The TSD Kids:

The Adventurer’s Agency

Lv. 40

Black Fortress Battle

Last time, the others regrouped at Shoreside Hospital. One, to have the seriously injured Deep Six Gang rest there, and two, to figure out how to approach this whole problem of me getting possessed by Xylos. They realized that they’d have to fight him in order to defeat him, even if it meant hurting me in the process. To this solution, Lena led everyone to Xylos’ old castle in the Forgotten Wasteland. Aside from that, in my head, the spirit of the Emerald Sword, better known as Emma, and I managed to come across the point where Xylos tied his soul to my body. With this in mind, we wondered how we could use this to my advantage…

Outside my head…

“Ah, this brings back memories…”

Xylos was walking through a hallway of his black castle. He ran my hand along a wall.

“Now that I’m back here, not even this boy can stop me from succeeding!”

Eiji: “Hey! Xylos!!”

“What?”

Eiji: “Rekkuzan!”

A very familiar energy shot landed near my feet! I jumped back before I actually got hit.

“Who dares?!”

When he looked up, everyone was standing on a platform above. Even I could see them in my mind!

Xylos: “Curses! You’re here!”

T: “All right! You’re here!!”

Sofia: “Xylos! We want our friend back!”

Xylos: “Demanding, aren’t we? But this is my castle! Do you honestly expect to best me on my own turf? Impossible!”

Nadia: “How so? T did. In fact, all five of us bested you here!”

Harold/Sari/Usagi: “That’s right!”

Xylos: “Grr… rub it in, why don’t ya…? If you want him, you’ll have to catch him! This boy is pretty fast; I can make a quick getaway!”

Usagi: “Hold it! Dragon Fang!”

Xylos tried to use my Rapid Boots to run off, but…!

T: “I don’t think so!”

Xylos: “What?!”

Suddenly, he/I tripped! As he tried to get up, Usagi’s attack hit me on my leg!

Xylos/T: “Ow!”

Inside my mind, I could feel the pain. I held my leg.

Emma: “Are you okay?”

T: “I’ll be fine… they may be hurting me, but maybe it’ll force him out!”

Xylos: “You pests!”

Getting up, he ran for it.

Sofia: “Alright everyone, split up!”

Lena: “Memorize the layout of this place! Then we can strike him at every turn!”

Xylos ran for a bit, then stopped by a stone carving of an eye, made in his eyes’ likeness.

Xylos: “The second I find one of those upstarts, I will end their game so fast…!”

Tracy: “End whose game??”

Tracy appeared on top of the statue.

Xylos: “You! I’ll bring this statue down, and you along with it!”

He raised my left had, charged with his evil energy, and began to thrust it toward, but then…

Xylos: “Aah!”

He drew his arm back in pain!

Xylos: “What just happened? My hand!”

Tracy: “Metal Fist!”

With an iron hard fist, Tracy punched and cracked the base, making it fall my way!

Xylos: “No!”

Using my other hand, he tried to push back the rolling eye, forcing it to roll to the side with great effort.

Xylos: “Not bad, my short tempered friend, but try to avoid this! TNT… Ohh!”

Failing to land an explosive right hook, he fell to the ground on my knees. That’s when he saw Tracy’s boots, her Dynamite Boots, before my eyes.

Tracy: “Don’t hate me for this, green boy!”

T: “This is gonna sting…”

Tracy: “Dynamite Kick!”

She delivered a swift kick right to my middle! I landed on the wall.

Xylos: “Why did my arm lose it’s power so?!”

T: “Oh, Xylos! I’ve not your number!”

Xylos: “What? What’re you…? Oh no!!”

Oh yes! Since Emma and I found the ‘room’ hiding where his parts have taken root, we started yanking and pulling on the sinewy tethers that bound the four parts to his heart! Every time I agitated his hands, they lost power for a moment!

Xylos: “Damn you…!”

Not wanting another explosive kick from her, he got us out of the me-sized wall crater made me flee from Tracy.

Tracy: “I don’t know why he just hesitated to hit me, but, whatever! The chase is on!”

Xylos: “Where are they?”

Xylos glanced around, hoping to destroy the first person he saw. Looking along with him, I could see what seemed to be dark blue hair out the corner of my eye. Luckily, he didn’t notice who it was! …Or so I thought!

Xylos: “Ah-ha! I see…! AAH!”

I pulled on his eyes’ connectors.

Xylos: “My eyes!! I cannot see!!”

Rick: “Why is he acting so strangely?”

Kayin: “I have no idea!”

Nadia: “(To herself) Even though Xylos has possessed T’s body, T is still conscious… what if…?”

Nadia put her hands to her head and started focusing.

Rick: “Quick while he’s blinded, let’s hit him!”

