Kaboom!
The Red World
(Part One)

"Magic is a controversial concept, to say the least. Those based in the sciences scoff at the mere mention of it, preferring their proven facts to such mysterious concepts. Others—usually those with experience in matters relying on faith—spend their whole lives in search of it, yearning for that which lies beyond the constraints of our bodies and exists instead in the realm of the mind…"

—The wizard Merlon, author of Sorcery for Dummies

The two royal Mushroom Kingdom guards glanced uneasily at each other, then back at the new arrivals. There were three of them, all dressed in figure-hiding cloaks with hoods pulled over their heads, casting their faces into deep shadows. It would be impossible to ascertain their identities without pulling the garments off.

"I have not heard of any such kingdom before." The guard on the left spoke up. "How do we know you are actual dignitaries? You could be Koopas in disguise." The second guard narrowed his eyes in thought, shifting his grip on the long spear in one hand until it was pointed towards the strangers in a threatening pose. Clearly, he agreed with his comrade.

"Hey!" One of the strangers growled. "Watch where you're pointing that thing!" A high-tech laser gun escaped its hiding place to point squarely at the guard's ballooned, polka-dotted head. "You should learn some manners, pal." The gun's owner snapped.

The silent guard seemed nonplussed by the strange object being pointed at him. He'd never seen or even heard of a gun in his entire life; he had no reason to fear one. The guard standing next to him let out a short bark of laughter and pointed his own spear at the gunner. "So should you." He grunted. "For the last time, nobody is allowed near the Castle without express permission from either the Chancellor or the Princess. So if you don't have any, then bugger off!"

Another of the strangers sighed. "Look, your princess has something of ours that is very important." He explained. "We're gonna get it whether you want us to or not, so if you at all value your lives you'll let us through before I char you to tiny bits."

The talkative guard sneered. "Oh, 'zat so?"

The stranger nodded slightly. Two powerful-looking, gloved hands flexed themselves from within the folds of the cape he wore. "I mean it. Today's not been a very good day and I'm a little testy. Don't push me."

Even the silent guard had to crack a grin at that remark. His companion was reduced to full-scale laughter. "Oh, that's rich!" He guffawed. "This bunch thinks they can beat us up with some silly little toys! Hilarious!"

"You think this is a toy?" The gun's owner demanded, sounding insulted. The person turned and fired the gun at a nearby bush, reducing it to ash in two-point-five seconds. The mirth was wiped off the faces of both guards, who suddenly looked a bit frightened. The gunner twirled the weapon around one finger before switching it over to the other hand and pointing it at the guards again. "Never underestimate my work. Got that?"

Both guards frowned at them, taking up full battle-stances. "All right, then, now see here. Clear off! We don't wanna hurt you." The left one warned.

Finally, the last newcomer let out a sigh. "I didst not wish for this." He sighed. "But if thou must create such difficulties…" He tossed his cloak aside, revealing his short, misshapen body to the soldiers. "…then so be it!"

The other two cast off their disguises as well. The tall one pulled his gloves on tighter and eyed the guards evilly. "I get the one on the right." He claimed, pointing at the Mushroomian in question. "Mutes irritate me."

"The left one is mine," The newly-revealed female gunner growled. "Toy indeed…I'll show HIM a toy!"

The shortest intruder raised a massive broadsword into view, and nodded. "Together, then. Let us strike!" He rushed forward with a cry, followed swiftly by his companions. "HAVE AT THEE!"

Peach brushed a few loose strands of hair out of her face and sighed.

Back in her room, in her castle, at last. She was home.

She flopped down onto her bed, staring up at the ceiling. So much was weighing on her and the others…could they actually pull this off? Would it work?

Would they live through this?

She rolled over onto her side, trying not to think such depressing thoughts. But they kept returning, more forceful and insistent each time. Her eyes searched through her room for some distraction and came to rest on the sword she'd brought back with her. It lay, carefully cleaned and polished by her attendants, next to its sheath in the corner. Upon leaving Koopa Castle, she'd forgotten all about the weapon until one of her guards had pointed it out to her, still strapped to her back as she arrived at her home.

