"Popcorn balls! Fresh popcorn balls right here!" Cali cried as she waved a box full of buttery popcorn balls in the air, all while she donned a bright cyan vendor's outfit. "Get 'em while they're fresh!"

"Soda, we've got soda here!" shouted Flynn as he barged forward while carrying a box full of soda cups, his own trademark pilot outfit traded out for one similar to Cali's. "Nothin' better to cool down from a fiery battle than the best sodas in all Skylands!"

"And if you've got a big sweet tooth, we've got jumbo snacks right here!" Bouncer exclaimed as he wheeled in with a gigantic cardboard box full of cotton candy sticks in his arms, all while the other Elder Elementals followed behind him with giant boxes of snacks at the ready. "Cotton candy, candy apples, swirl sticks, and more! All for the sugar monster in you!"

Bouncer chuckled as he wheeled backwards, yet frowned as his eyes scanned over the selection of candy that he held in this strange cardboard box now, or maybe the gigantic striped shirt that he wore over his mechanical body. It was kind of hard to tell with his eyes being little more than blank plates of glass.

"Am I the only one who thinks this is a bad idea? I mean, a sweets vendor seems pretty suspicious," Crusher remarked as he tilted the candy box in his hands. "Besides, what if someone asks me about this? I'm a rock golem, the only thing I need to eat is rocks! I don't know a thing about sweets!" Crusher chuckled and scratched his head. "Well, unless they're rock candy."

A faint ringing like that of an alarm system dully blared from Bouncer's head, and he zipped over to Crusher and shushed him! "Keep it down, man!" Bouncer hissed as his eyes fell down on the crowds. "We already stick out like sore thumbs in this place! One wrong move and we're as good as dead!"

Bouncer winced, as did Flynn and Cali and all the others as they scanned the crowds. Hopefully, nobody heard that little remark…

Grumbles and chatters echoed from the crowds around in time with the clacking of footsteps against stone, and nobody particularly paid any mind to Bouncer or Crusher! A few patrons cast odd glances at them before shuffling off to the stands, or licked their lips as they got pulled away, but not a single strange remark came from anybody around. As far as the crowd was concerned, what it saw were just ordinary vendors selling their wares!

Cali and Flynn both frowned as they eyed the crowds around them. As the crowds passed on, they both breathed sighs of relief as they wiped the sweat from their faces, turned to each other and grinned!

"Phew, looks like these magic disguises work!" Cali remarked as she wiped her hands. "Now we can actually get around this place without the guards breathing down our necks!"

"A shame, really. I came up with some of the best slogans for these sodas!" Flynn remarked as he eyed the box of sodas in his arms. Flynn grinned and wiggled his fingers, lifted one soda and raised a brow. "Speaking of sodas, all these wandering around and looking cool is making me parched!" Flynn drew the soda closer to his lips as he licked them. "I could really go for a drink right now…"

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Flynn!"

Flynn chuckled to himself as he prepared to sip, but Cali slapped the soda right out of his hands before he could even get a drop,! Flynn gasped as his soda slipped away from his reach, yet Cali grabbed him back by the sleeve just before he could pursue it further. Despite his tugging and shoving, her grip just wouldn't relent. Flynn could only watch as the flying soda slammed straight into a drow guard and splashed them with cola, and his face drooped into a low, despondent frown.

"My soda!" Flynn cried as he turned back to Cali and crossed his arms. "What was that for, Cali? Can't a guy get a drink?"

Flynn flicked his ears as a groan came over from behind, and turned around as his eyes fell back on the drow guard his soda splattered on. The drow groaned as soda dripped down from their armor; they hustled over to a nearby food stand and wiped it off with some napkins, but soon screamed and jumped in the air, now stiff and straight as a board while sparks flew off of them! Their footing was light as they dropped back down to the ground, and they stumbled to and fro amid the coliseum floors. Their eyes drooped open and shut as they barely kept their grip on their napkins.

"You, you know what?" the drow panted as they fell to their knees, their head bobbing from side to side. "This, this job is such a pain… I haven't had a good break in ages…" The drow moaned as they fell to the floor and curled on their side. "Maybe I should take a little nap."

A soft snore came from the drow guard as they rested their head on their arms like it was a pillow, no care taken to the fact that they were still soaked to the bone!

"That's why," Cali explained as she walked up beside Flynn and placed her hands on her hips. She nudged the box Flynn carried, and shot him a glare as he raised his brows. "Those sodas are actually sleeping potions! Heck, all the food we have here is weaponry just in case we run into any trouble! Didn't you hear me when I said that at the briefing?"

Flynn rapidly blinked as his eyes fell on Cali, and then the box of sodas he still carried in his arms. A low chuckle came from him as Flynn carefully removed the soda box from around his body, and placed it on a nearby stand.

"Actually, yeah, I'm not as thirsty as I thought," Flynn remarked.

Eye hummed as he popped off of Brawl, and floated down to the sleeping drow who happily snoozed away at the job. His gaze fixed on a piece of paper that rested in the Drow's pocket, and Eye lifted himself up and flapped his wings a little more furiously than before.

"Now, my little brothers—bring that paper to my line of sight!" Eye proclaimed!

With one last flap, a bunch of tiny eyeballs phased through the ground and bounced against it like bouncing beans! They all giggled as they surrounded the drow, yanked the map from their pocket, and blew it straight to Eye, who attempted to grab it… But, it just unfolded and slammed right into his face instead!

"Oh, right, I don't have hands," Eye groaned as he fell to the ground.

Cali stepped over and claimed the map from Eye's face, frowned as she smoothed out its creases and laid it against the wall. It was a bit drenched from the sleeping potion's ambush, but thankfully, all the writing on it was still legible enough that a proper map could be made from it. It bore a field of coliseums, each one marked with text bearing their names and the activities that took place there. All of them were scattered around the town, yet they all lead to one specific arena: a large, golden one that held a small segment marked with some tiny, barely-readable writing.

Cali grumbled something to herself as she pulled a microscope from her pocket and held it up to the map, oblivious to how everyone knelt down and peered over her shoulder.

"What's it say, Cali?" Flynn asked as he leaned further over Cali's shoulder. "Is it a buried treasure map? A guide to a secret hideout?" Flynn's eyes sparkled and a wide grin spread across his face. "No, don't tell me, it's a secret ninja commando base!"

Cali nudged Flynn away with her shoulder and groaned as she leaned in closer to the map. The moment she finally got a read on what it said, she herself bore just as wide a grin as Flynn himself had! She hastily yanked the map from the wall, and brandished it for everyone to see.

"Even better!" Cali proclaimed as she pushed the map up for further emphasis. "It's a security map of the entire town!" Cali pointed back to the marked corner of the golden arena. "It looks like this king’s arena is where Ermit is being kept" — Cali drew her finger down across the map — "and apparently, there isn't a single guard manning the area outside the arenas! This'll be perfect!" Cali's grin spread to everyone around, and it only made hers wider as she straightened up the map and handed it over to Ninjini. "Ninjini, think you can make a replica of this?"

"In my sleep!" Ninjini remarked.

