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A Hero Tale {Complete}

~ Chapter 176 ~

_{The Epitome Of Gaia's Power, One With Gaia Unleashed!}

Ada Looked Dacer over carefully and nodded to herself, one hand on her chin. "Yeah... Yeah, this is a good look for you! I can be into this!" She purred, "I hope nobody judges me too harshly, hee hee!"

Dacer's eyes prowled the field as Ada began to focus carefully on her army, and the energy therein. Where to focus? Where to increase density? Where to unleash the Meta Clones? She smiled, and her voice boomed inside of each hero's head simultaneously.

~Alvios~

"Maybe we could hang out after this? Chat about fashion, I've got plenty of dresses, I'm sure you would look marvellous, strewn up against my wall in one with your cocky mouth sewn shut."

Several more clones of Cilia made their way towards Alvios, numbering at least forty. Each and everyone repeated phrases of discouragement, piecing together into a single line of dialogue. "Your choice was selfish" "Tell yourself whatever you want" "My sister is going to die" "She hates you" "I Hate you" "That time we spent" "What a waste" "Look at where you are now" "On the precipice of defeat" "If only I'd met Jenso before you" "I wanted so much more" "Here you are" "Here I am" "Here we are"

"We're going to pick you apart slowly!"

~Bruce~

"Oh, how Droll! The itty bitty psychopath is playing saviour! Didn't your wife ever tell you, that's not very heroic? If you're stupid enough to put on such a hypocritical display of sheer psychological malady, then please, step onto my dance-floor."

Two clones, one of Rajaka, and one of Zelriane, jumped up into the airspace near to Bruce. They were different than the rest, shining bright with glowing eyes and a sense of consciousness about them. Zelriane's clone swung his foot towards Bruce's face like a spinning shuriken, and Rajaka reached out for his hover board.

~Jeff~

"That assistant of your was delicious. Swallowed her in copious gulps, like a prime steak! There's something about the blood of crude lab assistants that tickles my taste-buds. But, maybe she wouldn't be dead, if it wasn't for your overwhelming incompetence." Ada's voice thrummed louder. "If you keep holding your friends back, you're going to get one killed. Don't worry though, I'll be sure to give them respect every day. Maybe I'll turn that silly golden kid into a lamp post."

Three clones of Sera, shining brightly, flew towards Jeff and rose their hands, trying to trap him in a literal sphere of force energy. Each one seemed stronger than Sera was in the past, and more resolute in their goal.

~Oswald~

"Fancy yourself a god, do you?" Ada mocked, "I can feel your Meta energy, and that pathetic Geode whelp inside of you. Couldn't manage on your own, could you? Zelriane was right, you'll be quite the specimen for Yzeira once we're through with you. Let's test that mettle, shall we?"

~Jenso~

"Golden boy," Ada started... ..."I'll save you for last."

---

Jenso's flame wave tore through a good portion of the army, but many of the clones, mostly those who went on to directly attack the individual heroes, had protected themselves with a barrier of ooze, pressing towards the castle quickly in an attempt to take it down. Those who were not completely eradicated with Ki based attacks, simply got right back up. Those that were sliced to ribbons, reformed themselves with ease. Ada laughed as she kept her eyes focused on Bruce.

"Let's make you mine"

Dacer's form didn't disappear this time. Instead, he ran at a speed comparable to Jeff's, into the thick of the battle. He swiped at the air with his claws, sending sabre-waves of Ki towards Bruce's newly formed giant golems from afar. The raking shock waves dug into their chests, dicing them into cubes as they criss-crossed past their stony figures. The archer- No- Feline Assassin landed lightly on his feet and hopped back into the air, charging a strenuous amount of Ki in his right paw.

