The morning after their glitter-coated misadventures, Kazuya, Sylvara, and Ravynne found themselves still picking sparkling specks out of their hair. No amount of scrubbing or magical cleansing seemed to do the trick.
"This glitter is eternal," Kazuya grumbled, glaring at his reflection in a pond. His bangs were still shimmering, much to his dismay. "How does something this annoying even exist?"
"It's a gift!" Sylvara said, twirling and sending a cascade of glitter into the air. "Why can't you appreciate the beauty of it?"
"Because it's in my boots, Sylvara!" Kazuya snapped. "MY BOOTS."
Ravynne was trying to maintain her usual stoic demeanor, but even she looked annoyed as she plucked glitter off her cloak. "We need to focus on our next move. The cult may have the orb, but they're not exactly trustworthy."
Sylvara gasped dramatically. "You think they'd lie to me? After I gave them such a precious gift?"
"Yes," Kazuya and Ravynne said in unison.
Glitter on the Horizon
Their conversation was interrupted by the sound of distant chanting. A rhythmic chorus of "Shine bright like a diamond!" echoed through the valley, growing louder with every step.
Kazuya's face fell. "No. No way. I am NOT dealing with this again."
But before they could react, a parade of cultists came marching over the hill, their glittering robes gleaming in the sunlight. At their helm was the cult leader, who now wore the Orb of Infinite Glitter as a gaudy necklace.
"Kazuya, Sylvara, Ravynne!" she bellowed, her voice booming unnaturally thanks to the orb's power. "We have come to offer you a choice: Join us and bask in eternal fabulousness, or be obliterated by the Sparklenado Supreme!"
Ravynne groaned. "It's always something 'supreme' with these people."
"Do they really think adding more glitter will scare us?" Kazuya muttered. Then he squinted at the cult leader's entourage. "Wait. Are those chickens?"
Indeed, several glitter-covered chickens flanked the cultists, clucking ominously. Their beaks and talons sparkled with what could only be described as bedazzled menace.
"They've weaponized the chickens," Ravynne said flatly. "This is getting out of hand."
The Glitter Bomb Battle
Before anyone could respond, the cult leader raised her hands and shouted, "Unleash the Glitter Bombs!"
The chickens squawked and launched into the air, dropping tiny orbs of sparkling doom. As the bombs exploded, glitter rained down in a blinding cascade, coating everything in sight.
Kazuya shielded his eyes. "I'm going to lose my mind!"
"Don't worry!" Sylvara said, whipping out her staff. "I've got this!"
She waved her staff dramatically, and a gust of wind blew the glitter back toward the cultists. Unfortunately, it also sent several of the glitter chickens flying straight into the party.
One particularly aggressive chicken latched onto Kazuya's shoulder, pecking at his hair. "Get it off! Get it off!" he yelled, flailing wildly.
Sylvara giggled as she gently pried the chicken off him. "Aww, it likes you!"
"I don't want it to like me!" Kazuya snapped, throwing the chicken as far as he could. It landed with an indignant squawk before waddling back to the cultists.
A Glitter-Fueled Stand-Off
The cult leader scowled. "You dare defy Glitterus Maximus? You leave us no choice!" She raised the orb, and a blinding beam of light shot into the sky. "Behold the ultimate power of the Sparklenado Supreme!"
The sky darkened as storm clouds gathered, glitter swirling within them. Lightning crackled, and the cultists began chanting ominously.
Kazuya sighed. "This is why I hate cults."
"Don't worry!" Sylvara said, her eyes twinkling with excitement. "We just have to out-fabulous them!"
"What does that even mean?" Ravynne asked, looking genuinely concerned.
"It means... THIS!" Sylvara raised her own staff, and a rainbow burst forth, engulfing the storm in a kaleidoscope of colors. The glitter storm hesitated, as if unsure how to respond to such overwhelming fabulousness.
The cult leader shrieked. "Impossible! No one can outshine Glitterus Maximus!"
"Watch me!" Sylvara shouted, striking a dramatic pose. The glitter storm began to dissipate, its power seemingly no match for Sylvara's radiant energy.
Victory... for Now
As the storm faded, the cult leader dropped to her knees, clutching the orb. "You may have won this time," she said, her voice trembling, "but the glitter will rise again!"
"Yeah, yeah," Kazuya said, waving her off. "Go sparkle somewhere else."
The cultists retreated, their glitter chickens clucking in defeat. As they disappeared over the horizon, Kazuya turned to Sylvara with a mixture of awe and exasperation. "I can't believe that actually worked."
Sylvara beamed. "Never underestimate the power of fabulousness!"
Ravynne sighed. "Let's just hope we don't run into them again."
"Agreed," Kazuya said, brushing glitter off his shoulder. "But knowing our luck, they'll probably show up with a Glitter Mech next time."
Sylvara gasped. "Oooh, a Glitter Mech! That sounds amazing!"
Kazuya groaned. "Why do I even bother?"
To Be Continued...