[center][img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/221005/7d7c778891f3387ab231a2bbd26f2d1e.png[/img]
[img]https://fontmeme.com/permalink/220729/023912a75a8a9b16c801799640a60148.png[/img]

[b]Word Count:[/b] 2,026
[b]Level 7 Ganondorf:[/b] 64/70
[b]Level 10 Roxas:[/b] 54/100
[b]Exp Gained:[/b] +3
[b]NEW EXP Balance---[/b] 67/70, 57/100

[h3]Frozen Highlands ~ Krat Zoo[/h3][/center]

By the time Roxas had returned to the stagecoach from catching Reindrix, he quickly found out that the stagecoach had been attacked by Reavers while his group had been away. But seeing as how the stagecoach, his friends, and their supplies were all still intact it was a safe bet that the ambush failed in the end.

Speaking of said ambush, Ganondorf had regarded the attack in a dismissive tone. He’d done his part in making those pathetic bandits regret targeting them, but for him the ambush felt almost trivial. Like he was more annoyed by it rather than relishing the challenge. He did want a chance to test one particular new power he had gained from the Gravemind, but wasn’t afforded the chance when it came to the Reavers. So he knew he would have to wait for another opportunity to present itself.

And present itself, the opportunity most certainly did. Almost as soon as the Seekers had set foot in the Hall of Adventure, they were set upon by what could only be described as undead apes. Roxas and Ganondorf could only imagine that these things were among the Zoo’s former occupants, and were now running free. Initially in the encounter, two of the apes made a lung for Ganondorf and one of them targeted Roxas. Ganondorf had little trouble, all things considered. The first ape that lunged at him was caught by the throat before getting slammed into the second, stunning them long enough for Ganondorf to call forth his trident and plunge forward. The weapon skewered one ape allowing the Warlord to loosen his grip on the shaft and quickly catch the second ape with a Gerudo Dragon uppercut that sent it stumbling back. The warlord capitalized by using his newest dashing ability to teleport back into close range and finish it off with Flame Choke. Roxas, by contrast, had some slight difficulty at first. His smaller frame meant he was in greater danger of being overpowered by the ape that was attacking him. When it first lunged, he was quick enough to cast Reflectga in order to block it and cause the damage to be dealt back to the ape. After that the Nobody vanished and reappeared behind the ape to slash it with the energy blade of his StepSword. But he was caught by a swing of the ape’s arm that sent him sprawling. Scamp had to charge in and pull off a risky Nuzzle to inflict paralysis so that Roxas could launch back in with a Cross Slash that the Boltund then followed by using Spark. All in all, both the Warlord and the Nobody managed their part of the fight well enough.

After the fight, the Seekers were allowed to get a better look around the room. The first thing that drew attention was the metal door. It wouldn’t budge. And while Ganondorf might be capable of breaking through it if he tried hard enough, he frankly didn’t want to waste the energy. For a moment, Roxas thought the door was just locked and tried to use his Keyblade, but to no avail. [color=gold]”Not locked.”[/color] He said, confirming Sandalphon’s guess that it was likely barred from the other side.

[color=797979]”Hmph, just means we’ll have to find a way around.”[/color] Ganondorf grunted, quickly deciding to explore the eastern side of the Hall. Roxas, not having any better ideas, shrugged and decided to follow after the Warlord.

[color=gold]”Place is pretty freaky for a zoo.”[/color] The Nobody observed, noting the dilapidated state of the building, not to mention the stomach-churning looks of the “animals” that resided here.

[color=797979]”Indeed.”[/color] Ganondorf concurred, [color=797979]”But The Basement is still by far the worst place I’ve ever seen.”[/color]

[color=gold]”The… Basement?”[/color] Roxas tilted his head, having been with the Midgar Team rather than the Under Team during that particular period.

