An ice ogre huffed as it drew lines in the snow between the Elder Elementals and the ice ogre's own ranks. It skittered back to Noodles' side and whipped out a horn. It cleared its throat, lifted the horn to its lips, and sent a mighty bugle to the heavens—a signal for the challenges that laid ahead.

"Attention! The ceremonial horn has sounded," Noodles proclaimed as he strode out down the middle and held out his arms. "Which means it is now time for the" — Noodles cleared his throat, and his eyes narrowed as he pounded a fist against his palm in tandem, with his words — "ICE. FISHING. GAMES!"

The ice ogres all cheered and tossed their fishing poles in the air, but quickly claimed then back as Noodles glared at them.

"The standard rules apply. There'll be three games, and whoever ends up with the most wins outta us all is our winner!" Noodles shot a look towards the Elder Elementals, who glared back at him in return—but even though his glance seemingly glared down them all, it pierced Thumpback specifically.

"If the whale's team wins, they get that giant robot back there." Noodles gestured back to where the Arkeyan Conquertron parked, and he turned back to his fellow ice ogres. A smile crossed his face as he did, and the ice ogres all grinned back at him. "If we win, the whale'll show us that ancient treasure he was talkin' about!"

On one side of the line, Tree Rex, Eye-Brawl, Swarm, and Thumpback all stood close together while the ghost hovered above Thumpback's shoulder. All their eyes fixed on the ice ogre soldiers that rested aside from them. A faint buzz came from Swarm's wings as one soldier shot him a particularly nasty look, but Tree Rex just drew Swarm back before he could say or do anything.

Across from them, the ice ogres all shot them sneers and laughs. The ice ogres were the perfect picture of confidence compared to the quartet's tension—well, most of their tension.

While the other Elder Elementals and the ghost were fairly tense, Thumpback didn't seem worried at all! He just hummed some kind of old sailor's tune as he polished his anchor with no mind paid to those before him.

"You seem awfully calm about this," the ghost remarked as he slid off of Thumpback's top and gently nudged Thumpback's shoulder, sending a small chill through Thumpback's arm. "Aren't you worried?"

"Worried?" Thumpback whispered back as he raised a brow. "Not particularly." Thumpback chuckled, and toyed with his anchor's chains as he spoke. "After all, I've gone fishing in some of Skylands' roughest seas, so a little fishing contest like this is nothing! Besides, one thing that all my years of fishing taught me is that the fish can smell fear. You act nervous, and they'll all know!"

The ghost nodded, and turned back as his body began to fritz, forcing him onto Eye-Brawl's shoulder next. Below him, Brawl caught Thumpback's attention with a nudge of the shoulder.

"I suppose you have a point. Still, what are we going to do if we lose?" Brawl signed as Thumpback raised a brow at him. "After all, they have a gigantic robot and the entire terrain on their side! I don't believe it would be a wise idea to upset them."

"Oh, don't worry," Thumpback tossed his anchor back over his shoulder, while his laid-back smile steadied itself as he clutched the anchor's chain tight. "I may not have fished in quite a while, but I have confidence in my abilities."

"With that being said, our first challenge is simple!" Noodles proclaimed, still oblivious to the ice ogres' confident jeering, or Thumpback's quiet conversation as Noodles rambled on. "It's a size contest! Whoever can catch the largest fish at the local ice pond is our victor!"

The ice ogres all chattered as Noodles lead them away to the pond. Thumpback himself frowned and clutched his anchor tight as he trailed after them. A wary Tree Rex, Eye-Brawl, and Swarm followed behind, and that little ghost tagging along, trembling and flickering as he sat on Eye-Brawl's shoulder.

Thumpback only steeled his gaze as his eyes fell over the horizon of a snowy hill above. There, a pond, one laid still by the thick, cloudy sheet of ice above it, sat amid endless hills of snow and the occasionally ice-coated tree. Its surface shone and glistened as Thumpback drew closer to it, and its cloudy surface cleared enough that he could faintly spy the tails of small fish and ice tadpoles skittering and swimming underneath. Ah, the sight brought back memories of his youth, where he'd spend his calf days fishing in the icy ponds of his home island. It was a little nostalgic, and he couldn't help but grin. That grin didn't relent, even as the ice ogres that were his opponents cheered and snatched their fishing poles from a stand made of ice.

Thumpback raised a brow as he snatched a particularly large pole from the stand, and tip-toed across the ice, so gentle and quiet enough that none of the fish startled from his presence. A couple of holes were opened in the ice already, and some swarmed with fish, but Thumpback turned away and eyed a hole smaller than the rest. It would barely fit his rod, but the large, shadowy blobs that bobbed underneath its surface seemed promising. Thmpback steadied his rod, dropped the line in, sat down and grinned as he laid his rod beside him.

"Good things come to those who wait," Thumpback whispered as he twiddled his thumb, "and fishing is no exception."

Thumpback hummed as his eyes turned to the ice ogres, and he frowned as they hooted and hollered while they yanked out their lines. Didn't they know they were going to scare away the fish? If they wanted bigger catches than the ones they held, they couldn't scare away all the little ones! Surely, that was why the first of the ice ogres only yanked out a measly bluegill. While the first one only sighed at the sight of the fish they caught, the second shouted with delight as they yanked out a much larger sunfish! The sunfish slapped them in the face with its tail, but they seemed hardly displeased as they held their catch for all to see. In fact, they were as proud as ever—until the ogre beside it yanked out a much larger cod!

Tree Rex, Swarm and Eye gestured and mouthed something to Thumpback as the ogres all spat and quarreled over their catches, but Thumpback shushed them and turned back to his rod. The rod started to twitch as it rolled just slightly across the ice. Did he finally catch something? Thumpback lowered his head as the rod rolled right towards his foot, grinned and yanked it back up. He certainly had! The line tugged and frayed, almost prepared to snap, even, as Thumpback yanked it back and wound its reel as fast as he could!

Massive cracks formed in the ice in front of him. They were so big that the startled ice ogres immediately fled to the safety of the snow banks ahead, but Thumpback drew back and kept reeling. Parts of the ice drifted away into ice floes, and a low rumble came from within the waters.

"Yep," Thumpback groaned as he yanked his rod back with all the might he could muster, "this is definitely a big one!"

With one last grunt, the rod yanked itself up and snapped in half as Thumpback's catch landed on what remained of the shattered ice pond. The catch revealed itself to be a gigantic snow-catfish! It gasped for air as it shuddered the ground below it with a thud. Everyone around gawked in awe at its size, but Thumpback chuckled.

"That's the biggest snow-catfish I've seen in my life!" Thumpback crossed his arms. "I think this has to be a new record for me!"

The ice ogres' rods dropped from their hands as their catches scurried back into the waters.

Beside them, Noodles gnashed his teeth and tugged at his mohawk. "Ugh, fine! First point goes to the whale!" Noodles cried as he stormed off and grumbled. "Onto the next challenge!"

Thumpback adjusted his anchor's position on his shoulders, and chuckled as Tree Rex, Swarm, and Eye-Brawl joined him. The grins on their faces stretched up to their eyes, and Thumpback only smiled as he pulled up his anchor.

"That was amazing, Thumps!" Swarm cried as he nudged Thumpback's arm.

"You have quite the eye for fishing," Eye remarked with a sagely nod.

Thumpback chuckled as he followed after the ogres, his anchor kept tight over his shoulder. "It was nothing," Thumpback remarked, though he couldn't help but crack a grin of pride. After all, it was nice to know that he still had it, even after all this time!

The ice ogres glared down Thumpback as he finally caught up, and smirks crossed their faces. The head of their group trailed up to him and crossed their arms, almost as if they were irate behind those sly smiles they held.

"We're gonna win this, you know!" the head ice ogre cried.

Thumpback grinned and waved back at them. "Good luck with that, then!"

However, the ice ogres just scoffed and turned away! They mumbled something about someone being full of themself and the likes. Thumpback frowned; he was just wishing them well, so what got them so upset?

A warm gust of wind hit Thumpback's face, and he shuddered and shook it off as he lifted his eyes ahead. Warm air bubbled out from the pond ahead, but it seemed seemed more like a sauna with all the hot steam and bubbling water! It was an odd sight compared to the masses of snow that surrounded, which still seemed perfectly frozen in spite of all the heat. Yet, it was a welcome sight compared to the cold of before.

Thumpback pressed forward, peered in the waters, but flinched and stepped back as one of the bubbles popped in his face. He popped an eye open, and grinned as a large red fish with shiny scales swam away beneath the water! For that matter, it wasn't the only one. Fish in all shapes and sizes swam underneath the depths, and they seemed quite lively, too! Thumpback hadn't seen such a sight in a while.

"Alright, time for round two!" Noodles cried.

A metal, frost-covered bucket slammed down beside Thumpback's foot and scared away the fish. Thumpback raised a brow and gingerly plucked a squishy, spongy object from inside. The scent reminded him a bit of fresh bread, and its texture suggested it was warm and just made. Was this bait?

"For this challenge, you've gotta catch the most fish you can with those twenty-five pieces a'bait!" Noodles proclaimed as he crossed his arms. "And ya don't get any more, so don't ask!"

Noodles clapped his hands, and his ice ogres all lined up at the edge of the pond with fishing rods and buckets of bait in hand.

"Now start!"

The ice ogres all readied rods with five components stuck to one in a way that made them resemble flails more. They were all giddy at the prospect of what they'd catch, judging by the way they chattered and danced, but Thumpback smiled and shook his head.

Thumpback's eyes turned to a similar rod stuck in the snow beside him, and then to the masses of fish that swam in the pond above. If catching a lot of fish was the name of the game, he knew just the way to do it! Thumpback stuck a bait piece to the rod, dipped it in the water and hummed as he jiggled his fishing rod around. The larger fish zipped past beneath the bubbles and waves the warm water provided, some moving with so much speed that the smaller fish went spinning away! The fish all yanked onto the hooks, and Thumpback yanked them out of the pond and into a nearby bucket! The bucket dinged with every fish that fell into it, but finally brandished a bright thirty—not bad for his first catch!

