KND Moonbase
"So, you're ready?" Cheren said into his phone. "Alright… I'll meet you there. I just need to collect my group first. See you soon, Kid." He hung up.
"Is it time?" Panini asked.
"Yeah… we're going to meet him in the town square."
"Cheren, Miyuki's back!" Francis called. "They brought some people with them!"
Cheren exited his office to see Miyuki and Melody approach. They were accompanied by a brown-haired girl and a familiar blue-haired girl. "Wendy!"
"Hello, Cheren!" Wendy greeted happily.
"ANOTHER girlfriend?!" Panini yelled with disapproval.
"You wish! Wendy, who is this girl?"
"Name's Samantha! I wanted to join the Kids Next Door."
"So do I!" Wendy followed. "I heard you guys were planning to fight the World Leaders and I wanted to help."
"Well, by all means, feel free to help. But Arctic Training is kind of suspended at the moment. This Apocalypse business is making everyone go nuts."
"Oh… I understand. But I'll do my very best to help out!"
"Ha ha, great!" Cheren grinned. "Anyway, Miyuki, I wanna take you on a mission. We're going to the Underworld, so we need to get you a Life Ring. Kid said he would have some. Let's go get Nerehc."
Miyuki followed him and Panini with worry on her features. The Underworld… is this when it happens? "Cheren, why are we going to the Underworld?"
"We're going to meet Majora."
"!" Miyuki gasped. Unable to think of a follow-up question, she followed them at a quicker pace.
"Yeah, I thought you would." Cheren smirked.
"I guess I'm gonna have to wait to join, huh?" Wendy asked her mother.
"Perhaps this is good. We need to find a way to rid you of your Horcrux curse." Carla replied.
"I agree… but I have to admit, it has made me stronger." Wendy stared at her hand. "It could be useful… but it feels wrong using my dad's power. …Well, let's go talk to some people!" she said happily. "You never know which ones we'll be seeing every day!"
Underworld Prison
A centaur-driven chariot pulled up to the gates of Underworld Prison. The prison was surrounded by a great stone wall and the only entrance was through sapphire flame gates. The chariot parked by the gate guard, a Fatblin in black armor. "Halt. This is a restricted area. What business have you?"
"I'm the Grim Reaper's son, you disproportioned mess of a mountain." Death the Kid, the chariot's passenger, stated aggressively. "I demand you let me in. I'm here to see a certain prisoner."
"Hurrrr…" The Fatblin looked at a list of approved people: below Grim Reaper and Velma Green, Kid's name was listed. "Ukay. But I need to do a disguise test. Step out of the cart, Mr. Reaper."
Kid climbed out of the chariot. The Fatblin raised a bucket of magic water and poured it over him. Kid was infuriated by the soaking, but nothing else happened. "Okay… In you go." The Fatblin clapped and disabled the flames.
"Thank you." Kid passed and headed for the entrance to the small, two-floor building. Inside was the giant desk belonging to the prison's new warden, Magellan, a huge bat demon in a black coat and horns.
"Hmm?" Magellan looked down and saw Kid. "Your Majesty. Welcome back. Is there any word regarding the Blackbeard matter?"
"We're closing in on the case." Kid answered. "As a matter of fact, I'm here to visit a certain prisoner: Dimentio Z. Winkiebottom."
"Dimentio? Mmmm, okay." Magellan grabbed a ring of keys. "Follow me, Kid." The demon unlocked an elevator and crouched to squeeze inside. Kid was forced to stay against the wall, but he detested the asymmetry. The elevator closed and began to move down to Hell 1.
"Uoh." There was a squeak when the lift bumped.
"What was that?" Magellan asked.
"Me." Kid blushed. "I have… high-pitched squeals."
The elevator stopped and allowed them to disembark. Hell 1 of Underworld Prison was Prickly Pine Hell, where prisoners were forced to walk barefoot on a floor of blood-red pine needles. (Red from the blood of sinners, of course.) "Mm-! Mm. Mm-! Mm."
"Are you okay, Kid?" Magellan asked, hearing the squeaky sounds.
"I have a bad gulping habit and it sounds like my squeals." Kid blushed, annoyed by his friend's lack of subtlety. This is what you get for not wearing shoes, Ellen.
Magellan stopped beside a cell, prompting Kid to view into it. "Dimentio…?"
The Zathurian with the jester's uniform smiled from the back of the cell. "And so a visitor greets me like an old grandpa, dying in the hospital. To what do I owe this surprise?"
"Dimentio… my father still can't figure out the mystery behind your extended lifespan. By any chance… are you acquainted with Lord English?"
"Is my secret out? Aha ha ha… yes. I met Lord English eons ago when I fell into a Vortex of No Return. He spoke to me as a Shimmer and granted me eternal life. After that… I found a strange stone pyramid and found myself able to read its foreign text. It said… 'My name is English. You are the first of my Thirteen Servants. Allow me to feed you my knowledge.' And before I knew it… I was the instigator of the Twenty Keys Prophecy. I was the one who would initiate the threat of the Apocalypse and force the prophecy to transpire."
Kid gasped in horror. "So that business in the Netherverse—with destroying the universe's matter… it was all part of your plan!"
