Victory and Defeat

Wendy whipped out a red-jeweled magic wand and pointed it into the sky. Four candy cane rings hummed from the wand and floated into the air. Sheik could see the tiny serrated blades on the outer part of each ring.

"Don't let those rings touch you!" he warned Peach. All of the rings suddenly flew at him, testing his quick reflexes. As he hopped, jumped, and sidestepped out of the way, Wendy shot a wave of wide-ringed energy at him. He disappeared in a puff of smoke before it could hit him and appeared to the side. When Peach threw a turnip at her, one of the candy cane rings sliced it apart and continued to pursue Sheik. When Wendy shot another wave at him, he ran straight for it and dived through each ring, rolling to the ground and coming out of it with a rising slash of his dagger on Wendy. She was sent upwards by the impact, but immediately whipped Sheik to the ground with her long, two-spiked tail.

"Ugh!" he grunted, rolling to his feet. He threw a few needles at her, but they merely bounced off of her as if she were made of steel. He also noticed that she had not been harmed by his slash at all. He ducked as one of the rings passed over him and flipped backward when the next passed under him. Wendy shot at him again and again as the candy canes continued to fly at him from various angles. Peach tried to rush her from behind, but was smacked away by her tail. When she approached once again, Peach caught the whipping tail in her hands, carefully avoiding the spikes.

"Let go!" Wendy yelled, looking over her shoulder.

"No!" Peach yelled back. The strength of Wendy's tail was enough to toss Peach about, but she refused to release her grasp.

"Let go or fry!" Wendy said, spitting a fireball into her free hand. When Peach held on, Wendy aimed to lob the fireball at her, but was punched in the face by Sheik. He continued to pummel her with kicks, punches, and slices while she was off-balanced, that is, until she grabbed his arm and blasted him with her wand.

"Sheik!" Peach screamed as he was turned into a white rat that scurried away. With another whip of her tail, Peach was sent flying into the stands of the coliseum, landing next to the largest of the withering sunflowers.

"Princess…" it said, sounding like an exhausted old woman. "Call the stars…The stars and sprites are the only way…to defeat her." Before Peach could reply, another wave blast from the magic wand slammed into her. When the smoke cleared, she found herself as a scarecrow. She could not move because there was only a single wooden post below her waist and she lay against the stands. She was very familiar with this form from a previous adventure.

As the candy cane rings came her way, she stiffly cupped her hands and closed her beady eyes. "Power Stars, please help me in my time of need. I call upon your power." Unexpectedly, a pink and yellow, swirling star-shaped beam blasted out of her body, past the candy cane blades, and plowed into Wendy.

"What is this!" Wendy yelled as the beam enveloped her and seemed as if it fused into her. It did not hurt at all and seemed harmless. Seeing no harm done, she directed the blades to get rid of Peach. Instead, the rings dropped to the floor and shattered into pieces. Then, Wendy began to shrink down a bit. Her red hair disappeared completely, and she lost most of her beauty. She had reverted back into her true form: a short, bald, bratty Koopaling with an oversized bow on her head. Though she was smaller, she was still nearly the same height as Peach. "WHAT DID YOU DO!" Wendy shrieked.

Peach then raised her arms and healed herself, returning to her normal form. "That looked like the Star Beam…but different."

"Now…the Shine…Sprites," the sunflower heaved. When more blasts from the wand went Peach's way, she had to run through the stands.

"I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" Wendy screamed, shooting furiously. She hopped up into the stands and gave chase. Peach slowed her down with a few tossed turnips. She then hopped out of the stands, floated a short distance, and ground-pounded on top of Wendy's head. Wendy retracted into her shell and spun away. She came out and began shooting again, spitting fire as well. Peach had to use her best rolling, jumping, and dodging abilities, but managed to use the rising dust and smoke to her advantage. When Wendy got too close, Peach leapt out of the cloud of debris and stomped on her head once again.

"One more should do it," Peach said to herself as she landed behind Wendy. Wendy retracted into her shell and threw herself at Peach, spikes first. Peach grasped the sides of the shell just as the spikes touched her skin. When Wendy popped out, Peach stomped on Wendy's foot.

