Chapter 1: A Warning Sign
He leans back heavily in his luxurious, leather chair and puts his booted feet on the table, smiling at me, as if he's the one in charge. "So, you decided to come."
Warily, I stare back in the dimly lit office. I'm not sure if it was wise coming here. The man in front of me is, after all a known thief and that smile of his is calculating, shrewd. Here's a man who knows how to intimidate his opponent, and he's using those skills on me. But I'm not here to be his opponent. I say nothing, but I look back into his eyes steadfastly.
He pushes a sack of gold towards me. "I assume then you'll be taking on my little assignment? I assure you, you'll be rewarded beyond your wildest dreams. This is only a little taste, honey."
"I'm not interested in money, and I'm not your honey," I cut in for the first time. I lean forward, putting one hand on the table to assert myself. The other is placed on my holster situated on my hip, just in case negotiations go bad. You can never be too careful, after all. "You know what I'm after."
Samurai Goroh strokes his chin, still smiling calmly. "Ah yes," he says. Then he takes his feet off the table and also leans forward to increase the pressure of his eyes. "I will give you the information as long as you do what I ask."
I wait for his terms. I will not ask, beg for them. I want to make it perfectly clear that I'm the one in control. Even though I'm not. How can I be, when I'm not even sure I'll get what I'm promised? "How do I know you even have the information?"
Goroh chuckles. "You don't, my dear. But," he adds. "You know that people who are involved in the underworld know certain things that people of honorable status such as you don't."
It's risky, but I've got no other leads, and Samurai Goroh is my closest bet to one. I may not like him, as he's one of the most notorious thieves in the galaxy, but I've put up with worse. I doubt Goroh's ever even killed a person. His unofficial motto is, after all, "Steal, but never kill." Which is probably why he hired me to do his dirty work. Coward.
"So my dear, Samus Aran. I've heard you are without a doubt the best bounty hunter. I hope the rumors are true because you're going to be hunting down somebody who I've found has been eluding my capture for a very long time. He can be dangerous."
"And who would that be?" I ask carelessly.
In response, Samurai Goroh takes a large manila envelope and slides it across the desk. I catch it. "Captain Falcon. His real name is Douglas Jay Falcon. You've heard of him, I presume."
Yes, I have. We've both competed in the Smash Tournament that's held every year, but I've never had a chance to fight against or with him on Team Battles and I know very little of him, seeing as how I don't spend a lot of time with the Smashers I hardly get to know. I have heard that he's a very famous racer. "I've heard things, met him once before about five years back. But I don't know a lot about him to know why he'd be dangerous."
Goroh's smile is still etched on his face. "Yes, that's partly the reason why I picked you for the assignment. This year, the Smash Team Tournament will be popular, as it always is. And guess who will be your partner this year?"
Captain Falcon, obviously. "So you want me to get this over with quickly, right?"
"No, quite the contrary. You must kill him after the Tournament is over, otherwise suspicion will arise that it was a Smasher who'd done it and you'll be a suspect. I'd rather not that happen. But during this time that you'll be fighting together, you must get to know him, find out his strategies, make him let his guard down around you. Make him suspect it was never you, until he's already dead. Are you up for the assignment?"
I breathe in. This was easier than I thought it'd be. I have the chance to take Captain Falcon out a lot easier than other bounties who go into deep hiding. Captain Falcon will be right under my nose. I don't like murdering innocent people, but I can't pass up the chance for the information I so desperately crave.
"Go, Samus!"
"But what about you?"
"I'll be fine, just go! Save yourself!"
In my mind's eye, I can see it clearly, even though it happened almost two decades ago. I focus my eyes on the man in front of me, nod and say, "I won't let you down."
But tailing Captain Falcon proves boring. For one, he's just a normal man. I've been tailing him for two weeks now (Not thoroughly), gone through all public records, and even his house, where I gave a cursory glance. Nothing suggests that he's anything extraordinary.
On record, I know that Falcon just recently turned 37 years old which is about 11 years older than I. His occupations are now being a racer, but before he dabbled in bounty hunting such as myself. There's not a lot of information here about his bounty hunting days though, so I can't determine how good he is at his job. It sounds arrogant, but I doubt he's as good as me.