The ice ogres all blinked and gasped as they examined Thumpback's bucket, and then turned their eyes to the catches on their own lines. One got five, another got seven, but the third got twelve, the biggest catch of them all from their ranks. It was a little small, but Thumpback didn't understand just why they shouted at each other and waved all their lines around. Scaring the fish away wouldn't give them any bigger catches!

"Alright, I'm throwing it all on the line!" cried one ice ogre as they shook their catches onto the empty bucket beside them and yanked bait out by the handful.

They immediately attached all their bait to their rods, tossed it in, and grinned as they yanked out fish by the tens. They tossed their fish into the bucket as it lit up to forty-five, and the grin on their face grew even smugger as they gazed at Thumpback.

"Think you can beat that, you oversized barnacle-blower?" the ice ogre called from the other side of the pond.

Thumpback chuckled, stuck the rest of his bait on his line and tossed it in. "Ah, kids, always so competitive," Thumpback remarked as he spun his lines around, jiggling it just so that it mimicked the patterns of swimming fish. "Everyone knows the fun in fishing is getting the catch, not beating the rest!"

The lines all tugged and yanked at once, and Thumpback yanked them out to reveal what had to have been half the pond at least! Fishes in all shapes and sizes gnawed at his line in some attempt to get their share of the bait. Thumpback tossed them into his bucket, which rattled and spun as the number displayed changed to an eighty-five.

"Sixty-five fish on one rod?" Thumpback remarked as he scratched his head. "Not bad, not bad!"

The ice ogre who mocked Thumpback before blinked his wide eye as his rod slipped out of his head. His face turned awfully pale and sickly-looking. Was he getting sick?

"No, no way," the ice ogre sputtered as he stumbled backwards and fell into the snow. "I used all my bait too…"

The other two ice ogres both screamed and frantically tossed their lines in. One gasped with glee as his line got a bite, but yanked it out to find that there was no fish to be found—just empty lines. So, he growled and fixed his line with more bait.

"This time for sure!" the ogre cried as he tossed his line back in. He frowned, gasped and grinned as his line very barely tugged! He yanked it out, but once more, there were no fish or bait to be found!

The ogre grunted as he prepared to toss his line back in, when his companion screamed with glee as they pulled back on their own rod!

"I've got something, I've got something!" the other ice ogre cried. Their reel spun out of control as they held the rods tight. "It's a big one, I can feel it!"

The other ice ogre grunted as they pulled and tugged while they struggled to steady the reel, but screamed as they flew into the boiling waters head-first! Garbled, muffled screams came from the pond as the ogre flailed their legs. Their two companions rushed over and yanked them back onto the snow! Steam burst from the ice ogre's red, boiled skin as they groaned and laid down in a snowbank, and their broken rods disappeared underneath the water.

Noodles sighed and crossed his arms.

"Welp, guess this round is over!" Noodles cried as he clapped his hands. "Everyone, bring ya catches here!"

Thumpback chuckled as he brought his bucket over, and dropped it into the snow with such force that the fish flopped and slapped each other. The ice ogres reluctantly brought in their buckets as well. Even without a formal count, it was clear from the bucket's numbers who won. After all, the ice ogres' buckets were so sparse, with even the most filled one barely breaching the bucket's top.

Noodles gritted his teeth as his eyes fell on the massive bucket of fish. "Er, er, uh, the, the, the, that…" Noodles sputtered, but finally, he groaned and buried his head in his hands. "UGH, FINE, THE WHALE WINS ROUND TWO!"

The ice ogres all groaned and grumbled amid each other as Noodles flipped the table and dumped all the fish back into the waters.

Noodles just patted them on their back as they sulked. "Hey, chin up, fellas! We've still got the final round ahead of us!" Noodles remarked as he raised his brows. "Have you forgotten what we're doing then?"

The ice ogres raised their brows, and their frustration turned to concerning confident smirks and mumbles of agreement. They all smiled and mumbled to each other as Noodles joined in on their laughter, but paused and peered up as Thumpback cleared his throats.

"Er, pardon my intrusion on your laughter," Thumpback remarked, "but, just what is the final round, exactly?"

"Just follow me, whale!" Noodles cried.

Thumpback gulped, and he and the others all trailed up the vast masses of snowy hills. Snow and frozen plantlife crunched underneath their feet as they trekked up the masses and over the hills. Finally, the masses disappeared for a large, round, icy marble platform with a part free of gating that stretched out into docks. Wispy clouds decorated the skies around them, and bellows sounded from the skies as large, blue, Leviathan-like creature soared along… Wait, those had to be…

Thumpback gasped as his anchor nearly slipped from his grip. Beside him Tree Rex hiked up and frowned.

"What's wrong, Thumpback?" Tree Rex remarked as he gently nudged Thumpback's shoulder. "I don't see anything strange."

"Unless you count sky-fishing strange," Swarm remarked as he flew up and crossed his arms. "I don't see anything other than those weird blue things."

"That's exactly it!" Thumpback gasped as he wrung his anchor's chain in his hands. "Those aren't just any weird things—those are, they…"

"Leviathan Cloud Crabs!" Noodles jeered as he stuck out his chest and smirk. "They're the final test! Whoever can catch one of these guys and bring 'em back here automatically wins a bounty of one million points!"

"ONE MILLION?" Tree Rex, Swarm and Eye sputtered at once.

"This whole thing was a setup, wasn't it?" Swarm shouted, his face red and incensed as he glared down Noodles. "You were just stringing up along! Why, I oughta—"

"Just leave him be, Swarm."

Swarm paused, and the crimson in his face faded as Thumpback pushed him back. Thumpback steeled his lips and calmed his trembling hands. His eyes fell on the ice ogres that flanked Noodles, all of whom peered back at him with the same snide looks that Noodles held.

"I accept your challenge," Thumpback said, his voice cold and clear as he held out his hand. "May the best fisher win."

The ice ogres blinked as their eyes fell on Thumpback's massive hand, and then, they fell on their backs and kicked their legs as they burst into laughter.

"Oh, we're not gonna be the ones fighting you!" one ice ogre shouted between chortles. They wiped tears from their face as they came back to their feet, smirked and gestured over to Noodles. "The commander's gonna do that!"

"They're right!" Noodles cried.

With a single whistle, the robot zoomed over, and nearly blew away the rickety boat stationed at the docks!

"Noodles is catching them in my robot suit and you… Get that boat, Noodles supposes."

"Hold on, that's hardly fair!" the ghost cried as he got up and hovered over Tree Rex's shoulder. "You've got an advantage!"

Thumpback didn't particularly fuss himself. He slung his anchor over his shoulder, silent and steady, trailed across the docks and hopped into the boat. Its boards creaked as he manned the wheel, and beside him, Noodles flew up in the robot and sneered.

"Good luck—not!" Noodles cried as he dashed off.

Thumpback freed his ship and steered off. The clouds parted around him as his eyes fell on the pod of cloud crabs who flitted and flew without a care in the world, and his gaze only tensed. The Leviathan Cloud Crab, the one thing he was never able to catch—before, that is. He was young and inexperienced when he first tackled the beast, but this time, he would definitely catch it in his grip. His grip tensed on the wheel's pegs, and he only flew further ahead. After all, he had to.

"Cloud Crabs are pretty tough little things," Thumpback mumbled under his breath. "Not only are their hides incredibly tough, but they're quick to panic and slow to give up. If you aren't careful, they'll be the ones catching you!"

Thumpback slowed the ship's pace as his eyes fell on a smaller Cloud Crab—a yearling, by the looks of its size. It rested asleep and content on a soft cloud, while bellowing snores emerged from the mouth of the beast. Something like this would probably be the easiest of the bunch. Thumpback crept closer and closer, but the sound of rockets burning screeched across the horizons!

"What, are you scared of a little crab or something?" Noodles jeered as he zipped past Thumpback. "What's it gonna do, eat you?"

Noodles guffawed as he paused in midair, and his eyes fell on a particularly large Leviathan Cloud Crab with a hide covered in scratches—no doubt a bit of a fighter. Noodles' fingers clasped and stretched, almost as if he planned something. Wait, he couldn't be! Noodles cried out, latched right onto that Leviathan Cloud Crab, and snatched it in a chokehold!

The Cloud Crab wailed and screeched as something as big as itself held it tight, and its spines leaped off of its hide as they pierced through everything around! They tore holes in clouds, smashed into nearby glaciers, and bounced off the hides of other Cloud Crabs, who only screeched and swam off in a hurry. One of the even nearly grazed the side of Thumpback's vessel, and forced him to veer away!

In lieu of Thumpback's ship, the spine instead tore through the cloud that the yearling slept on, and gave it quite the rude awakening! The yearling screeched and zipped off. Thumpback snarled and gripped his wheel.

"Full steam ahead!" Thumpback cried as he zipped off.

He caught a glance behind to where Noodles struggled with the Cloud Crab he had caught, but Thumpback only scoffed and pressed on—he had no time to waste! The yearling panted, laid on another thrush of clouds ahead, and groaned once more as it fell back asleep. Its snores rumbled across the skies, yet those skies stayed completely vacant of everyone save for the Cloud Crab and Thumpback. Thumpback had a chance!

Thumpback smirked, slowed down the ship to a crawl, and dove behind another group of clouds as he inched closer. His movements were slow-paced and careful; he moved just mere inches as he crept around the clouds, and closer towards the sleeping yearling. It only groaned as it occasionally twitched its fins in its sleep with no mind paid to Thumpback's intrusion. He had his catch in his grasp, and now all he needed to do was reel it in.

