I was so happy when Pyra and Mythra were announced for Smash that their trailer reveal was one of the few the genuinely made me scream with joy. Unlike my other Slice of Light fics, this one is going to be multichapter, because I really wanted to explore the idea of Pyra and Mythra becoming friends with Shulk outside of the brief interaction they had in the Xenoblade 2 DLC. I also wanted to explore how Pyra and Mythra's character development would go without Rex being directly involved and how they treat each other.

A few notes before we start:

-The fighters in my Smash fics are stated to be clones of the original characters. They have the memories and personalities of the original fighters, but they are still Master Hand's creations. This part is important.

-This first chapter will only show Pyra, so this is me saying sorry in advance for Mythra enjoyers.

-This is not supposed to be a ship fic, but I also can't promise that Pyra and Shulk's feelings for each other will remain entirely platonic.

I guess that's it. Hope you enjoy.

It was with the loud singing of the cicadas and a gentle falling of a leaf on her cheek that Pyra woke up from her slumber. Feeling the warm breeze on her skin, the girl stirred and let out a long and withdrawn yawn, though she still had her eyes closed, as if she was still asking herself for five more minutes. Her fingers gently grazed over the grass that served as her bed and it took her a few seconds to realize that she was not supposed to be sleeping on grass.

Pyra's eyes shot open. Everywhere she looked she could see thick vegetation, not unlike the depths of a Gormotti forest, which startled her even more, because last time she checked, she was supposed to be resting in a nice Uryan inn. Now wide awake, Pyra quickly got up from her resting spot and frantically looked around her. She had been sleeping under a tree for Architect knows how long and found herself standing completely alone in an unknown forest. Worst of all, she realized that was completely alone.

"Rex?" Pyra called, uncertain. "N-Nia? Tora?"

As if answering her call, the cicada's song became louder and only proved her growing anxiety that those insects were her only company. At least, as far as she knew. Pyra gave out a shaky breath and extended her trembling hand forward, slowly spreading her fingers until her scarlet, asymmetrical sword materialized in front of her. Without a second thought, Pyra grabbed her weapon and exited her glade.

That was the beginning of Pyra's journey of finding her missing friends. Despite her confusion, she was not all that worried over her friend's safety during the first hour of exploring that unknown forest, so long as they remained together. Rex, Nia, Tora, Vandham, they were all very capable drivers. Her biggest concern was over what happened for her to wake up in a Gormotti forest.

Her worries grew the moment she exited the forest and found herself standing in the middle of a road. Without the trees and thick vegetation to shield her from the intense light, it was only now that Pyra realized that the day had been especially bright. Placing a hand over her forehead, she looked around with her eyes threatening to close at any moment. There was no sight of life anywhere nearby, but on closer inspection of the road ahead of her, she noticed some metal bars placed in orderly fashion on the ground, resembling a gigantic staircase.

Pyra did not know what it was for, but it was not natural. If it was not natural, it was man made and if it was man made, then she was most likely to find people if she followed that strange trail. The use of steel meant that she was not in Gormott, as the Gormotti people abhorred the use of excessive metal, though as far as she knew, she most likely was not in any titan that she had knowledge of.

She eventually reached the end of the road; not a single person was in sight. There was, however, a rather large house a few feet away from where the trail ended. Pyra cautiously made her way towards the house, her grip on the handle of her sword tight and her breath shaky, and once she was a few inches away from the wooden door, closed her eyes and gently knocked. Her body tensed up as she waited for an answer, yet there was only silence. She knocked again, this time less than gently, though the lack of answer was the same.

Against her better judgment, Pyra turned on the knob and realized that the door was unlocked. Slowly poking her head inside, it appeared that the house served more as a transportation station, judging by the abandoned balcony that divided the room in two and the various posters on the walls promoting "fast and secure train rides".

Pyra had never seen what a train looked like, but it was safe to assume it was some kind of public transportation, which only made how abandoned the station was all the more bizarre. She briefly considered walking inside, if only to give her eyesight some respite from the strong sunlight, but she had to find Rex and the others as soon as possible. With her hopes of finding civilization dashed, Pyra had no choice but to move forward and continue her search.

She was about to close the door and walk away, when the loud FWOOOOM resonated from behind her that made her jump in a startle. The lost girl quickly turned around and saw a massive, metal vehicle coming towards her, what she assumed to be the "train" that she saw in the pamphlets. Pyra watched it approach the station, mortified by the loud noise, the frenetic chug chug chug that somehow made the vehicle seem like it was out of breath. She watched it slow down and had to cover her ears by the high pitched squeal once it came to a stop.

