Legend of the Seven Lights, Chapter 7, Part 1

Welcome back. So these next few chapters will be about getting the first Light, er, second. Yeah, you know how in Firstborn, you go through a lot of crap to find one Firstborn, this story’s really no different, what with character and world development. But finding this Light, we’ll at least be a step through.

Chapter 7-1: Under the Night

Excess Express (Play “Excess Express Night” from Thousand-Year Door.)

Cheren and Mom sat at opposite ends of a candlelit, curtained table, beside a window with a lovely view of the blue night sky and starlit desert, rushing rightward as the train was in motion. A peaceful tune was playing via the train’s speakers as the slim older woman poured two glasses of wine. She lightly shook hers in the air and spoke with a smooth smile, “Care to try the champagne?”

“You know I’m not old enough.”

“Really, ‘cause I couldn’t tell.” she said with a snarky tone, guzzling her glass in one gulp.

“So who’s this boss of yours. Why do you want me to kill her?”

“Funny, I never said it was a ‘she’.” Mom smirked.

“…”

“You’ve heard of the Corporate Presidents, haven’t you?”

“Only stories. Never saw what was so great about them.”

“Well, of course they’re great. They’re second only to the World Leaders in political power.”

“World Leaders?”

“Of the World Government, of course!”

“World Government?”

“My, what do they teach you in school nowadays? Would you be interested in a little story?”

“…”

“As you know, the multiverse is contrived by many universes, and those universes contrived by millions of planets. And each universe has a few what are known as ‘Core Worlds’. Worlds where a great concentration of energy in the universe is focused. One of them for this universe is Planet Avalar. Can you guess another Core World?” She smiled slyly.

“Ummm… Flora?”

“EARTH, YOU DINGWAT!” She banged the table. “Ah-he-hem…” she calmed down. “Earth is one of the Core Worlds, and has the strongest concentration of energy. For that reason, around 4000 years ago, a group of humans came to this planet and established a secret dominion. They at first called their selves the Illuminati, but eventually came to be known as the World Government. For eons, they oversaw this world’s operations, and see almost every activity that occurs. Their one goal is to assure the peace and order in this world, and to help them, they have the Corporate Presidents For Children’s Entertainment.”

“And that’s you guys?”

“The Corporate Presidents is a team of business owners who specialize in children’s toys and brands, but they make stuff for adults, too. The reason is that the fate of this world rests in those who will inherit it, the younger generation, so who controls the youth, controls the future. That’s what the World Leaders intend from us Corporate Presidents. But due to my actions in Galaxia, I’ve lost millions, and now the Head President is chewing my ass off. That’s why… I’ve been plotting to kill her, and seize the throne. Of course, I couldn’t do that myself. Someone else needs to take the fall.” She smirked wickedly. “You…”

Cheren glared. “But why use me to do your dirty work?”

“Because you were the snot-nosed urchin who defeated that Nature Goddess. Your father was the even-snottier urchin who saved the universe. And you and the Head President… are connected.” Cheren’s expression didn’t falter. “You are clearly on equal grounds with her power. And on top of that, we Corporate Presidents are currently opposed against you KNBrats. Killing our leader would give you the advantage. I, on the other hand, don’t care about our silly ‘purpose’. I just want to make a lot of money. True, the World Government would be disgusted with you, but they already are. The only advantage will be yours.”

“Well, what happens to me after I kill her?”

“You promise not to blow my cover, I promise not to blow your ass off. But I can’t stop the other presidents from doing the same. That pleasure is theirs.”

“…”

“The other presidents will be boarding this train tomorrow morning at 7. We’ll be heading to a gathering of bigshots and nobles from around the world. Their kids will be on this train too, so you’ll have to stay hidden. After all, it’d be a real shame if TWO big-time bigshots met with an untimely demise.”

“Yeah…” He still looked smug.

“WWWWALT! You three show Cheren to your room. No reasonable classy bigshot would DARE step in there. Myself included.”

“Yes, Mother.” Walt nodded. “This way, Mr. Uno.” The three brothers marched off to the back of the train.

“Just a second.” Cheren said quickly, holding up his DS. “Does this place have Wi-Fi? Figured I’d spar a few rounds with Panini while I’m waiting to commit murder.”

“Oh, fine.” Mom eye-rolled. “Just don’t contact anyone. Walt, give him the password.”

“Very well. Let us proceed.” The sons continued leading him to the room.

Civic City, Rhode Island (Play “Across the Arkham” from Batman: Arkham City.)

