Bow Before Your King

Chapter 3 - Confrontation

Alright, the moment of truth. I hope all you Bowser, Ganondorf, and King Dedede fans have your popcorn ready today. (...Then again, this chapter was posted in the morning, and I don't know if you're reading this the morning this is posted eat popcorn during breakfast hours. Meh.)

So anyways, before we get to the confrontation of this chapter, Dedede's gonna have a scene here, and we're gonna get another side character (Meta Knight) as well. Ganondorf will be at the end, so stay tuned!

~KF

Yet another door was slammed. However, it was not from King Bowser Koopa, but the culprit was rather yet another heavyweight character. This one in particular happened to be on the Brawl floor in room number five, Mister King Dedede. Of course, it was what he preferred to be called for obvious reasons, yet his fellow lazy Smashers chose to simply leave the 'king' out whenever his name came up.

One thing for certain was that Koopa was clearly not the only Smasher to not be in the best of moods on that Saturday. Yet obviously, it was not as if they were both annoyed about the same thing, since the two were not in ShineSpriteBucks together.

Well, what was he so upset about? Knowing him, it could have been almost anything given his personality as well as his overall status in life. Fortunately it was not anything important, but the level of significance could be argued depending on the source of his problem.

He stomped hard throughout the hallway making his way to the stairs. Wherever he was going had yet to be thought of, since he was too irritated to even think of where in the name of Dreamland his feet were going to take him. He did not even see Meta Knight as he walked right on past, much to the masked man's confounded look, which then resulted in a roll of his eyes.

He even sighed, which turned out to be a grave mistake for him. Triple D apparently heard him based on the penguin's complete rotation just as he was getting ready to land his foot on the first step.

"..."

"..."

Thinking everything over, Dedede the Brawl veteran concluded that in order to vent out his frustrations, he needed someone to complain to just for the sake of it, not caring who it was.

"Meta Knight!" He stormed over. "You won't believe what happened!"

Meta Knight immediately thought of the option to leave him alone and head off elsewhere in the mansion. However, putting up with his mouth later would have been a bad strategic move for him. Besides, on the bright side, he assumed that if anything, it could have actually been an advantage. He needed something to past the time until he felt ready for any Smash battles that day. Like many others, his breakfast was just consumed, and according to Wii Fit Trainer, in order to avoid stomach cramps, one had to wait at least one half hour before brawling. She also added that the Smashers needed to be able to set an example to their fans that are interested in physical fitness. And for the small warrior, the wait was not even halfway over.

"...Anything major?"

"...Well,..." He was already struggling to figure out words to spit out. "...It... um, depends on how you look at it, I guess... ...Oh, who am I kidding. It's serious!"

The swordsman quickly made an inference that it was just another one of Dedede's personal issues and how he for some reason always complained to others instead of helping himself.

"So I've been wanting to see this movie called 'A Star Is Brought to Life', right?" He began his elaboration. "I didn't know anything about the movie, but a lot of people were hyping it up so like they did for 'The Black Cat'. Anyways, I really wanted to see it in the movie theater because, guess what? They are finally showing it in the Smash World today! ...Or, they were supposed to."

Mentally going through his large selection of words to choose, Meta Knight decided that remaining mute and continue to let him vent was the most wise choice to make.

"Yeah, they were supposed to." The King of Dreamland repeated. "But then I received a text from K. Rool, who also wanted to see it, and said that it apparently already happened!"

"..."

"I am so upset!"

He was right. It was yet another one of Dedede's issues that he could not simply figure out by himself, which was the most irritating part of the whole situation. It took quite a few seconds on how to respond to Dedede. Yet in the end, he ended up pouring out everything that was floating in the large head-like body of his.

"Okay, let me explain my thoughts on all this." He told him. "Firstly, why were you planning on watching a movie you know literally nothing about? Second of all, I must comment on your poor timing skills. You say that it already premiered at the theater sometime before; you should have known when it was scheduled in the beginning. Why would you think that it was supposed to be shown in the theater today? By the way, it is Saturday. You should be able to watch it tonight at the theater in the Smash Mansion as well as any movie you like. Also, since when did you and King K. Rool have become so fond of each other to the point where you two exchanged contact information and seeing a movie together?"

"..." He was staring at his fellow Kirby acquaintance as if his mask broke into a million pieces revealing his face to the world. Then again, he and Kirby both had seen his face quite a few times before, so it would not have been nothing new either way. With a sigh, he began to answer all of Meta's questions. "Okay, me and K. Rool are slowly becoming friends here since we do happen to have some similar interests. I've asked my fans on Twitter to not spoil me on anything that 'A Star Is Brought to Life' is about. I didn't even read any of the replies just to be extra careful about it! And finally, sometimes it's fun to actually go to a movie theater to watch something! I guessed either my fans told me the wrong date, or something came up last minute causing it to be cancelled today!"