The double door in front of her opened and from them, two figures emerged, both of them chatting casually until they noticed Pyra watching them. The man on the left wore a red helmet that hid half of his face and had a sculpted build that still showed through his tight blue spandex and contrasted against his yellow scarf. The boy, on the other hand, was a scrawny little thing, though his baggy clothes made him look smaller than he probably was. The red cap in his head helped contain his brown hair for the most part, but she could still see the sign of capillary rebelliousness sticking out. Both had a strange glow around them, as if enveloped by a multicolored flame .

At that moment, it was as if time had frozen. Both man and boy looked at her in shock, almost as if they were staring at something not quite human. Neither party moved a muscle. Pyra did not have a good feeling about the situation.

Passed their initial shock, neither man, nor boy seemed pleased to see Pyra there. Both got into a defensive stance, the man raising his fist and the boy taking out a spherical device from his belt and Pyra, in return, raised her sword at them. Time seemed to stop as they exchanged glares, though Pyra thought it unfair that she could not read the man's glare in the same way he could see hers.

Without warning, the man dashed at her and Pyra quickly got out of the way before his fist could find its way to her stomach. Pyra swung her sword in retaliation, but was left dumbfounded by the man who quickly spun around and redirected her attack away with a swift quick to her blade. She was forced to step back, using her blade to block the onslaught of punches and kicks that the man kept delivering.

Such strength! Such power! The man was fighting with his bare fists, Pyra dreaded imagining what he was capable of if he had an actual weapon with him.

"Go, Ivysaur!"

To Pyra's surprise, a green creature sporting a budding pink flower on its back appeared out of nowhere and began to assist the man in taking her down. She cried out as two vines shot out from the creature's back and grabbed her by the ankle, trying to make her lose her balance before she quickly slashed her sword downwards and forced the vine to recoil. By some miracle, she was fast enough to block another punch, though her less than ideal stance made her recoil and fall on her butt on the squeaky, wooden floor.

"Let's finish this!" Her assaulter exclaimed. He raised his fist in the air, flames engulfing it to unleash a devastating attack. "FALCON-"

"Captain, what ARE YOU DOING?! STOP, STOP!"

To Pyra's relief, both the man and the creature attacking her stopped at the plea from the unknown fourth party. The man, the boy and the creature turned around and they all saw a young man, all clad in red and black and with a golden hair that shined so bright under the sun that it almost blinded her, jumping out of the wagon and running towards them. He too was enveloped by the strange, colorful aura that her other opponents had.

The young man was distressed, shoving her assailant away and gently kneeled by her side, his concerned blue eyes not even giving the exasperated man attention and instead checking out for any injuries.

"Shulk, why are you protecting her?" Captain asked. "She's an enemy!"

"She's a friend," Shulk said. "I've met her before."

"Is that so?"

Pyra frowned, though she did not rebuke his claims. If being considered a friend to the young man, Shulk, was going to be her ticket out of a certain brawl that she had no chances of winning, she was more than happy to roll with that narrative. She nodded, but the captain was not impressed with her gesture. "Hate to break it to you, buddy, but fighting friends is the thing that we've been doing the most in these past few months," he said, crossing his arms. "Prove us that she's not being controlled."

The boy in baggy clothes, who had been silent the entire time, simply nodded in accordance. The creature still had its eyes locked on her. Perhaps it was for the best that Pyra remained silent and avoided saying anything out of line. "You're not a puppet fighter, are you, Pyra?" Shulk asked, gently. "Please, answer the question truthfully."

"What… What is a puppet fighter?" Pyra asked. So much for remaining silent. "I mean, I don't think I am, but I don't understand. I just… I woke up and…"

"See? If she was being controlled, she would not be speaking like this," Shulk said, turning around in what she could only assume was triumph. "Pyra is not an enemy. There's no need to fight her."

"Well, why didn't you say something before, girl?" the captain asked, his attention now solely on Pyra. "Really would have avoided all of this!"

"I… What?! But you attacked me first!" Pyra said. "I'm sorry, but I was more worried about defending myself than anything else…"

"She has a point," the boy said, drawing out a ball from his pocket and, to Pyra's shock, dematerializing the creature so it would fit inside the device. The boy could simply put that monster in his pocket? What shocking technology! "We started the fight. Sorry."

"Come on, Red, back me up here!"

"I think Pyra deserves an apology from you too, Douglas," Shulk said with a smile.

The captain didn't say anything, instead preferring to extend a hand to her. "Think you can get up?" Douglas asked, his voice firm, but gentle. "Give me your hand."

She hesitated for a couple of seconds before taking the hand that a few moments ago was ready to punch the lights out of her. With that, Pyra was back on her feet, despite her legs still trembling from her likely near death experience.

"Never seen her around," the boy, Red, said. "Think she's a new Smasher?"

