Pas de Trois
Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Brothers or any other franchise used. That goes to Nintendo. The only characters I own are those from the Golden Land, angels from Skyworld including the royal bodyguards, Angel Assembly and archangels along with all the other angels and of course the witch hunters. I also don't own Queen's Blade as that belongs to Hobby Japan.
Summary: Corrin reminds himself he cannot trust the Smashers despite them saving his and Cory's life. He is not his sister though and finds himself easily drawn to the battles in Smash. Before he can bond with the newcomers, more problems stem from outside the Smash Realm and their target is the dragon prince.
Pairing: Cloud/Corrin/Bayonetta, implied Rob/Shulk, Marth/Caeda and Cory/Azura
Rated: T (for Teen)
Genre: Friendship, Drama, Romance, Humor and some Hurt/Comfort
Warning: Violence, Fire Emblem Fates spoilers, swearing, dark themes, sexual situations and unintentional OOC
Now that the DLC is out and I got to play with them, I can now write this piece. There still needs to be build up until the end of the arc (which unfortunately won't focus on the DLC/Salt trio since I had already decided on who are my main targets). This took a really long time to write mainly due to a combination of midterms, spending almost 24 hours labbing Corrin to be a secondary and playing Bayonetta and Final Fantasy VII to help with my research (so pretty much slacking). Enjoy! And yes, there are huge spoilers for the third route of Fates. You have been warned!
While Bayonetta was able to settle in Smash Brothers Mansion (despite the fact others were intimidated by her), the Corrin twins were having a harder time situating themselves and for good reasons. Their original intention was to leave after their injuries were healed. Master Hand insisted they stay only after they refused to tell them which world they came from. Judging from their clothes, it was obvious they were from another Fire Emblem universe. There was no name given to it along with the fact there was a curse that prevented the dragon twins from describing the location. Add the fact they didn't trust anyone in the mansion and Master Hand realized they were going to be stuck here for a long time.
The dragon twins were separated due to their gender. Cory was less than thrilled that she wouldn't be staying in the same room as her younger twin, but Master Hand explained that he hated the idea of people of opposite genders sharing a room. Because they were twins, there was an even amount of rooms. Cory had to stay with Bayonetta while Corrin got Cloud (after he had successfully managed to leave DDD's room behind).
It turns out that Corrin wasn't too thrilled with the idea of being separated from his older sister even though their rooms were across from each other. He was left in a situation where he would grow to trust his roommate and that was the last thing he wanted while he was in Smash Brothers Mansion. He and his sister were still being hunted down by that man and the last thing they wanted was for others to be dragged into their mess.
Fortunately, Cloud was just as antisocial as Corrin was being. The ex-SOLDIER would not believe that Corrin was originally a lively individual who wanted to be friends with everyone especially with the glare he was given now.
"Let's make this clear. This room arrangement is only temporary. Once my sister and I find a way back home, you'll be alone. Do not even think of coming to my side of the room especially my bed."
"…Why would I want to sleep in your bed?"
Corrin ignored him as he prepared to head out of the room in order to explore the mansion. He wasn't good at keeping the Ice King persona like his sister was. The longer he stayed in the room alone, the more likely he was going to open up to the blond Smasher.
Unlike his sister, Corrin was very bad at maneuvering around the mansion. He often needed to be told repeatedly where everything was before he would walk around without getting lost. There were only five floors in the mansion along with the roof, so it shouldn't have been that difficult especially when you consider the second to fifth floor consisting of a long hallway that intersected the foyer and allowed Smashers to go from one side of the mansion to another.
The third floor had the other warriors from the Outer Realm that Corrin has heard of. Of course, they had no idea who he was, but he was fine with that given the big mistake he made in his world. From what he heard from a distance, the redhead swordsman Roy dragged the entire group into the room just so they can ask about not so appropriate topics.
Corrin crept closer to the room to see the group using the third floor lounge to relax and talk. The tactician twins were playing chess in the corner of the room and Rob was thinking hard on where to move next. Roy, Marth and Ike were sitting at one of the tables having a rather heated discussion. Lucina was on the couch trying to snooze, but she would probably be the first one to leave seeing as how she found the topic pointless.
"Roy, why don't you tell us who you like instead of putting us in the spotlight." Marth told him rather harshly as he flicked his hair. "You already know the only person I will ever love is Caeda…and myself."
Ike snickered hearing that last part. Marth always had to make things about him. Unfortunately, Roy wasn't ready to open up who his crush was.
"Fine! Ike, what about you?"
"If I said Marth, would you shut up?"
Now it was Marth's turn to laugh. These two weren't going to give Roy a definitive answer, so he turned his attention to the ladies. Lucina pretended to be asleep leaving only the Robin twins…or rather Rob to be the next target.
"So, Rob, have you told Shulk you liked him yet?"
Rob who was lost in thought suddenly looked up confused.
"What?"
"Have you and Shulk fucked yet?"
Robin knew she won the game of chess seeing Rob move the wrong piece at that moment. His face turned the color of Roy's hair and he wasn't happy about it.
"W-W-What?! Why would you even suggest that?! I thought I made it clear Shulk and I are not dating!"
No one in the mansion believed him. Everyone in the mansion minus Shulk and a few oblivious fools knew Rob had a crush on his roommate. The male tactician would deny it at every turn, but the more he denied it, the more they would make fun of them. If only there was someone else they would nag then he would finally find a way to stop his heart from racing.
And then he saw Corrin spying on them at the doorway and made the others focus on him.
"Aww, Corrin. C-Care to join us?" He asked despite his voice still sounding unsure.
Naturally, Corrin would decline, but it wouldn't be long until they started hammering questions on him just so he would join their Emblem Warrior group.
"Care to explain what timeline you're from?" Marth asked simply. "Are you years after Robin's timeline or are you from an alternate future?"
"Who did you S Support?" Roy foolishly asked.
"…Why is your sword a chainsaw?" Ike questioned.
The silver haired prince wasn't really pleased by one of the questions.
"For your information, it's a katana, not a sword! Second, it is not your business on who I romance in my world. Finally…" The red eyed prince realized he wouldn't be able to talk about his world without the curse going into effect. Actually, the curse was vague but he didn't want to risk it especially with a question like that. "…I cannot say."
Marth eyed him suspiciously. "Oh? How come?"
"…I cannot say." Corrin repeated. "…It's not important anyway. I won't be here for long once Master Hand connects us to our world."
"Assuming Master Hand doesn't keep you in the tournament." Ike told him right before the announcement came on. "See?"
"ATTENTION ALL SMASHERS! WE WILL BEGIN THE MATCHES AGAIN! ONLY THIS TIME, IT WILL BE AGAINST THE NEWCOMERS!" Master Hand proclaimed over the microphone. "FOR THE VETERANS, CAN I HAVE THE BOUNTY HUNTER ZERO SUIT SAMUS, THE YOUNG LION ROY AND THE BLAZING FURY CHARIZARD ON ONE TEAM! FOR THE OTHER TEAM, I WILL HAVE THE EX-SOLDIER CLOUD, THE UMBRA WITCH BAYONETTA AND THE PRINCE FROM THE MYSTERY REALM, CORRIN COME TO THE RING!"
Corrin gasped at being called to fight. Wasn't he not allowed to? He and his sister were just visiting…
"No way…" Corrin mumbled darkly as Roy spoke with his friends being getting off the chair. "He wants me to fight despite what happened? But…"
"Hey, Mr. No Shoes, get moving! We got a match together!"
Corrin paled as he was being led along by the younger redhead. He had no idea how he was going to handle himself in the machine…
The prince's teammates were waiting for him on the first floor. It was ironic how the one who tried to kill him and his roommate that he wanted to avoid were the ones he would be paired up with. He remained wary of both of them as he walked toward them. His heart continued to pound the closer he was to them.