A pitch-black night over a city that’s less than colorful. A sea of clouds blocking the sparkly stars and their light. And some guy in a trenchcoat and gas mask seated atop a tall building in a wheelchair. He skimmed the city with binoculars. Few cars roamed, and the only people throughout the streets were suspicious types. Quietly gliding to his perch was the witch in the purple cloak, Wiccan, and floating on a small ice platform, Frosty Coldman. “Welcome to the Nightclub, guys.” said the Sandman.

“I can’t bear to miss any meetings.” Crystal sighed. “What’s today’s grand heist?”

“Doflamingo.”

“I think you meant to bring us to California?” inquired Yuki.

“No, Doflamingo, President of Doflamingo Incorporated. They create toys that talk and interact with their buyers, no batteries attached.”

“Oh, I was always so curious about those things. Such an odd technology, I just had to get ahold of it. Never had the money.” Crystal explained.

“Well, now you won’t need any. I read that a huge shipment of Doffy Toys are being delivered to the local Toys 4 Grab. Run by workers of his company, no less. We’re going to interrogate ‘em and see if they know anything about Caesar.”

“That guy again?” Yuki asked. “Didn’t we trust him in Kids Next Door’s hands?”

“Flamingo was one of Caesar’s customers. I think he has something to do with Caesar’s escape. And even more to do with trying to destroy the KND.”

“What makes you say that?” asked Wiccan.

“It’s, eh… hard to explain. …I see their trucks now, let’s go. And careful of any Triads no one’s bothering to arrest.”


Stage 11: Civic City

Mission: Get info on Doflamingo.

And so began a calm, gentle glide across the damp city. While regular people had to walk busy streets, they could fly over everything and swing from roof to roof, ‘cause they were superheroes. They could cause any sort of property damage because they were superheroes. And beatin’ the crap out of any individual in the name of justice. “The Flamingos control a lot-a this area, and they staked the Triads into helping look after things. I wouldn’t be surprised if one or two satellites wasn’t under their control. If we get ahold of them, I can listen in on their conversations.”

Their first destination was a high balcony where thugs were refreshing in the pool, the satellite active behind them. They took land on the roof just above the pool. “Ahhhh, I tell ya Shin, the best part of Summer is the easing of soul after a hard, hot day.” said one of them. “I dunno what these bird guys are about, but ‘long as we rent out this suite, I ain’t complainin’ one… HEY, it’s Sandman!” Lying back, he could easily spot the three heroes on their perch.

“Distract ‘em.” They dropped down as Crystal and Yuki began wailing on ‘em, while Nolan hooked the satellite up to his wristwatch. Yuki raised ice shields against two firebenders before flipping upside-down and spin-kicking them across the heads. Crystal pelted fireballs at two more, but they sank in Shadow Veils and slithered to her, the witch leaping high and performing a Ground Quake to pop them into the air, and afterwards batting them away with her staff. She watched as Yuki leaped over the pool, and she quickly batted the thugs into the pool as Yuki blasted ice down and froze them all solid.

“Sorry. Winter’s come early.” He smirked. The thugs were merely trapped with shocked expressions.

Sandman unplugged his watch from the satellite. “Almost there. Now I just need one more.”

“That’s not right!” frowned Crystal. “Videogame tradition is three!”

“Yah, well this is thah new, age, so Ah only need TWO!” proclaimed Nolan in a gangsta fashion. “Alright, let’s go.”

The three glided again over the city until they spotted a satellite atop a fairly tall skyscraper. “Stay down.” Nolan said as they stopped on a lower building, seeing the red beams skimming around from the tower. "They have snipers. Let me just sneak up from below." Nolan glided to a low area on the building where he could begin climbing a ladder that led up and around, his wheelchair also grabbing it with short claws so it could climb with him.

“You might be able to with Swanson, but it’s hard to make jokes about that cripple.” Crystal commented. Sandman tried to climb quietly to avoid rattling the fencelike ladder, but the building had branches with mirrors aimed at the ladder so the snipers could check it real quick. It was a matter of waiting for their lasers to leave so he could progress up the zigzag fence. The ladder eventually brought him to a round walkway just under the snipers’ area. He tossed a few quick boomerangs to knock two of them dizzy, tempting the others to coming over. With that, Nolan climbed up a ladder behind them and threw a smoke bomb to cloud them inside, allowing him to knock them out without being seen.

He then climbed up to the satellite and linked his wristwatch to it, downloading the Wireless Communications Network to 100%. “Hey, you been to that new restaurant with all the singin’ animals?”

“Freddy’s Pizzeria? No way, that stuff always gave me the creeps.”

"I been there once. Damn things smelled like carcasses. Made the bar behind the motel smell like a meadow.”

