Restoration Center
Jenny and Carmine rode the elevator up to Floor 91, finding the surreal and empty atmosphere rather frightening. The gloomy hospital greeted them with a long bridge, crawling with XANA Tarantulas. Jenny evaded their bullets and sped past while Carmine dropped bombs on the mechs. "So, this is where all those comatose people are being reformed?" Carmine recalled. "It's not as nice as I would've hoped."
"Yeah, and the robots don't make it any better. Let's find the others!" They broke through the entrance, where the GLaDOS receptionist shot and derezzed two XANA Krabs.
"Welcome to the Restoration Center. Please ignore the infestation of evil robots and zombie patients and enjoy your visit."
"You two!" They noticed Megumi, who used her paddle-ball to pierce a Tarantula's head. "You're Sector Q, right? Hurry inside, it's terrible!" The Nimbi ran in ahead, Jenny and Carmine following. Terrible as she proclaimed, the patients were moaning like zombies, eyes displaying XANA's symbol as their bodies glitched like static. "Oh, no! Stop!"
A Nursebot was about to shoot a possessed man, but Megumi struck her first and destroyed her. The man attempted to strangle her, but Jenny kicked him off. Further ahead, two nurses were shooting a horde of other zombies, and Carmine was horrified as one of the patients derezzed. "Are they killing the patients?!" Carmine cried, throwing a bomb to destroy the nurses.
"They are!" Megumi yelled. "We've been trying to stop them, but it's been hard to hold the patients back ourselves!"
"What the hell?!" Jenny shouted, sliding to knock a few patients off their feet. "Aincrad was supposed to fix these people, why are they letting them die?!"
"All hazardous glitches must be eradicated from Aincrad." GLaDOS said, walking in with a minigun. "These corrupted patients must not leave the building at all costs. Now, back away! I bought this gun at the toy store and am not afraid to use it."
Jenny didn't give her the chance to use it and kicked the gun upward, afterwards kicking GLaDOS off her feet. After stamping the robot's head into nothing, she grabbed Carmine and rushed up the hall. "Leave my zombies alone, you wretched nurses!" XANA's voice snarled through the intercoms. "How am I going to destroy the MCP with a zombie army if there are no zombies?! On the bright side, I can pick off a few operatives this way."
"The hell you will!" Hibiki Lates declared, trying to bind Bon Clay in Light Rings. Nursebots surrounded and threatened to shoot the swan, but Uiharu strangled them with vines and beheaded the robots. The possessed Gary-Lou tried to choke Uiharu, but Hibiki helped restrain him.
Saten used airbending to stir a group of patients together and hold them in place, leaving Tronta to toss his Light Disc at the assaulting nurses. But even grounded, the nurses managed to land shots on patients, injuring David Keith (a former Gallagher President) and Hikari Gilligan, while some fatal shots ended the lives of Lenny Whitby and Richard Teague (another Gallagher President). "STOP!" Dipper Pines spun and drilled his pine tree through the Nursebots, destroying them. "Their families were hoping they would get better, how could you betray them?!"
"Damn it! I can't believe I put Clay in here!" Hibiki shouted. "Should've known this game was bad!"
"There's more coming!" Uiharu cried.
"Leave them to us!" Jenny sped along the wall, flying over the operatives and robots as Carmine dropped nukes over the soulless nurses.
"It's those two!" Dipper recognized them.
"I wonder how the Miko situation is going…" Tron said.
Carmine's Haki tracked the presence of more XANAbots, Jenny rolling downstairs and through a hallway. She expertly sped past the Megatanks' barriers and curved left, massacring more nurses and Krabs. "I don't sense any zombies in these rooms." Carmine said. "But I feel two presences at the end!"
With one more right turn, they tore through a door at the end of the passage. Inside was a fairly wide room where a teenage boy stuck halfway out of a cone-shaped machine, gaps of code along his body.
The girls' eyes widened. The boy was remarkably familiar, his body strong under his green T-shirt, right hand a hook, and short, spiked black hair to match his sunglasses. "Jenny… th…that's Drake!"
