Mario
Luigi
Yoshi
Hammer Bro
Kirby
Metaknight
King Dedede
Fox
Falco
Krystal
Link
Waluigi
The moment Rebellion disappeared from view, the twelve who had taken on this mission were covered in complete darkness.
"Wait, it wasn't this dark when we were going into Rebellion," said Hammer Bro suspiciously. "What's going on?"
"The entrance closes after a few minutes," answered Link. "A small protection; if Rebellion were ever to be found, the army could never attack at once. The entrance would continuously be closed, forcing it to be opened."
"Smart," Falco muttered respectfully. "Cut the waves to make them easier to handle." He looked around and grimaced. "Anyone got a light?"
Link nodded, although he quickly remembered nobody could see him. He pulled a small lantern out of his pocket and tapped it, and it shined a small light. He looked at the size of the flame disappointedly.
"It looked more impressive when I last used it," he admitted.
"When was that?" asked Waluigi, chuckling. "When you were a kid?" Link ignored that remark and took the lead, holding the lantern outstretched.
"The moment we exit the tunnel, we sprint to the mountain," said Metaknight. "We can't stop for anything."
"We'll go as quickly as we can afford," Mario promised. "But if we need to slow down, we will."
King Dedede got the strange feeling that Mario was referring to him, so he harrumphed. "What's that supposed to mean?" he asked. "Everyone here is in top physical condition."
"I'm not," Falco said quickly. "I haven't run this much in years."
"We can't run as fast as Metaknight can glide," Mario explained. "Plus, the more people we gather, the slower we'll be able to travel. I want to make sure everyone understands that despite the urgency of this mission, the only goal is to get everyone through the realms together. If we have to stop, we will stop."
"We don't need to stop yet," said Metaknight simply.
"I think we should stop at the castle," suggested Link, looking behind at the others. "Make sure Zelda knows where we're going."
"Is it imperative?" asked Metaknight.
Link hesitated. "It might be."
"Then no."
"Metty, come on!" Kirby moaned, nudging him. "Let Link see Zelda again!" Metaknight ignored him, so he continued: "What's one detour?"
"The difference between saving a life and arriving a few minutes too late," Metaknight replied bluntly. "The person dies in your arms, and then the entire realm disappears."
"You act like you've done this before," noted Fox. "You're just speculating."
"Best to go in with that thought process; otherwise, you won't act as decisively as you should, and we will suffer."
"So we're going to suffer if we go to Zelda?" asked Link. "What if we suffer because we don't?"
It was Metaknight's turn to hesitate. Although the others took his silence as avoiding the question, and the conversation dropped, Metaknight thought about the consequences carefully for the duration of their travel. He was about to answer when Link brushed against the edge of the tunnel.
"We're here," he hissed, holding his arm out to prevent the others from running into him. He felt the wall for a movable rock, pushed it down, and stepped back as the tunnel entrance revealed itself once more.
The group covered their eyes, and the lantern was extinguished, as light bathed the tunnel once more. It was comforting to see a sky once again, to feel the wind breathing against their skin and the heat from the sun. To be able to breathe in clean air and see the stars barely shining through the clouds.
"I can't believe that place," Hammer Bro said, shaking his head and taking a cautious look behind him. "It was so… unnatural."
No one could disagree, but they kept their thoughts to themselves. None of them enjoyed Rebellion for its atmosphere, and few of them could appreciate its seclusion and secrecy.
Link turned to Metaknight. "Are we going to Zelda's castle?" He demanded.
"No," Metaknight said firmly, having weighed the consequences. "We move to the mountain quickly."
Link nodded, hiding his disappointment. He pushed his way through the brush, and when they were clear of the forest they sprinted across Hyrule Field.
They could see the battle going on in the distance. The army hadn't made it past the first layer of boulders; they were still stuck at the edge of the lake. Waluigi was relieved to see that nobody had found the entrance he had made, or perhaps it had collapsed once he passed. Either way, the war was confined to the small section of Hyrule Field, and the group's path was clear. They raced across the field, up the mountain path, and into the tunnel.
