Toxic Pea's injuries are nearly fatal, and he is haunted by strange dreams of the one and only Dr Zomboss. What could they mean? Is there any hope for these plants?
Introducing Fire Pea, who is currently fighting at the same huge Team Vanquish as Mystic Flower. Enter his mind as he experiences his closest friend in a near-death condition, an exhilarating fight, and as all of these plants unite as one to be the first to reach 50 Vanquishes. Who will emerge victorious in this fight? The plants?
Or the zombies?
Fire Pea
"Fire Pea watch out!"
An All-Star releases an Imp Punt in my direction.
I Hyper out just in time, dodging the Imp Punt and launching a Sombrero Bean Bomb in the All-Star's direction and flee as the All-Star is blown up into the air seconds or so afterwards, and is vanquished seconds later.
Shaking my head, I use my Fire Pea Cannon to shoot an incoming Foot Soldier. It grunts and it's starts shooting me with its Z-1 Assault Blaster. I keep shooting it until it growls out and it drops dead to the ground and I do a little victory dance. I love to taunt these dumb zombies.
A Bandit Cactus shrieks as she falls down from a sniping point, hit by a ZPG. I watch as her eyes go dull, her body hitting the ground.
I can feel my eyes flare with anger. She could be revivable, but I can't be sure. The yellow revival sign hasn't appeared yet...and I hope she is. That zombie will pay.
I fire from my Fire Pea Cannon, a fire pea popping from my mouth and it hits the Arctic Trooper that launched the ZPG. It hits him square on, and lights him on fire. I continue to fire at him, and he drops down from the rooftop he's on and I feel satisfaction flooding through my vines.
"Rargh! Rargh rargh RAGH RAGH!" A General Supremo waves his arms in the air frantically, gesturing for the zombies to retreat. I blink and hear a familiar sound that signifies that 50 Vanquishes have been reached.
Grunting, yelling, and barking, the zombies retreat, and we plants taunt and cheer in victory.
We won.
We successfully reached 50 Vanquishes and succeeded in taking out most of their forces and now we can all rest.
My roots feel stiff from all of the running and jumping I've been doing. I don't feel too weak, but I've definitely lost some health.
I head over to the medical area, looking sadly at some of the injured plants and even those that have perished to join the other lost plants among the rainbows above us. I spot Mystic Flower, who is next to a Heal Flower and is healing...
Toxic Pea!
Oh no! What happened to him!?
I rush over to Toxic Pea, ignoring my own injuries, and my eyes widen in horror as I see him resting on the flower bed, and I stare at him, forgetting my own injuries.
Toxic Pea is one of my closest friends. We graduated up to L.E.A.F agents together, completed quests together, and defeated Gargantuars side by side. To see him like this instantly makes my head burn instantly. At least...burn more than it already does...because...it's...on fire...
"Fire Pea?" Mystic Flower looks up and her glowing eyes flit back to Toxic Pea. "You're injured."
"What happened to him?" I ask, touching a bruise on one of my fire pods.
Mystic Flower begins to explain what happened, and I can feel my flaming eyes grow wider and wider.
"Oh seeds... He could've died... I could've lost my best friend..." I whisper to myself, my fire pods covering my mouth in shock.
Mystic Flower nods gravely. "I'm really scared for him Fire Pea... He can barely stand and let alone sit up. He couldn't even speak to Alien Flower earlier. He dropped back down and fell unconscious. There's a large chance that he'll of his injuries...I just hope that he pulls through..."
I can feel panic flaring through my vines. "No! Come on Mystic Flower...you....you have to save him!"
Mystic Flower places her glowing golden hands on my head, gently releasing her Rainbow Heal Beam on me. "There's nothing more we can do." She murmurs, gently healing the bruises on my fire pea pods. "He's in the hands of the ones who dwell in the land of rainbows above us."
I whimper, trying to calm down. "Ok." I manage to say. "I'm going to check up on him later."
Mystic Flower nods. "I'll make sure to watch him."
"Take care of him..." I whisper, rubbing my two fire pea pods together.
"I will." She replies gently. "Get home safe Fire Pea."
I give her a small nod and heave a sigh and start scuttling towards and out the door.
I spot Fire Flower, and scuttle over to her.
"Hi Fire Pea!" She smiles brightly at me but then it fades when she sees my gloomy eyes. "What's wrong? Are you injured?"
"No." I murmur. "It's Toxic Pea."
I begin to explain the whole story, watching as Fire Flower listens, giving me her full attention. Her glowing flaming eyes glow sympathetically. When I finish, she sighs.
