The water below roared, and the powerful winds from above tossed their currents; they rocked as if the fiercest of storms raged, even though it was sunny and clear as day around them. Where did these winds come from? None other than the Dread-Yacht, which flew above the watery canals below as it shifted into its giant robot form.

The Dread-Yacht charged even further, its line of sight set on the Machine Ghost's mechanical body. Flames burst from the body's feet, brushed against the Dread-Yacht's face, and it swiveled aside as it joined the Machine Ghost's body by its side. Both robots' faces fixed on the sprawling, endless masses of rocky canyons and trailing rivers below.

Within the Dread-Yacht's cockpit, every single one of its passengers stood crammed as tight as sardines within. They were all frowns, crossed arms, and knitted brows as they tried not to jab into each other, or poke someone in the eye.

The Elder Elementals all crowded in the back. Vatra, Jorden, and 'Enehana laid Vaayu to a wall beside them. Vaayu, for his own part, rested there as Sihiri and Chihiro tended to him. They fed his soul magic energy while he groaned and slept. To their left, the Skylanders huddled together, discussing plans and strategies in hushed whispers. They only occasionally glanced out the window as they spoke. To the front laid none other than Flynn, still cocky as ever as he smiled and steered, and Cali manned the massive panels of controls beside him.

"Greatest pilot in all Skylands to metal eyes in the skies," Flynn said into the radio he held in his palm, the other hand nonchalantly steering. "How far are we from this vault thingie, anyways? I don't see any weird robot dudes or anything. It's all rocks and rivers as far as the eye can see!"

"Not long now," the Machine Ghost replied over the radio, his voice a bit muffled by the masses of static that crackled from the speaker. "According to the map I found within my body's databanks, this secret vault is only a few more minutes away!"
"Say, what was a map for that thing doing in there, anyways?" Ermit added over the speaker.

The Machine Ghost scoffed. "You do recall that this is an Arkeyan robot, correct?"

Ermit growled a bit. Before he could retort, Flynn turned off the radio and whistled as he spun the wheel. Even in such a tense situation as this, Flynn hardly had a care in the world. Didn't do much to lighten the tension in the air, but it was still nice to see.

"Alrighty, then!" Flynn called. "You heard the ghost! This vault's not that far away, and with your awesome pilot at the helm, we'll be in there and out with that pipsqueak before he can even say a word!"

A few tense glances crossed the room, and Flynn frowned as he turned around.

"Ah, I get it. All tense in the knees or however that goes!" Flynn beamed back. "Well, don't worry a thing! Once those robots see me, they'll go screaming and running for their robot moms! Well, if those tin cans even have moms."

Flynn whistled again as he turned back to the wheel, but Chihiro sighed as she rested a blanket around Vaayu's shoulders.

"Kaos was possessed all that time, and by the ghost of an Arkeyan king, of all beings!" she whispered. "I know I should probably be surprised, but after everything that's happened, dead beings from ancient times are the least of my worries."

Chihiro chuckled all soft and small, yet, nobody around her seemed particularly amused.

"Well, you should be worried," Vatra hissed. "Arkilles will stop at nothing until his reign over all Skylands returns, and with all those robots in Arkus in his hands…"

Luz winced a bit as Vatra shuddered, but forced a smile of his own.

"Hey, look on the bright side!" Luz said. "Even if he's got the map, we might be able to catch him before he gets to Arkus!"

The rest of the ancient portal masters all frowned still. Their hands still clasped tight and tense, and their bodies sparkled a little brighter, more frantically even. A few glares shot at Luz, who gulped and shrunk back while mumbling something under his breath, but for the most part, it was all tense, stoic silence.

Chihiro gulped, crawled up to Sihiri and sat beside her. "Was Arkilles really as bad as all those books said?" Chihiro whispered.

"The worst you could imagine," Sihiri whispered back. She only glanced at Chihiro for a moment before she turned around. "He held not an ounce of compassion in his heart, not even for his closest allies, or his most loyal followers. Everything to him was a pawn for him to play, every stretch of Skylands another monument for his empire… Hundreds of thousand died underneath his rule because of that selfishness."

Chihiro shuddered. She was only able to nod before she pulled away. and crept over near the windshield where the Skylanders all huddled together. They kept their voices low, just to hushed whispers, yet it wasn't quite quiet enough. Just barely, whispers of shock and awe, and mentions of Kaos, kings, and ghosts could be heard between gasps and nervous trills. Seemed as though they got filled in too.

"So," Chihiro said, raising a hand, and all eyes turning to her in exchange, "got a plan settled on yet?"

Spyro shook his head and broke from the group.

"Still figuring it out," Spyro said, his voice carrying a cold kind of seriousness. "None of us really planned for the whole 'Kaos getting possessed by an old Arkeyan king' thing."

