Mid-chapter Conversation

Part Two

"Alright!" Izzy said as he stretched his legs. "It's time to fight Sam. This time, I won't lose."

"Yeah sure." Iggy said, rolling his eyes.

"Are you sure you wanna go through with this Izzy?" I asked as the older brother stretched his arms. "I mean, judging by what's about to happen, it may be best to quit while you're ahead."

"No way, Boss!" Izzy replied, reaching for his toes. "I'm gonna beat Blondie once and for all. I'm gonna get my revenge." I shrugged.

"Ok… If you say so…" I sighed before turning to the camera. "Anyway, despite what I said last update, this isn't the last chapter."

"Eeesh." Iggy said, looking at the script. "This one's humongous!"

"That's why it's not the last chapter." I told him.

"Come on, Iggy!" Izzy said, getting ready to exit the studio. "I feel pumped! I'm gonna destroy Sam this time! I can feel it!" He laughed evilly as he left. Iggy and I looked at each other.

"What are the odds of Izzy and me beating Sam and Otto?" My secondary fan character asked.

"About the same as the odds of me getting more than one review for this chapter or Izzy admitting he likes Keoni." I answered before turning to the camera. "See ya later!"

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Otto's Christmas Quest

Chapter Three

The Electrifying Rematch

Part Two

In the lobby of the arcade, the angry patrons turned to the screen behind the stage, which was showing the room Otto, Sam, and the Yaoi Brothers were in. The contestants only saw the backs of the players' heads. On the right side of the screen, a scorecard appeared. From top to bottom, a picture of Izzy, Iggy, Sam, and Otto's faces were shown. Next to each of their pictures were the faces of the characters they were playing as, as well as a number twenty. Immediately, the viewers recognized the game the quartet was getting ready to play.

The screen switched its view to the battlefield. It was a medium-sized green field that was suspended on a single pillar over a deep dark pit. In the middle of it was a picture of a poké ball. Two platforms floated near the center. Surrounding the field was a stadium full of people. A screen like the ones the tournament participants were watching was in the background. Also in the background were buildings, as well as the night sky. Fireworks shot up every few seconds.

Soon, the players' characters appeared onscreen. Ness and Pikachu were standing on the field across from each other while Bowser and Mario were on the platforms. The Yaoi Brothers' characters were on the left side of the screen while Sam and Otto's were on the right. The Pokémon theme was playing in the background.

"So they're playing Melee, huh?" A random audience member said. "I hope the Yaoi Brothers win!"

"Duh! We ALL want the Yaoi Brothers to win!" Another audience member exclaimed. "If they lose, I won't get my DS!"

"YOUR DS!.?.!" Everybody else yelled. "YOU MEAN MINE!.!.!" Everybody gasped and looked at each other. They all gave each other looks of extreme malice and distaste. It was silent as they glared at each other, each person angry because everybody else had the gall to say that the grand prize belonged to them.

A few seconds passed before the whole lobby erupted into a full scale battle.

Upstairs…

'At long last, after three months of planning and training, I finally get to have my revenge.' Izzy thought as he gripped his controller tightly. 'Iggy better have done that thing I told him do in here.'

'There was something Izzy wanted me to do in this room in case the opportunity to fight Sam ever arose.' Iggy thought, tilting his head in thought. 'But what was it?' He shrugged. 'Oh well. It was about a month ago, so he probably did it himself.'

'I hope Otto will be alright.' Sam thought, adjusting his glasses. 'I mean, he has no idea how to play this game.' He sighed. 'I guess I'm on my own then…'

'There's no way I'm gonna lose!' Otto thought, staring straight ahead with a determined expression. 'I gotta get that DS for Lars! That's all that matters!'

"Three…" The announcer began the countdown.

'Finally, the moment of truth.' Izzy snickered inwardly.

"Two…"

'What was it Izzy wanted me to do!.?' Iggy asked himself, scratching his head.

"One…"

'Here goes nothing!' Otto thought. He blinked when a sudden thought came to him.

"GO!.!.!"

"Here I come!" Izzy yelled, making his character dash forward.

"I'm ready for ya!" Sam shouted, directing Pikachu towards the psychic. A malicious grin made its way onto Izzy's face as the characters inched closer and closer.

'It's time!'

They were mere centimeters apart when…

"Hey! Hold on!" Otto said, pausing the game. Izzy and Sam turned to him.

"What is it NOW!.?.!" The former roared. The latter rolled his eyes before looking at his friend.

"What's up, Ottoman?"

"I meant to ask you guys something." The redhead directed to the brothers.

"What?" They both asked.

"You said that if me and Sam won, you'd give me the DS, right?"

"Yeah…" The brunets replied.

"But you never told us what would happen if we lose, not that'll happen."

"Is that all?.!" Izzy asked exasperatedly, ignoring that last comment.

"Ya coulda asked us that while we were playing, ya know." Iggy added.

"He did raise a good point though." Sam defended. "What does happen if we lose?"

"Simple. If ya lose, you'll be disqualified from the tournament." Izzy replied.

"Disqualified!.?" The blond and redhead yelled.

"Did I stutter? Yes, disqualified!"

"Guess we only have one shot at this…" Sam commented.

"One shot's all we need, Squid!" Otto told him.

"Yeah right." Izzy and Iggy scoffed.

"You two ain't so tough!"

"Pffft! You'll be eating those words as soon as you unpause the game." The older brother retorted.

"So come on! We're wasting enough time as it is!" Iggy rushed. "We still got the tournament to run!"

"Alright already! Sheesh!" Otto rolled his eyes before pressing the button. Everybody else turned back to the screen as the action resumed.

Pikachu went for a head-butt, but Ness rolled out of the way. Izzy then made the boy jump towards Mario and deliver a hard kick. As soon as contact was made, Otto felt a small prick.

'What the…?' He shrugged it off and focused on the screen.

He pressed the A button, hoping Mario would fight Ness off. Mario went for a right hook, but again Ness dodged the attack. The psychic raised both hands, preparing an attack.

"PK Fire!" The boy shouted, shooting a lightning bolt towards the plumber. The attack hit, causing Mario to catch fire.

As the column of fire caused damage to Mario, Otto felt another strange sensation. It felt like a mosquito bite, but he felt the pain all over his body.

'Ugh… What's going on?'

As Izzy continued to pummel Otto, Sam was having difficulty hitting Iggy. Despite the obvious difference in speed their characters possessed, the blond couldn't hit the younger boy. Pikachu jumped and went for a whack with its tail, but Bowser jumped out of the way and landed on the field. Iggy smirked as he watched Sam grit his teeth in frustration out of the corner of his eye.

"What's the matter, mad because I'm too fast for your pokémon?" He snickered as he dodged another attack. This time a thunder jolt.

"Grr… Stay still already!" Sam grunted.

He guided Pikachu towards the Koopa King in an attempt to make a hit. The electric mouse was about to perform a head-butt when Bowser struck it with a downwards sweep. The pokémon was sent back a few inches. Sam felt a strange burning after the attack.

'Something's wrong here.' He thought.