Jenny narrowed her eyes. "Boly… she really did make a copy of Drake! God, I can't believe her!"
"Oh, is this one important to you~?" a cackly voice sneered. XANA unveiled himself from behind the boy. "My, we wouldn't want anything to happen to him~"
"Hmph. Go ahead." Jenny retorted. "It's not the real Drake. But hey, it oughta motivate us to kick your ass."
"And what're you doing back anyway, XANA?" Carmine asked. "Quill said you were destroyed in the Great Clock."
"Well, it sucks to be that XANA. I'm actually a copy that was given to Team Gnik. Seems Giovanni kept me and gave me to Eggman. Interestingly, I seem to have a very faint memory of this boy." XANA pinched Drake's cheeks with his pointed fingers. "I think he gave one of my associates some trouble… but who cares? Pitting him against you dearies shall be excellent!" Cords rose out of XANA's chest, sticking into Drake's ears and electrocuting him, much to their horror. (Play "Zant Battle" from Twilight Princess!)
Drake's sunglasses dropped, his once cool eyes corrupted by those of XANA. He shot his harpoon, the girls splitting up. XANA directly lunged at Jenny and lashed his blades, but she spun on her head just as quickly and clashed her rollers against him. As the Fake Drake assaulted Carmine, the awful memory flashed in her mind. She was unable to focus on evasion as Drake socked her in the head. "HEY!" Jenny slid over to kick Drake in the head as well. "Back off, you Fake!"
"Jenny, I-I don't think I can—AAH!" she screamed as XANA flew at her with a cartwheel slash, but Jenny rammed him with her own cartwheel maneuver and steered him off-course.
"Then you can go help the others. Just leave these freaks to me!" Jenny shot at XANA with a Screw Kick and forced him against the wall.
Carmine looked anxiously to Fake Drake, who was about to shoot Jenny with his harpoon. She hurriedly tossed a Spring Bomb to blast him away. "Y-You shouldn't fight both by yourself!"
"You hurt your own friend!" XANA teased. "How could you!"
"That's it! I'm smashing your face in, you outdated software!"
Boss fight: X.A.N.A.
XANA spun like a mad twister and flew at Jenny, who spun on one foot to counter him with her other rollers. XANA bounced her away, then Jenny bounced off the wall and returned to him. She got down for a breakdance spin, kicking him down and quickly getting up to stamp his head. XANA lashed his blade back, so Jenny escaped with a boost. His fingertips opened to shoot rapid laser bullets, so Jenny zoomed around the room in evasion. A harpoon pierced the wall in front of her, Jenny gasping as Fake flew up to kick her. As she fell over, Drake tried to stomp her face, but Jenny's kick was faster as he was forced back. XANA cartwheeled at Jenny, but she boosted away again. XANA performed a tight turn and kept pursuing, so Jenny continued boosting.
She gasped, seeing him suddenly turn to Carmine, who was distracting Drake again. Carmine feared she wouldn't dodge him in time, but Jenny thought fast: she turned off her boost, turned, then turned it back on to ram into XANA's side. He flew headfirst against the wall, but was able to cut Jenny's hips before she could pull away. XANA bent his swords like boomerangs, electrified as one homed in on Carmine and the other at Jenny. The latter growled at the cheap trick, seeing Carmine running from the weapon, with Fake already plotting to attack her. Jenny boosted and ducked under her boomerang, tackling Drake, turning, and holding him as a shield. The fake was stabbed and shocked by the boomerang, but once the shock wore off, Jenny shoved him directly into XANA. The act disabled the boomerang chasing Carmine.
Jenny followed with a whirling kick to XANA's head, but Drake shoved her away with his harpoon. XANA bent his swords back to normal and cut his own head off. "Ah ha ha ha!" he laughed as his head swirled about the ceiling. His body spun at Jenny, who spun to counter him—XANA stopped and ducked under to stab at her leg, prompting her to move away. "Ha ha ha! I have better focus from up here!" XANA laughed. "And just as much control!" Jenny growled and decided to flee from the body. She tried to boost up the wall, then along the ceiling, but couldn't gain enough momentum to reach the flying head.
