Friends tend to Gossip

“How dare you!”

Keisuke and Daichi were already antagonizing the president to the best of their ability, but with the arrival of Okame and her copy. They had reached a new high in annoying someone. And that’s coming from a little sister.

“How did you steal my sacred copy magic!”

“If it’s so sacred you should keep it locked up!”

Said Daichi, his mouth covered by his mask; his eyes smiling enough for the lower half.

“If you don’t, someone may just come across it and take it!”

The two friends laughed at the frustrated Sukimoto, his face turning a new shade of red.

“Look his face matches his new hair.”

“See I told you this look suited him.”

They high-fived. The copy of the president came over to the original to soothe him.

“Hey it’s not my fault you only got a thousand spells.”

“You really need to catch up to my friend here.”

“I’ve only gotten a million or so, oh wait I don’t think I could count them.”

The young men laughed like boys and high-fived again, this time down low.

“You can’t do anything without your friend you stupid loser. You’re both going back inside for a decade this time!”

Daichi pulled down an eyelid and Keisuke stuck out his tongue.

“Make me!”

They said it at the same time.

“Jinx!”

It happened again.

“Jinx Again!”

The boys fell over laughing on the cloud they stood on, the long fight and prolonged essence use making them slap happy. The President was also catching his breath though. Fighting against two people in sync must be rough.

“You’re acting real tough for a guy who’s sister is locked up.”

Daichi stopped laughing, his gaze murderous. Kei held him back.

“You’re acting real weird for a guy who went on a date with a monster.”

Daichi looked confused, as the President sputtered.

“Is that true?”

“Rei told me she saw him on a date with Dr. Kawaguchi. At first I thought she was talking about you.”

“Ew gross!”

“That’s what I thought!”

“I could do so much better!”

“Of course, bro! But get this, it was actually the copy monster disguised as your sister.”

The president’s copy held him back. As Daichi made a face I can only describe as flabbergasted.

“This monster hater was on a date with an arch monster? You are one messed up guy.”

“It wasn’t a date it was a strategy meeting.”

Daichi raised an eyebrow to Kei.

“Rei said it was at a nice café, and he was wearing designer.”

“To a strategy meeting?”

“Apparently the monster dressed up for the occasion too.”

Daichi looked at the President with a face full of judgement, like he thought it was pathetic.

“You two were undercover so long, you forgot who was who huh.”

“How long did you two think you could keep that act up?”

“Wait you’re not actually in love with my sister, are you?”

Daichi looked sick at the thought of being in-laws with Sukimoto.

“No, I’ll kill your whole bloodline!”

Essence clumping around the president and his copy, casting numerous buffs and transformations on themselves. Until they resembled monsters more than the dancing creatures still circling the building. Okame keeping her flute music on tune and on beat, the tribal drums coming from somewhere. Now there was a whole backing orchestra filling the air. The president still yelled above it.

“That orb was made for permanent arch-monster containment; your sister is never getting out! I wasn’t going to kill her, even if she fell off the roof that orb wouldn’t break. I was going to hold her life over you, lock you up and make you work like a dog until you died of old age!”

Daichi welled with sadness and rage at the news. Keisuke scoffed.

“Sure buddy, more like you needed to keep her locked up and safely out of the picture. That way you could keep playing boyfriend/girlfriend with a monster made from your own essence.”

“His own essence? Is that allowed?”

“It’s not natural I’ll tell you what.”

Sukimoto couldn’t catch a break.

“Lucky for you both I’ve changed my mind. I’m ending you right here!”

“Don’t worry Daichi, we’ll get your sister out.”

The copy and the real Sukimoto dove after the two wise-cracks, but they quickly both popped out of existence in their own way. Sukimoto had chosen his rival correctly, but now he had another and they had been upgraded to arch rivals.

Vice-captain Kirigaya’s trash talk game was just as strong but she didn’t have nearly as many openings or breaks to make them. Sukimoto’s girlfriend, or the copy monster was setting the pace for the fight. Meika and her had to coordinate their attacks to kill both of them at the same time, but couldn’t quite pin down the cunning monster.

Now things would change; they had her outnumbered. Okame’s copy had joined the fight.

