Alright! We're finally here! Enjoy!

Final Shot: Until the Truth and the Dream Become the Same

Jing woke to a black sky. Not a sky of stars, but a sky of smoke. As he sat up, he noticed Kir next to him also stirring.

"Hey Kir," said Jing. "Nice nap?"

"Hi," said Kir groggily, his voice hoarse. Considering all the super-powered Kir Royales that were fired, it made sense. Instead of answering verbally, Kir just grinned and gave Jing a thumbs up.

Assured that his partner would be fine, Jing picked him up and walked around. The only traces of the palace left were scattered items that once perched on the walls, now lying in disorganized shambles. Just as randomly tossed about were the people. Many were just waking up, while others wandered around in a daze. Not even a drop of fantasy was to be seen.

Among the strangers Jing soon spotted his friends. Stir was explaining things to her discombobulated mother, while Razekar and Cassis were helping some of the more distressed people. Falcon soon arrived to assist as well, but his mind seemed to be elsewhere. Not long after both he and Razekar left, calling for Dalios

Right, we haven't seen Dalios or Neirnyx since they fell into the fantasy, thought Jing. Were their minds really shattered like Valium said? But there must still be a body…at least, for Neirnyx…

"What a mess," said Kir.

Jing nodded. "Not much to look at without all the fantasy, huh? That's all that supported it. It's only natural that nothing's left…"

"What do you mean nothing's left?" exclaimed Pharos, as he stomped into view. His garb was not only tattered, but it was plain brown clothes. So even his golden outfit had been modified by illusion. "Every dream has a setback every now and then, and this one's not even that big! The palace may been gone, and a few rare animals may have run off, but everything and everyone is still here! Neirnyx will just make a new one and make everyone forget this ever happened!"

"I don't think it'll be as easy as that," said Jing. "Neirnyx's mind got broken."

Pharos paled. "I-Impossible! She's a tough old bird, trust me…she couldn't be…I'll prove it! Neirnyx!"

There was no answer.

"I need you to fix things! Neirnyx!" Pharos called again. He waited uneasily during the next silence. "I'll give you lots of grapes!"

Still silence.

"Uh, hate to break it to you, old man, but-" Kir began.

"Neirnyx!" Pharos shouted at the top of his lungs. "Your father was a barn hen and your mother was a feathered snake!"

"…What?" asked Kir. "That doesn't even-"

There was a blaze of orange light several feet away, causing a nearby Falcon to yelp and jump the auburn light flew a diminutive avian about Kir's size, golden in coloring.

"That doesn't even make sense!" squeaked the little phoenix, adorable in her anger. Her feathers puffed out while burning orange at the tips. "Hens can't be daddies and a snake's not my mommy because I'm not a snake!"

Pharos laughed in relief, before grinning the tiny bid a big smile. "I knew that would get you up and going."

"Wha…" Kir began, perplexed. "But how…?"

"I guess she must have gotten the ability to reincarante at some point, probably the same time she got that phoenix form," Jing deduced. "Though…does that mean you're a phoenix and not a Valefor now, Neirnyx?"

"What's a Valefor?" asked the golden bird. "And what's a Neirnyx? Is that me? I like it!"

Everyone gave Neirnyx a dumbfounded stare.

"Wait…you don't remember?" asked Kir.

"Remember what, Mr. Birdie?"

Kir gave her a suspicious glare. "…Oh really? You sure you ain't gonna turn into an old hag to freak us out?"

"An old hag? How would I do that?" asked Neirnyx. "I'm not an old hag or a Valefor or anything. I'm a phoenix!" She proudly puffed out her chest and blew out a small orange fireball, as if that proved everything.

"You…really don't remember anything, do you?" said Pharos quietly, as he watched Neirnyx flit about happily.

The baby phoenix paused. "…Nope!" She landed on one of Pharos's sagged shoulders. "I like you though! Your eyes are all shiny! What's your name?"

Despite everything, Pharos smiled warmly. "Call me Pharos."

"Okay, Mr. Pharos!"

"Neirnyx!"

The others turned to see Razekar sprinting toward them.

"Hey, you fellas seen Neirnyx?" asked the cyborg.

The little phoenix zipped over, nearly flying into Razekar's face. "Hi! I'm Neirnyx! Who are you?"

Razekar just stared in shock at the tiny golden bird.

"You were looking for me?" little Neirnyx prattled on. "Oh, did you want to play? Yeah, let's play, let's play let's play!"

