Captain Falcon's Theatre (pt.1): Before the Grand Prix
And now, here comes Falcon's theatre. Let's see what the good captain and his teammates will be encountering within Port Town's perimeters.
Darkness has been around since the beginning of time…
It is the shadow that appears in the presence of a bright glow…
It is vital to the functions of the worlds, bringing about a gentle shade when the light becomes too harsh…
It brings a cooler wind to counterbalance the sun's heat…
It and light are opposites of each other, with each one representing what the other is not…
For peaceful harmony to be achieved, the two forces must be in balance with each other…
Therefore, the darkness cannot be eradicated, contrary to the beliefs of some…
While it is generally agreed upon that the balance should not be tampered with, evil forces have often sought to go against the laws of nature by expanding upon the darkness…
Such efforts have brought nothing but death and decay…
And it has often led to punishment by the light itself…
The red and black roses are opposites of each other, but without one, the other cannot exist…
"Hang tight," Captain Falcon announced. His hands were tightly gripping the Falcon Flyer's steering handles to keep straight. The portal was, for reasons unknown, exerting erratic forces that threatened to destroy all control and thus, cause chaos inside. King Dedede, the massive, penguin-like ruler of Dream Land, struggled to maintain a solid grip on his hammer; the unpredictable motion was causing the weapon to be heavier than it was, effectively forcing a bit of strain onto his body. The others grasped the handles of their seats very tightly.
Whoosh…!
As the airborne vehicle exited the portal, a new, majestic sight presented itself to all who were staring at the front end. In the distance was a city of futuristic design, with its technology being ages ahead of most other worlds. The skyscrapers were sleek and powerful, and a few of them could touch the very top of the troposphere. Clouds were very scattered and few, leaving the area below them soaked in the beautiful colors of the morning sky. The streets were bustling with hundreds, if not thousands, of vehicles and were further illuminated by animated signs placed several meters into the air. Off to the west was an ocean; currently, it was a dark blue because the sun's rays were not touching it. The watery domain seemed largely plain, possessing few objects that were bound to it, permanently or otherwise. One such object was a small archipelago located a significant distance away.
But the most noticeable thing about the city was a racing field suspended in midair. Compared to the courses of Mario Kart, it was very large, stretching over a huge part of the urban area and being much wider to compensate for the size of the F-Zero machines. With the sole exception of the racer himself, all were mesmerized when their eyes became glued to the hovering structure.
"Welcome to Port Town," Falcon sighed calmly.
"It's nice to get a view of the real thing, unlike the simulated stage at the Smash Mansion," Dedede commented while pulling on his red robe, which partially covered a kimono-like uniform underneath.
"Poyo," Kirby chirped, seemingly in agreement with the greedy king. He then leaped out of his seat to indulge himself in the serene view. He was careful enough not to step on any of the ship's controls by accident, and his small body only aided him in this rather short endeavor.
"Well, everything seems pretty normal around here," Red muttered. His attire resembled that of other male Pokémon Trainers of his region, with light blue trousers, a red cap with a white half-circle on the front, a collared shirt with black on the sleeves and red on the torso, and red shoes with black details. On his back was a bag that was handy in storing important items, including the valuable Poké Balls. The young man himself was blessed with brown eyes and moderately dark brown hair.
"It does seem that way," Falcon replied. "However, we still have to keep our guards up. For all we know, the Lords could be lurking quietly around every corner."
"Jiggly," Jigglypuff squeaked. The balloon-like Pokémon was reminiscent to Kirby in body shape and color, although the top of its face was decorated with a tuff that resembled a hair curl and its blue-green eyes were rounder in shape. As the Falcon Flyer approached the streets, the bright glow of the busy streets slowly began to overwhelm the sky's more subdued illumination. Common noises on the streets, ranging from active vehicles to electronic signs, were increasing in volume, though this event was not very noticeable because of the air machine's isolated interior.
"Get ready to disembark," Falcon ordered. The racer directed his vehicle towards the rear of a medium-sized building, where there was no traffic to be found. As soon as all motion had died down, a portion of the bridge's floor extended downwards to create an exit for all those inside. The captain quietly led his group outside and when the departure was completed, he returned to activate the Falcon Flyer's auto-pilot function, but before he could…
Beep! Beep! Beep!
"It looks like I've just received a call from someone," the captain grunted. Tapping on a blue button located next to the primary monitor, he was greeted with a faint amount of static from the speakers. This noise did not last long and was soon replaced by a familiar voice…
"Captain Falcon, can you hear me?" the caller questioned. His voice was moderately deep, but possessed a degree of warmness that often was associated with friendliness.
"Doctor Stewart," the captain replied. "It's been awhile since I've talked to you. What do you need?"
"Recently, I've been getting reports of strange activity within Port Town, all of them having to do with unidentified figures hanging around a condemned building in the suburbs. I can't tell much right now because someone might be listening in to our conversations. Come meet me by the dance club in Downtown; I'll give you more details there."
"Yeah, I'll be on my way. Besides, I got a few things to tell you as well." After finishing his conversation, Falcon engaged his vehicle's auto-pilot function and returned to the other Smashers. A distinct whoosh echoed across the landscape as the Falcon Flyer made its retreat to the captain's solitary base.
"What do you think we should do now?" Red asked, twirling a Poké Ball on one of his fingers.
"We have to go see Doctor Stewart," Falcon answered. "He says he's been getting reports of strange activity within the city, which may a clue for getting the staff piece."
"I have a feeling that the strange people in the city are likely members of the Lords," Peach muttered. The crowned Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom was recognizable by her pink dress, detailed to the full extent of regal beauty. On the top of her blonde hair was a crown that symbolized her status as a member of the royal family. Her face was smooth and clean while her eyes shined with the color of the oceans. Her hands were coated with white gloves as well as a ring on one of the fingers.
"In either case, we better get going."