Attempting to give them the cold shoulder didn't work seeing as how Bayonetta casually struck up a conversation.
"Oh darling, I hope you're not too upset what happened a few nights ago. No hard feelings."
"Right…that's why I won't trust you…" Corrin murmured darkly. He would go against his trusting personality if that person almost got him and his sister killed or captured by that ugly goblin.
The beautiful witch returned the comment with a wicked smile. He trembled realizing that she could give away his secret before the battle begun. Besides the Umbra witch, Pit and the tactician twins were aware of his identity. He didn't want to scare anyone with his appearance even if people from the Outer Realm probably had some sort of idea what he was.
"Just don't get in my way." Cloud said coldly.
Corrin had no intention too even if they were on teams. They would all fight with their own strength. With that said, they all went into the room where they would be warped to the battlefield.
R.O.B. was in charge of the stage picks most of the time, but Master Hand was around this time around to monitor everything. He was faster at sending everyone to battle and the minute they stepped into the room, he told the three newcomers to step on the warp panel.
The trio was teleported onto the battlefield. Their opponent was waiting for them on the other side with a red glow to their bodies. The veterans were the red team and the newcomers were the blue team. Master Hand had chosen Arena Ferox for the stage due to the open area for the Smashers to fight on. This wasn't a legal stage, but for today, he would make an exception with how it was a three on three match.
Corrin's position on the battlefield prevented everyone from seeing how he entered the battle in dragon form before reverting back to his human form. Cloud fell from the sky in front of him before catching his buster sword while Bayonetta emerged from the Bat Within.
In the control room, Master Hand was messing with the soundtrack. While trying to assist the dragon twins with returning to their home world, he ended up finding bits and pieces that came from said universe. He listened to the music and was rather pleased. However, he couldn't start the music yet and needed the machine to install it first.
"I HAVE SOME NEW MUSIC!" Master Hand announced. "BUT YOU WILL HAVE TO FIGHT WITH NO MUSIC FOR A COUPLE OF MINUTES! DON'T END THE BATTLE BEFORE THE SONG HAS FINISHED INSTALLING!"
Corrin shivered having a bad feeling about the music that will be played. How did these matches differ from the battles he previously had? No one especially Roy who was from a similar universe as his own had any problems fighting here…
"3…2…1…GO!"
Friendly fire was on in this three on three situation, but Corrin had no intention of attacking often. He hadn't watched any of the matches prior because he thought he and his sister weren't going to stay in this area for long. People would accuse him of camping, but he would rather observe everyone's fighting style over attacking recklessly. He didn't even get to check which moves would make him transform into a dragon. If he wanted to play it safe, he needed to use moves that kept him in human form.
Samus wasted no time laying Cloud to waste. She already grabbed him and threw him down on the ground before following with a fair. Bayonetta had shot Samus with her bullet arts to keep her from comboing the tall swordsmen once she hit the ground before him in order to grab him again. Charizard tried to Flare Blitz through the bullets, but ended up stopping short before being punched in the face by Wicked Weaves. Corrin looked toward Roy who was rushing toward him. The Young Lion started out with Dancing Blade forcing Corrin to block before following up with an out of shield fair. Roy was impressed with how quick Corrin was in the air. One fair led into another but he couldn't keep it up due to being caught off guard by the platforms changing behind him thus allowing Roy to fall to the ground and not get hit by Corrin who had jumped to a higher platform.
Corrin wanted to hit his opponent straight down but could not. He had to hide his dragon identity. Roy saw this pause and had no problem doing some up tilt strings. Corrin forced the combo to stop with his fair before doing a simple jab. He grabbed immediately afterward, but was stopped when he ended up being hit by Bayonetta's slide that knocked them both in the air.
"Don't hit me!" Corrin ended up shouting as he fell out of her combo while Bayonetta continued to combo Roy. "Darnit…"
Because Bayonetta left Cloud alone, he was getting overwhelmed again. His sword could easily knock Charizard aside, but the bounty hunter was too quick for his sword. Corrin turned around and smacked Charizard with his sword to hit the Pokémon back at the blond swordsman but he had his hands full.
At this point, Master Hand had finally gotten the song to install. Now the music was playing in the background. It wasn't a battle theme though. It was similar to Ai no Uta and Calling to the Night (both got removed because some fighters started tearing up at the lyrics or the melody). A melancholy song echoed throughout the battlefield that stopped Corrin in his tracks.
You are the ocean's gray waves…
Destined to seek life beyond the shore just out of reach…
Yet the waters ever change…
Flowing like time, the path is yours to climb…
"It can't be…Azura?" Corrin spoke in a hoarse voice.
In the white light, a hand reaches through…
A double-edged blade cuts your heart in two…
Waking dreams…
Fade away, embrace the brand new day…
Her soothing song…how did he yearn to hear it again. Instead of calming him down, his blood was boiling. Something inside of him was reacting negatively to the song.
Sing with me a song…
Of birthrights and love, the light scatters to the sky above…
Dawn breaks through the gloom, white as a bone…
Lost in thoughts, all alone…
Corrin's mind shut down after he felt himself turn into a dragon for the first time that battle. The song still rang through his head, but he found himself not caring as he tore through the opponents in front of him. Friend or foe, he didn't care. He rampaged through his opponents.
"CORRIN!"
Who was calling his name? He didn't recognize the voice at all. All he saw was Roy being impaled into the ground by his spear and the redhead screaming in pain at the actual damage it was doing. Corrin ended up kicking in the opposite direction when he felt flames burning down his back. He hit Charizard and had no problem turning his hand into a mouth that attempted to chomp the fire Pokémon. The water portion of the attack almost dosed the flame on Charizard's tail. A large roar that equaled his own escaped Charizard's mouth. Corrin felt himself being tasered but he shook out of it and shot a water pillar out to protect himself when Samus tried to kick him.
"SNAP OUT OF IT!"
Corrin wasn't turning back into his human form anytime soon. He felt time slow down around him. Before he could turn his head to see what was going on, Master Hand had finally ended the match.
"NO CONTEST! STOP!"
Only when everyone returned from the match would Corrin slowly regain his senses and realize what he done. He clutched his head in pain.
"Oww…what did I…"
The silver haired prince flinched hearing Roy's cries on the other side of the room. Even when the "NO CONTEST" was declared, he was still injured. Master should have considered regulating the dragon twins' attacks.
"What was that?"
Cloud didn't sound too happy. Why would he? His match got interrupted because Corrin flew a temper tantrum.
"If that stupid hand didn't cancel the match, that witch would have ended you."
The dragon prince refused to look at Bayonetta who gave him the silent treatment.
"…Sorry…I…got to go…"
Why was he still fooling around here? He was only going to hurt others because of his dragon heritage. If he went insane on the battlefield, he might as well lock himself up…
Nobody could find Corrin for the remainder of the day. Master Hand wanted to lecture him, but it was like the dragon prince vanished like a ninja. In reality, Corrin just left the mansion and hid in the lake. As a water dragon, he could hold his breath for a very long time. If it meant hiding from that embarrassing display, he would gladly drown. Of course, Corrin was great at playing hide and seek so none of the Smashers would even think he was at the bottom of the lake.
Cory would have an idea where he was but he expected her locking the room that she was in just so no one would bother her. If he freaked out just hearing Azura's beautiful voice, he couldn't help but imagine what his sister was feeling. Actually, he knew exactly what she would say should Master Hand confront her.
"You're a disgusting bastard, you know that?! We ask you to take us home and you just send us Azura's music as an answer?! Fuck you! I'm done!"
