Hey guys! I've got a new chapter lined up for you all this week that sheds some light on the World of Light as well as Mario, Falco, and the others adapting to an environment none of them are familiar with. Will they all get along? Read on to find out. Before I continue, I just want to say thank you for the support all of you give. It really means a lot to me. As always, don't forget to fave, follow and review! Now, let's get into this brand new chapter!
Disclaimer: I do not own Super Smash Bros. It is owned by Nintendo and Masahiro Sakurai.
Brightwood Forest, World of Light
Mario, Lucario, Sonic, Falco, and Wolf were heading to the makeshift base that the two rival pilots made after escaping Galeem.
Cappy, Mario's trusted hat friend, was in charge of scouting the path ahead in case of an enemy ambush.
Throughout their hike, there were abundant living things unlike the ones seen on the World of Trophies. The group saw birds that had an odd number of eyes, deer that had more ornate antlers along with having speeds almost as fast as Sonic, and reptiles that looked like they could withstand a good amount of damage with noticeable body armor.
These creatures weren't enemies though. To the group, they were no more than the living beings they see back on their own worlds.
"I'm guessing these critters aren't with Galeem?" Asked Sonic.
"Your guess is as good as mine," Responded Falco. "Sure Galeem apparently created them, but if they were really against us, we'd be either dead or back in cells by now."
After a little more walking, the group finally got to their temporary base of operations.
It was a 7 foot tall, 12 foot wide circular hut built from the sturdy wood surrounding them. They had logs outside for a fire, as well as a few bigger ones to serve as benches.
"Nice-a place you got-a here." Said Mario, admiring the work the two pilots put in.
"Thanks." Replied Wolf "We like to keep it top secret, as well as in tip top shape. The trees provide us enough cover to keep this place hidden."
Along with the resources taken from their surroundings, they also had a bunch of supplies they salvaged from the Lightspace ship they escaped in. These included first aid supplies, nonperishable food, and metal scraps to use as they saw fit.
Lucario showed a brief smile. "I have to admit. It sort of reminds me of the hut I lived in back on the World of Trophies. It gives me a sense of home."
"Glad you feel that way." Said Falco.
After an hour of the new fighters collecting resources and settling in, Wolf went into the woods for a few minutes before coming out with a fresh World of Light deer carcass.
"Who's hungry?" Said Wolf excitedly. "I'll prepare the fire!"
Falco and Mario immediately felt their stomachs growl as Cappy looked in pure awe.
Meanwhile, Sonic was a bit skeptical. "It's not chili dogs, but I guess it'll have to do."
Lucario also showed some doubt, but opted to eat since he was starving anyway.
After another few hours of skinning and cooking the deer, they all sat around the campfire together. The sun was down by this time, so the fire was the only source of light they had.
Maro was roasting some mushrooms he found nearby when Cappy decided to talk to him. "It's been one thrill of a time so far."
"How-a so?" Replied Mario.
Cappy then looked at the rest of the group and how they all positively interacted with one another while eating their dinner. Even Wolf was showing signs of friendship. Especially with Sonic.
"We've fought new enemies, got blasted into space, and met some unexpected faces." Explained the sentient hat. "However, the fact that we're still friends, not to mention the fact we have people we can trust just shows how much we can keep going, despite the odds stacked against us."
"You-re right-a Cappy." Responded Mario. "I'm-a grateful to have-a friends by my side. Even in the most unexpected of-a circumstances."
"Thanks, Mario." Said Cappy before yawning. "I best be getting to sleep."
The hat then got back on Mario's head and shut his eyes.
As the fighters finished their dinner, they all decided to use the new deer skin to use as makeshift beds.
"I volunteer to keep watch." Said Lucario to the rest of the group. "I can sense the aura of enemies that may come in the vicinity."
"I have no problem with that." Responded Falco. "What about you, Wolf?"
Wolf responded with a nod before heading back into the hut to get some sleep. This prompted Falco, Mario, and Sonic to follow suit.
After several hours of rest, Sonic suddenly awoke from a nightmare he had.
The hedgehog was sweating, something unusual in a speedster like himself. Realizing he needed some fresh air, he walked outside when he saw Lucario meditating on a nearby rock while also keeping a lookout for enemies.
Lucario, sensing Sonic's aura, decided to inquire about the hedgehog's sudden awakening.
"What bothers you, Sonic?" Asked Lucario concernedly.
