Chapter Text
If there was one thing Magnus hated about himself was how he had a bad habit of failing those he cared about. He hasn't exactly had a good track record of keeping promises in the past and it had given him hardships as a result. When things got tough, he would blame the Gods for his problems when he could just look at himself in the mirror and see that he was the problem.
Gaol had told him multiple times that unless he fixed this character flaw that he was going to continue being hurt in the future. He already experienced this when he lost Rita to the Underworld. Pit never explained to him how he was able to find his child's soul. Rita suffered from amnesia therefore cannot remember anything from his past life to what he was doing before he ended up in the Skyworld orphanage of children. Pit only took him in originally because he had potential as a royal bodyguard (and the fact he was nagged by the royal bodyguard Pepper to help her take Rita and the other royal bodyguard Ginger in), so it never occurred to him to ask Rita on his backstory.
In general Pit had been the miracle that prevented Magnus from screwing up too badly. Pit was the reason he was able to save Gaol from the Underworld as well when he was ready to kill her after she had slaughtered many humans under the control of the Underworld. He might have done that to Pit too if he didn't tell him while in the ring that he had no control of his body.
But this situation is different. Magnus had allowed Dunban to die. He didn't watch him close enough and Dunban's soul was snatched. He never bothered asking about Dunban's past despite venting to him about his own when confronted with Rita and he was too slow to get him out of Nav in time.
OH, DON'T LOOK SO SAD. I WILL TAKE GOOD CARE OF HIS SOUL. Ala could be heard taunting as she slowly appeared in front of Magnus. He was ready to cut her down, but it would be pointless. Even if he killed her, that would not change that Dunban's soul was tied to Nav now.
"You got to be kidding…" He growled as he gripped Dunban as tightly as possible feeling that he was losing his hold on the younger male. His body was becoming more transparent by the minute and that meant that he would just be a hovering soul. "Dunban…don't…"
Dunban was given a small ray of hope, but it was yanked from him the minute he thought that he could escape. He resigned to his fate of being stuck here knowing at least that he saw the person he wanted to see one more time. The Homs didn't like how Magnus looked like a kicked puppy ready to shed manly tears for him. He wasn't worth crying over.
"Magnus…" He spoke feeling his voice was leaving him. "…Please get out of here with everyone else…"
"W-What?"
"…I am not worth it." Dunban lamented. "I…already messed up in my youth. I don't want anyone…to be hurt because of a mistake I did…I'll accept my fate."
"That's absurd! You didn't do anything!"
"…I wanted to live." The Homs admitted as he felt his mind fading away. "I wanted to make sure Fiora lived. I felt…like it was my duty…it is fulfilled though…she is happy…and safe…I know she is. I…"
Ala chuckled seeing how Dunban was all hers now. She ended up using her magic to take out the very contract the samurai signed in his youth. Magnus looked up and wanted to snatch it out of her hands. If he ripped it up, would Dunban's soul no longer be bound to Nav?
"Do you see this contract human? Your little Homs friend signed this with full knowledge of what he was getting into." She smirked. "The only way for this contract to ever be nullified is with the Power of Love…but we all know that doesn't exist."
"Don't talk down on him…" Magnus growled. "Even if you take his soul…I'll kill you so you won't be able to torture him."
"You can try. I am immortal like most of the Gods." The demon contractor teased before reading the contract out loud. "I, Dunban hereby resign the ability to reincarnate into another life. This I resign unto Ala, and in return I will be granted the strength that I require to protect those that are close to me, in particular my little sister Fiora. This strength given to me will include the ability to manipulate elements such as wind and electricity, sometimes at a cost to my own health or safety. This contract will be terminated at the first sign I am no longer strong enough to even protect myself or when Fiora no longer requires protecting. This contract may be nullified if I find someone that will romantically love me in life, but this will only work if the other party reciprocates my feelings. This factor will only be applied if both I and my partner or partners share these feelings with one another, even if they are not outright stated. If I have not found anyone that will reciprocate any feelings of affection I have for them, or I do not return the feelings of another by the day of my death, my soul will be forfeited to Ala and she will use my soul in any way she then pleases."
Magnus could go on a tangent about how the contract is biased and should be burned into a fire like hell, but that wouldn't change anything. He was only human, so it would be impossible to reverse the contract. If only Pit was here or if he could get in contact with Palutena, she might find some sort of loophole.
"Dammit!" Magnus cursed seeing Dunban fade away. "Dunban, I'm so sorry! I couldn't…"
"…No…it's…my fault…" Dunban murmured weakly. "…My only regret Magnus…is not…asking you out…on a date…" He sighed in defeat thinking of everything they could have done on that one date. "…Would have been…nice…"
There wasn't anything Magnus could do at this point. Even if he registered that Dunban was reaching out to him in his last moment in a weak proclamation of love, it would achieve nothing.
"Well, I guess the soul is mine now." Ala said. "Come to mama, and then I can be generous and let your friends leave unharmed…if Aldra didn't kill them already for her precious husband."
The minute she said that though, a katana impaled her through the chest. It even reached the contact where now there was a big hole in the middle. Her eyes widened in horror because she could see blood dripping from the sword after it went through her. She claimed immortality but she could still bleed especially if it was another divine being stabbing her from behind. Magnus was just as taken off guard as Ala was as she let out a cry before the sword was pulled back. Her human form fell to the ground immediately unmoving even if she could still communicate with her Underworld.
W-What…
"I'll be taking that contract now."
Magnus glanced who was the one brave enough to stab the woman he hated with a burning passion and was surprised that it was that same Goth girl that technically acted as Hades' messenger.
"The Goth chick?"
"THAT IS JULIET!"
Well, Hades was making his presence known when Juliet snatched the contract from Ala's hands. She glared at the contract she ran her katana through and was ready to slice it into pieces.
What…are you doing? Ala questioned threatening to lose her temper again. You cannot destroy the contract…
"This is a fraud." Juliet told her firmly. "You cannot take the soul when the contract has indeed been nullified."
That was news to Magnus. "What?"
Ala couldn't believe a single word this newcomer said. Juliet sighed realizing she would have to explain to Ala in simple terms what she was talking about.
"You underestimate the Power of Love. As the Guardian of Love, I can see the red strings of fate on every living being. For you to try and sever the bond between two lovers is a crime against love."
What stupid red strings of fate do you speak of? There is nothing.
"…Only the Goddess of Love and those she grants the power to can see and manipulate the love around them." Juliet continued explaining. "This contract interferes with my job especially since you are attempting to violate your own contract."
Ala obviously had no idea what she was talking about…or maybe she did but didn't care if Dunban failed to notice the error. Juliet shook her head as she laid out the truth in front of them.
"This line right here. This contract may be nullified if I find someone that will romantically love me in life, but this will only work if the other party reciprocates my feelings. This factor will only be applied if both I and my partner or partners share these feelings with one another, even if they are not outright stated. Sounds familiar?"
To Magnus it made no sense. He may have been observant, but something like this was going over his head. Ala hissed at what Juliet was suggesting.
"You…" Juliet spoke looking toward Magnus who was still trying to best to hold onto whatever was left of Dunban before he completely faded away. "You love him."
That came out of left field for Magnus. "W-What?"
"The red strings of fate is not just tied to you and your beloved…but it's like a handcuff that can never be broken. To attempt to break it is a crime against love."
Magnus really had no idea what she was talking about now. However, if he searched deep within his heart, he would understand what she meant.
"Me…in love…"
Don't be ridiculous! There is no love between either of them! Ala yelled. Give me proof that there is love instead of you making stuff up on the spot!
Juliet walked over to the two men and placed her hand on Dunban's chest. Even if he was completely transparent at this point, the white haired Guardian's magic allowed her to reverse the effect that was forcing Dunban to be bounded by Nav. The thumping of a heartbeat resonated throughout the area. Magnus' eyes widened feeling that it was his own, but listening closer Magnus realized that it was both his and Dunban's heart beating in harmony.
"Look deeply inside your heart and you will know that love has always been there."
In the back of Dunban's mind before he nearly fell into absolute despair, he knew it was love. Ala's hypnotism forced him to acknowledge it. He just couldn't convey these feelings to the older male in fear of rejection. Every little thing they did together from training with each other to Dunban being a taste tester for Magnus' cooking brought them closer together. All the problems he had from Bionis from being betrayed by his closest allies to not having a male figure to vent to also contribute to the Homs falling for the mercenary. Magnus may have spent more time talking about his past in the Overworld, but Dunban could tell that Magnus had no one to pour his heart to besides Pit…and all Pit could do was give him back Rita as an angel. Dunban was never good with romance, so he just kept it to himself until now.
