A/N: Hey, guys! Since it's been seven years since the release of Rayman Legends and 25 years since the release of the first game, I thought about doing another Rayman fanfic, and this one is based on Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc, a game I bought as a child. in a store, and I played a lot of it, and after the story of this game, a little arc based on its Game Boy Advance sequel, Rayman: Hoodlums' Revenge. In October 2017, Michel Ancel, the creator of Rayman, says that development on Rayman 4 will begin after the release of Beyond Good and Evil 2, which has been in development for many years, and Wild, announced in 2014 and still in development. As a fan of the series, I hope this happens soon, we have been waiting for this moment for 17 years. End premise, let's get started!

Chapter 1: Red Lums, Black Lums

It's been two years since Rayman, the Guardian of the Glade of Dreams, defeated Admiral Razorbeard and his army of Robot-Pirates and restored the Heart of the World. Currently, he has changed his style, with more spiky hair and a hood instead of a scarf. In the Glade of Dreams, Murfy and some Teensies were enjoying the night, illuminated by the red Lums, and they were dragging a brown or blue fur-like goat animal, the Bonton.(1)

(''Battle- The Legend of Zelda The Wind Waker OST'')

However, the peace did not last long. A different Lum, an evil Black Lum named André, began corrupting many Red Lums with touch to transform them into other black Lums. André was not your typical Lum, as he did not shine, he was hairy and had a large mouth with gray lips, small ears and big red eyes that were bloodshot and so protruding that they seemed to pop out of his eye sockets, while the other black Lums, unlike him, have no arms. He wanted to create an army of villains, the Hoodlums, and use the energy of the Heart of the World to conquer the Glade of Dreams.

Murfy saw that the Black Lums were coming. ''RUN! BLACK LUMS!'' he screamed in fear, and the Teensies, just as scared, started to escape, while the black Lums stole the Bonton's fur, and André thus became a basic Hoodlum, the Hoodmonger. He looked ridiculous, looking like a living potato sack, but at the same time, he was menacing: he wore a rather shabby and stitched orange cloth suit and hat, with a shotgun in his hand and a mouth that looked sewn like his clothes. Murfy, hidden behind a mushroom, noticed that André was chasing him, forcing him to fly to the forest near the Fairy Council, where Rayman and Globox were sleeping. ''Guys, wake up! The bad guys are coming!'' he shouted.

Globox woke with a start and was frightened to see that menacing being with a shotgun, but Rayman was sound asleep. ''Rayman, you have to wake up!'' he shouted. He tried hard to wake his limbless friend, but his efforts were in vain.

''Globox, hurry up! He's getting closer!'' Murfy yelled, more and more frightened.

''I'm trying! But he doesn't wake up!'' replied the amphibian, and as a last resort, he grabbed him by the hands in an attempt to bring him to safety, but...

*POP! POP!*

he pulled too hard, pulling his hands away from his body. As Globox fled, Rayman woke up. ''What's going on?'' he asked sleepily. Then he saw the Hoodmonger and ran away.

''Rayman! Finally! Globox and I were trying to wake you up, but you weren't answering!'' Murfy exclaimed, a little irritated.

There was a shot, and Rayman jumped to avoid getting hit. ''Let's run!'' he shouted.

The greenbottle then grabbed him by the hair. ''I'm taking you out of here!'' he exclaimed, dodging the bullets. But he realized that there was not only one Hoodlum, there were others as well. ''Oh, no! There are others! They are everywhere!'' he yelled.

Rayman found he no longer felt his hands, as if he didn't have them. ''Murfy, I don't feel my hands anymore. What happened?'' he asked.

''There was a Hoodlum from which I had to escape, and Globox, realizing the danger, woke up in fear, and when he realized that you were not waking up, he tried to take you away to escape with you by grabbing you by your hands, but he pulled so hard that your hands fell off.'' explained the greenbottle.

''What a terrible time to lose my hands... how much I hate it when that happens.'' murmured the limbless hero. If there's one thing he hates more than being bored and spending the night without sleeping, it's when his hands come to life and come off while he's asleep- they often tend to cause problems.

The Hoodlums started shooting from all sides, and Murfy, out of fear, began to get hysterical. ''It can't go on much longer, or I'll have a seizure!'' he shouted.

''And if you pull my hair for a much longer, you'll tear it off of my head!'' Rayman replied.

(''Battle- The Legend of Zelda The Wind Waker OST-s'')

(''Rayman, You Truly Are the Best- Rayman 3: Hoodloom Havoc OST'')

After five minutes of escaping, Rayman and Murfy managed to find a safe place, with no Hoodlum nearby. ''You know what, Rayman? With that new look of yours you look really sexy. When do you drop your pants?(2)'' Murfy asked jokingly.