"Oh, who cares if baldie's possessed or not?" Terrafin spat from behind the group as he cracked his knuckles. the sharp pops they made accentuated the fury in his words. "I'll still punch him in the face first chance I get!"

"That's all well and good in theory, but we have no idea what this person is capable of!" Spyro turned back around and folded his wings against his back. "All I know about Arkilles is that he was just as power-hungry as Kaos was, and ten times more conniving and competent than him. Someone like that, within the body of a portal master with all the powers it offers…"

A few tense glances came from the others in the group, and even Terrafin crossed his arms and scoffed.

"Well, I do know one thing." Chihiro took a seat with the group, her legs crossed as she sat at its head. "It didn't seem like that guy was all that used to having a body again, much less using its powers. When he tried to fight us, he had to get Kaos back in just to escape!"

"So what you're saying is…" Stealth Elf piped up from the group.

Chihiro grinned and pointed to Stealth Elf. "Without anything else to protect him, he's pretty much a sitting duck! If we can find him, and put him in a situation where it's just him, we could probably take him down and get Kaos with him!"

"Killing two birds with one stone, I see." Stealth Elf lowered her ears and turned her attention to the windshield. "That's assuming he hasn't made off with the map already, and with the head start he had, I wouldn't be surprised if he already has."

Chihiro frowned, got up and glanced out the windshield herself. Her frown grew deeper as she bore witness to more identical stretches of canyons and rivers that seemed a bit larger compared to the ones before; maybe the occasional dead tree here and there; but not a single Arkeyan. No soldiers stationed on cliffs or rocks, no helicopters flying in the sky, nothing.

"Still not seeing any of those robot dudes," Flynn remarked as he leaned forward over the steering wheel. He leaned back, and a smile stretched across his face as he gave the wheel a spin. "Looks like we beat them here!" Flynn chuckled and rubbed a fist against his chest. "All thanks to the greatest pilot in all Skylands, of course~"

Flynn popped an eye open, hummed, and glanced over the steering wheel once more as something splashed against the Dread-Yacht's legs. His eyes turned wide as saucers! He didn’t even peel his eyes from the windshield as he patted around the control panel, and yanked the radio from a nearby panel.

"Hey, metal eyes in the skies—are these canyon thingies supposed to be flooded?" Flynn asked.

"Wait, flooded?" 'Enehana called, jumping up from where they sat on the right side of the room.

'Enehana immediately joined Flynn at the front. They nearly pushed him out of his spot at the wheel as they glanced over, and their face immediately fell.

"Oh no."

Their shock inspired the others to converge at the front of the room. They all nearly crowded out Flynn and Cali as all eyes turned to the windshields.

In front of their eyes laid the canyons of before, but they now had rusted golden gates so massive they almost reached the Dread-Yacht's height embedded in their sides. Rusty red and gold round platforms that lost their luster long ago stuck out from the rocks ahead. Perhaps most importantly, the water levels below them rose so high that they brushed against the Dread-Yacht's knees. Beside them, the Machine Ghost flew up so the splashing waters wouldn't extinguish his body's thrusters.

"If the water levels are this low," 'Enehana said as they brushed their hand against the console, "that can only mean Arkilles got here before us, and turned the security dams back on!"

"Security dams?" Flynn echoed.

"I think I read something about that in this robot's databanks, actually," the Machine Ghost chimed in over the radio. "The vault was plunged underwater so as to further discourage unwanted guests, I assume."

"Correct," 'Enehana added. "Normally, you can only deactivate them from the inside of the vault itself, but there's a fail-safe."

'Enehana flipped open their backpack, rummaged through it, and yanked out a worn scroll they quickly spread open. Everyone else crowded around the best they could, pushing and shoving around as they crowded around 'Enehana. They, for their own part, levitated up the scroll and projected its contents for all to see! An elaborate map glowed over the room as 'Enehana turned around and held up a hand.

"There are two emergency power sources, one for each dam. If we can find and reactivate them, it should redirect power to the dams, and lower the water levels at the vault for us." 'Enehana turned back to the controls, pushed Flynn away from the wheel and gripped it tight. "I'll lead us to the first one! Just follow my lead!"

"Duly noted!" shouted the Machine Ghost.

Flynn scoffed and crossed his arms, but 'Enehana paid no mind to him! No, their eyes completely transfixed on the console before them. They pressed buttons and switched levers while their hands glowed with an orange light. The orange light spread over the console while it sparkled like it was brand new, and the whole room started to rumble around 'Enehana! The others shouted and cried out, but 'Enehana spun the wheel with a grin.

"Full speed ahead!" 'Enehana cried as they pointed ahead.