Three hours earlier…
Wario flopped onto the ground as soon as he reached the other side, scrambling away from the tunnel entrance and pushing himself as flat as he could against the hillside. His vision was blurring from the adrenaline, his breathing fast and heavy. He was sweating profusely, the liquid dripping into his eyes, but he couldn't feel the burning.
He had faced many obstacles in his life; he'd seen weapons of all kinds. But the machine gun fire that punctured Birdo and sprayed her blood over his face was something of nightmares. He saw her body jittering with each bullet in front of him and then collapsing onto the ground in a pool of blood. He heard the metallic roar of the gunfire echoing all around him, a screeching of pure terror surrounding and swallowing him.
Dry Bones was no less affected by the attack, having already been wounded by similar gunfire. He could still feel the phantom pain of the bullet slicing through his bone. He had leapt out of the tunnel and turned around to see if they were being followed.
It wasn't pure panic that had forced them to flee from the attack. In truth, the attack was only a catalyst for their escape. They had discussed separating ever since they had left the Star Fox base. Dry Bones had suggested that they would be better off on their own, and after being lied to for so long Wario happily agreed.
"Wario?" Dry Bones said cautiously after several minutes of silence had passed. Despite the danger having been over, Wario still jumped at the noise. "Wario, are you okay?"
Wario forced his breathing to slow, and he nodded. He stuffed the fear inside, putting on his tough façade. "I'm okay," he lied. "That was nothing compared to what I've been through."
Dry Bones eyed him warily. "Should we go back to the others? Are you having second thoughts?"
"No!" Wario shouted. "We're not going back!" He caught himself and quickly lowered his voice. "We can't go back. They'll call us cowards for running."
"Then we need to move onward," replied Dry Bones. He considered Wario carefully. "Do you have a plan?"
"Me? I don't know what I'm doing! It was your idea! Do you?"
"I do," Dry Bones answered. The calmness of his response would have made a more observant person wary. Wario, however, barely heard him. "Are you ready to go?"
"Of course I am!" Wario blurted as confidently as he could. "Lead the way!"
So Dry Bones started walking through the forest, and Wario followed him without a second thought. The pair traveled in silence for an hour, each one in his own thought. Wario didn't care in the slightest where they were going. He was only glad to be away from the soldiers firing on him. He was concerned that he had been affected so much by that one attack. Every step, he could see Birdo's body. Every step, he could feel the blood.
They exited the forest, and Wario stopped, suddenly fully aware of where they were. An entrance to Toad Town was only yards away. They could see a mixture of Bowser's minions and Master Chief's soldiers patrolling the streets side by side. The city was still in flames, and smoke billowed out of several smoldering houses. The sounds of death had faded, although the stench was still in the air.
"Why are we…" Wario sputtered, looking from the town to Dry Bones, who seemed unconcerned. Wario had been lost in his own thoughts and hadn't noticed the clues as to their destination. "Dry Bones! What are we doing here?"
He saw movement. A pair of Koopas waddling out of a side street. He didn't hesitate; he grabbed Dry Bones and jumped behind the nearest tree.
Dry Bones struggled to break free, but when he realized Wario's grip was too strong he grunted: "Release me!"
"Answer me!" Wario countered, glaring at him. "I thought you had a plan!"
"I do," Dry Bones answered, returning the glare. "We're going to find Bowser and join his army!"
"Join his…" Wario stared in shock. "Join Bowser's army?"
"Of course! How else do you plan on surviving? By following Mario and his lies, or by following the winner?"
"You think it will be that simple?"
Dry Bones scoffed. "For me? Absolutely. I'll move into his army without anyone noticing."
"For me?"
"For you?" Dry Bones repeated. "Maybe Bowser will be merciful."
"Or maybe," Wario narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "You're leading me to my death."
"There's only one way to find out what I'm leading you into."
Wario opened his mouth to reply, but Dry Bones noticed something behind him and raised his hands in the air. "Don't shoot!" He shouted in a panic. "Don't shoot!"
Wario dropped Dry Bones instinctively and turned around, seeing a pair of soldiers with their guns drawn. Leading them was a pair of Magikoopas, their wands at the ready.