Kayin: “Icicle Spear!”

Rick: “Shadow Ball!”

Kayin and Rick pelted me relentlessly with their attacks!

Xylos: “Striking me while blind! You cowards!”

Rick:“You’re the coward; hiding inside our friend!”

Kayin: “Come out and fight!”

Xylos: “You’ll get yours!”

Still sightless, he/I ran off.

Kayin: “Let’s keep at it; we’ll get him!”

Rick: “Let’s go, Nadia.”

Nadia: “Okay. I’m not sure… but T’s doing something… in his mind…”

Xylos: “Ugh! Can’t see! Can’t see!”

Still blinded, Xylos had me running around like a beheaded chicken. He stumbled, tripped, and toppled over anything and everything in his castle, save the kitchen sink, not to mention run headlong into everyone’s long-range attacks! When he got his bearings against a wall…

Xylos: “Ugh… I can see again…”

Eiji: “Ellis, now!!”

Xylos: “Huh?”

A multitude of throwing knives flew our way!

Xylos/T: “AAH!!”

Taken totally by surprise, he/I just stood there!

Ellis: “Did I get him?”

T-na: “No, but I think you made him make T wet his pants…”

When the hail of knives ended, all of them were finely outlining my body! Needless to say, they all closely missed me!

Xylos: “What the hell are your ‘allies’ doing, boy?! Don’t they know that by hurting me, they hurt you?”

When he spoke to me, everyone could clearly hear our two separate voices yelling at one another!

T: “I don’t care! I pelted them with way worse when I tried to save them!”

Usagi: “Sir T? Are-are you still in there?”

T: “Yes! Keep going! Do whatever it takes to get this creep outta me!!”

Harold: “You heard him; Tiger Fang!”

Eiji: “Rekkuzan!”

Sofia: “Thunder Ring!”

Xylos: “Oh, no you don’t! Secret Eye…!”

T: “What was that? I couldn’t hear you! Now, Emma!”

While she twisted the left eye’s tether, I bit into the right one!

Xylos: “AAH!!”

Holding my face in pain, he got hit by everyone’s attacks!

Lena: “Did we get him?”

Sho: “Not quite…”

By now, Xylos was holding my side, looking rather beat up.

Xylos: “This is… unacceptable! I will not be allowed to lose to you inferiors! I must get to my room…”

Limping, we ran down a hallway.

Eiji: “Get back here!”

They gave chase.

T: “Oh… oh, man…”

All those hits definitely took their toll on me. Back in my head, I sat down wearily.

Emma: “I never knew how strong your friends were… have they actually weakened Xylos?”

T: “(Pant, pant…) A little, I bet…. But they’d have had a rough time if we weren’t here, screwing with his vital points.”

Emma: “About these parts… we’ve done good by agitating the tethers, but can we actually sever them?”

T: “I’d like that, really I would, but how? I don’t exactly have access to my weapons in here…”

Emma: “Maybe, maybe not… but look!”

T: “What is it? Oh!”

Emma pointed to the tether between the left hand and the heart. The middle looked rather tender and soft!

T: “Is it just me… or is it…?”

Emma: “I think so…”

Xylos: “Here… here… right in here…”

Xylos found a large set of double doors. He looked back and quickly went inside. Shortly after, Eiji and the others stopped in front of it.

Tracy: “What’s this?”

Lena: “Behind these doors… is Xylos’ throne room.”

Sari: “This room is where our battle with him took place.”

They went in.

Harold: “Xylos!”

They could see me floating in midair.

Xylos: “So, you children were foolish enough to follow me in here…”

Lena: “You monster…!”

Lena boldly walked forward and stood just before me.

Lena: “Your plans to destroy this world have gone on for long enough! I was a fool to have ever worked for you! It ends here!”

Xylos: “What ends here?”

I floated down and stood right in front of her.

Xylos: “I see nothing of mine that ends here, oh no… but what will end here… is your pitiful lives!!”

He made me expel an intensely foul gust of air that knocked everyone backward!

Xylos: “I underestimated you all… that, and you all merely caught me off guard, but I’ll solve that problem! And as for you, boy…”

T: “…Huh?”

Suddenly, to Emma’s surprise, and mine, monsters appeared before our eyes!

Xylos: “You’ve been interrupting me for far too long! Now if these beasts destroy you in your mind, your body will be but a mindless vessel, free for me to harness for all time!”

T: “No!”

Xylos: “Now which one of you should I rip apart first?”

Sean: “I guess this time he isn’t playing around! Wait, where’s Lena?”

Cotton the Bunny: “(She’s right here!)”

Cotton had pulled her to the side.

Tracy: “She’s out cold again!”

Xylos: “Okay, I’ll start with you… my former servant!”

