Chapter 6: Breaking the Ice
The stadium was filled to the brim, all of them watching the fight in the ring. There were two boxers brawling in the square, all landing blows to each-others bodies.
The one with black hair dodged a punch to the temple, he got back straight up; retaliating with a devastating uppercut to his opponent chin. His adversary flew up in the air for a couple of inches, landing on the floor; knocked unconscious.
A referee came to the downed fighter and began to counting.
"1! 2! 3! 4!"
Come on, stay down.
"5! 6! 7! 8!"
Almost there!
"9! 10! Knock out!"
The audience erupted with applause and acclaim. They praised him yet again for winning another match. He got tired of winning time after time, feeling very bored from not having a sense of challenge. However it was worth it; Getting cheered at, have people chant your name, becoming a hero in their eyes. He wouldn't trade it for the world.
The boxer got up on one of the corners of the ring. The fighter got up on top of the pole and extended his arms into a T-pose. Making the cheers go louder.
Yes. nothing can ruin this moment.
"Brawler." Said a female voice
The boxer looked around him, trying to find out the source of the noise but to no avail.
"Come on Brawler wake up!" Said another voice, this time being male.
He looked back at the stands to see all of the audience had disappeared; the stadium appeared to be rusty and broken. This place had been abandoned for some time.
"Brawler we don't have the time for this! Get up!"
"Please Brawler, for the love of god just wake up."
The spot lights began to turn off one, slowly placing the world in a thick darkness.
"Why won't you get up?"
"Brawler we need you."
What happened to the stadium?! Where are his fans?! What's going on?!
"Wake up!"
"Open your eyes!"
"What's wrong with him!?"
"Get the hell up!"
"BRAWLER!"
Brawler opened his eyes in alarm, sitting upright in a comfy bed. What the hell was that dream? Was it a memory, or perhaps something else?
"Oh thank goodness you're alright." Said a voice to his left. The fist-fighter turned his head to see Gunner and Swordfighter peering over him.
"Sword? Gunner?" said Brawler being very puzzled. "What are you doing?" The red fighter looked around the room he was in, it appeared to be a bedroom; large enough to fit three people. It included a large bathroom, a walk-in closet, and a flat screen TV hanging off a wall. "What happened. Where are we?" Brawler said to the pair.
"We got captured." Said Swordfighter, sighing with disappointment. "They took away my sword and shut off Gunner's cannon. After they rounded us up, we we're put in here." Sword gestured around the room. "Our captors locked every possible exit in this area; said they'll come back for a 'chat'."
'They? Who is-' Thought Brawler, before all of the memories from the previous encounter flooded his mind like a hurricane; the image of the floating creature still present in his brain. He gritted his teeth with indignation at the revelation.
Oh that's right. "They". The bastards who took them down like it was nothing.
Damn them to hell.
"Did they hurt any of you? Brutal interrogations or torture perhaps?" said Brawler, his blood boiling in his body "Because if they did. I'm going to tear them limb from limb! I'm going to snap their necks! I'm going to-"
Gunner interrupted the fighter in his rant "NO! Nothing like that at all. We weren't tortured or abused when they caught us. In fact, they offered to heal us up; heck, some of them even said sorry.
Brawler was taken aback with disbelief. "They actually helped you?! That's impossible, they hunted us down like criminals. Why would they all of a sudden care about our well-being?" questioned the fist-fighter.
"I know how it sounds but it's the truth, I was with her the entire time, they seem genuine."
Brawler gave out a huff. Still struggling to believe the story "When did this happened?"
"Whiles you were unconscious" said Gunner "You slept the entire time, so you wouldn't be able to know what's going on."
Brawler replied back "But that doesn't make any sense, they have nothing to gain from taking care of us. We're dead weight to them. For all we know, they could be planning to dispose all of us right no-"
The door began to unlock, the trio turned their heads towards the door as it slowly opened.
Some of the captors entered the room: a solider with a beard, a turtle-like monster, a jackal, a blue-haired swordsman, and a robot with binocular-like eyes. The canine stepped forward from the group; holding a metal tray in its paws.