She merely snapped her fingers, and in moments a magical, purple giant-sized replica of the map landed in her hands, then rolled itself up and tucked into her belt right beside all her other little trinkets.

"Well, we got what we came for!" Bouncer proclaimed as he wheeled away. "Now come on, let's scramble! We need to get to those games and get a piece of the action!"

"You mean get this Ermit fellow back, right?" Crusher asked as he strode up to Bouncer and nudged his arm. "Right?"

All eyes and a couple of coughs fell on Bouncer, and he just chuckled as he twiddled his fingers. "I mean, yeah, totally, that's definitely what I meant."

Ninjini just chuckled as she ran a hand across Bouncer's chin. A smile formed on his face as he let out a few shaky giggles at the touch of her hand, but she spun around and cracked her knuckles.

"We'll have plenty of time to watch the games when we bust Ermit out of there!" Ninjini remarked. "After all, we'll be able to get in and get him out in no time at all with this lack of security out here!"

"Have who in and out?"

Ninjini's eyes went wide, and sweat crept down her brow as she turned her eyes down to the floor. There, a drow clad in armor and security getup raised a brow at her! It clutched a spear tight in its hand, and its security badge flashed against its chest as it drew closer to Ninjini. Its ears flicked as if it was prompting her to make her next move, and Ninjini just chuckled as she floated backwards.

"I, I, mean, get them in and out!" Ninjini replied as she held up the box of lollipops in her hands. "I was just saying, these lollipops are going to be such a hit that we'll have them all in everyone's hands and out of ours in seconds!" Ninjini leaned down so that she was near the drow's face and winked. "After all, our secret recipe just can't be beat!"

The drow hummed, but the way their brows raised showed that they weren't exactly fooled! They just frowned further, pulled a clipboard from behind their back and skimmed it over.

"I don't recall any sweets salespeople signing on to cater here," the drow flipped another page. "Where's your license?"

"L-License?" More sweat crept down Ninjini's face as she leaned back up and scratched her head. "Why, just what are you talking about?"

"You need a license to cater here at these games! We've had to tighten up on regulations ever since some weirdos tried to poison their least favorite team with radioactive popcorn." The drow shook their head and held out a hand. "But that's beside the point. Where's your license?"

Ninjini forced a grin as she cast a side-glance back, and even with her eyes being completely blank, anyone could tell that she was beckoning for a diversion! She shifted her hand down below, and reached it out like she was grabbing for something. Behind her, Cali hustled up and nudged her own box of popcorn balls towards Ninjini! Ninjini gripped the box of popcorn balls tight, and smirked as she held it behind her back.

"Oh, I've got your license right here!"

The drow grunted and lifted their head, but screamed and dashed off as an entire rain of popcorn balls came down from above courtesy of Ninjini! The popcorn balls all smashed against the ground and exploded, and the scent of buttered popcorn flooded the arena as a misty yellow haze shielded everyone from view! Coughs came from all around as beings shouted out in confusion, or remarked on the faint scent of butter, but it meant little to Ninjini as she frowned as she turned around.

"Hurry, everyone!" Ninjini cried as she held out her hand. "Grab onto me! I'll get us out of here before the haze lets up!"

Everyone else nodded as their laid their hands on Ninjini's own, or clutched beings who did, and Ninjini whisked them out to the mouth of coliseum in a flash of purple light! Purple sparkles floated down around them as their feet hit the ground, and everyone paused their own breath as shouting and the faint scents of butter lingered out from the open coliseum doors.

"I knew those popcorn bombs would come in handy!" Cali cried as she pounded a fist against her hand. "Good thing I stocked up on them before we left!" Cali took Flynn's hand in her own, oblivious to how his cheeks turned hot and pink as she did, and patted Bouncer's wheel. "Flynn and I are gonna head to the arena and see how the others are doing!" Cali turned around and waved as she dashed up the hills and into the horizons. "We'll leave Ermit to you!"

"Got it!" Ninjini cried back as she gave Cali a thumbs up.

The other Elder Elementals all huddled around Ninjini, and she unfurled her magical copy of the map Cali snagged. Though its blue, translucent surface was a teensy bit harder to glean from against the bright afternoon light, all its details were still legible enough that they could be drawn from. More importantly, the king's arena was still marked with its shiny gold exterior!

"So, going by this map, this king's arena is near the end of the island," Ninjini explained as she drew her finger around the map. "Most of the security seems like its going to be consolidated around here" — Ninjini tapped the mouth of the arena, where a copious amount of tiny circles were drawn, and drew a half-circle towards the back — "but, they've left the back door completely unguarded!" Ninjini grinned as she tapped the back. "We'll just take a path through the back way, then—"

"Hey, where'd they go?" cried a voice from the coliseum's open door.

"I think they went outside, I can hear voices!" cried another, shriller one!

"Quick, get 'em before they ruin the games!"

"Actually, babe, we'll save the planning for later!" Bouncer cried as he rolled up the map. "Looks like security found us!"

Coughing and hacking came from the open mouth of the coliseum as a swarm of drow soldiers poured out and fanned away the yellow, buttery haze that lurked out from the open entrance, but they completely forgot their fits the moment they laid their eyes on the Elder Elementals! They cried out as they brandished their swords and spears, and their cries grew into screams as they charged right after the Elder Elementals!

Ninjini raised her brow, but her cool composition hadn't been lost. She just tucked her map back into her belt, then swung around and snapped her fingers!

"Sorry everyone, we'd love to play with you, but we've got business of our own to attend too!" Ninjini shouted as a purple glow surrounded her. "So I'm going to have to make this quick!"

Right as Ninjini said this, she waved her hands and crafted a whole ring of purple orbs! The other Elder Elementals backed away as the orbs all floated in the air, sparkling and shining in radiant shades of purple against the light. The orbs all crashed on the ground and exploded in massive plumes of purple smoke! The drow all cried out and screamed as the smoke engulfed the whole area, but as an oncoming chilly breeze cleared it away, their cries faded... For they all laid sprawled and pained across the grass, save for a few who dodged the onslaught and stood with wide eyes as they gazed over their fallen, bruised teammates!

"Oh dear, and here I meant to go easy on you," Ninjini remarked as she drew back. "My bad!"

The drow heading the charge stumbled backwards, nearly tripping over their own feet as they clutched their spear with trembling hands. "Alright, Plan B!" they cried as they turned tail and ran off. "We need to get reinforcements! Quick, everyone, to the King's Arena!"

The other drow all cried in agreement as they chased after their leader, and Ninjini gasped!

"If they get there, our cover's blown!" Ninjini cried as she glowed with a purple light. "After them!"

Ninjini teleported away in an instant, reappeared at a field just a few feet ahead of where the drow ran, and drew her wishblades, but lowered them as she found nothing but grass! All that could be heard was the whistling of wind and birds, nothing like the screams of the drow guards she heard before. The ground shuddered, grass popping from the ground as the other Elder Elementals raced up the hill and gasped.

"They disappeared!" cried Hot Head!