"Yes!" Dimentio cheered giddily. "By tampering with the Nexus, I have weakened it! At the end of this month, it will be destroyed…"
"Grr…" Kid grit his teeth. "Then… we have to go to the New World. Sigh… Many thanks for your cooperation. Magellan, there are other prisoners I want to see. By my understanding, they're on the 6th floor."
"Oh, I can't allow that, Your Highness. Hell 6 is too dangerous. The inmates down there have extremely high levels of chi and power."
"This man also possessed incredible power. Why is he on Level 1?"
"Well, he has no power in spirit form. Besides… your father requested he be in this very cell. It was his sister's former cell."
"Interesting. Well, if I can't go any lower, you can show me to the exit. Let's leave."
Magellan proceeded to walk him back. When they were out of sight, Ellen Wickens took off the Invisibility Cloak she "borrowed" from Grim. "Ouch, ouch!" She tingled from the prickly pines under her feet. "Climb down, quickly, watch the needles!"
A shrunken Cheren, Nerehc, Panini, Miyuki, Sipa, and Bon Clay climbed down Ellen's legs before Sipa used magic to grow them all to normal size. "Oh! A jailbreak, is it?" Dimentio cocked a brow.
"Here's the map Kid lent me." Ellen unraveled a paper. "A hole connects to the 2nd floor, that way. Someone carry me!"
"I'll carry ya, baby!" Bon Clay lifted her over his shoulders. "My, what trim, boney legs." He softly rubbed Ellen's half-skeletal legs. "Don't worry, Cherry Cakes, I still enjoyed our time under her robe." ;D
"Why did you bring him again?" Sipa asked.
"I thought his love could liven the dark of the Underworld?" Cheren shrugged.
"We're to be at Level 6 in 30 minutes." Miyuki reported. "Let's get moving."
Death the Kid watched as Magellan opened the elevator. The prince crossed both arms, clutching the guns on his belt. "Magellan…" The warden turned to him. "Open wide!" He whipped the pistols up and blasted rounds of spicy hellbeans into Magellan's mouth, an easy task since his mouth was forced open in shock. When enough beans were in, Kid hopped on his skateboard, surfed up Magellan's body, then stomped him in the face to push him in the elevator.
"I know you have constipation issues." Kid said as the demon was too weak to climb out. The elevator closed on him. "Hurry to the bathroom or there'll be a new floor of this prison. Now to get to the 6th floor." He hopped on his skateboard and surfed across the prickly ground. (Play "Deep Into the Shadows" from Paper Mario: TTYD!)
Stage B-30: Underworld Prison
Mission: Find Majora and the Thirteen Darknesses.
Act 1: Hell's Floors
Cheren climbed onto a safe pathway above the needles, but alarms went off in the dungeon as Bulblin charged from around a corner. The darkness of the Underworld made them faster and sharper than overworld Bulblin, so Miyuki used timebending to Stop their arrows while Cheren froze the ground with Ice Arrow. Bon Clay slid along the ice and kicked the demons off their feet with his swan slippers. "Wah wah wah!" The okama almost slid off a ledge over a pit of giant needles, his top half completely bent over as he flailed his arms.
"Don't fall here." Nerehc pulled him back up as the path turned left, reaching a dead end over the pit. Nerehc used rockets to fly over- "AAAAH!" His flames suddenly extinguished, but Cheren caught him with the Hookshot before he fell.
"Take your own advice."
"It's one of the prison's new defenses." Death the Kid skated up. "It filters Dark and Fire Chi. The Underworld's favorite natural elements."
"Ya couldn't have told us that?" Panini inquired.
"Just don't use it too close to those vents." He pointed at a duct above the pit.
"Say, that can be useful!" Bon Clay jumped off and kicked his slippers' swans to stretch up and wrap around the duct. "Grab on, fellas!" He swung to and fro, so one at a time, the kids grabbed his hands and swooped over the pit, jumping off on the other side before Clay detached himself and joined them. When the path turned right, they saw a Bulblin riding a Goliath – a black Hollow mammoth with tusks. The Bulblin spotted them and commanded the mammoth to charge forth, so Ellen went into Hollowfication and pushed the beast back with a burst of black magic.
"This type of Hollow is hard to defeat with sheer force." Kid said. "Ellen, push him under that stalactite! Cheren, climb those twin pillars and blow it off with a M.A.R.B.L.E.." The stalactite in question was a giant red needle hanging on the ceiling. Cheren Wall Jumped the indicated pillars against the wall, reaching a platform from which he could shoot a mini explosive at the needle's base. It dropped and stabbed the Goliath along with the Bulblin, and the needle fell into the pit.
They progressed along the path and reached a field of needles, in which a certain line of needles would briefly fall down and stand up. When they were down, they looked like a square platform was whisking across the field. Only Nerehc was fast enough to stay within the square and run along with it, doing so with excellent timing before reaching the other side. He stepped on a switch that made all the needles flat so his team could get across.
They were now on a wide, rectangular floor with four square holes in-between. A Blue Bubble, Green Bubble, Red Bubble, and Ice Bubble jumped out of the respective holes (they were winged skulls in colored flames). The distant wall over the chasm had a red Eye Switch, so Cheren shot an arrow through the Red Bubble's flame and activated it. An ice Eye Switch was on the ceiling, so Cheren lined it up with the Ice Bubble and shot it. The green switch was on the wall next to the entrance of this area, and the blue switch was down in the Blue Bubble's very hole.
