[center][h2]Forbidden Kingdom - Yellow Wind Ridge[/h2]
[i]Friday Afternoon[/i]
Word Count: 2534 (+3 exp)
Ms. Fortune, [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]Pit[/color], [color=D34C25]Primrose[/color], [color=BC8DBF]Therion[/color], [color=aqua]Rika[/color] & [color=springgreen]Bowser Jr.[/color][/center]

It was smooth sailing past the (very gross) flooded pig farm, on account of there not being any sailing at all given the dry scrublands that stretched out ahead of the Seekers after it. It was hard to tell exactly how long the group had been traveling, and thus exactly how far from Esaka and its surrounding villages they were, but the ruin-lined area they currently found themselves in seemed as good an arena as any. With the heads up from Sandalphon in the back of their minds, the Seekers couldn't waste too much time looking for a better spot from which to spring their ambush lest the lose the chance entirely. So, once he'd had the chance to take a quick look around, the team captain made a declaration.

[color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"Let's set up here!"[/color] he called out to the other Seekers, his voice traveling through the slightly echo-y ridge. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"Spread out to secure the area!"[/color]

Though truthfully the order hardly needed to be said, as the Seekers were prone to splitting up regardless. 

It was only once everyone had grouped up again in the badlands that the koopa siblings realized that the twins hadn’t come along for this little excursion. This was a shame because both of the had thought the twins were pretty fun while chatting, but it was annoying (to Jr) because now they were the ones who were going to have to spread the info they’d found out around properly

[color=SpringGreen]”Hey. Heads up. You lot remember that interlinking thing we talked about a while back? Where two people who are like, bffs can fuse into one super being. Turns out that’s what we need to break flame clocks. Also its a thing Consuls can do”[/color] Jr said into his link pearl as the group got started on whatever prep activity caught their fancy. 

[color=SpringGreen]”Not, like, super relevant right now, but me n sis are gonna try n pull one off while fighting R. If things get dicey enough anyway, which they need to be to do it the first time apparently”[/color]

Rika piped in to add [color=Aqua]”It’s how we did the cassette fusion after all, so all we have to do is almost die again”[/color] in a somewhat matter of fact tone, with just a little bit of the arrogance of youth in there.

[color=BC8DBF]"Oh, if [i]that's[/i] all..."[/color] came a clipped, facetious comment over the communication link. 

After arriving in Yellow Wind Ridge and slowing down alongside the others to get a lay of the land, Nadia had set her sights on one of the nearby pagodas. The tiered tower both intrigued her visually and promised to provide an excellent vantage point of the area, as long as the decrepit structure didn’t come crumbling down when she tried to climb it. The Koopa Kids’ call reached her earpiece just after she tied her chocobo to a tree near a patch of wild greens that seemed to interest him, so she stood by to hear the news.

Junior’s mention of ‘interlinks’ did not immediately ring a bell for her. Was this all new information, or had she not been paying attention? Sadly, it was a genuine possibility that she’d simply zoned out during an important prior conversation. And this matter did seem pretty crucial, given what Junior said about interlinks being the only thing that could destroy Flame Clocks. As for Moebius doing it too…why not? They already had a crapton of different powers, so what was one more?

“Uh…” Nadia scratched her head as she watched a buzzard circling over the wasteland. The bigger bombshell was what interlinking actually was: some form of fusion. “This is something we could always just do whenever? Or in a moment of need I guess?” Her brows furrowed together as she mulled over the other prerequisite: having a BFF, apparently. Primrose was probably the friendliest Seeker for her, but best friends they were not. Her mind drifted to Ace, a little forlorn. Fusing with someone else and losing herself alarmed her, but she supposed that if there was anyone that she’d want to do it with, it was Ace. “Fusion? Like, purr-manently? That doesn’t sound…great. Even if it is strong.” She tried to picture a fusion between herself and Ace, but utterly failed. “How does that even work?”

[color=Aqua]”So, like, when we fought Clover’s parents by mistake, when they were on the back foot one ran up to the other, then they joined hands and then turned into these blue swirls that then fused into this big robot armor person that was really tough. But they turned back afterwards. Bit like that cassette monster fusion thing we did in the Deadzone”[/color]

[color=Aqua]”The main difference is it’s more like dancing instead of turning into a big new thing-y?”[/color] she added as well, prompting her brother to clarify that she meant [color=SpringGreen]”one of those fancy boring dances where one person leads and the other follows instead of the just let loose n groove kinda dancing.”[/color] 

“Ahh, okay, I get it,” replied Nadia, who didn’t get it at all, but assumed it must be one of those experience-it-for-yourself kind of deals. The idea that it could just happen on its own if she and someone she really got along with were endangered unsettled her a little, but fusing was better than dying, she guessed. Honestly, this was pretty shocking, but since it apparently hadn’t happened yet among any Seekers, either the Koopa Kids had it wrong or the requirements for interlinking were very, very specific. Thinking back on the last couple weeks, she realized that she’d never gotten the chance to dance with Ace after her lessons in the Crypt of the NecroDancer. He was probably a riot too, with zero know-how but one hundred percent effort, which would be a riot. Bummer.

