Steve stood in line with the other pikmin, his best friend Ben right next to him. Olimar was gathering some other pikmin, yellows and blues. Steve still found it strange that pikmin of other colors existed. He and Ben had been sprouted in a place Olimar called 'The Impact Site', home to most of the red pikmin. But now he took them to all sorts of places, and these missions had led to the discoveries of yellow and blue pikmin. One blue pikmin named Indigo told Steve that there were rumors of purple pikmin, and a yellow named Sparky spoke of white ones. Steve thought that two new breeds were enough.
Olimar blew his whistle and everyone followed him, except for Ben and five other leaf pikmin of various colors. Irritated, Olimar blew the whistle again and they all came scurrying forward. "All right, now that I have all of your attention-" A few flower glared at the leaves, and Steve glared right back. "This is the Forest Navel, and it's very dangerous. Red pikmin, this is your place. There are fire hazards everywhere that will not harm you. I'm counting on you." Steve watched the rest of the red pikmin hum excitedly. He remained silent.
Instead, he thought about the stories of the days before Olimar. They were filled with fear and the need to keep the pikmin population growing. But generally it just always remained the same, the dead flower and bud pikmin replaced with whatever the troop had been able to carry back that day. Back then leaves were kept in the Onion until nectar was brought to them, and they were brought out as buds for training. When they proved themselves, the buds would be promoted to flowers.
But Olimar didn't follow the traditions. Instead, any pikmin that were needed were brought. And yet they were flourishing. Rather than sneaking around and praying to not wake up predators, they were taught to fight and bring back the creatures for food for the Onion. Leaves had no reason to wait anymore.
Many pikmin didn't like him though. "He treats us like slaves," They complained. "He sacrifices us to the Wollywogs and Breadbugs so he can get his precious ship parts. And where are we left?"
But Steve didn't agree. "Where would we be without him? We'd be hiding at home, slinking around like little pests, trying to just live through the day rather than conquer our territory." At this the others would do nothing more than turn away and grumble.
In his heart, though, Steve wasn't completely sure about Olimar. He would yell at them for tripping (All pikmin knew that tripping was an inevitability.) or for trying to bring back pellet posies, which were their very nature. And yet, Steve couldn't help but want to do everything he could for Olimar and his Onion family.
"All right, so we're going to get the Libra first." Olimar announced. "My daughter gave it to me."
Daughter? Steve had no idea what this meant. Olimar would sometimes call them the sons and daughters of the Onion, but no one ever understood or even really cared. He tagged along while Olimar sent the yellow pikmin onto the cliff to get the Libra. They carried it towards the ship, humming happily.
Olimar, in a hurry, turned and started taking the troop down a fiery path, keeping them against the wall. Steve watched with wonder as fire shot from the ground. Many other pikmin spoke about their fear of 'burning'. How did a pikmin burn? Fire felt like nothing but a warm breeze to Steve. Suddenly Olimar let out a gasp. "Are the yellow pikmin carrying the Libra back?" He asked furiously. The pikmin all looked around in confusion. He ran back through the fiery path, with the pikmin following. When they reached the next fire path, Steve froze, horrified. In front of him were yellow pikmin, their leaves, buds and flowers on fire. Rather than glancing off their skin, it stuck to them like bud, charring them.
Olimar whistled frantically, and a few with some sense ran over, terrified but able to be extinguished by Olimar. But the rest ran in circles or withered on the ground, squealing in pain. He whistled as loudly as he could, unwilling to lead the rest of the pikmin into the fray, but it was in vain. The rest of the pikmin watched in horror and sorrow as four of the yellows fell still and their souls drifted upward. Steve wondered if they could find their way to the flowers to be reborn while they were under the caves.
After a moment of pure stillness, Olimar let out a soft whistle. "Let's move on. Reds, get the Libra." He whispered, and they all followed silently, their usual hums too choked with grief to make their way through their mouths. Some of the reds went to take the Libra, while Steve stayed behind. He dared to look at one of the burned bodies and shuddered when he recognized the withered body of Sparky, his story telling friend.
Olimar led them to a safe place right outside of camp and rounded up his blues, leading them through the water into the water, ready to clear the way for another ship part. The reds and yellows milled around, too stunned to say anything. Even Ben was silent, Steve noticed. "You okay?" He asked quietly.