With the four switches hit, a stairwell appeared, leading down a hallway to the second hell. Kid surfed on his skateboard during descent. They arrived at the second floor, seeing dementors hovering around the ceiling. Sensing the kids' arrival, they swooped down to dine on some souls. "Expecto Patronum!" Ellen materialized a silvery light cat from her hands, scaring the dementors.
"This is Fantastic Beast Hell." Kid said. "Where the fierce, fantastic creatures roam. Ah, including my half-species." They looked right as giant Skulltulas crept up hurriedly. Sipa cast shrink spells on the spiders as they charged forward and squashed them without concern.
"HIIIISS…" A hissing language echoed in their ears, coming from around a corner of cells, the same way the spiders ran from.
"TURN AROUND!" cried Kid, gesturing to do so quickly. "It's the basilisk! One look in its eyes will kill you!"
"What if I made it look at itself?" Cheren asked, slapping the Mirror Shield on his back.
"If it were THAT easy, Harry Potter would've been a lot shorter, JUST RUN!" Panini sprinted forward and her friends followed. They turned down a right path and encountered Elite Wizzerds, floating white, ovular machines with antennas and four floating hands. The Wizzerds quickly surrounded the kids and began rapidly tickling them with their fast, floating hands.
"UAAAAH HAHAHAHAHA!" Bon Clay was naturally more susceptible to the attack. "PLEASE, fellas, one at a time, hahaha!"
"Hahahahaha, does tickling even work on anyone down—ha ha ha ha!" Cheren laughed.
"Miyuki's—the only one—who's not affected." Sipa spoke through chuckles. "Do something—haha."
Indeed, Miyuki was frozen in place, her body twitching as she struggled to hold it in. "HWAH HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH!" She burst into tears and laughter.
"I'm so proud of you." Cheren remarked, still in laughter.
"WIZZERDS, where are you?" a voice called. "We need you to clean the bat cage." Their antennas sparked, and they left the group alone.
"The basilisk is still behind us!" Kid hopped on his skateboard and rode down a different path. "You keep running, I'll take care of it!"
Kid found the basilisk's tail and hopped on, skating to the head across the back. The basilisk felt an irritation and turned its head—Kid shut his eyes and leapt above with a flip, shooting both guns directly down to damage the eyes. He stopped to study his results: the basilisk furiously shook its head to the goop splatted over its eyes. I've blinded the basilisk temporarily, but it can still hear. Time to give it a distraction. He played a song on his skull phone and set it to fly away with bat wings. The basilisk hissed and gave chase, while Kid ran to find his team.
Ellen's Patronus kept the dementors at bay, but three Gigabites (flying white munching skulls) flew overhead and swooped down in attempt to bite them. Cheren and Nerehc did little damage with their swords and Sipa's Reducto spells couldn't break its skull. "Gigabites have high defense." Ellen noted. "They're very annoying, too."
"Not as annoying as ME!" Panini burst into emerald flames and rocketed up, bouncing between the Gigabites like a comet until they dropped on the floor in defeat. Panini landed and cooled down as their venture continued.
"A lot of these cells are pretty empty." Miyuki noticed. "Did they all get eaten by the beasts?"
They arrived at an open area and froze at the sight. "Uh… I think we found them." Cheren said.
"PLACE YOUR BETS!" Tallest Red declared while Purple chewed on blood-filled donuts. The Tallests were skinny and shriveled from dryness. They stood on a short platform and hosted the event. "Place your bets! One Goliath vs. a baby Big-Mouth Hippo!" The prisoners were roaring and waving as the giant Hollow elephant was pitted against a tiny hippo in the ring.
The elephant bellowed and stormed toward the hippo, intent on crushing its molecules. The hippo opened its mouth extremely wide and "GULPED" the entire elephant. "YAAAAAAHHH!" Some prisoners cheered having won their bet, others were angry.
"What's going on over here?!" Death the Kid caught up. "WHO FREED ALL YOU PRISONERS?!"
"Hey, look Red!" Purple pointed. "Some kids are here!"
"Welcome to Fantastic Beast Brawl!" Red waved. "Fine-quality free prison entertainment! (Admission is 10 Mon.)"
"Hey, those are the Almighty Tallests!" Cheren recognized.
"Well, whaddya know, they're fans! We reprogrammed the Wizzerds, in case you're wondering. They can even project artificial Patronuses to scare the dementors!"
"Do you mind if we can squeeze through?" Ellen asked, trying to get past two skeletons.
"Eh?" One of those skeletons appeared to be an old man with a hearing phone. "'EY!" the man yelled at Ellen hoarsely. "It's you! I recognize you, Crystal Wick…Wicka… er, was it a soup or something?"
"You mean Wickens?"
"I KNEW IT! Well, I'll get you this time!" The man raised his bone cane. "Feel the elderly wrath of Jonah Icarus!"
"GUYS, MAGELLAN'S COMING!" A small skeleton scampered by. "QUICK, BACK TO YOUR CELLS!"
"KIIIIIID?!?" The giant bat demon quaked the prison as he stormed forward in a rage. "WHERE ARE YOOOOUUU?!"
