Characters: Mario, Arbiter, Samus, Master Chief, Doom Slayer, and Penetrator
Settings: Mushroom Kingdom
Mario took a deep breath as he looked up as his enemy. He'd not expected to have to get in a brawl with a demon or whatever it was he was facing on his way to visit Peach's castle, but life for Mario never went as expected. He was always in some struggle to save his kingdom or some land to save his Princess. But this enemy was different. While his previous adversaries had committed misdeeds, none of them were "evil". The entity in front of him gave off an aura of pure evil. It was almost unsettling. Seeing as it had come through some random portal that appeared on the ground, he assumed it to be a Demon of some sort, which would corroborate the aura it gave. The being he faced was tall, with silver knight armor, with engravings covering the entirety of his body. His right arm had a swirling red mist surrounding it, and in his hand, was a sword as long as a lamppost. Unbeknownst to Mario however was that this being had a name. It was known as the Penetrator.
The Penetrator did another wide swing, barely being dodged by Mario. He then went for a jab, forcing Mario to jump up to avoid it. He took it as his opportunity to strike. Midair, he swiftly placed a metal cap on his head, covering his entire body in the substance. He then slammed down on the Penetrator's head with a punch from his newly metal covered fist. Penetrator recoiled and fell to the ground. When he got back up, Mario could see a dent in his helmet.
The Penetrator, full of rage at his new injury, rushed Mario, but instead of going for a stab, he grabbed Mario by the neck, and then proceeded to slam his head into the ground.
The metal covering Mario lessened the pain, but the metal coating had cracked. He tried to get up, but the weight of his hide, as well as the shock from the impact forced his body to stay put. Penetrator wasted no time. He lifted his blade staring into Mario's eyes, with his lifeless, eyeless gaze. Mario had accepted death.
As the Penetrator plunged it down, Mario flinched in anticipation. But no such blow came. He opened his eyes to see a blue blade emanating with light and energy holding back the red mist infused blade of the Penetrator. As he looked to the holder of this energy sword, he gasped. It was no one he recognized, hell, it wasn't even humanoid. It was a tall, black skinned, reptilian creature. He had a long neck, but it was his face that was what shocked Mario. He had a flattened head and snakelike yellow eyes, with a mouth that had 4 mandibles. His body, head, and neck were all covered in silver armor that glowed in the moonlight.
This creature dodged the Penetrator's next swing in an elegant fashion, before coming back at it with an upward swing using his energy blade. Penetrator blocked it as they both pressed each other's blades with as much force as possible, trying to embed them into the other's face. The battle went on for about 10 more minutes. They were both evenly matched, and the creature that saved him was getting tired. Penetrator went for a powerful stab, thrusting his blade with as much force as possible. The creature rolled to the side dodging it, and in a flash, rushed the Penetrator's arm, slicing it clean off with one powerful stroke.
The red mist that surrounded the arm started to envelop it's entire body, as Penetrator made an inhuman scream. A portal opened under it, and the Penetrator, it's sword, and severed arm, all fell in. The strange portal proceeded to close. The creature's energy blade disappeared into the hilt, and he placed it on his armor. It started to walk over to Mario, but as he did, Mario came out of his shock. He realized a sharp pain in the back of his head, as the broken metal shards of his Metal Cap armor started to pierce his head. Mario's conscience fluctuated and he started to pass out. The last thing he saw was the creature standing over him. Then everything went black.
Mario woke up to the rattling of an engine. The ground in which he was laying on was no longer normal terrain, it was a sturdy metal, and he could tell he wasn't alone. He could hear the footsteps of others around him but was in such a haze, that he couldn't make out how many people he heard. His eyes opened, and he looked at his surroundings. He was inside of a ship, in the middle of a transport hold, laying on a cushion. Next to him were others sitting in pod-like spaces mounted on the wall. His vision was still hazy, and before he gave the people a good look, he reached for the back of his head. There was no pain, but he could feel bandages lining where was once shards stabbing into his skull. He sat up, as his vision returned and decided to examine who or what, was in the ship with him. Sitting on the wall mounts, was a man in green armor. He had exposed muscle however, and mounted on his arm and shoulders which seemed to house some sort of weapons. The visor on his helmet was translucent, but it was still hard to get a look at his face. Mario could tell he was sleeping however. Next to him was an all too familiar bounty hunter in red armor…
"Samus?"
The armored woman woke up in a flash, and stood up. She looked down at Mario, realization dawning on her face. She looked to the front of the ship, and yelled for someone "Arbiter! He's up!"
