Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction / Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction / Digimon Fan Fiction / Final Fantasy - All Series Fan Fiction / Gundam Wing Fan Fiction / Sonic Series Fan Fiction / Fan Fiction ❯ Ultimatum 3: Trance Trauma ❯ The Last Jump -- Part 2 ( Chapter 18 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

(OMFG THE SUSPENCE SI BILDING LOLOLOL!!!111oneoneonetwo

Expect the weird shit to pile up quickly. The end is near...)










The Last Jump
Part 2
















There's one thing that could've been said about what was happening aboard the Van Eltia. If most of its major facilities were trampled over by armies engaging in minor skirmishes, often happening several instances at a time throughout the ship, it would be safe to say that the infrastructure of the vessel itself would take a beating, be damaged and/or eliminated/annihalated/obliterated/flattened/crushed/blown up/pulverized/eradicated/devalued/desecrated in any conceivable manner.

However, it was also safe to presume that where the Ki fighters went it would be ten times worse.

Gohan ducked, holding his arms over his head as in the background, behind the ruined pillar he sat hunched behind, a rocking explosion nearly deafened him. If that didn't work, then the bright flash of light that accompanied the 3-foot wide laser of solid Ki tearing through the air would have diminished his sight.

"Heads up!" Eric clenched his fists tightly together, spinning and slamming them against the shaft of light as it threatened to envelope him. The attack fractured, beams of energy splitting off into different directions and spreading the damage over a wide area. Ki riddled the entire wall behind him, causing yet another pillar to collapse, and, accordingly, the entire balcony.

It was easy to observe that the surfaces available were somewhat Ki-absorbant, and shared properties of Ki-reflective material, otherwise it would be noted that the entire bottom of that sector of the ship would've been blown to pieces by now.

"Hang on!" Vegeta pointed off into the darkness. As was expected, from admidst the debris and boiling haze of the Ki-charged room advanced opponent Ki-fighters of various races, sizes and builds. It was safe to predict that only about a third of the defenders present were actual Grappler-race Pirates, the others must have been affiliates, bounty hunters, hired hands or a mix of the three.

"One more time!" Magnus advanced slowly, the others forming a V-shaped front behind him. What melee fighters there were remained in the center, still a blur. It was quite excessive, however - it was more of a brawl than anything else, and while the moving cloud of fists and feet seemed to have a definitive state, friendly fire seemed to be commonplace. Meanwhile, people on both sides began charging their long-range blasts, ready to lob them over the confusion in the center. With a cry from both sides, they followed through. Javelins of energy flew through the air, each with its own identity and target. Many of them collided with each other, but what ones got through were evaded as both teams scattered, shielding their heads as they sought cover under anything that remained standing.

"Does anyone else see anything wrong with this picture?" Balkan lied crumpled underneath a bench, leaning backwards as a large, basketball-sized chunk of rock fell inches from where his head once sat.

"The structural integrity, for one thing." Gohan shielded his head as a piece of a metal girder hit the ground next to him.

Suddenly, several figure leapt out the other side of the melee, smashing several of the Grapplers on the other side away. "We have a breach! Follow through with it!!"

Almost instantly the action in the center of the courtyard intensified. Everyone simultaneously shoved each other out of the way, making a straight heading at the opposite side.

"I think we have an issue!" Vegeta fell on his knee, dodging a flying kick from a stray soldier. Eric and Magnus did likewise, but were immediately swamped by the remainder. The fighters further down the V were struck with the same problem, though not to the same severity.

Hydramon slammed his giant scaled foot down, causing a good portion of the people around him to lose their balance. "We can't afford a defensive any longer!! Let's GO!" Hyrdamon hovered a foot off the ground, suddenly rocketing forwards as his wings split. Several armored Smash subjects followed in hot pursuit, flanking him. As Hydramon closed in on the jumbled mass of colors ahead of him, he spun with one mighty slash of his claw. The group was divided, four people taking the brunt of the hit. They all flew through the air, one smashing through another pillar, the remainder crashing through a large pane glass window leading into another chamber.

"Stick around," Hyrdamon growled as the crowd quickly spread out in all directions away from him. "The fun's only begun."

"...what's going on?" Eric suddenly loosened up. "...they're not running from Hydramon..." Eric suddenly twitched. Everyone around their group had simply disappeared.

"HEY!!" Magnus stamped his foot down as he watched a large group, both Grapplers and Argetlahm allies, stampeding away from them down a wide hallway. "...what the hell is with this?"

"...this has to be the weirdest thing yet." Gohan stood up, dusting himself off. "Everyone just... gets up and leaves?... guys?"

Vegeta rested his palm on the side of his head. "...are you guys getting that?"

"Oh, yeah." Magnus muttered. "Power surge."

"Is it Ultimanium?" Hydramon bellowed.

"The power signature's a bit different... it's a bit more powerful than Ultimanium's... but it can't be the Grapplers, you saw them just pack up and leave... whatever it is they're afraid of it."

"I have a bad feeling about this." Gohan growled. "This seems a little TOO convienient."

"Should we investigate?" Eric asked.

"...it's on the move. Not toward us, thankfully. We should try to stay out of its way, whatever it is, just in case it a little more hostile than we hope." Vegeta paused. "...is it just me, or does this source feel really familiar?"

Gohan's eyes switched sides. "...nah."

"Enough of that, we can't let them get away." Magnus gestured towards the far hall. "Let's get moving."


********


Deep within the bowels of the Van Eltia, far below the skirmishes above, the datalyte continued to pulse its eery red. Far away from the Craymel Corridor, two figures, shrouded in the darkness, continued to plod along as the hall itself shuddered from the constant bombardment stories above.

"...well, what can I say?" the taller one sighed. "It's been nice meeting you."

The other shadow nodded accordingly. "No, I think the honor is mine. It's been great talking to you. You certainly have more of an idea of what's going on here than I do. Days ago I just thought Argetlahm was a bunch of Magnopolitian pirates. But I see differently now."

"Good to hear. To tell you the truth, days ago I thought you were some spoiled brat that ran away from home. But, yeah, I look upon things differently, too."

The shorter person pressed his face into his hands, chuckling. "Yeah. I get a lot of that. But I had bigger things to aspire to. I had a responsibility to fulfill. Stability of the dimensions."

"And the Digital Worlds seemed to be a good place to start. Yeah, they're pretty quiet as far as dimensional violation is concerned."

"Well, the Magnusi proved me wrong on one account." the man laughed softly. "I'm just glad things carried out how they did. Argetlahm was really responsible for all of that? And you were there?"

"Ultimanium's First Battalion. Been there, done that."

"...well, it's time to look to the future. The Magnusi are nearly down for the count and it is my job as watcher of the dimensions and a member of the eigth dimension to combat the Magnusi Prime on its own turf after these long millenia. As well, it is time for Argetlahm, and all those present to stand up against him!"

"I'll be behind you. Every step. You do your thing."

"Give Narrin my regards!" he waved. "Good luck, you and I!"

Footsteps echoed loudly as one figure seperated itself, dashing away from the recesses of the Van Eltia.




Davis watched silently as Ryo disappeared into the darkness.



"I see you couldn't miss out on much, either."

Davis pivoted. Behind him, the hollow form of Lord Raul stood, his arms folded. "A member of the eigth dimension? Astounding. Though I can understand the fear he encounters."

"I thought you were meeting up with the others?"

"...I must meet Ultimanium face to face. I seek to unleash my full powers as post-Seeker... and only certain death at the hands of the Magnusi Prime can allude to that."

