Lightning was now flying as freely as he should've been.
It'd been such a long, long, *long* time since he was able to get out into the world and enjoy its many sights and activities; soaring with the clouds, feeling the breeze rush through you, seeing all sorts of vistas and landscapes you thought you'd never get to see, even if you made it your life's mission to explore the world for 2,763 years. It'd felt like ages ago since he had that *genius* idea to sneak into the Battle for Dream Island in some vain attempt to get the recognition and commendation he wanted, to be seen as more as someone that instantaneously appeared and disappeared, registering as nothing more than a sudden nuisance to others. And what did that get him? Years of being stuck in a prison, only getting hints of freedom every once in a while, and a whole lot of pent-up aggression and frustration that made him want to... you know. Every single day it'd bothered him ever since he was finally let out for good. Even though nothing was anchoring him to that competition of misery any longer, nobody keeping him stuck to that dreary old city the contestants now called home, for a while he still felt trapped in that little hole, unable to just fly out and escape. This... This was nice. A calming reminder that he was one of the privileged few that could just... escape his problems with such speed and efficiency. And yet... he couldn't...
Like all things in this world, *apparently*, there was a catch.
Despite having a city-sized playground all to themselves, the contestants of the former Battle for Dream Island still found ways to feel longing, to feel anger. Golf Ball and her *friend* was constantly digging things up street by street, looking for any answer, *any* at all, to the many mysteries the world had to offer. W.O.A.H. Bunch wants to go on all sorts of wacky and crazy adventures, seeking to relive the good ol' days, and ends up roping everyone else into a whirlwind of chaos in the process. And FreeSmart continued their time-honored tradition of gossiping about every single person in their vicinity and angering them in the process.
That last one in particular was of interest to Lightning; after a whole bunch of aimless wandering about, looking for *anybody* to call his friend (because for whatever reason nobody wants to even get close to a living hazard to life), he had ended up settling with Pencil and her clique. He already knew all the controversy surrounding them thanks to incessant eavesdropping, as well as rumors floating about that he was only allowed to stick around due to his value as a weapon, but they were the first ones in *such* a long time to actually approach him, and so he wanted to give them the benefit of the doubt. But with the whole debacle continuing to grow larger by the day, not only did he have to contend with his mere existence being a danger to others, but also his association with *them* netting him yet more ugly looks. In his pursuit of gaining the favor of anyone, he ended up just alienating *everyone* more.
And so, during a completely ordinary day, Pence-Pence and the others decided to approach their newest member and task him on going on, like, a super duper highly special mission. FreeSmart *absolutely* didn't want to hang around Yoyle City anymore, with all its dilapidated, dangerous buildings, its unpleasant neighbors, and... Needle. Fortunately for them, they had the means to take the initiative and change their condition, as opposed to just wallowing in their despair for the rest of eternity; well, at least until some other entity inexplicably falls out of the sky and announces yet another battle for something or other. They'd considered just booking it immediately and spending the rest of their lives as a merry traveling alliance, but that brings up the possibility of them dying inexplicably due to some unforeseen danger, with absolutely no one bothering to recover them due to just how obnoxious they were.
And so, much to their dismay (because they thought that planning things was something the *balls* would do), they decided to task Lightning with going out into the world and finding the best place for them to hang out and have fun without any worries. He was to scout out the optimal partying spot (because their previous one had been destroyed following... an incident), and upon finding it would make sure the road (or path, or whatever) to get there was completely safe. Once all that was done, he'd lead FreeSmart and their SuperVan to their new home, where they could do whatever they pleased for the rest of time.
