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The Swatchling, who was originally a bright red, turned to a refreshing green, bowed elegantly before they went off to clean another area of the mansion, leaving the heroes to themselves.
Susie chuckled and cracked her knuckles, “These guys just get easier every time,” She commented with a smirk.
Ralsei beamed, ticking a checkmark mentally, “Great job, Kris! That was the last one needed to recruit the Swatchlings!”
“Damn, have we gone through that many already?” Susie asked, feeling as if she was barely getting into the flow. Ralsei nodded enthusiastically in response.
The heroes ventured further into the mansion, avoiding any sharp blue pieces of pottery that might’ve broken in the scuffle with the Swatchling they’d just spared. The three of them entered a long hallway that was lined with portraits of Queen. Each portrait was similar to the next and the ones they had seen previously. They passed familiar benches and vases, all a similar dark cyan with square and rectangular patterns. Large chandeliers lit the space in a bright but cold glow, and windows to nowhere provided depth to the otherwise flat walls.
Susie lightly groaned, “Oh, there’s another.” She pointed to another Swatchling farther into the hallway. It was difficult to see from so far away, but this Swatchling appeared to be shorter than normal. Compared to the other ones the heroes had come across at that point, at least, other than Swatch themself.
The Swatchling clutched a broom in their armpit, using their hands to tilt a painting. It appeared as though they were fixing it. However, upon closer inspection, it became apparent that the Swatchling was turning it off-center.
Susie and Ralsei both watched in confusion. From everything they had seen of the Swatchlings, they were extremely tidy and detail-oriented. The odd Swatchling snickered to themself and looked around suspiciously, before finally, the heroes caught their eye. They jumped harshly, their broom falling from the side of their body to the floor with a clatter.
They stood in shock for a second before processing what was happening. The Swatchling widened their stance, leaning forward with hostility, their messy neck feathers ruffled and puffed up. Bits of light twinkled in their grip before materializing into a large tool from the air. They summoned what looked like a farming scythe, blade shaped like a flat gardening spade. They gripped the tool tightly. The blade had a thick, shiny substance slathered on top. The liquid was bright red, matching their suit.
They walked towards the Lighteners slowly, granting them a better view of the Swatchling. With a closer look, it became clear that the Swatchling was definitely shorter than the rest. The lightners also took the time to notice many other differences. This Swatchling's feathers were a mess, covering their eyes like bangs instead of being pushed back like the other Swatchlings. They appeared to be less top-heavy, and the tip of their pale beak was crooked downwards. Even their suit was desaturated and muddy compared to the bright and vibrant Swatchling suits they had grown used to. That same suit had been an even blue color before they noticed the lighteners, now turned into an aggressive red.
The odd Swatchling suddenly spoke up, spooking the heroes briefly. “The Swatchlings told me there were Lighteners around making a mess. I will fix it for Her Lady Grace.” They lunged at the trio with their scythe, flinging the red paint-like substance onto the ground. The three easily dodged the attack and drew their weapons. Kris, who drew their shield and held it over themselves defensively, pointed towards Susie, who nodded in response and looked back to the Swatchling.
Susie yelled at the weird bird, “Making a mess? Why the hell would you get mad at us for that? Weren't you just messing up that painting over there? And what about the paint you just threw all over the place?” She questioned.
The Swatchling pulled at their collar and suddenly stood up straight, “Oh, uhm. Haha!” They looked around, seemingly watching out for something. “Uh, you- You didn’t see that!” They stammered and cringed before attacking again. The Lightners successfully avoided their attacks for the most part, as more paint was flung on the floor.
As the battle went on, Kris seemed to come to an understanding. They approached the Swatchling, stopping when they reached their feet. Kris bent on one knee and untied the Swatchling’s expensive-looking business shoes. Instead of the expected hostility, the Swatchling’s neck feathers fluffed up at the action.
“What are you doing?” The imperfect Swatchling asked weakly, attempting to appear as perfect as their siblings. Their suit changed from an unsaturated red to a muddied olive. Kris got up and walked backwards toward their teammates. Motioning for Ralsei and Susie to come closer before saying something in a low tone to their teammates. Both Ralsei and Susie nodded in acknowledgment and stood in their initial places. Determination heavy in the air, Susie smirked.
The Swatchling shook their head roughly and muttered to themself, “ Chip, you’ve got this…” After hyping themself up, they yelled back to the Lightners, “Do you think that will stop me? I will paint this hallway red- er, green!” The Swatchling, Chip , then attacked, flinging the paint, further messing up the interior of the hallway.
The lighteners weaved through the barrage and started their turn. Kris walked up to them again and wasted no time untucking their tie. Susie roughly kicked a floating vase, toppling it over, and Ralsei gently turned one of the benches to the side about forty-five degrees.
Chip felt excitement tighten in their chest. They tried to keep it minimal, suit betraying their faux composure, the olive turning into a pewter blue. “Stop doing that, Swatch and Tasque Manager hate it!” They yelled, frustrated as they swiped the ground with their scythe, only succeeding in spreading blue paint on the floor. The heroes hopped over each attack, only getting a little bit of the acrylic on their clothes.
Once their turn came again, the heroes quickly took the initiative and chose to ACT. Kris took Chip’s pocket square from the chest pocket of their blazer and shoved it back in, leaving it crumpled and sticking out awkwardly. Susie leaped from the floor and pushed a chandelier, making it swing back and forth roughly, and Ralsei tilted one of Queen's portraits a bit, careful not to touch the canvas itself.
Right before the odd Swatchling could tell them to stop again, a bitcrushed meow sounded out far down the hallway behind them. Chip froze up, and the scythe they had welded disappeared into nothing but little specks of light.
“Seems like someone’s been a bad kitty…” A voice rang out behind them, quickly approaching. Chip, having heard the same line multiple times before, immediately recognized the voice as Tasque Manager. Chip looked around wildly for an exit, the only one being behind the lightners. They quickly sprinted down the hallway, ignoring their initial mission. They ran down the hallway where the lightners came, the trio moving out of their way. An army of Tasques bounded after the odd Swatchling, Tasque Manager following not long after. Echoes of meows and “Order, order!” Echoed from the mansion hallways, leaving the trio of heroes shocked.
After a few seconds of listening to the echoes, Ralsei broke the silence, “Uhm, well that’s another recruit, I believe! You both did so well!” He praised, smiling gently.
Susie grinned toothily. “They seem like my kind of guy. Maybe we can kick some trash cans over or something.”