Author's Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Bros or any of the characters involved in it. I am earning no profit from this story, other than the enjoyment of writing it and sharing it with others! I hope you all enjoy reading it!
Cloud stood before the mirror for a moment, scowling at his reflection. He had to say that he didn't like these clothes. The pants were stiff, the tunic was too vibrantly covered, and he'd long ago forgone a rigid shoulder pauldron. The only thing he didn't hate were the leather boots, since he wore those all the time anyway, just colored black. Yes, Cloud most definitely preferred to wear black. But for whatever reason a change of clothes was required for this plan to be successful. He couldn't possibly fathom why, so he just went with it. He stared at his inventory bag for a long while, then decided that bringing it would probably be a good idea. So he clipped it to his newly-acquired belt and ensured that the orb was still stored safely inside. It was. His materia glinted up at him alongside the powerful orb. He was ready for this.
He brushed his hair carefully and then walked downstairs. Most other fighters were already there. From his brief glance across the long dining table, it appeared that everyone was there sans himself and Sephiroth. Cloud took a seat at the table in his usual spot besides Link, who nodded in approval. "You look nice," he said simply before returning to his conversation with Zelda.
"Can anybody explain why I need to do this?" Cloud demanded, tugging at his pauldron.
"It will become apparent shortly," Robin promised. "Have patience."
Cloud rolled his eyes.
"I think we should do a toast or something," Palutena said, winking at Pit. What kind of communication was this? "To celebrate our upcoming freedom."
Young Link grinned, his eyes sliding to Cloud. "An excellent idea."
"Let me do it!" Pit exclaimed. He stood up on the table, calling attention to himself. Every fighter turned their gaze towards him. The angel held his glass of milk up to the sky. "To an exciting day!" he said, so that the robots who were listening wouldn't be suspicious. "Good luck to us all!"
The other fighters raised their glasses and repeated the phrase. Cloud joined, smiling slightly. Why not have a little fun before things got real? Pit moved to sit back down, but he slipped on the tablecloth. His wings flapped frantically, but he somehow failed to regain his balance. He fell forward, Link catching him, but his glass of milk spilled from his grasp.
Right into Cloud's hair. Cloud cried out in irritation, shaking out as much of the liquid as he could. His long hair hung down in his eyes, no longer light enough to just stick straight up. He pushed it out of his gaze and glared at Pit, who was smiling timidly. Link set him back on his feet, and the angel laughed nervously. "Uh, s-sorry, Cloud."
"Whatever," Cloud muttered, getting up to go get a towel. The others around him all appeared amused. Cloud looked funny with wet hair. They'd never seen it hanging down so much. It seemed bleached even whiter from the milk that was caught in it. Without it being all spiky, Cloud's hair actually was pretty long.
"Stay here," Shulk said urgently. "We haven't got time for you to fix it."
Cloud crossed his arms over his chest, shaking more of the wetness away. Hopefully Link wouldn't care that his outfit was now all wet and gross.
"Trust us," Zelda said calmly.
"Yeah, appearances are the least of our concerns right now," Young Link said pointedly.
It wasn't that. With his hair like this, it could get in his face and impede his vision. But if they insisted, Cloud could be patient and let it dry naturally.
Robin leaned over and whispered something to Zelda, who turned her gaze to the stairwell. Sephiroth had arrived. His mood seemed pretty sour today. No doubt he knew exactly what was coming. His confidence last night seemed to have disappeared. He marched downstairs with a scowl on his face and his arms crossed over his chest.
Zelda got up from her chair and approached him, smiling warmly. Cloud watched her with great interest.
"Get ready," Palutena mumbled, pulling her staff from the void.
"Sephiroth! Good morning," the princess greeted him happily.
Sephiroth narrowed his eyes. "Don't take me for a fool. I know what you all are doing today. And no, I won't be helping you."
"Oh, I know," Zelda replied easily, leaning against the table and blocking Sephiroth's food, ensuring that the one-winged angel needed to stand and listen to her. "I wasn't asking about that. I just wanted to thank you for your recommendation."
Sephiroth remained silent, suspicion radiating from his slitted eyes.
"Loveless, remember?" Zelda went on. Her hand drifted to a pocket in her dress concealed by her cape. Sephiroth didn't notice. "I read it last night. The entire thing, I just couldn't put it down. It was wonderful."
Sephiroth smiled. "And why are you telling me this now?"
