"You ready?" Marth asked.

Samus nodded. "I'll be up in my room. When Bowser leaves...I'll go and do my thing. Now get going."

Both of them were standing in the lobby in front of the front doors. Samus walked to the staircase going upstairs. She turned, gave a small nod to Marth, and went up.

It's now or never, he thought, trying to control the butterflies in his stomach. He steeled himself and walked into the kitchen. The smells of dinner hit him, and he tried to keep his mouth from watering. Despite the big "Cooks Only" sign plastered on the door in front of him, he walked inside to meet a busy Peach.

"You're not supposed to be back here, you know," she said, turning her attention to goodness-knows-what frying on the oven.

"I know," said Marth, grabbing a roll from a nearby basket. "I just came here to ask a personal favor."

Peach tried to snatch the roll from him, but Marth jerked his hand back, keeping hold of his prize. He took a bite out of it to ensure it was his.

"That roll was supposed to be saved for dinner," Peach said, glaring at him.

"I'm hungry."

"Then wait until dinner."

Marth defiantly took another bite of roll. Peach glared at him until he swallowed. Finally, her hard shell dissolved, and she sighed. "What's the favor?"

"Can you make me a steak?" Marth asked as casually as he could, leaning on the counter and biting into his roll again.

"Poof, you're a steak," Peach said, rolling her eyes. "We're just about to eat dinner. What in the world would you want with a slab of meat?"

"Then make it after dinner," Marth suggested.

"Do you really want a steak that badly?"

Marth swallowed his bite of roll. "Yes."

Peach sighed. "Fine, but you'd better eat it. Remember that you may not have room after dinner."

"I know, I know. I'll make room. Maybe."

Peach tried an imitation of the Samus Eye. Since Samus, of course, was the only one capable of successfully pulling it off, Peach just looked silly doing it. She held the look for a few seconds, then gave up and continued making dinner.

"Thanks," Marth said. He finished his roll and left the kitchen.

"It feels so empty," Peach said.

Marth stopped and turned around. "What do you mean?"

"At the end of each tournament, we all gather around and celebrate the winners. Not all of us will be there. And then I usually have Zelda cooking with me in the kitchen, but now she's now here to do that. Some of our greatest friends are missing, and we don't even know what's happened to them."

I do, Marth thought, but he didn't say anything.

"It just doesn't feel right," Peach continued. "When you think about it, the end of the tournament should feel happy, but it makes you sad instead. I know Roy followed you around almost everywhere, and I know you normally would have celebrated the end with him, but now he's not even here."

"I've read many books," Marth said, "heard many stories, and done many things, and the lesson that I've learned from it all is that good always wins. Even if bad rules the day and seems like they've got the upper hand, we've always pulled through, no matter how bleak the outcome may look. Zelda will cook with you in the kitchen again, and Roy will celebrate the end of the tournament with me. Keep your chin up."

Peach smiled. "Thanks, Marth."

Marth left the kitchen and sighed. Now all he had to do was wait.

--

The cheeriness and positive mood of the dinner made it hard for Marth to dwell on any unhappy thoughts. Besides, Bowser was going to be caught--Marth couldn't help glaring at him from across the table when he wasn't looking--and then he'd 'fess up where Roy, Link, and Zelda were. Marth smiled, grabbed an apple from a bowl, and bit into it. He noticed Samus trying to get his attention several seats down. He gave her a small thumbs up, then returned to his plate of food.

"Marth asked me to make him a steak," he overheard Peach telling Mario. He glanced at her nervously. At first he wondered if that would blow his cover, but then he looked at Bowser and realized it could work for him. Bowser, who had previously been grumpily ignoring Mario and Peach sitting together, was now eyeing them with interest at the mention of a steak. Bowser gave a quick glance at Marth, then returned his attention to Peach. "First I said, 'Poof, you're a steak,' but seriously, what would a guy like him want with a steak? He's got a waist about the size of a toothpick."

"Maybe he just wants to put some meat on those bones," Mario suggested. "Can't say I couldn't go for a little steak myself. Some ravioli...maybe a little spaghetti and meatballs...."