The dog looked at the fighters with a smile on his face "Oh good, all of you are here." Said the blue creature as he approached the table near the bed.
"Now that everyone is accounted for, it's time to get to business." Said the jackal as he placed the platter on the tabletop. The three of them stared at the tray with suspense. Especially Brawler, who eyed the object with enmity.
What is hides under the plate cover? Perhaps array of hammers and pinchers for unrelenting torture? A gun to blow their brains out on the wall paper? A machete to hack them apart.
Or maybe even-
The canine lifted the metal dome, revealing what's inside.
A plate of grilled cheese sandwiches and pitcher of lemonade?
He thought his eyes deceived him, but there it was. A nice hearty meal, guaranteed to fill up the bellies of the most ravenous of gluttons.
"We didn't know what to serve you-being unfamiliar with your species dietary habits. So we took the safe option and went with grilled cheese and lemonade. I imagine you're all very famished after that exhausting chase." Chuckled the blue-furred canine.
The trio looked at the supper with hesitation, being unsure whether to consume the food.
"Oh come on now." Said the dog, his lips still curved into a smile. "We didn't tamper with it, the only things we put in the food is a handful of healthy ingredients, and compassion. In fact I'll prove it." The animal grabbed one of the sandwiches from the plate, he showed the fighters the grilled delicacy in his paw before taking a huge bite out of it-the cheese being pulled from the bread, going into his snout.
"See? Just an ordinary sandwich. Go on ahead, try some. It's on the house." The creature beamed towards the platter.
Swordfighter looked at the canine for a couple of seconds before turning his attention at the dish. He slowly extended a hand towards the tray, grabbing a grilled-cheese from the plate. The sword wielder put the snack up to his mouth and began to chew.
He munched the chow in his jaw, swallowing with a huge gulp. "It taste…just right" said the fighter, as he continued consuming the meal.
Gunner blinked a couple of times at Sword's words, she faced the table with curiosity-grasping a large sandwich in her hands. The shooter nibbled on the crust; her eyes widening with delight.
"Yeah these are really good." Proclaiming Gunner, taking another ravenous bite.
"Well I'm glad you liked it." Said the canine, being pleased with Swordfighter and Gunner's approval.
Brawler however, did not join with his 'friends' in the feast. He outright refused to eat anything the creature had to offer; despite his stomachs protest.
"Just what are you trying to pull?" Brawler said, menacingly glaring at the animal with disdain.
"I…beg your pardon?" said the jackal, his smile slowly fading.
Brawler got up from the bed, standing in defiance in front of the blue mutt. "Just earlier you and buddies were hunting us down like we were criminals; beating the living crap out us, but now all of a sudden you're trying to act like you're our best friend? Appealing to our better nature by putting on a jolly act whiles giving out free food! Well you know what? I'm not falling for it! You all revealed your true nature during the battle, I saw in your eyes. All of you are bastards, every single one!"
The residents were taken aback. Not expecting the harshness of his words to be so vile.
"But I am perplexed. If are so concerned about our safety like you claim, then why did in god's name did you chase us down like blood-thirsty animals?!" Said Brawler. Infuriated with outrage.
"Because we thought the mansion was under attack." Piped the solider, his bandana draping over his shoulder.
"Under attack?!" Brawler replied, his tone erupted in astonishment.
The bearded man nodded "Yes, under attack. Think of it from our perspective; we were all in the dining hall, enjoying ourselves with a great feast. When all of a sudden, our friend was blasted through the wall; his body was in a lot of pain. Then we saw the three of you make your grand entrance."
Gunner and Swordfighter cringed with embarrassment, whiles Brawler expression remained the same.
"You broke in, destroyed private property, and dealt the first blow. We had every reason to believe it was an attack. We were just following protocol." Said the solider as he pulled out a cigarette from his pocket, he lit it with a grey lighter-taking in a deep breath before expelling the smoke from his lungs.
"But I suppose you're not the only one at fault here, we deserve just as much of the blame as you do. Perhaps we should have started off by demanding an explanation rather than duking it out. All of us could have solved this peacefully instead of resorting to violence. Mistakes were made on both sides."