As for Magnus, he probably had feelings for Dunban for a while now. Besides Pit, Dark Pit and probably Ike, there wasn't anyone in the mansion he could bond with being an assist trophy and all. He didn't care about making friends as much as he was making money so he can send it to Gaol back in the Overworld. After a tragedy struck there not too long ago (and Pit ended up taking one of his comrade's back to heaven and making her one of the royal bodyguards immediately afterward), Gaol needed all the money she could get to rebuild the town that was attacked by the vicious mob that wanted to break away from Palutena. Dunban (and Chrom admittingly) were the odd ones in the mansion and were easy to communicate with. The more he hung out with the raven haired Homs, the more he wanted to be near him and protect him. That was probably why he jumped at the chance to be on the rescue team. Maybe it was his ego talking, but Magnus wanted to be a hero and succeed this time around after failing to save Rita or Gaol in the past. To be told that his love for Dunban could actually save him…
"Without love, the truth cannot be seen." Juliet states with a small smile on her face. "With that knowledge, the contract will be nullified. You love him."
"…I…" Magnus paused as he felt a powerful force allow him to continue holding Dunban in his arms. "…Do…"
Dunban would get Magnus later for the older male pulling a Sleeping Beauty right there. Magnus leaned down and placed his lips on the weakened male hoping that something would come out of this random action. His lips were chapped and cold…almost like he was kissing a dead body now…but Dunban wasn't dead. His heart was still beating and it was still resonating inside of him. When their lips met, the orange color of the Underground was blending with red, white, purple and pink colors, almost killing the orange. Ala could be heard screeching feeling the power in her Underworld being drained because a contract was burning up in the flames of love.
Magnus let go of Dunban who was being levitated by the colors of love. The magic that Ala had injected in him due to the curse was being forced out of him. Dunban would be disappointed if he were to try to fight again and found that some of his Arts were gone because of what was going on now. The samurai's body was quickly returning back to a physical form before the magic would eventually give up and he would fall to the ground if Magnus did not catch him.
"Dunban!" Magnus called out immediately shaking him. "Dunban!"
"...Mag…nus?"
Magnus had a huge smile now seeing the younger male open his brown eyes. They were still dull from his near death experience, but he was alive.
"…Thank the Goddess…she actually created a miracle for once…"
He was mainly referring to Juliet even if she wasn't a Goddess of any sort, but the thanks were apparent. The white haired Guardian continued to smile before turning her back to the couple. She looked up hearing the God of the Underworld making fake sobbing noises.
"Lord Hades…what is the matter?"
"I wasted one hour of my immortal life on this soap opera, Juliet dear! How can I possibly get my precious sixty minutes back?"
"…I honestly think it was longer, but I will refrain from insulting your lack of telling time." Juliet was looking around and grumbled. "Lady Palutena, how long are you going to ignore Lord Hades' presence?"
Palutena could be heard grumbling. Magnus could not hear her at all due to his lack of respect for her (and being human contributed to this too). She was trying to warn him that Ala was coming after the two, but there was nothing she could do without Pit there to translate for her. She was still surprised that Hades of all people would back her up after feeling like she failed everyone, but she still had a job to do. She just needed Dunban to be on higher ground so she could transfer his soul back into his body.
"Lady Palutena…it would be nice if you brought the body down now." Juliet spoke. She tapped her foot impatiently implying she had been talking for the last couple of minutes. "Lord Hades can assist if you're having problems."
"I have a hard time believing that Hades is here to save the day." Palutena grumbled.
"Oh, you know me Pretty Palutena. Days was worried sick about Pitty, so he nagged me until he wasted more of my precious time."
"Not really, Hades. You just wanted to grab some souls here if you could that wasn't that Homs over there." Juliet corrected causing Hades to fake cry at being outed. Palutena could be heard groaning knowing that Hades wasn't here out of the kindness of his heart.
While the two ladies were mocking Hades, Ala was slowly regaining her form and transforming into something more terrifying than her human form. Juliet only noticed at the last minute when the entire cave shook from the weight of the transformation. The Guardian of Love only had a split second to guard her front before something large slammed into her katana sending her flying against the cave wall.
"Gruh…"
"JULIET!" Hades suddenly called out. He probably surprised himself when he did and going above and beyond to use his powers to cover the Guardian of Love with a purple barrier that would prevent that large object from slamming against her stomach.
Ala had morphed into a dragon filled with absolute rage.
I WILL NOT BE MOCKED IN MY OWN HOME! She roared causing the stalactite to drop near Magnus and Dunban. Their reunion would be cut short because of Ala's main target being they. YOU THINK YOUR LOVE WILL SAVE YOU FROM MY BELLY?
Palutena still couldn't reach them even if she tried. Hades didn't have the authority in another Underworld, so he couldn't do anything (and that was if he got off his lazy ass to support anyone else that wasn't Juliet). Magnus cursed to himself for losing himself in the moment and not paying attention to Ala. Ala did say she wouldn't die that easily. Even with his blade, he wasn't going to be able to slice her head through the middle and save the day. Not if he didn't want Dunban's soul to be hurt in the progress.
"Magnus…leave me and run…"
"Never. Even if I die here…I'm not leaving you alone."
Dunban could only cling to Magnus' arm weakly closing his eyes waiting for the inevitable. Magnus' attempt to swing his blade indeed failed seeing how Ala was over the both of them with her mouth open. If she chomped right there, Magnus would have been without a head. Instead, he decided to roll into her so she would swallow them both whole without chewing them. It would take longer for anyone to die by this process, but they weren't leaving any time soon.
"Oh no…" Juliet murmured as she tried to stand up but didn't have the strength to do so. "Dammit…my legs…"
Ala didn't bother turning around and eating Juliet when there was a barrier protecting her. She would go back to her later when she ate the others that were fighting up ahead. Palutena could only gasp at the realization that Pit and the others were in danger.
"What are you doing, Juliet?! Get up and warn them!" Palutena exclaimed before she was already hurrying to try and regain communication with Pit.
The time may have run out but Aldra's husband was not returned to her. She would keep fighting even if Ala would not return her husband to her. Pit and Airi had already dealt with their opponents. Having experience with demons, Airi was able to subdue Dogor with her spirits hovering over the green frog. He cursed and struggled underneath her heel but he wasn't going to get free to attack. If he tried to move his tongue, Airi would slice it off.
With Riki's help, Belphe was toppled over allowing Pit to sink his foot into Belphe's stomach preventing him from moving from his spot. He made sure that Belphe's face was smacked against the ground, so he wouldn't be able to shoot fire from his mouth if the white angel let his guard down. There was a debate whether Riki should freeze the red bear or not, but Pit decided to leave it alone.
Shulk finally got the advantage over Aldra after struggling to be on even ground with her. She was a difficult opponent due to the demonic energy flowing through her. The blond stopped speaking to her once he realized that he wouldn't get through to her and focused on subduing her. Instead of going on the offensive, Shulk focused on parrying all of Aldra's attacks. Her rage prevented her from seeing that the Monado boy only needed to tire her out before he disarmed her.
"Shulk."
"I know, Alvis. She's wide open!"
Aldra let out a shriek the minute Shulk disarmed her by simply smacking the blade against her hand. If it were anyone else, he probably would have accidentally chopped her hand off. Her half demon status gave her protection against something as simple as that.
"Ahhh!" She shrieked as she was immediately met with the Monado blade to her neck. If she moved, he would not hesitate to decapitate her and that was the last thing he wanted.
"There is no more need to fight. You have lost."
"N-No…my husband…if I don't keep fighting then…"
She was looking toward her weapon despite the Monado being pointed toward her neck. Shulk wondered if she had no disregard for her life if she were to jump and grab the paddle. The blond expected her to do that hence he shifted the blade as a warning.
"We will help you."
"How would you help me?! You are trying to save your own family!"
Shulk spoke up before Pit interrupted him with the obvious rejection answer.
"We are capable of helping you. Ala is our enemy too."