"This is Garden Warfare." She murmurs sadly, lifting up one of my fire pea pods to make sure the bruises are gone. Then her glowing eyes meet mine. "It's what happens...war costs plants...and friends..."
"It isn't fair." I mumble.
"Don't worry Fire Pea. Just trust Mystic Flower. She knows what she's doing." She offers me an encouraging smile.
"Ok..." I reply, feeling a little more hopeful.
"I'm going to go see if anyplant needs my help. Rest Fire Pea. We need you."
And with that, she struts away, heading for the medical area. I sigh.
I just hope that Toxic Pea makes it.
May the Mega Flower give him strength. I think as I scuttle off to one of the RV's that take me home.
Toxic Pea
"Using this plant's strong toxic aura, I will create a liquid so deadly to those weeds, that will make them fall to their deaths! Rahahaha!" Dr Zhangus, or Dr Zomboss, laughs, his hands in the air.
I let out little Peashooter groans as tubes that are attached to my toxic pods and my back leaves suck out a glowing green liquid from me.
I yelp as I feel my body draining, the toxic part in me disappearing, the pea part of me weakening. I let out another Peashooter yelp.
"Toxic Pea?"
I murmur something, trying to rip free of the tubes, violently thrashing in the air. But it isn't working.
"Toxic Pea!"
I thrash in the air, the tubes still sucking my toxic energy and aura. I try my best not to cry out, my Peashooter noises of pain seeming to make an even bigger evil grin on Dr Zhangus- I mean Zomboss's face.
"Toxic Pea! Toxic Pea!"
Everything starts fades to black as I cry out just like any other Peashooter that has been vanquished. Then, I see nothing.
Mystic Flower
"Seeds. Seeds. Seeds. Toxic Pea! Come on! Wake up! Wake up!"
Toxic Pea is thrashing on the flower bed, making Peashooter grunts, groans, and cries. I try shaking him awake, but it's no use.
Is he having a nightmare? What could he possibly be dreaming about? I poke him with one of my mystic hand.
I know exactly who to get.
I go as fast as my leaves can take me, strutting quickly so that I can find her. She's the only one who could maybe wake him up.
Please say that she hasn't left yet. Oh seeds, please! Toxic Pea is in pain!
I sigh in relief as I spot her talking to Iron Citron. I rush over to her, gasping. My roots feel stiff.
"Druid Rose. Can you please come with me?" I ask urgently to my masked friend that I've known for ages.
Druid Rose looks at me, and even through her mask I can see that she is surprised. "Very well. Farewell Iron Citron!" She calls while I pull on one of her rose hands as I run as fast as my roots can move.
I get to the medical area, and stop at Toxic Pea's body that has suddenly gone still, and explain to Druid Rose quickly about what had happened.
"That sounds horrendous!" Druid Rose exclaims, her wooden cape flowing gracefully in the air. "I'll see what I can do..."
As Druid Rose starts her magic, I head over to Metal Petal, who is treating an injured Chomper.
"There there Chomp." She soothes, stroking the Chomper's head. "You'll be fine. Those Football Cannons must hurt." Then she releases her Rainbow Heal Beam. She doesn't use the Normal Heal Beam which isn't rainbow and rippled. It's just a long straight golden beam that connects to the patient.
"Hey Metal Petal." I greet, trying to keep the strain out of my voice. "Is everything going ok?"
"I guess. Thank the rainbow heavens that not many plants perished this time." She murmurs, stretching her metal petals. "I heard what happened. I was watching him while you were gone briefly"
She looks up, the solar-powered light reflecting on her silver plates. "I can't believe that Toxic Pea endured that much pain. He has a very strong spirit."
I sigh. "But he's in trouble now."
Metal Petal nods her metal head. "I've noticed. Do you know him well?"
"No. I met him once a little after I graduated up to L.E.A.F...but we're in the same Garden Ops group..." I reply thoughtfully. Then I add "but we haven't had a round of Garden Ops since the beginning of the second Garden Warfare....so..."
"I hope he makes it. We need him. He's a pretty good fighter."
I sigh. "You're right Metal Petal. We can't afford to lose more plants." And then I head back over to Druid Rose, who just casted some type of spell on Toxic Pea.
"That's the last spell that could work. Poor sprout." She murmurs sadly, shaking her wand, the glowing green orb on it sparkling. "This should work...however I am scared for him. Whatever has him trapped in this state is a new form of dark magic." She strokes her wand, her eyes darkening, and I can see that she is worried behind her wooden mask.