Davis slung his fused Buster Sword over his shoulder. "Let's go."


********


Dozens of heavy boots clattered against the polished floors, clambering down stairs, sliding down ramps. The neon signs scattered along walls watched silently as an entire brigade of Grapplers, uniformed and covered head to toe in recon equipment and small arms, plowed through the open courtyard, setting themselves up behind benches, around pillars, hidden among guardrails, and sheltering themselves behind anything vaguely solid.

Beyond lied a large yard filled with simple tables and padded chairs. All along the walls, small compartments and long shelves were embedded, stacked full with boxes and containers of preserved foods. A celing-touching stack of simple trays sat nonchalantly in the far corner, at the start of the long trayholder that wrapped around the edge of the room.

Takato, Rika, Renamon and Guilmon all sat at a table in the very center.

"This space food they keep talking about..." Takato mumbled, poking at his mashed potatoes, or what somewhat resembled them. "This isn't that great... and the vending machines in Osaka were selling it for, how much now?"

"Too much." Rika droned, taking another small bite of her strawberry shortcake.

One the officers slowly advanced into the tabled area, holding up his rifle in both hands as he did so. "...all of you! Down on the ground! We'll make things quick and painless..."

"..." Rika glanced to her left, where the heavily-armed guard waited patiently. "...is that so." Rika slowly rose from her chair, letting her beige overcoat fall over her. She reached up, sliding her glasses on.

Pause.

"Well?" Rika suddenly spat. "We're not going to stand here all day."

The guard raised his gun further, sliding towards the unarmed girl. He let out a stifled yell as a yellow/white blur rocketed in from the other side, checking him across the room and into the wall, going limp on impact.

"NOOO!" the remaining guards rose up from nearly everywhere, sliding their rifles into firing positions. Takato dove under a table as Guilmon completely lifted a different one above his head, throwing it into the crowd. Several fighters dove away, while three were lethally pinned under the massive metal surface. Both Takato and Rika withdrew blasters and started firing as their digimon flipped over more tables to take refuge behind. Both tamers finally hunched over as fire drew closer to them, ducking behind the hastily constructed barriers.

"I knew this was a bad idea." Takato huffed, shielding his head as more shots ricocheted directly behind him.

"If I'm not mistaken, I'd say you're outgunned." Renamon laughed harshly.

"Give them tamer hell?" Rika suggested.

"Give them tamer hell." The other three responded.



BIOMERGE...

"Biomerge.. activate!!"

Both Takato and Rika felt their centers of gravity warp as they were suddenly shifted to their sides, colliding with their partners. A bright flash erupted from beyond the barricade, causing a minor lapse in the fire from the other side. Two great silohuettes of light reached up from behind the table, Takato's nearly tripling in height while Rika's increased a small amount. Takato dropped his head, it wildly changing shape and gaining multiple layers of thick armor as the eyes died into a primal, large-pupiled mass. Light yellow mail sheeted Rika, a bright gauntlet reaching up and catching a shamanistic staff as it fell ahead of her.

"Gallantmon!"
"Sakuyamon!"

"...oh man." Takato tried to duck Gallantmon under the celing, but was surprised to have plenty of headroom. There was several more feet clearance between the Mega-digimon's helmed head and the skyroof above. "Well, let's get cracking."

"Wheeeeeee!!" Guilmon's voice cried out as Gallantmon suddenly broke into a run, swinging his massive lance behind him as he stampeded straight at the militia, it quickly dividing as to avoid being trampled by the behemoth. Those who weren't shaken off by the sudden rush of the giant digimon opened fire with their beam rifles, though the tiny darts of energy deflected off the polished armor of the Mega with ease.

Multicolored fox-like wisps flew by, slamming into another battalion. "I wonder if anyone else finds it this easy." Sakuyamon wheezed.


********


"How the hell do we get them up there?"

The largest courtyard in the Beta wing of the Van Eltia was nearly overrun, quite a feat given it was completely roofless, and it seemed fire was coming from every way, even up. The courtyard itself wasn't as much a courtyard as it was a single, wide-surface plate reaching over a giant rift in the ship's framework, with the void of space visible as a vertical line in the distance.

Glenn grit his teeth as he turned back to his group of conscripts. "...well, if they have an opening, of COURSE they're going to be using it. I don't know how they're hitting us, or what they're using to do it, but either they have embattlements along the surface of the shaft, or they're tagging us from the outside - though I'm willing to go with the former."

Captain Falcon finished ripping a hoverpack from a downed soldier's back. "Well, what are we waiting for?" he bent down again, picking up an oddly large handcannon.

Glenn scratched the back of his head. "Are you sure you guys want to do this?"

"Well, you're the big rocketman," Falco slid on his own pack. "This is your chance to shine."

"I guess you have a point. But I have no idea how heavily fortified the front itself is from this distance." Glenn reached back, clicking on his overpack and unsheathing his revolver as he brought his hand back to his side. "So you won't see me mourning anybody."

"Vice versa," Falco sighed. He began to lift off the ground, blaster in one hand, stolen rifle in the other, as was the poise of most of the other fighters with him. "Alright, if all else fails, just tear up the place, okay?"

"That can be arranged." Glenn grumbled as he switched the rifle in his hand to automatic with a loud click, which quickly resounded throughout the group. With one huge roar, most of the 50 fighters with Glenn took to "space", swapping their rifles forward to defend themselves.

All at once, a swarm of turrets discharged themselves from the wall, unsheathing hoverengines. They all turned to face the group, which quickly slowed in response. With a loud shriek, the wave of probes was upon the small battalion, their cannons switching into position.

"This is too cruel." Falco sighed.


********


Ultimanium ducked under another APC, covering his head as an explosion rocked the ground nearby. A flaming car-door-size piece of flaming wreckage crashed down in front of him. He sheepishly stuck his head own, ushering Charmy and Keele to his position.

Keele quickly swept into position, hiding underneath an adjacent bench. "I see the war's alive and well."

Ultimanium stuck his head out again as Charmy hunched behind him. "We'll need another way around. But we'll lose too much ground if we take the long way around. Any ideas?"

"Whatever happened to just plowing through them?" Charmy shrugged. "Keele knows Regen... we can both Trance..."

"And what, lady, happens if some lucky people out there have the potential to Trance as well?" Keele covered his head as the ground shook again. "I know we haven't seen any Trances yet, but we can't rule that out."

"...NOW!" Ultimanium dove out, crossing the ground as he settled himself behind a plantation. Charmy and Keele quickly followed, Charmy diving behind the obstruction just as an explosive shell hit the APC they were just prior under. Ultimanium shifted to the side again as a Grappler slumped over the edge of the plantation, tumbling over. "...Sherheim's on the move. We can't waste any more time. We have to move, and move FAST."

He was startled by a loud rumble. A tall, extremely bulky tank slowly rolled towards the two, rolling to a halt near them. The top hatch opened, Keele sticking his head out. "...maybe not, but we can move at the very least. The cockpit's only got room for one, but I think we have enough armor to shield any hitchhikers."

Charmy and Ultimanium hopped forward, stepping to the top of the armored vehicle's treads. They started to walk in the direction of the conveyor as the tank whirred to life, rolling forward at a snail's pace. If nothing else, the sheer image of the immensely armored vehicle worked in the group's favor, as Keele suddenly realized that it was one of the Grapplers and they were actually making a wide path for the vehicle to move on.

"...why... aren't they shooting at us?" Charmy sighed.

"Shut. Up." Keele muttered through his teeth.

"It's them!!" One of the heavily armored soliders bellowed.

