Author's Note:
If you just clicked the link to read this "new" chapter, put on the brakes for a second. This story has been majorly updated; the new chapter is actually Chapter #1. The first few chapters also have new content. So please read the story over again. You'll like it, I promise. (puppy eyes)
Chapter #14: Great Galloping Goombas!
Bottom Floor of Smash-Mart
"This is a-it. The elevators!"
"Um…bro? I a-think we have a problem."
Mario looked at Luigi with a cocked eyebrow. "A-what?"
"How are we gonna open the doors?"
The red plumber blinked, and then groaned and slapped his forehead. "Oh a-dear…"
The brothers were standing in front of the elevator doors. But, in their hurry to rescue Yoshi and Kirby, they had forgotten the matter of getting inside the elevator shaft.
After some thought, Mario stated, "One of us will a-have to go a-back to the Koopa guard."
Luigi sighed. "I'll a-do it." He turned and began to walk back the way they had come…
But someone dropped from the middle floor and landed inches in front of him. He fell on his rear with a shriek of terror that sounds an awful lot like a girl's. He scrambled to his feet and hid behind his brother, quivering in fright.
Mario, on the other hand, tensed in an attack pose. The person who frightened Luigi looked like Samus, but the armor wasn't right. He didn't like her one bit.
"Who are a-you?" he asked.
"B-b-bro?" the green Mario Brother stammered. "R-r-remember Samus's s-stories about her evil t-twin?"
Dark Samus chuckled wickedly. "So, she has warned you about me. At least we will have worthy opponents."
"We?" Luigi squeaked.
"Of course, Wimpy Weegee!" taunted a voice behind them. The Mario Bros. whirled around and saw Wario leering at them while riding his yellow motorcycle.
"Wario!?!" Luigi exclaimed.
"What are a-you doing here, Wario?" Mario said, clenching his fists.
"Ah, just the usual," Wario replied. "Harassing you Smasher wimps, makin' money, takin' sides with your enemies, makin' money, kidnappin' your girlfriend, makin' money…"
"You a-what?!"
The pseudo-Mario sneered at the real plumber. "That's right. Me an' Dark Samus here locked up your girlfriend. Ya want 'er back? Just try and get 'er!"
Dark Samus started running towards the duo to fight, and they tensed, ready to defend themselves. But suddenly, out of nowhere, a dark blur knocked Dark Samus into the air, away from them. While she was sent sprawling, her attacker—none other than Meta Knight—landed in front of Mario and Luigi. The brothers tensed more; they knew from Kirby's stories how dangerous he was. But Meta Knight wasn't focused on them; rather, Wario had his full attention.
"Hand over the princess and do not interfere in our business," he warned him, his voice low but firm.
"In yer dreams, stubby," spat Wario. "Ya want her, come and get her!"
"Then you leave me no choice. Minions, charge!"
The ground suddenly began to rumble underneath their feet, and the brothers wobbled unsteadily. The mall echoed deafeningly with the sound of rushing feet. Wario and Dark Samus covered their ears. Then Luigi turned around and shrieked.
Over a dozen Goombas were charging towards them at full speed!
The terrified, green plumber cringes for impact, but his braver brother turned and waited for them to come, his hands glowing as he prepared fireballs. But suddenly Meta Knight grabbed both of them by the backs of their shirts and flew above the mob to a safe place. He released them to safe ground, and Luigi tried to stammer a "thank-you". But the mysterious knight held up a hand to quiet him, and then glared at the red Mario Brother.
"I have allied myself with the one who is following you, plumber, and he is desperate to have his prized possessions back. If you don't want anything to happen to your friends, then you will leave them in the suitcases under one of the tables at the food court. Understood?"
"B-but he doesn't have—" Luigi tried to say.
But Meta Knight ignored him and flew off to get a few shots at the retreating Wario and Dark Samus. The Goombas continued to chase them to another area. The brothers remained where they were for a moment, puzzling over what had just happened.