Strolling down the streets, the Smashers were surrounded by neon lights, people from various worlds, and vehicles soaring by. There was no room for rest; everything was moving at a constant pace with very few stops and the noises ensured that sleep would not be a possible option in a busy place like this. Such was the experience of a common commuter, as Falcon was so kind to remind himself, and with millions of people around, it was unlikely that anything would change by a drastic amount, if at all. After the Smashers passed under a bridge, most of them noticed that the buildings were becoming taller and taller, becoming more imposing with each step. By the time they reached the downtown district, the sky was being touched by the distant rooftops. The F-Zero course mixed in with this sight to give the impression of a pseudo-skyline in the upper troposphere.
"Damn, if they didn't look huge before, they certainly look huge now," Dedede gasped. As soon as he stopped speaking, a series of faint beeps played from R.O.B.'s body.
"Agreed," the machine spoke. The former Ancient Minister was mostly tan in color, though there were several areas which were colored red, such as a lone horizontal line crossing the top of his base or his arms. A coiled cord connected the upper body to the base while his head was decorated with a red, minuscule light on the top. His eyes were dark, mechanical holes equipped with enhanced vision capabilities.
"Whoa, I nearly forgot about your voice upgrade from two weeks ago."
"I guess you're not used to him speaking," Falcon muttered. By this point, the Smashers were within range of their destination: a sleek, flashy building with neon lights attached to the front.
"Let's see we the doctor has in store for us," Red chirped. As he and the others stepped inside, they were introduced to a scene of typical bar-related activities, which included noticeable bouts of drunkenness and rowdiness over F-Zero replays and live sports. Loud dance music boomed from massive speakers and nearly shattered the eardrums of each Smasher. The center of the building was an open area where colorful, hyperactive characters danced until their bodies gave out from fatigue. A slight scuffle was taking place in one corner, but with hundreds of people in the way, Falcon could not get a clear sight of the belligerents. The far side of the area was a bar filled with numerous alcoholic beverages for many to drink. This was a place of rowdy extroverts, filled with people who would often socialize very frequently and speak about miscellaneous subjects, sometimes in a drunken or hard manner. Along the way, Falcon easily recognized a few of the occupants to be F-Zero racers, among them Doctor Stewart. The pilot of the Golden Fox was a middle-aged man with neat hair of brown coloring and a suit of yellow with blue stripes, complete with a red tie.
"Over here!" he called out. On cue, the Smashers approached his table, which was far off from the center area. As they situated themselves into classy chairs of leather, they patiently waited for the full details.
"So what's been going on in Port Town?" Falcon asked.
"To start, I initially attempted to contact you earlier this week," Stewart answered, "But upon realizing that you were still doing some work with the Smash Brothers, I decided to wait it out until your vehicle's signal could be reached. Now, as I've said before, there have been some strange reports in the news about a few unknown figures gathering inside and around a condemned building for the past two months; a few reports even claimed that there were strange lights coming from inside. No one is sure who these people are or what their intentions might be, but I have a feeling that we're dealing with something potentially dangerous."
Falcon pulled his scarf to the side. "Has anyone tried to get near the area?"
"Yes, but those that do end up disappearing altogether."
"Show me the reports."
"Will do." As the good-willed doctor brought up the reports on his miniature tablet, the pilot of the Blue Falcon waited patiently for whatever information was awaiting him. It was likely that the strange activity was something that would be caused by some of the city's shadier characters, no doubt about it, but if it had to anything with the current adventure, then there would be ample room for searching. The others, also filled with anticipation, gathered around in a half-circle.
"Here they are," Stewart muttered. He turned his tablet around for the sake of feeding the Smashers information.
"Lots of reports, I see," Dedede grunted. His eyes were locked onto the paragraphs that made up each visible report, all of which served to fill his mind with knowledge… and a slight amount of boredom. From his perspective, the reports all seemed similar, with little to no difference between each of them. Hopefully, something interesting would come out of this, he pondered. But in an unexpected twist of luck, there was indeed something noteworthy. One of the reports contained a low-quality photo of the site; the details were generally muddled by noise and blurriness, but there was one thing just simply could not be obscured.
"Hey, I see a guy with a robe on him," he commented. "You can see it too, right?"
"Yes, I can," Stewart answered, observing the dull picture.
"Just as I thought…" Falcon added. "The Lords are here in this city. I don't know how they made entry without drawing any attention, but they're here."
Stewart's eyebrows rose at the captain's statement. There was indeed a potential threat, but he needed more details before he could fully comprehend the situation. "Wait. Explain to me who the so-called "Lords" are."
"The Orm's Lords are a group of dark cultists that seek to revive an evil creature called the Svärtad Orm. This snake-like being has been responsible for causing mass destruction and death wherever it went, leaving almost nothing standing. It was eventually sealed away by an ancient hero with the Staff of Björn, a weapon of pure light that has been split into five pieces. One of the fragments is in this city. We need to get it before the Lords do; otherwise, chaos will break out again like it did millennia ago."
"Who told you this?"
"We were given the information by a mysterious woman named Lillian Åkerfeldt. She came to us because she was looking for heroes to assist her in keeping the Svärtad Orm sealed."
"That's interesting to know. Now, I would help you in finding the staff piece, but since there is no clue in regards to its location, I'm afraid you'll have to find it on your own. I can, however, assist you in dealing with the Lords."
"Good. We're going to need all the help that we can-"
But his sentence trailed off as soon as he noticed a poster pasted on the nearest wall. Slowly standing up, he wandered away from the table, passing up a few abhorrently drunk occupants. When his approach was finished, he examined whatever details that awaited him. By a stroke of pure luck, the poster was a flyer for an upcoming F-Zero competition. The text present was large, blocky, and colored like clouds on a sunny day; additionally, it read the following message:
SIGN UP NOW!
F-Zero Platinum Cup
$5 Million For First Place
$2 Million For Second Place
$1 Million For Third Place
DON'T MISS OUT!