The Dread-Yacht rumbled, and zoomed ahead with such heightened speed that everyone else fell on their faces—but not 'Enehana! They stood still and silent as they spun the wheel with a steely grip. Their eyes only left the windshield once as the Machine Ghost flew up to their side, just to signal to him, but their grip returned to the wheel once the signal was given.

"That power switch stuff's all well and good and all," Ermit said over the radio. "But wouldn't they have already done something about these emergency switches if he's already got this thing?"

"I do wonder about that myself," Machine Ghost added. "The map I saw said nothing about emergency power sources, either."
"That's because they were secret switches, ones installed right under Arkilles' nose," 'Enehana explained.

"Then how do you know about them?"

"Who do you think designed this vault?"

The Elder Elementals and ancient portal masters alike chuckled with each other, but the others gasped down below! Their eyes grew wide as they glanced at each other and back at 'Enehana. A few eyes even traveled the room with a curious glance, as if they wanted to ask a question or two, but nothing came of it.

That is, until Chihiro stepped forward. "Wait, you designed this vault?" Chihiro asked.

"Not by choice, I'll admit," 'Enehana replied as they gripped the pegs a little tighter than before. "When Arkilles got word of my works, he snatched me up and forced me to design machinery for his empire, including this vault." 'Enehana's voice turned colder. They snarled, and squeezed the pegs so hard that the pegs started splintering by the time they released their grip. "So, I sneaked in a few… Surprises of my own."

The sound of whirring came faintly over the air, and 'Enehana smiled.

"Speaking of surprises, it seems we have a few unexpected guests."

The whirring grew louder, beating against the windshield as a whole fleet of Arkeyan helicopters flew in front of the Dread-Yacht. Cannons deployed from their robotic bodies and charged, the light of their barrels tinting the windshield blue. Just before they could fire, a punch from the Dread-Yacht smashed them to bits!

"Luckily, it seems security isn't particularly tight. Now, if you'll excuse me—"

"I'm going to steer my ship from here on out!" Flynn shouted as he pushed aside 'Enehana and snatched the wheel back. He huffed for a moment, but his smile quickly returned. "Now, onto that power source!"

Flynn spun the wheel, and the Dread-Yacht sped past—but as it did, the sound of bullets smashing came from the side, and the room started to rumble! Flynn turned his view to the front, snarled as another, larger fleet of copters flew in front of him, and slammed down a large blue button to his side.

"BOOM!" he cried as he released his hand.

A laser pierced through the fleet and severed its midsection. The copters' remains were left only to fall into the waters' depths. As they fell, even more copters swarmed in! Their ranks refilled with much more girth, crowding out the path ahead. They shot at the Dread-Yacht with bullets of light that banged into its sides and front, leaving flashes of light and rickety, rumbling noises bellowing from the depths!

Flynn snarled as he pulled back for a moment, and glanced over the controls. His fingers danced over a few buttons, but before he could press one, Cali swept in and slammed it down!

Swift, quick laser bombs like firecrackers burst out from the Dread-Yacht and into the copters' ranks. The exploded with such ferocity that they engulfed the copters in fire!

Both Flynn and Cali steeled themselves as the flames' warm light flashed across the windshield, and Flynn smirked back at Cali.

"Great minds think alike," Flynn said as he adjusted his scarf; he knitted his brow as another ricocheting noise faintly echoed from the side of the robot, "and this incredibly great mind thinks these robots need to stop messing with my ship!”

Flynn grunted, spinning around the wheel.

The Dread-Yacht swiveled to face a group of robots that sat on a ledge and fired off. Their blue chassis shone in the sunlight with a much more brilliant light compared to the rusted ledge they sat on. Though, the sparking generator that shone beside them and crackled with blue electricity probably helped.

"That generator isn't the one we need to find, is it?" Flynn asked.

'Enehana popped up from the floor and frowned, humming as they leaned against the controls. "Nope!" 'Enehana confirmed.

"Then I'm going all out, baby! Double boom!" Flynn grinned as he slammed a few more buttons on the panel.

The Dread-Yacht raised its arms and prepared to strike—but just before it could, even more lasers shot the arm. These ones were so large and fierce that it knocked the arm back! The Dread-Yacht stumbled back, and Flynn clutched the wheel with a shut as he tried not to get knocked back. The others shouted as they slid behind him, and Flynn winced as he clutched the steering wheel further.

Cali and 'Enehana slid down and hit the walls beside him, but Cali quickly peeled herself off. Launching herself towards the controls, Cali bit her lip as she gripped the console the tightest she could. Her eyes scanned the array of buttons and levers before her.

"Come on, come on," Cali mumbled. Her ears flicked and folded as the sound of bullets beaning the robot echoed from outside. "The laser buttons have to be here somewhere!"

