Characters: Zelda, Arbiter, Link, Teba, Mario, Samus, Riju, Master Chief, Doom Slayer, Sidon, and Yunobo

Settings: Hyrule Castle

"State your business."

Teba's eyes met the mirrored determination of the 2 sets of eyes in front of him. His bow was prepared to fire, and he knew he was quick enough to fire at both of his opponents, before they could land a solid hit on him, injured eye be damned. He was too close to them for that to factor into his shots.

Neither of the 2 responded, and as such, he was about to let his arrow loose into the face of the reptilian creature, however, a figure stepped in front of his bow.

It was none other than his fellow Champion, Link, much to Teba's surprise. His face was slightly impassive as it usually was, but there was a hint of stern panic etched into the lines of his face. His voice reflected this urgency. "Teba, hold your fire, these are not hostiles!"

It was the last thing he expected to hear, in all honesty. Link had been retired for years now, secluded in Hateno, yet, he knew these foreigners? Something was off, however, Teba obliged, and lowered his bow.

The reptile, and the red hatted man, relinquished their battle stances as well, the reptile turning off his energy sword, and the red hatted man allowing the embers on his hands to dissipate.

"Teba, this is Mario. He is an old friend of mine, and an ally from the war against Galeem."

Thoughts felt like a river to Teba. He'd heard slight tidbits of the battles Link fought against Galeem, however, he'd heard of none of the allies that fought alongside Link, except the fact that they were known as the Smash Brothers. It was always a thought the Rito had pondered over, the fact that outside of the land of Hyrule, there were warriors with similar powerful levels to their Champions, yet they had their own worlds to defend. How many were out there? How many had Link met. Teba would never ask Link to answer these questions, out of respect, but they did occupy his mind often.

However these thoughts were paired with an eerily dark one.

What had happened, that was so dire, for an old comrade of Link's to have journeyed all the way to Hyrule to speak with him?

It could be no coincidence that this visit was made in such close proximity, time wise, to the attack on the castle.

Teba looked the 2 newcomers in the eye. "I...apologize for my hostility."

The reptile nodded, seizing this moment of peace between the 2 groups.

"We take no offense", he said warmly. His expression then became grave. "I must stress, however, that we focus on the topic at hand. Your kingdom was attacked recently, was it not?"

Teba nodded, confused as to how these newcomers would have known about such an attack. It struck him, however, that Link was talking with them moments prior, sparking guilt into him. He'd interrupted a possibly important conversation, that was most certainly about the attack.

The reptile continued. "And I assume, you are confused as to the nature of the portals that have attacked your province?"

Teba nodded once more, curious to see where this reptile was going with this tangent. A glance to his side, gave Teba view of Link, who had his brow quirked in confusion. It was evident by his face that he had no idea as to what these portals were, due to not have been present for the attack.

However, the reptile was cut off before he could continue, due to the entire party's ears being claimed by an oncoming sound. It was the sound of clanking metal. Upon turning their heads, the group's eyes met the view of a large squad of Hylian soldiers, armed with spears, and in front of them, the 3 other Champions, and Princess Zelda herself.

They were all marching at a quick pace, eyeing the newcomers in a deadpan, and obviously ready for attack, should the need arise.

Arbiter leaned towards Mario, asking a question the Rito Champion could not hear, only making out the word "sovereign". Mario nodded, and the Arbiter straightened his stance.

The soldiers had reached a distance of about 3 yards, before stopping. Zelda walked a few paces in front of the group, studying their stances. Her eyes widened as they met Mario's, and then they immediately went to Link's, a motion which Teba didn't entirely understand.

Zelda swallowed hard, before saying to Link, "I assume then, that this is not an attack on the kingdom?"

Link nodded gravely. Zelda closed her eyes for what Teba counted as 10 seconds, before opening. "Shall we take whatever business our guests have, to the Sanctum?"

Link nodded, before turning towards the reptile, and Mario. Both of them nodded as well.

The walk back to the Sanctum was excruciating for Zelda. In fact, she didn't even feel that she was walking, as all of her attention was being directed towards her mind.

Mario was here, and days after an attack from a seemingly unknown world. It didn't take a genius to put the 2 together, and Zelda was a proficient scholar. Mario knew of these attacks, due to them possibly not being isolated, and was coming to ask for Link's aid in another quest. Zelda was sure of it.

She hadn't even formally allowed Link back into the Hylian military(although she was planning on it), and now he was just going to go off on another suicide mission. No. She wouldn't allow it. If Mario asked, Link was sure to say yes.

The thought of it made Zelda's spine shiver. Did this man care nothing for his life?

