Summer Daze: The Swimsuit Challenge

Ch-11

Summer Daze:

The Swimsuit Challenge

Another hot day it was. Captain Steffbird sits atop a whale in the open shores while Claws naps ashore under an umbrella. It was a day at the beach, girls in swimsuits running around. Sairori looks away smiling, remembering the good old days of his youth.

Tannen couldn't care less of the others as they wait in line at an ice cream stand. Auroa lurks in the shadows by the cooler while Maigashi flirts away with some girls.

"Where could those two lovebirds be?" Auroa wondered.

Back at the Aggerona lair…

"Just look at them; how pitiful. Such youth at a summer daze." Moon gazed back at the screen.

"So, what's the next approach? Shall Commander Bronze take action?" Second hand suggested.

"No, not this time."

He pauses for a moment thinking back.

"At least the D2 drinks accomplished something."

"Yes, we're no longer in debt."

A Glamour comes in to deliver the mail to them. An ad catches Moon's attention.

"What's this? A male and female swimsuit competition…." The flyer gave him an idea.

"Oh no! You're not thinking of."

"Of course not." Moon snapped. "This event utterly annoys me even more. But, on the other hand, this competition could work to our advantage."

Moments later, back at the beach, Claws and the party arrive by the gates to a theme park. It was a grand opening. Aggerona's symbol rests above it.

"Looks fun! Let's check it out." Katty said.

"You sure this isn't a trap. Another of the enemy's elaborate schemes." Tannen pointed.

"Who cares?" Maigashi shrugged. "Remember, Gleese and Haze City is among the neutral territories. So we shouldn't worry too much."

The gates open as everyone goes to check it out. A crowd of people lined up to get in. Rides, games, and amusement shows are all around.

"Oh, I want to ride that fast coaster!" Claws pointed.

"Eh….what harm can a day off do." Tannen nodded.

Tannen figures they should enter for the heck of it, expecting a monster attack to happen.

Back at the capital, the General oversees the crowd enjoying themselves.

"A good amount of the civilians are at the theme park. So a monster attack would be perfect at this time." Taishae suggested.

"True…Mmm, now nobody will go to that boring competition. Wait… What's this!"

Moon checks over the screen. Among the guests, Alistor and Rena were not present.

"Adjust the viewing screen," Moon ordered.

Taishae locks on to Alistor and Rena's position by the beachside. Rena is seen in a bathing suit, preparing for the contest.

"Uh! That accursed Silver Maiden. This is unacceptable, mmm."

"What can we do about it?" The General asked.

"Just watch and see. I'll handle this from here. Prepare Darrum for me." Moon commanded.

"Right away."

At the swimsuit competition, Auroa gets dragged along by Maigashi while the others stay at the theme park.

"Did I need to come…Ugh, I want to go back." Auroa requested.

"Hey, you might never know. This event could be our chance to get lucky and score some chicks for tonight." Maigashi said.

Auroa, just facepalms as the competition was starting as the announcer's voice comes on the air. Alistor is not far from the backstage with Ralph, sitting in his wheelchair near the front.

"Ladies and gentlemen! The swimsuit contest will now begin!"

The competition commences. Plenty of fine young men and women come out to the scene. Some male contenders walked on stage in their swim trunks, striking a pose. The crowd starts cheering. Females in their swimsuits then followed up on the scene. The crowd cheers wildly. Mira comes walking out in a leotard pleasing the group to a cheery delight.

"Is that really Mira? I can't even believe it's really her." Ralph muttered.

"And now for our paired couples! Let's bring 'em out!"

Alistor and Rena are seen backstage along with other couples paired like them. Rena is ready to make her debut.

"Rena….why did you have to drag me into this?" Alistor moped.

"Oh, quit complaining! If we win, we'll totally get an all-expense trip to Crescent Moon Island. Heh…I got this in the bag." Rena assured.

Rena soon walks out in her swimsuit. The crowd went wild, madly cheering away. Alistor merely follows along in his trunks. He did his best to maintain his posture as the other couples lined up on stage by them. Cameras flashed on the scene.

"Let's get on to the voting!"

