SBS Time
Kite Landford: I wonder what models of R-Type fighters will be used?
Game2002: You'll have to wait and see, and there's more than just one!
Chapter 4: The Terror
Outside the ruined streets of Fourside, the rescue squad and workers were digging through the ruins of the city, looking for bodies and survivors. Ambulances were also there to rescue and aid injured ones. Some of the civilians were also there to do whatever they can to help.
SLASH!
Link slashed down a large piece of rock that is blocking the entrance into a crumpled building. The rock broke down and the rescuers were able to go inside and look for survivors. "Thanks for the help," they said to Link.
"Not a problem!" he replied. He turned around and walked away to look for more help. "Boy, the destruction sure is worse than what I saw on TV!"
Dr. Mario is healing the injured ones that were just rescued. "Boy, this is hard work…" he said to himself as he wiped off sweat on his head. "I've never seen such casualty!"
"The Bydo or whoever did this went too far!" said Ganondorf. "I'll never forgive what they have done."
"Let's not be forgetting you used to enjoy this."
"And how many times must I tell you that I am a changed man?"
-
Captain Falcon is in another area, helping the people all he can. "What a terrible sight…" he said. "I can't believe the great city of Fourside becoming like this just in a single day!" Then he heard someone crying for help from nearby, and he began to search for the source until he found it coming from underneath a pile of rocks. "Someone's down there! I must help him up!"
He grabbed the rocks and used his strength to lift them up one by one until the person is free. He helped the victim out and dusted for him. "Are you all right?" CF asked him.
"What took you so long, man?" said the person rudely. "I was crying for help for many hours already and you only came to rescue me just now? Is that what you call a rescue squad?"
"Hey, be happy that you're rescued!"
"How can I be happy? I came to this country in hope of looking for happiness, but what do I get? War! They didn't tell me about such awful thing happening in Eagleland at all! I am so terribly disappointed! My hopes for this country have gone down the drain! This is officially the worst place I've been too!"
"Are you talking enough yet? We didn't even expect this thing to happen too! How can you say this is the worst country ever if you only met something once like this? Listen up, mister; a person who thinks of other people or things badly is a very bad person himself! You are showing yourself that you are a horrible person!"
"Dude! Is that you treat an injured person? I'm injured and you're lecturing me? This is bulls---!"
"And is that how you talk to someone who just rescued your life? If I didn't walk pass here, you would've died already! You should give thanks!"
"I should I give thanks to someone who didn't do what he is supposed to do? Do not give me that s---ty crap!"
"Why you?! You wouldn't happen to be an A…"
Before CF can finish speaking, a rumbling sound is heard, and the ground underneath that annoying fellow could be seen. Suddenly, that part of the ground burst open and the guy is sent flying aside, and a really long white snake whose body consists of circular segments flew out from the ground and into the air.
"What the heck?!" gasped CF.
The snake also has a rather deformed circular head with a pair thick line for eyes and no visible mouth.
Everyone's attention turned to the giant snake also. "What is that?!" they gasped.
"A snake coming out from the ground is common sight, but not snakes like that!" said Ganondorf.
The snake snaked through the air in a circular path and headed for one of the buildings and rammed into it, boring a hole through the other side. It rose into the air again and continued to ram down anything that got in its way.
"Hey! Nobody is messing with this place as long as I am here!" shouted CF. He ran after the snake and jumped at its tail, because it is nearest to the ground. He was able to grab onto the tip of the tail and began to climb up its body. He ran up each segment of body and tried to hold his balance, and when he reached the head, he delivered a punch into it. "Falcon Punch!"
BANG!
Amazingly enough, the punch didn't bother the snake at all and didn't leave behind a slightest scratch! "What the?! It has a tough skin!" exclaimed CF.
Link got out his bows and arrows and shot at the snake, but the arrows were like twigs as they snapped when they hit the snake's body. "Dang! It isn't doing anything to him at all!" he said.
The snake pointed its head downwards and flew towards the street, where it crashed headfirst and dug into the ground again. CF landed onto the street and said, "It's getting away! We must go after it!"
"But our attacks couldn't scratch it at all!" protested Link.
"We'll find a way eventually!"
Suddenly, another part of the street burst open and the snake popped out again. "I'll take on him this time!" said Ganondorf. He charged up an energy ball and hurled it at the snake. When it hit one of the segments of its body, an explosion is created.
BOOM!
"How do you like that?" asked Ganondorf.