Him defending himself on his decision making somewhat made sense to Meta Knight, but he knew that he personally would not have gone that route just to see a movie. But to his knowledge and life experience, all he could come up with was the fact that everyone was different. And in his world, Dedede was clearly no exception.

"...Alright..." He sighed again. "As much as all that might have made some sort of sense to you, I unfortunately do not have a solution for your problems, since my honest opinion of this whole thing is that it's a rather petty thing to be upset about. If you want to take your anger out on something, however, meet me in the Teleportation Room in a few. I am already planning on fighting with Snake and Bayonetta. You would make a good fourth player if you ask me. All four of us have different fighting styles."

With an initial blink, the robed, legendary king began pondering on whether it was a good option to consider. Sure, fighting would definitely be a good way of defusing his distress, yet in a good way unlike Bowser. Besides, practicing for Smash Tournaments was always a good thing to do. No one had any specific schedule, so any fighter could practice in any way he or she desired with friends.

"...Hmm... You know what, that's actually a pretty good idea!" He grinned. "You said a few minutes, right? That's just enough time for me to grab a snack real quick."

"Snack?" Meta Knight raised an invisible eyebrow. "Hmm... You are normally one of the first in the cafeteria in the mornings. Haven't you already ate?"

"I did..." Dedede stared blankly.

"...Then why would you eat before a match?"

He facepalmed. "Meta Knight, do you know who I am? You've known me for years! I'm King Dedede for crying out loud! Kings can do whatever they want, when they want, and how they want it, right?"

"But haven't you heard of the recommendation from Wii Fit?" Brawl's best player recalled. "She suggests that we set an example for our fans in regards to eating and exercising. The woman has stated that multiple times in the Smash 4 era. One of the top rules is to not exercise immediately after eating, unless you want-"

"Wii Fit Trainer, Wii Fit Lame!" He interrupted, turning around to resume walking towards the steps. "I can exercise two seconds after I eat and there's nothing she can do about it! I don't care what she says! A little matchup ain't gonna hurt anybody, Meta! I'm gonna get a snack real quick, and then we can all meet in the Teleportation Room. I am going downstairs. ...Oh, and if you find anyone else that wants in on our match, please bring 'em. The more, the merrier!"

Bowser Koopa also showed to not care of what the Wii Fit Trainer thought. He already knew he was going to end up fighting Incineroar if he accepted his challenge (which he would most likely not reject the offer), yet he was leaning against the vending machine in the cafeteria eating a small bag of 'Walden's' potato chips with a straightforward look. A quick snack was something he needed before meeting up with his opponent. At the time, the cafeteria was being occupied by Ike, Little Mac, Mega Man, Ken, Falco, the Ice Climbers, Rosalina, and Shulk. Krystal, Jeff, and Knuckles were in there as well, representing the Assist Trophies and Celebi seemed to be the only Pokemon in there at the time.

"Hmph... Most of the Pokemon already ate breakfast apparently."

After observing them for a bit, King Koopa's eyes suddenly widened as he paused his chewing. What if Incineroar and Palutena were already back at the mansion? For all he knew, Incineroar could have been banging on Bowser's door for a response. If there was no answer, the power-type Smasher would have presumed that he either simply refused to answer or 'ran away like a coward'.

The latter possibility haunted him the most; he knew he had to get back and in a hurry.

So he took off. He wished he had the opportunity to run, but after numerous incidents that occurred in the mansion's hallways over the years, Master Hand developed a strict 'no running in the halls' policy. To further make his point clear, he then installed security cameras in all of the hallways in case some fighters had the desire to be slick and get away with it, much to Sonic the Hedgehog's disappointment. It was his only way of being first in line for breakfast in the morning.

The closest movement to running was of course speed-walking, so he did that instead. Of course it took a longer time, but anything was better than moving at the speed of molasses.

The furthest Bowser traveled was on the first floor. Ignoring Mario's question on why it looked as if he was rushing somewhere, his eyes widened all of a sudden standing frozen in place.

There before him were Pit, Shovel Knight, Palutena, and Incineroar coming from the opposite direction. To no one's surprise at all, the latter had the most enraged stare in his eyes. If looks could kill, the Dark Lands would have had no choice but to find another ruler and the Koopalings and Bowser Jr. would have been mourning their father for the rest of their lives.

