Update: 10/19/15: Moved background to the very end of the chapter. Other than that, unchanged.
AN: Hello everyone! I thank you for taking the time to read my latest work, and my first multi-chaptered fic. I've been meaning to get one out for a bit now, but the first idea… fell flat on its face. I only recently started working on this, but I think it has a better story than the first. I hope. I guess only time will tell. I appreciate any feedback any of you guys or gals out there have. Hope you enjoy this!
Also, I would appreciate it if you could keep an eye out for any memorable quotes, and tell me later. I might do something with them later on, or I might not. Depends on my brain.
Disclaimer: Nintendo owns Earthbound and its characters: I only own the plot and the OCs.
The Royal Family of the Confederation of Eagleland was not exactly at peace currently, since a bunch of men that were dressed up as pigs were only held back from the enterance by only the hastily-constructed barricade, and even then the guards were slowly falling.
The man-pigs were technologically superior to the guards' since the most advanced the guards could bring to bear were a handful of guns that relied on a rapidly dwindling supply of bullets. The rest were forced to use medieval weaponry and went up against laser guns that didn't need bullets. Nevertheless, the low odds of survival was not the main thing on their minds.
Their thoughts mostly went to the safety of the Royal Family. Both King and Queen Polestar were benevolent rulers, in the eyes of most. They held no real power in the Confederation, but they still symbolized a step towards what countries looked like. And if the man-pigs had their way, what would they do to them? Throw them into the dungeons or execution? The possibilities were overwhelming if they thought about it, so they didn't. If they did not survive, that left only Princess Polestar to lead, and she would probably suffer the same fate as her parents. If they were to endure as a Confederation, they would have to at least buy the Royal Family enough time to escape. These thoughts strengthened the resolve of the defenders as they stubbornly resisted the rebel forces.
Moments later, Captain Ernest Levins, the Captain of the Guard reached the barricade. He wasn't their commander for nothing; he was an inspirational leader and possessed potent PSI, which he put to use by blasting away their center with a single PSI Fire Gamma. Shortly after, he raised a Shield Beta to protect not only himself, but also the troops charging in for close combat. Now the guards were in their comfort zone: Their medieval weaponry useful for cutting down enemies and protecting them. The masks on the man-pigs also didn't help them since their more limited vision only served to hinder them in close-combat. Plus, their force was being cut into two pieces; they had no choice but to retreat to the gates.
Deep in the heart of the castle, King Polestar paced back and forth across the throne room as the sounds of battles echoed down the halls. He had a gut feeling that they would not hold for much longer, but long enough for them to escape. He looked at his wife, who was currently hugging their only child as she winced at every battle cry that her ears picked up. However, close by their side was the one who had the best chance of surviving the battle if they joined.
Of course, he knew that the chance was slim, and he had no intention of wasting the fifteen-year old's life like that, no matter his accomplishments as a warrior. After all, Ninten was like a son to him; he could not bear the thought of sending him to his death intentionally; though the Giant Knife strapped onto his back would be sure to fell a number of the attackers. His oversized blade was as sharp as his emerald green eyes and as tough as his fists. But he had another mission for the loyal guardian.
"Ninten," the king whispered, gaining his attention. He closed his eyes as he resumed. "Through your five years of service, you have demonstrated superb combat skills to your peers at the academy, undying loyalty to the Royal Family, and friendship to my daughter," he began. "But this mission I am about to give you will test all three of those admirable qualities. I beg you not to lose them."
"I can handle it, just give me the order," Ninten replied.
The king sighed, deciding to just get this over with. "Take Paula and escape through the secret passages," he instructed. "She is the hope of the future; she must not suffer the fate that these...rebels want to inflict onto her.
"Your majesty, what about you and the queen?" Ninten questioned.
"We can escape by ourselves, there is no need for you to worry," the king reassured, placing a hand on one of his shoulders, feeling the coldness of the metal plating on his shoulder pad. "Now go, and get her to safety."
"Yes sir," Ninten saluted, and then faced Paula. "You heard your father, let's move," he told her.
The duo left the throne room, but not before taking one last look back at the king and queen, both smiling and nodding reassuringly. Then they took off down the hall.
It didn't take Ninten long to reach a particular painting, one with the Earth on fire and an ominous shadow looming over it. That shadow belonged to their leader, or at least most thought it was. But there was no doubt it had to do with the PSI Wars. And it contained the entrance to the secret passage network around the castle that dated back to the PSI Wars. With Paula's PK Fire lighting up the tunnels, the duo headed to safety.