Another particularly large bullet burst, and Cali winced as she covered her ears before her eyes fell on a shiny red button! Cali slammed it down, and lifted her head towards the windshield as a mighty, red-hot laser slammed into the canyons. The laser carved through the canyons’ stone and fried the robots! A string of explosions burst from the platform.

Cali smiled, and pulled away from it as the Dread-Yacht slid back to its upright position. A few more pings came from the left-hand side, and she yanked her head to a secondary platform that filled itself with firing robots by the moment! Cali snarled, and her hands hovered above the button as the Dread-Yacht turned around.

Before she could even fire, the Machine Ghost swung forward and punched all the robots! His punch came rapid-fire, slamming through the platform in the blink of an eye. The robot's smashed remains floated in the air along with that of a broken generator, its electricity coursing around the Machine Ghost's hands!

'Enehana leaned above Cali, blinked for a moment, and raised their brows for a moment before they scrambled for the radio.

"Metal eyes, you punched that generator just now, right?" 'Enehana asked.

Static crackled over the speaker for a moment, but soon a few small coughs came from the other side.

"I suppose I did," the Machine Ghost said. "I hadn't even noticed until you brought it up."
'Enehana chuckled, and a thin smile came across their lips. "Well, there's something really amazing you can do with that extra electric power!"

"There is?"

'Enehana's eyes drifted over to the windshield as even more copters flew in. "See those copters over there?" they asked. "Slam yours fists together, right in front of them!" 'Enehana lowered the radio and turned back to Flynn. "Oh, and you all might want to stand back."

Flynn warily flew back as the Machine Ghost flew forward, shielding them completely from the copters ahead. The Machine Ghost rubbed his hands, and the static from one coursed to another as it changed to hot, sparking thunderbolts in an instant. With a single clap, a massive shock wave burst from his hands!

The rusted platforms crumbled to bits along with the weaker parts of the canyons from the sheer shock, leaving only large dents where they once rested. The copters ahead stood charred at every angle. Sparks flew from their now-crooked blades as they collapsed into the sea!

"That truly is amazing!" the Machine Ghost gasped. "Even in all my years of occupying this body, I've never known it held such a power!"

"And I never knew owning a giant robot would be so dangerous!" Ermit snapped in the background. "I told you not to scratch this thing up! We were just tailing Kaos until the Skylanders could rough him up and take him in! Now quit messing with my robot!"
"The robot you abandoned for years in the cold, snowy depths of Skylands' wastelands?" the Machine Ghost scoffed. "Anyways" — taking a warmer tone, the Machine Ghost's voice grew a bit louder — "tell me, do you know of any other powers this body holds?"

A few explosions sounded from the outside world, and 'Enehana cringed for a moment, clutching the console as tight as they could. The Dread-Yacht stumbled back and forth, shaking the world around them. Their finger slipped onto a button, and pressed it just in time for a shield to shield the Dread-Yacht from an oncoming explosion, but not in time to keep them from getting knocked to the floor. The others fell down around them, and 'Enehana staggered up with a grunt.

Another explosion sounded outside, and Flynn grimaced as he let go of the wheel.

"Hate to cut the chit-chat short, but we've got bogeys at twelve o' clock!" he cried before he scratched his fur underneath his hat. "I think that's the phrase, anyways."

"In that case…" 'Enehana whispered as they clutched their arm.

"ALL HANDS ON DECK!" Flynn cried.

Immediately everyone scrambled to their console, their hands fixed on the buttons and their eyes on the windshield. Ahead of them, even more copters made chase as they flew further into the vault's paths; the copters were all armed with laser cannons, bombs, and sniper rifles glowing with sheer power. The Dread-Yacht's crew tensed, arms tightly held over their parts of the console and frowns eminent. Beside them, the Machine Ghost's body drew up into a fighting stance, sharing their own tension as they stared down the forces.

The copters came first. They flew in and charged their cannons as they shone with bright yellow light!

"Here they come!" Cali cried. "Get the cannons ready!"

"Right!" Spyro and Chihiro cried back. The two of them slammed a large button on the console, and its click rang through the cockpit.

The Dread-Yacht yanked up its arms as they transformed into cannons of its own! The cannons shrieked as they charged with light, coating the arena in a bright flash coated the arena and disappearing just as quickly. It moved just fast enough that everyone caught the copters' fried remains cascading into the depths!

Spyro and Chihiro both grinned and high-fived each other, but jumped back as Vatra pushed ahead of them.

"There's more to the left!" he cried. His hands twitched as they hovered over the buttons. "Where's the attack button?"

"Allow me to take care of them!" the Machine Ghost cried.

