A Meerca's Mission

           It’s the big day! After all this time, I can’t believe it’s finally happening for real. To think, last time I wrote here, I hadn’t even met the nice Lupe lady that told me she would help me meet Sloth. And now, we’re about to go on our big, final mission! Diary, next time I write in you, I’ll be Sloth’s new best friend and right-hand man. I can’t wait to see the kind of adventures I’ll be getting up to when that happens! I’m so excited I feel like I’m gonna explode!

      I think I’ll miss the others a little bit once this is all done. Chuychu was super nice to me, Killua and Macer are tough and strong, and Aishtra is really smart. Being around them makes me feel better about myself. If I wasn’t strong and capable, they wouldn’t be keeping me around, right? I hope they’ll want to at least keep in touch. When Sloth takes over Neopia, I’ll make sure he doesn’t do anything bad to them. And at least I’ll have Eliv 2 to hang out with me forever now!

      Well, I gotta go now, Chuychu says it’s time to leave for the ship. Bye Diary!!!!!!

          …

           Matatat was nearly vibrating out of his skin with excitement as the group waited on the deck for Aishtra to finish her final safety check on the ship. Clutching Eliv 2’s hand, he glanced over at Killua and Macer to see if they were just as excited as him. But both of them looked a little bit nervous, much to his surprise.

      “Are you guys ready for this?” Matatat asked them.

      Killua looked up, a bit startled. “Yeah, why do you ask?” He replied defensively.

      “Oh, I dunno, you just look kinda worried. I mean yeah, I’m a little nervous too, but I can’t be too scared when I know that soon I’m gonna have Sloth as my new best friend!” Matatat said with a grin so wide that it looked like it would almost stretch off his face.

      Macer and Killua looked at each other, unable to hide the doubt on their faces. “Yeah, sure. It’ll be great,” Macer said.

      A few moments later, Aishtra stepped off the ship. “Alright, everything is in tip-top shape. Ready or not, here we go.”

      The rest of the group began to board, walking single file as they walked up the stairs and into the ship. At first glance, Matatat could see that the interior was decked out. Not only did the passenger area look comfortable with all of the most high-tech amenities, but the control system was decked out as well, with buttons and levers and panels that he couldn’t even begin to comprehend.

      “Wow, this is so cool! What do all these buttons and things do?” Matatat asked, peering into the pilot’s room.

      “I’d explain them all, but we don’t have all day. You want to go and meet Sloth, don’t you?” Aishtra asked, moving a metal suitcase from the passenger area to near her pilot seat.

      “Oh yeah, you’re right,” Matatat said. “Hey, what’s in the suitcase?”

      Aishtra glanced over at it quickly, an amused smirk crossing her face. “I asked Chuychu for something specific in exchange for my services. She came through.”

      “What is it?”

      Before she could answer, an alarm went off on one of the panels on her suit. “Ah, look at the time! We’re going to have to get going if we want to stick to our schedule. Let’s all get settled in.”

      Matatat, Eliv 2, Macer, and Killua each took their seats, the ship automatically buckling them in before they had the chance to reach for it. A small panel popped up next to the seat with comfort options, like heated seats, massage functions, and even a tiny little TV screen.

      “Oooooh,” Matatat said, clicking through the channels on the TV.

      Aishtra’s voice came over an overhead speaker. “Alright, are you guys ready to fly?” Matatat was the only one to cheer, so there was a small moment of pause before she spoke again. “Okay folks. Counting down. Ten, nine, eight, seven, six…”

      The engines began to roar to life, preparing for liftoff, and the whole ship shook with it. A rush of adrenaline went through Matatat like an electric shock.

      “Five, four, three, two, one, liftoff!”

      With that, the spaceship’s boosters fired up and they began to slowly lift out of the dock and through the opening that had been made in the ceiling for the ship to go through. Matatat gripped the arms of his chair as his skull felt like it was about to shake out of his body. Looking over at the rest of the passengers, he could see that everyone else looked equally as overwhelmed. But once they got further away from the pull of the Space Station, the flight began to feel a lot smoother. The force of their seatbelts kept everyone from floating out of their seats, but there was still a sense of weightlessness that came from flying through open space.

