The Ancient Ones: Age of Nothingness (IC)

[The States of Balloon]

Kanto Region

“Hylian?” Lusamine questioned Link. “I’m unfamiliar with such language. I’m speaking in English right now. As for the location…” Lusamine flinched a little, spooked that Reinhardt wanted to kill the new person. “Could you please relax Reinhardt! He doesn’t mean any harm. In fact, he might be a Pokemon Trainer.”

Reinhardt deactivated his hammer and turned. "sorry, as I am in an unfamiliar area and a former overwatch agent, I've been on guard". He extended his hand towards Blare for a handshake "Sorry for startling you, I did not know your intentions."

"It's alright. So where are we anyway?" Blare payed little heed to the recently departed swordsman.

[The Dark Brotherhood of Deros]

Metru Nui
Kadoor was correct when she assumed Clairus was lost in thought, and the look on her face as she stood there silently looking up at the Traveler confirmed it. She was busy thinking back on the days before all of this happened, and she was recalling how she even grew to love Jacob like she did now.

It started several months ago, during the early days of the war against the Borg. Clairus' people had been relocated to a distant planet under the protection of the Zodiac Expanse, where they would be watched over. Rather than join her people however, Clairus opted to remain with the Traveler crew, as she thought there was nothing left for her with her people. She was alone without family, and her social awkwardness wouldn't allow her to meld with the rest of Kitsune society very easily, so she decided to remain with Jacob who was a half-blood, and the only real "kin" she had left.

She remained quite distant from the group however, and although Jacob was very kind to her, she didn't make much effort to get to know him very well. That all changed one day, when the stress and reality of what had happened caught up to her. She had been crying in her room alone for what must have been several hours, and Jacob had stopped by to just chat. At first she had been reluctant to let him into her room when he asked her to, but she eventually relented, and Jacob noticed her sorry state.

She was embarrassed of course, but Jacob told her not to be as he sat down next to her. "I'm a crier too, you know?
If you don't believe me you can just ask my friends and they'll tell you all about it!" He had said to her, which surprised her. He then went on to say that "There's no shame in tears; crying is a good way of letting out bad feelings. And besides,
you have every right to cry." Which soothed her aching soul.

Clairus then recalled crying on Jacob's shoulder, while he hugged her and assured her that she'd be alright. That was the day that they became friends, and it was a very warm memory for the kitsune half-blood indeed. Kadoor's words then snapped her out of her daydreaming, and she looked at the troll a bit sheepishly. "O-oh... Yeah... W-we should go." She said. After this, both she and Kadoor were teleported onto the Traveler.

Clairus turned to her troll friend. "Follow me. The med-bay isn't far from here." She said to her, taking off in a direction. Upon arriving at the bay, they were greeted by the sight of Aicy's holographic form standing over the still unconscious form of Jacob who was now lying on a bed. Not far behind him was the now breathing and sitting form of Hanzo, but he appeared to be... different. He was now covered in various metallic plates, as if large portions of his body had been replaced with mechanical parts, and a nasty scar enveloped his jawline.

Clairus gestured to the Shimada, who currently had a solemn and dazed look on his face with concern, drawing a sad sigh from Aicy. "The damage to Mr Shimada's body was... severe. I had to improvise to save him..." She explained. A low huff emerged from Hanzo. "You should have let me perish..." He said in a tone not of anger, but of depression and shock. Aicy seemed to ignore him, and then turned to face Jacob.

"The captain's vitals are improving, but the shock of Infinity's death is still effecting him rather harshly. I don't think he'll awake until tomorrow at best." She explained. Clairus nodded, and then looked down at Jacob with a concerned expression. "Can... can I stay with him?" She inquired. Aicy smiled and nodded. "Yes, of course." She said. With that, her form vanished. Clairus sat down on the bed beside Jacob, and then turned to Kadoor. "Hey... Um... Maybe you should see to Hanzo? I... I think he needs you help more than Jacob does right now." She said to her.

[Naval Monte]

The Wood

Both Damian and Marie noticed that Victoria didn't join and when they looked for her, it didn't take long for them to find her and to see that she was in a terrible state. The two called out to her they rushed forward to the injured girl, the two dropping down to the knees. Marie was to shock to see Victoria in her state to do anything but cry while Damian gently lifted up the upper half of her body. "Damn it sis don't do this to us. We finally got away from that timeline and defeated Zalgo. We're suppose to live the rest of our lives in peace with our parents together. Please don't die on us now!" he pleaded as he made no attempt to contain his tears.

Marie reached down to find any healing potions but found that she had none. "No, no, no. Where did my healing potions go?" the panicking half blood kept searching for any vials left but the more she found herself empty handed the more she realize that she couldn't save her own daughter. Marie tried to look through her collections of souls for one that can heal Victoria. She found a few but none can heal her in the state she was in. "James we have to take her somewhere so she can receive proper medical attention now." she said, worry and sorrow very much evident on her voice as she looked at the time lord, like her son she too was in tears.

