F-6. Big Daddy

Planet Bounjum

With the KNN ship repaired, Danny drove Jessie, Sugar, Wendy, and Carla to a colorful planet that was flashing in several areas. Upon entering the atmosphere, they realized that it was a planet composed entirely of circus tents. The stars in the sky sparkled like the circuses' countless lights. "A planet that's naturally composed of circuses…" Sugar smiled in awe as she stepped onto a red carpeted platform. "Wouldn't Floop go crazy if he saw all this, Wendy?"

"He sure would!" Wendy beamed at the colorful sights. "If I invited him here, I'm afraid he might explode like one of his balloons!"

"I would enjoy it, too, if Bill's ugly eye wasn't glaring everywhere." Jessie noticed giant eyeball pyramids rotating on the tips of numerous tents. "There's more than enough tents here for the Darknesses to use as hideouts."

"I agree. But Meloetta's definitely here. I can hear her voice." Sugar said. "Let's rescue her before Bill has a chance to hurt her." (Play "Switch Scramble Circus" from Mario 3-D World!)

Stage F-3: Land of Tents and Mirth

Mission: Rescue Meloetta from Bill.

"Come one, come all, to joyous Planet Bounjum! This is Bill Cipher, your new sub-ruler, coming to you live with enough entertainment for a multiverse! Watch as four hapless souls brave the perilous park in some silly, ill-forgotten hope of defeating me! Hurry now, Polokus!"

The trio leapt onto and grinded along a tightrope, which snaked around several circus tents before setting them on a red path. Juggler Heartless (impish jesters) came rolling in on giant balls, juggling bombs that they would hurl at the operatives. Jessie blew a bubble trampoline to bounce them back—however, Bulblin Archers perched above tents popped the bubble with arrows. Wendy was quick to defend from the bombs with Protego, then Carla lifted her up to blast the Heartless with spells.

Shy Guys were swinging on trapezes higher above the path and dropping bombs, forcing the group to evade them as well as the Bulblins' arrows. At the end of the path, they had access to two cannons that fired confetti bombs, and they were strong enough to hit the Bulblins and knock them off. Jessie was able to make slanted bubble trampolines so they could bounce up to a higher path. From here, they were level with the Trapeze Guys. Sugar faced them, put her hand in an 'o' over her mouth, and coughed a straight sonic wave that struck them all in a straight line. Sugar then decided to swing these trapezes, doing so gracefully until she landed perfectly on a floating platform.

There, she discovered a Catch Card. The card's captive was a spike-haired man named Brock, whose eyes seemed to be closed, yet he could still see. "I must be dreaming," Brock's face reddened, smiling goofily at Sugar, "because a giant version of the perfect girl is holding me!"

Sugar giggled. "My, I've found a cute one, haven't I? I know just where to put you." With that, she slipped Brock in her cleavage.

"That's completely inappropriate!" Carla stated.

"Don't be jealous because you two are late."

Wendy was saddened, looking down at her chest. Sugar swung back to them (wait, how did they even see that from that far?), and they headed into a circus tent. In this tent, a thin pathway of tiles went around and over a pit, shaping like a rectangle with an indent in the middle top. The tiles all bore the Heartless Emblem, but when Wendy stepped on one, it changed to the KND logo. "Perhaps something will happen if you step on them all." Carla said.

It switched back to Heartless Emblem. "I'll need to do it quickly." With that, Wendy began to dash across the path, doing quick right-angle turns when it was needed. The indent almost threw her off, but she kept steady and was able to convert all the emblems to 'KND.' They all sparkled as a tightrope grind-rail appeared below. "Welcome to the Grind-and-Shoot! Shoot the targets as you're grinding and see what surprises await!"

"I bet we won't like them." Jessie said, drawing his Keyblade. "Let's go." He jumped on the rail first, followed by Wendy, then Sugar. Whenever a flame barrier would come up along the tightrope, Wendy had to shoot a spell at a target to lower the gate, but would have to hold back in doing so if there was no gate. Jessie, in the meantime, swat Air Soldier Heartless away. The tightrope eventually led outside and dropped them on a large, round platform.

"Ouchie-ouchie!" Sugar rubbed her reddened soles. "Grinding barefoot is a bad idea!"

"We've got company, girls." Jessie cautioned, facing upward. A Mega Alakazam floated down, ten spoons rotating around him via psychic. The Pokémon rapidly flung its spoons to attack them, Jessie blocking with Keyblade and Wendy with Protego. "WAAAAAHH!" Sugar cried a deadly soundwave to hurt Alakazam's ears, leaving Wendy to blow it down with a Sky Dragon Roar.

Afterwards, Jessie impaled the Keyblade into its head. "I read that psychics are weak against fear. I can use my Keyblade to unlock the fears this one has."