Water splashed against the side of the Dread-Yacht as the Machine Ghost’s body sprung forward. It punched away a few more of the robots, spun around, and squashed several more between its palms like it squashed bugs! A zooming sound came from overhead as something that looked like a crude plane armed with a missile came over. The Machine Ghost’s body craned its head up, and zapped the plane right out of the air! The plane's parcel exploded, and took the plane itself with it as it crashed right beside the Dread-Yacht!

"Alright, I've let you all have your fun!" Flynn cried as he smacked down an entire row of buttons and pulled down a lever. A twinkle shone in his eye, and he released as he spun the wheel around. "Now it's time for me to lay down the boom on these metal creeps!"

The Dread-Yacht creaked for a moment, and its body seemed as though it… Twisted? A few glances went to each side of the robot as it creaked, and then spun around at the fastest speeds it could! Like a spinning top, it tore through the waters and the robots, blowing copters, planes, and more into the sides of the canyon, and ripping platforms out of their places!

The distinct smells of smoke and saltwater mingled together as the Dread-Yacht slashed through the last of the airborne ranks. It creaked to a stop, and crossed its arms as Flynn's laughter bellowed from its loudspeakers, shaking rocks off the canyons and disrupting the waters around it.

"BOOM! They didn't even see it coming!" Flynn cried as he flexed his muscles.

"Neither did we…" Chihiro groaned.

Flynn blinked, and turned back around to find the rest of the group flung all across the cockpit. They all piled together, and groaned as their eyes spun around in their heads.

"Whoops!" Flynn chuckled and scratched his head. "Forgot about you guys for a second! Guess you couldn't handle my raw power of my awesomeness either!"

Flynn chuckled for a bit more, but the sounds of banging outside quelled his laughter soon enough. A particularly strong bang came as something dented the inner wall of the cockpit, and Flynn winced as he jumped over to the console. His fingers hovered along the console's controls as more banging noises and dents came from within, and sweat crept from his brow and stuck to his fur.

"The heck's going on out there? Someone get a visual out of the outside!"

Ninjini leaped from the pile of crew members, and swept to the console in an instant. She tapped away and grimaced as a screen appeared in front of her.

"The outer side of the vessel's under attack, and they've brought in a good bit of their forces, from the looks of it!" Ninjini cried. She swept the screen to Flynn, and showcased an outside covered in robots for only moments before she leaped away. "The rest of the Elder Elementals and I will take care of it! Just send us out!"

Tree Rex blinked, but quickly jumped to his feet and nodded. "You heard her!" Tree Rex cried. "To the outside, right now!"

"And we'll help as well!" Sihiri cried.

The rest of the Elder Elementals and the ancient portal masters cried in agreement as they crowded around the back of the room, surely prepared to fight…

But, as they all ran, Vaayu hobbled behind. He gritted his teeth as he clutched his side. Though he trudged along, he still lingered a bit in the back, as if he struggled to keep up with the rest.

Vatra turned around, and winced as he pushed Vaayu back. "Vaayu, you stay here," Vatra insisted as he grabbed Vaayu's shoulders. "You're still injured, you need to rest!"

"Nonsense, Vatra!" Vaayu protested. He pushed Vatra aside, gripped him by the sleeve, and pulled them both into the crowds. "I wasn't able to stop Arkilles before he could arrive here, so the least I could do is stop him from getting away with the map!"

Flynn pressed a button before Vatra could protest further, and a part of the floor underneath Vatra’s group clunked! The Elder Elementals and ancient portal masters alike slunk down for a moment, and in another, the platform shot up.

It knocked them on a ledge outside of the Dread-Yacht's mouth and into harsh sunlight. They staggered back to their feet and surveyed the area, eyes locked on the masses of robots that banged and tore away at the outside hulls. The robots littered the area like termites that chewed and ate away at the entire chest, crawling up the robot's waist by the second.

"Ah, fresh air," Vaayu whispered as he clenched his fists. His shoulders slunk, loosened just a bit, and a smile crossed his face as clouds formed around his fists. "Just the thing I needed!"

Vaayu broke away from the group first. He swept over to the left shoulder as the clouds solidified into tough, tightly-packed gauntlets around his fists.

"Now I can finally fight these pests!"

Vaayu cried out as he shot right for a robot on the edge of the left shoulder, and plunged his fist into its chest! The robot's head creaked up as the metal around its chest peeled and exposed the wiring inside, but Vaayu smirked at the sight. His cloud gauntlets turned darker and crackled, lightning bursting from their puffy surfaces and jumping into the robot's exposed chest. His feet swept into its shins as he removed his fist, and the robot flew off right as it exploded!

Vaayu's feet planted on the Dread-Yacht's shoulder right as the other robots turn and ran for him, yet his stance didn't waver or loosen. He shot forward and jabbed one robot right in the neck, severing its head from its body. He shot around, and kicked a second robot in its side right as it charged him. The robot shot away, curving in the distance while two more robots charged for Vaayu.