Mario heard footsteps coming from what he thought to be the cockpit. Turning, he saw the creature that saved him entering the transport hold. "Ah, you're awake", the creature said with an oddly soothing, deep voice, betraying his otherwise menacing appearance.
He walked over to Mario, and handed him his cap. Mario got up off his cushion placing it on his head, studying the creature in front of him, who was apparently called, "Arbiter." He knew it was not hostile, however, he was uncertain of its intention.
"Thank-a you", Mario said, and the creature took a few steps back.
"I watched you fight that Demon," Arbiter said. Then he made what Mario assumed to be a smile, although it was hard to tell as his 4 mandibles couldn't make the same expression a traditional mouth could. "Well done."
Mario found this odd, seeing as The Arbiter had to save him from the attacking Demon. But he also realized that the Arbiter only stepped in at the end, as the battle had taken 15 minutes before it reached the point where Mario had fallen. Had he really been watching him the whole time? But then the question that he'd been wondering since he'd been saved, came out into words.
"How did you-a know to come and-a help me in that fight?"
Arbiter looked to Samus, who nodded. He then looked back at Mario.
"I assume the best way to explain your predicament is to get straight to the point." He then paused. "That portal that you saw, was a gateway to a realm not of ours. It's an entire world filled with Demons and monsters, and whatever Demons reside there, have somehow found a way to enter our world."
Mario had assumed that what he fought was a Demon, but he didn't know to what extent the threat had posed. But before he could finish thinking of what such a threat meant, Arbiter continued.
"They appeared on my homeworld. We'd fought what came out of it off, but the attacks wouldn't stop. I had seeked out the assistance of an old ally and we have found a way to track said portals. We have since tried to find warriors capable of assisting us in this struggle. We so far have found Samus, who has told me she is familiar with you. And we have found the so-called, 'Doom Slayer' who is currently not with us." He chuckled looking at his sleeping form. "And now you. That is, if you join us?"
Mario knew he didn't have much of a choice. While the description of the threat was brief, the threat such portals could pose was not one he wanted to think about too much. However, he was getting old. A lifetime of adventures, and saving his kingdom did take a toll on him. He didn't want to go on this new quest, but wants were never really a concept Mario indulged. He'd never backed down on an adventure before and he sure as hell wasn't going to now. He nodded in agreement.
"Excellent", Arbiter replied. But then his face turned solemn as he heard a beeping sound coming from the cockpit. Another man walked out of the cockpit, wearing shiny green metal armor, and with a helmet lined with an opaque orange visor. He was not as tall as Arbiter, but that didn't take away from the man's immense stature. He immediately looked at The Arbiter before saying: "Another portal located. I've locked on to the coordinates." The Man's voice was firm, yet rough.
Arbiter nodded. "Where"
"Some place called, 'Hyrule'"
Mario grinned and they both looked at him, Arbiter confused, and the armored man with an unreadable expression, due to his face being behind a helmet. Mario knew where, and what, Hyrule was. But he wasn't concerned about it's fate. He knew Hyrule had a protector, and he knew that whatever Demon showed it's face there, was in for a...surprise. Mario decided to quell their confusion. "I-a know-a Hyrule. They already-a have a warrior there."
Arbiter looked intrigued. He had been searching for warriors to fight this threat for some time. Was he about to not only acquire not 1 but 2 warriors in the span of a few days?
"What kind of warrior do you speak of", Arbiter asked. Mario could tell that the Arbiter was excited at the prospect of a new warrior on their side, but his monotone voice hid it with great effect. But before Mario could respond, the beeping had begun again, and after a few minutes, again. Apparently, a large amount of portals were entering the kingdom.
"Set course for Hyrule!", Arbiter yelled to the armored man, who nodded, and headed back to the cockpit. A battle was erupting in Hyrule, and the Arbiter was not going to miss it.
But then he was reminded of something. Something that Samus had told him upon their meeting, when Arbiter had found her in a destroyed ship, barely clinging to life. Seeing as Mario was now a part of the crew, he had to tell him, so he'd better understand the situation at hand. He turned to Mario. "I do not know of the importance of this to you, however, there is a piece of information your old comrade has relayed to me…"
Arbiter cast a sideways glance at Samus, and beckoned for her to join the 2. Samus nodded, stood up from her seat and walked towards Mario with a grave expression on her face. And the news she told Mario, did not do her expression justice...