Ala wouldn't believe Shulk's words so easily. Pit cursed the Monado boy out when he lowered his weapon against her. This was her opportunity to grab her paddle, but she kept her eyes gazing at Shulk's instead expecting a surprise attack.
"…Pit…"
The light angel rolled his eyes when Shulk started using this tone against him. "What?!"
"Can you have Palutena pinpoint where Ala is? We can focus our attention on her since Dunban is safe."
"How would you know?" Pit asked rather annoyed. "…Is it your vision again?"
The Monado boy would have spoke, but he felt the ground rumbling below his feet. Since Airi was floating above the ground, she didn't feel the tremble. Pit gasped when he heard Palutena's voice suddenly scream in his ear.
"PIT! GET OUT OF THERE! SHE'S COMING!"
The white angel was quick to look behind him to see a huge dragon approaching. The dragon had its mouth open ready to take a bite out of the person who was in its way.
"MOVE OUT OF THE WAY!" Pit cried out as he rushed over toward Shulk and Aldra and pushed them both to the ground just before the dragon flew over them and tried to eat them. Riki had fallen off at that moment leaving Belphe free to float and shoot flames again. He didn't want to see the dragon going after anything that was considered tasty and he didn't want to be on the menu.
By saving the two, Pit ended up in this awkward position between both of them especially Shulk who blushed feeling Pit's crotch against his butt. It was a miracle that the Monado wasn't cutting Aldra, but she was put in an awkward position too with Shulk's head in between her breasts no thanks to Pit.
"G-Get off…" He groaned knowing full well if he got up that the dragon might sink its teeth into his chest. If it bit the Monado, the teeth might shatter (but he really didn't want Alvis to complain about damaging the sword in this situation).
"H-Hey! It's not like I want to feel your ass!"
"T-Then stop moving so close! This is not necessary!"
The dragon flew right over them anticipating one of them to sit up. Airi faded out quickly before the dragon reached her, but she could only do it so many times without making herself vulnerable. For a moment, Shulk saw another vision that wasn't Dunban and Magnus being safe (and even then he didn't see that they just got eaten). He now had a vision of Pit crying out to Airi who got cornered by the dragon and met a horrible end despite being a wraith. The blood was oozing everywhere and Palutena was begging Pit to not lose his temper. If things kept going, Pit would be impaled by the dragon's claw.
"Ala, what are you doing?!" Aldra questioned in a demanding tone as she pushed both men off of her with her sudden strength. "I can handle them on my own! I will save my husband and I will not let you try to go back on the deal!"
DEAL, WHAT DEAL?! I WOULD NEVER GIVE BACK YOUR HUSBAND WITH YOUR TYPE OF PERFORMANCE! The dragon screeched causing Pit and Airi to cover their ears at the sudden sound that vibrated in their ears.
"W-What…but that's…"
Pit was more concerned with Airi now who Ala was targeting now. She faded out a second time. The battle with Dogor and just traveling to Nav had worn her out. She needed to feed on someone soon if she wanted to sustain her appearance, but since she chose to disappear at will to avoid being hurt, she was at a threat of vanishing for real…that was if Ala didn't take a bite out of her first.
"Shulk…you're not…"
Shulk knew he was being risky when he got up with the Monado in hand.
"I will change the future, Alvis!" Shulk proclaimed while charging toward the wraith and pushing her out of the way. "This is the Monado's power!"
How reckless of him to swing his blade at the huge dragon. He has fought difficult ones back on the Bionis and wished to avoid fighting any dragons in the future (and that included Charizard despite not being classified as a dragon). Ala wasn't a dragon though. She was a Goddess and simply slicing at her teeth wasn't going to stop the demon of Nav in her tracks. All it did was prevent any vision of being bitten be shattered. Ala screeched when her teeth were sliced cleanly off.
DAMN YOU PUNY ALIEN! She roared before she recovered rather quickly to attack him. Shulk was able to dodge a few moves but the agro was complete on him. He was sweating bullets realizing that he probably should have thought things through…but the desire to save someone (especially Pit despite his utter dislike for him) overcame the desire to think logically. The only thing he could do was put up the Monado Shield when she opened her mouth wide when he realized he could no longer dodge her with the position he was in without her going after Pit.
"SHULK!" The angel captain called out as he witnessed his rival being swallowed whole by the Slavic dragon. "I'LL KILL YOU!"
"PIT!" Palutena yelled causing him to flinch. "You need to get everyone out of here or she'll eat you all! She already got Dunban and Magnus, Pit! We need to come up with another plan!"
Pit was blinded by rage in that moment and ignored his Goddess' orders once he registered that the person he was trying to save and his beloved friend was also eaten. He did not realize how stupid he was charging. With no teeth, she couldn't chew him into bits and pieces, but she had the claw ready to impale the light angel.
"PIT, NO!"
"Oh, hell no! You're not going to be impaling him!"
Another voice that wasn't Palutena or Hades entered the fray. Ala could hear him and the minute she did, she immediately found herself frozen in place by dark metal bars that shot out of the floor. Pit stopped in his tracks recognizing the magic by the musical notes that were hovering around the black metal bars.
"Dad?"
"Pit, what the fuck were you thinking?!" Daedalus questioned in a very angry tone. His voice sounded strain, but judging from the cage he was using to keep Ala, it was apparent he was using his magic all the way back in their realm to keep the Goddess of Nav in place. "You need to retreat and form a plan! You're not going to let everyone die here, right?!"
Hades could be heard snickering in the background. In the Underworld, Hades' backup plan while Juliet was rushing toward the others was to allow Daedalus to use his powers all the way in the Slavic Realm. It would not last long especially with how exactly they were going about the spell in the first place.
"Dad…are you…"
"Oh Pity, you can take your time. I enjoy the sexy pose Days is giving me now."
Pit didn't want the mental image of a Holy Pose being used on Hades so that he could transfer that magical power all the way over here…it wasn't even a Holy Pose…it was an Unholy Pose…
"S-Shut up Hades! I am not losing my concentration because of you! H-Honestly…stop giving me that look! Unholy Pose: Control!"
Ala struggled to get out of the cage she was confined in, but she felt that someone was invading her mine and almost forcing her to return back to her humanoid form. If she were to turn into a snake, she would have gotten out quicker, but then she would be at the mercy of the light angel in front of her. During this time, Riki had rushed back over to Pit and hopped onto his shoulder as if telling him that he shouldn't be careless even if Shulk was just eaten in front of him. Aldra had also regained her composure and quickly went to pick up Belphe and Dogor. Ala's refusal to keep her promise would result in them not wanting to fight her enemies. Airi shivered as she forced herself to regain her form with her clothes still intact.
"Pit…run to Juliet. From there…Palutena and Hades will take you back here. We will think of a plan…to save the others."
"G-Got it!"
Pit shivered hearing his father let out a yelp that sounded like a small moan. What the hell was Hades doing to him?! He'll joke about it later as he ordered the girls to run in front of him.
YOU…WILL NOT…ESCAPE…
Aldra and Airi ran past Pit before he followed after them. The cage was getting weaker as Ala clawed at it.
They met Juliet halfway and immediately noticing that she was limping. Would she be okay?
"Palutena, Hades, now!"
Light and darkness covered the remainder of the group as the Goddess of Light and God of the Underworld attempted to take them back to Smash Brothers Realm. Ala was not having any of that though. She suddenly broke out of the cage causing everything to tremor again before using her magic to flash the entire room with magic to counter the teleportation spell. Normally, those who were trying to warp someone out of her realm would feel the burn, but Daedalus had redirected everything to him when he was using his magic to hit her.
On the other end, Daedalus wasn't use to this type of pain and struggled to at least maintain some control over Ala. Well, if it was physical pain, he would be able to handle it, but he could never get use to anything that became sexual. As a result, he let out a huge cry that sounded like something else entirely the minute he lost control of Ala. This distracted Hades enough that the warp spell lost the power to send them all straight to the Smash Realm. Palutena cursed to herself that all they could do was send them to the human world of the Slavic Realm.
Suffice to say, the Slavic human world was now in danger of being invaded by a furious Goddess of the Underworld wanting to claim more souls to seize her anger. Pit was expecting them to be back in the Smash Realm, so seeing that they were in a segregated area in the Slavic human realm confused him. The girls and Riki made it in one piece although Riki had to get off of Pit so he could heal the pretty Juliet from her injury. The angel captain was more concerned with Daedalus who could be heard panting loudly in his head.