The background was a flashy mix of turquoise and white stripes, which darkened when going from center to edge; it somewhat reminded the captain of a circus tent, barring the different coloring. At the very center was an object that only the best racers received when completing a Grand Prix: a trophy. This one appeared to be composed of platinum, not counting the gold plating at the front of the base, and was decorated handles on the sides. Above the grasping areas were wings that seemed quite angelic in appearance; attached to the rest of the trophy via extensions that plugged into holes, they were quite large and spread out, almost giving off the impression that the piece of victorious memorabilia could fly. But that was not all.
Just beneath the diamond was a set of wings; the wings were rather angelic in appearance and were a sign that the staff was a weapon of holy power, designed to banish virtually all traces of evil whenever it was used…
"So," Falcon muttered, "One of the wings is the staff piece…" Not wasting anymore time, he strolled back to Stewart's table to let out all newly-discovered information.
"What were you doing over there?" Dedede grunted.
Falcon sat back down onto his chair. "Here's some interesting news for you guys; the staff piece is actually a part of the first-place trophy for the upcoming F-Zero Platinum Cup. I'm not entirely certain if the Lords are already aware of this, nor am I sure as to how the piece ended up where it is now, but I'm signing up for the Grand Prix as soon as we leave this piece."
"You seem awfully certain about this," the doctor interjected. "The woman that you mentioned earlier definitely had something to do with your knowledge of the whole situation."
"She certainly has. Now, we must get moving as soon as possible."
Stewart stood up. "Wait, before we head out, I would to know the identities of your teammates here."
"No problem," Dedede chirped. "I'm King Dedede, the ruler of Dream Land, though not many people think of me as such."
"Jigglypuff!" the Balloon Pokémon exclaimed.
"Name's Red," the trainer sighed. "I'm a Pokémon Trainer."
"Kirby!" the puffball squeaked.
"I am Robotic Operating Buddy Model 996-XA," the robot said in a computerized voice. "You may call me R.O.B."
"And I'm Peach, Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom," the royal added.
With nothing else to say, the group exited the chaotic bar with no problem. As Doctor Stewart began calling down his vehicle through his tablet, Falcon linked up his helmet to the Internet to register for the Grand Prix. A computerized display appeared over his vision in an instant, revealing a full browser much like the one Stewart's tablet possessed. Using his fingers to navigate, he reached the official F-Zero website, where the option of online registration was at. As he proceeded to enter all necessary information, Stewart's vehicle began approaching from one side of the road.
"Our ride is here," the doctor announced before stepping inside. His mode of transportation was a gold, hi-tech car that utilized gravity diffusers to stay afloat. There were no wheels on the underside, much like the F-Zero machines, but there were thrusters on the back to provide the necessary propulsion. The hood was decorated with red stripes that stretched across the full length, and the front was equipped with blue-white headlights that had the brightness to potentially blind someone.
"Poyo," Kirby ordered, with the others following him into the vehicle.
Far away from the hustling and bustling of Port Town's central area, an abandoned building stood was stuck in relative solitude, only connected to the rest of a quiet suburb by a dirt trail. The meters-long concrete road from years ago had been removed, leaving only a small frame that surrounded the exposed earth. No lights were present except for the rising sun, as there were no vehicles passing by or fixed posts set to assist with driving. A fence surrounded the area, but it was beaten and the verge of breaking down. The building itself was a small factory that had been shut down at an unspecified time for reasons forgotten by many. The sign at the front was rusted and mostly illegible, save for a few letters and numbers; at closer glance, the sign said this:
F- ER MA U ACT RI PL T #3 7
Most of the windows were dirty and provided no visibility to what was still inside, but a few of them were broken or, at the very least, cracked. Small glass shards littered the floor like fallen bits of transparent hail, with some standing up to provide pain for unlucky passerby. Whatever lights were present on the exterior were now inactive, which only complimented the darker scenery. The doors were sealed shut to prevent anyone from accessing the interior; there was an exception to this, however…
"The materials that you have requested are en route to our location," one robed figure, a Lord, sighed. "They should arrive within the next hour."
"Excellent, excellent!" another person, possessing a deep, demonic voice, cackled. His figure was very difficult to discern because of the low lighting, but his outline was visible enough to give off an intimidating aura to anyone who was unlucky enough to cross his path. The man himself was very large and bulky, in stark contrast to the rest of the Lords, and possessed a constant grin of twisted joy, his mouth rarely showing any other expression. His outer clothing was a black robe with a red serpent-like logo on the front, much like Agnetha and Lars, but his copy was larger to accommodate for his greater mass.
"So, what are your next orders, my captain?" The subordinate braced himself for his leader's response.
"Lay low and continue your normal operations for now," was the response. "I will head to the F-Zero Grand Prix for registration purposes. The first-place trophy for the event should have the staff piece attached to it."
"And how would you know?"
The captain let out a disgruntled sigh before continuing. "You are truly a forgetful imbecile at times… Do you remember the image that our leader revealed to us? If you compare that to the posters that are currently promoting the Grand Prix, it should be no surprise to you that the left wing on the trophy is identical to that of the staff. How it came to be on such a shining piece of decoration is unknown, but that matters little to us. Once I win the race, we will be one step closer to reviving our mighty savior."
"And if you lose…?"
"If I feel that I am losing the event, you will have my permission to interfere. I will not allow anyone to stand in my way."
"Acknowledged; just say the word and we will assist you to the fullest of our abilities."
The behemoth unleashed a deep, maniacal fit of laughter. "Glad to hear it! Now, the Grand Prix is tomorrow, so stay on guard once I am away. Understood?"
"I understand. I will inform the others about this." As the dark person finished speaking, his commanding officer departed from the building without a trace. This truly was an amazing thing of him, along with the Lords in general; with helpful magic and the ability to enter a low-profile state at any given time, a smart Lord could remain invisible for long periods of time. When the time was ripe, a devastating attack would unravel, with death and carnage being nearly unpreventable. He was, of course, aware of this due to past experiences. With nothing else to do, he slowly strolled back into the building.