When the smoke cleared, it is revealed that one of circular segments is destroyed, and a skinny bone-like structure is left in place. "I guess it's working," said Link. "Perhaps we need to use explosives!" He got out a bomb and lighted it, and then quickly attacked it to one end of an arrow and fired it at the snake.
The bomb arrow hit another circular segment and blew it off also. "It really is working!" said CF. "Perhaps if I punch it hard enough, it will work also!" He ran towards a building and hopped at it, and from there, he wall kicked off the building and launched himself even higher into the air until he is on the same level as the snake. "Falcon Punch!" He punched one of the segments really hard and shattered it into pieces.
"All right! Let's keep this up until he's dead!" said Ganondorf. He held up his arms and a large energy ball began to form. "Dark Rain!" The energy ball exploded and several smaller ones shot into the sky, where it hit every single segment of the snake's body.
KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!
And all that left of the snake is the head and a skinny skeletal body. "It's still not dead yet!" said Link.
"Maybe we have to go for the head too," said CF.
"No problem!" Ganondorf hurled another energy ball at the head, but it merely caused an explosion; the head did not take any damage at all. "Huh?"
"Its head must have a really thick skull!" said CF.
The snake dived at the street and once again dug into the ground. "It's getting away again!" said Link.
"But I believe it must be in a weak state by now," said Ganondorf. "He's nothing but bones after all."
Then they felt shaking again, and like before, the snake popped out from another part of the ground, and to their surprise, its body is back to normal with circular segments! "Didn't we just blew off his skin?!" said CF. "How comes it's back?!"
"How would I know?" asked Ganondorf. "Maybe he has regenerating abilities! Either way, we're gonna bust him down again."
The Smashers continued their attacks on the snake, blowing off each body segment until it is down to bones again. Afterwards, the snake dove back into the ground.
"That does it! I'm going after him!" said CF. He ran to the hole made by the snake and jumped into it.
"Wait! We're going with you!" said Link as he ran to the hole.
-
CF dropped down a dark shaft and grabbed onto a pipe that is conveniently sticking out of the wall. "This place sure is big…" he said. "I never thought the sewers were like this. Now where is that snake?" He looked around for signs of the snake, but saw nothing. He then looked down and saw a glowing blue light down there. "What's that?"
He felt around with his feet and touched another pipe below him, and so he dropped onto there, and from there, he slowly jumped closer and closer to the bottom using the pipes laid all over the place.
As he got closer to the bottom, he got a better look of what the thing is. "Whoa… What is this…?"
Then Link and Ganondorf popped up next to him. "What is that thing?" asked Link.
"If only I knew…" replied Ganondorf.
Below them, they saw what looked like a giant heart half submerged in sewer water. At the top of the heart is a single, large bluish eye that is blinking and looking around. There are four tubes sticking out of the sides of the eye and the whole thing is pulsating and beating very slowly—Gomander.
"And where did that snake go?" asked Link.
"Look!" CF pointed to one of the tubes on Gomander.
The tube shook a bit and then the snake popped out from it! "So that's where the snake comes from!" said Ganondorf.
The snake headed for them and rammed down the pipe they were standing on, and the three of them fell onto the solid floor around the pool of water Gomander was in.
Link got up and looked at Gomander. "It looks like a heart if you ask me…" he said.
"I never knew such a terrifying creature like this exists!" said CF.
"So that's where the snake comes from," said Ganondorf. "I may know the reason why the snake is invincible. This is his heart and it is separated from his body, therefore his body is just an empty shell that is impervious to all attacks!"
"What makes you so sure?" Link asked him.
"Think of it! It all makes sense! The snake hid his heart somewhere else so that we cannot find and destroy it. As long as his heart is safe, he will never die!"
"But does one survive without a heart?"
"Well… Remember what Bowser said about this guy named Tubba Blubba?"
"And how is the heart larger than its own body?"
"Um…"
"Enough talk! We got company!" said CF.
The snake flew in circles above them and its body segments began to glow, and then red energy balls shot in every direction. The Smashers quickly got out of the way to avoid the blast. Link tried blocking it his shield, only to get pushed back by it, but he is unharmed.
"If the snake can't be killed, then let's aim for whatever that is!" said CF.
"I told you that it is his heart!" Ganondorf reminded him.
"Whatever!" CF ran and jumped towards Gomander and punched it in the side of the body. "Falcon Punch!" His fist sank into the body of the creature, but then is bounced back in a way like a pudding and CF is sent flying back on the floor. "Damn! This guy has a skin so soft that it cannot be penetrated!"
"We'll have to use something sharp!" said Ganondorf. He got out his sword and jumped at Gomander and stabbed it into his body. "Take this!"