      “Everyone good back there?” Aishtra called back.

      “All still present and accounted for,” Macer responded, looking a little less tense than he did at takeoff.

      “Good. It’ll be a bit, so make yourselves comfortable.”

      It was hard for Matatat to sit still and be comfortable when his excitement was through the roof. With each passing second, he had to resist asking the age old ‘are we there yet?’ question. But he reminded himself that Sloth would reward his patience, and that helped keep him slightly on the calm side throughout the trip.

      Just when he thought he couldn’t take it anymore, Aishtra’s voice came over the speaker. “We’ll be landing on Althrax shortly. Please make sure your seatbelts are buckled and you’re secure in your seat. There’s no designated port so it may be a rough landing.”

      As she had warned, the ship began to shake like it was caught up in a violent earthquake. Were it not for the seatbelts, all of the passengers likely would’ve been tossed around the seating area. Matatat braced himself for some sort of major impact, but eventually the shaking calmed down and the ship made a final ‘clunk’ noise as it settled in on the ground.

      “The captain has turned off the seatbelt sign, you are now free to move about the cabin. Thank you for choosing Air Aishtra,” Aishtra said over the speaker before exiting the pit and coming back into the passenger area.

      “Well that was… something,” Killua said, wiping some sweat from his forehead.

      “Sorry for the stressful landing, we kinda just had to free-land here. I’m sure we got the attention of just about everyone, but we had no other choice,” Aishtra said, leaning up against a wall. “Everybody okay back there?”

      “Dizzy…” Eliv 2 said, holding onto his seat as he tried to stand up.

      “Please don’t throw up stuffing on my ship…” Aishtra said, taking a step back and picking up the suitcase. “Whenever you guys are ready, get your suits on and we can exit. Just make sure you’re prepared for whatever might be out there waiting for us.”

      After getting their bearings, the group all gradually got upright at their own pace. They each took spacesuits from a rack near the door, zipped themselves up, and prepared themselves for a potential battle. Killua and Macer each took out weapons, Eliv 2 kicked up some nonexistent dust from the floor, and Matatat raised his fists cautiously. When he looked over at Aishtra, he found that she had taken her boon from Chuychu out of the briefcase. In her hands was a large laser gun, big enough that she needed both hands to hold it. It was sleek and silver with a yellow stripe down the middle that seemed like it was already starting to crackle with electric energy. Aishtra looked down at the weapon with an eager smile on her face, then up at Matatat.

      “Wow…” He said in awe, trying to keep his jaw from dropping.

      “Just a little insurance that things will go in our favor,” Aishtra said. “Now, on the count of three, I’m going to open the doors. Everyone ready? One, two, three!”

      With that, she slammed a red button to her left and the doors opened to reveal two Grundos with small blasters pointed straight at them. “State your business!” One of them demanded.

      Aishtra lifted the laser gun up so the two could clearly see it. “We’d like you to take us to your commanding officer, please and thank you.”

      Both Grundos shuddered in fear. “Um… uh… for what reason?”

      “We’d just like to have a friendly chat,” Killua said. “And that chat will stay friendly as long as you comply.”

      The Grundos looked at each other as if weighing their options, then finally nodded. “A-alright, fine. Commander Tarvis is in his office,” the Grundo on the right said, stepping aside so the group could exit their ship.

      “We appreciate your cooperation,” Macer said with a smirk.

      As the Grundos turned and began to lead the group to the large dome ahead of them, Matatat sighed in disappointment. “Man, I thought we were gonna see some action right away!”

      “Patience. We’re not out of the woods just yet,” Aishtra told him, her weapon pointed at the back of one of the Grundos in case he decided to pull a fast one.

      After a few minutes of walking, the group approached the dome, coming up to a door on the side of it. One of the Grundos pressed his hand to a scanner next to it, and the door opened immediately.

      “Open sesame,” Killua said softly as they entered the building.