"What a day! First I deal with a romantic reunion and now I have to deal with a woman's temper tantrum." Hades complained. He was sarcastic as usual, but there was a hint of frustration in his voice for technically being the reason why things weren't going so smoothly.
"Hades…what happened to my old man?" Pit asked rather concerned for the fallen archangel.
"He's not dead, don't worry. Although, I am liking what's going on now."
"D-Dammit…Hades…this isn't…funny…ahh…hah…"
The dark archangel was completely out of breath. He wouldn't speak until he regained his voice. On that side, it was humiliating to say the least for Daedalus to be clinging to the Lord of the Underworld after that Unholy Pose and the sudden pain that Ala gave him as a result of it. His face was crimson red as he ended up burying his face in his boss' chest.
"Don't tell Pandora…" He pleaded in almost a whisper that only Hades heard. "I messed up…"
If Daedalus had any strength left, he probably would have slapped Hades' hand away with his awkward attempt at trying to comfort his old archangel friend. It was a miracle that either Pandora or Medusa was around to witness this. Juliet was probably imagining what was going on and rolled her eyes in disbelief.
The white haired Guardian thanked Riki though for patching up her leg so she wouldn't be such a burden.
"Riki is glad to help pretty girl!" Riki exclaimed. "Now friends can save Shulk and others!"
Ala was working her way to the human world ready to attack those who escaped. They needed a plan before she found them.
"Lady Palutena, any ideas?" Pit asked worryingly. "There doesn't seem to be too much time to think before Ala comes out of the ground. Airi, how long will it take for Ala to digest those souls?"
"I give it an hour." Airi murmured. "If the soul is powerful, they might be able to resist a little longer."
"I expect Shulk will be able to protect any souls that haven't been digested yet," Palutena began, "but I don't think he'll last long depending on how the inside of Ala is."
"Are you suggesting all Gods have another dimension as a stomach?"
Hades laughed at the idea, but he must have been a special case.
"We need to turn her back to her human form and force her to regurgitate."
"Regurgi…what?"
"She means Mistress Ala must puke out those she has eaten." Airi explained rolling her eyes when Pit gave her a disgusted look. "I prefer the idea of just blowing her up from the inside out. She's a Goddess now, so she won't die from that and it would probably be better than being ejected from the mouth for those inside."
"But I like Pretty Palutena's idea better. We get a waterfall of souls that way."
"Hades…you are gross…" Juliet grumbled to herself. Hades heard her and continued laughing at his poor joke. "Daedalus, hopefully you have a plan."
Daedalus didn't want to make up a plan when it required everyone's cooperation. Pit still had issues listening and if Palutena was already here, there was no reason for him to actually come up with something.
"Please, you have to help my husband!" Aldra begged causing Pit to flinch. For a moment, he forgot she was still there. The half-demon was on the verge of tears because of being put in a helpless situation. Her husband was still nowhere to be found, but she was starting to think that maybe Ala ate him and there was still hope to save him…but she might be alone. "I don't know what to do without him…"
"Calm yourself." Juliet told her calmly. "If your husband has been eaten, we will save him. Daedalus."
"Uhhh…don't nag me." Daedalus growled as he finally got off of Hades. His face was still a dark shade of red. "My idiot son needs to cooperate with me here."
"Argh…fine…what is it old man?"
"Pit, you'll only get one shot. I'll…channel my power over to you. You need to shoot your arrow into Ala's mouth when the opportunity comes. She might realize what the plan is and avoid doing it at all cost. This is why I need Juliet and Airi to serve as the bait. You girls need to keep her eyes away from Pit while I'm transferring my power over to him. I also need one of you to open up her mouth either willingly or unwillingly. For this to work, it has to go straight into her and cause her to rot from the inside out."
Pit was trying to imagine how that would work. If he shot an arrow, he would have to curve it into Ala's mouth. He would imagine a light arrow would simply go through her body instead of blowing her up from the inside out. Whatever magic Daedalus was going to do to enhance the bow must be something…
"Holy Poses?"
"Unholy Poses…"
"…Honestly dad, I think you only came up with this idea now is because you're a pervert."
"What?! Who do you take me for? YOU?!"
"Well, you are my dad so…"
Hades' laughter stopped Daedalus from digging his grave any deeper in terms of his secret perversion. After cursing under his breath, the fallen archangel continued his explanation.
"Pit, the reason for this plan is because you already wasted the Power of Flight on this idiot God over here! If it weren't for that, you could just do your normal air game and shoot until she explodes. The previous Unholy Pose has weakened her and Juliet did destroy her human form once. If it keeps happening in rapid succession, then she would lose her form completely. However, since that is not the case due to circumstance, it has to be one huge blast from the inside of her."
Now Pit had a better image and snickered. Daedalus gave up trying to reason with his son at this point.
"Do you understand the plan?"
"Hopefully you have the endurance to make my bow powerful enough for it to happen in one hit. I wouldn't want to disappoint a Goddess with my skills."
"Pit…please cease your innuendos at once." Palutena could be heard groaning. "I'm getting a headache."
"Sorry, Lady Palutena."
"Airi, are you okay with the plan?" Daedalus questioned the redhead.
"…It's a hassle, but what choice do I have? That alien did save my life. I don't like owing people favors."
"And you Juliet?"
"I will need Lady Palutena and Lord Hades' cooperation for me to perform at my best."
"What about Riki?"
"…You can stay in the back with my son and watch over that half-demon. Not everyone needs to be involved…if Pit misses, I do hope you will make yourself useful."
"Riki will do whatever is needed to save Shulk and friends!"
Pit chuckled nervously realizing that his father might order Aldra to treat him like a tennis ball. The Heropon was oblivious to him being demoted as a weapon should plan A fail.
Hades wasn't that thrilled with Juliet acting as the bait. If he had his way, then it would just be Airi and then him opening up a portal with the Underworld army having her back. Juliet would be right next to him and Daedalus where it was safe…
"I wonder why I would even let you do something so dangerous Juliet." Hades said out loud while pouting.
"Perhaps the old Hades is truly falling in love again." The green haired Goddess teased. "And that's a good thing because it means less souls for you and the primary focus is now love and tolerance."
"Nope. Not me. Nuh-uh! Days, get everything ready."
Daedalus could be heard grumbling about his boss being bossy again.
"Everyone, you all have five minutes to yourself. Start preparing. When I'm done, I want you all to be in positions!"
Airi could not believe she was still helping Pit and the others after she achieved her mission. Her only order was to take them to Ala, but she ended up playing hero and now she had to save everyone again. Sometimes she wondered why she was such a nice person for a wraith. Every other wraith would have backstabbed Pit the minute he let his guard down. She was only doing this in the name of duty…since now she technically worked under Pit's fiancé instead of the Swamp Witch.
Pit wouldn't leave her alone either. Palutena was kind enough to give her and Pit time alone and even Hades was going over the plan with Daedalus and Juliet. It wouldn't be long before Airi had to fly off and distract Ala, so right now she had to tell the white angel what he needed to hear.
"Pit…you do realize that there is nothing between us, right?"
The brunette ignored her statement. He ended up hugging her from behind causing her to give an irritated sigh while trying to hold in her blush.
"Oh, don't be like that Airi. If you survive, I can give you a victory smooch."
"…Angels are toxic to us wraiths." She reminded the light angel while slightly pushing him away. "That's why nothing has come of us together…if I was any other demon race, I might reconsider but I will not die in the name of love. That almost happened once before, and even if my prince's annoying archangel friend won't stop chanting about love I cannot give myself to you."
"I'm sure the Golden Land can find a way to-"
"Pit, they'll tell you to talk to Laharl. He is the only one for you."
The angel captain let out a sigh of defeat as he let go of the redhead. He really didn't like being reminded of his future marriage. Even if they were all to die before then, it will get to the point where one timeline the Great Evil will be defeated and he will have to marry that bratty overlord.
"I'm going to get ready. This might be the last time I help you Pit." Airi warned him. "After that, unless my prince tells me otherwise you will be my enemy."
"…And I don't think you can convince that brat to change his mind?"
"He's stubborn. You know that."
Pit rolled his eyes as the light angel left the maid's side to get in his position to shoot the arrow. Airi went over to Juliet who already had the plan memorized.
"Don't mess this up." They could hear Daedalus warn them.
