Chapter II – Mew's Creation
"Who am I?"
Countdown was not slowing for the Nintendo heroes in the skies and space above and beyond the world of Pokémon. Even so, Mewtwo meditated in silence and loneliness, for he had no obligations to return to the past.
The philosophical creature had often wondered why he existed. He knew of course how he had come into being and through what human avarice he was born and wrought into a cruel world. Mewtwo thought bigger than this. He wondered why the great cosmos, the delicate, intricate fabric of the universe, allowed him to be. He certainly was not normal, and no matter where he stayed, Mewtwo felt unnatural.
His partner Mew thought this grand to have kin so powerful, caring and intelligent. It only increased their capacity for good and to spread miracles throughout the lands of humans and Pokémon.
Weary from bringing relief to the lands on the planet that had been decimated by Majora's Perfect Chaos, Mew and Mewtwo took their break in the Valley of Life. It was the place with shimmering waters, lush forests and a majestic mountain where Mew had often spent most of her time. Mewtwo remembered thinking of it as he was born in a scientist's test tube. As he floated above the sacred lands filled with Pokémon now, the legendary felt such a rift between his old self chasing the fleeting image of paradise and the present version of himself doing his part in saving the world.
Mewtwo wondered what the team of Giovanni's scientists would have thought of him in the present if he had left them alive. He was surely different. Nevertheless, he could not help from drifting back into his memories of his creation. Regardless of how much he had evolved since, the man-made Pokémon did this often.
The fossil had been found. The experiment was finished. The vessel for infinite power, the first synthetic Pokémon, rested in the test tube before the band of intellectuals. Cloning Mew after the famous expedition seemed to have produced results. The manipulators were waiting for success.
"Who am I?"
No answer.
"What am I?"
The Pokémon opened his eyes to see his creators for the first time.
"Where am I?"
The unrelenting looks of satisfaction on his creators' faces were haunting behind the sheen of sickly, bubbling liquid Mewtwo was encased in. The shadows of Dr. Fuji's ambition and his daughter Amber's gentle nature haunted Mewtwo subconsciously. He could not remember anything; feelings of loss and loneliness had no paired memories.
"This…this is not the same. Was everything before just a dream? Why?"
Hours later, the scientists had thought they had stumbled upon another significant discovery in the creature. Its brainwaves were off the charts. Its mind was racing.
"Those voices," said Mewtwo to himself. "They're outside…where I must be."
With a crash, the Pokémon had freed himself from captivity. Glass and wires were strewn across the floor stained with the orange liquid of Mewtwo's birth. The intellectuals wanted to learn from his newfound and realized psychic powers.
"So, I am simply the end result of your experiment?" questioned Mewtwo after learning about the original Mew, the cloning process and the copy that he was.
"What becomes of me now that your experiment is over?"
Now the serious testing begins. What would that entail?
"These humans…they care nothing for me. Is that my purpose? Am I just an experiment? A laboratory specimen? This cannot be my destiny."
Explosions followed one after the other as Mewtwo glanced at the science of his imprisonment to make it blow. Fires raged from the technology that had birthed him, and that fire now consumed the team that had so foolishly created a sentient being for the hopes of keeping it contained and in check. Mewtwo scoffed at their greedy, scholarly ambitions as his psychic power shielded him from the destruction he had caused.
"We dreamed of creating the world's strongest Pokémon…" muttered Dr. Fuji dying on the floor.
The first psystrike began to emanate from Mewtwo. The whole island was about to go up in flames.
"…And we succeeded."
In the wreckage that followed, Team Rocket leader Giovanni landed. He promised Mewtwo a way to augment and control his powers. The new metal skin was just another means of containing the man-made Pokémon.
Mewtwo found no purpose in battling trainers and their Pokémon. They were all too pathetic to pose any threat to him anyway. Days later, Mewtwo hated hearing that he was created to obey the whims of the petty creatures who had made him. Giovanni would not be strong enough to control him now.
"Humans may have created me, but they will never enslave me. This cannot be my destiny! I was not born a Pokémon; I was created. And my creators have used and betrayed me. So, I stand alone!"
Giovanni's plans for world domination crumbling before him, an awesome scene of destruction shot into space while Mewtwo flew to an escape. He stood once more on the island where he had been created.
"Who am I? What is my true reason for being? I will find my own purpose and purge this planet of all who oppose me: human and Pokémon alike. The world will heed my warning. The reign of Mewtwo will soon begin."
He had changed completely since then. After the sacrifice of trainers and Pokémon alike, he had finally been able to see true compassion and sympathy. He now saw the majestic mountain that stood before him. That same one that had always eluded him in his dreams was now a vision in reality as copy levitated alongside the original.
Mew playfully bumped into her friend, and Mewtwo was altogether done sulking in remembrance for the day. Good to be alert now, the two Pokémon saw something odd shooting through the sky and coming their way. Silver spikes crashed into the earth.
"Seriously though, how can I have all of this greatness going for me at my age?!"
The responder looked at the blue fox as if he should already know the answer, but Marcus was still reeling from the gradual realization of how good his life was at the moment.
Fox's son continued, "For us to have graduated from the academy at the top of our class, gotten married and then become official members of Star Fox at the age of eighteen is insane. Come on, I know you'd agree."
Marcus's wife, a red fox formerly known as Katrina Nova before taking his surname, answered, "Well, I know you could just read my thoughts to find out for sure. But yes, it is pretty awesome. I never would have imagined all of this happening so fast. However, I came to terms with it months ago when it all happened. I thought we've been celebrating life ever since, Marcus. Where have you been, you goofball?"
"I guess life was just moving so fast last summer for me to really realize everything that was happening."
"And it's not going by fast now?!"
"Yeah, I guess it is," summed up Marcus. "But it's a different kind of fast. Now the world is ending…so stuff outside of our little personal world is revolving at incredible speeds, right, but things between us and who we love have sort of stayed the same…if that makes sense."
"It does; I can see the point of view," answered Katrina. "We really live in a world of extremes, don't we? Either the universe is going to shatter all around us or everyone is happy: getting married, having kids, moving on to that next chapter in life."
"And for us in this crazy place, both extremes happen at the same time. Simply amazing."
Katrina responded, "Indeed, my sweet Marcus. That is the best way to look at it."
"Well, you know me more than anyone. For me, the best way to look at something is the only way. For example, we're going to meet dad, and while I assume it's for a dangerous assignment or some mission that might put our lives at risk, I'm just glad to speak with the old fox hahaha."
"Your relentless optimism just never wavers…something's wrong with you. And you sure like to sneak in saying your father's name. I guess it's pretty easy to do…"
"Hey, it's not my fault my grandfather named him after an entire species. He probably did it so his future grandson could exploit the name. And one more thing…of course there's something wrong with me!"
Katrina just looked at him as they walked toward the pillar's command center.
"Why else would you have married me, vixen, if that hadn't been the case?"
She had stopped wanting to encourage his overly cheery mood at this point, but Katrina could not help but laughing at the silly grin her husband of six months was wearing. Some had called them stupid for pledging eternal love so young, but both Marcus and Katrina had always known they had found their soulmate when they had been even younger, both just simple pups and cadets in the Cornerian Academy. Fully equipped now with the skills and galaxy experience necessary to leap into adult life as mercenaries and heroes, the foxes had figured they would do it all as lovers too.
Link and Midna were lucky no one could see them in their private quarters. The wolf was having way too much fun having his partner scratch his belly with her ancestors' magic.
They were certainly comfortable around each other. It was as if, in the time that passed when they had thought they would never see each other again, they had softened emotionally to prepare for the fun times they were to have after the miracle reunion. Or maybe it was just that now they were not spending their time together with Hyrule on their shoulders. That had been their existence when they had met before. Every waking moment was spent saving the land back then. Now, they had the opportunities to better get to know each other.
For instance, Midna had learned about Link's greatest desire to see all his world had to offer. He would often adventure to far-off places and soak up the new sights by laying out on the ground. These excursions mainly took place after having slain Ganondorf and before joining Nintendo. Link had an appreciation for silence, but Midna brought out a primal rambunctious side in him.
In Midna's time ruling the Twilight Realm, she had reformed the ways of her people and had them focus more on future prosperity instead of ancient tradition. She was almost unanimously popular as a ruler, and Link was now finding out just how much she really enjoyed being around people. As an imp in his shadow, he had never known how outgoing she really was. Yet, there had always been something about the imp that rode upon him that made his heart go aflutter.
They were truly smitten with each other, and that love was made mostly private. When they were around each other, it was difficult to maintain the stoic hero and princess exteriors everyone expected from them. They had recently let a few friends see them with their guards dropped, and most had agreed seeing them together made them individually stronger. As the human form of Link and taller impish version of Midna sprawled out on their bed, they sure looked like they could take on anything while in love.
"When I left…" Midna began, "I remember you gasping aloud when the mirror was breaking. That was…in retrospect, a terrible thing for me to do. And the way you acted broke my heart. I should have believed you loved me too…I mean, we're making it work now, so what was I thinking…?"
"I understand what you did. You didn't want our worlds to hurt each other's anymore," said Link. "You thought about the repercussions of that day as a ruler of your people and not…someone in love. What I don't understand…"
Link paused. He relished in the silence of his thoughts. He was not used to talking so blatantly about his emotions. But, he did feel comfortable completely around Midna.
"…is that you did not think I loved you too. You're all I thought off every day on horseback after you left. Every new mountain or lake I came across in my travels, I would sit and look out at those views and wish you were at my side enjoying them as well. And during the twilight hours, I would just sit and think about the days we spent adventuring and growing together. You occupied every wandering thought of mine…"
"Link…I…somehow, I don't know what to say around you when faced with you and my feelings." The interactions had turned from playful to somber in their mutual love. They had missed out on time together, so spending every moment with each other was making up for time they could not have back.
Midna touched her hand to Link's face gently and spoke: "I always thought Zelda or that Ilia girl from your hometown would be for you. I thought to myself, 'how could he love me?' We were friends but not more back then."
"We were everything for each other back then," answered Link. "How could I not grow to love you the way you did me? We saved each other's lives, saved the world as a pair and helped Hyrule and each other through so much. Those are memories that will always be with us; time spent with you, even as a wolf…" Link chuckled, "was the most important set of moments in my life. …I'm just glad that now we get to make more of those forever."
Midna let a tear trickle down her face and silently scolded herself for letting it happen. All Link did was wipe it away with one finger while smiling. Even if she let her guard down entirely, Link was there just as kind and honest as always. Their bond was almost indescribable.
"Look at us: total saps, right, hee eee? Oh, chosen hero, I'll never hide it again: I love you without end!"
She kissed him ferociously and would not stop. They embraced each other leaving Link little time to speak before they made love that crossed though the realms of light and shadow.
"Twilight Princess, I love you more than anything."
Their titular monikers given to them by the goddesses and followers had become their pet names for each other. All seemed right in their world together. They were just one example of how love blossomed like never before between heroes while the world was nearing its end in just seven months.
And with a convergence of space-time on top of it all, the heroes of Hyrule and their lovers and friends had a lot to do in the coming days, weeks and months. Link of the Twilight Era was about to meet others with his spirit throughout time and space tomorrow. He was excited for it. The peak of that enthusiasm for the journey was that he could take Midna with him and let her see all the spectacles of the land with him like he wished he could have in their time lost. But now, much as the intermingling fates of the timelines of Hyrule, their lives were inseparable.
Bowser grunted awake. He had had a pleasant rest and a splendid dream. In it, he was waltzing with Rosalina, princess of the cosmos, without a care. His children were near them both; the Koopalings were playing with and teasing each other like usual. Junior was working hard on a new clown car. It was for recreation in the next Mario Kart tournament. All of this in the dream, it had seemed like a stagnant pool of eternal happiness. Waking up now for the koopa king was not much different.
After the skirmish between his troops and airships and her intergalactic magic, Bowser had lost and had never been so glad to have failed. Instead of warping the villain into the plasma of the nearest star, Rosalina had instead warped the throes of goombas, koopa troopas and hammer brothers back home to safety in the Mushroom Kingdom. Bowser had been a different case. He, in particular, had been badly beaten: his shell was cracked, his thick hide black and blue. She had had the Lumas lovingly take care of the unconscious mass of villainy until he had recovered completely. Now nearly a month later, Bowser found himself sleeping within the purple sheets of the bedroom he had been mended back together in after the battle. In the enchanting comfort of the Comet Observatory, Bowser no longer manifested a desire to kidnap the princess, mother of Junior, or rule over the world for his greedy ends to satiate his ego trip that had lasted decades until now. It was not just the calmness of space that had eased the king's soul….
Bowser was in love with his savior. He could not believe he had fallen in love, and in such a short amount of time too. Heck, he barely ever got to see Rosalina for more than a few moments scattered throughout his few waking bits during recovery. Still, she was always radiant and caring. She was a princess too. Soon, all thoughts of Princess Peach or his other ex began to drift away.