"Talk about hiding in plain sight." Keele sighed.

"What were SUPPOSED to do, genius?!" Charmy spat.

Ultimanium's handcannon rattled in his hand as he rapidly fed Ki into it. Before the commander could rally enough Grapplers to notice the group's insertion, the gun's barrel exploded as it launched a wave of tiny Ki bolts into the fray. The tank suddenly sped up as it reached a large opening on the opposite side of the chamber.

"Whew... but don't do that, you know?" Charmy never turned, calling out to Ultimanium. "...Ulty?"

"Keele, take a left here. Sherheim's headed in that direction."

"He wouldn't know we're here... would he?"

"He knew a LONG time ago."

On cue, as the bulky tank rolled up to the intersection, it slowly twisted on its treads as it pivoted and accelerated down the adjacent hallway. "What's down here, anyways? Why would Sherheim point us down he... hey, I've got a few bio readings... but they're not armored..."

Further down the passageway, Shaun, Max and Melanie wandered out into plain sight of the Grappler tank. Before any of them could contemplate turning any way, the armored vehicle halted mere feet in front of them.

"I don't want to die." Max sighed. Shaun stared at him blankly.

"We're not Grapplers." Charmy said dully.

"What's going on?" Keele stuck his head out of the main turret.

"ACK! GRAPPLER!!"

"We're not Grapplers." all three chorused.

"It's about time I ran into you guys," Shaun stepped forward. "I've got my own little band, as you've probably already noticed. This is Max, the man who trained me with the Mega Launcher as a child, and a defector from the Grapplers, Yur... Melanie."

"GRAPPLER!!" Max twitched violently.

Shaun blinked. "..uh.. yeah. Anyways, I don't know if Farah or Chat told you already, but I've already tried to activate ARK and transform the Van Eltia... though in the end, that would do less good than anything. How goes the war?"

"I haven't heard from anyone since I entered." Ultimanium said. "It was just me and Charmy... everyone else entered through different hangars. I have no idea where the battle's centered right now."

Right on cue, the hallway rumbled.

"...anyways... I'd get down there and join that battle." Ultimanium tugged at his collar. "From what I understand, everyone including the Ki fighters are occupied elsewhere... leaving us with Sherheim and Antimagnus."

"Are you sure?" Keele asked. "From the readings I'm getting, it looks like Antimagnus is in a completely different area of the ship. If I'm not mistaken, that's where the Ki skirmishes are taking place."

"Then how do you explain the power source with Sherheim?" Ultimanium questioned.

Everybody paused.

Shaun stepped back, rubbing his chin. "Something doesn't seem right here... one of those readings definately can't be Antimagnus... who's this Sherheim?"

"We'll explain later. The Magnusi would probably be sticking to Sherheim in this hour, given they're keeping direct watch on our advance through the Van Eltia. What would he be doing down that deep in the ship, asides from offering backup to the Grappler Ki squads? I highly doubt he'd even make that effort."

"There's no vital components of the ship in that sector, either." Keele finished.

"The only thing we can do now is just hope that the Ki fighters can deal with whatever's going on down there," Ultimanium said. "We just have to keep moving and take the fight to Sherheim. Everything'll clear itself up in due time, right now we have to concentrate on our mission."

Everybody nodded as the tank began rolling again. Shaun, Max and Melanie all took stations along the treads of the tank, Melanie of course still having no idea whatsoever what was happening. She sat off the side of the tank, letting her chin rest on her hands. "Ugh."


********


The darkened hallways, quite a contrast from just a few floors above, remained silent. At one intersection, a clatter of footsteps and a mosiac of shadows gathered at one intersection.

"This is bullshit!" Eric growled. "We just had them a second ago!..."

"I don't know why, or how that number of warriors could escape unscathted..." Balkan glanced around. "...but there are no power levels nearby. Either we've lost them, or they've lost us..."

"A battalion does not just.. up and disappear!" Vegeta roared. "We're being tricked somehow, there's no other explanation!"

"There's always one we can't comprehend." Gohan muttered.

"The only power level I can keep a steady scan on is the huge one from earlier." Magnus fiddled with his scouter.

V2 grit his teeth. "Are you STILL keeping an eye on that stupid thing?"

"It still concerns me a bit," Balkan murmured. "It most definately can't be Antimagnus, he knows he has much more serious things to worry about, if this siege continues as it does. But who else could it be?"

Magnus twitched. "We should move."

"What do you mean?"

Magnus pivoted. "I mean, it's coming in our direction."

"Maybe it's just lost?"

"It's gonna BE HERE in LESS THAN A MINUTE!" Magnus bellowed.

"Crap..." Gohan shielded himself as the hallways rumbled again. Down the leftmost corridor, the celing began to collapse, datalyte dripping from the internal circuitry. With another jolt, the supports exploded, seperating the hallway and caving it in. Datalyte flowed out, not helping any to cancel out the sudden hurricane of dust. Gohan poked his head out above the smokescreen, looking around. "Everyone okay there?"

"...I believe I'm alright..." Vegeta coughed, hovering up out of the mist. "How about the oth-"

"Something wrong?" Magnus inquired. Vegeta continued to twist about, as if the celing itself was haunted. "...huh?"

"You feel that?"

"It's right on top of us!" Balkan yelled.

Everyone leapt away as another rattle, much closer to home, enveloped the central hub. An ear-splitting crack echoed out as the celing exploded, raining debris down on the open floor. Everyone raised their heads faster this time, staring off into the distance. Down the hall, a tall figure stood slouched, faced away - black hair stretching down his bare back, ending as black, runic-scribed gi pants began. A long, monkey-like tail hung out, remaining still.

"Show yourself!" Balkan commanded.

The man's head turned slowly, before the rest of his body followed. He stared down the hallway. His bright red eyes pierced directly through his audience's psyche - before he exposed his feral teeth.

"Who are you?!" Balkan followed up.

"Shut up." Vegeta squeaked.

V2 glanced around. "Is there something I'm missing here? Gohan?... Gohan?!"

Gohan froze in place, stepping back in a fight stance as his pupils shrank. "YOU!!..."



--------

It's not a Trance. But it's just as bad. If not worse. Sherheim has lived up to his legacy, piercing the barriers of all dimensions below him to summon forth what was once destroyed... it looks not even Shenlong can stand up to the forces of work here... in all cases... it is Magnusi reborn.

As with all cases, Magnusi share certain attacks! Both his Neo Crusher and Renzokamehameha attacks are formidable Ki expenditures that can turn the strongest fighters into pancakes!


ULTRAMAGNUS DEUX - Quasi Trance

--------


"Magnus! What do we do?... Magnus?" Balkan turned back to the Magnopolitian, who simply sat with his arms folded.

Finally, he simply smirked.

"Well, it seems you're out of your little cry-like-a-baby-until-I'm-granted-undeserved-immortal-power phase. What level of Super Saiyan is that, may I ask?"

"You'd just love to know, wouldn't you know?" Ultramagnus hissed. "I'm a tiny bit smarter than you think, Magnusi. I was thinking even in my death you would carry out your own mission and betray Argetlahm and abduct the J all those years ago, but I suppose I was wrong. There's a first." his head reeled back in an inhuman snicker.

"Magnus!" Vegeta roared. "Is this true?!"

Magnus remained staring forwards. "You heard what he said. I thought you would have figured that out by now. Look at him... look at me... look at Antimagnus... we're all Super Saiyans, and I think having the name 'Magnus' would make at least ONE person wonder."

"But why didn't you-"

"Because he had nothing to hate."

