CHAPTER XXXV: Gifts for the Battle
Darkness. He was floating in an endless sea of darkness, a strange, unemotional calm washing over him. He saw a bright light at the end of some kind of hallway. He floated towards it eagerly.
"Ness! You're awake!"
His eyes opened to see Paula's beautiful face above him. She looked very worried, and he suddenly felt very ashamed for making her that way. She threw her arms around him, squeezing gently. He hugged her back, taking a moment to look around. He was in Kav's house in Tenda Village II. Poo and Jeff were busy making hot compresses, and grinning over at the two others.
"Glad to see you awake," Jeff said as Paula pulled away. "You've been out for about seven hours. What happened to you? And where's the Sound Stone?"
"Gone," he grinned weakly, and proceeded to tell them--in great detail--of his journey through Magicant, and the battle with his Nightmare.
"I thought I sensed something different," Paula sighed. "I know Ness, and you seem a bit different. There's something there, a pulsing power deep in your aura."
"The Sound Stone has blessed him," Poo laughed. "Finally, we'll be able to beat Giygas! But one thing...how do we go back in time TWO THOUSAND years?"
>Ring, ring!<
Ness picked up the Receiver Phone. "Hello?"
"Ness? This is Apple Kid!"
"Hey, what's up?"
"What's wrong, dude?"
Ness sighed. "We finally found out where Giygas is--where we can never touch him. He went back in time two thousand years."
"Excellent!" The voice at the other end laughed. "Dr. Andonuts and I have been working on a Phase Distorter machine that can transcend time and space! Come to Saturn Valley, and we'll get you set up!"
"Really?!" Ness nearly cried. "All right! I'll be there in about five minutes!"
"FIVE MINUTES? How...?"
>Click!<
"Come on, you guys," The young man grinned, grabbing Paula's hand. "We're going back to Saturn Valley. PSI Teleport!"
Kicking up huge chunks of dirt, Ness slid to a stop next to Apple Kid. His friends stopped next to him. Ness had quickly explained everything to them on the way, so they were well briefed by the time they arrived. Apple Kid jumped when they appeared.
"You were right," he laughed. "Four minutes and thirty seconds."
"Let's get down to business," Ness said resolutely. "and get to Giygas."
Dr. Andonuts, who was greeting Jeff, turned to the leader. "I'm afraid we can't yet. You see, we need a strange material to operate the Phase Distorter. It isn't found on Earth, but it IS brought here on meteors. Its called Zexonyte. Without it, any living thing passing through the Phase Distorter will be instantly killed."
Ness sighed, flopping on the ground. They all thought about this for a moment.
"But..." Poo began. "If we had a meteor, we could get Zexonyte, right?"
"Correct."
"What are you getting at, Poo?" Paula asked questioningly.
"Remember how the whole mess began?" The young prince grinned from ear-to-ear. "With...?"
Ness perked up, slamming a fist into his palm. "With a meteor! A meteor that carried Giygas' essence onto the planet!"
Jeff clapped his hands. "All right! We can get some Zexonyte, and come back to fight Giygas!"
Ness stood up. "I'll go myself," he said quietly. "It might be dangerous by now, so I don't want to put you three in danger."
"Don't even think about it!" Paula growled. "I'm not letting you go off by yourself! You might get hurt! What will I do then? I'm going too!"
"Paula," he admonished. "I'm going alone...I...couldn't..."
"Couldn't what?..."
"Nevermind. I'm off."
"I'm coming too," Poo stood, folding his arms. "I can be of great help, and besides--if our leader died before we can fight Giygas, I couldn't forgive myself!"
"Well..." Ness debated with himself. "All right. Let's go!"
"Great!"
"PSI Teleport!"
They flew through the pillar of light, landing quietly in front of the meteor. The skies of Onett were dark, and the view from the cliff the meteor sat on revealed monsters roaming the streets of his hometown. Ness growled, leaned down, and pulled off a large chunk of the meteor. Poo drew his sword, looking off into brush.
A line of Wild'n'Wooly Shamblers cut Poo off from Ness. The young leader spun, tucking away the rock, and drawing his bat.
"Enough of this!" Poo shouted. "PSI STARSTORM!"
A huge barrage of star-shaped energy racked the line, and the two heroes leapt past, grabbing each others' hands. Ness stopped himself, yelling out.
"PSI Teleport!"
They landed exactly from where they left. Ness, breathing heavily, pressed the rock into Dr. Andonuts' hands.
"That was quick," Jeff grinned. "Any trouble?"
"A bit," Ness laughed. "Poo decimated the trouble with his StarStorm attack, so we got away pretty easy. So, Doc, can you get the Zexonyte from that rock?"
"Darn tootin', I can," Andonuts laughed, eyes alight with glee as he watched the rock. "And pretty soon, I'll go down in history as the man who invented the time machine!"
"You guys go get some rest," Apple Kid said. "You'll be risking your lives for us tomorrow...you'll be risking your lives..."
"...For freedom," Ness finished.
That night, after having a rejuvenating reunion with Mr. Saturn, Ness took a walk in the half-light of dusk. He slowly circled the city, hands in pockets, the night wind feeling good on his tense body. He was coming around a corner, when he saw Paula sitting on a rock, her golden ponytail streaming. He cocked his ear, listening to her voice lift in song:
"I walk in a sea of confusion, not knowing where I stand...
But a light will guide me to where I need to go...
Borne on an autumn wind, my fearless knight will take
me to a place where I will find my peace."
"And when the light, it fades, the glory will shine through,
my knight, bound to the earth, will strike...
the EarthBound one, the one to save me from the strife...
he will conquer the evil and love me again."