Nearby, the trusty vehicle of Doctor Stewart soared over the dirt trail and eventually froze in place at the area where the parking lot used to reside at. The engine slowly died down as Stewart, Falcon, and the others stepped out into the desolate area, with a small amount of light from the sun to boost visibility. The clouds in the sky were starting to increase in size and number, but not enough to where the daylight would be completely blocked out.
"Stay on your best guard," Falcon muttered. "We don't know much about the Lords in terms of offensive power… or anything for that matter."
"Gotcha," Dedede whispered. The others simply nodded in agreement before starting their cautious travel towards the abandoned factory. Nervousness, though mostly hidden, was present in some of the members, mainly because they had no clue as to what the Lords were capable of. And now that their minds were glued to this subject, another thought suddenly sprang up; for some reason, with the obvious exception of Stewart, Lillian did not explain to them about the true potential of the dark organization, which could prove to be devastating, if not outright fatal. It was likely that she had forgotten to warn the Smashers, which was the case that Falcon was hoping for. Hopefully, he was correct.
"Puff…?" Jigglypuff squeaked, slightly nervous. As the group entered the building, absolute darkness began to swallow up whatever previous visibility was present, with the process being complete via the closing of open doors. Of course, the power was offline and the windows were so soiled with dirt that they offered no light from the rising sun. There was nothing discernable whatsoever. It was also dead silent to the point where some of the heroes could hear their hearts beat more easily.
"Poyo…" Kirby whispered, unable to wander around the factory without assistance.
"Activating LED flashlights," R.O.B. announced. In a split second, his eyes sprayed a white light that stretched across a small part of the desolate building's main area. The interior was plagued with dirt and rust, which contrasted with the sleek, cleanly appearance of Port Town's skyscrapers, and was filled with machinery that had been left to decay for decades, if not centuries. Assigned to stations, mechanical arms hanged overhead and were stretched out, as if they were trying to establish contact with something down below. There were consoles for each arm, but none of them were functional; if fact, some of them appeared to be damaged from an unknown force. Beneath each station was a teleporter meant to transport the heavy F-Zero machines to another part of the factory. On the far side was an assortment of boxes, most likely containing vehicle parts.
"Not the place I would want to be in," Peach sighed, dusting off the skirt of her dress. The princess had long resided in an elegant home, not counting any of her years at the Smash Mansion, so it was only natural for her to react negatively to such a neglected place.
"Same here," Stewart agreed. As he spoke, he nearly tripped over a wire that attached itself to one of the consoles. Quick reflexes were the only things that saved him. "Although, I guess this is where the so-called Lords would prefer to work-"
Thump…
"Stop," Falcon ordered, immediately reacting to the sudden noise. "I hear something. Did you hear it too?"
"Poyo," Kirby replied in the negative.
"I don't hear anything," Red added, retaining a tight grip on a Poké Ball. "It might be just something messing with your head, though I could be wrong."
"Enhancing microphones to maximum performance," R.O.B. spoke. He then began a sweep across the factory's ground level, hoping to single out whatever was creating the faint sound. As the thump echoed again, his sensors began to react but just barely. Even as his head twisted in all directions, which was accompanied by him strolling a short distance away from the group, there was just nothing in plain sight. Meanwhile, the others began to follow him to provide protection if he was ever to be attacked.
Thump…
"Source confirmed," R.O.B. beeped. "The sound is emerging from the second floor."
"Let's head up there," Dedede grunted. Falcon and R.O.B. guided the group towards a rusted stairway that led up to the second floor, hoping to uncover the source of the sound. As all ascended into the second floor, their noses were suddenly beginning to inhale a foul scent in the air.
"Jiggly…puff," the air-filled Pokémon puffed. "Puff… Puff-Jiggly."
"I sure hope we don't run into whatever's creating that scent," Red muttered, shielding his nose as he spoke. As the doors placed at the very end were open, the scent only grew stronger, forcing all travelers except for R.O.B. to squeeze their noses as tight as possible. The reverberation of the main hall disappeared when the smaller environment of the hallway began to assume dominance, which only intensified the silence from before. Jigglypuff began to tremble as nyctophobia started to invade its mind, overtaking its usually relaxed body. It, out of instinct, chose to remain close to R.O.B., for he was the only light-bringer in the vicinity. Dedede grasped his hammer tightly and increased his normally low vigilance, anticipating danger.
"I just can't help but think that something died in here," the doctor commented. "I hope I'm wrong…" But not one second had passed before a response was made to his comment.
"No, you're right," was Falcon's answer. He released a hand from his nose to point at the nearby ground. "Look at this."
"Oh man," Red gasped, "That does NOT look pleasant." A few meters away, there were bloodstains on the ground. Some of them appeared to be recent, but most of them were rather old, having been around for a few weeks at most. As the group closed in, it was revealed that there were more stains all over the environment, with some even reaching all the way up to the ceiling. Jigglypuff, now feeling more unnerved than before, began to shield its eyes to avoid being permanently traumatized by the dark imagery. Kirby and Dedede were starting to become nervous, fearing the possible carnage that was up ahead. Falcon simply stared around in surprise, as did Stewart, Peach, and Red.
"My goodness," Peach muttered. "What happened here?"
Falcon opened one of the doors, which led into a room that had been previously vacated by the original owners. Inside was a table that had a corpse lying down on it; it was severely decayed due to the amount of time between its death and now, with its skin being a rotten brown and hair almost gone, and was split in half at the waist. Entrails were spread across the table, with some of them even coming close to touching the floor. Though it was initially hard to notice, a swarm of ants was attacking the exposed organs. The wrists and ankles were restrained by chains, designed to prevent any sort of escape. As with the hallway, blood was present in heavy amounts.
"Puff!" Jigglypuff gasped, nearly tripping as it stumbled backwards.
"What the…?!" Red added. The unexpected sight of the gory mess was very unnerving to him, as he had never witnessed anything this violent within his own world; even the most brutal of Pokémon battles now appeared to be tame in comparison. There had to be a reason why this poor man was severely torn apart.
"How long do you think this man has been dead?" Falcon asked of Stewart.