…I think I'm exaggerating her attitude at the moment. Corrin grumbled to himself as he decided to swim to the surface. I should make sure that she doesn't lash out at anyone.
By the time Corrin got out of the water, the sun had already set. The moon was starting to come out. How long was he underwater? Sighing at the amount of time he wasted, he proceeded to head back. It wouldn't matter if anyone saw him in dragon form if he flew back. The water would dry up quickly while he was flying.
First I need to check up on Roy. I can heal the injury I caused him. It shouldn't be too hard.
Corrin hoped there would be some stave in the infirmary to use. He noticed that besides Rob and the Goddesses, there weren't that many healers in the mansion. Dr. Mario was a doctor in name only but he wasn't a healer of any sort. The same applied to Peach. Corrin hasn't said anything about his healing powers, but he didn't want to reveal anything about himself. The Smashers finding out he was a dragon was one of the worst case scenarios. Now everyone would avoid him if they did see him again.
The infirmary was on the first floor, so it wasn't difficult for Corrin to land next to the window. It was even easier sneaking into the infirmary (Dr. Mario really needed to lock up. The people who had to stay in the infirmary were defenseless). Roy was forced to stay in the infirmary for the night until his injury was healed. He was forced out of his usual attire and into one of those hospital gowns that was used in this world. Roy's stab wound was hidden behind the bandage. Looking at the trashcan, a lot of pressure needed to be applied to the wound. The white bandages were stained with blood. Despite all the bleeding, Roy's life was not in danger.
I can feel the dragon blood running through his veins. Corrin thought as he searched through the cabinets in the other section of the infirmary and grabbed the Recover staff that was conveniently placed against the wall. This is why he's able to handle such a wound.
A recover staff was easy to use for Corrin. If it wasn't from his universe, it would be even easier. He was not bound by the staff ranking as long as he could have enough magic to use it. Roy shifted in his sleep and ended up on his side. Slowly, the dragon prince placed the recover staff next to the redhead and started channeling the magic from it. From the looks of things, Rob had been using the recover staff to at least close the wound. Corrin at least could close the whole completely seeing as how he was the one who caused it.
Perhaps I should use some of my Dragon's Vein…no…that wouldn't really work…
Before long, Roy was sleeping soundly. Granted, he was fine before, but now he'll wake up and think a miracle happened. The healing didn't take that much out of the Nohr prince, but he was feeling woozy.
"…I guess I should be heading back…"
By heading back, he meant back to his room where Cloud was supposed to be. He wanted Cloud to be asleep, so he wouldn't have to deal what happened earlier. Luck wasn't on his side though. After he had put the Recover staff back against the wall, he quietly left the infirmary only to be met with his two partners from earlier this afternoon.
A lump was caught in his throat as he stared at his taller companions. What was he supposed to say to them? He ran off in shame and he still didn't want to talk to him. Were they going to drag him to Master Hand? Or were they continue to pick up where they left off?
The red eyed prince couldn't read their expressions. As time went on, he was able to read the situation even if he was still too trusting. He couldn't tell what Bayonetta or Cloud was thinking…especially Bayonetta.
"Where were you?" Cloud spoke up. "Everyone was looking for you."
"…Everyone?"
"…Only a few of the Smashers to give you a piece of their mind for not telling them you were a dragon."
"Oh…was anyone worried?"
"Your sister."
Why wasn't Bayonetta speaking to him? It was odd for Cloud to speak more than he needed to. He felt so tiny close to these two. Corrin just wanted to go back to his room.
"…I'm sorry for ruining your first battle." The dragon prince ended up apologizing as he gave a pathetic bow in front of them. "I didn't mean to cause trouble. When I heard the song…I couldn't stop myself…"
A song that was meant to calm him down only drove him insane due to the events that had occurred in his world. He could not tell them this.
"That was not my first battle." The ex-SOLDIER corrected. "Why do you think I'm here?"
"I…don't know. I didn't mean to…" Corrin shut his mouth. There was no point talking. "I need to go."
Cloud wasn't good with talking to the young dragon. The Umbra witch had no intention of stepping in, but seeing as how Cloud was being incompetent with getting the message across…
Corrin yelped when Bayonetta grabbed a hold of his cape. Try as he might, he won't get away without ripping his cape…and he didn't want to ruin the cape with no guarantee of fixing it.
"Where are you heading?"
"…Back to my room…I won't cause any more problems…"
"Like during the battle."
"…I'm pretty sure you are the one who hit me."
Normally, Corrin wasn't this snarky, but he was growing impatient. Just a little bit more and he could run away from them and back up the stairs. Cloud would still follow him, but at least he could pretend to be asleep.
"You're very good at observing the battlefield. However…" She frowned. "It takes three to pas de trois."
"…Pasta what?"
"Pas de trois…a ballet for three people." Cloud explained before shaking his head. "Why would you use that term of all things Cereza?"
Cereza?
"I think it describes our relationship well."
"Our…"
Corrin was lost with this term. Bayonetta noticed the expression he gave her. She wasn't looking forward to explaining it in simpler terms.
"If one person is unwilling to cooperate, we cannot do the pas de trois correctly."
"If that's just a metaphor for teamwork, you can count me out." The dragon prince reminded her as he slapped her away in order to free his cape. "I'm a lone dragon. I don't cooperate with anyone but my sister."
"Oh? Your eyes say the opposite of what you think."
She was too observant for her own good…
"When that giant hand stops tormenting my sister and me with music from our world instead of taking us home, we'll talk."
The silver haired dragon was done with the conversation at this point. Turning around, he walked away with his head held high. He intended to keep the façade that he was an apathetic individual who didn't want to ask anyone for their cooperation. Cloud just sighed the further Corrin was from them.
"Honestly, what a waste of time." He complained. "And I'm stuck with him as a roommate."
"You should have stayed with the penguin then."
Cloud growled as a response. Bayonetta would have continued mocking him, but she looked at the window for a brief moment and noticed a shadow was staring at them. Once the shadow that it was spotted, it disappeared out of thin air. The Umbra Witch wasn't fooled. That shadow had been stalking Corrin for a while and it was waiting for an opportunity to pounce.
Corrin kept to his word about being a lone dragon and isolated himself the next day in order to avoid being rejected for his not so appealing dragon appearance. He couldn't 100% be alone due to Cloud. Unlike Cory, he would never lock the door on someone. That was due to his trusting nature and it was doing more harm than good in this situation. The ex-SOLDIER would have left Corrin to mope if other Smashers weren't concerned for his wellbeing. Cloud would weakly attempt to talk some sense into the dragon prince, but would immediately be rejected.
The silver haired prince decided that if no one would leave him alone in the mansion, he would simply go on the roof and hope no one else was up there to disturb him. He would rather nap alone on the roof than sleep on his own bed.
In order to get to the roof, one had to travel up the staircase to the fifth floor. There were two sets of staircases on both sides of the mansion so the Smashers wouldn't have to walk down the hall just to reach one of them.
While the fourth floor was empty except for the room with the angel twins in it at the very end of the left hall, the fifth floor was oddly shaped compared to the rest of the mansion. The Goddess' room was also on the left side of the hall…and ironically that was the only way to the roof. Master and Crazy Hand were in the middle. Their room didn't overlap with any part of the mansion because it was in the middle. Corrin still didn't understand how the others were able to get the Hand's room so easily.
Once Corrin made it to the roof, he immediately took a seat near the edge. He stretched his arms out and let out a yawn before he fell on his back. Staring at the clouds was a passing time back in his world after he was let out of the castle and he and his sister were on his own. Corrin's eyes slowly became heavy as he nearly let himself be taken to dreamland. Unfortunately, he heard footsteps coming upstairs to the roof and he knew he wouldn't be able to take a nap.