It was like the sword hadn't wanted to be noticed, somehow…but that was silly. Swords couldn't act on their own. They were just inanimate hunks of metal. Peach closed her eyes, feeling drained and world-weary. Finding that generator could wait; she needed to rest, first.

An image of Mario being sucked up by a black portal, never to return, played itself out behind her eyelids. She snapped her eyes open, heartbeat fluttering. No, sleep was beyond her right now.

She sat up and pressed a hand to her forehead. A minor headache was building up behind her eyes. Perhaps she was worrying too much. Mario and Luigi could take care of themselves. They were the famous Super Brothers. They could handle anything.

She repeated similar reassuring phrases to herself for a few minutes until she began to feel better about the whole situation. Yes, she was merely overreacting. They'd take care of this problem and everything would be okay again. She took a deep breath and held it, then slowly let it out. She should just relax. She should—

BAM. The door to her room slammed open, causing Peach to nearly jump out of her skin. "Breach!" The messenger leaning against her door panted, out of breath from having run the whole way across the castle. "Security breach! Princess, we must get you to a safer place! Hurry!"

"What?" Peach stood up as several guards rushed in and surrounded her in a protective ring, waiting as she grabbed the messenger by the shoulders and held him in place. "What do you mean, security breach? What's going on??"

"Intruders!" The messenger gasped out at last. "At the front gate! They've broken through all our defenses! Hurry, you must seek shelter!"

Peach straightened, face pale. No, not again…she wasn't going to be captured again. Not after having just arrived! "Guards, follow me." She commanded. "We're heading for the Emergency Shelter, Escape Plan 30-A. You," she pointed at the messenger, "tell General Molden to get his squadron in position. Understood?"

The messenger saluted, albeit a bit weakly. "Yes'm."

"Good. Now go!"

The short Mushroomian sprinted off, having finally gained his second wind. Peach watched him go, a frown playing at her mouth. Sometimes, she hated being a Princess.

"My liege," One of the soldiers prodded.

Peach blinked a bit and looked at him. "Right." She muttered. "The escape plan. Okay, let's go! Everyone, keep up!" She ordered as the troops escorted her out into the halls at a run. Their footsteps quickly faded as the shadows cast on the walls by their bodies vanished around a bend.

The area remained silent for a few moments more, until one of the doors in the hallway burst open in a fiery explosion. Three individuals flew through the smoke left behind and landed in the hall with relative ease.

"Heh, that'll teach 'em to try and stop me." The gloved, tall man smirked as he stood up and brushed soot off his armor. "Quite a good workout, I must say. That was the most fun I've had in a while."

"It's not over yet." The female gunner reminded him. She jerked her head in the direction of her shorter companion. "Hey, Glenn! Which way?"

The swordsman let out a strange sound of confusion, a mixture of grunt and croak. "I know not," He admitted, sounding baffled. "The signal is strong, yet I cannot tell from which room it originates!"

"We don't have time to try every single one," The gloved man grumbled. He began to point at the door to each room. "Eenee, meenie, minee, mush! Go kick Ozzie in the tush! If he's not mad, let it lie—otherwise he'll have to DIE!" As he spoke the last syllable, the man's finger came to point towards a door further down the hallway, to their right. Without further delay, the man made a series of complex arm gestures and pointed at that door. In a burst of sudden flame, it exploded into chunks of smoking debris that scattered all over the floor and walls.

The gunner shot him an irritated glance. "You know, you COULD just use your magic to undo the door locks. You don't have to keep blowing them all up."

The magician waved a hand indifferently. "Fine, so I have a flair for the dramatic. What's your point?"

"Aye, let us argue later!" Glenn interrupted. "We must make haste, for our enemies doth follow at our heels!" He dashed inside the room, and a moment later let out a cry of triumph. "Ah-ha! Fellows, come quick! 'Tis in here!"

The gunner and mage entered the room. "Found it? Good." The former said. "Hurry, let's get out of here!" A high-pitched hum emitted from the room for a few seconds, then faded away to silence.

Peach blinked in confusion. That headache was starting to return again.

She let out a weak groan and leaned against the wall behind her, pinching the bridge of her nose in exasperation as she glared at her Captain of the Guard and best friend, Toad.

"What do you mean, 'they just vanished'?" She demanded at last.

