A/n: Bleh... I edited New Limits to account for some events that happened in the SSE that I forgot about... my bad. It's basically about the Stadium being bombed and the Tayll villagers can see it from where they are. *whispering* IF YOU WANNA MAKE YOUR WAY OVER—


Chapter summary: With one siege broken, there are still looming questions about who is behind the hostilities, and what sort of world our heroes have stumbled into.


Chapter Six: Divide or Conquer


Snake lands in the pilot's quarters and holds on as Indeom reaches for its unauthorised passenger. Lucario continues firing Aura Spheres, slowing its movement, but it's clear that Indeom will pluck him off just as it did with Popo.

And then there's a squeak.

A pink ball—Jigglypuff—spins through the air and barrels into the offending arm. There's a satisfying snap and a shower of sparks, immobilising the robot just enough for Snake to locate the console and find what he's looking for: 'MANUAL OVERRIDE'.

He yanks the lever and holds his breath.

Beneath his feet, Indeom sags with a dramatic creak of metal. Snake disembarks and lands in a roll as it begins to pitch forward. It sends a quake through the ground as it topples over, and finally lays still.

Lucario looks on in a trance before her legs give and and she collapses. Jigglypuff rushes over and offers her support.

Snake's eyes widen as he remembers the kids. His eyes dart around the plain and he finds a pair of silver statues a few strides away.

He jogs over to them, strangely unnerved by the way the statues glint in the afternoon glare. He remembers the way Roy had been overpowered on that confounding night, and realises perhaps he'd been haunted by that sight ever since. Despite himself, he's beginning to feel responsible for these kids, even if he's becoming increasingly sure they can handle themselves just fine.

Remembering the advice of the villagers, he taps the statues' bases and shields his eyes.

He hears groans before he sees the ice climbing siblings moving again. They're both doubled over, eyes scrunched tight. Popo is clutching his forehead.

"Kids, are you okay?"

"Headache," Popo moans. He feels like his skull is about to split open.

"Did we win?" Nana manages, voice tight from pain.

"I think so," says Snake.

Nana nearly forgets her headache as she pumps a fist in the air. "Yes..."

*.*.*.*.*

They reach the doctor's house. It's in much better shape than the guide's, but similar in size. Forrest sets them up in the sitting room adjacent to the kitchen.

"So, how did you guys end up here?" Forrest asks. He attempts to strike up conversation as he and his Infernape prepare some tea, scones and sliced apple.

Captain Falcon opens his mouth but stops himself to check that he isn't interrupting anyone.

"Funny story, actually," he finally says. "I'm not entirely sure. Must say I was in pretty tight circumstances before coming here."

"Oh, I wish you luck."

Falcon laughs. "No no, I mean that literally. I was driving when I swerved and ended up here. Thought I was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel of life!"

"You saw a light?" Roy blurts. "...Or was that a metaphor?"

"No, that was literal as well." Falcon stares at the others. "What, you've also had a near-death experience?"

"I was ambushed in the armoury before I came here," says Roy.

"I was out on the ocean when we sailed into some fog and I ended up here," Link contributes.

"I was on an errand," says Olimar.

"Pichu and I arrived here in a similar manner," Mewtwo explains. "In a flash of light. How curious. Perhaps it is a trap." He side-eyes the doctor.

"I've never heard of people ending up in this world accidentally," says Forrest, his tone defensive. "The portals are marked by light, but people usually step into those deliberately. Willingly. You guys aren't someone's pawns, are you?"

"Are we?" Wolf returns.

"Don't keep accusing him," Link says, irritated. "Anyway, how did you get here?"

"I was on a mission."

"Cool. What sort?"

"...Retrieval."

"I guess you were the one retrieved," Falcon remarks.

"Forrest," Roy interrupts. "Would you happen to know anything of the situation at the place I was taken from?"

"Situation?" Forrest loses his voice for a second. "There's a situation at Tayll?"

"It's why I'm here right now, instead of over there. How far away are we? Can we reach them quickly? They'd just been placed under siege, last I was aware."

"He doesn't know about the robot," Falcon gasps. "You don't know about the robot. There's this hunk of scrap metal stationed outside our current location, and it's not letting anything through. No one prepared to challenge it has showed up so far."

"Here, too?" Roy pales.

"Could we do anything about it?" Pichu wonders.

"Are you guys serious?" Forrests asks. "You're thinking of taking on the robot?"

"We ought to try," Roy says firmly.

"Who are you people?"

"An infam—uh, I'm renowned for my prowess," Wolf says, leaning back in his chair.

"As for me, I'm not really anyone super important," Falcon says. "As little Olimar here said before, I do race sometimes. Any of you important?"