"You dirty, stinkin,' overgrown fungus!" Wendy cursed, hopping on one foot. Peach hit her with a mighty slap that sent the Koopaling tumbling down the stairs and into the arena.

"Now's your chance!" one of the nearby sunflowers struggled to say.

"Oh great Shine Sprites," Peach said, taking a praying stance. "Please help me rid your island of this evil…Let the sprites Shine in!" There was a bright bang high up in the sky. As Wendy angrily got to her feet, a gleaming beam of light blasted from the point in the sky and shined down onto her.

"What the heck!" she exclaimed as a flurry of Shine Sprites rained down onto her. "DAAADDDDYYY!" she bellowed and fell unconscious.

"Peach, down here!" Sheik's voice in her head said. She looked down and saw a white rat. "I'm using telepathy."

Peach used her healing power to break the spell. The rat grew into Zelda, who was surprised to be present.

"How did you do that?" Zelda asked.

"My power returns people to their true forms," Peach explained. They looked around the arena and saw that the Shine Sprites had fully reenergized the sunflowers.

"That's much better," sighed the flower nearest them. "Princess, go to that big sunflower over there and use your full power to restore the Shining Fairy." Peach could see the one it was talking about. All the sunflowers were bigger than Peach herself, but the one on the far end was at least four times as big as any of them. It had white beady eyes instead of the usual black and its freckled face was tanned brown instead of orange like the rest. Peach and Zelda walked through the stands, past the many Shine Sprites floating around, and stood in front of the gigantic sunflower.

"Hello there," it said, staring down at them. "Are you the one who is to awaken the Shining Fairy?"

"Yes," Peach curtsied. "Now, let's see…Use my full power…" She cupped her hands and prayed to the stars. "Stars, help me awaken the Great Fairy of this island…" Her pink aura glowed as a giant Power Star floated out of her and spun above the sunflower. The plant glanced up at the star and looked back at her, noticing that nothing was happening.

"Is something wrong?" Zelda asked.

Peach fell to her knees, feeling exhausted. "Power…need more power…" She looked around and remembered that the Shine Sprites were there. She forced herself to her feet and called out, "Shine Sprites, come unto me!" The Shine Sprites surged into one point above her, becoming a giant Shine Sprite. She directed it into the Power Star, fusing them together as they spread their energy onto the sunflower. A blinding light flooded the arena.

"You can open your eyes now," a pleasant, echoing voice said. Peach and Zelda saw the Shining Fairy floating in front of them where the sunflower had been. She had white skin and short, glowing lavender hair. Her shining yellow clothing looked like an odd sundress. The hem of her dress was made of yellow petals and there was a small flower wrapped around her finger like a ring. When Zelda looked around, she pointed out to Peach that all the other sunflowers had turned into more standard fairies of various colors.

"So, you were all fairies in disguise," Zelda commented.

"Correct," the Great Fairy said. "I believe it is time that you receive an upgrade, Zelda."

"You know my name?"

"You look like the Princess of Destiny," she smiled. "Receive a portion of my power." A light shined down on Zelda from above.

"What did you do?" Zelda asked as the light faded and her hands glowed briefly.

"It is a spell," she replied. "I never bothered to name it, but it is essentially a shining ray of light. It is a charged, somewhat powerful attack. Be careful not to exhaust yourself, though. It is quite draining for a being such as yourself, especially if you use it consecutively."

"I'll be careful," Zelda said.

"What should we do next?" Peach asked.

"You've defeated the evil here," the Shining Fairy said as the newly formed Shining Star appeared. It had as many ends as a Shine Sprite, but they were sharp and seemed to be made of pure energy like the Power Star. "However, I sense something amiss. I cannot join you on your quest, for we are needed elsewhere. For now, wait in the safety of Delfino." The Shining Star broke into smaller versions and flew back into Peach. "Apparently, the Shine Sprites wish to stay with you. They sense something. Be careful." She turned into a beam of light and disappeared along with the rest of the fairies.

