Chapter 15

Link's Departure

A/N: Okay, first thing's first: There's been a little change of plans. As these past 3 hours have proved that I cannot fill an entire chapter with a fight sequence. So for the folks who were hoping for that, I sincerely apologize. Instead, enjoy this small arc I have designed that will ultimately combine some of the great classic games. I hope you all like it!

"Hey… wake up! Wake up!"

"Mm… is that you, my fiery little redhead?" Link murmured as he began to wake up.

"Who?" came the same voice, but in a more indignant tone, followed by a slap on Link's face.

"Yow!" Link cried, snapping bolt upright in bed. "Who is that?"

"It's me, you idiot!" Zelda snarled. "Who is this redhead you mentioned?"

"Oh… it's… it's nobody…" Link said, looking away.

"Oh, yeah, right!" Zelda said, turning and walking away. "I can't believe you were dreaming of someone else! After you told me I was the only one you thought of! I must have been out of my mind!"

"No, no, Zelda!" Link said, trying to get out of bed quickly, and tripping over the sheets and falling on his face. "It's nobody, really! I just have weird dreams sometimes! Honestly!"

"Like I believe that!" Zelda said, wheeling around, causing her dress to swirl about her feet. "We're Hylians, Link. We don't have dreams for no reason! Now, I have a fight with Samus, so I'll see you later! …Unfortunately." And she stormed out of the bunk.

Link groaned and fell back on the bed. This was an utter disaster! Of all the inopportune times, it seemed his brain had picked the worst one to give him a dream about her…

He put the pillow over his face and screamed into it. This was no good… Zelda would tell everyone! Link the unfaithful, Link the infidel… It wasn't his fault that another woman got to his heart before she did. He had tried to put her out of his mind, telling himself there was no chance he'd ever see her again… he tried to love Zelda like everyone said he was supposed to, but… it just wasn't working. Screaming into the pillow one more time, he threw it aside and got dressed.

A short while later, he was in the dining hall eating breakfast when Peach approached him.

"Hey Link," she said in a smooth voice.

"Hello, your Highness," he said without looking up.

"Um, Zelda wanted me to give you something," she said.

"Really?" Link asked, looking up.

"Yes," Peach replied, and she slapped Link hard. "You deserve a lot more than that, but I thought you were cute!" and she turned on her heel and marched back to her table.

"It's not like I haven't tried to do something about this!" Link roared in Peach's direction.

"Ah, ignore her, man," Mario said, sliding onto the seat across from Link. Once he had Link's attention, he leaned in and said, "So who is she?"

"She's nobody," Link grumbled, not looking up.

"Horseshit it's nobody," Mario said pleasantly. "Come on, spill the beans."

"You're not going to let up, are you?" Link snapped.

"You got that right," Mario said with a smile.

Link sighed. "All right, fine! A long time ago, I had just got done with an adventure in these two sister countries, Labrynna and Holodrum. I had been sent there by the Triforce."

"Interesting," Mario said, rubbing his chin. "Go on."

"Well, after everything was all mopped up, I built a boat and was sailing home to Hyrule, when I got shipwrecked. I washed up on this uncharted island, and I would have died right there on the beach… but this absolutely gorgeous girl saved me. Flowing red hair, golden voice…"

"Did she live under the sea?" Mario interrupted, before snickering. "I'm sorry, I couldn't help it,"

"Are you through?" Link asked, annoyed.

"Yes, I'm sorry."

"So anyway, I didn't think much about her in the beginning; all I was really concerned about was getting off that island. But after a while she just got to me. By the time my quest was over, I was madly in love with her, and I knew she felt the same."

"So why didn't you just stay there?" Mario asked.

"I couldn't… I had work left to do in Hyrule. So, long story short, I had to leave my one true love behind, alone on an island I may never see again.. I've never gotten over that. I miss her so much…" He stopped speaking and looked down, biting his lip.

"Hey, it's okay, man," Mario said. "Some things just take more time than others. Besides, there are plenty of girls here, or in Aldaria nearby. I mean, now that you've lost Zelda and all…"

"Shut up about that already," Link snapped.

"Hey, sorry," Mario said, raising his hands in defense. "I'm just trying to make a bad situation better for ya…"

"Hey Mario!" called Luigi as he walked past the table, "I'm going up to the cantine for a Red Bull, do you want one?"

"Yeah, I'll come with you," Mario said. He turned back to Link and slapped the table twice. "Cheer up, kid. It'll get better." He got up and followed his brother.