"I would say a few weeks, give or take," the doctor replied. As he spoke, he approached the site of the slaughter to gather further details, but he also kept his distance to avoid the ants. The cause of death seemed obvious, with the bisection in consideration. Someone had locked the man down before taking something long and sharp to cut away at his waist, resulting in what he was witnessing now. The murderer's exact motives were unknown for the moment, but the fact that the execution was so violent led to assumptions that singled out either sadism or extreme anger… or both. Strolling over to the face, Stewart attempted to deduce the victim's identity, even though the face was horribly rotten. Nothing appeared to be distinctive… until he remembered a four-week-old report from the news.
As Doctor Stewart continued to watch the news channel, one topic immediately stood out from all the rest.
"We have reports of yet another disappearance within the city's boundaries," the anchorman announced. "Last week, twenty-five-year-old Adrian Landon went missing while he, per his wife's statement, was returning from a business trip to Mute City. The spouse, who has chosen to remain anonymous, stated that Landon was communicating online with her over the details of his trip when he was apparently interrupted by what he claimed to be a strange light coming from within a decrepit building. His efforts to investigate have ended in his transmission being abruptly cut off by an unknown force-"
As the anchorman continued to speak, the image of a younger man with brown hair appeared. Stewart simply stared on in both interest and confusion. What was causing all these disappearances?
"Hold on," he muttered. "This man is one of the people that went missing over the past few weeks."
"No way," Red replied.
"I wonder why the Lords wanted this poor man dead," Peach whispered. "I mean, it's not like this person was killed for no reason at all. We should look for clues to find out what the murderer wanted."
"You're right, Princess," Falcon commented, cracking his knuckles together. "We should do that, but we need to be careful. For all we know, whoever did this could still be in this building."
"Let's move," Stewart commanded. The travel through the offices was marked by more scenes of death, made possible by various methods like lynching, burning, bludgeoning, quartering, and vice versa. All the corpses identified were those of the missing persons, thanks to Stewart's sharp memory, but nothing else appeared to present itself. The foul scent only intensified the further the adventurers explored, and it soon became so harsh that it nearly provoked vomiting in some. The very end of the hallway was marked by a mahogany-colored door isolated from all the others. Entering the room, the heroes realized that there was, rather surprisingly, no carnage at all, not even mere bloodstains on the walls. Instead, there was a greenish table resting comfortably at the wall, complete with a small lamp.
"Let's check out that table," Falcon grunted. As he and the others gathered around the lone piece of furniture, it was realized that there were three cabinets, with one of them being twice as large as the other two. Inside the topmost one, there was only a pen visible to the group: not the modern-day variant, but rather, a white feather with what appeared to be black ink at the tip. The middle contained a sharp knife with dried blood on it; Falcon was quick to assume that this was one of the many weapons used to butcher those lying motionless in the office rooms. But what truly captured the attention of all present was hidden inside the bottom cabinet.
"Looks like a journal," Red commented. The book in front of him was composed of brown leather and was held closed by a button-on seal, with white pages spanning the full thickness of the larger object. Picking it up, the trainer unbuttoned the seal and proceeded to flip to the first few pages. There was writing present in the form of individual entries, but…
"I can't read this," he moaned. "It's written in a foreign language. R.O.B., can you translate this?"
"Translating now," R.O.B. answered. While the machine's eyes deciphered every word of the journal entries, the two puffballs leaped up to the tabletop to watch the action. A blue glow shined over the book and provided a cool shade of relief that contrasted with the dark environment, especially with the blood in the middle cabinet. The blood itself now appeared as black due to the absorption of the colored light. A few minutes were forced to pass before the former Ancient Minister had a full translation ready, which, as expected due to the combined length of the entries, was fairly long.
"Translation complete," R.O.B. chirped. "First journal entry…"
We are now within the boundaries of Port Town, one of the many locales for the racing competition known to the locals as "F-Zero". All required equipment for the search has been prepared and will be used shortly afterward. Our presence is currently obscured from the millions of people, faithless ones at heart, living inside a city of the future; the leader has ordered us to avoid attracting any unwanted attention, which is different from most of the other groups, since they have been ordered to initiate a more aggressive approach. He once stated to me that he was doing this as something of an experiment to see whether the passive group is superior to the active one. However, I am already beginning to feel a murderous urge from within, which I hope to keep in check out of respect for my master…
"Second entry…"
We have now been stationed in the city for a week now, but our searches have been… less than successful. Port Town's massive size has proven to be more of a problem than I initially thought, as progress so far has been slow. However, the members of the stealth squadron are lucky enough to vanish at will, for if that was not the case, they would have been captured or even killed a long time ago. I can imagine the Svärtad Orm desperately trying to free itself from its prison, constricted by mystical chains that prevent escape. In due time, it shall be free. As a final note, my servants have been seeing flashes in the distance. What is causing them is beyond me, but I hope that this is not the work of an intruder...
"Third entry…"
After three weeks, someone has finally decided to explore our hideout. My best assumption is that he wandered into the area and was very curious to explore the building that we call our secondary residence. Regardless of his motives, I had him executed since I cannot afford to have anyone expose us; this event also certainly has aided my thirst for blood. Our action may arouse suspicion within the populace, but I do not anticipate law enforcement officials to raid our place anytime soon.
"Fourth entry…"
It has been a month since we entered Port Town, and we still have no clue where the damn staff piece is. My assigned soldiers have been searching all over the city as well as its suburban extensions, but luck has not been on our side. We also had to deal with the problem of more fools discovering our hideout; they must have gotten more suspicious since the first few killings. Our leader grows more impatient by the minute and promises punishment if we fail to retrieve the piece. I do not blame him; the city is very large, larger than even the most magnificent city of our own world. Boredom is beginning to overtake me, but I will not stop until the Holy Serpent is revived… and neither will my leader…
"Fifth entry…"
Luck has suddenly decided to present itself in the form of an F-Zero competition set to take place in three days. The first-place trophy is what I need; after cross-referencing it with an image of the Staff of Björn, I have reason to believe that one of the trophy's wings is what my leader needs to complete the artifact and revive the Svärtad Orm. I will register for the competition as soon as possible so that I can take the trophy not just for myself, but for the Orm's Lords. Should my initial plan fail, I will launch a full-scale attack on the city. After two months of endless searching, I shall not disappoint the leader again, especially since I have revealed the piece's location to him.