A moment later, voting went underway. From the booth, the contestant's scores get tallied. Then, Maigashi made his way over to Auroa.

"Hey, Auroa! Check out what I hooked for us."

He presents a pair of chicks to him. The couple wearing nothing more but skimpy swimsuits. They wave back with a fake smile. Auroa expresses an uninterested look.

"They may not be a runner up, but they are UP for some fun tonight," Maigashi added. "My man here is a wind channeler. He, in fact, made some good cash at the casino back in Haze. So he'll be glad to treat us for a ride."

"Ugh….I hate you." Auroa muttered.

The two leave off with the pair of girls. Alistor remains on the scene with Rena, waiting for the tallied results.

Minutes later…Ready to announce a winner, Moon waited quietly behind the curtains.

"We have the results! And the winner for this year's Gleese swimsuit competition is…."

Moon's silhouette appears behind the curtain stage. Now visible to the crowd, he casually walks to center stage. He grabs the microphone away from the announcer.

"Why, it's me, of course!!!"

"Seneca?" Ralph muttered.

"Oooh, how much I despise this pointless contest. Such a waste of bitter time. You all should have been at the theme park."

"What the hell do you want?" Rena asked.

"There is a much greater beauty at hand. And it's me! Not one of you can even come close."

"This guy is full of himself…." Alistor added.

The audience begins complaining, but Moon abruptly fires a dark wave dispersing the crowd.

"Enough! Darrum, get in there."

Darrum pops into the scene. The crowd immediately panics, leaving the contest undecided of a winner. Darrum starts chasing many away with its whirling tentacles. Claws happen to arrive on the scene.

"This thing again?" Claws shouted.

"Yeah, but it's much smaller this time." Alistor pointed.

"I'll take care of it from here." Claws insisted.

Moon starts making his way to the other side of the beach.

"Leave Seneca to us."

Rena and Alistor jump to battle, wearing nothing but their swimsuits. Moon makes the first strike, scattering a dust cloud of dark energy at them.

"Come on! Hit me with your best shot." He tries to provoke them.

"A darkness user?" She smirked. She pulls out her massive twin blades, striking a pose in her swimsuit.

"I reckon we try a light-based attack?" Alistor suggested.

"Sure, why not. This drama queen is starting to annoy me."

The two decide to retaliate back with a blast of light. Moon sends his tentacles at them, but they maneuver around it easily. He then sends a shadow sphere at them. The two breakthroughs his attack.

"Eat this!!!"

Rena blasts his face with a heavy amount of light at blank range.

"Oooof!!!! Ah! The pain! IT BURNS! IT BURNS! Oooooh ……"

They stare at him. Emperor Moon covers his face for the moment, pauses. He then peeks open with one eye to creep them.

"JUST KIDDING!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Oooooh HOO HOO HOO!"

Pretending to act in pain pissed Rena off.

"Just seeing the look on your faces amuses me. How unequivocal do you think I am? Just because I fiddle with a few such arts doesn't make me a pure dark fanatic. You need more than that old trick to best me."

Rena was speechless, irritated to no end as Moon went on.

"Taishae told me much about you two. Such passion, many desires, and of your hopes to accomplish."

They don't trust his word. So then, believing he was bluffing away, they attacked again.

"Shut up and die already!!!"

Hitting Moon with twice the amount of power, the light this time pierces through his body. Tearing his body into liquefied droplets of water. Tentacles whip around as it melts away into the sands.

"Did we get him?" Alistor asked.

"I think so…." She flicks the side of her hair.

Back at the other battle, Claws has the others to reinforce him. The monster Darrum swings mindlessly; thus, it falls into Auroa's trap. With a team attack, Maigashi quickly finishes it with lightning shooting through its mouth.

"Next time, warn us when you bring a monster towards us." Maigashi pestered.

"Well, sorry…" Claws said. "It was the best option I had to lead it away from the public."

The pair of girls stand behind Auroa. They squeal and hop excitingly, impressed by their team's performance.

"Well, if you don't mind. We have a date to enjoy." Maigashi said.

"Whatever…." Claws shrugged.