"Is that enough apricot tea, sir koopa?" asked a round, yellow Luma cheerfully.
"It is…um, thank you, little…star." Bowser was still not used to talking to the floating babies all around him. Even though they had taken care of him for a week, the koopa was still unsure how he should interact with the specks whom he had endangered so many years ago.
He especially did not want to put a single scaled toe out of line. Once he was well enough to climb out of bed (which would be soon), he wanted to start impressing Rosalina with a new leaf that her improbable love would make reality.
Days continued to pass on, and after three more, the big guy was finally able to stretch and walk…and really not do much else. He was still sore from whatever hit him when he had clashed with Rosalina and her magic. He was feeling it. He also wondered if someone who had just attacked him to protect her home kingdom would even be willing to talk with a giant monster, let alone reciprocate feelings.
Bowser was lost in these thoughts as he wandered around the observatory. It was as big as one of his smaller castles but instead, this place was open and freeing, not claustrophobic and depressing. His ideas for a new life seemed to float from space into his head, which could breathe a lot easier now in the serenity of the cosmos. Was this place and this woman making the former evil king soft? Maybe too soft, thought Bowser often.
It was during one of these chronic strolls when the ruler of the observatory herself met with Bowser, surprising him when she came near. Bowser felt his throat become dry and his hands tremble. If only he was as fearsome on the inside as he was on the outside, Bowser thought to himself, he might not lose so darn often.
"Glad to see you're doing well these past few days." Rosalina started the conversation.
Bowser did not know what to say. Thank you for giving me these injuries and then taking them away? He knew he had deserved the former though, and as vicious as he was sometimes, the koopa knew full-well that he had not deserved the latter. Especially not from a bystander who leapt into action and had never wronged him or his family before.
After thinking on it for a few moments, with Rosalina waiting patiently for a reply, Bowser said, "It's all thanks to you and your stars…so, uh…thank you."
"You are very welcome. Those stars are my children in a sense, and I'm happy to hear they've taken good care of you. Hospitality toward an enemy will help achieve peace in the universe. I'm glad they understand that as much as I do."
"That's, um…" muttered Bowser. He had not had a conversation with a human in such a long while. And to hear such sound thoughts coming from one was a very nice change of pace. "You are very wise," said the koopa eventually. He still thought it a little crazy that she considered stars her children. That had made him hesitate a little more before answering. He decided against questioning it though. He certainly understood loving children.
"Hmhm, thank you. …This is almost nice, Bowser. I much prefer talking over fighting."
Bowser was a little offended. "Almost nice?" He had not done anything wrong yet, he thought.
"Sorry, this IS nice. It's just…I also know who I'm talking to."
Bowser put his head down in shame. With so few words, Rosalina had managed to put all of his wrongdoings in his face at once. And it was even worse and sadder because he still felt like he loved her. His respect for her was growing too. Had he really waged intergalactic war against such a fair maiden and her children all those years ago?
Rosalina broke the silence. "I can never look past someone in need. You were badly hurt, Bowser. As in…on the edge of death, actually."
The koopa had a look of surprise on his face now. He knew how difficult he was to kill.
"So of course, we took you in and mended you back to, what I hope to be soon, full health," continued Rosalina. "But I cannot lie either."
Bowser looked up. He spoke quickly now: "It pained you to have your children, those stars you care so much for…take care of me, right? After all the evil I've ever done. I can't blame you…even though the old me would set this place of peace ablaze right now."
"That wasn't what I was going to say. If you had let me finish, you would have heard me say that my hidden motive was one of good intentions, not silent disgust at you or the past."
"Urh, ah, sorry," muttered the self-loathing koopa. He had never felt so bad about who he was ever. Why did this mysterious, lovely woman have the power to make him feel so deeply?
"I wanted to extend an unbiased kindness to you…because I wanted to see if I and my children could inspire a change in character. There is the potential for good in every living creature in the universe. This much I know. I wanted to see if we could make that good happen inside you for the betterment of your world…and the betterment of you."
Rosalina had smiled upon saying the last part. Bowser sniffed a tear away on the side of his mug she could not see. Her soothing voice was having its stirring, melancholic effect on him.
"If you decide to give up on your conquest of the Mushroom Kingdom and that squabble with the mother of your child, then there will have been another wonderful reason for having taken care of you here. If not, then at least I affected your life in some way…for the better I'm hoping…"
Bowser turned to see Rosalina head-on. The princess of the stars did not even flinch. The koopa was just now realizing how tall she was. She came up to his chin.
"…And believing," finished Rosalina.
Bowser could not keep his emotions in anymore. He would give up being evil for her, perhaps even if she declined him and respected his feelings all the same. The koopa king had never been one for subtlety anyway.
He wanted to roar it aloud, but he kept the confession at a whisper.
"I LOVE YOU," said Bowser with a soft intensity. He did not care how taken aback she would be or how the rudely blunt confession could hurt his chances.
But Rosalina just stood there calmly with hair covering half of her face. In her stoic manner, she let out a sigh. This could not be good.
Bowser's expectations for rejection were all he could think of before Rosalina replied, so when she finally did, he was pleasantly surprised.
"Yes…I thought as much," said Rosalina. "A koopa as large and blunt as you are is not very good at hiding these feelings."
"So, ugh…you already knew?"
"I had my suspicions," confirmed Rosalina. "Even though I should hate you, I can't help but feel flattered. However, that doesn't mean I reciprocate the same intensity you feel. …But, I do wish to get to know you better, to ease the tempest of inner conflict that rages in your heart. Yes, you're not good at hiding that either."
Bowser was at a loss for words. She seemed to know exactly how he was feeling.
"I know your kids have joined with your former enemies and turned over a new leaf. It is obvious that part of you wants to join them too, but there is this…more monstrous, immensely powerful part that just refuses to let go the conquests of old and the trespasses done against you or your people. You are unable to forgive, and thus, you cannot forgive yourself for the evil you've done. So, ask yourself this, Koopa King: how are you supposed to change alongside your family if you refuse to let go the things that are keeping you the same?"
If Mario or even Peach had said these things, Bowser could have easily imagined himself raging against the notion such words poised, but with Rosalina saying them, all the koopa could do was think about this change. Was it possible to change almost everything he was so late in life?
"You are probably right," muttered Bowser. "But I don't know if I can make this huge change by myself. I'm too out-of-control to make sure I'll do what you say…"
Bowser was about to boldly ask for the same thing Rosalina was thinking of now, and hearing her say it instead filled the spiked menace with fuzzies all throughout his body.
"Maybe you just need someone in your life to work with you and keep you strong," said Rosalina. "As a parent myself, I know, more than anything, even your most likely misguided feelings for me, you need to get back to your children."
Bowser knew she was right, and from thereon out, he focused on becoming good for the sake of his heir and seven Koopalings. Rosalina helped Bowser manage his anger and come to terms with his failures, losses and regrets that plagued his mind and continued to push him toward ill pursuits. It was a difficult period of a couple weeks; the time was not without its outbursts and frustrations, but through it all, Rosalina was steadfast and true in her support for Bowser. By the end of the self-actualization for the koopa, she felt like she was friends with him. Bowser felt more indebted to her than ever.
The princess of the cosmos did not owe anything to the koopa king until two thirds of Countdown remained, and even then, it was questionable if she really did. Sorcerer Kamek unexpectedly raided the observatory one night and powered down the facility with his magic. The lumas had been unprepared for the assault; scores of Bowser's airships raided the place in retaliation for the defeat weeks before. Kamek had suspected the observatory had taken Bowser prisoner, and it had taken a while to assemble a means of taking the hulk on where it had previously decimated a smaller fleet with Bowser in it.
But now the koopa was on the other side entirely, and he woke up frustrated to find that his right-hand wizard was still following orders from the old him. He did not want to harm his troops or Kamek, but he also knew the baby stars were in danger too. The koopa hurried over to the armada's leader with the echoes from Bowser's fleet footsteps thundering throughout the observatory. He yelled out at Kamek with the same ferocity he could have spent with his fire breath on the wooden hulls of the ships. He wanted to keep everyone safe.
"Kamek! I'm fine. Stop attacking! There's no need for it. These stars are peaceful and won't harm you if you don't hurt them!"
"Master Bowser! I'm glad to see you okay, but kidnapping you is no excuse for giving them mercy now. Troops, follow through!"
The goombas, koopas, bob-ombs and boos were in a frenzy trying to figure out who to follow. Normally, they would follow their king without question, but they had also never been following orders from someone else for so long. There was some fighting and conflicted actions from the fray before most of the action stopped.
Bowser let out a humongous roar in his anger: "STAND DOWN, MEN!"
The fact that he had indirectly caused he injured lumas' tears was ruining him, and now, his men just had to listen to him. No troops who ever angered the king got off with a lax punishment.
The army listened to their master despite Kamek's meddling, but the wizard remained a soldier who would not stop fighting. He had already changed his evil methods into something crueler; wherein, he transformed Ludwig into a monstrous behemoth in Rogueport to suit his own desires for domination and eventually the usurping of power from Bowser. The king knew nothing of Ludwig's unfortunate situation nor these new ambitions from his elderly retainer, and that was why it was even more shocking for him to see Kamek risk everything and duel Rosalina with his magic.
"Since you took our king away from us, I'll take the image of a mother away from these stars!" said Kamek with cunning. No one expected what he had up his blue cloak sleeve.
Rosalina could barely let out a scream before she was disarmed and transformed by Kamek's superior, more evil magic. The princess felt herself growing larger and more grotesque; her skin began to crawl and yellow.
Bowser could not reach the two, so he managed to spew fire at the floating interloper. Kamek's cloak caught ablaze, and he came crashing down to the fountain exterior. Koopatrol units were already cuffing the koopa before Bowser even had to order them too. He was too preoccupied with climbing up the observatory to reach his beloved. She looked like she was in some terrible pain.
What Bowser saw when he reached the top spire took his breath away. He had not expected that. What he had expected was for Kamek to have transformed her into a horrendous beast. What lay before him was a fetching koopa combined with the amazon nature of the space woman herself.
"What?" spit out Rosalina. "Do I look terribly ugly? I don't want to look so terrible to have the lumas rather be without a mother…"
"Wow," grunted Bowser. "If that was Kamek's goal, he did a horrible job at it. He wasn't always the best at magic; he only ever really made simple shapes or some things grow, but this!" The smitten koopa gestured at Rosalina's new body. "This is his greatest work if you don't mind me saying. You look serene…gorgeous…but still amazingly peaceful somehow. You won't have to worry about your children; they'd love you no matter what, and anyone would love this and the old you."
Kamek was being taken away onto one of the airships, but through his glasses, he could see the proud, well-endowed koopa amazon he had created. The old wizard blushed and cursed at the same time before he was ushered out. It was time for the rest of the fleet to follow suit.
"Koopas!" Bowser roared from the top of the observatory. "Men! Followers! It is time for all of you to leave. If you do serve under me once more, someday, which is a day that might not come to pass by the way…if that time comes, then you will serve for good and not evil. The official state of our way of life as an army is now a way of peace. Not evil. Now, leave and know that I will be more than happy where I am now!"
His army listened without confusion this time. Rosalina just stood and looked at her friend who had saved her family. Her blonde hair still draped over her right eye, but now that lovely hair laid upon her face in curls. Now, it certainly seemed that her way of peace had rubbed off on Bowser along with some of her eloquence and vocabulary too.
"Bowser, I think I'm almost at a loss for words after all of this…." said Rosalina. "Thank you so much for saving us…and saying those things to your troops. Just by that action alone, you have changed the world so much for the better."
The princess of the cosmos bowed her head slightly in thanks.
Bowser just grunted. "Hey, for once, I can say 'it's my pleasure' after doing something good. Because of you, I did this for me too."
Bowser was still lying awake in his bed aboard the observatory as he thought about all the events that had come to pass that had changed his life completely. Now, he was a koopa of a new leaf: ready to work together with anyone to achieve peace in the galaxy. With Tabuu and more persistent evils around, Bowser needed to suck it up anyway. That was the new sentiment Rosalina had helped instill in him. But almost more important than his change of heart, he had fallen in love, and after a while and a lot of work, it had been reciprocated. The koopa looked over to the figure of a shapely koopa princess that rested beside him. She was still asleep.
Bowser could hear that the lumas were up and about, so he prodded his princess gently. Rosalina woke up with a yawn and large stretch. Her crystal blue eyes looked into the fiery red ones of her partner, and they celebrated a day anew with a kiss.
"You're looking handsome as always," blushed Rosalina.
"Thanks…urgh, I guess it's a waste of breath for me to tell you how gorgeous you are, both what you are now and normal you of course."