When the group of four finally approached him, a growl escaped from the mouth of Incineroar, arms folded so tightly, it seemed that they were about to break. Koopa used the moment to form a glare as well, to prove to him that he meant what he said and had no intentions on backtracking his statements. After all, when it comes to people gunning for him, Bowser made sure he put his foot down no matter who came in his way. Not only he was not afraid of getting into arguments with the majority of the Smash Family, but he also battled Mario often where he came from. What did Bowser have to prove to Incineroar of all creatures? Nothing at all.

"Someone told me that you are picking a fight!" Incineroar began speaking, his eyebrows becoming even more scrunched up then they already were, with the eyes themselves locking on Bowser as if he was getting ready to blast him into smithereens with Fox's arwing. ...Then again, he would have had to learn how to fly it, and it was not as if anthropomorphic, cat-like, fire type Incineroar knew how to even drive a car. Maybe it would have been best for him to borrow Mario for go-kart lessons like Link did. He quickly received his Driver's License in the Smash World for a reason, much to the surprise of Zelda, the other Links, and especially Ganon.

"Aw, come on, Chum Bucket!" Perhaps Bowser stumbled in Jr.'s room to catch him watching some popular TV show one time. "I was the one that told Pit to tell you to come find me in the first place! Don't play dumb!"

Of course, the shouters were already receiving the attention of everyone in the hallway at the time.

"That's not the point!" Incineroar pointed. "I am not one to be mess with! Don't underestimate me just because I'm a newcomer! I had to fight Ken in the boxing ring for my trailer! Now you were already making bad decisions at ShineSpriteBucks, but you've made your worst move today by coming for me! You really want a fight? You've come to the right place!"

Palutena took a glance at Pit and Shovel Knight and quietly suggested they headed off elsewhere before the argument escalated. It was best for a sweet natured Goddess like her to not get involved with two of the toughest fighters of the Brotherhood, neither for Pit nor Shovel Knight. Sure, she would have place the peacemaker card, but dealing with a large ego and an infuriate Smash newcomer that wanted to have 'justice served', she chose otherwise.

Besides, Shovel Knight ended up playing the card before her.

"Now, now, gentleman." He stepped in the middle between the two of them with arms spread out. "I'm sure we could work this out somehow. Please calm down. I'd rather not have the two of you in trouble for potentially fighting in the halls. I might be an Assist Trophy, but I'm sure that literally every single individual is already aware of how hard Master Hand pushes the 'no fighting outside Smash activities' rule. Even the general population knows that."

Unfortunately, his small height and being ignored were both factors. Incineroar even shoved him aside, nearly making him fall.

"I, King Bowser Koopa, ruler of the Dark Lands, refuse to back down and cower away from a random Pokemon I could care less about!"

"Random!? Alright, then. To prove that I'm not one to take lightly, instead of a 1v1, it's going to be a 2v1 so you can be taught a lesson! Don't you worry! You'll find out why I got 'that note' soon!"

'That note' referred to the typical letter every single fighter received to get involved with the Brotherhood of Smash. It was something the Smashers chose to call it, which then for some reason, became a huge meme on social media sometime after Cloud got in as a 'DLC' character.

"You're the one that needs to be taught a lesson, Mr. I-Don't-Know-How-To-Mind-My-Own-Business-Because-My-Tail-Is-So-Far-Own-My-Own-Butt!" Koopa nicknamed with a point.

No one noticed, but Mario from before facepalmed with a shake of his head. It might have not been shown in the games nearly as much, but Bowser was also known to come up with nearly every insult from the book. Yet it was as if Bowser made his own book of insults himself to be thrown at anyone he was not fond of. Being a Mario brother, of course he was obviously a victim of many of them, mostly whenever he was still mad about him getting his way with Peach.

"What do you mean a '2v1'?" Palutena lifted an eyebrow.

She nearly gasped upon Incineroar's finger pointing directly at her.

"You! You're coming with me!"

"What?" Shovel Knight, Bowser, and Pit all said simultaneously.

"You were with me in ShineSpriteBucks!" The red creature elaborated. "If you want to fight him as well, now is your chance! Normally I would stronger perfer taking him on myself, but you have every right to stand by me in Bowser!"

"No, no, wait!" Pit held a hand out, stepping right in front of Palutena as if to protect her from being Incineroar's right hand man. "I won't allow this! Even though Lady Palutena was with you, she didn't ask for any of this! ...I'll fight instead."