"Who would mess up a simple plan like yours?" Airi asked harshly as she flew off into the distance to distract Ala while Pit got ready for the attack.
Juliet waited for Hades to create a path for her once Airi had distracted Ala enough.
"I should just give you grind rails." Hades said simply. "Pretty Palutena does it all the time!"
"Hades…just make a path…"
"I like grind rails better."
"What is the god damn point of a plan if you don't follow it?!"
"I think you should be more concerned about yourself, Days."
If it wasn't apparent yet, then it is now. Similar to Palutena, Hades was capable of shrinking himself to a normal "human" level. When he was in his actual castle, he took an appearance that wouldn't bring the entire place to the down. All the Gods were able to enlarge or shrink themselves depending on the situation and Hades found it easier to remain a giant. Juliet had nagged him though that she felt like he wasn't listening when he was as big as an elephant (a similar insult Viridi used in the past) so Hades complied and shrunk.
Hades would not admit the benefits of being this size again. It meant he could speak to other demons normally. Medusa tolerated him more when he wasn't killing and resurrecting her. Pandora was completely devoted to him for whatever reason and Thanatos could actually prank him (and it would fail miserably since Hades wasn't that stupid). The best part though was how he could hold Daedalus and Juliet in his arms without having that nagging feeling the back of his mind that he could squish them accidentally.
Not to mention, Hades had his own chambers and could lock it when he wanted to be alone. It was already locked when he was communicating with Palutena and the others, but he had to open it for Daedalus to leave for a bit and come back. The God of the Underworld rolled his eyes at how Daedalus brought his Orb Staff from one of the many weapon rooms. Hades' army in particular did not need any weapons, but Daedalus had insisted on a room with them once he came back to him. Daedalus was a claw user and wasn't much of a fighter anyway, so he found it pointless. The use of this staff though…
"Why would you need a staff when you have something better?" Hades teased with his usual grin.
"…I am doing an Unholy Pose…I am not trying to turn you on…"
"Too late for that, Days."
Daedalus wondered how much Hades was teasing him and how much it was genuine. He sighed as he turned around to start one of the two poses. He only wanted to do one of them, but for the main pose to have more power, he had to do this one first. Taking a deep breath, he ended up flexing one leg and started chanting a spell. He closed his eyes trying his best to ignore that Hades was staring at him.
"…Can you not look? You have Juliet, or are you doing this because Palutena brought up the reality of the situation?"
"What? I thought you weren't doing it right. Aren't you supposed to wear something more revealing?"
"If he did, Daedalus would die of embarrassment. Right now, blood is going straight to his cheeks from simple observation." The robot Tinker spoke. Daedalus stopped the pose immediately realizing that the thing wasn't off and growled. Sometimes he wondered why he would make an annoying robot as an ear piece.
"What the hell, Tinker?! Why can't you stay off?!"
"You programmed me this way in case Diamond ever tried to take advantage of you again."
Daedalus shook his head as he pressed a switch on the robot. He just wanted to leave that timeline behind him. Never again would he have to worry about escaping to Diamond and Mecha Galaxy. Raven had rewritten things so that old man would not remember the horrible things he had done and would die in vain. Scars are forever though and Daedalus had put up with his abuse with him for so long that even if he trusted Hades more than he should, his body continued to react badly.
The fallen archangel forced himself to focus again flexing his leg. His body glowed while chanting allowing the magic to take the form of a black orb that he could easily use to replace the one on the Orb Staff. Putting his leg down, Daedalus went over to Hades before turning his back toward him again. The staff was jabbed into the floor to where the orb was the one pointing upward. His body shook as he lowered himself slightly on it.
"It's more effective if you took your underwear off."
"I know that!"
"Pitty would probably be mad at you if you didn't give it your all."
"That's his problem, and you're more concerned about Juliet anyway!" Daedalus shouted before the staff was kicked away from him nearly causing him to lose his balance. "W-What was that for?!"
"…Daedalus…how do you expect to get over your problems when you turn your back on them?"
Daedalus flinched when Hades used that serious tone of voice. Everyone forgot Hades was capable of being a serious God, but it gets glossed over for his bad jokes and overall toxic attitude of how he saw things.
"…It's my problem…" The fallen archangel mumbled weakly even though he heard Hades stand up from his throne. "I can handle it myself…"
He yelped feeling Hades lift the lower part of his tunic and rip off his underwear.
"If that's the case, then do the pose correctly. Pitty may be a brat, but he does need you for this."
"…Stop bringing up my son…you're more concerned for Juliet."
"And you're not concerned about what Pandora will think if you don't do the right thing."
"I…" Daedalus sighed in defeat realizing that arguing with Hades was pointless.
"Unholy Poses are the exact opposite of Holy Poses. You of all people should know that."
"…"
Hades went back to sitting on his throne anticipating Daedalus to submit to his whims. Its not like he had a choice. Taking the dark orb from the Orb Staff he gave it to Hades who placed it in his lap. Daedalus shifted his eyes slightly not wanting to do this pose.
"Well, it will work when you're ready to take a seat."
"God dammit, Hades! Why would you place it there?!"
"Well you just need something that resembles a stick, right. This is good."
"…Whatever."
Daedalus continued to tremble as he put himself in a position ready to lower himself down.
"We're ready now!" Hades shouted after radio silence in the Slavic Realm.
Pit had already charged the arrow and could already feel a little bit of the dark energy that was being transferred to Palutena's bow. In the past, Pit might have hesitated to allow black magic to hit him, but he learned that it had proven beneficial. He may have hated his dad, but he trusted him enough to deal with this situation without backstabbing him.
Airi had caught Ala's attention quickly summoning her minions to cover her eyes. Since Hades was taking too long to assist Juliet, Palutena was the one who gave the Guardian of Love grind rails to grind on. It was faster than Juliet just running on a path given to her although Juliet preferred that because she thought she gained better momentum while running. She was rather surprised how easy it was to use grind rails. She just needed to position herself so she would be able to jump on Ala's head when the grind rail ended.
Before reaching the end of the rail, Juliet closed her eyes searching for where the souls would be inside Ala. She only needed to locate Magnus and Dunban to be able to locate all of them since she could only find those with a powerful red string attached to them. It should have been apparent that they were in the belly region of the dragon. She could have easily just asked Airi to slice open the stomach region and be done with it, but that wouldn't save all the souls plus Ala would still be able to move around.
Airi yelped when she was nearly grabbed by Ala's claw.
YOU THINK YOU WILL BE ABLE TO FLY AWAY FOREVER? I WILL EAT YOU TOO.
"You can try Mistress Ala, but I'm good at dodging." Airi taunted as she flew to the left of the dragon just so Juliet would be out of the Goddess of Nav's blind spot.
Juliet jumped off the grind rail with her katana held above her as if she was ready to impale Ala in the head. However, on closer inspection of the Guardian of Love's weapon, one could see a chain attached to it making it more of a chain sickle. The katana portion was thrown to wrap around Ala's horns so she would be able to grip onto her head.
OWW! STOP PULLING ON ME!
"Open your mouth…" Juliet ordered causing Ala to immediately thrash about trying to get the little girl off of her. "This will end the moment you open your mouth."
YOU JUST WANT TO BE EATEN! OKAY! I'LL EAT YOU ONCE I EAT THAT TRAITOR! Ala declared as a snake/tentacle like hand formed from where her belly was to grab at Airi's leg causing her to scream when her movement was suddenly halted. Airi was immediately thrown into the air and then grabbed by the snake arm again. This one was wrapped around her waist almost causing Airi's boobs to squeeze out. She groaned in pain as she struggled to break free. If she had the strength, she would have simply faded away to get out of Ala's grip, but this Shapeshifter was smarter than that.
"Dammit…" The redhead cursed to herself. "Not this shit again…"
Pit could see what was going on from a distant and for a moment lost his concentration.
"Pit, focus!" Palutena shouted.
"Sorry…I just…I might hit Airi…"
"Pit, you have no equal when it comes to the bow." The Goddess of Light reminded him. "You cannot possibly hit Airi with your aim."
The brunette knew that…it's just that he was worried that Ala would notice the arrow from far away and move Airi so it would go through her. Airi always feared Pit's arrows because he was capable of killing her in one hit. Any demon would want to avoid an angel with that sort of power given how many demons he had slaughtered in the past.