Before Cotton knew it, I was looming right over him and Lena!

Xylos: “And let’s not forget the little rodent, too!”

T-na: “Cotton!”

Cotton: “(Get out of my friend’s body!)”

Cotton transformed, taking Xylos by surprise! He then proceeded to sink his monster bunny teeth into my arm!

Xylos: “Aargh! Release me, rabbit!”

While Cotton was biting me, he noticed a particular item in my possession.

Cotton: “(Muffled) (Huh? Hey, what’s this??)”

Ellis: “Is that what I think it is? Toss it here, Cotton!”

Cotton: “(Muffled) (Here Ellis, catch!)”

He tossed the five-fingered object her way!

Usagi: “Hey, that’s the…!”

Ellis: “Glove n’ Chain!”

Using the item, she grabbed onto my back!

Xylos: “What?!”

Cotton: “(Hah!)”

Cotton double kicked me to set me off balance, then the others, helping Ellis, flung me into the air!

Ellis: “Someone hit him!”

Nadia: “Spirit Boomerang!”

Nadia threw some sort of weapon. It flew to me and circled around me, belting me repeatedly! It then returned to her hand.

Rick: “Spirit Boomerang? What was that?”

Nadia: “This.”

She held up the weapon. It looked like an ordinary boomerang, but the middle had a hole, which bore a single blue flame.

Nadia: “This is the tool T and I found in Diamond Shell Mausoleum. I wish I remembered it sooner so I could give it to him, but for a moment like this…”

Sho: “It’s better if he didn’t have it…”

After saying that, Sho, Eiji, and Kayin closed in to fight with their swords. Xylos drew my Emerald Sword to fight back.

Sari: “Look at his sword…”

T-na: “It’s lost its pretty green glow…”

The blade glowed black with Xylos’ foul energy.

Sofia: “Look what he did to his face…”

Just like Xylos’ actual face, according to Harold’s and everyone else’s description, my mouth had the same silly smile design, especially when I laughed evilly. Also there were the large rows of teeth that would suddenly appear in my mouth when I was enraged or hurt. Everyone already took note of the change in my eyes. Wide, saucer-shaped, and gold-rimmed with red pupils.

Sofia: “Ohh… that’s it!”

Sean: “Almost… almost…”

Sean was busy aiming for me while I fended off multiple sword attacks. A Tech Arrow was loaded onto his Cyber Bow, ready to fire.

Sean: “My aim’s always spot-on; I never miss!”

But before he could fire, Sofia lowered his bow.

Sean: “What happened? Don’t worry about me hitting the others.”

Sofia: “No. I’ll take him on myself!”

Sean: “What?”

Sofia: “Guys, pull back! Thunder Ring!”

The three of them jumped out the way, as her attack hit me square on.

Xylos: “What? Now you’re going to challenge me?”

T-na: “Sofia…”

Sofia: “Please, don’t. I have to do this.”

Nadia: “But Lena already said; it’s not your…”

Sofia: “I know, but still…”

Xylos: “If you won’t make a move, I will!”

Xylos swung my sword, releasing a dark arc of corrosive energy. Sofia avoided it, letting it hit and eat away at the wall.

Xylos: “Let’s see… I know! X Tornado!”

He totally ripped off my move and spun towards her!

Sofia: “Aurora Revolution!”

Balancing on one leg, she starting spinning my way!

T-na: “Hey, since when could she spin attack like T?”

Ellis: “Oh, she’s always known that move, long before T perfected the T Tornado.”

Our attacks were evenly matched, and after colliding several times, we jumped away from each other. But unlike Sofia, or me for that matter, Xylos had to stop, for he was dizzy!

Sari: "It looks like he's dizzy!"

Eiji: "Xylos may be controlling him, but I bet he can't handle the spinning!"

Xylos: “Ugh! If only I didn’t spend all that time, getting beaned by all your insipid attacks!”

Sofia: “Thunder Pillar!”

I had staggered long enough for Sofia to nail me with a column of pure lightning!

Xylos: “AAH!”

When it ended, I lay on the ground.

Cotton: “(She got him!)”

She stood over me, whip raised, ready to lay the last strike…

Sari: “Why is she hesitating…?”

Tracy: “Hey, Sofia…?”

To everyone’s surprise, she lowered her arm!

Sofia: “…I-I can’t do it! I know I said we’d do whatever it takes to save him… but… I can’t… I’m sorry!”

Though the others couldn't say it, they would've felt the exact same way, had they been in her position...

Xylos: “Ugh… An opening!”

From the ground, I tripped her! And now it was the other way around! Remember, Xylos is making me do all this crap, okay?

Xylos: “Your soft-heartedness is your downfall! A pity, if things weren’t going to end like this, I’d have made you my queen!”