The thugs’ conversation playing on his wristwatch, Nolan glided back to Yuki and Crystal. “Well, I downloaded their Wi-Fi. Now I’m the ultimate eavesdropper. And I can check my Yahoo, deviantART, and my wiki stuff whenever I want.”

“Did you mark on the wiki how I’m totally fabulous?” Crystal smirked.

“In all ways. Now let’s fly to the toy store and try to sneak in.” His new communications link also marked the location of the store a few miles from here. It was big enough to see on their own, given enough flying, but to make it easier for first-time players. They trekked across the roof of the store, swiping a small, green ‘?’ trophy that was between two vents, before crouching below the back ledge and spying on a truck driving to park near a backdoor. Groups of men in pink feathery coats and slanted sunglasses came out to haul boxes into the door.

“If only more business tycoons allowed their workers to have such fashion.” Crystal sighed.

“Yeah, if you’re into punk rockstars. Let’s follow them.” Once the men were inside, Nolan and co. dropped down to try and enter the door, but it was unfortunately locked by a terminal. Nolan attempted to hack it with his new Wi-Fi, but such a task was, shall we say, gargled? By static? You know what I mean. “Crap. Guess these are on a different system. There must be some way-” But that’s when his com. network made an eerie, whirring sound mixed with static. “Wait a second, someone’s trying to get in! What could…” Nolan switched on an overview map of the network and scrolled around ‘til he found the source of the sound.

The voice on the other end was on a very high volume and echoing. “HHHHHHhhhhh... hhhHHHELLO, Sandman. Or should I refer you as ‘Caveman’, since you are a simple Neanderthal.”

“And this is?”

“I am Edward Nigma, THE RIDDLER! Of course, Gamewizard was going to replace me with some *** rip-off called The Puzzler, but THEN he decided why not stick with the original? After all, I suppose we have ONE too many knock-offs around these parts. But I must say, the guy in the bat suit was far more interesting than you.”

“Whaddyou want, Nigma?”

“A little raven told me you were on the hunt for a certain bird. Which, judging by you being on this network, I was NOT misinformed. I have something that may help you, but it comes with a riddle. Is your brain up to the task?”

“More than yours is.”

“Very well then. Ahem. ‘You come to me in seek of pleasure. We drain your pride, like a parasite. What am I?’”

“Is it a place we have to find?”

“Who knows. Is the great Sandman afraid?”

“You wish.” With that, transmission ended as the trio returned to the rooftops. “Okay, a place that drains pride like a parasite, and we go there for pleasure. Shoot me ideas.”

“A bar?” Crystal asked. “We go there for pleasureful booze and cheers, slowly drowning our pride.”

“No no, if it’s like a parasite, then the other side would benefit.” Yuki noted.

“Well, bars take our money.”

Nolan was quickly putting two-n-two together. “It might be the answer, but… I got one other idea.”

So following his map, they glided to the city streets and landed before a small building with a light-up line picture of a woman and the words ‘Slim ‘n’ Sexy’ (in which the lights were out). “A STRIP club??” exclaimed Crystal. “Nolan, just WHAT is going on in that mind?”

“Hey, it’s just an idea, and the pieces sorta make sense. Let’s just check it out.” The building was dark and abandoned, but Nolan switched on Detective Vision for any secrets. One of the poles was curved like a cane at the top, and some invisible light-green painting was on it. Curious, he walked around the right pole, which was a few inches shorter and had a green painted dot on its top. Positioned correctly, the green paint on the curved pole, above the green dot on the shorter, made it look like a question mark. Nolan snapped the image in his digital camera. After analyzing it, a series of numbers and letters were scattered within the paint, which Nolan began to decipher and organize.

“Very impressive, you dirty-minded cretin. I look forward to the day I can challenge you directly. Until then, try your best to find the trophies I left scattered around. I’m sure if fate calls, you’ll be wandering around their respective towns.”

Side Mission unlocked: Find all of the Riddler Trophies in Nolan’s levels.

“So whaddid that do.” Yuki said.

Nolan tapped the screen a little. “I think this gives me a list of passcodes to Doflamingo’s terminals. Not sure how the Riddler managed to get ‘em and hide ‘em here. Let’s try and get in now.”

They made their way back to the toy store, and using the Riddler’s code, managed to hack into the terminal. A firewall attempted to throw him out, but he decrypted the code ‘Playtime’ and unlocked the door.

Team Hero passed down a dusty, narrow hallway, finding two steam currents from broken pipes that blocked their path. Yuki tried to throw ice and freeze them, but nothing came out of his hand. “Do they have this place chi-blocked?”

“That’s why you wear that back-up.” Sandman noted.