"Exactly what I said." Toad replied. "There is good news, though: The Royal Treasury is intact and the only things broken are the doors."

"That's pointless unless we catch those responsible. They could come back and do more damage." Peach straightened up, trying to compose herself. "Where were they last seen?"

"A couple guards who were on watch claimed they saw the intruders enter your room and not leave it, your majesty. We sent some troops there to capture them, but the interlopers were not there. General Molden reported nobody leaving the premises through any of the entrances. They could not have left without being seen."

"But then where did they go?!" Peach demanded. "Ugh. I'm getting sick of all this magical stuff. Come on, I'm gonna have a look at this for myself."

A short while later Peach came to the hallway leading to her bedchambers. She grimaced as she saw the damage done to the door, and stepped past the charred remnants to look around the room's interior. Nothing seemed out of place…until the bareness of a red plush pillow sitting on her bedside table caught her eye.

"Hey!" She blinked. "They took my sword!"

Toad peeked into the room from behind her. "Why, that's true!" He exclaimed. "How odd."

Peach walked over to the table and stared down at the empty pillow, face a mixture of relief and confusion. "Why would they take a crummy old sword and nothing else?" She muttered. "It doesn't make sense."

"Well, one thing's for sure—this definitely isn't the work of the Koopas." Toad remarked.

"Yeah, I knew that already. But who else could be behind it?"

A curious beeping welcomed the three intruders back to their hideout. "Greetings, friends." A metallic tone spoke out to them. "Have you accomplished your mission objective?"

"Aye." Glenn answered. '"Twas there, just as we suspected."

"Ooo! Big shiny sword! Bring back for Ayla?" Another voice asked the swordsman.

"W-what??" Glenn sputtered. "No! This be the legendary Masamune, destined for only the true Hero to weld! Hands off, lass!"

"Ugh." The magician grunted, hand pressed to his forehead. "Thank the Gurus we're back. Lucca wouldn't let me kill a single one of the buggers, it was horrible." He tossed some of his long cerulean hair over one shoulder as the gunner rolled her eyes at him behind his back. "I'm gonna go work off some battle tension on Spekkio, now. See ya." His steps faded off into darkness.

"You know, we still don't know how or why that portal took the Masamune in the first place." The gunner named Lucca mentioned once he was gone. "A bit too much of a coincidence, isn't it?"

"Indeed, it doth seem like some evil force be at work here." Glenn agreed. "Let us hope it decides to cease toying with us, and reveal itself as an honorable opponent should."

A feminine snort was Glenn's reply, followed by a burst of giggles in a voice more high-pitched than Lucca's. "Honestly, Frog, I don't think this 'Evil Force' will follow the Knight's Code." It spoke up from a different direction.

Glenn, a.k.a. Frog, paused to consider that. To him it almost sounded alien; where he came from, the Code was such an ingrained part of life that it was difficult to imagine being without it. But he'd seen enough in his recent travels to understand that not all beings think alike. "Hmmm, perhaps thou art right. Nonetheless, far be it from me to allow such an act of cowardice to go unpunished."

"What do you mean?" The metallic voice asked.

"Denying thy opponent a weapon in combat is a most dishonorable act! The one responsible shall need to be taught a lesson in manners." Frog exclaimed, drawing his old broadsword and exchanging it for the one he'd gotten in Peach's bedroom. "Now that the Masamune hast been recovered, I plan to set out on a quest to find and rid the world of the evil presence behind its theft!" Frog turned in a circle to eye each of his compatriots. "Do any of thee wish to accompany me on such a quest?"

One person who'd remained silent up until now stepped forward and nodded, determination evident on his face. Frog grinned at him. "Crono, you have my thanks. I knew thou wouldst volunteer!" He looked around. "Anyone else?"

"Magus would want to go, but he just left." Lucca shrugged. "You might as well take Ayla, Robo or Marle, since they didn't get to go last time."

"Aye, but which one? Only three mayhap use the portals safely." Frog reminded her. A burst of arguing quickly followed as the aforementioned three individuals voiced their reasons for going.