[The Palmetto]

N-J

"It's fine, Bastion, we all have our issues," Aestus told the robot with a small sigh. This trip was suffering many delays, but with that resolved, it seemed that they would be on their way.
"It seems that we all have the issue of paying attention," Aestus remarked with a chuckle. He looked at the datapad in his hands, then showed it to the group.
"This device told us earlier that the first component is in an abandoned space station, the only access to it has had a village built around it, seemingly by accident," Aestus informed the group.
"I believe I know where that is. The space station was built there to extract resources, and oblivious natives built an outpost there, too, for the same reasons. It seems that once the invading forces were gone, they expanded the village. I will be able to take you all to it" F5 told the group, glaring at the various corpses of the local natives. He felt a deep hatred of them, for reasons far beyond his reasons of creation.
"Alright, thank you- hey, Takanuva. Are you feeling alright? If you need to rest, please tell us," Aestus said to the Toa. While every delay was yet another frustration to the old God, he still did care for the health of his teammates. But, with time running short, the idea of cutting weak links had come to his mind more than once.

[Prusselanden]

N-J
Julian felt a bit uncomfortable at F-5's hatred of the natives, as well as the behavior that Takanuva was showing earlier. Even Aestus seemed to be getting a bit irritated. Julian could just hope that the small band wouldn't break out into a Lord of the flies-esquire fight. Julian put her arms around herself and trembled a bit. She didn't feel safe.

"I-I'm gonna have to agree with Aestus here. However, we cannot afford to have our group splinter in the face of this great of danger. I can sort of help anyone with something in their mind or with their body, but we need to still hurry. Aetherus won't be out for long...."

Fred, on the other hand, was elated that F-5 was going to give them a ride. "YES! Oh, I've always wanted to ride in a Leibniz bot." he chimed merrily. Newton merely shot him an irritated glance.

"He isn't a Leibniz bot, and just for your information, Leibniz wouldn't be that genius to create something like F-5."

Konrad grumbled. "May I just be let down, please?"

Peter looked at Aestus. "Your call, Sea God."

[Arkeyana]

Bastion was viewing the fact that the others were getting increasingly irate. He thought a little before asking "Do any of you need a rest, I could carry anyone who needs to in tank config?". Karrakis, on the other hand, was seemingly emotion less, his face showed that he had witnessed this before. He got off the coral and said "Okay, how far away is the station?" to Aestus.

[Kaidou]

Thollorrat Village

"My crimes?" Claudius laughed even as the wolf began to circle him, a broken figure lying on the ground, his leg twisted in a horrifying angle. "Don't bullshit me. The universe is too chaotic for there to be any such thing as morality.

"Ever since I was a little boy, I have only believed in the one, unchanging law of the Universe; that the strong shall have inherent dominion over the weak. That is the way existence has always worked, and that is how it will continue to work until the end of the Time of Times. Any attempt otherwise is an act against the very laws of the world."

He attempted to get up, but the crushed leg dangling from his waist only served to weigh him down. Horrifyingly, with a manic grin, Claudius drew a steak knife from his weapons vest, before proceeding to brutally saw through his own leg, laughing and gurgling as he did so, almost as if he found the sensation pleasurable.

"Maybe I will be punished for my weakness? That's no matter. The IGSE will not be hindered by the death of one general. Cut off one head, and two more will grow back to take its place."

The steak knife eventually reached the bone, and Claudius began to saw even more vigorously.

"You poor, idealistic children. If only you could see the folly of your pathetic quest to save whatever it is you fight for. Justice. Freedom. The greater good.

"None of that exists. Good and evil are illusions. There is only... chaos."

The leg was detached completely.

Claudius roared in laughter, lifting up the detached appendage and taking a bite out of it gruesomely, before sticking the steak knife into its thigh and getting up on his one remaining foot, gnashing his teeth mockingly and drawing a rapier.

Then a bullet entered the back of his head, exiting from right between his eyes, and Claudius fell face first to the ground.

The one who had fired was an old man armed with an arquebus rifle, dressed in a long, beige trench coat and brown trousers, wearing a large black fedora, under which long, grey hair fell and covered part of his ears and collar.

Upon seeing Claudius fall, he limped over, favouring his right leg, as fast as he could, still pointing his rifle at the fallen general lest he stood up, ignoring everybody else around. He got to the body, prodded it a few times, and then reloaded his rifle and fired another bullet straight through Claudius' head, just for good measure.

"That's two IGSE bastards down", he said to himself, scowling. "And a few hundred billion more IGSE bastards to go."

Tenri Gohnza
Former captain of the Maris Stella

Gu Mindefron

"You should be careful. Things have changed a lot ever since the Emperor was assassinated."

57-year-old Yang Chae-moon, the owner and manager of the restaurant, did not attempt to hide his use of conversation to distract his five guests from the waiting time, but even as the food came, packaged into nice, best plastic bags for easy takeout, Koizumi found himself dragging on the conversation, which had quickly taken a darker, more geopolitical leaning.

"What exactly do you mean?" he asked.

"The central government is in shambles", said Yang Chae-moon, sitting at the table the other five were at and filling up their cups with more tea. "At the moment, from what the propaganda leaflets say, the military is running things in place of the Imperial designated survivor, who has disappeared, ironically.

"Thing is, the military itself is split. Half the generals are in Don Thozoigeth, which has been locked down for some reason, and the other half, the one that still issues orders, is in Don Cholgon, which is a small port at the southernmost tip of the Nizangar Empire's territory. Not the best place for a capital to be, geographically."

