Once Zinx was done with his battle (it had gone more smoothly than Nadia's did) the Battle Stars surprised them and Musa in the backstage. Musa had actually gone back to congratulate them as well.

"Oh, hey, Musa!" Coraline says, waving her arm when she spots her. Musa waves back after a moment of surprise.

"How are you, Coraline, Lilian?" Musa asks. Lilian smiles widely.

"We're doing great! I hope you're faring just as well, Musa." Lilian says. Nadia looks at Musa in confusion.

"Musa, do you know them on a personal level?" Nadia asks. Musa waves her hand in a so-so manner.

"Kinda. Aside from this Battle Theatre being my first challenge, my parents collaborated with them on occasion. That's about it, though." She says.

"Mm. But we're not here to chit-chat away right now, but if you want to catch up, we can later!" Coraline says, interrupting the two.

"Yep. We're here to congratulate the two of you on your victories." Lilian says, looking at Nadia and Zinx. "We win most of our battles against challengers because our battle style is completely different from the norm, so you should be proud."

Despite Lilian's words, something still eats away at Nadia's thoughts. Something's making her uneasy.

"That's right, be proud of your accomplishments. You can always work on improvement, after all. And, as proof of your achievements, we award you with a LoomiWatch upgrade, just like Roria's other Battle Theatres." Coraline says in agreement. "Lilian, would you like to do the honors?"

Lilian nods. "Sure thing! Musa, you too. We didn't get to do that last time because you didn't have the Soul Crystal upgrade yet, but now we can."

Once she upgrades all their watches, she hands them back to everyone.

"Alright, here you go! Bubble Helmet is installed!" Lilian says.

"Bubble Helmet's a special gear application," Coraline starts to explain, "It forms a bubble around your head, allowing you to breathe underwater for an indefinite amount of time. Additionally, that helmet has the ability to expand when in battle, allowing you and your Loomians to engage safely."

"Wait, that's really useful." Zinx says. Lilian nods.

"It's pretty cool, right? We use it often when we're doing our regular swim training." She says, beaming. "You'll never know when you need to traverse the ocean bed, so having this would make things much easier."

"With that though, we bid you good luck on your journey, young trainers!" Coraline says, already waving goodbye. "All of you have a bright future ahead of you."

"Yeah, good luck out there, guys!" Lilian also begins to wave goodbye. "Keep fighting, keep improving! And you'll dazzle everyone with a stellar performance! Bye now!"

They exit the backstage, leaving the three of them alone. Nadia looks at Zinx and Musa.

"So, what now?" Nadia asks. Musa shrugs.

"Well, we defeated the Battle Stars, so the next step would be to figure out where the stone tablet is, no?" She says. "Except, your father's still tinkering with the radar, so who knows when we'll get an update."

"True. Do we have other things we can do in the meantime?" Zinx asks. Nadia thinks for a moment.

"I have to heal my Loomians. I'll take a look at what they have in the store too." She says after a moment. Looking up, she sees Musa nodding as well.

"Okay, let's go heal up our Loomians first. After that..."

"How about we just meet up with everyone outside first?" Zinx suggests, "We can think about what to do afterwards."

Nadia and Musa both nod. "Good idea. They're probably waiting for us, anyway."

When Musa pushes open the door, she almost crashes into Lucy, who's about to barge into the room with how long they're taking. Lucy jumps back in time, but gives Musa a scare in the process.

"Guys! What was going on in there?" Mabel asks them as soon as they all file out of the backstage. Zinx shrugs.

"I mean, they were just doing the usual. They talked, upgraded our watches, bid us good luck and farewell, then left." He recounts.

"Why do I feel that it took longer than usual, though?" Jake asks, mostly to himself, though.

"Mm. But first off, congratulations on your victory, Nadia!" Nadia's mother says, going in for a hug. "It was really exciting seeing how far you come since you left home. That battle was tough, but you still somehow pulled through. You've made us proud!"

"Really? Thanks..." Nadia says, hesitantly hugging back. Does this mean the new strategy worked? Did it not work? But she's had the same close call she did before, but somehow, this victory felt less rewarding. Before Nadia could think about it further, Lucas starts speaking.

"I still think it's really hard to fight two people by yourself," he says, arms slung over his head, "It feels kinda unfair if you ask me, but it's still impressive how you managed to win. Although, I'm not surprised. You're really strong, so no strategy could possibly fail when you're the one using it."

Nadia blinks, slowly processing the compliment. In the end, she manages a quick "Huh?"

"Ah, looks like time's up for me," Nadia's mother says, interrupting them both, "It was fun watching you two battle, Nadia and Zinx. You've got this! I gotta tell your father all about it when I get back, sweetie."