He shook his head and got back to the battle. A beam sword appeared on the ground. Before Iggy can move to collect it, Sam grabbed it. The blond then made Pikachu run up to Bowser and swing it. Unfortunately, Iggy anticipated the attack. He made Bowser jump a few inches towards the mouse and performed a massive hip drop. The attack hit and Sam felt another burning feeling. This time it was stronger.

'Why do I feel this pain?' He thought, shutting his eyes. He only felt more pain as his character took more damage. Groaning slightly, he forced his eyes open and jumped just in time. Pikachu dodged a stream of Bowser's fire breath.

'Yes! My plan's working!' Izzy cheered inwardly, watching his opponents out the corner of his eye.

He took a quick look at the bottom of his screen, which displayed the amount of damage everyone's taken. So far, Otto was at fifty percent damage, while Sam had around forty percent. The numbers were growing steadily bigger and bigger. He and Iggy still haven't taken damage.

'Hmmmm… I think it's time I revealed my little secret.' He smirked and made his character jump away from Mario after bashing him with Ness's baseball bat.

'Ow!' Otto seethed, shaking his head. 'What's the deal?.! Every time I get hit, I get hurt!'

Noticing that Ness was retreating, he made Mario run after him.

'Let's see what the B button does.'

Otto pressed the button, causing Mario to shoot a fireball out of his hand. Ness jumped over the attack and moved backwards towards the plumber. Before the redhead could defend himself, Izzy made the psychic kick Mario hard. The result was another prick. This time, Otto felt like he literally got kicked in the face.

'Come on! Why am getting hurt?.!'

'Let's go already! I need something to knock him out!' Izzy thought, dodging Otto's attacks. The skater fired multiple fireballs, which Ness hopped out of the way of. 'He's starting to get the hang of things. If I'm not careful, he'll actually land a hit.'

Rolling under another barrage of fire, the psychic ran up to the plumber and got him with punches and kicks. Meanwhile, Otto was continuously feeling more and more pain. Gritting his teeth, he looked towards Sam, who didn't seem to be fairing any better. Bowser was pummeling Pikachu with repeated slashes and bites, and Sam kept feeling this weird burning sensation. It almost felt like his insides were on fire.

'Ok, this is definitely strange!' The blond thought, rolling away from the turtle. He had lost the beam sword he had earlier due to Bowser's repeated strikes. Iggy was being relentless in his fighting. A quick look at the bottom of the screen caused Sam to gasp.

'No way! We haven't caused any damage to either of them!.?'

Both brunets were still at zero damage while Sam and Otto were nearing a hundred percent!

'This can't be!' He groaned inwardly as he felt another prick. Playing it safe, he made Pikachu roll away from Bowser, dodging a hit from the reptile's flaming breath. He kept Iggy at bay by firing lightning bolts, which sparked across the field.

"Oh no ya don't!" The younger Yaoi Brother said, making the Koopa jump onto the left platform. He then smirked when he noticed how close Otto's character was. He made Bowser jump towards Mario and delivered a great punch that knocked the red-clad plumber away. Ignoring the new jolts of pain, Otto panicked as Mario started to fall out of bounds.

'Oh crap! There's gotta be something I can do!'

He pushed the control stick to the left and pressed every button in a faint attempt to get back to the stage. Just when hope seemed lost, he hit the Y button, causing Mario to perform a double jump and grab the edge of the field. Otto sighed with relief.

"Whew… That was close."

"Think again!" Izzy shouted with an evil laugh. Otto's eyes widened when he noticed Ness, who was practically on top of Mario, pull out a yo-yo. The boy onscreen spun the toy and held it behind him for a few moments before letting it fly. It hit Mario's hands, causing him to fly all the way towards the end of the screen. A beam of light shot out as the plumber disappeared. That was when the redhead felt the greatest pain he's experienced since the match started.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!" He screamed as a bolt of lightning shot out of the port above him and struck him. Sam faced him in horror as he glowed yellow from the discharge. His teeth were gritted as he felt the stinging slap. Soon, the lightning stopped and Otto was gasping for air. Small amounts of electricity were crackling around his body for a moment before fading. His dreadlocks stiffened slightly.

"Otto! Are you alright!.?" Sam asked, pausing the game. The redhead caught his breath and hunched over as he turned to his friend.

"Do I look ok!.? I just got hit with like a hundred volts of electricity!"

"Actually, it was more like ten." Otto and Sam faced Izzy and Iggy, who were chuckling. The younger brother was the one to correct him.

"You knew that would happen, didn't you?.!" Sam yelled. "What's with this room, anyway, and why did Otto just get shocked like that!.?"

"I thought you would've figured it out by now." Izzy answered, giving him a defiant smirk. "This room is actually a training area I had built sometime ago. I would train in it night and day, trying to improve myself for the next time I would face you."

"You didn't answer my question." The blond hissed, shaking his hands angrily.

"Duh! Every time you get hit, you'll get shocked with electricity!" The taller boy replied. "The more severe the attack, the higher the voltage!" He laughed teasingly. "Of course, the highest amounts of electricity are saved for when you lose a life. Oh, and let's not forget what'll happen when you lose all of your lives."

"Are you crazy!.?"

"No." Izzy answered calmly. "I want vengeance! Like I said earlier, you ruined my reputation. This is the only way my heart will heal from the loss."

"Some vendetta." Sam started, rolling his eyes. "You're gonna kill me and Otto over a stupid game?"

To that, both brothers laughed.

"Kill you?.! You think I wanna kill you!.?" Izzy said when his laughter was under control. "Of course not! It's bad for business."

"We'd get arrested." Iggy supplied.

"Besides, it doesn't even hurt that much. It's just a tiny shock."

"How would you know?.!" Otto yelled. "You didn't get hit yet!"

"Tch, tch, tch…" The taller boy shook his finger. "Oh I've gotten shocked before. Like I said, I trained in this room for a long time. Every time I got hit or made a mistake in whichever game I played, I'd get zapped. The worse the hit or the mistake, the bigger the shock. Of course, the shock was never ever big enough to actually cause any injury."

"But you're still inflicting pain on yourself." Sam said.

"It's no worse than the pain you gave me." Izzy defended.

"And what about your brother?"

"What about me?" Iggy asked.

"Dude, your brother's actually putting you through this!" Otto shouted incredulously. "Aren't you scared that you'd get shocked too?.!"

"Pffft! Whaddya take me for?.!" Izzy scoffed. "A month ago, I made Iggy set it up so that we couldn't get shocked if we were to actually get hit!"

Iggy's eyes widened in horror as he gasped.

'Oh God, that's what he told me to do! Shut off the system for our half of the platform!' He thought, gulping. 'If we get hit, we're gonna get shocked!'

He hid his face, which still had that fear-stricken expression on it.

"You cheater!" Otto protested. "Just because Squid beat ya fair and square, you're gonna cheat to win!.?"

"'Cheater'?" Izzy repeated, grinning. "I'm not cheating. I like to think of it as using my surroundings to my advantage."

"Well I won't have any part in this." Sam said, putting down his controller. He crossed his arms as he turned away. "If you're not going to play fair, then I won't fight you." He helped Otto stand up. "Come on. Let's go back downstairs and get ready for the tournament." He got ready to walk.

"Leave this platform and you'll never get that DS." The owner of the arcade said. "If you don't play this match to the end, you won't be allowed to play in the tournament."