I watch as the green magic surrounds Toxic Pea before crashing into his body.
For a moment, I don't move my leaves. My roots feel stuck, and my petals don't even shift an inch. Druid Rose is the same as she hovers in the air, completely still, except for her floating wooden cape, that is flowing in the air.
Toxic Pea stops thrashing. A Peashooter sound of relief comes from his mouth, and he starts to breath normally. I watch him, a slight panic filling my inside vines.
Slowly, one of Toxic Pea's eyes opens. It isn't glowing green, but at least he's awake. For now.
His other eye opens, just as slowly.
"Where am I?" He whispers, sounding fearful and scared. "Zomboss?" His eyes flit across the area, his central stem trembling.
"Toxic Pea!" I gasp and lean over the flower bed. Druid Rose sighs with relief, and approaches me.
"Thank you so much Druid Rose." I wrap my little flower hands around her, and smile.
"My pleasure Mystic Flower. I am happy to have helped. Tell me if you need anything." She says warmly and starts to hover away.
I watch Toxic Pea's shaking figure, and it doesn't look like he has improved that much. His back leaves are still drooping and dry, his body isn't glowing green; his toxic aura is barely visible, and his body is trembling with fear.
"Toxic Pea... It's ok. Calm down." I soothe, stroking his back leaves and his head, and releasing my Rainbow Heal Beam. He seems to relax at my touch, and he heaves a deep relaxed sigh, closing his eyes.
"What happened?" I ask gently, and I start stroking his toxic pods, as gently as I can because I remember how much he had hurt them earlier. My Rainbow Heal beam heals the cuts and bruises on them slowly.
Toxic Pea doesn't say anything for a while; and when I think he's peacefully asleep, he murmurs
"I was having a nightmare Mystic Flower. It was terrible... Worse than those exploding leftovers in a Crazy Dave's fridge." He murmurs, his eyes closed.
"What happened in your nightmare?" I continue softly, soothingly stroking his head with my soft petal flower hands.
"I-I-It was really painful... Dr Zomboss had these t-t-tubes at-t-tached to m-me." Toxic Pea breathes heavily. He struggles with his words. I keep stroking his head soothingly, just so that he can stay calm.
"T-t-they were s-s-sucking all of my t-t-t-tox-x-xic energy t-t-to make some kind of deadly serum." He stutters, struggling to speak, but relaxes as he looks around, remembering that he's with us now. "I-I was really weak... And those tubes... They hurt... And I couldn't get out... They hurt so much..." He whimpers and rests his head on the flower bed. "I'm really scared Mystic Flower. What if it's real?" He makes soft Peashooter sounds, and I withdraw my flower hand away from him for moment, and then stroke his pods again soothingly.
"Don't worry Toxic Pea." I assure him. "It's all going to be ok."
Toxic Pea closes his eyes for second, and then murmurs "thank you for everything Mystic Flower."
"Anytime. I'm happy to be here with you." I smile and remembering Fire Pea, I add "Fire Pea was really worried about you. He panicked like a Scaredy-Shroom when he saw you..."
Toxic Pea's eyes widen. "Oh Fire Pea." He murmurs. "I need to see him. I need to tell him I'm alright."
"He's already headed off back home." I say. "Come on. We should head home too. There's an RV waiting for us outside. I think Crazy Dave is in it. It'll be good to see good o'l Penny! I'll help you."
I gently manage to carry Toxic Pea off of the bed. He is surprisingly light, and I place him on the floor and support him as we walk outside to the RV.
We reach the RV, and it sucks us in slowly, and Crazy Dave laughs.
"Old fashion hamburgers! Here we go!" He laughs, and I smile at his comment, helping Toxic Pea. One of his pods is wrapped around me gently for support as I help him sit down.
I blink and take a deep breath before we zoom through a portal, my inner vines rushing with that familiar exhilaration of rushing in the RV.
We're going back to the Backyard Battleground. We're going home.
I look out the window, reflecting on everything that has happened today. Light nectears fall out of my eyes.
I lost Ice Cactus, a dear friend of mine today.
I look at Toxic Pea, and his eyes offer me a weak but warm smile.
But on the bright side....I think I just made a new one...
As we continue travelling through the portal, Toxic Pea murmurs
"Thanks Mystic Flower."
I smile at him, tilting my head. "For what?" I ask, sitting down.
"For saving me twice today."
We zoom out of the portal, and I can't get rid of the bright smile off of my face.
"You're welcome." I say kindly and we both listen, smiling as Crazy Dave laughs about how he isn't a Space Wizard.