Curiously enough, Mario's new crew did not consist of the same members she had seen before with the exception of Samus. The new crew seemed remarkably less vibrant, as though most of them came from one background, instead of the many the original Smash Brothers team had. Whether or not this crew was just an ambassador for a large team or if it was a full recast, Zelda did not care. One thing was for certain. She was not going to allow them to utilize Link, in any way, shape, or form.

Her mulling through these thoughts made her woefully ignorant of the fact that the group had reached the Sanctum. It took a tap to the arm, from the Gerudo Champion Riju, that woke her from these thoughts. Riju gave Zelda an almost mischievous grin, indicating she knew exactly what Zelda was thinking. She leaned in and whispered, "How much you wanna bet they'll want Sidon to come with them, once you disallow Link to them?"

Zelda shot her a look of warning, yet fondness. Riju maintained her usual stance, trying to suppress a grin.

The group organized themselves inside of the Sanctum, the 4 Champions each taking a guard position at each of the entrances. Zelda walked up to her throne, sat in it, while Link stood beside it, sword pointing towards the ground, a position Zelda hadn't seen him in since well before the Galeem war, when Link was appointed as her guard. Mario's group stood in the middle of the Sanctum floor, however, much to Zelda's surprise, it was the reptilian creature from before, who stepped forward to speak to her.

He knelt as he said, "Forgive my intrusion your grace. I am the Arbiter. My allies and I were alerted to the presence of strange portals that have plagued a multitude of worlds across the cosmos. It is my understanding that this kingdom has been attacked by said portals?"

Zelda took in this new information. She was right in their reason for coming here, that these portals were not an isolated event, raising a multitude of questions about the nature of the portals. However, it seemed as though Mario was not in charge of this endeavor, and instead, he was simply an acquired member to this new Smash Brothers, similar to how Link was positioned in the old team, and that this Arbiter, was the leader.

Zelda nodded in response, before saying, "Yes, we have been attacked. What knowledge can you provide that would aid our defense against them, Arbiter."

Arbiter gave Zelda what she assumed was a grave look, however, it was hard to tell with the mandibles. "As to that, we have not much to share. My colleague 117" - he gestured to a very large man coated in green armor next to him - "and I have developed a way to track down where these portals appear. Our knowledge of their origin, however, is limited. What we can tell though, is that these attacks are coordinated, due to a testimony from our comrade here, Samus."

He gestured for Samus to step forward and speak, and a haunted look overcame her features. Zelda could tell that whatever these portals had done to her, had a large impact on her mental state.

Samus took a deep breath, before telling Zelda of the event that she had brought up when she first met Arbiter, and when their group recruited Mario.

"The portals...have decimated Mute City."

Zelda did not understand the gravity of those words. Neither apparently did the Arbiter, as he was relatively unfazed by them. However, Mario's look told her all she needed to know. His eyes looked dead, and his face full of grief. What she didn't expect to hear, was Link shifting uncomfortably in his stance beside her. His impassivity usually left zero room for any sort of emotional outbursts, so this slight shifting spoke volumes as to how important this...Mute City was.

Even more odd to Zelda, was that Link spoke up. "Who...who was with you during it's destruction?"

Samus tilted her head towards the floor. "Captain Falcon reached out to me and a few others. I believe in total, our group consisted of him, me, Fox, Falco, Shulk, and Cloud. We were...called...upon, to help with portal attacks that were happening at random. But then they...increased...a lot. Eventually...some kind of...tower, I think it was, appeared, which opened up a portal large enough that...an army came out of it. The city stood no chance."

"And your crew?", Link breathed, although Zelda could tell that he knew the answer coming.

Samus shook her head in sorrow. "All of them...died. Except me. I managed to retreat, crashing on a nearby moon, where I was found by the Arbiter, who'd tracked down the attack.

Zelda heard Link let out a long breath of what could only be described as being full of sorrow, which made sense. Chances were that Link knew, and was possibly friends with all of the people she mentioned that got killed. She could see Mario exchanging grave glances with him.

"I don't mean to intrude upon this moment of grief", Zelda spoke up. "But what exactly is...Mute City?"

Samus' voice was more even than it was during her retelling of Mute City's destruction. "It is a large city, containing a population of over 1 billion people. It contained all kinds of species of life...until...now." Samus took in a deep breath. "It was host to one of the best bounty hunters I knew, known as Captain Falcon, who helped the Smash Brothers during the war against Galeem. To take on Mute City, is a feat long thought impossible. But now...it's been done, and there's not a soul alive there..."