The prisoners screamed and scrambled everywhere. "Time to go, Purple!" The Tallests jumped on a Thrino (a giant three-horned rhino).
"Take us with you!" Cheren jumped off the platform and on the beast's back, which had room for the others.
"Find your own monster rhino!" Purple shouted.
"I'll persuade my father to send royal snacks down here." Kid reasoned.
"All aboard!" Red announced, convinced. The Thrino charged down the wide corridor, kicking down Bulblins riding Bullbos. "Mind if we ask what you kids are doing?"
"We're going to break some people out of the 6th floor." Sipa answered.
"The 6th floor? We snuck down there once before. I got a bad vibe from those guys."
"They liked snacks, though!" Purple said happily.
"ROOH!" The Thrino suddenly stopped as two pairs of sharp teeth sprouted up in front and back on the floor, in rectangular alignment.
"It's a giant Snaptrap!" Kid yelled. "Quick, jump!" They leapt off the front as the Thrino was devoured whole by the beast.
"OUT OF MY WAY!" Magellan threw purple acid on the Snaptrap.
"PLEASURE HELPING!" The Tallests sprinted into a cell.
"We have to hide!" Sipa yelled. "Reducio!" She zapped them down to small size except Ellen, who picked them up and backed against a wall to hide in the Invisible Cloak.
Magellan was accompanied by two dementors as he sniffed the area. His eyes directed at the space where the kids were hidden. "Do you two sense anything?" The dementors slowly floated down.
The tiny Sipa slightly peeped out of the cloak and cast, "Expecto Patronum!" A crumb-size beetle soared out. Despite its size, the dementors were frightened, so they glided back down the hall. "That way, huh?" Magellan assumed. "What is Kid up to, anyway?" Magellan stomped after them.
When he was out of sight, Ellen took off the cloak and Sipa restored the team. "Heh-hey, pretty clever!" Red praised. "Tell ya what, we'll give you a hint: there's a secret hole in our cell that leads down to the 3rd level. We programmed the Wizzerds to dig it for us."
"We'll take it." Kid agreed. "It's too risky to take the stairs that way." The team entered the cell and one-at-a-time climbed down the hole in the corner. Sipa used Lumos to provide a light, but this became irrelevant by the time they were at the bottom. "Sigh…sigh…" Kid squinted his eyes from the scorching brightness. The humans were already sweating. "Welcome to Hell 3: Scorching Hot Hell."
This floor was designed like a desert, where bones lay dead in the sand, which according to Kid is actually the ashes of skeletons. Not far in, a giant scorpion emerged from the sand. Bon Clay Jr. leapt forward and swiftly dodged its poisonous sting. "Lucky for you, I'm quite adapted to hot areas!" Clay smirked. He danced toward a more solid space, causing the scorpion's stinger to be stuck when it stabbed down. Cheren charged a Skyward Strike to chop the tail in two. The beast cried before falling dead.
An army of Stalkin emerged from the sand, 3-inch tall skeletons with spears. Cheren and Nerehc swiped their swords along the ground to destroy them. "Be careful. Stalkin lurk within quicksand." Kid cautioned. "There's a switch somewhere that can turn it off."
"There's a lot of vents." Nerehc noticed the ducts standing in the open sand ground. "I can't fly across."
"I guess it's up to me." Bon Clay spun on his slippery slippers and skated over the sand with grace. Staltroops emerged to block him, so Clay maneuvered around, sliding right, then left, slightly right, and swerved around a cell before hopping up some stairs onto the cell's roof. Clay stretched his slippers to swing a ceiling duct to an L-shaped line of cells. Kargaroks flew up to peck him, but Clay kicked them out of the air.
The okama whipped his slippers around a high point of some twin ducts and used them to slingshot up to a fenced platform. A Moblin whipped its spear at Clay, who nimbly flipped and whipped the two demons in the face. Clay spotted a lever labeled Quicksand and flipped it down. "FELLAS, is it safe?"
Cheren ran forward. "Yeah Clay, we can move on!" Clay kicked the Moblin off the platform and rejoined his team. In the center of the room, Count Dracula was chained to a table above a garlic circle, forced to dry under the artificial sun.
"Kiiiiid?" The elevator opened as they heard Magellan's voice. "Are you down here?"
"This is taking forever!" Panini complained. "Does the elevator go down to the bottom floor? Let's take it and get this over with!"
"Perhaps you're right. Let's get under Ellen's cloak." Kid complied. Sipa shrunk the group once more, and Ellen carried them under the Invisible Cloak. Magellan came around the right of a wall of cells, so Ellen hurried around the opposite side. She sprinted into the elevator before it closed. The witch clicked the 'Hell 6' button and remained hidden during the descent. They stopped on the Forgotten Hell and resized as they disembarked. (End song.)
Most of the cells on this dark floor were gigantic, filled with what appeared to be giant humans with ravenous, grinning expressions, reaching for the little prey in hunger. "PUT SOME CLOTHES ON!" Panini shouted at them.
"I don't think yelling at them is the best idea." Miyuki said.
"Kid, why is this the Forgotten Hell, anyway?" Cheren asked.
