AN- I decided to write a thing. Yay. This is somewhat based off of an earlier one shot of mine, but it's mostly a new idea. I really hope you enjoy!

Also, I do not own Super Smash Bros, only my own ideas. Thank you and enjoy. -Twilight Joltik

The Mansion Enigma

Prologue

I stood with my ear to the ornate door, holding my breath. I did not want to be caught eavesdropping; the results would hinder my plans. My father's voice echoed through the wall dividing the hall from his conference room. "We must prepare at once! The attack could come at any moment!", he cried. I let out a sigh of relief. He was preoccupied with political issues. I hadn't the foggiest idea what he was talking about, but I supposed it was likely what he had been talking about when I had tuned him out in lessons for the past month. It seemed to be some sort of military issue, but I did not care. After tonight, I wouldn't have to care. I started to return to my room, but my breath caught as a familiar voice called out to me.

"Marth!", my sister called out. "What are you doing up this late?"

"M-might I ask the same of you?", I countered, trying very hard to suppress the fear in my voice.

"I was going to get a small snack," she stated. "But you're usually asleep by now. Is something wrong?"

"Not at all. I was just getting a bit restless, so I was just walking around, trying to see if that helped," I lied.

She narrowed her eyes, as if she was trying to see what I was truly planning, but she soon turned away. "Alright," she cried as she headed back down the hall. "Try not to disturb father's meeting."

I sighed. That had been a close call. I glanced down the rich red velvet hall after her. It was far too lavish, filled with far too many expensive paintings, lavish tapestries, gold, and other superfluous trinkets. I felt it was no wonder my father was having political issues, if he spent all of the country's money on luxury items for himself and his family alone, rather than on things the country actually needed, such as help for those in need and military defences. I tried to convince myself one last time of what I had been told time and time again; I would make a great king. I would be able to rule this country well, or at least better than my father. I shook my head. I had already made up my mind; that was not what I wanted to be. I did not want power, only freedom. And freedom I would get.

I pulled open the door of my room, where I had laid out one of the horrible capes my father insisted were "proper regal garb", though they looked silly. On it, I had stacked everything I believed I would need. The sword I used for "combat training", which was hardly ever anything practical, sat by a small pouch of gold that I would surely be able to use to buy whatever else I would need from a shop in a village somewhere. The cape would find practical use as a blanket; I had never been taught how to start a fire. I glanced around the room to see if there was anything else I would need. The golden crown I was so often forced to wear glinted in the faint moonlight on its perch atop my dresser, as if it were beckoning to me. I groaned and grabbed it; surely it would sell for a few coins.

I quickly changed into the only practical article of clothing I owned. Perhaps it was a guard uniform I had pillaged, but it was the best I could do. The blue tunic had some shoulder armor that seemed all but pointless, but the lace-up boots would be resilient, and the leggings were fairly comfortable, so I could not complain. After putting on the cape, strapping the sword to my belt in its sheath, and fastening the coin pouch to my belt as well, I begrudgingly put the crown on, as it would be the easiest way to carry it for the time being, though I knew I would have to take it off once I was out of the castle so I was not recognized. I then walked back out of my room. I could not bear to look back. I did not want to regret my decision. I swiftly sneaked through the halls, flinching each time I heard a noise. It was never anything but my own imagination, but I soon encountered another obstacle. A guard was stationed at the door, silhouetted in the moonlight. I took a breath and inched closer. He turned towards me and my heart stopped.

"So, you're really doing this, are you?", he asked. I recognized the voice well, as it belonged to one I could almost call a friend. Roy was a trainee guard that was around my age, and despite the bows and formal titles, almost treated me like a normal human being. "You said you wanted to so many times, but I didn't think you'd actually try to sneak out."

"I am not sneaking out; that implies I intend to return," I huffed.

"Don't be so s-" Roy's voice caught, as if he had started to regret what he had started saying. "I mean, you couldn't possibly mean that. Your parents, Elise, they would be so worried. Not to mention your father would have the entire military out looking for you."

I sighed. "I know, but I want no part of this life anymore. I cannot bear being confined like this any longer. I do not want to be on a pedestal, never getting to touch my surroundings. I want to be a regular person, not a leader who thinks only of himself. So, even if I'm caught, which I hope to not be, I'll have made my point."

He nodded and started to say something else, but stopped himself. "I won't tell anyone where you've gone, or that I know anything, if that helps."

I smiled and started to leave, but something stopped me. I turned back to him. "Thank you," I whispered. "You have been kind to me."

I continued out the door, but heard footsteps behind me. I turned to see Roy trailing me. "You don't know anything about the world. At least let me show you where the inn is in town," he offered.

