Another chapter ready. School is stressing and I'm trying to find a place to work at my school. Hopefully, this won't make me abandon this story. Enjoy the chapter! :)

Chapter 25

The standings were in for the beginning of the tournament. Many teams had performed well so far. However, 5 teams were extraordinarily outstanding above all others. Most of them were veterans of Smash whether from the first to the third series. In 5th place was the team of Sonic and Pac-Man. Their Target Blast session gave them a strong lead in the tournament. On their second day, the Cruel Smash event, luck had played on their side. They managed to get 8 kills, boosting them into the top rankings. The singles champion was not particularly concerned. Even though it was the beginning, things can take an unexpected twist.

In 4th place was the team of Marth and Roy. The Melee duo was back at it again. Previously upsetting everyone in the second edition as a team, it was no surprise that both swordsmen were doing well. In their Multi-Man events, Endless and 100-man, they entered with high expectations and came out achieving the role. They were one of the favorites to win the tournament. In 3rd place was the team of Mario and Luigi, also known as the Mario Brothers. Their Home-Run session gave them the biggest boost in their total score. Mario, however, wanted to beat his rival, Sonic after the loss in the singles tournament.

In 2nd place was the team of Samus and Zelda. People had polarized reactions. They knew Samus was, if not the best, one of the best fighters in Smash history. Zelda, on the other hand, was perceived by people more on the negative side as she had low results from previous tournaments. Because of their Home-Run trials, everyone became surprised since the two scored one of the highest in the tournament so far. That performance significantly placed them in the top 5. It was not just skills that got them there; it was their chemistry that led them to their domination in the competition. Both were aware of the idea, but Zelda felt something more than chemistry. Despite the bounty hunter being unaware of Zelda's attraction towards her, the Hylian kept it hidden until she can have the courage to ask her out. Link thought he was going to be partnered with Zelda but was unhappy when Samus was her partner instead. In the end, he teamed up with Meta Knight and ended up being the team in 1st right now.

Robin was preparing herself for the next event, Endless Smash. The rules were simple, knockout as many Miis before both Smashers were beaten. The total number of kills was then converted to tournament points, which were calculated with some mathematical formula. Then she realized something horrible, she would be seeing Lucina and Palutena there. It also didn't alleviate her stresses that she had a fight with her male counterpart.

"Everything will be ok," was what she would repeat to herself whenever something bad happened. When negative was clouding her mind, she would repeat the aforementioned statement. As she made her way to the white room, Dark Pit met up with the tactician, causing her to smile.

"Robin," he greeted her and noticed that she was not in a good mood. "Are you okay? You don't seem to be happy."

"No, I am not, unfortunately," she admitted, never wanting to lie in front of the angel whom she liked dearly. "Yesterday was just atrocious."

"Was your home-run bad?" He guessed.

"No," Robin took a deep breath before speaking to Dark Pit. She told him everything about that happened between her and her male counterpart. It was becoming harder for her to speak about it. The more she talked, the harder it became to finish the entire story. Robin did her best to hold back the tears as the memories came flashing back to her.

"Robin, I'm sorry that happened," unbeknownst to the dark angel, he embraced Robin in order to comfort the pain she was going through. "If there's anything I can do to make you feel better, you can tell me."

"Keep hugging me, I need it," because she said that, Dark Pit's mind froze for a moment. He realized that he was hugging the woman he liked and became intensely warm. However, soon after, his body temperature cooled down a little.

"Ok," was all he can say. It was silent for them for minutes before both released their hug. Dark Pit rubbed his neck in awkwardness whereas Robin had no expression on her face other than sadness.

"Thanks, I really needed that," she grinned before wiping the water that was on the surface of her eyes.

"Yeah," he answered back, trying to keep his cool and act as if it was no big deal.

Robin simply giggled by the black angel's amusing behavior, but she was not completely feeling better about herself. "I should be on my way right now."

"What event are you doing?" He inquired.

