Game 38: For All the Marbles

The gang had now entered Level 11. This Level was another maze level, with walls made of stone.

“These Game Masters sure love their mazes, huh,” Takeshi observed.

As they explored the maze, they noticed some of the walls looked more fragile than the others.

“Everyone, stand back,” Makoto told the group. “Magic Art: Vulcan Arrow!” One blast destroyed one of the fragile walls, revealing another passageway…

… and a new enemy.

“Do you like it?” Mr. Set asked them via a screen in the wall. “This was one of the last enemies Lazlo designed before the Tower was completed. This is Blast Ninja. His job is to chase after you and then blow you up with bombs.”

“So he's like Bomberman?” Makoto asked.

"Young people know what Bomberman is?” Mr. Set asked. “But yes, he's exactly like Bomberman. Avoid his bombs, and you'll be able to make it to Level 12.”

•

Takeshi immediately began filing through his bag for anything that could be useful against the Blast Ninja. Other than things he had acquired throughout The Game, such as his sword, he actually couldn't find much. But then… he found something interesting. A book.

“Huh… I've been here almost seventy days and I totally forgot I had this book in my bag,” Takeshi noted.

The Blast Ninja found them.

“Run!”

“What's the book?” Makoto asked as the gang ran from the ninja.

“It's a game design handbook,” Takeshi answered. “Must have been the only book I didn't take out of my bag the day I got here.”

“I didn't know you wanted to be a game designer,” Rita commented.

“A lot has happened in the past almost seventy days,” Takeshi replied. “I almost forgot about it myself.”

“Not sure what a game design handbook would…” Makoto paused, stopping in his tracks. “There wouldn't happen to be a section on games like Bomberman on there, would there?”

“Well, probably, but this is a book on designing games, not beating them,” Takeshi told him. “Wait, you've played Bomberman, you should know how to beat the game!”

“I stink at this game,” Makoto admitted. “I know, I know. How can I be the #1 gamer in the world if I can't beat a simple game like Bomberman? Everyone has a weakness.”

Before long, the ninja found them again. With each bomb it set, more and more of the maze was open to explore, but that also made it much easier for the ninja to find its enemies. The more they ran, the more bombs the ninja would set, the less the maze would look like a maze.

Rita noticed the ninja was a little too eager to set bombs. As she was still wearing the Mossy Sylvan cloak, she came up with an idea to defeat the ninja. “Guys! Lure it into a corner!”

“Are you crazy?!” Takeshi asked. “That thing is going to kill us!”

“Trust me!”

The gang followed Rita's plan exactly. As the Blast Ninja approached them, Rita charged right at it, forcing it to drop a bomb too soon. The force of the impact knocked the ninja to the ground, allowing Rita to escape just in time for the bomb to explode. Even the Blast Ninja was not immune to the explosive force of its bombs. Just one was enough to defeat it. A door appeared off to one side of the maze, indicating that the gang had cleared Level 11.

The gang were now outside, climbing a stairway on the outside of the tower. Their goal was Level 12, which was a giant floor tile puzzle. However, someone was waiting for them. As they made their way towards Level 12, the Desert Rose, still with only one Life remaining, attacked them while riding a broom.

“All these buffoons and twits trying to end The Game,” she scoffed at them. “Do you want to know my wish? My wish is to keep The Game going forever, so I can keep fighting forever! A hunt that never ends!”

She then launched a Final Time attack at them, destroying large sections of the Tower at once. It would practically be impossible for anyone to complete Level 12 with all the damage that had been done to the Tower. The only way to win now was to keep on climbing.

In the resulting chaos, Proteus had to think quickly. The Desert Rose was about to win the Game if he didn't do something now.

“I'll see you losers when the Endless Game begins!” the Desert Rose told them with a cackling laugh. She then darted up towards the top of the Tower on her broom.

“I don't think so!” Proteus said as he leaped off the stairway, shifting into his four-winged pigeon form in the process.

•

Back on the stairway, Takeshi, Rita, and Makoto were able to gather themselves and resume their climb up the Tower. But Sora was nowhere to be found. Takeshi found Sora dangling off the railing of the stairway one floor below them.

“Sora!” Takeshi called out to him. “Don't worry! I'll come get you!”

“Don't worry about me, Takeshi!” Sora yelled back. “Remember what we talked about the other day? I'm basically a dead man walking!”

“No!” Takeshi protested. “You need to live, too! We are winning this game together! All of us!”

“What's he talking about?” Rita asked.

“Doesn't matter,” Takeshi told her. “We aren't leaving without you!”

“Let me go, Takeshi! I will only slow you down!”

Sora let go of the railing, sending him falling to the ground many hundreds of feet below.

“Sora!” Takeshi cried out.

“Takeshi!” Rita yelled at him. “We gotta move! The Desert Rose is almost at the top!”

•

Elsewhere, Proteus Rhade and the Desert Rose were fighting for control of the latter's broom.

“Get off me, you insolent brat!” the Rose screamed.

“Three years you've had control over my life,” Proteus told her. “Three years I was afraid of you, but no more! I realized that you're just a bully who likes to prey on the weak. But you made a big mistake messing with me.”

“Then do it, if you think you're so brave now!” The Desert Rose was taunting him, pushing him to do something he would come to regret. “Finish me!”

“I have a better idea,” Proteus told her. As they continued fighting for control over the broom, Proteus had just a little bit more control, sending the broom crashing through the windows and into a large lobby full of players. With her broom and her staff shattered into pieces and a crowd of players surrounding her, it was difficult for her to find Proteus, let alone perform her magic.

She struggled to call out to him, saying, “This isn't over, child! I will have my revenge! Once I get to the top of the - Ow!”

Before he morphed into something that could fly, Proteus quickly quipped to her, “At least I don't need a broom to fly!”

The Desert Rose was now left to fight for herself amidst a crowd of players.

•

“Keep climbing!” Takeshi told the others as they made their way up the stairway. Proteus quickly found them and joined them on their climb.

“How much longer have we got?” Makoto asked.

“We're almost there!” Proteus answered.

However, the Desert Rose's attack on the Tower destroyed a large section of the stairs as well as much of Level 12, leaving a large gap in the stairway.

“Now what?!” Proteus asked.

“I got an idea!” Rita said. “I've never tried this before, but I have the cloak, so I can try to carry each of you across the gap.”

Proteus, being the youngest, was the easiest for Rita to fly across the gap. Next was Takeshi, who was of very average build for his age. A bit more difficult that was, but Rita was able to handle it. Then came Makoto, the oldest. After some difficulty, she was able to get Makoto across the gap as well.

“Whew… that was close,” Rita breathed a sigh of relief.

“You ever think this all might be a little too convenient?” Makoto asked.

“What do you mean?” Takeshi asked.

“Like someone's trying to manipulate The Game in our favor.”

“We'll have plenty of time to figure that out once we get to the top! Come on!”

After three more flights of stairs, the stairway suddenly ended. They had made their way up to the top of the Tower of Power together.

And then… nothing...