"Then we'll go home." Sam retorted, facing him. "I'm not putting my friend through this just for some toy. Besides, there's still time to find one."

"Did you forget what today is? All the stores have closed by now." Izzy smirked. "As it stands, winning this match is the only way you'll get that system." Sam glared at him.

"Look, it's not—"

"Sam, it's ok." Otto interrupted, standing without Sam's help. "Let's keep playing." Sam turned to him with a frightful look.

"But Otto—"

"I'll be fine. A little pain won't stop me." He grinned proudly as he picked up his controller and handed Sam's his. The blond gulped as he accepted it and turned to the screen.

"Ok…" He said nervously. He then smirked as he added, "You owe me for this."

"Yeah, I know." Otto replied, keeping his grin. He looked over his friend's shoulder at the brothers. "Alright, we're ready when you are."

Iggy shook his head as he and Izzy turned to the TV.

"Fine." The elder brother said. "There's just one thing though."

"What?" The redhead asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Blondie's the one who paused the game!"

"Oh yeah! Forgot about that!" Both members of the second team said, rubbing the back of their heads. The Yaoi Brothers slapped their heads.

"Just press Start." Iggy said plainly.

And so, the game continued. Mario reappeared on the battlefield and immediately went after Ness in a bid for revenge. The psychic boy was ready for him though. He tossed his yo-yo upwards, knocking the plumber back on the right platform and causing Otto to suffer another shock. The skater quickly shook it off and used Mario Tornado in an attempt to knock Ness for a loop. Izzy blocked the attack by raising Ness's barrier, a red bubble that shrunk after every hit from Mario's move. When the attack ended, he struck Otto with another PK Fire. While Mario was preoccupied by the column of fire, Izzy charged up his character's smash move. Being shocked by the damage he received from the brunet's previous attack, Otto couldn't defend against the incoming attack. Ness whacked Mario with his baseball bat.

"Ugh!" The redheaded player grunted, feeling another shock.

"Hang on!" Sam called, propelling Pikachu towards Ness.

"Wait up!" Iggy shouted, making Bowser use his Koopa Klaw attack. The evil king took a swing and grabbed the pokémon. The brunet grinned as he added, "Stay awhile."

He then made Bowser bite Pikachu repeatedly. Because the damage inflicted was small, Sam didn't get shocked too badly. However, the damage was quickly adding up and he already had over a hundred percent of damage. Ignoring the sharp burning pain, he mashed the buttons in an attempt to get free. Bowser held on tight on however. Smirking, Iggy made the king toss Pikachu to the left. The blond gasped when he noticed the mouse fly off the stage.

"You won't beat me that easily!" He said, using the electric type's up and B move. Pikachu charged energy and then darted in the air towards the field. It started falling safely towards the ground.

"Sorry, you're getting knocked out!" Izzy yelled, moving away from Otto. He directed Ness underneath Pikachu and pressed the B button.

"PK Flash!" The boy called, squatting as he held his head.

A green flash of light appeared from seemingly nowhere and got bigger as it floated. Sam tried to move Pikachu away from the blast zone, but the pokémon only moved slightly to the right. When it was in range, Izzy let get of the button, causing a brilliant flash to illuminate the area around Ness. Pikachu suffered a massive blow and was knocked upwards. It went so high; it flew into the background and became a star. Sam screamed in pain not only from the shock of the mouse getting hit, but by the bolt of lightning that struck him when Pikachu was knocked out of the field.

"Oooooohhh! That felt good!" Izzy said, shivering in delight.

"Squid, you ok?" Otto asked, trying to avoid Iggy, who went after him.

"I've been better…" Sam groaned, standing straight up. He shook his head and turned back to the fight as Pikachu reappeared.

The fight pretty much continued like that for some time. The Yaoi Brothers would ruthlessly attack Otto and Sam with their characters' moves, as well as any weapons that would appear. The redhead learned the hard way to avoid bob-ombs and red shells. They suffered shock after shock as the two brothers remained unscathed. Izzy and Iggy used every advantage they had. They used poké balls, hammers, and cloaking devices to lay the hurt on their opponents. Slowly but surely, the blond and redhead were losing lives while the brunets had yet to even get hit.

The crowd downstairs, who was covered in bruises and cuts, was cheering. They all hoped that the owners of the arcade would bring a quick end to the fight so that they can finally do what they came here to do. Play in the tournament and try to win the hottest Christmas present. It was quickly becoming apparent that the siblings would claim victory. It made sense. After all, Otto and Sam were hardly putting up a fight. This was due, of course, to the fact that they kept getting shocked every few seconds. They just couldn't concentrate on fighting Izzy and Iggy.

'Ha! This is a lot easier than I thought it would be!' Izzy cheered inwardly.

By now, Otto and Sam have each lost five lives. They were burnt from head to toe. Their clothes were blackened. Soot covered most of their faces. They were dead tired. Their legs wobbled weakly as they struggled just to keep standing, let alone keep up the fight. Their bodies ached, crying out for freedom from this torment. Otto refused to give up though!

'It can't end like this.' He thought, reeling from his latest shock. 'I have to win.'

His relationship with Lars was on the line! If he didn't give him something tomorrow, the brunet might think that he didn't care and leave him for someone else. Ok, maybe that was the paralysis talking, but he didn't care. He HAD to win and give Lars the ultimate symbol of his affection! His eyes flared with great fury and determination. He won't fail the love of his life! He couldn't! He wouldn't!

'I'm not gonna fail.' He made Mario run towards Ness, who was getting ready to execute his smash attack. 'I won't lose!.!.!'

As Ness swung his bat, Otto surprised everybody by rolling under the attack. Before anybody can do anything, Mario used his smash attack, a hard punch. The attack struck Ness hard!

"What the—!.?" Izzy shouted in surprise. A few seconds passed before electricity crackled at his feet. "Huh?"

"You got hit!.?" Iggy yelped.

"Come on, Otto!" Sam rooted.

Izzy panicked as the plumber used the Mario Tornado to repeatedly strike Ness. The boy onscreen got hit with punch after punch before getting knocked into the air.

"Yeowch!" The older brother shouted, feeling the pain. Otto quickly followed up his attack with a couple upward smashes, successfully juggling Izzy's character. Mario knocked Ness into the air a couple more times before ending with his Super Jump Punch, a move that struck repeatedly while tossing the capped boy higher in the air.

"Ow! Ow! Ow!" Izzy cursed, gritting his teeth. Mario landed on one of the platforms just as a bob-omb appeared. Otto grabbed the bomb and tossed it at Ness, causing a great explosion that caused the psychic to fall into the background.

"AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!" The brunet screamed as he got hit with a bolt of lightning. "IGGY! WHY AM I GETTING SHOCKED!.?.!.?.! I TOLD YOU TO CUT THE POWER ON THIS SIDE!.!.!.!"

Iggy gulped as the lightning strike ended and his brother's body was smoking.

"Y-you see…" He stuttered under his brother's glare. "I forgot?" He shrugged sheepishly.

"Forgot!.?.! How could you forget a simple thing like that!.?"

"Well, well, well…" Sam snickered, giving the Yaoi Brothers a defiant grin. "Looks like you two can get shocked as well."

"Heh, you're in for it now." Otto added with an evil grin. Both siblings gulped and turned to each other.