Now Xylos had my sword pointed right at her!

Meanwhile…

T: “Whoa!”

Emma and I were trying our hardest to avoid the monsters’ attacks, for Xylos made it clear that if I were to fall here, then everyone’s efforts to save me would be for naught! All this, and we were fully aware of the tight situation everyone was in!

T: “Oh, this isn’t good! With these things in here, we can’t focus on the tethers!”

Emma: “This is a problem…”

By now, the monsters started to corner us.

T: “Not only that, I have no weapon to use!”

Emma: “Are you sure?”

T: “What do you mean?”

Emma: “I am the spirit of the Emerald Sword, aren’t I? In essence, I am the sword.”

T: “But Xylos is…!”

Emma: “He’s unable to… no, he lacks the right to use the sword the way you do. That’s why the blade is tainted black. He’s drawing from his twisted power. And that’s something we can’t allow, isn’t it?”

Suddenly, Emma turned into a green ball of light, then reformed as the sword in my hand! Then she said,

Emma: “Only you can use the sword’s real power! Use me as you would normally outside of your mind!”

T: “Right!”

With a few well-timed slashes, I managed to dispatch the beasts.

Emma: “T, your friend!”

I could see Xylos, with my sword pointed at Sofia’s neck!

T: “She’s in trouble!!”

Emma: “What about the tethers? They’re weakening!”

T: “Right!”

Seeing as I was left-handed, that’s the hand I aimed for! With as much strength as I could gather…

SLASH!

I managed to sever the tether between Xylos’ left hand and heart!

T: “Not done yet! Swordy Judgement!”

I then tossed the sword at the right eye’s tether, rending it in two! Suddenly the entire ‘room’ started to shake!

Xylos: “Have a nice afterlife, girl!”

Sofia: “!”

Xylos was about to thrust the sword into her, but then…

Xylos: “Uhh!!”

When Sofia opened her eyes, my body was frozen stiff, trembling slightly. Then before she knew it, Xylos had dropped my sword, and was holding my left hand, yelling in agony!

Xylos: “AAAAAAAAAHHH!!”

Sean: “What’s happening to him??”

Usagi: “Poor T… I can’t stand to see him in such pain…”

Eiji: “But is it him yelling, or Xylos?”

Nadia: “It’s Xylos! He’s ailing somehow!”

Ellis: “How so?”

Nadia: “I can see T… the real T… inside his own mind! He’s done something to Xylos from within!”

Suddenly, something that looked like purple mist started spewing sharply from my left hand and right eye! So much so, it started to build up around me!

Tracy: “What the…??”

When the mist cleared…

Sofia: “…T?”

My right eye looked normal once again, and my left hand was no longer black! Even the TNT Glove on that hand looked the way it did!

Sari: “It looks like he’s half T…”

Harold: “And half Xylos…”

Xylos: “You insolent…! My hand…! My face…! What have you done to me?!”

T: “That’s my hand and my face!”

With Xylos still in shock, I started striking away at his heart. I then stopped for a brief moment to see that…

T: “It’s starting to flash wildly… why?”

Outside…

Cotton: “(Look at that!)”

T-na: “Something’s happening to his chest…”

Soon, everyone started to see something emerging right on my shirt.

Rick: “It’s… his heart!”

Nadia: “Whatever T’s done has forced the Black Shadow Heart to show itself…”

Emma: “Did you hear that?”

T: “Yeah, now they can see it! Huh?”

I then looked at the heart. I could see a tiny crack right on top of it!

T: “I don’t believe it! Take this!”

I tried a thrust, but nothing seemed to change…

T: “What if… of course!”

Sho: “How did his heart appear?”

T: “Ugh… guys!”

Seeing as half of me was visible, I could speak freely, somewhat…

T: “His heart… is his weak point! Strike it… pierce it… I don’t care! Do… something!”

Ellis: “Sofia, here!”

Ellis threw one of her daggers to her.

Ellis: “Do as he said, strike the heart!”

She forcefully struck the heart as hard as she could! Fortunately, this was one thing that didn’t injure me! Xylos, however…

T: “His heart has cracked more! Time for a simultaneous strike!”

I then stabbed the heart once again. This time, it worked! It had a crack straight down the middle! Soon the ‘room’ around me started going haywire!

T: “Gotta go!”

I ran out the ‘room’ and shut the door. Suddenly, the door started to dissolve as if it were being broken down by acid! As this happened, Emma reappeared next to me.

Emma: “Looks like we did it…”

T: “Yeah… Uhh…”

Emma: “What happened?”

T: “I guess… all those hits… everyone laid on me… were just a bit too spicy…”

I fell over!

Xylos: “AAAAAHHH!!”