All seven of them mumbled among themselves as they gestured and waved towards the places where the drow guards once ran. Ninjini's fell on the ground, and she gasped as she pointed to the trails of footsteps embedded down below!

"They didn't disappear, they're just invisible!" Ninjini cried as she bolted across the pathway of gigantic footsteps. "After them!"

The Elder Elementals cried out as they made haste once more, and ahead of them, the sound of screaming came as faint figures flickered in and out of the light.

"And here I thought that invisibility spell would buy us more time!" one drow cried, their form barely able to be seen as they slid underneath a branch. "We'll need to find somewhere to hide!"

"But where?" another retorted as he gestured towards the path ahead. "There's nothing but grass here!"

Unfortunately for those drow, their comrade was right! The whole path ahead was open fields of wavy green grass with the occasional patch of jungles or houses scattered around. While the sight was pretty, especially with the scent of freshly-cut grass that accompanied it, it wasn't exactly good for hiding from angry crowds. There were no large cliffs, caverns, or other convenient escape spots to be seen for as far as the eye could see, and more!

"Wait, over there!" another drow cried. "Get to that Elemental Gate!"

The drow all screamed, and ran so fast that they kicked up ground and dirt into a thick, dusty cloud that blocked them from all views—including Ninjini's!

Ninjini tensed her brows, cringed and coughed as the dust kicked up. As the sound of warbling came from around her, she popped her eyes open with a purple glow, and narrowed them as she turned her head over to the sound's source.

She frowned as her eyes fell on a gate with thick, leafy vines for sides that all wrapped around a green disc which bore the Life Element's symbol. Flowers bloomed around its base as grass grew much richer in color there compared to the rest of the area.

Ninjini’s eyes' glow faded in tandem with the cloud vanishing near the gate. She gasped and floated back as a bright green shine came from the gate, but its vines sank into the ground as its central disc vanished and unveiled a path coated from top to bottom in plantlife! Far more importantly, the drow all cried out as they rushed in, their forms now visible under the coat of dirt and dust they covered themselves in! She went to bolt after them, but the gate rose just as quickly as the drow entered and sealed itself up once more!

"An Elemental Gate?" Ninjini gasped. She flew over a little bit, frowned and tilted her head as she tried to sneak a closer look.

"That's not gonna work, Ninjini!" Crusher shouted. "It's a Life Element Gate, and Tree Rex isn't—"

A bright glow came from the gate. Ninjini and Crusher gasped and drew back as the gate drew down, and it opened itself up once more.

"Here?"

Ninjini dashed up to it and waved everyone over. "In here, everyone! Quickly, before those guards escape!"

Crusher winced as he examined the gate's open path, yet with everyone else quick to run inside, he himself had no choice but to follow after. All of them rushed right into the gate's pathway just before its doors rose and it locked itself up once again, and they all sighed and sat down. Around the ground were footsteps and faint trails of dust, yet no sign of the drow guards to be found. The whole area was completely vacant of life. It was just them and the trees and flowers, all in a quiet harmony.

"Come on, everyone," Ninjini panted as she laid down against the trunk of a mighty oak tree, shook her head and flew off. "They're so small, they couldn't have gotten far."

Ninjini turned towards Crusher as he clutched his hammer and turned his head from side to side, floated over and ran her fingers across Crusher's shoulders. "Crusher, is something wrong?"

Crusher shuddered a bit, and held his hammer close like a teddy bear as he turned to Ninjini. "Something about this place doesn't feel right," Crusher remarked as he wrung the hammer's handle. "Why did that gate open for us if nobody here is a Life Elemental?"

Ninjini lifted her hand from Crusher's shoulders and frowned. "True, that does feel a little suspicious," Ninjini remarked as she brushed her fingers against the closed gate. "Maybe it just got the wrong paint job?"

Ninjini lifted her hand from the gate, but no reaction came from it. She hummed, planted her hand back on it, but once again it refused to open!

"Looks like this thing has us locked in," Ninjini remarked as she placed her hand on her chest. "If none of us can open it here, why'd it open for us in the first place?"

"Exactly! Something about this place is off," Crusher proclaimed as he gestured to the area ahead, "and besides, this place hardly looks like a Life Element area to begin with! Just look over there!"

Everyone turned their eyes to the path ahead, and immediately met it with concerned frowns and whispers. Crusher was right! The path ahead was many things, but it was everything but lively and natural! The foliage and trees of before replaced itself with a full assortment of elemental décor: pathways made of warm, glowing volcanic rock; statues of gears and crystals; sparkly lavender fog from which fireworks, glowing orbs of yellow light and more leaped out; clouds that swept past the candy-colored skies and poured down torrents of water… Even a stray ghost or two leaped from the hazy mist ahead and giggled as it flew off! Nothing about it was trademark of the Life Element—but in that case, why was it locked behind a Life Element gate?

"Something about this smells fishy," Thumpback remarked as he stood up and wielded his anchor, "and I'm not talking the good kind of fish."

Thumpback pushed past Ninjini and Crusher as his eyes fell back onto the Elemental Gate. He lifted up his anchor, but lowered it as the gate itself warbled and shifted in appearance!

Its vines trapped and obscured themselves in thick, solid blocks of ice as the verdant greens of spring that its disc reflected changed to cold, deep blues reminiscent of ocean waves! The area before it, in turn, wiped clean of foliage under flooding waves of cold, salty water, and the path underneath turned to the grainy sands of a beach. No longer was the opening area that of the Life Element—rather, it donned the energies of the Water Element!

Thumpback winced but forced a smile nonetheless. "Now I'm more in my element!" he cried as he raised his anchor. "I'll have this gate open in no time!"

Thumpback shouted out as he swung his anchor high above his head, then slammed it right into the gate, but it just bounced off like it was a rubber ball! Thumpback gawked, and grunted as the anchor swung right back into him and slammed him right in the face!

Thumpback groaned as he stumbled backwards and fell into Brawl's arms. "But that doesn't make sense!" Thumpback moaned as his anchor fell at his feet. "It’s a Water Element gate, so why didn't it open for me?"

The gate warbled again, and its disc changed hue from its cool ocean blues to a bright, fiery crimson instead! The frozen sides of the gate melted away to reveal hot, pulsing, volcanic rock that heated the area around by several degrees with its very existence, and the melted water turned to steam as it hit the sands, which in turn grew harder and warmer as they shifted to pathways of hot volcanic rock.

Everyone shouted out as the heat seeped into the feet and sent them bouncing on their toes. Well, everyone except Hot Head, who just grinned as he held out his hands.

"A little heat can't beat me!" Hot Head cried as flames sparked and crackled from his open palms. "I'm already on fire!"

FWOOM! Bright columns of flames burst from Hot Head's palms and slammed right into the surface of the gate, but the gate stood tall and warbled once more as they extinguished! Its disc turned to a sky blue while bolts of crackling lightning replaced the molten rock that flanked its sides, and the paths below turned to thick, fluffy, white clouds!

Hot Head grunted as he stumbled back, and his eyes fluttered as everyone else stood up beside him.