"Hey, I'm a great healer, you know!" Marle pointed out. Dressed in a flimsy powder-blue tube top and loose, airy pants of the same color, it was a wonder she wasn't feeling chilly. She hefted a large crossbow in her arms and grinned, tossing a blond ponytail over her shoulder. "Besides, what if you need a sniper?"

"I can also effectively use firearms and healing techniques, Marle." Robo reminded her. As the name implied, Robo was, well, a robot. Plated with beige, almost rusty metal, he (at least, they assumed he was a 'he'—robots didn't actually have genders) was a bit bulky, it was true—but also very powerful. In effect, a walking, talking tank. With radar. And all sorts of useful gadgets. Like James Bond's ultimate companion.

But despite his boasts of strength, Robo was only the penultimate powerhouse of the team. He freely admitted to being weaker than the scantily-clad cavewoman who spoke up after him. "Ayla bored!" She whined pitifully. Not the most effective argument, but Ayla was never one for verbal debate. She tended to let her fists talk for her most of the time.

Finally, Frog picked Robo. "He can heal, and he doth harbor powerful attacks; a good combination of Marle and Ayla's best qualities." He explained as the two unpicked women glared at him.

Robo blinked his blue-green optics. "Thank you very much. I have been eagerly anticipating a chance to experience these new worlds for myself. It will be quite…educational."

"Indeed." Frog spoke, sounding amused.

But a new twist was yet to occur; cheated of her position as the third team member, Marle looked to the red-haired, katana-welding swordsman for help. "Crono…" The boy turned to face her with some degree of wariness. Whenever her voice took on that tone, it usually meant trouble for him.

"Can I go instead of you?" Marle begged, putting on her most pathetic doe-eyed expression. "Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease?"

Crono gave Frog/Glenn a helpless look. The high-speaking knight let out a croaking laugh. "It appears the lass doth have thee in a pickle." He grinned, waving his hands. "Seek not my aid; I have no skill in such matters!"

Crono grimaced, like a man sentenced to hang, and turned to face the full brunt of Marle's 'Poor Me' Begging Routine™. Luckily, he was saved by a third party.

The magician from the previous mission came striding back out of the shadows, looking slightly bruised but otherwise no worse for wear. Frog's mirth diminished considerably upon seeing him. "Hail, Magus. What business have thee with us now? Did thee lose thine battle with Spekkio so soon?"

"You wish. The guy may claim he's a God of War and all that, But he sure seems to be getting less difficult to beat these days. Or maybe he's going easy on me because I'm facing him alone. I'm inclined to believe the former, though…" Magus smirked. Frog rolled his bulbous eyes and turned to leave, but Magus' voice stopped him. "Oh, by the way, you guys forgot something."

Irritated, Frog turned back to face him. "Well? What be it, then? We must be off!"

Magus pulled one of his gloves on tighter. "You need me to actually open the stupid portals, remember? I have to be in on whatever silly little adventure that you're taking if you actually plan on getting anywhere. Your time machine doesn't move between dimensions."

Frog gave the gunner of their group a surprised and questioning glance. "Is this true, Lucca? Thou said that it was possible for the Epoch to achieve such a feat."

The young female inventor let out an embarrassed cough. "Well, it IS possible for us to cross dimensions in Epoch…but it'd be very risky. With some more time, I could spruce the ship's mechanics up so it could safely transport several people."

Frog decided to press his luck. "When thou say 'risky', what dost thou mean?"

"Well, if we try it as-is, we might get killed."

Frog frowned. So much for that. "Curse it all! Why must the Fates ally themselves with this vile urchin?!" He raged, pointing in Magus' direction. The mage's current expression of smugness lit a fury in his brain, and he truly had to fight to suppress the battle-honed instincts currently urging him to unsheathe his sword and chop it off.

Crono looked heavenward and gave a sigh of incredible relief. Then he turned to give Marle a shrug, as if to say "It's out of my hands." Magus stepped up next to Frog and Robo to take his place, as the blonde pouted at them all to show her unhappiness.

Robo blinked a bit in what could possibly be called amusement. "As I believe Master Spekkio would say…'Dems de breaks', Lady Marle." He chirped.

"Robo, how many times have we told you to knock off the 'Lady' stuff?!" Lucca growled.