Everyone turned to the side tunnel. Standing there, the Buster Sword held high, was goggleless Davis. "I've become smarter over the years, too, contrary to popular belief."

"Davis?!" Gohan screeched. He turned back and forth between Ultramagnus and the jacketed man repeatedly. "What.. how.."

"Magnus was on the verge. Eric, you know what Magnus has been through. He endured little of the hardship that his father endured, under the constant siege of Frieza's forces. He had a future ahead of him... he had friends... he was the governor of the entire city of Magnopolis, and still is.. and this bond with the world was only strengthened by the alliance with the Argetlahm." Davis suddenly grimaced. "That, and the raw betrayal that YOU, Ultramagnus, committed on your Magnusi brother in your invasion of his domain of Magnopolis! What do you have to say for yourself?"

"Any of my bretheren would have taken that chance!" Ultramagnus growled. "As such, Magnus should be aware of the mandate of the Magnusi!"

Magnus grinned. "Betrayal. Gotcha. I think it's time you got a little betrayal of your own! Eric! All of you! Are you ready?!"

With an inhuman metal grind, Davis swung the gigantic Buster Sword behind himself with one hand. Vegeta, Gohan, Balkan, V2, and Eric all braced themselves.

"I think we've ALL learned a few new tricks." Vegeta laughed. "When you die a second death, you'll have no one to blame but yourself."

"I see you're all eager to prove yourselves." Ultramagnus laughed deeply as he assumed his normal battle stance. "Let the futility commence."


********


Nearly half of Argetlahm was united. Whether that was a good or a bad thing was left up to the individual. Several non-Argetlahms rode upon Gallantmon and Sakuyamon, but otherwise were subject to foot travel. Several more APCs had been reclaimed to lessen the load, but the battalion was still bulky.

"Anyone got a map?" Fox laughed harshly as he jogged along. He was easily the fastest moving person in his group, being, just as everyone else was, exhausted from the constant combat they'd endured in the past hours.

"I believe that most of the Grapplers have been forced out of the area." Minonim suddenly piped. "If we want to... we should be able to head right to Antimagnus."

Cody slumped down against the wall. "How about we just take ten?"

"I like the sounds of that," Helmut responded. "Crono, can you organize the fresher Smashers and set up a perimeter? Grappler influence is out of the question, but it seems everything and anything could jump out at us in a situation like this."

Crono nodded fervently, dashing off. In the background, both Gallantmon and Sakuyamon devolved, letting their passengers drop to the ground softly before doing so. Both pairs of digimon and tamers collapsed against the ground, sitting up as they did so.

"This is murder." Takato huffed. "You might call this the shortest war, but I'm ready to call it the longest skirmish."

Takeru glanced up, resting on his sword as Patamon perched on his shoulder. "I'll second that. Even my training is designed to score decisive blows quickly and effortlessly. Not even this Seeker can fight in this conditions for very long..."

"As long as I can see the end, I'm fine." Samus sighed. Kirby slouched.

"What about you guys?" Fox snapped, glancing over to Heero and Serge. "You're the sweated veterans, I presume you've been in hairier situations than this."

Serge wiped his brow. "We scored quick, decisive blows, too. I don't recall ANY kind of battle, El Nido or elsewhere, that's stretched out this long. Add to the fact we haven't exactly been in action for the past couple years."

Fox grimaced, folding his arms. "Wouldn't ya've loved to be in my shoes two years ago, at Sector Y... big battle, resupply cruiser gets blown up, and I have to stay in the Arwing living off my energy reserves for two days. Borderline life support didn't seem so shabby then."

"Oh, just shut up." Dante muttered. "Alright, I've got a little more juice left and I'm willing to go on, but if you're going to hang back and relax for a bit I can't complain."

"I'd like to file a complaint." Tron wheezed.

"...where's Armadillomon?" Cody suddenly burst.

"On the ship, where else." Renamon mumbled. "Think about it long and hard. How useful would an Armored digimon be in a situation like this? We had enough trouble dealing with the Grapplers as it stands."

"...I guess you have a point there..." Cody rubbed his head. "...I just wish he could be here. You know, like old times."

Takeru glanced over, before turning back straight. He had his head lowered. It was only a moment later that Cody could notice him chuckling. "TK? What's the iss-"

"TK." Takeru laughed. "Haven't heard that one for a while. I wasn't ever expecting to hear it ever again, I'll have you know. It seems like everything's changed in the past few years."

"Yeah," Cody nodded. "It has."

"Could you ever see yourself calling me by my real name? Not since school, I know at the very least. I've gone through an evolution, it seems. I think we've all gone through some kind of evolution into what we are at this point. And now..." Takeru glanced down the hallway. "It looks like we're about to reach our final step."

"It's finally ending, I know." Serge ran his hand through his hair. "It's a real shock... almost as much of a shock as the first time."

"..." Cody turned back forwards. "...I just don't know. I have a bad feeling about this, though..."

"I'm getting out of this that this'll be a larger fight than any of us assume." Tails rubbed his head. "...am I signing my death warrant here?"

Takeru closed his eyes. "It's logical you have a bad feeling about things. Raul certainly does."

"Raul?" Serge blinked.

Two large black boots hit the ground. Everybody turned slowly as the balded man stepped forward, his massive cape swinging clear behind him. He wore none of his usual armor, instead in a black jumpsuit, wearing a pair of large gold armlets. "It took long enough for you to notice."

"I noticed you a long time ago." Takeru said plainly as Raul stepped past him. "I simply made nothing of it."

"Made nothing of it?" Raul said emotionlessly.

"I was doing perfectly fine here, thank you." Takeru responded similarly.

Raul paused, eventually turning back forward. "Well, you certainly are a better swordsman than even I hoped for. And Argetlahm seems to have assembled quite a posse. But I can feel it already - things are indeed wrong with this picture. I've already tried establishing contact with Ultimanium, but he's being masked somehow. I doubt he himself is aware of this. The only lead I've gotten since boarding the Van Eltia has been my contact with Daisuke Motomiya. His presence here is no more coincidence than the Sixth Magnusi."

"Davis is here." Takeru's eyes narrowed. "Not that I have any particular beef with him, but he wouldn't just show up now for no reason."

"He may have some connection with Ryo, as do most of the primary Digidestined... and most Tamers."

"What are you blabbing about?" Rika cut in.

"I don't quite understand it myself. Ryo seems to be at the harness of some incredible power, not physically, but otherwise... I have reason to believe he may be an extradimensional figure."

"Like the Craymel?" Teisel blurted.

"...yes, like the Craymel. Ryo is everywhere he's needed. He is a guardian of the lower dimensions. I have not actually confirmed this, but the evidence stacks in favor of assumption."

"...so he must be the Ryo from all those years ago, as well..." Takeru rubbed his chin. "That's uncanny. But what would Ryo be doing out here? And why would he bring Davis with him?"

"Ryo could handle any problem in the Digital World on his own. Why he is so interested in assisting with the ousting of the Sixth Magnusi, and why he brought help in the form of Daisuke, makes one thing clear - something is very, very wrong. And even that is not the least of it - the J3 has been triggered somehow by the people still aboard the Argetlahm - this is no doubt the work of Daisuke or Ryo as well. This is what we've been waiting for. This is what their message is, from Ryo's superiors - the Last Jump is upon us. It is both the Zeal's, and our time of reckoning."

"The Last Jump...?" Fox muttered. "As opposed to what, the First Jump?"