Please leave me alone. Corrin thought darkly to himself as he pretended to be asleep. He wasn't fooling anyone with how his ears were twitching.
"I can tell you're awake."
"Nope. I'm asleep."
Corrin opened his eyes despite this to see another pair of red eyes staring down at him. This was the black angel that was always hanging around Pit…
"Oh, it's you…uh…who?"
"Lived Twilight." Dark Pit introduced as Corrin sat back up realizing it would be rude to continue to pretend to be asleep. "You better remember that."
"…Why are you here?"
Dark Pit folded his arms before speaking. "Everyone's looking for you. It's already bad enough your sister is locking the door. That witch is creeping me out with how she's walking around because of her."
"What does that have to do with me?"
"…Get off your ass and do something about her. We don't want a witch shooting us for getting locked out of her room."
Seeing as how Bayonetta was a dangerous woman who easily outmatched Corrin and his sister, it was hilarious to see her getting flustered at being locked out and not being allowed to destroy the door. She would do that too but Master Hand made it clear if she messed up once, she was gone.
"…You know…you shouldn't be avoiding everyone because of what happened in that match." Dark Pit continued. Corrin turned his head toward him puzzled. "Your dragon form is actually cool…not something to be ashamed of."
"What?"
"I mean…yeah you kind of nearly killed Roy back there, but other than that, your dragon was really cool to look at. I have no idea why everyone else was screaming though."
"…That's not reassuring." Corrin grumbled as he went to lie back down only on his side this time. "Cere can wait to get back in the room. I'm going to go to sleep…"
Corrin originally was the type of person to help others. He just couldn't bother helping anyone out in the mansion. He couldn't allow himself to help anyone. They weren't going to be here long…
"You're going to sleep with the sun this high up? You're weird." Dark Pit told him casually.
"Says the person who finds my dragon form awesome to look at." Corrin snarked to himself before thinking how it felt nice for someone to be so open about liking his dragon form up close. Even his allies back at home were startled when they first saw him transform before being okay with it.
"Well, you got Cloud to say more than a few words to you, so that counts as something, right?"
Corrin never really noticed. He only saw Cloud interact with Zelda when he did pay attention to the ex-SOLDIER. It wasn't his business to ask Cloud about his whereabouts though.
"Well, make sure you don't forget. Someone is going to end up having bullets in their head tonight and it won't be me or Pitstain if your sister doesn't open that door."
Dark Pit turned to leave Corrin alone after his warning. He passed by the Pink the Villager who was carrying an envelope. She waved it at the dark angel, but he ignored her and continued to walk down the stairs back to the fifth floor. If Dark Pit didn't want the letter, Pink would give it to someone else. Corrin growled how he was still being disturbed despite wanting to be left alone. The young girl said nothing as she placed the letter next to him before she rushed off.
What a strange girl. Corrin thought as he grabbed the envelope. Wonder what this is? Isn't it for Lived Twilight? Should I be opening it? Hmm…
Curiosity got the best of him and he decided to open up the envelope. You wouldn't think Corrin would be able to read the letter given the language of this world did not match his own. To his surprise, he was able to read it just fine. His eyes widened in horror at the context written on the piece of paper.
Do not think you and your twin can run away from me forever? If you do not want your twin hurt, you come to the Botanical Garden of Smashopolis alone tonight. Do not bring anyone or your twin will die.
Corrin's skin became as pale as his dragon form reading the message.
"T-This is…no…that can't be…"
Corrin thought that they lost him after they escaped to Smashopolis. Yes, that evil goblin Dogura was hired by that person to capture him and his sister, but he thought that after that incident they were home free. No, Corrin should not have let his guard down. This person would tear down anyone just to bring him and Cory back to their realm. If they were caught…there was no telling what would happen…
"I can't let her get involved…" Corrin murmured to himself. "But…I can't fall into his trap. Sis told me that even if he's after both of us…he just needs me because I…"
The silver haired prince sighed in defeat before standing up again. He had an idea that would allow him to get backup, but it would be risky.
"…Cloud…I hope you're observant enough…"
Corrin followed the instructions on the letter and went to Smashopolis alone later that evening. If anyone questioned where he was going, he would lie and say he was going to get some fresh air. It was advised for him to take a bus to Smashopolis but he failed to do so. The dragon prince found it easier to transform into a dragon and simply fly over to his destination. Yes, it would attract attention if he approached Smashopolis as a dragon, but it was quicker. He paced himself so he wouldn't tire himself out and landed near the entrance of Smashopolis where the bus would enter the metropolis. From there, he would use the map that was posted at the entry's bulletin board to figure out where the Botanical Garden was.
Smashopolis was a huge place. Corrin wasn't used to walking around on his own. He was always with someone so he would never think of running away. The concept of freedom felt so foreign to him and he sure as hell wasn't going to let his freedom be taken away from him.
The villain was watching him from the shadows. Corrin could feel something was amiss and kept his guard up. He wouldn't let the enemy take advantage of him being alone. He would prove that he could handle himself without anyone to assist him.
The only way to approach Corrin was to send someone he trusted to speak with him. This wouldn't be too hard with this villain who had observed who made the dragon prince tick. It also needed someone who was capable of causing concern in Corrin's heart. There were other people that Corrin particularly did not like, but he didn't want to summon that man now. For now, he needed to test the waters. Literally.
Now, Corrin had arrived at the destination. He had his wings open so he could glide on the ground and move faster. Maybe he should have waited for a vehicle to drive on by so he could ride it to his destination. In the darkness, he caught light blue hair shimmering in the dim light that the moon was giving.
"Azura?!" Corrin asked as he rushed into the Botanical Garden without thinking that he was falling into a trap. "AZURA?!"
The figure flinched hearing her name be called. Corrin stopped right behind her just so he could prepare himself for the worse. His heart beat rapidly at increasing tension the more the woman refused to show her face.
"…You're Azura…right?"
Corrin took a step back so he was in the darkness of the Botanical Garden. It was the woman that took a step forward. Light blue hair that shined in the moonlight…mysterious gold eyes…the white dress she wore…
"AZURA!"
"…Corrin? How…"
Oh how much did he want to hug her right there on the spot! He wanted to feel the warmth of her body before pushing away and telling her that Cory was alive too. He wanted to catch up with her and find out what happened to their world. However, he still felt uneasy even around one of his most trusted allies.
"Azura, why are you here? What happened to everyone?"
"I…don't know." She spoke softly. Corrin's ears twitched listening for any inconsistency in her voice. He could not catch anything. "I have been wondering around this place most of the evening. I assume that I was caught by your father and thrown here. Without me, everyone else will…"
"Azura…"
"…Do not worry. I did not die. I am not controlled." Azura told him immediately. "I can see the look of distrust in your eyes. Corrin, you are a trusting person, but I understand why you would think that."
"…Yes…"
"It's good to be suspicious."
"But Azura…"
"…My songs have no effect here. I feel as if some greater power is blocking me."
Corrin needed to trust Azura now. If he could get her to the mansion and meet up with Cory, they could come up with a plan to get back. Maybe Azura would be able to convince Master Hand for them to return to their universe. Corrin may have been the better negotiator, but he hasn't been able to risk everything to negotiate with Master Hand.
How am I going to explain what happened to Azura? Corrin asked himself. I need to get her back…but I need to check if she's injured. What happens if she was hurt getting here? I should ask if she has a stave…
"Corrin?"
Now that Corrin's attention was back to facing the songstress, he flinched realizing how close she was to him.