"Ala…Ala…kazam!…" The Pokémon gripped its head in agonizing fear. He flew up and aimlessly crashed into tents before plummeting down. "So, Polokus, you've developed a fancy for using fear. But don't forget who the real master is. I still see the way you think about Shelly when no one's looking."

A music note pad appeared on one side of the platform. Standing on it fueled Sugar's Music Chi, and she sung the circus theme to make a Song Road for her friends to glide on. Like any Song Road, Sugar alternated lines to touch the notes and stay with the rhythm. The Song Road surfed up the roof of a tent, ending at the top where Sugar grabbed a trapeze—Wendy holding her legs and Jessie holding Wendy's. A rush of wind brushed them as they swung down, zooming past numerous tents.

"HAH HAH HAH HAH!" A large Bill picture popped up in their route and sprouted spikes.

"AAAH! LEAN LEFT!" Sugar screamed, hurriedly turning the swing and flying that direction to avoid the spikes just in time. They dodged left and right to avoid upcoming torch towers, followed by a rather tight U-turn around a spike wall. As they were coming to land on a platform, Sugar luckily caught a floating Catch Card in her cleavage.

"BACK OFF, this spot's taken!" Brock shouted.

"This is entirely inappropriate!" yelled King, a short boy with orange hair.

"Only one, please!" Sugar took King out and handed him to Wendy.

"Sorry for the abrupt treatment." Wendy told him before placing the card in her pocket. The next path was littered with Beamos designed like Bill's head, shining triangular spotlights around the floor. "Reducto!" Wendy attempted to destroy one of the Beamos, but the triangle looked in her direction and turned red. Bulblins charged out of unseen places and bombarded them with arrows, Jessie swiftly swinging his Keyblade as a defense measure and stabbing the demons once to put them to sleep.

They made a mad dash through the Beamos field and got to a tower of tall platforms. Wendy put up a magic shield from the Bulblins, allowing Jessie to make bubble trampolines to bounce them up to the platforms. Some platforms had Yellow Chuchus that would flatten and electrify, requiring them to wait for the Chus to power down before they were safe to attack. At the top of the tower, the heroes crossed a small bridge to the roof of a tent. A Card Bandit (a blue Shy Guy with a smirking mask) taunted "Nah nah nah-nah nah!" as it ran around the roof with a Catch Card. Wendy chased the Bandit with superior speed and tackled him to the roof. The card fluttered out of his grasp, but Carla caught it. The one in the Catch Card was a green-haired fairy named Cosmo.

"Ooo, a fairy cat! You'll make a great edition to our show! We got lots of bad episode ideas!"

"I have a more important show to run, thank you." Carla stashed him in her purse. The group discovered a hole in the roof that allowed them to enter the tent. They were on a platform with four cannons in each compass direction, and a target moving around the walls. Jessie whacked the cannons with the Keyblade to fire them, striking the target a total of three times before one of the walls opened. Sugar climbed in the corresponding cannon first as Jessie launched her, followed by Wendy, then he fired himself.

They landed on a slide that had small pools of lava, fairly easy to dodge. At the bottom of the slide, they stood before a small sea of balloons ascending from the abyss. "Only one way up!" Wendy said before happily bouncing up the balloons. Jessie and Sugar mimicked her actions, with each balloon popping upon touch and propelling them up a few feet. Along the balloon trail, giant slow-moving fan blades attempted to block their path, forcing them to keep bouncing in one area until the blades passed.

A giant fan was blowing balloons across a chasm, and the kids blew along with it. Bouncing on the balloons was trickier to do during this, but they managed to last until they could land on a new path. This road took them to a greater, blue-striped tent with two Bill heads rotating on top. "Well, well, well, you made it just in time, Polokus! I got everything set up for you. And of course, the ladies can come and watch."

Before entering the tent, Jessie looked right and saw a Shy Guy fondling a card in the corner. "Ho ho ho… this is the rarest card ever. I'll make millions selling it at the Dollar Store."

"Sounds good enough to steal." Jessie said before bashing the Guy unconscious. The Catch Card contained Blooregard Q. Kazoo. "Are you f**king kidding? This is the most common card of all."

"Hey, there's a million Bloo Cards. But there's only one me." Bloo stated proudly. "Well, except for my hundreds of clones."

"Go figure." Jessie put him away. Afterwards, the trio entered the tent. (End song.)

Some fanfare played as spotlights shone on a stage. The audience consisted of Heartless, Hollows, and demons. "WELCOME, Jessie Sidney, to the Sonata of Me and You!" Bill announced, using his scepter as a microphone. There was a giant egg on the stage, and they knew what it was. "Don't worry, Meloetta's still safe and sound. I've got bombs rigged to blow if you don't play along. Jessie, if you would, step onto the stage. Your girlfriends can wait down below."