"Take this!" Carmine yelled, tossing a Spring Bomb at Fake, but she seemed to kick another one over to Jenny. Taking the cue, Jenny faced up at XANA's head, rolled backwards, and allowed the bomb to shoot her into XANA with forceful speed. "What?!" XANA yelped, being grabbed and slammed to the ground. Her blades smashed into the bulbous back of his head, but she escaped before his body's blades could cut hers. XANA reattached his head to recalibrate his sensors. Jenny shot at him with whipping-fast kicks, XANA countering with equal speed. She thrusted a foot up as a blade chopped down, catching XANA's weapon between the wheels. She did a midair twirl to fling the sword out of his hand, then kicked the other foot at his leg. As he fell, XANA cut her back, but Jenny stomped the airborne leg over his head and face-planted him.
XANA leapt from the girl, his face glitching as he glared in spite. "You know, Infinite told me that Vanellope tried to attack him, but was instantly destroyed. Pity that I wasn't around to see that! It's her fault that I've been disgraced! Now my only chance of returning to glory is to take over Aincrad. I'll do it even if it derezzes me!"
"Boo hoo! You probably saved another copy of yourself somewhere. Most Programs don't have to worry about dying, not like people."
"That's right! But I suppose that means they've saved a few Vanellope copies."
"Sector V only needs one Vanellope. But 'far as I know, Vanellope is persistent. I'm sure she'll come back somewhere!"
"And I'll be sure to destroy her. But for now, I think I'm in need of some shelter. I guess-" XANA lashed at her again, Jenny reactively countering, but the Program suddenly morphed into a staticky ghost, "YOU will do!" He grabbed Jenny's face and phased into her body.
"AAAAHH! Heeeeeyy!" Her body began glitching under XANA's control, forcibly punching herself in the face.
Carmine watched horrifically, but was still bracing herself for Drake's next attack. …However, the fake turned at Jenny. As he watched her struggle for control, punching out her own HP, his own programmed mind began to spark. Though he was incomplete, memories of Jenny faintly flickered, images of sparring with her, sharing soda with her, even being socked in the gut when she was angry one time. The words 'great friend,' 'awesome teammate,' and 'trust' registered in his mind, but these faint commands were steadily overwriting XANA's programs.
"J-J-J-Jen-ny…" He stuttered like a malfunctioning robot as he weakly raised a grappling hook arm. "Ge-et your j-junk outta Je-nny, you-ou-ou-ou creep~" The hook launched, seized Jenny by the fist, and pulled her over. "Ha-ave some of m-e ins-tead~" Drake locked Jenny in a kiss, her eyes widening and face flushing.
"Ouch! Why is it so hot in here?!" XANA cried. "YUCK!" The emotions forced XANA to evacuate, but Drake shot his harpoon through the ghost's chest just before he reformed, causing it to be stuck through XANA's solid chest. Drake yanked XANA over to punch him in the face, so XANA stabbed him in the head—Jenny leapt and smashed XANA beneath a Screw Kick. Driving him into the ground, the last of his HP was reduced to nothing. (End song.)
"Aaaaaack! You haven't seen the last of me, you wretched kids! I'll be back someday! I'll be baaaaaaaaaack-" And his body exploded into digital matter.
Across the hospital, all the controlled patients began to faint on the spot. The Nursebots no longer sensed the glitch data within them, so they ceased their attacks. The Fake Drake dropped to his knees, his last bit of health lost to XANA's final blow. As his body derezzed, he looked up at Jenny and Carmine and smiled.
"…" Jenny and Carmine shared a mixed, speechless expression. "Hm…for a moment, he really sounded like Drake."
"Yeah… must've been good programming."
"…You okay, Carmine?"
"…I don't know." She put a hand to her head. "I'm not even sure… how I made myself throw those bombs."
"Well, 'cause you were trying to protect me, right?"
"I-I was, but…"
"He was a fake." Jenny plopped a hand on Carmine's head, smiling in comfort. "The real Drake wouldn't want to be disgraced like that. But I'll admit, he was pretty convincing in the end."