King Polestar sighed. "I'm sorry I lied to you, Ninten," he apologized. "But I would rather die than to abandon the men I lead." He drew a single saber from his sheath. "As such, anyone who enters this room will probably lose their heads in more ways than one," he declared.
"Halt advance!" Captain Levins shouted at the top of his lungs. "Fortify this position; we'll wear them down here, and then drive them back!"
"Sir!" a soldier called. "The leader of these forces requests an audience with you."
"What?" Levins growled, distrusting this information.
"Sir, he's on the radio over there," the soldier pointed to a radio lying several feet away. Despite his suspicions, Levins felt that it was for the best to at least learn the motivation and identity of the enemy, and maybe cause him to spill the beans on his plot (however unlikely).
"This is Captain Levins of His Majesty's Royal Guard," he growled through the radio. "I hear you request an audiance. Speak your demands or I'll personally make sure your pathetic excuse for an army is routed."
"Your empty threats do not intimidate me," a distorted voice sneered from the other side. "You have no idea who you're dealing with, as your ignorance radiates off you with that arrogant statement."
"Then why have't we been overrun by now?" Levins asked. "And who are you?"
"Both are beneath me to answer," the voice continued. "Though you will find out the answer to one of them soon enough..."
"What do you hope to gain by allowing your own men to die in this futile attack?" Levins scoffed.
"The Royal Family is weak; it will fall when it is most needed," the voice stated. "Have you ever heard the saying 'might makes right'? To save the human race from itself, I have to be mighty. That is the only way to unify what is left, and endure as a species."
"Preposterous," Levins snarled. "This Confederacy is only a stepping stone; uniting each city-state will require resources we don't have! Your goal is to save humanity? Well you'll doom it with these wars of yours!"
"And you'll doom it by not allowing me to do what is right?"
"Your forces spilled too much blood today," Levins continued. "If you overthrow the family, you'll trigger war with every city in the Confederacy. No matter the outcome, it will undo most, if not all of the work our ancestors have poured into this continent. Are you willing to take that risk, knowing the possible consequences?"
"You are not listening, and therefore unworthy of my notice," the voice sneered. "I think I'll have my pet deal with you, and show you a fraction of my strength."
At that moment, a loud 'bang!' echoed across the castle fields. Levins gasped as he saw several soldiers fall to the ground, sparking with electricity. He turned his gaze upward, and spotted someone he nearly mistook as a soldier. Actually, he was dressed like a soldier, if the black leather coat, military pants, combat boots, gray helmet, and yellow sword were anything to go by. A PSI user by the way he was uniquely dressed, as well as the electricity sparking on his sword, and he was flying with a jetpack with bat-like wings. But he looked no older than fifteen, no older than that Lieutenant assigned to guard the Princess.
"Fall back to the barricade!" Levins ordered. "We can't hold this position! However, I will deal with that psychic!"
The Masked Man waved his sword once, and then landed on the ground. Both warriors stared each other down. Then the Masked Man charged. Even though his sword was parried by Levins's katana, he was blasted by the Masked Man's cannon.
He got back up from being knocked down and growled. Electricity cackled around his fingers as he prepared a PK Thunder Gamma to attack his adversary with.
Paula's PK Fire had just gone out, but it was not because of her lack of endurance: Both sensed an ominous presence with them, and they hoped that by extinguishing it they would have a better chance of sneaking out.
But unfortunately, their stalker was not fooled by this.
"Nwehehehehehehehehe!"
Ninten drew his Giant Knife as Paula charged her PSI as the haunting laugh echoed through the caves. Sure enough, the one who cackled came into sight seconds after it finished echoing. He was short and stocky; honestly not very impressive physically. But Ninten wasn't either, so he wasn't fooled by his appearance when he sensed incredible PSI energy emanating from this man.
The man must have been either really confident or exceedingly stupid because he took out a banana, ate it in one gulp, and then threw the peel on the ground. Ninten knew Paula was going to have a fit.
"Hey, what was that for?" she snapped. "Why can't you throw that in the garbage bin? I mean, come on! The last thing we need in these times is pollution!"
It would have been hilarious if it weren't so true.
"You naive little girl, pollution is hardly the worst problem that this world faces now," the mystery man sneered.
"I think we all know that; yet pollution can amplify it."
"That won't be an issue before long."
"What do you mean?" Ninten demanded.
"What I mean is that these...so-called governments are just folly. They are only delaying the inevitable."
"What, you mean humanity's extinction?" Ninten scoffed. "Well, united we stand a better chance than on our own of surviving, so if you have a better solution, why don't you propose it?"
