A/N: Alright, dudes. This is it. Battle faces ON! Let's go RAID THIS FORTRESS! YEH-UH!
"We are like sheep without a shepherd.
We don't know how to be alone.
So we wander 'round this desert
And wind up following the wrong gods home.
But the flock cries out for another
And they keep answering that bell,
And one more starry-eyed messiah
Meets a violent farewell...
Learn to be still..."
Brother Squadron: Chapter 14: Operation Siege
The long hours of the night rolled on through without surveillance as there was a stiff silence in the air surrounding the Hands' Fortress, as if the land was holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. It could've been the midnight hours, it could've been almost dawn, but Commander Dreadnaught of the Fortress' Defense Squadron couldn't tell and couldn't care less. He leaned over the barrier of the southernmost wall, bored out of his skull and wishing for anything to break through the monotonous night.
There were footsteps beside him, but Dreadnaught didn't bother to look away from the dull horizon, knowing it was only Captain Rattlegun. The captain joined his side, looking out across the desert.
"Slow night, huh?" Rattlegun had a knack for stating the obvious.
"If you call watching the stars blinking exciting, than nah."
"Lucky you."
Dreadnaught rolled his eyes. Rattlegun was a very dimwitted Frame to begin with.
"I'd like a siege right about now. Break into mah new gun," he laughed, hefting his powerful grenade launcher and patting it affectionately.
"Heh. You'd be dead before you'd break into it."
"Sh'ah right." He looked back to the horizon, just as a strip of pink decided to come up. "Hey, whazzat?"
In the strip of pink, tiny black dots bounced above the dunes in the south, their destination: the Fortress. Confused, Dreadnaught brought out his binoculars and gazed at whatever was coming this way, even though it was too dark to really tell.
"Huh. Looks to be prison transport caravans, bringing in prisoners."
"Hehe, maybe they finally caught the rest of th' Nintendians!"
"Ha, that'll be the day." As other Frames raised their various weapons, he made a silent hand gesture for them to hold fire, for now, at least. The scouts reluctantly obeyed.
And then something happened. A gunshot rang out through the silent dawn, a flash of bright light from the lead caravan indicating the shot's source. At the sound of a thud, Dreadnaught turned to find Rattlegun on the floor beside him, his head torn open like a cantaloupe, vital fluids draining out. But he only stood there for a second, turning away as if the death never occurred. But the gunshot certainly did.
"Open fire! Open fire!" he shrieked the command just before another bullet found its way into his throat, tearing into his voice box. He spent his last few seconds of life gurgling, leaning over the edge and tumbling down the wall. He was dead before he hit the ground, the second casualty of the Siege.
The Wire Frames immediately unleashed lead upon the attacking force, but most died before the caravans even came into their proper firing range. The shooters still surviving heard shouts and hollers of excitement from faraway before more lead pellets ended their life. And as the sun fully came up, the sky burning in a fiery crimson fire, the Siege had begun.
"Sir! Sir!" A frantic Wire Frame private rushed into the throne room, standing before Master Hand. "We're under attack!"
The glove hovered still, pondering with careful analysis. Sayu grew tense, and had a sense of what he was thinking.
"... Get back to your post and work them over. And stop panicking. The situation will be dealt with."
The Frame bowed hastily and rushed away. Sayu glanced at her master puzzlingly. Perhaps her senses were wrong. What was he thinking...?
The vans began to circle the barrier wall in a straight line, running at a quick, yet steady pace as the auto-driver was set and running. Small blasts of plasma slammed into the sides of the generators as lead from the rest pierced the skin of Frame defenders. Only a few heads and the barrels of their weapons dared to poke out from under the flapping drapes, ducking back inside to avoid shots that ricocheted off the steel plating. Every weapon, whichever was comfortable for their wielder, showed their face and showered their foes their merciless sentence.
Ness' truck took up the trail end, him with the plasma cannon and Falco covering him with his rifle. Both watched as the first green sphere atop the tower exploded like a glass ball, with only the smoking frame left, the once glowing pieces spread out across the wall.
"Generator down, repeat, generator down!" Ness screamed into his speaker above the deafening noise of explosions.
"Keep going! Hit 'em Hard!" Link shrieked into his own speaker, hefting his Uzi and unleashing a flurry of bullets to cover Fox as the vulpine continued to blast the green orbs. Link silently rejoiced whenever his targets fell off the wall, plummeting limply to the sandy ground, where several smoking carcasses already laid and covered the ground in their stink.
"YEAH! Take THAT, you sons of bitches!" Bowser celebrated his succeeding hits more loudly, but it was all the same. Ganondorf stood by him, blasting without any effort or emotion. It was expected out of someone like him, but it still somehow seemed out of place in that environment. All the same, he was following his orders, and that's what mattered most.