"Not brave enough to fight us all?" Jessie cocked a brow. "Fine, Bill. I'll play your game." He passed a glance to Wendy, who looked calm and nodded. Jessie walked up the tall steps and onto the central stage. He stopped and observed the pyramid-shaped bombs around the stage.

"That's right… a bit closer…" Bill smirked. Jessie walked onto a small pad. "STOP!" Bill pressed a switch and the pad turned red. "That's a motion-sensor pad! Move even a single inch and this stage explodes! That includes turning your head or flexing a finger." Bill tapped the microphone. He looked up and smirked at the other conscience with Jessie. "This song's for you, too, Madotsuki. LIGHTS! CAMERA! ACTION!" The music played and the song began.

Take me home… to…

The Gameverse!

Bill danced and sidestepped, but Jessie refrained from turning his head.

Never dull… in…

The Gameverse!

Crossovers rule, it is WILD! *flips and does a splits*

Everyone laughs and everyone smiles

I was so GLAD to destroy them all

NOW I'm gonna DANCE!

Unbeknownst to Bill, Rupert Dickson was leading a small group of Pikmin across the stage, aiming to enter and disarm the bombs. I hope this works… Wendy thinks to herself nervously. It was Sugar's idea for Rupert to hide in Wendy's Vanishing Chest, so the girl could call them over if they needed to. Wendy released the Pikmin so they could hide under Jessie's robe minutes ago, and the Pikmin climbed off before he stepped on the motion-sensor pad.

I destroyed all your worlds and I'm dancing! *jigs forward*

I crushed all your hopes and dreams and I can't stop dancing! *jumps left and right; Jessie keeps still*

I have UNLIMITED POWER, and I'm still dancing! *explodes with blue flames briefly*

WHAT ELSE CAN I DO?!? *performs several flips before thrusting his face at Jessie*

But annoy the CRAP out of you!

Rupert's Ghost Pikmin phased into the bombs to disable them, but if Bill spotted the tinies during his dance, he would blow them up with no hesitation. So, if Bill looked at them, the Ghost Pikmin would make themselves and Rupert invisible. Bill kept singing,

Oh, hi there, Madotsuki! *the music repeats the rhythm*

Now, you were VERY kooky! *the music repeats again*

You were RAPED in the dead of niiiight

In the end, you chose suiciiiide

And thanks to you… I have legs now

ALL I do is DANCE!

Nigel Uno's dead and I'm dancing!

Jagar King's dead and I'm still dancing!

CALLIOPE IS DEAD!

And I just keep dancing!

LIKE SCOOBY-DOOBY-DOOOO!!! *swings his staff around before flashing columns of fire*

And piss the FUCK out of you! *flicks his hand at Jessie's face*

"Hey Jessie, stop me if you heard this one! Ahem:"

Moses *clap* supposes *clap* his toeses are roses

But Moses *clap* supposed this *clap* ERRONEOUSLY *rolls eyes*

So then Lord English *clap* proposes *clap* that toeses are roses

And Moses *clap* supposed his *clap* accurately

Because English WANTED THEM TO BEEEE!

"So to recap:"

A toes is a rose *clap*

A nose is a hose *clap*

Your clothes will outgrows *clap*

We knows as it goes

'Cause – wait I lost my train of thought – WHY?!?

"BECAUSE LORD ENGLISH SAID THEY WOULD BE!" cheered the audience.

"Thus, he proposed it ACCURATELY!"

You see, I can TASTE… your FEAR… *glares closely at Jessie as he steps around him*

Because the end… is… NEAR…

I never felt so alive!

It's so fun to look deep inside

That screwed up little mind of yours

Don'tcha wanna DANCE?

We're rewriting the worlds and we're dancing! *swings a trapeze*

We're killing everyone you love and we just love dancing! *rolls across on a giant ball*

I fucked up Mado's body, and STILL I'm DANCING

IT'S CRAZY, BUT IT'S TRUE!!!

All to FUCK with you!

"PLAAAAAAAH HAH HAH HAAAAAAAH! HA HA HA HA HAAAAAAH!" Bill fell into a laughing fit, but still Jessie wouldn't move his head to look at his ridiculous position. At least, not until he noticed Rupert giving the thumbs-up.

Jessie shut his eyes nervously and raised an arm. The motion-sensor didn't set off the bombs. He smirked to his teammates and gave the thumbs-up.

"HYYYAH!" In her humanoid form, Charle flew up to STAMP Bill under her high-heel.

Sugar and Wendy dashed up onto the stage—Wendy laid the Vanish Chest down for Rupert's army to jump into, leaving Sugar to open the Egg Chamber. Meloetta bared a human face, her hair long, flowing, and shining rainbow colors. She soared around the tent with music note wings that rained glitter and stung the monsters.

