#I like the pattern of secret bosses having some form of unresolved conflict or situation that happened with a character close to them

[ne0nwithazero]

I have an idea that might solve your whole 'Host being part of final boss but also secret boss' problem.

Being that if and how you fight Omega Host is what decides whether or not Mike ends up in Castletown.

Mostly because I just couldn't get behind the post about how with no secret boss fight he just heads to the town and just leaves without knowing where Host is. They're too close for Mike to just go 'oh well you musta left them behind u suck'.

So what if instead; by the end, when you face him and whatever boss mooks he whips up to fight you at the fountain, he seems distracted. When you beat him and are about to go close the fountain, his main concern is that Host is awol.(at this point character development lets him let you close the fountain so that's settled) so he goes off to find them while you finish up business in Home before closing it off.

And this is where Omega comes in. All secret bosses so far have partially tested toby's whole 'how far will you go to find every secret' deal. First by making you find key fragments then by doing the key-basement fetchquest. This one tests how much you've actually been listening to the npc's. Throughout the chapter there are various hints about where to go and what to do("host's being hanging out at X lately", the signal is strongest at X",etc.). Rather than being told what to get and where to go, you use such info to figure out where to find the boss arena.

Mike going looking is the prompt to put all that info together, but of course plenty of players will find Omega way before then. If you do, then at the fountain fight, you tell Mike what happened(Susie does it despite Ralsei's objections). He refuses to believe you, and once you show him Host's item, he's enraged that you hurt his beloved and a much harder form of the final fight ensues. On losing, he either despairs and lets you take him to Castletown or bitterly storms off to wait to be turned to stone depending on your relationship with him(like how Birdly may or may not hurt his arm depending on previous choices).

If you do wait to do the fight until Mike goes to find Host, then you walk in on him and about-to-transform Host. Tragic dialog ensues, Host goes nightmare tower, and the fun gang jumps into the ring. Mike keeps begging Host to stop, and once again based on previous choices, will eventually either help you vie support magic or help Host the same way(fight's much much harder if Mike helps Host). If he helped you, the ending in the room video happens. If he helped Mike, he begs you to kill him to(you can't, Ralsei stops you) and then runs off to await stone-oblivion.

And if you never fight Omega at all, then that's the last time anyone sees Mike. No one ever knows what happened to either of the Home leaders.

I appreciate the determination to write your own take on it LOL :B But the Omega Host fight is something I'm trying to keep under wraps for now until I'm able to properly show it :) So I can't fully explain some of the decisions that went into it as they fall into spoiler territory

Mike doesn't know that Host went to do secret boss things nor are you given a chance to tell him, he just figures that Host will tag along when they're moved to Castle Town, in a "We'll meet there" sort of deal.

He's busy because [Spoilers] and he figures Host is multitasking as much as he is.

But Mike and Host get separated in every route except for Voltrage (My AU's weird route), which is the worst ending they can have

I also have a much different idea for how the quest for Host goes, but like I mentioned, it's spoilers so I don't want to speak much of it as of yet ^^ Mike can't come along because he wouldn't want Host to do it, and Host knows he'd be able to talk them out of it.

They also know it's dangerous for a darkner as fragile as Mike is. He could never join them in Omega form, I'm almost certain it would kill him and Host is not taking that risk.

I can say something though. Host does not want to be followed. And they do not want you to interfere with their plans. This applies to Mike as well, though their priority is making sure he does not get hurt.

But yeah, Mike always ends up alone in Castle Town unless it's the Voltrage route. He puts up a happy front to Fun Gang because he does not want them to see the grief he's going through because of Host being gone.

At the end of the chapter, he does care about them too, and as much as he loves Host, he understands that the kids had no choice but to defend themselves.