"It seems like this thing's element changes with everything we throw at it!" Ninjini remarked as she floated up and tilted her head. "Obviously, just attacking it individually isn't going to break it open" — Ninjini's hands crackled with purple magic as she clasped them into fists — "but maybe a group attack will!"

Ninjini lifted her fists, popped them open and sent purple orbs out from her palms! The orbs expanded in size and sparkled even brighter as they floated in a ring around Ninjini herself, but she didn't send them out to fight. She just turned back to the others, grinned as they raised their own weapons, and turned back to the gate.

"On my word, we shoot!"

The shrill shriek of charging energy echoed around the area as everyone's bodies glowed with bright light, from Bouncer's eyes as they charged with lasers to the coral gauntlets on Thumpback's arms as bright blue light spewed from their open tips! The light filtered out from their bodies as they stepped forward, and Ninjini smirked at the head of the charge.

"NOW!"

The orbs that surrounded Ninjini shot forward as a bright purple light surrounded them, and rockets, spurts of water, flames, crystals, and more burst out and tailed behind them! The combined attack slammed right into the surface of the disc with so much force that rainbow-colored smoke exploded from the surface, and it coated the entire area in a thick smog, so thick that the Elder Elementals all broke into coughing fits. As they fanned away the smoke, the sound of rustling leaves came from around them and the scent of freshly-cut grass filtered through the air! It couldn't be, could it?

Swarm fanned away the last of the smoke with his wings, and as it cleared away everyone's faces fell—for in front of them, the gate switched back to a Life Element Gate and stood strong as before!

"Well, that's definitely not concerning in the slightest," Ninjini sighed as the glow in her hands faded, and her eyes popped wide. "Wait a second, those drow! I almost forgot!" Ninjini turned around, lifted her head, and summoned a wishblade as she pointed it to the skies. "We have to find them before they—"

"Actually, hold that thought, Jeannie!" Swarm cried as he flew backwards and lifted his barb cannons. "I'm getting some really bad vibes from these bushes here!"

Ninjini raised her brow, and her own eyes fell on the bushes as she summoned a second wishblade. The bushes before her rustled and shuddered with fury as a strange, malevolent energy seeped from their leaves in a smog, yet nothing identifying could be make from out the leaves! No tails, claws, or eyes could be seen, no sounds of footsteps or growling, nothing! Whether that was better or worse, nobody was certain…

So, they just warily raised their weapons on the bushes. The bushes’ shuddering grew furious, so furious that the leaves popped right off of the bushes—and something leaped out! Ninjini's wishblades shot from her hands as they sliced the thing to bites, and it fell to the ground as its true identity unveiled. The failed attacker was nothing more than a dark purple and rainbow blob; even though it was segmented, its sliced halves formed into more blobs that plopped down on the ground and slid around with a cheetah's speed!

An amazing amount of malevolent energy radiated from the blobs’ presence as they circled around the Elder Elementals. Eye spun around and shot lasers right down on them, but, all that did was sear the blobs and send smoke from their bodies. They were completely fine otherwise!

"Ugh," Eye groaned as he stopped and sank into Brawl's headless top, "no more, my eye's spinning…"

"Just what are those things?" Brawl signed before he gestured back down to the blobs. "I've never seen anything that small house so much malevolent energy before!"

"I don't know, Brawl Star," Swarm cried as he raised his stingers towards the still-rustling bushes, "but there's more coming in at twelve o'clock!"

Eye and Brawl both whipped around as even more blobs screeched out from the bushes, and Brawl immediately punched them away! The blobs let out pained squeaks as they split apart and collapsed on the ground, but the blobs that circled around the other Elder Elementals slammed right into the fallen blobs and completely ate them up. The combined blobs screeched to a stop, and Ninjini and Bouncer immediately turned their weapons on them—but they didn't even flinch!

The blobs’ surfaces bubbled and expanded as screeches popped out from their popping bubbles, and the rainbow veins that stroke through their dark purple bodies glowed even brighter as they turned emerald in color! Their screeches grew louder, vaguely formed words as two more blobs leaped out from the first, and they all grew even larger as they started to take on some kind of shape. An arm emerged from one side, a leg from the other, but finally, they completely exploded and sent flecks of their gunk flying everywhere as something, no, someone emerged from the interior! Three identical beings, all completely identical to Stealth Elf in shape, but with blank eyes and bodies made entirely of that strange dark purple and green energy burst from the blobs! Twisted Life Element energy exuded from their bodies as the trees around them wilted, and that twisted feeling only exacerbated from the glares they shot the Elder Elementals and the twisted daggers they held in their hands, all of which pulsed with that same sickening glow!

"That elf ninja girl!" Hot Head cried. "But how?"

"They're not her they have to be clones of some kind!" Ninjini reasoned as she summoned a new pair of wishblades. "But, what're they doing here?"

Whatever their purpose was, the Stealth Elf clones didn't feel like elaborating on it. They just raised their daggers and shrieked as they charged towards the Elder Elementals!

"Silent but deadly!" they all cried as one shrieky, twisted voice as they slashed against the Elder Elementals' legs!

The Elder Elementals all cringed as the attacks came in at first, all eyes shut in preparation for their blows, but then, they popped their eyes open and frowned. Though those strange clones slashed, bashed and threw all they could at them, they were far too small to do any substantial damage! Their slices just chipped and grazed against the Elder Elementals' legs with not a single drop of blood or wide cut given!

"Hey, hey, stop that!" Hot Head chuckled as one clone fruitlessly slashed its blades against his legs. "That tickles!"

"Y-yeah!" Swarm guffawed! He knelt down and grinned as he loomed over the clone who tried to slash at him beforehand. "You really think those things are gonna hurt us?"

One particular clone grunted as it smacked its blades against Bouncer's tire in some futile attempt of popping it, yet the tire just wouldn't pop no matter how hard it tried! Instead, the back of its blade flew right back into its face and beaned it between the eyes. The other two clones flipped back and flattened their ears as the third clone stumbled backwards and groaned. Their eyes narrowed as all three of them glared down the Elder Elementals, and they all shouted out squeaky, angry cries!

"Sorry 'bout that, elfies!" Swarm remarked as he shrugged his shoulders. "We're just a little too big for you, it seems!"

Swarm grinned as he leaned forward and prepared to stomp, but lowered his foot as the clones bubbled and shifted back into shapeless blobs! Their veins of green magic glowed even brighter as limbs popped out from the blobs, and once again, flecks of their strange sustenance splattered everywhere as bazookas leaped out from their tops! The bazookas landed onto the clones' shoulders as their transformation ceased, and they emerged not as Stealth Elf, but as creatures that resembled thick bamboo stalks with limbs and those same blank eyes!

"Locked and loaded!" the clones all cackled in a slightly deeper but still twisted voice as they fixed their bazookas on the Elder Elementals!

Swarm crossed his arms and rolled his eyes. "I already told you, you're way too small to face us!" Swarm scoffed as he waved his hand around. "Whaddya think those are gonna do? Sting us?"