Thumpback docked his ship beside the yearling and gulped. The easy part was over, but now he faced his biggest challenge—catching the Leviathan Cloud Crab itself. Thumpback's eyes fell on the anchor in his rugged palms, his one companion through many fights and fishing trips alike. It probably wasn't the ideal rod for a normal Cloud Crab, but it would suffice for a yearling this small. Thumpback lifted up his anchor, swung its chain around like a lasso, cast it out, and looped it around the Cloud Crab's neck! The Cloud Crab grunted, and its eyes popped open as the chain tightened around its neck. Thumpback held the chain's base tight in his grip still, and quickly squeezed it tighter as he rushed off the deck and prepared to leap!

"Oh no you don't!" Noodles bellowed from below.

A flash of bright blue light streaked through the clouds as it pierced holes through a row just above the yearling's head, and the yearling squealed! It zipped off across the clouds. The chain still stood tight on its neck, despite its thrashing and flailing in some attempt to free itself of the bindings.

Dangled below that chain was none other than Thumpback! He screamed, and dug his claws further around the chain's cold silver as he swung from side to side. His eyes fixed on the yearling's underside, and definitely not the massive drop below that awaited him should he let go! Thumpback did cast a quick glance aside to where Noodles still wrestled with that older Cloud Crab, all while Noodles shot lasers in every direction!

Another fleet of lasers flew above the yearling courtesy of Noodles, and it squealed as it dove down! Thumpback shot up; his hide lashed with sharp blasts of wind, and his gums flapping in the breeze as he ground his teeth. His hand flew up, brushed away from its position on the anchor's chain by the cold breeze that hit him, but he latched onto a link further down the chain and grunted. He let his other hand fly free off, grunted and latched onto another lower part of the chain.

The yearling screeched as it thrashed its tail, and Thumpback was whipped from side to side, little more than a ragdoll on a thin string as he clutched his anchor's chain for dear life. Finally, one powerful tail slam knocked Thumpback right atop the yearling's carapace! Its tough, thick scales scratched into the side of his chest and left a stinging reminder of the impact, but it left little more than an annoyance in Thumpback's mind.

Thumpback pushed himself up, and clung to a spine on the yearling's back as a grounding force. The yearling calmed some as it swam through the skies, and thankfully, the chains Thumpback tied still rested around its neck! Thumpback trudged across the carapace, clinging from spine to spine in case of another sudden outburst; as his foot brushed against cold metal, he bent down and clung to the chains like a horse's reins.

"Alright, little guy," Thumpback cooed as he petted the yearling's carapace, and it hummed as its furious flying slowed underneath his touch. "It's okay, I'm a friend. I just need you to take me somewhere, alright? I'll let you go right afterwards. Can you do that?"

The yearling cooed back, and its spines flattened against its back. Good, he seemed to have earned its trust! With a gentle tug of the chains on Thumpback's end, the yearling soared up, spinning through clouds before it hit the top of the stratosphere and glazed down. Amid the masses of ice, snow, and mountains, Thumpback could make out the meeting point. It was just a few clicks down from where he was! Thumpback grinned, snapped the chains and sent the yearling flying down.

The yearling corkscrewed through the skies, cold air twirling around as it dove closer and closer to the meeting point—but something smashed into it, and sent it tumbling across the skies at the last minute! Some of the yearling's spines snapped off; the broken spines fell into the abyss as the screaming yearling flailed and thrashed its fins once more. Thumpback screamed as his grip started to slip from the reins. His claws dug into the holes in the chains' links at just the right moment, and Thumpback gripped back onto the chains as he flipped himself atop the carapace.

A bellowing cackle scared off the remaining Leviathans Cloud Crabs. While they fled, Noodles floated back down in his robot suit with his own Leviathan Cloud Crab unconscious underneath his suit's arm!

"Sorry, buddy, but you're not catching any more fish today!" Noodles insinuated as he pointed a finger at Thumpback. "You may have beaten Noodles' minions, but Noodles is smarter than they are!"

"I wouldn't quite say that," Thumpback spat underneath his breath. Thumpback's eyes turned to the back, where a thick, fluffy mass of clouds blocked off most of the skies—the perfect detour! Thumpback snapped the reins and yanked the yearling around before he high-tailed it towards the clouds.

"Wait, get back here! Noodles didn't say you could leave!"

Noodles' cries came a little too late. Thumpback already dove into the clouds and drove through their masses! The scent of cold air brushed against Thumpback's hide, and filtered around him as Noodles' screams came from the outside; the screams muffled from both distance and the thickness of the clouds. Thumpback grinned and popped right out. He took a moment of pause and turned the yearling around. Noodles was no more than a speck in the distance from where Thumpback laid, and better yet, the meeting point wasn't that far.

"Time to reel in my catch," Thumpback whispered. He cracked the reins again, and his grip tightened as the yearling zipped back off. "FULL SPEED AHEAD!"

The scenery around blurred as the yearling flew as fast as it could, swerving around clouds and ducking from the odd iceball flung! Aside of those, the skies were clear and perfect for the taking. Thumpback could even hear his companions' cries and cheers from down below despite the altitude, but Thumpback just frowned and squeezed the chains further. If there was one thing his days as a younger fisherman taught him, it was that he should never count his catches before they were caught. So, he just powered through another clouds, its wispy fragments curling up and vanishing behind him as he sped right past it!

"There you are, whale!" Noodles cried across the horizon.

Thumpback gasped and yanked the yearling back with such abrupt timing that it leaned back; if not for Thumpback's tight grip around the yearling itself, he might've fallen off! But, he stayed with his grip tight as Noodles fell down in front of him. His moment of pause must have been just what Noodles needed, for Noodles immediately shot a laser right for him!

The laser slammed into the yearling and singed its underside. The yearling screamed and thrashed around, shaking its fins and tail with all the fury it could! This time, it was so sudden and soon that Thumpback's grip slipped, and he tumbled down along the yearling's carapace! The sharp scales dug into his back, leaving it raw and sore as he slammed into the yearling's side. One last bump knocked him off, and he went plummeting through the skies!

"Thumpback!" Tree Rex, Swarm, and Eye all cried down below.

Their cries were nothing compared to the haughty laughter of Noodles from above. He hovered above the yearling and leaned his head down, his eyes bright as he drank in the sight of Thumpback's fall.

"You lose, whale!" Noodles cackled.

Noodles' laughter spun around, a crashing wave in Thumpback's ears as he collapsed in the vast seas of the endless skies. His friends' cries resounded in tandem behind him, and the world around turned cold and gray. The voices around melted away to the voices of pirates crying, cawing, and shouting, and a distant memory flashed in his mind as an illusion of a large pirate ship sailed across the sky. He came so close, yet once again, the Leviathan Cloud Crab was the one to catch him and drag him into the depths!

Wait, no! Thumpback shook his head, latched onto a spine from the yearling's tail, and gripped it as tight as he could! He cast a glance down below to where Brawl seemingly pointed towards him, the exact gesture masqueraded by the distance, but Thumpback pulled his head up and turned back to the yearling's carapace. Large spines shot out from its back, their bodies thick and long enough that they could easily be used as a ladder!

Thumpback swung around and leaped towards the first, pulled himself atop it and towards the next! The yearling roared and leaned back, and Thumpback himself nearly slipped—but at the last moment, he yanked onto the spine and swung around. He launched himself towards the next spine; with one last swing, Thumpback swung back and leaped onto the carapace as the yearling calmed itself. He dashed up and reclaimed his seat at the yearling's head!

"Ha! Ha ha! Noodles won, you lost!" Noodles bellowed as he spun around. "Noodles won, you're—" Noodles turned around, and gasped as his eyes fell to where Thumpback sat on the yearling's head. "HERE!"

"You can't get rid of me that easily, I'm afraid!" Thumpback cried as he tightened the chains and snapped them once more. "If there's one thing a fisherman has to be, it's persistent!"

The yearling wailed, and it zipped right for the unconscious Leviathan Cloud Crab that laid in Noodles' arms. The yearling crashed right into it, and smacked it right out of Noodles' grip with just enough power that it slapped the older Leviathan Cloud Crab awake! The older Leviathan Cloud Crab shook itself and snarled as its eyes fixed on Noodles, and all the spines on its torn, weathered back rose as one!

"What the—" Noodles cried right as the older Cloud Crab rammed right into his chest/

While Noodles tended to his ornery catch, Thumpback zipped right off, turned the yearling around, and dove right back towards their meeting place at the docks! The yearling's hastened flaps and tail wags came to a slow close as it docked itself on the snow, snorted and closed its eyes. A few content huffs came from it as it flopped against the cold snow and snored.

Thumpback chuckled as he slipped the anchor from its neck. "Thanks for your help, little guy," Thumpback said as he patted the yearling on the belly. "Get some rest, you deserve it."

Thumpback straightened out his anchor and turned around. His eyes first fell on the other ice ogres that belonged to Noodles' team, all of whom had wide eyes with tiny pupils and jaws left agape. They dropped their own arms, as if they couldn't believe what sat in front of them! Thumpback's view of them quickly blocked off as Swarm rushed in and swarmed Thumpback. (See, even he could make puns if he chose too!)

"That was awesome, Thumps!" Swarm cried as he slapped a hand against Thumpback's shoulder. "You really pulled a fast one on that dude!"

"We almost thought you were a goner for a moment!" Eye exclaimed as he popped off of Brawl and floated around Thumpback.

"Ah, there's no need to worry, you two," Thumpback replied as he turned to them both. "Even though I haven't been out to sea for a while, I've still got it!"

Tree Rex chuckled as he approached Thumpback, but it was the ghost on his shoulder who really grinned as he floated up to Thumpback.

"Does this mean I can finally get my home back?" the ghost asked.

"Absolutely, little one!"

The ghost beamed, and he sparkled so brightly that he started flickering! He stabilized himself and dodged behind Tree Rex's arm.

"What's this about taking things?" Noodles exclaimed as he flew down to the docks. The chest of his robot now stood covered in scratches, and it sparked in some areas.