Vaayu took a breath in. Right as the robots swung, he leaped up, pounded their heads into their bodies, and swung his legs around as he knocked their bodies off the shoulder!

His feet planted on the shoulder once more, and Vaayu panted, clutching his chest and slinking over. His knees fell on the shoulder as he held his chest, but behind him, another robot crept up and raised an ax well above its own head. A volley of fire blasted away the ax right as it swung down, and the robot turned around as another volley tossed it aside.

"Don't let your guard down, Vaayu!" Vatra called as he tossed a few more flames at oncoming robots and knocked them off the shoulder. "You almost lost your head there!"

Vaayu grunted a little as he lifted his head aside. He smiled as he caught Tree Rex, Ninjini, Sihiri, Hot Head, 'Enehana, and Bouncer, who all crept on the space between the ledge and the left shoulder before they charged along. Vaayu staggered up a bit, but quickly ducked as another robot's limp body swung around him!

Behind Vaayu, Vatra snarled, and leaped off the shoulder as he clutched the robot's throat in his palm. Flames burst from the soles of his shoes and propelled him higher into the air! The robot beeped and squealed as its trembling fingers wrapped around Vatra's own palm, a futile attempt to pry his hand off of it.

Vatra snarled as he squeezed its neck tighter! The black metal that comprised the neck turned red hot, and grew lighter by the second, all while its heat spread as fast as it could around the robot's body!

The robot turned so hot that it was little more than a hot, white silhouette in Vatra's grip, and its noises turned warped and distorted as it glowed and exploded! The flaming bits of its burnt body burst and rained down all over the deck, one in particular pelting Tree Rex on the head.

Tree Rex blinked for a moment and peered up, but a larger, more heavily-armored robot tackled into him, knocking him into the Dread-Yacht's neck! Tree Rex grunted, his bark cracking just a bit as he slid down and rolled along the shoulder. He grabbed onto its ledge for a moment and strained as he pulled himself up.

The robot that tackled him now loomed over him, and set a laser-charged hand on his face. Tree Rex snarled and flicked his other arm a few times. A thick burst of dark green spore clouds burst from below and engulfed Tree Rex! The robot that once threatened to shoot him lifted its arm and beeped in confusion, peering from side to side…

It was then that a laser of sunlight burst from the clouds, and pierced right through the robot's chest! Tree Rex leaped from the clouds, punched away the robot's body as he landed on the shoulder once more, but ducked as a glob of oil shot for him. The oil splattered against the neck, and Tree Rex turned his attention to the shoulder.

There, Hot Head cackled as he doused the robots that surrounded him in oil! Robot and ally alike back away as Hot Head's oil storm seceded, and Hot Head pounded his hands together. The oil that splattered around the shoulder glimmered underneath his flames, and even more dripped from his claws while he pounded, coating the shoulder in at least a fine layer.

"FEEL THE BURN!" Hot Head bellowed as he leaned back, cackling so hard that his chest throbbed.

Tree Rex blinked, thrust forward and held out his hand. "Hot Head, wait!" Tree Rex cried. "If you use your flames now, you'll—"

An eruption burst from Hot Head's head, and he stomped the floor of the shoulder, tossing the oil-coated robots into the air! Flames burst from his palms as he torched the robots, setting them alight with such haste that their entire bodies quickly engulfed in cocoons of fire! They crashed down onto the floor, but just before they could hit the oil-coated ground, a burst of purple light whisked them away and flung them into the seas!

Sihiri wiped her head as the robots flew into the seas behind her. The oil disappeared just as quickly with another snap of her fingers. She wiped her hands, raised a brow and teleported away as crackling came from behind her!

Reappearing in the air with a pop, Sihiri floated around the back of a robot that swayed from side to side as it turned around and jabbed for her once more. She chuckled and teleported again! The robot squealed and teleported right as she appeared to the front side of the shoulder, but Sihiri laughed.

"Looks like you can teleport too!" Sihiri remarked before she lifted up a hand and waved it around. "That being said" — Sihiri swept away from another punch and chuckled — "You're not the only one who can throw a punch, either!"

Above her, swirls of purple magic twisted together, condensing into gigantic fists. The giant, magic fists charged down and smashed right through the robot!

The robot stuck to the fists' knuckles for only a moment; the next, it shot through the air, flying at rapid speed towards Ninjini.

Ninjini snapped right around and slashed it in half! The robot’s halves remains sparked and crackled by her foggy feet, but Ninjini knocked them away with a spin and waved her hands. A ring of purple orbs flew around her as she spun. The orbs burst out at all directions, and knocked back the robots that remained on the shoulder!