Koizumi, having already had four cups of tea, surreptitiously pushed his cup to Uska. Anthony simply emptied the cup, as he had done with the previous five he had had. Leaning forward, Chae-moon opened an ornate cigarette box, offering hand-rolled cigarettes to the others (Koizumi and Anthony, being nonsmokers, politely refused), before lighting one for himself.

"Now", he continued, leaning closer to the others, "whatever I'm going to say is considered sedition of the highest degree. We'd all be hanged for discussing this. So whatever I say stays at this table."

Koizumi nodded. Chae-moon puffed out a smoke ring.

"Firstly", he said, in a hushed voice, "this sudden power vacuum has opened the door to secessionist movements. With the monarchy gone and the central government virtually incapacitated, the real power lies in the hands of the clans who once subscribed to the Emperor. Nobody would ever have dared to think of this with Road Theleng Roatu VII in power, but now that he's dead and no successor can be found, something big is going to happen.

"Secondly... and this is something a little more crackpot... I believe that foreign powers are acting in this world."

"What make you think so?" asked Koizumi.

Chae-moon gestured at Koizumi, Uska, and Ackerman.

"These three are not from our world", he said. "I know this because I, too, am not from this planet. I came when I was 29. And the truth is that there is something very wrong with this world."

"What do you mean?"

Chae-moon stubbed out his cigarette and took another one out of his cigarette box, but became so lost in thought and conversation that he forgot to light it.

"Say", he asked Koizumi, Ackerman, and Uska, "did you happen to see a rather bizarre vision when you first came into this world? Specifically, a procession of emaciated elephants with long, thin legs, walking across a bleak desert under a red sun, carrying on their backs obelisks with eyes on them?"

"No", Koizumi replied. "I just came into the world, through a portal. Nothing fancy or weird."

"Ah. That means the end of the Angels' rule has begun."

"The Angels?"

Yang Chae-moon put the cigarette back into his cigarette case and chuckled, before getting up, lifting the plastic bags up, and handing them to the five at the table.

"Enjoy your meals", he said, smiling and cutting the conversation off. "Don't bother about the money; these are on me."

...

[The Palmetto]

Charleston, South Carolina (1864)

Robert Rhett had always been a vocal critic of President Davis, always having disagreed with his policies and way of governing. He lampooned the president in the Charleston Mercury, pointing out all of his flaws and changing fiery insults at him. However, the people of the Confederacy were so disillusioned by propaganda that they refused to believe that the president himself was anything less than a god. Davis, Lee, and Jackson were all viewed as gods by the Confederate citizens, and anyone who disagreed with them was a heretic who deserved punishment. The innocents of the North were feeling this punishment now, as the Union was crumbling, with crime running rampant and Yankee warlords patrolling the USA as incoming Confederate forces dissolved any actual authority.

The War of Southern Secession had caused much chaos and instability in the CSA as well due to all of the men being drafted, but as the CSA began to win the war and demoralize the Yankees, they needed less soldiers, and many draftees were allowed to return home. Slaves that had been acting inappropriately were punished, and rebellious areas such as Jones were reduced to ash. But the federal government had used the now almost non-existent chaos to further their grip on the rights of the people. Free speech was outlawed, and Rhett was a wanted criminal for speaking out against the government. That was why he was leaving for Great Britain, hoping to escape the death penalty.

He was on a dock in Charleston and as he was waiting to board the ship, he noticed President Davis himself, with two Confederate Secret Service Officers walking at his side. Before he could scramble on to the ship, one of them grabbed him by the shoulder and threw him to the ground. Rhett let out a scream of agony, causing the bustling crowds of Charleston's ports to stop for a moment.
"Don't worry folk, we're just taking care of a Yankee-wannabe," Davis said to the crowd, putting on a smile and speaking charismatically as usual. The crowd, trusting their godly leader, merely excused this act and continued on with their lives.
Before Rhett could scream again, one of the officers cupped his hand over the politician's mouth. He struggled to escape, before falling into a deep slumber.

Several hours later....

Rhett woke up restrained to a chair, and examined the room around him. It was dark, with only a single lamp illuminating the room. In front of him was Davis, smirking at the South Carolinian.
"What the hell do you plan on doing to me!?" Rhett shouted in anger.
Davis let out a small sigh.
"I've always been oversensitive about criticism, as you have said. I suffer through it, but, I'd like to make you suffer, too," the Confederate president replied, pulling out a small, bizarre glowing piece of metal the size of a bullet.
"I don't know what in god's name this is called, but I do know that the last time we experimented with it, we lost our finest soldier. I regret that we tested it on a person of use, but this time, we'll try it out on the scum of the Earth," Davis added. There were two guns at his side, one, a loaded Calhoun Submachine Gun for Davis's own safety, or perhaps enjoyment, and two, a more bizarre, somewhat revolver-like weapon. He inserted the metal piece into it, and cocked the gun. He aimed it at Rhett, and shot him in the calf.
The South Carolinian let out a cry of anguish, clenching his teeth as the device dug itself into his calf. Cries of anguish turned to cries of rage, and he managed to have his chair fall forward. His tied hands reached for the Submachine gun, but before he could do a thing, and he and the matter around him seemingly disappeared into nothingness.

