Apocalypse Reset: My Crab Can Heal the World!

Barns and Clancy descend into a pool of murky black water, near the heart of the Undersea Kingdom. Blissfully unaware of the events transpiring in Dimartino at that very moment.

The deeper they go, the more the pressure of the water bears down on them. Thankfully, all of the Crab Affinity Barns has built up makes him somewhat resistant to the crushing effect of the depths.

"SAGE CRAB HERE."

Clancy's words are Barns' truth - for now, anyway. It's his first time to the Undersea Kingdom, so he just has to take Clancy's word for it - as he narrows his eyes, he still can't see a thing.

As they descend into the inky blackness, it gets increasingly harder to see. Barns can barely make out the tips of his fingers - a deep darkness that swallows even imagination. At least the change in water quality doesn't affect Barns' water breathing.

"You sure there's not an octopus sage down here? Seems kinda…"

"SAGE CRAB HERE."

They continue swimming through the dark depths until suddenly, they emerge into a dome of eerie blue light. The water is awash with clear foam, almost like a bubble bath. It holds the suffocating darkness at bay.

Barns looks forward. Sitting at the bottom of this liminal space is a large crab - bigger even than Clancy. It boasts a spiked green shell, and sits in a cloister of pearlescent light. The crab is also, naturally, surrounded by golden coins, scavenged from shipwrecks over eons.

"So that's the sage, huh?" Barns asks as they float above. The green crab hasn't seemed to notice them yet. "He's like the strongest crab ever, right? Does he speak human?'

"HONORABLE SAGE. PAY RESPECTS."

Clancy drops to the ocean floor and scuttles up to the sage crab, getting ready to involve Barns in one of the most difficult conversations of his life.

Barns lands next to him, stumbling slightly. He's still not fully used to maneuvering in a three-dimensional space like this, and walking on the seafloor disorients him.

He finds himself lost in the sheer presence of the sage crab - a silent green behemoth. His weathered shell is ridged with ancient scars, evidence of former battles, and hardened by centuries beneath the waves.

Clancy lowers himself as if to bow. "GREAT SAGE. I BRING HUMAN. HUMAN BARNACLES. BARNACLES MASTER MIGHTY CRAB CLAW, MIGHTY CRAB DEFENSE, MIGHTY CRAB BREATH, MIGHTY CRAB INTUITION."

'It's all mighty, huh?'

The sage crab stirs.

He shakes the water with his very presence, sending vibrations that rattle through Barns' chest.

Then, it finally speaks.

"WHASH CLANSHE DON BRINGEN HOUMSHIN APOCALYPSH?"

Barns blinks. "Eh…what?"

The crabs ignore him as they click aggressively at each other, launching into a flurry of incomprehensible dialogue. Barns can only watch helplessly, catching fragments of words that make no sense to him.

"BARNACLES SAVE WORLD. FORTY THOUSAND HUMAN BOW TO CLANCY KING OF LAND ABOVE."

"CLANSHE IMPRESH SAGE, BUT HOUMSHIN UNPROVEN. MUSH TESH."

"BARNACLES. SHOW CRAB CLAW."

Barns nods - the first thing he's understood since the conversation started. He's happy to demonstrate.

Taking a deep breath, he lets the Crab Affinity flow through him. Energy crackles through his arm, the transformation fluid and instinctual. His left hand twists and expands, snapping into an imposing, armored Claw of Death. The weight is familiar, comforting.

Clancy clicks in approval.

But the sage crab's clicks are harder to earn.

"I WOOSH STAB HOUMSHIN AND TESH HARDNESS."

Barns' ears perk up. He might not understand much of the sage crab, but the word 'Stab' is heard loud and clear.

A deafening clang reverberates through the chamber as the claw slams against Barns' torso, the impact so powerful it nearly throws him backward. But his body holds—his defenses unyielding

"GOOD. BUT PROVESH BUBBLE BRESH?"

"I'm here, aren't I? Humans can't normally breathe underwater."

"SHMART. BUT CAN PROVE MASHTERY OF INTUISHINS? HOUMSHIN, WHAT SAGE THINKSH?"

Clancy pivots to Barns. "BARNACLES. SAGE DEMANDS MIND-READING."

"Yeah, I figured," Barns says quickly. He eyes down the crab. Usually, he only uses Crab Intuition to sense murderous intent. He had no idea how to sense other emotions - but as he focuses, he senses a blue-tinged aura around the sage.

"Uh…you don't want to kill me, and you're…happy?"

"HOUMSHINS CORRECT."

"BARNACLES CORRECT."

"Thanks for the translation, buddy, but I think I'm starting to learn how to speak crab."

"CLANSHE DESHIRE HOUMSHIN TAKE ULTIMATE ESH RANK TESH?"

Clancy bounces up and down in agreement.

"IF THIS BARNACLESH PASH TESH, CLANCHE BE EMPEROR OF LAND ABOVE. BIG HONOR. EMPERORSH OF OCEAN BE CAUSHIS."

"CLANCY ALREADY KING FORTY THOUSAND HUMANS. BASICALLY EMPEROR. MORE HUMAN SUBJECTS THAN MOST CRABS."

The sage directs all his attention to Barns, and behind him, a large boulder begins to shift. It reveals a passageway, leading into a darkened hollow.

"ESH RANK TESH BEGINSH NOW! RETRIEVE CURSHED GOLD MEDALLION FROM CHALLENSH ARENA. BECOME CRAB."

"Alright," Barns says. He has the gist of it - there's a cursed gold medallion somewhere beyond.

"I'm…not going to actually become a crab, am I?"

"BARNACLES HUMAN. BARNACLES CRAB. BEST OF BOTH IN ONE."

Barns is slightly off-put by the implication of becoming any more crab than he already is, but he has no choice. They've come this far, and this is the way he can unlock the true potential of his Crab Affinity. This is what he has to do.

"I'm ready."

"LUCKY TIME, BARNACLES!"

"NO HOUMSHIN ATTEMPT MASHTER TRIALSH IN HUNDREDSH YEARSH. EXSHITEMENT.

Barns swims through the opening, and as he does, the rock seals behind him. There would be no going back - not until he's finished his trial.

He expects a large area, some kind of platforming gauntlet, but as he emerges into the main area of his trial, it's actually quite small. Just a single room, about the size of his bedroom in Dimartino Castle. The far wall is made of a speckled mirror.

He walks close, examining his reflection - but something is wrong. It's him, but not. He notices the subtle differences.

Whoever's staring back at him in the mirror is a crabbified version of him, with a golden medallion hanging from his neck. And suddenly, the frightening and familiar figure steps out of the mirror, eyes glowing with an intimidating sheen.

"Hello, BARNACLES."