With a blink from Incineroar, and Bowser eyeing him as if he was wearing glasses, of course Palutena was at least a bit surprised. "...Well, Pit, I don't think that is necessary either. But if you really wanna do it, I'm not stopping you. But, thanks anyway."

"It is my duty as the servant of the Goddess of Light to protect Lady Palutena at all costs!" Pit explained his reasoning. "...Even if it means by protecting her from being involved in a Smash battle... But still, I'll fight Bowser with you, Incineroar."

"..." Blinking, he then shook his head with a small sigh. "Fine... Now as for you Bowser, unless you perhaps want to find someone to be on your side so that it would be a 2v2, expect to be pummeled so hard, you will be in the Walk of Shame based on how stupid you're acting! I will make sure you look like a fool when you have no more stocks left to support you!"

"Bring it on!"

"..."

"...So will you do it?"

Bowser came to the decision that he needed someone to fight alongside him in order to increase his chances of winning the match. Letting Incineroar getting away with it was the last thing that he needed to happen. Everyone knew that fighting two Smashers at once was difficult, and fighting the universe's most powerful angel and a Pokemon that relied on power to get his way in the upcoming tournaments was not something to be underestimated. He needed simply one person, and it could not have been just anybody, as explained when it came to targeting someone to take out his frustrations on.

After going through the process of elimination again, he suddenly thought about Ganondorf Dragmire. He figured he would have been one of the few that would stand with him and not against him. They were both villains and both of them had a different way of thinking when it came to dealing with the public. Why not?

He found him in the gym lifting weights, which he knew that it was the room he spent most of his free time in since the Brawl days where Master Hand decided to have a gym in place thanks to the large amount of requests from his fighters. The Gerudo himself never took the time to workout, only because of it never being thought of, but upon doing so thanks to the curiosity spreading around other interested characters, it was now a personal hobby of his. His interest skyrocketed even more thanks to Wii Fit Trainer of all people.

With a simple blink, he only stared at Bowser briefly before looking away, lying flat on his back to perform some more weightlifting. "No."

For some reason, Koopa knew that he would decline. Dragmire was typically one of the last people to get involved into some petty drama that he would call 'childish' and 'not worth his time'.

The king of evil wanted to make it clear. "I have no interest; I simply have better things to do that are actually worth my time."

A different approach and maybe even a little bit of manipulation was the only way to drag him in, and Bowser knew it very well. Then again, to avoid being seen as a liar in his eyes, the manipulation tactic was rather not something to go for just to get his way. ...However, what if he had no other choice? He could motivate him by thinking of Ganon's best interests. It was well worth a shot, even though it was rather risky. "Trust me. It will be worth your time. It's Saturday and we both know it. This is the only day to get some serious matchups done. You rarely do 2v2 matches with anyone. What if someday Master Hand decides to host some team battle tournament last minute and it's something you're not prepared for? Yes, it may seem pointless, but think about it for a second. You're literally working out right now, so by the time you're done, you should be already pumped up and ready to go. Do you not want to take this opportunity? This is the only day you can test yourself by working as a team member and become stronger than ever so fans can actually see you as a threat to win a tournament or two?"

This time, Ganon took the time to think for a moment. He even sat his weight down to stare at Bowser in the middle of his explanation. From his point of view, all of what he was telling him suddenly made sense. For one, working with others in team battles was one way to prepare for any tournaments that had the requirement of him being paired up with someone. When it came to Smash, he always needed to expect the unexpected, and that very much included surprise special tournaments. Also, ever since Brawl, he was constantly made fun of, put down on social media, and even harassed by strangers of his low rankings in the tier lists. In spite of fans standing beside him and knowing that he had nothing to prove since he was Ganondorf Dragmire and they were not, it was something that he had been tired of ever since it started.

Some fans posting on social media that he had gotten better based on what they had seen at the time definitely received his attention, so performing well in a team battle was something to consider. It could show the fans of the real world that he was actually a threat that had to potential to win something, whether it was a 1v1 match or not.

"...I accept."

Longest chapter so far. Three separate scenes, with one per each king. Sure, Bowser is involved with the main plot, but Ganondorf got involved in it last minute. ...So where does that leave Dedede? We learn that he's also doing a match with Meta Knight, Snake, and Bayonetta. Maybe you guys can guess what would occur and hope you are right in the next chapter.

Questions:

1. Pick a team. Who will lose? Who will win? (Put #TeamBowser or #TeamIncineroar in your reviews when you pick a side!)

2. Do you agree with Meta Knight in regards to the Dedede situation? Why or why not?

3. Is Ganondorf making a smart move here?

I will see you all next Monday the 25th!