"Endless Smash."

"Fight until you drop then," Dark Pit tried to put some humor, which did work as Robin chuckled.

"I suppose so. What's your event?"

"Home-Run contest," he responded, feeling confident about the event. "I've been practicing for that event. I just hope my copy doesn't fuck up."

"I'm sure he won't," Robin optimistically said. "Good luck with your tournament," she walked away before being stopped by her angel.

"Robin, hold on," he didn't want to leave his tactician having no energy to compete. She faced him, confused on what he wanted from her. "I'm not the kind of guy who says nice things; that's Pit's job, but you need to know something. Mistakes are what make people like us people. We will never be perfect in whatever it is: Smash, personality, body, or mind. However, we do have one skill that drives us to become better people, compromise. Fixing the wrongs will make things right. Doing things because you have fear becomes bravery. Robin, you have to talk to your male counterpart. Things will stagnate further if you don't do anything. Suffering in silence doesn't get you anywhere. Talking to others does. I just want you to know because I don't want you to suffer anymore."

Robin walked up to him and embraced him once again. Tears flew down her face. She cannot express how much Dark Pit motivated her to repair the relationship with her male counterpart. "Thank you so much, Angel. What would I do if you weren't around?"

"Asking Pit for help," Robin released her hug, wiped her tears, and laughed. This time, she felt better now that Dark Pit lifted her spirits up.

"I need to be going now, so I'll talk to you later?"

"Talk to you later," Dark Pit said before departing for the stadium. He was glad to comfort Robin in her darkest times. There was a strange feeling he was getting from his heart. It was not a romantic feeling; it was a feeling of happiness for helping a person in need. For a doppelgänger of Pit, he was not completely opposite of him at all.

Inside the white room, Robin saw a reasonable amount of Smashers in the room. They were not clustered but rather spread out. She did not see her male counterpart anywhere, so she had a quick sigh of relief to herself. He must be on his way if that was the case. The tactician did find Lucina at the couch similar to how Palutena was the previous day. Speaking of the goddess, she was not present with her nor was she in the vicinity of the room. It was not a good sign to see in her eyes.

"Lucy," she sat down next to her friend, trying to give positive vibes to the swordswoman who expressed no emotions. "Feeling alright?"

"The events that occurred in the past days have not made me feeling 'alright' at all," she sounded curt at the latter of her sentence, which Robin didn't seem to mind.

"Probably shouldn't have said it," she joked to herself in a non-humorous way before shifting her tone to more serious one. "Anyways, I actually learned something from my angel that will apply to you and Palutena."

"Unlikely to succeed," Lucina was downright pessimistic as if she accepted the break-up as it was. "Besides, I can move on and potentially find another partner who doesn't call me a clone."

"She was angry at the time, she wasn't thinking rationally," Robin argued against her blue-haired friend.

"I heard the message and she had the same view that all other fans view towards me: unoriginal and never meant to be here," the negativity nearly brought Lucina into tears.

"Damn it, girl," Robin shook the swordswoman. Her voice wasn't vociferous so that no one heard it, which was a good thing. "People make the wrong choices. Mistakes are what make people like us people. We will never be perfect in whatever it is: Smash, personality, body, or mind. However, we do have one skill that drives us to become better, compromise. Fixing wrong will make things right. Doing things because you have fear becomes bravery. Robin, you have to talk to your male counterpart. Things will stagnate further if you don't do anything. Suffering in silence doesn't get you anywhere. Talking to others does. I just want you to know because I don't want you to suffer anymore."

The tactician realized for a moment that she quoted the exact words that Dark Pit said to her. She memorized the words just by listening to him once. It was strange to her, but it did not matter to her. Lucina took some time to process the information Robin threw at her. It was a compelling argument since Robin proved some points. Lucina did want to fix things with Palutena yet she felt uncertain if she wanted to get back with her. Everything was swirling around her with nothing to resolve.

