CHAPTER 2: The First Fight
A/N: I'm gonna try to make the chappies a bit shorter, that last one was just the introductory chapter… hope you enjoy what's to come! ~Fasha Hulk
Mario squeezed his eyes shut as the unusually bright sunlight pierced through the window of his cabin. He sat up. Still unsure whether or not yesterday's events had been another dream, or reality. However, a quick glance around at the extensively furnished cabin told him that he had not been dreaming.
Just as he sat up, a loud bell rang, echoing across the whole city, and Mr. Handey's voice returned.
"RISE AND SHINE, EVERYONE! IT IS TIIME FOR TODAY'S ACTIVITIES!" Groans could be heard from across the complex as the contestants rose from their slumbers.
In cabin 6, Yoshi was having some trouble waking Pikachu up.
"(Pikachu! Wake up, wake up!)"
Pikachu yawned. "(I don't wanna… Zzzz… Stop Team Rocket, and… zzzz… fluffy pancakes…)"
"(Hey guys, check me out!)" Kirby exclaimed, walking out of the bathroom wearing a hat that looked like the top of Yoshi's head.
"(Where'd you get that hat?)" Yoshi asked suspiciously.
"(I, uhh, made it last night. I couldn't sleep. Hey Pikachu! Hiiii, wake up!)"
Pikachu sleepily sat up and started to sparkle. "(Do you know what I do to people who wake me up early??? Hmm?)"
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Popo and Nana sat on the roof of their cabin.
"Hmm… big flash." Popo mused.
"Mmm…" Nana echoed.
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"How do I look?" Link asked Zelda, tilting his hat rakishly over his hair.
"Like yourself." She replied indifferently.
"Today's the first day of the tournament," he said, sidling over. "How about a kiss for good luck?"
Zelda magicked him to the other side of the cabin.
"Well excuuuuuse me, Princess!"
"Come, we must go." Zelda said, exiting the cabin.
Samus had been the first one to make it to the courtyard. She stood, staring at the rising sun through her helmet. This would be her first time actually fighting with anybody. She had always been a loner… but hey, maybe this would be healthy for her… maybe she could even…….
"Hi," said a voice at her side. She jumped only slightly, and recovered with dignity.
"Hello, Mr. McCloud."
"Call me Fox." Fox said, smiling. "Were you up early?"
"I don't sleep."
"Oh…" Fox scratched his head. "Can I ask why?"
"Too many bad dreams." She said, looking at the sky. "Too many bad memories." She looked down at him, and smiled, even though he couldn't see. "So I prefer to live my dreams."
Fox smiled. "I work up in space too. I work for Team Starfox. (PPL, I forgot the name of his team, forgive me that I am forgetful in my old age… F.H.)"
"Team Starfox…" Samus mused, "Hey, isn't that who Falco Lombardi works for?"
Fox started. "How do you know Falco???"
Samus laughed. "I almost killed him on a mission once. Luckily, we got everything straightened out before the real bad guys showed up."
"That's strange. Falco never spoke about you. Then again, he doesn't speak a lot about his past…"
Their conversation could not continue, however, since all the other members of the group had just arrived.
Mr. Handey's voice resounds: "BEFORE WE BEGIN THE COMPETITION, WE WILL HAVE THE OPENING CEREMONIES. PLEASE GO TO THE MAIN FIGHTING HALL TO THE EAST."
Following the east path, they arrived in front of a huge building, round in shape and very wide.
"Well, let's go in then." Bowser said, throwing open the door. The hall was gigantic, with rows of bleachers going up seemingly endlessly along the walls, and a large floor in the center, which was obviously for fighting.
Mr. Handey's voice resounds: "YOU ARE NOW ALL TO TAKE YOUR PLEDGE TO COMPETE AND STAY IN THE TOURNAMENT UNTIL THE VERY END, UNTIL ONE OF YOU HAS CLAIMED THE WORLD'S MOST PRIZED POSSESSION. STEP UP TO THE WELL, AND MAKE YOUR PLEDGE."