Meloetta set her high-heeled feet beside Sugar. "Ohhhh, Sugar!" she sang. "I heard so many wonderful voices! So many wonderful songs! All sung with love and harmony! Nothing could go wrong!"

"That sounds so amazing, Meloetta! I wanna hear these wonderful sounds!"

"After we hear the sounds of Bill's despair." Charle stated, keeping the child demon pinned under her heel.

"That's a song I can dance to!" Jessie smirked, tipping the Keyblade to Bill's head.

"Hn-n-now wait just a second, Polokus." Bill chuckled nervously. "I know we can strike a deal! Perhaps you'll like our Intermission Entertainment!"

The tent mysteriously levitated into the air, exposing them to a fleet of flying pirate ships surrounding them from every direction. Bill remained in his captive position, smirking as the heroes readied their guard. A Dark Pokéball came flying out of nowhere and struck Meloetta. "AAAH!"

"Meloetta!" Sugar screamed when the Firstborn turned into darkness and was slurped inside the Pokéball, which flew back into the hands of Ganondorf, standing on a tent.

The Darkball shook in Ganon's hand, alternating rainbow colors. "The Firstborn are much too powerful to be commanded by the likes of you. Unfortunately, these pathetic little child gods refuse to embrace their titanic power, and put their faiths in weak children who believe in goodness."

"Which is why we intend to put them to good use!" Bill said before poofing out from under Charle's feet and reappeared flying above them. "Still, it seems that even our Darkballs can't contain a 2nd Age Firstborn. Perhaps we need Sugar's help for this, too!"

"Okay, I'll help!" Sugar shouted. "Help Meloetta escape! MELOETTA, KEEP FIGHTING! DON'T LET THAT BALL CONTAIN YOUR SOUL! Mmmmp-!" She was seized from behind as a clawed hand slapped over her mouth.

"Cease your useless crying!" ordered a man with spiky blonde hair, red eyes, and fangs. "Or YOUR soul will spend the rest of eternity in my bowels!"

"Kids, I would like you to meet my new friend, Dio Brando!" Bill introduced. "He was so excited to join our cause, he jumped like a little kid!"

"And I won't hesitate to dine on your flesh NEXT, Cipher."

"Hey, can't blame a guy for poking fun. Just bite her, Dio. Once Sugar is under your control, Meloetta will fall into our service!"

Bite her? Is he like a vampire? Wendy wondered. In that case… "Lumos Solem!" Sunlight exploded from her wand, burning Dio's skin and giving Sugar the chance to escape.

"ARRRGH!" Dio screeched as the light continued to burn. "You annoying little-!"

"Uuuuuuuuaaaaaaaaaaahhhh. . . ." Meloetta was able to escape the Darkball, singing with a seemingly pleasant, yet earsplitting tone that sounded like nails scratching a million chalkboards in the enemies' ears. However, the heroes were safe in a Silence Shield she created.

"I think this is our cue to call Danny and leave!" Sugar decided.

"Hold on, where is Ganondorf?!" Charle noticed the Dark Lord was no longer on the tent.

"ENOUGH YOU BRATS!" A dark portal opened on another tent. Danny Jackson was kicked out, followed by Ganon as he pinned the boy under his foot. Meloetta ceased and gasped when Ganon tipped his sword to Danny's head. "Surrender immediately or I puncture this boy's head!"

"BOOM! CHECKMATE!" Bill cheered. "What's it gonna be, Polokus?! Wanna risk losing a teammate for the sake of attempting to make an escape?!"

"Guys, just forget about me!" Danny pled. "You've got Meloetta, so leave!"

"NO!" yelled Wendy. "We're not leaving anyone behind!!"

"You can't let them get Meloetta OR Jessie! You think I'm real happy about doing this?! I don't wanna die, either, but if you guys can save the universe, then I'm worth leaving! !"

"Y-You can't possibly…"

Jessie… you must heed his words. A voice spoke in his mind.

"Polokus…" Jessie closed his eyes in thought for a moment. "Sigh… Wendy, we have no choice."

"Jessie, but-!"

"We have to escape. We don't have time to think of another way."

"DIO, ATTACK THEM!" Bill shouted.

"LUMOS SOLEM!" Wendy cast the sunlight spell and subdued the vampire again.

"I WARNED YOU!" Ganon pierced the back of Danny's head without a moment's hesitation. Wendy nearly froze at what she had done.

"CHILD, THE BOX!" Charle snapped her out of it.

Wendy gasped and whipped out the Vanishing Chest. "Vacudo!" The small chest turned into a vacuum that slurped the four heroes and Firstborn inside.

On the other side, Rupert, Dr. Facilier, and Nebula noticed the chest shaking. "Looks like things didn't go well!" Rupert yelled in worry. Facilier opened the box, the five people flying out. Jessie sliced the chest with the Keyblade to prevent them from following.