      One of the Grundos turned to the group again, his face slightly twisted up with fear. “S-so, um, Commander Tarvis is this way. He might be busy, I don’t know if-”

      Aishtra cut him off, waving her weapon. “He’ll speak to us.”

      The Grundo immediately turned back and started walking forward again, guiding everyone down a very long hallway. Every now and then they would pass another Grundo or two, and they would receive either a confused or horrified stare. The looks began to set Matatat on edge. Who was this big Commander Tarvis guy? Would he understand the very important mission they were on at all? Was Aishtra really gonna hurt him if he didn’t take them to Sloth?

      They finally arrived at another door, one with a golden name plate that said ‘TARVIS’ in front of it. The two Grundos turned back to the group, anxiously smiling. “So uh, heh, here’s his office. Just go ahead and knock and he’ll let you in. After that, we can’t help you,” one said, before immediately high-tailing it out of there with his coworker.

      “Well that was rather hasty,” Killua commented, looking at the rest of the group. “Something tells me that Mr. Tarvis in there may not be too kind to us, even with Aishtra’s scary laser thing, We might wanna be ready.”

      Matatat’s heart was racing now. For the first time, he actually wondered if maybe he was completely unprepared for whatever was behind the door. Was it going to be another big, scary mutant? An army of Grundos? An army of big, scary mutant Grundos? He slowly raised his fists again, but his hands were shaking this time. “E-Eliv 2, can you knock for me?”

      Eliv 2 nodded and raised his hand, giving the door three loud knocks. There were a few silent minutes after where nothing happened, but then, the door slid open.

      “ENTER,” a voice from inside boomed.

      With weapons, or hands, raised, the group slowly entered, taking every step carefully as if they expected to step on a landmine or stumble into a trap. After a few moments of awkward creeping, a large light flickered on in the center of the room, revealing a baby Grundo sitting in a desk chair.

      “Yes?” The Grundo said, in the same voice that had just spoken moments ago. The vocal dissonance seemed to startle the whole group, as everyone jumped when they heard him speak.

      “You - are you…” Killua trailed off, looking around as if this was some sort of trick.

      “Commander Tarvis. Show some respect,” the Grundo said as he hopped off of his chair and waddled down to the group. “I was warned of your arrival. You have five minutes to state your case before I blow each and every one of you out to Kreludor.”

      “Look, we’re here to -” Aishtra began before being cut off by Macer.

      “I think we should let him tell the story,” he said, gesturing over to Matatat.

      Matatat looked at the group, then right at Eliv 2, and then back to Commander Tarvis. “Um, excuse me, Mr. Commander Tarvis sir, my name is Matatat and I live on the Space Station. I bet you’re a really great guy and all, so I’m sure you’ll understand where I’m coming from…”

      “Four minutes,” Tarvis warned.

      “Um, yeah! So… I’m a huge fan of Dr. Sloth! Like, he’s my favorite person in the whole world! Ever since I was young, I’d always dreamed of becoming his right hand man. I want nothing more! So I thought maybe that if I came all the way here and showed how devoted to him I am, that maybe you’d let me go and meet him! So what do you think?” Matatat said, his eyes wide as he stared at Tarvis.

      “I can already tell this isn’t gonna work,” Killua said under his breath.

      “And why in the galaxy would you think that the Doctor is here in the first place?” Tarvis said, beginning to pace in front of his desk. “And even if he were - big if, why would I confirm that?”

      “We have it on good intel,” Aishtra said with a shrug. “Very good intel. And I think you might want to seriously consider letting Matatat meet the good doctor.” At that, she pulled out her weapon.

      “Are you crazy? He’s probably got a million rays and missiles at his fingertips!” Macer whispered harshly.

      “And I have something more powerful than all of that,” Aishtra replied smugly. “What do you say, Tarvis?”

      The rest of the group braced themselves, as if they were expecting Commander Tarvis to whip out some heavy weaponry of his own. But to their surprise, he was actually starting to shudder. “How… what… where did you get that from?!”