"Because this floor is filled with people that history would like to forget. The prisoners here were extremely powerful, and their connection with the Dark Side makes them very influential."
"That's what they want you to believe." a feminine voice said.
The group turned left. "Viridi?" Cheren recognized the childlike goddess in the cell.
"So, you've come to see me." Viridi said with a quirky smirk. "Or did your pitiful species realize that the world was doomed without me and you've come to free me?"
"If only you were important enough." Cheren remarked. "We're looking for the Thirteen Darknesses."
"Oh, are you?" a man's voice said. It came from a cell further down the passage. It was occupied by a brown-haired man wrapped to a chair like a mummy.
"Sōsuke Aizen." Kid spoke.
"He's one of them, isn't he?" Cheren recalled.
"So, the prophecy was true after all." Aizen figured. "I was almost afraid everyone had forgotten me… but that was foolish."
"How could they forget us?" The kids looked up at a larger cell on the wall behind Aizen's. Inside was a purple giant in black and gold armor, the stub of his left arm completely chained.
"And you're Thanos." Kid glared.
"And you must be servants of Medusa." Thanos smirked. "What adorable subjects she has at her disposal. If you release me first, I will happily make you my children."
"Will we rule the galaxy as father and children?" Sipa joked.
"Thanos will rule all. And if you are obedient, Thanos will allow you to live."
"Well, if he isn't Father of the Year." Cheren shrugged sarcastically. "We're looking for a prisoner with gray skin and orange horns."
"That fellow is further down." Aizen nudged. "Is he one of the Chosen Ones?"
"Isn't everybody?" Cheren led his group down, ignoring the giants' moans as they studied the cells. One of them was designed like a classroom, as Czar Baldy Bald III was trapped in eternal remedial English.
"MAAAAA!" A red-eyed, round giant drooled at the sight of the kids with a wide mouth of giant, venomous teeth. "PANINIIIII! You've RETURNED to meeeee! Get in my MOOOOUUUUTH!"
"Suck a Great White Asparagus, Big Mum!" Panini shot back.
"Are these all her relatives or something?" Cheren asked.
"No." Kid answered. "These monsters are-"
"I see him!" Ellen peeked into a dark cell. "Alohomora." She cast a spell and unlocked the cell door. She and Kid stood watch while the humans entered.
The prisoner was in the dark of the back of the cell. Cheren raised his sword as the glow from it highlighted his form. The prisoner's black clothes and gray skin (except for his purple cape and orange horns) helped him blend in with the darkness. "Zanifr…"
The troll heard his name and opened his red and green eyes. They reflected the glow of Cheren's sword. "Cheren… Just when I was wondering who'd they send to execute MMe."
"Majora!" Miyuki exclaimed. "It's… really you."
Zanifr's eyes widened, highlighting slight emotion on his features. "MMiyuki… Are you angry with MMe for what I did?"
"I'm different from how I felt back then. But I think I… still understand your plight."
"Catch up on your romance later." Cheren stated. "Majora, the reason I came here is because a Zoni named Vriska told me you could help."
"Vriska sent you?"
"Wait, I remember Vriska." Miyuki mentioned. "She was the Zoni who put us to sleep on Moonbase. I never understood what that was about."
"The purpose of that slumber was to allow MMe to achieve God Tier." Zanifr explained.
"You mentioned that before." Cheren remembered. "What is God Tier?"
"In MMy universe, God Tier was the original Fury MMode. Element benders like MMyself could achieve this by developing our skills. But it is far MMore powerful than your Fury MMode."
"Seriously, stop with the M's, we're in a hurry."
"It's a habit. The reason for its power is due to Arceus's disregard for a proper Balance, as you MMay know by now. Or should I say, it is a result of the struggle between Caliborn and Calliope. One who is able to achieve God Tier can inherit formidable chi."
"And this chi is on par with Lord English?"
"Hmm hmm hmm. Do not be silly." Zanifr laughed tonelessly. "If Lord English is reborn, God Tier alone is nothing. However, perhaps it would be a power to MMatch the Octogan."
Cheren gasped. "So that means… you can defeat Andrew. The King who's using the Octogan."
"Unfortunately, I don't believe I could. My element is darkness. The King of your World uses the Octogan to steal pure, holy energy. However, I believe one of similar powers could stand against him, if they possessed God Tier. I am speaking of you…"
"M-Me? But how could I use God Tier?"
"After you defeated me, Vriska curiously conducted research on you. Your great-grandmother, Shadow Queen MMalevolous, was a denizen of the First Dimension, the Black Queen of the Carapacian race, and all of her descendants inherited her blood, including you. Cheren, on your journey to destroy me, do you recall how the Zoni transported you to the Dream World?"
"Yes?"
"In truth, it was not your dreamself in the Dream World: the Zoni were taking your dreamself to regions in the First Dimension. There were places in that world where Quest Beds lay, and if a person's dreamself had a symbol that matched the Quest Bed, that person could attain God Tier by sleeping on it. When Vriska recorded the symbol on your shirt, she searched for a Quest Bed with a similar symbol. She found one. So, MMy theory is, since your blood comes from the First Dimension, it is possible for you to achieve God Tier."
"God Tier… but what are the side-effects?"
"On someone like you, I do not know. It MMay not even work."