"We won't be seeing each other again after today," Zelda replied confidently. "So I thought I'd just let you know." She subtly pulled from the pocket a small vial of red liquid. Cloud recognized it instantly. Liquid anger. And suddenly his allies' plan made sense.
Liquid anger. They were going to force Sephiroth onto their side by drugging his drink this morning. The fight would begin whenever the drug kicked in. Which was why Cloud needed to change this morning. Because while Sephiroth hated the robots and Master Hand-and would thus direct his artificial rage towards them-he hated Cloud even more. But if the ex-mercenary was unrecognizable, and on a moving battlefield there would be no time for close inspection, Sephiroth would not notice Cloud, and would obviously leave him alone.
Snippets of a conversation that Cloud had somehow forgotten flitted through his mind. All these points brought up in the hallway, coming downstairs, some of them by Cloud himself. Young Link mentioning water in his hair. Link insisting Cloud dress differently. The ex-mercenary himself relaying what it felt like to be under the influence of liquid rage. Sentences and moments flashed through his memory.
"You alright?" Shulk whispered to Cloud, noticing him resting a hand on his forehead as though he had suddenly developed a headache.
The flashback ended with him sitting on his bed, Mewtwo resting a hand on his forehead. His memory had been wiped. They'd had this plan for weeks. Cloud himself had helped develop it. And then they'd reset his memory to preserve it.
"You figuring it out?" Young Link asked Cloud as Zelda continued to talk to Sephiroth, silently uncorking the bottle and feeling behind her for the one-winged angel's glass.
"Better," Cloud whispered back. "I remember."
"I thought you might," Link said quietly.
Cloud nodded. They went back to watching Zelda speak with Sephiroth. Nobody said a word about the princess's hands behind her back. Ridley and Ganondorf, who were sitting across the table from Sephiroth's food and could quite clearly see what Zelda was doing, remained silent. Even they wanted to get out. They weren't about to let Cloud's enemy ruin it for them.
"The three friends have such a tragic relationship," Zelda was saying, nodding as though in accordance with something Sephiroth had stated earlier.
Sephiroth nodded slowly. "They do indeed. But I'm certain that you're busy this morning. Surely you have preparations to be making?" His tone was personable, but his gaze was irritated. He was hungry, and he wanted to get on with his breakfast.
"But of course," Zelda agreed, slipping the emptied vial back into her pocket and stepping aside. Sephiroth's milk was left behind, though somehow the liquid wasn't tainted red. Palutena had her hands clasped in front of her, almost unnoticeable sparks flying from her fingertips. She winked at Cloud when he looked to her. Cloaking magic. Sephiroth would never notice what was in his drink.
Zelda returned to her seat, and elbowed Young Link, forcing the young Hylian to tear his attention away from Sephiroth. Conversation resumed. Cloud watched out of his peripheral vision as Sephiroth collected his things. He grabbed his glass and took a long drink before moving to go back upstairs. Palutena grinned.
"Arm yourselves," Shulk whispered, drawing his weapon discreetly.
Everyone at the table pulled their weapons out. Sephiroth noticed the action, and paused, glancing back at them. Then he grimaced, his green eyes burning with hatred. His interest shifted from the armed fighters to the robots guarding the perimeter of the room, staring them down with unbridled rage. And with Sephiroth's lead, the battle began.
"Now the fun begins," Palutena said, her fingers sparkling with magic.
Sephiroth lost himself to the artificial anger. Masamune flew from its sheath and he charged the robots with a harrowing vengeance. It was so satisfying for Cloud to watch his enemy become so unhinged. For once Cloud was not the one being used. For once Cloud was not the one who had his free will taken away. This time, Cloud was not the empty puppet. This time, he was one of the puppet masters.
The robots recognized Sephiroth's aggression and one of them moved to close the hallway door. Donkey Kong quickly dismantled it, tearing it limb from limb and screeching with pleasure every time a scrap of metal went flying.
"Let's get this started," Young Link said, grinning maliciously, his precious mask clutched in his hands.
Cloud nodded. He pulled his materia out of his bag and quickly put one into each slot in his bangles and the Buster Sword. He shook his arms out as the gemstones' power flooded him, his magic power finally ready to be put to use.
Robot reinforcements began pouring from the staircase. The fighters capable of taking them down stepped up while those who couldn't began advancing into the hallway. Young Link pressed his mask onto his face. For a moment, he screamed and writhed in pain. Then black light exploded from his body, and when it cleared the childish hero had been replaced by the figure of a god. A man with white eyes, an enormous double-handed sword, and red and blue war paint on his face stared down at the battlefield. The Fierce Deity was easily ten or eleven feet tall, and Cloud was immediately thankful that it was on their side.