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Ada sneered, the corner of her lip cringing backwards as Alvios quipped about her dress. "We're just starting, Hon," She whispered to herself, shifting her gaze back to Oz. Then the white flame rose, a giant wall that blocked off the heroes. Ada snickered and shrugged. Her eyes glimmered and she rose one hand above her head. "Trying to block out my omnipotent vision? Puh-lease." She looked upon the battlefield with glee as it was torn in half, and more golems began to lurch from the flying rock above her. Dacer pulled back on his drawstring and waited patiently. Ada's eyes flashed towards a new target as soon as his sinister vibes began to ripple across the battlefield. "Oh?" Her lips curled into a smile. Ada stepped forwards and wrapped her arms around Dacer from behind moments after he dispatched of the golems descending from above with a series of flaming arrows,
incinerating them completely in a spectacle of Arki that peppered the sky with miniature infernos.

"Dacer, Hon, keep me safe for a little while," she whispered quietly into his left ear. He tore away from her and pulled back on his bow once more. A spiral of torrential fire built viciously as the island continued to soar towards them. Oz's projection sped past it slightly faster. For a split second, the entire army slowed their pace, their attacks and movements became sluggish as Ada rose her hand. Dacer fired a much larger inferno arrow, striking the landmass above them, and triggering the attack at its epicentre. A purple dome covered Ada, Dacer, and Tiger, stopping the oncoming Atlas short with the dense material which showed no signs of breaking.

"I'm going to catch you a playmate"

The dome surrounding Ada suddenly lurched up and around Atlas, into a sphere that looked much like a giant jawbreaker. It glinted in the sunlight, and Ada threw it back into the center of her Army, which immediately picked their pace right back up. Ada focused on Bruce and licked her lips. "Come close, stupid boy," She whispered, "If you're so sure about yourself."

Something was odd after she'd revealed herself again. Tiger and Dacer had gone missing. Ada paused and glanced forwards at the two shots that ripped through the air like sniper fire. She giggled gleefully under her breath and stomped the ground like a giddy schoolgirl. "Oh this is going to be be so cool!"

The two shots, as if hit by one of Dacer's arrows, split into many different projectiles, with only a moment's delay between one another. Following that, each of the smaller shots split, one after the other, until the remaining shots, possibly numbering in the hundreds, lacked the energy to pierce anything Ada had prepared. Several clones jumped into the path of the remaining bullets, practically eating them with their viscous bodies, while Ada rose several pillars to block anything that made it past her army. She rose a hand to her mouth and yawned as Dacer appeared in front of her.

He stood crouched, one hand pressing into the grass below him with newly formed claws, while his other was braced backwards, as if ready to swipe. Fur ran along his arms, legs, neck and face, with a green aura of energy encompassing it all. Most notable, his hair had turned green, and he had two little ears poking out from the sides of his head. His eyes, once luminescent globes of emerald, had developed small black pupils that divided them as slits, shifting to adjust to his speed. And of course, he had a small striped tail that flicked from side to side. His form was far more feral than Lark's, Sera's or Jenso's. With nearly every inch of his body covered in fur, his hands and feet armed with razor sharp claws, and his... Tail...

"One With Gaia"

---

~ End Of Chapter 175 ~

A Hero Tale {Complete}

The violet webbing beneath the castle snapped and tore as the pulse of energy pushed it away, freeing the Castle. all while Jenso's flames belted down against a small portion of the unfamiliar clones, melting them away. Once the army was fully risen, the purple sludge below them faded. Ada Shrugged and looked up at Oswald and Alvios. "Curious that you think me to be so simple," Ada's voice echoed inside of Alvios' head exclusively, "You're a prime example of everything I hate in a man." Suddenly, one of the clones nearest to the castle was launched upwards by a figure of Rajaka. It was Cilia, post her hive-queen transformation, and she was preparing to slice Alvios in half. "I have eyes and ears everywhere"

That phrase began to echo in the heads of every last hero that strode forwards.