“Guess so.” Yuki shot ice from his pack instead and froze the pipes shut, letting them pass. A stairway led up to a higher path, but Sandman first checked the enclosing on its left, finding a Riddler Trophy stacked atop some crates. He pulled it down with his grappler before proceeding up the stairs. He stopped his friends before a doorway on their left, where a sniper appeared to be eying the spot afterward. Nolan viewed backward and noticed the alignment of crates on high shelves along the left wall, and was at a point high enough to latch the top shelf with his hook and pull up. Crystal and Yuki joined him (the latter having to share Crystal’s staff) before they viewed the gap and noticed a vent on a high point on the dead end wall.

Nolan shot his grappling hook up to yank the latch off, whipping it to himself and catching it so it wouldn’t make much noise. “Crystal, I can’t get in there ‘cause of my chair, you’ll have to glide over and crawl in. Look for a way to take out the sniper.” Crystal nodded and glided over, quietly crawling into the duct. She found an exit above a tall shelf of crates, where she had perfect view of the sniper on a lower shelf of crates. She quietly glided to the floor away from him, snuck up to the point below his perch, and rolled into the shelf, making it shake and for the sniper to fall. With that, she quickly ran up and bashed him with her staff, knocking him out.

She signaled for Nolan and Yuki that the coast was clear, and they all regrouped in this storage room. In the far left corner was a door sealed with a terminal, so Nolan began another hacking segment. He decrypted the password ‘Smiles’ before the door opened. They came into another short hallway before the door that brought them into the store. Nolan switched on his Detective Vision, and all of the 9 men roaming the aisles were marked orange. He quickly gestured his friends to follow as he grappled up atop a duct near the ceiling, where they had view around the whole expansive store, and all of the guards in pink flamingo coats.

“They all have guns.” Sandman whispered. “I’m sure one or two of them know something about Caesar. But it’s too risky to question every single one—we’ll have to take the rest out and interrogate the last one.”

“Traditional Arkham style, got it.” Crystal agreed.

So they all glided different directions—except Yuki and Crystal had to stay together. Nolan glided to the first unsuspecting guard walking down an aisle and cupped a hand over his mouth ‘til he fainted. He then flew back above the ducts to view Yuki and Crystal sneaking up on separate guards. But that’s when Nolan noticed the collar around the man he just took out’s neck, which began blinking red as alarms blared around the store. “Intruder alert. Intruder alert.”

“Max better not be sleepin’ on the job again.” a guard said.

“Let’s go see what’s up.” Crystal hurriedly knocked out another guard before he turned, while Yuki froze the floor at a guard’s feet to make him slip before the former escaped. “‘EY! Someone’s IN here!” The guards were scrambling to find the intruders as the three went into hiding. Two of the guards climbed atop shelves and aimed sniper rifles around, even taking time to search the ceilings. Yuki was hurriedly running around the aisles as a guard was on his tail, planting his back against the end of one as he sensed the guard approaching quietly. Yuki whipped around quickly and slammed the guard to the floor, knocking him out.

A sniper turned to the area where he heard a slam, so Nolan quickly glided down to knock him out from behind. Unfortunately, the other sniper took sight of him and began rapidly shooting, Nolan retreating back above the ducts before too many bullets got through his coat. Crystal ended up cornered by two guards, quickly spinning her staff to block their bullets, then switched the setting on her staff as she leaped in the air, and performed a Ground Quake to knock them down. She quickly jumped on one’s stomach and bashed his head unconscious, then ran away before the other guard recovered.

Yuki hid behind another aisle end when he heard someone coming, freezing the floor with his pack to make them slip. “WHOOOAA!” Crystal went wobbling and sliding down the next aisle, crashing into the shelf as she and some toys fell down. Yuki blushed innocently, but when another guard came around an aisle, he jumped across the frozen floor, tricked him to slipping, then quickly took him out. The sniper took aim at Wiccan while she was down, but Nolan once again flew from behind and took him down.

The last two guards tried to chase Yuki, but Nolan tossed a smoke bomb to block their vision, flying in to take one out. The final guard shook his way out, searching around with fright for where the intruders could have gone. He heard a whoosh behind him and whipped around, seeing no one (but Yuki had actually dodged back behind the aisle). Another whoosh behind him, barely seeing a figure glide behind a shelf. He turned to walk the other way nervously, but- “GAH!” Sandman grabbed and forced his head against an aisle end.

“I’m not ruffling your feathers, am I?” he inquired.

“Aaaack! Look man, if you’re with those Triad guys, you already got this week’s payment!”

“That’s not why I’m here. You work for Doflamingo, don’t you? Know anybody named Caesar?”

“Who wants to know?”