"You are such a softie now." Rosalina openly laughed.
"You've only known me for a little while," reminded Bowser. "Maybe I've always been a softie. You just unleashed it."
"And you've finally provided someone I can lean on," said Rosalina as she transformed with her magic to human form like usual. "I've been alone ever since I embraced the cosmos and lost my family back home. I've always been afraid to make it sound like I don't appreciate these star children…but they grow up so fast. And you…Bowser…"
Bowser let her finish. Rosalina kept gushing about how she enjoyed having someone matured and understanding in her life. Ever since their relationship started, Rosalina began letting down her guard and talking about everything she had been bottling up for centuries.
"…You're already grown up. And I can keep you too." Rosalina thought carefully about the wording of what she was going to say next. "I never imagined I would be with someone like you…" She took a pause as she sighed out of joy. "…but I couldn't be happier with how the fates have aligned for us."
Bowser's soft face said everything caring he ever could, so instead, he responded with: "You really do talk a lot!" and kissed the real her passionately.
The unlikely couple were excited for the future. They were in love and were ready to face any obstacle together. Rosalina had decided to steer the observatory off course for one year in order to help Nintendo save the universe from extinction. They could have helped any planet's governments and armies, but Bowser's princess knew there was only one option. Bowser desperately wanted to make amends with his kids and show them he changed. He knew the best way of doing that was going to be joining up with the group his kids had all sworn allegiance to.
Through extension, Bowser was going to be on Mario's side once more. But at least now, he had his princess. Rosalina and his eight kids were all that mattered to him now, and because of the woman who had set him free, the koopa king never needed reminded.
A crazed ball of spikes long forgotten, Dr. Eggman's Silver Sonic barreled into Mewtwo's abdomen with ferocity unmatched since the machine's duel with Sonic aboard the Death Egg years earlier. A psychic shield protected the nimble Pokémon with his incredible reaction time. Being of this world and seeing this unfamiliar foe, neither Mew nor her counterpart wondered who or what sent this contraption to battle.
It was a battle quickly dismissed once Mewtwo gained his bearings at least. The metal ball of spines was fast and got a few hits in, but the living combatant soon tired of the fight and ripped it apart from the inside with his psychic power. Mewtwo knew very little of Dr. Eggman, true, but he still had questions now. Who had sent this death trap to their secluded door, and if someone had indeed picked them as targets, what were they trying to accomplish?
Mew looked kindly into her friend's face as he pondered these questions. The floating feline-featured original was worried about their home, and her demure countenance made that apparent as Mewtwo acknowledged the fear and worry, silently reciprocating it himself. They needed to stay, but they also needed to leave. Nintendo's minds would be the most apt at solving this mystery.
As the pair took one final glance around them at the majesty of their mountain home, their thoughts drifted from the minuscule threat the Silver Sonic had posed to the foreboding feeling an earlier presence had cast over the springs and glades of the land. Mew and Mewtwo thought back a few weeks earlier to when Giygas, with his unsettling resemblance to the clone, still lingering in Mewtwo's head, stalked the sky, practically begging for action. Mewtwo had given chase with shadow balls and heavy attacks. The alien had merely took the brunt of the force behind its own psychic shield, and without warning after its beating, disappeared without a trace.
The origin of life and the friendly man-made accomplishment that hovered beside Mew both felt the pang of loss. They hoped nothing else would spoil the nature, so pure and beautiful, of their world while they were gone. With a crazed machination left over from a doctor's insanity and an old evil not even the most powerful of Pokémon could pursue, the Mew family felt threatened on more than one end. There were multiple, separate forces that wanted to taint the final year of the universe.
E-123 Omega strode out into the meeting hall. McCloud had summoned the robot for a mission, and if Eggman's greatest creation of the E series was being called, it knew some brutal action was expected.
Marcus soon dispelled that idea, at least for now: "Actually, big guy, we're doing reconnaissance on the planet Zoness of the Lylat System. We with flesh and bone can't really dive into that toxic sea to check things out for ourselves, you know?"
It was impossible to see if Omega was pleased or disappointed with this change of assignment in his mind. Most still doubted if he even had those feelings or honestly any potential to feel something past a desire to destroy what would stand against them.
"Affirmative," was Omega's answer. Katrina and Fox laughed at the head of the table. As accidentally funny as the android could be, all foxes still counted themselves lucky that the red and black behemoth was on their side.
Unexpectedly for the younger pups, a much larger powerhouse made his presence known in the chamber. Bowser's wide belly and chair-sized feet were having trouble squeezing through the tables to his new leader, but he did make his way to Fox without too much rubble and commotion.
"Fox, I…want to thank you again for letting me join the team," said Bowser. "Maybe I can prove my worth as a king by being a minion for a while."
Katrina and Marcus looked at each other in disbelief in this moment. Not only were they about to head out on their first substantial Nintendo mission together, but also the great koopa king was in some way going to be a part of it! In the backs of their minds, their feelings were mixed, but the cheerfully surprised looks on their cobalt and maroon muzzles betrayed any honest skepticism or dread. Besides, Marcus wanted to believe anyone could change from immoral ways to an honorable path.
"King Koopa, please, don't think of yourself like that," said Fox. "We're happy to have you aboard as part of this initiative to take down something that threatens us all, even you…if you were still not on our side. That being said, I'm doubly proud to have you on board compared to how you feel to be a part of us now. That, I can assure you."
"I can see why you're the leader of this motley crew…. Hopefully I can pick up a few tricks to take back to my troops!"
The final briefing was about to proceed without any more surprises. However, when Mew and Mewtwo grazed across the metallic floor with their soft toes, a tingle of anticipation shook through everyone. With concerns of their home now heard and new connections drawn, Fox gathered the heroes together to say what he knew. Some of the brightest minds in villainy had supposedly come together for a new challenge.
Dr. Ivo Robotnik, Giovanni and Andrew Oikonny were twisted minds, to be sure, but even with their combined efforts in the first stages of maniacal collaboration, they were all silently skeptical about whether their bioweapon initiative could truly be everything they dreamed it to be.
Their work together had started when the Mobian professor had sent out an anonymous encryption onto one of the servers that brilliant minds usually flocked to when their creativity or innovation in their careers began to lack. Eggman, tired of having been defeated again and again by his nemesis and his new overly powerful band of allies, admitted to himself that if he was going to have any chance at universal domination now (and, more importantly, finally killing Sonic and his friends), then he would have to do the same thing is rival had done: team up.
Oikonny had jumped at the chance to solve the puzzle. Ever since his failure in the Anglar War, Andrew had often found himself alone and with nothing to do. He still had a small but dedicated group of followers behind him, but those lizards and monkeys really only pledged allegiance out of remembrance to the sad ape's uncle. The former Star Wolf pilot wanted something more.
Giovanni had been skeptical to answer the message after the anonymous challenge had been beaten. He never wanted to be in the shadow of someone else's work, especially if that work concerned animals or Pokémon. However, ever since the downfall of his corporation and criminal empire after his defeat at the hands of Red and the devastation Mewtwo had caused, Giovanni's life had been swallowed down a pit of obscurity. One faked suicide later, and the world and all other worlds had forgotten about small-time crime boss Giovanni of Team Rocket. The lonely man overcame his skepticism; he had found a way to combat that image.
The three rarely met in person. After their initial briefing, they had found out their personalities clashed completely but that, afterwards in an online chat, their minds blended together perfectly. In a week's time, they were already crafting unique hybrid bioweapons for their schemes. After future months of their irreverent construction of life, they would have a force large enough to oppose Nintendo and stake their claim on the universe while it still lasted. Maybe, they could be the ones to overthrow Tabuu too. And then the worlds would be begging to be run by their new overlords, instead of being subjugated by the mad scientists.
Only time would tell if these men past their prime would have the power to make their ambition, finally, reality.
"From reconnaissance reports we've received from the other E-series robots, we've discovered that Giovanni, formerly of Team Rocket, has set up base on the toxic planet of Zoness. Scans indicate very strange life readings from the poisonous seas, and we assume these changes are due to his presence. To the weathered cliffs of Gabreshan, this is where we're sending the four of you on Zoness."
Fox's quick summary of what was wrong was a welcome mission briefing for the unlikely group getting ready for action. Their main objective was to investigate the supposed sea outpost and interrogate Giovanni. Fox was trusting his son and the others enough to allow them to make the decision of where to go from there. Marcus and Omega were asked to take on the seas while Mewtwo and Bowser would see what, if anything, awaited them along the gray, ashen coastline, and Katrina would monitor the planet's readings from the Great Fox in orbit. If life was being tampered with again, a lot of trouble would be coming their way.
Before the team shoved off, Fox had a word with his son alone.
"Now, Marcus, before I tell you this, I need to let you know I have reason to say this only to you," Fox said with whispered urgency even though they were the only two left in the room.
Marcus was surprised by the manner of business in his father's voice. He was usually not like that. "Um, okay, dad. Is there anything wrong?"
"Yes. That's why I'm telling just you. …We have reason to believe Andrew Oikonny is a part of what's going on. In fact, from what our team has gathered across the web, it looks like we have a team of really bad guys we're going up against?"
"Oh, okay…but why can't the others know about that?"
"That's not exactly the bad part. It's a bit of a distraction from the mission since we don't know for sure, but you can tell the others that much. What worries me, and your mother, is what that old ape might be up to."
"Oh, is this about what you and mom saw on Macbeth a while back?"
"Yes, it is…"
"And how you aren't exactly sure of what you saw in retrospect because of the nightmares you've been having?" continued Marcus.
"Yes…"
"But dad, you know mom was there to see it too! I think it IS safe to assume Andross will be back, and as a future threat. It only makes sense, then, that the nephew could be a part of it!"
"Shh, Marcus, keep your voice down. We're probably all right about that, but, again, I don't want to jump to conclusions. Everyone respects my judgment except on that family of apes. Everyone knows how Andross can mess with my mind. He could've even gotten inside your mother's head. Hell, he's done it before!"
"Dad…I think you're worrying too much about what others might think about you. We all have vulnerabilities. Sometimes…" Marcus hesitated at what he was about to say. "…It could be considered a weakness not sharing those vulnerabilities."
"…" Fox thought hard about what his son had just said. He respected him so much; at such a young age for everything he had ever done, Marcus was always impressing his dad. "I don't know where you get that wisdom from, young fox…probably from Krystal because I'm sure too headstrong to see these things most of the time."
Marcus always liked it when his dad used his mom's name. It let him know he was really serious and caring about something. This was a perfect time. Fox and Marcus were so close and so very alike.
"I understand you worry, dad," said Marcus. "I promise to be on the lookout for Oikonny and anything suspicious that links back to Andross. I won't let you down."
"At this point, my son, I don't know how you could. You never have."
With that, the father and son departed from the unofficial mission briefing. Marcus was excited to meet new friends in living legends he had always heard stories about from his father and childhood friends. Mewtwo was supposed to be one of the most powerful, yet also mysterious lifeforms in the universe. Bowser was a great and evil king gone soft, and Omega, while admittedly not much more than a berserker android, seemed awesome at every sight.
The ride was silent, much to the awkwardness of everyone aboard the box-like Cornerian transport. But Marcus did not mind too much. He was busy piloting, and if there was anything he enjoyed more than meeting new heroes at home, it was flying through the stardust of his galaxy. Everything was prepared, and the heroes' minds rested on their goals. Marcus, Omega, Bowser and Mewtwo touched down on the Zoness surface with their crimson vixen of an angel overseeing them from above.
Andrew Oikonny was having trouble controlling his crew. This new ship had to be in top shape, and the laziness of his men was just not cutting it.
"Get up here, you lazy monkey! You aren't a sloth, but you sure act like one!"
Oikonny's first mate, Matren, hated his boss, but the elongated face of the Andross wannabe was the closest thing this monkey was going to get to working with Venom's former ruler anymore. The first mate ape mostly wished his superior had not been so vain in claiming their new ship. It was a bold thing to say that they deserved the technology of the Eggman to fall in their lap.
These simian forces piloted the Egg Usher, a self-described spin-off of the Egg Carrier line Eggman had been so proud of in the past. The flying monolith was outfitted with concealed artillery on every square inch of the vessel, and Oikonny could even make the entire behemoth turn invisible with an advanced cloaking device.
"This really is the greatest ship I've ever flown!" said Oikonny. He was not going to admit that to his partner. "So we're not going to screw this up, Matren. I've-we've deserved this type of thing for a long time coming now. Let's make ourselves proud!"
The Egg Usher continued to scan its way across the Zoness surface and its toxic, green seas. The hostile environments were already suitable for highly adaptable lifeforms. It was Oikonny's job to find the best of the most fearsome and toughest creatures. The others were already testing and experimenting with the first batch the mad ape and his crew had gathered.