Strangely enough, the creature didn't flinch or anything; it stood still like a tree and continued to pulsate with life. Ganondorf pulled out his sword and fell back into the water, and greenish blood poured out from the wound he made. He swam back onto shore and looked at Gomander. "That should do!" he said. But to his surprise, the wound instantly recovered. "What?!"
"Maybe we have to aim for that eye we saw from the top!" stated Link. He looked up and saw the pipes hanging up there, so he got out his hook shot and aimed for one and pulled himself up to it. From atop the pipe, he looked down and saw Gomander's blue eye. "That's the one! Now to hit it!" He got out his bow and arrows and was about to use it when suddenly the snake showed up in front of him. "Whoa!"
The snake rammed into Link and he grabbed onto its head for dear life as the snake traveled forward and rammed through a wall, crushing Link against it at the same time.
CRASH!
"Damn! He got Link!" said Ganondorf. "Looks like I'll have to handle things myself!" Ganondorf ran towards Gomander and jumped up high into the air and right above the eye. "Take this! Wizard's Foot!" He unleashed a kick of dark energy downwards, but the snake showed up again and blocked the hit, and thus Ganondorf landed on top of the snake instead. "Argh! This guy is getting in my way!"
The snake flew around the air and ran through several pipes and at the same time banging Ganondorf against them.
"Ow! Ow! Ouch!"
Then the body segment Ganondorf was holding onto began to glow in red, but before he could react, energy balls shot out and struck Ganondorf in the body, blasting him off the snake and falling onto the sewer floor with a thud.
"Ganondorf is down too!" gasped CF. "Looks like I'll have to go serious this time!"
The snake turned its attention to CF and headed for him, and CF responded by jumping up and landing on top of the snake's body. The snake continued to travel forward and bore into the wall in front of it, and CF had to jump off to avoid hitting the wall.
"Now's the chance!" thought CF. He ran towards Gomander and jumped above its eye and the unleashed a downward kick. "Falcon Kick!" CF dropped down with his foot on fire, and everything would've gone successful if it weren't for Gomander closing its eye in time.
BANG!
CF jumped back onto solid floor and said, "Damn! He closed his eye to protect himself!"
Then the snake came back into the room by running through the wall again, and this time Link is riding on top of him. "I'm not done yet!" he shouted.
"Link!" said CF. "You're all right!"
Link rode on top of the snake as it carried him towards Gomander. Then he noticed the segment he's standing on beginning to glow in red, so Link quickly placed his shield underneath him and stood on it like a surfboard. When the energy balls shot out, Link was sent into the air thanks to the explosion against his shield. He jumped off his shield and fell towards Gomander. When near, he got out a bomb and hurled it at the eye, but Gomander closed its eye the last second to protect itself.
KABOOOM!!!
The explosion released some very thick smoke, thick enough so that nobody can see through it. Thinking that the coast is clear, Gomander opened its eye again, only to see Link coming down through the smoke with his Master Sword pointing at its eye.
Too late…
Link's sword stabbed right into Gomander's eye.
The blue eye slowly dimmed down and turned black, and the whole creature stopped pulsating and beating.
Then the snake that had been accompanying Gomander the whole time froze in midair, and starting from the tail, it exploded in a chain reaction all the way to the head.
BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAANG!!!!!!!!!!!!!
And the snake is gone…
"You did it, Link!" exclaimed CF.
Link pulled out his sword and hopped back into the water, and swam onto dry land. "That was pretty tough, but at least we won," said Link, looking back at the now lifeless Gomander.
At this moment, Ganondorf got back up too. "Ow… I'm gonna get that creep for getting me good! Huh, Link! You're still alive!"
"Were you hoping that I was dead?" Link said to him.
"Do you think that this monster had something to do with the battleship that invaded yesterday?" asked CF.
"I don't know, but that can be a possibility," said Ganondorf.
"After all, the battleship came out of nowhere, so I wouldn't be surprise if this monster popped out of nowhere too."
"Forget about that," said Link. "Let's just be happy about the fact that we destroyed him."
"Right," said CF. "If someone ever asked us what was happening in the sewers, we will reply, 'There was a heart attack.".
TO BE CONTINUED
Trivia:
1. Gomander, along with Dobkeratops, was also a very popular and well-known boss that appeared in almost every R-Type game. He was called Cyst in the American of R-Type 1, but was later changed to match the original name in R-Type Final.
2. And on the side note, Dobkeratops used to have an Americanized name of Doppelganger. Some sources even said that he was sometimes called Doberman.
Next chapter: The Truth