"Azura…I…uh…mmm?!"
Corrin's mind came to a complete stop when Azura turned around and surprised him with a soft kiss to the lips. His eyes widened at how assertive she was being. If it was any other time, perhaps Corrin would have returned the kiss passionately. Closing his eyes, the image of his sister came to mind and he pushed the songstress away.
"Corrin? What is the matter?"
"…Save your kisses for my sister. I'm not worthy of them."
"Cory you say?" She asked in a confused tone. "What does she have to do with you?"
Something was amiss…Corrin wanted to trust Azura, but he felt like there was something wrong with the woman in front of him.
"Azura…I…"
His ears twitched as he looked to the side where the window to the Botanical Garden was and noticed that Faceless were already outside waiting to pounce on him. The dragon prince gasped at the enemies before him.
"Faceless…here?! No way…they followed sis and me all the way here…"
"And it wasn't easy to track you down either that we had to hire a pathetic goblin to find you."
A familiar voice from Corrin's past brought him back to reality. There was no one in the room that matched the voice. He turned to Azura who was grinning manically now.
"A-Azura?"
"You thought I was Azura? Too bad."
The person in front of him vanished into thin air and replaced by a menacing looking jester with sandy blond hair, green eyes and very long finger nails. Corrin recognized this man from anywhere.
"Z-Zorua?! How?! You're dead!"
Zorua let out an evil laugh as he approached the young prince. Corrin took a step back not realizing his legs were shaking. Why was he scared? He had defeated this man before. Sure, Leon was the one to off him at the end of the day, but this man was a pushover in comparison to someone like Macbeth.
"You forget that the Invisible King can revive the dead. Here I am to take you and your meddling sister back to your papa!"
Corrin refused to be reminded of the man who has taken everything away from him. If only he could rid the doubts in his heart…then he could slay that bastard and return everything to normal. He couldn't…that's why he ran away with his sister. Everyone promised they would survive until they returned, but they didn't have much time…and here he was wasting his time fighting in Smash…
"Oh, I know how honorable you are boy, so let's make a deal. If you lose to me and my Faceless army, then you will be brought back home with no resistance. If you win, I will give you the information you want." The jester smirked seeing Corrin's pale expression. "I know who is the person that prevents you from returning home and why. It ain't your old man. He's waiting for you."
"What?"
"I also know that if you had let me feed the information to you as your sister's lover, then you would have gotten it out sooner…without a fight."
Corrin's eyes nearly fell out of his eye sockets as the first reaction was to wipe his lips. His cheeks became the same color as those pretty pink flowers in the corner of his eyes.
"Hopefully that wasn't your first kiss." The jester taunted.
"…No…you're gross." Corrin growled as he took out Yatogami. "I won't lose to you and your cowardly ways!"
The silver haired prince was falling right into the sorcerer's trap. If he fought now, he was sure to lose in this confined space. He needed to find a way to even the odds. If only he could warn his sister or the other Smashers…
I can't rely on them. Corrin thought to himself. But the least I can do is this…
Zorua was taken back that Corrin's strategy was to turn into a dragon to fight. Instead of hitting the Faceless that intended to break through the glass to reach him, the ice prince decided to shatter the glass first. Using as much power he had inside the stone and his body, he let out a roar that broke the glass before shooting a whirlpool from his mouth at the top of the ceiling. The whirlpool was so huge that anyone from Smash Brothers Mansion could see it. He just hoped that someone would see it was an SOS and come assist him.
Cloud stared down toward the front of the mansion and shook his head in annoyance. How did he want to get out of his place, but with the recent happenings, he was here to stay. The one thing he wanted to do was go home and tell his friends that he wasn't dead, but Master Hand was being an asshole and wouldn't let him do that. So here he was moping around at night thinking of all the ways he could get home. He wasn't going to ask Palutena because she got his hopes up. He didn't want to push his luck with Rosalina and Viridi was bad news from what he heard from Pit. The one idea that came into his mind was asking Bayonetta to help him out. She didn't seem to be bound by the rules of Smash like the Goddesses, so maybe he could slip a favor in for her so she could assist him. The only problem was she didn't appear that trustworthy either.
As he pondered his options, he noticed that the eight Villager children were sneaking out of the mansion following a bright light that was floating away. Cloud assumed it was a firefly of some sort seeing as how it was nighttime. He let the children leave the mansion without an adult and continued thinking.
The Villager children vanished into the shadows of the night, but there was something else that caught Cloud's eye. Looking forward this time, he saw a huge whirlpool being shot in Smashopolis. His eyes widened at how large the whirlpool was. Instinctively, he grabbed the hilt of his sword. He had a feeling bad was going on in the metropolis.
"It seems like our little dragon is sending an SOS to us."
Cloud jumped hearing Bayonetta sneak up behind him. Was he that distracted that he couldn't hear her walking in his direction? Why was she even on the roof?
"Us?"
"Who else is going to help the little dragon?"
"…This does not concern me."
Corrin was his roommate but he had no emotional attachment to him. He was just go back to his room and rest, but was met with his trusted motorcycle shoved in front of him.
"…How did he get Fenrir out of the garage?"
The ex-SOLDIER was far from pleased that Bayonetta was willing to steal his stuff now. She hummed as a response as she waited for him to get on it.
"Normally, I would ride by myself, but you have a fine ride. Why don't we have some fun while we go help the little dragon?"
"Are you hitting on me?" Cloud asked annoying. "Because I'm not interested!"
A Cheshire like grin appeared on her lips as she waited for Cloud to do as he was told. In the end, he was getting looped into this rescue mission.
Normally, Corrin would care about the civilians around him when there was a battle going on. He would make sure that everyone ran into a nearby building to not be thrown into the chaos. During this chase sequence, he did not care for the citizens one bit. The one thing on his mind was getting away from the Faceless. In his dragon form he had crashed into buildings leaving large dents in them, nearly knocked over a bunch of people who were in his path and killed a few Faceless that had gotten too close to him.
Unfortunately, Corrin was too kind. If he left the innocent bystanders alone, they would have been killed by the Faceless thus giving him more time to escape. He had failed to close his heart up like his sister…therefore he couldn't stand by and watch others get slaughtered in his place.
Corrin made a quick u-turn and charged the Faceless that turned their attention to the citizens and impaled them with the horns on his head. The Faceless vanished the minute they were killed. Corrin reverted back to his human form to warn the citizens. They didn't know who he was and took a step back in fear.
"Get as far away from here as you can! It's not safe!" Corrin ordered. "Hurry!"
These tourists could only do as Corrin wished if they valued their lives. They screamed for their lives and ran in the opposite direction of the monsters. With his attention back on the enemies, Corrin charged them with the Yatogami. These were stronger than the previous ones he killed. He growled as he took a step back thinking of what to do next.
It feels like I'm having déjà vu. Corrin thought darkly. I think I should transform again and get rid of these enemies before I get surrounded.
The dragon prince could sense enemies were starting to gather behind him where the citizens had fled too. As much as Corrin didn't want to lure the Faceless into a big area, he needed a larger area to fight. If he got surrounded…then he would get caught…
Corrin hurried over to the Trade Center hoping to have some breather room. At night, there should be less people, but he was still putting others at risk.
To his horror, Zorua already predicted Corrin would head toward an area where he could shift into his dragon form more easily. The Faceless were already waiting and had attacked anyone that was dumb enough to be in the area at the time. People screamed as they all scattered away like a pack of mice. Many were caught and had their skulls broken into the pavement. Zorua had also summoned Invisible Soldiers to appear and impale the unexpecting citizens.
"STOP IT!" Corrin shouted before transforming again. "IT'S ME YOU WANT!"