"Quick! Cut the juice before it's too late!" Izzy yelled at Iggy.

"Uh, uh, uhhh…" Sam started, shaking his finger the same way the taller brunet was a few moments ago. "If any of you leave the platform, you'll forfeit the match and the DS."

"Crap. He's right…" Izzy growled, clenching a fist.

"Bust!.!.!" Otto laughed teasingly. The brothers glared at their opponents.

"Fine! We'll continue the match." The elder one said.

"But that doesn't mean you'll win just because we can get zapped too!" The younger one supplied.

"We'll see about that." Otto mocked.

Everybody turned back to the game and continued.

Meanwhile, outside…

"Man, I can't believe your flight came in today." Twister commented. "I almost got there late because of all the traffic, not to mention all the people that were at the airport!"

He was walking along the Strand, holding hands with another boy who was about Otto's height. He had skin that was a lighter brown than Lars' skin. It was almost bronze-like. His hair was also brown. It was smooth and went in two separate directions. He was wearing a slightly tattered blue vest over a light violet shirt. He was also wearing a pair of khaki shorts.

"I told you it was coming in today, brah." He said.

"No, you said it was coming in tomorrow." Twister denied. The other boy gave him a strange look.

"Now why would I want to inconvenience you on Christmas, babe?"

"Keoni, I heard what you said. When you called last week, you said you were coming in on Christmas and then there was static. I'm not deaf, ya know."

"I wasn't saying you were deaf." Keoni told him. "I was simply saying that you misinterpreted what I said, that's all."

"And I'm telling you I heard you loud and clear. You said Christmas!" Twister retorted as they faced each other.

"I said Christmas Eve!" Keoni argued.

"Christmas!"

"Christmas Eve!"

"Christmas!"

"Christmas Eve!"

"Christmas!"

"Christ—! Look," Keoni sighed, holding his head with his other hand. "Let's just forget about it. All that matters is that I'm with you for a month and I want to spend as much time as possible by your side."

"Yeah, you're right." Twister nodded before grinning. "I can't wait til tomorrow to give you your present!"

"And what is it, anyway?" The brunet asked, raising an eyebrow. The redhead winked at him.

"Sorry, it's a secret."

"Aw come on." Keoni faked a groan. "Tell me."

"Nope sorry. You'll just have to wait til tomorrow." Twister grinned. The shorter boy was about to continue this when his expression turned devilish.

"Well maybe there's some way I can persuade you to change your mind." He said, tracing a finger along the taller boy's chest. Twister shivered in pleasure.

"I-I think w-we c-could c-come to an agreement…" He stuttered under his lover's gaze.

"Good…" Keoni purred. "And maybe I can give you your Christmas present tonight." His hand rubbed the other boy's cheek.

"S-sounds g-g-good to m-m-me…" Twister began to sweat.

"Cool…" The brunet reached up and planted a kiss on his boyfriend's cheeks. He then pulled Twister along. "Now come on! I wanna see that arcade you told me about!"

'How does he do that?' Twister wondered as he let Keoni drag him through the Strand. 'He always gets so sexy and then he just switches topics like nothing even happened.' He shrugged. 'Oh well… That's why I love him!'

He grinned as he walked alongside Keoni. The couple continued along, looking at all the store windows in awe, despite the fact all the designs were dark. They were about halfway through the area when a bunch of kids passed them, conversing about a fight. They were followed by several teens and even some adults.

"I wonder what's everybody excited about." Keoni said, turning to Twister, who shrugged.

"I have no idea." He said confusedly, watching a few more kids run past them.

"Oh man! We gotta hurry up and get there before it ends!" A voice was heard as three boys ran past them.

"Yeah! The ultimate rematch!" Another one yelled.

"Think they'll have food?" The third kid asked.

"Duh! The fight's in the arcade! Of course they'll have food!" The first kid shouted.

"But if both of them are fighting those two guys, who's supposed to serve me?"

"Oh well! You could stand to lose a few pounds anyway." The second kid said.

"Take that back!" The third kid snapped.

"Make me!"

"Grrr…"

"Will you two stop it and come on!" The first kid yelled. "We're gonna miss the best part!"

"We're coming!" The other two kids replied.

"Guess it's a fight everybody's going to." Keoni summarized.

"And it's at the arcade." Twister added.

"Well what're we waiting for? Let's go watch!" The brunet said, dragging the taller boy along. Twister struggled to keep the pace as they continued until they reached the Yaoi Brothers arcade. Keoni looked at all the decorations in awe. "Wow, whoever these 'Yaoi Brothers' are, they went all out."

"Uh… Yeah…" Twister panted, leaning against his boyfriend. After catching his breath, he and Keoni walked inside.

As they walked through the front hall, the two lovers heard cheers echoing throughout the room. When they entered the main area, they noticed that the whole area was packed. All eyes were focused on the big screen behind the stage. It was currently showing the fight in the game. All of the players currently had over a hundred percent of damage. Ness and Bowser each had fifteen lives remaining while Pikachu was holding steady at thirteen. Mario was in last place with only eleven lives remaining. Ness was battling Pikachu while Bowser and Mario were going at it. All four players seemed to be fighting ferociously, which was just fine with the screaming crowd.

"That's all? A video game?" Twister pouted in disappointment.

"It makes sense." Keoni shrugged. "After all, this is an arcade."

"Yeah, good point…" The one in the hat agreed, rubbing the back of his head.

"I wonder who's playing though."

As if to answer Keoni's question, the camera switched to the players, who were all getting shocked. They only saw the backs of the quartet's heads.

"You know," The brunet started. "I think I recognize those two guys on the right." He pointed at the blond and redhead.

"Yeah. I know what ya mean." Twister agreed with a nod. "Those guys look a lot like Squid and Otto."

They continued watching the action for a few seconds before snapping their heads at each other.

"Squid and Otto!.?.!.?.!"

They turned back to the screen, which showed everybody getting blown off the field by an electrode. The camera switched its view to behind everyone as bolts of lightning struck all four of them. The camera then showed individual shots of the players. Twister and Keoni gasped when they saw the looks of pain on Sam and Otto's faces.

"What's happening to them!.?" Twister yelled.

A girl that was sitting nearby turned to them.

"These two guys showed up to participate in the annual tournament." She told them. "When Izzy noticed the blond guy, he went nuts and challenged him and the other guy to a fight in Melee."

"But why are they getting hit with electricity?" Keoni asked. The girl shrugged.

"I guess it's something Izzy set up to get revenge or something."

"And who's Izzy, anyway?"

"Him." The girl pointed at the screen, which showed a close up of the older Yaoi Brother, whose face was scrunched up in pain. Electricity was crackling around him as he screamed.

"Thanks." Twister told the girl, who nodded and turned back to the match. He then turned to Keoni. "I gotta go and get Lars and Reggie! They're not gonna like this, but maybe they can stop the fight."

"Alright. And I'll stay here just in case something happens." Keoni said. Twister turned to run.

"I'll be right back." He exchanged a quick kiss with the other boy before running out through the front hall.

"Hurry back!" The brunet yelled before turning to the screen.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"OW!.!.!" Iggy shouted as he got shocked. He faced his brother. "You were actually in here, torturing yourself!.?"