Thumpback snarled, and he wrung the chain of his anchor as he turned to Noodles. "We had a deal, Noodles!" Thumpback cried as he held his anchor low. "If I won, you'd give us that robot back! So hand it over!"

"NO WAY!"

Noodles' cry bellowed through the area, and shook the snow off the ground while everyone struggled to keep footing.

Noodles' eyes glowed red. "You guys cheated the whole time! Noodles isn't gonna let a cheater take his robot!"

"But you weren't exactly being fair either, you know!" the ghost hissed from behind Tree Rex's shoulder. The air chilled around him as his eyes glowed. "Not to mention, it isn't even your robot to begin with!"

Noodles screamed again, and the ghost shuddered as he dove behind Tree Rex's shoulder—but, the ghost was forced to flee as Noodles pounded his fists against the ice! The boat and docks all crumbled underneath the weight of Noodles' attack. Noodles' eyes glowed with an even more furious crimson than before.

"Noodles is gonna wipe you cheaters off the face of Skylands!"

§

Within the depths of Inochi's room, Skylander and portal master alike trekked through with tense, trembling hands and leery gazes. The whole area was completely overgrown! It was covered in such a thick blanket of plants, flowers, and grass that left couldn't be made out from right. The scent of pollen and sweet honey that wafted through the air was so thick and strong that it was almost sickening. Occasionally, rustling and hooting sounds came from parts of the overgrown thicket, sending chills running up spines and goosebumps rising. The moment eyes fell on the source of the sound, however, nothing appeared save for maybe a glint of light, or a faint patch of color amid shadow! From the looks of it, if that Inochi person was here, she wasn't going to be found anytime soon.

"Something about this doesn't feel right," Dej remarked as he crafted a sickle out of ice, and cut down a patch of particularly tall grass with it. "Inochi's always been so careful with her garden. Heck, she practically treated all those flowers like they were her kids! How could it get so overgrown?"

"Well, it has been ten thousand years," Chihiro remarked as she nudged a particularly long vine aside and hopped over it. "I'm pretty sure even the most carefully-tended garden would get overgrown after that!"

Vatra sighed, pushed a leaf out of his face, and gasped as a fanged pink flower dropped before his face and licked it! Vatra groaned and wiped the slobber from his face while the plant cackled. He only scoffed as he strode off.

"I told her bringing all these plants back was a bad idea, but did she listen to me?" Vatra mumbled. "When we find her, I'm definitely giving her a piece of my mind!"

"HELPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!" squealed a voice in the distance.

A green glow pulsed from the end of the way, and all eyes turned to it. It glowed brighter and brighter, closer and closer, and finally, it took shape! The cries for help grew louder as the light formed in the shape of a seed, but even that light faded as a person's ghost burst from its seed, and tackled Sihiri down! Sihiri grunted and stumbled backwards as a chubby woman with pale skin and snow white, rose-shaped hair who dressed in a pink and green kimono clutched her tight. The woman's eyes screwed shut in horror as she panted and grappled for Sihiri's own gown.

Dej, Vatra, and Luz all gasped, but Vatra pushed past Dej and scoffed.

"There you are, Inochi!" Vatra cried as embers popped from his hands. "We've been looking all over the place for you!" Vatra snarled and gestured towards the overhanging vines. "This place is an absolute mess! I told you this would happen if you kept bringing back all those flowers back, but you said" — Vatra grunted as a vine lost its place and fell right on his head — "Owch!"

Vatra groaned and pushed the vine aside as he rubbed his side, but Inochi only sobbed as she buried herself in Sihiri's grip! Her hands trembled as she tugged on Sihiri's dress, and her teeth chattered as she snuggled in close. Sihiri shot Vatra a look, before she herself ran her fingers through Inochi's hair.

"Darling, is something wrong?" Sihiri asked.

"It, it, it," Inochi hiccuped. The tears streamed down her face again, but she turned back to Sihiri and popped open rosy pink eyes that were small with fear and burned with tears. "Sihiri, it's awful!"

Inochi wailed and sobbed further, and Sihiri just backed away slightly.

"What's awful, Inochi?" Dej cried as he nudged Inochi's shoulders. "What're you freaking out about?"

Everyone else clenched their teeth, and the sound of growling pricked their ears in that instance! The growls echoed from all around the garden, low but still loud enough to be heard. Everyone turned their eyes in every direction, yet, nothing could be found: no rustling came from the bushes and leaves, nothing leaped down from the ceiling, and no suspicious figures leaped out from the petals of the massive flowers that sprung from the garden.

"Just where is that growling coming from?" Cynder demanded. She jolted up and prepared to zap a vine that had trickled close to her paws, but Chihiro yanked her away by the tail before she could!

"Over there!" Chihiro cried as she pointed to the distance.

There, over the horizons of leafy green and fuzzy moss, bright yellow eyes formed before they vanished entirely! Chihiro gasped as they disappeared, and behind her, the bushes rustled and shuddered. She immediately jumped to the bushes and parted their leaves, yet nothing showed! Chihiro frowned as she pushed them just a little farther, but as she did, a growl echoed ahead and she yanked her arms out. She narrowed her eyes; in the distance, she barely spotted glowing yellow eyes before they rushed off and vanished!

"I can't be the only one who saw that, right?" Chihiro asked as she turned to the others.

Everyone else all nodded and mumbled out words of agreement in tandem. Chihiro frowned and turned her gaze around. Everyone saw it, yet she still couldn't find any trace of where those eyes went! Then again, it was pretty hard to see anything over the thick overgrowth of gigantic bushes and tall grass. Chihiro frowned as she turned her attention back to the bushes where she previously looked, but a soft tap on her shoulder drew her away.

"Something up?" Chihiro asked.

She turned around, but instead of meeting a person, she met with a tall, lanky vine! The vine waved at Chihiro for just a moment, wrapped right around her and yanked her off the ground. Chihiro screamed as she struggled and kicked at the vine while it hovered her above ground. It was tough for such a thin-looking thing, and nothing she did made it relent!

"Chihiro!" Terrafin called as he gazed back up at her.

He snarled and reached up for her, but the growling noises' return drew him back away. He backed into the others as the growling grew more intense. All around them, the bushes rustled once more while plant monsters leaped out from their leaves! The monsters' mouths gnashed with thorny fangs while their thorn-covered root bodies grew leafy armor and weapons. The plant monsters all snarled as they surrounded the Skylanders and portal masters alike.

"That's what's awful!" Inochi sobbed. She clung closer to Sihiri while she and everyone else backed down. "I don't know how, or why, but all my plants grew completely out of control! They're all monsters now!"

The plant monsters snarled, squealed, and made all sorts of nasty noises as they closed further in. Chihiro snarled at them from her place above. She grunted as she kicked against the vine a few more times, but even so, the vine still didn't budge. Looks like she'd have to try another way!

Chihiro closed her eyes while the magic bubbled within her veins, and a faint glow dusted against her eyes as she closed them. Chihiro screamed, and a loud screech erupted around her! The feeling of tightness around her body withered away, and she fell down to the ground with a thunk. When Chihiro popped her eyes open, the first thing she caught was the withered remains of the vine that once held her captive. Next, she saw the ancient portal masters and Skylanders crowded together as the plant monsters herded them in. Though the ancient portal masters and Skylanders pressed together tight, they held snarls and glints of defiance in their eyes, ready to strike at any second.

Chihiro was more than ready to join them. "Alright!" Chihiro cried as a bright cyan magic glow flared around her body. She pounded her fist into her palm, and a smirk crossed her face as the plant monsters all turned to face her. "Looks like it's time to do some weeding!"

The plant monsters screeched and bolted towards Chihiro, but she chuckled and jumped right over them! As she fell on the other side of their assault, she turned around and stuck her tongue out at time. It was a bit of a simple gesture, but it was enough to make them chase after her once again! The plant monsters yelled and gnashed their thorny fangs as they dashed for her, but Chihiro slipped aside and raced around them. She ran so fast that she was practically a blur to their naked eyes, and all the plant monsters could do was yank their heads around in some attempt to find her!

"Am I here? Or here? Maybe I'm over here!" Chihiro's voice echoed all around the speedy storm. "Actually, the truth is…"

A pop sounded off as the running came to a cease. Chihiro chuckled as she hovered above the plant monsters' heads! The plant monsters gawked as she waved back at them, but Chihiro winked in response.

"I'm up here, and you're gonna be stuck down there!"

With a snap of her fingers, a circle of magic ropes formed around the plant monsters. They screeched as their eyes fell on the glowing ropes, but the realization came a bit too late. The ropes came together and bound the plant monsters tight! The plant monsters screeched and shuffled as they tried to escape; some even resorted to gnawing the ropes open, but nothing made them burst!

Chihiro chuckled as she teleported beside Eruptor, and gently nudged him with her shoulder. "Eruptor, do your thing!"

"Well," Eruptor smirked as he pounded his hands together, "I was born to burn!"

With one last clap of his hands, their round tops turned to molten magma! Eruptor smirked and flung his arms. Round, solid blobs of magma leaped from his hands, and slammed right into the plant monsters! The ropes that kept them bound buckled and burned away as the plant monsters flew off into the distance, but Eruptor smirked.

"That should take care of those overgrown weeds!" Eruptor smirked as he turned back to the others. A shudder ran down his spine, and Eruptor clacked his hands together. "Now, let's get outta here before—"

"SKREEEEEEEE!"

Eruptor gasped, whipped his head around, and screamed as the plant monsters came storming back in! They were burnt to their charred roots, and set alight, true, but they were still kicking! They weren't happy either, judging by the large snarls on their faces,!

"I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY!" Eruptor cried as he scrambled away. The plant monsters surrounded him in that instant, and Eruptor fell to his knees. "Actually, I didn't mean to call you overgrown weeds, I—ACK!"

