The Mii Fighter Chronicles
Chapter Thirty-Six: The Return
Erin shivered, rubbing her arms. Her breath came out in a cloud of mist. She cocked her gun and hurried forward, stepping carefully to avoid sliding around on the icy floor. "Okay," she muttered to herself, glancing up at the ledge above her. "I believe I was supposed to go straight here."
She ran forward, ignoring the ledge. After a few feet, she came to a dead end.
"Huh," she said, glancing back to where she came from. "Weird that I couldn't see that from back there."
Erin backtracked and hopped up onto the ledge. She hurried through the icy maze, shooting up at red robots up above her. After a few turns, she came to a sheer drop. She stopped for a second, recharged her gun, then dropped into the darkness.
She landed on a small icy platform below. Behind her, a robot piloting a giant walker activated. "Intruder alert!" the robot shouted.
Lasers fired from the walker. Erin dove to the right. She rolled to her feet and fired off a couple of shots at the robot. Using its powerful legs, the robot leaped into the air, causing one of the shots to miss. The other shot hit home however, striking the walker in the leg and causing it to flash for a second.
"Great," Erin said. "Nine more."
The giant mech stomped toward Erin, firing off more lasers. Erin ran around the robot, firing at it as quickly as she could. Two hits. Three. Four.
A laser found its mark and struck Erin in the shoulder. "Ah!" she shouted, falling to the ground. The robot bore down on her, its guns training on her torso. Erin raised her gun and fired off one more shot.
The giant mech exploded, breaking apart into its individual pieces. Erin backed up, holding her injured shoulder. The robot piloting the mech landed on the ground, looking around in dismay. "Hey, what do you think you're doing?" it shouted.
It raised its gun and marched toward her. Erin held up her gun and shot it in the chest several times. The robot stumbled, then exploded into balls of energy.
Erin took a deep breath, sweat beading down her face. She got to her feet, wincing at the pain in her shoulder. "Come on, Erin," she said. "Just a little more."
She ran ahead in the level. She hurried through another maze of platforms and levels, occasionally backtracking and trying different routes before coming to another drop. She ran to the edge and jumped down, holding her shoulder as she fell.
"Intruder alert!"
Another robot piloting a mech sprang to life as she landed.
Erin groaned. "Oh, come on."
The robot fired its lasers, and Erin dodged to the side. Her wound flared up as she did so. She raised her arm to fire, but the mech jumped, and only one of her shots connected. Erin staggered to her feet and fired off another shot. The mech returned fired, striking her in the stomach before she could avoid the attack.
"Aaagh!"
Erin fell to the ground, clutching her stomach in pain. She tried to get up but her hand slipped on the icy floor. The robot stomped toward her, another laser striking her left leg. Erin raised her gun and fired. The mech shuddered, but stood its ground. Its lasers trained on her face.
Erin closed her eyes.
Two energy balls struck the mech from the side and the machine exploded, leaving the pilot standing in the rubble. Both Erin and the pilot looked to see Rock standing at the base of the drop, aiming his gun arm at the pilot.
"Get away from her," Rock said.
The pilot turned his gun on Rock, but he was too slow. Rock nailed him with two shots to the chest, followed by two more, throwing him backwards. One last shot and the robot evaporated into energy orbs.
Rock lowered his gun. He ran to Erin's side.
"Erin, are you alright?"
Erin pushed herself up weakly, holding her bleeding stomach. "Rock," she said. "What are you—"
"Hold on," Rock said, propping Erin up against the wall. "Stay there and hold still. I'll be right back."
Rock ran down the corridor ahead. After a few seconds, he came running back through the room and looked up at the ledge high above that he had dropped from. He ran back and forth across the room frantically. "Come on, come on," he muttered.
"What's—?" Erin tried to ask.
Rock stopped, rubbing his helmet. He turned to Erin and crouched down beside her. "I can't find an energy canister. The drop's too far to get back up, and the boss battle entrance is just up ahead."
Erin looked up at him, her face pale and drenched in sweat. "You'll have to . . . get to . . . the next stage," she said. "I can't remember . . . if there's a hidden . . ."
"It's okay," Rock said. "Don't try to talk."
He put his arms under her and lifted her off the ground. "I'll get you there," he said. "Don't worry."
Erin nodded, laying her head on Rock's shoulder. Rock hurried forward to the end of the level. He shifted his grip when he got to the door and pressed his hand to the panel, then rushed through to the next door. Once in the boss chamber, Rock set Erin down in a corner. "I got this," he said.
He stood defensively in front of Erin, his gun held at the ready. A set of icy steps obscured half the room. Rock took a deep breath. "Come on, Robot Master," he said. "Where are you?"
From the corner of his eye, Rock thought he saw a flash of movement before a tiny needle embedded itself in his armor.
"Ow," he shouted. He looked at his arm to see the thin black weapon sticking out of it. "What the—"
Another flash of movement, and Rock spotted a shadowy figure in ninja garb, crouching on the top step. "There," he said. He fired off a couple of shots, but the ninja teleported away before they hit. The ninja reappeared at the bottom of the steps and threw another set of needles. Rock deflected them with his arm brace and fired again. Once again, the ninja disappeared.
"She's too fast," Rock said.
"It's Sheik," Erin said. "Hang on."
Shakily, she pulled her gamepad out of her pocket alongside the new Sonic amiibo. She tapped the figure to the pad's sensor, and the blue hedgehog materialized from thin air beside Rock.
"Let's go Sonic speed!" Sonic said.
Rock looked Sonic up and down, then nodded. He turned back to the battle and held out his gun. "Let's do this!"
Sheik appeared on the top step again. Rock fired at her. The ninja threw some powder at the ground in order to disappear again, but Sonic was too fast. He sped up the steps and snagged Sheik by the scarf. Rock's energy orbs hit home, pounding Sheik in the chest and knocking her back.
"You're too slow," Sonic boasted. He hefted the ninja and sped down the steps, laying her at Rock's feet.
The ninja sat up and glared at Rock. Her hand went for her weapons, but Sonic grabbed her hand and held it down. Rock pointed his gun at her chest. For a second, he stared at the ninja, staring through to his fellow Robot Master trapped inside. Rock charged his gun.
"I'm sorry," he said.
Rock fired. Sheik slumped to the ground. Her pixels drained off the robot, leaving behind a blue-and-yellow robot and a Sheik amiibo at its feet.