"I've never seen anything…die before." Ben replied.
Steve nodded. Death used to be a part of every day life, but now it wasn't anymore. It was…shocking.
A yellow flower turned around. "Would you useless leaves shut up? Do you think we want to hear about our families being burned alive?" She snapped.
Steve recognized her as Kurrent, an extremely bossy flower. Normally he would've snapped right back, but he felt guilty for her loss, as if he could've stopped it. "Sorry." He muttered.
"You should be. You were in the front of the group. If you weren't a stupid leaf you could've helped them." She let out a bitter laugh. "Or you might have tripped."
Steve narrowed his eyes and looked away. "I didn't see any of you help Dave when he was trapped under the bridge with that spark rock. Or would the electricity scare you so much, since you yellows are pretty much good for nothing?"
Kurrent lashed out with her flower and Steve dodged it. By now other pikmin had gathered in a circle around them. "Any pikmin with a brain knows not to get stuck under a bridge!"
"It wasn't his fault! Olimar sent him under there." Dave had been Ben's friend, and he wouldn't allow him to be disgraced, especially in death.
"Yes, that was a death caused by Olimar's carelessness as well." An older blue that had been ordered to stay behind, Berry, came forward. "It seems that Olimar is no longer teaching us survival skills but using us for his bidding." She mused.
Steve opened his mouth to protest, but shut it. Maybe she was right. Maybe Olimar wasn't interested in helping them anymore.
"We ought to go back home when night falls, rather than follow that ship of his." Another older pikmin mentioned. It was a red that Steve knew well, named Charlie. He used to tell all the new leaves stories, and he was well known as the only pikmin able to survive the old days until retirement.
"No! If Olimar had never showed up, all those pikmin would be dead anyway." Steve pointed out.
Charlie studied Steve for a moment. "Well put, young one."
"We can discuss this tonight with the rest of our families. Tomorrow night we can make the final decision." Kurrent said.
"Agreed." Charlie nodded and soon Olimar came back with the blues. They looked battered, and they were two short. They said nothing about the numbers, and neither did Olimar. The reds and yellows exchanged a look. Kurrent and Charlie went off to talk to Navy, the eldest blue pikmin. She nodded as they spoke to her, and Steve realized they must be telling her about the decision making tonight. Steve's stomach clenched. He didn't want to leave this life yet.
They followed Olimar back to camp and watched as he put away most of the yellows and took out some blues. On the way out from camp a pikmin slipped from the bridge and fell, his soul rising the instant he touched the ground. Kurrent, Charlie and Navy looked on with grim eyes.
Olimar gathered his thirty eight blue pikmin and took them off to battle some Wollywogs, some of the hardest enemies to battle. Steve watched in shock as only eighteen returned. Twenty dead pikmin.
After gathering some more blues, Olimar sent them to take back the Anti-Dioxide Filter. "All right, reds." They all listened. "The blues will need a cleared way if they'll all make it back safely. I want you to split up and attack the Fiery Blowhogs.
A shiver of wonder and excitement went through Steve. He remembered how buds had proved themselves in battle. Could he become more than a mere leaf if he did well in his first battle? "Move out."
Steve rushed forward towards the first Fiery Blowhog. Half of the red troops ran with him, and he lashed forward with his leaf stem, which was weak. But it left a red mark on the beast. It bellowed in anger as they all rushed forward, attacking brutally. Shaking them off, it blew fire forward. The flames glanced harmlessly off of Steve's skin, but he heard a cry from behind. The blues were too early. Eleven souls drifted upward. Anger made Steve recover first, and he ran forward once more, attacking the Fiery Blowhog.
In the distance he heard Olimar's frantic whistle. But it never registered with Steve. After a few minutes, the sounds of pikmin and whistling disappeared. They had left him behind.
Steve panicked for a moment. Should he try to follow them? But what if more blues or yellows came by? The Fiery Blowhog couldn't kill him. The vision of burning blue and yellow pikmin flashed through his mind, and Steve ran forward, letting out a fierce hum. The Blowhog was about to crash down on another pikmin. Ben! "Run!" Steve called, giving the Blowhog a sharp whip with his stem. It bellowed and turned away from Ben, who stood and ran.