[color=797979]”Trust me,”[/color] Ganondorf said, [color=797979]”you don’t want to know.”[/color]

As the two Seekers continued their way, their path naturally led closer to the Hall of Adventure’s East Wing. And when they finally could see what was waiting in there…

[color=gold]”Ugh, what is [i]that[/i]?”[/color] Roxas asked, quite disturbed by the elephant monstrosity roaming the East Wing.

[color=797979]”An obstacle, as far I’m concerned.”[/color] Ganondorf said, summoning his trident with a wicked grin.

That was when they both heard Sandalphon’s warning over the communication she’d long since established with both of them. And it was Roxas who answered back, [color=gold]”Copy that, Halo.”[/color] He said over the communication glyph over his ear, even as he watched with widening eyes as Ganondorf was already charging in to take the monster on. [color=gold]”I’m already in the East Wing with Ganondorf, and… it looks like he’s already decided we’re gonna fight it.”[/color] He cut the transmission and recalled Scamp to his Poke Ball, thinking the elephant might be a bit too dangerous to risk letting him fight. Then the Nobody vanished.

Meanwhile, Ganondorf was already approaching where the elephant creature was lumbering. While he didn’t charge it directly, he did start closing the distance. In addition he summoned a squad of Moblin Archers to pepper the abomination with their fire arrows. The elephant reared its head in preparation for a charge, only for Roxas to appear on top of its back and slash it with his StepSword. So rather than charge, the elephant began to thrash in place in an attempt to fling the attacker from its back. [color=gold]”Whoa!”[/color] The Nobody yelped, struggling to stay balanced while he attempted to cast Aeroga on himself. The spell went through but at the cost of Roxas not being able to stay up on the elephant’s back longer.

[color=797979]”My turn!”[/color] Ganondorf grunted as he used Bullet Jump to launch himself into the elephant’s side, plunging his trident into its body. The weapon sunk in, and certainly did its damage. But the elephant only responded by thrashing even more violently as fire arrows from the Moblins started hitting it. Rather than try to remain, Ganondorf pushed himself off with another Bullet Jump and landed safely back on the ground before re-summoning his trident. At that point he saw a protective whirlwind appear around his body.

It was Roxas, casting an Aeroga on Ganondorf followed by a Tailwind to help him move just  a little more quickly. But that was all he had time to do before the elephant finally did a charging attack. Thankfully Roxas was just barely fast enough to dive out of the way. And Ganondorf? He smirked and used his Chaos Rift to teleport forward, harmlessly passing through the charging elephant and reappearing on the opposite side. His Moblins weren’t so lucky and were promptly trampled, leaving Roxas and Ganondorf alone again.

[color=gold]”Um, any other minions?”[/color] Roxas asked curiously, before suddenly getting an idea. [color=gold]”I choose you… Shocker!”[/color] With a quick toss he released his Rotom from its Poke Ball. [color=gold]”Shocker, quick! Use Confuse Ray!”[/color] The ghost Pokemon practically warped to the elephant’s fase and flashed it with glowing eyes. When the elephant began shaking its head and appearing as if it was looking for its bearings, that indicated the attack worked.

[color=797979]”Not bad.”[/color] Ganondorf admitted, [color=797979]”For such a small creature. And yes, boy, I do in fact have more minions.”[/color] He said as he began channeling magic to summon Phantom Ganon to back them up. Meanwhile he noticed Roxas was recalling his Pokemon back into its ball only to brandish another one.

[color=gold]”Come out, Turbo!”[/color] Roxas said, calling out his newest Pokemon, the Revavroom charged her engine in anticipation. [color=gold]”Use Screech!”[/color] The Pokemon obeyed, revving her engine until it made an ear-piercing noise that sharply lowered the elephant’s defense just in time for Phantom Ganon to drop down from above with his black nail - using a strong combination of Ripping Bear to empower himself and N Corp’s Nail to capitalize on the debuff for a powerful stab that also inflicted Bleed on the elephant. [color=gold]”Now we’re getting somewhere!”[/color] Roxas said, [color=gold]”Turbo? Keep your distance and keep using Screech!”[/color] Then he vanished again.