"Forgive me, but it would be improper to—"

"Let us not tarry any longer!" Frog broke in. "Magus, the spell!"

"Yeah, yeah, just hold your wart-ridden tail for a freakin' minute. It takes time to charge up." He said no more after that, concentrating his focus singly on the task at hand as Frog sputtered in indignant fury beside him.

"Okay, there we go." He grunted at last, making one last arm gesture and pointing at the spot where he wanted the portal to appear. "C'mon, let's get this over with."

The glowing rift opened with a soft hum. Frog leaped through immediately, with Robo trundling in behind shortly afterwards. Magus gave the rest of the group a mocking two-finger salute before tossing his cloak over one shoulder and leaping into the rift. The hum faded away a few moments later as the portal disappeared, leaving them alone.

The bitter Alaskan winds howled without mercy, their constant snowfall mixing with a half-frozen rain to create a numbing sleet that froze limbs and turned men into statues.

Standard weather, as far as Paul was concerned. Life as a special-ops recruit wasn't without such hardships. But he was used to it. The cold might've forced a different, less-prepared person into the later stages of frostbite and hypothermia—but not him. He'd gotten a special injection that took care of all that...he didn't even feel the low temperature much by now. The specifics of that shot's contents eluded him, but he didn't care as long as they worked correctly.

He shuffled a bit to obtain a more comfortable position, leaning up against the wall behind him. His FAMAS rifle rested in both of his gloved hands, the barrel pointed harmlessly at the ground. Nothing important had happened today, nothing to note of…Paul yawned. As dynamic as the environment might seem to a tourist or other such visitor, it was rather monotonous to someone who'd lived there a while. Still, he had to keep alert. One never knew what might happen if they let their guard drop, even for a moment. Unlike some of his comrades who allowed themselves to sleep at their posts, Paul felt a sort of patriotic duty towards his superiors. He'd follow his orders without question, should they even lead to his death.

Sometimes, however, such dedicated obedience proved tiring. Even Paul couldn't deny that.

He cocked his head from side to side to work the kinks out of his neck and slowly stretched, feeling his joints pop as the tension was eased from them. Maybe he should get the next guy on shift to take over from here. What was his name…Johnny. Yeah, Johnny Sazaki. The guy owed Paul a favor, anyhow. He could call Johnny, have him come over, and…

…what was that?

Paul blinked, then lifted his gun to point out into the snowy abyss. He'd heard something. Might've been his imagination, or maybe it was one of those native wolves that prowled the area. Stupid dogs always kept making trouble for guys like him, never knew when to stop hunting for prey.

…No, wait. There it was again! It wasn't a wolf. Sounded metallic. Like banging on a metal surface or something. Paul swiveled his head around, suddenly cursing the poor weather that obscured his vision to less than five feet in front of his face. Anything could be out there, and he wouldn't know what it was until too late…

Okay, stay calm. Focus. Remember your training. Paul lifted his radio, then reconsidered. Maybe he should check out the disturbance first. He'd feel pretty silly if he called in a false alarm to Security for no good reason.

He slowly, hesitantly moved forward. The winds and sleet enveloped him in white, soft powder mixed with hard cores of ice. Paul gritted his teeth. Great, now it was starting to hail. This was making him more irritated by the second. If this turned out to be a prank, he'd cap the guy responsible.

Inch by careful inch, he covered the damp earth, leaving tracks behind him to be slowly hidden by new precipitation. There came the sound again—definitely some sort of metallic clank sound. It was coming from ahead of him, and to his left. He continued forward, and a boxlike shape appeared through the blizzard; a stack of crates. So that was what the 'metallic surface' was. Now, where was the thing that had been banging on it?

Paul almost turned around to head back to his post and chalk the whole thing up to coincidence, but something in the snow caught his eye.

A footprint?

He slung his rifle over one shoulder and bent down to take a close look. Yes, definitely a footprint. The pattern left by the sole was not from any boot used by his teammates, either. It was alien. Recent, too.

Paul straightened up quickly, heart beginning to flutter as blood pounded in his veins. Someone else was here, someone who should not be. The adrenaline rush came to him swift and hard. An intruder. Here! Right here!

