Ever since Peach became a teenager, her Soulfire went unglued. For starters, she was a blonde one day, and a redhead the next (with a few singed pillows to boot). No matter how many times she dyed it back to normal, one nap was all it took to roast it away. She gave up after a while, everyone convinced her this was just puberty, just a phase. A phase still ongoing after a year. But oh, if that had been the worst of it.

After setting half the castle on fire in her sleep, she spent a week in Elvin's IC labs; areas designed for experimenting and testing in extreme cold. Her Soulfire went from burning down everything around her to just keeping her warm. Elvin did increase the temperature when she sleeping and not actively regulating her body heat, and she slept a lot more as time went on and it was exhausting to keep her flames going for hours and hours on end.

Once that went away, she thought she was in the clear to get her braces. She rushed into getting them because she wanted them off by her fifteenth birthday in about a year. Her braces lasted for a month until one day she licked the corner of her mouth and realized the metal was melting on her teeth. Everything tasted like heavy metals for the next few days.

But nothing, nothing was worse than the time she went overseas on her first international peace summits. The King of Sarasaland, who was hosting the event, had spent much of the week getting acquainted with Peach, citing her as a great role model for his daughter. Peach signed an autograph for the king and promptly forgot the princess' name two days later after meeting every leader ever (Deiji, right?). And in return, at the end of the summit on international television, Peach went to shake hands, and she sneezed fire on the King of Sarasaland. Fortunately, the fire alarms she set up made an excellent distraction for a getaway. Toad promised he'd handle foreign affairs from now on.

Ever since the Sarasaland debacle, Peach put every waking moment into re-controlling her Soulfire. Turning it on was no problem, turning it off was a different story. For that, the solution was Professor Elvin's squadron of OTTOs, drones he specifically designed to contain fires. They were fast, they could fly, and despite being small, Elvin made so many of them they could put out some pretty big blazes.

They could do other stuff too, or at least, they used to. Well...the first time Elvin deployed them on her fires, Peach didn't remember the encounter, just waking up to a throttled Elvin profusely apologizing about... something something life-threatening sensory overload.

Honestly, the only things she remembered were the absolute lividness on Toad and Toadsworth's faces. That and a sure headache whenever she saw an OTTO anytime afterward. Every time they entered a fire zone, for just a few moments, she could feel the hive of unblinking eyes analyzing her existence, waiting for something, before looking away and playing firefighter. Artificial Intelligence was much more unnerving than what Elvin first described. But it was Elvin, so she never brought it up. After all, the OTTOs were here because of her, so if anything, she deserved it. And that only made her want to push herself harder.

Sneaking a pack of playing cards from Toad's drawer, she hunkered down in her renovated chambers and placed the first card in the middle of the floor. Then, she created a small flame next to it, just to see how long she could keep it from closing in and consuming the card, which it did in mere seconds. Fire has an insatiable urge to move. Even when lighting Elvin's scented candles, Peach could feel the trapped flames crying out to grow. In her family storybooks, there were legends of a Blazing Emperor that had complete mastery over all arts of the pyro. E-something or whatever. They were just stories anyway. Onto the next card.

And the next card. and the next card, and the next card, and the next card. Every suit, every joker, even the instructional cards at the end. Until the very last card in the deck laid on the floor. The Queen of Hearts. Peach put forth her hand. A small ball of fire gathered in her hand, settling next to the card. With her hand, she swayed it back and forth away from the card. Controlling fire's movement was no easy task, so practice was always welcome. But that wasn't why she was there. Go out. She clenched her hand. The fire squiggling as it flattened out, but persisted to live all the same, slinking closer and closer to the card, just like all the others.

"Stop."

A restless vibrated in her head, blurring her vision. She gasped, loosening her grip. It took everything she had to steady it. Even with her distorted vision, she could see the card on the floor. The fire had completely engulfed the Queen of Hearts. However...the edges had not gone black. The Queen was entirely on fire, and yet, not on fire at all. How am I...doing this?

"GAH!" One eye slammed shut, her hand going into a tremble. Peach held up one hand with another, slumping against the wall to keep it from falling over. Now was the test. "O-One, twoooo, thre-" The burst of pain in her arm made her relent. As Peach writhed on the floor, the flames finally latched onto the Queen of Hearts, greedily eating her away in seconds. Peach caught one last look at the Queen before she turned to ash. Three seconds. Barely three seconds.

She was going to need more cards.

A steady limp forward. Past the tea. Past the bed. Don't rest. Now isn't the time to rest. Just keep moving. Steady. Steady.

Steady.

Wardrobe room. Heavens, this place was huge. Focus. Something...reserved. Sharp. Black. Black coat. With black pockets. And black pantyhose. And black heels. And a black beret to match. Why not? It's pretty. And classy. And effective. Speaking of effective, Charzord might be needed in the state she was in. Still, her father's sword felt very foreign to her. It'd been used since she used it to depose 'King' Wart and the rest of the Doki Doki Gang.

If only this would be as easy as Wart. As she raised her arm to draw forth a portal, the rest of her body sunk to the ground. "Blast!" Even just making a portal, using any energy at all. Her tolerance to the Bits, the power she had saved up; she had burned it all on trying to save Midna. And now she was in this...state. The first she'd experimented on herself to calculate the power of two Bits, she couldn't remember the day or the amount of time she'd been confined to bed rest. She wasn't trying to remember it either. When she was lucid again, a horrified Elvin told her his observations, her body flashing red, only being able to describe it as 'overheating.' One thing she could remember very well was the exhaustion she felt for days afterward. Well, if she wasn't going to be active for a while, she'd need someone to do it for her.