Link too was staring up at Young Link in shock. Young Link snickered. "What are you looking at?" His voice was different. It wasn't childish. It was deep, menacing, and reverberated around the room despite the large amount of noise already present.
Link averted his attention, drawing his Slate off his hip and activating Stasis on the nearest robot.
"Make yourselves useful if you can!" Zelda advised. "If not, hang back! We don't want unnecessary injuries!"
Well, Cloud could be helpful. Alongside Young Link, he advanced to the outer edge of their ragtag and unorganized force. A full-on battle was raging now. Sephiroth had the front all to himself, and was masterfully disposing of any robot that crossed paths with him. Cloud would keep an eye on his enemy's position, and would be certain to avoid him at all costs. But for now, Cloud took up a position at the back of their force and went about destroying as many robots as he could.
"Don't overwork your Limit yet!" Young Link warned as Cloud eagerly lit his skin up with blue fire.
But Cloud wasn't worried. These Limit Breaks weren't fueled by a drug. These Limit Breaks were fueled by his own hatred, his own anger, his own fighting spirit. They wouldn't hurt him. He thought about everything Master Hand had taken from him in the past two years; his children, Tifa, Barret, Vincent, and all the others. He thought about everything he'd endured here in the mansion; the extreme boredom, the forced fights, the torture room. He thought about the insults and the teasing and most of all the words 'empty puppet.' And those things filled him with rage. Over and over his rage hit its breaking point. Limit after Limit was broken, and the robots advancing towards the rear of their unit began to show hesitation. They had many fighters at the very back, but not all of them were needed. Young Link shoved aside any bot that got within range of his enormous blade. Cloud repeatedly summoned Meteorain, using the large and heavy projectiles to dispose of multiple machines at once. Robot after robot fell before them. But still more kept coming from the stairs. How many there were, Cloud didn't know. He hoped Zelda had a plan for stemming the flow of bots.
She did. As soon as the last person was within the boundaries of the hallway, she called out to the rear of their unit, "The switch! Someone flip the switch and close the hallway door!"
"I'm on it!" Samus volunteered, making use of her electric whip. The switch was activated, and the heavy metal doors slid closed slowly. The robots near the edge of the door began banging on it, but not even they had the strength to damage whatever metal this was. Those in the middle kept filing into the hallway, but they didn't stand a chance against the fighters bringing up the rear. Fierce Deity Link alone would've been enough to handle them. But with backup, Young Link and the others needed mere seconds before they were standing alone in the hallway.
Sephiroth marched onwards towards the wooden door, his green eyes literally glowing in the dark, his skin roiling with black smoke, his signature wing splayed out in his forced anger. The other fighters let him approach the door leading to Master Hand's office. There were two doors between the hallway and the office; one of them was the steel door that was now protecting them from the robots. The other was a decorative wooden set of double doors that looked easy to burn down.
"Does Sephiroth have an orb?" Cloud asked suddenly. Despite his recovered memory, he wasn't sure about that.
Young Link shook his head. "He'll get knocked out now, probably. It'll make it easier to kill him later."
Cloud nodded.
They marched on. Sephiroth reached the door. Masamune carved a hole through the thin wood in seconds, the edge of the blade sizzling with electricity from dismantled robots. Master Hand was waiting on the other side. Now the real fight began. Their captor hadn't been taken by surprise. No doubt he'd heard all the noise coming from the main room.
Master Hand wasn't their only opponent. Crazy Hand hovered next to his brother, his fingers twitching madly as though he was eager to swoop down and begin wreaking havoc. Cloud had never seen Crazy Hand. Evidently, he was why some of the stranger fighters like Pac Man and Sonic were brought to the mansion. Rumor had it that Master Hand would dispose of his brother if he could afford to, but then who would he have to pit his toys against?
That aside, Crazy Hand was doubtlessly just as powerful as Master Hand. Probably a little less intelligent, but certainly just as powerful. Well, those two weren't the only gods going to war today. Palutena, Sephiroth, Ridley, Kirby, and now even Young Link stood as deities against their captors. And the rest of the fighters all had commendable power. Shulk had slain gods. Cloud had slain gods. This was just another impressive victory to add to the list. No matter what Master Hand had taken from all of them, it was now going to end.
"What are you all doing?" Master Hand asked tiredly, as though every one of his prisoners standing armed against him was a minor inconvenience.
