X2.1.3 – Calyxx Town

Roa fell to his knees. His heart was running like a train. He was the one who had erased—everything? His past, his memories, his—life?

C-Saw let out a giggle. "Sorry. Everything seems funnier and less serious as a kid. My bad. That was—really uncalled for," she said, forcing her smile to disappear.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, Flower Boy. Afterall, you probably thought you were going to your own death, anyway. Might as well have pulled the trigger first—and keep them from learning what you knew. If the Lord could have gotten to the Dreamer with that information, who knows what horrible wish he could have made," Nirvana placed her hand on his little shoulder.

Roa then remembered Lord Smog's words. "The Gate we defeated—he said the Patriarch already knows the way to the Core, though. This doesn't make sense. What gives? Shouldn't he have already made the wish by now if he knows where Exit Zero is?"

Nirvana shrugged her shoulders. "Beats me. For all we know, we're already living inside the results of that wish. The Patriarch probably put the remaining pieces in your mind together, torturing you for decades—centuries, as he probably did with the Ambrosians he managed to find. Why he didn't kill you after he got the directions though—I have no idea. It doesn't make sense to me either, honestly."

The boy stood silent, lost in thought.

"No—something is up. After I was caught, he killed all of the Ambrosians—so that no one else would know the way. Then, he closed the Exits and placed the Gates at the chokepoints of the Palace—so that nobody could make their way up to the top. Right?"

"Right."

"And no other considerable change happened after that, correct?" asked the Sunflower.

"Correct. The Palace has been blocked for centuries now. No one has managed to go up, or down past the Gates. The status quo has been kept—well, Default World has expanded considerably, eating up everything in its path and literally destroying the balance of Nature in the process, but yeah—other than the Great Death killing everything, it has been the same ever since."

The Earthling's eyes narrowed. "He didn't make the wish yet."

"Why not?" asked Rosso, butting into the conversation.

"I don't know. But I don't think he made the wish, which means—he can't. Something is stopping him from doing so," Roa explained.

"Anyways, we got bigger fish to fry right now," said Nirvana.

"Bigger fish than the Lord of the Worlds trying to have the most supreme being in Existence grant a wish so powerful—that it could alter reality itself?" asked Shiro, towering behind everyone.

"Yeah—I'm hungry and I gotta eat," said Gunhand Nirvana walking out of the room. "I want some fried fish."

"Yay!" C-Saw ran behind her and out of the room.

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They made their way through a busy city filled with shops and restaurants. Nirvana morphed into the old lady from the diner and Shiro transformed into a regular Human.

"Can't be too careful. Here, put this on," Shiro threw a trench coat on Roa. "The Shadows are several floors down at the chokepoint doing who-knows-what-now. But they'll make their way up here soon enough. Might as well get a bite before Calyxx Town turns really crazy."

"This coat is adult-sized," the little boy said, dragging half of it on the ground.

"Shouldn't have turned yourself into a literal child then," Nirvana said without looking back at them. "Here. Let's get some ramen. I know the guy here. He's one of us."

They sat at the counter that faced right on the street. Everyone ordered meat ramen except the rabbit-man who ordered one with carrots.

"Where are we?" asked Rosso.

"Calyxx Town, part of Grand Market, the cluster of floors of the Palace on top of the Flooded Basements," explained Shiro as he sat down. "Grand Market is the center of commerce in the Palace. Or at least, it used to be before the Gates showed up. It's a chaotic mess of shops, stalls, bars, restaurants, as far as the eye can see. If you want to find something to buy, or eat, or try, chances are that Grand Market has it."

"Hey, any idea what my tattoos are all about?" the boy asked, changing the subject. "My body's covered in them."

The pink-haired Jumper turned to him with an eyebrow raised.

"You don't have any tattoos," she said, staring at his arms.

"I do, but they only come out when my aura hits a certain level. Like when I'm going all out in a fight."

"No idea, man—kid, I mean. You've done plenty of dumb things in the past, even if you don't remember them anymore. I'm sure that's just one more to add to your long list," Nirvana said as she went back to slurping her food.

The Jumpers didn't speak for some time as they enjoyed their food. Behind them, a crowd of strange characters filled the streets. The locals of that place were just as odd as those in the Flooded Basements of the Palace. Roa turned around, letting out a long, satisfied sigh after emptying his bowl as he did some people watching.

"Look, a woman with two heads," he whispered with a smirk.

"Don't point at people," Shiro said.

"And a horse that can talk. And he's got an apron on—although, how could he possibly do anything with hooves?" said Rosso, as he also turned around.

"You guys haven't seen much of the Palace, have you? Or many other worlds, huh?" C-Saw giggled. "This is nothing. Strange doesn't even begin to describe what's out there."

"Oh, yeah? What's the strangest place you've seen?" asked Rosso.

C-Saw thought about it for a moment. "Oh, definitely Meat World. Oh, that place is horrible with a capital 'H.' I wouldn't wish it upon the worst people."

"How come?" said the kid from Lalh-Ah Land. "The deserts where I'm from are pretty terrible. How could that place be worse than an endless, dead waste?"

"Oh, trust me, a desert is a stroll in the park compared. This, instead, is a world where everything is alive—grossly, disgustingly, and dangerously alive. For example, hills? Nope, massive, throbbing organs. Seas made of water? No way—oceans made of blood," C-Saw said with a look of disgust on her face. "And rivers of pus!"

"Ugh!" Rosso stopped sipping on his soup.

"Alright, thank you for all that," Nirvana let out a very loud and long burp that interrupted everyone. "You guys done? You made me lose my appetite," she said, staring at them with a stern look. "We got important things to discuss. Let's ditch this popsicle stand and head somewhere quieter."

"I can't come," interrupted young Vesper. "I—have to care for Mattina. She's too small to be a part of—anything. I'm sorry everyone, but I can't just abandon my granddaughter. I think my adventure ends here."

His students looked at each other.

"Where will you go, teacher? The oasis was burned to the ground, remember?" said Roa, causing Vesper to look down, defeated.

"You can stay with us at HQ. Two more mouths to feed won't be a big deal," offered Nirvana after a long bout of silence.

The martial arts master thanked his new host and headed back.

"I'll see you boys later," he said, disappearing in the crowd.

"It's too bad Vesper's has got to babysit. I bet he's even stronger now that he's young," said Roa.

"Yeah. I wonder if we got stronger too," Rosso said in return.

Nirvana rolled her eyes.

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