“Someone who’s gonna merge those pretty sunglasses with your face if you don’t tell me.”

“Well uh… Doflamingo and his guys took a trip to SPACE a few weeks ago if you can believe that. Said som’in about getting a new employee but, i-it sounds ridiculous I know.”

“I’m a fan of the ridiculous. Anything else?”

“Well. . . word around the underworld is Doflamingo’s become a distributor of Bang Gas, selling to certain… buyers.”

“What kind of buyers?”

“Some say it’s a bunch of drug-dealing teens—if you can believe that!”

“You’re not telling me everything!” He pressed harder.

“Aaaaauck! Look—I’m not in ‘is inner circle, I don’t know WHAT to tell you! If you’re a disappointed customer or somethin’, I guess you can file a complaint uh… ehehehe.”

“Nah. That’s all the service I’ll be needing from you.” And with one quick punch, the guard was unconscious.

As Crystal helped herself up, a limpy thin toy fell off her head. It was a Sheriff Woody toy, which she picked up and held face-up. “Is it really wrong that I found this cowboy sexy as a little girl?”

“…You wouldn’t’ve looked half-bad yourself.” winked the toy.

“AAAAAH!” She let the toy drop and jumped to her feet, aiming her staff with a frantic expression. “Electronic or not, talking toys creep me the flip out!”

“Okay okay, don’t worry!” Woody got up too and raised arms in defense. “I won’t hurt you! That is… until things get freaky in yo’ bedroom.” A very sly wink. “…OAF!” He was immediately grinded under Crystal’s staff.

“AAAUCK, I take back EVER wanting to study this technology, IT’S ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING!”

“Ooof, ‘ey, stop! You’re! Tearing! The. Stuffing!”

Nolan pulled Crystal back and picked up the toy, whose chest area was now torn with fluff leaking out. “Stuffing? Where’s the metal bars to make your limbs move?”

“Hwhat?” Woody sat up with a casual humorous smile, “All that junk just gets in the way, who needs to waste money on it when we can just speak to twerps for free!, riiight? Heh, why I can’t even… Say, you’re an odd one, ain’tcha?” He observed Sandman. “You some kinda toy, too?”

“Uhhh-”

“Yes!” Crystal hugged the crippled man lovingly. “It’s my patented life-size Sandman action-figure with REAL gas-pumping action! I taught him to get around on a wheelchair, isn’t he adorable?” Nolan shoved her off.

“Another toy, huh? Well in that case, let’s you and me have some one-on-one time. You know, without theee, humans.”

“Wonderful.” Wiccan clapped hands. “Come along, my messy little brother, let’s go.” She led Yuki off.

“Uhhhh what are we doing again?”

Nolan rolled a little forward as Woody spoke, “Anyway, since it’s just us, my real name is Randy Davis. I used to have a wife named Emily and son, Andy, but we’ve-”

“WAIT! Emily Matthews?” inquired Nolan.

“Uh, no.”

“Continue.”

“Me and Andy have been growing apart for awhile. I signed up with this seminar on how to get closer to your son, where me and a few other parents met this, gross guy with a really runny nose. Before we knew it, we were glued to the ground, and everything went dark. Next thing I know, I’m on the shelf of some toy store, in THIS flimsy little body! I don’t even remember anything, except that ‘talking to twerps for free’ bit. And speaking of not remembering, wouldn’t you know it, Andy shows up and buys me! But I couldn’t tell him I was his father, and worse than that, Emily talks about never being married, or Andy having a father. They didn’t recognize my pictures, it was like I never existed at all.” He frowned with remorse. “That was 12 years ago, now Andy’s going to college so he sold all his other talking toys back to the company. Now I’m waitin’ to be bought again. …You think you can talk your owner into, buying a nighttime cuddly?” Winked again.

“But why couldn’t you talk to them? Couldn’t you yell for anyone’s help in that toy store?”

“I wanted to, but something inside my brain kept telling me not to, just, ‘pose like a toy, play with whoever buys you, you may only reveal your past to fellow toys, if you do so with any human, self-destruct is imminent’! Wait, why am I telling you, every other toy had these orders, why don’t you??”

“Because I…” He pulled his mask open slightly.

Woody’s mouth dropped. “A-… human. AAAAAAAHHH SOMEONE HEEEEELP!” He fell to the floor and ran around like a toy that’s lost his mind. “I’M GONNA DIE, I’M GONNA DIE, I’M GONNA DIE!”