It was at this point that the group's foremost expert on dancing chimed in, the light echo of wind heard from her end of the line unable to drown out the tint of amusement in her voice. [color=D34C25]"You may find it surprising how much work the follower still has to do in such dances,"[/color] she said first. [color=D34C25]"Done right and it's certainly not boring."[/color]

Though honestly she did prefer free-form, solo dancing just like Junior did. Primrose's tone flattened out soon after, becoming a little more serious. [color=D34C25]"I mean to say that partner dances require a great deal of concentration from both participants. That... and [i]trust[/i]. If you're right about it being similar to a dance, it's likely more difficult than you're imagining."[/color]

Though unfamiliar with the acronym the Koopas used, Primrose could easily infer what they meant. If interlinking required two equal partners... then maybe the siblings were one of the few who actually could achieve it, eventually. The unspoiled heart of children would let them bond deeply with anyone. The dancer herself was on good terms with many of the Seekers, but she couldn't imagine entrusting herself to someone else to the extent that she'd literally become one with them, however temporarily. Something deep inside her almost recoiled at the thought. An impossible hurdle, even with her closest companion that hailed from the same world as her and who shared in many of her troubles. Not to mention Therion had his own walls around his heart.

[color=BC8DBF]"Where'd you hear this from anyway?"[/color] the thief asked. He, and the masked horse he'd been riding, were already nowhere to be seen in the open area of the badlands. It hadn't been that long ago that the Seekers were still in the dark regarding the Flame Clocks, and last they'd heard before now it was some special weapon that could be used to break them. Were interlinks meant to be said weapon?

[color=SpringGreen]“‘Parently the lost numbers knew this the whole time. Or some of em did. The Bogard twins who snowball’s doing the tournament told her n she got them to tell us before we set off”[/color] Jr replied, intentionally mocking the divine wolf and getting a growl of annoyance down the line for his efforts.

He took this in stride and, with a shrug added [color=SpringGreen]“Dunno why it's only come up now, but hey, least we know now,”[/color]  having gotten over his own annoyance at the information withholding already.

[color=BC8DBF]"...must not have been relevant until now,"[/color] Therion said after a moment's thought. What had changed he didn't know, especially because the prerequisites that the Koopas gave were pretty vague, but something must have tipped someone off that this interlink thing was now possible for the Seekers. 

[color=Aqua]“Also we should probably let Sandy know so she can tell everyone else”[/color]  Rika added.

Pit, who had been busying himself with the task of eliminating monsters from the immediate area so the Seekers would have a clear battlefield, piped up over the linkpearl then. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"Oh, yeah, you're right! I'll call her!"[/color]

He'd been half-listening to the conversation about interlinks, but was in much the same boat as Ms. Fortune in that he didn't really get it. He also didn't understand how it was different from what Rika and Bowser Jr. could already do, just with a different form as a result, but if [i]any[/i] of them could do it then he thought he'd like to try fusing together with someone at least once. It sounded pretty cool, but since the fusion he'd experienced himself so far was only with spirits after the fact it was hard to imagine how two living brains would work stuck together. Maybe they'd take turns? Or each person piloted a different body part, like a combination robot!

Pit shook himself out of idealistic thoughts. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"But if you have to be beat up to do it, are you gonna start losing to R on purpose?"[/color] he asked the siblings, his voice skeptical. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"'cause that's pretty lame. Not to mention I'm not planning on letting him get even close to taking any of us out!"[/color]

[color=SpringGreen]“That’d be lame. We’re just gonna stick together while we get all up in R’s face! So we can punch them in it!”[/color] Jr replied with childish bravado.

Rika certainly seemed to be onboard with this plan, but she did at least have the foresight to ask [color=Aqua]“Do we have any idea about what R can do by the way?”[/color]  

As the others spoke via their linkpearl connection, Nadia had approached one of the super-tall pagodas in order to scale it. True to form, however, she became distracted by a number of plants in the vicinity. Bulbous but dessicated, they looked sufficiently strange to rouse her interest. After a few moments she tried splashing some water from a nearby pond on one of the odd plants. It promptly came to life and rose into the air, lifted by leaves that whirled like propellers. Different peahats rose to different heights, and it wasn’t long before a half-dozen hovered in the air around the tower, perfectly placed for the use of a grappling hook. Or grappling arm, as it were.

Before ascending, however, the feral dialed back in to the others’ conversation. “You mean, aside from tele-paw-tation and mind control?” she chimed in. “I think they all have some kinda special power unique to each of ‘em. Some of the stories about the other consuls got pretty wild. So get ready for somethin’ weird.” 

