It had only been a meager day before trouble struck once more. Samus had been the first to leave, yet she would run into the first of many problems before all the others.
The orange-armored warrior walked northward alongside high hills and rugged peaks. Every few moments she would pause. Moonlight glistened off her metallic frame.
"Galactic Federation, do you copy?" she spoke into a panel on her arm cannon. Each time, however, she was met with dissatisfying static. With a groan, she frustratingly shut off her communications link after a few dozen tries.
"What in the world is going on here…" she mumbled.
A stone fell loose.
Alerted, Samus deftly turned on her heel to point at the source of the noise.
There was nothing.
She looked left, and then looked right. Still there was nothing on radar or in her sights. Despite the obvious signs—or lack thereof—she continued to be suspicious. The warrior's arm cannon transformed. Its muzzle bloomed like a flower, with a red-tipped warhead at its center. Samus became motionless. Only the faint sound and movement caused by her breathing remained. She was waiting, patiently, for the slightest of disturbances. Another fallen pebble would signal to her the necessity of defense.
Within her helmet, several HUD displays were monitoring her surroundings.
There was a faint ripple… a tiny blip on her radar. In a split second she turned and fired a missile. It careened and exploded not two meters away, and another missile was loaded in its place.
In the scorched rubble there was nothing.
She glowered at the spot in question, miffed for obvious reasons.
Behind her, there was another ripple. This time, however, there was a figure in the dim light of the moon. It was a jester, clothed in yellow, purple, and black. Upon his face was a mask with a deceptively smiling face: half black, half white. Bells chimed from atop his hat as he gently landed upon the gravel.
Samus turned slowly this time, eager not to make a mistake in aim. "What are you supposed to be?" she scoffed through her helmet.
The jester chuckled. He gestured to himself, and then with a grand flair, he twirled his fingers to let loose fireworks from his gloved hands. With another lighthearted chuckle, he bowed. "I am merely an entertainer. Such is the duty of a court jester."
"Cute. Now, if you don't excuse me…" the warrior readied another missile, aimed squarely at the clown's masked face. "I'd like to be on my way."
With yet another chuckle, the comic snapped his fingers, rippling out of the space before Samus had even thought of firing. He casually reappeared just above her, landing and standing atop her shoulders. "I should have you know, I am not violent by nature." He playfully tapped her visor, and in the blink of an eye he vanished once more.
Angrily she had tried to swat him away so she could get a clear shot, but he was too nimble. She growled and retracted her weapon. If he could zip around endlessly like he had been doing, then she was clearly ill-equipped for the situation.
Reappearing, the jester began juggling purple balls of fire. "But perhaps you'd prefer to fight, as many a cretin such as yourself would enjoy." One by one the flames were sent in Samus' direction, all the while the jester wore the same facetious grin as his mask. "Come at me!"
Samus grimaced, and steadied her aim at the clown. He made yet another chuckle, and this time, it sounded far more like a smirk. The jester lobbed more fireballs, and Samus reprimanded herself for not shooting sooner. She instead pointed the muzzle towards the oncoming storm, and fired shots of similarly purple electricity in the clown's direction. Each fireball sizzled and each bolt dissipated, leaving Samus alone in the rocky field without her opponent in sight. She was far more wary this time, and cautiously scanned the outcroppings.
She didn't need to look long. The distinct chiming of the jester's bells alerted her, and she wheeled about to fire a charged bolt of electricity.
It made impact. The clown shouted in surprise and pain, and was sent flying through the air. As he crashed upon the stones, Samus casually readjusted her aim, and the whirring of her weapon filled the air.
Despite the abject pain that he was experiencing and the violent twitching he was displaying, the clown stood once more, and began to levitate. Tiny bolts of energy began to flit off his slightly charred form. Even though masks are not meant to change expression, the fact that it still wore the same cocksure Cheshire grin unnerved Samus, and she hesitated.
"Well… w-well…" the clown managed. "I severely underestimated you." The last of the bolts quit their jumping. Brushing himself off, the figure snapped his fingers. As he did so, a transparent square grew behind him, engulfed him, and then disappeared with him with a small chime. The square reappeared just above Samus' arm cannon, expanded, and revealed the clown once more, now unmarred. "I commend you for damaging me, even if it was only temporary. However, I do think I've dallied far too long." Samus swung her cannon, like swatting at a really big insect. However, the strange, transporting square appeared again, taking the clown with it. The voice emerged from behind the warrior's helmet. "Continuing to fight you, though, would make me in the wrong, like a knife in a gunfight."