_{"I have eyes and ears everywhere" "I have eyes and ears everywhere"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere" "I have eyes and ears everywhere"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere" "I have eyes and ears everywhere"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere" "I have eyes and ears everywhere"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere" "I have eyes and ears everywhere"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere" "I have eyes and ears everywhere"
"I have eyes and ears everywhere" "I have eyes and ears everywhere"}

"I know your fears," Ada mocked Alvios once more.

"You let her die," The clone of Cilia Bellowed, mimicking the dead woman's voice as best it could. Ada's eyes shifted to Oz and she smiled, raising her lower eyelids. As Oz's spear flew through the sky, several clones of Zelriane jumped into its path, only to be blown to smithereens, unable to stop or slow it. But, a moment before the attack struck Ada, it was matched by a stream of white energy fired from Dacer's bow. The archer stood in front of Ada, his hand reeled back from pulling on his weapon's invisible drawstring. Ada chuffed and lightly pet the boy's dirty blonde hair.

"Silly little man," Ada's voice pulsed inside of Oz's head like a nagging disease, "Maybe I can't defend myself thoroughly with my army up, but Dacer here is no longer under the effect of my simpler methods of control. You won't be finding a candle, just to be clear." Dacer lowered his bow and glared at Oz. His mouth curled into a subtle smile.

"Now, I think he just wants to protect me!"

The clone hordes went toe to toe with Bruce's golem swarm, from one side of the battlefield to the other, clashing indefinitely. However, it quickly became obvious, that ada's clones were slowly reforming themselves. Any entity not hit by Ki, stood right back up and repaired itself, fighting on. The golems, although effectively keeping sections of Ada's army at bay, were fighting a losing battle. Although Bruce's Ki reserves were astronomical, Ada's Meta energy was unlimited.

Jeff and Bruce received oncoming fire from the front row of clones. Shards of ice, rock, flames, force, arrows, and even Meta energy blobs flew towards them in massive volleys of sheer oppressive power. Ada glanced at Bruce and smiled. "I have eyes and ears everywhere" her voice boomed inside his head once more, "What are your fears?" She glanced back at Oz, and a clone began to form near the bottom of the tower.

"Such stupid little heroes," Ada mumbled to Dacer, "Aren't you glad to be on the winning team?"

"Ecstatic."

A Hero Tale {Complete}

~ Chapter 175 ~

_{Ozmone Army}

Ada sat quietly, casually picking at her painted fingernails with the corner of her perfect smile as both eyes looked down at the grass in front of her, half closed. She hummed to herself and reached into a small pocket underneath her breasts, placed just above a small circular hole that revealed her midsection. The dress she wore clung to every curve like tight velvet. Her right forearm was covered with a loose sheet of see-through fabric as well, and her right leg was sticking out of the slit in her dress's skirt. He eyes darted up towards Jeff's camera, and she smiled, with her fingernail still between two of her teeth. She rose her other hand and offered them a petite wave.

The bottom sections of Jeff's flying castle had been clung to by large, gooey strands of purple ooze, thicker than towers and sturdy enough to hold the contraption in place. It came up in several criss-cross patterns as it continued to climb the sides of the giant flying fortress. The caslte was stuck over the edge of the forest that met the large plains at the tower's base. It was just like Mikey explained it, the battlefield was vast, at least a kilometer long, meeting a beach that stretched for what seemed like forever to the left. On the right, a large hill crept upwards, overlooking the ocean beneath it with the Tower Of Chaos standing on top, at least 100 stories high, like a paragon of doom.

Ada stood up and began to stretch her limbs. "Oh me oh my, look what the cat dragged in!" Ada shouted loudly, her voice echoing in the minds of everyone on board the Flying castle. Dacer suddenly hopped out from behind a large bush at the tower's base, the only cover available on the massive field of grass, with Tiger following closely behind in his enlarged form. He stood next to Ada, the wound in his left leg now only a faint scar, almost match the old wound through his right knee. "Tsk tsk tsk! After Ra'Ra's silly little plan failed, I figured it was about time to give my beloved a little nudge. Of course, here you are, like moths to the flame! Did the earthquakes start to rustle your itty-bitty hearts? Aw, so sowwy!" Ada frowned, and then smiled, cackling loudly through the minds of Jenso and his friends.

