A/N: Well, in the time that this story's been up lots of readers have guessed at who the Prankster could be. Some were way off, some hit real close to the mark. I'd say by tonight, I'll have the final chapter up to reveal the identity. In the meantime, enjoy some more cliffhangers! Oh and Maverick doesn't exist yet, but again, give me time and he'll show up in this series.
Chapter Six
Allstar Link got worse overnight and The Prankster didn't make an appearance. Sonic had fallen asleep, Mario had a bad case of red eyes from staring at the hall, and Peach was hyper from all the coffee she had drunk to stay up. And worst of all, Link's code was rejected as well.
"I'm going to kill that guy very slowly." DK muttered. The grumbling of the other Allstars signaled they agreed with him in some part.
"We've tried every Allstar code we have and nothing gets us in. This guy must be real good with computers." Peach sighed after the caffeine wore off. They kept watch on the hall, but no one showed up. So, they gave up and went to their rooms.
Morning brought them another set of problems. Allstar Link wasn't getting any better, and Advance Link was giving everyone an attitude problem. Tiny's prank worked. She bribed DC Shadow into using his powers over the Chaos Emeralds to make DK's secret stash of bananas rot at super-speed. The living area stank and everyone gave DK nasty looks since the mess was located under his bed. Tiny walked along the halls to the rec room with a big smile on her face, passing by Advance Link without even realizing it.
"Hey, Tiny." he called out coolly. Tiny paused and looked back at him in surprise. "If you wanted to make a stink, you should have asked me. I'd have let you borrow a couple of these." he went on and tossed a pair of round, yellow balls at her. Tiny caught them and looked at them. Each ball had a cap with a stem and three curled leaves. The balls also had little thorns on them.
"What are these?" she asked in confusion. Link chewed on a toothpick and grinned.
"Scent Seeds. Pull off the cap, give them a toss, and you can clear a crowded room in ten seconds flat. Guaranteed." he replied. Tiny eyed them warily and held them out.
"Thanks, but no thanks. Where'd you find these?" she asked as Link took them back.
"They're used in my Oracle games. They're real stinkers." he answered and put them away in a pouch, "I always carry a few different seeds with me, in case of emergencies."
"That's handy. I guess." Tiny muttered and forced a smile, "Hey! I've got an idea! Let's play a song in the rec rooms! I'll use my sax and you can use that harp of yours." she added. Link pulled it out from behind him. "Oh, you have it already. Well, let me get mine real quick." she muttered and ran off. A few minutes later she was back with her saxophone. They headed for the rec room together.
There were several other characters in the room when Link and Tiny arrived. Mostly they were just trying to find ways of taking their minds off of the trick The Prankster had played. The two of them found a spot with some of the other Kong kids and N64 Yoshi kids and set up their instruments. Once again, Link played the quirky little tune.
"Do you have to keep playing that? It's weird and it doesn't sound like music." Tiny asked him in exasperation, "Five notes and that's it. What kind of song is that?"
"One I made up myself." Link mumbled and grinned at her, "Why don't you give it a shot?" Tiny shrugged and lifted the sax to her mouth. Link played the notes and she followed along. They played the melody a few times, then switched to another song. "That's a weird one. What is that? The Harp of Ages couldn't match it."
"Saxophone Slam. It's only for my saxophone. That's why it doesn't work with your harp." Tiny replied and studied the way he held the harp. "Maybe it's also because you're holding it wrong."
"No, I'm not."
"Yes, you are. You're using the left hand. Play it with the right one."
"I don't use my right hand! I'm left-handed! All Links are left-handed!"
"Why?"
"There aren't many heroes who use their left hands. Nintendo designed us to use them so that left-handed players wouldn't feel left out."
"Bad pun, Link."
"I wasn't joking."
"They went on for another hour, playing songs and talking about things like toys and web-sites. They argued over whose was bigger and whose was more good-looking, but in the end they had to settle on a draw.
"We have a cartoon and you don't so, nyah!" Tiny suddenly said and stuck her tongue out at him. Link grabbed and pulled on it, an angry look on his face.