"You're pretty confident."
"I would be remiss if I stayed here like a vulture to a carcass. So, with that, I will take time to finish you off later. Ciao!" And just as he said, he conjured another square and vanished.
As he disappeared, Samus clenched her armored fist.
"Arrogant prick."
0=0
Samus was not the only one to encounter issues. Not too long and not too far from her location, Mario encountered an enemy of a different sort. His opponent was, in short, an armored, humanoid Tyrannosaurus. Now Mario didn't stand very tall himself, but what was before him was quite the giant. Green scales lined his figure, and atop his head was a horned helmet. Plate mail adorned his chest and shoulders, leaving defined musculature bare. Faded bracers preceded two clawed fingers and a clawed thumb on the right arm, and two very distinctive, pirate-like hooks on the left. The creature stood on strong legs, each foot bearing the mark of a predator: thick talons.
Mario found himself on the receiving end of a blow from the giant's left arm. He grasped the two hooks as he was shoved towards a tree. The reptile laughed in a very human manner, despite his very obviously saurian maw. The hooks and the pointed, ivory teeth glinted in the silvery moonlight as the Italian struggled against his binding. The creature chuckled. "You fight well, ape." He sounded as if he came from the United Kingdom… if reptiles could speak in human tongues and in distinct accents. "But, I tire of this."
"You're-a-tired?" Mario struggled. "Then… let's-a-play my game…" His white gloves burned orange with flames, and the heat traveled easily into the hooks that bound him. Soon that heat transferred down the gauntlet and into the arm, causing the creature to recoil in pain.
"You wretch!" He charged, drawing a chipped scimitar from his waist. The creature yelled and swung down, barely missing the plumber who dodged with a roll. With reptilian eyes, the creature glowered upon Mario's moonlit form. The plumber readied his fists with fire, all-too prepared to battle. The reptile seemed to smile, perhaps in admiration. Lunging, he swung his blade across, messily chopping down the nearest tree. As it fell, Mario darted aside and covered himself from the oncoming shards of foliage. Amidst the cloud of debris, the reptile jumped above the plumber and drew his scimitar back, ready to impale.
When the creature landed, however, the only thing the blade met was dirt. Snarling, his slit, orange eyes darted not to one, but to two figures. "Fox McCloud. How good of you to join us!"
Fox crouched beside a bewildered Mario, who in his daze set about readjusting his cap. Fox's ears perked up, and he shot a glance at the assailant. "Scales. What are you doing here?"
The beast growled. "General Scales. You will address me properly."
Fox smirked and stood up. "Well, I think you're out of your element. This is not your planet."
Scales chuckled in response. "My element? Foolish boy! Battle is my element!" He gripped his blade, unearthing it with haste. "You, young pup, are out of your element." He roared, swiping down with his cooled hooks. Mario snapped out of his confusion and dashed between the two combatants. Empowering his hands with fire, he caught and gripped Scales' hooks with fervor. Glowering, Scales slashed with his blade.
Fox kicked the blade aside and out of Scales' claws. In that brief moment of surprise, Fox carried his momentum and roundhouse kicked Scales in the face with armored boots, sending him stumbling a few feet.
Unmarred, Scales turned to face the two slowly. "It seems that our sides are now rather even. I hope that your tenacity continues should we meet again." He calmly walked towards his scimitar.
Fox drew his blaster and steadied his aim at the General's head.
Without even looking, Scales picked up his weapon and said, "Foolish pup. You and your apelike friend should run and hide in the time to come."
"What do you mean?"
Turning, the creature stared down at the two. "You don't understand, do you? Already the lives of your friends and the lives of your enemies are becoming vastly intertwined. You cannot possibly fathom the breadth of what is happening as we speak."
Confused, Mario spoke up. "What is-a happening?"
Scales' face showed a knowing look. "Oh, you shall see soon enough." A ripple formed behind him. "You trials have begun."
Fox's eye twitched, and he shot at his opponent's head, but it had already disappeared through the ripple. He fired several more shots at what remained, but Scales had slipped through the ripple and vanished.