      “I have a very big stake in this mission, so I was bestowed this laser to make sure that it went smoothly. If my calculations about your weaponry are correct, you’re going to have to activate everything you’ve got in the next ten seconds if you want to try and stop me,” Aishtra answered. “So take us to your leader.”

      “He’s not gonna be scared of that little toy of yours, you know. He’s gone toe-to-toe with the Space Faerie and just barely lost by an inch,” Tarvis said, his voice quivering.

      “And I have no intention of using it as long as things stay peaceful. We just want to chat,” Aishtra said, lifting her laser and pointing it at Tarvis. “So are we going to do this the easy way or the hard way?”

      “Alright, fine. We’re gonna have to pack up and move the second you leave anyway,” Tarvis said with a groan. He hopped off of his platform and started walking west as fast as his little legs could carry him. “You’ll have to be patient with me, we have a lot of security measures in place to protect him. I’m one of only three Grundos who are allowed to speak to him in person.”

      The group followed the baby Grundo as he led them down yet another hallway. At each door, there was something Tarvis had to do to get them past it - an eye scanner on one, a fingerprint scanner on another. He even had to swab his mouth for a DNA sample and submit it in a little tube before they could get access to the second to last door. Finally, they reached the biggest, most imposing door of all. The red text box on the door simply read “THE DOCTOR IS IN.” On each side of the door, there were lasers pointed directly at the entrance, so that any intruders would be zapped the second they made a wrong move.

      Commander Tarvis reached out and pressed a small, glowing button below the LED text sign. Instantly, the lasers activated and pointed straight at his head, ready to fire at any time. A speaker next to the door crackled to life with a deep, haunting voice.

      “State your business.”

      “Commander Tarvis, code Oh-Two-One-Three-Four. I have guests for you,” Tarvis said, eyeing the lasers nervously.

      “I wasn’t expecting any guests today.”

      “They’ve insisted. In fact, they’re harmless.” Tarvis looked back at Aishtra, who had stowed her weapon away and was smiling innocently. “Mostly harmless. One of them is claiming to be your biggest fan and he just wants to speak with you.”

      At the mention of his name, Matatat lit up. “Yeah, yeah! Mister Doctor Sloth, I really am your biggest fan. I just wanna talk to you. I think we could be great friends if you just give me one chance. Please? Pretty please?”

      There was a brief moment of silence, then the voice spoke again. “Not interested. Send them away.”

      Tarvis looked back at the group, hoping they would understand the situation, but Aishtra motioned to the weapon strapped to her back. “Um, p-please, Dr. Sloth,” Tarvis pleaded, “I promise this will only take five minutes tops. They came all this way and haven’t hurt anyone yet. We’re going to have to find another planet now that someone has found us anyway, we may as well hear them out.”

      There was another silence that stretched out even longer. “Fine. I’ll just activate my protective systems. Please inform them that if any of them even think about trying anything funny, they’ll be history.”

      “D-Dr. Sloth said-” Tarvis began before being cut off by Macer.

      “Yeah, we heard him,” Macer said before looking over at Killua briefly. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

      “Yeah, I think we should stay out here while you guys do your business. Aishtra, you too,” Killua said.

      But Aishtra shook her head. “Absolutely not. Matatat needs someone strong and someone smart to back him up. Eliv 2 and I will follow him in.”

      “Are you okay with that?” Macer asked Matatat.

      Matatat looked back and forth between Aishtra and Eliv 2, then nodded. “Yeah, I think so. Plus, I bet Eliv 2 wants to meet Sloth too, don’tcha buddy?”

      Eliv 2 nodded with a blank stare on his face. “Meeet Sloooth.”

      “Fine. We’ll keep Commander Tarvis company out here,” Killua said, flashing a dangerous smile at the baby Grundo, who gulped.

      Aishtra faced Matatat, her face deadly serious. “Are you ready for this? I know this is the culmination of all of your life goals, so it’s probably pretty scary. But if you want to turn around now, that’s okay. We can go home safely like this never even happened. Just know that if you go in there, you might not get the results you want.”

      “That’s okay, I believe in myself and I believe in Dr. Sloth. Nothing could possibly go wrong!” Matatat cheered, before nodding up at Tarvis. “I’m ready to go!”