"Don't know, but she sure knows how to fight. We can't leave her like this," Douglas said. "Pyra, was it?"

"Um… yes."

"You said you just woke up. Where was it?"

"In a forest nearby," Pyra said and then pointed at the trails. "I found this station by following the trails."

"And did you happen to see a giant, disembodied hand when you woke up?"

Strange question to ask, but Shulk's reaffirming gaze helped her remain calm. "No, never saw anything like that," she answered. "Was I supposed to see a hand when I woke up?"

"In any other time, yes, but right now, it's a relief that you didn't," Douglas said, grimly. He then turned to the young man by her side. "Shulk, you said you met her before. I'm still not entirely convinced that we can leave her alone like this, so she's your responsibility until we decide what to do with her."

Until what they decided to do with her. Pyra's grip on her sword tightened. She was being taken as a prisoner, there was no other way of looking into that situation. Shulk apparently noticed her immediate discomfort over the captain's words, because he gently placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "I promise that I'll explain everything as best as I can once we reach our camp. Captain Falcon only sounds scary with his loud voice, but he's saying this to protect you."

"HEY, I don't sound scary!"

Red cracked a smile at that and Shulk let out a hearty laugh, which only made Captain Falcon become even more exasperated. Pyra was far too nervous to share the sentiment. She did not want to go with those strange people, but it was as clear as that day that she had no choice in that matter. With a silent apology and a promise to her friends that she would find them, Pyra began to follow the strangers to their camp.

Sitting on the bed of a room on the second floor, Pyra watched from the window two kids with strange tentacle hair play tag. Had it been any other day, she would be impressed by their ability to shoot colored ink and swim in said ink under another form, but Pyra's mind was swimming in turbulent thoughts of her own, so much that she feared that she might drown in them at any moment.

She kept replaying Shulk's words over and over again, about the nature of the world that they lived in, about what might have happened for her to wake up there, about how she was not who she thought she was, about why they needed to keep her under surveillance.

The brilliant shimmer of the sea outside was almost blinding, but she could not bring herself to look away, until the gentle knocking of wood took Pyra out of her trance enough for her to mumble "come in".

She did not turn around, but it didn't take much to know that Shulk decided to pay her a visit. She heard the sound of something being placed on the nearby cupboard and then the sound of the wooden chair rasping against the marble floor. The smell of fresh brewed tea soon took over the white room, but Pyra was not in the mood to drink anything.

"How are you holding up, Pyra?" Shulk asked.

He offered her a cup and Pyra took it. This time, Shulk was not enveloped in that strange multicolored flame.

"I don't know."

"Understandable. I guess… I explained too much in a very short amount of time," he said, rather sheepishly. "Do you believe me?"

"I'm not sure I do."

"I see…"

She looked outside the window once again, at the people walking around the camp going on with their day. She saw the two kids being scolded by a tall woman who was likely mad that they got ink splashed on her blue spandex suit. The boy that she met at the train station was under the shade of a palm tree, taking care of some monsters together with another girl, healing their wounds from what she assumed was a vicious battle before.

What really caught her attention, however, was the occasional sphere of multicolored flame that floated around here and there. She couldn't help, but ask, "Hey, what are those things?" Pyra pointed at a sphere floating near the tall woman. "Those flames?"

Shulk got up from his chair and sat by her side on the bed. Pyra brought her legs closer, a bit uncomfortable with the sudden proximity, but remained silent as he searched for the thing she pointed at.

"Ah, those are spirits," he said. "I'll explain what they are later. Right now, you should rest."

"I had plenty of rest."

"I mean, you should rest your hearing from my verbal vomit of explanation," he said, which unfortunately got a chuckle out of her.

Pyra took a sip from her now warm tea. It was not unpleasant, but needed a little more sugar. Shulk watched her with a curious expression on his face, with a mixture of fondness and sadness showing in his bright blue eyes. Pyra decided to continue watching the scene below them from her window.

They remained like that for a while, with a strange and unnerving silence between them that forced Pyra to take sips of a tea she did not want, having to avoid the longing gaze of a boy she did not know.

"You don't really remember who I am, do you?" Shulk eventually asked, almost as if reading her mind.

"I'm sorry, I don't," she confessed and took another lukewarm sip. "I lied so the captain wouldn't break my face."

"You would be fine, trust me."

"Shulk, nothing about the situation showed me that I would be fine."

"Right, I guess that explanation will also be left for another time," Shulk said, which did not make Pyra feel more comforted in the slightest. "It's a shame that you don't remember who I am, but I'm glad that we reached you in time all the same."

"Please, Shulk, let me go," Pyra said, tightening her grip on her cup. "I need… I need to find my friends."