Province of Carolina, Nizangar Empire

Rhett hadn't died that day, instead, he had landed in some far away land. It was a temperate region, it seemed, and it even had people as well. They were poor farmers, not unlike those of the South, and practically lived in feudalism. They spoke in an accent that reminded him of the poor white farmers of his home, and slaved for the higher class known as the Nizangar. Rhett saw an opportunity to rouse up the local farmers, and with this, he would be able to assume control of them and live a powerful and wealthy aristocrat once more. He managed to write and publish a book in secret, calling for the locals to rise up against the oppressive government and form a republic.

He had stay in hiding because of this, but it didn't matter to him. He had planted the seeds of revolution, and the fruit of independence was soon to be ripe. The people were poor and starving, and he used his emotional writing to turn discontent into anger. There was a growing secessionist party that aligned with him and his ideals, teaching the poor peasants of his ideals and inspiring them to rise up. The lower caste of Carolina would no longer tolerate the oppressive rule of the Nizangar Empire, and the spark that started the flame of revolution was about to created.

Rhett's Revolutionaries, as they were nicknamed, had gathered everyone they could to the center of one of the more populated rural areas, where Rhett was to publicly speak for the first time.

"My people! For far too long, you have lived under the oppressive rule of the aristocratic Nizangar. They drain you of your hard earned work, claiming they own it. But they've never worked a day in their life, and they only leech off of you all. They do not care about you, and they will never stop sucking your blood! You have all had the live like this, and so have your fathers, and their fathers, and so on! They all had to work under them, and received nothing good from it. They hoped that one day, the world will peacefully change for the better, or that if there is a revolution, someone else will do it, not them. But that is not what will have to happen. If you want your freedom, you must fight for it!

You are not the Nizangar, when you want something, you get it yourself! You do not have someone else work your fields, you plant the seeds and grow the crops yourself! If you want to build a house, you gather wood and tools and build it yourself! You do not need the Nizangar for anything, but they need you to survive! Stop serving them, and end this cycle of exploitation, and free yourselves! Workers of Carolina, unite together for a better land. Workers of Carolina, march forwards into the palace of those who would exploit you, and cut off their heads!" Rhett yelled out. From here he would speak for many more hours, discussing how they would revolt and secure their independence, and how they would run this new republic. The crowd had noticeably increased in size, and soon enough, local guards attempted to break it up. The crowd burst into riot, and with pitchforks and other dangerous farming tools, they turned on the guards.

The guards didn't stand a chance against the mere size of the crowd, and were brutally slaughtered by the angered lower caste. Enough was enough, the people decided, and waving red flags with blue saltires and white stars, they soon marched towards the palace towards their oppressors. The flags were based on Confederate designs, as Rhett had decided that if he was going to be away from the Confederacy, he would establish a new one.

[Skylus]

Thollorrat Village

The clearing grew quiet as the barrier went away.
"Ammy...Did you see that? I wonder who rescued us..."
Issun titled his head a bit as Ammy directed her attention to the old man.
"Who are you?"

[Prusselanden]

Thollorat Village
Kalo cringed when Claudius sawed off his leg.
"Sorry, coming from a pg-rated show, I'm not used to gore like this." He prepared to fight Claudius again as the man started to get up, but the general was suddenly killed by a newcomer.

"Who are you?" Kalo suspiciously turned his hand into a sword. This newcomer could be an ally, but he wasn't going to let his guard down yet.

Wherever Ackerman and Co. are.
Ackerman was ravenously inhaling the soup that the owner had offered them. Xe suddenly choked, only to be patted free by Uska. Ackerman then continued to eat xer way through a third bowl and loudly burp.

"So this place is also in political turmoil? Ah...who are the Angels anyways?"

Uska sighed and put an hand on Ackerman's shoulder. "Xe means, do people often hallucinate when they come here?"

[Skylus]

Log of Second Lieutenant Lincoln Douglas Forester of the Hyrulialus Royal Air Squadron

Current Time and Date of Log: 12:00, CHT (Central Time); 6-20-3412

"My team and I have picked up a strange energy reading coming from the Faron region. The General says that I've been selected to be the sole one to go out there and investigate it. Meaning, that if something happens to me, nobody's going to know. I'm not lying that I'm scared to death about this, but I've got to follow orders. Signing off for now."

Doug pushed a button on the recorder and stopped the log, then pushed his chair back and stretched.
"Leaving so soon?" called out a female voice, one that Doug was very familiar with.
"Margret....I spent the entire night with you, what do you want?"
The brown haired woman crossed the room and sat on the bunk nearby.
"To wish you good luck, of course..."
She was now looking at him slyly.
"...Unless you want to continue what we were doing...."
Doug looked down for a few seconds before shaking his head.
"I'd love to, but I can't. Besides, I leave in 10 minutes."
"It can be quick."
"No."
The man got to his feet, walked over to a shelf and picked up three specific items:
a tablet, what looked like a finger guard or brass knuckles, and a dimmed plasma shield.
"You're really leaving, aren't you?"
Margret got up from the bed and walked over to her boyfriend.
"...Yes...But I'll come back."
She sighed and began to rub Doug's shoulders.
"They always say that..."
Meanwhile, Doug had turned the tablet on and was double checking his mission.
"Says that I'm to go alone and check out the energy readings..."
Margret had stopped the shoulder rubbing and was now by the entrance to Doug's room.
"Sounds interesting..."
She grinned.
"But not as interesting as last night."
Doug rolled his eyes at her and walked out.