"What should we a-do now?" Luigi asked.
Mario rubbed his chin in thought for a moment, and then answered, "I'll a-follow Wario. He might a-lead me to Peach. You a-go to the Koopa and a-tell him to help you open the a-doors. We should still a-help Yoshi and Kirby."
Luigi nodded. "Will a-do, brother."
The two brothers parted ways on their rescue missions, and both were worried. Mario thought about Peach; who knew what evil plans that greedy Wario had in store for her?! But Luigi's mind was on their original mission.
I a-hope Yoshi and Kirby can wait a little while longer…
Unknown Location, Smash-Mart
"I can't wait much longer, Yoshi! I want out!"
Kirby raced around in circles in the small elevator. But Yoshi, the exact opposite in manner, sat calmly in the middle of that circle, watching his panicky friend.
"All the elevators have cameras in them, Kirby. Somebody will come after us. We've just gotta be patient."
The pink puffball started banging on the elevator doors and yelled, "Help! Somebody get us outta here!"
"You're wasting energy," Yoshi sighed.
Kirby whirled around, grabbed the dinosaur by the neck, and started shaking him. "And you're wasting all our precious air!"
"There are air vents. We can't suffocate."
"…Oh."
He seemed to calm down, and Yoshi breathed a sigh of relief. But he thought too soon; Kirby resumed panicking again and attacked the doors once more.
"Help! Help! We need out now!"
Yoshi groaned. "Kirby…"
He turned around and hopped up and down. "Yoshi, you don't understand! I can't wait much longer! I need to use the bathroom!"
The dino's eyes grew to the size of saucer plates. There was a long pause, and then both of the trapped Smashers pounded on the doors and screamed for help.
"Help! Help! We're trapped! Is anyone out there?!"
Suddenly the doors slid open, and Yoshi and Kirby tumbled out of the elevator. They found themselves on the middle floor, with a large shadow standing over them. They looked up…and Kirby gasped.
"You!"
Food Court, Top Floor
Samus and Snake were hidden behind the main counter in the food court. They had been looking for Yoshi and Kirby (since Samus figured they would be there), but something else had caught their interest. In a shadowy corner of the court, they had spotted a certain cloaked figure leaning against the wall, watching the rest of the top floor.
Samus swept the figure with her scanner, and then frowned. "He's not any species known in my database."
"That must be him," Snake mumbled.
"But what is he waiting for?"
The secret agent lowered himself to the floor and crawled to the corner of the counter to peek out at him without being seen. But he also spied something interesting under one of the tables close by where the figure was. "There are some suitcases," he said. "He's waiting for Mario to return the items from his world."
"If he is, then he must have given him a warning," said Samus.
"Or Meta Knight did."
"…True."
Suddenly they heard static, and saw the cloaked figure shift and take out a radio. A voice exclaimed from it, "Hey, bud, I just saw Meta Knight attackin' that Wario guy and the dark spacesuit chick. He's got 'em occupied; we can move in on the store now."
"Good," replied the Stalker. "I'll be there in a second."
"Gotcha. Boshi out."
The Stalker switched off the radio, tossed one last glance at the table with the suitcase under it, and then walked away. Snake crawled after him, and Samus waited a few seconds until he signaled her to follow. But when they got out into the open, their target was already out of sight.
"Guess he was in a hurry," Samus said, getting a little frustrated.
"Hey, you!"
The two whirled around to find about three dozen Goombas behind them, glaring menacingly.
"You're Smashers, ain't ya?!" snapped one. "Well, guess what! We're gonna turn ya into mince meat!"
Samus clenched her fist. "I'd like to see you try."
The Goombas bellowed a war cry and charged forward to attack. The two fighters got back to back, one armed with her blast cannon, and the other with a rocket launcher. Both wore grim expressions on their faces as they braced themselves for a scuffle.
The Stalker was important, but they had to put these obnoxious talking fungi in their proper place.