"You're damn right mistakes were made!" shouted Brawler, raising his fist to express his anger. "You could have killed us you know! With your pointy swords, laser guns, and meatheads with the power to blast you away with a fiery fist, are you kidding me?! It's a miracle that we all survived!"
"Oh pa-lease!" said a gruffly voice, everyone turned to the turtle-like creature leaning against the wall "There was no way in hell we could have killed you, it would have been impossible. You're just upset that you got your butt handed to you. Get over it! "
The fist-fighter eyes blood pressure began to rise again, his face becoming red hot. "Get over it? You want me to get over it?! Go to hell you spikey-shelled freak! Someone ought to shoot you and leave your corpse to the buzzards!"
The turtle eyes widen with rage, puffs of smoke coming from his nostrils "You want a piece of me you little wimp?! I'll cut you like a fish!"
They both began to march towards each other, more than willing to kill to tear their adversary apart. However the blue-haired swordsman got in between them, preventing them from brawling.
"Stop it, both of you!" said the man said, his voice becoming very stern "We are here to talk, not to fight. Please. Calm down."
Despite the monster and the fist-fighter's reluctance, they did manage to relax; letting off some steam. The two of them were still furious, but at least they won't try to kill on another.
"Thank you." The swordsman sighed with relief, he waited for a couple of seconds before speaking up again. "Okay. I think we gotten off the wrong foot here-again. Let's break the ice by introducing ourselves, my name is Marth. I'm a prince from a faraway kingdom called: Altea. I have great pride in my heritage and I'm sworn to protect anyone in need. It's an honor to meet you."
"[My identification is Robotic Operating Buddy, but call me R.O.B. everyone does]" spoke the robot, his voice becoming very monotone and dull.
The Creature was still in a stare off with Brawler, looking very infuriated. "I'm King Bowser, the most feared ruler in the entire world." Boasted the monstrous turtle.
"Solid Snake." Said the solider, putting out his cigarette in ash tray.
"And I'm Lucario, I'm well...A Lucario, a species known to see and manipulate Aura: the force that surrounds every living thing." The canine extended out a paw to Swordfighter for a handshake. "It's nice to meet you Mr..?"
"Swordfighter." Said the sword wielder as he grasped Lucario's forepaw, shaking it firmly with respect. "The name is Swordfighter. The girl and the guy with me is Gunner and Brawler."
"Those are some very lovely names Mr. Swordfighter. Glad to be of acquaintance." Lucario once again shook Swordfighter's hand for several seconds before retrieving his paw back at his side. "I imagine you have many questions swarming around your mind right now" said the jackal, his posture becoming much more serious.
"As a matter of fact we do!" Said Brawler, he walked towards the creature; arms folded in annoyance. "Where are we, what are you, and how the hell to we get back home?!" Demanded the fist-fighter-getting straight to the point.
Lucario, despite the man's rudeness, managed to maintain a respectful and friendly tone "The answers to those questions are very complicated, it would sound like absolute rubbish if I told you. So to make things easy, I'm going to tell you a story about the history of this world. Things will make more sense if I do it this way. Do you want to hear it?" asked the jackal.
"Uh…yeah, we love that." Piped the shooter, injecting herself in the conversation.
The blue canine nodded his head "Very well then." He pulled out a chair from the table-getting comfortable as he sat down on the seat.
"Sit down and get comfy, this is going to be quite the tale."
Long time ago, in a place where nothing existed, before the existence of creation came to be. There was an entity known as Master Hand; A god who was a giant living hand.
He formed The World of Trophies (WOT) a universe separate from the entirety of reality. He was the ruler of this domain, and he enjoyed every second of it.
But eventually he got bored, being the only habitant in this world of his design. So one day Master Hand came up with the idea of a fighting tournament: his own subjects battling against each other in his honor; and amusement.
He created the Smashers: living trophies, made in the image from the beings of other worlds, whose sole purpose was to brawl for the entertainment of the godly hand. Angry over the meaning of their creation, the Smashers rebelled!