Razekar remained stupefied as the avian flew circles around him excitedly. He shook his head, smiling mirthlessly. "I don't know whether to laugh or cry…" He looked back up to the bird. "You, what can you do?"

"Me?" asked Neirnyx, perching on Razekar's shoulder. "I can talk and fly! Oh, and I can breathe fire!" She spat out a ribbon of fire near Razekar's head, who jerked back automatically.

"….Yeah, that's just great," Razekar grumbled. "But that's not gonna help Dalios."

"You found him?" asked Jing.

"What's left of him."

IIIIII

Dalios laid on the ground on his back, with Falcon kneeling next to him. The white-haired boy's colors were pastel, though no further color bled from him.

Falcon's head immediately snapped up upon Jing and Razekar's arrval. "Neirnyx?"

"Is a little phoenix chick now," said Razekar. "Memories and powers wiped. Great timing, huh?"

Falcon sagged. "I was afraid of that…from what Jing told me earlier, her mind got broke, so…yeah…" Falcon quickly put on a smile as he turned back to Dalios. "But hey, at least you still remember who you are and stuff!"

"…For how much longer?" Dalios murmured. His eyes shifted to where Rolly was curling up beside him, whining. "You…always knew, didn't you Rolly? That I was fake? You can smell fantasy after all…"

Rolly only wagged his tail a little.

"Please stop saying that, Dal," Falcon said quietly.

"You…of all people…" Dalios began sternly.

"Look it's…" Falcon started, before turning to Jing. "Uh, this is a Jing thing. King of Dreams and all that."

Razekar raised na eyebrow. "Since when?"

"We'll go over that later," said Jing, before kneeling down on the other side of Dalios. "Let's just say for now that I'm an expert at things such as fantasy. Which means you should listen to what I say, Dalios."

"…Yeah?"

"It's simple, really," said Jing. "All of us believe in you already. You just need to believe in yourself."

"…Is it really that simple?" asked Falcon, sounding almost annoyed. "Dal! Believe in yourself! You've done a lot of stuff that only you can do! Getting us out of the Uncanny Valley, for one!"

"But…I'm a dream…fantasy…" Dalios answered.

"So?" asked Jing. "Dreams can become real if enough effort is put in. You're already there, Dalios. You wouldn't still be here if you didn't already have some reality to you. You wouldn't have been able to leave Uncanny Valley either. You're only weak now because you keep doubting your reality."

Dalios was silent at first, but Jing thought his colors seemed brighter already. "Yeah…Yeah, you're right. Before all this…my doctor's checkups were normal. I bled when I got cut. I got hungry like everyone else. It was only because of what Valium told me when I…"

"Bingo," said Jing. "Let yourself be more than a dream. Nothing's stopping you other than yourself."

Dalios's colors were returning now, as he forced himself to sit up. "I…I think I've got this now."

"I know you do," said Jing. "Because I know when something's more than just a dream."

Dalios glanced down to himself, only a little pale now. "Huh. That worked better than I thought it would."

"Alright Dal!" Falcon cheered throwing a arm around him. "And thanks to you too Jing!"

"Way to go," said Razekar, rustling Dalios's hair.

Rolly barked in excitement.

"Whoa! Hey! I'm not fully recovered yet!" Dalios protested.

Jing smiled and turned away. People were starting to leave now. He should move on too. Once he lined the infinite hole in his pocket with some souvenirs anyway.

IIIIII

Both Jing and Stir knew that, as the Bandit King, Jing could never stay in one place too long. He couldn't awaken dreams worldwide if he didn't travel. However, now, whenever Jing wanted a break from his adventures, he could always call Zaza home. It was still a strange thought to Jing, but a pleasant one.

All roads now led to Zaza, it seemed. Perhaps Stir could join him on some of his trips now and then.

Even though Jing knew it was time to leave, he still stayed unexpectedly long on those ruined grounds. He finally got to have a proper talk with Baiyu, who apparently had been "collected" by Pharos recently. It spoke of the size of the palace that they had never met again until now. They swapped news and memories in Chesirian while Kir pretended to ignore them. Jing needed to trach Kir Chesirian sometime. He had tried before, but Kir had quickly given up. Maybe the dark avian would be more willing now.

Now that the mayhem had settled, Postino and his mailmen friends delivered their mail like it was an ordinary day. Cartero mentioned how Adam and Lilith were expecting a package from him, so he left first. Facteur left soon afterward, with Baiyu hitching a ride with him.

Postino had learned the details of Jing's past from Baiyu. "Sorry, it was rude of me to pry."