"You can't fool me into blabbing all of my master's secrets," his adversary rolled his eyes. "Don't you realize that war is the only way to ensure our survival? My master wishes to unify humanity under him, and give them the means to endure. Didn't you say, 'united we stand'?"
Ninten's eyes narrowed. "You are a fool for thinking war at this time is acceptable. Most city-states around the world can't even field standing armies, and those that can only have a few thousand partially-trained troops at their disposal. We can't afford another world war, not after the last one. And this 'ruler' would be your master? How can we be sure he won't give us a one-way ticket to hell?"
"You don't, but you must boy," the mystery man frowned. "But we're wasting time: Hand over the girl, now."
Ninten's eyes flashed as a response. A moment later, both princess and guardian disappeared in a similar flash of light, only to reappear behind him seconds later.
Ninten adopted a battle stance. "Paula, run! I'll handle this," Ninten called.
"No! I won't leave you, Ninten!" she cried.
"You must!" Ninten snapped. "If you don't survive, neither will everything we and our ancestors fought for will come to fruition on this continent. You need to rally the other cities! You need not worry; I will not die here today."
Ninten could sense Paula's inner dilemma. She didn't want to abandon her best friend to an uncertain fate, not after abandoning the soldiers defending the castle, yet she understood what he was saying.
In the end, she decided to place her trust in her best friend.
"Be careful Ninten," she ordered before she fled the scene.
The mystery man wasn't about to let that fly if he could help it. "Out of my way, boy," he growled. "Or else Commander Fassad will have to break every bone in your body...no, I won't do that; I'll turn you into dust."
"Let's see if you're good enough to keep your word."
Fassad let out a battle cry as he charged, scimitar flashing as he swiped for his opponent's legs. Ninten leaped back, and parried Fassad's other scimitar before stabbing forward with his knife. Fassad strafed to the side and slashed again, but Ninten was too quick: He twisted away from his telegraphed attack, putting some distance between them.
Fassad put away his scimitars and quickly tried to power up a PK Thunder Omega, thinking that he couldn't evade them all. However, instead of putting up a shield or distance, Ninten actually closed on Fassad, and moments before he released, he rolled to the side, causing all four blasts of electricity to miss. Fassad couldn't react fast enough to his slash, gaining a cut on his hip, letting out a cry of pain as he tried to defend from his adversary, but Ninten didn't relent. A punch to his jaw knocked him back; a kick to his knee sent him to the ground. Fassad had enough: He simply used PK Fire Alpha to send a forceful message to back off.
"Not bad, boy," Fassad grinned as he used Lifeup Alpha to heal his wounds as he redrew his scimitars. "But let's see if that lasts."
This time when he charged, he circled around and slashed for Ninten's right arm. Ninten wasn't quick enough this time, and growled as he felt the cut, attempting a backhand to level him, but Fassad ducked and slammed a foot into Ninten's gut. Ninten grunted as he stumbled back several steps. Ninten swung his Giant Knife, holding off both of Fassad's scimitars and launched a glob of spit that landed directly in Fassad's eye. Fassad cried out and this brief lapse allowed Ninten to not only disarm Fassad but also pin him to the ground. But Fassad blasted him with a PK Thunder Alpha to knock him away before he could do anything.
The teen decided to use Defense Up to improve his durability, followed by Offense Up to improve his power. Fassad grimaced. He knew that the odds were against him now, and this boy was somehow proving to be superior to him in close combat, evidenced by the loss of his weapons. But what about at a distance?
Fassad charged up a PK Freeze Gamma. In only one second, he let it loose on Ninten. But the teen did not simply sit around idle waiting for his imminent doom. No, he instead deployed a PK PowerShield around him. PowerShield is a technique that can reflect any kind of incoming attack; even PSI. As a result, Fassad was the one who had the icy snowflake collide with him.
Needless to say, Fassad was pissed off now. He was about ready to unleash his special technique, but had to scoot to the side to avoid a PK Beam Gamma that Ninten launched. That gave him an idea.
He whipped out a small futuristic-looking gun and began to aim it. 'He should know a regular attack can't get through PowerShield,' Ninten thought. 'Unless either he's too dumb to realize it or he's up to something, and I don't think its stupidity.' However, Fassad fired it earlier than he anticipated. This left him no time to dodge the beam heading his way.
Ninten's suspicion was proven correct as it passed through his shield without affecting it at all, and as it made contact, it seemed as though his chest wanted to break into two. That was how much pain he was going through as a result of the beam. He managed to bite back a scream, but bit his bottom lip so hard that it started to bleed. Then, it was over. Ninten was on his knees, panting.
"W-What was that?" Ninten muttered to himself in shock.
"If you expect me to explained the effects boy, you're sadly mistaken," Fassad sneered.