"What happened?!" Nebula shouted.

"D-D-Danny is… d-dead!" Wendy trembled.

"Danny… Jackson?" Facilier asked in shock.

"I-It's all my fault!" The wind mage sniffled. "I-It was a forced reaction, I-I cast the spell, a-and Ganondorf, sniff-sniff!…"

"Wendy, it isn't your fault." Charle hugged her daughter softly. "If you hadn't have done that, we all would've been killed. You saved us."

"B-But Danny…"

"I know… it's terrible. But we have to keep fighting. We can't let his sacrifice be in vain."

"Sniff…sniff… I promised myself I wouldn't cry, anymore, Mom… I promised that I would do my very best to help everyone…"

Facilier softly touched the child's shoulder. "It's alright, Wendy… Just take a moment to let it all out. But when you're finished… your friends are gonna need you again."

Wendy allowed her tears to flow for the next few moments. Jessie and Sugar shared her remorse for Danny… but internally, they wondered what would have happened if either of them died and a Firstborn would fall into the enemy's hands. Danny's loss did not seem as great in comparison… but it didn't seem like Wendy preferred to think that way. So, they said nothing and let her cry.

Unknown hideout

"WAH HAH HAAAaaa…" Bill was sobbing as he trekked down the corridor. "Wah hehn heeeehhhn…"

"Ohhh, poor Bill…" Xehanort passed by with a sympathetic expression. "What's the matter?"

"I almost had a Firstborn, but those stupid kids took her and escaped! Even after we threatened to kill one of their stupid friends! Sniff, sniff…"

"Hur hur hrm. They allowed one of their own to perish to protect a Firstborn?" Xehanort stroked his beard. "Such a selfish action… the darkness is starting to swallow them."

"Yeah…Yeah, I guess it is!" Bill cheered up. "Good golly, I feel loads better now! Thanks, Xehanort! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have another matter to see to!"

Bill continued to a chamber with a bright rainbow light source. "Well, the mission to capture Meloetta was a bust… but looking back, her rainbow hair looked an awful lot like yours… Ragyō!"

"Is that right?" The light was coming from a woman with neon hair and a fancy white dress. "Perhaps I am leaving an impression on this universe."

"Speaking of leaving an impression… is he ready, yet?"

"But of course. Presenting the new Lord of the Multiverse: Lord English!"

Ragyō opened a curtain: Lord English was adorned with a green tuxedo and top-hat, whose edges bared flashing squares of the same neon colors. He walked out with his gold cane propped over his shoulder. "OOOOOHHH IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL!" Bill cried. "This is the garb of a guy who's ready to rewrite the MULTIVERSE!"

"And best of all… the Life Fibers woven into his clothing amplify his already immense power. If he was not invincible before… you can be certain he is now."

"Oh, Ragyō… how I would've loved for you to be one of the Darknesses. But His Lordship's power could not scatter well enough. Still, it never kills to have a backup army, am I right? Ah, who am I kidding: OF COURSE a backup army kills! That's why it's good to have one! Ha ha HA!"

"DAMN IT, BILL!!" Lord English's thundering voice quaked the fortress. "I'M STILL IN THE MIDDLE OF BEATING THE BITCHING SNOT OUT OF ARCEUS AND YOU'RE WASTING TIME HAVING LITTLE BITCHES MAKE ME STUPID-ASS CLOTHES!" Walls broke and became ripples in time, Ragyō changed into a baby, a few dimensions' timelines collided into one-another. "NOW THAT PISSING INTER-DIMENSIONAL AGENCY WHATEVER-THE-FUCK IS INTERFERRING! AM I EXPECTED TO DO EVERYTHING MYSELF?!"

"My Lord, My Lord, it's okay!!" Bill told him frantically. "A few minor setbacks aren't going to stop us! I promise we'll have them taken care of soon!"

"I want them eliminated NOW! I know that pissy Calliope still exists, and I want her and her little retard chosen ones ERASED! Those 'Darknesses' are lucky that I let them EXIST in my masterpiece, but if they don't start showing they're worth a shit, I will PISS on their being and flush them in the black hole of nothingness! NOW, BILL!! I have REAL art to create!"

Elsewhere in Paradox Space

Sector W had been traveling the universe in the Angel Wing. Fybi Fulbright improved the ship's motion controls, so her teammates needn't worry as she guided them with her own wings. "Wherefore canst an angel flutter in space?" Fybi asked with a peaceful air. "The answer, like life, remains a mystery. All I can be certain of is there is much more to see and feel. There art no chains on this angel."

Anthony, Harvey, and Aranea were dreadfully sleepy. "When are we gonna land on a freaking planet?" Anthony asked. "We passed, like, 10 of them!"