Peach and Zelda turned back to the arena and found Wendy nowhere in sight. Conveniently, there was a dark opening marked "Exit" on the side of the arena. Zelda rolled her eyes, while Peach giggled cheerfully. They walked into the darkness and exited.

They reappeared in Pinna Park, near the collapsed Yoshi-go-round. Explosions could be heard all around and smoke could be seen in the sky. After moving to a spot where they could see the sea, they saw huge naval ships battling each other. There were mutant Electro Koopas running around everywhere. The spikes on their shells held visible electric currents. They seemed to be in a state of confusion. Some seemed as if they were trying to evacuate. Others seemed as if they were trying to fortify the park. However, they were all focused enough to ignore Peach and Zelda. A few even shoved past them. When cannon fire began to rain down onto the park itself, Peach and Zelda ran for cover.

They cautiously approached the entrance and saw a few mutant Koopa bodies lying about. They were brusquely shoved aside as two mutant soldier Koopas rushed out of the park and onto the beach. A black sub hatch opened some distance out into the water. They swam out to the hatch and it became apparent that they were carrying Wendy. After putting her inside, they hopped in themselves.

"Do you think we can take on a few of those monsters?" Zelda asked Peach, as an explosion went off nearby. It was too dangerous to even think about swimming back to shore. The submarine was their only hope.

"Let's go," Peach said.

They swam out a short distance and hopped into the hatch. Unexpectedly, they fell through a void instead of into the inner part of a submarine.

"It's a warp," Peach said to Zelda.

They quickly fell out of the void and into a lush jungle. Peach felt the area seemed somewhat familiar. Above them was a one-way warp pipe. It was impossible to tell whether it was just hanging from the high treetops or mysteriously floating in the air. Like any jungle, there were trees everywhere, blocking out much of the sunlight. There were scattered exotic flowers here and there. Fortunately, none of the ones in the area were the carnivorous sort. Zelda seemed to be amazed by the environment.

"What is this place?" she asked in awe. "Is this a jungle?"

"Definitely," Peach replied. "I'm not quite sure about which jungle it is though."

"There are more?" Zelda asked. "I only read about them in storybooks. It's as if this entire world is a storybook."

"I have no idea which way we should go," Peach said helplessly.

Zelda looked at the ground and saw numerous footprints going in random directions. "All of these footprints are relatively fresh. Let's just pick a direction and go. We'll get somewhere eventually."

Of the many animal noises they could hear in the background, the most out of place sounds were distant roars. The two princesses were slightly unnerved by the threatening noises, which seemed to be getting closer every few minutes. It became evident that something was following them when the bushes around them began to shake, so Zelda halted Peach. They stood ready to defend themselves. Zelda looked into the bushes and the sliver of a reptilian eye staring back at her.

"What is it?" Peach whispered, unable to see their pursuer.

"We're being hunted," Zelda whispered back. "They have us surrounded."

"Where?" Peach asked, slowly looking around. When she looked behind her, she could see several large, raptor-like reptiles approach them silently. They bared their sharp fangs and growled, preparing to pounce.

"Stay close," Zelda said, slowly preparing a spell. The moment a blue sparkle appeared, the raptors pounced from all directions. They all slammed into the Nayru's Love shield that surrounded Zelda and Peach. The dinosaurs began to repeatedly claw away at the shield and slam themselves into it. They came in various colors. Some were blue, while others were red. There were yellow ones and purple ones. There were even black and white raptors, all relentlessly attacking. It was difficult for Zelda to concentrate since the creatures were batting them around. Some were even jumping on top the shield. Then, they all stood back at once, seemingly knowing that the shield would go down eventually.

"I'm out of ideas at this point," Zelda said, feeling the power begin to fade. "I figured that they would search for easier prey by now."

"As soon as the shield is down," Peach said, "we'll have to run. I just hope they aren't as fast as they look." The raptors waited patiently as the blue shield became more and more transparent.

