SHACKLES
Chapter One
They say that heroes are supposed to be strong.
And I am strong.
But I don't know if I can handle this.
What have I been reduced to…?
I'm not even a pawn anymore; more like some kind of puppet.
Just dancing for their amusement.
The games continue…
Down the corridors he went, just like every other time.
Left here, right there, he had it all pretty much memorized by now.
The cold, stone walls became steadily more and more narrow, until even he was feeling a little claustrophobic. He couldn't imagine what this must be like for some of the others. He heard the occasional splash of water as his boots disturbed the puddles that littered the damp cobblestone floors, tossing little droplets into the air.
Down, down, down he went, until the only light around emanated from the flickering bulbs that had been haphazardly bolted to the ceiling. They dimmed as he approached. Finally, he rounded the last corner, and the lift was in sight. His escort stepped aside, allowing him room to climb into the tiny contraption.
The iron doors slammed shut behind him, and he heard the heavy bolts being slapped into place as he strapped on his shield and scabbard. With a final metallic clank, all of the latches were secured on the thick doors, and he heard the metal floor underneath him groan in protest as the lift started to inch its way up.
He heard the sound of thunderous applause, muffled by the thick walls of the elevator shaft, but growing louder and louder as the lift took him upward foot by foot.
Before long, the noise was deafening.
He looked up, and he saw that all-too-familiar square of light. It continued to grow in size as he drew closer, and he could eventually make out the details of the brightly lit stadium ceiling.
The light enveloped him, and he stood on the far end of the arena, surveying the screaming crowd without expression. He couldn't make out any faces, but it didn't really matter. They were all here for the same purpose anyway. They didn't come here to be recognized.
They had come for blood.
"WELCOOOOOME TO THE STADIUUUUUM!!!!!" he glanced upwards as the announcers loud voice blared through the speakers mounted throughout Pokemon Stadium. "Tell me, who's ready TO SMAAAASH?!!!!!!"
The crowd erupted into screams and cheers, with chants breaking out here and there as they roared their approval.
"In the right-hand corner…" The announcer continued. "Hailing from the distant land of Hyrule, here comes the Terror of the Twilight, the Titan of Time, give it up for LIIINK!!!!"
Link sighed heavily and reached back to draw the Master Sword from its scabbard as the roaring of the crowd intensified and chants of "LINK! LINK!" broke out.
Here we go again…he thought.
"Aaaaand in the other corner…" Link directed his attention to the other end of the arena, where the other lift was just arriving as the announcer introduced his opponent. "Hailing from beyond the stars, give it up for the femme fatale of the arena, heeeere's SAAAAMUUS!!!!"
The bounty hunter gave a curt nod across the fighting field, which Link politely returned as the crowd went wild yet again. He couldn't see her face, but he was certain she wore an expression similar to his; an expression of 'dear GOD when will this be over?'
"Folks, you all know why you're here!" The announcer was saying. "So let's just cut to the chase, and watch the action! Smashers, are you ready?" Neither of them offered an answer, and the announcer didn't wait for one. "Ready, FIGHT!!!"
Later
The fight was a good one, at least according to the crowd. They left with their bloodlust satisfied, for the time being, and Link shook hands with Samus as they made their loud exit. After they had both been lowered down on their separate lifts, she tracked him down below ground.
"Good job out there, green guy." She grinned, punching him on the shoulder.
"Not bad yourself." The grin was returned, minus the punch.
The two of them were on pretty good terms, for smashers at least, and they even went so far as to consider themselves friends. Friendship was a luxury that was hard to come by in the arena, especially for Samus. She was the most dangerous and feared among the other smashers, and that obviously didn't help to boost her popularity any. In this world, it was survival of the fittest, and most of the smashers hadn't made the time to try and make any new friends. They were all too busy trying to live to see another day.
Link could relate. When he had first been brought to the tournament, he didn't want to get to know anybody. Why would he get to know people who wanted him dead? Those were the rules; if you survive, you can go back home. If not…well, then.
The two of them made a little conversation as they walked towards the mess hall, where they met up with Zelda.
Dinner sucked, as usual.
Trying to stomach the food was always an ordeal, so they tried to talk to each other as much as they could to avoid thinking about how their stomachs were reacting.
"When do you think they'll let us go back?" Zelda said. The other two were silent, staring into their trays of mush. "Well? How long do we have to be here? Didn't they ever tell you?"
Link shook his head. "All they said was 'if you survive'. And they made it sound like a pretty big 'if'."
"I don't think we're meant to survive." Was all Samus said, before she took another daring spoonful of dinner.
Link and Zelda looked over at her; Link had a resigned look in his eyes, but Zelda looked scared. "What do you mean?" she asked.
"Exactly what I said." Was the only response. "Link…" she continued, her tone even more serious. She never used his real name. "We've been here almost two years now, you know that right? And it's been almost one year for Zelda."
Link nodded. He knew. And Samus knew what was going through his mind. 'If you survive' wasn't a prize. It was a taunt, a death sentence. One way or the other, they would die if they stayed here long enough. And the Hands knew it. As long as there was money in the business, every single smasher was doomed to wait out the rest of his days in the arena.
"There's gotta be a way out of here…" Samus said, looking up at the ceiling. "I'm so sick of this shit hole."
"We'll find a way." Link said, giving her a reassuring smile. "We've all survived worse before. If there's a way, we'll find it."
Samus finally allowed herself a little smile. "Thanks, green guy."
"ATTENTION SMASHERS." A robotic voice blasted through the mess hall, and they heard Princess peach let out a small 'eep' from somewhere to their right. "NEW ARRIVALS INCOMING. RECEPTION IN TEN MINUTES. THAT IS ALL."
The three looked at each other for a moment. New arrivals.
"More smashers…" Link groaned, putting his head in his hands.
"I wonder where they got them from this time…" Samus muttered. She had a forlorn expression, just like the rest of them. They all remembered the feeling very clearly, the feeling of being torn away from your world, and brought into this living hell. The Hands always took the strongest fighters around, no matter who they were. Some of them were just kids…
"I don't understand why they do this…" Zelda said, half to herself.
"Because, princess," Samus replied, her voice bitter. "That's the way people are. Your people, my people, whatever the hell kind of people live where Kirby's from…and the Hands. They're all the same, you give them a good book and they'll think about it for a little while. But you promise them a fight, and they'll come back to you every day for the rest of their lives."
"I can't believe that…" Zelda murmured. "I won't believe that."
"Well, believe it or not, it's true." The hunter responded. "I've been traveling space for years, and trust me…all most people care about is money and blood."
Zelda was silent, staring into her tray and stirring the contents absent-mindedly with her spoon.
"We're not like that." Link finally said.
"Yeah, I know…" Samus replied, not looking at him. "That's why you're here. You either step on people, or you get stepped on. Lucky us."
They sat there in silence for a moment, lost in their own thoughts.
"Well," The bounty hunter finally said, standing up from her seat and grabbing her tray. "Let's go meet the new blood, shall we?"
END CHAPTER I
So, what did you think? Good, bad? I've got some cool ideas for this story, so please tell me what you think of it!