Woo hoo! I didn't even wait for three reviews this time 'cause I was excited about this chapter! I need reviews this time though, folks, and you'll see why when you read!

The father of the Nintendo family had disappeared. No one knew what happened to Mario but he hadn't been seen since before Zelda's murder. It was like he had vanished into thin air, disappeared without a trace. Though they were paranoid and mistrusting, the Smashers knew that Mario couldn't be the murderer; rather, perhaps he, too, had fallen victim to the serial killer.

After Mario's disappearance, the rash of murders had continued. Only a few Smashers remained, among them Doctor Mario, Link and Young Link, Kirby, Popo, Fox and Falco, Ganondorf, Pikachu, Samus, Marth and Roy. These few remaining warriors feared for their very lives. This misadventure was something straight out of a mystery or horror movie! The Smashers were dropping like flies, one by one, and no one knew who the killer was. They would leave the Melee House but there was just one problem: Mario had put the house on lockdown after Pichu's murder. He was the only one who knew how to open the heavy metal doors. He was now missing, presumed dead.

For the Smashers, there was no way out of this hell.

--

Samus was perhaps one of the few Smashers who didn't hide in her room during these troubled times. She wasn't able to stand the thought of being in her room for very long and so she made frequent visits to the kitchen, the entertainment room, and the library. The Metroid warrior was currently sitting in one of the large velvet armchairs in the library. She pried her attention away from her book on tactical maneuvers when she heard something from behind the couch.

It wasn't guilt but self-pity that drove Marth to tears. He had come into the library and opened the many medical books on hands only to find nothing that could help him. Was the prince doomed to imperfection forever? The thought of it just made him break down into tears. His head in his hands, Marth was quietly sobbing to himself when he heard a deep feminine voice from above him.

"Marth? Is that you, Marth?" The prince lifted his tear-streaked face up to see that Samus was leaning over the couch to get a look at him. He sniffed and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand as she slid off of the couch and went around it to join him. Samus was a hardened warrior, it's true, but she was still a woman beneath that yellow Super Suit. She was naturally kind and comforting and she had a soft spot for friends who were sad. Samus went around behind the couch and sat near Marth to offer him what comfort she could. She would never hug him, but she got as close as she could comfortably get.

Samus immediately noticed the medical books spread out over the floor and she sighed in sympathy. "I don't know how you must feel inside, Marth. I've never had anything like that happen to me. I barely ever get bruised when I fight in my Super Suit." Marth looked at Samus with such sadness in his eyes and yet he said nothing. The female warrior sighed, whispering to him, "Don't be shy, Marth. Go on, just tell me how much it hurts."

Marth leaned in toward Samus and slowly, timidly wrapped his arms around her shoulders. He leaned in so close to her that Samus was afraid he was about to kiss her, but he stopped just inches from her lips. His breath brushed over her skin and made her tingle, but the anguish in his eyes demanded her sympathies. He held her close for several minutes, tears constantly streaming down his cheeks.

Marth's voice wavered as he opened his mouth and struggled to speak. "I-it hur-rts this much." Samus' lavender eyes opened wide as she felt an abrupt stabbing pain in the back of her neck. Something was piercing into her skin. She opened her mouth to cry out but she was silenced as Marth forced his lips over hers, holding her in a forceful kiss.

At that moment, Doctor Mario was walking down the hall toward the kitchen. He just happened to peer into the library and he saw Marth and Samus hiding behind the couch, both of them wrapped up in a passionate liplock. He only saw Marth's backside from his vantagepoint. The good doctor sighed, politely turning his eyes away and moving on. How nice it must be to be in love...

Samus' pain lasted only a few more moments before she slumped against Marth, her warm lifeblood putting a vivid red stain on the front of his tunic.

--

In order to be safe, Roy preferred to stay in the dorm room during most of the day. He was terribly paranoid about the murders since he had been the one to find Pichu's dead body. The young warrior was always worried that he would be the next to die.

Roy wasn't the only one who stayed close to home base, though. Link and Young Link were huddled in their room day in and day out. Kirby was seldom seen out in the halls and Doctor Mario was always locked up in the infirmary. Similarly, Roy had become a hermit and stayed in the dorm room. The only reason he ate was because Marth brought him food and drink.

Roy was normally lazy and he seldom cleaned anything; however, he was becoming so bored that he needed something to do! The warrior currently had on a T-shirt and his flame-patterned boxers while he dusted and cleaned the dorm room. Roy's boredom was only part of the reason for this cleaning spree, though. His other reason was the strange smell that hung in the room. There was a nauseating odor in the bedroom that frequently made Roy sick. He surmised that the smell was coming from Marth's side of the room, but that was strange; the prince was much too tidy and he never let something stink up the room.

Roy didn't feel uncomfortable about cleaning up Marth's side of the room. The prince would probably think it was a favor, right? He dusted off Marth's dresser and vanity and, as he neared the closet, the stench was getting stronger. It smelled like rotting meat and it was making Roy start to dry-heave. "This is ridiculous!" he thought, "I have to take care of whatever he's keeping in his closet."

Roy went to the closet and threw open the door to see just what Marth had inside. Marth's boots were lined up along the wall; his multicolored tunics, leggings, and chestplates were hanging on the racks. Roy followed them over to the capes and the shoulder armor… and then his eyes focused on the plastic bag.

There was a thick white plastic bag hanging in the right-hand corner of the closet. It obviously wasn't a suit bag because there were dark red stains on the inside of it and beneath it on the floor. Roy swallowed hard, knowing what he had to do. His trembling hands reached forward to slowly undo the zipper on the bag. Just as he had feared, as soon as he opened it, the dismembered body of Mario tumbled onto the floor, cold and coagulated and dead.

Roy yelped in surprise and backed away from the bloody corpse only to feel the kiss of a blade against the back of his neck. Marth stood behind his friend with a hard, unforgiving glare in his eyes. His porcelain features were splattered with vivid crimson blood, as was the blade of his sword. The same blade now held Roy frozen in place.

Marth's tone was normal, soft and sad, as he said to his friend, "I'm very sorry, Roy, that you had to see this. I'm so very sorry…but now you've seen too much. Now you have to go."

Now, what does the audience want? There are no limits to the wants: a kill, a swordfight, or a good old-fashioned happy ending. Send me your suggestions please! And thanks to Morias and Spirit Dragon for their reviews to Chapter four.