Sears, Top Floor
In a shoe section on the top floor of Sears, Ness woke up to find himself buried under dozens of shoe boxes. Groaning in pain, he scrambled out of the mess and ran off before someone found him and made him clean up the mess.
"Man, that hurt," he whined, rubbing his rear. "Why did Zelda wear her really pointy shoes today?"
Suddenly he heard screaming; it sounded like it was coming from a furniture section close by. The boy ran toward the noise, and found a startling sight.
The entire section was overrun with Goombas. Growling and shouting, they leaped on or overturned the furniture. They were angry and bewildered, and constantly shouted to one another.
"Where'd that little brat go?!"
"He isn't anywhere!"
"Let's check another area!"
"Yeah; that one was too scared to be a real Smasher, anyway!"
They turned around to leave, but spotted Ness walking towards them. "Hey! That's one of 'em!" cried one. "Get 'im!"
They cheered and rushed toward him, but Ness was ready. When they were close enough, he whipped out his bat and started swinging it wildly around him. Fungi went flying left and right; none of them were able to touch him. But they started to crowd too close, and the boy decided enough was enough. He jumped up and walked on the Goombas' heads until he reached solid ground. Then he picked up speed and ran deeper into the furniture area, hoping to find a good hiding place. The Goomba mob pursued.
Ness managed to lose the swarm by doubling back and taking sharp turns into small spots. As he crouched under a bed, getting his breath back, he suddenly heard whimpering. Carefully he peeked out from under the bed, and watched a wardrobe only a yard away from him; the noises were coming from inside it. Very curious, the boy came out from his hiding place and cautiously approached the wardrobe. Then he gripped the handles and swung the doors open.
The person inside shrieked, covered his face with his hands, shrank against the back of the wardrobe, and stammered, "P-please, g-go away! I-I didn't d-do anything! L-leave me alone!"
But Ness didn't move; he was too surprised. The person was a boy about his age, and he wore the same kind of outfit, but with a few different colors. He didn't have a cap, and his hair was blond. Ness took a moment to remember his school days before becoming a Smasher; that's how he knew this boy.
"…Lucas? Lucas, it's Ness. We were in the same history class."
The blond-haired boy looked up at him and blinked in surprise. "N-N-Ness? Wh-what are you doing here?"
"I should be asking that question!" Ness replied, getting back some of his fast talk.
"W-well, this weird Master Hand guy told me to come here. He said that he's making me a…a…"
"A Smasher?" Ness's eyes grew wide. "Awesome! I've gotta show you the others! Some of 'em are weird or mean, but lots of 'em are nice!"
"But…but what about those monsters out there?"
"The Goombas? Aw, they're easy. Come on, come on, let's go find everybody!"
Not giving his friend a chance to object, Ness pulled Lucas out of the wardrobe by his arm and hauled him all the way out of the furniture section to find some of the other Smashers.
Garage, Bottom Floor
"Here it is! The hiding place!"
"…Place!"
Marth, Roy, Captain Falcon, Pit, and Young Link blinked in confusion at the metal garage door in front of them. It looked very out of place, and nothing like a hiding place. The blue-haired swordsman had one idea, though.
"Is it supposed to open?"
The Nooklings nodded their heads. "That's right!" Timmy said. "But, um…oops. Dad has the keys."
"Keys," groaned Tommy, slapping his forehead.
Suddenly Captain Falcon brightened. "Hey, maybe it opens when you speak a password!" He walked up to the front of the door, thrust out his arms, and exclaimed, "Open sesame!"
The door didn't budge.
Falcon shrugged and turned to the others. "Well, we're not getting in there."
All four of his friends slapped their foreheads at his stupidity. Pit looked at Young Link and asked, "Is he always like that?"
Without missing a beat, the young Hylian answered, "24/7."
Suddenly they heard shouting, and turned to see Dr. Mario, Fox, and Falco running up to them.
"Hey, guys!" Roy greeted them. "Where have you been?"
"No time!" panted McCloud. "Young Link, we need you right now! That's what DK said!"