They banded together and defeated Master Hand, but upon their victory, without his power. They reverted back into sculptures. This was known as the 64 era.
Next was the Melee era. Shortly after Master Hand's death, he was revived by his twin entity: Crazy Hand. Together they continued to create and collect trophies. In order to trick the sculptures into believing that they were the real heroes, rather than mere duplicates. They copied the home worlds of the original heroes, and inserted them into the world of trophies.
The two of them brought the Smashers back to life, and once again forced them to fight. The Trophies once again rebelled and fought back against Master Hand and Crazy Hand.
The Smashers defeated them, and this time won the ability to continue their lives without the continued magic of the hands. Master Hand went into hiding and Crazy Hand disappears.
After the second age was the Brawl era.
As Master Hand plotted how to regain his collection, he is captured by a cosmic entity named Tabuu. Tabuu was the ruler of a parallel dimension called Subspace.
Tabuu devised a plan to destroy the World of Trophies, absorbing it into his own world. He controlled Master Hand's mind and formed an army of his own to take over the WOT. He almost achieved his wicked goals too. The Smashers had barely defeated the cosmic demon, erasing Tabuu from existence. Killing him permanently.
However, Tabuu's attack on the WOT left the Omniverse unstable, If things have kept going as they had, everything that ever existed would be destroyed. Forever.
Luckily, The World of Trophies stepped in, acting as the glue. Preventing the collapse of reality which still holds to this day.
After the war, the trophies got together and formed their own society. They called themselves the Super Smash Brothers, The sculptures continued to live out in peace and harmony, accepting new Smashers with open arms. Dedicating their lives to protect the Omniverse, for the rest of eternity.
"And that's the end of it." Said Lucario, smiling slightly from remembrance "Now, do we have any questions?"
The trio was stunned, not knowing what to say. They stayed silent for several moments before Swordfighter spoke up "So…This place were in. It's the World of Trophies?"
Lucario nodded once more "Correct. We're in the World of Trophies, where we are right now specifically, is the Smash Mansion; our home. Yeah the name's very corny I know, but it works none the less." Said the canine, who rubbed the back of his head in awkwardness.
"So what lies within this world?" Pressed Gunner getting more intrigued by the second.
"There are many things that can be found within this land; Ruins of ancient civilizations, monsters the size of houses, Powers that are beyond your wildest dreams. You're stepping into a world of pure imagination, this place has more in common with the realm of fiction than the universe of grounded reality." Lucario answered almost immediately.
"Okay that sounds very interesting and all, but what the hell is a 'Smasher'? You said they were beings from other worlds but you didn't go in detail on what they actually are. How can a team of ragtag misfits defeat one of the most powerful beings in all of existence?" Said Brawler, questioning the legitimacy of the canine's story.
"Well you see Mr. Brawler." Said the jackal, shrugging off the fist-fighters attitude. "You; Me; and everyone else in this building is a Smasher. As I said before, we are beings that were created by the god: Master Hand. He controlled us for a while but we rebelled against his tyranny. Winning our freedom from the unruly king."
Gunner raised her hand in the air, getting the attention of Lucario.
"Yes Miss Brawler?" Asked the canine.
"What kind of powers do Smashers possess?" replied the shooter, taking another grilled cheese from the plate.
Snake took a stool from the edge of the bed and sat right next to Lucario, injecting himself in the conversation. "Exact abilities vary for each Smasher, but there are some general skills and talents that each person possesses" Answered the solider.
"Like?" said the Sword wield, cocking an eyebrow.
"R.O.B. list the powers that all Smashers have in common." The bearded man told the robot.
"[Affirmative.]" The robot said as it made a series of bleeps and bloops, it was calculating something in its mind before speaking up again. "[The traits that every single Smasher has are listed as follows: Enhanced Strength, Invulnerability, Enhanced Agility, Pain Reduction, Combat Intuition, Double Jumping, Force-Field Generation, and Immortality.]"
"IMMORTALITY!?" Shouted the trio of fighters, shocked by this newfound revelation.
"Yes you heard him right-Immortality." The solider plainly said, as he poured himself a glass of cold lemonade from the pitcher.
