Troublesome Force: Chapter 10

Place: Siruv's Palace
Group: Ness, King and Jeff
     <How much further is it going to be, Ness? I'm getting scared!> King complained.
"We don't know," Ness muttered, "and stop asking me that. It'll just make the travel seem longer."
"I have to concur with Ness, King," Jeff added. "Complaining only makes it worse."
<And I thought you were my friend, Jeff.>
"You thought? Wasn't I truly your friend?" Jeff demanded, feigning anger.
<You were until a little while ago,> King retorted.
"Oh... so we're friends only when it suits you?"
<Next time, I wouldn't be so snobby!> King snapped back. Ness related this rather unwillingly.
"Stop, you two!" Ness then protested. "If we dawdle any longer, we run the risk of Siruv winning!"

Group: Poo, Amy and Pika
     "Which way should we go?" Poo queried. His group had run into a three way fork, not counting the hall they had come down. "We can go down 1, 2 or 3." He pointed at each fork in turn.
Amy walked by each fork. "I'm not sure," she responded. "They could lead anywhere, I'm sure."
"Pika!" (Two!) Pika cried, pointing at the second fork.
"Does two sound right, Poo?" Amy inquired.
Poo focused a second. He closed his eyes, then immediately opened them.
"Yes," he answered. "Two sounds right."
Poo, Amy and Pika walked down that fork.

     "I can't believe it!" Amy muttered. "We've run into a dead end..."
"Chuu!" (It's not my fault!)
"I'm not saying it's your fault. It's Poo's fault! He should have sensed there was a dead end."
"Don't drag me into this argument. Anyway, if we find a dead end, we simply backtrack and choose a different path. Right?"
They turned around and began to walk away.
"Kach!" (Wait!) Pika cried.
"What is it, Pika?" Amy stooped down to look the electric mouse in the eyes.
"Pik, pikach!" (Look, it's moving!)
And indeed, the supposed dead end was moving.
"It's alive?" Poo asked.
The group was suddenly shaken by a tremou, and the "dead end" moved back.

Group: Alis, Ani and Myau
     "Can this staircase get any longer?" whined Ani. "I'm getting tired. A future queen shouldn't have to walk so far."
"There's no point in whining about length," Myau chided. "Whining would only make it seem that much longer."
"Myau's right," Alis noted. "You shouldn't whine about the length of the stairway at all. Anyways, you're not a queen yet."
"I will!"
"What will be isn't necessarily what is."
"Oh look," Myau muttered. "We're at the end of the staircase."
"Hooray!" Ani jumped off the staircase.... and into nothing. "Agh!"
Alis leapt and caught Ani's hands before she fell too far down.
"Thank you, Alis..." Ani said, breathing heavily.
Ani's Sword of Eternal Queens began to glow.
"What?" Myau looked down the pit, now illuminated. "There's a ladder..."
"A ladder?" Ani screamed. She started struggling inexplicably, and Alis lost her grip.
"Ani!" Alis cried, jumping down after her.

     "Where are we?" Myau asked.
"It's too squishy to be real," Alis noted. She looked at the illumination from Ani's sword. It revealed the surface they were standing on was like a jellyfish. But it wasn't a jellyfish. It was a little too dark to be a jellyfish, and tingled with electricity.
The jellyfish-like thing shook.
"Uh oh!" Ani exclaimed.
"To the ladder!" Alis commanded.
But they were stuck.
"Wonderful!" muttered Myau.
Alis, Myau and Ami could only stand by idly as they were shephered. Like lambs to a slaughter, perhaps.

Group: Paula, Ana-Ecoli and Tracy
     "AAaaaaaaa!!!!" cried someone above them.
"That sounds like Ness!" Tracy exclaimed.
Paula and Ana looked up. Yes, it was Ness. And King and Jeff, too! But why were they falling?
Paula caught Ness. Ana caught King. Tracy caught Jeff. And everyone went tumbling to the ground.
"Ness!" Paula asked hurriedly. "How'd you get here from there?"
"A squishy thing was the floor where we were. But then it disappeared beneath us, and we fell," Ness related.
<In future, can we avoid stepping on any floor that results in us going to a lower floor?> King demanded angrily.
"Oh, quit whining, King," Ana chided. "He has been whining, right?"
"I'm still mad at you because you ate my sandwich," Ness warned. "So don't try to get further on my bad side, King."
<Oh... so it's my fault you dropped your sandwich?>

     The group of seven continued their journey, combined now.
"King..." Tracy hugged the dog who was now practicing discord like never before.
<...> The group of seven was now shaken by a tremour. It started around them, and neared them.
"Not again," Ness muttered.
Ecoli popped out of Ana's body. "You mean, this happened before?" he demanded.
"Just before we... dropped in on you." Jeff gave his best 'Sorry for the joke' smile.
Paula and Ana rolled their eyes.
"Yipe!" Ecoli cried. "Look below us!"
"Aaaaaaaagggggghhhhhh!" everyone but King cried.
<I'm too cute to die!>

Group: King and Jeff
     <NO!> King cried angrily. <Why'd I have to end up with you?>
"Look at it this way: We get to bond," Jeff retorted.
<I don't want to bond!>
"We're going to have to, if we want to get out of here alive."
An eerie voice echoed from down the hall ahead of them: Come... if you wish to aid yourself...
King's fur stood on end. <Who are you?>
"Yes, who are you?"
If you wish to find out, travel towards me...
<No! You scare me!>
Then die...
<I'm coming!> King ran down towards the source of the voice.
Jeff shrugged his shoulders, then ran after him.