Instead of feeling scared or nervous, Paul felt excited. Finally, a chance to prove himself! He and his teammates had been trained with virtual-reality exercises but hadn't had any real battle experience. An encounter with an intruder would be a welcome change to Paul's tedious and dull everyday routine, as well as a valuable learning experience for later.

His rifle was unslung and back in his hands as fast as his honed reflexes could make it, the rubber-coated handles comforting him with their mere presence. More footprints surrounded the first, all leading him on a path away from the crates and around a rocky crag up ahead.

Looks like that radio call would be a good idea after all. Paul lifted the device to his mouth as he crept forward, following the footprint trail to wherever it led. "Base, this is Agent Rogozinski at the Heliport. Possible intruder activity has been—urk!"

The last was a surprised grunt that was forced from Paul's lips as a pair of hands slipped around him from behind, quickly snapping his neck. He dropped to the snow, lifeless, as his slack fingers released the radio that was now buzzing in distress.

"What's the matter? Agent Rogozinski?? Respond!" The person at the other end of the line demanded. "Agent Rogozinski! Do you copy?"

Paul's murderer stood above him, glaring at his inanimate corpse without remorse. His gray bandanna whipped around his head wildly, as if attempting a desperate escape from its wearer. The cold, steely eyes just below it narrowed in thought as the radio operator began to request backup be sent to Rogozinski's post. One of the boots whose prints had been so unfamiliar to Paul lifted itself up and stomped on the radio, smashing it to pieces.

"Hmph." The intruder grunted in a low, scratchy tone, lifting two fingers to press against his right ear. "Guess my cover's blown, then."

"You sure didn't waste any time getting discovered, did you?" A voice spoke in the man's ear, though only he alone heard it. "Looks like the jig's up. Better hide somewhere."

"Copy that, Colonel. I'll lay low for a bit." The man agreed. "Anything else I should know?"

"Only the common-sense stuff. You don't want to use the guards' guns, as they make too much noise without silencers equipped. Although if they already know you're there, I don't suppose it matters…"

"Still, I'd rather sneak past these guys than kill them. I've got too many dog tags on my conscience as-is." The man looked behind himself in surprise as he heard the distant shout of voices, slowly getting louder. "Look, I'll talk to you later, Colonel. Gotta scram."

"Agreed. Be careful, Snake." The miniature radio shut itself off.

"Okay, Kamek. You hid these things, so you'd know where to start looking."

"Indeed I do, Princess." The magikoopa nodded. He, along with Peach and a number of the Mushroom Kingdom's military generals were seated in one of the castle's meeting rooms. "Our world's generator is within Dark Land."

"Figures." Peach muttered. "Will you help us find it?"

"I can't, unfortunately. I taxed myself too much with that portal-opening stunt and need to rest for a few days before I'll be able to do anything more than walk and talk. But, I can show you where it is and point you in the correct direction."

Peach sighed. It was the best deal she was going to get. "Do that, then."

Magus scratched his head in confusion. "Ummm…"

"How in the nine Hells didst thee land us in THIS place?!" Frog exclaimed, staring around at the foreign surroundings. Wherever they were, he knew for sure that it was NOT the destination he'd had planned.

"Look, it's not as easy as it looks to direct those portals, okay? I had enough trouble finding that dimension last time, even WITH the Masamune acting as a beacon for me to lock on to. Besides," Magus added with a frown, "this was all your idea anyway."

Frog attempted to calm down. "Very well, forgive my rashness. Would thou be so kind, then, as to conjure up a return portal?"

Magus shrugged. "Yeah, sure. Hold on." That complex series of arm gestures occurred again, followed by The Point.

There was a silent pause, as absolutely nothing happened.

Magus blinked. "What the…?" He tried again. Nothing.

Despite his best efforts, Frog was beginning to feel panic coming on. "What? What is the matter?"

Magus looked sheepish. "Um, whoops. I think I might be out of magic power…"

"WHAT??"

"Well, I forgot to use an Ether after that fight with Spekkio, so…"

Another pause.

"Dost thou mean," Frog began in a slow voice, "that we are STUCK here?!"