"Indeed. I lack the time to dictate the events of the First Jump - you are near the end. You have to stop the Sixth Magnusi. We must stop the Sixth Magnusi. And I dedicate all my magicks to aid you." Raul drew a longblade from deep within his cloak. "I am not sure what waits ahead, but I am content this is the greatest battle you, and the rest of the Magnusi's oppresors will face. I am still uncertain as well as to how the J3 will pertain to this fight, but in all events I cannot guarantee the successful return of those who are from out of the third dimension."

"That's a small audience..." Takato scratched his head. "...still..."

"We'll stay here as long as we need to." Cody finally nodded. "There may still be a chance. And if I sit here and let events carry on without me then time is against me."

"He's right." Takeru drew his blade again, pushing himself to his feet. "...so... what's next?"

Pause.

"Asides from what we have here, our forces are divided," Raul muttered. "A small portion of your Smashers and crew are currently in the Van Eltia's transfer ducts. They can be accessed from the sector bridges that can be found in this division, but I wouldn't advise going out there unless you have means of propulsion."

"Got me." Fox sighed.

"In that case, you should all find Ultimanium. I can set up a mystic beacon to guide you, but getting there is of your own concern. I can tell, still... he is far away... but you still have a chance of catching him."

"Then let's move out!!" Teisel waved his wrench in the air, eliciting a cheer from the crowd as they began to move away from Raul as he stood and watched the small army move further and further away from him.

"...I... have other things to attend to." Raul held his blade to his forehead, a bright ring sounding as he literally thinned out of existance.


********


"This won't particularly end well!" Glenn shouted. "You're going to need some bigger firepower!" he quickly rolled to the side, dodging a giant energy bolt as it whizzed by him, quickly disappearing into the void of space far behind him.

"And I certainly see you delivering!" Falco snarled back.

Falcon turned the side slightly, zeroing in on a single mounted gun. He flipped upwards, launching at the tiny cockpit feetfirst. The pilot never saw it coming - the heavy iron boots crashed through the window as Captain Falcon slipped in narrowly. The entire group paused as he leant out again, holding different varieties of assault rifles. "They aren't helpless in close quarters, it seems."

Tails caught one of the rifles. "...these are light... hey, toss another one here..." he reached out, catching another gun in his other gloved hand. Falco, Glenn and everyone else present followed suit.

"Where are we headed, anyways?" Falco shot back.

"..." Glenn stared up at the air. "...well, it seemed like a good idea at the start, didn't it?"

"You're suggesting we take out every turret on our way down to wherever the transfer duct ends? I'd suggest we just motor through and get as deep as we can... what IS at the center, anyways?"

Falcon scratched his head. "I'm not sure, they usually have aux power cores at the bottom of transfer ducts in ships this size."

"But what about the one that was destroyed earlier?" Tails asked.

"Beats me. Maybe it was just there to power the Devil's Throat." Glenn glared forward. "Maybe there's more power coils deeper in. In all respects, the very least it can lead is closer to the front-center of the Van Eltia. I wonder if anyone's stormed the bridge yet."

"Hang on..." Tails pointed at the side of the shaft. All eyes shifted to it. A giant slit was opening in the wall, out of it slid a wide, tall sheet of tiny, bright red probes. "I don't like the looks of this."

"I haven't liked the looks of anything from day one." Falco cocked both rifles in his own hands. He was interrupted by a loud cackle that roared over them, seeming to come from every direction at once. Falco frowned as he pivoted in the air. "Who's there?!"

"Enter stage left." the voice cooed. Everybody turned appropriately as a giant panel began to open next to the slot. Inside, one large man in a beige jumpsuit emblazoned with the log of the Unity, sans Grappler gear, sat at a vastly upgraded turret helm. He let his hands rise off the dual flight sticks in front of him, leaning forward as he examined the fairly large militia that hovered within his reach. "...drat. I was hoping for a bigger show. But that won't matter much to you, I suppose."

Glenn's eyes narrowed. "Ah. You."

"Know 'im?" Falco asked.

"This is one of Balkan's old cronies. Got every little bit of info about him in my brigade's prebriefing. Though I never though he'd gave the nerve to give up on the Unity and join up with the Grapplers and Antimagnus." he stabbed his finger at the man behind the glass. "Appleton! Give it up!"

Appleton chuckled as he leant back. He drummed his fingers on the consoles on each side of him. "Master Balkan... I can't believe even he has defected... always treating me as his inferior.. but I think I've more than proven myself. I see the true goal of the Unity now... it is beyond his feeble mind... I serve the Magnusi Prime! He will lead the way to the seventh dimension... and prosperity for those who serve him, and purge all opposition!!"

Almost immediately, the cube-like probes dissolved into a blood-red cloud of swirling motion. Bit by bit they began to clump together, forming something from the backwards forward. A giant cartoon-like revolver.

"This won't end well." Falco sighed.


********


The tank clunked to a halt. All its passengers lurched forward, nearly thrown off from the sudden deceleration.

"Hey! We have a schedule to keep!" Max banged his fist against the alloy armor of the battle tank. "This thing moves slow enough as is without taking pit stops!" he was quickly silenced as the lid flung open, swiveling up and down again, bashing Max on the head in the process.

Keele poked his head out. "The nav systems of this vehicle seem to have been disconnected from the Van Eltia's systems... why, I can't understand... I've had auto-coordinate systems on the whole time, and it's corrected any offshoots we've had up to this point... but now it's completely inoperative."

Shaun was still trying to grasp the concept of the Magnusi Prime, but so far it was sinking in well. "He'd probably try to cut us off from outside contact and deal with us personally."

"He DOES sound like the type to toy with his prey." Keele sighed. "...his power level is straight ahead. From the looks of things we're entering the bridge corridors, so I don't think we'll be able to move this tank much further.. not that it'll be of any real importance."

"I don't find any of you particularly important."

"Oh, god..." Charmy glared up. Hovering above them was Antimagnus, arms folded.

"Thankfully the Magnusi Prime was able to nullify the transmissions that come out of that tank... I was almost getting concerned that you'd all jump on me at once. But I see that's the least of my concerns. In all respects... I see you're a bit more powerful, all of you. In the least case I highly doubt you'll get by me, but if this should extend towards the Magnusi Prime I don't think any of you will as much as breathe in his general direction before he submits you to eternal agony through the most disabling and punishing of dimensional controls."

"Happy happy funtime." Max murmured.

"You're getting a bit ahead of yourself." Keele climbed out of the tank, standing atop it.

"I suppose so," Antimagnus sang. "But if I were standing in your shoes you'd wish I'd go as far as to get it over with."

"Fine, then," Charmy hopped off the tank. "Trance. See if we care."

"Does it matter? You have TWO Trances at your disposal, a noname Regen lackey, and a bunch of weird looking people that I'm not going to bother identifying even though their smoldering remains won't give me a good idea anyways."

"You're a lot of talk lately. More so than I remember." Ultimanium stood at the head of the vehicle. "I think you've lost your touch."

Antimagnus stanced himself as bright purple electricity arced around him, emitting a high-pitched squeal. "I've still got more of the touch than any of you EVER will!!" he stretched back out as the energy reshaped itself into a bright purple shield, rising above him and piercing towards the celing. A harsh wind was blasted outwards, causing everyone save for Ultimanium and Keele to shield their faces. As the light died, Antimagnus' Trance was revealed, much smaller than before but still even more hulking than its host's previous form, nearly three times taller.

Millenial let his head fall again, its gilded, scaly surface shining in the overabundance of light in the courtyard. His face twisted into a reptilian grimace. "Alright, then. Are you willing to make YOURSELF proven? Well, I welcome it."