"Run!" Zelda shouted, dispelling the shield. They only ran four feet before two raptors jumped onto them from behind and began to claw at their backs. They screamed and yelled as they struggled to get away. The raptors hopped back and forced them onto their backs. Before either could get away, Peach and Zelda were each pinned down by the razor sharp talons of the raptors. They growled in their faces as they prepared to bite into their throats. Suddenly, there was a roar from a greenish raptor that had pushed its way into the circle. The other two backed away from Peach and Zelda submissively. The green raptor glared at Peach and sniffed her. She was too frightened to do anything but shrink away from it. The green raptor turned away and gave a mighty roar. The circle spread away from it all at once. Then, the green raptor left the circle and stomped into the jungle. The other raptors snorted at the two young women and sniffed the air. Catching the scent of something, they quickly scampered in the direction of the green raptor.

"What happened?" Peach said, getting to her feet.

"Something scared them...Ah!" Zelda said as she felt her wounded back.

"Let me help you," Peach said, casting her healing spell. "Does that feel better?"

"…Yes," Zelda said, sensing something odd as she rubbed her bare back. "Anyway, we need to be more careful. That could have easily been the end of us."

"Right," Peach said as they began to walk in the opposite direction of the raptors path. The presence of dinosaurs made it apparent that they were in Dinosaur Land. Still, she had never seen those sorts of dinosaurs before. There was a terrible thought lingering in the back of her mind, though.

A short time later, they reached the end of the jungle. There were familiar hills and small cliffs all over. Berry bushes were scattered about, as were the occasional "?" blocks. As Peach went to check one of the blocks, she noted the absence of any animal life at all. Even the jungle behind them seemed to have become quiet.

"Something's not right," Zelda said uneasily.

"What do you think scared those creatures?" Peach asked. Just as she was about to punch the block, a lightning bolt annihilated it. The blast knocked Peach back in front of Zelda. They suddenly saw a figure leap out of a bush and land a short distance in front of them. He looked very much like a member of the 8-bits Club. However, he wore a hockey mask with a horizontal slit for a visor and several very tiny holes for ventilation. His white three-fingered gloves also looked like they were meant for fighting. He wore a green vest over his yellow robe and looked unusually fit for any member of the 8-bits Club.

"I did," he said in a low, rough voice. His yellow glowing eyes could be seen through the slit staring directly at them.

"Who are you?" Zelda demanded.

"My name is Bolt," he replied simply. "And I've come for Toadstool."

"You're not going to get her so easily," Zelda replied, stepping in front of Peach.

"Stay out of this," he warned. "No one has to get hurt."

"I distinctly remember orders were to kill Peach," she said, glaring at the figure.

"That's true. But there were also orders to capture a certain elf, or Hylian rather, who's been causing quite a bit of trouble. I believe you are Princess Zelda. Am I right?"

Zelda took a guarded stance.

"I'm willing to negotiate with you ladies," he said, folding his arms. "If Toadstool marries Bowser, her death will be unnecessary. And I'm sure your death will be equally unnecessary, Princess Hyrule." Peach expressed her distaste for the idea with a grimace.

"How do we know you aren't lying?" Zelda said, beginning to charge her magic.

"I don't know what changed His Evilness," Bolt spoke calmly. "However, I do know that deep down inside, he still has a soft spot for Toadstool. I can guarantee your livelihood at the very least. You have my word."

"The word of a stranger is of little value, especially when he attacked first!" Zelda shouted, letting a fireball fly at him.

He jumped to the side as the fireball ignited where he had stood. "How about you Princess?" he asked Peach.

Peach had been quiet for the entire encounter. "I've gotten this far without giving up. Why should I stop now?"

"You're making a mistake," he said.

"I've had plenty of chances to marry that creep before," Peach said grimly.

"Her decision has been made," Zelda said, readying another fire spell.

"You leave me no choice," he said, unfolding his arms.