"Heh heh…" Carmine managed a chuckle. "…Let's check on everyone else here before we head back."
"Yeah."
The operatives monitored the Nursebots untrustingly as they were set back in the recovery machines. Dipper and Tronta heard something rolling and saw Jenny and Carmine return. "We destroyed XANA. Is everything okay here?"
"I guess." Tron answered. "Not that we saved all the patients…"
"You know, if Hinobi was planning to trap us all to begin with," Dipper followed, "then how do we know these people will even return to their bodies? Even if the Log Out button gets fixed, what if they stay trapped?"
"Wouldn't put it past them at this point." Jenny said. "Better to just let their souls recover naturally."
"BOLYPIUS! BOLYPIUS! ANSWER MEEEEEE!"
The hospital rumbled under the thundering, distorted voice. "WHAT IN TARNATION WAS THAT?!" Megumi screamed.
"Oh, great. What's about to happen now…?" Jenny sighed.
…
Dr. Eggman took cover as XANA's computer exploded, Infinite looking over in shock. "Damn! Now XANA's been destroyed, too! Now the only one in there is Sark… and what's HE supposed to do? Bah!" He pressed a button on his terminal and yelled, "Scratch, Grounder, why haven't you killed her, yet?!"
"We're trying, Doctor!" Scratch responded. "Sector V is really strong. We had to send some robots to save Omelette from Arctic Prison, too!"
"I tried going myself," Grounder shivered, "but it was c-c-c-cold!"
"Is it really that hard to conquer one lousy TREEHOUSE?! It seems I have no choice… Infinite!" He spun toward the Jackal. "You're my only hope of dismantling that treehouse! Your DNEgg should be mostly repaired, so breaching their defenses shouldn't pose a problem. I'll fly you there myself. Are you ready?"
In truth, Infinite held mixed feelings. It didn't seem that Miko was in her own free will… that she was being used as a tool just as he was. But even so, Miko was a threat to the Eggman Empire and its allies. He felt pity for her… but she had to be destroyed. "Of course, Doctor. I'll do whatever it takes to destroy this menace!"
Hinobi H.Q.
Phil took cover behind the File Room door, blasting Hinobi bots with a laser rifle he had stolen from them. Behind him, Ridley was frantically searching all the drawers, her fingers practically sprinting along all the files. "Mmmmmnnnnhhhh," she mumbled with anxiety, complimented by her sweating. "I can't find a Heartbreak Protocol anywhere!"
"Nnnhh…can you check again?" Phil asked nervously.
"You know how long it took to search all these?!"
"Gah, Eddy said that Flynn said it was in this room! It has to be somewhere we haven't…" Phil glanced back and down at the floor. There was a faint, curved scratch mark leading to the end of a shelf. Sparking with adrenaline, Phil grabbed the back of the shelf and mustered his strength. "Huuuuurrrr hey kid, need some help!"
Ridley ordered Chomp Kitty to grab the shelf in its teeth, helping Phil to twist it around. "A safe!"
"I'll open it!" Ridley leapt on Chomp Kitty to get level with the safe. Holding her ear to it, she very carefully twisted the knob.
"Now, Philip, this rash behavior needs to stop!"
Phil cast a dark glare at the door and boldly marched out. Barbara was adorned in a fittingly large set of Hinobi armor. "Why are you going along with this, Barbara?! You're letting so many innocent people die!"
"We'll be reborn, Philip! I've spent my entire life reading stories and playing games that now I'm ready to live them. But this universe has so much to see and do and so little time to do them, with just as much danger to cut that life short. But Aincrad will give us all the time we need for an endless adventure and infinite wisdom! It's the perfect paradise that everyone should enjoy!"
"Yeah, well leave the fuckin' universe out of it!" Phil charged at Barbara, ducking her punch and socking her in the visored face. She blew up a magenta bubble to push Phil away, but he recovered quickly and dodged her lasers. Phil charged a shot in his own glove and blasted her shoulder, but took a kick to the belly in turn.