“WAIT!” He tried to roll after-

“AH-HE-HE-HEM.” He stopped and looked left at a Buzz Lightyear. “Well, since blabbermouth already got us in trouble, I got some information for you. I’m forbidden from telling you much on what happened, but there’s a peculiar group of toys who, shall we say, go a little feral when the sun goes down. They’re the animatronics at Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria, which had a contract with Doflamingo for that very purpose. They behave as ordered during the day, but when the store is closed, theeey… go a little freestyle. I don’t know the story behind them, but rumor has it they got a look at who or what transformed them into toys. So you can go there and ask them but, honestly buddy, you look like a guy who does better with a frontal lobe. You’re better off just keeping away from that place.”

“I’m afraid that won’t be an option.” Nolan told him regrettably. “If these animatronics have clues for us, we have to take a chance. Coldman, Wiccan, let’s go.” He began his roll to the exit.

“WAIT!” The toy stopped them. “…Just what are you trying to do, anyway?”

All three turned to him, “Isn’t it obvious? We’re going to find out whatever gave you your curses and try to change you back. Sure, we can just roll up to Doflamingo and beat the crap outta him, but we need to prepare ourselves.”

“Siiiiigh. Well, then… I couldn’t just let you suffer an untimely demise without giving you a few tips. The truth is, I learned about Freddy’s from a toy that was sold here a few weeks ago. A Yipperman Plus. His kid-owner ate at Freddy’s and wanted to go back and see the animatronics, dropping Yipper on the floor. The toy waited for hours, but his kid never came back. He waited all night, ‘til the nightguard found and decided to safeguard ‘im ‘til morning. He watched up close when the animatronics came, and forced that guard into a Freddy suit, killing him.”

The three heroes couldn’t mask their horror. “The toy hid in the restaurant for six more days, watching as a second nightguard miraculously survived. He kept track of the toys movements and wrote ‘em down in a journal, and Yipper mentioned something about reading the journal. If you’re thinking of going to Freddy’s, you need to speak to that Yipper and find out what he knows. His eyes might’ve been beady and joyous, but even I can tell when a toy looks like he’d rather have his retinas removed. The toys at Freddy’s don’t mess around.”

And Nolan could tell when even a toy was speaking seriously and caringly. “Alright.” He nodded. “Where do I find him?”

“A little rich girl bought him two days ago, the computer should have a list of purchases.”

He made his way to the front desk where Sandman began to hack the computer. “Let’s see, Shrek dollll, Mario Kart Racing Seeeet, Harry Potter broomstiiiick—Sector V action figures, holy wow! And hah! Yipperman Plus, sold to Oliver Warbucks from New York City! Let’s hit the streets guys, we’re goin’-”

“Yorkin’?” grinned Crystal.

“Iiii… walked right into that one.”

“It was only a matter of time, buddy.” Yuki noted.

So with that, the heroes were rushing to the front doors, out of the store. “Call me!” Woody winked to Crystal.

“Uck!” She was over guys like him when she was 12.

Cleveland neighborhoods

Rupert, Timmy, and Hikari were forced to camp in the front yard of an unsuspecting house. It still had the natural camping experience, since the yard was as big as a forest. They gathered a few small twigs and had the Red Pikmin create a fire. The creatures allowed them to eat some of the remaining pieces of the monsters they caught today. Bulborb meat truly possessed a funky taste. Timmy and Hikari were already conked out, but Rupert was up and roasting a Bulborb chunk, staring reflectively at the fire. Normally, he would be sleeping nice and snug in his room, after Mom read him a nice bedtime story. He never thought he would be camping with a bunch of ant things. What a wild adventure this had become.

Rupert looked left at a Red Pikmin that had come up, staring mindlessly. “Oh… you want some?” He held the meat out. The Pikmin just stared and did nothing. “…I guess not.” He took it back. “But listen, thanks for all the work you guys’ve been doin’ for us. Heh, what I wouldn’t give to have you around all the time.”

“…”

“…How d’you guys feel about it, anyway? Doin’ all the work for the Minish. Don’t you all get tired?”

“…”

“…Sappo and Gibli said you guys were mostly just… weapons. Like, a means to an end. ‘Cause you don’t actually think for yourselves. You just… do what the Minish tell you.”

“…”

“…I don’t like to think of you that way. I like to think… you just need a little help getting around. And, you all support each other. ‘Cause it’s a big scary world out there. You know?”

“…”

“…Siiiigh.” They weren’t really good for conversation. “I should get to sleep. You guys’ll protect us, right?”

“…”

“…Mm-hm.” So with that, Rupert went to the other side from Timmy and Hikari and lied on the ground, head rested on his hand. He really wished he was in a comfy bed right now. The cold, messy soil, no blanket to cuddle up in. Even getting into that house didn’t sound so bad, if they could rest on the soft carpet.