For hours Steve fought the Blowhog. He grew exhausted and hot from the flames, but he continued to fight, refusing to give up. I'll never let this one burn another pikmin. He vowed silently.
Finally, the Blowhog paused and Steve was able to give it a lancing blow on its neck. It fell onto its side and trembled before falling still. A soul drifted up from it.
Steve watched in amazement. It was dead! He had killed a Fiery Blowhog, all on his own! But now what? He looked around and noticed that most of the other Blowhogs were gone. They must have been defeated while he was fighting, and he had gone unnoticed.
Customarily, the pikmin would take their kill back to the ship. But Steve didn't know how to get back to the ship on his own. Ben will tell them to come get me. He thought, and decided to drag the Blowhog into the open, so he could help carry it back to camp. A pikmin always brought his kill back to the Onion. It was tradition, and one that Steve was determined to carry out, even if the sunset were to kill him. It had killed his friend Judy. But she had died in honor, he knew, attempting to carry a twenty posy, which would have been a fantastic prize for the pikmin. It was found the next day, and Judy was honored for giving them so many lives.
How many sprouts did a Blowhog bring? Steve didn't know. But he did know that the sun was beginning to set. The light inside the cave was growing darker by the second. Fear gripped Steve. He didn't want to die, even with honor. He could only imagine what it would be like to be crushed by a Wollywog, or eaten by a Breadbug. But he couldn't give up. He had to try to help his troop, like his family before him died doing. He pulled harder, desperate to get the Blowhog to move.
Nine seconds to sundown. Steve could feel it. I'm going to die, he thought. But will anyone honor me?
Eight seconds. Creatures rustled in the grass, ready to awaken and feast on the weaker prey. Like me, Steve thought.
Seven seconds. There was a faint whistling sound. "A Wollywog!" Steve whispered in terror.
Six seconds. No, it was much more high pitched. Olimar? A loud whistle fell on Steve and he raced forward, following orders and abandoning his catch. The traditions didn't save him, Olimar did.
Five seconds. "Steve!" Olimar gasped. He waited for the scolding, to be told how stupid and idiotic he was to nearly die for nothing. But Olimar looked almost…respectful. "You're a real trooper. You were staying there, sacrificing your life, into the hours of the night to carry back a rotting corpse of a fire-breathing pig." He sounded as if he were in complete awe.
Strange person, Olimar was.
Four seconds. "Where's Ben?" Olimar asked. Ben's missing? Steve closed his eyes. There was nothing but the shocked hum from camp. No, wait, there was one coming from close by… the fiery paths!
Three seconds. Steve ran forward, determined not to trip. I can't have saved him for nothing! He had three seconds to save his friend.
Two seconds. There he was! "Steve!" Ben called.
One second. Olimar's whistle fell on Ben, and luckily he responded. They huddled behind Olimar and watched as night fell onto the land.
Zero seconds. Olimar led them back to the camp, where the rest of the pikmin were ready to go into their Onions. They saw Steve and a large cheer fell upon the crowd. "You're alive!" Charlie gasped.
"Thanks to Olimar." Steve said meaningfully.
Charlie nodded. "We have much to discuss tonight."
And once Steve explained that Olimar had come back for him and Ben, it was agreed that they would stay to help Olimar build his ship. "I must admit, I mainly only want to stay because of your vote Steve." Charlie said. "You saved Ben twice, and would have died to bring that Blowhog, which you killed, back. You have shown yourself more worthy than even a flower could."
Pride swelled up in Steve. That night he was assigned a flower's sleeping chamber, which was three times as large as a leaf's. But Steve was more pleased with himself than his earnings.
The next morning Steve wanted to ignore the whistle signal. He was still exhausted from the previous day's stress, battles and attempts to carrying Blowhogs. But he went out to go with the troop, and was surprised to see just Olimar there. "Come with me," He said, and went off without a whistle.
Steve followed, too surprised to do anything else. Soon they reached some grass, and Olimar nodded. "Go eat it." He said softly.
Joy filled Steve. He would be a flower. A real flower! He hit the grass with his stem, and sweet nectar came out in large drops. Steve ate it quickly, and warmth flowed into his limbs. He felt stronger, and his stem was tingling. After a moment he ran forward and looked into the water. He was a flower. Pride coursed through Steve and he went to work that day, and there wasn't a single casualty.