Zelda took a moment to process this information. These portals were strong enough to take on a city with 1 billion people in it, nay, not just take it on, but destroy it entirely? More importantly, the portals contained an...army? And what was this tower she spoke of?" Zelda opened her mouth to voice some of these incredibly important questions, but the Arbiter interjected.

"We know not of the origin of this army, nor what this tower is" - it's like he read my mind - "however, one thing is clear. This threat possesses unprecedented power and destructive capabilities. And that is why I have come to ask of you a favor."

So this is where he asks it... Dread was overcoming Zelda. She knew that it might be construed as selfish to not allow Link to join their midst, however, she didn't care. She'd given every ounce of her power in holding Ganon down for 100 years, and had dedicated all of her time since then to rebuilding Hyrule. She was allowed to keep certain aspects of life to herself. Besides, if Link was gone while Hyrule faced similar attacks to Mute City, the kingdom would have lost it's best defender.

"I have been aiding provinces in their fights against these portals, and recruiting warriors to help in this conflict. Our most recent ally has alerted me to the presence of the one you call Link, and has stated that he-"

"Are you asking that Link joins you on this crusade of yours?", Zelda interrupted, trying to get straight to the point. She knew full well of what the answer was.

"Indeed I am."

"I am afraid that Link is currently unavailable for any sort of recruitment you may have in mind", responded Zelda coolly.

The Arbiter seemed to be searching for the right words to respond. "I would beg you to reconsider this choice, your grace. Should this threat reach more worlds-"

"So you'd have my kingdom lose a crucial part of it's defense, leaving us vulnerable, so other worlds may have their safety ensured? That doesn't seem to be best for Hyrule's prosperity."

Arbiter now eyed her with a look she could not decipher, before speaking up. "I can assure you, should Hyrule be attacked again, we will arrive on the scene to aid your struggle."

"Right...like you did last time we were attacked? I'm afraid your appearance is about a day late of the time the attack was resolved. I cannot put my faith in such a proposal."

Arbiter's eyes went to Link's. "Shall we ask the person in question, what they're input is?"

Oh no. This was the part where Zelda's refusal would surely fall apart. Link would undoubtedly agree to go off on whatever quest the Arbiter had in store for them. Her eyes turned to his, to see that he was in deep thought.

"I... I cannot accept to leave with your crew", Link said, much to Zelda's surprise. "With Galeem, the threat was concentrated to certain locations. We could bring the fight to him. These portals can attack anywhere, at anytime, and we can only defend against them. And if they were able to destroy Mute City... I cannot allow Hyrule to succumb to the same fate."

Zelda's heart was filled with gratitude. He'd said the last thing she'd expected, and it was exactly what she'd wanted to hear. Turning back to the Arbiter, she could see that he was absolutely crestfallen. He was searching for the right words, but eventually, he simply let out a breath, and said, "Very well. Thank you for your hospitality. I wish your kingdom the best in these trying times..."

"We wish the same to you", Zelda responded, betraying the near argument that had just transpired.

Arbiter's beckoned for his crew to turn and leave.

Zelda turned towards Link. "If you wish, you may bid your old friends goodbye."

He gave a smile in return.

Mario was the only member not onboard, as he was standing in front of the Hylian Champion, Link, making idle conversation. It was rare for Mario to have a full on conversation, and even more rare for Link to speak in general, however, here they were. Talking like the brothers they were.

"I'm surprised you got roped back into this mess", Link said to his aging friend. "You're getting old."

Mario gave a laugh. "Aren't you-a 100 years old?"

"Fair enough", Link admitted. His face then became serious. "Stay safe. We can't have you going like Falcon and the rest."

Mario nodded gravely. "I'll-a be sure to make it. Besides" - Mario leaned in towards Link, with a playful grin on his face - "I'm-a retiring after this-a fight."

"Retirement... Not my thing."

Mario rolled his eyes. Always the fighter he was. "I'll-a see you by the end of this."

Link nodded.

Mario then turned, and walked onto the ramp of the ship, waving as it closed. It took off, and disappeared into the night sky.

Link took a breath, before walking back towards the castle to prepare defenses for possible oncoming attacks. His mission was clear now. He was once again going to defend Hyrule from any and all threats, regardless of the cost. Retirement was not going to get the kingdom anywhere.

As he pondered these thoughts, he was unaware of a presence that watched over him. On the cliff overlooking the field, stood a figure, who had been attentively watching the Hylian for days now. It was the armored man.

Author's Note: The thing Samus tells Mario in Chapter 1 is finally revealed! And as for the Mute City crew, while Falcon and Fox are proven to be alive, Shulk, Falco, and Cloud are in fact dead, and are the first of many characters to wind up that way. They will not be making appearances later on. R.I.P.