Chapter Text
The tang of ozone and the acrid smell of ionized air mingled with the salty sea breeze as Storm's sweat dripped to the burnt and blasted sand. Haphazard flecks of glass were scattered about from her bout with her opponent, who stood a fair distance away with a self-satisfied smirk.
"Tapped out, Storm?" Shou cracked her knuckles. "I can go another few rounds, if you want."
"You're a monster." Storm panted heavily, spitting a bit of blood out of her mouth onto the sand. "Ack, you made me bite my tongue."
Shou laughed. "I told you, Storm, I'm not gonna hold back even if it's just for fun."
"No kidding." Storm stood up straight, then crossed her forearms in front of her. "That's enough for me, Shou. I quit."
Shou relaxed and walked towards Storm, dropping her combat-ready stance. "You did a good job. Still, why aren't you using those powers?" Shou gestured to the Pen hanging on Storm's left hip. "You could put up a lot more of a fight if you did, probably even last longer."
Storm shook her head. "...I don't want to use them. Or rather, they won't let me."
Shou quirked an eyebrow. "They won't—"
Shou's question was interrupted by a short, sharp clap from up above them on the hill. "Magnifique, magnifique, wonderful showing, ladies." Joker practically floated down to the shore where they stood. "A spectacular display, really."
Storm sighed, wiping sweat from her brow. "Joker. What is it now?"
Shou crossed her arms, though she seemed a bit cowed by Joker's mere presence—unsurprising, since he created her. "Master Joker, to what do we owe the pleasure?"
"Please, dear Shou, relax. I'm not here to do anything as blase as scold you two for making noise." Joker spread his hands in a sort of welcoming gesture. "In fact, I'm sure you two have grown bored with sparring against one another. Why don't you both accompany me on a little jaunt?"
"A... jaunt?" Storm quirked an eyebrow. "Plain English for those of us who aren't thespians, please?"
"Ah, where's your sense of romance, my dear?" Joker clicked his tongue. "But, if I must I must. It's a performer's duty to—" Joker's spiel was cut off by a wheeze as Storm delivered a quick punch to his gut. "Agh... methinks the audience is rather impatient tonight." He recovered quickly, seemingly none the worse for wear. "All right, I understand. Simply put—I'd like to visit some old acquaintances of mine, and I'd like the two of you to accompany me."
"Us? Why us?" Storm glanced at Shou as if searching for some clarification. "Wait, is it...?"
"Must be." Shou spoke up, her voice having dropped quite a bit from its earlier lighthearted tone. "Is she going to be there, Master Joker?"
"Ideally, yes."
"Then I'll go." Shou glanced over at Storm. "You should come, too, if only to get some fresh air."
"...Well, sure, if you say so. I'll be pretty bored otherwise." Storm shrugged. "So, where are we goin', clown?"
"Nanairogaoka, my dear. It's a wonderful place—I do think you'll enjoy it." He grinned. "After all, it's an old haunt of mine."
Usually, when Yayoi and Yui went on a road trip, they were cheerful and chatting it up the whole way. The same shared interests that brought them together after a strange set of circumstances eight years before provided plenty of fuel for long chats. Today, though, there was an uneasy silence between them as Yui drove, leaving Yayoi to simmer in her thoughts.
Yayoi knew that Yui and her friends knew Terminus better than any others, and perhaps Haruka better than the rest. She'd been touched by it directly, made a puppet of Terminus' King, then slain that King herself. Yui had been crippled for years after fighting that original puppet, and though those days were past she was still haunted by the ghosts of that time.
They were far from the only ones affected, though. For five years, the Precure had known peace due to the efforts of those who fought to defeat Terminus. The war, and the victory, came with a price, as it always did: some bore scars, physical and mental. Some were haunted by nightmares of what Terminus had done to them. Some had entirely lost their fighting spirit as a result and simply couldn't, or wouldn't, transform anymore. The reappearance of old enemies re-opened old wounds, and being forced to fight former allies turned enemies was traumatic in and of itself.
Despite it all, the war had begun again. Terminus was back, and if Terminus was back—
Yayoi's eyes widened, a startled gasp slipping from her lips and spooking Yui. "Oh no."
"Love? What's the matter?" Unsurprisingly, Yui's tone was laden with concern.
"Yui... we brought all of our projects, right?"
"Of course." Given how often they ran on the same wavelength, things clicked into place quickly for Yui. "...You're worried about your friends. Your old teammates."
Nod. "If Terminus is back... then so is he. Joker."
Yui grimaced at the mention of the name. "...Sooner or later, he'll go for them. He wants revenge on your team... and me. Us. Go for the team, and we're bound to show up, he thinks."
"Yeah."
Yui was silent for a moment after that. "We could be walking into a trap." Nevertheless, she was already punching the Kise house into the car's navigation.
"If we are, so be it. We've fought them, fought him and won before. And we're stronger now..." Yayoi reached into her pocket and gripped the device that she always carried with her. "I'm ready to fight, Yui. are you?"
"Of course, love. We're partners." Yui reached over and gripped her wife's free hand. "There is no Peace without Keeper. Whether it's as a Precure or anything else, I'll always be at your side, no matter the fight."
"You're right." A pause. "If he is there... why don't we show off a bit?" A smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "See if we can't put the fear of God in him."
Yui laughed at that. "I doubt that's possible... but fine by me. I've got a few new tricks up my sleeve."
"I look forward to it." Another fight... hope I haven't gotten rusty in the past five years. Yayoi closed her eyes, tightened her grip on the device in her pocket, and started reciting her usual... calling it a prayer would be a stretch, but it gave her a similar feeling of strength and peace. "1, 2, V3, Riderman, X, Amazon..."