Ultimanium was the first to step forward as a similarly-styled blue facade surrounded him. Moments later it shattered into particles of light, leaving the silver-haired man behind as the energy reformed itself into a protective barrier.

"We're not afraid of you anymore." Shaun muttered. He rolled up his sleeves, following Ultimanium as he dropped his handcannon to one side. He was abruptly stopped by Charmy.

"Are you crazy?" Charmy shook Shaun's arm for good measure. "He's still a full Trance... maybe you should just leave us to handle things..."

"We're all a little stronger. If you're asking why I ditched the Mega Launcher, because I can't hit a small target, speaking in terms of Trance. I'm all for melee combat in this case. I haven't had a good workout in a while." Shaun darted ahead, leaving Charmy standing in a daze. She glanced down at her own self, still pulsing with the energies of her infused Trance. Perhaps it was time for her, as well to start pulling her weight in the thickest of things.

"Now stands what I have aspired for these long years." Keele hopped down, also beginning his passive approach. "A true Magnusi... astounding... let's see how my Regen will stand!" he stanced himself partway through his advance, gaining a thin layer of bright green energy around himself.

"So everybody's in this time?" Millenial glanced to his new opponents, then to Melanie and Max. "I still have the Trance of the Magnusi on my side... but even I'm interested how this will turn out!" he raised his own hand, gathering energy in it. A stone-cold frown crossed his face. "Nearly."


********


"...graaahh..." Magnus slumped to the ground midstride, as did Ultramagnus.

"What's going on?!" Gohan screeched.

"Antimagnus must have triggered his own Trance elsewhere..." Balkan growled. "...the fool... he isn't fully powered-up though, for some reason... and it would seem all the power levels in his area are unclouded... he's up for a fight..."

"Don't tell me that's Ultimanium and the others." V2 gasped.

"...forget it!" Magnus bellowed. "Worry about him!"

"Do you think I couldn't see this coming?" Ultramagnus laughed as he suddenly rose back to his feet. "Or any other Trance worth his salt, for that matter? My superiors have insured me from such letbacks..."

"Superiors?" Eric asked.

"The Magnusi Prime." Ultramagnus chuckled. "Were you not initially surprised to see me alive? Maybe I wasn't alive a short time ago. But the Magnusi Prime... blessed me with life, and granted me the power and the absolute anger I possessed so long ago and sent me out to reattempt my mission... to crush Argetlahm!! And secure dominance for the Magnusi!"

"Who?! What..." Vegeta stammered.

"We'll worry about it later!" Gohan shouted back.

"Oh, but what about now?" Ultramagnus laughed. "I'll tell you. The power level derived from a Trance-in-progress is dependant on many factors, not just your power level. Our friend Balkan here should know that, hm? Awareness level, lack of sleep, any number of emotionally and physically draining factors can all add greatly into the level of drain that is set upon yourself when another integration of yourself Trances! Mind you, I've got plenty of energy stored up... just for you..."

"TRY IT!!"

"RENZOKAMEHAMEHA!!" Ultramagnus crossed his arms together - the pose was embedded in Gohan and Vegeta's minds, clear as day. The fact that this was the exact same movement taken by Ultramagnus at the end of the Ultimatum only reinforced what they were up against.

"That's a nice TRICK!!" Vegeta sidestepped to the front of the group, stretching out as suddenly he lurched upwards into the air, his hands a blur as they flew across every conceivable area in front of him. A wave of counter-Ki blasts, stretching the width of the hall, flew right in the face of Ultramagnus' signature attack, several of them coming in contact with the Renzokamehameha's multiple bolts and detonating each other with shuddering blasts of energy. Gohan suddenly rushed forward, tackling the Super Saiyan - Ultramagnus simply embraced his counterpart, launching himself backwards as he effortlessly flipped Gohan over his head, grinding him into the ground as he rocketed in reverse, giving him a horrific-looking moving piledriver.

Eric growled. He glanced back at Magnus, who was finally getting back on his feet. "Are you alright?"

"...asides from the 'hit by frieght train' epidemic, I think so." Magnus grunted. "I'm not sure how much of this I can take... I have to get out of here..."

"You ARE a Magnusi..."

"I TOLD you... again and again... but it doesn't matter right now. Nothing I do will matter right now... as long as the Tranced Magnusi leech my power I'm useless, and helpless on top of that. And last time it took a few days to get back into fighting shape..."

Eric nodded. "I can help. I have the Power."

"Forget about me! Eric, you have to fight Ultramagnus... from the looks of things, Vegeta and Gohan won't be able to hold him off forever... and V2 won't be able to handle his tamer being thrashed... their life forces are linked! Just quit worrying about.."

"I can get you to Trance. I can get you power to get rid of Ultramagnus permanently! Just believe in me!"

"ERIC!" Balkan bellowed. "Are you insane?! You can't be thinking of Fusion Trancing with Magnus! Though it would expand both your powers drastically, you're also Trancing with a power source of a currently-occuring Trance! There's no telling what implications that could have on the stability of either Trance, or any effects it could exert on the dimensional fabric!"

Vegeta dropped down in front of Ultramagnus. "Stand still!!" he suddenly flipped in the air, lashing out with a standing roundhouse kick. As Ultramagnus ducked, Gohan locked arms with him.

"Graah!!" Ultramagnus thrashed in Gohan's grip. "You little brat!!..." Gohan's pupils dilated as Ultramagnus attempted to push himself forward out of his grip, nearly tearing his arms completely off. Ultramagnus reeled back, planting both his feet in the teen's face with vicious force. Gohan streaked again across the floor, digging his previous trench even deeper.

"We're running out of options here." Eric said matter-of-factly.

Davis stood at the far side, his arms folded. "Oh, I'd say they are."

"Quit STANDING there, Davis!" Gohan screamed. "Give us a fucking HAND!!"

Davis shrugged, glancing down at his watch. "Three... two... one... and..."

Ultramagnus let out as a pained growl as everything around him began to slow down. He was subsequently nailed in the back of the head by a flying boot. Vegeta ducked quickly as Ultramagnus flew over him, smashing off the celing and into the ground, creating a giant fissure.

"What...?" Balkan blinked in disbelief.

"It's starting to get boring around here." Farah raised her leg high in the air again before letting it drop back to the ground.

Ultramagnus suddenly spun in place on the ground, jabbing both his open palms forward. A wave of bright yellow energy pulsed from them, sending visible feedback through the ground.

"Eep." Farah's eyes widened as she bounded against the wall, narrowly dodging the crescent of energy as it continued down the open hallway, disintegrating as it flew off into the distance.

"Just give us a chance!!" Eric yelled at Balkan.

"..."

"You old buffoon." Ultramagnus had already righted himself. "You employed the dimensionsplitting device J without even comprehending its true meaning? Or I'm sure you've attempted it, with that cult and all. I say we've made more headway with it than you and your little false religion ever would!"

"...then, we will not use it to conquer... or destroy what others hold dear..." Balkan glanced up. "We will use it to defend justice, and defeat you and your kind, whatever instabilities become of it!!"

"This'll hurt for a second." Eric rushed over to Magnus kneeling down to him as he pressed both hands against his bare chest.

"So be it!! But don't think your Trance will see the light of day." with a single motion, Ultramagnus swept his arm forward, a neon-green surge of energy leaping from it at Eric as he just began to channel energy.

"You walked right into that one." Magnus sighed.

Ultramagnus was only able to grimace for a moment. With one great, home-run swing the blast was deflected. Davis dropped the sword again. He tipped towards Vegeta. "Your game."