"I had a nightmare, as if my friends were all gone before my eyes… Tails… Amy… Knuckles… Shadow… " The hedgehog then started to choke up, "All gone… right in front of me… because of Galeem…"
"I see." Said Lucario as he was thinking. "Don't let worrying thoughts like that get to you."
The aura Pokemon then continued to speak. "Let me tell you something."
This prompted Sonic to listen. "I wasn't always the Pokemon that preferred solitude. Long before Subspace, back when I was a lowly Riolu, I was adopted by a trainer who had a heart as big as the sky. She cared for me, fed me, trained me for battle. However, none of that compared to her most important piece of advice she passed onto me."
"What was that?" Asked Sonic.
"Have faith in people you can trust." Answered the aura Pokemon. "That's what pushed me not only through battles, but through my life after my trainer… untimely passed away."
"Wow…" Said the hedgehog through choked speaking.
"Thank you… I'll try to keep my head high through thick and thin. We'll get through this. Together." Sonic then raised his fist at Lucario.
Lucario then raised his fist to meet Sonic's. However, the fighting type packed a bit too much aura punch into his bump. This accidentally pushed Sonic back a few feet, leaving him lying on his belly.
Lucario grew worried and started to run towards the lying hedgehog. "Sonic! Are you okay?"
As the fighting type flipped the Blue Blur onto his back, the hedgehog started to laugh. "You really need to work on that, dude!" Said a laughing Sonic through some pain.
The aura Pokemon became relieved as he helped the hedgehog back onto his feet.
This laughing woke up Wolf from his slumber. He headed out of the hut to meet up with the two other fighters awake. Despite all the noise Sonic and Lucario were making, Mario, Cappy, and Falco were still fast asleep.
"What're you two doing up?" Asked the pilot with some slight irritation.
"Sonic had a nightmare and wanted to talk about it." Replied the Aura Pokemon.
"Is that so?" Said Wolf as he made an amused smirk. "I bet it was about you going through a hideous transformation and acting like a cat to fool a human."
"Not funny, Wolf!" Said Sonic through embarrassment.
"Whatever." Said the pilot. "Anyway, the reason I really came out was that I'd like to keep watch for the rest of the night. Wolves are nocturnal anyway."
Lucario and Sonic had no problems with this.
"Very well." Said the Aura Pokemon. "I'll leave you to watch."
The two fighters then went back to sleep inside the hut.
For the rest of the night, there were no nightmares or enemies plaguing the group, and for the first time in a long while, the five fighters finally had a chance to rest.
The Next Morning
After the night of recovery Mario, Lucario, Sonic, Falco, and Wolf had, the World of Light's sun rose from the sky as unusual birds started chirping in the high trees around the campsite.
After a few minutes, Mario was the first one to get up with Falco following him a few minutes afterward.
Once the two fighters got out of the hut, they saw Wolf sitting on a log bench eating some Light deer leftovers.
"Morning,Wolf." Said Falco.
"Morning, guys." Responded Wolf. "I decided to keep watch for the second half of the night. No enemies managed to come within two miles of here, so I believe we're safe."
"That's-a good news to hear." Said Mario. "What's on-a the agenda today?"
"I was about to go to a huge lake nearby and get some water to keep us hydrated." Explained Wolf. "Do you two want to come with?"
"I see no reason not to." Said Falco after thinking about it briefly.
"Agreed." Added Mario.
"We'll hold down the fort here." Said a voice coming from the tent.
Mario looked behind to see Sonic sitting on a bench.
"You can count on it." Continued the hedgehog as he gave a thumbs up.
Mario responded back with another thumbs up as he, Falco, and Wolf left for water with a couple buckets.
Mirror Lake
Once the trio got to the pristine and clear body of water that laid before them, Wolf proceeded to test out the liquid and soon knew it was safe to drink.
Mario, Wolf, and Falco all carried two buckets in each hand while Cappy carried an extra one behind them.
When Wolf was drinking straight from the lake with his tongue, he couldn't help but notice a shadow lurking beneath the water below.
This caught Wolf off guard as he turned his body towards his allies.
"Mario! Falco! Get back now!" Shouted the pilot.
As soon as the two other fighters heard Wolf's warning, they felt rumbling. A few seconds later, a huge and wide geyser burst out of the water, releasing mist as the trio did what they could to block it.
Once the mist dissipated, a creature loomed over them. It was a reptilian serpent with three heads all connected to a large singular body. Its body had arms and legs along with a long tail. As for its size, it looked like it was 15 times Bowser's mass.