Jing laughed. "I myself should have pried more about my own past. Don't worry about it."

Postino chuckled. "Well, now you can see the world for what it really is. It'll make your travels that much richer, yet you won't spend a dime more."

Now Jing chuckled, shaking his head. "I will always see the world for what it could be. That's where my power comes from. But all dreams need a certain reality to anchor them, just as all reality needs a certain dream to cushion it."

After Postino left, many of the other people started to disperse. Some left by foot, other by wagon - wagons once on display in a palace museum for their prized antiquity. Jing saw Hope and some of her fellow villagers depart in one of those vehicles. Still others seemed to have no intention of leaving at all, as they and Pharos already got to work making tents. Little Neirnyx was their cheerleader, singing happy songs.

Jing suspected that Neirnyx had such a keen interest in him because she sensed his potential with fantasy. The cave of illusions and even his trip to Uncanny Valley were perhaps all to test or try to unlock his power. That certainly seemed to be what she was trying to do at the palace, even in their emergency situation. Perhaps she was trying to groom him to be alongside her and Pharos?

Jing would never know now, of course, nor would he go out of the way to seek an answer. It would make no difference. It was a role he couldn't accept, especially now. He only wished for their next palace to be a true place of dreams, a place where people's thoughts were free and not regulated. With any luck they learned their lesson from Valium and this disaster…if not, then Jing would be back.

Cassis found her three boy minions, but not the forest fairies. They, along with most of the creatures, had long fled. It frustrated Cassis, but she vowed to track each one of them down and drag them back to Amarcord, so there could finally be peace there. Falcon quickly volunteered to help, which inadvertently got Razekar and Dalios roped in as well. Not that there were many complaints - none of them had a reason to stay here anymore, and yet they didn't have anywhere else to go either. Regardless, all three of them said proper goodbyes to Pharos before boarding one of the hay wagons. Cassis didn't bother, as she chatted casually with Stir until the guys were ready.

Jing hopped in a hay wagon alongside Stir, the queen, and many others, with a certain chubby man as the driver. Jing handed him a new pocket watch to replace the one he had stolen from Babble so long ago. It was a simple watch, pewter with olive branches engraved onto the top, but the man seemed pleased nonetheless. Said it worked better than his old gaudy one anyway.

For a while Jing's haytruck and Falcon's went side by side down the flat, wide road. They exchanged conversations over the dust and the rumbling tires, even if they had to squint and shout. The sky was clearing, revealing approaching orange dusk.

But after a while the road split in two. Jing's cart went left as Falcon's cart went right.

"Hey!" shouted Falcon as they grew further apart. "A lot's happened, but it's been…well, not always fun, but…uh…Anyway! You'll do dreams, and I'll do truth, and… we'll make things right that way!"

"And don't worry, we'll make sure Fal here doesn't get too crazy," Razekar added.

"If he doesn't make us crazy first," Dalios added.

"Hey!" protested Falcon

"We only say that 'cause we care," said Cassis with a smirk.

"Anyway!" Falcon shouted. "Even if we don't see each other for a while, I'm sure I'll see signs of you around, and you bet you'll see signs of me too! So…well…bye!" He and the others waved at Jing's cart until their cart disappeared behind some trees.

After the other cart was gone, there was only the rumble of tires and occasional chirp of animal life. The day's events had finally caught up with everyone, as the vibration of the cart lulled even Jing to sleep.

Jing stirred a few hours later, greeted by a clear starry night. Everyone else was still asleep. Kir was snoozing his lap while Stir slumbered against Jing's shoulder. Verdant green plains stretched out on every side, blinking with fireflies and humming with crickets.

Jing snatched at the sky, his eyes rimmed with rainbow. When he opened his hand, a star floated tranquilly in his palm. He smiled, and then let it go, watching it rise back to the heavens. He didn't need it. The worst times may have still waited ahead, but so did the best.

IIIIII

...And it's done. OMG it's finally done. This feels so weird. I've worked on this story for so long, it's strange not having it linger in the back of my mind. Still, it feels good to put it to rest.

Anyway, I hope that this was a satisfying end and that everyone enjoyed! Thank you to all who have followed, favorited, reviewed, and read this story to the very end! I'm glad that I've at last completed this tale, and I'm sure you guys are too XD.

As my focus on now on original work, who knows if I'll ever write another Jing story. I certainly won't write another one of this size and scope lol. Maybe a oneshot every now and then though. Jing still seriously lacks fanfics.

So thanks again to everyone, and see you in other stories!