"Not torturing—Ouch!—Training…" Izzy panted in response.

"And where was I when this was going on!.?" The younger boy asked as he knocked Mario back with Bowser's downwards smash, a quick spin of his shell.

"I always did it when—Yeow!—you were sleeping." The older one answered as he got shocked due to an attack from Pikachu.

"Ow! Don't tell me you shoobies actually LIVE here!" Otto shouted after getting hit by a green shell.

"Whaddya take me for, some kind of geek!.?" Everybody else looked at Izzy with an eyebrow raised. "Don't answer that." He turned back to the screen and tossed Pikachu. "Anyway, I always snuck out of our house every night to come to the arcade and practice. Ouch!" The pokémon had hit Ness with a skull bash.

"And what's a shoobie, anyway?" Iggy asked as he used Bowser's fire breath on Pikachu, shocking Sam.

"Ow! It's skater talk for casual gamer." The blond replied, hitting Ness with a tail whip.

"Ohhhh…" The brothers nodded in understanding. "…HEY!.!.!" They both hit the other team with their smash attacks, knocking them out.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!" Sam and Otto screamed as they got hit by lightning bolts.

"That's what you get for calling us casual gamers." Izzy said.

"The nerve." Iggy added.

"Well you wanted to know what a shoobie was!" Sam retorted when the electricity stopped flowing.

"Why you…!" Otto hissed as he and Sam were brought back to the stage. He used Mario Tornado to knock out Bowser while Sam used Thunder on Ness, also knocking him out.

"OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWW!.!.!.!" The Yaoi Brothers cried out as they got zapped. As their bodies smoked and crackled with leftover electricity, they glared at Otto and Sam.

"Oh you're gonna get it now!" Iggy yelled.

"Yeah!" Izzy added.

"Bring it on!" Otto shouted.

A poké ball appeared near Ness. Grinning, Izzy grabbed it and toss it ahead of him. The device landed in the center of the field and opened, revealing Ho-oh, one of the legendary pokémon.

"Alright! Things are about to get hot." The older brunet chuckled as the giant bird flew up.

"Why? What happens now?" Otto asked confusedly. Both Yaoi Brothers looked at each other and smirked evilly.

"It's quite simple." Iggy started, turning towards the redhead. "Whoever's standing on the exact same spot Ho-oh appeared will get healed by its majestic flames." He snickered as his and Izzy's characters made their way to the center of the arena.

"Ha! You just messed up big time!" Otto bragged as he propelled Mario over to where Ness and Bowser were standing. Izzy and Iggy's smirks only got bigger.

'Hey wait a minute…' Sam thought. 'Ho-oh doesn't heal anybody. It—' He gasped when he realized the brothers' trick.

"Otto! Get away from there!"

But it was too late.

In mere seconds, a pillar of flames erupted where the other three characters were standing. It shot up into the sky. Since it was their pokémon, Izzy and Iggy weren't harmed. Otto, on the other hand…

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!" He screamed as he got shocked repeatedly.

It may not have been same as getting knocked out, but it might as well have been. The damage racked up quickly as Ho-oh's attack continued. When it finally ended, Iggy took advantage of Otto's dazed state and knocked out Mario with a massive head-butt. The Rocket's screams of pain continued as he got struck by lightning yet again.

"Too easy." Izzy bragged, blowing his left hand.

"Man, I can't believe how gullible you are!" Iggy added, giving his brother a high five. A charred Otto shakily stood up and shook the ashes out of his hair.

"You'll pay for that…" He growled icily to the two brunets.

"Pffft! Yeah right." Izzy scoffed.

"That was a cheap shot!" Sam told them.

"Hey, could we help it if he's such a casual gamer?" Iggy defended with a shrug.

"I'm gonna win this! You'll see!" Otto barked.

"Ha! That's hard to believe, considering that you're the one in last place!" Izzy retorted.

"Just you wait."

Nothing more was said as they all turned back to the screen and continued the battle.

.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"I hope I'm not…too…late…" Twister huffed as he reached the top of the hill. He had run all the way there from the arcade. He wiped his forehead. "Man…running never made me so…tired before… Don't tell me I'm getting out of…shape or something…"

He stood up straight and stretched his back before running over to his house, hoping that his brother and his best friend's sister were inside. He dashed up the stairs and barged inside to find Lars and Reggie wrapping presents.

"Thank God you guys are here…" He panted, bending over.

"Twist, what happened to you?" Reggie asked as she and Lars ran over to him.

"Never mind me!" He yelled, looking up. "We gotta get down to the arcade!"

Reggie and Lars looked at each other before giving the redhead a curious look.

"Why would we want to go over there for?" The brunet asked, crossing his arms.

"And where's Keoni? Wasn't he with you?" Reggie added.

"As matter of fact, where's Otto? I haven't seen him since this afternoon."

"And Sam's been gone too…"

"That's what I've been trying to tell ya!" Twister shouted. "They're at the arcade!"

"The arcade!" Lars and Reggie asked.

"What would they be doing over there?" The former asked.

"And at this time of night." The latter added.

"Well I don't know all the details," Twister started. "But Sam and Otto are…"

Cut to a view of outside.

"WHAT!.?.!.?.!" Reggie and Lars roared, causing several car alarms to go off. "I'LL KILL 'EM!.!.!"

They ran out of the house, dragging Twister over to his car. The boy in the elf hat fumbled for his keys as he tried to keep the other two calm. The expressions on Lars and Reggie's faces indicated that he was failing miserably. They rushed him into the car and made him speed off down the hill.

"What the hell was he thinking, accepting a challenge like that!.?.!" Lars shouted as Twister narrowly avoided another driver.

"He's Otto. Whaddya expect?" Reggie said as Twister skidded to a stop at a light. "What I wanna know is how did those Yaoi Brothers pay for something like that."

"Who cares!.?" The brunet yelled as the driver swerved into the strand. "When I get in there, I'm gonna strangle both of them!"

"Hey! Leave some for me!" The girl said as Twister parked in front of the arcade.

Without even waiting for the redhead to turn off the car, Lars and Reggie ran inside the building. They entered the main area and walked up to Keoni.

"Oh good. You guys got here." He said, but Lars and Reggie weren't paying attention. Instead, they were looking at the big screen, their mouths agape.

The screen was showing everybody getting zapped, following an explosion from a bob-omb. Reggie gasped when the camera did a close up on Sam, who looked close to dropping. Lars felt his blood boiling when he saw his boyfriend, who looked even worse than the blond. Otto was panting heavily as electricity crackled around him. His face was almost completely black. From what Lars could tell, his dreadlocks were sticking straight up.

The camera soon switched to the Yaoi Brothers, who were laughing, despite the fact they were getting shocked too. The brunet gritted his teeth in extreme rage. Reggie's face went red with fury at the looks of malice in their faces. A look at the right side of the screen told them that Izzy and Sam had three lives left while Iggy had two. Otto only had one life left!

"Come on. Let's go." Lars said as Twister reached them. They pushed their way through the crowd until they reached the elevator, where the official for the tournament was standing guard.

"Hey! Let us in there!" Reggie shouted.

"No can do." The ref said, shaking his head. "The bosses are having a private duel."