Ridley twisted the vault handle back for the third number and finally heard the victorious click. She perked up and opened the vault. Inside was a yellow folder labeled 'Heartbreak Protocol.' Ridley reached in and pulled out a solid, relatively sturdy disc. The disc's image had eight hearts around it, with a black heart in the center, and a crack running through the middle. "Found it! Don't worry, Miko, we'll save you."
Granzam
Sinon ran along a castle wall and found a good position to view Miko through her scope. She seemed to be returning from her victory against the boss. "That's another one down…" Sinon sighed. "I let Nagisa have my key, so she shouldn't sense me. She'll probably fly to another floor soon, so I better-"
"Oh, man! I can't believe I defeated two bosses all by myself!"
Hearing a close, but distant voice, Sinon looked a few blocks along the ground. There was a planet-eyed man with a goatee and purple jacket walking and waving two Boss Keys. "They sure were tough, but they weren't a match for Kaito Momota, Luminary of the Stars!" Miko sensed the keys, but more prominently heard his boasting. "These keys are all mine! You can try to take 'em, but my hands are like glue!"
Miko lowered down to a few meters above him. "Well, this is so obviously a trap. But fine, I'll bite. You got something for me?"
"Yeah!" Kaito stowed the keys away. "I got a BEEF to pick with you! I don't appreciate being locked in some virtual universe. I haven't been able to do any of my nightly push-ups, and my ass is prob'ly gettin' bruises from sitting this long."
Sinon was curious at the man's intentions… though he could just as easily be an idiot. However, after looking around a bit, she noticed someone stationed in another distant window: a pigtailed girl in a red school uniform. Sinon zoomed in on Maki, who seemed to load a black bullet in her rifle. "A Black Bullet?! That's insta-kill! Can't let her shoot Miko with that!" She focused on the girl's head and fired an inkball, drenching Maki's head in blue ink.
"A sniper shot?!" Miko looked around in panic.
"You're dead now!" Kaito declared. "…" But he frowned in realization. "Uh, why aren't you dead?"
Miko glared and mustered a giant hammer, Kaito backing up in panic. Thankfully, Quill fired a Place Swap from his kart, switching places with Miko as her hammer smashed nothing. Eddy was riding the kart as well. "Hey, give those keys to us!" Quill insisted. "She won't target you if you don't have them."
"Hold on, these keys belong to Maki Roll!"
"Who the heck is that?"
Maki angrily shook the ink off, but the assassin became eclipsed in shadow. The enormous hand of Toymaker's robot collapsed the building she was hiding in, but Maki leapt out another window, using Moon Walk to safely land on the ground. "I was about to smash that sniper on the wall over there, but it seems she had her eye on someone else. Bolypius, leave these ones to me! I'll have their keys brought to you on a plate."
"Or, just, bring them to me normally." Miko shrugged. "Doesn't have to be a plate. Laters!" She flew away.
Maki glared in her direction, using Paper Art to escape Toymaker's fist. She looked as Quill zoomed up in his kart, with Eddy leaping to slice the robot's wrist with his sword, doing some damage as Toymaker pulled the arm back. "Why don't you pick on someone your own size, buddy?!" Quill shouted up at the robot.
"Maki Roll, what happened?!" Kaito asked, catching up to them. "Did you miss?"
"Miss what?" Eddy wondered.
"Somebody shot me! I think it came from that direction!" Maki rushed that way.
"W-Wait for me!"
Quill and Eddy briefly wondered what was up with them, but readied their selves as Fighting Polygons drove up in karts. The Polygons resembled Sector Q (minus Miko), Kazma, and Guy's team. "You still trying to protect these amateur players? Newsflash, kiddos: they're trying to KILL Miko! Don't you know you can't show mercy in videogames? Just let your wild side loose and WIPE them out!"
"They're just desperate to go home!" Quill shouted. "Because YOU all trapped them here! We're not letting anyone die!"
"And yet, you still think you can change Miko back to normal. Not that it matters, anyway. Only Bolypius and Kayaba have the power to free everyone, and that's not happening any time soon! So, GET used to your new LIFE!"
"Yeah? And what do YOU have to gain from this?"