He rushed Zelda, who put up her shield quickly and counterattacked with a magical blast from her palm. Bolt sidestepped it, grabbed her wrist, and tossed her over his shoulder. She rolled to her feet and turned around in time to be clotheslined by him, painfully knocking her onto her back. She rolled away just as he swung a punch into the ground. She got to her feet and slashed at him with her magical wrist. When it struck his side harmlessly, he punched her in the face, sending her to the ground once again.

"Give up," he said calmly. "I'm not like the others." With quick reflexes, he caught the wilted turnip Peach had thrown at him from behind. To his surprise, the turnip had quite a bit of power in it and made him slide back across the ground a short distance. He looked at the wrinkled face on the wilted turnip and then at Peach. He pitched it over her head and into a tree behind her. The thick tree snapped in half on contact and fell over behind her. Zelda snuck up behind him and smashed a large rock on his head. He dropped to his knees from the sheer weight of the rock, but hopped back to his feet unharmed. Zelda, who was shocked by his unbelievable resilience, was not prepared for his flurry of attacks. There was a punch to the stomach, a jab in the face, a low kick that swept her off her feet, and a hard kick in midair that sent her tumbling. She struggled to her feet as he stood, waiting for her to give up. When Peach attempted to attack him from behind, her face met the back of his fist and she fell back.

"What are you?" she said painfully. "Are you a mutant like the others?"

"Most of my kind no longer exists," he answered, keeping his eyes locked on Zelda. "You may have heard of a special type of 8-bits member known as the Zeus Guy. As far as I know, I'm the last."

"A Zeus Guy!"

"I don't care who or what you are," Zelda growled, wincing. "I won't let you do anything to her. No ridiculous marriage and no barbarous murder. You're the only one who is going to die." She had been charging a ball of light at her side while she talked.

Bolt began to charge a yellow ball of fire and electricity at his side. He launched the slow moving projectile forward just as Zelda fired her Shining Ray. The blasts cancelled each other out in a blinding explosion that was awfully close to Bolt. When the light faded, he was nowhere to be seen.

"Behind you!" Peach screamed.

"Flame Wall."

Zelda turned around to see Bolt summon a wall of fire. The Flame Wall burned into both Peach and Zelda and knocked them over. The flames on them went out quickly, but both were hurt badly. Both managed to struggle to their feet. They were burned and bruised, but not beaten. Zelda began to charge another ball of light while Peach raised her tired arms to heal the both of them.

"This has gone on long enough," Bolt said. Once he was sure Peach had finished her spell, he said to himself, "Willy Wisp." A large red ball surrounded by electrical discharge formed above his raised hand and plunged into the ground.

"Oh no!" Peach exclaimed, familiar with the attack. "Zelda, move!"

Before she could do anything more, a circle of swirling, blue particles of energy formed around Zelda and beamed into the sky. She was trapped and could already feel the pain surging through her. She screamed out loud as the circle filled with more light and the energy ball blasted into her from underground and flew into the sky. The particles had finished flying out of the ground and disappeared into the sky as well. Once it was done, Zelda fell to her knees and collapsed.

"Zelda, no!" Peach said, coming to her side. Another of Bolt's electrical fireballs blasted into Peach before she could start healing Zelda. Bolt steadily approached her as she scooted away and pulled up a turnip. She weakly threw it at him and he easily batted it away.

"No more games, Princess," he said, grabbing her by the throat and lifting her up. He electrocuted her briefly to cease her struggling and said, "I'll give you one last chance: marriage or death. What shall it be?"

"I'd rather die than marry that evil monster," she rasped.

She could tell from his eyes that he was disappointed. "Then, so be it."

He flung her high into the sky. Once she began to fall helplessly, watching the clouds become more distant, Bolt thrust his arm into the sky. Just before she landed on his raised arm, a blade of lightning shot out of his hand and impaled her through the back. She gasped involuntarily as she hung from the energy blade that burned through her back and out of her stomach. With a fling of the blade, Bolt violently threw her down and off the blade. Her body lay still, with a burning hole in her back.

"Peach…" Zelda said weakly, outstretching her arm. She too quickly fell still once again.

Bolt took out a mini radio and said, "Mission complete."