Off record, his breakfast is usually a bagel with an onion and chive schmear, and prefers The Nintendo Gazette over Mute City Herald. This probably means he's a Libertarian, but most certainly not a Conservative. Lunch usually consists of some sort of lean meat. Once a week he has fish. I realize he eats at only high class restaurants, and he's conscious of what he eats which is puzzling to me at first. You don't need to be in great shape to race. He's into black and white movies (He watches these on his own, when he thinks nobody is looking) and all of his... Er... Adult DVD collections feature blue eyed, blonde girls.
Consequently, he ends up taking a lot of blonde girls out as well. He treats them to expensive restaurants, or high end clubs, or some other wealthy affairs before they spend the whole night at his house. But I realize, they are all different girls and they never come back after the one night stand. So he's not serious about any one specific girl. He's only in it for the sex. He races a lot on his downtime, and it seems his main obsession is cars. I also watch a few of his practice races, and while I admit he's pretty good at what he does, he's also quite reckless when he drives. He relies more on instinct, than he does on logic, which is dangerous in this sort of competition.
He's a a typical boy. I yawn. What did Goroh find so challenging about this man?
The day I leave to Smash Headquarters, I've pretty much worked out most of Captain Falcon's routine and I think it'll be cake to take him down.
But he's not due to Smash Headquarters for another week, so I begin to get myself acquainted around the area. The headquarters look more like a condo building than anything else. Each condo houses up to four people, but since there are only three girls in the tournament this year, it looks like my only roommates will be Peach and Zelda, both princesses with different backgrounds than I.
That's not to say I hate my roommates. We get along pretty well and though I prefer having my own condo, there are times when I enjoy their company more than just having the whole space to myself.
"I can't believe there are no new girl Smashers this year!" Peach exclaims throwing her hands up dramatically, beginning a conversation. "I thought for sure that Krystal was going to get in but it seems there was only one more slot for a character from the Lylat System and Wolf took it before she did!"
"That's a shame," Zelda agrees, though in a more subdued manner. She's at the kitchen, making Moroccan tea for the three of us. "But at least we all know we're not going to get into any roommate problems this year." She smiles at us and I return it. Peach, on the other hand scowls, not entirely placated.
I change the subject before she can further pursue the subject. "So uh, do you guys know how teams are going to be like this year?" The first Team Tournament I was in, my partner was Mario, and he was agreeable enough though his work ethic was far too taxing on my health. The second and third were both taken by Pikachu. The fourth time, I was paired up with Roy and we actually placed third. He ended up leaving back to his country which was sad. He was a great friend to have around. This year, I already knew my teammate was Captain Falcon, but nobody is officially supposed to know until everybody's arrived.
Zelda shakes her head in worry. "I hope I get somebody good."
Peach grins slyly at her. "Somebody good, or somebody Link? Eh?"
"Peach! Would you stop that?!" But Zelda's blushing furiously, and she spills some tea on the countertop. It's no secret that Zelda loves Link. But she's too shy to tell him her feelings. Likewise, it seems like Link hasn't noticed her feelings, or he probably doesn't care much for Zelda. To be honest, Link seems to be interested in Ilia, some girl he knows back home.
Peach is singing her own idea of, "Zelda and Link, Sittin' in a Tree," when my XCommunicator begins to bleep. Each Smasher gets a wristwatch that acts as a translator, and a smartphone among other useful things.
Looking at caller ID, I frown. It's Samurai Goroh. I excuse myself from my friends and go outside the small balcony we have to take the call. "Yes?"
"Ah, Aran. Glad to see you've settled in. I've just received word that Captain Falcon left early for Headquarters. He's due to arrive tonight, not next week as we previously thought. I would encourage you to resume your observation as early as possible."
I'm a little annoyed. "I only just got here," I protest. "And the Tournament is going to last for two months! There'll be plenty of observation in that time."
Goroh's voice changes from sweet and syrupy to clipped and curt. "May I remind you who your employer is Samus?" This does nothing to ease my irritation, but I don't challenge him. Instead I remain silent. "Believe me, you'll want to do things right. You may not think it now, but Captain Falcon is a dangerous person with a dangerous past. Should you fail your assignment, you will not only face my wrath, but you personally will also wish you'd never failed it." The communication link is severed and I'm glancing blankly at the communicator.
What did he mean by that?