Xylos started to stagger backwards. Then more of the purple mist started to spout forth. Through the heavy mist, his voice, accompanied by labored breathing, yelled out…

Xylos: “So… that’s it, huh? I guess I just… couldn’t get used to his body, then… If you must get something done… you have to do it your own… damn… self…!”

The cloud swelled and grew bigger…

Ellis: “W-what’s happening?”

Sari: “He approaches…”

Harold: “His original form is taking shape…”

Then, everyone could see a set of four zigzag horns sticking out of the top of the cloud… then a pair of eyes glowed from within. Soon after, a crescent smile could be seen aglow! When the mist cleared…

Xylos: “This is my actual form!”

T-na: “He’s… so big!”

Tracy: “Whoa!”

Standing before everyone and looking back at everyone else, Tracy pointed and said,

Tracy: “He really does look like a big ugly bowling ball!”

After everyone fell over from her silly remark…

Kayin: “Look what’s in his hand!”

Rick: “It’s T!”

Xylos had me firmly grasped in the palm of his right hand. He looked at me contemptuously, saying,

Xylos: “So you succeeded, but that as far as you go for victories! Here, take this pitiful excuse for a vessel back!”

Then he just threw me to the ground like a discarded banana peel! I landed just behind the others, not too far from Lena, who was still out cold.

Usagi: “T!”

Sho: “…He’s unconscious too.”

T-na: “Only because we had to hit him with so many attacks…”

Cotton: “(Sorry I had to bite you, T…)”

Xylos: “You should be more concerned with your own well-being!”

When they turned back around, they could see Xylos melting away into the floor!

Eiji: “Where’s he going?!”

Xylos: “I’m not going anywhere! You lot, however…”

The floor started to tremble underneath them!

Harold: “(Gasp) Scatter!”

They all jumped out of the way before the floor under them all morphed into countless spikes!

Rick: “What was that?!”

Nadia: “He’s bending the room to his will!”

Xylos: “Fools, do you see my power?”

His voice echoed in the room.

Xylos: “I wanted you all to come to my throne room because my power is strongest here. Do you know why you do not see me? Because now I am the room!”

Multiple hands morphed down from the ceiling to try and flatten them. When those stopped…

Xylos: “I see you!”

Eyes started appearing, each firing X-shaped lasers!

T-na: “How did you defeat Xylos last time?”

Sari: “We aimed for his vital points; his eyes and hands!”

Nadia: “When those were disabled, his mouth opened, exposing his black heart.”

Sean: “Disable them, and the heart appears, huh? I see!”

Sean took cover behind a pillar, going unseen. He then spied the multiple eyes.

Sean: “I just have to hit his eyes… but there are so many of them; which ones do I hit? Oh?”

He then noticed that two of the eyes looked different! Instead of them looking like the material the room was made of, the two eyes were gold-rimmed with red pupils, just like his actual eyes!

Sean: “That’s it! Tech Arrow, Spread Shot!”

His multi-arrow shot hit a good portion of the eyes, but it only hit one of the real ones!

Xylos: “Aah!”

Ellis: “Why’d he yell?”

Sean: “Do as these guys once did; hit the eyes and the hands!”

Sari: “Good thinking!”

Tracy: “Sari, behind you!”

The second real eye morphed behind her. Thanks to the heads-up, she wheeled around and struck it with her sword!

Sean: “Why did that eye look different from the one I hit? It looked like it was injured somehow…”

Sofia: “T’s right eye returned to normal before I struck the heart…”

Nadia: “That means he must’ve done something to the right eye, and apparently the left hand too.”

Xylos: “You’ve come this far to save the boy; I should give you a hand!”

Suddenly, hands started morphing from the floor, bringing their open palms down to try and flatten everyone!

Cotton: “(Look out!)”

They managed to evade the hands, which lingered before melting back into the floor. Then they took note of one hand in particular…

Kayin: “There’s a glowing red X on that hand! Hit the hands, right?”

Harold: “Yeah!”

Wasting no time, Kayin stabbed the hand with his sword.

Xylos: “Aah!”

After more hands, soon the second one appeared! It looked like a gaping slash was made down the middle of it, meaning it was the left hand.

Nadia: “Although I’m not one to rub salt on a wound…”

Nadia attacked the hand with an arc of Dark energy.

Nadia: “…This thing clearly deserves it!”

Xylos: “Ohh…”

Suddenly, a transparent projection of Xylos’ face floated out from the floor! It was much smaller than his actual size, and his face looked rather dizzy. His mouth hung open, revealing…

Harold: “It’s the heart!”

Harold closed in and slashed it!

Xylos: “Aah!”