Link finished his breakfast and was leaving the dining hall when Pikachu dashed up to him and leapt onto his shoulder.

"Oh, hey little guy," Link said.

"Pikachu!" The mouse said, wiggling his ears.

"Boy I'm glad you can't talk," Link said. "You won't judge me like those others."

Pikachu smiled, patted Link on the back, and dashed off.

"He's adorable," Link said with a chuckle. He walked out of the dining hall and was heading towards the battle area when he was suddenly jolted hard from behind. He fell flat on his face, his hat flying off and landing several feet away.

After several moments, he rolled onto his back and looked up to see Donkey Kong standing there.

"Hey, what's the big idea?" Link snarled.

Donkey Kong grunted, and used both his hands to stand Link on his feet. Then he reached around and pulled something off of Link's back.

"What is this?" Link wondered, examining it. It was a piece of paper, specifically a scrap of Celadon Hotel stationery. On it was written in jagged letters, "Kick me, I cheat."

"That little yellow sack of dung!" Link growled. But then he looked up and said to the gorilla, "I didn't know you could read."

"Mystery," Donkey Kong grunted, taking a huge shrug and then ambling off down the path.

"This day could not get worse!" Link roared, stomping down the path.

"Hello there," drawled an icy voice off to his left. He looked to see a hooded figure leaning against the tree.

"Do you have a question?" Link asked irritably. He had never known these folk to carry out more than the protocols of the city.

"You know this tournament requires loyalty to the city and its officials," the hooded figure said.

"Yeah? What of it?"

"Well Mr. Handey has sent me to make sure that you won't… betray us too."

"How did you even hear about that?" Link snapped.

The hooded figure drew very close to Link's face. "We hear everything." It hissed, and turned away, robes swirling and began to leave, although Link swore he heard it chuckle.

"This is horse shit!" Link screamed. "That's it! I don't have to take this!"

"Princess Zelda, a word with you."

"Hmm?" said the Hylian princess, looking over at the hooded figure that had come up beside her. "What's wrong?"

"Mr. Handey wishes to speak with you."

"Why? What did I do?"

Instead of responding, the hooded figure passed her a small, flat circular disc and pushed the center of it. A beam of light came out of it, and a holographic image of a ball with lines crossing in the lower left corner appeared above the disc.

"Good evening, your Highness," said a deep voice.

"Um… good evening, Mr. Handey." Zelda replied uncertainly.

"Your Highness, things are not well in Battlefield City. One of our fighters has been missing for a prolonged amount of time."

Zelda was genuinely unsure of what this apparition meant. "What are you talking about? Who has gone missing?"

"I believe it was the young man you are sharing your bunk with. We have cause to believe his absence is correlated to the altercation you had with him this morning."

"Well it's not my fault if he turned tail and ran," Zelda said with some arrogance.

"Be that as it may, each combatant here has given his sacred pledge to remain in the competition till the end, if you so remember. If someone has caused one of those people to be absent from this tournament, then the instigator must be held responsible."

Zelda held up her hands. "Hey, Link's actions got him to where he is. It's not fair that I should be punished because of his stupidity."

"You misunderstand, Princess. We do not intend to administer any form of punishment. …Yet. However, you must find a way to bring him back. That's your current priority."

"What? But I have no idea where he is!" Zelda complained.

"I have said all that I came here to say," Mr. Handey concluded. "I sincerely wish you luck."

And with that, the hologram above the disc faded, and the hooded figure wordlessly strode away.

"Oh, freakin GREAT!" Zelda shrieked, kicking the ground.

A short while later, Zelda walked into the Cantine, which was a combination of a store, an eatery, and a hangout. Most of the fighters were gathered there: Mario and Luigi were throwing darts; Samus and Fox were sharing some ice cream; Captain Falcon was giving the mechanical bull a run for its money; Bowser, Yoshi, and Jigglypuff were sitting at the counter eating, and Ness was playing the Galaga machine.

"Ask him how he can eat those and have a clear conscience," Yoshi said to Jigglypuff, shuddering as he watched Bowser devour hard-boiled eggs whole. Using her red microphone, Jigglypuff repeated the question to Bowser.

"Well, as long as these eggs didn't come out of your hind, I don't really care," Bowser said, swallowing a few more.

Yoshi narrowed his eyes, then said something to the waiter, and then turned to Jigglypuff and said, "Tell him I just ordered turtle soup."

Jigglypuff obeyed, and immediately afterwards, Bowser began to choke on an egg.