After having said momentary good-byes to Bowser and Mewtwo, who were currently discovering how arid and barren solid ground on Zoness was, Marcus and Omega began their underwater exploits. Marcus flew just above the crests of the waves most of the time, occasionally dipping beneath the sea to scope out anything suspicious. His Arwing would resurface quickly though; Zoness's waters were too corrosive for any permanent visit.
E-123 Omega was made of something tougher. His metal body could withstand harsher conditions, and so he patrolled the sea floor, and with lights attached and vision ready, he spotted the first signs of altered life on the planet. The fox and the robot were efficient together.
"What did you find, Omega?" asked Marcus.
"It seems to be a group of crustaceans oozing a toxic substance," reported Omega. The android took another scan of his underwater environment. "Scans do indicate that these lifeforms were transported here yesterday. There are no old signs of these creatures living in this particular habitat. Life readings also indicate that these crustaceans' genetic makeup have been altered in some way. I cannot trace the changes back to any known technology or method of genetic engineering."
"Thanks, Omega," said Marcus earnestly through his comm link in the Arwing. "It sounds like everything we've already found here is confirming suspicions about the area. Let's move forward, buddy!"
"Let's" was Omega's short reply.
The fox and his partner continued to trace the top of the toxic ocean waves and explore the depths beneath. They found more altered test subjects: glowing shoals of submarine-sized fish, spear-tipped jellyfish, double-limbed squids and a plethora of ravenous Zoness sharks.
It seemed as if the trail of suspected bioweapons was leading Marcus and Omega directly to the thought-to-be abandoned outpost in the middle of the toxic sea.
"We've found nothing so far. How disappointing," muttered Mewtwo to himself. He did not particularly want to start a conversation with Bowser, but he did not mind either. The monster koopa shared the sentiment.
"Urgh, I know! There's no action!" shouted Bowser.
The two powerhouses' hike along the cracked, grey stone shores of Zoness had been very uneventful so far. Only small signs of life had shown up for them, but at first glance, everything had seemed natural to the environment, at least as natural as things could grow and flourish on this radiated and polluted planet.
It was not until the pair found themselves at what looked to be the hurriedly abandoned site of an old building that their interest was finally peaked. It looked like something big had been grown and reared here.
"These tracks…" wondered Mewtwo, "…they look like they were made when large tentacles scraped along the surface. Bowser, what are your thoughts?"
"I'm no expert," admitted Bowser, "but it looks like whatever was dragged away from here…it wasn't willing to go along."
"Then there definitely is something wro-"
Mewtwo was cut off. The enormous silhouette that rose from the ocean waters beside them was enough to shake Bowser off his feet and disrupt Mewtwo's telepathic thought.
What sprawled out before them onto the rocks, dripping viscous saltwater, was something unnatural in its most defined sense. What looked like creatures combined in some unholy manner roared out at the Pokémon and his partner. The toothed flaps of a giant Zoness Shark mixed with what looked to be the tendrils of Diababa and the eyes of a burning lava fish burned its image into the minds of Bowser and Mewtwo. This thing was truly repulsive. On the same page once more, a shared look of disgust between them was what made the Nintendo wanderers prepare to wipe the ugliness clean away from the surface of planet Zoness.
The outpost seemed deserted at first. After climbing up the rickety ladder, leaving the Arwing wading just above the toxic sea, and shining light into the rusty excuse for a building dedicated to science, Marcus spotted Egg Pawn sentries. Omega did not leave those up and running for long, but those untamed blasts unknowingly gave away their position.
Were Eggman's robots protecting anything?
"Omega, no more firepower!" whispered Marcus intensely. "We can't afford to let anything else know we're here."
"Apologies, Marcus," said Omega in his typically robotic voice.
"Remember, buddy, we're here to scope out anything suspicious and then act. Those androids may be out-of-place, but they're not going to pose a whole lot of danger themselves."
"Of course. Just look at how easily they were wiped out."
"Yes…"
Marcus and Omega continued to climb up further, finding nothing more along their way. Either they spooked what had remained in the tower from the surrounding rooms or there really was nothing looking to ambush or surprise them.
Then, an Arbok and Kangaskhan appeared in flashes of light from the Pokéballs of their master. Poison breath and a flurry of punches aimed for the heroes, but they were a team. Omega, with his shimmering, resistant armor shielded the fox from the toxins while Marcus paralyzed the mother with his blaster. It was not a moment too soon as Kangaskhan's fist sailed right into the floor before Omega's feet thereafter. With keen sight and rapid scans, Marcus and Omega frantically looked around for the master of these beasts as they ran away from more attacks.
"Running away from mere Pokémon! I can see why it was always so frustrating for my colleagues to get beaten by heroes like you. It must be humiliating to be bested by cowards."
Marcus stopped and looked to the balcony where the sickly green of the Zoness skies shone through. Who did that voice belong to?
"Where is that voice coming from? Show yourself!" blared Omega.
"I'm a bit too preoccupied with my work, sorry. However, I can give the two of you a taste of it," shouted Giovanni as he called Arbok and Kangaskhan back into their homes.
A real force of nature, of twisted science, was unleashed from the boss's grasp.
The Zonessian Abomination struck out with spiked tentacles into the earth Bowser and Mewtwo stood on. It was not long that they stood there however. Bowser, a whirling fortress of more determined spikes, slammed into the maw of the Zoness shark head, sending it spiraling to the cliff face before it could attack once more.
Mewtwo then used psycho cut to slice into the bulbous, boiling eyes on the beast's shell, and with that attack, the monster writhed in pain and let out an unnatural shout. Whatever this really was they were fighting, it was not of this world alone.
"Someone had to create this beast; it's too sick for nature to have done this," said Mewtwo.
"Agreed," grunted Bowser as he dodged the slower tentacle strikes coming toward him now. The Abomination was in bad shape. "What is it that scientists typically call these types of things, again?"
"Bioweapons," said Mewtwo. "Those who take part in altering life into another means for artillery or defense are twisted. There is no greater perversion of this world, and creatures like this must be put out of their misery!"
Without much warning, a mighty psystrike ripped through the air into the maw of the Zonessian Abomination. Its screams echoed throughout its disintegrating body in an unsettling fashion. Mewtwo had not even broken a sweat in taking it down.
Meanwhile, Bowser admired the power of his partner. He was majorly impressed. But then he got to thinking. Mewtwo was a clone of another lifeform and was created for supposedly evil ends and used to battle others. Didn't that make him a bioweapon too?
Mewtwo shot a friendly glance at Bowser. They had won the battle without much trouble at all. Not being one for emotional encounters, Bowser ignored the potential of Mewtwo having any capacity for self-loathing. Instead, the two heroes walked along the rocky beach and tried to get a strong enough signal to contact Katrina. They had found a bioweapon; their suspicions had been correct. And as long as Mewtwo focused his hatred for the unnatural on their enemies, Bowser thought they would have nothing to worry about.
At least, what this mission with Mewtwo had helped the koopa king realize so far was that he was not alone in coming from a ripped up background. Even this godlike Pokémon was making the best of his situation. Bowser would continue to do so too, he thought to himself with newfound, well-meaning courage.
A pile of rocks seething in molten lava surrounded Marcus and Omega in the Zoness science outpost. When the rocks began to build on themselves and the lava started to melt and drip into the lower floors, Giovanni finally introduced his team's early creation.
"Personally, I never knew piles of dirt could create something so incredible, but, as it turns out, life force in this terrible galaxy has even seeped into creatures like this…such as Thardus and Magman and Steppe Talus. Two of them living piles of psychokinetic rock, the other the living lava that holds them together. Good luck with this fight, fools."
A pool of lava was nearing Marcus's boots. Not even Omega could wade through a substance this hot. Despite what looked like no way out, these heroes kept their cool.
"Omega, do you know any reason we can't take this down?" asked Marcus playfully to his robotic companion.
"Not at all," came the dry reply. Barrages of missiles were already being sent into the boulders, some that stayed in place to take the brunt of the attacks and others that were thrown off the path from hitting their targets. Marcus, knowing any ice arrows or GF ice guns that they did not have to be this monstrosity's weakness on foot, made a judgment call and decided he would get back to his arwing immediately. As big as this thing was, there was no way a pile of rocks and lava were going to stand a chance against the full power of his ship, hopefully.
After hearing of the fox's plan, Omega knew what he would have to do. "I will protect you and cause distractions. You get to your ship as fast as possible."
"Thanks, Omega! We're taking this thing out!"
The robot's bulk hid Marcus away from the deadly, fiery assault until the blue hero could reach the ladder. He slid down as Omega prepared to dive into battle more fiercely. Jets lit on the backs of his legs, Omega shot up into the featureless face of the monster. He peppered the crystal on its top with bullets, but Thardus blew the brute off with a massive psychic wave. Marcus had better hurry, Omega worried, because the essence of Magman was flowing ever faster in and throughout the outpost.
Marcus ran as fast as he could, which was an insanely brisk speed. He had been the top runner at his academy on Corneria every year, much to the pride of himself and his father. But none of that mattered now. Now, that quickness was coming in handy. Running every night through the barracks while others had slept or goofed off was turning out to be practical, pivotal preparation.
Lava blasted out of the lowest hatch on the outpost as it followed Marcus who was leaping into his ship right in front of it. The fast, blue fox was speedy enough to get in his cockpit unharmed, but the lava still landed on the bow of the Arwing, permanently damaging one of his dad's prized models. Knowing it would not matter a bit to anyone if he used it for what he was about to do, Marcus hovered outside to the middle of the outpost.
Omega was having some trouble in the outpost's innards. Although his armor protected against most stray specks of cinder, the force of an entire plume that had erupted from Magman blew the robot back into the wall. He was badly damaged with exposed circuits sparking everywhere.
Once the unwavering robot, even in his shaken state, managed to let loose his most powerful attack in a huge beam of fuchsia energy at the rocks, Omega had nothing left more to do. Marcus's twin plasma blasters shot through the wall of the Zoness outpost easily. The fox had made sure to scan for his friend and avoid shooting him, and now he had the Talus-Thardus-Magman amalgamation in his sights.
Rapid Arwing fire sent the soulless beast sprawling backward into the other side of the building. Omega stood to see the fox give a thumbs up beneath the cockpit speckled with ash. It was working. The two heroes had no weakness to serve the enemy, but brute force in firepower and teamwork was all that was needed to win.
In its final desperate attack before being pushed through the opposite wall, the boiling hot swarm of rocks let its magma fly from its body, leaving the boulders of Talus and Thardus without support and splashing into the toxic sea. Magman's essence spewed forth from the final breathing moment of the rock monster to defeat something, and it aimed perfectly for Marcus and the Arwing.
Seeing it coming, the fox reacted quickly and punched open the cockpit, knowing he had to leave the ship behind. He ran through the remaining lava on the front point of his ship; soles of shoes almost brunt through when he jumped from the ruined arwing. Magman, meanwhile, fizzled into the green Zoness waters along with the ruined Arwing.
"Whew, that was a close one…" said Marcus out of breath and with hands on his knees. "You did great, Omega. I couldn't have escaped without you!"
"Thank you for saying that," said Omega. "And, also…thank you for saving my life. Without you, I would be spare parts."
"Well then, no one wants that! We couldn't afford for something like that to happen to you, buddy."
"I know, I'm an invaluable streng-"
"No, not just that," interrupted Marcus. "We care about you as much as anyone."
Omega stared blankly. His torso was somewhat burnt, and his right arm was dislocated from its socket.
"…You big, unfeeling mass of spare parts!" Marcus joked, trying to lighten the mood.
"Ha ha," voiced Omega in his unmistakable tone. "But now we have someone to apprehend. We must get him."
"Of course!" agreed Marcus, who had almost forgotten the attack's culprit.
When Marcus had said that, no sooner did Giovanni finish sending his distress signal out to Andrew. His pet had been destroyed, but the Team Rocket fiend had what the entire group of them needed most: Mew. Ironically, Giovanni had been the first to finally catch the legendary creature immediately after its partner left the world to help on this very mission.
Marcus and Omega reached the top of the outpost and saw her. Mew looked like she was suffering inside the large test tube that housed her. The final ingredient these mad scientists had needed, Mew's DNA, which included all of the future descendants of her complete and ultimate genome, had already reproduced monsters and beasts Nintendo heroes had already slain long ago. Giovanni was not going to tell them that though. And neither was Oikonny. Whatever Mew had created with the help of Eggman's new bioweapon initiative was going to be a new surprise for any heroes.
"All life comes from this fragile creature," said Giovanni as he stalked behind the machine that kept Mew in custody. His menacing demeanor had no jokes in store, but Giovanni could not help but chuckle at how all life came from one frail-looking creature.
"That's exactly why, if you're smart," started Marcus, "you will hand yourself and the Pokémon over to us, and all will be right." The fox tried to appear serious too, but he was losing his balance. This outpost, with two walls blasted out of it, was becoming very unstable.