The original Okame kept the music of the monster festival going strong. Staying on the outskirts, skipping on the clouds and lounging on the breeze.

Her copy popped up behind the copy monster’s copy. I was getting confused myself on what was who.

“I have nothing against you. You’re just not very funny.”

It went to hit Okame with an essence filled fist, but she leap frogged over it. Using this chance Meika and Vice captain Kirigaya double teamed the original. Meika would run fast and slash at any chance she could, her panthers flanking it and keeping the copies from helping. The arch monster looked weak, it was bleeding essence from many cuts, and she didn’t have a relic to provide her with more essence like Sukimoto. Asaka didn’t let up her assault, her sword freezing the lower half of the monster in place.

The monster cried out for help.

“Sukimoto!”

The copy, dodged Okame’s taunts and games, chanting a spell to help speed it towards the original. It crept in range, with the essence clumping around it once more preparing to attack. The president was cornered by the twin teleporting terrors, who were running low on the mystery-marbles storing chants, but not yet out of them.

The copy raised her hands, the chant almost finished, the essence surging into her hands. The original copy monster looking like Sukimoto trying to escape, beginning to chant a spell then getting interrupted by Asaka who froze it once more. The copy of the copy closed in.

“PETRIFY!”

That was the last of my essence, but It was enough.

Meika’s shadow panther bit the head off of the petrified monster. One Sukimoto copy disappearing into the air. The original copy monster cried out. 

“Tomoki! I won’t forget you!”

“This brings me no joy.”

Kirigaya Asaka hid a faint smile as she cut off the head of the fake Sukimoto, as it yearned for the man it had copied. The President turned to look at the monster he had been working with for the last two years. The only thing he could trust after surrounding himself with opportunists and fellow egotistical status seekers.

An incredible amount of essence spread out as a cloud of mist appeared. There was a clang as a large framed mirror dropped onto the roof of the association. Vice-captain Asaka had slain the arch copy monster. With a little help from us girls. Meika ran over to her and jumped on her back, knocking her down.

“NOOO!!!”

Sukimoto in his messed up form, shrieked like a monster, he race towards the girls on the roof. I was included in girls on the roof, we were all running low. He was cloaked in a terrifying presence of essence. There was a large cry from behind us, as the cloud dragon had returned. Barring the pathway of his boss, Captain Kawakami stood his ground in the sky.

There was a small mist as Keisuke and Daichi used the distraction to undo the Presidents copy. Just moments ago, there were four Sukimoto’s, now one remained. He was all alone up here. His guards lay in the ruined association building, or caught up in the festivities of Okame’s tune. He stood at the top with no one to have his back.

“Sukimoto, Tomoki, please! Stop this. It’s over.”

Captain Kawakami was a nice guy, but I knew the president wasn’t the type of guy to go down easy. He glared at Chihiro, then suddenly frighteningly calm.

“It’s not over, until I say it’s over.”

The breastplate on Sukimoto surged filling him with all the essence left in the relic. He smiled, a horrible fang-filled grin.

“Since I have no use for her anymore, I guess for once I’ll have to be a man of my word.”

He tucked his wings, and began to drop out of the sky, nose diving towards the ground. Then opening them back up again, heading straight for the ball containing the real Doctor Kawaguchi!

“Nooo, you can’t!!”

Daichi started switching places with the monsters swirling around the building at a frantic pace. Moving his way back down, trying to catch up with the enraged president.

Keisuke was already using his third chant to follow Daichi.

“Daichi, don’t kill him he’s not worth it!”

“Shut up Kei! There’s no other way to stop him! He’s a monster!”

“You’re not that guy Daichi!”

My brother sounded as desperate, no even more desperate than when Oddball had escaped.

Captain Kawakami grew closer, motioning for us to join him.

“Get on all of you!”

Asaka sat behind him, then Meika, then me, and then Okame, and then Okame again. The music lifted my spirits a little, but not by much.

The cloud dragon took a steep dive as well.

Everyone was getting desperate. When people were desperate, they would do almost anything.

I knew that first hand. I had been acting in desperation for the last three days.

“Sukimoto it’s not worth it, please!”

He didn’t hear me.