      “Alright Doctor, let them in,” Tarvis said into the speaker.

      Within seconds, the door whooshed open, tickling the fur of those among them that had it. Aishtra took a moment to center her breathing, but when she opened her eyes again, Matatat had already began to march in with Eliv 2 on his heels, so she had to catch up to them quickly.

      Beyond the door was an almost completely dark room with only the outlines of some furniture visible. They could see a ginormous bookshelf, a couch, and a desk, but not much else. The only light was something at least twenty feet away from them, so small that they couldn’t tell what was being lit up. “Umm… hey, could you turn a light on please?” Matatat asked, his voice echoing slightly.

      At that, lights all around the room began to flicker on, nearly blinding the trio with their strong glow. Everyone shielded their eyes for a moment, and when they lowered their arms, they were rewarded with the sight of the man himself standing at the head of the room.

      Dr. Sloth stood a few inches in front of a throne, setting a book down behind him. He began to descend a grand staircase ahead of him, the black cloak that hid his body dragging behind him. “Now, I’m going to need you all to give me one good reason why I shouldn’t turn you into sludge right here, right now.”

      Matatat stepped forward, his hands innocently clasped behind his back. “Um, we’re really sorry to bother you, sir, but I’m your biggest fan. In fact, I’m such a big fan that I’ve been working undercover at the Space Station for you for years! I mean, I haven’t gotten to do much sabotaging or anything yet, but I figured that if I could come and meet you, you’d give me a big important mission or top secret intel!”

      Dr. Sloth stared at Matatat, his expression unreadable. “And why would I do that?”

      For the first time, Matatat’s face fell. “Um, because I’m your biggest fan? And I think we’d be really good friends if you just gave me a chance, and -”

      “Friends?” Sloth barked out a laugh. “I don’t need friends. You’re dismissed.”

      Matatat’s lip began to quiver. “B-but… but…”

      “I don’t need the likes of you working for me. I have plenty of other agents all around Neopia who are devoted servants. If you were actually effective in your little mission, you would’ve done something with some impact by now. You may leave,” Sloth said as he turned around, his cloak whipping along the ground with him.

      “B-but, Dr. Sloth-” Matatat tried to speak again, but was cut off.

      “If you’re actually as good of a servant as you claim, then do what I say and make yourself scarce. Otherwise I’ll see that you’re forcibly escorted out.”

      Then, Aishtra spoke up, beginning to grab her laser. “Alright, I tried to play nice, but playtime is over. I’m going to finish today what the Space Faerie and the rest of Neopia tried to end all those years ago.”

      “Aishtra, what?!” Matatat shouted.

      First, Aishtra fired a crackling lightning blast from her weapon, which Sloth was able to deftly dodge without even a glance back. Then in response, a giant laser lowered from the ceiling and blasted a powerful beam that hit the alien Aisha square in the chest.

      “AISHTRA!” Matatat screamed, rushing to her side.

      “I’d consider that a warning shot, if you even live to tell the tale. Now get out before I mow down the rest of your band of misfits,” Sloth said, still not even facing the trio.

      At that, Matatat’s adrenaline kicked in. “Eliv 2, help me get her out of here!”

      The plushie picked Aishtra’s limp body up and quickly carried her out of Sloth’s lair to where Macer, Killua, and Tarvis were waiting outside. The former two rushed to meet them, helping to support her body.

      “What in Neopia happened?!” Macer said.

      “She tried to pull out that big laser, didn’t she?” Tarvis asked, shaking his head judgmentally. “Tsk tsk. Not a smart move. You’re gonna need to get her out of here quick if she wants even a chance of survival.”

      “But she’s the one that piloted the ship that brought us here, how are we supposed to get her back on the mainland?” Killua asked, trying to check to see if she had a heartbeat.

      “That’s not really my problem, is it?” Tarvis said, beginning to chuckle until he saw Matatat’s crushed face.

      “P-please Mister Commander, please help save my friend!” Matatat said, sniffling as fat tears began to stream down his cheeks.