"I guess you're right," sighed Giovanni. "I was hoping my partner would have made it here by now. There's almost no point in stalling the inevitable."
"I'm glad you see it our way," said Marcus. "Omega, blast a hole in that wall, so we can be ready for our friends in orbit to pick us up with this criminal."
As soon as Omega did so in the commotion of the blast, Giovanni went for his Pokémon, but it was too late. Marcus flew to him in a flash and locked his arms in a hold. Omega put a railgun to Giovanni's head.
"You are not going to fight anymore," said Omega in his cold tone of voice.
"Stop, I give up!" yelped Giovanni. He was not liking the cold steel of the robot's railgun against his neck.
"See, this doesn't have to be so hard, boss," joked Marcus. "You can be an imaginary mobster in the prison of our choosing soon enough."
"Hmph, it doesn't matter, you fools," scoffed the Pokémon master. "What I started here with Mew is going to get finished. And you don't even know what's coming for you that we've already conjured up!"
"Great, keep talking!" said Marcus with his trademark smirk as he led the old boss to the gaping hole in the outpost wall. "Now we know there's a 'we!'"
Giovanni heard that clearly. He did not want to blow Eggman's secrecy. Too much was still at stake here. He would watch the Nintendo heroes crumble from inside any prison.
Right then, Oikonny's Egg Usher soared into view on the horizon. It was almost upon the outpost already since neither the heroes nor Giovanni saw it coming in the scuffles prior. Without thinking, the mob boss broke from Marcus's hold and took off running abruptly to the edge. It was the last decision Giovanni ever made.
Panic did not compute for Omega, and he saw the error Giovanni made as a fatal one, warranting justified execution. Eggman's android shot a round from his arm that pierced right through Giovanni's heart and chest, killing the man instantly. The blast was so powerful that it launched the mad man too, and he was sent into the chilling Zoness wind, silhouetted by the hazy sunset sky before he reached the toxic waters below.
Giovanni landed with a sickening splash. The death and burial had been nearly instantaneous, and Marcus was in shock. Nothing should have led Omega to kill the man on the spot. He had not even attacked. Running for help was probably a moment of weakness for Giovanni, and Marcus had thought that after being beaten, he was truly going to comply.
The fox had no words for Omega right now. The shock was too much to allow any words from the blue pup's mouth. With Oikonny almost upon them (unbeknownst to them), they still had Mew to attend to. She looked pale and weak. They could at least contact Mewtwo and tell him the legendary Pokémon was here and still alive.
About to give Omega an order, Marcus felt ill himself all of a sudden. Omega looked malfunctioning as well. A familiar creature attached to Andrew's ship was sending out a critical wave pattern; the living and the mechanical could not avoid its crippling power. A bioweapon that Mew's cells helped create, the revived Phantoon detached from its vessel and shot off into space, soon to be a potential field of havoc for the resurrected monster. It was not the only returning horror either.
Marcus could barely get a glimpse of the shadowy tentacles and the cruiser it left behind in the smog of evening before he collapsed unconscious. Omega was completely powered down. His computations were still taking in Giovanni's murder when he went asleep. Mew and the unexpected catch of two Nintendo heroes were easy pickings for Oikonny, Matren and the rest of the Usher's crew. The loss of Giovanni was barely felt. The ape and the Eggman still had what they needed.
Mewtwo and Bowser had seen the explosions far-off in the distance and were still wondering if Marcus and Omega were okay. Knowing them, they were probably the ones causing the chaos, but with everything scoped out on the coast as requested and the Zonessian Abomination slain, this pair glided over the green waves to investigate.
Bowser uneasily shifted his scaly feet when Mewtwo told him they were going to have to float to the blast site with his psychokinesis. The koopa king knew the Pokémon was confident in his abilities, but he was not sure if it was warranted.
"I know you ARE bigger than most, but I promise, I won't drop you," said Mewtwo telepathically. "I've done this before. Levitation, especially for only two people, is no big use of my strength."
"Fine," grunted Bowser somewhat unhappily. He was undoubtedly nervous. "But if you do drop me, you're never going to stop hearing me complain!"
Mewtwo agreed: "Fair enough," as he raised the heavy koopa into the air. Mewtwo followed. His feet were never touching the ground, but now they were both practically flying, making their way to the wreckage of the outpost they had seen burst in flames not long ago.
It took Bowser about half the trip to get used to flight. He waved his arms and legs playfully after waving them in a startled panic at first. Mewtwo never humored him though. He preferred levitating in silence. If there was nothing productive to be said, Mewtwo never wanted to say anything at all.
Despite knowing this, Bowser tried to make small talk as they neared the remains of the outpost. "So, uhh…err, how does it feel? I mean, having so much power. You must feel like a powerhouse all the time! I bet that feels great!"
Mewtwo just smiled to himself. Bowser's ignorance and shallow nature were amusing. "Actually, I see my powers as a burden. No creature should have as much of it as I do. I've fallen into the hands of evil, to be used by cowardly men and infernal magic, time and again. All it's caused is pain and suffering. This is why I live alone with Mew where I can ponder the ways of the world without harming those who inhabit it. Only when the world, or now that I am with you heroes, worlds, are in crisis, do I intervene and come out of the chrysalis of home."
"Oh…wow, I see," said Bowser, as deep in thought as the koopa ever dove. "So, where is that home?"
"The Valley of Life," answered Mewtwo. "Some say it's where all things in the world of Pokémon began. Mew was born there, and fittingly, I feel connected as well. Hopefully, I'm not a perversion of that sacred place…But I've come to realize, I can't blame myself for that…just the humans that created me."
"You are filled with many stories, aren't you? Well, in any case, I've learned from someone recently a lot more about fate than I ever thought I'd know. Maybe…you were always meant to be created."
Mewtwo paused at this sudden depth of meaning from Bowser's words. He rolled them over in his infinitely turning mind. "Perhaps."
As soon as Mewtwo could view the wreckage in the distance, they picked up speed through the Zonessian air. What they found worried them a lot, but it was not until Mewtwo found the empty capsule that had once housed Mew that he felt helpless and desperate.
"WHAT?! How could they have captured Mew?!"
Bowser, who had been scoping the lower decks for any signs of Marcus or Omega, came to meet his partner quickly. "What happened?"
"This is impossible…" said Mewtwo, ignoring Bowser, as the distraught Pokémon held his head in his hands. "The others are gone, yes, but they've also somehow kidnapped Mew and took her from here. If we think these fools are creating bioweapons, then they've got the origin of all life to do it…"
"Woah…So this seriously couldn't be worse?!" yelled Bowser at the situation, not Mewtwo.
"Depending on what's already happened, you're right, that may not be possible. We have to explore the planet, call the others to let them know what's wrong."
"I'm sorry, Mewtwo, but I don't think that part's possible. I actually dipped my toes in the water here myself and found the wreckage of that ship."
"The arwing?"
"Yeah, it doesn't look like we'll be able to contact Katrina quick enough…but I just say we should fly and follow where these idiots who captured Mew might have gone. You can sense her, right?"
"I can follow Mew's brain waves if I concentrate, yes. I guess I should think on this and try to target her. Then we'll go there as quickly as we can! Tampering with all life…and Mew…it's all unforgivable."
Mewtwo would never know that Giovanni's body, that of his old master, lay below the surface of the water. In truth, he would have taken little satisfaction in knowing he was dead. Every thought Mewtwo could muster, thousands of them all at once, were all focused on finding Mew. Bowser, for once, waited patiently, so Mewtwo could meditate on this crime against all life.
Marcus hated the gag in his mouth. Matren had stowed him and Omega away in the hold in the far back of the Egg Usher. Oikonny had greedily decided to hold them for ransom in hopes of getting an insane sum from Nintendo, which Andrew would no doubt get a chilling satisfaction from. Having something over Nintendo, something they would bargain anything for, felt so sweet. Piloting this megalith cruiser felt just as good, but it left Oikonny wondering. Would it have been better to execute the son of Fox McCloud instead? He surely would have one less major problem to worry about. And what if he could get the chance to tell Fox himself that he killed his son?
Maybe, the cowardly ape would change his mind.
For now, Marcus was struggling to get free of his binds. Omega was the key, but there was no waking the completely powered down robot. If only the fox could reboot Omega, the Egg Usher would be a memory left in the Zoness sea just as Giovanni was.
That got Marcus thinking about the death sentence of said mob boss again. He had been outraged at Omega, all the way to the point of having no words to speak to him. The vision of the man filled with bullets falling into the ocean's embrace was just so unbelievable.
But was there a chance Omega had made the right decision? Marcus knew from growing up in the Cornerian Academy and even the recent possession of Adam that truly terrible things could come from origins often overlooked. If they had left Giovanni alive, would countless lives have been snuffed out due to the creations he would make? And what about all the crimes of his past? The world had already decided Giovanni should be brought to justice. He had just eluded it forever. Omega killing him where he stood, because of a final defiant move against them both, was effectively a means to an end of not giving the dangerous villain any chances at escape through corrupt systems or daring maneuvers.
In short, Giovanni was dead, and the galaxy was better for it. However, Marcus could not help but feel his near perfect moral code ruined at what he had seen and almost condoned. He was thinking it the right thing too! Or maybe not the right thing, but perhaps a necessary one.
Left to struggle to kick something toward Omega to reboot his partner and squirm in his moral ambiguity all the while, Oikonny gloated with good feeling of his past, seen through rose-colored glasses, as he boasted to the lizard and egg pawn-filled crew of his days impersonating a robotic Andross, serving as one of the ace Star Wolf pilots, and managing a deadly crab android on Fichina. He was only barely beaten by Star Fox every time.
Of course, that part was completely false.
Matren could not listen to the display anymore. His captain was really getting on his nerves more and more every time he was subjected to the foul and unearned arrogance of his leader. He guessed he would just go back and check on their prisoners. They were secure, but perhaps it was worth checking on them.
It would have been had Marcus and Omega not already escaped. The fox had finally managed to kick his boot off his footpaw to hit the robot so hard in its head that it automatically rebooted in a defensive mode. Flames barely missing Marcus's ears, he talked sense into his buddy soon enough for Omega to blow him free. Now, they would wait silently despite how ecstatic they were at this second chance, for now, they held the advantage.
"We need to find Mew first," remembered Marcus. She had been taken from the custody of one coward to another, which only made him even angrier at Oikonny.
Omega transformed into a larger, Tails-enabled, deadlier version of himself as he said, "There's no reason for subtlety," and rocketed off, leaving stealth and Marcus behind. The latter had thought the android would cooperate now.
Marcus was starting to wonder if it was a good idea to assign this robot on team missions. He was not following orders, and his dad would not condone that once the briefing came to pass after all was taken care of. Marcus ventured to guess what repercussions killing Giovanni would have on the galaxy, but he did not want to worry himself with what Omega's trail of wreckage would do for their slightly altered mission. At least, the blue Cornerian fox could still hide.
Explosions rang out throughout the hull and the deck of the Egg Usher as Omega blazed a path toward finding Mew. Dozens of apes and lizards screamed in his wake, and it was almost instant that Andrew flew in a raged panic at the head of the ship. He had no courage to face the unstoppable robot directly. Oikonny should have dismantled the killing machine when he had had the chance to. Marcus was a different story.
And the son of McCloud was creating that story on his own terms. The muscular fox was surprisingly able to fit in the air vents of the ship. He had been bigger than his dad for quite a while; Marcus always contended that he was the right size. This was further proving that point. Marcus had not been seen yet.
Omega found Mew in a closed-off cargo hold Matren had been ordered to shut up. The first mate had protested to Oikonny that it might not be able to breathe, and he had been right to worry. When Omega blasted the shutters away, Mew was looking ill, covered in sweat (which was very unusual for Mew) and struggling to keep her eyes even a fraction open.
Never a gentle fixture by nature, Omega was unsure of how to handle the Pokémon. He guarded it from incoming egg pawns while he thought of how to break through the capsule that housed her. He made an incision with one of his spiny, black fingers and reached in to pull her out. He was surprised to see Mew float in a small pink bubble within his hand; it turned out Mew was not out of it yet. In Omega's grasp, the scientists would never endanger creation and birth bioweapons from her DNA again.
Marcus found himself looking down upon Oikonny as he set his deep blue eyes on the ape who had tormented lifeforms around the galaxy. He had disturbed their mission and constantly run away from his consequences. Now, he was going to pay for it.
"Come on, you stinkin' apes!" shouted Andrew. "Let's get a move on! Ready the secret weapons! Finish that call to the Eggman! We need all the help we can get if we're going to get rid of these pests!"
That was the last thing Oikonny said in front of his men alone. Marcus kicked open the hatch directly above Oikonny's platform in the command center. It landed on the ape's feet, causing him to shout in pain before it could be interrupted by higher pitches as Marcus landed on the deranged leader and had him in a chokehold in front of his followers before any of them had any time to react.