Robo beeped, processing a large chunk of data. "Probability of Magus opening another portal at current magic levels: less than 0.0001 percent." He paused, calculating the best course of action. "Affirmative. Current party is stranded until suitable energy replenishing sources are found or Magus regains enough energy through rest. It is recommended that we seek suitable accommodations for camping tonight, and wait until tomorrow to return home." He peered at Frog, curious as to what his reaction to this news might be.

Surprisingly, the knight grew calm again. He sighed. "Very well, if such is our fate." He drew his sword and planted it in the ground so it stood upright, the blade glowing with energy as it cut through the solid metal and cement. "Robo! Could thou scan for enemies, if thee please?"

Snake peeked around a corner, eyeing yet another unsuspecting guard. He double-checked his SOCOM pistol to make sure the silencer was still in place, and that he had a full magazine of ammo attached. Couldn't be too careful. He looked up again, seeing that the guard was just about to walk into his range of fire. He tensed, preparing to jump from his hiding place and start shooting.

RING-RING. A sharp noise sounded in Snake's head, breaking his concentration. He blinked. "Urgh! Damn!" He cursed, watching as the guard walked out of view. Irritated, he placed two fingers up behind his ear to activate his Codec radio. "Yeah, what do you want? This had better be good."

"Snake! It's me."

The man gave a mental sigh. He knew that voice. "What do you want, Otacon?"

"Wow, you're not gonna believe this…"

"Try me."

"Well," Otacon snickered, "we've got some unexpected company."

Snake's interest perked up a bit. "Really?" He took a quick look around the corner; nobody there. He turned back to his hiding place. "Who?"

Otacon took a peek out of the slits in the locker he'd hidden in. It afforded him a somewhat obstructed view of the outside. Through it, two beings were currently visible. "Some guy with gloves, and a robot." He answered.

Snake's response was purely reactional. "What the hell?!"

"I told you so." Otacon smiled.

"A robot?" Snake demanded. "Is it that ninja? Gray Fox?"

"No, this one is different. It looks like a completely mechanical creation."

"And the man with gloves? What does he look like?"

"Well," Otacon pushed his glasses back up onto his nose to see better, "he's got blue hair, just like in some of my Japanese animes…"

Snake placed his free hand on his forehead. "Unbelievable. This sounds completely ridiculous." Snake opened another frequency. "Colonel, are you and Naomi hearing this?"

"Yes." The elderly man's voice answered. "Those people are not members of FOXHOUND, I'm afraid. Whoever they are, they're intruders."

"Just like me…" Snake muttered.

The voice of a narrow-eyed, buisnesslike Asian woman suddenly contacted Otacon's Codec. "Dr. Emmerich, be careful. Don't let them see you." Dr. Naomi Hunter warned him.

"Relax," The scientist reassured her. "I've got my Stealth Camouflage equipped. I'll be okay."

"Can you see what they're doing from where you are now?" The Colonel asked.

"Um…no, not really. They've moved out of view. Wait, hold on." There was a pause. "There's one of them now. Hmmm, short little fella, must be a midget. He's wearing a cape or something, I can't really see him from this angle. Let's see, he's currently looking around the room, not really doing much of…uh-oh, wait, he's coming this way! Yikes!"

"Art thou sure, Robo?" A voice was asking in the background. "There be another person in the vicinity?"

Beeping responded to this query, barely heard over Otacon's quickening breaths. "Affirmative. Thermal scans indicate a humanoid present within that locker."

At one end of the comm. link, Snake's expression darkened. "Otacon! Get out of there, NOW!"

"I can't, it's too late! There's nothing I can do, Snake! They know I'm here!" The sound of the locker's door opening cut into the transmission at that moment, halting any reply Snake may have wanted to make.

The three listeners held their breaths. Silence seemed to be the only answer to their tensions for several moments. Finally:

"Robo, thine sensors mayhap need fixing. There be no one here."

More beeping. "Negative. All sensors working within normal parameters. Possible cloaking technology may be present."

"Cloaking?" A third, alien voice broke in. "Is that possible? I thought that technology died with the fall of Zeal…"

"Hmm…what be this 'cloaking' thou speaketh of?" The first voice asked.

"Invisibility." Said the third voice. "Let's find out if someone's there or not, shall we?"