"End translation."
"Whoever wrote this journal has been doing some serious business," Dedede sighed. "If we can find this guy, we might be able to cripple the group of Lords hiding in this city. The problem is: where can we hope to find him?"
"Beats me," Red replied. "I don't think he's in here, though, unless I'm forgetting something important. Since there's nothing else to explore, let's just get outta here and prep up for tomorrow."
"Poyo," Kirby squeaked. Following his lead, the others proceeded to leave the room and head back to Stewart's vehicle, but as soon as they emerged from the doorway…
SLAM!
"What the?!" Dedede yelped in surprise. There was not enough time after his statement for the others to speak up, for all the other doors, previously left open, were slammed shut by themselves. All the Smashers braced themselves for a dangerous situation while Stewart remained motionless. Something was chillingly wrong, and this belief was further proven when a strange voice began echoing throughout the hall.
"Intruders…" the voice hissed. "You have fallen right into our trap, and now, you shall be punished for your actions…"
"Who are you supposed to be?" Falcon grunted. "Are you associated with the Lords?"
"You are correct, and it is the Lords that will bring about your untimely demise…" The hidden speaker's voice was that of an elderly woman, cursed with dark, menacing overtones. Its origin was extremely close to Captain Falcon, almost as if the woman was standing right next to him.
"Poyo!" Kirby angrily chirped, preparing for battle. After he spoke, the room began to glow a very dark purple. The speaker uttered these final words before the battle truly began:
"Kill them…"
CHINK! ZAP!
Without any warning, two blasts of magic, one icy and one electrical, soared at the adventurers with ridiculous speed. Jigglypuff was unable to avoid the first projectile, leaving part of its body frozen, while the second struck Dedede in a failed attempt at deflection. Wasting no time at all, Falcon immediately launched a counterattack at his foes.
WHOOSH!
"Falcon Kick!" he shouted. As he rushed forward, his extended leg was coated in flames, threatening to sear whatever was in front of him, invisible or not. Surely enough, one foe was hammered by the powerful blow. The now-exposed enemy was a male clad in a dark suit that spanned from head to toe. The suit appeared to be composed of a softer material that provided some comfort and was equipped with a visor that obscured the man's face. As the victim was struck in the gut, he let out a loud howl of pain as his suit began to catch fire.
"Squirtle, go!" Red shouted, tossing one of his Poké Balls to the floor. Emerging from the device was the red-eyed Tiny Turtle Pokémon itself, its skin colored an aqua blue and a shell around the larger part of its body. Following Red's orders, it utilized Surf, a far-reaching tidal wave that successfully knocked a few opponents into the farther part of the hallway. Compounding this was Peach's descent into sadness; while both friend and foe were initially confused by this sudden change in behavior, they soon realized that she was only strengthening Squirtle's ongoing attack by adding a stream of tears large enough to partially flood the area.
"Let's see if they can handle some Gordos," Dedede snickered. He then launched at least four Gordos, living spheres of with spikes on their bodies, into the soaked crowd of newly-exposed hostiles, all of them dressed identically to the burned man. Most of them inflicted noticeable damage, but one was deflected, nearly cutting Red's right shoulder in the process. A magical blade was launched right into Falcon and successfully struck his upper abdomen, but the racer momentarily overcame his pain to uppercut another foe. Kirby swung his hammer forward to knock some of the Lords down. Peach smacked several foes with a frying pan before being staggered by an earthquake created from a fist striking the ground. R.O.B. fired off lasers from his eyes to pierce through flesh and bone.
"This is bad," Stewart muttered as he took aim with his previously-concealed handgun. Firing at the opposing group, he struck down a few targets via headshots, but surprise would overwhelm him when he witnessed the injured easily recovering from what should have been a lethal injury.
"That's… That's impossible," he gasped. "How did they survive that?"
"Puff!" Jigglypuff squeaked. After freeing itself from its icy prison, the Pokémon used Pound against foes around it, but its efforts to provide some breathing room ended in vain when a cultist kicked it straight into the ceiling. Upon impact, Jigglypuff was swallowed by massive pain, which left it unable to avoid an energy sphere aimed right at it.
BOOM!
"Squirt!" Squirtle yelped as it was launched by an explosive spell.
"Hiya!" Kirby shouted as he unleashed another power attack with his hammer. He executed up to seven swings before his weapon was halted by a female opponent, who proceeded to punch him with an icy fist. The puffball, unable to control his flight path due to the ice freezing parts of his body, was launched right into Dedede's stomach.
SMACK!
"Oof!" the greedy king grunted as the wind was knocked out of his stomach. As he struggled to regain his composure, Squirtle was forced to protect him by launching its shell all over the place. This action was, for the most part, successful, though the water-loving Pokémon was eventually knocked away by an electrical blast, with heavy pain following afterwards. Meanwhile, R.O.B. launched a fast-moving gyro into a single target for minor damage.
"Try this for size," Falcon remarked. He thrusted one of his knees into a foe's face; the impact was marked by a sickening crack that rang throughout the hall, along with the victim receiving a serious burst of electricity. The cultist was instantly launched into the opposite end of the hall. On the other side of the field, Peach tripped an opponent with one of her legs before stabbing his left eye out, and cracking the visor, with her high-heels.
"It's not so fun when you lose an eye, right?" she giggled. She prepared to gouge his remaining eye, but a second enemy from behind stabbed her in the shoulder with a short blade. Twisting her body around, she smacked her attacker hard enough to inflict a slight dizzy spell upon him. Dedede, seizing his opportunity, flattened the same foe against a wall with his hammer. As a final blow, Jigglypuff utilized Rollout, a move involving extreme rotational force, to finish off the Lord.