"You shut up about that, banana brat! We had one, and a comic strip, too, but they canceled both when they couldn't come up with stories good enough for us!" he hissed and let go so Tiny could fall backwards. He stormed out of the room and headed back to his living area.
"Tails found out something else about that red stuff." Sonic suddenly said during another stake-out. Everyone looked at him. "It's not paint." The Allstars groaned and went back to watching the hall from inside Master Control. So far, no one showed up.
"Why hasn't he shown up?" Peach wondered aloud.
"Prankster's block?" DK asked, "Maybe he ran out of pranks to pull." Mario shook his head.
"No way. The Prankster's clever. He'll come up with something and then wait for the right time to do it." he replied.
"This is sooo boring!" Sonic exclaimed and everyone shushed him. "What?"
"Someone's coming! I think it's him!" Luigi remarked and they stared at the screen. The Prankster stepped up to the hall where the traps were set, then stopped. "Do we get him now?"
"No, he has to either get caught by the traps, or come in here where we can ambush him." Mario replied. They watched the small figure anxiously.
Out in the hall, The Prankster studied the walls, floor and ceiling with suspicion. He didn't like the looks of it. It seemed almost barren and deserted. He leaned against the wall and looked out at the door on the opposite side, thinking. When he got there, what prank would he pull? It had to be something big. His head began to ache and suddenly, the world began to spin. Nauseated, The Prankster wobbled away from the wall and dropped to the floor, breathing hard. Just great. The boss was back.
"Destruction." it said. Just one word. It always told him just one word. First, chaos. Now, destruction. Well, the boss is the boss. And he did promise to make Nintendo change their minds. But, how were they going to change their minds if Nintendo collapsed?
The Prankster got to his feet and looked back at the Master Control one more time, then left the hall. He would return another time, when he had a plan in mind.
"The Prankster looks sick." Sonic remarked as they watched the figure on the screen.
"He didn't do anything. Now what? We're stuck in here while he just walks away again." Peach grumbled.
"We'll just have to come back tomorrow night and do it again. The Prankster's not done yet. I can feel it in my gut." Mario growled, "He's up to something major."
"My gut wants a chili dog. I can feel the rumble already." Sonic muttered as he leaned back in a chair to get some sleep.
With The Prankster psyching everyone out by delaying his next prank, everyone in the Nintendo base was high strung, anxious to find out who would be the next victim. The Sega trap was still untouched as the Allstars continued working on the clues they had with them.
"What is up with the chairs?" Luigi muttered, "Why does The Prankster keep messing with the chairs?"
"He's small, right? The picture shows he's small. So, maybe he can't reach the controls. That's why he would move the chairs. That way, he could reach the controls set high up on the computers." Peach replied.
"I'd like to know why The Prankster is doing this. What does he expect to gain by ruining our games?" Mario wondered aloud.
"Attention?" Sonic put in.
"Money?" DK offered. Mario shook his head. "Then you think of something, plumber. I have to go and check on Tiny. Somebody said she's still hanging around that worthless elf-boy."
"Advance Link is not worthless! He did a good job of stalling players while we got Atlantis completed!" Luigi snapped at the ape.
"All that punk's good for is memorizing music and shooting junk from that slingshot thing of his." Donkey Kong grumbled as he left the group and ambled away.
"They're not junk! They're seeds!" Peach yelled and huffed. "Allstar Link's right; he is a Banana Brain." Sonic gave her a flat look.
"Took you this long to figure that out? Boy, you are a slow mo." he remarked. Peach scowled at him as Mario frowned and stared at the clues. Something was coming to his mind, but he wasn't sure what it was, or whether he would like it or not.
The Prankster stood in the supply room and looked around. There were some things he was going to need for later. Opening a black knapsack, The Prankster began to walk down aisles and selected pieces of electronic equipment to pack into the bag. A radio and small electronic tool kit were among the items swiped and one small armband computer with hacker ID card attached to it was also added to the collection. The Prankster closed the pack and pulled it on. Always one to make sure he was fully prepared for anything unexpected, The Prankster felt more confident with a full stock of supplies. He then fled the room and raced back to his own room.