"I'll put my efforts in mending my relationship with Lady Palutena," Robin was pleased to hear those words come out of Lucina's mouth.

"That's good, and now go fix it," the bluenette was surprised that she should fix the situation immediately.

"Lady Palutena isn't present. She should be here momentarily and I will disclose it then."

"Do what you have to do," as soon as Robin finished her sentence, the male Robin walked in. When he saw his female tactician who gave a smile and wave, he ignored the message and walked away. That brought down some pessimism to the female mage but not to a point where she lost all hope. She still was certain that things will be better.

"I'll be somewhere else now."

"Go ahead, Robin."

"See ya," Robin said before taking off to meet with her male counterpart to amend broken strings. Meanwhile, Lucina was concerned with Palutena. She had not arrived yet. What reason could it possibly be? Hopefully nothing bad happened; otherwise, Lucina felt like she was going to blame herself.

Inside the goddess's room, there were empty bottles of alcohol on the counter table near the kitchen. Some were tipped over while some remained still. It was a disastrous image like when a person was heartbroken over losing someone. Just like that, the green-haired goddess was on the floor, passed out from drinking many bottles of alcohol. There was one on her hand when she was out like a light.

"I'll never be happy," Palutena cried as she finished her second bottle before drinking another one right after. "I'm so stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. I ruined my relationship with Lucina, and now she hates me because I acted like a bitch. I'm a pathetic excuse for a deity. Shameful. Disgraceful. Dishonor. Stupid." After finishing so many bottles, Palutena tried to walk to bed with a bottle in her hand but she fell down and slept like that for the rest of the night.

Her eyes were slowly opening, visions still blurry from being hungover. Palutena placed one hand on a chair while the other hand was reaching for the other chair. As she got up, she saw the clock and panicked. She was going to be late for her event. First, she had to drink some water because she was completely dehydrated. Once she did, she changed to her default attire for battle and ran out the door while having headaches.

When she arrived, people stared at her since she made noise entering into the white room. Trying not to give away signs of a hangover, she ignored the pains internally and acted like she was normal as she could be. "Sorry, I overslept as all."

The fighters believed her, so they resumed to their business. Palutena then saw something that she felt as disgusting: Meta Knight having a conversation with Lucina and the two seemed to enjoy each other's company very well. There were laughs and smiles, which signal a positive relationship. The goddess perceived it differently; she viewed it as Meta Knight stealing away the one woman that made her happy like no other. Her expression changed to being enraged and marched towards the two.

"So," she pretended to be curious and happy that Lucina was talking to people. "Who are you to talk to Lucina?"

"I approached her and requested a casual conversation. The fair lady had accepted my request, so, therefore, I am engaging in a social talk," Meta Knight responded calmly without being upset whatsoever.

"Get away from her. She's not yours. She's-"Lucina had cut her off.

"No, you should get away from Sir Meta Knight. At least he wasn't discourteous compared to you," that hit a nerve on the goddess. She was surprised that the bluenette had insulted her. No words could describe how she felt when the woman she still had feelings for just shot her down. Her world had fallen into broken pieces.

"B-but, I… I…" without forming a sentence, Palutena left the room and went outside to the bathroom to clean herself.

"I apologize for her uncivil behavior," the swordswoman felt bad that the Star warrior had to face the goddess in a negative vibe.

"Has she not? Might I ask what happened?" Meta Knight was intrigued and curious to know what was going on between the two women.

"I prefer to not talk about it. It's very personal between Lady Palutena and me," Meta Knight understood Lucina's boundaries and respected it. He dared not to cross that line.

"I apologize for not realizing that it was something close to you," Lucina forgave the Star warrior's apology. "But I do wish you the best in the competition."

"Thank you for your support, and I wish the same to you," Lucina smiled back, which gave Meta Knight a warming sensation from inside of his heart.

"And may your beauty glisten as well," at first the swordswoman seemed confused by the former champion's words but soon blushed by the compliment. Meta Knight had no regrets saying the words he had just said. He felt good because of it. "I should depart. My partner and I are next for our event."