     Keep coming... or die...
<I'm coming!> King exclaimed, increasing his speed.
"Slow down!" Jeff cried. "I can't run at mach speed, you know!"
Slow down... and you die... the voice threatened.
<I don't want to die! I'm too cute!>
"He's lying!" Jeff snapped. "Don't you realise it? It's all a lie!"
No. I am telling the truth... you slow down... you die...
"Don't trust him, King!"
Don't trust him, King... he's lying to you... ignore him...
<Go away from me!> King went further into the shadows.
Jeff stopped running.
"No, King..." Jeff moaned.
How am I ever going to tell Ness what happened? Jeff thought. He began to walk in the direction King had run off in. He wanted to make sure he knew what he was walking into.

Group: Alis, Ani and Myau
     "It's stopped?" Myau asked. The rumbling had stopped, and they no longer had the sensation of being artificially moved.
Come.... a voice beckoned. Come... face your destiny...
"What?" Ani demanded. "What do you want?"
I want you to face your destiny.... the voice offered.
"We'll face our destiny when we want!" Alis snapped.
Suddenly, Ani's sword lost its illumination!
"What just happened?" Ani yelled at her sword.
"Owwwie..." Myau whined. "You just yelled in my ear!"
Alis slumped slightly, then returned to her original posture. The sword re-illuminated.
"Let's go," Alis stated monotonously. She began to walk towards the voice.
"Stop, Alis!" Myau warned. "We don't know what this voice wants of us!"
"He wants us to face our destiny..." Alis related monotously. Alis continued to walk forward.
"Alis!" Myau cried. "Stop!"
"No... he wants us to face our destiny. He will..."
Alis seemed to stumble slightly.
"Alis!" Ani ran up to her, and tried stopping her advance. But Alis persisted, and stayed in the trance-like state she was in. Ani stumbled, and fell backwards. Myau jumped to avoid being hit. Alis disappeared into the darkness.
Myau nimbly landed on Ani's stomach, and turned to face the young Dalaamian.
"What do you think we should do? Follow Alis, or try finding our friends?" the musk cat asked. His ears twitched.
Follow Alis.... the voice suggested.
"No!" Ani cried defiantly.
"Let's go!" Myau exclaimed, pointing towards a secondary passage... one that he knew they hadn't come down. And not the one Alis gone down, either.
They show a courage... but they won't win...

Group: Poo, Amy, Pika
     Poo, Amy and Pika waited until the "dead end" had moved down as far as it would go.
Then they continued on their way, Poo's sword brightening the darkness.
"Chu?" (Alis?) Pika asked.
"Alis? I thought you were with Myau and Ani," Poo commented.
"C... co... come... me... meet... ou... our... dest.... destiny..."
"Are you okay, Alis?" Amy asked.
"I'm... o... okay." It seemed that Alis was having trouble speaking.
Pika sniffed Alis.
"Kach!" (Fake!) he cried.
"Fake?" Poo was dumbfounded. "Surely, this can't be a fake of Alis... can it?"
Alis' face contorted. "Pika... come... attack... meet our... ME!"
"What?" Amy and Poo demanded.
Alis' face began to assume its natural form. "Attack... destiny!... me!"
"PIKAAAA!!!" (THUNDERBOLT!)
Alis' body contorted. Her back arched backwards. From her heart arose... a Virus?
"A Virus!" Poo cried.
"Get it..." Alis moaned, her hair flopping over her eyes. She fell unconscious.
"PSI THUNDER GAMMA!" Poo exclaimed.
"PIKAAAA!!!" (PSI THUNDER OMEGA!)
"You can't do this!" the Virus warned as he dissipated. "Siruv will win!"
"Chuu?" (Alis?) Pika nudged Alis' arm gently.
Amy's heart beat faster. No! Alis can't die! she thought.
She dropped to her knees quickly, and felt for Alis' pulse.
"She's got a pulse... but it's weak."
"PSI Healing Omega," Poo whispered.
"No effect," Amy reported.
"PSI Life-Up Gamma."
"Her pulse is going up!"
Pika's eyes widened. "Pika, kach!" (Yes, she'll survive!)
Alis' eyes fluttered opened.
"Is the Virus dead?" she asked.