A few minutes later, he was on the landing strip, heading towards his jet - the now infamous Golden Sapphire. She was a Class-A Loftwing, completely custom golden paint with blue striping along the wings. The "hood ornament" was a bronze Hylian Crest.
"She's ready to fly, Sir." called out a technician as Forester approached his jet.
"Thanks, Colon."
Various other people helped him into his fighter and a few minutes later, the ship was roaring down the landing strip and then lifted off.

Around an hour later, Link reached the area that was to be inspected.
"Hmm...No signs of anything yet..." The General on the viewing screen nodded.
"We'll keep track of things back at base, Forester."
"Can do."
Link switched the viewing screen to what was in front of him but then the screen went blank.
"....What...?"
He leaned forwards a bit in disbelief.
"Sir?"
No response.
"Hello? Anyone?"
Again, no response.
Dammit...I'm dead in the water here...Oh well...
The man sighed and flicked a few switches in his jet and continued to fly about 20 feet from the plains below.
But then he came upon what was causing the energy surge - a massive blue portal.
In fact, it appeared out of nowhere.
"What is that?!"
He banked a very hard right and the jet roared as it turned sideways and then back to normal.
"...That was close...But what was it...?"
Link turned his jet around and flew straight at the thing, thinking he could go up the side of it.
But, instead, he flew straight into it.
He didn't even have time to send a signal back to base, the moment he did so, the portal closed, and left no sign of it ever being there.

Link was now on his own, no contact from base or anyone from home, just himself.

[Kaidou]

Thollorrat Village

Prodding the corpse with the barrel of his arquebus, the man surveyed the carnage that was Claudius' body, digging through his coat and inspecting the body. From the way he searched, it seemed as if he was intent on finding some object which he knew was on Claudius' body somewhere.

"A low-ranked General, hm...?"

Finding nothing of interest, the old man stood up with some effort, tilting his hat to cover his face from the sun.

"My name is Tenri Gohnza", he said to the others in a slurred voice, half of his face stroke bound, just like his leg and arm. "Who might you be?"

...

Gu Mindefron

"Ah, so the food's arrived at last."

Koizumi, Shōko, and Anthony dumped the bags on the floor, untying their handles to reveal the numerous bowls of stew, which the rest picked up and started eating. Thankfully, nobody else in the vicinity seemed to care that the party was taking up an entire square, seeing as nobody else seemed interested in resting at that part anyway.

"I don't know who the Angels are", said Koizumi, looking out into the distance, "but that this place is in political turmoil... it's not something you need to say."

"This whole place is a shithole", Zi-xiang muttered, drinking the thick soup in small sips. "I can't wait to finish whatever it is y'all want to do and get the hell out of here."

"Maybe-"

"Gentlemen."

The party's lunch stop was rudely interrupted by the appearance of a large Ucsa-nizangar man, bare chested and draped in a long black coat with a hood that he didn't wear, his muscular torso covered in tattoos. He carried a large sword by his side, but didn't seem to have the slightest interest in using it.

"Who might you be?" asked Koizumi, keeping one hand on his katana just in case. Anthony said nothing.

The man turned his gaze to Ackerman, standing tall enough to look xer straight in the eye.

"Master Samuel would like to speak to you", he said."

...

[Osnil Returns]

Hyrule Field (Hyrule Warriors Universe)
The sunny day brought joy to the blonde girl happily strumming the harp in the center of the field. Zelda's smiling face suddenly turned to sheer terror as a black cloud blotted out the sun, turning everything into darkness. Then it came towards her, and swirled around her.

As she looked into the clouds, she could see vague figures. Battles being fought in other worlds. Red and blue swords of light flashed. She could vaguely hear phrases and statements from a malicious, eerie voice. "Do it! Kill him!" "Your journey to the Dark Side will be complete."

A hooded figure stepped out from the black cloud. Zelda couldn't make out his eyes, but she could see the cruel smile plastered onto his face. He stretched out his hand and blue light shot from his fingertips. Then everything went black.

Hyrule Castle
Zelda's eyes flashed open as the dream ended. She ran out into the hallway where Impa stood guard. "Impa! I've had another dream!"

"You have?" asked Impa. "What was it?"

"A great evil is coming to Hyrule," Zelda replied. "Something that Hyrule has never seen before."

Impa's eyes widened. "We should summon Link."

"Yes, and Lana and Cia. And find that girl with the cloak like Link's. What was her name. . . Linkle, right?" asked Zelda. "We're going to need all the help we can get. Muster the army. If battle comes, we'll be ready."

Impa nodded, and rushed off to do as her princess commanded. Just then, Lana and Cia came rushing in. "We've got a problem!" shouted Lana. "Soul Gates are everywhere again."

Cia piped in, "It's not like monsters are pouring out of them this time. They come in different colors. Some are red, some are blue. And the rest are the ones like we've seen before: white. Something isn't right with the blue and red ones, though. Nothing's coming out of them."

[Skylus]

Lincoln Douglas Forester

"Gaahhhh!!!!!"

The Golden Sapphire exited the now golden portal thing to...