The next few sounds were a jumble of confusion to Snake, Naomi, and the Colonel. First there was some banging, followed by a muffled 'oof'! Then the three voices began to shout, accompanied by the sounds of some sort of scuffle. Ten seconds into this strange auditory mix, the radio link to Otacon abruptly cut off.

"Otacon?? Otacon!" Snake demanded. "Otacon, can you hear me?!"

"Snake! Otacon's in trouble!" The colonel exclaimed. "You have to rescue him! He's the only one who knows how to stop Metal Gear and the nuclear missile launch!"

"DAMNIT!" Snake growled, resisting the urge to bang a fist into the floor—the sound would surely attract unwanted attention. That didn't stop him from softly-yet-vehemently cursing, though. "Of all the lousy timing…" He paused for a few moments to compose himself, then pressed two fingers behind his ear to reply. "Copy that, Colonel. I'm on my way. Where did his last transmission come from?"

"Mei-Ling's tracking it down now, but she'll need some more time to get a precise location. All we know for certain right now is that it came from somewhere on the second sublevel of the Nuclear Storage Facility. Head there first, and then we'll try to pinpoint it further. Good luck, Snake."

"And be careful." Naomi added, just before the Codec went silent.

"AHHHH!" Otacon whimpered as he was held up in the air by his neck. "D-don't kill me, puh-please!"

Magus sneered. "Give me one good reason not to."

Frog unsheathed the Masamune. "Magus! Still thy hand!" He warned with a dark glare. "We doth not yet know whether he be friend or foe. Do not take such hasty action!"

Robo beeped. "Analysis is in agreement with Frog's statement. Suggested course of action: Question him."

"Could I torture him a bit? It'd be kinda fun." Magus' eyes took on a sinister gleam.

"If he comes to harm, thy life shall be forfeit." Frog growled.

Magus snorted. "Spoilsport." Almost carelessly, he released Otacon and let him fall to the floor. The scientist frantically backed up until his back hit the wall, where he cowered in fear.

"D-d-don't hurt me."

Frog put the Masamune back in its scabbard, walking forward to stand in front of Otacon. "That all depends on who thou art. What be thy name?"

"M-my name? It's…" Otacon looked up and good a good look at Glenn for the first time. "…AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" He screamed, visibly recoiling and kicking out at the knight. "Get it away, get it away!"

Magus burst into laughter. Otacon, like so many other unfortunates before him, had just discovered how well Glenn lived up to his nickname—his features were identical to those of a frog. Needless to say, the green skin, bulbous yellow eyes with black slits, and webbed digits on his hands and feet made him appear monstrous and frightening at first glance.

Frog was not amused. "Be still!" He snapped, grabbing Otacon's feet and holding them in place with a surprising amount of strength. "Calm thyself, sir! I am not what thou thinkest I am."

Otacon blinked. "Huh? It talks?"

Frog gritted his teeth. "Aye. Will thou please cease thine kicking now?"

Otacon stared. The scientist in him suddenly overshadowed his survival instinct. "WOW…a-are you an alien?"

Magus was overcome with a second fit of laughter and had to lean against the wall to steady himself. Frog frowned at him. "Nay, I am as human as thou art. An unfortunate…accident, thee might say, has resulted in this form of mine."

Otacon adjusted his glasses. "Amazing…that must have been some accident!"

Magus shrugged, still chuckling. "Well, anything's possible when magic is involved."

Otacon blinked, now looking at the wizard with a skeptical expression. "Magic?"

BWAAAAAHM! BWAAAAHM! Blared numerous alarms, as red lights flashed throughout the room. Startled, everyone jumped slightly and looked around in surprise.

It was Robo who spotted the problem first. A panel on his arm slid aside, as a laser cannon lifted into view from beneath it. He quickly blasted the cameras that had been placed near the ceiling.

"We have been detected by security." He reported in his calm monotone.

Magus let out a vulgar curse that had Frog recoiling from him in shock. "I can't use my spells against the guards, either!" The mage growled, unbuckling a curved scythe from his backside. "We'll have to fight our way out."

Frog shot Otacon a worried look. "It is a pity we did not have more time to talk with thee, good sir. Thou had best hide thineself again." That said, he and the others rushed from the room, leaving one very confused scientist behind.