A hole opened up in the ground underneath Eruptor, and he gasped as he sunk underneath. The plant monsters eyed the hole for mere moments, but turned their heads around as Eruptor flew out from the ground behind them! Not just him, either: a trace of a gray shadow dove back into the ground as Eruptor collapsed, and he hacked blobs of magma over the ground!

The magma swept across the earth and turned it hard and rocky. The plant monsters all screeched as they skittered away from the magma—but as they ran, a shark's fin carved through the still-soft earth right underneath their roots! The plant monsters swept right off of their feet, and the churned earth below them became a tripwire that flooded with magma and set them ablaze. The flaming plant monster screamed as they ran off, and behind them, that gray shadow popped from the ground and grinned as it leaned against a tree.

"Never saw me coming," Terrafin smirked as he crossed his arms.

His eyes closed, but popped right open as a screeching, sizzling sound unlike the bubbling heat of magma resounded! A bunch of flaming, green orbs comprised of large leaves folded over amid the pools and veins of magma that formed in the earth. Their singular stems fizzled away as they poked up from the center.

"Just what are those things?" Terrafin asked, backing away right as the stem-like fuses in the orbs vanished under the flames.

The orbs shot out bright, shiny green seeds that exploded in an instant, and the orbs themselves sprouted legs as they skittered off! A thick, green smog coated the entire area and sent everyone coughing. The magma underneath their feet cooled and hardened in an instant. All collapsed to their knees as the smog choked out the sights surrounding with its thick, flower-scented clouds, but amid the smoke, eyes cropped up and low growling sounded!

"Ack!" Chihiro cried as something smacked into her side and knocked her on the ground. "Who kicked me?"

"Wasn't me, I—OWCH!" Eruptor cried before something else slammed into his back and knocked him face first on the floor.

Whirlwind winced and flew up. Her head snapped from side to side as shouting and trouncing noises came from within the clouds. One by one, everyone around her went out from within! They all collapsed to the ground, punched and kicked in the back without a clue as to where their enemies organized from. Cackling replaced her allies' cries of shout as they cowered underneath Whirlwind's lower paws, and those sparkling eyes and cackling noises all fixed on Whirlwind herself!

Whirlwind winced and lowered her horn. Massive gusts of wind rang through the area with a few furious flaps of her wings, and completely blew away the smoke clouds! Those shining eyes were none other than those same plant monsters from before; they were still singed and burnt in places, but otherwise still kicking. Despite the loss of their cover, they charged at Whirlwind with the same gusto as before! The plant monsters growled as they flung out their arms and shot vines right for Whirlwind, but she swept up and shot lightning bolts right for the plant monsters.

The plant monsters screamed as the lightning rushed through them. As the shock ceased, they fell to their knees, fang chattering as sparks flew from their charred bodies. In their moment of weakness, a thin shadow dashed right through and sent them all spinning! The monsters all cried out in jittered shock as they groaned. The faint traces of spores around them cast up in tiny clouds as they fell to the rocky floor.

Behind the fallen plant monsters, those round plant bombs squealed and skittered off as the larger plant monsters collapsed in front of them! Faint pants and squeaks came from the plant bombs as they stumbled over their own feet while they rushed across the rocky ground. One tripped over itself, rolled right into the others, and sent them all rolling across the floor like bowling balls. They finally bumped into something in a rousing stop, unfurled themselves, and squealed as they found themselves right at Chihiro's feet! The plant bombs scurried backwards and tumbled over each other as Chihiro loomed over them, a smirk on her face as her hands glowed with magic.

"Time to do some weed whacking!" Chihiro exclaimed as a magical weed whacker fell into her hands!

The weed whacker shuddered as it revved to life, and Chihiro grinned as she set it after the plant bombs! They all squealed and tried to run off, but the weed whacker zipped right through them in an instant and sliced them in half. The weed whacker vanished in a puff of smoke and sparkles as the halved remains of the plant bombs withered and fell to the floor. Chihiro frowned as she lifted a withered leaf. The leaf's remains crumpled away to tiny, ragged bits as it flew off in the wind, so Chihiro met Inochi's eyes instead.

"What happened to them?" Inochi whispered as she lifted the plant bombs' own remains in her hands. Her frown grew as those leaves too crumpled in her hands and disappeared with the oncoming breeze, then she perked up as Sihiri laid a hand on her shoulder.

"Dear, what happened?" Sihiri asked.

Inochi frowned as she rubbed her hands, and her head lowered as she turned back to Sihiri. "I'm not sure myself. I was drawn here, almost like I was in a trance of some kind. When I finally came to, everything was completely overgrown!" Inochi sighed as her hair drifted in front of her face, and she lifted her head as Sihiri drew the stray strands behind Inochi's ear. "If I had to guess, it's been so long since I tended to my garden that it took on a life of its own!"

Sihiri and Inochi both frowned. Their eyes turned aside as Chihiro prodded up to them and rubbed her own arm.

"Either way, we should probably get out of this place," Chihiro remarked as her eyes shifted from side to side. A shudder ran down Chihiro's spine, and she lifted her head up to Sihiri and Inochi. "Something about it gives me the creeps."

"Agreed," Terrafin remarked as he walked up and brushed spores from his arms, "I'm not in the mood to deal with any more overgrown weeds."

A few more mumbled agreements came from the rest of her party, so Chihiro crafted a sword made of raw magic and pressed ahead. She swung her sword through the grass until it was short enough that any oncoming enemies could be easily seen. Most of the others quickly trailed after her, but Inochi just lingered on the place where the plant monsters once laid.

"Just how did this happen, though?" Inochi whispered. "What could have caused them to grow this violent?"

Inochi pressed a clasped hand to her face, sighed, and shook her head as she reluctantly headed to the back of the ground. Ahead, Chihiro slashed through the grass, and sent both clippings and a pungent scent of fresh grass wafting through the area. Inochi cringed a little at the sight of all the fallen grass scattered amid the overgrown and untamed greenery that surrounded her. Her teeth chattered a bit as she scanned for some sight of oncoming plant monsters—or maybe she was still in shock from what she witnessed prior? It was hard to tell with her being such a bundle of nerves.

"Hey, I think I found an exit!" Chihiro called from ahead.

Inochi gasped, and shuffled through the grass right as the others crowded around a green door covered in leaves. The exit, at last! With one last hop, Inochi pushed through and held her hand up to the door, fully ready to leave. A shiver ran down her spine and she yanked her head towards the bushes!

"Inochi, what's up?" Luz asked.

Inochi blinked as the bushes' rustling come to a close, frowned and peered down at her sparkling hands. "I, I could've sworn that I saw something glaring at me from the bushes," Inochi said. She shook her head, and gulped as she shot one last, worried glance towards the plant life before she turned to the door. "I'll just get this open."

Inochi lifted her hands, and they glowed with an even more intense green light as she raised them to the door.

"Finally, we can get out of this place," Eruptor scoffed as he crossed his arms. "All this pollen's making me stuffy!"

"OH, YOU'RE NOT GOING ANYWHERE!"

A booming voice resounded across the area as vines snapped around the door, locking it tight! Inochi gasped, and her light lowered as she crept away from the door and yanked her head around. Her eyes skirted around the area as skittering noises and the faint scent of flowers came from the crevices of shadows amid plants, yet nothing could be seen! The others around her raised their weapons and prepared spells in alarm, but Inochi just crept back and clasped her clammy hands tight.

"Who, who was that?" Inochi cried as she backed into the door, squealed and leaped back as vines tickled her back. "Show yourself!"

"My, my, ever so eager to see me, hmm?" the voice crooned again, but at a lower, much closer volume. "Quite odd, considering that you hadn't been all that eager to make your return, INOCHI!"

A sharp gasp escaped from Inochi's throat. She turned back around to the front as massive mounds emerged from the earth and shuddered. The mounds rumbled furiously while crumbs of dirt crept down from their tops, and the dirt flew as something leaped out from the earth and fell on the ground! The creature chuckled as it stepped back from the hole that it had leaped from, crossed its arms, and turned its eyes on the group—but its glare seemed fixed on Inochi specifically.

The creature's face was yellow, comprised of powdery pollen compacted into one hard mold, and slits formed in its face to make eyes and a mouth. Bright pink petals formed a mane around its head while a small, leafy crown decorated with tiny petunias laid atop it. Its body was humanoid, and comprised of vines twisted to form a bodily structure. Atop its body was a pompous dress and cape made of gigantic petals that were folded together, and trimmed with dandelion seeds. Within its one thorny hand was a staff made of leaves and thorns.

More of the plant monsters from before leaped up behind the creature. Above it, the sound of buzzing poured down as gigantic bees with more stingers than they probably should have floated down from above. With its looks and entourage, it was almost like this creature was the queen of all flora!

"Geez, that's one big weed," Dej remarked, his frost-covered hands sparkling and chilling as if he prepared an icy blast.

"I've seen some overgrown plants in my lifetime, but never anything like that!" Sihiri exclaimed. She turned to Inochi and frowned. "Inochi, dear, this couldn't possibly be one of yours, could it?"

Inochi's hands trembled as she faced the queen flower. "Who, who are you? Better yet, what are you?" Inochi cried, her rosy pink eyes dappled with tears of shock as she wrung her hands. "How do you know me?"

The queen flower scowled as Inochi's question hit her ears. Her grip on her staff tightened, squeezing it so tight that sap slipped out from its body and poured over her hand.

"Oh, of course you wouldn't remember!" the queen flower spat, and she drew back her scowl to reveal fangs stained with sap. "You've been gone for so long that you forgot about all of us! If it weren't for my efforts, we'd had all withered and died ages ago!"

Inochi gasped, her voice trilled and soft as she stepped back. Her eyes laid stagnant, barely moving as her hands trembled further. "It can't be…"

The queen flower smiled, and her eyes fell on the pendant around Inochi's neck. "But, that won't be a problem for much longer!" the queen flower cried as she held out her free hand. "Because this time, you're not leaving! You're taking root here—PERMANENTLY!"