"It's always been my game." Vegeta sneered. Winding up, he spun through the air at Ultramagnus, striking downwards at his fist as he attempted to drive him into the ground. Ultramagnus parried, swinging his leg out and across to try to smash the other Saiyan away. Instead, Vegeta caught onto Ultramagnus' leg, pushing himself up and off it and catching Ultramagnus' throat in a scissor-hold between his legs. With one yell, Vegeta catapaulted himself backwards, slinging Ultramagnus into the wall.

"Neo Crusher!!" came the reply. A pitch-black cyclone of gravity tore at Vegeta. Quickly leaning to the side and toppling himself, Vegeta narrowly escaped the attack, watching grimly as it drilled straight through the other side of the corridor. He backflipped onto his feet as Ultramagnus stepped casually out of the rubble. Vegeta saw him flash a smile as with a rush of energy Ultramagnus dove at him, wrapping his arms around Vegeta's waist. With one hoist, both of them smashed through the celing Vegeta-first.

"Why isn't this working?!" Eric groveled.

"It may take some time to wrest some control from the currently occuring Trance," Balkan shot back. "There's no way to determine how long it will take to gain some control over the energies being siphoned from Magnus. Just pray Millenial gets distracted."

"Hoo boy." V2 muttered. "...hey, shouldn't we be, you know... giving Vegeta a HAND here?"

Farah sweatdropped. "That'd.. be dandy. I guess. Whatever's fine by you."

"I'll give you a lift." Gohan answered. He turned back to Eric and Magnus. "Eric, watch Magnus. We'll try to keep Ultramagnus distracted while you two power up." he stepped forward, Farah getting a good grip on Gohan's shoulder as they both hovered up through the gaping hole in the roof along with the others.

"...you know... it's at times like these I think to myself," Magnus coughed. "I could've turned into THAT at some point in my life."

"A max-level Super Saiyan?"

"Ugly as fuck." Magnus corrected.

"Ah." Eric replied.


********


"What are these things?!" Glenn reeled back as the wall of red suddenly reformed itself.


--------

The Grappler application of microdroid technology is made clear - exactly 125 have been assembled into a fierce ensemble that have the ability to fixate themselves around each other and literally form any other kind of physical structure. Needless to say, some of them can be extremely painful in some way or another. It is safe to assume that the Mass Polymorph ability will be used and abused.

DEADLIES - Multi Trance

--------


An inhuman buzz rang out. "Revolver/bazooka/missile/destroy/immolate/anvil/toothbrush/phalanx"
"What the hell is it saying...?" Falco held both his rifles up.

"None of those drones look like they could accomplish anything on their own..." Tails studied the swirling mass of red, forming itself into the shape of what looked like a gigantic handgun. "...revolver?... oh no... they're not individual probes, they're components of a larger one!"

"So?..."

"That IS a revolver."

"...fun."

The giant red old-style gun made a loud click as it pointed downwards. With one screech, all the Smashers split in different directions, as did their leaders. The wide barrel of the gun pulsed a bright white before spewing forth a wrecking-ball of energy, thankfully missing everyone as instead it crashed into the side of the duct, exploding in a great white wave of fire. Falco flipped both guns upwards, both of them making odd clunking noises as they discharged bolts of energy at the mass. The probes, however, bended inwards, temporarily seperated from the giant device, or otherwise easily navigated out of the way of the attacks that him, Glenn and Tails threw at it. At least a dozen of the tiny parasites detatched from the enormous gun, sweeping down on the three and swarming around them, letting off small shocks as they harassed their targets.

"Gah-son-bitch-frick-ow-" Falco, as with his comrades, danced around (or at least to the extent that their weightlessness let them), swatting at the tiny robots. By now, the vast majority of the battalion backed off, allowing the three their space as they danced in a tantrum. As they were distracted, the gun appeared to cock itself, instead devolving into another flurry of buzzes and beeps as it began to reform itself. The device now lost its coherant look, instead forming itself into a great, hollow tube.

"Forget it!" Captain Falcon began to drag Tails away, who was still clawing at himself. "Let's just get out of here!!" Everyone else seemed to agree. He ducked as in the period of a split-second the entire Smash battalion roared by him. "...o..kay." regaining his composure, he roared away, Tails still in his grip. Falco and Glenn followed, finally shrugging off their assailants.

"What's it up to?" Tails shouted.

"Yeep.." Falcon lurched as he suddenly ducked, a girder sweeping over his head. "...we're in deeper than I thought... we might run out of breathing space... if I'm... correct."

True enough. As great steel fins redirected the group, it lead them straight into a nightmarish maze of large pipes and energy conduits. At that point, nearly everyone was headed in a different direction - Falco counted eleven different paths taken by the Smashers before he himself slipped into a side duct, twisting upwards. If there was one thing that Falco had been made aware of so far, it was that flying the same twisting turns and dangerous curves without the life-support systems and general protection of the Arwing he normally would have tackled the task in made him more than mildly nauseous.

"Crud..." Falco glanced behind himself as he entered a straightaway. "Lost everybody... well, I guess that thing is someone else's problem, at the very least."

"Are you so sure."

Falco paled. "Eep."

He exited the tunnel into another transfer duct. Sitting directly in front of him were the Deadlies, with Appleton standing on the top of its seemingly stable barrel. "Going somewhere? I would be a little disturbed if my comrade went another direction to leave the Deadlies to them."

Falco glanced forward in time to see energy arcing within the Deadlies. Yelling, he suddenly forced himself upwards as hard as the gravpack would take him. He reeled back, springing off the wall of the duct once more as the massive barrel's end lit up, letting out a dull roar as the entire structure rocked backwards, blasting into the wall with a gigantic laser - tearing a near-50-foot hole through the wall of the transfer duct. Falco crested his flight, swooping downwards at Appleton with a flying kick. Appleton brought his hands up, catching Falco's leg. The avian let out a squawk as Appleton spun once, throwing him downwards into the accepting Deadlies. Falco pierced through the outside of the barrel, plummeting downwards into it as at the far end another blast blinked, ready to incinerate its indirect target.

Appleton grinned wickedly as the Deadlies shuddered beneath him. Closing his eyes, he turned to walk to the far end of the polymorph - and instead was smashed in the gut as a flaming Falco blasted back through the surface, sending his flaming body back against the Deadlies, which cradled him appropriately. Growling, he crawled back to his feet, eyeing Falco as the flame around him died out.

"I save things for that for people like you." Falco growled as behind him several of the hit Deadlies self-destructed, causing the remaining to scatter and begin reforming again. Several dozen dart-like entities became visible, each constructed of only a few Deadlies.

"MISSILE!" Appleton cast his finger down at Falco, causing the multiple clusters of Deadlies to hiss as they rocketed downwards at their target. Almost immediately, laser blasts rained down on the Deadlies, causing them to split again. "...what?!"

"We don't have time!" Tails yelled. "I've done a scan.. the structural design and composition of the individual Deadlies means they can't operate under normal gravity, like that in the Van Eltia! Forget about him, we have to find a way back into the Van Eltia!"

"DESTROY!! TOOTHBRUSH!!" Appleton screeched. Falco and Tails watched in dismay as every single one of the Deadlies pulsed a bright blue, reforming again into... a toothbrush. "Go!!... and DESTROY!!"

"Have you used max power on the gravpack yet?" Tails asked as he began to move forwards.

"...well.. no." Falco responded.

"Then DO IT!"