Marcus's young blue face with its ruffles of white fur looked innocent enough to the hostage bystanders. It contrasted immensely with the things the young pup was thinking of doing to the ape. What had been a source of endless cheer around his friends a couple days ago was now a muzzle filled with heroic determination that protruded past Oikonny's shoulder. He was panicking, asking his men to get a clear shot at the fox.
"Why, boss? He's not going to kill you; he's chicken, so why take the chance on it," asked one of the lackeys.
"Because foxes can be unpredictable! Shoot him!"
"Wait, wait, wait a minute," shouted Marcus offended. "You think because I'm the hero taking you villainy scum down that I'm above killing this piece of trash?"
Marcus said this as he moved the gun from its mark on one of the butchers to the temple of Oikonny's skull covered in his signature grease of white fur. Marcus held his rival's shoulder tighter with his other hand. If only the soldiers were taken care of, Marcus could actually follow through. He could kill the bastard.
That was when the crash came. A brilliant yet confusing display of lights, sounds, smoke and mechanical ash littered the air where no one could see. In fact, very few of Oikonny's followers were left after Omega's most devastating explosion yet. He still kept Mew safe in his other claw. The second had just been used to obliterate most of the command station, leaving a couple ruffians on the floor groaning in pain as pools of blood spilled from their centers.
Marcus was shaken, but he had locked up into the same stance. He was relieved to see Omega with Mew and him out of trouble. Maybe, there really was no reason for subtlety. They had gone their separate ways and completed this new objective together and apart.
One last thing: what to do with the ship's captain?
As if seeing Omega's figure in the smoke made him react, Marcus immediately threw Oikonny down to the floor after realizing the new reality of the situation. Andrew looked genuinely worried now. It was a type of cowardice, this time, that almost made Marcus feel sympathetic.
But Marcus was not stupid. Despite the groveling and the almost incoherent rambling of words that pleaded for the fox not to shoot him, the young pup remembered all of the recent history lessons at the Cornerian Academy, all the stories his dad had told him as a child. Simply put, Andrew Oikonny was a menace, not even a power to be admired. He was a waste of life, and here he was, still, after over twenty years of trouble, making the same mistakes and trying to tamper with the lives of innocents. No more.
"Do it," said Omega. "Mew is safe. She is our objective. She will be in danger if Andrew is left alive. Kill him."
Marcus wanted to believe he did not need Omega's opinion to help justify what he wanted to do with the ape's life. One of his followers, dying on the floor, looked up into the deep blue eyes of the fox.
"You don't have to kill him," said the loyal ape mournfully. "You've already, ack, beaten him." He coughed up a final bit of blood. "You've beaten all of us…"
Andrew was still babbling and getting more desperate with each passing moment Marcus took to decide. The ape was almost hugging Marcus's feet when he finally spoke again.
"Don't go near me, Oikonny," said Marcus defiantly as he backed up, gun still pointed right in Andrew's face. "I've thought a lot about this…" muttered Marcus, but still with lasting diction on the last syllable of every word he almost whispered to himself and his opponent, defenseless on the floor.
"And I know for sure," the pup continued, "that if I let you live today, you'll only go on to make life worse for others, like you always do. I can't allow that to happen anymore. And definitely not on this scale. You lack the courage in the execution of your own beliefs and the confidence in your actions to be the man to tamper with life's greatest creation. Sick to the core, Andrew, that's what you are. This is it…I'm not going to let my own morality get in the way of doing what's right for future people. What do you have to say to end your life, Andrew?"
"Marcus…" murmured Oikonny, eerily having accepted his fate, it appeared, "…what different animal altogether has come from the great and noble Fox McCloud. What a joke…"
The laser pelted through the hide, the skull, the brain and out in reverse order. Thankfully, it had silenced Oikonny's mocking. Omega was getting tired of hearing the ape speak. Mew was all right, and the Egg Usher was no longer in the commission of the league of scientists, of whom one remained alive, who wanted to threaten the galaxy with the perversion of life. All that was left to see was what was already created.
These permutations of possible lifeforms they would have to deal with or scenarios they would need to take care of rushed through Omega's processors. Mew still in hand, Omega steered the ship toward the Zoness cliffs, where Mewtwo and Bowser would head too. They were still on the cruiser's trail and had seen the blasts of the scuffle.
Meanwhile, Marcus McCloud was frozen in the spot in which he had killed another living being with no honor. He had had reason, but he may not have had justice. His mouth was not really agape, just slightly parted as the fox thought more on what he had just done. Looking into the dead eyes of the wasted ape was not making it any easier to convince himself he had done the right thing.
Marcus started to move after some minutes of contemplation. What Oikonny had not done to him, admittedly because the coward had expected to reap some selfish reward for bargaining his life, Marcus had committed to the coward. The fox with the deep blue eyes tried to shed any thoughts about his ego now. He was accepting that this kill would always haunt him, but in the end, he thought, the decision to murder was a selfless one. Marcus had exchanged the potential suffering of innocents for the imperfection of his own ethics.
One thought plagued Marcus more than any other moral quandary though. What would his father think?
Bowser and Mewtwo quickly made their way to the cliff where the Egg Usher had landed moments ago. The chaos had stopped aboard the flying goliath (which usually meant, and likely too, that the good guys succeeded), but that did not stop Mewtwo and his uncomfortable traveling partner from moving any swifter through the air.
Immediately after landing, Marcus sent Omega to fly out and assuage their partners' worries. Not one of them had been hurt, which was not a lie. Marcus assumed the deaths of Giovanni and Oikonny would not ruin the hardened consciences of Bowser and Mewtwo if they knew that it had been Omega and Oikonny who had killed the prizes they were after. After all, the four of them combined had the gist of the madmen's plot figured out. Judging on the architecture of Oikonny's final vessel, Eggman was all they needed to find to end the perversion of life the scientists' had planned.
At least, the continuation of such a plan had been thwarted, for now Mewtwo held the ultimately fragile and tired Mew in his paws. He was still reeling from how insane it was that she had been kidnapped from their secret valley, apparently not soon after leaving for this mission when Fox had decided their home would be an apt stronghold with some heroes looking out for her (a flash of Eggman's new warping technology had abducted her from the Silver Sonic battleground, which had only ever been meant as a reconnaissance point for the villains, and rendered the guards shocked asleep). But now that feeling faded instantly with her in his grasp again; Mewtwo kept looking at her shivering, still breathing mostly normally. Her tiny frame needed attention, and Marcus had already called from his communicator medical assistance would be needed on Zoness.
"So, it was all of these fools' plan to create bioweapons from Mew's genes?" asked Mewtwo in mid-conversation. "I always knew Giovanni would be capable of such things, but I had no idea his kind of avarice was repeated in other worlds too."
"Unfortunately, yes…it is," said Marcus with quivering voice, but not because he was unsure of the validity of what he had said.
"Yep, Two," started Bowser who had apparently grown comfortable with Mewtwo in a very short amount of time, "even you have more to learn."
"Yes," affirmed Mewtwo, "and most of all that includes the most complicated thing of all." Mewtwo knew a great many things, more than most without even trying, but he lacked the experience others had with change.
"What is that?" asked Marcus in earnest. Perhaps he could put it on the to-do list too.
"People's natures," said Mewtwo simply.
Right then, the Egg Carrier III breached the clouds of the lower Zoness atmosphere and thundered into the ground with incredible force, much to the shock of the four heroes. What had caused it, too, to go asunder?
"It still feels weird sending our son on solo missions, doesn't it?" asked Fox full of papers and writing tick marks on a schedule that seemed overloaded with briefings, conferences, trainings and counseling sessions, all of which he had to run with the added stress of it potentially being the final year if it was not all done swiftly. He had let his mind wander in the presence of his wife to the only thing it ever did besides work: family.
"It does, indeed," said Krystal calmly as she knew through her mind-reading that the smoothness of her voice was just one of many things that kept her husband from becoming unhinged. "I'm also glad our son is so good at what he does, like his father at that age, that we're able to send him into something he wants to do," said Krystal thoughtfully and cheerfully.
"It's amazing," sighed Fox in half-relief and-half pervasive moodiness that would not quit. He slumped back in his chair as he thought of what a far cry signing papers and talking to others was from battling endlessly in space. While Krystal nodded silently, as she knew her husband to be full of thoughts that were not to be interrupted, Fox thought again that maybe it was not. He signed Cornerian invoices and bantered with his teammates back when he was young; he just did a lot more of something similar now. Encouraging hundreds of fellow warriors and keeping a schedule tight enough to handle the end of the universe was just different. It was something he had honestly become quite good at, just not anything he would ever, nor would he want to, get used to.
Sensing her Fox finished with his brainstorm of self-reflection, Krystal peppered in something to lighten his mood. "About Marcus…what do you think he and his team are going to find? Knowing how he never gives up and hardly ever fails, he's going to end a lot of bad things for a lot of good people. As we all know, signs of tampered life always point to something horrible."
"I do know that," said Fox, turning the tragedy of it over in his head, "and that's why I sent our son on something so important. He's become a better fox than I ever could have dreamed he'd be…hell, he's only eighteen, and he's already as mature as me at my age now!"
"Yeah, and he didn't do all of that just on his own," Krystal reminded him.
"Yes, I think we were good parents and are still alive…"
"Thankfully," said Krystal telepathically.
"…but he did do so much of it on his own. Ever since he was born, he's always been so good around different people. Around his comrades and friends, he knows how to be almost incessantly cheerful to bring them up. And around the evilest creatures, he knows how to be merciless and precise in his actions. Nintendo could not ask for a better hero, and the fact that that shining example is our son blows me away every time."
"I couldn't agree more."
Fox and Krystal put their son on their minds some more and were able to share each other's thoughts as Marcus killed Oikonny systems away in Nintendia.
That was until Fox and Krystal strayed to another topic of family and looked at each other longingly. Fox was long overdue for a break anyway.
The Comet Observatory followed the vessel it had defeated, blown into the planet below. In her patrol of the galaxy she was now trying to finish after having it on hold for so long taking care of Bowser, Rosalina had no idea that the Egg Carrier she had found planting monsters all over the Lylat System was the final target her partner and his friends were searching for.
Not one to let a possible danger to the cosmos continue to exist, the mother of the stars crashed through the same thick Zoness smog her opponent had gone through. The Egg Carrier III was still intact.
Meanwhile, Bowser was the one who received this second shock the most. Seeing the pursuer follow the downed ship was no extra surprise to the others, but Bowser had not expected to see Rosalina again so soon. All the while, Marcus and Omega wondered at and computed the odds of Mewtwo's friend being the source of their prey's plan and their final known target being delivered to them without hardly any action.
It was all still surreal when Eggman blasted out of his forgotten warship in a much more modest pod. Without warning or time to act, he snatched Mew from the clone's paws instantly and threated to kill her if anything be done further. Last of three madmen, Eggman was still in control.
"Things may go wrong," started Eggman, "but when they do, I can always count on the things you do to put me a step even further ahead in the game than I was before the upset! You've made it all very fun and incredibly easy!" said Eggman cryptically, oozing with maliciousness in his tone.
"What do you mean?!" shouted Marcus harshly. If his friends or family could see him now, they would have been seeing a side of him they never had before.
Eggman smiled smugly, knowing that he was out of their reach. He was familiar with the weapons he had designed in Omega's systems, and he was not worried about Mewtwo trying anything, lest Mew's life be risked. Bowser hurried over to Rosalina in the background to see how she tied into all of this.
Finally itching for his evil plan to be revealed too, Eggman spilled his secrets after gaining satisfaction in the silent anguish he saw on his adversaries' faces.
"It's interesting how fate works, see?" started the doctor. "I never really believed in it myself, but now, there's piling statistical evidence that seems to point to its existence!"
Marcus barred his teeth while the others listened intently, waiting for the Eggman to drop his guard.
"For instance," continued the doctor as he pointed to Mewtwo, "that bioweapon who killed our Zoness ocean beast was the key to our making more and better of the like. Right when your team decided to investigate us was when I plucked that originator, Mew, out of your valley, clone! And now, here you are handing her over to me again…with NO TROUBLE AT ALL, HA HA HA!"
Mewtwo's palms burned with the shadow energy he had been holding back until now. He remembered the mysterious presence of Silver Sonic and cursed at himself, half-shocked and half-disappointed, as he correctly assumed the Eggman its creator. In an effort to protect people, he had let his guard down. Silently fuming at himself and the doctor, Mewtwo loosed a shadow ball toward the egg mobile with sheer legendary intensity. The Eggman dodged once, but he could not help but go down in the barrage of gunfire and mystical energy that followed Mewtwo's vengeful appetizer.