Ninten growled as he got up onto his feet, preparing a PK Beam Gamma.
But he couldn't.
Ninten frowned as he tried again, and again. It wasn't working. Quickly, he attempted a Lifeup Gamma. That didn't work either. Finally, he tried another PowerShield, which also failed. 'What's this? This never happened before!' Ninten thought in a panic. 'Nothing except PSI Block can take away PSI moves; wait! The pain...Is it possible that he took away a part of my PSI Core?' He became certain that was what happened, but why wasn't he dead? Maybe it had to do something with the technology of his weapon.
But he couldn't have taken it all; he doubted that even with science he wouldn't be killed without even a fragment of the core. Regardless, he was a sitting duck at long range as Fassad tried to blast him with a PK Thunder Beta. His only option was to raise his Giant Knife to try to block it, but it didn't do any good. After enduring electrocution for several seconds, he was on one knee as he breathed heavily.
"Your time is up, boy!" Fassad cackled. With that, he began charging up a PK Starstorm Omega.
Ninten's eyes widened as he comprehended what situation he was in. Instantly, his mind began working on ways to get out of this: He could not run fast enough to get away, PowerShield was disabled and even if Shield Alpha worked, it couldn't stop all the damage, he couldn't close fast enough to attack, and Beam Gamma was gone. That left only 4th D-Slip, if it even worked.
Praying that it would work, Ninten cast his signature move just as the stars were let loose.
Fassad grinned at each explosion, knowing that he had won the battle. Sure enough, Ninten was gone, vaporized Fassad assumed. But his grin turned into a frown. The Princess had escaped despite his victory, and that meant more than all the losses the Royal Family's troops suffered today. It was a strategic victory for them, but Fassad vowed it would only be temporary.
However, unknown to him as he retrieved his scimitars, a flash of light flared at the end of the tunnel. Emerging from that was Ninten. He took a glance at his Giant Knife. He frowned, since a crack was running up the middle. He would have to avoid using it until he could get it repaired, lest it break. But he was alive, and the Pigmasks have just made a dangerous enemy.
Without even a spiteful snort, the Masked Man pulled his sword out from his fallen adversary. That Captain was good, good enough to damage his cannon arm; it will need repairs. But he fell all the same, no matter how valiant he was in battle. The Captain was weak, and he was stronger: just a part of the natural order of things.
"Well done, my pet," the same voice said from the Masked Man's earpiece used for communication. "You have once again exceeded expectations in your duty. But now is not the time to bask in our victory; we must lay claim to the castle itself. Lead our soldiers in securing it and initiate Phase Two.
The Masked Man mutely nodded and flew toward the front lines. There weren't many guards left, but the ones that were still fighting were holding up their advance with only a makeshift barricade and whatever weapons they could acquire.
It took the Masked Man only a wave of his sword and a burst of PSI Energy for his PK Thunder Omega to tear it apart and kill most of the remaining opposition.
With that complete, the Pigmasks flooded toward the wrecked final line of defense, slaughtering the remaining forces in their way. At last, the echoes of battle halted. Now, the Pigmasks have won, though with heavy causalities. They'll have to count, but the Masked Man was sure this would be enough to secure the castle. If they really had to, they could call in Chimeras even though they were supposed to be a secret weapon.
The Masked Man summoned the Colonel in charge of the attacking unit, a Major, two Captains, and four rank-and-file Pigmasks to march on the throne room. The only people left in the castle were the occasional servant, whom often ducked back into their room when they saw the conquerors marching toward them.
But as they approached the hall with the throne room, a painting swung out and Fassad stumbled out. The Masked Man saw his clothes were dirtied, torn at the hip, and was bloodied around that area, but he figured he himself looked worse.
Fassad didn't seem to notice or care about this fact, and joined their march to the end of the hall. However, as soon as the door flew open, the Masked Man's damaged arm cannon blocked an overhead sword strike. It had the end result of becoming even more damaged than before, but that was better that than losing his head.
The Masked Man simply punched the King in the gut and he stumbled back. The next second, two regular Pigmasks were upon him, one per each arm. The other two had just seized the queen and were dragging her toward their commanders.
"Yes, yes, very good," Fassad grinned. "Now, do you four know what they Royal Family does to criminals?"
"Oh, I know!" one called out. "The Royal Family throws a banquet for them."
Fassad facepalmed at his ignorance. "Idiot, they throw them into the dungeons!" he snapped. "So if your puny brains can process this, give them the same fate as they do to the so-called criminals!"
"You dare accuse us of crimes?" the King growled. "For what offenses are we chained to walls for?"