[color=D34C25]"Mm. It's easy to say based on what I've heard of his personality that he would prefer a direct, melee approach to combat, but we shouldn't assume anything."[/color]

If it was possible with the data they had to form some sort of common link between Consuls and the areas they governed, perhaps they could make an educated guess. Unfortunately they still just didn't have much to go off of.

[color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"We'll try not to let him do much of anything,"[/color] Pit said with a nod, though no one else could see it. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"First we'll crash his queztal and his guards to the ground, overwhelm him with a ton of firepower, and then bam - we'll be at phase two in no time! We'll probably get to see what sort of powers he has from there but he'll already be losing by then!"[/color]

[color=SpringGreen]“So we just gotta find a good spot to jump out and then pew pew pew em outta the sky when they go by?”[/color] Jr asked, definitely making finger guns on his end of the line.

[color=BC8DBF]"You got something that'll reach that high?"[/color] Therion sounded more curious than skeptical, although the healthy dose of skepticism was definitely there. There was a squealing sort of squeak in the background of his call in, suggesting that perhaps the thief was on the perimeter of the area keeping the rat-like humanoids away from their chosen battleground. The creatures were similar enough to the Ratkin of Orsterra that evidently he knew how to deal with them.

Before Junior could actually respond though, Pit popped back in sounding particularly eager. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"You won't have to shoot him down - I'll knock him out of the sky myself! Then once he crashes the fight'll be on for real!"[/color]

[color=Aqua]“How are you gonna stop R from seeing you coming up there? Wouldn’t it be sorta hard to hide in the sky? Plus I’ve never seen you fly, I don’t think?”[/color] Rika asked.

[color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"Uh, well, that's because I don't. Normally."[/color] Pit replied awkwardly. He quickly recovered. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"Lady Palutena's been working on using her Powers long distance from Skyworld, and she said she thinks she's got it figured out now! And once I'm flying around up there, it's not gonna matter if they see me coming 'cause they won't be able to stop me anyway!"[/color]

[color=SpringGreen]“She’s gonna make you that strong. To knock a Consul, a que-whatever and his minions out of the sky on your own?”[/color] Jr asked, disbelievingly, before offering [color=SpringGreen]“You sure you don’t want us helping out up there in my clown car?”[/color] 

[color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"Hey! I'm already that strong! She's just gonna get me up there!"[/color] came the reply in a huff. [color=lightgoldenrodyellow]"Don't worry, I'll be fine! And Poppi's gonna be up there too. You guys just focus on hitting him with everything you got once he's down!"[/color]

It was true that Pit was far more powerful than he appeared. If he couldn't even take down one dinosaur then that would mean he'd gotten really rusty. He didn't [i]feel[/i] rusty though, if anything he felt like he'd been getting stronger! 

[center][hider=For Pit: Level Up ×3]New Power: [b]Crisis Mode[/b]
Activates automatically when Pit's health is reduced to zero, saving him once from instant death and putting him into "Crisis Mode". While in this mode, Pit's feathers pulse a dull white and he remains fighting fit while on death's door, functionally operating at full strength with 1 HP. Any attack landed on him in Crisis Mode will be fatal, and he cannot regain health from any source until the mode expires. Crisis Mode ends naturally after ~15 seconds. Pit can only enter Crisis Mode once per encounter. 

New Power: [b]Patron Goddess[/b] Tier 2
[b]Power of Warp[/b] - Teleports Pit and anything he's holding (within reason) to a safe central location that he's been to before. Cities, base outposts, or certain mobile command centers are viable targets for arrival. With a longer cooldown, can teleport Pit to an ally's side instead. Not suitable for combat when cast on another person like this, as it has a noticeable blue glow and a casting time of a couple seconds, making it useless to avoid attacks unless you're Palutena herself. Use is also subject to Palutena's whim.

New Power: [b]Patron Goddess[/b] Tier 3
[b]Power of Flight[/b] - Grants Pit five minutes of flight, indicated by a soft blue glow on his wings. In addition it raises the power, speed, and accuracy of his attacks while airborne. His flight path is loosely controlled by Palutena, so it's not quite free flight, and she can take direct control at any time. The five minute time limit is not the power's duration, but instead how long Pit's wings can endure it. If pushed past five minutes, the glow will heat and turn to flames, burning Pit and potentially causing fatal injury depending on the length of time left burning.[/hider][/center]
His confidence spoke for itself, as he was completely convinced that he could do it - which would give everyone else plenty of time to get ready. 

[color=SpringGreen]“Well… if you say so”[/color] Jr replied, not sounding entirely convinced, but willing to move on and inform them that [color=SpringGreen]“In that case, we’ve found this dungeon that’ll make for good enough cover to avoid em spotting us till they’re right over us”[/color] 

This time Therion headed off Pit's reply. He hadn't gone as high up as Ms. Fortune, but he was currently on a cliff about middling way as tall as the ones that surrounded it, looking over the badlands. [color=BC8DBF]"Sounds good. Let us know where it is so we can make our ways there."[/color]

The kid did, giving the seekers their re-grouping point in the process.