"All I want to do is right the wrongs and give everyone a second chance. In Aincrad, all mistakes of the real world are erased. Everyone, gets, A SECOND, CHANCE! Now, you kids gonna run off and play…" the robot balled its fists and stomped, "or are we gonna take this to the NEXT, LEVEL?!"
Eddy jumped back in Quill's kart. "Don't mess up, buddy rider."
"'Long as you obey the traffic rules."
"There are no traffic rules when a giant robot is attacking the city!" (Play "Battlefield" from Smash Bros. 64!)
Boss fight: Toymaker
Quill sped up a town street as the Polygons gave chase. He could see a Glide Ramp that would launch them up to Toymaker's head, so he would make their way to that. They hit some ?-Blocks, only rewarding Quill a banana peel. Eddy held it behind as they swerved a right turn, expertly dodging a Green Shell from Poly-Eddy. However, Poly-Jenny acquired Triple Red Shells. Quill drove around a pile of barrels, using them to shield from the first shell. The second shell destroyed their banana shield. Quill could drive up a pile of hay and use it as a ramp to an upper stairway, leading them to a shortcut passage between some buildings. But Poly-Jenny followed and stunned them with her last shell, driving past them.
She hit a ?-Block, so Quill waited for it to respawn before collecting it, earning a Blooper. The passage led them to a Glide Ramp that would land them along some roofs, with the other racers steadily catching up from the main route. Their little delay dropped the boys to 4th place. Poly-Francis was ahead of them, shooting two Green Shells forward to hit Poly-Eddy, with one more going backward. Quill dodged this and had already triggered the Blooper, blotting the vision of the racers ahead. They had to drive up small ramps to cross the escalating roof segments, later to drive onto a castle wall ahead. Poly-Kazma missed a ramp due to the ink, and Poly-Eddy would bump the side of the wall. Quill made it onto the wall, which would snake around to the Glide Ramp leading to Toymaker.
Sadly, Poly-Jenny got a Bob-omb just before that ramp and was threatening to blow the boys up on it. The duo seized a ?-Block with its own bomb, but would save it for Toymaker. "BLUE SHELL!" Eddy screamed, Quill hastily dodging right and dodging the siren shell.
"Hey, that works in our favor!" Quill exclaimed. The Blue Shell would explode on Poly-Jenny and destroy her Bob-omb, knocking her off the ramp. Eddy held his bomb at the ready as they could launch off. The Toymaker shot small missiles, Quill steering about the air in evasion. Once close, Eddy launched the bomb and BLASTED the robot's face, spinning crazily as nuts and bolts came flying out. The boys swerved around the mech and landed on the next part of the track.
This segment seemed to lead into an expansive battlefield where several pairs of squadrons were engaged in combat. Two squads nearly closed in on the racers, but Quill readily steered his kart left—a Green Shell sniped them as Poly-Francis passed, followed by Poly-Quill. The boys struggled to catch up while driving around other squadrons—they saw Poly-Quill take a shortcut on the right and followed him. They had to drift within a gap between squadrons and hit a Flight Ramp (plus a ?-Block), taking flight over the mini armies. They flew through a window into another battlefield. It was far more open, but small nukes fell from above and covered the area in fire. Quill crashed their kart through some fire, slowing them down.
The item block from before gave them Triple Red Shells. Quill maneuvered around the flames, but lost a shell to a banana that Francis dropped. They soon reached the next field, where giant arrows would launch and stick into the ground as they attempted to harm them. The path swerved rightward leading to an exit gate, but Quill saw one of the giant arrows lean and lead to a window beside that exit. He drove up to seize an item block in that window, attaining a Star. The track would seem to lead to Toymaker's feet, but Quill saw Poly-Francis turn invisible through use of a Boo. "Uh-oh!" Knowing the invisible racer could steal his item, Quill activated the star and became invincible.