One by one, the members walked up to the large well that had appeared in the center of the hall and gave their pledge. Then, the well fell down into the floor, and a humongous iron sphere rose up in it's place, etched with the same pattern that had been on the transport ship. It burst into flame, and rose high above the roof.
"THE TOURNAMENT HAS NOW BEGUN!!!! NOW, LET ME EXPLAIN THE RULES. THE PRELIMINARY BATTLES WILL BE ONE ON ONE, FIVE OUTS PER FIGHTER. AN OUT IS CALLED WHEN A PLAYER IS KNOCKED OUTSIDE THE FIELD OF BATTLE. AS COMBATANTS EXCHANGE BLOWS, THEY WILL BECOME WEAKENED, EVENTUALLY SO MUCH THAT THEIR OPPONENT WILL BE ABLE TO SEND THEM FLYING OUT OF THE ARENA. WHEN THAT HAPPENS, MY ASSISTANTS WILL HEAL YOU AND SEND YOU BACK. YOU WILL HAVE MANY HELPFUL ITEMS TO AID YOU, RANGING FROM A LASER SWORD, TO A BOB-OMB, TO A POKE BALL."
Pikachu cocked his head.
"TO BEGIN THE TOURNAMENT OFFICIALLY, WE WILL NOW STAGE THE FIRST FIGHT WHILE YOU ARE ALL TOGETHER. CAN I PLEASE HAVE MARIO AND DONKEY KONG STEP TO THE CENTER OF THE FLOOR. THE REST OF YOU, SIT ON THE SIDELINES."
Uncertainly, Mario and Donkey Kong stepped into the arena and stood opposite each other. A figure wrapped in a cloak and hood stepped forward.
"Mario, call it in the air."
"Heads!"
The figure picked up the coin. "It's heads. We go to Mario's world."
As if by magic, the stadium and bleachers disappeared, and they were standing on the roof of Princess Peach's castle! They looked around, dumbfounded.
"Nice touch," Bowser commented.
"(Ugh, I can't look at that roof anymore,)" Yoshi groaned. "(I spent so much time up there…)"
"NOW, BEGIN!!!"
Mario took a Jack Dempsy stance. "Come on.. What, Mokey boy? Huh? What?"
Donkey Kong growled and dashed in and delivered a low kick. Mario recovered and did his signature "punch-punch-kick." Donkey Kong slapped the ground, and Mario went flying up in the air, but came back with a drill kick that nailed DK in the face. DK grabbed Mario by the waist and threw him aside. Mario did a roundhouse kick that knocked DK on his back. DK got up by flinging his feet forward, which knocked Mario onto his back. They proceeded to exchange blows, and finally, Donkey Kong wound up and slammed Mario from the arena. But just as quickly as he had left, he reappeared.
"YOU MAY STOP NOW!" Mr. Handey commanded, and the stadium turned back to normal. "I SIMPLY WANTED YOU TO GET A FEEL FOR BATTLING. YOU WILL NOW HEAD TO THE SPECIAL TRAINING HALL, WHERE MY ASSISTANTS WILL EDUCATE YOU ON THE ART OF TRUE FIGHTING AND HELP YOU PERFECT YOUR OWN, UNIQUE SKILLS. THE SPECIAL TRAINING HALL IS WEST OF HERE… STUDY HARD, THAT YOU MAY BECOME THE VICTOR!"
When the voice faded, one of Mr. Handey's assistants, (Those cloak-and-hood folk) directed them out of the hall and to the western path. "This way… half a mile… train well…"
A/N: I don't want to spend a lot of time detailing the actual battles, because I'd like to save more room for drama, and the storytelling itself. Just so you know, this way in case you feel like writing to me complaining that I only used a paragraph for the whole battle, you'll understand. LOVE FATHER HULK