Irritated by what the greenbottle had said, Rayman gave him a dirty look. ''You know I don't have legs, Murfy!'' he replied. As much as he has a good sense of humor, he doesn't like jokes about the fact that he has no arms, legs and neck, he found them offensive, and if he still had his hands, he would have punched the greenbottle hard enough to break his teeth.

''Come on, don't be so touchy! I have the Manual, and there is everything there is to know.'' Murfy chuckled, pulling out a small purple booklet.(3) ''So, once upon a time there were the Lums, harmony, peace, blah-blah-blah... suddenly, André transforms the Red Lums into Hoodlums, the world is in danger... Here we are. Globox ran off with your hands.'' he read.

''Knowing how easily he gets scared, I'm sure Globox is somewhere around here. André is the leader of these Hoodlums, isn't he?'' asked the hero.

''Yes, he's the bad guy. Speaking of Globox, it won't be easy for you to get your hands on him, especially for it? Beacuse don't you have hands?'' Murfy said, with one of his usual puns.

''Oh, holy Polokus! Murfy, with these puns, you are completely breaking the fourth wall! And I only woke up five minutes ago!'' Rayman snapped.

''Don't take it so badly, blondie!''

''I hate jokes about the fact that i don't have limbs!''

After these lines, while the greenbottle made fun of the Manual for the fact that the instructions on it were too obvious and trivial (''Seriously, do they pay people to write this garbage?''), the hero began to explore the nearby area and called Globox every now and then. He had reminded him that fear wasn't something to be ashamed of, and he hoped he was okay. ''Globox? Globox, where are you?''

Soon after, Murfy laughed to see something in the Manual. ''There is something funny about the Manual. It's about the fact that you can make a helicopter with your hair. ''No offense, but who created you was smoking or what?''

''You're talking about Betilla and her sisters!'' Rayman replied. At not even ten minutes from his awakening, Murfy's overly sarcastic attitude was already starting to make him lose his temper.

The Manual also had its say. ''Hey, Murfy, moderate your language, will ya?! There are children reading this fanfic too, you know!'' it replied in a high-pitched voice, and Rayman almost laughed. Since he had no hands and couldn't climb, he had to keep an eye on his shadow and use the helicopter. After a few mushroom hops, he found Clark and Ly(4). ''Hi, Clark! Hi, Ly!'' he greeted them.

''Good evening, Rayman. Clark and I came here to keep an eye on the Fairy Council nearby.'' Ly said.

''Hey, Rayman! Anything odd?'' Clark asked.

''Yes, Murfy woke me up and warned me about André, a Black Lum. He's turning the Red Lums into Hoodlums, and that's no good.'' replied the limbless hero.

''I agree. André wants to attack the Heart of the World.'' said the giant.

''What?! It was already destroyed once, I can't let that happen again! Why does he want to attack the Heart of the World?!'' cried Rayman in shock.

''Because he wants to use the energy of the Heart of the World to convert it into an army of Hoodlums like the ones he created, and that would destroy it.'' Ly explained.

''The Heart of the World has already been destroyed once, I can't let this happen again! We gotta do something!'' exclaimed the hero.

(''Rayman, You Truly Are the Best- Rayman 3: Hoodloom Havoc OST-s'')

(''The Teensie Circle- Rayman Revolution OST'')

Shortly thereafter, the four reached the Fairy Council.'' If you want to get a girlfriend, I don't recommend this place, blondie. A lot of Ludivs are crazy old hags.'' Murfy said jokingly.

Rayman chuckled a little, then saw an empty plum juice barrel. But he heard a frightened voice. ''Hold on. It's Globox's voice!'' he exclaimed.

Ly tried to take the barrel, but it moved, as if someone were in it. Indeed, Globox, who was inside the barrel, was trying to escape.

''We have to get him out.'' Clark said.

Murfy, seeing a nearby switch, looked at the Manual again.'' Another pearl of wisdom from the Manual. He says the switches are for activating... mechanisms. Duh. No, seriously, who's responsible for writing this s**t?(5)'' he criticized again, and his bad word was immediately censored by a beep.

Everyone was quite shocked, even Clark. ''It's official. Murfy is going crazy.'' Rayman said, unimpressed.

''This is too much, Murfy! Do you want to get fired right away?!'' yelled the Manual, and everyone laughed out loud at the ridiculousness of the situation.

Rayman, after pressing the switch to raise a low wall, trapped the barrel and destroyed it with a series of spinning kicks. His hands reacted with him and immediately re-attached to his body.

Globox realized he was out and immediately saw his best friend. ''Rayman! It's you!'' he cried, lifting him off the ground and hugging him.