Corrin shot water from his mouth hoping to cause some damage. It wasn't fire though, so he couldn't burn through the Faceless. Instead, he could drown the green monsters that were punching the people to death. The Invisible Soldiers were already dead and were completely unaffected by Corrin's attempt to drown them.
"Got you."
Corrin's attention was to saving as many people as possible that he neglected to watch his back. Zorua was standing on higher ground thanks to the Faceless totem pole he formed. With Fimbulvetr in his hand, he summoned a powerful ice spell Corrin's way. The dragon prince was not able to dodge quickly enough and his wing was hit by the ice attack. Corrin cursed as he tried to land safely, but there was a Faceless below him.
"SHOOT!"
The Faceless winded up his fist and punched the dragon prince as he tried to land. Corrin let out a horrible screech as he reverted back to human form. He was lucky that the dragonstone on his chest didn't crack from the impact of the attack.
"Guhh!"
The eerie laugh resonated in his ears. Zorua got down from the Faceless totem pole ready to double attack him. Corrin attempted to grab the Yatogami and get back up. The jester refused to let his prey escape.
"As if I would let you escape!"
The first Fimbulvetr spell was aimed directly at Corrin's arm so he would it would be stuck in place. He couldn't move it at all much less pull it out without injuring himself. If he turned into a dragon, he would be a bigger and easier target.
The second Fimbulvetr spell was not needed, but Zorua was feeling sadistic. If the Invisible King wanted Corrin to be in despair, then he would give him an undignified defeat. Corrin let out a pathetic cry at the ice attack attacking him head on. He heard tearing sounds coming from his clothes. His cape was safe given the position he was trapped in, but everything else…not so much.
Red eyes widened seeing his skin being exposed toward the dark sorcerer made worse by the fact he wasn't wearing anything to cover up his lower region. Zorua was very pleased to see the dragon prince attempt to close his legs immediately.
"Oh? Where's your underwear? Were you expecting this to happen and be exposed like this?"
No response escaped Corrin's lips. Normally, he wouldn't care if someone saw him naked (and was rather confused when others freaked out when he walked in on them in the bath). This time, he felt vulnerable. The Faceless were circling around him and Zorua had him at his mercy. He had no more cards left to play…and he was too far away from his sister to cry for help.
"What's wrong? Aren't you going to beg? Or are you too scared too." Zorua smiled as the ice tome started glowing again. "I like that look you're giving me. Now come along now. The Invisible King waits!"
"No…" The prince whispered. "I won't…"
He couldn't stop shivering and it wasn't from the cold. He knew he screwed up this time and no one was going to save him. Not Cory…not Azura…not anyone…
Corrin shut his eyes tightly waited for his body to be encased his ice. He waited for his inevitable defeat, but it never came. Confused, he opened one eye and noticed that everything was moving slow around him. He gasped recognizing the technique.
"You really are more trouble than you're worth."
The sound of a gun click actually warmed Corrin's heart. Shots were fired and every bullet hit the Faceless in the back of their head. This was followed by a fist appearing from the demonic realm and smacking the jester in the face. It would have killed him if he was alive, but Corrin recognized the purple aura anywhere.
"C-Cere…"
The Umbra Witch emerged from the Bat Within in front of him for a flashy entrance. Butterflies appeared whenever she took a few steps. Corrin's eyes sparkled glancing at her back.
"Cere? Did I give you permission to give me a nickname?"
Silence followed before witch time's effect wore off. The Faceless vanished into thin air and Zorua was sent flying. A nasty bruise appeared on his face that he was forced to become invisible just let his enemies see how badly he was bruised.
"What? You weren't alone? How did you get here so fast?!"
Ignoring the jester, Bayonetta explained it to the dragon prince who was equally confused. "Motorcycles do not exist in your universe. I am not surprised that a hideous creature like that doesn't understand what a joy ride on Fenrir is."
"Fenrir…Cloud's here too?!"
Corrin sounded so shocked that it wasn't just Bayonetta coming to lend a helping hand. The ex-SOLDIER had dropped Bayonetta off earlier and decided to warn the citizens who were running away. The last thing he wanted was to be blamed for casualties not caused by himself. These people have enlightened him about the monsters that were in the Trade Center and how a white dragon was the only thing fighting against them. The dragon needed the assistance of the Smashers if it wanted to save anyone. Seeing as how Corrin was the most likely person that was the dragon and needed saving, Cloud rushed over to the Trade Center after clearly the area as quickly as he could.
Zorua would not stand for his plans to be ruined by outsiders. He used most of his powers trying to maintain his form as Azura and trap Corrin in this particular state. Now he had to use more of his powers just to fight off the Umbra Witch who was out of his league.
"GET HIM! KILL HER! I WILL NOT HAVE MY PLANS RUINED NOW THAT I WAS GIVEN A SECOND CHANCE!"
Bayonetta hummed at how slow the Faceless were. They reminded her so much of the angels in Paradiso with how ugly they were. She wouldn't even need to break a sweat fighting them. She charged the one in front of her before jumping into the air and giving a dive kick downwards. The guns strapped to her shoes shot through the Faceless causing it to disappear instantly.
"These things are weaker than those pathetic angels."
Because the Faceless were so weak to her, she stopped trying to be flashy and just shot them all with her two main guns. She let out a yawn at how bored she was getting. How did Corrin have a problem with these things?
The Umbra Witch only noticed too late a Faceless was summoned behind her. Corrin cried out to her, but Cloud had her back. He had rushed toward her with his buster sword and impaled the Faceless in the face before it hit her. Bayonetta wasn't fazed a bit as Cloud yanked his sword out resulting in that Faceless poofing out of existence.
"You may be powerful, but you sure put yourself in bad situations you can easily avoid." Cloud mocked once he landed on the ground.
"We've only known each other for a few days, but you're very good at watching my back. If only you did that in Smash."
Cloud glared at her as a response. His attention turned to Corrin who was still stuck in the ground because of the ice. Noticing the male dragon had his attire torn, he resorted to helping him.
"How long are you going to be like that?" Cloud asked. "You're a dragon. You can break out."
"Umm…I can't. I'm injured in my other form…"
"…Hopeless."
Now Bayonetta how Cloud's back as he walked over to the dragon prince. Corrin noticed that Cloud had put a magic material on his wristband before starting to cast a spell.
"Don't move or I might burn you."
The silver haired dragon gulped before nodding his head. Cloud was quick and efficient with casting the fire spell on the young prince. Not a single burn mark was left when the ice melted. Once Corrin was able to move his arm again, something was thrown at his face.
"…Cover up." The ex-SOLDIER ordered. "You can't expect to fight like that."
He was mainly referring to the fact Corrin had no underwear. He assumed that Zorua had ripped it off, but it was better to think that then Corrin going into battle without underwear in the first place. Once the red eyed dragon forced the sleeveless shirt on himself, he noticed how awful Cloud looked without it.
"Cloud, belts won't save your fashion sense." Bayonetta could be heard taunting as she killed another horde of Faceless heading their way.
"I rather have him covered up than fix my appearance."
"You were better off in your first class outfit."
Corrin stood up and walked toward the two Smashers. They noticed that he was still wobbling. Perhaps he should stay out of the fight seeing how pale he looked.
"…This is my fight. I can handle it from here."
"Darling, didn't I tell you that it takes three to pas de trios?"
That again?
Again, Corrin nodded his head before Bayonetta decided to lecture him.
"You were smart enough to send an SOS, but now that we're here, you want to pretend you do not need help?"