"What is-a that?" Asked Mario in a panic.
"I don't know!" Replied Wolf. "We never encountered a creature like that before!"
As soon as it saw the three fighters, the left head spewed out a concentrated blast of steam.
The fighters didn't think much about the steam at first, but once they got close enough, they could feel their skin burning intensely. This forced them to retreat as scalding steam soon went all around them.
With the heads overlooking the surrounded trio, the left one spewed out highly corrosive green acid.
"Scatter!" Shouted Falco.
The other fighters ran in opposite directions to avoid the acid onslaught. Once the liquid touched the ground, craters began to form around the lake shore.
The creature, realizing that they were more nimble than they thought, decided to step out of the lake and go on to dry land.
"It's getting closer to us!" Shouted Falco.
He and Wolf then started firing blasters, only for them to have no effect.
The middle head then started to take a deep breath as electricity flowed through it.
Wolf realized what it was going to do the moment he saw the electricity. "Get down!"
Once the head exhaled, it unleashed a beam of electricity at the trio.
Mario and Falco successfully avoided the attack. However, Wolf wasn't so lucky.
The unfortunate pilot had his leg caught in the blast. As a result, it had received third degree burns from the thigh down, dramatically slowing him down.
"Don't worry about me, Lombardi!" Shouted Wolf as he was hiding behind a nearby rock. "Stop that thing!"
As Falco was holding the creature off and avoiding its steam, acid, and electricity attacks, Mario noticed a scale missing on its chest.
"Falco!" Screamed Mario. "I just-a noticed a weak-a spot! On the right-a side of his-a chest!"
Falco then looked where Mario mentioned and noticed a gap between two armored scales. "You're right!"
The creature then unleashed another lightning blast at Mario, who just barely avoided it. "Use-a your reflector!"
Then, suddenly, the realization hit him like a train. He immediately knew what he needed to do.
After a few seconds of dodging steam and acid, he was preparing for the lightning blast to come. However, before it could inhale its breath to fire the attack, it stopped.
"Wait… Why'd it stop?" Asked Falco.
"Oh no… " Said Mario after realizing what just happened. "The creature's intelligent!"
"Great! Perfect! Just what we needed!" Said Falco in a fit of rage.
The creature then unexpectedly fired another steam attack at Mario, keeping him occupied. Unfortunately, the attack scalded his left arm and leg, rendering him immobilized.
The middle head then inhaled again as it prepared for another lightning blast.
As Falco looked at what would happen to his ally, he immediately realized what he needed to do.
Meanwhile, Mario was nothing more than a sitting duck. Realizing there was nothing he could do, he raised his arms over his face and expected the worst.
The lightning blast from the middle head fired, but before it could fry the plumber, Falco got in the way and successfully turned on his reflector.
In nothing but a small fraction of a second, he redirected the lightning blast from himself to the weak spot in his chest.
This caused a huge gaping hole to form in the creature. Soon enough, the reflected blast erupted from its back, effectively killing the monster.
Mario knelt down as he recovered. Cappy got to helping his wounds. "Hang on, Mario. I'm not letting you stay hurt."
Meanwhile, Falco looked to where Wolf was and found him still lying behind a rock.
"This is a surprise." Said Falco unexpectedly. "I would've expected you to run off while we fought that thing."
"I have a badly burnt leg, Lombardi." Explained Wolf with some hostility. "I couldn't go anywhere even if I wanted to."
After a few minutes of recovery, they picked up the buckets again and filled them up with whatever water they could carry.
Falco hoisted Wolf onto his shoulder while carrying a bucket in the other hand. Wolf was carrying a bucket with his free hand while Mario carried two. Lastly, Cappy used the remaining full bucket and followed the other fighters.
They all then started to head back to their camp.
"This should provide us enough clean water to last us a couple more days." Said Falco. "Before that though, we should come up with a plan to take down Galeem."
"Agreed." Replied Mario as he and Cappy followed the two pilots back into the forest. "It's-a time we form a plan."
Little did they know, they were being watched as they were returning to the forest.
From a mile away though, the Neo Ancient Minister floated from an unseen foggy mountain overlooking the lake and the nearby forest.
He looked through his optical sensors as he received thermal signatures of the fighters.
Still under Galeem's control, the minister could only say one thing to his master. "Targets found. Moving to pursue."
He then proceeded into the lake and followed the trail the fighters left behind.