Nintendo was in a state of shock. Almost certain death loomed over one of their own, and everyone had been so busy squabbling and scheming over who The Prankster was that they had completely left themselves open to a deadly hit. They were now ready to rally together to stop The Prankster, but how could they, when the trickster hadn't even been identified?
The launch of the GameCube loomed ever closer to them, and shock began to give way to panic, slowly but surely. If Allstar Link died, what would happen to the Legend of Zelda series set for the new system? And the Smash Brothers sequel everyone had been looking forward to seeing? The Allstars and the other characters involved in the first game were going to return in the sequel to recreate the whole story in fluid 3-D detail, complete with the in-between scenes of Allstar Link's talk with GB Link, telling Pikachu his plan, transforming into GB Link, and a movie at the end of the game that shows what really happened. Now it may never be released.
Little did they know that on that very night, The Prankster would play the ultimate joke on Nintendo....
Advance Link was catching a quick nap in the library when Tiny took her seat in front of him. She watched him snooze, then waved her hand in front of his face.
"Hello? Link? Are you awake? Geez, you're about as out as DK's brain on a good day." she told him. Link flicked an ear and opened his eyes, looking up at her.
"Homework. Ugh." he groaned and sat up, stretching. Tiny yawned and grinned.
"I know what you mean. Prof. Cranky Kong has me doing computer assignments all the time. It's 'cause he doesn't get the idea of technology going on without him, so he bugs us with it in hopes we'll get as sick of it as him." she remarked.
"I'm not in the mood to talk right now. I've got to go and take a nice long nap." Link sighed and left the library. Tiny watched him leave and wondered about her own work. Nights are tough for someone like her. She needed every second of beauty sleep if she was going to be as pretty as Candy Kong.
"Well, if I'm going to be up again tonight, I'd better get some naptime, too." she decided to herself and ran off.
Sonic and the remaining Allstars waited again to see if The Prankster would show up. It was late and Allstar Link was losing strength rapidly. Nintendo's Power Core wasn't going to keep him alive much longer. As they anxiously awaited the arrival of The Prankster, Mario sat in a chair fitting clues and evidence to the suspect he had in mind.
"It can't be. It couldn't be. After all this time... is it even possible? Why? I don't understand. Why? So young and innocent... who would have ever guessed?" he mumbled to himself as his suspicions gave way to facts. He was beginning to realize the identity of The Prankster.
The Prankster knelt at the floor of the hallways and peered at the floor. It was now able to see the thin wires delicately set up before it. Nice try, Sega. The Prankster stood up, judged the length of the hallway, and pulled out a boomerang. It gave it a flip in its hand, then hurled it near the floor. The boomerang sped along, cutting the wires and causing the robots to fall from the ceiling. The Prankster stood patiently, waiting for all the lines to be cut. The robots prepared to attack, but the boomerang returned and sliced them, destroying the robots on its way back to its owner. The Prankster grabbed the boomerang and put it away, walking past the rubble calmly as it headed to the room.
The group stared at the screen in shock. They couldn't believe their eyes. The trap hadn't worked!
"He cut them! That brat cut the wires and destroyed the robots in one shot!" Sonic exclaimed, "How'd he do that?!"
"The Prankster's had training to deal with things like that." Mario muttered darkly.
"He's coming this way! Quick! Everybody hide! When he comes in, jump him!" Peach declared and everyone scattered to hide and wait for the ambush.
The Prankster entered the Master Control and stopped. There was someone else in the room. Several someones. The Prankster heard breathing, soft, as if the people were trying to stay quiet. It smiled. What idiots, as if anyone could be as quiet as The Prankster. It stood there at the door, listening to the breathing and thinking. Then it shrugged and walked to the back of the room. All around the trickster, the Allstars watched and waited. They wanted to get the culprit, but they also wanted to see what its final prank would be. It was something they were curious about.
The Prankster stopped at one computer and looked down at the pad of numbers and Greek letters in confusion. Could it remember the code by numbers and letter, or was it still stuck with sounds? The Prankster combed its memory, but the code wasn't easily recalled. It sighed, it did music better than number codes, curse that pirate.