The moment Mario began rambling about his favorite Italian dishes, Bowser lost interest and continued eating. Marth grinned and finished up his dinner.

--

Marth set down his book and smelled the air inside the lobby. It was thick with the scent of steak. The smell of victory, Marth thought to himself. He walked back into the kitchen, where the smell was so overwhelming it took all his willpower not to dive at the steak and devour it on the spot.

"Your steak's ready," Peach said.

"Looks good," Marth said. "A fine cooking job, as always. Thanks, Peach."

She smiled at having her cooking talent applauded. To her, cooking wasn't just a hobby; it was a craze. Which was nice, because nothing she made was ever disgusting.

Marth turned and saw Bowser's head peeking into the kitchen. He tried to suppress the smile threatening to appear on his face. It was working perfectly. Samus, I hope you're moving, he thought.

"I smelled meat," Bowser said, staring at the steak. "Uh, who's that for?"

"Well, it's none of your business," Marth said, picking the plate up proudly. He held it in front of him so that Bowser would be further teased by it.

"Can I at least have a bite?" Bowser asked. Marth never thought he'd see the great King of the Koopas bargaining for a steak.

"Yeah, right," Marth said, walking past him out of the Cooks' Room. "One bite would be all it would take."

"One lick?"

Marth decided to improvise. "Alright, you can have some of it. Not all of it, though. I was going out to have a meal outside with it with a friend, but I suppose you could come along as well. However, this means that you have to behave yourself and not go wild over steak."

Bowser nodded. He had fallen for it, hook, line, and sinker. The plan was that Samus would see Marth walking out and she would follow him in secret until they both arrived at the place. Bowser would come, and then they would first demand the answers from him, and if he didn't comply, fight him. The fighting was only minutes away. Marth's heart thumped against his chest so hard he wondered if Bowser heard it.

He left the academy with Bowser following him. Trying to look casual, he scanned his eyes across the windows of the academy. He didn't see Samus, but of course he wouldn't be able to; Samus was sneakier than that. He turned left and headed off to a clear, grassy meadow. He hoped Samus was following him.

"Where's the spot?" Bowser asked anxiously. "I'm getting older, boy!"

"We're almost there," Marth said.

They walked on for a few more seconds. When the academy was out of sight, he stopped. He inhaled, then exhaled sharply.

"It's here."

Samus came flipping over his shoulder the moment he finished the second word. She took on a fighting stance behind him. Marth wondered what he should do with the steak; he didn't want to make Peach angry, and it sure looked delicious... He ignored his weaker feelings and tossed the plate over his shoulder.

"Hey, that's good steak!" Bowser protested. He growled. "Is this the friend you were talking about? I thought we were all eating steak."

"We're not," Marth said. "Neither are you. Where are they?"

"Hey, wait a minute," Bowser said slowly, narrowing his eyes. "This is no friendly gathering, is it? It's a trap."

Samus nodded. "Good. You're smarter than you look, which isn't saying much."

"Now answer the question," Marth said. "Where are they?"

Bowser grinned slightly. "You think I kidnapped the three kids?"

"We know you did," Samus said. "So tell us, or we'll fight."

"That would be interesting," Bowser said. "With no hope of winning the tournament, a little action would be nice. I will warn you, though; I am the King of the Koopas. Koopa Kings were always tough as nails."

"I'm the prince of Altea, and Samus is a bounty hunter the likes of which we've never seen before," Marth said. "And we've always won in everything we've done. It would be much easier for all of us if you just told us where Roy, Link, and Zelda are and then turn yourself in."

"Well, I wouldn't want to make anything easy for you morons," Bowser said. "It surprises me, the number of absolute wimps Master Hand's invited here. You've got crybaby balloons like Jigglypuff, two-dimensional freaks who can't talk, and then cocky jerks like you two."

"You're the one who's being cocky," Marth shot back. "Last chance; tell us where they are, or we'll attack."

"Bring it on, you pathetic idiots!"

True to his word, Marth leaped forward and swung his sword at Bowser, who shifted the center of his body to the left and dodged it. Marth swung his sword again but hit his shell and did no damage. Bowser clocked him in the head and sent him flying.