But then the Red Pikmin cuddled up at Rupert’s front. On his back was a Yellow one, a Blue by his feet, a White near his head, a Wing on top, and a Purple one to hug them all. Rupert made a smile, and suddenly felt much warmer. As many other Pikmin began to surround him and his friends, Rupert surely knew. They would protect him…

Sand Kingdom, South America; Sand Castle

The Knights of the Round Towel placed the jar containing Sappo and Gibli on a shelf inside a dark closet. “STAY here and keep quiet. As if you could make much noise, ohohohohoho!” They shut the door and left them in blackness.

Sappo paced about their cell angrily while Gibli only sat. “How will we get OUTTA here, Sappo?”

“I’m thinking, Gibli. …And reaching nothing.”

“I thought you were SMART!”

“AHH, can it. But Gibli, this is the place they got our princess locked up. We gotta watch ourselves, or they might do somethin’ to ‘er!”

“Like WHAT?”

“Nooooooo! Oh, it’s so awful. WHYYYYY?”

Both siblings shuddered. “D-D-D-Did you HEAR that?”

“Oh no!” frowned Sappo. “Princess! What could they be DOING to her?”

Upstairs; Princess Shelly’s room

“NOOOOO! It’s so horrible!” Princess Gonshiri cried with the greatest agony. “NAAAAAAAHHH! Pleah!” She spat the fruit piece at her Red Pikmin. “I HATE mangos! Bring me some pie cakes!” The Pikmin marched off to do so. “Uuugh. Toss me some of those blurpleberries.”

“Certainly.” Shelly reached to the bowl beside her couch, grabbed a berry, and tossed it to Gonshiri. The self-called beach princess was lain relaxed on a sand-made couch while the Minish Princess relaxed on a cottonball on a table in front of the couch. “The only bad thing about servants who don’t speak is you can’t tell if they understand you.”

Gonshiri began to feast on the giant berry. “So how are things at the school?”

“Ahhhhh just fabulous.” Shelly smiled. “Seeing Shorts whine and cuss over my victories is music to my ears. Especially when he has no clue of my little… secret.”

“Hmhmhmhm! Oh, well I can’t take all the credit.” Gonshiri blushed. “It was your lovely feet that executed it in the end. I merely taught how to do so.”

“Are you insinuating that YOU had something to do with my success?” Shelly smirked. “I was naturally born with my earthbending and I possessed the talent. Your blathering was just tiny noise in my ear that paid no contribution.”

“WHHHAT??!” Shiri jumped to her feet and faced her with a look of pure rage. “How DARE you talk down on me like some sniveling ANT, you…YOU…”

“Myyyyy what?” Shelly’s gigantic, snarky face loomed closer. “You simple little insect.”

Shiri couldn’t be more angry. “AAAAAAAAHHHH!” She leaped to Shelly’s nose and munched as hard as her tiny teeth could. Her ant-size body was unable to pierce Shelly’s thick flesh.

“PFFFAAAA HAHAHAHAHAHA!”

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” Both princesses laughed joyously. Shiri jumped off and continued munching her berry.

“Ahhhhh.” Shelly lied back on her couch, scratching that light itch on her nose. “You’re the best part of coming back here, Bugsize. You may be a royal shrimp, but you know what we princesses want.”

“Hmhmhmhm! Well, you may be royally STINKY, but you know how to stay on top.”

“Well, staying on top isn’t hard when those under you are just so puny. But don’t your subjects still need someone to rule them?”

“Oh, a sea of buffoons is still a sea of buffoons even with one smart person among them. Besides, Lenari thinks he runs everything, he can have his glory. I prefer an individual who believes they can challenge my authority.”

“Hm hrn hm. Five months and you still think you have more intellect than me. Ever since that day…”

A boring day at the castle, Shelly kicking back, left foot over the right knee which was up in a triangle, as she munched an apple. Her knights walked in and bowed, “Princess Shelly: we hath brought to you, a new servant. A princess from a distant land.”

She swallowed, “Princess?”

A knight placed a small jar on Shelly’s table. She loomed closer, seeing an extremely tiny chipmunk-like creature in a purple grass dress and flower crown, yellowish-green skin and beady black eyes. “Hmmm… she looks kind of fun. Be gone, knights. I wish to play with my new pet alone.”

“AS YOU COMMAND, Your Highness.” The knights politely left.

Shelly popped the jar open and dumped the tiny princess onto her palm. “All right, Toothcrumb, I dunno where you’re from or if you reign over a colony of ants, but I’M Princess Shelly, and if you want a decent treatment here, you better start showing your respect and doing everything I tell you.” The princess stood up, viewing the vast palm and the fingers that towered like mountains. Only a single part of Shelly’s tremendous body. “First off, my nose is really stuffy and I need someone to get those boogers that’re really far in. If I’m impressed with your work, you’ll get to sleep in my navel and use my lint for pillows, otherwise it’s the tootsies for you.”