"Doh dai di dee doo." The Prankster sang softly and pressed the keys whose sounds matched the notes. DK's access code was accepted and The Prankster was in the Master Computer. It turned and began to drag a chair over to the computer, then climbed on. It reached up to the control keys and quickly typed in a command. Suddenly, alarms began to go off all around and flashing red lights lit up the darkness of the base computer.
"Alert! Alert! Energy regulation systems deactivated! Implosion commencing in ten minutes! Evacuate Nintendo compound! Alert! Alert!" the computers all screamed as the Allstars and Sonic shrieked. This wasn't a prank! The Prankster was setting off a giant bomb to destroy Nintendo!!
"Stop him!" DK yelled and charged. The Prankster typed in another few keys, then leaped over the oncoming ape. It hit the ground and raced out of room in a burst of speed that seemed almost remarkable for someone its size. "He's getting away!"
"Sonic! Get after him! Mario! We've got to reactivate the Core fuel system! If we don't, we'll all lose life energy and the Core will implode from an energy overload!" Peach cried and rushed to the computer. She put in her access code. The computer rejected it. "NO! He's locked this system, too!" she screamed. The Allstars raced to catch up to Sonic and The Prankster.
All around Nintendo, characters were in a panic and chaos spread. The system was going to explode! Nintendo was going down! The Prankster has struck again! The Allstars couldn't stop him! Everyone began to grab things to escape. Only eight minutes left!
"Get up! Grab your things! Hurry! We have to get out of here!" GB Link yelled at the characters in the Zeldas' living area. The princesses and elves scrambled to pack up and leave.
"Don't forget Advance Link!" N64 Navi cried as she flew off to the infirmary and see what would happen to her Allstar partner. NES Link stopped and raced to the little elf's room.
"Advance Link! Get up!" he yelled as he threw the door open. He gasped in shock.
Advance Link's bed was empty.
"Move, move! Get going! That no good grandson of mine loused up! I should have known better than to let him go gallivanting around like some self-made hero!" Cranky barked as the Kongs scurried to get away. Dixie and Diddy ran to get Tiny up and on her feet but stopped dead in their tracks when they entered her room.
The littlest Kong was nowhere to be found.
Sonic ran as fast as he could but, somehow, The Prankster managed to stay ahead of him. The other characters had split up and gone to separate halls in an attempt to surround the trickster. Finally, with only five minutes to go, The Prankster came to a screeching halt at a dead end. The other halls were blocked by the other Allstars. They all glared angrily at The Prankster. The Prankster stood, back against the wall, looking around at the characters.
"Give it up, ya little runt!" DK snarled, "We've got you surrounded! There's no escape!"
"Give us the passwords to entering those systems so we can save Allstar Link and Nintendo! NOW!" Peach snapped. The Prankster shook his head, slightly crouched, as if about to run.
"Who are you?! Why are you doing this to Nintendo?!" Luigi demanded to know as GB Link and Candy Kong raced up to the group in a panic.
"Guys! Advance Link is gone!" GB Link cried.
"And so's Tiny! Where could our little Kong be?!" Candy wailed. Mario shot them a look.
"Tell me! What is missing from their rooms?" he ordered. Candy looked startled.
"Um, her copy of the Banana Cam and some of her weapons, like the Feather Bow and Orange Grenades?" she stammered in surprise.
"Some of the Oracle series items, the Harp of Ages and the Rod of Seasons." GB Link replied, confused. Mario gave them a grim look and turned to The Prankster.
"That confirms my worst fear." he muttered and shouted at The Prankster, "Prankster! Take off that hood! I know who you are now! I may be a plumber, but I have had my fair share of puzzles! I've figured out your identity! Show yourself to the world!"
The Prankster looked at Mario for a long time, leaving the group with only three minutes to stop the meltdown. After a moment, The Prankster sensed that Mario was telling the truth. He did know The Prankster's identity. Straightening up defiantly, The Prankster pulled back the hood of the cloak and gown....