"I couldn't feel any emotions of fear and questioning from those planets like I did from the cards." Harvey stated.

"That doesn't mean the cards aren't on them! Man, I wish we brought Sunni with us. I don't trust that dorky emotionbending."

A few minutes of flying later, an orange light began to glint off Fybi's eyes. The light shone into the ship, prompting the kids to sit up. This region of space basked in the warmth of an orange sky. A sun was setting below a galactic sea, so this realm existed in eternal sunset. "One thing's for sure, Anthony… you can't beat this view." Aranea said.

"It is a world known only to our dreams…" Fybi spoke wondrously. "I could forsake everything… to fly hither forever."

Anthony remembered how beautiful Fybi looked when she spoke that way. The galactic twilight still paled in comparison to her lovely hair… but it did come close. "Me, too…"

"Anthony's in looo-ooove! Anthony's in looo-ooove!" Diancie sung.

"Michelle, since Mom isn't around, there is NOTHING to stop me from whaling on you!"

"HEY, I feel worry!" Harvey outbursted.

"Well, I feel anger. Worry about yourself, Harvey."

"No, I'm feeling worried emotions! The same ones I felt from the cards! They're coming… from that planet!" He pointed at a planet that looked simply like a gray orb with divided segments floating in space.

". . . It's familiar to me." Diancie said.

"What do you mean, Michelle?"

"Anthony, just look at it. That color… It looks just like Stone."

Anthony gasped. He looked at his hand. It was made of flesh and peach-colored, yes, but deep down… "Do you think that's Planet Ore?"

"It must be… We have to land there."

"If thou so wishes." Fybi flew toward the planet and the ship followed.

The orange sky faded into a bright gray once they entered the atmosphere. Planet Ore was composed of large stone houses, and much of the landscape was of a smooth and gray texture that looked like the granite of a pencil. Fybi set foot in an open area within some hills, the ship coming still and deactivating. The four passengers climbed out and gazed at the sights. Anthony wiggled his toes in the soil. It did feel like the granite of a pencil… at least, he imagines it would feel this way.

"You're so lucky, Anthony." Diancie said sadly. "This is the planet we both came from… I wish I still had feet, so I could know how it feels."

"I didn't COME from here, Michelle, Stone did. We're two different people!"

"Hm hm, I know! Well, let's start exploring! I'm just crumbling to see my homeworld!" Diancie bounced forward.

"I shalt make like a blanket over the land!" Fybi flew high. "Catchest me if thou canst!" And she flew off.

"SHOULDN'T WE STICK TOGETHER?!" yelled Harvey.

"She'll call us if she gets in trouble." Anthony assured. "Besides, we gotta find these cards. Let's go, team."

"Seriously, how did all these cards scatter so far?" Aranea wondered. (Play the Blue Mountains combined soundtrack from Rayman 1!)

Stage F-4: Land of Stone and Rock

Mission: Explore Stone's home planet.

There were steps leading out of this area, but they were much too tall to climb. Anthony used earthbending to sink the steps, making easy access. The steps led to an open field where three Mega Golem (covered in rock needles) were rolling against pairs of rock creatures. Anthony leapt and stomped his feet into the ground, then thrusted himself out with a pair of giant stone feet. Diancie giggled as he jumped toward a Golem in a silly fashion. Anthony made the feet levitate over a Golem, applied pressure, and then CRUSHED the Golem hard enough to KO it. When the other two Golems tried to attack him, Diancie quickly flapped the earth up like a book to smash them, then flipped the ground to smash them beneath.

"Hey, those guys don't look like Ores…" one of the rock creatures noticed.

"But they can move rock. And that one's teeth and body parts oversized like Ore."

Diancie giggled at Anthony's scowl. He broke the stone feet to get down. "Look, we're humans, and I'm an earthbender. Er, except Michelle. Hey, you seen any cards around here?"

"What is 'card'?"

"Little rectangular papers?"

"What is 'paper'?"

"Anthony, these guys are more dense than you are." Aranea remarked.

"Thank you! That nice thing to say!" The Ores blushed.

"Ha! Your quips mean nothing here, Nea!" snapped Anthony.

"Let's just move on!" Harvey insisted.

There was a high ledge with little blocks sticking out of the cliffside. Aranea used nimble leaps to climb up there and find a Catch Card. The card was of a red echidna, and his name was Knuckles. "One of those rock things put me up here as a joke. I didn't really get the joke… they make me sound like Tails."

"And I don't get that joke." Nea said, stuffing him away. After returning to her friends, the group followed a wide path over a cliff, steep hills on their left. Giant Ores were pushing huge stone cubes down the slope. Anthony was able to stop the stones, but more stones would come to push them off, so the kids progressed quickly when they could.