Mario and Luigi moved in unison, Mario armed with his beloved sniper rifle and Luigi with the long shotgun that he was most comfortable with. Luigi moved at the command of his brother, who was obviously the wiser of the two shooters.
"Watch it, watch it!" Mario warned as he saw a scout raise his weapon and aim right for their van; his target, their heads. Luigi aimed and fired, then cursed out loud as his bullet whizzed past without striking his target.
"Duck!" Mario cried out, grabbing his brother's shoulder and pushing him down as a few gunshots rang out, and the pellets whizzed over their heads and into empty crates and cloth. Luigi was sweating and breathing by now as he had nearly escaped death.
"You okay, Luigi?" Mario asked immediately, and Luigi was comforted when he knew his brother was still alive and right beside him.
"Y-yeah, I'm okay..." he breathed out, yanking off his hat to relieve his sweat-coated mop of hair. Running his fingers through it, his finger poked through the bullet hole that had torn through the front, right above the "L." He looked up at Mario, and both laughed, then cringed and ducked deeper as more shots were fired in their direction. Furious, both roared and jumped in unison to return fire.
"Link! ...ksshhhk... ink!" a voice called to him through the interrupting static. The Hylian quickly ducked below in the safe zone and brought a hand to his headset.
"What?"
"We've got a fighter down!" Samus shouted into her own headset as she kneeled above Roy, blood leaking from a thin wound on his forehead. Her plasma cannon was tossed aside, DK above them and still shooting Frame scouts.
Link sighed in exasperation. "How is he?"
"Just a glancing shot to the head. He's stunned, but he'll live."
"Tuck him in someplace safe. Then get back to firing. These guys aren't letting up anytime soon!" he swiftly ordered, then jumped back into combat.
This phase of the siege went on tediously, as the more Frames were shot, the more that took their place. The defense force slowly multiplied like cockroaches, and they were just as nasty. But lo and behold, eventually the last generator smashed into a million tiny fragments.
"Last generator down, repeat, the last one is gone!"
There were frantic cries and a low hum as the ionic shield flashed one more time before fading away. It was fully down and un-operational.
"Sir! Sir!" The Frame from before rushed up to his master, not following his orders from before and completely panicking. "They've destroyed the generators! The shield is down!"
"I told you not to panic," Master Hand nearly growled, but not quite. "Get the stunners ready. If they do manage to breach the barrier and enter, they won't get very far."
He was still panicking, but respected his lord's authority, bowed, and left again. Sayu was surprised at how calm Master Hand was. Never before had attackers been smart enough to lower the shield, and it was entirely possible now for them to get inside. Yet he was completely relaxed. Whatever was going through his twisted mind, Sayu knew it wasn't good for the attackers.
These self same attackers parked their caravans for the last time, nearby the southernmost gate. They were given direct orders to leave everything but their weapons behind, so as not to slow themselves down. This was do or die time, no turning back.
Crouched behind the vans for now, Link shouted to Mario, "Get out the bomb!"
Mario nodded, pulling out the black ball of destruction and a single match. The rest of the Nintendians wisely backed off as he scratched the match across the van's side. Then a wily grin came to his face, and he stepped out in the open, holding up the object for all to see.
A young, dimwitted, male Frame stood by a female one, both squinting to see the object. "... 'Ey, that's a Bom-omb, ain't it?" He chuckled. "Oh, man, dat brings back the memories, huh?"
But the female's eyes widened with dread. "Oh, shit!" She pushed him aside. "Move, dumbass!"
"OW!" The male kissed the floor as the frantic female bolted away to a farther wall. He sat there, bewildered, oblivious, and about to be blown to pieces.
Mario lit the fuse and hurled the Bom-omb with an impressive throwing arm, ducking once more by his brother. Many Frames watched in horror as the bomb soared towards them. It never occurred to any of them to use their weapons. They just stood there, frozen, seemingly accepting their fate.
BOOM!
The great explosion shattered the southern wall, sending up chucks of stone into the air in a fountain-like blast. Frames were sent in every which way screaming, joining their fellow scouts' corpses on the ground. The Nintendians howled in excitement as the smoke and flames framed a smoldering gap in the wall.
"Go! Move, move, move!" Link hollered, and the Brother Squadron seemed to move as one unit as they leaped out of their cover and sprinted across the bloody earth and towards the exposed base. Dodging the bullets of scouts still alive, they ducked once more behind a mess of rubble.
"How's it look in there?" Link asked Fox, who bravely peered over the rocks and past the wreckage.