At this point, the confused elephant had managed to bat away Phantom Ganon with its thrashing. But now the actual Ganondorf had rejoined the fray, using Bullet Jump to launch himself up and onto the carcass’ back so he could proceed to plunge his trident downward, hoping maybe stabbing the head or neck might prove fatal. It didn’t, due to the elephant’s undead nature. But the attack still did heavy damage anyway thanks to the debuffs from Turbo using Screech. That was when Roxas reappeared nearby and also attacked the elephant’s neck/spinal area with his StepSword. But this time, both Seekers could predict what was about to happen and both jumped from the elephant’s back before it started thrashing about. Phantom Ganon chose not to charge in again, but instead attacked from a distance by launching a crackling sphere of dark magic at the thrashing beast, inspiring Roxas to do the same by casting a Firaga Spell at the Elephant.

[color=797979]”Hmph, this thing must be getting close to death by now!”[/color] Ganondorf grunted, javelin-throwing his trident into the elephant’s hide and following that with a lightning blast that struck the weapon like a lightning rod. That certainly hurt a lot, enough that the maddening elephant chose to charge toward Ganondorf. And this time the somewhat closer proximity didn’t give Ganondorf quite enough time to Chaos Rift out of the way, resulting in the Warlord getting knocked down and nearly trampled on. The damage was heavy, and would have been even worse if not for the Aeroga spell which was just now wearing off.

Roxas, on the other hand, was quick enough to dive out of the way. Seeing that the Aeroga spells were gone, he quickly cast two more. And then… [color=gold]”Heal!”[/color] He cast Curaga, thinking it was going to restore Ganondorf. But he was wide-eyed with shock when it appeared to have no effect. [color=gold]”Wha- I don’t understand, that usually works…”[/color]

Ganondorf pushed himself to his feet through gritted teeth. [color=797979]”No, you fool! Healing doesn’t work on me anymore, not since I took the Gravemind spirit!”[/color]

[color=gold]”You couldn’t have told me that BEFORE I wasted all my magic?”[/color] Roxas said, flustered and surprised. Unfortunately, this little interaction gave the elephant enough time to recover from its confusion. But not before Phantom Ganon hit it with another N Corp’s Nail, inflicting a worse form of Bleeding now that the carcass was below half of its health. Thanks to the Curaga blunder, Roxas was now without any MP to use for the next half-minute. That was going to make this harder. He decided to mimic the strategy he told Turbo to employ and keep his distance. In fact he hopped on the Pokemon’s back and let her carry him while he fired charged shots from his RockGun, occasionally telling Turbo to use Screech again to try and lower the elephant’s defense further.

Ganondorf fought through the pain to brandish his trident again, watching as Phantom Ganon was finally vanquished by the elephant. Getting frustrated, he empowered his trident with dark energy, preparing a new strategy. He threw the trident at the elephant, but this time it forced the beast to be pulled back toward the Warlord who was waiting with an angry Warlock Punch to smash it with. Ganondorf’s Warlock Punch was already known to be quite a strong attack, but against an enemy whose defenses were already immensely lowered, it would be devastating. Ganondorf roared as his fist collided with the elephant, the Triforce of Power giving him enough strength to launch the large beast away from him despite its size. That, it seemed, had been enough. Both the Seekers watched as the thrashing elephant slowly melted and dissolved into ash, leaving its spirit behind - which Ganondorf claimed and bottled for later.

[color=gold]”Um, Halo?”[/color] Roxas said over the communication glyph after he recalled Turbo to her Poke Ball, [color=gold]”The elephant monster’s down. East Wing should be okay now. And one more thing? Apparently, healing powers don’t work on Ganondorf anymore. Because of the Gravemind spirit, he told me. Just… thought you should probably know and would want to inform everyone else who can perform healing.”[/color]