They made it to a hill, where a giant cube slid down at a scary speed, but Anthony and Diancie combined their strength to stop and push the cube up the hill. Living Bone Heartless appeared at the base of the hill and charged up in attempt to ram the earthbenders, but Harvey kept the Heartless at bay by heating his body with anger and using Rage Kicks. "Wow, am I really the only nonbender among us?" Aranea asked. "I feel like such a broken wheel."

Anthony and Diancie could catch breath at the top of the slope. "Hey, don't move it, yet!" Harvey told them as he squeezed through a gap on the right. The large hole where the cube would've fallen had a Catch Card at the bottom. Harvey climbed down the small steps to collect it. The card contained Amethyst, a purple girl with a black top and hair covering her right eye.

"Man, that cube thing coulda squashed me! But I woulda survived."

"Then I shoulda let it crush you." Harvey remarked before putting her away. He climbed out of the hole and squeezed back through the gap, so Anthony and Diancie could push the block into the hole. They crossed the block to a trench area, where cylindrical stones were drilling out of the walls like screws. There were Ores on top of the walls, churning the ends of the screws.

"You have to wonder the point of these alien customs." Nea commented. Whenever the drills stopped, the kids took the chance to jump across them. They rested on a stable center platform, but the next half had vertical drills sprouting from below. The drills were in two parallel lines, so the kids were forced to Wall Jump when they stopped. The kids then followed a path around some walls that led to a hot spring area, but instead of water, it was lava. Block-headed Ores called Igneouses were rising in and out of the lava, but their tops were much too hot to jump on.

"Now's as good a time as any to use temperature control." Anthony channeled chi into his feet and willed it in a cold state, so when he jumped on the block heads, they steamed and cooled. Harvey and Nea could safely jump on them as they hopped to a cliff across the spring. What awaited them, unfortunately, was a greater pool of lava with Ores bathing and melting their woes away. "Sigh… Tom, don't fail me now." Anthony stomped his feet in the ground again and jumped out with rectangular blocks over his feet. "Climb on." His friends got on the blocks, and Anthony maintained a constant cold temperature as he stomped across the lava.

Lava geysers sprouted up in some areas, and their droplets would burn the kids if they got too close. As Anthony steered clear of them, they searched for a way out. There was a platform with steps beside a lava geyser, and this gave Anthony the idea to kick one of the block-headed Ores onto it (it was too relaxed to do anything). The geyser uplifted the Ore beside a high platform, so Anthony stomped up the steps, got on the Ore, and rode him up to said platform. He could safely break the rocks on his feet.

There were flat-topped rocks precariously balancing on stone needles. The kids carefully jumped across them, but there was nowhere to go from the last rock. A more powerful geyser was popping up a few feet from the end of the rock. Anthony chose to take the greatest risk and make the rock tilt toward the geyser just before it would sprout up. (There was a checkpoint before this segment, so no worry if they fail.) His plan succeeded as the geyser sent the rock flying for several meters. The rock landed at the top of a lava slope and slid down quickly.

Fireballs were shooting up from under their foothold and landing and whooshing across it, requiring the kids to make quick jumps or dodges. One of the fireballs was a bubble containing a Catch Card, but Diancie was quick to notice it, letting the bubble pop against her so she could recover the card. At the bottom of the slope, the rock slid across the pool and came to a stop at a shore. Diancie's Catch Card contained Gajeel, a man with long, spiky black hair and nails in his body. "How come your card didn't burn under there?" Diancie asked.

"I've dealt with hotter fire than this." Gajeel smirked.

"Hmmm… I think you'd bond better with Anthony." She gave the card for Anthony to put in his pocket.

The kids stood before a massive, sloping stairway to a massive stone palace. Square segments of the stairway were actual stairs, but others were slopes. Ores were throwing spiked bars down separate rows of the stairs, flipping the different segments. Sector W made the tricky journey up the slope as Anthony and Diancie shattered the spikes if they threatened to crush them. Eventually, the kids and Firstborn made it to the top.

"STOP where you are!" The Ores demanded. "Just who are you puny fleshlings?! Breaking our rocks, climbing to our palace as if you were Ores?"

"You were throwing rocks at us FIRST!" Anthony shot back. "What's so special about this place, anyway?"

"This is the domain of Lord Titan, one of the Great Kings of Ore. To him, you're even LESS than fleshlings!"

"This is Titan's palace?!" Diancie exclaimed. "Titan… Anthony, Titan is our father."

"PYAH HAFF HAFF!" laughed the Ores. "Titan is your father… that's richer than Gold! Next you'll say Lord Gold is your father. And that would be richer than Lord Platinum, and we'll say-"

"Yadda-yadda, okay okay, can we just go in?" Anthony asked impatiently.

"Heck no! Now get off our perch or we'll bat you down like-" The Ores whipped out more spike bars—they were instantly destroyed by sudden light arrows.