Nadia nods. "Do you have to go already?"

"Yes, I do wish I could stay a little longer and get to know everyone else better, but your father just shot a text saying he might've found a breakthrough. He's tweaking it now, so you kids should find something to do until then. I suspect it's gonna keep him up all night again." She says, sighing at the end fondly. "Well, until then, I shall keep cheering you on from the back! Thank you all for allowing me to join you, by the way. Take care, kids! Have fun and be safe!"

"Okay, bye mom! See you later!" Nadia waves her goodbye.

"Bye-bye auntie!" Angel says, waving too.

"Goodbye!" Jake says, offering a small wave.

The others also wave goodbye as Nadia's mother disappears past the clear glass doors. Lucy looks over at everyone.

"Welp, now what do we do?" She asks. "We've pretty much explored the entire city. The rest of it is just the same thing with shops and residential buildings."

"I want to go back to the arcade," Angel says, Vari sleeping peacefully in her arms, "There's still games I haven't tried."

"I have to supervise you again?" Zinx asks, almost exasperated.

"I mean, I can do just fine on my own!" Angel says, offended that Zinx still thinks she's that immature. "I'm 10, but I'm old enough!"

"I can come along! I've been wanting to check it out since I passed by it on my way to the museum!" Lucas says, raising his hand.

"...So two children?" Zinx says, sighing into his hand. Lucas shakes his head vigorously.

"We'll look out for each other! Promise!" He declares. Though Angel looks a bit taken aback.

"I dunno about that..." She mutters to herself. Nadia notices this behavior, and signals Zinx over.

"Hey, Zinx," Nadia whispers, "I think if you leave them alone Angel might try to fight Lucas, so maybe supervision isn't a bad idea."

"Really, man?" Zinx asks, raising an eyebrow. He points back at the them. "Wouldn't it be a better idea to just not let them go to the arcade?"

"Musa and I have to heal our Loomians and stock up on inventory." Nadia refutes. Zinx sighs and places a hand on his head.

"I have to heal as well! You realize how painful it was to fight Jellusa with Dimpire?" Zinx argues back. Before they could continue, Nadia's watch starts ringing.

"Eh? What is it...?" Nadia grumbles to herself. She presses the accept button and everyone crowds around her to see who it is. The hologram comes to life, presenting a miniature Mr. Ferrix. Nadia, realizing who it is, regains her composure in a minute.

"Ah, Mr. Ferrix! Good...uh." Nadia trails off, immediately losing the haughty and announcer-like persona she planned on having when the man called for the first time. "What time is it anyway?"

Ferrix gets a good laugh out of that. "It's near evening, children. I fare that the Battle Theatre Challenge went well?"

"Well' is probably not the best word for it." Nadia deadpans. Lucy lightly slaps her shoulder, telling her to shut up.

"Well, I'm sure with that energy in your voice you've defeated the Battle Stars. Congratulations on your victories, Nadia, Zinx." Ferrix laughs again. "I was watching on TV earlier. Millia wouldn't stop bugging me about it and was rooting for you the entire time. And seeing as you are all still in the city, I'd like to invite you all to my home this evening for dinner. I want to thank you again for what you did for Millia and I, and I'm sure Millia doesn't mind either. What do you say?"

What a stroke of luck...or coincidence. Nadia looks at the others crowding around her, a little miffed about the fact that she has little to no breathing room, but nods anyway. "We're free. We can head over as soon as possible."

"Yeah, dinner sounds great right now!" Lucas exclaims! "After those battles? I'm starving."

"Yeah, I think we screamed our stomachs into emptiness. Some food would be nice." Lucy concurs.

"Mm, food!" Angel exclaims. "Now that I think about it, I am actually really hungry."

"Looks like most of us, if not all of us agree." Jake says, nodding in approval. "I'll be down for dinner."

"Oh, then me too!" Mabel chips in. Lucy gives her the side eye, as if saying, "I know what you are."

"Excellent!" Ferrix says, smiling, "You may come home as soon as you're able to. I'm sure you know where my estate is. It's the large marble building in the Living District. I'll have Baxley wait out in the front for you. I look forward to having you all."

"Thank you for inviting us." Musa says.

"Of course, Musa. It is only fair. Well, with that, I bid you farewell." Ferrix says and nods. He hangs up the call, and finally everyone gives each other breathing space.

"Guys." Nadia says, grabbing everyone's attention. "Please don't crowd around me that tightly, I can't breathe. The call's holographic, stand on the other side."

"You know what, that's fair." Jake chuckles.