"Not worth mentioning," Mewtwo responds. Link and Roy shake their heads.[1]

Forrest brings over a tray of food and sets it down on the coffee table.

"When are you guys planning on taking down the robot?" he asks cautiously.

"We'll need time to plan our attack," Mewtwo replies. "Time to figure out our assets and liabilities, our strategy."

"That's true. Do you guys have a place to stay?"

"The village head offered her place yesterday but I think we're now short on her grace," Falcon says. "Do you have any recommendations?"

"A-actually, I was just wondering if you wanted to stay here."

Wolf narrows his eyes.

"Still trying to balance out your karma, are you?" says Falcon. "Any objections?"

Olimar taps Roy on the shoulder and whispers, "What about you? He was paid to, you know..."

After a measured silence, Roy smiles and replies, "I'll be fine. You don't always find someone so eager to atone."

Olimar nods solemnly.

"Thank you," Forrest says, bowing deeply.

"We should be the ones saying that!" Link remarks. "So, thanks."

"I'm honoured. If you guys are serious about the robot, I ought to inform the village head. She'll know best how to handle the rest of the villagers."

"Will she buy our story?" Wolf questions.

"Perhaps if you could come up with a plan, she'll be convinced."

"Are we doing that now?" says Olimar.

"You don't want to eat first?" Falcon asks through a scone.

"I-I think my nerves are suppressing my appetite..."

Falcon pats the smaller captain on the back. "That's no good. Why don't you sit back and relax while we do the thinking?"

"That's not going to make me feel any better."

"Then make up your mind!"

The doctor laughs. "I'm sorry. Call me if you need anything. I've left my work to my assistants and I'm sure they want me back. I wish you luck." With that, he beckons Infernape and leaves the room.

There's a thick silence, broken only by Falcon's consumption of the scones. Link eventually joins in, masking his enthusiasm.

"Perhaps we should start with a review," Mewtwo suggests, "of our last engagement with our opponent."

*.*.*.*.*

Tayll Village hails their heroes, the streets becoming even more packed than on the day the crew arrived. Local reporters soon begin to approach them, whom they—with Snake's encouragement—manage to largely shake through the dancing, drumming crowds, save for a particularly tenacious grey feline with a pen and paper.

"Hey there, I'm Carmen Roemon[2]. I'd like to know more about the saviours of Tayll Village!"

Lucario shoots Snake a look that says We've been caught, and requests, "We'd like to lay low for a while."

"If you can get us away from the crowd, we might answer some of your questions," says Snake.

"Oh, sure! My house is right this way."

The feline leads the group to a cabin with a small garden out the front (that's the greenest tree Snake's seen in three days), locking the door behind them. She ushers them to a sitting room with a three-seater and a single chair. She takes the chair while Jigglypuff and Lucario allow the humans to take the three-seater.

"I'll try to be brief, then. Who are you and how did you do it?"

"Well," Popo begins, "This is my sister, Nana. We're ice climbers by day, and… robot-kickers by day also, it seems."

"You wear those parkas when you go climbing? Aren't you hot?"

"Yes, this is what we wear. No, we're quite comfortable, thank you."

"And the rest of you?" Carmen focuses on Lucario and Jigglypuff. "You two look like Pokémon. Do you have trainers?"

"Neither of us do," Jigglypuff says.

"I keep to my own," says Lucario.

"And where do you come from?" Carmen turns to Snake.

"I have military training."

"Which military?"

"…Earth." Snake bites his lip but the feline seems content with his answer, scribbling down messy shorthand notes without pause.

"Tell me a little more about your attack. How long did you plan it for? Did you anticipate the siege? What intel did you rely on and how did you receive it?"

"We worked mostly on our own," Snake says. "It was a simple siege, with few enemy targets to deal with. We just worked as a team to exploit its weaknesses and delegate to our strengths."

"We went for the joints," Nana says. Then she gasps. "We forgot about Roy!"

"Maybe you did," Popo mutters. Nana jabs him in the stomach and he doubles over.

"What was that?" Carmen asks, leaning in attentively.

Snake holds up a hand before the others can speak. "Could we keep this off record from now?"

Carmen closes her notebook. "Of course. Is there some security risk?"

"Nothing that complicated—we don't want to cause any further panic."

"I understand. You mentioned a sixth person."

"He was with us on the day we arrived here," Jigglypuff explains. "That was two days ago, the day the robot arrived as well."

"How curious."

"He worked out one of the robot's weaknesses," says Lucario, "but he was captured and taken away that night. We withdrew to figure out how best to deal with our situation."

"And you dealt with it marvellously," Carmen says, smiling brightly. "We all owe you one."

"We've been warmly received already," Jigglypuff says. "We came here lost and were provided with safe lodging that enabled us to pay you back. I believe some balance has been reached."