The face retreated into the ground, heart and all. Soon, more hazardous objects formed from the floor and walls, which everyone defended against. In the midst of all this, one of Xylos’ real eyes surveyed the situation from above.

Xylos: “Ugh! How dare these inferiors devise a strategy against me! There must be some way to defeat them! What’s this?”

T: “Oh…”

His eye turned to look at me, stirring from my sleep.

Xylos: “The boy! They came to save him, but if he’s gone, their spirits will be crushed! I’ve found my advantage! This is my revenge!”

Suddenly, spear-like tendrils came from all sides of the ceiling, aimed at me!

Harold: “Come on! We gotta hit his vital points again to expose the heart!”

Rick: “Yes, yes, but where…?”

T: “Uhh…”

Rick: “Huh?”

Suddenly, everyone turned to see me getting up. They also saw the spears!

Sho: “That monster’s trying to hit him while he’s down!”

Usagi: “T!!”

Everyone stopped what they were doing and rushed towards me! Then… all the spears made impact!!

…

T: “Uhh… oh man… I really blanked out right there, guys… Guys?? (Gasp!)”

What I saw, I could not believe! Just as I said, all the spears made impact… but they didn’t hit me! Everyone had shielded me from all sides, standing in the way of each spear… taking the hit for me…

T: “No! No!! Why?!”

Eiji: “Ugh! We… came here to save you, didn’t we?”

T: “B-but I didn’t want you all to get… impaled!!”

Nadia: “Please… don’t worry…”

Sean: “I don’t think… any vital points… were pierced…”

Usagi: “It hurts, for sure… but it would hurt even more… to lose you!”

Sofia: “I promised to save you… no matter what! Just think of this as an apology… for throwing you…!”

Xylos: “Oh my, it seems I was off target…”

The spears retracted, and everyone fell over… The tip of each spear was drenched red. It felt like everything just shattered when I saw that.

Xylos: “…And you’re still alive. But I bet the shock of losing your friends will break your spirit instead!”

Cotton: “(Oh no… T… they just… he…)”

The bunny’s words fell on deaf ears. I merely stood up quietly, looking down at them.

T: “…”

Through my fuzzy vision, I could still see Sofia holding my glasses. As I knelt to get them, they were all still breathing slightly. I put my glasses on. As Cotton looked on sadly, he could see a look in my eyes that was never seen before…

T: “That’s… it. You’re DEAD!!”

Filled with sudden rage, I started to give off a bright red aura, totally ignoring my injuries!

T: “(Distorted voice) Overheat Mode!!”

Cotton: “(Quietly) (He’s doing it again…!)”

Xylos: “His power has doubled… no, tripled! Even so, getting mad will only blind him, like he tried to blind me! Take this!”

He sent both hands my way, but I no longer felt sad or scared, or even happy! I only wanted to see him destroyed!!

T: “AAH!!”

I tore through the first hand with such force, the material it was made of just dissolved into nothingness!

Xylos: “…WHAT?!”

T: “TNT Punch!!”

I blew up the second hand with one single punch!

Xylos: “What power! Why wasn’t I able to harness such strength?”

He then sent his two eyes to try and laser me, but not even that affected me! I looked back at the others, and quickly grabbed the Glove n’ Chain from Ellis’ motionless hand.

T: “Glove n’ Chain!!”

I reeled in the first eye, bringing it close to the floor!

T: "Turtle Stomp!!"

I then brought my foot down on it repeatedly! It was a bruised and swollen mass when I stopped.

“Chilly Scepter!!”

After reeling the second eye, I belted the eye over and over again with the blue rod. Though it was a more crude way of using it, it had its effect of freezing it over! When all four of his parts were disabled (a bit of an understatement), his heart floated up!

T: “Show yourself, coward!!”

I knocked it away with my hammer, sending it straight to the wall!

Xylos: “Heh, heh… impressive…”

Xylos’ whole body oozed out of the ground. His current condition was a pitiful excuse of what he was looking like when the others started fighting him. His left had an even worse gash across his palm. His right hand had a hole blown through it! It looked like someone rocket-socked him in his left eye, which was now a black eye, and his right one was frozen over. As bad as he looked, I wasn’t done with him, not after what he did!

Xylos: “To think you housed such destructive power… you and I are very much alike…”

T: “We’re nothing alike!! You destroy only because you get off on it! I fight for me and my friends!”

I looked back at them. Only Cotton looked on fearfully.

T: “…And if you ever touch any of them again, no matter how far you run, no matter how well you hide, I will find you! And I will never stop, not until you draw your last breath!”

Xylos: “Last breath, eh? Then you shall draw yours right now!”

He expelled a foul gust of air that seemed to seriously eat away at the ground around me! I rushed forward, totally unaffected by its corrosiveness.