"Not too good. They're getting together to ambush us once we pass the wall."
"Typical." He faced the rest. "Everyone... Activate shields!"
Each of them held the small chips in the palms of their hands. They tightened a fist around them, fingers pushing down on the single button that activated their power. Instantly, a flurry of red bubbles blinked into existence, enveloping each of them in a protective sphere that had been used in combat so long ago.
"These things don't last long," Link ordered loudly over the noise. "So let's move!"
And then Nintendians charged into the enemy's stronghold, their weapons hung loosely at their side and not in use as they stampeded like a herd of buffalo, not willing to stop for anything. Frames' bullets ricocheted off the shields' translucent curves, some even striking their own shooters. Yet as they kept moving, the orbs grew smaller and smaller, exposing more vulnerable skin by the second. As more areas became unprotected, the Frames' resumed shooting, and many Nintendians cried out in pain as lead pierced their limbs or sides. But no matter how injured, they pushed on, fueled by the desire to return home after so long. They were so close, and they weren't going to let a few bullets stop them now.
Link sprinted in front, his shield reduced to a size that only guaranteed safety to his heart muscle. The doors before him were shut tight and required time they didn't have to open. They were reinforced titanium doors, impervious to any known physical force. But that didn't necessarily mean they were shield-proof.
An insane plan brewed in the elf's mind, but he chose to take it as the only choice he had. As others released their reduced shields, Link charged, concentrating all his might in his arms, holding them out to direct the tiny orb in front of him. Pushing hard, he broke through the doors as they flung open at his unthinkable force. There was a sound like muffled glass shattering, and the shield broke into tiny fragments. Link then felt himself hit the floor, dazed from the age-old effects of a shattered shield. He looked across the floor with dreary eyes as all the rest trudged by his field of vision, some even collapsing from exhaustion. There was a slam, a someone had sealed off the entrance. They were safe, at least for now, and Link took in a bit of comfort.
He then felt a rough pair of hands turn him onto his back, forcing him to face the dark ceiling. By now, his senses rattled, Link was seeing double vision, which quickly faded away so the two Foxes formed into one.
"You okay?"
Link grunted numbly, not quite able to form a proper response.
Fox grinned wily. "Broke your shield, huh?"
Link nodded, though it didn't help his condition. "... Forgot what it felt like," he mumbled, and both chuckled feebly.
Fox gently grasped his shoulders and pulled him up into a sitting position. Link retched a bit, but held back his vomit as he glanced around with less dizzy eyes. They were all huddled in the entrance corridor, walls gleaming with the power-filled lights, casting them all in a creepy glow. Some were simply catching his breath, while others suffered from the pain of injuries. He caught the sight of his sister kneeling by Roy; one hand on his forehead, the other on his shot shoulder. The pulsing of healing magic vibrated through the air. Link smiled warmly at that.
"Zelda's making her rounds, healing the more injured first," Fox stated, glancing at her as well. "You never told me she could use magic."
Link nodded slowly, that smile of his never wavering. There was then a rumble, followed by much banging against the doors as they buckled and threatened to open from whatever outside force.
"They're trying to get in!" Fox exclaimed irritably, slowly standing a slightly uneasy Link up. "With that blow from your shield, it'll fall!"
Another rumble rocked the doors, and Link became aware of their urgency. He turned to his huddled Squadron. "Carry the wounded! We have to get out of here!"
The Nintendians never bothered to complain against an order, no matter how much in pain they were. With half of them carrying the other half, the squad raced down the corridors, searching for a "safe" haven to mend wounds from the battle. There was no point in finding the Portal when half their force was incapable of a dimension shift.
They then came to a larger hallway, humming with power. But before they could realize what the hum actually was, the sound escalated until hatches in the wall opened and small cannons appeared, pointing directly at the sprinting Nintendians. There was a blast of blue light from each that enveloped them in its powerful glow. And as the light struck them, they instant froze as if coated in a flurry of ice. They all struggled to move, but to no avail.
"What the hell is this?" Link growled in frustration, suspended in mid-run.
"Zero-point energy!" Ness cried, struggling some more.
Link looked ahead as several burly Wire Frames came out of the doorway before them, sick and twisted smirks on their faces. They had their long-time prey in the palms of their hands.
"D'garvit..." Link whispered.
"There are so many contradictions
In all these messages we send.
(We keep asking)
How do I get out of here?
Where do I fit in?
Though the world is torn and shaken
Even if your heart is breakin'
It's waiting for you to awaken,
And someday you will-
Learn to be still..." learn to be still, The Eagles
A/N: So? How was that for a battle chappie? Next chappie will be quite interesting. Review, please.