For a moment, Carmen appears splendidly lost in their story. Eventually she returns to them and says, "Your abilities are well worthy of the Smash Brothers' Tournament."

"Really?" Nana exclaims, eyes sparkling.

"Your actions here were pretty heroic, I must say. The Tournament gathers a small group of noble fighters every year. The fifth tourney is actually just a few days from now, and they are small enough that they can still take new applicants and fit you in the roster easy."

"Our priority right now is locating our sixth member," Snake interrupts. "He was transported away in a cart. Would you have any idea where he might have been taken?"

"I've convened with some of the other villagers here to keep up with the situation," Carmen says, tapping her pen on her notebook. "They reported seeing a small vehicle moving in an easterly direction on the first night, down the Lakeside Trail. There aren't any occupied military buildings out that way, or anywhere in fact, but the Orfan Forest lies further in that direction—it would provide good cover for any shady dealings."

"We ought to head in that direction, anyway."

"I'm glad I could help! And wasn't just another reporter trying to force headlines out of you." Carmen grins again. "So, what do you plan on doing now?"

"We'll see if we can use the robot as a mode of transport," Snake says. "It can be controlled manually, so there shouldn't be too many complications."

"When do you plan on heading out?"

Nana gazes at Snake expectantly, nearly jumping out of here seat in anticipation. Popo is stoic but mentally crossing his fingers.

"Not today."

Nana sags.

"You kids are in no condition to travel," he says sternly. "You got knocked out today and I don't know if there are any repercussions. We need time to prepare, anyway."

"I could assist you with that," Carmen offers.

"Thanks." Snake convenes silently with Lucario for a moment before receiving an encouraging nod. "We might need the rest of the day to learn how to pilot the robot."

*.*.*.*.*

Popo can barely see above Indeom's console as the taller Snake grips the two handles on either side of the pilot's quarters.

"Don't mess up Mr Snake, Popo!" Nana hollers from the ground.

"Don't get in our way, Nana!" Popo retorts.

Snake slides his thumb over a button on top of the right handle and Indeom lurches forward, half swivelling around. Popo catches himself before his forehead collides with the console's edge.

"This is gonna take a while," Snake sighs. "Hang on tight, kid."

"Will do, sir."

Snake pushes the button again and notices a small jet flare up beneath Indeom's foot. He presses the buttons on top of both handles and Indeom jumps about a foot into the air. It lands roughly, but still upright. Snake doesn't touch those buttons again.

Eventually, Snake manages to get Indeom to take a slow step forward by easing forward on the handles.

"Alright, Popo. Push that button."

"This one?"

"Yes."

Popo pushes an orange rectangular button on the console and Indeom's left arm transforms.

"Spin that green ball in the console. I think that's for aiming."

Popo obeys and the left arm raises itself into the air.

"Good. Aim it at the ground in the distance."

He points the arm at a gentle angle, away from village.

Snake reaches over and pushes the orange button again. A missile flies out, smashing into the ground. A small counter below the orange button reads '9'. Snake fires again, and the counter doesn't change.

"Unlimited ammo. Huh."

"Do you think we'll run into trouble along the way, Snake?" Popo wonders.

"I wouldn't know." Snake pauses, staring into the distance over the sunburnt land. "You're not obligated to come, you know. You can stay here and wait for me to come back, then I'll take you to your portal."

"I don't believe that can happen, sir. I think we'll be needing each other if we want to go home." Popo lapses into solemn thought. "Even if we screwed up a little on that first night, you were still there to help us, that night and the next. Nana and I aren't the best at confrontations, and for a while I thought it was impossible to do anything about this siege, but you changed that. You and the others, we made it possible. But I'm… still uneasy about everything. I still don't know how we got here, or where we even are. I'd never heard of this place before we arrived. Sometimes I think I'm still in a dream…"

He trails off. The clouds of dust kicked up by the missile seem to merge together and glow strangely in the reddening light, as Snake struggles to untie his tongue.

"You've got guts, kid," he finally says. "I doubt I would have been able to do this on my own, either. Perhaps it's a good idea to stick together—I'm sure I'll need backup."

"Really?" Popo's face brightens, eyes almost sparkling in the approaching sunset.

Snake's expression suddenly hardens. "We've got to figure this out, first."

Nana hails them from the ground. "Lucario and Jigglypuff are back!"

"Greetings," says Lucario.

"You're back early," says Snake. "Did something go wrong?"

"We've picked up some troubling chatter about the village this evening. There are rumours of hostile activity at other places around this world. Messengers that tried to reach Tayll were intercepted and lines of communication have been interrupted, so any confirmation of these rumours will be delayed. I fear for our unimpeded departure from this village."