"What do we have here?" One of the Magikoopas giggled childishly. "Wario returning from his place of safety?"
"Or perhaps he was left behind by Mario," The other added giddily. "After all, Mario could never stand him."
"Or maybe he just got lost trying to find his own way," suggested the first. "He never was one to follow someone blindly."
The second eyed Dry Bones stepping noticeably to the side. "Or maybe he did, and he was just realizing his mistake."
"Oooh!" The first clapped his hands. "Do you think Wario was learning a valuable lesson about trust?"
"Wario?" The second repeated curiously. "Learning a lesson? Are you sure we're talking about the same person?"
Throughout the Magikoopas's conversation, the soldiers' gaze had been flickering between Wario and Dry Bones and the pair of chatting minions. One of the soldiers finally had had enough, and he shouted: "Hey! What are we doing with them?"
"Why are they taking your orders?" Wario demanded, pointing. "They're the ones with the guns!"
"Because we have full control," the first Magikoopa laughed, waving his wand threateningly.
"Quit with the act," said the second soldier, also tired with the pair. "We wouldn't hesitate to shoot you if we weren't ordered not to."
The second Magikoopa turned back to the soldiers, glaring at them. "And we wouldn't hesitate to turn you into a block and smash you!" He snapped. "Don't forget who gives the orders."
"Not you," the second soldier retorted.
"Can I make a suggestion?" Dry Bones said hesitatingly. "Don't shoot us. Bring us to Bowser."
"Why would we waste our time with you?" The first Magikoopa, yawning exaggeratingly. "We should kill you and be done with it." His eye gleamed greedily, however, and Dry Bones noticed.
"Wario would be a handsome prize, and I as leader of the Dry Bones would help unify them with the rest of Bowser's troops," Dry Bones suggested. "We're both excellent prizes that – if you bring to Bowser and take credit with our capture – would result in incredible rewards for whomever takes credit."
The Magikoopas immediately turned to each other. "Soldiers!" Both shouted simultaneously. "Shoot him!"
The soldiers hesitated for the briefest of moments, and then they aimed their rifles at the Magikoopas and fired. Both minions were blasted, and both collapsed in a pool of blood. Dead, just like that.
Dry Bones' mouth dropped open in surprise, and Wario's face paled in fear. Wario looked down to his chest and saw more blood, and he suddenly felt like vomiting. He retched, dropping to his knees, and Dry Bones stepped in front of him, his arms held out.
"The offer still stands!" Dry Bones pleaded, as the soldiers aimed their weapons at him. "Take us to Bowser, and we can help his army."
"We don't care about Bowser or his army," said one soldier.
"It's war," the other said. "People die. You'll just be another casualty."
Dry Bones noticed something creeping up behind the soldiers, so he pushed his arms out one last time pleadingly. "Please just listen to me! You have to understand that Bowser would want us alive! The Magikoopas you just slaughtered were willing to kill each other just to get the reward for bringing us in. That means we're important enough to keep alive!"
"It's a compelling argument," the first soldier admitted. "But we have a job to do, and ferrying you two around would get in the way of that."
Dry Bones looked to the trees and gasped. "What are you doing!" He shouted to the trees.
The soldiers couldn't help but move their weapons in the direction of the forest, and that is when the attack came. Dry Bones charged from their right, and the hidden attackers came in from their left. Dry Bones ripped out two of his ribs, rushed over to the soldiers, and cracked them over their legs, bringing them to their knees. The hidden attackers pulled out large wooden mallets and dogpiled onto the stunned soldiers. The seven of them completely demolished them, whacking them again and again and again until the mallets were covered in blood and nothing remained of the soldiers' heads.
Wario had already accepted his death, and he looked up expecting the soldiers to be standing over several bodies. Instead, however, seven heroes had come to their rescue, and they were the ones standing triumphantly over their victims.
"I…" Dry Bones wanted to thank them, but even the sight of them made him nervous. "…You're alive?"
Ludwig Von Koopa stepped over the soldiers and raised his bloody mallet to Dry Bones' snout. "Don't think we killed these men because we wanted to save you. We don't. We've got our orders too. You're coming with us."