The clones growled, pulled the triggers, and fired out a storm of mortars from their bazookas that exploded just before they hit the air. Thick green clouds of smoky spores formed around the Elder Elementals, and they all fell to their knees as they hacked and coughed! The fog was so thick that they couldn't even see a thing, but it cleared up soon as the spores exploded and sent flames bursting everywhere!

Swarm fell on his side as the spores exploded, and hacked again as he pushed himself up. "Yeah, spoke too soon!" A snarl crossed his face, and Swarm jumped back to his feet with a thud as he splayed out his wings. "But lucky for me, I've got just the thing to blow you away!"

Swarm's wings buzzed as they flapped at speeds so fast they were complete blurs, and from them emerged fast, tough breezes that completely blew the clouds away. Only tiny puffs of green spore clouds remained as the fog completely disappeared, and even those vanished as the terrain shifted back to the aesthetics of the Air Element!

Clouds formed underneath the clones' feet and swept them off their balance as nimbus clouds shot out from Swarm's wings. The nimbus clouds hurtled towards the clones, all amplified by the increased Air Element energy—but while the clouds wrapped tight around two of them, one clone just launched a mortar and shot it right towards Swarm!

It moved at so fast a speed that it pierced right through Swarm's winds, and slammed him right in the chest. Swarm grunted as he slammed right into the gate behind him, and the whole world shuddered as the heat in the area raised! Swarm's eyes popped wide as his body turned to a burning reddish tinge, yowled and leaped right in the air as flames burst from his chest. His wings kept him straddled in place as he blew off his burning body, and the other Elder Elementals quickly joined him as they leaped in the air and bounced around the floors while the ground glowed with heat!

Underneath them, the gate behind became scorching hot as it shifted to the Fire Element's energies, and the floor hardened and turned back to molten lava in tandem with it.

The clouds that kept the other clones captive completely vanished, and dropped them on the ground! The clones chuckled to each other as they reveled in the heat of the area, but their eyes popped as they fell on a string of small volcanoes that emerged from the molten hot ground. Their grins grew wider as they loaded their bazookas and fixed them on the volcanoes; their mortars shot out with a pull of the trigger and landed right into the volcanoes' mouth. The volcanoes shuddered and bubbled as explosions rang out from their insides, and spewed out hot fire and rock as they blew to bits! The flames blew bits of the floor wide open and sent molten magma spewing everywhere, and the heat became so high that the whole area dyed in a red tint!

A particularly large molten rock crashed down from the skies above, and hurtled right towards Thumpback, who gasped and blew it back with a stream of water from his blowhole! The blowhole blast was at least able to cool the flames that surrounded the rock, but the sheer amount of heat evaporated it before it could blow the rock itself back! Thumpback grunted as the rock smashed into his head and knocked him down, and Hot Head collapsed right beside him with a gasp.

"Thumpback!" Hot Head cried as he shook Thumpback's arm. "Speak to me!"

"Urgh, too hot," Thumpback groaned as he flopped on his side. "Completely… Beached…"

Hot Head winced, and scratched his neck as tiny pebbles burst from his forehead and rained down on the ground. "You're telling me! I'm made of lava, and even this place is too hot for me!"

Hot Head's eyes turned back on the gate, flung out his hand and shot a blast of fire right towards the gate.

"I'd better cool it a little!"

The flames slammed right into the surface of the gate, and it rang like a bell as it shifted with the terrain around. Cool, rushing water poured in as the molten lava floors changed to cool sand, and steam floated into the skies as the temperature cooled around them!

The Elder Elementals all panted as they landed in shallow pools of water, and they breathed a sigh of relief as the heat finally vanished. Crusher and Swarm lifted Thumpback from the waves, and everyone flinched and turned away as Thumpback shook the water from his head.

"Much better," Thumpback remarked as he stretched his arms to the sky. "Cool waves like these are just what I need! In fact, it feels just like all those days I had fishing out at sea!" Thumpback smiled as his arms fell to his sides, and clasped them together as he took a breath. "The smell of salt water tickling my nose, the cool breezes against my face, the gentle caw of seagulls flying in the skies…"

SWOOSH! A bright blue glow came from ahead, and the sound of fierce, rushing water made the entire path quake and shudder underneath its wrath!

Bouncer perked his head up, turned back and winced. "Would gigantic tidal waves happen to be a part of that, too?"

Thumpback hummed and scratched his chin. "Not normally. The seas were usually as tranquil as a sleeping seal. But you know, there was this one time, when I—"

"Forget the fish tales, Thumper!" Swarm cried as he pushed Thumpback around and jabbed a finger at the path ahead. "The tide's coming in!"

Thumpback blinked and rubbed his eyes, drew back and gasped as bubbly, warbling cackles hit the air!

Right ahead, a tidal wave as tall as an entire tower, and well past the Elder Elementals in its total height, rolled in fast, and at its top were none other than the clones! Their emerald veins changed to a sapphire color as their forms shifted into that of a water dragon bearing a harness with tanks atop its back, and they all cackled as their waves crashed forward.

"Oh no you don't!" Bouncer cried as he pulled back his arms with a click. "You're not washing us up anytime soon!"

"Agreed!" Thumpback cried as he yanked up his anchor and spun it like a lasso. "In fact, I'd say it's time this wave crashed!"

Bouncer screamed and wheeled back, sand and water kicking up and splashing around him as he fired off his fists. The two fists slammed right through the wave, and created two large gaps in its waves, gaps that were only made larger by a slash of Thumpback's anchor. The sheer massive gap disrupted the wave until it completely fell apart! The water all crashed down, and the clones skittered in midair before they smashed right into the ground and splattered! Their essence splattered into a mass of shiny, colorful spheres that scattered around like grains in the drenched sands, still radiant with their malevolent energy but stagnant for the time being. They shuddered as Ninjini loomed over them and snarled, yet they remained perfectly stagnant still.

"Now, let's finish this," Ninjini said as she lifted up glowing purple hands. "A purification spell ought to do the trick."

Ninjini closed her eyes and hummed as the lights around her hands glowed brighter, brighter, brightest, and she shot lasers right into the sands with a flick of her wrists. Before they struck, the spheres all scattered from the sight of her blast! It dug into the sands, and created a small hole as the spheres flew around Ninjini, who only gasped as they floated around her!

"Now what?" Ninjini cried as she drew her wishblades!

The spheres all cackled as they swirled around Ninjini, and their cackles grew deeper and more warped as they amassed into each other. That dark purple, gooey shell coated around them, and split into a trio once more as bright red veins of magic seared through them like the cracks in an eggshell! The trio of eggs cracked and splintered as their lights grew brighter. The eggs exploded, and the clones popped out out from them as some cross of a dragon and a phoenix! Their bright white eyes filled with flames while their dark purple bodies pulsed with flaming hot energy from their bright red veins, and they all cackled and stuck their tongues out at Ninjini before they zipped right off!

"Hey, get back here!" Ninjini cried as she sped after the clones.

She floated forward still, but gasped and jumped back as a large purple block dislodged itself from the ground and shot up just inches away from her! As the block disappeared into the heavens, never to be seen again, Ninjini winced and turned back to the beginning while cries of shock came from behind.