"It's not that. This man…is already dead. I need to get rid of him before he…"
"I don't know what he did to you, but it wasn't pleasant." Cloud interrupted. "As much as I hate the witch's use of that term, she has a point. You cannot do everything by yourself. We may not be the most trustworthy people in your eyes, but you better believe we'll help." Cloud sighed seeing Corrin's eyes widened. "You make me say stupid things…don't make me say it again."
"Are we going to dance boys, or do I have to clear out the enemies by myself?"
Corrin shook his head as he held Yatogami in front of him. The sword started to make the chainsaw noises.
"I'll fight too."
Cloud complained about how troublesome this entire situation was before the three stared down the Faceless. Zorua was at his limits, so he only had one more horde of enemies before he played all of his cards.
Corrin was commanded to stay in the back. He was injured and he was main Zorua's target. If they let their guard down, the dark sorcerer would flee with the dragon as his hostage. Too bad for Zorua that he had to face two of the most dangerous Smashers that were recently recruited for Smash.
Cloud fought nothing like he did in Smash. He was more tactical with his attacks now using the material from his arm to cast spells that would surprise the Faceless allowing Bayonetta to follow up with whatever flashy combo she had. Ice was the go to spell only because Bayonetta decided to skate before kicking the Faceless in the face. She was serious when she said she was ready to dance.
"I don't dance." Cloud had softly commented seeing Bayonetta stop to stare at the blond hoping he would join her in the chaos. "Corrin!"
Corrin refused to transform into a dragon, but he sure as hell could take advantage of the ice that Cloud was leaving around the area. He could use it for a barrier when the Invisible Soldiers were shooting arrows at him. They were Corrin's biggest concern seeing as how the Faceless were complete pushovers.
"Cloud, electrocute them!" The dragon prince ordered. "Then you can see them more easily."
The ex-SOLDIER had a lightning materia equipped as well combined with the all material. With it, he was able to shock every enemy in the area and identity his or her location. Corrin was pleased at how scattered out the enemies were.
"Cere, you take the right. Cloud and I got the left."
"I did not give you permission to call me Cere…but I will allow it this time."
Cloud already had his limit break, so he was ready to send his opponents flying. Corrin noticed the blue aura around him and quickly dashed into the opponent with Yatogami as his main shield against any attack. The big Faceless surrounded by Invisible Soldiers created a perfect set up. The prince pinned the Faceless into the ground causing it to growl at the sudden pain.
"CLOUD!"
Cloud was already behind him. Corrin quickly jumped out of the way when Cloud unleashed his limit break. In Smash, it might have done one damage and sent everyone flying, but here, it was a one hit KO for everything caught in the blast. At this very moment, Bayonetta had already finished with the enemies to the right of her and knocked them all into Cloud's limit break. She blew a kiss to her teammates for how well executed the combo was. Cloud wasn't looking her direction so he missed it but Corrin noticed and blushed.
"…There's one more." Cloud brought up seeing how Corrin was ready to celebrate. "The ugly jester over there."
Corrin didn't forget. He was going to end his life again and end this horrible nightmare.
Zorua had one last trick up his sleeve to get out of this situation alive. He really thought the Nohr prince was naïve if he thought that transforming back into Azura would stop him.
While Corrin did stop in his tracks, he was not fooled by her appearance.
"Zorua, you're still a coward…" He hissed. "How dare you wear Azura's face!"
"What are you talking about Corrin? I am Azura. Do you not recognize me…or has this realm corrupted your senses?"
Corrin gritted his teeth. He wasn't going to be fooled. Zorua may have mimicked her appearance and her voice, but the aura surrounding her was certainly not one of his most cherished companions.
"…We must stop the fight and find another way back home. Otherwise, you'll be tainted by these evil thoughts."
The dragon prince may have stopped his attack, but Zorua forgot that the other two Smashers weren't as merciful as the prince he was tormenting. Bayonetta simply took her pistol and aimed it at the songstress' dress.
"Too bad for you I'm not a fan of magic tricks. It's curtains for you."
The Umbra Witch fired the bullet at the wrong moment. If she had waited, she would have been able to prevent a future misunderstanding from occurring. The Smashers and Zorua noticed the sound of another dragon flying overhead and landing near them. Corrin was thrilled to see his sister was able to sense something was wrong and came for him. Cory's attention was to Azura. Her heart flustered seeing the gold eyed singer again, but her heart shattered immediately when the bullet that came out of Bayonetta's bullet shot through the girl's chest. This would effectively kill the illusion Zorua was using. To Cory, she just witnessed murder.
"A…Azura…"
Azura's body went flying into the pavement due to the impact. She immediately coughed up blood to continue the illusion that she was dying. Noticing that the female dragon was near, the illusion called out to the Nohr princess.
Corrin expected his sister to fly into rage and maul Bayonetta. Instead, she noticed the terrified expression on her eyes as she stared at Bayonetta before taking a step back.
"No…this can't be…"
"Sis, that's not Azura!"
Cory didn't want to listen. She took a step back into the darkness and dashed off. Bayonetta frowned realizing that she just made her relationship with the silver haired princess worse.
"Not a bad show…right?" Azura asked darkly before reverting back to the jester form. "The princess…is just as gullible as her brother."
"You bastard…" Corrin cursed. He rarely did, but what Zorua did just now was unforgivable. "How dare you make my sister suffer!"
"Heh…I'm dying again…what can you do to me that stupid prince Leon didn't do before?"
Corrin's arm was still numb from the ice, but he could still use his other hand to transform into a mouth and grab at his throat. How uncharacteristic of him to be so violent…
"Tell me who hired you!" Corrin shouted. "There is no way father would be able to follow sis and me all the way here! He does not have enough magic to come here much less send you when he's dealing with big brother Marx and big brother Ryoma!"
"Ha ha…you think they're alive…" Zorua laughed as he seemed to be reaching for something in his outfit. "I'm not like I was when I died originally…I have nothing to lose…"
"You…"
Zorua smirked seeing the angry look on the prince's face.
"You will be taken to your father…sooner than you would think. You can't run forever…not without killing him…"
Bayonetta saw what the jester was carrying. Quickly, she activated witch time to grab Corrin out of his stance and yank him away. Corrin was holding onto Zorua's head that she thought he would yank it off. The man was already dead, so no blood oozed out of his sockets. This was for the best though. Zorua had taken out a bomb designed to kill everything in the vicinity. Because of witch time, the explosion was contained, but it still caused his body to vanish instantly.
"Ahh!" Corrin cried out seeing Zorua explode on him without warning. "W-Wait…I didn't get the info I needed…"
"You would think your life would be higher on the priority list." Snarked the Umbra Witch as she dropped him to the ground.
"But my friends and family…"
If Corrin was capable of being cruel, he would have dug up some information on them before Zorua decided to commit suicide so he could stay silent. Bayonetta's main concern besides Corrin's mental health of course was the aura of the man today and the aura of the shadow the previous night. They weren't the same one. The one yesterday was more sinister…more dangerous than anything Bayonetta felt. She could handle it just fine…but the shadow was lurking and waiting to attack Corrin. He failed tonight because of his servant, but what if he came back?
"Bayonetta," Cloud began, "I don't know what you're thinking but we need to leave before the authorities of this world show up." He glanced at the silver haired prince who was on the verge of collapse. "…I'll take him back. Just make sure no one is following us."
"You sure can take command when you want to."
"Don't push my buttons."
The Villagers were following the glowing light that was leading them toward Smash Forest. As a whole, the group had a short attention span and would go together to get things done. In Smashville, there was only a need of one mayor, but they had all switched out for seven days a week leaving Ed of course as the odd one out (because Isabelle didn't think he qualified to be a mayor, but she couldn't tell that to his face. Fortunately, he wasn't that bright and never realized that he was never on the list to be the mayor for the day).