Luke reached out and grabbed everyone nearby by the collarbone. "We don't have time for this," Luke grunted, "Blup! Relay the plan!" The little blups on everyone's head began to bleep and bloop. Ada was still stretching while laughing maniacally.

"Our goal is to reach Yzeira, above all else. The fabric of reality will only be able to hold out for so long..."

Ada cracked her neck and rose her hands forwards, her fingers curved upwards like little knives, tipped with purple energy.

"We must locate Ada's Candle for Dacer as soon as possible. We stand to gain yet another extremely powerful ally,
while crippling Adarine. Jeff's castle and mechanized weaponry, robots, etc will have to assist us while assailing the exterior."

The temptress bent her fingertips down, and turned her hands so that the palms faced one another.

"While on the battlefield, try to remain close. Keep each other safe. Get to the tower, and dispatch of your enemies with due prejudice. Do not use more than one power pill in a 10 minutes time frame, or you will overcharge your body and your organs will fail."

Ada slammed her palms together, flexing her thin arms for a moment before thrusting one of her hands into the ground at her feet.

"Above all else, do not allow Ada to take control of you. Take advantage of the fact that she's alone. Do not hold back unless you absolutely need to conserve your energy. There are enough power pills in reserve for a long drawn out fight... We must-" Suddenly Blup's feed stopped, and the little robot went silent.

"Remember, kiddies! That stupid little robot was part of Mikey before you released him from my clutches. I don't think I'll be letting him say anything else, 'kay?" Ada's voice rang out. Suddenly, the ground beneath her began to shake across the entire plain. A massive stream of purple sludge rose up and coated it all, turning the once green sight, into an ocean of violet goop.

"Zay-Zay said I'm not allowed to hold back! So I won't."

Ada's expression went dark, and listless as a fountain of energy poured out of her being.

"Ozmone Army"

Heads, hands, weapons, armoured figures, mimicked copies of the other order members, Jenso, Bruce, Alvios, Oswald, and Jeff... Luke, Gol-Ira, Bobba, Sera, and even Geode... hundreds- No, more. Thousands of ooze clones rose between the flying castle, and the Tower of Chaos. Suddenly, in the flash of an eye, Ada had unleashed a sheer torrent of power incomparable to anything they'd ever seen before.

"Let's have some fun~"

A Hero Tale {Complete}

---

~ End Of Chapter 174 ~

A Hero Tale {Complete}

Luke nodded and smiled. "Well when you put it like that, I guess there's no point in overthinkin' it too much," He concluded. Suddenly the entire room shook to a halt, jostling its passengers viciously as if it had just been struck by something big. "What the hell was that!?"

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"That attitude of his..." Luke brought his hand up and squeezed the side of his jaw, looking off into the corner of the room. "If he's strong enough to scoff at people like Lark and Jenso as if they're nothing, and he's reasonable enough to offer Jenso some level of uh... Compromise, well. Yeah, why are we still alive?" He turned to Alvios. "Have any of them been taking us seriously up until this point? That attack yesterday, From the sounds of it, Zelriane and Rajaka were holding back intentionally. Are they still... Toying with us?"

A Hero Tale {Complete}

"I reckon that boy'll be on his hands and knees thanking us when we wrest him from that witch's grasp," Luke interjected, slowly hobbling his way across the war-room. Looked like he was joining the fight as well, despite the fact that he wasn't too capable. He glanced at Jenso, pulling the strap on his newly-constructed lightning rifle with a sly smirk. "Good to see that we seem in high spirits, at any rate."

A Hero Tale {Complete}

The Final Battle

~ Chapter 174 ~

_{Take To The Sky, Heroes!}

A Hero Tale {Complete}

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~ End Of Chapter 173 ~