"Well, this has been a waste of time." Panini remarked. "Let's save the Darknesses and get out of here."
"Hold on." Cheren said. "What if… it did work?"
"Hmmm… Power beyond your wildest dreams. The kind of power that could protect people, save lives, defeat ultimate evil… I assume you relish in that kind."
"You aren't actually considering it, are ya, Cheren?" Panini questioned. "All this just to defeat King Andrew?"
"Why not? You were just mocking the fact I was no match for him. I already lost the Fierce Deity Mask and-"
"You lost the Fierce Deity MMask?" Zanifr cocked a brow. "Hmmm… Perhaps this is the best option."
"Why can't Mr. King battle Andrew?" Panini asked.
"Because Mr. King needs to save his strength for Ragaj. If Ragaj is planning to use an Octogan, Jagar needs one, too. If God Tier can really help me beat Andrew…"
"We can fight Andrew together!" Panini reasoned. "All your operatives—heck, the Firstborn can fight him!"
"I'm not risking anyone's lives against that monster! Panini, I HAVE to do this! In case…In case there's a worst case scenario."
"But ya don't even know what it'll do to ya!"
"It'd make me heck of a lot stronger than you." Cheren smirked. "Is that what you're afraid of?"
"N-…" Panini blushed. "No, of course not!"
"I can call the Zoni to take us to the place where your Quest Bed was found." Zanifr said. "It is your choice… Will you attempt the God Tier?"
Cheren faced Panini and Miyuki. Panini's face pled him to say 'no'… Miyuki looked grim. If his other friends knew, Cheren was sure they would say 'no.' Perhaps, for their sake… he shouldn't.
"I think you should." Miyuki said. The two gasped.
"Miyuki!" yelled Panini in protest.
"I think… it may be the only chance. You said yourself, Cheren… that everyone must become their strongest if we're to stop this. This is no longer the Kids Next Door we read about… this is the present. And it will be… the future."
"You're really sure?"
"I am…"
"…Okay." Cheren faced Zanifr seriously. "I'll do it, Zanifr."
"Very well. Lie on the bed."
"Wait!" Panini grabbed Cheren's shoulders. She was about to do something, but bit her lip.
"Do you… wanna kiss?" Cheren laughed.
"I thought I did, but… Ay dunno, is the setup good enough?"
"I'm about to evolve beyond my mortal form and possibly become an entirely different person for the sake of protecting mankind. That's more than Chicken Little ever did."
"Fair enough." Panini pulled him in for a kiss. Cheren wrapped arms around Panini and embraced it. It lasted about a minute.
"Hurry up!" Kid demanded. "You're not even lined up properly!"
"Like you ever kissed someone." Ellen stated.
"OOOHHH my Cherry Boy!" Bon Clay cried. "He's straight after all! I'm so heartbroken!"
The couple broke apart, smiling and blushing. "I'll, um… catch you later?"
"I won't tell the other girls."
"I won't, either." ;) Cheren went to lay on the prison bed. "Well, Zanifr?"
Zanifr snapped his fingers, and three Zoni appeared out of space as though they were waiting. They shocked himself and Cheren, and slumber followed suit. The operatives gathered as Ellen asked, "What are they doing?"
"Something spiritual, most likely." Sipa said.
"Am I interrupting your slumber party?" The group gasped and whipped around. Medusa towered over the room in her true goddess form, holding baby Chernabog.. Thanatos and Pandora floated beside her, along with a familiar black demon that blended with the darkness.
"LUCIFER!" Sipa and Ellen yelled in fright.
"ELLEN! SIPA!" Lucifer beamed. "Two of my loves… This must be fate!"
"This is a little bizarre." said Medusa. "I planned to have you break into Underworld Prison and follow you in through the chaos… but I didn't expect you to do it so willingly."
"ZEEEE HA HA HA!" laughed Marshall D. Teach, who stood beside Truman Kirman. "This reminds me of a very similar jailbreak from my homeworld! The resemblance is… uncanny."
"These filthy savages are my fellow Chosen Ones of destiny?" Truman asked. "Delightful."
"Truman?" Panini recognized him.
"Thank you, Nerehc, for helping us get this far." Medusa said. "It's true that the unfortunate souls in this dungeon are the Thirteen. But do you see the humanoid giants inside? Those were all giants transformed into savage beasts thanks to demon experiments. They're so savage, they even swallowed other demons. For that reason, they were locked down here. I think I'll take a few with me."
"I can't allow that!" Kid raised his guns. "I surmised your only intention was to free the Darknesses. This is overstepping your boundaries, Medusa!"
"I was a rogue goddess from the get-go, everyone knows that. But in 9 days, it won't even matter. Thanatos, let's Titan things up."
Thanatos formed a cloud of Death Chi and sent streams into the kids' ears, except for Nerehc. "Ahh! I can't hear!" Sipa yelled.
"What'd you say?! I can't hear!" Ellen followed.
"Ay've gone deaf!" Panini cried.
"Now I'm about to go deaf!" Nerehc was tired of their shouting.
"That was my Deaf Chi." Thanatos remarked. "Should wear off in an hour. Now, who's up for a little song?"