''Hi, Globox. We were looking for you.'' Murfy said. ''Listen, have room for five?''

''Hey, Globox. You're okay, aren't you?'' asked the limbless hero, returning the hug.

''I'm fine. Not even a scratch. Sorry if I took your hands off, I noticed the danger and I was trying to wake you up, but you were sleeping so soundly that not even Murfy could wake you up.'' said the amphibian, a little sorry for what happened. He hoped it wasn't his fault.

''Oh, it's all right. But next time, be careful not to pull too hard when you take my hands, or else you will take them off.

''Globox, if you woke up before Rayman, you quickly realized something was wrong, right?'' Clark asked.

''Yeah. That thing, that Hoodlum I saw as soon as I opened my eyes, is no good.'' Globox replied.

''And if it gets to the Heart of the World, it will be the end.'' Ly concluded.

(''The Teensie Circle- Rayman Revolution OST-s'')

Suddenly, Globox began to feel nervous.

''What's wrong, Globox?'' Rayman asked.

''Up there...'' murmured his friend.

(''X Invasion Detection- Metroid Fusion OST'')

''Oh-oh. I don't like this at all.'' Clark said.

''Here we go again...'' murmured the hero.

''Here, what did I tell you? The bad guys are back!'' Murfy exclaimed. In addition to the Hoodmonger, there were two other different Hoodlums. They were short, rather fat, strawberry-colored and holding a wooden shaft with a boxing glove attached to the tip. Globox was so frightened that he let out a shrill scream and smashed the door.

''ANDRÉ! You're supposed to say that the villain is called André! Stick to the script, will ya?!'' yelled the Manual.

''And of course, these hotheads attack the Fairy Council! You know, Rayman, after your previous adventure, they promised me a certain role, and I hope that what I will have will not be that of an irrelevant character in a low-budget and third-rate story!'' Murfy snapped, a little frustrated.

''Calm down. It's not a third-rate, low-budget story. I think.'' Rayman replied.

''The Heart of the World is in the Fairy Council! We have to stop André and the Hoodlums before it's too late!'' Ly exclaimed.

''Then let's go!'' exclaimed the limbless hero, and they all entered.

(''X Invasion Detection- Metroid Fusion OST-s'')

A/N: Well, this is the first part of the story. Keep following me and all my stories if you want to see more. I hope that for this year, as it's Rayman's 25th anniversary, something new will come out, and not just a new mobile game based on Rayman Legends, even though I've played Rayman Adventures, or become a playable character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. See you next time!

(1): Just before the final boss, there is a secret room which can only be accessed if the player has earned enough points in the last world. In this room there are creatures discarded in the final game, namely the Bonton, the Glute, mentioned by Globox several times, and the Xowar, a large gorilla.

(2): The ad campaign for the game is based on penis jokes, and this can be seen in an image showing Rayman and humans in the bathroom, and in an ad where people pee in the snow with the shape of their name, and Rayman does the same thing with the game's American logo, also because Rayman 3 has a generally more light-hearted tone than its predecessor, and although it's so sarcastic that it doesn't take itself too seriously, in its humor, there are sometimes references to adult themes, so the HD version was rated E+10 by the ESRB and 7+ by PEGI, as this rating was only introduced in 2005, and before that, the game was rated E by the ESRB and 3+ by PEGI. Also, the Game Boy Advance version of Rayman 3 does not have the Hoodlum Havoc subtitle because initially, it was supposed to be based on Rayman 2, but due to the release of Rayman 3, elements of this game (the Hoodlums and Black Lums) were added to the game. last moment and only in very few levels.

(3): The picture on the Manual that Murfy has at the beginning of the game is Rayman as he appears in the first game. Initially, as seen in some early screenshots in the development stages and in the first trailer of the game, the HUD and graphics engine were to be the same as in Rayman 2, the old Rayman design was to be used in this game as well, and in a cutscene in the fifth world, it is possible to see for a few moments Rayman's appearence in the second game, taken directly from an image of the first trailer, but during development, it was decided to redo the Rayman model from scratch, increasing the details, especially on his face and hands, making his hair more realistic and spiky, and changing his scarf into a hood. Also, due to Murfy's attitude, the Manual tends to speak for itself and get angry with him for his behavior.

(4): Clark and Ly were supposed to appear in the game, but got cut. However, Ly appears as a statue in a secret located in the third part of the sixth world, it is possible to find his design in a concept art and her model is present, but Clark has been removed for unknown reasons.

(5): If you play in French or Spanish, when you get to the switch at the end of the second part of the first world, Murfy says a curse word that is censored with the classic beep that is often heard on TV. Murfy says a bad word even if you play in Italian, but he censors himself by making the beep himself.