"Good luck," Lucina said before she found out that the Star warrior grabbed her right hand and bowed down.

"I shall not fail you, my princess," he released his grip and entered the teleportation pod with Link for his Cruel Smash. The bluenette did not expect Meta Knight to behave that way towards her. Now that she thought of it, the former champion acted somewhat like a gentleman except the one time he was nervous asking her to be partners for the tournament. Based on the circumstances, Lucina had a hunch that Meta Knight had some attraction towards her. She felt torn by her new situation she was in: Meta Knight or Palutena. The goddess was her ex-girlfriend but she really liked her. The times they spent together were some of the best moments Lucina had ever experienced. The Star warrior, on the other hand, was respectful and kind towards her. They had several things they shared in common in regards to how they wore blue, wore masks, and wielded swords. She didn't know what to do. Part of her wanted to repair conflict and return dating the greenette again; the other part of her wanted to develop a new relationship with the former champion who would not call her a clone.

"She would never be with that sword puffball," Palutena looked at the mirror after washing her face with cold water. Her tone revealed anxiousness, the fear of losing a loved one taking a toll on her. "She just would never… no one should be with her but me. That's how it is supposed to be… just how it is supposed to be."

The goddess thought no one heard her in the bathroom because she was all alone. However, outside of the restroom, a female tactician overheard the greenette's agony. Hearing the statements Palutena had said Robin simply walked away, feeling uneasy about her friend's situation. She pondered the questions she formulated based on the goddess's words: Was Lucina seeing someone else? Will it make things between her and Palutena worse?

Robin returned to the white room with a surprised expression as if she saw a ghost. Just when things could not get any worse, it did. She saw Lucina sitting by herself and wondered if she should talk to her about Palutena's agony. In the end, she decided to walk towards her male counterpart.

"Hey, you still want to talk?" She began the conversation nervously, hoping that he would talk back to her.

"I don't know. Is our relationship real?" He mocked Robin with the question that referred to her remarks that his relationship with Lucina was not a real relationship yesterday.

"Yes, of course, it is," Robin knew he was going to ask that particular question, which she had no problems at all since she took the blame to herself. "There's something you may want to know, that is if you want to hear it."

"Make it quick."

"Ok," she prepared herself to speak clearly and discreetly. "I overheard Palutena in the bathroom saying that Lucy will never be with Meta Knight and should only be with her."

Hearing this, the male Robin finally turned to face his female counterpart, intrigued to hear that Lucina may be interested in someone else. The female mage got him to look at her, which was some progress.

"Are you insinuating that Lucina moved on already?"

"I don't know. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but I can't rule it out. It's possible, but I don't want that to happen," Robin knew exactly why she hoped her male counterpart's question would be wrong. She didn't want to see Palutena suffer in a spiraling depression.

"You didn't mind that when Lucina and I were over," she felt another worry again. "Maybe I'm glad Lucina's finding other people."

"Come on," her voice rose a little louder, but no one seemed to care about hearing the conversation. "She just went through a break-up, so why would she find someone to have a romantic relationship? It'll be a big slap in the face for Palutena."

"It's possible because Lucina found out that she and Palutena did not have a real relationship," he mocked the female Robin once again, still feeling indignant. "Maybe Lucina and Meta Knight's relationship will have a real one."

Robin wanted to shout at her male counterpart, she really did. However, she refrained from doing so since it will cause a confrontation. She took a deep breath and calmed her psyche. "Please, help me this once. Mock me if you will, but I don't want to lose you, Lucina, Palutena, and Angel. I'm sorry for being such an asshole. I deserve it. I didn't consider you when I was worried about Lucina's performance yesterday. Please, just help me for once."

He considered her plea for assistance. There were things to consider: she admitted her mistake, she was stuck in a cage and couldn't get out, and she kept her cool. However, he noticed that Robin never explained why she was a jerk to him, which weighed significantly high on his perspective. After debating against himself, he made his decision.