With Charizord as support, she propped herself up and sauntered closer to the light.

One step outside of the portal and she was already stumbling over, plunging Charizord into the ground, before she even thought to look down. Worn-out cobblestone. Because of course, this is where I would land. On a road leading me to nowhe-

Bit energy. Loads of it. Peach whipped her head around. As the portal closed in, a mansion came into view. King Code, already?

She paused. From the way Midna had described him, King Code was a merciless force to be reckoned with. To attack an enemy while not at full strength was foolish. And she hadn't felt a power like this since...

since...

Since she first tested out using two Bits at once.

Captain N had told Link there were only 8 Bits in existence. Unless Link was much, much more sly than he appeared, he wasn't lying to me. That desperation was too genuine, especially considering Midna's experience. I have two. Link has one. Bowser has one. The gorilla has one. King Code has one. And the other two were with...him.

Every Bit was accounted for. Who would be fighting here over a Bit? Maybe Bowser? After that stunt with the ape, she couldn't put anything past him. It could be Link or the gorilla. And if King Code was here... That didn't matter. There was a fight here. Definitely multiple Bits involved.

Maybe I can catch the winner.

Signs of a struggle were apparent in the foyer as crumbs of marble littered the floor. Peach tapped her brooch, swinging open the gemstone in front. One touch of the second Bit made her legs gave out, leaning on Charizard for support. I can't overheat now...not until I'm done here! With a snarl, she snatched the Bit from its chamber and took in the power of Bits.

Flames instantly burst at her feet. With a steady grip on Charizard, Peach shot up the stairs, reaching the top in one bound. The roaring crackle of fire would have alarmed anyone in the mansion, and yet, silence. Late to the party...probably for the best. She allowed herself a small sigh of relief as she sheathed Charizord and placed the Bits in a pocket.

The upper floor was in complete disarray with a mass of furniture strewn about. She could taste the Bit energy in the air. Tingly. Definitely multiple Bits in play. So...residual Bit energy is a thing. Wonder how long it's been. Still... Something wasn't right here. In a battle of singular Bits, Link and the gorilla brought down an embassy in seconds. For Two Bits to be used and only a section of a house in mere dishevelment, what was the point of using such overwhelming power? Stepping over the debris, Peach looked inside what used to be an impressive master bedroom.

A body lay on the floor, completely motionless.

They were covered head to toe except for part of their face. A puddle of dried blood was at the person's hip, and yet...Peach slid her fingers against their neck. Still alive...and breathing's stable. At second glance, not a scuff, stain, or tear on the clothes at all. Certainly a Bit.

You lost this fight. You should be dead. But they healed you. Left you here. Why? Are they coming back? There had to be some clue of who was here. Ganon? No...he would have taken this person for his collection, or just kill them. Far too much mercy.

She exited the room. They shouldn't be conscious for a while. What else is in this place?

Walking across the hall, Peach entered the study. Hello, what's this? Hanging on the wall, was a portrait of Link. And some other...rather large fellow. Green. Intimidating, yet stoic.

So it was Link, paying a visit home? He must have already killed the gorilla and took his Bit. So assuming he has two Bits, his next move would be...to go after King Code Ganon.

Oh no.

That idiot is going after King Code, and he's probably already overheated. King Code with 3 Bits...

Oh no.

Well, if he overheated here, he probably doesn't get to King Code. Either way, I'm in no position to help him right now. She stumbled over to a broken window. I don't even know where my position is.

Wait.

This wasn't anything like the barren castle where Midna had been. King Code Ganon must have been in another part of the world.

She sat down in a chair and closes her eyes. Activating the power of the Bit, a shockwave dispersed from her body in a flash of white light.

Her body glowed red. But now she knew.

There are no other Bits in this world. He wouldn't just come back, defeat one robber, and leave again. If there was anyone he'd come back for; it would be Ganon. I don't sense any other Bits. Maybe it wasn't Link.

Amid the shards of glass, stars were beautifully gleaming against the dark backdrop of night.

Stars.

At King Code Ganon's lair, there had been no stars in the sky black as death. So King Code has some kind of limit on his power. Good.

Going back downstairs, she noticed a bright yellow object sticking out from underneath a nearby cabinet. This is some kind of music player. A few tapes scattered next to them with a pair of headphones still attached. "My, aren't you out of place?" She spun the object around. Pulling out a tab, were two batteries. Very out of place.

She looked around the manor. Batteries were a technological landmark. This place had torches, not light switches. No electrical outlets. No phones. Not even an electric refrigerator.

This world doesn't have the technology to produce something like you. You shouldn't be here. Why would Link have you? Did Bowser give him this? Peach flipped the device around. Bowser's obnoxious face wasn't plastered anywhere on this thing. So Link wasn't here. This isn't good. This isn't good at all. Peach gave a quick glance around the foyer. Nothing else seemed to stick out. The person upstairs is gonna tell me something I don't know. Maybe there's something on these tapes I can use to find out who was here. Either way, this trip was more than worth it. Good thing this coat had pockets. As she pulled her hand out, Peach realized her arm was going red, and she was starting to lose feeling all over. Time to go.

Going up the stairs, Peach kept an eye on her hand. The red was no longer flashing, simply taking more and more of her hand. As she made a Bit portal in the bedroom, her body seized up, leaning on the railing for support. With more than a wince, she slowly regained her ability to ascend to the bedroom.

"I hope... Elvin's still awake." She grabbed the stranger and hoisted them up on her shoulder. "I'm really going to get it for dropping this on him. And as for you, my new guest, You better be worth the trouble."

There's a crack in the ceiling
And there's an open door
Nothing there but the dust and the rust
Oh, oh, oh, everything changes