Back with Alistor and Rena…

A cold shoulder is soon felt behind. A moist breath by Alistor's neck, Alistor didn't want to turn around as Moon easily regenerated. Rena slams down her sword, nearly hitting Alistor, but Moon jumps back.

"Oooooh hoo!"

"Damn it!!! This guy is annoying." She raged.

Moon came to a standoff with them.

"How utterly disappointing. You may have bested Silver, pounced over Gold, but you're nearly not as tough as they say. Now it's my turn."

The two got into a defensive stance.

"The sea is my realm...Light may travel faster than anything, but no matter how fast, darkness will always be there waiting for it first."

The sea grew dark to a pitch black. A large burst of energy emits from him. Then, influenced by darkness, a colossal figure forms from the open sea. Rena and Alistor stood there amazed at the amount of power.

"Hoo, let's see how you like this."

The colossus falls over. It plows down, knocking Alistor and Rena both away in one shot. The beachside floods within seconds.

"We're not done yet." Alistor struggled.

Persistent enough, they hold on together and resist the force of the tides.

"Now watch this!"

Moon immediately raises a whole tidal wave from the shoreline, ready for another blow. Towering more than ten stories, the wave catches everyone's attention. Rena and Alistor stand on the side, speechless.

"This power…we can't take another hit like that," Rena muttered.

"What do we do now?" Alistor asked.

Moon stands strong, laughing maniacally.

"Washed up already?"

He prepares to crash the second wave on them, but a large blast of lightning soon hits him from behind.

"What the heck?"

Maigashi, Zolhalla, and Sairori arrive on the scene. They interrupt his wave with a combined attack. He was left stunned in paralysis as his liquid body fights to stay attached.

"Damn it! Lightning users..."

Taking effective damage against it, he falls back to the open seas. They rush to Alistor and Rena's side, checking on them as Auroa stands with the rest from the sidelines. Tannen felt overwhelmed looking at the massive wall of water. Finally, the tidal wave dies down, leaving a gush of water to pull on land. Moon takes his leave.

"Love to stay, but you've all given me quite a workout today. I'm most depleted. For now, that is all, ta ta."

Moon's body dissipates back into the ocean. Captain Steffbird arrives on his whale, giving the party a lift.

Later that night….

"Just who is that Seneca guy? He's like no ordinary monster we've faced so far." Alistor mentioned.

Rena was busy drying her hair off. All deterred and quiet, a fearful look was in her eyes.

"Taishae must be getting serious from here on out. Let's not forgot you both weren't properly equipped today." Claws reminded.

Recuperating back at the hotels by Gleese City, they take a moment to reflect on their loss.

Meanwhile, at some bar with Maigashi and Auroa…

"Sigh…and once again, you're slumped as usual." Auroa nodded. "Those girls were just for show as expected. Glad I brushed them away."

Maigashi was wasted away; his head lay flat on the table. With piles of liquor beside him, Auroa helps Maigashi up from his chair.

"Time to head back. Maybe we can catch one of Axe's shows in the future once this mission is complete."

He leaves off, carrying Maigashi over his shoulders.

Moon returns to the capital. All moody and excited, it was a victory for them.

"Hoo, did you see me out there?"

"Yes, I see you've showcased some power, but was that wall of water really necessary? You had them already on the run." Taishae said.

Emperor Moon begins to contemplate.

"I know… that move did take up a lot of energy, but it was all for intimidation. I would have had them, but all that matters is I won today. They're probably all left worried, scared, or even sobbing hoo hoo."

Taishae looks over at the theme park still intact on screen.

"They may have bested Silver and Gold, but they're not so tough."

A little alarm rings on a clock in the room.

"Tea Time!!!!!! Let's go."

The two dismissed the palace. Whatever was going down, everything went as they favored.

The theme park still sits along by the beach, illuminating the night. A distant voice of Moon's laughter can be heard from the eerie shores. The scene transitions back to Alistor and Rena. The thought of their loss still crossed their mind.

"Seneca…"

From the balcony top at the hotel, Alistor and Rena gaze at the open sea on a starry night.