Xylos: “You still stand! The flesh has not been stripped from your bone! Impossible!”

T: “I told you, I’ll never stop; not until you’re dead!!”

I jumped up to his left eye. Badly bruised as it was, I wanted him to suffer so badly!

T: “White Tiger Byakko! Feral Five Star Slash!!”

I slashed the bruised eye until it leaked a purple fluid, rendering it useless!

Xylos: “No! I…!”

I dropped down to his left hand.

T: “Green Turtle Genbu! Terrible Terrapin Tremor!!”

I stomped the ground with such force, it created a running shockwave that split the hand in half!

Xylos: “…Will…!”

Aiming my sword at his right eye, I yelled,

T: “Blue Dragon Seiryuu! Dragon Slayer!!”

The pulsating force melted the ice, and split the eye in two!

Xylos: “…Not…!”

I then ran to the right hand.

T: “Red Phoenix Suzaku! Phoenix Inferno!!”

White-hot flames surrounded me, and the all-consuming fire engulfed the hand, burning it beyond usage!

Xylos: “…Die…!”

He fell to the ground, with his mouth hanging wide open! Inside was the heart, already split down the middle!

T: “This is for my friends!!”

With one final hit from my hammer…!

CRACK!!

I split the Black Shadow Heart in two!

Xylos: “AAAAAAAAHHH!!”

His entire body expelled large volumes of purple mist, seeping out of multiple cracks! The force blew me backward.

Xylos: “N-no!! I can’t be defeated… again… can I??”

His body seemed to inflate with instability… then…

BOOM!

His body exploded like a big ugly balloon! When I opened my eyes, all that remained was a small wispy image of his face, and the two halves of his heart orbiting around him…

Xylos: “Defeated again… But I can’t let myself die! Not yet… and not by your hands!! Remember boy, you can never truly destroy evil… it will always be hiding in the deepest, darkest corners of the world! You’ll see!”

With that, what was left of him flew off, as the throne room, returned to normal. I raised the sword in my hand, looking through the translucent blade, as he departed.

T: “Someday, Xylos, someday! Evil can be destroyed… if you believe hard enough…”

I lowered my arm, as the aura faded… I turned around.

T: “Oh, everybody…”

I walked up to them and knelt down. Cotton was downed too. Probably when the gust of air knocked me down.

T: “All this, and you were supposed to be the ones saving me… I’m sorry…”

For the first time in quite a while, I actually shed a tear. I know the last time was when they headed off for the tournament, but this time, I feared I’d never see them again. It fell on the ground. But then where it fell, there was a faint glow.

T: “…What?”

When I looked at it, it turned into…

T: “…A feather?”

Though small, it was a vivid red and gold.

T: “It’s just like a phoenix feather…”

When I held it in my hand, I could see the bite mark from when Cotton bit me disappear!

T: “How’d that…?”

I remembered something that I read in one of Gale’s books…

T: “Phoenix feathers have healing properties… and a multitude of them could… (Gasp!)”

It was then that I remembered one of the last and most powerful skills I learned when finding the Medallions!

T: “I was only supposed to use this in very extreme situations… and this is one of them!

But i realized that my MP was nearly drained... because Xylos constantly misused my moves...

T: "I'm nearly tapped... but I'll try anyway! Here goes… Phoenix Down!”

I was surrounded by a golden glow. Then the feather in my hand split into numerous feathers!

T: “(Pant, pant…) Heal!”

The feathers rose into the air. One feather landed on each of the others, melting away into them… but for some reason, I started to feel very exhausted…

T: “I… hope that did it…”

I fell over once again.

Lena: “Uhh… my head… huh?”

A few minutes later, Lena regained consciousness.

Lena: “Th-the battle’s over…”

She then saw every one of us lying on the ground.

Lena: “No! Please… don’t tell me they’re… Wait… Xylos… I can’t sense him anymore! …What’s this?”

Something glowing was at her feet. She picked it up.

Lena: “It’s… a phoenix feather! …(Sigh…)”

Just by looking at it, she could tell…

Lena: “…We won.”

…

T: “Uhh… uh? Oh…”

When I started to open my eyes, I noticed I was lying on something soft. That and the area around me seemed very white and bright…

“He’s waking up…”

T: “(Sleepily…) No… don’t tell me I… that we’ve went and gone to the pearly gates… that our games are over…”

Harold: “Over? Our games are far from over, my friend!”

Eiji: “As a matter of fact, you could say you’ve scored us all extra continues!”

T: “W-what?!”

I opened my eyes wide. I was lying on a bed, and the bright whiteness was just the paint job of the room I was in. I sat up to see everyone standing before me! Aside from the fact they had numerous amounts of bandages plastered on them, there they were!

T: “Holy crap!”