Flying above an open field?

"...Whoa....This is actually kinda nice..."

The second lieutenant of the Hyrulialus Royal Air Squadron sat back in his seat as he watched the view.
He seemed to be heading towards a distant castle of some sort.

But then lights began to flash everywhere.
"Aw no no no no nononononoooo!" he yelled as he began to frantically push buttons.

But it was to no avail, as the ship began to plummet towards the surface of the field below....

The ship hit the ground and skidded across the field, leaving scars that would possibly never fade.
Doug was knocked out instantly but would still be mostly okay when he would be found.
The ship's engines died to a whine as she began to cool off.
The running lights would kick on and light up the area, even in broad daylight.
She had made a complete 360 spin and was now resting on the field - one of the wings was broken off, some of the grass was actually smoking.

[Prusselanden]

Gu Mindefron
Ackerman let out a soft gasp as the man spoke of Samuel.
"Samuel...is he really?"

Xe put xer stew bowl back on the table and wiped xer mouth rapidly. "Please, take me to him as quick as possible."

"Ackerman, what!? We have a mission to complete, and who knows if it is really the Samuel we-"

"Uska, he might be able to help us! Besides, we could reunite him with Henry!" Ackerman's eyes shone as xe looked back at Uska. "Come on, let's go!"

"Why did I end up with someone with so low of an IQ? Lieutenant my ass." He face palmed.

"Take me to Samuel then. Please." Ackerman calmed down and stated clearly to the man.

Thollorat
"Planet Adeli, Rank-General, Number-TC-9527, Kalo." Kalo kept his sword hand ready still. Gohnza...now that name sounded Japanese. He himself did not know much about the language or the nation in general, but he could always turn to Ammy and Issun for help."Why did you help us? Did you just think he was pathetic, or...?"

[Skylus]

Thollorat

"I am Ammy, the Sun Goddess, and my companion is Issun, the 7th Celestial Envoy."
Ammy sat down while Issun was once again bouncing on her head.
"It looks like you got in a fight or two!"
Meanwhile, Po had recovered from the "dumping machine gun" attack and wandered over to the main group.
"Oh, someone new. I'm Po, the Dragon Warrior."

[Legokiller]

The Woods

Just when some moment of peace could settle down, someone else is dying! Rosa sworn this got to be a curse for everyone. “Victoria!” She cried out. There is little time as she needed to heal Vicky with her mom’s staff. Shining Heart Tiara was created for this job to heal and save people. If she doesn't save her, then Victoria will be gone.

Rosa held the tirade in the sky and cried out, “Mom, grand me the power to heal Victoria!”

Then nothing happened.

“Come on, don't do this to me!” Rosa pleaded at her staff and jumped to get a little closer to Victoria.

Camille didn't hesitate as she rushes into the scene, and looked at Marie. “I can heal Victoria if I'm fast enough.” Camille answered. She calmly placed her hands over Victoria, channeling her magic to pour healing energies to stabilize Victoria. Rosa continue to flail her arms, mind scrambling to figure the tiare out. Obviously mom intended for Rosa to figure the staff’s power before they face Zalgo and…

Rosa screamed when the tiare activated, summoning a swarm of fluttering prismatic rainbow butterflies. She collapsed into the ground, and witness the butterflies without direction, went off into different places, and landed at random people and trees. “What the heck!?” Rosa gasped as one butterfly landed onto her. Rosa and the others felt a warmth and pleasant touch from the butterflies as they dissolve, healing some of their wounds. Even the flora, damaged by Zalgo’s corruption, began to show signs of renew of life and greenery.

Kanto Region

“Saffron City Blare.” Lusamine replied. Things are getting far more stranger for the Aether Paradise President as another creature appeared from the sky. A horse named Epona. The more she ponder about Link and Epona, it became clear he is from a famous nintendo game called Zelda. Sadly, Lusamine wasn’t a gamer herself and didn’t know much about the series, or what version Link is from.

“Excuse me, but could you kindly assist me with this personal matter? Look, I need to find the my daughter, and why did she disappeared at Selene’s old home in Saffron City.” Lusamine said. “I know this is much, but please understand. My daughter and her girlfriend both disappeared at the same time, and are nowhere to be found. Something and someone is behind this.”

[Kaidou]

Gu Mindefron

"No way you're going alone", Yoichi interjected, grabbing Ackerman by the wrist and stepping forward. "Like the guy said, you don't even know if it's the one you're looking for, or if it's a trap. Best not to go alone, is what I'm thinking."

"I might as well go", Anthony added, wearily. "Nothing much to do here anyways."

"You sure?"

"Of course I'm sure."

Ceiji just looked out into the distance pensively, showing no reaction to the news of Samuel possibly being alive. Her face betrayed a flurry of emotion stifled by her hard military training, as if the memory of the Bard had awoken some darkness within her.

"Please hurry", said the big man. "Time is running out."

...

- Ackerman
- Yoichi
- Anthony
- Zi-xiang

"I see you've made yourselves some new friends."

The one in the dark room whom the big man had brought the three to was, without a doubt, Samuel, but he looked significantly different from when they had last seen him. He was still of the same height, and his hair was still as long and scruffy as it had been before, but his muscles were significantly more defined and sinewy. Unlike in the past, he dressed only in a black tank top and tapered black trousers, minus the hoodie, and among other things, he was now barefoot, and had sprouted a ghostly stubble.