He was able to speed up and tear through the Pogo Frogs Toymaker released. Quill drove at an angle where he could ram through both the robot's feet: the Star Power would cause both legs to be propelled, the giant mech tumbling over and smashing facefirst to the ground. Quill and Eddy exchanged a victorious smirk, but their vision would be blotted by a Blooper from one of the back racers. They raced through a street where jousters ran out of random doors, one of them sticking the boys and halting them. Poly-Jenny managed to pass them, then Poly-Arnold tried to ram them, only to hit their second shell. Now in 4th place, the boys struggled to catch up, evading the jousters, though they seized another ?-Block from behind one.
This block rewarded them a Boo, but they waited for a good chance to use it. They swerved left and up a snaky flight of stairs with barrels rolling down—Poly-Arnold rammed through them with a Star and got ahead. Poly-Rez would shortly follow, using the last of his Gold Mushroom, but his speed would be thwarted as Eddy chucked the third Red Shell at him. Once up the stairs, they raced over another castle wall with several bumps to serve as boost ramps, though Pogo Frogs would attempt to thwart their progress. Eddy glanced back and saw Rez carrying a Blue Shell. "Quill, drive close to that one!" he said as he activated the Boo, turning them invisible.
The Boo would spot Rez and fly to steal his Blue Shell, cackling at the Polygon. "Nice! This item is broken and I love it! Hey…" Quill saw a broken segment of the road and wall on the left. He drove off that segment—immediately regretting that decision as there was no shortcut below—but it all worked out as the gravity shifted for him to drive on the wall. "Oh, phew!"
"So, what'm I supposed to do with this Blue Shell? It's no good this far back!"
Quill drove through some Item Blocks and acquired a Bullet Bill. "Darn right!" He instantly switched it on and rocketed across the wall. The gravity track would curve upside-down through a hole in the wall, then along the opposite side of the wall. They bypassed Arnold and Poly-Jenny, the latter of whom shot a Red Shell at Poly-Francis while he was jumping a gap, dropping him off the wall. The grav-path would lead to a Glide Ramp and launch the boys to a rather tall, wide tower, in which the shifted gravity let them drive up it. Poly-Quill was still ahead, but they hit an Item Block at the base of the tower, earning a Place Swap.
They watched as Poly-Quill hit a Glide Ramp at the top of the tower and launched for the Toymaker. "Want me to shoot it now?" Eddy asked.
"NO! I have a plan!" Quill hit the ramp and took flight across the town as well. He launched the Place Swap at his Polygon Clone and stole first place. The Toymaker unleashed another round of bad CGI missiles, but Quill maneuvered around and closed in. The Toymaker instinctively put hands in front of his face to block their potential attack. "Sorry, man, but Blue Shells pierce obstacles! NOW, EDDY!"
Eddy hurdled the shell forward, plowing through the giant hands and striking the face. The enormous head sprung skyward from the shell's force… but as Quill and Eddy were actually in first place, the shell had to slow down and change course backward. "JUMP!" Quill screamed, the two diving off the kart. The head was falling back to the body, at the same time the kart flew under it, at the same time the Blue Shell impacted it…
The explosion blew the humanoid head across town, rolling violently before stopping on its side. Quill grabbed onto Eddy and shot flames downward, softening the landing, and the boys ran from the collapsing robot. "Huff…huff…okay, dude, that was the most awesome move in Mario Kart history."
"And you got to be a part of it~" Quill smiled.
"Ugh, you're never gonna change, are you?"
"Come on, I'm kidding. Thanks for helping."
"I know~" Eddy smiled. "Now let's go get this guy!" (End song.)
The two rushed over to the head's wreckage. The Toymaker weakly climbed out of it, his HP greatly depleted due to the fall. He climbed down with an air of defeat, facing the boys with a neutral expression. "…Go ahead, boys. Finish me off. It'll take about 10 minutes for me to respawn. I'll be reborn… as a true Aincradian."
"Sebastian… is that you?"
Toymaker turned to his left. The boys were taken aback by the very muscular-looking man in orange futuristic armor. He bore the aura of an old, wise grandpa, his wrinkled face looking quizzical. His head felt disproportionately small for his armor. The armor loudly clacked the ground as he approached the comparatively small Toymaker. "So, this is where you've been. Hiding away in your little game world…"
Toymaker turned his nose up at the elder. "I was wondering when I'd see you, Valentin… You enjoying those new legs?"