Fassad grinned. "For dooming humanity to a slow death with your current system," he said. Before the King could reply, a single punch from one of the Pigmask Captains silenced him before he could even speak, and without further resistance, both Polestars were dragged away unceremoniously, escorted by the Captains.
Fassad faced the throne, grin widening. "Finally, we have claimed this for the true King. Now, initiate phase two of the plan. Once that is completed, we'll march to the closest city; Ellay!"
This proclamation was met with wild cheers from the remaining officers, knowing that the steps to unification are being taken, and so would the revival of humanity's glory days...
...Except for the Masked Man. He simply stared ahead. It was almost time to initiate Phase Three...
Legends have been passed down through generations that detail how psychic powers came into existence on Planet Earth.
Most of the legends claim that it was started before humans built Mesopotamia; the first known civilization on Earth. However, it was likely that their powers were weak, and were of little use in surviving in the wilderness of Africa.
As the centuries passed, little by little their powers have increased drastically. By the time of Julius Caesar, psychics often were able to lend greater powers in pursuits ranging from military action to farming. However, people grew wary of these, and often times psychics were seized and killed without even a trial or defense.
After the fall of Rome and entry into the Middle Ages, psychic powers were on the decline; most psychics no longer used their powers as they once did, mainly out of fear of execution. Therefore the overall rate of executions over psychic powers became rarer and rarer to witness.
It wasn't until the Industrial Revolution that psychics became more common. By the end of the Nineteenth Century, most executions over psychic powers had stopped, and once again psychics began to emerge, though as they did so the prejudice against them emerged again.
In both World Wars psychics fought, whether for the Allies or Central Powers, the Grand Alliance or Axis Powers. In the subsequent Cold War psychics served in various professions around the globe, hoping to beat out their communist or capitalist rivals in science, education, military might, and overall happiness. However, the early Twentieth Century was when everything changed.
In a series of brutal wars against aliens that became known as the PSI Wars, humanity finally developed their first real PSI users and these gifted (or cursed) individuals were the most decisive factor in humanity's survival, though on its last legs. In the wars, most countries had disintegrated; their rural towns leaving no trace of existence and entire cities leveled: It was destruction that exceeded all the previous wars of humanity combined.
However, eighty years after all this happened, several city-states have banded together into loose Confederations as they tried to reestablish connections over the land (global is out the question right now), but it will take a long time. Unifying them even further will likely take wars, wars that everybody knows that they cannot afford. As such, peace has reigned for the years after the wars, and it looks as though it has come to stay.
AN: So how was it? Future chapters…I'm not sure in length. But several will have a good amount of action; at least I'll try to write good action scenes. I'll probably have to rewrite the majority of it by the time I'm finished. Several emotional/character development scenes will still be there, in between battles. Also, I will be including footnotes just below here in every chapter just to define some terms so that more information can be given about things I don't have time to really go over or simply fun facts. The footnotes were pretty much taken from The Fighting Irishman's Legend of Zelda fanfic: And So We Fight. I recommend checking it out sometime if you don't mind spoilers for Hyrule Warriors: It's really good, and is far more than just a simple novelization. I hope to get out chapters every week to two weeks.
Anyway, that's all I have to really say for now. Have a good day!
PSI Encyclopedia
PSI: The pinnacle of all known psychic powers, given that elemental attacks, lasers, and shields are commonplace among them. However, it has limited endurance and other drawbacks which make PSI users targets of prejudice out of simple fear. However, a number of them hold integrity and honor above all else, and will take up their sword against those that wish harm on others. The use of this power properly often takes practice. To use it to its full potential requires years of training and experience from a young age.
Also worthy of mention is that saying the name of their attack boosts their power and control, but it is possible to do it without saying it out loud, which gives the advantage of the element of surprise.
The Confederation of Eagleland: This loose nation is comprised of what remains of North America, which would be the western part; they are ruled by the Polestar Royal Family, though since it's a Confederation, they have very little central authority despite the monarchy. Several major centers include: San Francisco, Ellay (formerly Los Angeles), Seattle, Salt Lake City, Vancouver, and Mexico City. Though the Royal Family is just a figurehead: The individual cities make all the decisions, making it difficult to coordinate them all. This causes great frustration at the castle.
PSI Core: The area in which the PSI in a user is concentrated. It is typically around the heart to give it extra protection. It serves not only as a reservoir of PSI energy, but it also contains the knowledge which is subconsciously drawn upon for techniques. If damaged or destroyed, the results will be catastrophic to the user, given the sheer amount of energy concentrated there, if they're not dead already, though Fassad's new weapon seems to be an exception to that rule.