"Did you ask them about us taking the robot?"

"They have not revoked their agreement, but I don't consider it outside the realm of possibility. They may see themselves as needing some form of self-defence."

Snake rubs his face. This place is confounding, he thinks. The conjunction of worlds was borderless, fluid, defenceless—if not having a military was their idea of diplomacy, then he was beginning to have some doubts.

"Are we packed up?" he asks.

"Yes," Jigglypuff replies. "Carmen was a tremendous help, purchasing some supplies for us. This may sound funny, but I still feel like we owe a debt to this place. Either way, we are prepared to leave."

"Good. I'd like to leave by tomorrow morning, if we can get our transport in order."

"The robot?"

"Yeah. We've almost got the hang of it. You should try to rest as best we can before we leave. Something might come up en route."

"I was so caught up in our success that I never considered the possibility."

"Doesn't hurt to be cautious."

*.*.*.*.*

For the second night in a row, Roy finds that sleep evades him. He stares up at the ceiling of the doctor's house, following the cracks in the wooden boards in the hope that his consciousness might fall through. The carpeted floor of the house is comfortable enough, but his head swims with thoughts as if searching for something he's forgotten.

A small, round thing in his peripheral vision patters past. He sits up carefully, to keep from disturbing the others' rest, and sees Pichu leave the room. He follows the tiny mouse Pokémon until Pichu leaps up onto a moonlit window sill, staring into the depths of the forest.

"You can't sleep, either?" Roy whispers.

Pichu's ears prick up and he muffles a startled squeak. "No."

"Mind if I join you?"

"Of course not."

Roy sits with his back to the adjacent wall. They say nothing for a while, and neither does sleep grace their presence.

"I'm kinda worried for tomorrow," Pichu eventually admits, ears drooping back down. "I don't know how much help I will be. So far, I've only been a burden..."

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Roy replies. "There's bound to be something you can do that the rest of us cannot."

"I want to believe that, but it's hard. Aren't you worried? You're going first, after all."

"A little, but... you just need to keep trying, I guess. Even if you feel like you haven't done enough, you might end up inspiring other people instead."

"Oh." Pichu mulls on the idea for a little while, but it's hard to see himself in any useful, let alone inspiring, role. Instead, he chokes the growing feelings of self-doubt and asks, "What was it like being transformed? You looked scared when we found you…"

Roy has trouble finding the words. "I suppose it was like being asleep. Like in a dream you become completely accepting of everything, of a sequence of strange events that meld together amidst the absence of time. But there was an additional feeling, like your body and soul were being separated and if only you could, you could observe yourself from outside your body, and you know there's something wrong, but your mind won't complete the thought, and you're incapable of feeling uneasy—"

He realises he's rambling and stops, perturbed by his unusual lapse of self-control. "I'm sorry—I haven't frightened you, have I?"

Pichu drops his head a little. "Yes… no. I feel weird. Like, there's this instinctual fear in my gut of guts, yet at the same time it's as if I've heard it all before. It's a similar feeling to the one I had a few nights ago when I had this strange dream…"

The moonlight seems to flicker and refract. The room loses its earthly solidness for a brief second.

Roy loses his balance and braces himself against the wall.

"Are you okay?" Pichu asks from above.

Roy's gaze flickers upwards to see the tiny mouse on all fours, fur prickled and tense, but not focused on anything in particular.

"Yeah. You look startled."

"It was just a dizzy spell."

"That's what overcame me as well. Perhaps it's something about this place." He bristles at the thought.

Pichu shakes the tension from his body before leaping into Roy's lap.

"Do you mind?"

"Not at all."

Pichu turns around on the spot a few times before settling down. Roy leans back and begins to feel sleep lap at his consciousness. He strokes Pichu's fur, the short, stiff hairs affecting a strange, relaxing energy.

Finally, he drifts off, their breaths falling into synchronisation.

He and Pichu awaken the next morning with the words of a lost god on their tongues.


[1] To be clear, this story takes place after all the characters' adventures (games). Or somewhere between adventures if they've had more than one ;)

[2] Another OC from my novelisation! She's a journalist and friend of the Princess Zelda.

Guest replies:

Brick: I don't see any reason to exclude SSB4 characters from a sequel... except for the fact that I don't really know where to begin with it! A post-credits scene might be a good place to start brainstorming. There's a chance that a story with that many characters is not the one I want to write (there are better authors for that!). Thanks for the prompt and for reviewing!

Guest: That sounds about right. But I'm not going with the official lore so everyone who came from beyond the portals can become a trophy. Thanks for reviewing!

a/n: I've held onto this chapter for way too long and any remaining oversights are unfortunate but my own ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Have a nice day and feel free to review!