"I got it!" Mario called, running over. He wound up and socked Bowser in the back of the neck, and the egg rocketed out of his throat and landed squarely in the trash can.

"He shoots, he scores!" Luigi cheered from across the room.

"Um, can I have your attention please?" Zelda called from the doorway. The room fell silent as everyone turned to look at her. "I'm afraid there's a bit of a problem."

"Oh God, did Link come out to you?" Samus asked. "I had a feeling he would sooner or later."

"No, no no," Zelda said, raising her hands. "He's… disappeared."

Wary glances were strewn about the room.

"Well, where did he go?" Fox asked.

"I don't know!" Zelda said, distressed. "But Mr. Handey has made it our priority to find him

"Well, maybe he went home to Hyrule," Jigglypuff said.

"No, it's impossible. I would have sensed his presence there."

Mario was rubbing his chin in thought. "I think I may have an inkling," he piped up.

All gazes were diverted to him.

"Now, maybe I'm way off, but I suggest that perhaps our little pointy-eared friend has gone to find his old flame on Piece-of-Lint Island or whatever it was."

"Koholint," Zelda corrected him. "And what makes you say that?"

"Simple," Mario replied. "He got fed up with being picked on for having a relationship with said old flame, and decided to return to her rather than deal with the heat."

"Well, I do know of one way we can be sure," Zelda said after a moment. "Link carries the Master Sword with him. I can try to sense its presence, since it is a sacred relic of the Hylia." She closed her eyes and clasped her hands together, and for a few moments it seemed like the light in the room dimmed for all but Zelda, giving her a kind of a glow. Then she opened her eyes and spoke.

"I was able to pick up a faint trace of it. It was miles and miles south of Hyrule, and there's no continents in that direction."

"And how far away from here is that?" Samus asked.

"Surprisingly not far," Zelda said. "A few days across the sea. But we have no way of sailing."

Murmurs of agreement ran throughout the room, until Luigi noticed that Bowser was looking around nervously.

"What's the matter, Bowser?" Luigi asked.

"Nothing," Bowser grunted, but when he saw everyone's eyes on him, he faltered. "Well… I mean…"

"Spit it out, Bowser," Mario said warningly.

"Well, it's just that… I have some…"

"You have some WHAT?" Luigi demanded.

"I have ships!" Bowser screamed. "Remember those military battleships I…er…used against you two in Dark Land?"

Mario snapped his fingers. "That's right! Those ships were so sturdy they could float on lava!"

"Precisely," Bowser said with a chuckle. "And if you wanted, I could have my kids airlift them over here… but I would expect something in return."

"And what would that be?" Mario asked as apprehensive glances were exchanged.

"The princess must kiss me!" Bowser declared.

"What?" Peach shrieked.

"Hmm…" Mario murmured.

"Mario, you're not considering it?" Peach cried.

"Well, I mean… it's not that bad…"

"I'm not going to kiss him!" Peach snapped.

Bowser leaned back in his chair and examined his nails. "I guess you're not all that serious about getting elfy boy back then."

"Do it, Princess," Zelda said. "We'll all have to pay a price if Link isn't brought back safe."

"Can't I just, like, buy you dinner or something?" Peach asked. "I'll take you to this one place, they have the best swordfish you have ever tasted!"

"No, it has to be a kiss." Bowser said with joviality.

"Princess, if you do this for us, I'll buy you that silk dress you saw in Aldraia," Mario said.

"Really?" she asked, before sighing. "Fine… but it's only going to be a peck!"

She nervously walked up to Bowser, but as she was leaning in, he opened his mouth and let out a great big horrible belch that shook the room.

"Aaaagh!" Peach wailed, leaping back.

"Ah ha ha ha!" Bowser cackled in triumph. "Oh it was SO worth it!"

"Aaaaagh, I felt it on my face!" Peach cried in distress. "It smells like rotten eggs and poo! Mario, hurt him!"

"There, there," Mario said soothingly. "At least you didn't have to kiss him."

"You're all horrible!" Peach screeched, before storming out.

"Peach, wait!" Mario called, running after her.

"So," Bowser said, when he had finished laughing. "Where were we?"

"I believe you were going to contact your wretched little seeds," Luigi said coldly.

"Oh yeah!" Bowser said, and he reached behind his shell and pulled out a cell phone.

"You have a cell phone?" Fox asked in surprise.

"Yes," Bowser growled. "It's just so hard to push these buttons with my claws…Wait, I have voice activated dial!" He pushed a button, and said, "The munchkins," and the phone began dialing.