Behind his chair was a large red flag, the top left hand corner of which was emblazoned with a yellow hammer and sickle crossed. Aside from the three guests and the large man, the only other person in the room was a young lady with long silver hair carrying a dao.

"Tell me, though, Ackerman", he asked, "What brings you here?"

"Who are you, anyway?" Yoichi asked.

Samuel smirked sardonically.

"Just somebody who lost everything to the Chimaera", he replied.

[The Intergalactic Russian Empire]

Abakelia's Base

Death was never really a pleasant thing for Pobeda but unfortunately, here he was again. Just when things seemed to be at their lowest, life had to come and give him another kick in the balls. As the life was abrubtly severed from his body, Pobeda's soul slipped out of his body and began to transcend the boundaries of this universe, destined for the afterlife. Before he could reach it, however, a grandfather clock's chimes sealed his fate...

Unknown Location

In a spacious, green colored room, there stood a grandfather clock. It, like the rest of the scenery, was a garish shade of green, where the time would usually be there was a square area divided into two halves: one purple, one yellow. In the center sat a familiar symbol. The hand of the clock swung to the right.

*TICK*

HEROIC

It then swung to the left.

*TOCK*

JUST

*TICK*

HEROIC

*TOCK*

JUST

The arm of the clock then slowed down and stopped in the middle, neither Heroic nor Just. The Mage would yet live, for now at least, and once more he had staved off death.

Abakelia's Base

From under the rubble which had buried Pobeda, the others would see a bright multicolored light surge forth. The rubble then moved aside, and Pobeda's body levitated in the air, surrounded by the flashing lights, his blood stains flashing in an intricate way. When the light faded, Pobeda hovered above the rubble where he had just a moment ago been killed. Physically, he seemed completely unscathed, all his injuries having vanished, but one look into his eyes would make it apparent that his mind was still very much damaged. The Mage then flew towards where the others were, ignoring any of Abakelia's machines that were between him and them.

The Woods

Draigo watched as the palace of Zalgo was destroyed, and as Zalgo himself was killed, pride swelling in him. He finished up his prayer then "In Vengeance be true, In Valor be Strong,
I am the Hammer,
I am the Sword,
I am the Spear,
I am the Shield,
I am the soldier at the End of Time."

The Astartes looked down and saw Victoria's crumpled body on the ground, barely alive. He went and knelt down by Damian, who held Victoria now. His face seemed stoic and blank, and there was no hint of any sadness or pity, but there was a small glimmer of respect. "As hard as it is for me to admit, you fought bravely. If it is okay with everyone else, I will attempt to give her the Emperor's Peace, though I do not have the proper tools for it."

TUS Traveler

Kadoor followed Clairus into the med-bay, looking to Jacob resting on the medical bed. He seemed quite peaceful there, but she had a feeling he wouldn't rest peacefully much after this. Clairus then asked the Troll to check on Hanzo, and she knew that was her way of saying she needed alone time. The Sylph of Hope nodded and went over to Hanzo "You seem to be upset, aren't you glad that you're alive?"

[Skylus]

Kanto Region

“Saffron City Blare.” Lusamine replied. Things are getting far more stranger for the Aether Paradise President as another creature appeared from the sky. A horse named Epona. The more she ponder about Link and Epona, it became clear he is from a famous nintendo game called Zelda. Sadly, Lusamine wasn’t a gamer herself and didn’t know much about the series, or what version Link is from.

“Excuse me, but could you kindly assist me with this personal matter? Look, I need to find the my daughter, and why did she disappeared at Selene’s old home in Saffron City.” Lusamine said. “I know this is much, but please understand. My daughter and her girlfriend both disappeared at the same time, and are nowhere to be found. Something and someone is behind this.”

Link came back to the others and was guiding Epona by a rope lead.
"I can help you find your daughter."
As Lusamine continued, when the fact that her daughter had a girlfriend came up, Link shook his head and muttered something about "heretics" before replying. "Where is this structure? Is it far from here? I assure you that I shall do everything I can to help find your daughter...and....her...." He trailed off and didn't speak for a while, but merely looked at the grass beneath him.
What have I gotten myself into?

[The States of Balloon]

Kanto Region

“Saffron City Blare.” Lusamine replied. Things are getting far more stranger for the Aether Paradise President as another creature appeared from the sky. A horse named Epona. The more she ponder about Link and Epona, it became clear he is from a famous nintendo game called Zelda. Sadly, Lusamine wasn’t a gamer herself and didn’t know much about the series, or what version Link is from.

“Excuse me, but could you kindly assist me with this personal matter? Look, I need to find the my daughter, and why did she disappeared at Selene’s old home in Saffron City.” Lusamine said. “I know this is much, but please understand. My daughter and her girlfriend both disappeared at the same time, and are nowhere to be found. Something and someone is behind this.”

Link came back to the others and was guiding Epona by a rope lead.
"I can help you find your daughter."
As Lusamine continued, when the fact that her daughter had a girlfriend came up, Link shook his head and muttered something about "heretics" before replying. "Where is this structure? Is it far from here? I assure you that I shall do everything I can to help find your daughter...and....her...." He trailed off and didn't speak for a while, but merely looked at the grass beneath him.
What have I gotten myself into?