Mew could handle the crash; she had to. It was imperative to get the creator of all life out of the Eggman's hands.
The Pokémon fell out of his clutches and would have tumbled to the cliff below had Mewtwo not extended his levitating cloud to reach her. She was safe. Perhaps this was the end for Eggman as well. Bowser had gripped the fragile doctor, powerless without his machines, after the crash and was looking into the mad blue eyes of the doctor as he remained flailing in mid-air. Pretending to beg for mercy, Eggman's head meanwhile was a whirring machine at work beneath his thin, bald cranium.
Knowing what Eggman had done to the galaxy just prior from what Rosalina had told him, Bowser looked ready to breathe fire. Mew looked up at Mewtwo as she lay in his paws. Her power had been sapped time and again. Her unwanted spawn were not done being born, and they were just starting to terrorize the galaxy.
"Well, well," said Eggman abnormally cheerfully in the mitt of the enemy as he looked at Bowser's mug, "You DO look like the something I've been looking for. There must be something BIG hidden inside you."
Not having enough time to react, the heroes could only stand in shock and look in awe. Taking out some unfamiliar device tipped with a liquid-soaked needle, Eggman kicked out of the grasp of his captor, placed a hair he had plucked from Mew into the machine and stabbed Bowser directly in his bulging, scaly belly. He yelped highly in his pain. The stinging sensation was just getting started.
With Marcus not wasting any more time to finally detain Eggman in cuffs, all Omega, Rosalina and Mewtwo could do was watch the gruesome transformation. Mew had the ability to unlock the deepest power within any creature, given the right science. Eggman had just happened upon both of the things he needed: the originator and a worthy experiment to test the theory and execute the plan for domination the three mad men had conjured up.
First, Bowser felt everything rip inside him. To the shock of his comrades, Rosalina's horror and Eggman's grim satisfaction, the koopa grew twice his size in an instant. Unlike most other times when he had grown bigger to face his enemies, Bowser now seemed very unsure and scared of his own growth. He had not wanted to hurt anyone for a long time.
His feet extended sickeningly across the gray Zoness stone until Bowser's claws stuck out to a grotesque length like another pair of feet-sized tendrils. The same phenomenon was happening to his hands that branched from his bulging body full of terrible new muscles. The lanky limbs became a sharp contrast to the massive hulk that was the king's torso, a chamber full of an evil heat. Most frightening of all, the teeth that lay bared from his face wrought with pain and the spikes that stood on end from the back of his shell looked sharper than the most perfect blades, ready to pierce through anything. Bowser, whose expressions had gone from a wracked state of surprise and grief to those of a snarling, primal beast throughout the transformation, now stood ten times taller than his old self. A reformed king was now the great Giga Bowser, a form he had always wanted to forget.
"Well, that should do," said Eggman, who, still cuffed, had prepared to escape while the gruesome business was getting done. The new ships of his could be controlled with his thoughts, and freedom was seeming possible. However, he had not planned on everything that was about to happen at once.
Finally, Nintendo had shown up, heeding Marcus's call for action. Two things shot out of the Halberd at once as Giga Bowser attempted to wipe out his targets in his way with a torrent of fire. The beast lacked a mind or will of his own to guide his actions, much to the satisfaction of Eggman who was otherwise quite worried.
Two heroes then interrupted both the destructive force and the fleeing of the destructive mind. Fox, landing in his arwing, detained the doctor who had tried to make an escape in his Egg Mobile. Shadow had sprung into the fray with one of the chaos emeralds in tow and warped Giga Bowser far away from Zoness. He had not thought of where to send the monster initially, and he ended up thinking his wish to save the others too strong. Giga Bowser might have been warped to the other end of the galaxy.
"D-Dad," stammered Marcus. "I'm glad you came as quick as you did."
"It looks like things could've gone smoother if we had been faster," replied Fox simply out of the corner of his muzzle as he gave the cuffs on Eggman a rough tug to make sure they were secure. "Where's Mewtwo?"
And that's when they all realized Shadow had accidentally caught Mew and Mewtwo in his chaos control that had sent Giga Bowser away. The beast and his fated combatants were, unknown to these heroes, banished to Master Hand's final destination.
Rosalina then told Marcus and the others of the bioweapons she had found on her way to the planet. She volunteered to search the galaxy for her partner and the Pokémon. The comet observatory would stand the best chance of finding them quickly.
Omega jettisoned off into space immediately. Marcus, telling his father he wanted to see part of the mad men's plan to the end by killing a bioweapon, took off in his dad's arwing. He also wanted to avoid telling his father what he had done. Eggman captured (they were thinking of putting him in G.U.N.'s custody since no one wanted him around at the Pillar) and Giovanni and Oikonny dead, their plot had come to a swift end. Unfortunately though, Nintendo was going to be dealing with the products of that tampering with life for the rest of time to come.
Omega had found his target. The flying behemoth that had immobilized him and his partner was going to answer to Eggman's other creation. The dreaded Phantoon, a beast that had been instilling terror into creatures and cities alike for years, had been birthed from Mew's genes. Finding just the right combination of DNA created this beast anew. The original had been killed by Samus Aran aboard the bottle ship, and now Omega fully intended to be its second killer.
The android caught it by surprise in the depths of the cosmos. Jets spitting blue fire off Omega's feet, he blew up at close range behind the creature's head. Phantoon turned around but only to be too late in sending its debilitating waves of energy. Omega soared around and stuck his railgun into the tentacles. Shooting those to bits made the beast writhe in agony.
Phantoon chose to summon spawn, hordes of hand-like children with sickly skin and eyeballs shooting laser blasts out of the palms. Omega ended them swiftly, using his claws to tear out the sources of the energy. It gave the android an idea, and after disintegrating the corpses of the ghostly minions with his searing pink laser, Omega headed for Phantoon itself.
With tentacles torn off and huge mind pulsating with psychokinetic rage, Phantoon whirred around, shooting blue flames at Omega as it did so. Not hot enough to burn Omega, he braved the attacks while floating in space and shoved his claw deep into the pupil of the enemy. Phantoon cried out as Omega ripped the entire eyeball from the head of the beast. Defeated, Phantoon began to disappear in a white light forever once more.
Satisfied, Omega propelled off toward Zoness. He was ready to dock and rest at the Halberd. Having eliminated his targets, Eggman's creation considered his mission complete. No one else would know, but Omega felt a slight tinge of happiness, knowing that he had thwarted part of his old master's vision for the world.
Rosalina wasted no time searching the galaxy for signs of Bowser. In truth, she could not be more worried. His transformation had been gruesome, yes, but even if he could be saved and turned back to normal, she shuddered to think what effect this transformation and the resulting actions would have on his psyche. Was this fate that his new leaf be reversed by simple chance and the will of an evil man? Mother of the cosmos, she could not help but have that thought cross her mind.
The observatory was nearing the edge of the galaxy, where space junk and ancient ruins filled with mysterious platforms and monoliths abounded, when the lumas were knocked around by a sudden impact. Rosalina recognized the creature instantly, knowing it to be one of Mario's old foes from Good Egg Galaxy reborn. Lumas were in danger of being eaten by the rampaging Dino Piranha.
Leaping into action, Rosalina followed the beast as they gravitated to the nearest planetoid. The dinosaur was much like Giga Bowser, Rosalina thought, with no freewill beyond an urge for destruction, which was merely an annoyance for Rosalina now. She was able to control gravity, so she harnessed its pull around the planetoid to smack the ancient piranha plant baby into the planet and made its hard tail hit its flowery, fragile head.
While this galactic threat went down without too much of a hassle, Rosalina could only think that the ease of taking care of Dino Piranha was an ill omen to come. She was intensely fearful that Giga Bowser would not be tamed, or defeated, as easily.
Without bogging her spirits down anymore with ill things fate might yet bring, Rosalina focused on the search again and rejoined her star children to find their adoptive father.
Fox had had this Arwing outfitted with a scanner that could read irregularities in lifeforms and detect irregular seismic wave activity. Finding both after an exhaustive search for at least one bioweapon, Marcus was drawn to Solar while his thoughts were elsewhere. What was he going to tell his father when Oikonny was sure to come up this very day?
Thinking of excuses and explanations, whether or not to tell the complete truth to his dad, was pushed away as something rose from the depths of the sun. It was Vulcain, an Androssian bioweapon from the Lylat Wars that the three scientists had somehow managed to conjure up from Mew's genome. All life really was possible through her.
Not succumbing too much to the philosophical ramifications of this plot and his mission, Marcus set to worth pelting the abomination with arwing cannon fire. Twin lasers pierced the volcanic shell of the ape-like monstrosity. It did not stall long to build up its attacks either. Vulcain dove into the magma of the star and shot up again to send a wave billowing high, threatening to scorch Fox's vessel for a final time.
Marcus saw it coming and almost predicted it as well, remembering his dad telling stories of his fights through the Lylat System when he was eighteen once. Feeling like an extension of his father now stuck in some sort of twisted déjà vu, Marcus destroyed the fire-shooting menace that had been created from the sick will of evil mad scientists.
With one unholy bioweapon gone and assuming more would be found in the future, Marcus gave up the search after scouring the solar system for a little longer. It was time to face himself and his father and relate the moral cesspool which he considered his conscience; Marcus still second-guessed his thoughts and actions. Hardly any of that was doing any good.
Mewtwo had been buying time for what felt like forever now, and it turns out Giga Bowser was not going to let it be sold for eternity. Although his concentration was strong, Mewtwo could not hold his psychokinetic shield around himself and Mew much longer. The weak yet essential Pokémon could scarcely believe her power had led to Bowser's transformation. She was a simple-minded Pokémon who could barely fathom her importance in the universe.
Her clone, on the other hand, was all too knowledgeable of his originator's impact on the worlds. He had to protect her, and as Giga Bowser stuck his claws into the weakening shield of energy and blazing it in flames, Mewtwo accepted he would have to fight to protect her above all else. He took down the protective barrier around them, pushed Mew far away from the platform to spectate in space and prepared to fight his fellow bioweapon.
Final destination was an eerie setting to have a duel. The neon-infused, crystal-powered arena glided effortlessly through a sea of stars with Giga Bowser taking up most of the room. As the stage was seemingly sucked into a blue tornado (perhaps an illusion created by Master Hand's brother, Crazy Hand), Mew could only watch as her friend hovered around the edge of final destination, Mewtwo's feet never touching it while he concentrated all his energy on slightly hurting the behemoth with shadow balls and psychic blasts.
Even a psystrike could only topple Giga Bowser over onto his shell. He was surprisingly quick to get back up too. Mewtwo was growing fatigued, and he was nowhere near subduing his adversary here. One way or another, Bowser had to be taken down, even if the old version could not come back. Mewtwo was doing his job so far, but all it would take would be for him to die for Giga Bowser to find Mew and set the stars afire in her wake.
Mewtwo let out a telepathic yelp, involuntarily, which was rare, when Giga Bowser snagged its claws on the hero after reaching down to grab him. The tube connecting the back of Mewtwo's head to the gap in his shoulder blades was severed, leaving the Pokémon struggling to stay alert, let alone stay focused on a necessary brutal assault. Mewtwo had never experienced such a feeling as wooziness.
At this, Mew rushed in to try to help but was batted away by a swift lash of Giga Bowser's multi-spiked tail. Her pink bubble of energy shot out around her; though, she was still hurt badly. Mewtwo had seen enough, the rage inspired by the attack on Mew enough to put him back into the fight as the swirling blue and twinkles of light around them shed into a black abyss with perpendicular green lines of purest energy.
Both bioweapons drew strength from it all. Giga Bowser leaped into the air and crashed down just inches away from Mewtwo as he prepared to attack. An all-encompassing shadow ball barrage bombarded the stage while Mew still floated next to it. She seemed to be suffering. Mewtwo ignored his own. He and his energy were dying fast.
Ignoring a need for defense as a psychic shield could have protected him from the immense wall of fires that now ravaged his body, Mewtwo decided to take a chance and focus on one final gambit: a mental assault. Mind focused completely, the Pokémon stared into Giga Bowser's eyes that shone with malice that neither belonged to Eggman who created him nor the real Bowser who could never be so evil. This force Mewtwo attempted to combat was unlike anything else he had seen; it was fully primal but also relentless in its bloodthirst. Mewtwo challenged the tiny mind that housed that force, making Giga Bowser squirm with unbridled pain. The flames began to die out, and Mewtwo hoped they would entirely before he did.
At the end of his power, Mewtwo smiled faintly at what he saw. Finally, Bowser was shrinking, reverting back to his normal self just as fast as he had grown. Mew was safe and perhaps Bowser was too. These were the last thoughts that raced through Mewtwo's mind before he collapsed to the ground, the floor of final destination the coldest thing he had felt since the inner glass walls of the test tube that birthed him.