"You call that private!.?" Twister yelled, pointing at the screen as Iggy suffered another shock. Lars rolled his eyes at his brother before grabbing the ref's shirt and glaring at him.

"If you don't want to get beaten senseless, I suggest you let me and my friends inside." He growled. The official gulped.

"I-If y-you strike me, y-you'll have the N-National Gamers' Association t-to a-answer to…" He stuttered in fright. The brunet only snarled in response.

"Come on, brah. It's not worth it to get sued, is it?" Keoni reasoned. Lars only glared at him before letting go of the ref, who sighed with relief.

"Whew… Thanks a lot." The judge said to the younger brunet, who only glowered at him.

"If you are a referee with this Association, why are you letting this match go on?" He asked. "They're getting hurt, ya know."

"I'm well aware of the situation, but I'm not about to risk my job by disobeying orders."

"Come on!" Reggie pleaded. "You have to let us in there before somebody really gets hurt."

"Sorry, it's out of my hands." The ref said, crossing his arms.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!" Izzy and Sam's voices were heard screaming. Everybody looked to the right, where the voices were heard. They noticed a staircase leading upstairs. The referee then went over the elder Yaoi Brother's orders.

"I'll worry about them. Your job is to do whatever I say while you're here, and I say don't let anyone enter this elevator. Got it?"

The judge grinned before turning to Lars and the others.

"Sorry, I have my orders. I'm not allowed to let anyone come inside this elevator." He winked at them. "I'm not supposed to let anybody ride the elevator to the fourth floor." The quartet put on a confused expression before they grinned and nodded.

"Right. We can't go in the elevator." Reggie complied, winking at the others.

"Sorry to bother you then." Lars said as they moved towards the staircase. "We won't take the elevator to the fourth floor." He, Reggie, and Twister ran up the stairway. Before following them, Keoni turned to the ref.

"Thanks, cuz." He turned and dashed after his friends.

"Anytime." The official replied, giving him a thumbs-up.

As the group made their way up to the fourth floor, more screams were heard. It was a mesh of voices. Neither member of the quartet could figure out which voice belonged to whom. All that was apparent was that two of them belonged to their friends, and that was enough to keep them moving. As they climbed further and further up, the pain-filled shrieks were getting louder and louder. The horrible sound was especially painful to Lars and Reggie, who had to get their loved ones out of there as fast as possible before anything bad happens to them, if nothing happened already.

"There they are!" Twister announced as they reached the fourth floor. Across from them, they saw the opened panel in the wall. Wasting no time, Lars and Reggie sprinted inside, followed by Twister and Keoni.

"Ouch! I can't believe I'm actually this close to losing!" Izzy shouted as he got hit with electricity.

"You!.? I'm barely alive!" Iggy added, gritting his teeth as he got zapped. "You so owe me for putting me through this!"

"There's no way you shoobies are gonna win!" Otto yelled at them.

"Count on it!" Sam added.

Otto still had one life left while Izzy and Sam had two. Iggy was also on his last life. Everybody had high amounts of damage.

"Otto! Sam!"

"Huh?"

The four battlers turned to see Lars and the others, who have just entered the room.

"Lars? Reg?" Otto said.

"And Twister and Keoni?" Sam added.

"Oh great! Company!" Iggy cursed.

"Grrr… Can't that idiotic ref do anything right!.?" Izzy said, stomping the ground. "I told him not to let anybody come up here!"

"I'll deal with you two later!" Lars yelled at them before turning to the redhead. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"And why are you with him?" Reggie added to Sam. Both boys gulped, trying to think of an excuse.

"Ummm…well…" Otto chuckled nervously.

"The thing is…" Sam tried.

"Ha! Defenseless!" Izzy laughed.

Everybody else turned to the screen to witness Ness unleashing his PK Flash on Mario, sending him high into the air. The red-clad plumber was sent sky high. He then fell into the background and became a star.

"No…" Otto said, dropping his controller with a wide-eyed, gaping expression. "I lost…"

"But wait! There's more!" Izzy yelled, grinning maliciously.

"Player four, defeated." The announcer said. Immediately after that, Otto was struck with a massive bolt of lightning bigger than all nineteen of the previous ones.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!" He screamed in pure agony. Lars and everybody else shielded their eyes from the bright light. Otto threw his head back as his hands fell to his sides. Those watching the fight in the lobby winced as they heard his ear splitting cries. It felt like an eternity as his body burned. Soon, it all ended as he was tossed from the platform and into the wall near the only way out of the room. His body was still crackling with heavy amounts of electricity as he fell onto the ground.

"OTTO!.!.!" Lars and Reggie shouted as they, Twister, and Keoni ran over to him. They waited until the electricity faded before turning him over.

"Are you alright?" Reggie asked, rocking him.

"Can you hear us?" Lars added. Otto coughed as he weakly lifted his head and turned to his lover.

"Lars…" He gave the teary eyed brunet a small smile. "I-I'm sorry… I messed up…" He dropped into unconsciousness.

"I-Is he…?" Twister trailed off.

"No." Keoni answered, putting two fingers to the fallen boy's neck. "He's just knocked out. He'll be alright after some rest."

"Whew…" Reggie and Lars sighed with relief.

"Heh, one down, one to go." Everybody turned and glared at Izzy, who delivered that snide remark.

"You just can't keep your mouth shut, can't you?" Iggy commented, shaking his head.

"YOU!.!.!" Lars roared, stomping towards the platform. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't come up there right now and beat you to a bloody pulp!"

"Because if you do, your boyfriend's sacrifice will be for nothing." The elder Yaoi Brother replied calmly.

"He's right, Lars." Sam agreed reluctantly. "Believe it or not, me and Otto are fighting them for you."

"For me?" The brunet asked, raising a curious eyebrow at Otto.

"What could he have been fighting them for that involved you?" Reggie asked the blond. Twister gasped in realization.

"Ohhhhh…! I get it! They're fighting for—!" He slapped his mouth.

"Yes…?" Lars and Reggie said, turning to him. The boy in the elf hat sweated, trying to think of someway to avoid telling his brother the truth and spoiling Otto's surprise.

"Oh nothing!" He said, rubbing the back of his head. The other two rolled their eyes.

"God, you pick now to act like a kook, huh?" Lars said, crossing his arms.

"Hey!" Twister protested.

"Can we get back to business already?.!" Izzy shouted. "I still have my annual tournament to run and it's gotta be real late already."

"Actually, it's only ten to nine." Iggy said, looking at his watch.

"That thing still works after you got shocked so many times?" The other brunet raised an eyebrow before shaking his head. "Whatever! It's time to finish this thing!"

The battle continued with both Bowser and Ness charging towards Pikachu. The yellow mouse ran head-on towards them. Before the brothers can attack, Sam made his character perform a shocking head-butt that got both members of the opposing team. Recovering from the shock, Izzy used PK Fire, but Pikachu jumped over it and used Thunder Jolt. The taller brunet grinned as he made Ness encase himself in an orb of bluish energy. Sam's attack was absorbed into the shield, causing Ness to get healed.

"Oh man…" The blond cursed as he jumped away from Bowser, who went in for a punch.