"Thank you. That would be very helpful." We crossed the grounds silently. I once had thought these gardens must have been the most beautiful thing in all the world. Now they only reminded me of the time I spent there being taught by my father how to rule Altea someday. I would soon find far greater beauty in the world of freedom.

An iron gate stood at the border between my old world and the new one. Roy climbed over it deftly, but I hesitated. I recalled climbing them with my sister a few times when we were young, but the memory of the action itself seemed to have left me. I stared at the swirling rusted metal, putting one foot in a low curve. I recalled it a bit better, and put my other foot in a higher one, and then swung my leg across the fence. I then found myself laying on the ground in a rather awkward position, Roy attempting to suppress a snort of laughter. I stood back up and smiled; I was finally free. I stood for a moment, reveling in the beauty of it until Roy pulled me into a patch of trees nearby. "We can't just stand here in the middle of the road!", he berated. "Someone might see you!"

I nodded. "Yes, you said you would show me to the inn?"

"Right. This way." He started off into the woods. I walked behind him, looking at the deadened trees and fallen leaves littering the forest. It was charming, in a way. It seemed to carry the magic of endless possibilities, but also of death and endings. Fitting, as my old life was now dead to me.

We soon arrived in a small collection of houses with stone walls and wooden roofs, strung together with stone brick pathways. "The inn's here," Roy stated, motioning to a larger building with a sign hanging in front of its door with a sketch of a bed on it. "Good luck."

"Thank you again," I stated as he walked away. It was finally time for me to be on my own. A vague smile graced my face as I stepped towards the inn. Before I could enter, a loud metallic thud rang out from behind me. My smile fell as I turned to face an unfamiliar figure, clad in fiercely glinting full-body armor and holding a spear. As I saw a blazing orange glow at the edge of my vision, I drew my sword.

The eyes of the figure glowed gold inside the blackness of his helmet in a way I found wholly unnatural and inhuman. I knew my sword strikes would do very little, or even no damage at all, so I ducked out of the way and ran towards an open stretch of paving stones. Fire seemed to surround me, yet no villagers were there. Was it possible they had all fled, or were they all dead already?

The armored mass shuffled towards me, making an awful clanking noise with each step it took. I flinched as held my sword in front of me like a shield, unsure what to do. Suddenly, Roy grabbed my hand and pulled me towards a patch of woods. "Come on, that thing's trying to kill you!", he cried. I ran beside him, but I could hear its metal body shaking the ground on impact behind us.

Suddenly, I realized the clanking seemed to be multiplying. I hardly dared to look back, fearing I'd find more of the armored beasts pursuing us. Roy let out a small cry, and my heart stopped as more of the beasts materialized in front of us. They seemed to be pursuing another boy, who looked more irritated than fearful. They converged on the three of us, holding out their spears. More of them seemed to approach on every side, and I closed my eyes and held my breath, knowing that I was done for.

I waited for the attack, but it did not seem to come. I carefully opened my eyes to see our armored assailants gone, Roy and the other boy sprawled unconscious on the ground, and a mysterious figure covered by a black cloak standing before me.

"What happened?", I asked. "Am I dead?"

"Not quite. I am keeping the beasts at bay, for the time being," replied a low voice that could only have come from the cloaked figure.

"So you saved me?"

The cloaked figure came closer. "Not quite. You see, time is not flowing as it should at the moment. If I were to resume it, then you and your friends would perish at the hands of those armored men."

"Why were they attacking us?", I asked. "Who are you? How did stop time?"

"They were invading the country," it croaked. "Your father would know that, wouldn't he, Marth?"

That must have been the attack my father had spoke of. Why had I dismissed it? The country was being destroyed, and had I payed attention, I could have tried to warn someone. Now we would all die. "B-but why are you telling me this?"

"I have a… proposition for you," hissed the cloaked figure. "You see, I have a safehouse, of sorts. If I were to bring you and your friends there, you would not die. However, this asylum comes at a price. Are you willing to pay?"

I knew this couldn't be a good thing. Eerie cloaked figures offering you impossible deals at a 'price' never ended well in stories. However, the alternative was a certain death for the three of us. "Are you asking me to make the decision for the three of us?", I asked.

"No. You are dreaming this, as are they. But if you accept, you will be safe."

I breathed deeply. I knew I was making a mistake, but I choked out "I-I ac-cept."

"Thank you for your agreement," muttered the cloaked figure. I suddenly fell to the ground, a dark haze overtaking me.

AN- I hope to write more soon. More things will be explained next chapter. Thank you for reading! -Twilight Joltik

Next Chapter- Exposition. A very much lot of exposition.