Inochi gasped and planted her back to the door. In her moment of panic, the queen flower stretched out her free hand and yanked Inochi by the pendant! Inochi screamed, and her ghostly body dissolved into sparkles! The queen flower drew its arm back and admired the pendant in her grasp. A large pod shaped like a glowing flower burrowed out of the ground with a bang of her staff; it leaped beside her, and she tossed Inochi's pendant in!

"Inochi!" Sihiri cried as the pendant fell in.

She whipped out her hand and prepared a blast, but by the time she fired, the pod sealed itself up and completely nullified Sihiri's blast!

Inochi coughed as she reformed, and let out a sharp, small gasp as she found herself in the pod! She lifted herself up and pressed against the sealed tips of the pod's petals. A brighter green glow tinted the flower's light from inside, and Inochi yelped and collapsed as a small zap hit her! Sparks of static-like pollen burst from Inochi as she pulled herself off the ground. She leaned forward and banged her fists against the pod.

"Let me out! Let me out!" Inochi cried, her voice muffled from within the flower pod's confines.

"Yeah, let her out!" Chihiro cried as she stepped forward, hands glowing as she prepared to attack. "I don't know who you are, or what your deal with her is, but we don't have time for this right now!"

The queen flower scoffed, pulled the flower pod close and stuck her tongue out at Chihiro.

"And go back to being alone in this place again? I think not!" The queen flower crossed her arms and pouted like a child as she leaned against the flower. "I'm not letting her leave again!"

With another bang of the queen flower's staff, vines dropped out from the ceiling and yanked Inochi off the ground! Inochi cried as the vines pulled her from the ground, moving with such speed that it tipped the flower pod over. She groaned as the flower pod bounced up and down from its place on the ceiling! Inochi leaned against the pod's walls, but her dizzy expressions turned to a sad scowl as the queen flower stretched up beside her.

"Minions!" the queen flower cried as she held out her staff. "Exterminate the pests!"

The plant monsters and bees alike all shouted and growled as they glared down the rest of the team.

Chihiro gulped as she summoned a sword. "So much for getting out of here quickly," Chihiro remarked as she squeezed her sword's handle.

"Ah well, this ain't nothing for us!" Luz chirped as he summoned his shield. "Come on, everyone!"

Luz spun his shield, and a bright light shimmered from it before he shot it out in a sparkling beam towards the crowds of monsters! The monsters all screamed as they shielded and scratched at their eyes. Luz smirked as he dimmed the shield's light with a tap of his hands.

"Let's do some gardening!"

Terrafin nodded, jumped out from the crowds and dove into the earth! The ground below rumbled as everyone else charged after him, but Terrafin sawed through the earth. Churned ground and cracked stone flew in his wake as he zipped up to where the plant monsters laid, and leaped out of the ground! His entrance marked itself with a cry of war as he punched one of the plant monsters right in the kisser, dropped down and smacked another in the gut!

The two of them groaned and collapsed to the ground, wailing as they clutched their injured bodies. Terrafin didn't relent! Another plant monster stormed for him and shot an arm right towards him, so he leaped up and yanked open his jaw. Just before he could bite down and snap it off, something wrapped around his chest and yanked him away. Terrafin cried out as another larger plant monster tossed him up with its vines, and slammed him against the floor! A sharp crack resounded through the room as Terrafin slammed against the floor.

The plant monster just laughed as it swept Terrafin off the ground; it slammed him down again, and again, and again in a neverending battering. That is, until a magma blob slammed into the plant monster's back and knocked it on its face! Its grip on Terrafin slipped as it prepared to toss him back up, and Terrafin collapsed down into Eruptor's arms! Eruptor grunted as the weight knocked him on his rump, but nonetheless he released Terrafin, who groaned as he laid against Eruptor's shoulder.

"Fin, you alright?" Eruptor asked as he propped Terrafin up.

Terrafin groaned again, his eyes spinning in his head. The sounds of groaning and smoldering flames sounded beside him, and he shook his head as both he and Eruptor turned back to the where the flaming, tattered plant monster loomed over them! Its arms raised as it prepared to strike forth, but a gigantic glob of honey leaped forward and pinned it to the ground instead.

The plant monster crumbled to bits as the honey extinguished its flames, but the battle was far from won! A buzzing sound came in as a bee flitted over and readied it stinger, but a shadow slammed into it and knocked it into a wall.

Cynder emerged from the shadows as the bee slipped into the massive glob of honey below and smirked. "Knocked that one's lights out," Cynder remarked, yet the sound of buzzing en masse behind her soured her smirk, "but it looks like I've got the rest of the hive to deal with!"

Cynder scowled as she turned around and glared down the swarm of bees before her. Her jaw yanked open slightly as black lightning bolts burst from it! Just before she could fire, one of the bees yanked up its abdomen and shot a stinger right for her. Cynder gasped, and her lightning strike vanished as she zipped away from the stinger! While that stinger just harmlessly lodged itself into the wall, it was far from the only one. The other bees buzzed even more furiously as they shot their stingers, and Cynder could only fly off!

"Looks like Cynder could use a little help," Whirlwind remarked as she flew on the sidelines while mist wrapped around her feathers, "and I've got just the thing!"

With one last flap of her wings, dark clouds charged with lightning flew out from Whirlwind and right towards the swarm of bees that cornered Cynder! The bees buzzed in shock—in more ways than one—as the clouds surrounded them and zapped them with crackles of static. The shock continued as Whirlwind zapped them with rainbows, and blew the clouds up in a colorful explosion! The bees' buzzing turned screechy and pained as they slammed against the floors, the ceilings, and any plants they could find…

But they weren't the only ones who got knocked away! The blow was close enough that it knocked Cynder back into a wall. She knocked away the leaves, and revealed a honeycomb full of sticky honey underneath! Cynder herself stood trapped within the honey, only her head free as she groaned!

Whirlwind gasped, and covered her face with her paws as she flew up to Cynder. "Sorry about that!" Whirlwind cried as she pulled Cynder from the honeycomb.

Cynder groaned and shook the honey off. Whirlwind squeaked and crafted a cloud for a shield beside her, but Cynder frowned. Cynder licked a drop of honey from her paw, gagged and reeled back.

"That's way too sweet!" Cynder groaned.

Whirlwind frowned as she flicked honey from Cynder with her wing, but a crash from behind caught her attention!

Back over by the gate, Chihiro and the rest of the portal masters all grimaced as a few massive seed bombers backed them into the wall. While the others seemed somewhat hesitant, Chihiro smirked as she drew her sword and held it to the ceiling!

"Time to cut these guys down!" Chihiro cried as her sword changed to a massive cleaver! Chihiro grinned and jumped up. The cleaver shone bright as it rested in her hands, bright enough that it caught Inochi's eye!

"Wait, don't!" Inochi cried as she planted her hands against the flower pod's walls. "You'll—"

Inochi's warning came too late, for Chihiro slashed her cleaver and sent massive blades of wind flying down towards the gigantic plant bombs! The blades slashed them right in half. Chihiro smirked and patted her cleaver's blade against her palm as she floated back down, but soon screamed as the halved plant bombs exploded in masses of spores! Chihiro and the other portal masters all hacked as they crashed against the wall, collapsed, and yelped as a smaller plant bomb skittered up to pelt them with seeds!

Inochi gasped as they cried out from within the masses of green spores. Behind her, the queen flower only laughed! Her petals shone brighter, her colors richer as if just basking in their pain fed her like the sunlight did.

"Please, stop this!" Inochi cried as she turned to the queen flower. Her pink eyes were teary as she pressed her hands against the pod's walls. "They didn't do anything to you!"

The queen flower perked up, and her petals wilted slightly as a nasty scowl came across her face. "Yes they did! They tried to take you away from me!" the queen flower cried. She grunted as she yanked away the flower pod, oblivious to how Inochi screamed as she got tossed about within, dashed into the walls and vanished. "But I won't let them! You're not going anywhere!"

Inochi's screams pierced the air and Sihiri immediately jolted her head up.

"Inochi!" Sihiri cried.

Sihiri leaped to her feet. With a snap of her fingers, purple smoke flitted into the spore clouds before they all vanished. Her eyes fell on a particularly suspiciously silhouette that formed amid the leaf-covered walls, dashed into it and vanished.

"She went this way, come on!" Sihiri cried, her voice hollow as it echoed across the room.

Vatra, Dej, Luz, and Chihiro immediately leaped to their feet and trailed behind them. Whirlwind, Cynder, Terrafin, and Eruptor all pulled away from their battles as they followed suit. They all jumped into the hole one by one, and slid down through a tunnel covered in vines and flowers that rumbled with the sound of Inochi's screams!

Their gazes tensed as they sped down towards the golden light at the end of the tunnel—but as they did, a dandelion leaped up from the ground and knocked Eruptor into the ceiling! Eruptor screamed out and hacked a magma blob that burned the dandelion down. He hit the floor and rolled towards Terrafin, who immediately punched the earth and crafted a stone pillar that stopped Eruptor in his tracks! Eruptor groaned and composed himself as the pillar vanished. He turned around, and skittered back as a flower-shaped cannon emerged from the wall and shot globs of nectar at him!

"Just what's this stuff doing here, anyways?" Eruptor demanded as he tossed a magma blob at the nectar and burned it away.

"Don't ask me!" Vatra cried as he shot a burst of fire and burned away the flower cannon, scoffed and tossed another one at a catapult of seeds before it could fire. "Ask Inochi! She's the one who brought all these things here!"

Vatra grunted as he cut away oncoming vines with a burst of flames, but stopped as light brushed against his face! Golden light poured in by the second as they all slid further, and all of them fell out in a pile as the tunnel ended. While everyone around him groaned and pulled themselves off the ground, Vatra frowned and crossed his arms.

"Looks like it's just a dead end," Vatra remarked, before his eyes fell on a suspiciously light patch of the ground, "or is it?"