"I'll assist you in your situation," Robin cheered by jumping a little and gave her male counterpart a big hug.

"You're the best!"

"I'm not finished," the female mage now became worried. "You never really acknowledged why you were inconsiderate to me. Until you truly realize why I am unhappy, I won't consider you as a friend, or even an acquaintance."

"Count that as a promise," Robin wasn't too fond of hearing that the male Robin would not be her friend until they reconcile. She'll do whatever it takes to make things right again. Realizing the time, they were next in competing in their event in Endless Smash. "It's time to Smash."

"Yeah," he flatly said as he walked towards the teleportation pods waiting for the session to commence.

The male tactician was on the highest platform while the female tactician was on the ground in Big Battlefield. There was no time limit and Mii fighters will continuously spawn until both fighters were knocked out.

"Ready? Go!" Even amount of brawlers, swordfighters, and gunners appeared on the stage. Robin had thrust her Levin sword outward, sending two Mii fighters out of the stage. She then charged her Thunder tome halfway when two brawlers came trapping her from running away.

"This should be fun," she scoffed at her opponents, thinking it would be an easy kill. First, she had cast a fireball at the Mii in front of her. Predicting the knockback of her arcfire, Robin short hopped past the brawler by a couple of feet. When the brawler was in stun, the female tactician slashed her Levin sword in an upward overhead way, sending the Mii to the sky. The second brawler charged up and kicked both feet sideways. Robin, somehow knowing the exact timing to catch the Mii, actually grabbed the brawler and threw the computer upwards, killing him.

The male Robin wasn't as aggressive as his female counterpart. He usually evaded the enemy's attacks before striking the computer with his Levin sword. He would then mix things up by using double arcfire before swinging his blade over his head. Another strategy he would use was throwing his opponent downward and swinging the sword over his head. He continuously recycled the same techniques but in a randomized style in order to throw off his opponents despite them being computers. To him, it was a good strategy because he wanted to practice until he got the combos executed perfectly.

After minutes of slaying computerized Miis, both Robins were barely taking any damage, which was a good sign. The fighters did not seem to be challenging as they only executed two attacks or just grab the opponent. So far they had 143 kills, not the most out of all the competition, but it was reasonably a good score to boost their ranking if other teams scored worse than they did.

Just when things were okay, the Mii fighters suddenly became stronger and tactically better in their fighting skills. The level of their abilities exponentially rose within a split second. Because of this, both tacticians were taking more damage frequently. They were taking more damage than before, which can ruin their momentum.

"When did all of these guys get so good all of a sudden?" Robin had dodged another grab of the brawler. She grabbed and pummeled the brawler before throwing the fighter down. She quickly short-hopped and unleashed her arcfire before jumping again for an overhead slash with her Levin sword. The female tactician charged her tome for a full second before being shot by a gunner. She turned back and charged at the Mii gunner. Once she predicted the Mii's movement, Robin side dodged the attack before throwing the enemy upwards.

10 more Miis defeated and the Robins had recorded 153 kills. However, the tides had turned against them as the Mii fighters became extremely more difficult than they ever were. They were cleverer in their fighting abilities and strategies. All of a sudden, both tacticians were at kill percentage. Any little mistake can be fatal.

A swordfighter grabbed the male Robin while a gunner shot a small bright energy that connected to the male mage's back. The swordfighter threw him up, which the energy had been detonated while being in a stun. Then a brawler used both of its fists to meteor smash Avatar. He then teched the ground to recover quickly, but he rolled to the right which the gunner anticipated the move and grabbed him. The swordfighter slashed its blade diagonally sending the male Robin across the stage. However, the brawler somehow knew where the mage would be at a specific area and executed the Soaring Axe kick, sending the brawler and the male Robin down into the stage.

"Poor Robin," Dark Pit talked to himself when he saw that it was seven, formidable Mii fighters against his tactician.