As the mouse evaded the other fighters' attacks, a super scope appeared. Sam smirked as he saw his opportunity to strike. He weaved around the Koopa's hip drop and Ness's yo-yo before diving for the weapon. He grabbed it and immediately charged energy into it. Iggy stayed on one of the platforms to avoid the attack, but Izzy stood his ground as if to challenge his rival.

"Go ahead and fire if you think you can land actually land a hit." He dared.

"There's no way you'll block it." Sam told him as he got ready to fire.

"We'll see about that."

Putting on a determined expression, Sam fired a huge ball of energy at the psychic. Izzy smirked as he hit down and B, causing the same orb from a few moments ago to appear and absorb the attack. The blond growled, trying to think of something.

"Man, why can't Squid hit him?" Lars asked.

"PK Magnet." Everybody looked at Iggy. "When Izzy uses this attack, all energy moves are absorbed and used to heal Ness. No one can beat him for this reason." He turned to Sam and added, "So you might as well give up."

"No way!" Sam shouted. He made Pikachu jump up and toss the super scope at Bowser. It connected and sent the turtle flying.

"Ouch!" Iggy yelled, feeling the pain of the impact. He made Bowser double jump back to the stage, but Pikachu was waiting for him.

"Pika!.!.!" The mouse called as thunder rumbled in the skies above the field. Before Iggy could get away, a lightning bolt came down and struck Pikachu's body. This wouldn't have been so bad had Bowser not been next to the pokémon at the same exact moment. The king got hit and was tossed out of the field and the match.

"Player two defeated." The announcer said.

"Ahhhh!.!.! No wait!.!.!" Iggy screamed, trying to get away. "I didn't mean to hurt him!"

It was too late though. His post glowed with energy and sent a lightning bolt as big as the one Otto received crashing down onto him.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!"

Like Otto, he threw his head back as his body glowed brightly. His screams continued for quite sometime before he was thrown into the wall behind the platform. He was rendered unconscious as he slumped down the wall and onto the floor.

"Iggy!.!.!" Izzy gasped in horror before glaring at his rival. "You'll pay for that." He shook his fist. Sam only smirked in response.

"Well, guess it's just us now. You know, it's still not too late to give up."

"No way!" The brunet turned back to the screen. "Let's go!"

Both characters resumed movement and charged towards each other. When they were both close enough to each other, they jumped and made to attack one another. To Izzy's annoyance, Sam was able to score a hit with a hard tail whip. The brunet got shocked hard as his character was sent falling to the ground. His eyes widened when he heard Pikachu call forth its Thunder attack. Izzy barely rolled away from the lightning strike as a capsule appeared. It was right across from Ness.

Both characters instantly raced for the precious item. They both fought each other, trying to claim the item that could possibly help them win the fight. Just before Pikachu can get the precious container, Ness sent it skyways with a swing of his yo-yo. He then grabbed the capsule.

"Ha! Now to destroy you!" Izzy bragged as he tossed it down.

°BOOOOOOOOOM!.!.!°

"What the—!.?.!" He shouted as the capsule exploded, tossing Ness out of the field.

"BUST!.!.!" Lars, Reggie, Twister, and Keoni cheered as the boy got zapped by his own training device.

"Bet you didn't see that one coming." Sam grinned as the psychic reappeared on stage. He only had one life left.

"'Bet you didn't see that one coming.'" Izzy mocked, coughing up smoke. Just to make Sam shut up, he knocked Pikachu out with a quick swing of the bat before the blond could even defend himself. He stuck his tongue out as the blond got shocked. "Now we're even."

"Come on Squid!" Reggie rooted.

"Kick his ass!" Lars cheered.

"Beat him Sammy!" Twister added.

"You can do it, brah!" Keoni shouted.

The battle seemed to go on for ages. Both boys inflicted point after point of damage. They kept up the fight as they used item after item. They tried their hardest to ignore the shocks they kept suffering. It was like watching two gods go at it. Both fighters refused to give up the match. They were at well over a hundred percent of damage as they panted, trying to hang on to conciousness. The fight often took to the air as they jumped, double jumped, and even used their up and B moves to recover. The damage racked up to well over two hundred percent, but both combatants were still hanging on, though barely.

"I won't lose…" Izzy muttered, struggling to even breathe. "I'm one of the Yaoi Brothers… I can't lose… Again…"

"I gotta win this for Otto's sake…" Sam breathed. The cheers of Lars and the others echoed in his mind. "I have to…"

After what seemed like their twentieth aerial battle, both characters landed on opposite ends of the field while their players kneeled on the cold metal of the platform. They both panted and wheezed as sweat dripped from their faces. Electricity crackled each time the liquid trickled down onto the platform. Sam and Izzy closed their eyes, trying to regain their breath. They stayed like that for about a minute when a small jingle sounded, announcing the arrival of an item. The brunet and blond struggled to stand to see what appeared. Their eyes widened as soon as they recognized it.

It was a hammer. The wooden handle and black head called to them like a siren's song. As soon as one of their characters grabbed it, he or it would swing it wildly and cause immense damage to anyone unlucky enough to get hit. And judging by how much damage both players suffered, it would only take one hit to end the match. Both Izzy and Sam felt their energy returning to them as they jammed their control sticks to the limit in an attempt to grab the weapon before the other. They raced to the item. Because it was closer to Ness, Izzy was able to reach it first.

"YES!.!.! You're mine now!" He cheered as hit the A button. Ness grabbed the hammer, causing a song from the arcade game Donkey Kong to play.

"No… It's over…" Sam said, bowing his head.

"You got that right! And as soon as you get knocked out, you'll feel the shock of a lifetime!" Izzy laughed. "You think what Iggy and Otto suffered was horrible? Wait until you lose your last life!"

As Izzy moved Ness towards Pikachu, the most unexpected thing happened.

"Huh?" He gasped. "NO! NOT THAT! NOT NOW!.!.!"

"What?" Sam looked up and grinned.

The head of the hammer fell off!

"Of all the times for that to happen!" The brunet slapped his head.

"Hurry up Squid! Toss it before he can get away!" Reggie yelled.

"Right!" Sam nodded.

He propelled Pikachu towards the hammer's head and grabbed it. Izzy tried to get away, but it was useless. Without a second thought, Pikachu pitched the head, which connected. Ness was rocketed out of the field!

"GAME!" The game's announcer said.

"ALRIGHT! HE DID IT!.!.!" Everybody that was conscious cheered.

"NO! IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!.!.!" Izzy roared as he slammed his controller onto the ground. He then turned and shook a fist at Sam. "HOW DID YOU BEAT ME, AGAIN!.?.! I'M A PRO!.!.! I'M INVINCIBLE!.!.! I SHOULD'VE WON THAT BY A LONG SHOT!.!.! MARK MY WORDS; I'LL DEFEAT YOU, EVEN IF IT TAKES ME A MILLION YEARS!.!.! NO MATTER WHAT, I WON'T ADMIT DEFEAT!.!.! YOU HEAR ME!.?.! I WON'T ADMIT DEFEAT!.!.!" He gasped for air after that outburst.

"Fine." Sam shrugged. He grinned as he added, "You don't have to." Izzy caught his breath and raised an eyebrow.