The terrain around her shifted to sparkly, purple stone pathways imbued with ancient power while the skies were dyed in a sparkly pinkish-purple hue, and mist from their clouds strung about the ground. More than that, the power of the Magic Element rang strong and true in the clear air. Despite being in her element, Ninjini just grimaced as the ground quaked below her! She gasped and jumped away as another block disappeared before her, and all the ones around her leaped off in a square sequence until the only one left was the one Ninjini herself stood on! She jumped off the block just before it fell into the deep blue below, floated up and zipped off as the ground around her crumbled and shot away. Ninjini frowned as she turned away, and her frown grew deeper as the other Elder Elementals zipped after her!

"Hurry!" she cried. "This whole place is falling apart at the seams!"

"No kidding!" Bouncer cried back as he zipped past a block that nearly smacked him in the chest. "I don't know who put this place together, but they could really use some design lessons!"

Bouncer grunted as he ducked underneath another block while the ground below him zipped and crumbled away, all while he grew closer and closer to Ninjini. Just before he could make the final stretched, the ground between them completely crumbled away! He and Ninjini stretched out their hands as far as they could reach, but only their fingers brushed against each other before Bouncer and the rest of the Elder Elementals collapsed into the blue depths of the world below! Swarm and Eye were quick to zip up and land on the ground as it finally stabilized, but everyone else fell further down by the second!

Ninjini grimaced and clutched the side of the broken path even tighter, so tight that the fractured stone remains dug into her palms, and small breaths left her lips as her eyes scanned what remained of the area. She had to do something, and fast—but what? Her eyes fell on a group of trees with long vines draped around their branches, and her eyes lit up. Ninjini snapped her fingers, and the vines all snapped right off the tree's branches as they dove down into the depths! A faint snap and bounce rang as the vines strained and frayed, but Ninjini just gripped them tight with glowing hands as they grew thinner and thinner. The glow from her hands seeped into the vines, and they puffed up and swung across the skies, all while the screams of her fellow Elder Elementals pierced the airs and shook the clouds!

Ninjini clapped her hands, and the vines immediately snapped right back and pulled the other Elder Elementals onto the stabilized bridge! The vines unraveled as they came in for their crash landing, and while the Elder Elementals seemed awfully dizzy going by their groans and their shaking limbs, they were alive!

Swarm chuckled as he lifted Bouncer and Crusher back to their feet, and Eye beamed as he popped right atop Brawl's head. Thumpback and Hot Head collected themselves soon afterwards, and with everyone back on their feet, Ninjini turned her eyes back down to the ground.

"Looks like those clones thought they got away," Ninjini remarked, and sniffed as smoke wafted over her nose. She peered down as a smirk crossed her lips. "But, what they didn't know is that they left a trail!"

Everyone's eyes fell down to where Ninjini's rested, and smiles crossed their own faces as the burning flames that streaked across the floor came into view! Also around them were more footsteps, and faint trails of dirt left singed from the flames. Wait, footsteps—just like the ones those drow guards left behind when they fled!

"As long as we follow the flames, we should be able to track them down," Ninjini remarked, "and hopefully, maybe find a way towards where those drow went on the way!"

Ninjini floated off the ground, zipped down the trail of flames as everyone raced after her, and she couldn't help but spin in the air as the gentle warmth of firelight brushed against her face. She hummed a tune to herself, eyes shut as she basked in the flames' warmth, but the sound of rushing leaves popped her eyes back open once again. Ninjini gasped as a gigantic tree shot up right before her eyes! She corkscrewed out of its way just before she could smack into it, but as she pulled herself up, something zipped right past her and nearly knocked her right off course!

She just barely stopped herself from crashing right into a second tree as a big yellow and brown blur zipped right past her. It tore a second tree right in half as it crashed through it, and behind it, Bouncer veered away just before the cleaved top of the tree smashed right into him!

"Swarm!" Bouncer cried as he hopped over a branch and sped ahead. "Watch where you're speeding over there!"

Another song of rustling leaves came from nowhere, and Bouncer gasped as a string of trees popped up before him in rampant succession! He swerved past one, only for yet another to crop up before him, and he zig-zagged through the entire field before he knew it! Behind him, Hot Head, Eye-Brawl and Thumpback panted as they bolted forward, and Eye jumped off of Brawl's head just before a branch slammed right into him!

Hot Head grunted as he slid underneath one particular branch on a slick of oil, turned his gaze back to the front, and screamed as another tree popped up right before his eyes! Unable to speed down or swerve, Hot Head smashed right into it and grunted as he spat chipped bark out, but the sound of more rustling proved he wasn't done yet. An entire row of trees shot up right before him, and he only screamed as he flung his hands in front of the trees and spewed out bright orange flames that burnt the trees to a crisp! Hot Head turned around and grinned as their ashy remains crumbled before him, but the sound of rushing, roaring waves shook the smile right from his face. He turned around, screamed and skated away as a massive wave crashed in!

"Here comes the wave!" bellowed a deep voice!

At the head of the wave, Thumpback just grinned as he surfed its top on a surfboard of coral! The wave bubbled and wavered and it slunk down to Hot Head's side, and with a stomp from Thumpback, another coral surfboard popped out from the wave and slid underneath Hot Head's feet! Hot Head sputtered and stumbled in place as the surfboard below him slid up to the top of the wave, but the moment he grinned and stabilized himself he laid eyes on Thumpback. Thumpback smirked back, stomped his foot a couple more times, and sent even more coral surfboards down to the ground!

The boards swept down, returned with Bouncer, Swarm, Crusher, Ninjini, and Eye-Brawl in a matter of seconds, and with good timing, too. The wave raged even faster than before, and everything below swept up in its wake! The trees and stones from below got uprooted and washed away in the wave's waters, and the ground below was completely obscured by a deep blue yonder. It was nothing but water from here on out!

So, they all just stuck tight to their boards as the wave pushed forward, crashed down and dropped them back on the ground! A shallow pool formed by their feet as the water slowly drained out, and left the surroundings shiny and drenched. Uprooted trees, displaced statues and stones and more scattered around in a haphazard mishmash! Yet, with everything around them now made of stark white stone with no decorations added whatsoever, the mess added a bit of charm to the place.

"Somehow, I doubt those things could have survived that," Ninjini remarked as she floated off. "Let's see if we can find an exit."

The air turned warm and the scent of distant smoke filtered right through the air. Ninjini paused as its flames crackled, shook her head and drew forward—but another deep cackle and a whoosh stopped her in her tracks! The scent of smoke and fire grew more pungent and overwhelming as something dashed past her, and Ninjini instinctively summoned her orbs as she changed her gaze to her side. Yet, there was nothing before her but a trail of flames!

Another cackle sounded out, and Bouncer raised his fists while Crusher wrung his hammer! Flames burst and popped all over the area as the other raised their own weapons. The sounds of shouting, cackling, and burning flames crackled in the air and swirled around them at a dizzying rate, all so fast that nobody could really tell where they came from! Every cackle came from a different angle than the last, every flame popped out at a different source—just where did they come from?