"How many of them are there?" Stewart asked, kicking a foe away from him as he spoke.
"Like I even have a clue," Falcon responded. After rearing his arms back, he thrusted one of his elbows forward, instantly igniting an unlucky foe. Squirtle, who was not too far away, tackled two foes with its head.
"Poyo," Kirby squeaked. Swallowing a foe whole, he incapacitated a second by spitting out the first. He then pulled out a small blade to perform his Final Cutter attack, leaping upwards and then falling back down to unleash a wave of energy at his foes. One unlucky aggressor had a large, deep, and entirely vertical wound etched onto her body, but this was quickly healed by the mystical power of Återuppliva, as Kirby immediately noticed.
"Poyo?" he mumbled.
BOOM!
"WAH!" Kirby was launched by a massive blast that nearly caused the metallic floor to melt. As he was thrown into the air, another enemy attempted to electrocute him, but failed when the spell was deflected by Dedede's hammer. Squirtle's skull was nearly shattered when a fast-moving foot exerted extreme force upon it. R.O.B.'s arms spiraled around in a fast circle to smack foes repeatedly, but this attack was stopped by a punch that launched the robot into his group.
"Need a little help here," Stewart ordered. The doctor was close to running out of bullets for his handgun, which would certainly lead to doom if his teammates failed to assist him. Luck would be on his side, however, when his trusted friend and fellow F-Zero racer brought one of his strongest attacks into play.
"Falcon…" the racer started. His right fist began to glow a bright orange, then…
BOOM!
"PUNCH!" As soon as his fist rushed forward, flames forming the shape of a falcon incinerated all those caught in the attack's pathway. The hallway was temporarily illuminated by both the initial blow and the victims subsequently catching fire.
"Get outta here!" Dedede grunted. Swinging his hammer around him, he knocked over several Lords before crushing the head of another. On the second attack's impact, black blood and brain matter oozed underneath his weapon of choice. The king froze for a moment to examine the blood's strange coloring.
"Hey, why is the blood all black?" he muttered to himself. "I've never seen someone with black blood before."
"Just a little more…" Red sighed hopefully. By this point, most of the Lords were down, with only a certain few still battling the Smashers to the fullest of their abilities. Before the trainer could any further action, he suddenly overheard the sound of a sleep-inducing song.
"Maybe you guys do need a bit of rest, especially after all that searching," Falcon joked in a somewhat uncharacteristic manner. After throwing no more than three foes behind him, he watched on as most of the remaining Lords began to succumb to drowsiness. It was no surprise to the captain that this event was unfolding; the Balloon Pokémon's voice was very notorious for being able to force anyone, including more resilient foes, to sleep because of its ability to shift wavelengths to match the brain waves of those affected. It was certainly demonstrated in several battles at the Smash Mansion, where Jigglypuff would use the move to set up for a killing blow. Falcon shielded his ears to prevent drowsiness from affecting him as well.
"Just our luck," Dedede remarked, hammering a foe afterwards. The few enemies that could shrug off the lullaby unleashed a combined attack involving a major blast of electricity.
ZAP! ZAP!
The electrical current struck everyone except for Stewart and Jigglypuff. Absolute pain shattered the nervous systems of those impacted by the devastating blow, almost to the point where time felt severely slowed down in their minds. Some, like Peach, let out horrifying screams of pain to compliment the serious shocking. After the attack, many of the adventurers were unable to move their bodies.
"Squirt…" Squirtle groaned. The Pokémon suffered greatly from the attack as, being a Water-type, electricity was one of its noteworthy weaknesses. It was unable to retract its limbs into its shell, not just because of paralysis, but also due to the weight of all the pain.
"Warning! System overload!" R.O.B. beeped. Sparks zipped across his chassis as his power supply suffered from the blow.
"Just great…" Dedede coughed. He could feel his arms go slack as his hammer suddenly weighed a thousand tons greater than it was.
"Jiggly… puff…" Jigglypuff sighed, suddenly beginning to feel drowsy. As its song transitioned to a halting point, two Lords began to circle the puffball to strike it down during its period of vulnerability. They witnessed its eyelids starting to remain closed for longer periods of time despite its attempts to stay awake. With blade and magic at hand, the cultists rushed in for the kill, but as soon as they were within striking distance…
CRACK!
"What the?" the doctor gasped. Presented in front of him was the sight of two cultists suddenly being launched and scorched by an unidentified force that was somehow related to Jigglypuff completely dropping off. Loud screams once again echoed throughout the hall, but these piercing cries of pain sounded even louder than before; in fact, they were quite comparable to the sound of evil souls being relentlessly punished for their crimes. This scene was, to Stewart, a moment of both triumph and horror. In the middle of all this, the Balloon Pokémon, after waking up, incapacitated one final foe with Rollout.
"Jigglypuff!" it squeaked.
"Is everyone… still alive?" Falcon, who was now recovering from the electrical shock, grunted.
"I'm still breathing," Dedede replied, "So I guess I count. Not too sure about R.O.B., though."
"Poyo," Kirby added, who struggled to maintain his footing due to the shock's effects.
"Can we just leave now?" Red groaned. "This place is starting to give me the creeps."
Without another word, Falcon escorted the entire group out of the dark factory, a place that, unbeknownst to many, was a hellish location of darkness. R.O.B. had to be carried by Stewart and Dedede as his motors were malfunctioning from the earlier attack. Everything was silent in the hallway when the adventurers were gone… until one enemy lucky enough to survive the counterattack awakened.
"This is terrible," he muttered, observing the mess caused by the intruders. "Nearly half of our group here has been slaughtered. The captain is not going to be pleased…"
With a painful grunt, he stumbled out of the hall to contact his leader elsewhere, all while ensuring that his feet did not step on one of his comrades.
Back at Stewart's vehicle…
"Geez," Dedede sighed, "I was kinda anticipating the Lords to be dangerous, given what Lillian had told us, but I'd never thought that they would be strong enough to nearly wipe all of us out."