The female mage did her best to escape any potential combo starters from any Mii fighters as much as possible. She tried everything she can to get more KOs in her session. However, Robin was suddenly grabbed by a brawler from the behind and held her. Then the brawler threw her forward, which the Mii swordfighter threw a bright, shining shuriken at middle distance. The brawler then kicked Robin upwards by flipping backward. A second brawler was over Robin's head and swung both fists downward, meteor smashing towards the ground. The tactician quickly recovered but was soon immediately grabbed by the first brawler. The computer threw her backward, and a second swordfighter was upside down in the air and rapidly spun around itself. Then a gunner went offstage to deliver the final blow. The gunner unleashed a fully charged shot, sending the tactician away from the stage as a red flash appeared on the left side of the blast zone.

Returning to the white room, both tacticians were experiencing sheer humiliation. The male Robin was stuck in a team combo, which he was not entirely content. However, the female Robin suffered worse; she was beaten to the extreme with a longer and well-executed combo. She could not do a single thing about it.

"Hey, Robin, sorry about that match," a familiar voice the female tactician had recognized. When she turned to find out where it came from, she saw Falco who appeared to try to make her feel better.

"Now it's not the time, Falco," Robin responded calmly while her expression was emotionless. "I know I got bodied and I don't want to talk about it."

"I only want to comfort you as all," he said smoothly.

"Alright, what do you want?" Robin knew there was a reason that the ace pilot was approaching to her. She didn't want to spend time with him, so he had to say it quick.

"A little bird has been telling me that you are having a personal issue," he smirked, although he wouldn't disclose who told him until Robin figured it out.

"I wonder who," she wondered sarcastically, insinuating it was Zelda. She recalled the time where Zelda and Peach had set her up with Falco, which she didn't appreciate. "Why would she tell anyone?"

"Now don't be upset at her," Falco defended the Hylian. "I would like to help."

"Why would you want to help me with my personal issue? I want to settle this myself," she assertively stood her ground.

"Falco, I think that's a great idea to assist this tactician," Robin was shocked to hear that the male Robin was allowing Falco to help her.

"What? You're on the birdie's side?" The female mage exclaimed indignantly.

"You see, Robin," Falco decided to clarify everything. "The male Robin had asked me about the troubling situation that's occurring between you and him. After hours of the mature conversation, we made a deal."

"What is this deal you guys are speaking of?"

"The deal is that Falco will help you in resolving your issue whether it is between us, Lucina, and any other people you are affiliated with," the male mage explained with a little smirk on his face.

"Are you serious? Falco has to listen to all of my personal issues?" She wanted to verify that it was not true.

"Yes," Robin groaned in dissatisfaction. "You shouldn't complain since you refuse to let anyone to help fix your problem."

"Fine," she sighed in defeat after realizing that she couldn't risk any chances of ruining her relationship with her male counterpart. Robin hung her head low and closed her eyes, trying to not see any images. She just wanted just blackness for a moment.

"Atta girl," Falco had his right arm over Robin's shoulders. She didn't flinch or move at all. Looking at the time, Falco's event was next, which was 3-minute Smash. "Well, I got to kick some ass right now. Robin, I'll back for you."

She said nothing. The ace pilot found his partner, Fox, and entered the pods to commence their session. Robin stood still like the world had stopped around her and reality seemed to be masked with a dark haze.

"I know you can hear me," the male Robin spoke to the silent tactician. "I know you are upset with me, but there is a reason I am doing this. I just hope you can figure this out," he walked towards a water machine to rehydrate.

A phone rang inside her robe. Despite its vibration being strong, Robin rarely felt it. She slowly reached the inside her pocket and peered at the message: "Robin, it's me, Zelda. Would you mind meeting with me alone in my room at 9pm tonight? It's important." The female mage text back by writing: "Sure."

People's worlds were crumbling down slowly as the cycle of disasters continued to perpetuate in each one. Will it end? Will the world be stable again?