Young Link scrunched his face up, puzzled. "What are you talking about? What happened?"
"We'll explain to you on the way! Just come with us!" The fox grabbed the boy's arm and darted back the way they had come, with Lombardi and the Italian doctor following close behind him.
"Waaaah! Fox, don't run so fast!" Young Link yelled. "And you're pulling my arm off!"
Then the group disappeared out of sight, and his cries faded away. Captain Falcon, Marth, Roy, Pit, and the Nooklings were left to stare after them, even more puzzled than before. But suddenly Tommy brightened, ran over to a potted tree close by the metal door, and dug through the dirt. His search rewarded him with a small key. He cheered and danced around, waving it in the air.
"Oh yeah!" said Timmy. "Dad left an extra key!"
"Key, key!" Tommy echoed.
"Then let's unlock the door!" Falcon exclaimed.
Just as the two raccoons moved to unlock the door, they heard loud voices behind them.
"Look! Smashers! Get 'em!"
They whirled around to see a horde of Goombas charging at them. Captain Falcon shrieked like a girl and leaped into Roy's arms, only for the swordsman to drop him on the ground in disgust. The Nooklings cowered in fear behind the group, wondering what to do. Roy and Marth prepared their swords, and Pit stepped forward and charged his bow.
"So, they're back," the winged human muttered, and then thrust a fist into the air. "The fight is on!" (A/N: Sorry, couldn't resist using that phrase of his; he sounds cool when he says it.)
But upon seeing Pit, the Goombas screeched to a halt. "Oh no, it's that freakish dress-wearing Cupid guy!" groaned one.
Pit glared fiercely and fired off a shot into the crowd. "It's not a dress; it's a toga!" he shouted. "And I'm not Cupid!"
The mob backed away in fear, hesitant to attack with Pit there, but they didn't leave either. And as the seconds passed, they began to grow bolder; they outnumbered the Smashers, and if they rushed them, they might be able to take them down with minimal losses to their group. Realizing this, Pit backed toward the metal garage door, whispering, "Get that door open, quick!"
The Nooklings darted for the lock and nervously stuck the key in. There was a click, and then the door shuddered and began to pull upwards. As soon as it was high enough, the Smashers ducked under it, and Roy exclaimed, "Now shut it!" Timmy and Tommy searched for the control panel that would let them close it.
"Don't let 'em get away!" cried a Goomba, and the horde swarmed for the door.
Seconds before the fungi reached the door, it closed completely shut. The Nooklings and the four Smashers were left in complete darkness. There were light switches, but they would rather wait until the Goombas were gone. So they sat on the cold cement floor and listened as the mob banged on the door in a vain attempt to break through. They could only hope that this bunch wasn't as stubborn as the Mario Brothers had said Goombas were, and that it wouldn't be a long wait…
Bottom Floor of Smash-Mart
Inside a dark video arcade, two shadowy figures intensely watched the entrance to a store. They kept their voices low, though no one was there to hear them.
"Shouldn't we break in there right now, man? I mean, we can't let those Smashers get to Peach and that raccoon guy first!"
"I'd agree with you, Boshi," replied the Stalker, "but it isn't that easy. I went into that store before; it's different. I'm thinking that one of them might know how to get in. Then all we have to do is jump them when they come out."
"I never thought of that. Sweet plan, dude!"
He chuckled. "Thanks." Suddenly he tensed, and pointed a finger at the store. "Look, here they come."
Dr. Mario, Fox, Falco, and Young Link stopped in front of the store, and the three explained the situation to the boy. He looked at the sign in the store's window, and he gaped in surprise.
"A modern version of the Treasure Box Game shop?! Whoa! I've so gotta see this! Come on, guys! We'll find them in no time!"
Young Link raced inside the store (which was now open), and his friends soon followed. The Stalker and Boshi came out of the arcade and found places with good cover. Then they hunkered down and waited…waited for the Smashers to emerge with Peach and Nook…