"But how?" said Swordfighter, trying to wrap his head around this new piece of information.
"I can explain that." said Marth, sitting down on the edge of the bed "You see, Smashers are very unique from the rest of the beings that reside in the Omniverse; we can absorb the damage from injuries, preventing us from getting hurt.
"Absorbing damage?!" The fist-fighter said with confusion.
"Yes, absorbing damage." The swordsman answered, shifting himself in the bed. "Let me explain: All Smashers have a very complex mechanism embedded in their body-Its practically apart of their existence; we call this the Percentage System. This "system" prevents the fighter from getting hurt by absorbing the damage from injuries and attacks, leaving the Smasher in one piece."
"However the damage has to go somewhere, it doesn't simply disappear." Marth continued. "So the Percentage System Transfers the damage from the injuries into energy. This energy is stored up in the body; being trapped inside the fighter. We call this energy: Percent. As the Smasher gains more Percentage, the fighter's abilities become stronger but it also makes the user easier to get launched by attacks. If a Smasher absorbs too much damage at a time, they'll enter their Trophy State. Taking the fighter out of commission until someone revives them."
"Trophy State?" Uttered Gunner, who tilted her head in bewilderment.
Bowser groaned with annoyance "A trophy state is when a Smasher is turned into life-sized statue. When in this state; they're unable to do anything. The fighter is essentially in a coma, helpless to save themselves. The only way to revive a fallen Smasher is to make physical contact with the round golden base they're standing on. Doing so will bring the fighter back to life; erasing the percentage from the body."
"Turn into a trophy? Oh! That's what happened to that blue turtle!" Exclaimed Swordfighter, suddenly remembering the chase that happened earlier ago.
"What the hell are you talking about Sword?" Questioned Brawler, turning his body to face the sword wielder. "Before I was captured, I fought against blue turtle that can puke water. When I defeated the creature it turned into a statue. Is that what you meant by a trophy state?" The sword wielder asked Lucario and Snake.
"Yes, what you saw happen in the dining room was indeed a trophy state." Replied the blue canine.
"It all make sense now" Swordfighter said to himself aloud. "Is the turtle going to be okay? I didn't mean to hurt it."
"Don't worry about." Snake said to the sword wielder. "Squirtle has been taken out of his trophy state and is quite alright. He forgives you for the attack, so you don't have to worry about it anymore."
"Well that's a relief." Said Swordfighter, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment "Is there anything else we should know?"
Marth was the one to speak "One more thing, besides not being able to get hurt; is the ability to never change. Every aspect of a Smasher cannot be altered: this includes our age, personality, powers, and appearance. Everyone here is like a record stuck in time. We can't go forward, and we can't go back. You're doomed to stay like this. Forever."
The trio felt a sense of uneasiness from Marth's explanation "That's sounds…very disturbing" said Swordfighter-twiddling his thumbs.
"Trust me it's not bad as it sounds." Said the prince, standing up from the bed. "You get used to it after a while."
"Ookkaaayyy then." Said the shooter, feeling a little uncomfortable. She changed the conversation to something else, to take her mind off the implications. "Now that we established that all of this is a huge misunderstanding, do you think you transport us back to our home world perhaps? There are probably people looking for us right now."
All the residents winced at once, staying deadly silent at Gunner's request. "What's wrong? Why's everyone gone quiet?" piped the shooter, getting increasingly worried at their captor's actions.
Lucario slowly rose from his chair, the smile that was plastered on his snout before was replace with a sad somber expression "I don't know how to tell you this but, there is no possible way that can happen."
The three of their heart's skipped a beat, getting very tense at what Lucario is implying.
"Why the hell do you mean we can't go back!?" yelled Brawler at the canine, clenching his fist with anger.
"Mr. Brawler let me explain-"
"Are you keeping us here? Imprisoning us for trespassing!"
"No! It's not like that its-"
"WE JUST WANT TO GO HOME! WHAT GIVES YOU THE RIGHT TO-"
"YOU CAN'T GO BACK HOME BECAUSE YOU NEVER LEFT IN THE FIRST PLACE!" The jackal telepathically shouted in their minds, the anger fury that Brawler had felt before was now replaced with confusion and surprise.