"The munchkins?" Luigi asked with a shudder.

"Hi Lemmy, it's daddy!" Bowser said. "How are ya, sport? Good, good. How's Wendy and her new boyfriend? Oh really? That's a shame. But, that's what you get when you date a Paratroopa, I suppose. Anyway, is Ludwig there? Great. Can I talk to him? Thanks. And daddy will be home to see you real soon, and I'll have presents! What? Of course you're my favorite son! That's right. Now put your brother on."

There was a silence for a few moments, and then Bowser started talking again. "Hey son, how are you? Listen, I need a favor. Can you and your brothers get your airships and fly my three battleships over to Battlefield City? Great! I'll see you in a few hours then. Yes, Ludwig, you know you've always been my favorite son. Okay. Buh-bye."

After a short stunned silence, Luigi said, "Bowser, I didn't know you were such a family man,"

"I once had a Grand Goomba concubine," Bowser said without looking over.

"What?"

"See, that's two things about me you didn't know!" And the large turtle got up and marched from the cantine.

The room was silent for a few minutes, and then Fox looked at his watch and said, "Well we really should be…" and then all at once the others began voicing matters of things they needed to do, and the room slowly emptied.

Three hours later, the skies grew dark over Battlefield City, and the loud droning of motors filled the air as several ominous shapes flew overhead, then began to land. It was the seven Koopa Kids in their airships, and attached to the bottoms of these ships were three massive seagoing vessels with all sorts of cannons and turrets.

"Oh good, they're here!" Bowser said with delight as everyone else began to follow the airships to the beachfront.

Once all the vessels had landed, a screechy voice spoke from one of the hulls, though nobody could see the speaker.

"Who are the cutest little troublemakers in all the land? Tell them, boys!"

And then, the Koopa Kids appeared on the railings of the airships.

"Form of, the Koopa Kids!" They cried together.

"Larry!"

"Morton!"

"Wendy!"

"Iggy!"

"Roy!"

"Lemmy!"

"Ludwig!"

As they each shouted their name they leapt down onto the sand in turn.

"Goooooo Koopas!" They shouted together, doing a simultaneous high-five.

"Do they always do this?" Mario asked Bowser quietly. The Koopa King nodded.

"Hi daddy!" Wendy said, clinging to her father's leg.

"Hey sweetie," he said. "Sorry to hear about Percy."

"I know!" Wendy sobbed, tearing up. "He was my world!"

"But your world was Water Land," Iggy mumbled, but Roy smacked him over the head.

"Well, well, well, look who it is," Larry Koopa sneered, walking up to Mario. "It's been a while."

"Yes it has," Mario said gruffly.

"You're lucky I don't have that magic wand anymore," he said. "Or I'd do terrible things to you!"

"Now Larry, come on, we like the Mario Brothers now," Bowser said. "At least, until this tournament is over."

Mario rolled his eyes and made a sarcastic face.

"I still say he got past me by dirty pool," Ludwig said snootily. "Human beings cannot turn into statues. It's not biologically possible."

"Well, we owe you one for bringing the ships to us," Falcon said. "They really are well built."

"Actually, they were our toy boats, but Daddy made them bigger with magic," Iggy said, and Roy smacked him upside the head again.

"Shut your yap!" he snarled.

"I'll call you guys again when you can come pick them up." Bowser said, and all the Koopa Kids piled back into the airships, detached the battleships from the hulls, and flew off again, leaving the battleships rocking gently in the waves.

"So!" Mario said, clapping his hands once. "Who do we bring along?"

Everyone looked around at each other warily.

At length, Yoshi stepped forward, and taking the red microphone from Jigglypuff, he said, "Mario, I've been at your side through countless adventures. If I can help you in any way, I will." He walked to Mario's side. "You have my eggs."

"And you have my gun," Fox said after stepping up beside Yoshi.

"And my fist," Falcon said proudly, joining them.

"Mario's not going anywhere without me," Luigi said, dashing over and standing proudly beside his brother.

"We're coming too!" The Ice Climbers said in unison. "For so long we have yearned to see the ocean."

"Great!" Mario said. "Nevertheless, Zelda must come with us. She is connected to all of this. So let's see, there are 8 of us. Very well. We shall be the group that brings Link back to Battlefield City! Let's all get some rest, we have a big journey ahead of us."

The group cheered, and then began to disperse to their bunks.

To Be Continued!

Coming in Part 2: Link pledged to never forget about Marin. But what about her?