The Guardian of Love was failing to open Ala's mouth. Airi wondered if the same tactic she used in the past would work on the Goddess of the Slavic Underworld. The circumstances were similar but Ala had a working mind that would not be fooled by such tricks unlike that one heavenly monster that Nanael and Laila summoned hoping to find the Swamp Witch.
There is only one way to find out. Airi thought to herself as she spread her legs apart. Her cheeks were the same color as her hair speaking the next set of words. "You want to a taste Mistress Ala? I'm giving you a taste right now!"
Hades wanted to laugh at the readers for thinking there was anything too perverted with him and Daedalus. For the full effect of Unholy Pose: Pain to work required one to lower themselves on a staff or a cylinder object and concentrate on their target. In Daedalus' case, he needed Hades to give the Underworld magic to Palutena's bow. Daedalus wanted to use the Orb Staff to make things less humiliating but bouncing even a little on Hades' dick got the same reaction. The dark orb might as well have been a condom. In Hades' mind, to have full power, you would need to mimic the sexual act rather than making a half-ass attempt with a weapon. Suffice to say, Hades was probably more turned on than needed with Daedalus letting out small moans while chanting the spell in the angelic language.
"You really are a masochist, aren't you?"
"S-Shut up…I curse…ahhh…falling…Pit…" His voice cracked when he tried to communicate to his son confusing him greatly.
"Dad, what's wrong?"
"Don't worry about me and fire now!" Daedalus shouted as he pushed himself to his limit. He had finished chanting and failed to maintain his voice now that the dark energy had generated below him. The fallen archangel disliked the way Hades was holding both of his hands on opposite hands of his waist so he could keep the momentum going, but now it felt like Hades was doing something else. "H-Hades…d-don't even…"
His voice was drowned out when Pit had his eyes on the target. The negative energy was so strong that the light angel felt tempted to fall just to absorb more into his body. Seeing Ala's mouth opened wide due to Airi's sudden bold actions caused Pit to shoot the arrow toward her in one clean motion. The arrow while big was easily curved zipping through the sky and actually going through the snake like arm causing Ala to drop Airi in that split second. The arrow went all the way down her throat to where Juliet predicted where Shulk and the others were. In the dead center, the arrow simply disintegrated before unleashed a powerful blast that caused Ala's dragon form to roar in pain. Throbbing in pain, she jerked her head so much that Juliet had to jump off. She needed to anyway to get away from the massive explosion that would soon follow. Airi was unfortunate to get caught in the blast, but it wasn't an explosion that would kill someone like her and it certainly didn't stop Pit from calling her name out when the explosion created a large sphere over the horizon.
"AIRI!"
Daedalus would never admit how powerful Pit has gotten with each timeline. In the past, Pit needed weapons made by Dyntos to stand a chance against a divine being whether it was the Three Sacred Treasures or the Great Sacred Treasure. Now he could take out a Goddess with just one well-timed hit with his arrow combined with the dark magic. It would get to the point where he could take on the Great Evil with the right preparations. If the universe didn't die so quickly then they might have a chance of defeating the Great Evil once and for all.
Ala apparently ate a lot of people within the recent week and not just the Smashers just now. When her body exploded, everyone that she swallowed whole got sent flying into a disgusting pile of a weird creamy liquid. Daedalus wanted to think it was blood, but the coloring made it seem like something else entirely. Why did this demon have this color when Juliet impaling her revealed blood? This was something he needed to research.
Shulk, Dunban, Magnus and Aldra's husband were all safe and sound even if covered in this mess along with the recent souls that have gotten eaten. Since they were outside of Nav, it meant they could go back to their bodies if they have yet to be buried and continue living their life without the fear of the contract.
As for Ala, even if her body exploded, her head was still in one piece. The dragon part of her was long gone and it was only her human head that had no way of moving from that spot. The arrow took all the energy out of her to even regenerate her body. Ala could only let out a huge groan seeing the state she was in. Because the head was farther from the people she held inside her stomach, Juliet was the only one who approached her in her weakened state.
"It's not fair…" Ala could be heard complaining as she stared at the white haired samurai girl. "You Greek Gods get to do whatever you want even if it's not your realm…"
"I am not of the divine." Juliet corrected her. "I am simply the Guardian of Love under the Goddess of Love Ceres. Injustice was done in front of me. I simply corrected it."
Ala continued ranting as if Juliet did not speak to her and that annoyed the petite Guardian.
"If I told the other Gods here what you Greek Gods did…then I'm certain they'll take my side and take revenge for me. They don't like being disturbed by outsiders. You stupid lot barged in uninvited and put me in this ruined state. Now Nav will not be able to function properly until I regain my body back!"
"…Why would you lie to them?" Juliet questioned forcing Ala to listen to her. "Lady Palutena and Lord Hades' group only entered because injustice was done to them. I have already told you that you tried to interfere with the red strings of fate and that is punishable by death in most situations. For me, I'm being merciful."
"Merciful? Stabbing me is very merciful…" The red-orange haired woman snarked while glaring at Juliet, "…I'm going to take that as sarcasm and I'm going to put you on my hit list when I regenerate my body."
Juliet wasn't pleased with how Ala was acting. She was the loser so she should accept defeat instead of swearing revenge. Rolling her eyes, she started to use magic that her mother gave her along with her love magic. She was always puzzled at why the magic was identical to that of the Underworld, but she never complained about it. This magic opened up a hole back into the Slavic Underworld. Ala's eyes widened at Juliet's spell.
"Lady Palutena and Lord Hades will not lose to you if you consider starting a war over love." Juliet warned her. "I will support them even if my mother won't…because I fight in the name of love and justice."
"Aren't you corny, Persephone?" She snarled darkly. "I thought you committed suicide, but I guess you came back as an emo with a hero complex."
Juliet tilted her head in confusion. "Who is Persephone?"
"…Ha ha…don't play dumb. You're Hades' wife."
"Ridiculous. I only just got to know him now…and I'm only dating him…" Juliet grumbled as she sped up the spell in agitation. "So far you have been nothing but a fibber to me…so I'm going to ignore your statement."
Ala just laughed calling Juliet "Persephone" over and over again expecting someone to respond. By the time Hades was able to communicate with Juliet telepathically, she had already thrown Ala's head back to Nav.
"Oh Juliet, dear, what bad things was she saying?"
"Nothing important. She tells tall tales." Juliet said simply. "I'm going to check on the others. I can't believe I made a pointless enemy out of her…"
The person who reacted the fastest when it came to checking on those held captive by Ala was Aldra herself seeing her husband on the ground.
"DARLING!" She cried as she made a mad dash to her husband. Belphe and Dogor only followed her after complaining about how they would need to act like innocent dolls if they didn't want to die.
Pit hesitated to aid Shulk. On one hand, he wouldn't care if the blond didn't last inside Ala. On the other hand…he was a Smasher…and after the events of that one timeline, he ended up being one of his most trusted allies.
Shulk had gotten a lot of that creamy substance in his mouth that he desperately tried to spit out. Maybe he shouldn't have opened his mouth so much when he was shielding everyone inside of Ala's belly. This was not the first time he was eaten by a dragon in the past timelines, so he thought that he would do better. Then again, that one timeline wasn't so nice to him if the dragon ejected him from the rear instead of exploding like this time.
"Does that stuff even taste good?" Was the first thing Pit asked him as he extended his hand out to Shulk.
"Ha ha…very funny Pit…" The Monado boy growled as he refused to accept his hand at the moment. He was mainly upset with how Alvis was too busy snickering in the back of his mind. Alvis, shut up.
"My apologies Shulk. Your reaction is too much."
As Pit, helped him up, he glanced around for any other familiar faces besides Magnus and Dunban. Aldra was already next to her husband, embracing him like a teddy bear and sobbing into his chest seeing how he was awake and okay.
"…How long has he been in Ala's stomach?" Pit questioned out loud. "No normal human should have lasted that long."
"Maybe a week…he's strong though."
"Well…he is a giant…anyways…" Pit failed to look at Shulk in the eyes as he continued speaking. "Thanks for saving Airi…I guess you'll be nice to my girlfriend even if you hate me."
Shulk rolled his eyes as a response. "She's not even your girlfriend. You already have someone Pit. I simply helped a friend in need."