"I told you," Bowser said. "You're not as powerful as you think you are."

"Well, if you're not the King of the Koopas," said Marth, "you're certainly the King of Very Cheesy Lines." He got back to his feet and prepared to fight again.

Samus gave him a spinning kick to the stomach, then jumped and kicked him in the head. Ordinarily, kicks like those wouldn't have done much to Bowser, but Samus was both very fit and infused with the blood of the Chozo which boosted her strength to incredible degrees. Bowser fell over backwards but rolled back to his feet and swung at Samus as she jumped at him. She dodged his swipe and kicked off of his head. Although she landed expertly behind him, she couldn't dodge his Fire Breath, which knocked her forward.

Marth chopped at his tail, causing Bowser to roar in pain and turn around, swinging his claw at him. Marth parried the blow, then swiped across his belly twice, leaving two long scars. Bowser jumped at him, which completely knocked the wind out of him and sent him flying. Falchion flew out of his hands and landed a good distance away. He didn't even have the energy to get back up before Bowser stepped on him with his foot, holding him down.

"Remember, there are no Smart Shields to save you this time," Bowser said. "I can crush you quite--"

He was interrupted with a kick to the back of the head by Samus. She was burned and her clothes were singed, but she still kept on fighting. Bowser took his foot off of Marth and turned his focus on Samus. He tried to head butt her with his horns, but she dodged it easily and gave him a kick in the face. He tried his Fire Breath again, but she jumped over it and landed next to Marth. She reached her hand down. Marth took it and stood back up.

"I need my sword," he said. Samus nodded and continued engaging Bowser in battle. Marth headed off in the direction of his sword and almost fell. With everything he had been through, he almost couldn't walk. He tried to go another step and fell. The sword seemed so close, yet so far away.

End it here, he thought. End it now. You can do it. Just keep going and grab your sword. Only a few more feet.

Marth crawled to his sword and picked it up. His anger and resolve spiked up, and he stood up, ignoring the pain he felt. He forced his legs to work, and he ran at Bowser, who had just punched Samus in the stomach and sent her flying.

"I'll give you one more chance, right here," Marth said. "Turn yourself in, and I won't cut you into pieces. Refuse, and you either die or feel a great deal of pain wherever we banish you to after we defeat you."

"On the contrary," Bowser said, "you don't look so good. First there was the tournament, and now I've been bashing you and stepping on you in this battle. I don't think you even have the energy to beat me. In fact, even Samus is starting to look a bit beaten."

"Wrong answer," Marth muttered. He lunged at Bowser and swung his sword in a flurry of blows. Bowser blocked some of them, but he soon wound up with cuts and gashes on his arms and chest. Finally, Marth swung his sword up to the right across Bowser's face, then stabbed him in the belly. Bowser roared, fire streaming from his mouth, then collapsed backwards.

"Is he finished?" Samus asked, stumbling toward him.

Marth stood over him. "He's unconscious. I stabbed him in the belly, but I wouldn't say it's anything fatal. You should probably get him to the Recovery Room and get him checked out. When he comes to, we can interrogate him."

"You should get to the Recovery Room yourself," Samus said. "Look at yourself, Marth; you're a mess."

Marth looked down at his body. His clothes were torn, and blood was seeping from several wounds in his body. He touched the corner of his mouth and realized blood had been coming out of it as well. The anger he had just felt started to fade away, and the pain and fatigue crept up on him until it was almost overwhelming. His legs wobbled, and he fell.

"Sorry," Marth apologized.

"What are you apologizing for?" Samus asked. "You just caught a villain and saved many people, Marth! I don't think it's strange that you're going to fall over. Get yourself to the Recovery Room and tell everybody what's happened, and I'll stay here watching Bowser."

Marth forced himself to stand back up. "There's no real danger, is there? Bowser's been caught. I can look for my friends. I will look for my friends. You'd have to fight me next to keep me from it."

Samus sighed. "Alright, fine. Go get some people to carry Bowser back, and I'll join you shortly."

Marth nodded and stumbled off in the direction of the academy. He smiled, closed his eyes, and breathed a sigh of relief.