      Tarvis looked around at the group, let out an irritated huff, then nodded. “Fine. I’ve got a teleporter that can get you from here to the Space Station before you can blink. But if any of our undercover Grundos hear that you’ve said a word about anything that happened here, I’ll personally make sure you regret it. Come with me.”

      The group, with Eliv 2 carrying Aishtra, followed Tarvis out of the long hallway to Sloth’s lair and into a technical lab swarming with Grundos in lab coats.

      “We’ll send her back to the Space Station if you hand over that laser on her back. There’s no way we’re gonna let you waltz out of here with that thing. We’re gonna have to study it,” Tarvis said, extending his hand and wiggling his fingers.

      Killua and Macer looked at each other hesitantly, but Matatat handed the weapon over without a second though. “I don’t care, just help us! Send us back to her room in the Space Station”

      Tarvis and a few other Grundos coaxed the group over to a circular chamber that looked like an open elevator as all the other Grundos gathered around the laser. “Transporting you back in three, two, o-”

      Before anyone could hear the one, the whole group jolted and found themselves right back in Aishtra’s Space Station dorm, where Chuychu was waiting for them.

     “Oh, thank Faerieland you made it back! I was able to telepathically see the whole thing,” Chuychu said before extending her arms out. “Hand her to me. She’s still got a weak heartbeat. It’ll take a lot of magic, but I can fix her up.”

     Eliv 2 passed Aishtra’s weak body to Chuychu, then the rest of the group stepped back as the Lupe mumbled some incantations and waved her paws over the Aisha’s body. It took a few minutes, but slowly, Aishtra’s body began to glow in a white light. Time seemed to stretch on forever as Chuychu continued to summon more and more light, eventually bathing the whole room in a calm glow. Finally, a blinding flash of light eclipsed everyone’s vision before fading away, leaving nothing but the dim fluorescents in the dorm.

     “S-So?” Matatat asked, his big eyes staring up at Chuychu. “Is she going to make it?”

     “She certainly will,” Chuychu said with a calm smile. “She’s lucky that laser beam didn’t hit her a little more to the left. Any closer to her heart and she would’ve been a goner. It’s going to be a long recovery period, but I think Aishtra will be back to her normal self in a few months at most.”

     As Chuychu finished her sentence, Aishtra began to stir, her body rolling slightly on the couch. Matatat immediately rushed to try and catch her fall, but Aishtra was able to stop herself as she sat up and rubbed her eyes.

     “Wh-what happened?” Aishtra asked, her voice soft and hoarse.

     “I think you got blasted in there or something,” Macer answered. “Sounds like you tried to get a shot off at Sloth but he beat you to it. You’re lucky you made it out there alive.”

     “Was that your plan the whole time?” Killua asked. “You really asked Chuychu for a weapon that could beat Sloth and you thought you were gonna be able to march in and take him down?”

     Aishtra sighed and laid back on one of the pillows. “I shouldn’t have fooled myself into thinking it could work. Just because the weapon was capable of beating Sloth doesn’t mean that I’m enough of a sharpshooter to hit him where it hurts.”

     “My apologies for that,” Chuychu said with a pitying smile. “Perhaps I shouldn’t have given it to you in the first place, knowing your intentions. I was curious to how things were going to play out.”

     “Ugh, I can’t believe it didn’t work!” Aishtra said, trying to lift herself back up again but collapsing back onto the couch before she could.

     “You wanted to defeat Sloth?” Matatat asked. “I thought you wanted to help me!”

     “Yeah, I lied. Big surprise, huh?” Aishtra rolled her eyes in annoyance, but her expression quickly softened. “I’m glad he didn’t hurt you though. You’re not the brightest bulb in the box, but you’re not the most dangerous by a mile. I think he knew that.”

     Matatat began to sniffle again. “S-so… he didn’t want to be my friend?”

     “I think you found that out yourself,” Chuychu said, resting a paw on Matatat’s head. “I could’ve told you, but I think that was a lesson that you needed to learn for yourself. But I think I can speak for everyone here when I say that we’re all glad you made it out unharmed.”