"Her girlfriend," Blare finished, "and I guess I can lend a hand as well."
>Blare: Check STRIFE SPECIBUS
It's set to AXEKIND, just like you left it.
>Change your fetch modus to something more tolerable
You have an alternative fetch modus buried in your sylladex, but first you must retrieve it using your current fetch modus.
==>
The puzzle is summoned at your feet.
==>
After solving that surprisingly easy puzzle, you retrieve the SBAHJ modus. This one you alchemized yourself.
>Equip modus
And...done. Oh, and the puzzle is gone too.

[Prusselanden]

Gu Mindefron
Ackerman beamed, barely containing xer excitement.
"Samuel, it's really you! It's been so long...Why are you here? We're here to try and find Henry's body. We're gonna bring him back to life, or at least stop the IGSE and Chimaera from doing so. Do you want to help us?"

"Ackerman, could you be a little less upfront?" Uska deadpanned. "Sorry Samuel, but what xe says is all true. Henry's at least being targeted by both parties, and we have to stop them from getting to him."

"By the way, who's your new friend?" Ackerman cocked xer head at the woman by Samuel.

[Prusselanden]

The Woods
Cascabel lifted Terry up under his arm and followed the others over to Victoria.
"You guys sure she's just not passing out? Draigo, it's really too soon for you to be making a funeral speech." Cascabel sat down next to Damian. "There should be a way to bring her back."

Suddenly he felt a warm and fuzzy feeling due to Rosa's tiara. Cascabel yelped as he grabbed his head. This feeling...he hadn't felt it since...forever. It wasn't anger...it wasn't sadness...no apathy either...what...

"Mama, wait for me!"
"Sigh...Cascabel...I'll carry you up the hill then."

"Mama you're the best." Cascabel beamed as he leapt onto his mother's shoulders.

Cascabel punched the ground. He didn't like this at all. He wanted to stop feeling it.

[Arkeyana]

"I'm always able to help, I hope your daughter and her girlfriend are okay". Reinhardt said. He turned to Blare and said "Nice to meet you, Blare, my name's Reinhardt."

[Truth Incarnate]

Eridan and Vriska

"Stupid fuckin' gutterblooded wwench. You take all the time you need up there, little fuckin' hag. Yeah, take all the time you wwant to just keep cod-damn hidin' behind excuses and flimsy allies. I'll wwait. I'll wwait until I get tired of this shit, and I fly up there and kill you myself, like you bloody fucking deservve!"

"..."

"Wwhat a load a' piss this all is."

Eridan kicked at the ground a bit, now unsure of what to do. The past few hours had been so full of movement and action, and it was scintillating to know that his victory, his destiny was to arrive so soon. He'd stand proudly over Kadoor's corpse, and he'd know that something had been achieved. That a great evil had been vanquished, and finally, his dreams were at hand. And the only caveat was killing some despicable, weak lowblood. He was almost dizzy with the thought. Yet here he was. Waiting.

"Hey! fishstick! You look lost. Mind telling me what's on your thinkpan? Oh, who am I kidding? It's pro8a8ly something incredi8ly 8oring and predicta8ly angry."

Vriska bopped him on the head, knocking him forward, stumbling over his own legs. She laughed, and held a hand out, catching Eridan by the back of his cape, leaving him a few scant seconds away from falling on his face.

"Whoops. Looks like you were a8out to fall. Good thing I caught you, huh? As it turns out, dru88ings and the mentally impaired don't mix well."

"Fuck off, spiderbitch."

Eridan righted himself with a burst of Hope, turning around, and pushing Vriska back. She barely moved her legs.

"Gahaha! You're pathetic, Eridan. No wonder your ancestor was such a wimp. You'd almost think that having a god in your 8ody would make you less of a chump, 8ut nope! Turns out, you just stay a sad, dum8 piece of shit forever. Your comedic attempts to set up a redrom with Feferi were ridiculous enough, 8ut wow! With Nepeta too? Just stay down next time, 8rine-8reath. You're never getting that girl."

Eridan snarled, and brought out his wand, little specks of white light dancing in his eyes.

"Oh, fuckin' please! Is that wwhat you think this is about? Thinkin' I'm gonna try to wwoo that ugly fuckin' broad ovver? I ain't got a lick of black, pale, red or wwhatevver the fuck's in your head for her! I'm dealin' wwith serious business here, Serket. These little skirmishes wwill look like wwiggler campaigns in comparison to wwhat I'm about to accomplish. Wwe'll see wwho's the top fuckin' barkbeast then, thief. I'm going to kill her, and then I'm going to havve the wworld to myself. Jack's power wwill look like a fuckin' gnat next to mine. You'd best be around to see howw the fate of bitches such as the likes a' you and her turn out."

"Ah well. If you're going to 8e such an o8stinate 8astard and not even let me in on the palerom comings and goings of my own fucking Kismesis, then sure, go ahead. I can see you've got plenty of irons in the fire. Just 8e sure to keep in mind who's num8er one, pal. I'll 8e watching you so I can laugh when you flounder. I'll see you around, Ampora."

And with that, Vriska flew off, leaving Eridan alone with his thoughts, and a long ass fucking wait.