In that moment, Fox and Mario understood little of Scales' cryptic words. As they remained in the aftermath of that skirmish, they both came to the same conclusion. "Fox calling Robin. Fox calling Robin. Do you copy?"
0=0
It was no coincidence at this point that battles were being conducted all over and outside Jump City. Link was no stranger to these battles; however, his opponent wasn't either. It was a massive, lanky, almost skeletal dragon. Its hide was covered in purple scales, and its eyes were a glowing yellow-green. Strong, orange-webbed wings flapped in the urban night sky.
Link was in constant motion away from this beast, as plumes of fire plummeted down like meteors on the street, licking at his heels. The dragon's screech pierced the night skies, yet Link refused to flinch and kept running. He looked over his shoulder, and the beast's silhouette filled the moonlit air. He scowled and muttered under heavy breaths, "What I wouldn't give for a little help…"
The creature's milky eyes stared down at the tiny green knight. With another screech, it breathed a plethora of fireballs down, leading the shots slightly. Link noticed this action and dodged as best he could. One plume crashed down onto his holstered shield, knocking him down. Seeing a prime moment of opportunity, the dragon made its descent, foreclaws bared.
The green knight urged himself to his feet, surrounded by swirling pillars of fire. He armed himself with his sword and shield. Another shriek later, and the dragon's toothed maw was nearly at the tip of Link's swung blade. It dragged along its snout, leaving a trail of sparks. The brief moment of surprise that Link experienced was window enough for it to snatch the knight up in its claws.
The dragon, feeling victorious, ascended high above the buildings. Link saw each window passing by, and he struggled in its grip all the while. He grunted and squirmed to free an arm; all the while the creature continued its journey skyward. Link reached behind him, produced a blue orb with a short fuse atop it. "This might sting a little," he muttered as he lit the bomb. Moonlit vermillion eyes darted towards the sparks, and the drake let Link fall from his grasp. The knight grunted; he hadn't expected the beast to take notice. But Link himself noticed something very important. He was falling.
Quickly regaining composure, Link threw the projectile as he began his ground-ward descent, and the dragon's tail swatted the miniscule thing away like it was an insect. It exploded in midair, leaving Link to silently curse as he reached behind him to pull out his clawed gauntlets, quickly mounting them on each arm. He pointed both devices towards a rapidly-approaching building, and he launched the claws at the brickwork. They both latched onto the material, and as Link felt it, he pressed a trigger to reel himself in. It was a risky measure, however, as he was still falling quite rapidly. As he headed towards the building, a familiar screech filled his ears. The creature was following him down like a hawk.
It breathed fire down at the knight, and when he contacted the building with the sound of cracking concrete, he aimed a device down to the ground, fired, and reeled himself down, barely escaping the wave of heat. The dragon seemed unconcerned however, and it barreled down almost as if it intended to ram into the knight and the street beneath him.
I've gotta get out of here, Link thought. But I don't see any way out of this thing's sight…
The drake swerved up and under the knight, catching him by surprise and in its jaws. Link's shield and sword kept its fangs from piercing his skin.
Link grunted. He didn't see a good way out of this mess. He groaned and struggled, trying desperately to keep himself from being eaten. All the while the dragon's shrieks filled his eardrums with disorienting pitch.
A projectile careened across the sky and into the dragon's chest. An explosion rocked its body and it lost focus, causing Link and the creature to fall to the ground. An orange flash blazed forth, grasping the knight in an armored left arm. The drake, stunned, crashed into the ground.
Samus landed gracefully, scraping along the ground in the remnants of high-speed movement. She released her grip on Link, to which he muttered a line of thanks. She nodded, and cocked her arm cannon. As the creature shook its head clear of concrete debris, it noted Samus' presence.
"Ridley! Freeze! I'll shoot you where you stand!"
"That creature has a name?!" Link was incredulous. "Well, no sense arguing." He drew his bow back, aiming at Ridley alongside Samus' readied missile launcher.
Ridley's milky eyes glowered down at them with irritation and defiance. He spread his gargantuan wings on the moonlit street, and instantly breathed a conflagration towards the two before him.
"Duck!" Samus yelled. Link, with not a moment to spare, instantly complied. As the flames cleared, both Link and Samus looked up, not seeing a trace of the creature.
"So strange," Link mumbled.