Usually the group was fine with walking in the dark forest. They were a squad of eight capable of scaring any living thing. This time was different at least for Pink. She liked to tease to the others she was the sane one of the group because she was the cute one. In a situation like this, she had every right to be concerned.
"Hey, I know we usually go out often, but why are we doing this time around?" Pink asked cautiously. "I think we should turn back if it isn't important."
"The light will lead us to Ice Climbers!" Ed exclaimed randomly confusing the pink haired Villager. Ace had to translate for his friend.
"You know how Rock has been feeling blue lately. Ed has determined that this bug apparently can lead us to Popo and Nana. We will only know after we reach our destination."
"Don't be a worrywart!" Shion declared with a laugh as they all followed after the glowing bug.
"But…"
Pink gulped before chasing after them. "Wait! Don't leave me alone!"
Deeper into the forest they went. The light of the glowing object was slowly disappearing the further they went in. Pink had to ask herself if the forest was always this large. If it was an endless forest, then they would never be able to get out. They all had this type of luck that allowed them to overcome anything, but their luck was about to run out.
Soon the bug's glow would disappear leaving them in the dark. K had snickered as he took out a torch out of his pockets and lit the area.
"K, don't you dare set the forest on fire." Fiona told him darkly. "Unlike you, I appreciate mother nature."
"I like forest fires though." K joked. "It's like watching fireworks in the sky."
None of the Villagers were laughing at his poorly made joke. Their attention was focused on something else glowing in the darkness. Something sinister…
"Umm…what's that?" Pink asked as she noticed the weird colored glow glaring at them.
At first, K had every intention of ignoring the issue in front of them until these weird black tentacles with huge eyes on each tentacle came out of the darkness. A laugh that matched his own echoed and out of the darkness came a Gazer demon.
"You'll do for Acedia's spies." The childish voice spoke.
It's a good thing all the Villagers had their axes in hand in case anyone tried to interfere with their plan. Pink however trembled as she hesitated to take a weapon out to defend herself. They could handle anything if they tried…right? Then why did she feel like they were all going to die?
It wouldn't be long before Corrin had asked the older Smashers to meet him on the roof after last night. The dragon prince wanted to avoid confrontation with the other Smashers after messing with Smashopolis, but that meant isolating himself either on the roof or the guest room. Both took their time to meet the red eyed prince causing obvious irritation at how late they were. He swallowed his annoyance before getting on the ground and bowing to them.
"Thank you for saving me." He said almost immediately. "I fell into an enemy trap and caused problems for you both."
"I assume you do that a lot in your world?" Cloud asked in a rather monotone voice.
A small nod was Cloud's response.
"Just don't rush into things without backup. You might have ended up dead."
"…Sis tells me that all the time…" The young dragon murmured darkly. "That's why she's always telling me to stick close to her."
Cloud wanted to add some snarky comment, but kept it to himself. It wouldn't do any good if he riled Corrin up now after an apology like this.
"You may raise your head." Bayonetta spoke. "It's not like a prince to bow down to others."
"…Sorry…"
Corrin slowly raised his head up before he decided to get off the ground. He got his point across and the two Smashers were free to leave. However, the prince wanted to say something else to them. He hesitated when Cloud turned his back on him thinking they were done talking.
I need to trust them. Corrin thought to himself as he gulped. Sis and I promised each other we wouldn't open up to anyone and settle this issue ourselves…but I know more than anyone that we can't save our world alone without the assistance of others. Even if they become cursed because of us, we can't lock away all of our options…that's what he wants us to do…
As Bayonetta turned her back on the dragon prince, Corrin quickly spoke up.
"Wait!"
Both of them turned their attention back to Corrin to see what else he had to say. Corrin should be thankful they were giving him the time of day after causing them so much trouble.
"…There's something I cannot tell anyone…not without dire consequences." Corrin began knowing that the dialogue between the three of them would end if Corrin refused to speak. "I haven't been open to trusting others…but after last night…I want to trust you two." He paused before continuing. "It has only been me and my sister for a long time after we lost our world. Everyone I knew…" Corrin cut himself off refusing to think of the tragic memories kept within his mind. "I know it's asking too much, but I would like to team up with you two. It's selfish of me to ask for you to help us in our quest to return home but…"
"Return home you say?" Cloud interrupted. "So…you're just like me…unable to return home."
"…It's complicated." Corrin admitted. "Besides…" He looked to Bayonetta who seemed disinterested in his speech about trust and friendship. If he knew her better, that probably wasn't the case. "Also, Cere, can you apologize to my sister? She thinks you killed her wife again."
"Oh, that explains the dirty look she gave me when I came back." Bayonetta commented.
It took a moment for Cloud to register Corrin's word before being blunt again.
"…Wife?"
"Yeah. Cory's married to Azura."
Bayonetta caught Corrin's expression darken for a moment when he said that. She wondered if the silver haired prince was jealous of his older sister. It wasn't her business anyway, but she did need to patch things up with the dragon princess.
"…I had no idea your sister was…" Cloud didn't bother finishing the sentence. He was making things more awkward.
"I enjoy a challenge." Bayonetta ended up saying to Corrin's original response.
The question was who was actually in trouble: Bayonetta or Cory? Corrin would have to find out later when the Umbra witch finally apologized.
The three were so absorbed into their conversation that they miss something important going down on the first floor. At first glance, it was just the seven Villagers returning from last night. Nobody questioned the Villagers because of how odd they were. Upon closer inspection, one could see something was wrong with them. They all had blood colored eyes that moved around slowly as they searched for the other Smashers. The seven Villagers had decided to split up after returning to the mansion. All of them could be named off: K, Ed, Fiona, Doug, Shion, Ace and Phyllis.
The only Villager not accounted for was Pink…
Me: Done with 13539 words.
Li: What happened to the Villagers?
Me: I think it's obvious, but Pink is the one everyone should be concerned for. Notes!
1. Corrin's title is the Blood of Dragons. In this scenario, the Smashers didn't realize the Corrin twins were dragons until battle. Once the reveal happens, then his title will appropriately change as well.
2. Corrin's class is White Blood and Cory's is Black Blood despite the fact that Corrin leans toward Nohr and Cory leans toward Hoshido. The Recover staff is B rank but Corrin can go higher than that only in the Smash Realm. It's why I implied that Rob is the better healer in the long run, but Corrin has a large amount of magic to be able to restore wounds Rob would not be able to do.
3. Notice how the letter is written in a context that could address the angel twins, tactician twins or the dragon twins? The letter was originally for Dark Pit and if you recall in the last story how Pit got a letter threatening Dark Pit's life, it's not hard to see that it might not be the person that is chasing after Corrin but the one that has been messing with Pit instead.
4. Yes, I implied that Cloud took Corrin's words to heart and didn't touch anything on his side of the room. This means Corrin leaving the letter out for Cloud (which anyone genre savvy enough would have looked at the contents) was a waste of time.
5. Corrin and Azura are the only characters who have their English names. Everyone else has their Japanese names. There is going to be some implication that because they were kidnapped, their names were changed, so it went from Kamui to Corrin and Aqua to Azura. Plus, I already have an OC named Aqua and I don't want to confuse them both.
6. A Gazer demon is pretty much a tentacle monster only with eyeballs and having one huge eyeball itself on its head. Think of it as a Monoeye only creepier as this particular one has a human shaped body. I didn't describe the monster's appearance for spoiler based reasons in my universe even if you know he's a member of the Band of Six.
7. If it wasn't apparent, Cloud is telling Corrin not to run off so he doesn't end up like Aerith.
That's it. Reviews are appreciated. Ja ne!