Master Chief got up from his seat once again, this time to look at the sun beginning its descent in the sky. It had been more than twelve hours since the scouts were sent, and six hours since the attacks had officially begun, and he still hadn't received an official report. He was wondering if all of his armies had been slaughtered, or even that they weren't planning on reporting.
The last thought brought a sudden feeling of doubt, and Master Chief's hand went down to his pistol. He looked at Cortana and asked, "Have you heard of dissent amongst the troops?"
Cortana considered the question carefully, knowing the implications. "I haven't heard of anything," she replied, and then she frowned. "Aside from those we weren't able to control."
"We were able to take care of all of them?"
"We terminated them all."
"Some may have slipped through," Master Chief muttered. The answer did nothing to assuage his concerns. He disliked how the soldiers had their own personalities; it added an unnecessary uncertainty. If they were simple robots that did nothing but follow orders, then he wouldn't have to concern himself with a potential coup. But those hundreds of soldiers who were still loyal to the last Commander still resulted in postponing the attack for months. Every soldier had to be inspected afterward, and as fast and as accurate as Cortana was able to process them, there was always the threat of a resurgence.
"No," Cortana said firmly. "I was thorough. None passed."
Master Chief nodded silently, noting the tinge of hurt in her voice. He turned back to the horizon, hoping to see a small speck in the distance returning. Some small sign that all of his efforts weren't wasted.
Cortana tapped against a digital sphere hovering in front of her. She spun it slightly, pressed a section of it inward, and moved her hand across the section. A small screen appeared in front of her, and as she peered at it her eyes widened. "Chief, it's Beta!"
He almost didn't believe her at first, but the seriousness of her expression told him that he was finally getting the status report he was hoping for. He took the device projecting Cortana off of the desk and inserted it into the slot in the back of his helmet. Cortana's image disappeared, becoming merely a voice inside Master Chief's head.
Master Chief turned to the door with his arms crossed, awaiting the knocks that indicated it was Beta. Three knocks rang against the door, then two, then three more.
"Come in," Master Chief called, and the door swung open.
An older man stepped into the nearly-empty room, walking slowly but with a purpose. As he entered, he removed his green cap and pressed it against the medals decorating his chest. His broad shoulders sighed with anticipation as he struggled to recall the news he was supposed to deliver. As always, he appeared unnerved at the lack of typical furniture decorating the room; having to cross such a large room to make it to a single desk struck him as unnecessary, but he was obliged to do so.
"I'm sure you know I have news, Commander," Beta rasped. His chest heaved from the struggle of walking up so many flights of stairs, and his eyes were tired from so many hours of working. Nevertheless, he stared at Master Chief with an air of admiration, something rare that the Commander appreciated.
"You always do," Master Chief replied. Beta was one of the few soldiers who stood out to him; he was one of his first allies upon entering the realm and was the first to stand by his side. That earned Beta a place at his side, a second-in-command of the armies. All soldier reports went to Beta first, and he was always capable of filtering out the unimportant to deliver to the Commander. "You took your time."
"I just got reports myself," Beta muttered. Adding with a hint of bitterness, "It takes a while to run thirty flights of stairs."
"You seem to accomplish it just fine."
"I hide it well, then," he chuckled. The smile dropped as quickly as it appeared, and he began the report: "All four fronts have reported their losses. The Pokémon attack was a complete failure; most men weren't able to reach the tunnel's exit. They report screeches from a powerful beast, followed quickly by a blast of white energy that completely evaporated them. Survivors are waiting for reinforcements at the tunnel entrance. They wanted to ask if you would advise them to go on the defensive."
"Not a single man made it through?"
"Not according to my reports. Hundreds went in, and all were slain."
Master Chief hesitated. Cortana whispered for him to advise them to wait, so he told the same to Beta.
"Right. The Fire Emblem front is much more successful; the initial attack allowed troops to establish a base around the tunnel. They're moving through the continent searching for Lucina. The Legend of Zelda front also established a base around the lake, but a large blockade covered by the enemy has halted all progress. They're currently fighting the enemy, but they're having a hard time."
Master Chief nodded. "And the Mushroom Kingdom realm?"