"Well, we just need to watch our backs from here on out," Peach replied. "If we're lucky, we might be able to find something that can help us bring down the Lords with ease."
"Okay, where to?" Stewart asked of the captain. By this point, his vehicle was approaching the central district of Port Town, back into the small world of colorful lights and constant activity.
"Take us over to the docks," Falcon ordered. "I'll call in the Falcon Flyer from there."
For the next few minutes, the travel to the docks was marked by an empty atmosphere. There was very little activity within the vehicle due to the people focused only on one thing: waiting to arrive at their destination. Additionally, R.O.B. was stuck in a low-power state; as his main power source was damaged, he was forced to rely on his backup battery to prevent complete shutdown. Colors passed by the windows of Stewart's machine, but despite their combined beauty, they failed to drag the Smashers into their bright allure.
There would be time to stare at the city's magnificent lighting once the Lords were defeated.
At the factory…
"WHAT?!" the hulking captain roared. "How could you fools allow yourselves to be easily beaten by a small group of explorers?!"
"I am terribly sorry, sir," was a nearby servant's reply. "We thought that we had our foes cornered, but as it turned out, they had abilities that made them effective threats to our group's well-being. We tried to-"
"SILENCE!" The group leader pounded his right fist against a nearby wall. "I will not tolerate failure from any of you! Thanks to your incompetence, we have lost a significant portion of this group! If you fail to defend this area again, I will make your punishment very severe!"
The servant, slightly backing away out of fear, gulped. "We will make sure to satisfy your criteria next time."
"Now leave." The subordinate remained silent and exited the office room at the end of the hallway. As the room fell silent, the captain placed his chin on one of his thick fists. He was soon lost in a sea of disturbing thoughts. How was it that a small group of adventurers, powerful or not, could wipe out a significant portion of his group? Furthermore, as the servant was kind to point out, the members of said group were somehow aware of the existence of the Holy Serpent's chosen ones, but what could they have possibly stumbled across to receive such knowledge…
"I must find the attackers responsible for the assault," he groaned. "This action must not go unpunished. Maybe I can meet one of these people tomorrow at the F-Zero Grand Prix… Once I do, there shall be no escape."
Retrieving his journal, he proceeded to place another entry onto the series of plain pages…
Two hours past noon, at Captain Falcon's residence…
"Do you think you can fix R.O.B.?" Peach asked. Worry was on her mind as she was focused on the machine's status.
"I'll check up on his systems and see if I can do some repairs," the captain answered. "If I can't help him, I might have to bring him to someone who can."
"Okay-"
But the princess was suddenly interrupted by a mystical voice within her head. She was not the only person to hear this voice, for all the others, with the sole exception of R.O.B., twisted their heads around out of surprise.
"Attention, all Smashers who are not traveling with Mario or Falco," the speaker's gentle voice whispered. "This is Lillian. I am here to inform you about what the Lords are using in combat."
"Wait, did you hear…?" the Mushroom Kingdom's monarch muttered.
"Yeah, I heard it," Falcon replied, having somehow predicted what Peach was going to ask.
"The Lords are using a magical spell known as Återuppliva, which offers advanced regeneration to its users. It can essentially withstand any injury except for burns, such as those from fires, and dismemberment. If you have attacks that fall into either one of the categories, use them. For those who cannot burn or tear apart the Lords on their own, find something that can help you out. Also, beware if you encounter a captain; captains are recognizable by the red emblems on their robes and are extremely dangerous because of their ability to revive from death, alongside additional powers unrelated to Återuppliva. Stay safe and find the staff pieces as soon as possible."
Once the maiden stopped speaking, Dedede quickly flashed back to the moment when he smashed a cultist's head in with his trusty hammer. Maybe the black blood was perhaps the work of Återuppliva, but the connection was still unclear. Additionally, Lillian did not mention the cultists having such a property. She likely had forgotten to notify the Smash Brothers about this, but it seemed too… odd for someone to hide something important until the very last minute.
"Hey, I gotta tell you guys something," the king muttered. "When I smashed a Lord's head in with my hammer, I noticed that the guy had black blood. Did any of you see that?"
"I did," Red answered. "I saw it right after Captain Falcon pulled off his Falcon Punch maneuver."
"I'm guessing that it might have something to do with the spell that Lillian mentioned, but we'll have to consider this once we get back to the Smash Mansion. Even stranger was the fact that Lillian hadn't told us any of this until after we left."
"Puff?" Jigglypuff chirped. "Jigglypuff…"
"Well, I suppose that's possible, but it seems all too strange to withhold important info until the last minute, especially since we nearly got killed by the Lords."
"We'll worry about that later," Falcon sighed. "Right now, we just need to prepare for the race tomorrow."
"What about the Lords?" Dedede scratched the back of his head, slightly nervous about the dark group appearing to ruin the mission.
"They won't be able to find us here, so we should be safe for now."
As the room fell silent again, Falcon strolled towards one of the hallways of his fancy house, searching for the supplies required to fix R.O.B..
I have faced numerous foes in the past, ranging from small-time perps to Black Shadow, who has garnered a reputation built from the fears of innocent civilians. As a bounty hunter, it has always been natural for me to stumble into danger, even when dealing with lesser criminals. However, the Lords are the kind of people that I have never faced before. Their bizarre magic and appearance lead me to believe that they are barely human to begin with, even when compared to the likes of Shadow and his goons. Furthermore, as King Dedede was so kind to mention, they appear to have black blood; I don't know what's causing them to have that, but I hope that we can get some answers as soon as possible, particularly from Lillian.
Secondly, the Lords were depicted in Lillian's picture as wearing dark robes, yet the enemies we encountered were wearing specialized suits designed for stealth. Maybe we ran into some sort of stealth squad, something that Lillian has failed to mention.
As a final note, I'm slightly anxious about the upcoming race, for some reason…
-Captain Falcon
College has started back up. You know what that means…
Falcon appears to be a little nervous about the race, but we know that he's going to get first place anyway, right?