"Pyra, look… I'm not saying that it's impossible that Rex exists in this world, but I also think that if he did, he would have woken up by your side," he said. "You told me that you woke up alone, so I don't know…"

"You know about Rex?"

"Yes, and also about everyone that you traveled with," Shulk nodded. "But I could tell that you and Rex were the closest."

"You say were as if I'm never going to see him again," Pyra mumbled.

Shulk bit his lower lip and that was enough of an answer for Pyra to stop the conversation there. She watched him get up from her bed and extend a hand to her. "Come on, let's go out for a walk," he said as he forced a smile. "You've been cooped up in this stuffy room for a whole day. Take this from someone who spends a lot of time indoors, some fresh air will do you good."

Pyra wanted to tell him that she would go later, but she had the feeling that she would not be allowed to go outside alone. She was not in the mood of potentially bumping into Captain Falcon and getting yelled at. With a resigned sigh, she took Shulk's hand and followed him outside.

Her captor's camp was made in what they called a resort, a place where travelers from different parts of the world would come over for a relaxing vacation. Pyra understood it as just a very large inn that had many other facilities attached to it. With its white, picturesque houses, the many trees and flowers that added some much needed color to the resort and the beautiful view of the ocean, she was sure that in any other time, this place would be a fantastic place to kick back and relax.

Right now, it was a wasteland occupied solely by strangers who would not set her free. Pyra did not feel relaxed. She kept holding onto her sword for dear life, with thoughts of rebellion crossing her mind every now and then. With every step she took, a different scenario appeared in her mind. Maybe if she shoved Shulk and took a left turn, she could escape, though she wondered if she could quickly get rid of the kid with strange, blue tentacle hair before someone came to assist him.

Every thought of escape ceased the moment she saw Captain Falcon approaching them, being accompanied by Red and the other girl that took care of monsters.

"Look who's finally decided to leave her cave," Douglas said with a grin. "How are you holding up, Pyra?"

"Okay, I guess."

"Leaf wanted to meet you," Red curtly said.

The girl, Leaf, unlike her more deadpan sibling (?) squealed in delight, unashamed when she said, with stars in her dark eyes, "Miss Pyra, I was so happy when I saw you joining us! I bet you're a really cool big sister!"

The way she talked to her and looked up to her took Pyra by surprise. She blinked her eyes a few times, unable to give an immediate answer, which Leaf took as permission to continue talking. "I've also heard from Red that your sword can create fire!" Leaf exclaimed, clasping her hands together. "Poor Ivysaur got a nasty burn to her vine. Is it only your sword that can create fire or are you like Ness and you can do that without a weapon? Are you magical? Your accessories glow, so I think you are! You-"

"You talk too much," Red grumbled.

"Maybe you're the one who talks too little, Red!"

"Settle down, you two," Shulk said with a chuckle. "Don't wanna give Pyra a bad first impression, do you?"

"Red already burned that bridge by attacking her," Leaf said, which earned her a groan from him. "Captain Falcon too."

That also unfortunately managed to steal an amused chuckle from Pyra, which made everyone mistake it for her feeling more at ease near them.

"No need to keep reminding us of that," Captain Falcon groaned. "Anyway, Pyra, if you're feeling hungry, Mr. Game and Watch has just finished preparing lunch. Shulk can take you to the cafeteria if you-"

The captain was interrupted by an alarmed yell that came from a distance. Without wasting a second, Captain Falcon dashed towards the direction where the voice came from. She expected Shulk and the kids to act alarmed too, but was surprised to hear him give a resigned sigh and simply watch the man take off.

"I hope this time he manages to take her down," he said.

"That Rosalina is one nasty pupper fighter, isn't she?" Leaf asked. "I mean, if she's making Samus of all people scream for help, then she's worse than we thought."

"It's because she's being accompanied by three small Kirbies," Shulk sighed.

Puppet fighter, that was not the first time Shulk ever used that term. Pyra walked in the direction where Captain Falcon took off, but was intercepted by Shulk grabbing her arm. "Pyra, let Douglas and Samus take care of her," he said, voice tired. "Should the worst outcome happen, we'll be there to bring them back."

"Yeah, our group has decided that no more than two people should fight puppet fighters at the same time," Leaf said. "Because if they are defeated, we'll always have enough people to bring them back."

"Well… not that we have faced a puppet fighter that required more than two people to face them until now anyway."

Red agreed with her statement with a nod and that seemed the extent of what he was willing to say. Shulk asked the kids to keep watch on the fight and be ready for any bad outcome and both agreed with his decision. From the way they looked up to him, it was clear to Pyra that they both had great respect for him.

With a reassurance from Shulk that she would have the opportunity to see a puppet fighter eventually and an embarrassing growl from her stomach, Pyra decided to follow him to the cafeteria.