"Huh?"
"You never left this world, you were here since the beginning."
"What?! No that can't be right! You said That Smashers were beings that originated from other worlds. So that means-"
"I said they were beings that were copied from other worlds." Said Lucario, interrupting the fist-fighter.
"Copied?" Brawler said in utter disbelief.
"Yes, copied. You see Mr. Brawler, we are not the real thing; we are clones of the original. This world has a way of creating new smashers, it searches the entirety of the Omniverse; looking for potential heroes. Once it finds a worthy hero, it replicates every aspect of the warrior; transferring the collected information into their trophy form. Creating a brand new Smasher into existence" said the jackal, becoming very seriouswith his choice of words. "Because of the fact that the World of Trophies is separated from the rest of reality, and that all trophies are bound to this land; we can never leave this realm"
The three of them were in absolute shock. Swordfighter' and Brawler's jaws dropped to the floor whiles tears threaten to spill from Gunner's eyes "So, we can't go back home?!" sniffed the shooter.
"I'm afraid so, you can never return to your world"
Gunner slumped to her knees, crying into her hands, mourning the loss of everything she ever knew.
Lucario went over the sobbing girl, she went down to her level as he gave her a big hug-patting on the back for comfort.
"Shhh...Shhh…It's going to be alright" Cooed the blue canine "You're going to be okay".
"No I won't." wept the shooter, pressing her wet face into his fur "We're trapped in this place, all of our loved ones are on the other side, and we can never see them again. We'll be in this hell forever."
"Don't say that." Lucario said, wiping a tear from her face "It's true that you cannot leave this world, but that doesn't mean there's nothing for you here. I know how you feel Miss Gunner, we all do, we've been through the same thing you have. All of us had thought that everything was lost, that there was nothing worth fighting for but we created something together. We picked up ourselves from the ground and started looking up, and eventually we all found something worth living for. We all made our peace with our fate, and we never looked back. I don't know what will happen in your future, but I assure you that this is not the end: Things will get better. I Promise."
"Gunner Stopped sobbing, her breaths becoming very slow and shaky. "Feeling Better?" asked the canine. "A little, thank you for trying to cheer me up." Lucario hugged her once again "Don't mention it."
Swordfighter approached the two, picking up his feet off the ground until his was right in front of them "So… what happens now?"
"Well Mr. Swordfighter that's all up to you." said Lucario, he let go with his hug with Gunner; standing up to eye-level with the sword wielder. "We can release you. Letting you go out into the world, exploring the big wide world. Or."
"Or what?" said Swordfighter.
"We can stay with us, you can join the Super Smash Brothers. We'll give you: Food, Water, Shelter, and you need to make yourselves comfortable. We will support you in any way we can, as well as to train you on how to survive in the realm if you desire. So what do you say?"
"I'm staying." Said Gunner slowly picking herself off the floor, her eyes still red from the tears "I vote for staying."
Swordfighter thought of the deal for several moments before turning towards the canine "I'll take you upon your offer, for how dangerous this world is; a bit of guidance would definitely help us out." He looked towards the fist-fighter, whose was staring at the ground in thought. "How about you Brawler?"
The red fighter raised his head to meet everyone's eyes, trying his best not so show any emotion "I choose to stay, but only because I've got no other choice." Said Brawler, avoiding eye contact with the group.
"Well I guess we'll all be living here for now on." Swordfighter said the canine. "Thank you for doing this."
The Lucario smiled with glee, taking the sword wielders hand for another handshake. "You're welcome Mr. Swordfighter. Welcome to the team."
Whew, that chapter took a while to complete. Anyway I'm glad for your patience for this story. I'll be quite busy with college so I may have some trouble fitting the fanfiction in my schedule but i'll try to work on it as much as I can. I don't want to rush this. I want this to be the best story it can be. So i'll be updating this story irregularly but I will try to release chapters as soon as I can.
If you have any suggestions on what I should be doing in this story, you can write it in the comments or PM me. I'll be willing to listen to new ideas
Till next time.