"Taking our freedom back!" Young Link cried, brandishing his double-helix sword.
Sephiroth didn't wait for further conversation. His hearing was drowned out by pure rage, his reason was consumed, his thoughts were burning with nothing but a desire for revenge. And here was his chance.
He took it. He sprung from the ground with Masamune raised high, his wing propelling him up towards the floating glove. Crazy Hand met Sephiroth in midair, and the two engaged in a fierce battle.
"Half of you, make use of your orbs!" Zelda commanded. Master Hand was floating beyond the reach of all the fighters. But Crazy Hand, too bothered by Sephiroth to pay attention to his surroundings, had lowered himself enough to be vulnerable.
The army did as Zelda ordered. From their bags half of them pulled the power spheres, each one glowing with the light of the rainbow, and each one intended to bring down one of their oppressors.
"Wait with yours, Cloud," Link advised. Despite the unorganized appearance of their force, it seemed as though exactly half of them now pulled out their orbs. Zelda had thought this through well. No doubt Shulk and Robin had also greatly helped. Cloud only wished he was more informed. Not that it mattered. Things were somehow going smoothly. Sephiroth was entangled with Crazy Hand. The glove couldn't keep up with the enraged ex-SOLDIER. None of Sephiroth's slashes served much purpose besides angering his opponent. It was a stale battle.
But then the other fighters stepped up. Sephiroth was oblivious of his backup, just as Cloud had been when they first tried this. They smashed the orbs in their hands, each one of them becoming enveloped with a flashing aura of power and color. Master Hand watched, and despite his lack of an expression to read, Cloud got the feeling that he was both surprised and horrified.
One by one, the assigned fighters released the power the orbs granted them. Kirby summoned a sword that put both Masamune and the Buster Sword to shame, and began tearing Crazy Hand to bits. Despite the puff ball's curse, the glove had blood drawn repeatedly. Pikachu threw himself into the air, his body glowing with white electricity, and zipped around Crazy Hand so quickly that Cloud couldn't keep track. Attack after attack rained down on the sentient glove, and Crazy Hand's confident cackling quickly was replaced by agonized screaming.
Master Hand just watched his brother suffer in silence. There was nothing he could do. If he moved from his elevated position, those assigned to him would give him the same treatment. So he stayed away, letting Crazy Hand writhe on the ground now, silently glaring at his supposed prisoners.
The stream of attacks let up. Crazy Hand lay on the ground, rainbow blood flowing from most of his torn skin. His twitching fingers stilled. He let out one last cackle, this one sounding deranged and mocking, and then he stilled. All the fighters stood in apprehension. Sephiroth stared down at the corpse with glee. Cloud hid behind Young Link. The one-winged angel raised his gaze to Master Hand. They still had a lot of fighting left to do. Crazy Hand was dead. But their victory was not yet assured.
"You….you all will pay for this!" Master Hand screamed. Then he jumped into action. He deftly avoided all the fighters still with orbs and heavily targeted those without.
"Wait for a better shot," Shulk advised when Incineroar moved to give chase. "We'll get a better shot." So they waited.
And they watched as those that had already expended their orbs were quickly thrown aside. Sonic was flung into the ground, pulled out of the air as he went in for a diving kick. Roy was chucked into the wall, his head smashing against an oversized cabinet, and he didn't get up. He was still breathing, but he wouldn't be participating in the rest of this fight. The young lion wasn't the only one. Meta Knight, Chrom, Mario, they all were quickly tossed aside by Master Hand's anger.
The glove reached Sephiroth. The one-winged angel put up a fight. The two went back and forth for several minutes. Sephiroth's motions were rash and ill-timed, fueled only by anger that wasn't even his. But his skill with the blade was not completely tarnished, and Master Hand had a hard time catching him. Sephiroth ran towards Master Hand, flying into the air with a single flap of his wing, landing solidly on the glove and dragging his blade through his flesh. Master Hand shivered with pain and shook Sephiroth off, sending the ex-SOLDIER tumbling through the air. He stopped his momentum just before the wall and tried again.
"We should help," Ganondorf said, his jaw clenched as Sephiroth was batted aside yet again.
"Master Hand is distracted," Robin said to Zelda.
Zelda nodded slowly. "Very well." She held out her hand, the Triforce of Wisdom glowing in the relative darkness of the office. "Let us take back our lives!"
Author's Note: Ah, sorry for the cliffhanger! But it's final fight time now! Hope you all are fired up about tomorrow's chapter!