“AUGH!” With utmost disgust, the princess leaped down to the floor. “I will NOT allow some mere peasant to pick ME up, LET ALONE believe they can tell me what to do! And judging by the sorry sight of your toenails, I see you are NOT the kind of person I wanna associate with.”

“Are you talking BACK to me?” Shelly stood with hands on her hips, so the princess could see the colossal oaf at full height. “Since your brain’s too small for math’s sake, I can understand if you’re slow to following my language. But since you aren’t bothering to listen more closely, I guess you’ll have to start from the bottom.”

“I’ll have you know my brain is TWICE the natural Minish size, including the Minish brain you needed transplanted to YOUR empty, hollow head. But I see that experiment was a bust.” She stood politely with her sleeved hands folded, eyes closed in a smug fashion.

Shelly raised a foot, “I’m NOT giving you a second option. Apologize and show your respect, or you will not end up in a happy place.”

“Hmph. You are a simple, good-for-nothing oaf. Your parents were chimps, and you are their mutated result. You have no class, no self-awareness, all you are is a gargantuan tub of lard that will never be anything more than some donkey’s last resort to lay their droppings.” Shelly has never been more enraged, never more ready to explode. To think she’d be talked down by someone that could be mistaken as a piece of dirt between her toes. To think this simple, good-for-nothing insect thought she had say. In front of HER. The Fourth Grade President, Princess of Sand Kingdom. To think she could talk high and mighty, like SHE was the tall one. And like Shelly’s foot wasn’t looming over her this very moment. “Why, a donkey’s bathroom would be lucky, your best chance is being an unsatisfying source for some leeches-”

Shelly’s foot couldn’t come down any faster. She put in great pressure, hoping this dirt was absolutely nothing now. Her foot stood half-buried in the sand for 30 seconds until Shelly raised it. The footprint was empty, but among the many grains of sand on her sole, the princess was nearly flat. She scratched lightly until the princess peeled off, regaining her senses back on the ground. …She couldn’t be anymore angry. “…I can’t BELIEVE you stepped on me, you…YOU… MOUNTAIN OF SKUNK POO!”

“… … … …PHHHAAAAAA HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” Neither of them ever laughed harder in their life.

“Huuuu… aaaaaahhhh.” Shelly touched her hand-size juice glass to Gonshiri’s eeny, teeny, Minish-size one, and both drank. “But wow, I never woulda thought I actually had earthbending. I was already good at beating Shorts, now he’s probably blowin’ his brains out.”

“It seems having far bigger eyes than I do allows you to overlook more than you see.” Shiri said. “We Minish have advantage over such things. I see every intricate pattern along your skin, the very tiny follicles of hair growing in – dare I not mention, and only a royal buffoon wouldn’t feel such an incredible flow of chi inside of those mountain-size feet. Honestly, I cannot imagine anyone more hopeless.” She sipped her drink.

“Well, it certainly helps to know.” Shelly shook her glass. “Heh, wait until I reveal it to Shorts and REALLY bury his butt! What’s a bunch of teeny little bubbles gonna do, anyway.”

“Princess.” Shelly’s Blue Knight walked in. “Your father wishes to know if the two of you are fairing well.”

“Yes we ARE, you overgrown wombat.” Shiri stated.

“Get lost, Victor.”

“As you wish.” He backed away.

“How did they manage to capture you, anyway?” Shelly asked.

“I was wandering outside my tree. I assumed it was some lost gorilla judging by those feet, but who’d’ve thought I’d be some lesser primate’s filth-reliever.”

“Well, whatever the case, you’re much better off in our company.” Shelly raised her glass.

“Indeed.” Shiri smiled. “After all, what reason am I obliged to return to my kingdom, anyway? Though if I may ask, you being the princess of this, erm, what you call a kingdom, why not find yourself a nice prince?”

“Who do you think I am, some lovesick dope like my dimwitted dad? His ultimate weakness was that he focused more on finding a ‘Queen’, and focused less on ruling with an iron foot. No wonder why my mom left him.”

“I can see what you mean.” Shiri looked at her juice and shook the glass lightly. “Parents are such morons. The clearest example being your father conceived you. At least we’re here to learn from them.” She smiled.

“Well, your folks ain’t do too good a job with you, either.” Shelly put her glass down and relaxed. “Still, buy me a hundred suitors or a thousand, ‘cause I ain’t suckin’ face with no dreamboat for a long time!”