The robots shrieked as they flew off, but as they flew helpless and undefended, bullets riddled their chests! Their hole-covered chassis collapsed and sparked on the ground, yet flew off as a gold and red blur zipped past and knocked them aside! Their remains tumbled off the side of the shoulder and cascaded into the ocean, and the blur nearly followed, if not for it bumping into the shoulder's rim and collapsing!

The blur unveiled itself as Bouncer the moment it hit the floor; he groaned as he pushed himself back up. Leaning on his side, Bouncer's optics narrowed as 'Enehana knelt in front of him. They hummed as their eyes scanned the broken, twisted remains of the Arkeyan robots that once fought around them.

"You know," 'Enehana said as they held out a hand, "I think I can use some of this!"

The parts glowed orange and rattled as 'Enehana held out their hand, and then smacked together like they were pulled by a magnet! Their parts twisted together as they grew larger, straightening and thinning themselves with every stretch. With one last thunk, they dropped back onto the shoulder as full-fledged turrets! More robots climbed up the shoulder as the turrets turned around. The turrets sniped the robots right off before they could even lay a foot on the shoulder’s top!

'Enehana smirked, grabbed one of the turret's sniper rifles and hopped off. They climbed up the Dread-Yacht's shoulder, scaled the neck, and flipped themselves onto the top of the Dread-Yacht's head! A few robots turned towards them, but 'Enehana sniped off their heads before they pushed aside the robots’ bodies.

"How're you holding up down there?" 'Enehana shouted as they waved.

Down below, Jorden grunted as he slashed through a few small robots with a pickax made of stone, turned around and beamed. "Just fine, Ena!" Jorden shouted back as he waved. "Don't worry about us!"

'Enehana frowned, and lifted their gaze up to the rest of the right shoulder. Before them, Brawl, Thumpback, and Crusher huddled together as several larger robots surrounded them with lasers charged. To their side, Dej and Inochi shouted as several robots squirmed their ways out of frozen vines just to get caught by more!

"I wouldn't particularly say they look okay," 'Enehana remarked as they leaned down to Jorden.

Jorden grunted, turned around as shouting echoed back from the back, and chuckled as he scratched his helmet with his pickax. "Whoops, looks like I missed a few!"

Jorden grunted as he heaved his pickax above his head. With one swing, its tip smashed through the shoulder and fissured its grounds! Crystals spreads from the newborn cracks in the ground, piercing right through the surrounding robots before shooting back inside the cracks. Their job finished, the cracks sealed up as if nothing had formed in the first place. All that was left were the robots' smoking corpses, a sole symbol of their battle.

'Enehana laughed as they heaved themself up, and a few stars crossed by as they sat themself atop the robot's head.

Before them, Luz cackled as he rode atop a shining star. Occasionally, he bounced around, and made finger guns as he shot bright stars from his fingertips! The stars shot into the Dread-Yacht, which creaked and stumbled back while the sounds of something faintly plopping into the ocean rang in the air.

"Alright, ten down!" Luz cried as he spun around and sat down on his star. "How many points is that, Swarm?"

Swarm zipped past him, laughed, and backed up for a bit as he flicked antenna charged with electricity.

"I don't know…" he shouted as his antenna flicked forward and cast lightning onto the Dread-Yacht! The faint sounds and scents of smoke and lightning rang in the air, and Swarm beamed. "But I'm still in the lead!"

"Watch where you're shooting, you two!" Nemir scolded as he flew past them on Eye. "We're supposed to be cleaning out these robots, not playing any games!"

Nemir grunted as he slipped down, but quickly crawled back up Eye and held out a hand! Beams of silver light shot from his palms and Eye's cornea, slamming directly into the backs of the robots! Nemir and Eye both beamed as the robots rusted away and fell down into the ground like flies.

"Eye believe those were the last of them!" Eye cried.

Eye flew over to the right shoulder and dropped atop Brawl. Above him, Nemir slid down Brawl's back and strode up to Inochi.

"Things should be covered over here," Inochi said as she wiped her hands.

"Same here!" Ninjini called in the distance over the sound of a few explosions.

'Enehana chuckled and slid down the front of the robot. "In that case," they said, "let's get back inside—"

'Enehana grunted as the world rumbled, the waters below lashing out like a storm shaking their depths! They churned with fury, tossing themselves and lashing their waves against the Dread-Yacht's knees. With the power they held, the Dread-Yacht was reduced to swaying and stumbling, trying its best to keep balance.

'Enehana tumbled right off of it, in fact!

"Ena!" Jorden cried as he rushed forward, but screamed as he himself tumbled down off the shoulder!

Everyone else quickly followed. They slipped from the sides of the shoulders, and plunged into the depths as the Dread-Yacht lurched forward! Vaayu quickly caught himself and floated up. He leaned forward, and cast out his hands as clouds began to form in his palms, but the Machine Ghost’s body rushed in front of him before he could shoot out a single one!