Bowser was collapsed too, still breathing. Rosalina found this out when the observatory landed, excruciatingly just too late at the sight of Mewtwo also unmoving on the platform. Mew had rushed over to stand, flat-footed, on the abdomen of her friend. He was apparently dead, his grievous wounds unfixable.
Lumas were nursing Bowser, impossibly still alive himself, when even Rosalina, one of the wisest beings in the universe, witnessed a miracle of life she had never imagined possible. Before her eyes and the sparkling ones of the young stars, Mew cried over Mewtwo. The glistening tears, like stardust, seemed to gravitate toward Mewtwo's body. The welling in Mew's eyes did not stop until she saw it. Mewtwo awoke, body healed and mind at peace, his spirit renewed as he looked into the beady eyes of Mew.
"You saved me," whispered Mewtwo in his mind to hers. "How is that possible? I hardly feel deserving of such a miracle."
Mew only smiled, a face that said she could save someone she truly loved and how she felt her selfless clone was immensely deserving of the second chance at life he was getting. For once, Mewtwo had very little to say.
"Thank you, Mew. I'm so glad I could save you. I'll never take this life for granted again. It's time to look into the future mostly, keeping the past around only to learn from it in my case. I am blessed to be near you."
Mew did a loop in the air as Bowser listened. He had only vague imagery of what had happened stirring within his head, and it was going to take some counseling with Rosalina and more bedrest to get over what Giga Bowser had done to him and the life surrounding him. Stronger than ever before though, the king of the koopas had no doubt he would bounce back. He had a family and a future to think about as well.
He turned to Mewtwo and said, "The future… That is what we need."
Bowser grunted in his lingering pain, and Mewtwo grimaced. They had barely got out of the mad men's plot alive, but still, they focused on what they indeed were: alive for the future.
Marcus stood, hands in pockets, uncertainly putting weight on either foot every few minutes as he waited outside of his father's office door, torturing himself in the process.
Throwing his fears aside and finding courage in the usual calmness of his father and how understanding he imagined he could be, Marcus stepped forward to open the door. At the same instant, Fox burst through the door. Bumping into Marcus, Fox was still absorbed in some document he was reading on the holographic projection coming off his watch. He was about to apologize when he saw the deep blue eyes of his cub staring back at him. All of a sudden, pride welled into Fox's face, and Marcus could only feel undeserving.
"Marcus, I'm sorry…" said Fox, feeling much too sorry in Marcus's opinion. "I've been so consumed with work that I haven't had time to focus on being a good dad…or husband. Lately, it's been a lot. Maybe I'll task someone else with doing some of this shit. I don't want to miss what may be my last year with you and your mom."
"Woah, wow, dad…I don't know how to reply…"
Fox had obviously hit a breaking point for the day, and his spirits were low, even after the success of Marcus's mission. Marcus motioned to a couch in the hallway. An offer to sit and talk made an obvious difference in his dad's mood.
"You know you're the best dad I could ask for, right? Don't beat yourself up for no reason, please. Not with all you're doing for everyone."
"I suppose you're right, son. It's just…you and Krystal are the only ones I let my guard down for, show how I'm just as discouraged and worried as anyone else here. If we don't make it through all this, it'll be on me…"
"No. Dad, no. It'll be on all of us. And if you somehow screw up, doubtful considering the perfectionist you are, father, no one will exist to even know."
Fox could not help but chuckle. He was glad to be spending some quality time with Marcus, even if it was mostly spent discussing the impending doom they were in. Some small talk later, after Marcus jokingly told the truth that he much preferred his badass dad acting stoic and charismatic in the face of all adversity, the pup closed in on what he wanted to talk about.
"Still though, I do enjoy it when you let your guard down, dad. It makes me happy to be there for you for once. I hope you know we all feel that way, and if we don't, it's probably because your leadership makes us all feel secure."
"Well, thanks, Marcus. And I want YOU to know that you're always there for me. Just being around you right now has been the happiest part of my day. And seeing you take on these missions on your own initiative, start a family with that beautiful, wonderful wife of yours – well, it all makes me prouder than you'll ever know."
"Actually, dad, that's what I wanted to talk to you about today…in a way," started Marcus, his voice immediately shaking at finally bringing up his flaw. "You shouldn't be…as proud of me as you are, I mean."
Fox looked surprised. He had not seen the change of the conversation's pace coming at all. "I'm not sure what you could do to change my opinion of you, Marcus. So…this is why you came to talk to me?"
"Yes," said Marcus with sudden dry mouth. "It's about the mission. I'm sure you've heard that Giovanni and Oikonny were killed."
Starting to guess where Marcus's words were going to go, Fox answered: "I've heard that much, of course. Omega conducted the entire report and handed it in when we arrived home."
"Mmhm, there were some details I don't think he included. I've done something terrible, dad, but I'm not sure if it was a mistake. Omega killed Giovanni, and I…"
"Killed Oikonny," finished Fox. There was a pregnant pause and Marcus was only slightly surprised. His dad knew him better than anyone. He only believed his son was so perfect because he usually was.
"Yeah, I did…" confirmed Marcus with sorrowful resignation. He had no pity for the ape he had slain, but the last thing he ever wanted was to put more weight on his dad's shoulders. Maybe his disappointment would do more bad than leaving Oikonny alive would have done for the galaxy.
"I can't believe you felt pressured to do that for me…" muttered Fox.
"What?! That's insane. I did it because I sincerely didn't want that bastard terrorizing anyone ever again. It's gone on for too long, and I was willing to sacrifice my morality to take him out."
"You honestly think it's your sacrifice taking the life of another, Marcus?"
Fox's words cut deep. The Nintendo principle of not taking any life, no matter how impractical it would be for the future, was his practiced dogma, but not absolutely. He thought he would have been able to talk his father into rethinking the deaths of some of their most persistent, dangerous enemies.
"I-I, no…I'm sorry, but…"
Marcus was stammering uncontrollably. Telling the truth to his dad could not be going worse. "But you have to see, there is some reason I felt Oikonny had to die. That evil coward, pathetic excuse for a living thing had to be stopped, and he was just going to keep escaping punishment. We would have had to deal with that bastard throughout this entire year. It would have set us back and only ruined the lives of INNOCENT people. I know what I did was wrong, dad, but I cannot apologize for it."
It looked like Fox's mind was changing, a little at once. Either that, or his expression had begun to soften when his son's tears streamed across his blue fur in his passionate explanation of his mistake. Fox had not at first pondered about the thought his son had put into the ape's execution.
"I'm sorry if I made it seem what you did was unforgivable, Marcus…there might be some practical merit for us, having killed him. But you must understand, my beautiful son, that actions you take as an individual reflect all of us as a group, a family. We don't take the lives of others lightly. We like to reserve killing others, no matter how deplorable they are, as the last resort. I know you know that."
Still sobbing, with his burden being released and internalized at the same time, Marcus said, "I do, dad. I'm not sure if it was weakness or some ego thing that made me feel I could make a decision that would affect the galaxy this way. I just don't want this to affect your work…. Please, don't let my mistake bring you or Nintendo down."
"Marcus, you could never bring me down. I love you, okay. Come here."
Father hugged son furiously. If this was supposed to stop Marcus from crying more, it was doing a horrible job of it. The pup sniffled, and his dad patted his back reassuringly.
"Above all of this," said Fox, "it's most important that we stick together through everything. Anything you decide to do or become: your mother and I will love you unconditionally for it."
Fox stopped embracing his child but still held on to his arms tightly. "While I may not have done the same," said Fox, "I understand the struggle you made for yourself. You make your own decisions. I'd never want you to be me. Be your own fox, but do it for yourself, not because you feel pressure from outside or even because you think what you'll do will save the world around you. You're only eighteen. You should still focus on yourself. I want you to take care of Marcus too. Hell, if I don't, I'm just an old man. But you've still got a lot to live for."
"Dad…thanks. I hope I can give you a lot to live for too. I am sorry for disappointing you through all this. It wasn't my intention."
"You're not a disappointment, Marcus. Never will be. And I'm just glad I can help you through this. You're probably right about all of this. That menace can't harm us or others now, and who knows? Maybe that will make the difference when it comes to the end only months from now. Being above morals is something I can't handle, and maybe some would consider me the fool. In my grey years, I'm done thinking my ethical standpoint the highest ground. Just keep this in mind Marcus: whatever you decide in the future, and in the past as you're experiencing, those are decisions you'll have to live with forever."
"You…always know the right things to say, father. I love you so much. Don't ever stop being the coolest leader I could ever aspire to be."
"Don't ever stop being the strongest pup I've ever known."
"I won't. You've eased my mind, dad. How else could I repay you?"
It was rhetorical, but Fox used his son's question for his parting lesson.
"You can keep those tears inside or outside you. Either way, I know you'll understand the weight each life holds."
"Yes, dad. I know we both do."
"Stop it! That tickles!" yelped Kelly, who was engulfed in the flames of Lucario's aura.
"I thought you said this felt like a massage," replied Lucario calmly. "What gives now?"
"Eesh, I never said that about my whole body. I can't believe how bold you've grown with me in such a short time."
Kelly Atlas, Nintendo's first full-time public relations liaison and Lucario's partner, rested face up on a mat in the zen Pokémon's dojo. In the past couple weeks, she had felt happier than ever before. She suddenly had a job she adored more than anything, and the beast she had always admired from another world was now her best friend and constant supporter.
"It's called comfort," replied Lucario, reminding her that she was in conversation with her lover. "I've grown comfortable around you." He smiled and stared with auburn eyes deep into her aura. "You've made it easy."
Touched by his loyalty, Kelly leaped up to kiss him. Their relationship, quickened by the end of the universe around them and the combination of their fiery personalities, had blossomed into something special. Nothing could distract either of them from each other. At least nothing they had encountered yet.
"So, how weird is it meeting versions of yourself over and over again?" asked Midna on her return trip from Hyrule Castle Town and the gathering of heroes.
"You know we're all different people," said Link. "The goddess of time just saw fit to make us all similar."
"Or perhaps she's perpetuated the spirit of the hero because she's smitten with you. I know that's what I'd be trying to do: replicate perfection after I saw the first of your kind."
Midna stroked Link's shoulder sensually. Seeing him interact with other noble heroes like himself had amused her all day, and it got them both in a great mood.
"You're the one who's too kind," blushed Link. "That look in your eyes is still weirdly unsettling."
"Well, by now, you should know what it means, beast." She giggled incessantly as her imagination wandered to places she and her lover would soon reach. "I wouldn't be scared or anything…."
Two young souls were quite enthralled with the presence of Captain Falcon as he strode triumphantly through the Pillar, victorious once more after having returned from Phantom Road alive again. The GX grand prix maze had been dissolved, and the kids assumed that was why he was so thrilled. Not much else made these tired heroes so overjoyed anymore. Not to be distracted for long, one of the boys got back on track as they moved through their palace of a home.
"Is your dad doing okay?" asked Adam to Lemmy. They were becoming best friends very fast.
"Yeah, he is. Thanks for asking. I just can't believe he's doing so well after his crazy transformation. And…it's weird having my daddy back in my life after so long without him. We have all our brothers and sisters here too, but I don't feel like a family again yet…"
"I'm sorry," said Adam quickly. "I don't know what that's like. If I did, I could feel sad for you."
"Haw, don't be sorry you don't feel sad for me…not like that. I'm just glad I have you to lean on."
"I guess I am good at that, buddy, especially when I'm bigger."
"Hahahaha, literally! Speaking of which…"
The little Koopaling jinxed the massive growth into effect before the words, still only thoughts of his giant best friend, even passed his lips.
Feet busting out of only socks (shoes were too expensive to keep replacing), orange fur becoming outlined with powerful muscles, and sharp Desbrachian mutations giving edge to the otherwise cuddly, gentle goliath that was Adam, son of Shadow and Tikal, the modest boy, used to it by now but not happy about his power, grew until the spiked quills of his head touched the ceiling and his legs were sprawled out along the corridor.
Adam smiled meekly as his friend stood awestruck, like every time it happened.
"You are so HUGE!" screamed Lemmy with enthusiasm. "I wish I could get big like that. I think you get bigger every time!"
"Great," said Adam maturely and sarcastically. One thing he had not gotten used to more than anything was how deep his voice became after he grew.
"I think it is," said Lemmy cheerfully. "To be so big and still be so nice. THAT'S awesome!"
This time, Adam agreed with his much smaller friend. "You're right, buddy. I just hope I stop transforming out of the blue like this. THAT'S not helping much."
His transformations a hindrance now, also a reminder of an old possessive evil, were about to become crucial to survival. Adam had not the war experience nor the capacity of a learned universe view to even imagine how much use his godlike form was about to have.
Evil kept seeping from the earths to challenge Nintendo in their ever-escaping final hours. On either side of the forever battle, power of some kind was the only certainty.