Medusa raised Baby Chernabog upward. The child began to sing an eerie, echoing song that rang in Nerehc's ears. The Titans were going mad in their cells, tugging and thrashing the bars with greater vigor. The more Chernabog sung, the more powerful they became, and soon they tore the hinges off their cells.
"ELLEN, containment protocol!" Kid declared, running to action.
"Kid, let's contain them!" the deafened witch went Hollow Mode and fought the Titans alongside him.
"AAAHH!" Having heard the song as well, Nerehc was forced into Demon King Mode. "What's happening?!"
"Chernabog's Demon Song empowers those who hear it with sheer madness." Medusa explained. "Especially useful on demons."
"But we can't have you over-reacting right now!" Blackbeard grabbed Nerehc, using his Dark-Dark powers to subdue Nerehc's chi. "Lead the way, Medusa. I can't hear a thing with this Deaf Chi."
"Where are you taking me?!" Nerehc struggled, unable to summon fire to free himself.
"Patience, Nerehc." Medusa led them around the cells toward a cave with a green glow. "Thanatos, Pandora, free the Darknesses and get these Titans under control."
"Nerehc! Come back here!" Sipa chased them.
With Blackbeard still holding Nerehc, Medusa led them to an underground cave where the Sanzu River flowed. The river appeared as deep as a black hole, an infinite abyss of ghastly green. "Let Nerehc go right now!" Sipa jumped in Teach's way and aimed her wand.
"Stay out of this." Zorc launched dark magic from his hand and blew Sipa aside.
"This is the deepest chasm of the Sanzu River." Medusa said. "The spirit of Ganondorf Dragmire is down there. Nerehc… you must swim to the very bottom and collect his soul from the depths."
"But… won't I die?"
"Thanks to the burst of power Chernabog gave you, you should be able to survive in the river for a longer period. I would say the choice is yours, but… it's either you or the universe. Take your pick."
Ghirahim emerged from the Devil's Sword. "I will be with you, Master. I will ensure your survival."
"That's awfully loyal, Ghirahim. What's the catch?"
"Hm hmm…" Ghirahim smirked. "I would like to bring Ganondorf back as well, Master… I would need to help you both escape to get my wish."
"Nerehc!" Sipa recovered and took his hand. "Nerehc, you're not really going down there, are you?!"
"I don't think they've giving me much a choice. But if Ganondorf is the last Darkness… I think it has to be me. I have his power."
"…" She stared into his eyes with strong concern, close to tearing. She knew what was to happen, and deep down, Nerehc knew. "Please don't die."
He gave her his cool smile. "I promise." The two shared a kiss for a minute. The villains moaned in disgust. "Okay…" Nerehc took a breath. "I'm ready."
And with that, Blackbeard threw Nerehc into the river of death. Ghirahim dove in after, and Medusa watched them swim into the vortex. "Even though, as a full god, I probably could have lasted longer. But who's complaining?" she shrugged casually.
Nerehc swam as fast as he could in his Demon King Mode. He felt the Tides of Time affecting his flesh, and the souls of the deceased felt rage for the Demon King and tried to claim him. Ghirahim sliced the spirits away—dozens swarmed them, swallowed them in a cluster of agony, Nerehc burst with violet flames and scattered them.
The tunnel grew narrow as they swam ever deeper into the depths. The green glinted rashly in Nerehc's eyes and the horrible liquid leaked into his mouth. He never held his breath for this long, if he didn't hurry, he would drown in the tears of a million souls. But as the swim took him deeper and deeper, the number of souls were dwindling and the light was fading. Soon, it was pure quiet, and pure darkness.
Nerehc saw a stone pyramid on the riverbed. It was the Pyrameglyph. Only one soul lurked down here, drifting around the stone like a mindless fish. Its green muscular body and flowing hair… It was Ganondorf. Nerehc swam down and grabbed the soul. Assuming he already read his destiny, Nerehc began to carry him up. "MMMMM!" He gurgled a scream when the soul grabbed him in turn. Ganondorf's vicious demonic features faced Nerehc. His mouth opened wide as the Dark Lord tried to slurp Nerehc inside.
Medusa's group watched in wonder as the Sanzu River bubbled. "UWAAAAHH!" A powerful figure burst from the water and crashed on the shore. As the deathly water dripped from his body, Ganondorf's soul retained a physical appearance. He gasped for breath, for parts of his skin were still molted and boney. "Heff…heff…heff…heff…" Ganon looked up at Medusa and the demons in her company.
Medusa smirked, glancing at Lucifer and Chernabog. She raised the baby demon and declared, "Eat up, Ganny!"
"HAH!" Ganondorf raised the Devil Sword and leapt at Chernabog.
"WAAAAH!" the baby unleashed its deafening wail in pain.
"AAAAAGH!" Lucifer was sliced afterward.
Ganondorf set foot on the ground and stabbed the blade into his chest. A shining white wound opened up… The two Demon Saints dissolved, and their essence flowed into Ganondorf's body. His flesh repaired itself, the demon thief sporting his ecstatic evil grin. "Did you read the Pyrameglyph, Ganon?" Medusa asked. "Bill said it was down there."
"I did." Ganondorf snickered. "It said, 'You will rise again, King of Demons. The world belongs to darkness.'"
Ganondorf awakened as a DARKNESS. All Twenty Keys have awakened.