It caught the rest of the group in swift timing. The Machine Ghost’s body flew up, and fed them into its chest before it flew off.

With their safety ensured, Vaayu frowned and floated back onto the Dread-Yacht's shoulder just as it stabilized. His eyes turned back down to the still raging waters below him.

"Just what could have caused this?" he asked.

Vaayu lifted his head and gasped as the rumbling continued, now taking a rhythmic, stomping pattern like a march! He immediately flew over to the Dread-Yacht's mouth platform, stomped it down and fell back inside! He grunted as he crashed onto the inside's floor, and all eyes turned on him as he stumbled in and panted.

"We, we've got trouble!" Vaayu cried.

"No kidding!" Flynn cried as he turned to meet Vaayu. "Just look at the size of all those things! There's no way I—" Flynn cleared his throat. "I mean—it might be no problem for the greatest pilot in all Skylands, but for you guys that's way too much!"

Vaayu tottered back and forth as he stumbled up to Flynn's side at the pilot's seat. Everyone else followed suit as they gathered at the front, all witnesses to the outside world.

There, the waters raged as the weaker parts of the canyon crumbled, all from the onslaught of one thing: robots! Shinier, bigger robots that were more humanoid in appearance marched in tightly-packed lines down the way, their metal bodies shining in the sunlight. The whole world quaked as they marched, and bowed underneath their feet, as if they owned the world before them!

"Conquertrons, and a whole army of them?" Tree Rex cried over the radio.

"There's no way we can fight them off and make it in time!" Sihiri shouted.

Flynn gritted his teeth. His eyes passed over the radio for a moment, and then to the controls. Sweat drenched his fur, sticking it together as his hands started to tremble. He squeezed them tight, and gripped the steering wheel as hard as he could!

"THEN WE'LL HOLD THE LINE!" Flynn cried at the top of his lungs! His brows tightened as he spun the wheel. "YOU ALL GO AHEAD AND GET KAOS!"

Chihiro, the Skylanders, even Cali and Vaayu backed away. Flynn, for all his bravado and headstrong nature, never spoke with such a demanding tone, yet here he was! Hands practically glued to the wheel, teeth gritting, and body sweating so hard it began to dampen the back of his jacket. Clearly, even someone as foolhardy as him recognized the threat these Conquertrons packed, yet he refused to budge.

"Wait, you don't know what you're dealing with!" 'Enehana cried over the radio. "Those Conquertrons are some of the strongest robots they have in their army! There's no way you'll be able to take them all on—"
"JUST LEAVE!"

Flynn grunted as he pushed the wheel forward, and yanked down a lever so hard it snapped in half.

The Dread-Yacht sped forward, and flew so fast that not even the lashing waves before it could quell its speeds! It body-slammed right into the chest of one Conquertron, knocking it back and tipping the rows of Conquertrons below like dominoes. As the Dread-Yacht settled, it turned around and punched another Conquertron in the neck. The punch tipped off the Conquertron’s head just enough that its wires exposed themselves, and strung over its back! A third Conquertron punched the Dread-Yacht in the shoulder, knocked it into the cliffs behind, but it popped off immediately and punched right back!

The Machine Ghost’s body just flew ahead.

Within the body, everyone within its crew crowded around the radio. Teeth clenched and hands tightened as the sounds of screaming, shouting, and creaking metal screeched over the radio. Another pained scream and some faint cries came over the radio as the static reached its loudest, muffling the shouts and questions of "Are you alright?" and "What's happening out there?"

The Machine Ghost winced and slammed a button next to a speaker. "Please, let us fight with you!" he cried.

And in turn… The radio shut off, but not from destruction, no. It still ruminated with static, leaving an eerie feeling in the air. Undoubtedly, it was manually shut down!

The Machine Ghost winced. Beside him, 'Enehana turned to the windshield, where the Dread-Yacht smoked as it traded blows. They bit their lip, and their hands twitched as if they debated whether to stay or go. They flinched as Tree Rex brushed their shoulder.

"Come on," he said, his voice cold as he turned his gaze to the path outside. "We have to get there. They won't be able to hold out for long."

'Enehana nodded warily, turned to the Machine Ghost, and gently nudged his shoulder.

"Let's go," was all they said.

The Machine Ghost warily nodded. With a few pulls and pushes, his body flew off across the canyons once more, but as he flew, he cast a glance out the side of the windshield, the others following suit. The sight of the Conquertron army and Dread-Yacht grew fainter and fainter in view, and their shoulders slumped, a few hands clasped, other hands held to faces as they turned away.

"May the Ancients protect them," 'Enehana whispered as they brushed their hands against the windshield.

"And us," the Machine Ghost added, and turned to the front of the windshield as his body powered along the canyons.