I glance at the skies trying to make sense of our conversation, before heading back in to unpack my belongings. This doesn't take too long as I haven't brought much. Most of the stuff I've brought are laptops, cameras, stuff like that. I've left aside a couple of nondescript outfits that only take up two drawers. I also have four formalwear outfits as well that I've hung up in my mini closet. One for the welcoming dinner, one for the dinner announcing the winners, one for the Red Carpet event, in which we greet our fans, and one just in case. You never know.
In the meantime, I help Peach unpack. It seems she brought her whole closet with her but that's not the case. "I knew I packed too lightly!" she moans. She ends up having to borrow some of my drawers and Zelda's.
We're still unpacking by the time dinner arrives. Zelda's stomach emits a loud growl and she blushes, clutching her waist. "I think we should eat," she says. We all agree and head down the stairs to the dining hall. This will be the first time I get to glimpse Captain Falcon up close.
It's strange, I think, as I look up at the stars that are beginning to light up in anticipation. The dining hall is in a separate place from the building where our rooms are so we get a taste of the night air. This will be the first time I've ever paid any sort of attention to Captain Falcon during the tournament. I'd never cared before. I spent most of my time with Peach and Zelda and they would gush over Marth, Ike, Roy or Link. But never Captain Falcon.
We enter the premises and a delicious scent wafts up our nostrils. We quickly hurry over to grab our food before seating ourselves. Even though I've kept a steady lookout, I'm disappointed to find that he's not here. Maybe Goroh was misinformed. Maybe he really is coming next week.
"You seem jumpy," Peach comments through a bite of her mushroom pizza.
I do? That's not like me at all. What is there to be so nervous about? Maybe it's Samurai Goroh's phone call that's set me on edge. Or maybe it's because I'm starting to realize how stupid and rash I was for accepting Samurai Goroh's offer so quickly. Even if I don't know Captain Falcon well, it goes against my moral code of doing the right thing. Captain Falcon, as far as I know from public records, is innocent. His death would be mourned by many.
I also haven't considered the thought of getting caught. If it were to get out that it was me who killed him, being banished from Smash Tournaments would be the least of my worries. I couldn't even begin to comprehend how Zelda and Peach would react to the news that I killed a fellow Smasher.
I finish my dinner earlier than Zelda and Peach who insist on taking ladylike bites and dainty sips of water. Impatient, I tell them I'm heading back to our room and they bid me a goodnight.
I'm outdoors again, and I look up at the stars again, and they seem to erase my doubts. My whole life and reputation and relationships might be on the line, but the information Samurai Goroh has is far more important to me than any of these things. I need to find out about the past.
About Ridley. About my parents.
My eyes are brought back down and with a start I realize my target is right ahead of me. I've memorized how Captain Falcon looks like from far away, after weeks of tailing him. So he really is here, then. He's walking in a seemingly relaxed position with his arms clasped behind his back. With the moonlight as my primary source of life, I am suddenly struck by how masculine and mature his figure is compared to Marth's, Link's or Roy's. He has big shoulders, a broad chest that tapers down to a narrow waist and strong legs that I know can kick harder than most Smashers.
I make my steps lighter, so that he doesn't know I'm behind him. The way he hasn't paused and none of his muscles have stiffened shows that he probably doesn't think he's being followed.
Encouraged, I quicken my pace, making sure all the while that my footsteps are as soundless as a leaf landing on the concrete. I swear, if my XCommunicator goes off at this time...
A breeze blows from behind me, and my hair which has been worn down today, blows over my shoulders, onto my cheeks and obscures my vision for a couple of seconds. Curses! Why didn't I remember to put my hair up in a ponytail today? I'm gathering my hair to do just that, but suddenly I realize that Captain Falcon is no longer in my line of vision.
Freezing, I scan the area quickly, but I can confirm that he's not in my direct line of vision. So where is he? It would be ridiculous if he were hiding in the bushes. I would have heard the rustle of leaves.
Right?
Feeling absurdly panicky, I finish tying my hair up and begin to walk towards a particularly shadowy area with a lot of bushes. I crouch, peering into the darkness, waiting for my eyes to adjust to the even darker area.
I comfort myself by lightly touching the whip at my side. Was this what Samurai Goroh meant, that Captain Falcon was sneaky? Where was he?!
My answer comes quickly in the form of a low, amused voice at my ear, right behind me. "So, what are we looking for?"