At that, Beta smiled satisfactorily. "They were completely overrun. The enemy was slaughtered, and the realm is ours. The Supreme General has already moved into the realm and has captured the large castle overlooking the world. Troops were able to infiltrate and conquer the Dreamland realm as well."
For the second time in so long, Master Chief was shocked. He had never expected a realm to fall so quickly. "You're positive?"
"I had multiple reports confirm it," answered Beta. "They also reported the tunnel leading to the Star Fox realm wasn't where it was rumored. They're still searching for it, but they've only found caves in the mountains."
Master Chief recalled the stinging pains he felt hours earlier. "They won't find the tunnels," he said. "Both of them were destroyed by the Triumphant Roar."
Beta hesitated. It was his turn to be surprised. "Were they able to transmit their reports to you directly?" He asked. "You said they weren't capable of communicating across realms."
"They aren't," Master Chief clarified. None of his soldiers knew what a Realm Representative was, or the connection they had with the world. Not even Beta understood. He had no intention of even hinting that he knew something they didn't about the world. To them, he was still just a soldier. "If the soldiers weren't able to find them, then they're gone."
Beta looked unconvinced, but he didn't comment. He put his hat back on his head and exited the room. As the door closed behind him, Master Chief removed the device and placed it back on the desk, and Cortana appeared once more.
"You're a fine actor," she said, smiling.
"I'm not convinced the Mushroom Kingdom realm truly fell," Master Chief said, looking at the map on the wall. "Mario escaped, and Metaknight escaped, or else Beta would've reported it as well. A realm cannot fall that easily. They've had months to prepare."
"That is for Bowser to deal with," said Cortana. "At the very least, we've forced Mario and Metaknight to go on the run. Perhaps they were forced into the Star Fox realm when the tunnels were destroyed."
Master Chief immediately discounted the possibility that any Realm Representative was trapped. He was already imagining the possible path they could've traveled. "The tunnels were destroyed hours apart. The Realm Representatives know where all of the tunnels are, and they had plenty of time to escape if there was the possibility that the Triumphant Roar could've fired again." Assumptions, admittedly, but with the enemy having multiple months to prepare he had to make them.
"The three of them are together," Master Chief concluded. He walked to his desk and pulled a stack of wanted posters out of a drawer. Posters drawn from intelligence gathered by scouts over the past several months. Names were printed at the top above a large picture of the person in question with his realm printed below. He placed three of them on top and put the rest away. "Mario, Metaknight, and Krystal are together." He paused for a moment, thinking.
Cortana looked at the posters as well. "They're so different," she noted. "They have to stand out if they venture into other realms."
"They won't let themselves get discovered."
Cortana looked up at him. "You may be overvaluing their abilities. I doubt they were all trained in stealth and concealment."
"Better to overvalue than undervalue," Master Chief reasoned. "They will do whatever they can to prevent capture. They likely retreated to the adjoining realms." He pointed to the Pokémon and the Legend of Zelda realms.
Cortana started to see his logic. "They're traveling across realms to gather Realm Representatives?"
"They're forming a resistance," he confirmed. He pointed to the Metroid realm. "If they go south, they will be able to establish a secure base in this realm. They'll have a greater shot at survival."
"But Beta reported that not a single soldier could break through the Pokémon realm's defenses," Cortana recalled. "They will be able to establish another base there."
Master Chief nodded, feeling a rush of excitement and nerves. The Mushroom Kingdom realm was abandoned, but it was a tactical retreat. The realm didn't truly fall. The Realm Representatives were still alive and free. They were running, but they were running with a purpose.
"Cortana, send a message to Beta," Master Chief commanded. "Tell the troops to attack south. Send the majority of our forces to the Mushroom Kingdom and Fire Emblem realms, and send them across the Metroid and Legend of Zelda realms. Break the lines and cut off one of their paths. If the Pokémon realm is untouchable, then we have to refocus our efforts."
He felt a tinge of satisfaction as he watched Cortana messing with the sphere. A few seconds later, Cortana looked up at him. "The message was sent."
"Good." He had made his move. It was the enemy's turn to respond.