Ness stood there for a moment, a tear in his brown eye. He smiled lightly, the beauty of the song touching him in a way he could have never fathomed. He turned around, closing his eyes, and walking away from the singing girl.
The next morning was one of great tension. Ness, Paula, Jeff, and Poo, the Chosen Ones, stood in a line in front of the Phase Distorter. A rather haggard-looking Dr. Andonuts presented them with some gifts for their final quest. "I based them on your weapon preferences," He had claimed.
"Jeff," he said, stopping in front of his son. "Remember that broken gun you found in the Stonehenge base?"
"Yes," Jeff replied.
"I fixed it. Here it is, the Gaia Beam. Carry it with pride!" He procured a blaster pistol, handing it to the bemused young man. Jeff took it respectfully.
"Paula," He turned to the young woman. "I know that a frying pan is your weapon of choice. Therefore, I hereby present you with the Holy Fry Pan!"
He held out a glowing, golden frying pan. She could feel the very strength coursing through it. With a smile, she thanked the good doctor.
"Poo," Andonuts sighed. "I'm afraid I have nothing for you. I analyzed the Sword of Kings and found I could not duplicate, much less enhance, it's power. So I have no gift for you..."
"But I do," A familiar voice said.
The old man that had taught Poo the StarStorm suddenly appeared in front of the startled prince.
"Poo E'l Ahrim Dalaam," The man said. "Receive the ultimate StarStorm power...close your eyes..."
A shockwave ran through the young man. Wisps of smoke ran off of his body as he fell to the ground, clutching his arms. He stood suddenly, his eyes full of hope.
"Thank you, Sensei," he bowed.
"You are welcome, Poo-kun," The old master bowed as well.
"And Ness," Andonuts finished. "Ness, leader of the group. A long time ago, I discovered a Scarabian totem made of petrified wood. It had hieroglyphs sketched across it, and was filled with immense psychic powers. Ness, I give you the most powerful weapon known to man--the Legendary Bat!"
Mr. Saturn dropped the finest baseball bat Ness had ever seen. It was smooth, polished beyond perfection. Scarabian symbols were marked up and down the wide part of the Legendary Bat, giving it a mysterious look. Power surged through every fiber of it, and that strength flowed into him.
"Carved from totem," Mr. Saturn grinned. "DOING! Done by Mr. Saturn! AAAAAAALL Mr. Saturn! Zoom!"
Ness threw aside his old baseball bat, and wrapped some tape around the handle of his new one. He spun it a few times, and sheathed it in that starched ring on his backpack.
"Now you go to fight for us," The old man said. "To battle for all our souls."
Ness nodded, a serious look fixed on his face. "And believe me," he said. "We haven't come all this way to be defeated!"
"Then go," Apple Kid said. "Make us proud...make us proud to have known the Chosen Ones..."
"Ness!" Andonuts yelled as they boarded the Phase Distorter. "Paula! Poo! And my son, Jeff! Go with all our hopes!"
Ness flashed his peace sign, and they all entered the Phase Distorter, a huge machine that looked like a huge, silver Mr. Saturn.
"Are you scared?" Jeff whispered to his friend.
"Pants-less," Ness replied--and it was true.
"Good, me too," Jeff sighed. "I'm glad I'm not the only one."
The Phase Distorter rocketed through the coils of time, while the Chosen Ones huddled inside. Jeff was busy packing gunpowder into Multi-Bottle Rockets, and Poo was meditating. Ness sat quietly with Paula leaning against him.
When the machine finally stopped, they entered the past fully girded for battle. Unfortunately, battle began as soon as they stepped out of the machine. A huge mass of monsters was clustered near the path leading north. There were different types of beasts, ranging from Final StarMen to Ultimate Octobots. They all converged on the group once they had left the relative safety of the Phase Distorter.
"They have come for Master Giygas!" One Final StarMan shouted. "Kill them!"
Four against four hundred were hardly even odds, but a combination of PSI Rockin' Gamma and PSI StarStorm Omega wiped out the first four enemy lines, and badly damaged the next ten. Ness charged his energy into the Legendary Bat, leaping towards a group of Mechanical Octobots. When he clubbed the one in the center, a huge explosion rocked the others, sending them flying. He landed defensively, small flames extinguishing from his body.
Poo was flying through the ranks, carving great arcs with the Sword of Kings. Great chunks of metal were flying through the air as he cleaved his enemies cleanly in various areas. He lashed out with his feet as well, rattling against his foes.
Highly concentrated beams of blue energy were flaring through the air, as Jeff knelt in the midst of the fray, firing the Gaia Beam into his enemies. On occasion, he would pick up his Bazooka, and fire a few rounds at those who came too close.
"PSI FIRE OMEGA!" A huge shockwave of flames rippled outward from Paula's body, searing circuits, and melting metal. She recovered from the expenditure easily, and went about clanging with the Holy Fry Pan. She fought like a thing possessed, blonde hair flying as she dashed between one enemy and the next.
Poo leapt up into the air. "Ready, Paula?" He shouted.
She jumped as well, falling into place next to him. "Sure am!"
"PSI THUNDER OMEGA!" They screamed as one. Yellow lightning twisted in a spiral down from their outstretched hands. It wailed as it struck the ground, radiating outward, and deactivating all of the mechanical enemies.
"Note to self," Ness grinned as Paula landed next to him. "Lightning and robots don't mix. Good job, you two."
Poo grinned, and pointed north. "Giygas is there, Ness. It's time for the final battle. Are you ready?"
It took him a moment to answer.
"I was born ready."