Again with the daily reminder that Pit was stuck to one person due to the red string of fate that transcended all timelines…
"Tch…"
Airi cursed up a storm for failing to dodge the explosion. It blew off her clothes and she too was covered in that goo. Frantically she used her powers to put her clothes back on, but she had already overexerted herself therefore the only thing she could do is put her bra and panties back into place and deal with not having a maid outfit to cover her.
The attention was to Magnus and Dunban particularly Dunban who they all came to save. He was paler than ever despite no longer being attached to the Slavic Realm. The older male shook his companion constantly begging him to wake up.
"Now would be a good time to bring his body here." Juliet told Palutena who immediately transported Dunban's Homs' body over to Shulk.
The soul in Magnus' arms immediately vanished so it could go back to the original body. The process was swift with the color that Dunban had lost in his original body return to its normal darker shade. A soul outside of its body for more than four hours was really pushing it. If Dunban was not a Homs, he might not have survived even if they saved his soul. Palutena might have resorted to placing him in an inanimate object if pushed came to shove (or better yet, just ask the Golden Land to fix it).
"Dunban!" Shulk cried out seeing his father figure slowly open his eyes. "Dunban!"
"Guhh…"
As the older Homs slowly opened his eyes, he was immediately met with a bear hug from the seer. Riki too was rather quick to rush over and tackle him immediately waking him up.
"Shulk…Riki…I was…"
"You're safe…thank god…"
"Shulk…did you already thank…" Dunban's voice trailed off mainly due to Riki interrupting him.
"Dundun is safe! The Heropon has saved the day again!"
Both Homs couldn't help but smile at Riki's enthusiasm.
"Riki…" Dunban murmured before looking over to Magnus who had an unreadable expression. "…Magnus?"
Magnus was currently at a loss of words, so Shulk ended up speaking before him.
"Dunban, why were you thinking of giving up?" Shulk questioned unaware that he probably a little angry with his father figure. "The Dunban I know would not have allowed himself to be caught so easily!"
"I was caught off guard…and I was about to sleep…"
"That's a lie and you know it Dunban! You gave up on yourself! That contract…you never told us about it…you just…accepted that you would never fulfill the end requirement…"
That's because I never believed that I would fall in love Shulk. Dunban thought bitterly to himself. If you knew what had happened to me in the past…you might understand better that I was incapable of forming those relationships…and Ala banked on it…but now…
"You have friends and family Dunban!" Shulk reminded him followed by a huge exaggerated sigh when he finally pulled away from him. "If something is wrong, you have to come to us. Everyone has told me that back in Bionis. I just wish you of all people would follow your advice."
"Shulk…"
"And Dundun has Magna to confide in too!" Riki added happily causing Dunban's eyes to widen in horror. "You talk to Magna like Magna talks to Dundun!"
That suffocating atmosphere that Magnus and Dunban had in the past had returned. The samurai had no idea why Magnus was glaring at him now. Shulk felt that now was a good idea to move out of the way and let Magnus talk some sense into the raven haired Homs.
"M-Magnus…"
No one said anything when Magnus decided that instead of just telling him what was on his mind, he showed it by yanking him off the ground like a little kid causing him to yelp at the sudden motion. The older male continued to glare at him even as he lowered him down enough to where he could easily lock lips with him.
Pit's jaw nearly dropped not realizing that these two had been very close in other timelines (heck, in one timeline, it was the reason for the angel captain's breakdown in the first place). Shulk who also should have known this held his hand over his face attempting to hide the blush not use to a scene like this. Airi shared the same expression as Pit before looking away making a disgruntled noise. Juliet remained stoic despite being the Guardian of Love. Only Riki was cheering for the love he was witnessing in front of him. Palutena and Hades were surprisingly quiet (not to mention Daedalus who was probably on the verge of passing out or simply did not care about the public display of affection in front of him).
"Well, isn't that sweet?" Hades asked breaking the sexual tension in the Slavic human world immediately. "I could watch this all day."
"Hades…" Palutena began but realized it was pointless to talk any sense into her uncle. "I think…we should probably get ready to send everyone back here."
"Oh yes, of course. I take Juliet and all the lovely demons back! Oh, and the souls!"
"Hades…" Juliet spoke in a dark, serious tone. "If these souls are not from your realm, then it is your job to give them back to the original owner. This is if the original body is not lost. Otherwise, it will be an abuse of power."
Daedalus and Palutena could be heard saying, "Oooooh" to Hades who growled at being reminded that he actually had to do his job now if he wanted to remain in a relationship with someone as strict as Juliet.
"Fiiiiiiiiinnnne. Meanie…"
Hades was in charge of taking Juliet, Airi, Aldra, her husband, Belphe, Dogor and the souls that did not belong to the Slavic Realm. The irony was how all the souls that have yet to be digested were indeed not of the Slavic human world therefore he had a lot of work cut out for him. Juliet had gathered them all in one place so it would be easy for Hades to take everyone at once.
"Days…when you are done recovering, you and Pandora are going to be the one to take the souls back."
"Tch…that should be Thanatos' job…not me…or Pandora."
In the meantime, Palutena had ordered Pit to gather up Shulk, Riki, Dunban and Magnus so they can all be brought back to the Smash Brothers Realm rather than be teleported to the Underworld. Hades' transporter circle was purple so it was obvious to know which went where. Palutena had a white one in the middle after Hades had taken his mostly female group back to him.
"Hopefully Airi will take Aldra and her husband back home."
"Don't worry, I trust Airi to do that." Pit said with a smirk. "Of course, I'll make sure Pittoo goes with her so she doesn't get kinky with them. Now let's go before those two start making love here."
What an odd way of putting it. Magnus had pulled away at that point whispering to Dunban's ear the same thing Shulk told him. He should never give up hope and to never give up on him. Dunban must have heard that in the past, but something told him that didn't work hence why he had little hope now. The older Homs only nodded his head though as he allowed Magnus to carry him even though Dunban insisted on walking to the white circle by himself.
Once everyone gathered, Palutena used her magic to teleport everyone back to Smash Brothers Realm where everyone was waiting in anticipation.
A week had passed since the startling incident. Things have mostly settled down, but Palutena was putting both angels to work to make sure that nothing escaped from the Slavic Realm. Hades did his part as well to ensure that nothing came from Nav either as he did not want to deal with Ala or anyone else in that realm after the incident (even if he barely lifted a finger).
When everyone returned, Palutena had allowed the healing division of the royal bodyguards to come down and heal the injured (specifically on Pit and Dunban's end. Despite what he had gone through, Shulk was untouched minus the whole liquid covering most of his body and Magnus was a tough cookie, so Riki's healing ability was enough.) Airi simply needed souls and disappeared the minute she was back in her familiar realm. Juliet was the same going back to her mother. Hades had a nagging feeling Ceres was going to flip her shit at him and sure enough, for the next week they had been fighting each other. Daedalus and Medusa just wanted some peace and quiet, but now that Pandora came back after her solo training session, things would be easier even if she and Daedalus were forced to guide all of those souls back to where they belong.
Dark Pit along with Airi escorted Aldra back to her realm with her husband. Palutena made sure that he was a good guide to them. Since Pittoo's division was about bridging the gap between angels and demons, helping a half-demon back home with her human companion would be a snap for the dark angel. The green haired Goddess made a mental note to warn Pittoo next time not to be so cheery. Those two dolls that belonged to Aldra were taken back too. Belphe and Dogor were obviously pissed that they wouldn't be able to eat delicious souls or flesh. They murmured how they would get their chance next time. The fact Pittoo found them adorable really didn't help matters. Airi was the one that had to warn them that if they tried anything funny, she would sick the prince she worked for on them.
Pit needed a break from that mission and Palutena was going to give it to him. Shulk was allowed to relax from Smash matches too and could spend his time with Rob. Riki went back to playing with the Lumas. Dunban was left alone in the infirmary, and this time, the real Magnus came in and promised him the date when he got out. He said it so bluntly that it was difficult not to laugh.
Magnus had that entire week to plan the date out, so his rival would be satisfied before he died (not like he wanted him to die of course. He just wanted to fulfill one of the tasks he desired to do before he died). Pit rolled his eyes when he was asking him of all people where to take Dunban. He was directed to the ladies and then got some stupid ideas. Asking Chrom was the last person on his mind, so he just ended up asking Olimar who had a family, so he probably went through this situation before.
