Turning to Stone 4: New Leaders (Rewritten)

Chapter 1: We See Our Heroes Again

"Ailura!"

The only response Ephex got was her cackling laughter. The Ghazt zipped through portals, going through walls and distracting the Wubbox chasing her with her orbs. It turns out making portals just to go through walls is a lot less exhausting than opening portals to go to another island or another dimension, and she was using that to her fullest advantage.

"Come on, Ailura-" Ephex leaned against a wall, out of breath. "I thought we agreed teleportation was against the rules!" The Ghazt stopped, flying back towards her friend. "Did we? I don't remember that." She smirked.

"Ailura-" The Wubbox whined. "Not my fault you're slow. Maybe you need to lay off the cupcakes." She gave them a playful shove, right in the orb.

"Ow. Careful, that's sensitive." Ephex put their arms up in front of them as a shield. "And also you touched me, so technically, you're it." They mimicked her classic smirk.

"Ugh. You're no fun." Ailura huffed, crossing her arms. She didn't really mean it, if Ephex really was a fun sponge like she claimed then they wouldn't constantly mess around like they had been doing. Sure, they had chores around the island to do, but they still had time for a game of tag.

"I'm tired, can we take a break?" Ephex slumped against the wall. Ailura rolled her eyes. "Fine." The Ghazt curled up around their neck, a favorite perch of hers lately. The Wubbox was made of electricity, so they were always rather warm. Their shoulders made for a nice napping spot for a tired Ghazt.

"Have you heard any of the rumors that have been popping up?" Ephex asked, attempting to start a conversation. "What sort of rumors?" Ailura lifted her head, intrigued. "Y'know, stuff about Basilio. Until the other islands decide on their own leaders, he's acting as leader for all the islands. I've heard some monsters say that getting rid of the Wubbox Council was just a ploy for him to be in power."

"Those monsters are stupid. Basilio's the best leader anyone could ask for. Do they want the Council back?" She said with a loud laugh. "I've heard that a few Wubboxes do..." Ephex looked away.

"You're not one of them, right? Who cares what a few Wubboxes think?" She grabbed their face comfortingly. "The Council is gone, and they can't hurt anyone anymore. Basilio will make sure nothing bad happens. Got it?"

Ephex slowly nodded. "Got it." They still didn't sound sure, so Ailura bonked her forehead against theirs, or as close to a forehead as Wubboxes had. "Okay, I got it!" They laughed, blushing slightly at just how close they were.

"Good. Don't you forget it. Besides, if anyone else tries to mess with you, I'll just toss them through another portal." She pulled away, sticking out her tongue. "No more murder, unless it's deserved. That one time was very deserved, but let's not do that again." Ephex said with another slight giggle.

They sat in silence again, until Ephex reached up to scratch Ailura under the chin. The Ghazt purred quietly, they really were a lot like cats sometimes.

A Pummel interrupted her petting session, however, making the Ghazt squint in annoyance. "Does Basilio want us?" Ephex asked, and the Pummel made a "yes" sort of gesture. Ailura groaned, she wanted more free time, but Ephex stood up to go to the leader's quarters. It wasn't really a bedroom, they already had that in Jolthead's rebuilt shed, but more of just a place for monsters to meet with their leader.

The Wubbox knocked on the door. "Come in!" A familiar deep voice called. They opened the door, seeing Basilio sitting at the table with Jolthead beside him. They'd clearly been talking to each other, when were they not?

Basilio snapped his jaws together in agitation. "I just don't know what I'm going to do, Jolthead. Way too many monsters think that I'll just be another tyrant like the Council Leader was. Speaking of her, did she ever have a name besides 'Council Leader' or whatever?" He turned to face Ephex, who was still practically wearing Ailura as a scarf.