Vatra tapped the patch with his foot. It sank into the ground for moments before the entire floor caved in underneath his feet! Once again, everyone shouted out as they collapsed into the depths of golden light, landed right onto a golden flower and bounced off its surface like a trampoline. They all groaned and rubbed their arms, but the sound of familiar shouts up ahead caught everyone's ears!

"I'm telling you, let me go!" Inochi cried!

"That's Inochi's voice!" Sihiri cried as she dashed ahead. "She has to be nearby!"

The others trailed ahead, the ground rumbling underfoot as they did, but the sights and sounds around didn't matter as much as one—Inochi's! The shouts and cries of hers mingled with that of another, lower and more growling voice as the light grew brighter. The light dimmed as everyone burst through the end of a tunnel, and they all stopped short.

They found themselves in a massive room covered in vines and flowers. Golden luminaries hung from the ceiling and acted as functional lamps as tinier petunias littered the grass-coated floor. A sweet, nectar-like scent coated the room with such a thickness that it was almost sickening. Its source was, perhaps, the massive throne of vines and flowers that the flower queen stood on like a ladder as she hung Inochi's pod from a vine on the ceiling.

"Perfect!" the flower queen chirped as she lowered herself. "Now you're not going anywhere!"

"You can't do this, please!" Inochi cried as she pounded on the pod. "You can't keep me locked up her forever! I need to leave this place!"

"She's right!" Sihiri cried. She stormed forward as everyone flooded in behind her, and summoned a staff with a frown. "We're not leaving this place without Inochi!"

"Yeah!" the others cried behind her.

The flower queen's brows perked up, and her pleased smile turned to a scowl as her eyes fell on Sihiri.

"So you found me, did you?" The flower queen snarled as she took a seat on her throne. "Well, I applaud you for getting this far, I suppose." The flower queen drummed her sharp, thorny fingers against the throne's armrest, and slammed her arms down on the rests. "BUT THIS IS AS FAR AS YOU WILL GO!"

The flower queen snarled, and her leafy body slowly unraveled, sinking into the depths of the throne as it rooted itself off the ground!

"I'M NOT LETTING HER LEAVE, NO MATTER WHAT!" the flower queen cried. Her voice became more distorted and snarling as her face sank into the top of the chair. The throne's petals dyed a rich, bloody red as arms with massive hands of thorns emerged from its armrests. "THE ONLY WAY YOU'LL BE WITH HER IS WHEN I BURY YOU HERE!"

Inochi gasped, but the flower queen didn't even notice as she slammed her arms into the ground! Her hands sunk into the grass as she yanked open her jaw, and she shot off a round of massive seed bombs! The group scrambled out of the way as the seed bombs crashed into the ground and cast massive clouds of murky green spores everywhere. The flower queen didn't relent; she skittered side to side and cast out more!

Chihiro squealed and hit the grass as a seed bomb flew over her head. It crashed into the wall behind her, and she pushed herself up as she snarled. Another group of seed bombs hurtled right for her, but she crafted a gigantic baseball bat out of magic and leaped right for them.

"Batter's up!" Chihiro cried as she slammed her bat against the seed bombs and shot them right back at the flower queen.

The flower queen screeched like a bat as the bombs slammed into her chest and exploded, slunk back and her vines unraveled once more! They cast clipped grass off the ground as they slammed into the earth, and she panted as the spores clouded around her. Nectar drool piddled from her mouth as she leaned against the wall, and her colors turned just a little lighter.

Luz and Dej grinned; the two of them dashed up the vines and leaped off! Luz summoned his shield, and shot a mighty burst of light towards the flower queen. Dej thrust his palms together, and shot a massive blast of water into the queen's mouth.

The queen let out garbled screamed as the blasts hit her, but as they faded… She cackled! Her colors grew brighter and richer; she stretched tall enough to brush just barely against the ceiling. She slammed her hands back into the ground, and a new glow of power brimmed from her.

"What the?" Dej cried as he floated back. "What happened?"

"Plants use sunlight and water to grow, you two!" Inochi cried from within her plant pod. "Your attacks are only going to make her stronger!"

Inochi squeaked as another slam of the flower queen's hands rattled her flower pod. Behind the flower queen, Luz and Dej gulped.

"We may have made a really bad decision," Dej remarked.

The two of them screamed as a pair of flower bombs shot out and exploded, knocking them into the grass! While they struggled to push themselves up, the flower queen cackled and sent another round of flower bombs right for them! The two of them gasped, and Luz reached for his shield. Right before he could block the blow, a group of flaming magma blobs slammed into the flower bombs, incinerating them in midair! Luz and Dej both gasped as they turned back to find Vatra and Eruptor standing behind them with a warm glow, one that quickly faded as Vatra lowered his hand.

"We need to come up with a plan," Vatra shouted as he blew up another flower bomb, "but what?"

A massive thud shook the grass below and halved it as Vatra lowered his hands. Shadows cast over the throne room! Vatra lifted his head, gasped and dashed away as a massive seed landed in the ground! He snapped his fingers and prepared flames, fully ready for an explosion—but instead of exploding, the seed leaped up from the ground. It sprouted not just arms and limbs, but weapons as well!

The ground rattled as even more seed warriors crashed on the ground. They dashed after the rest of the group, and Chihiro stood caught in the center of it all. She winced and turned from side to side as her eyes fell on the world around her. There, Skylander and portal master alike warred with the seeds surrounding!

Dej snatched her hand and dashed off. "C'mon, kid!" Dej cried as he summoned a wave, crafted a surfboard out of coral and leaped on. "We're going for the pest in chief herself!"

Chihiro gasped, but quickly nodded as she leaped aside and crafted a surfboard of her own. Below her, the wave charged straight for the flower queen! The flower queen cackled and yanked open her jaw, fully ready to take in the water—but at the last minute, the wave turned to solid ice! It glowed cyan as it dove right for the flower queen's chest! The flower queen screeched as the icy daggers twisted into her body, nectar seeping out and freezing across the ice. her twisted hands scratched at the ice while she attempted to free herself. Dej and Chihiro both frowned as they hovered in front of the raging flower queen.

Dej scoffed as he crossed his arms. "Just what's your deal, anyways? So, she disappeared for a few thousand years, big deal!" Dej exclaimed, his brows tight as he glared down at the flower queen. "It was only a few years, so just let it go!"

"LET IT GO?" the flower queen screamed.

Her snarl grew even wider, and the vines that made up her body rippled and pulsated before they bulked up, shattering the icy wave that stabbed into her. Her body reformed with twice the strength of before! It didn't stop there, either; she grew even larger as she growled and shuddered, until she finally hit the ceiling!

"YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT I'VE BEEN THROUGH, PEST!"

The queen shuddered. With a slam of her palms against the grass, more seed warriors—bigger, bulkier ones with weaponry that dripped with toxic liquid—emerged from the ground! The plant warriors charged after the others still on the ground, and their shouts drew Dej's attention back down to them. As he looked down, the queen yanked him out of the air and put him right up to her face.

"I was abandoned, left alone, left to die! I had nothing until she found me!" The queen trembled, and she squeezed Dej so tight he nearly popped. "She cared for me like I was her own daughter, promised me I'd never have to be alone again, gave me home and a family! I, I was so happy…" The queen flower sniffled, and tiny (well, tiny for her size) tears formed in the corner of her eyes. "But, but then, she just disappeared! I waited so long for her to return, and now she just wants to leave me alone again?"

The queen flower yowled as she slammed Dej into Chihiro. She knocked them both into the ground, slammed her fist on the earth next, and shook everything around!

"I THINK NOT! SHE'S NEVER LEAVING ME EVER AGAIN!"

The plant warriors squealed in agreement. As Chihiro and Dej started to come to, the plant warriors completely surrounded them! Dej gasped and stabbed them all in their hearts with spears of ice before they could strike, but as those warriors fell, even more burst from the ground and chased them down!

Inochi winced and sat in her flower pod prison. She looked down to where these plant warriors burst out from the earth, and chased down Skylander and portal master alike while the queen seethed. Her hands brushed against the petals as her eyes fell on the queen, but it wasn't fear that broiled in her gaze. No, it was a kind of somberness, something a bit more concerned than anything.

"It couldn't possibly be her, could it?" Inochi whispered. "I knew the risks of bringing a sproutling in, but I never thought something like this would happen!"

Inochi's hand clasped as it laid against the flower pod, and she nodded as she drew it away.

"I have to fix this!" Inochi gulped, and pressed her hands against the flower pod's walls while a green glow wavered around her. "Let's hope this works."

Inochi hummed as her flower pod glowed green. That green glow leaped out from the pod's petals and seeped into the ground! The grass around turned a bright, lush green as the glow seeped right to where the Skylanders and the other portal masters stood cornered by those plant warriors. It finally stopped, and formed a massive dome of tight grass around the Skylanders and portal masters' group! The plant warriors squeaked as their weapons were smashed to bits upon impact, growled and pounded their fists against the grassy dome—but it didn't do a thing!

"Where did this come from?" Chihiro asked. The sound of sprouting brought her attention down below. A petunia bloomed by her feet, and twisted itself until it took a microphone's form!

"Everyone, it's me!" Inochi cried from the speaker the petunia formed.

Everyone gasped and knelt down to the petunia's height as Inochi lowered her voice.

"I think I've figured out how to stop this plant, but I need to break out from this flower pod to do it! Do you think you can do something?"

"You bet we can!" Chihiro cried as she snapped her fingers. "Just give us a minute!"

Chihiro and the others all huddled together and whispered. As they nodded, Chihiro broke from the huddle and turned back to the petunia.

"Alright, Inochi, you can lower the dome now!"

Inochi didn't need to. A massive explosion rattled the world, and the grass receded to unveil a whole army of floral warriors before them! Those plant warriors from before were armed once again, and beside them were more seed bombers and wavering vines ready to strike. Chihiro, nor any of her companions were intimidated; they just grinned and jumped into the fray!