A powerful gust of wind blew past Ninjini, and she snarled as she held out her hands. Her eyes fixed on a pile of displaced trees, the leaves of which rustled as embers popped out from their gaps, and she clasped her hands tight. She went to fire, but instead, she shouted out as one of those phoenix-dragon clones leaped right for her and shot a column of flames! Ninjini immediately thrust her hands forward and sent her orbs right through the flames, their shiny purple surface not tainted by the fires at all as they hurtled right for the clone!

The clone cackled as it zipped right off. Its other two companions teleported behind it in bursts of fire and joined in its laughter, but squawked as the orbs slammed them from the back and tore holes through their chests!

"Homing orbs, never once have they failed me," Ninjini smirked as the clones collapsed by her feet and exploded into spheres.

The spheres laid dormant at Ninjini's mist trail, but quickly shuddered and leaped back into the air! Their bodies expanded like balloons as a rainbow glow radiated from them; they all swirled together and let out a demonic caw as they reformed and transformed back into their phoenix-dragon forms. Yet, now they were almost the size of the Elder Elementals themselves, and a new power radiated off of their bodies! The clones all cawed and screeched as they zipped right for Ninjini, who only summoned her wishblades and prepared to strike, but gasped as they bubbled and transformed right before her eyes!

One morphed into a skeletal knight bearing a sword and shield as it struck for Ninjini, yet she immediately countered its blow and tossed it onto the ground! The clone jumped back to its feet as Bouncer and Swarm rushed behind Ninjini, but she just brandished her swords and snarled.

"You just don't know when to give up, do you?" Ninjini cried as she pointed her wishblades at the skeleton knight.

The knight remained silent; its only reaction was to draw its sword and point it back at Ninjini's blades! Beside it, screeches sounded off as its friends morphed into the forms of an elven archer, and what appeared to be a clone identical to Eruptor, as they chased after the other Elder Elementals. The knight turned its eyes back to a shocked Ninjini, Bouncer and Swarm; while they gazed away, the knight scoffed and plunged its sword into the ground!

"Slice and dice!" it cried as it yanked its sword out!

The ground ruptured and shuddered as a massive wave of bony brambles decked in thorns tore through the stone, and screeched right towards Ninjini and Bouncer, but the two of them turned around and snarled! Bouncer held out his palms and shot off a fleet of rockets that completely shattered the brambles just before they struck, and Ninjini's wishblades diced them into tiny bits and flew back into Ninjini's hands as their shattered remains floated in the air! Bouncer and Ninjini both turned and smirked at each other when a cry from below caught their attention.

Behind them, a fraction of brambles slunk back while Swarm fell to his knees and hacked, one arm crossed over his chest as he covered a bloody gash on his chest. Scratches covered his arms and legs, and holes spotted his wings! Pained coughs came from him, and both his hands planted on the ground in some strained attempt to keep his trembling body from collapsing, oblivious to how the brambles loomed further and further over him. The brambles fused and twisted together as they formed into a bony spear, and an aura of death crossed them as they struck down and aimed for Swarm's back!

Ninjini gasped, teleported forward, and sent a gigantic magic beam shooting right for the spear as she appeared in front of Swarm! The brambles evaporated to dust as the laser caught them in its heat and blew away, but Ninjini completely ignored it as she lifted Swarm onto her shoulder and pressed a hand to his chest. Swarm hacked again as he tried to pull away from her grip, a look of defiance in his eyes, but another sting of pain sent him crumpling again.

"Easy there, Swarm," Ninjini whispered as she rubbed a glowing hand over his chest. "You're not going anywhere all banged up like that."

The light from Ninjini's hand spread across Swarm's body, and its glow faded as the wounds around his body cleaned themselves and sealed away! His injuries faded as if they were never there to begin with, and Swarm's hacking came to a cease as he finally swept away from Ninjini's grip and grinned.

"Thanks, Jeannie!" Swarm shouted as he grinned back at Ninjini. Swarm glared down the knight that still glared him and Ninjini down, and he cracked his knuckles as a furious buzz came from his wings. "Time I showed that creepy clone that when you mess with a bee" — Swarm let go of his fists, narrowed his eyes as he shot out his hands and flew forward — "YOU GET STUNG!"

Swarm thrust his hands forwards as a massive array of stinger blades shot from his arms and right for the knight. The extra air added to their speed; it sent them to the knight in minutes, and the knight only gasped as it flung its shield in front of its body. The shield glowed and grew in size until it completely dwarfed the knight and shielded it from view, and the stingers just harmlessly stuck into its surface. The knight heaved up the shield and cast the stingers aside, and its shield shrank back to its normal size as the knight raised its sword and charged right for Swarm. The sword grew massive as it leaped for Swarm and sliced, but Swarm just flew right out of its way!

Swarm smirked as the knight crashed back down on the ground, crossed his arms and scoffed. "You'll have to be faster than that if you wanna catch me!" Swarm cried.

His eyes fell down to the battlefield, and then to a giant tombstone that Thumpback's wave washed up as Swarm smirked. Swarm flitted down to the tombstone, lifted it from the ground with a grunt, and strained as he smacked it right on the knight! The knight gasped as it lifted its own shield, and tried to push back against the tombstone with all its might. Its shield increased in size with every push, but despite everything, it wasn't as mighty as the tombstone! Its sheer weight finally overwhelmed the knight and smashed it flat like a pancake! Its spheres seeped out from underneath the tombstone as Swarm wiped his hands and whistled, yet Swarm cried out and ducked as a stream of fire flew overhead.

The flames' embers popped and crackled over Swarm’s head as he lifted it up, and he turned around to where Hot Head and the Eruptor clone engaged in a heated battle—literally!

The two of them cast flames and magma at each other from their burning palms, and around them, volcanoes exploded out from the ground as they sent lava and magma raining around everywhere! Behind Hot Head, Thumpback and Eye-Brawl ducked as chunks of magmatic rock crashed into the ground and spewed magma everywhere! Hot Head remained completely oblivious, for his eyes fixed on shooting flames at the Eruptor clone as it continually blocked its blows with its own magma blobs.

A geyser of water shot out from Thumpback's blowhole and rained down on the arena, but Thumpback only crossed his arms and sighed as the rain drenched the flames that surrounded him and Eye-Brawl.

"Eye don't know about you, but I say it's getting a little too hot in here!" Eye cried as he wiped his face with his wing. "My eye can barely take it!"

"Oh, it's not just you! All this heat is making everyone a little too hot headed," Thumpback replied as he narrowed his eyes and set them on the Eruptor clone. "Especially that clone over that! I'd say it needs to cool down a little!"

Thumpback clapped his hands, and not only did a massive rain spew from his blowhole, but from the coral gauntlets on his arms as well! The whole area soaked in a thick shower, and the cold stone territory shifted in response! The stone grounds below softened as they transformed into sand, and pools of water formed around everyone's feet as the whole area chilled a couple degrees. The rain shower came to a cease, and a new, cool energy poured through the room: the energy of the Water Element!