"Thou art most late!" Fybi stated.

"Well, you're just in time!" Anthony returned. He stomped the ground and sprung the Ores overhead, watching them roll down the hill. "Fybi, let's go in! I think Diancie's dad is in here!"

"He's Stone's dad, too. Hurry up!" Diancie excitedly bounced forward. She used earthbending to open the palace's giant gate. (End song.)

It seemed like the entirety of the palace was one gigantic room. A great stairway led to a great, skyscraper throne where the great Titan sat. Titan was a humongous Ore with a rectangular head attached to a buffer rectangular body. His arms, fingers, and legs possessed a rectangular shape, but stone spheres connected the parts that would angle. The kids climbed halfway up the stairs before deciding they were close enough. "…Anthony…" Aranea spoke in awe. "Your dad is… a real square! Hhhha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!"

"Laugh all you want, NEA, but if he's my dad, then I'm gonna be freakin' HUGE!"

"WHO'S going to be huge?" Titan thundered. "Who are you tiny creatures?"

Diancie flew closer to him. "Lord Titan, my name is Diancie."

Titan was shocked. "Diancie?! But… it can't be. That's the name I—I mean… Rose and I… gave to our egg. Is it really you…?"

"Yes, I believe I am. And I also believe… you produced another egg. You named it Stone."

"Is Stone… here?"

Diancie moved aside and gestured to Anthony. The boy shifted his feet awkwardly. "WHOA!" Harvey and Nea jumped back in shock when Titan reached down and picked him up. Anthony stood in the giant's palm nervously.

"Yes… I feel it. You do not feel like an Ore… but your aura feels similar to mine. Why is this…"

"It's a pretty complicated story." Diancie blushed. "You see-"

If time were to fast-forward, Diancie would sound squeaky and incomprehensible. And that's how she sounded to Titan's ears. "Erm… can you sum it down to 20 words or less?"

"Yep, that's Anthony's dad." Nea smirked.

"Basically, Stone died, but he was reborn as a human. This is him."

"Hm… it's strange, but I think I understand… This boy is my son. HAH HAH HAH HAH HAH!" Titan stood and happily swung the boy around. "MY SON AND DAUGHTER HAVE COME BACK TO ME! Five rotations certainly feels like a trillion years! I cannot WAIT to teach you the sacred values of cube-bashing!"

"WAAAAHH!" Anthony held onto Titan's thumb. He had a flashback to when he was shrunken and his human dad carried him. "Dad—I mean—Mr. Titan, stop! I don't think my body is up to it!"

"It's true that your egg was much smaller than other Ores. I was afraid of how you would be treated, so I entrusted you to the trolls. They were gray like us, but much more squishy, so I thought you would triumph over them! But I feel the strength in your small body; why, it is nearly equal to mine!"

"Hu hu, equal to yours, really?" Anthony flushed. "You're so big, you can lift a mountain."

"Oh, any Ore can do that. But I'M strong enough to move the entire planet! Why, 10 cycles ago, our planet was in Flag Space!"

"Lord Titan, wouldst thou explain something to me?" Fybi requested. "A material known as Permanite exists on this world, dost it not?"

"Permanite? That's the strongest material we have on Ore. Only we kings of Ore have the potential to mold it. I crafted some powerful weapons from Permanite that Rose Quartz used to shatter Pink Diamond. Hah! And those arrogant empresses boast about their superior power!"

"Indeed they do." A voice echoed from the bottom of the stairs. The kids whipped around at the intruder.

"THANOS!!" they screamed.

"An acquaintance of yours?" Titan asked.

"TITAN, he's a bad guy!" Anthony shouted. "He can destroy an entire planet in just one punch! He's like…like… A ONE-PUNCH MAN!"

"Really? That sounds quite powerful!" Titan beamed at the idea. "But if he is your enemy, then you needn't fear. Daddy will protect you!"

Thanos leapt, Infinity Gauntlet pulled back, and PUNCHED Titan with enough power to blast him through the castle and send him crashing through several mountains. "ANTHONY!!" screamed the other four.

"Hm… One-Punch Man." Thanos smirked as he turned to the children. "That name has a certain ring to it."

"What are you doing here, Thanos?!" Diancie yelled.

"I've been hearing a lot of talk about the Diamonds. Together, they make the most powerful being in this universe. I'm here to see if that's true!" He raised his gauntlet at Diancie.

"Ow… Man…" Anthony felt sprains everywhere as he helped himself up. "Titan!" he gasped, running beside the head of the fallen giant. To think a giant who could move the planet could be knocked down so easily.

Anthony heard a loud STOMP and knew another giant had made its presence. He turned. "Grrrr… Not you, too."

"It's been a while, Titan." Yellow Diamond smirked. "And you too, Beaver."