"In fact, I have… Feels good to walk again." He looked down and flexed his left knee. "But… I'll never get back those 30 years. All those things I missed because of the accident you caused me. I could not walk my daughter on her wedding… I cannot walk with my wife on the beach…"
Quill and Eddy shared a glance, feeling awkward for listening in on this. "Meanwhile, you have been hiding in fear. All these years I spent looking for you, so that I could tell you… I forgive you."
Toymaker turned down, looking for the right words. "…Until now, I've only ever dreamed that you would say that."
Valentin nodded, cracking a smile. "Now, what say you leave these kids alone? They have a universe to save."
Toymaker returned to the kids with his smug expression. "Well then… the stage is yours."
"Uh…'kay?" Eddy was confused.
Valentin lifted the Toymaker over his broad shoulder. "Remember, kids: stay in school and eat healthy. And only two hours of videogames!" And with that, the cyborg dashed across the city with epic speed.
"…I could really use some context right now." Quill said.
"Yep. …Ah, screw it. I forgive you, too." He patted Quill's helmet with a smile.
"Ugh, not now."
They received a call from High Five. "Guys, Miko's gone back in the Elevator Tower. She's going to Level 98."
"We'll get there soon as possible." Quill responded. "Come on, Eddy." The friends ran off.
…
After witnessing the fall of the robot, Sinon began to make her way off the castle wall. Just as she scurried down the stairs—"AH!" Maki leapt out of a window and grabbed Sinon by the neck, pinning her to the wall.
"You're the other sniper, aren't you? Why did you stop me from shooting her?!"
"Ack…my friends are trying to save her!"
"So, they don't want us to return home?"
"No, they do! But she's being controlled by the MCP… They don't want her to die."
"Being controlled?" They glanced up at Kaito in the window. "You mean we almost killed an innocent person?!"
"We have no proof of that." Maki stated. "For all we know, you could be a Hinobi officer. I don't-"
"BAM BAM BAM!" Millium flew up and shot bubbles directly up Maki's skirt, the girl flushing horrifically from the ink. As soon as her grip dropped, Sinon bolted down the stairs. Millium slid up and leapt on Sinon's shoulders, shooting bubbles back at the pursuing assassin. Maki was evasive and fast, so Millium encased herself and Sinon in an Inkball, rolling them away quicker. Just as Maki caught up, Millium had the ball burst and soak her in more ink.
Upon their return to the Elevator Tower, Eddy and Quill saw the gigantified Bergy battling the equally giant Commander Sark. Bergy caught Sark's massive Light Disc and threw it down at the Program's knees, bending them as he fell over. Bergy brought his hammer down and flattened Sark's head, derezzing the officer at last. "Hey, you guys are back!" Bergy said to Quill and Eddy. "Boy, I was in the battle of my life! First Sark starts riding his disc like a saucer, and-"
"OI, Bergy!" Mitch shouted from the tower. "Get your ass in here, we've gotta get after her!"
Bergy sighed and shrunk back down to normal size. "We took out one of the Hinobi officers!" Quill explained. "But we haven't had any word from Phil."
"Try to contact him again. Are there any outside operatives that can-"
"BOLYPIUS! BOLYPIUS! ANSWER MEEEEEE!"
The godly, nightmarish command sent shivers down their spines. "WHAT WAS THAT?!" Five panicked.
"BOLYPIUS! Get up here this instant!"
"W-Where is that voice coming from?!" Sora asked, his group still in battle with Sector SA.
"I'm waiting for you up here. I know you want to see me again…"
Kayaba, Miko, and Fake Haneesh heard the ominous command from within the elevator. "My Lady… what is that voice?"
The "…"s loaded in Miko's eyes as the voice registered in her mind. "Error…error… you couldn't be here…"
"Boly…?"
Boly's eyes returned to normal, glaring at the ceiling. "What do you think you're doing here, Dad?!"
…
Having traveled to the 100th floor, Gaz cocked a brow at the entity that loomed in the sky. "Boy, who pissed that guy off?"