Sean: “Heh, look, he’s surprised to see us all alive and well…!”

T: “What’re you all doing wearing hospital gowns?! Don't you all feel a breeze down there?!”

They fell over!

Tracy: “That’s what you’re shocked about?? We’re at the hospital, you idiot!”

Ellis: “You’re wearing one too, y’know…”

T: “Ooh, that I am… but weren’t we at…?”

Lena: “Xylos’ castle?”

Lena, who was also looking rather tired, was standing to one corner.

Lena: “I guess you can thank me for getting you all here. I heard of that bus that transports people in the desert. It took some persuading, but once he heard that two certain kids needed medical help, he drove out to the Wasteland.

T: “Oh… he must’ve remembered us, then…”

Tracy: “I guess…”

Sho: “The rest of us have just woken up. The Deep Six Gang has just been released, I heard.”

T: “I see… but I guess Xylos made me mess them up pretty bad, huh?”

Nadia: “Yes. But I hope that experience for them has humbled them enough to lay low for a bit, like Edge…”

Rick: “We’re gonna go get ready. The doctors said we’re well enough to leave.”

T: “So soon?”

Kayin: “What do you mean? You were out for two days straight, man.”

T: “Wow.”

As they exited the room, Sofia stopped in the doorway for a moment. She looked back and said,

Sofia: “…I’m really glad you’re okay, T.”

T: “Heh… same to you.”

Later on, the others were down in the lobby, waiting for me.

Eiji: “Man, I still feel sore all over… that was one fight we had!”

T-na: “Yeah, especially when those sharp spears ran us through! Terrible…”

Sean: “Yeah, about those… I didn’t want to worry T any further…”

Cotton: “(But he was already shocked when those hit you… I never want to see that look on his face again...)”

Sean: “Right, well, I, for one, actually thought I was going to… you know…”

Ellis: “We all did… I just didn’t want him to get hurt.”

Rick: “So, what saved us?”

Lena: “When I came to after it all ended, I saw a feather.”

Sho: “A feather? There weren’t any birds there, as far as I can recall.”

Lena: “That’s the thing. It was a phoenix feather.”

Sari: “Was it a short, little feather that glowed?”

Lena: “Yes.”

Sari: “Phoenix… Down…”

Usagi: “What’s that?”

Sari: “Phoenix Down. Don’t you remember, Usagi?”

Usagi: “Umm…”

Sari: “It was one of the last skills T learned as the Chosen One. It actually allowed him to heal and revive himself or someone else, but it could only be performed in the tightest of situations… He used this to heal us all!”

T-na: “He did that?”

Sofia: “That’s even more shocking then when he used Indignation in ThunderConversion…”

Harold: “Wait, I remember that! But didn’t he need a large amount of MP to pull that off?”

Sari: “Normally, yes… but the way I see it… seeing as he took the longest to recover than all of us… he must’ve taken what little HP he had left, and distributed it amongst all of us…”

Nadia: “…So that we were alive to the point that our games wouldn’t end. He’s a true friend.”

T: “Hey!”

At that point, I entered the lobby and caught up with them.

T: “I’m here; sorry I took so long. Are we ready to leave?”

T-na: “Sure!”

T: “Okay. Oh…”

I looked at anyone whose midriff was showing, mainly the girls, and I saw the bandages that covered the part where the black spears pierced them. Though I couldn’t see all, everyone there had the same wound.

T: “I…”

Sofia: “It’s okay. You needn’t say anything.”

Tracy: “Yeah, all that matters is that we’re fine now, right?”

T: “If… if you say so.”

Harold: “Aw, don’t get so down, bud!”

Harold put his arm around my shoulder.

Harold: “When it hits nighttime, were all going to the café for a good time!”

Ellis: “Yeah, we all agreed while you were sleeping!”

Kayin: “I’m tired of eating hospital food!”

For once, everyone seemed really intent on Harold’s idea of a good time!

T: “(Flatly) Oh joy.”

Harold: “This is a time for celebration! We finally kicked Xylos’ ass for good this time!”

T: “Uh…”

I wanted to say that that wasn’t technically true, but I just didn’t want to spoil everyone’s good mood… besides, something tells me they know, too…

T: “Uh… yep! We sure did!”

So with that, we walked out the sliding doors of Shoreside Hospital.

T: “Man, when I thought you guys were done for, I just… totally lost it!”

Cotton: “(He’s right! He’s right! Just like last time!)”

Nadia: “Really? Do tell…”

Well, that definitely was one of the hardest jobs we had to go through! We didn’t get paid, but who cares? Our true reward was a world free of chaos and pollution! Now I know Xylos is out there somewhere, licking his wounds… and if he ever dares to come back, we’ll take him down again!