"Huh?" Sam only pointed up in response. The brunet looked up and felt his pupils shrink to nearly nothing. "Oh no…"

The post above him was charging a massive amount of electricity. Almost lethal by the looks of it. It glowed a bright yellow as the current begged to be released. A great lightning bolt slammed down onto him with the force of a giant weight.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!" He screamed as electricity crackled onto the platform. Sam narrowly avoided it as he jumped off and ran up to Reggie and the others.

"Sammy! You're ok!" The girl shouted, embracing him. The blond smiled warmly as he returned the hug. When they separated, she glared at him. "Don't you ever do something like that again!.!.!" Sam chuckled sheepishly.

"Heh, heh… Gotcha…"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!"

Everybody turned towards Izzy, who was still getting punished for his failure. Those watching couldn't see the boy's body. It was completely illuminated by the lightning. Small explosions were lighting up all over the room. Smoke was quickly filling the room. The TV's screen was cracking as it glowed red.

"Overload… Overload… Overload…" The female voice from before the match started droned as the entire room started shaking. The TV soon exploded, sending glass flying. The speakers soon followed suit.

"Ugh… What's going on…?" Iggy groaned as he sat up and looked around. He blinked as soon as he heard his brother's screams of extreme pain. His eyes widened when he noticed the explosions going on and the others.

"Run for it! It's gonna blow!" He yelled to them as he shot up and ran out of the room.

"You heard him! Let's go!" Lars shouted, taking Otto into his arms. Everybody ran out into the hall and looked as smoke and electricity filled up the room, completely blocking Izzy from view. His wails were still heard by everyone.

"Izzy!" Iggy skidded and ran towards the room.

"Wait!" Twister yelled as he and Keoni grabbed each of his arms.

"Let go of me! I gotta save my brother!" The boy protested, struggling to get free.

"You'll get hurt too!" Keoni shouted, trying to hang on to the shorter boy.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!.!" Izzy screamed one final time before a huge explosion was heard. Smoke was sent billowing into the hallway, causing everybody to cough and gasp for air.

When the smoke cleared, everybody looked inside the room. Aside from the TV, speakers, Gamecube, and the platform, everything was holding up. Everything else was destroyed. Some areas were still crackling with leftover electricity. The walls were cracked. There were holes in some parts. And standing in the middle of the platform was a charbroiled Izzy. His head was tilted to the left and his eyes were wide and unblinking. He coughed up clouds of smoke. The people downstairs were able to see his blackened face.

"Maybe I should've challenged him to Tennis instead…" He moaned as he wobbled backwards. "Ohhhhh…" He fainted.

"Will he be alright?" Twister asked.

"He better be!" Iggy shouted. "Mom's gonna kill us when she finds out what happened." He walked around the rubble and over to Izzy.

"We better get out of here." Lars said. He was about to turn towards the elevator when he heard a groan. "Huh?" He looked down at Otto, who was shifting around. The redhead slowly opened his eyes and turned to Sam.

"Well…? Did we win…?" He asked weakly. The blond gave him a thumbs-up as he nodded.

"Yeah. We beat 'em."

"Good… Time to rub it in his face…" The redhead coughed as Lars helped him to his feet. Leaning against him for support, the Rocket walked back into the room, followed by the others.

"Izzy…?" Iggy said, nudging his brother. "Are you ok? Can you move?"

Izzy shot up and bashed him repeatedly.

"Can I move!.?.!" He yelled as he pounded his younger brother. "I'm lucky I can breathe!.!.! Why did we feel the shocks!.?.! Wait until we get home! You're gonna get punished BIG time for this screw up!"

"Sorry Beldam." The smaller brunet remarked, catching that obvious line.

"So I've been playing a little too much Paper Mario lately! You're still gonna get it, ya little—"

"Hey Izzy!"

Clenching a fist, the older Yaoi Brother turned towards Otto and the others.

"We beat ya fair and square, so I want my prize."

"Well, you're not getting it!" Izzy yelled, sticking out his tongue.

"Hey! That's not fair!"

"Well that's too bad! You're not getting it and that's that!"

"You better give Otto whatever it is you fought for, or so help me…" Lars said, shaking a fist at him. Izzy was about to say something when Keoni stepped up.

"Listen, you're probably looking at a major lawsuit here, cuz."

"What!.? And just who are you?.!" The gamer barked.

"Like I said," The other brunet said, ignoring Izzy. "You could get sued for this little stunt you pulled. Trying to electrocute two of our friends and your own brother? This won't go down well with your customers or the proper authorities." Izzy's eyes widened in fright.

"Y-you wouldn't…"

"Wanna try me?" The Hawaiian shot back. "Your business won't be the only thing to go down after I'm through with you." Izzy growled, seeing no other way out of this. He bowed his head in defeat.

"Alright, alright… I'll give it to him." He said. "It'll be gift wrapped and hand delivered first thing in the morning."

"Thank you." Keoni grinned before leaving with the others.

"Can you believe the nerve of that guy!.?" Iggy yelled when they were out of earshot. "Just who did he think he was, threatening to sue us?.!"

"Forget about it." Izzy said, standing up. "You don't want to mess with a guy like that, especially when he threatens to sue. I'll give Red the blasted DS and the game. It's no skin off my nose. Let's lock up and go home. I need to chip off the dead skin."

"You know, I can't help but think we're forgetting something…" Iggy trailed off, holding his chin.

"AHEM!.!.!"

The brothers' eyes widened when they looked up at the exit to the room and saw an angry mob pour in.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!.!.! We forgot about the tournament!.!.!" They shouted, clinging to each other.

"I'll say you did!" A member of the mob yelled. "If you gave that kid the DS, what are you gonna give as the prize!.?.!" The rest of the contestants voiced their agreement. The siblings gulped as they turned to each other.

"What'll we do? We gotta give them a DS or they'll kill us." Iggy said.

"Simple." Izzy said, giving him an evil look. "We'll give 'em your DS." His brother gasped as his eyes widened before glaring at him.

"WHAT!.?.! No way in hell! We'll give 'em yours!"

"Yours!"

"No, yours!" Iggy yelled.

The brothers growled at each other before getting into a massive fist fight.

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Post-chapter Conversation

Izzy crawled inside the studio and went up to me with pure rage in his eyes. Iggy followed, walking weakly. Both of them were still charbroiled.

"You… You knew that was gonna happen, didn't you?" The older brother hissed when he reached me.

"Maybe, maybe not." I answered innocently. Izzy stood straight up and shook his fists.

"When will I win!.?.!" He screamed to the ceiling.

"Bro, he's just too good." Iggy tried. "Maybe you should get a new rival."

"No way! I won't rest until I beat Blondie in something!"

"What if you took up the Yu-Gi-Oh card game?"

"Nope. I don't know any strategies, so I couldn't write a fic on that." I answered.

"Fine. How about Hockey?" Iggy offered.

"Uhhhh hello! He's a goalie!" Izzy shouted.

"Oh yeah!" The younger brunet said, rubbing the back of his head. "Well, how about Tennis?"

"Pfft! The Rocket Power cast playing Tennis? That'll be the day!" I scoffed.

"Hey, they did an episode in which Otto went to a golf course. Why couldn't they play Tennis?"

"Believe me, that'd be too weird even for me." I said. I then turned to the camera. "See ya next time when we do the final chapter (for real this time!)!"