Steam burst from the Eruptor clone's body as it screeched and stumbled backwards in the pools of water that straddled its lower half. It frantically stomped its feet while volcanoes emerged from the waters! The volcanoes hissed as hot steam spewed out their cracked mouths; they coated the area in a thick mist, and all was completely obscured for a moment!

Thumpback and Hot Head both cried out. They swerved their heads around as they tried to make some sense of the world beyond the mist, but just then, a massive gust blew all the steam away! At the center of it all was Eye, who popped off of Brawl, and flapped his wings as furiously as he could alongside a whole troop of smaller flying eyeballs.

"Keep blowing all this smog away, my little brothers!" Eye cried as he flew out from the group. "I'll try and gun down that" — Eye whipped back around and gasped — "—clone?"

Eye swung back and forth, but the clone was absolutely nowhere to be found. However, one of those underwater volcanoes it erected looked awfully stuffed as it pumped up and down. The volcano shuddered as a low growl came from it, and Eye snarled as a bright silver laser formed at his pupil, its light stagnant but bright as the volcano pulsed and shuddered even further. Thumpback and Hot Head crept up behind Eye, and finally, a loud cry came out as the volcano erupted and the Eruptor clone leaped right from its bellows! The Eruptor clone cackled and puffed out its chest as it floated in the air, but screamed as a massive silver laser shot it right in the chest and tossed it back. A burst of fire shot the clone back even further as it flew back through the air, and an anchor shot forward and sliced it clean in half!

As the Eruptor clone burst into a shower of glowing spheres, a rain of flaming arrows shot forward and pierced the spheres right before they could hit the ground! The spheres went flying away as that elven archer clone dashed away. Flames burst from its footsteps, flames that quickly extinguished as Crusher chased after it!

"Hey, get back here!" Crusher cried as he swung his hammer towards the archer, only for it to sweep underneath his blow and dash off!

Crusher grimaced as he stopped in front of a part of the ground where holes bored into its remaining stone, right as the elven archer dove into one hole and popped out the other! The archer stuck its tongue out and wiggled its fingers at Crusher, who snarled and went to splatter it with its hammer. Just before he could crush it, it disappeared back into the hole and popped out another one. Crusher heaved up his hammer and went to smash it again, yet it disappeared once more and popped out another! Crusher grimaced and stepped back as the archer continually popped in and out of all the holes, and squeezed his hammer's grip even tighter.

"Just my luck, getting the fast one," Crusher grumbled as his eyes glowed brighter. "Let's see how fast you are when you're stone!"

Crusher growled as a bright green laser shone down from his eyes and seared into the holes! The already hard-as-stone exteriors turned gray and rock-solid as the laser burned against them.

The elven archer just peered out and tilted its head as it examined the frozen holes, and the laser shot right into it. It screamed as it turned to a stone-still statue! Now frozen still, all it took was one swing of Crusher's hammer to smash it to bits! The petrification wore off as the elven archer exploded into a mass of glowing spheres.

Once again, the Elder Elementals gathered together as their eyes fell on the battlefield littered with tiny glowing lights. The lights all shuddered as they swirled together and formed one big rainbow hurricane, but Ninjini slid forward and held out her hands as they started to craft a solid form!

"Oh no you don't!" Ninjini cried as she zapped the hurricane with a bolt of purple magic. "You've caused us enough trouble for one day!"

A bright purple flash came from the hurricane's form, and as it faded, it unveiled a lavender bubble with the formless spheres still trapped inside! They laid idle as Ninjini floated up to the bubble and rubbed a hand against it. A bright purple light flooded the bubble for moments, but nothing changed as it faded! The spheres still laid there still as ever, much to Ninjini's shock as she drew back.

"Strange, that's the strongest purification spell I know! How could it have failed?" Ninjini asked. She hummed as her eyes fell on the spheres' bright rainbow glow, and placed a chin on her hand. "Perhaps something's powering them enough to resist it?"

Bouncer frowned as he wheeled out from behind Ninjini, and he gently nudged Ninjini's back.

"Something like that machine over there?" Bouncer suggested.

Ninjini frowned as she pulled herself away from the bubble, and her eyes fell on a strange tube lodged into the ground in the distance. A mighty whir like an engine using every bit of power it held in its grasp sounded over the horizon, and its call drew Ninjini, Bouncer and Swarm in to its area. The three of them leaned down to examine to tube, and frowns fell on all faces—at a close up view, this tube seemed pretty run down!

Its metal was rusted and broken in several different places, and others were "repaired" with alloys that barely held up against its grip, judging by the rumbles and sparks that came from them as they clattered and shook. The glass panel that made up its front was almost completely shattered, save for a few bits that unveiled loose wires and sparking machinery inside! The only thing that seemed relatively stable was a stainless steel panel off to the machine's side, which was completely intact aside from a layer of glitter dust that covered it.

Ninjini wiped off the panel, and raised a brow as she glazed over its lettering. With a snap of her fingers, the letters shifted in appearance and she leaned in closer.

"'Evil clone generating machine of doom, property of Castle Blackthorne,'" Ninjini read. "Yep, seems like this is the ticket!"

Ninjini magically lifted the tube off, tossed it right in the air, and sent a trio of magic orbs right after it! The magic orbs joined with a trio of rockets and a fleet of stinging blades, all of which stabbed right through the machine and blew it to bits! Smoke and fire burst from the machine's parts as it crashed back down to the ground in pieces, and it exploded in a burst of warm fire! Ninjini, Bouncer and Swarm all smirked at each other, but turned around as a popping sound caught their ears!

Across from them, the bubble popped wide open and the spheres fell back down. As they did, the spheres grew much smaller. Their glow faded until they were little more than minuscule specks that disappeared in the blink of an eye!

A whoosh came from up ahead, and everyone turned around and grinned as a warp manifested on the ground below!

One by one, they hopped on and whisked off in flashes of light, and when they reappeared, they found themselves at the back of a massive coliseum lined with flags and banners at every angle! Cheering crowds and triumphant music echoed from within the coliseum's windows while the faint smells of blood and popcorn wafted out. It all seemed so imposing and powerful, and if its other aesthetics didn't sell in that feeling, the gigantic pillars with crowns atop their tops, and banners with "King's Arena" written on them served to hammer it in!

"Here's the place!" Ninjini cried as she floated ahead, her head swerving from side to side. "It seems like those drow are nowhere to be found. We'd best get Ermit and get out of here."

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!"

Everyone jolted and froze in their places as the leaves rustled around them. Out from the bushes and leaves that surrounded the arena rolled hundreds of drow soldiers clad in armor! Not just from there, either. The drow leaped out from underneath statues and out of houses, parachuted down from the skies, and tossed off disguises that resembled flagpoles and potted plants as they completely surrounded the Elder Elementals and turned their weapons on them. The Elder Elementals all winced and backed away from the masses of spears, cannons, swords, and more aimed right at their bodies, but a chorus of snide cackles lifted their heads.

"Well, well, I knew salvaging that banged-up castle when it crashed down would be worth it! Looks like those weird minions gave me just the diversion I needed!" remarked a voice as none other than one of the very drow guards who pursed them to begin with stepped out from the crowds. "Now, we've finally caught you intruders!"