Terrafin started first, leaping into the earth and shaving off the grass as he churned up the ground from underneath! Rows formed in the earth as the plant warriors squeaked and stumbled about above ground. In their moment of distraction, bursts of fire came from the ground! The plant warriors all squealed as the flames chased them down to one particularly barren patch of earth.

As they stepped foot there, the flames extinguished from a massive torrent of water that fell on them! The plant warriors panted as their leaves drooped slightly, lifted their legs and prepared to run—but they couldn't! The torrent drenched the earth into cold mud, and they were stuck tight. They only stayed stuck as blasts of fire and ice blew them to bits!

Dej and Vatra both chuckled, grinned at each other as the plant warriors withered, but jumped away as a mass of explosions blew behind them! As the two of them fled, a group of seed bombers chuckled to themselves within the mass of misty green spores they created. Soon, they yelped as a mighty gust blew all the spores away! The seed bombers all turned over to where Whirlwind flew in place.

Beside her, Luz smirked as he tossed a sphere of light so white-hot that it heated the area around by a good bit in his palm. "Hey, catch!" Luz cried as he tossed the sphere right towards the seed bombers.

The seed bombers squealed and dashed off, but right before they could, the sphere hit the ground and exploded! The world around them was completely incinerated: grass left singed, walls left scorched, and the seed bombers themselves left reduced to ashes!

Luz smirked as he wiped his hands. "How's about a taste of your own medicine for once?"

He chuckled to himself for a moment, but gasped as a vine shot forward and sliced of bits of his spiky hair! Luz hit the ground as the vine pulled back, and reached out to summon his shield—but stopped short as Eruptor and Cynder dashed in front of him.

They tossed both lava blobs and lightning strikes at the oncoming vines. The vines jolted backwards as flames and lightning alike completely singed them. As they turned thin and charred, chakrams of magic and ice shot forward and sliced them in half! The chakrams flew back across the area as the vines collapsed to the ground, and two pale hands yanked them out of the air as Chihiro and Dej smirked at each other.

At the top of it all, the flower queen yowled and slammed her hand into the ground. Her jaw twisted into a snarl as she overlooked the battlefield, but as she did, she missed one thing! The grass rustled as the faint sounds of someone panting echoed around, yet the flower queen hardly noticed.

Sihiri pressed herself against the wall and took a breath as she became visible. With a stomp of her feet, a massive magic tower formed underfoot and tossed her into the air, right toward the flower pod containing Inochi! Both Inochi and Sihiri grunted as Sihiri snatched it from the vine, and a floating star formed underneath Sihiri's feet as she flew off.

"Sihiri!" Inochi cried.

She grinned as the flower pod floated out of Sihiri's arms and unfolded, and Inochi broke into sheer, gleeful laughter as she leaped into Inochi's arms! The laughter spread to Sihiri as well as they hugged each other tight and spun around. Inochi chuckled as she tapped Sihiri's nose.

"My hero~" Inochi teased as she drew closer to Sihiri's face and locked her into a kiss! The two of them stayed in pure, pleasant bliss for a few moments as they embraced each other, their grip tender and warm as they kissed with such passion…

"No," the flower queen gasped.

Inochi and Sihiri both drew away from their kiss and peered down at the flower queen. The moment the flower queen craned her head up and caught wind, she screamed and flailed! She slammed her arms against the ground while hot tears of nectar burned in her eyes!

"NO, NO! THIS WASN'T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN!" the flower queen wailed, smashing her fists and sending the grass flying out of the ground as she sobbed. "YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO TAKE HER AWAY! SHE, SHE, SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO STAY! SHE PROMISED ME SHE WOULD! SHE, SHE TOLD ME…" The flower queen shuddered, and collapsed in a shaking, shuddering heap in the grass! Her cries of rage intermingled with sorrow, a rare sort of vulnerability as she buried her face in her arms. "Muh, ma, she, she told me we'd be together forever…"

Inochi drew herself away from Sihiri's grip, floated down and drew closer to the raging flower queen. Everyone around her readied their weapons in full expectancy of some kind of attack, but Inochi leaned in and hummed. She shushed the flower queen's rage as she brushed her hands against the flower queen's face. The flower queen's roars and screams slowly drew, and the furious tears of nectar that dripped down her face dried as she peered back down at Inochi.

"Oh, dear, you must have been so lonely, weren't you? You poor thing," Inochi whispered, and she gently pressed her head against the flower queen's face. "When I found you wilted all that time ago, I promised you I'd never leave you alone again…"

"AND YOU LIED!" the flower queen roared as she yanked herself away from Inochi's embrace.

Vines shot out from the wall and straight towards Inochi, but Inochi slipped away and hovered still. The gentle look of sorrow still on her face as she clasped her hands tight, not that it eased the flower queen's rage any. The flower queen slammed a leafy fist into the wall and sent more vines shooting! Inochi gasped and slipped away from one; her eyes fell on the flower queen, and she hesitated before another vine knocked her back.

"Do you have any idea how agonizing it was, being left on my own all these years?" The tears streamed again as the flower queen slammed her fists against the wall further. "I spent all that time waiting for you to come back, to greet me, to greet us all! It was cold, and painful, and I spent so much time alone and trapped by myself! I could feel myself dying every day, but I endured the agony all so I could see you, and now you're just going to abandon me again?"

Inochi squeaked as she dodged another vine, clasped trembling, shaking hands and drew closer. "Please believe me when I said that it wasn't a lie! I—"

"NOT A LIE? NOT A LIE?" The flower queen exclaimed, her face red hot as she stomped into the ground! Her neck stretched out as she shoved her face in Inochi's once more, and her petals turned red like blood and her face sharp and furious. "THEN WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME?"

"I NEVER WANTED TO!" Inochi cried back as she burst forward and hugged the flower queen's face.

The flower queen gasped, and her angry features softened as she wrapped her leafy hands around Inochi. Wrapped in her tiny embrace, the two nuzzled each other, and Inochi didn't even seem to notice the nectar tears that streamed onto her head.

"I died. I, I passed away fighting those very beings who wanted to hurt our world, and when I awakened, it had been millennia!" Inochi sobbed as she clutched a petal tighter. "I'd never willingly abandon any of my precious sprouts like that!"

The flower queen sputtered, and her leaves wrapped tighter as she lowered her head. Those nectar tears dripped down and formed pools at her roots, yet all she did was sit there and cry as she held Inochi in her embrace, so snug, so warm, so safe.

"I'm sorry I caused you so much pain. I can't imagine how awful you must have felt, being alone for so long!" Inochi sniffled herself, and her own tears turned to sobs once more as she squeezed the flower queen's petals. "Please, please forgive me for not being the caretaker I should've!"

The flower queen trembled, lips quivering and tears budding in her eyes as she gently ran her leaves down Inochi's back.

"Muh, muh," the flower queen sputtered and spat. Her voice, once so warped and demanding and full of power, grew weaker. Her own body shrank until she was no taller than Inochi herself. "Ma, ma…"

The flower queen grew smaller as her limbs started to lose their detailing. Her clawed hands and thorny limbs were just simple leaves and roots, and her voice was weak, a whisper. She was not a queen demanding an audience, but a girl crying for the mother she lost.

"Mama!" the flower queen sobbed at last as she wrapped herself tight in Inochi's grasp.

The flower queen nestled tight within her arms as her sobbing started to fade into the echoes. The last of her features shrank, receding back into her body until she was once again just an ordinary flower! Inochi gently brushed her fingers against the former flower queen's petals, knelt down and planted her back into the ground. The flower drooped over for a minute. Though it seemed to have wilted, it carried itself with a semblance of what seemed like a smile on its face as it folded into the earth and vanished, at rest at last.

A soft breeze blew as the armies of flower creatures froze in their places, sank into the earth, and vanished while the world itself came to a standstill. Leaves danced in the air as everyone else walked behind Inochi, but Inochi just stood and smiled as she examined the spot where the flower queen once rested.

"Rest well, my precious sprout," Inochi whispered. Leaves and flower petals cascaded forward and danced around Inochi, all paired with the faint sounds of a child's laughter that had no source.

For a moment, everyone stood still, the silent tranquility a rare moment of peace after such a hectic time… But, a cough from Vatra turned their attention back to him.

"Alright, now that everyone's here, just one question," Vatra asked as all eyes turned back on him. "How are we going to get out of here?" Vatra turned around and gestured to the sealed door behind him. "Because something tells me that isn't budging."

"I, don't know, actually," Inochi remarked as she turned around and scratched her cheek. "I haven't been down this way in ages, so…"

"Actually, I know!"

This time, it was Dej that all eyes fell on. He smirked and wiped his hands as he strode up, no mind paid to the attention as he approached a stick that looked suspiciously like a lever.

"Now, ten thousand years gave me a lot of time to run around this place. I practically know it like the back of my hand!" Dej remarked as he leaned down on the lever. "It just so happens that there's a little something here that'll give us the air we need!" Dej winked as the lever was pushed down the lowest it could go. "If you know what I mean!"

Vatra's own face faltered into a frown, and the others just blinked and stared while Dej rejoined them.

"Dej," Vatra said, his tone flat and colder than his warm appearance befitted, "don't tell me you're thinking what I think you are."

The ground around started to quiver. The others gasped and chattered among themselves, but Dej just crossed his arms and chuckled. His smirk didn't relent as a gigantic flower popped out from the ground, seating everyone right in its center!

"You might wanna hold on tight!" Dej cried as the flower creaked further and further down.

"Why?" Chihiro asked as she sat down and clung to the center of the flower right as it reached its lowest point.

"We're gonna be in for a wild flight!"

In one swift motion, the flower sprung from the ground, and the sudden force sent them all flying through the massive hole in the ceiling! Their shouts echoed around the chamber, and rustled its leaves as they disappeared into the heavens above.