"So, all this time… you only wanted the Demon Saints to revive Ganondorf?" Sipa spoke with utmost horror.
"What did you expect?" inquired Medusa. "You didn't think THEY had anything to do with the prophecy."
"But… w-where's Nerehc?"
Ganondorf licked his lips and raised the Devil's Sword. Ghirahim leapt out, bowing before Ganondorf. "Ghirahim!" cried Sipa.
"Master Nerehc is no more, Sipa." the Demon Lord said. "I belong to Ganondorf once more."
"!!" Tears spilling, Sipa bolted out of the cave.
"Should we stop her?" Zorc asked.
"Let her run." Medusa said. "We'll have plenty of time to snuff them all out."
With the others
"Zanifr!" Panini perked up when the troll awoke. The humans were standing their ground while Kid and Ellen defended them from Titans.
"Mmmm…" Zanifr stared at Cheren's body.
"What's wrong with Cherry Boy??" Bon Clay asked. "Ya need me ta kiss him?"
Miyuki put a hand on Cheren's chest. She waited for a pulse. …She gasped. "He's… dead."
"What?!" Panini ran up. She listened for a heartbeat and shook her friend. "Ch-Cheren…"
"RAAAAAHH!" Under Thanatos and Pandora's influence, the Titans finished tearing the hinges off the Darknesses' cells. Thanatos used his Death Chi to dissolve the chains on Madara Uchiha, along with his blindfold. Pandora used her Chaos Fire to burn Sōsuke Aizen's mummified wrapping.
"You guys!" Sipa came charging back to them. "Nerehc is dead!"
"DEAD?!" Miyuki yelled, Panini cupping her hands over her mouth in horror. They faced Cheren's dead body. It was true after all. God Tier failed.
Death the Kid fought to hold back a tear. "We…We must escape. It's too late to stop all this madness. Get Cheren's body!"
Zanifr opened a Dark Portal. "This will take you outside the prison."
"And WHY should we trust you this time?!" Panini screamed through her tears.
Miyuki peeped into the portal. "It's safe! Let's go!" She jumped in.
Panini and Clay grabbed Cheren's body, ready to enter the portal. Panini spared a remorseful glance to Zanifr before going. Sipa, Kid, and Ellen hurried in as Zanifr closed it.
The Titans were sent to rampage the rest of the prison. Medusa picked up the cracked yellow diamond from its cell. Thanos was freed from his chain, staring at the stub of his missing arm. "You have a way to fix us, I would hope." he said.
"You can wait, Thanny. Sōsuke, Madara, carry Xehanort."
The two approached Xehanort, who was still bound in his Multi-Lock Prison. They picked up his stiff body. "You know that some of us are still dead, Medusa." Madara mentioned. "We will be powerless in the living world."
"You'll have your freedom, Madara. That is, if Zeref is still in our favor."
"HEY, BALDY!" Thanatos yelled at the Chrome Dome Emperor in his classroom cell. "Remedial English is over, get your butt up!"
"No, I can't!" Tsurulina III yelled, clenching his temples in aggravation as he flipped through a book. "I've been trying to find the origins of the word 'Is' for 10 years! And I was already in the middle of deciphering the meaning behind caveman songs! Does anyone know what 'Aughsucks is the best captain' refers to?!" Incidentally, the book had a drawing of a cyan-haired cavegirl.
"Baldy, I think you're a little out of date." Pandora presented a document to him. "The government outlawed remedial English, deeming them pointless. Officially, the new way to speak now is with Internet lingo, and everyone's good at that."
Baldy Bald took the document and read it curiously. "BRB means 'Be right back', lol means laugh out loud, LMFAO my BFF…"
"Congratulations, you now speak perfect English!" Medusa stamped him with a smiley face. "You pass, Tsuru!"
"HOORAAAAAY!" Baldy kicked all his English books away. "Now that I got my degree… LET'S TAKE OVER THE UNIVERSE!!" His eyes burned with passion.
"Majora, aren't you coming?" Medusa asked as they began to leave. "You deserve part of the glory for getting rid of that wannabe Hero of Time."
"You're not still mad at me for kicking your arse, are ya?" Blackbeard remarked.
"I am coming." Zanifr stepped by Viridi's cell. "Well… you MMust be very happy I destroyed your adversary."
"Is Cheren really… dead?" Viridi asked with a hint of remorse.
"I do not believe you are really dead."
"Obviously not." The goddess smirked. "Cheren may have drained my powers, but he couldn't totally destroy me. My molecules reassembled in the Spirit World. Unfortunately, Grim was waiting to capture me."
"Then it would be bad for you to escape. Of course… I think we both should attend his funeral." Zanifr used his whips to slice open the bars of Viridi's cage. "He was a very good kid, after all." He formed a dark portal behind him.
Viridi smiled at the opportunity. "I suppose he was… but DON'T think I'm teaming up with you." The goddess entered the portal, and Zanifr joined her to the outside.
Outside…
The world turned gray around Miyuki. To her, it always seemed Cheren was the light of their world… and now that light has gone out. The others will be devastated when they find out… but Miyuki would have to press on. They all would. For him. "…Cheren…" Miyuki meant to tell him this before. Her final words to him: "Happy birthday."