     Matatat looked around the room, gazing at each member of the party. “R-really?”

     Killua sighed and offered a wry smile. “Yeah, it wouldn’t have been great if we had to leave you behind.”

     “Yeah, who else would be there to yap our ears off?” Macer added.

     “Matatat friend,” Eliv 2 said simply.

     When he got to Aishtra, she sighed. “Yeah, you’ve got a big heart. No one can deny that. You just needed to learn to be realistic with your expectations, that’s all.”

     Matatat looked down at the floor, awkwardly shifting back and forth. “Maybe you’re right. Maybe I was a fool.”

     “But hey, think about it this way,” Killua said. “You got to meet Dr. Sloth! You actually got to speak to him!”

     “Yeah, I did, didn’t I?” Matatat said, brightening up a bit.

     “So doesn’t that mean your mission was partially accomplished?” Chuychu asked, offering a hopeful smile.

     Matatat took a brief moment to think about it, then nodded. “Yeah, it kinda does. Thanks you guys, I definitely couldn’t have done it all without you.”

     Macer looked over at Chuychu expectantly. “So… is our deal still on?”

     Chuychu nodded with a smirk. “Yes, I suspected you’d ask that quickly. You held up your end of the bargain, so I’ll hold up mine. In a week’s time, you’ll be free to do whatever business you need to do in Neopia. But after that, I won’t be able to help you again, so be careful.”

     “Wait, does this mean you guys are leaving?” Matatat asked.

     Killua and Macer looked at each other, then sighed. “I mean, yeah, we’ve got some other stuff we need to do,” Killua said.

     “But…” Macer paused, as if it was difficult to say. “If you need us, reach out any time. We’ve got your back, and I mean that.”

     “Yay! I have real friends now!” Matatat cheered, pumping his fist in the air.

     “That you do,” Chuychu said before looking back to Killua and Macer. After a nod of affirmation from the pair, Chuychu spirited them away with a twist of her paw.

     “Um, hey, I guess I should ask too… do I get to keep Eliv 2 the way he is?” Matatat asked, looking fondly at the living plushie.

     “I couldn’t bear to take him away from you,” Chuychu replied with a nod. “He’s your friend until the end. Take good care of him.”

     There was a long pause, with only Aishtra’s labored breathing taking up the space. “So what am I supposed to do now?” Matatat asked. “I don’t really have a mission anymore since Sloth didn’t wanna give me one.”

     Chuychu tapped her chin with her paw. “Hmm… well, you do have a friend here that’s going to need a lot of help getting back on her feet. Maybe your mission can be to nurse her back to health.”

     “I-I don’t need a nurse…” Aishtra began to say before letting out a sputtering cough. “...Okay, well maybe I’ll need some help.”

     “See? There’s something for you to do,” Chuychu said before turning her back on the group.

     “Wait, are you leaving?” Matatat asked. “How am I supposed to take care of her without magic?”

     Chuychu nodded. “Sadly, yes. There are many other Neopians who could use my magic to aid them. Why not go down and visit Neopia Central? I heard that there’s a pharmacy there, perhaps they could help you.”

     “V-visit Neopia? How am I supposed to get there with Aishtra not being able to help?” Matatat asked, fidgeting a bit.

     “I have pilot friends,” Aishtra wheezed, trying to sit up again. “If it’s to help me, I think they’ll be willing to take you down to get some medicine. Maybe talk to a Faerie or something.”

     “See? You have the power within you to achieve your goals. You always have. You just didn’t truly understand it yet,” Chuychu said.

     The realization began to dawn on Matatat and he leaned back against the couch. “Huh, I guess you’re right.”

     “Now go find your adventure, Matatat. I’m sure we’ll meet again someday.” And with that, Chuychu vanished in a puff of smoke.

     Before doing anything else, Matatat sat down on the couch next to Aishtra with a long sigh. An adventure with Eliv 2 and Aishtra by his side? Maybe that wouldn’t be too bad. Maybe his new friendships would be the biggest adventure of them all. And now, he couldn’t wait to go on them.

     The End.