Tails reached behind Falco, yanking a ripcord as he did the same behind himself. They were immediately flipped 90 degrees, and suddenly launched forward. With a spectactular blast of energy, both shot off in a blink of light. "DESTROY!!" Appleton repeated, swinging his arms as suddenly the giant, primed toothbrush launched after its prey.

"As long as we don't run into anything..." Tails squeaked as he tried to keep his face in its right position. "We shouldn't have a problem."

Falco blinked as the layers of pipes wrapped themselves around the two as they barelled through a miniscule opening in the wall.

"...this won't end well." Falco sighed.


********


"You don't know how long I've waited for this moment. A simple chance to redeem myself. I realize you tire of me saying it, but I don't believe I ever will... I should have destroyed you and your ship when I had the chance. Either that many years ago, or at Gaea's Isle... shown you the real ruthlessness of the Magnusi. Now will have to suffice."

There was an eerie silence as Omnimanium and Millenial exchanged glances. There was a bright flash - and they were upon each other. Both had already torn benches out of the ground nearby and were locked in a parry with them by the time everyone else had blinked.

By the time their audience had thought about blinking again, Millenial's knee crashed against Omnimanium's chin, sending him up in the air and down again. Omnimanium barely put out his hand fast enough to break his fall, rolling away as Millenial lunged forward, crashing both his massive fists into the ground. With a flash, Omnimanium launched himself back at Millenial, reaching back far and sweeping downwards, smashing his own fist on top of Millenial's tough head, and appropriately smashing Millenial's head into the ground. Millenial flipped forward again, double-kicking him straight in the chest and sending him flying to the far end of the chamber, crashing straight through the wall as dust sheeted that edge of the courtyard.

"Who's coming in?" Keele turned back to the others. Charmy already reeled back as his cold blue eyes pierced into hers. "I'm going to try to jump in, but I need backup. A Trance, and Shaun seems ready to go."

"Eh, how about me?" Max asked sheepishly.

Melanie reluctantly stuck up her hand.

Charmy blinked. "..I-I can't fight! I can't fight with anything, period... I'm sorry, I'm sorry, that entire thing with the sniper rifle? I made it up. I was a lucky shot. A really lucky shot. That's about it. How am I supposed to fight without even that?"

"Like how the rest of us do." Shaun muttered. "Blood, sweat and limbs."

"...b-but I don't know any of your flashy.. kung-fu commie-hommie-ha hadoo-ken flying dragon special combo martial arts moves! I can't fight with my bare hands!..."

"Neither could I." Keele cooly remarked. "Do you think I have any martial arts training? I'm completely freestyle."

Charmy paused. And blinked again. "...you just.. punch and kick how you feel..?"

Keele nodded. "Regen is not a martial art, per say. It is more a doctrine of training. But since you've become a Trance, you've thought very much the opposite, I assume?"

"..yeah.. are you sure?"

"I'm sure. And if you're right up there with Ultimanium's Trance, martial art or no martial art, you should still be able to deal a fair amount of damage."

"But what do I do?"

"Go up and hit Millenial as hard as you can. Like us."

Charmy tugged at her collar. "..uh.. okay.. whatever you say, then.. let's.. go.. and.. stuff?"

"Then let's go."

Charmy watched as Keele launched himself through the air, very much in the same manner that Ultimanium had earlier, while Shaun ran alongside him, and Melanie aside Shaun. Finally gaining a frown, Charmy kept pace shortly behind the group.

Millenial, meanwhile, began to advance on Omnimanium's battered body as he slumped out of the wreckage that he helped mold. He threw his arm to blast the Magnusi as it advanced toward him, but instead had his arm kicked away, lifting him into the air and flipping him onto his back.

"Ironic. Notice how Ultramagnus had you in this exact same position, Omnimanium and all, and still managed to defeat you single handedly.. if it weren't for your meddling Argetlahm you never would have survived... and now, look at history repeat itself.. and this time, you don't have your ship of fools to save you... do you not notice how when things look up, they really are mediocre? Do you really think you could've gotten your pittance of a Trance to a level to topple the tranced Magnusi?! ANSWER ME!!" Millenial swung back his taloned leg, kicking Omnimanium as hard as possible - sending him rolling completely up the wall and depositing him a short distance away.

He was ready to reach down and strike again, until a ball of solid energy cracked hard against his back. As Millenial let out a pained yell, Keele shielded his eyes as he snapped his fingers. "Indignation!!"

"By the-" Millenial's confusion was cut short by lethal pain as the sphere of electricity exploded, sending a teravolt of unprocessed electrical energy tearing through his form. His reptilian eyes dilated, bloodshot as the massive influx of energy dissiapated, dissolving in a shockwave that tore the ground around him to pieces.

"Eagle Fury!!" Millenial regained his bearings as Shaun's airborne foot swept, launching a sharp edge of air at him. The attack struck down perfectly at his throat, causing his eyes to bulge out as he felt the wind drained from him. Another hit him in the forehead, and suddenly Shaun flipped and roared down through the air at him, bootstomping his face against the ground at an arc - the power drove Millenial a distance away, tearing up the ground until smashing through the wall.

Charmy breathed a sigh of relief as she watched Millenial crash through the wall - until she head a very familiar ringing noise.

"You seem to be quite smug." Charmy hopped, pivoting around to stare right in the face of Millenial. "Getting to sit in the back lines and everything. Your friends seem to be doing quite a good job, better than I thought. Even I'm surprised to battle them at these power levels. But you.. what do you do?"

Charmy reeled back, suddenly lurching back forward and punching Millenial square in the face.

Max winced as the dragon Trance whizzed by him, smashing through the wall next to him in very much the same manner as before. Charmy drew her hand back, still surprised at her suddenly display of strength. "...I.. I Trance. That's what I do."

"Yes... yes you do. You Trance." Millenial walked from the mass of debris, still without a scratch. "And soon you, along with your little friends, will be notified AGAIN how very little it means."

Keele stanced himself again, ready for melee combat. "This is going to be a lot harder than any of us can fathom."

Millenial flashed through the air at Keele and Shaun. "Yes. Yes it will be."


********


Narrin sat at the window, with a mug of coffee sitting on the small desk in front of him. He looked up with a frown on his face as Ryo entered the dorm.

"Am I interrupting something?"

Narrin paused for a moment. "...no. Please, have a seat."

Ryo blinked, dragging the small bed over to the desk. "...I understand you're all upset about this..."

"Don't play dumb with me, Ryo," Narrin suddenly shot back. "You know what's going aboard Argetlahm, as do I. You brought Daisuke to this place... and you have already discussed with Ultimanium. I demand to know why the J3 is operative at this time."

"...maybe we won't need to warm it up later on our way home."

"There is something you're hiding from me, as is Ultimanium - and you're going to tell me, one way or another. Don't think you've seen the last of me, Ryo."

Ryo peered up into Narrin's infuriated eyes as he literally disappeared into thin air. Almost instantly, a loud knock came at the door. "...come in."

The door propped itself open as Raul stepped in. "...I see you've already had your talk."

"He suspects something." Ryo sighed. "I've discussed this with you, Ultimanium, everybody... but he just won't listen... he isn't willing to go to those extremes. I don't understand... why can't he see... this is beyond even us now, even if we share more with the Magnusi Prime than anyone ever will..."

"This is still a backup plan." Raul spoke. "Always, always remember that. Not even I understand the mechanics behind using the J3 itself to fight the Magnusi Prime... but I'd prefer not to."

"Indeed." Ryo said sadly. "Neither do I."








TO BE CONTINUED...