He got sent to the Villagers…Smashers he would rather avoid due to their creepiness when in a group. K was surprisingly lenient on what he should do. All he said was give Dunban bugs as a present. It sounded stupid and would give others the creepy crawlies, but Dunban told him in the past that he loved insects, so it wouldn't be a bad idea to spend the day just bug hunting but…
"Tortimer's Island." K said simply. "Now go."
So once the week ended and Dunban was back on his feet, Magnus was ready for that date. The samurai in comparison had no time to prepare, but did not think too much of what to expect from someone like Magnus. Casual attire was not Magnus' thing even when he was taking him out.
The feeling of completeness was there though. Just taking a day off from Smash Brothers Mansion and going around Smashopolis doing normal things according to this world. If Dunban were to date anyone, he would take them hiking or sightseeing or something that involved danger. Magnus was the exact same way, but he wanted to demonstrate a more caring side of him that Pit had warmed him multiple times that he scared people off because of how he acted.
It was good that no one judged you in Smashopolis based on gender or sexuality (race on the other hand)… They could openly hold hands in public and no one would bat an eye. Both were too prideful to even do that although Dunban did lean against Magnus' large arms. Magnus responded by pulling Dunban closer.
When the two were alone, it was usually Dunban who did most of the talking about Bionis, Fiora, Shulk and just the small things when it came to battle. Magnus kept to himself even now about his past while the samurai opened up over time the more he trusted Magnus. There was still a chain around Magnus' heart that he didn't want to unlock. Dunban knew it concerned Rita though seeing as how that child is now an angel from a mistake he made, but he wondered what exactly happened for Magnus' son to end this way.
As they headed toward Smash Harbor to get on the boat to Smashville, Magnus made sure everything was ready. He had the impression that he and Dunban would be alone on the island therefore he could have some fun when things were said and done. In the back of Magnus' mind, he should just pop the question, but he didn't want to rush anything. They haven't even…
Magnus stopped himself from thinking about the end result and to focus on the moment at hand. More than thinking about sex, he enjoyed Dunban's presence. The younger male felt like his equal. Something he didn't just hand to anyone easily. Gaol was his biggest rival and she still was. They worked together though, but Gaol took care of the mercenary group while he was in Smash Brothers Realm. Pit was an equal too, but this definition was spread more thinly. With Dunban, everything just felt balanced and he felt complete. His heart couldn't stop beating around him and he just wanted to work up the courage to hold his small hands.
The boat trip was rather fast. Then again, they didn't have to listen to that stupid Kappa singing. The ship in Smash Harbor took them straight to the island without the need to stop in Smashville.
The two had spent almost the whole day in Smashopolis, that only when they saw the sunset did they realize that the day was almost over.
"…Time flies fast…doesn't it?" Dunban asked as he wanted to take a walk on the beach.
"Yeah…"
Magnus glanced around the island. There was no one in plain sight to disturb the couple. He gazed toward his partner whose bright smile remained on his lips. Ever since the incident, Dunban had been smiling more often. Maybe the revelation that his life was spared because of love enlightened him, or maybe he was just glad to have been taken to a serene location for his first real date with the older male.
"Hey, don't exert yourself." Magnus warned him noticing that Dunban wobbled just slightly when he took a wrong step. "You'll end up making a sand angel."
"Wouldn't you like that?"
"Perhaps. I can bury you in the sand and pat your butt in the process."
"There's no need to use the sand as an excuse for that."
Dunban was getting bolder with his comments now too. Magnus never figured it out that the younger male had dropped hints a few times in the past. Now that the two were technically together, he could make all the lewd comments he wanted.
"Let's rest for a second." Magnus told him as he plopped down on the hot sand. "Come sit with me."
"I still wanted to walk around." Dunban complained but had no problem sitting next to him. "But gazing at the ocean is nice too."
Why wouldn't it be? The scenery before them was gorgeous. If they stayed here all night, they would start to see the moon rise from the ocean and the stars shimmering in the sky as if Rosalina was shining them down on the newly couple.
"I never really had a view like this in Bionis." Dunban commented. "On Bionis' leg, we weren't near the ocean. We had traveled through Eryth Sea, but it was nothing compared to something as simple as this…even if Shulk changed Bionis so we can get a beautiful ocean…I like peaceful sceneries too."
Now did the couple have the guts to intertwine their fingers on the beach. Magnus only nodded his head a response acknowledging Dunban's words. Besides the wind blowing against the leaves and ocean, and a few insects such as the migratory locust making too many buzzing noises, the only sounds that mattered were the rapid beating of their hearts and their steady breathing.
Magnus could simply tell Dunban that he loved him right there and the war veteran would not have minded a bit. He waited for the opportunity though. Dunban felt the mercenary tense up and turned to the older male with concern.
"Magnus?"
"Hmm?"
"…We should bring Rita next time."
"The kid wouldn't want to mess with our honeymoon."
"I think the correct term is date. That's thinking way into the future…" Dunban frowned at the thought. He had no hope of living that long. Dunban just wanted to live enough to experience love, and he got that. Asking for the next step was too much for a sucker like him.
Speaking of sucker…
"Hey, I wanted to give you this. It was hard to come by, so be grateful!"
Dunban was confused at what he was talking about until Magnus pulled out a small jar that was attached to his waist the entire time (How he did he miss that? He was most likely distracted by the older male's abs) that contained a golden stag beetle. From the distinct color, Dunban already knew that it was a rare specimen found on this island but…
"Why do I have a feeling you bought the insect from those kids instead of catching them here?"
"You must be imagining things!"
"That explains why you didn't spend that much money on this date either."
"My poor wallet…"
This fact did not stop Dunban from accepting the gift. He would make sure to take care of it. He also had to be on the lookout for those Villager children who would charge big money for something that someone in the mansion wanted and then steal the item the minute that person let the guard down. Those kids claimed to have hated Crazy Redd, but they were worse than that fox.
"Today is a bug." Magnus told him firmly before looking his partner in the eye and snatching a kiss from him unexpectedly. A surprised gasp could be heard, but the gray haired Homs had no problem returning the kiss passionately, wrapping his arms around the older male's neck in an attempt to seize control of the make out session. Magnus proved to good though, and Dunban broke apart before he got sucked in completely. "The future will be a ring."
"…What?"
Well, if Magnus was known for being blunt, then he might as well say it.
"You heard me. Right now, we might just be dating…but if things continue like this…I don't think I'll ever want to let you go. You're a good catch."
Such bad wording, but Dunban knew what he meant and played along.
"What if I wanted to be caught in your trap? Not much of a challenge there."
"Nah, you're not the type to submit too easily…or are you?"
The mercenary slowly reached out toward Dunban's hair and began rubbing his fingers through it. His hair was so soft…and it had a wonderful fragrance. Why would Dunban put that in his hair when he hated flowers and fruits? Was he swallowing his pride this one time and give off a scent that allured the older male even more.
"Of course not. I'm a stubborn fool."
"A stubborn old fool."
"Younger than you!"
"Hey! Don't get too riled up. I don't want to damage your beautiful hair."
He went from stroking his hair to tracing his hands toward his cheek. Dunban unconsciously leaned into the touch with a content smile on his face.
"…Hopefully you'll be prepared when I have the ring for you. I wouldn't want you to act like those women who break down in tears at something they should expect."
"No…I wouldn't. Why wouldn't I be prepared? You're giving me everything I could ever ask for."
"Hmm?"
"…You gave my life back when I thought I lost it back in that Underworld. You gave me hope that I was capable of being loved…you gave me hope that I could…fall in love…" Dunban's cheeks were bright red as the darkest part of the sunset at this point, but the sun was almost gone and replaced with darker shades of blue. "For all my life…I really thought there was…no hope for me, but then you show up and now I…"
Magnus cut him off with another kiss. Dunban didn't mind again. He didn't want to get anymore emotional than he already had. He was rather surprised that the mercenary pushed him down on the sand.
"You don't have to say anymore. I know what you will say."
"…And I know what you want to do…pervert…there is a child on this island."
"She won't come out." Magnus reassured him giving him a small bite on his neck. He enjoyed the small moan he got as a response. "But I sure as hell want to go right in."
The younger male chuckled at Magnus' bold innuendo.
"Then come at me. The night is young and my body is not going to do that by itself!"
Juliet was right when she said there was a powerful love between the two. The couple had what it took to defy a contract. This was the Power of Love, and the Power of Love was going to extend to more than just sex on the beach…oh…if only they knew the troubles to come from this magical night.