Chapter 35: Sitting by the Campfire
"What in the world?!" Chimed Snake. "A pencil? It produced a pencil?! Why?"
"Doesn't matter why, we should dispose of it as soon as possible." Said Samus, hovering her arm-cannon at the generated object. Just in case things go awry.
"What?! No! We can't do that!" Shouted Fox, grabbing the bounty hunter's weapon with his hand, moving it out of line with the writing implement. "This…pencil, may be important later in the future. This is here for a reason after all, do you really want to destroy it, knowing that?"
Samus lowered her cannon, looking of the side as she comes up with an answer. "Perhaps, but it could be a trap. We don't know if it's simply a pencil or something nefarious."
"I don't think so." Commented Lucario. During Samus's and Fox's exchange, he took the liberty of viewing the thin wooden object with his aura sense. When he was done, he opened his eyes and talked. "I scanned it, there's no malefic energy in sight. It's safe."
"[And I'm not seeing anything that would make this pencil dangerous.]" Said R.O.B. as he analyzed the implement with his robotic visor. "All I see is an ordinary pencil."
"Bu-but why would FW put a pencil in his data files? As a matter of fact, how was he able to digitize something into binary code? It just doesn't compute at all!"
"[Transmuting matter in code huh, hmm.]" R.O.B. muttered as he moved towards the computer screen, tapping his metal chin in thought. "[There's two explanations for that: It's possible that this FW character is a more brilliant inventor than we thought. He could have discovered a way to digitize matter. If that's the case I'm going to have to take second look at that chip. It's unlikely I missed anything on the first examination, but there's no harm in doing it again. There is a small chance I might find the trick to how this works.]"
"And what's the second explanation?" Asked the vulpine.
"[Magic.]" R.O.B. plainly said.
"Ugh, it's almost always magic. Kind of an annoying cliché around here to be honest." Grunted Snake, tempting to take out his cigarette to smoke it, but he restrained himself from doing so.
"[As for the pencil…I don't think I'll be able to help you there any further. I didn't detect anything out of the ordinary.]"
Samus sighed, shaking her head side to side. "Fine, we won't destroy it…for now. If we're going to keep the pencil, we need to secure it somewhere safe."
"Easy, just use the vault. It's pretty hard to break in there, that's where I'd put it." Suggested the solider.
"[That's a good idea, but before we do that, there is something that must be said.]" Spoke R.O.B. as he turned his body to Snake and Lucario. "[Do you two remember when you told me that the beam on the moon was gone?]"
"Yes, it was quite shocking. I don't understand why it even happened in the first place." Responded the jackal.
"[Well I do. I told you that I sent a team to the lighthouse to investigate. Do you know what they found?]"
The two didn't speak at all, they were listing at R.O.B.'s words.
"[The lightbulb was missing.]"
Everyone held their breath, they couldn't believe what was coming out of the robot's mouth. "Missing?!" Cried Samus.
"[You hear me right. It's gone.]" Confirmed R.O.B. "[And there's a high chance it was stolen.]"
"Stolen? By FW?" Replied the fox.
"[It's possible, but it could also be someone else. I really don't know.]"
"What should we do in the meantime? Should we tell the others about our findings?" Questioned the armored woman.
"[Yes, but not at this moment.]" Affirmed the Veteran. "[I still need to examine the evidence before we tell them. Don't want to give them false information. I should get all the answers tonight. We'll tell everyone tomorrow when we get all the Smasher's gathered up. For the meantime, take a break. I handle the program. Just make sure the pencil is in the vault before you hit the covers.]"
"Okay, R.O.B. we'll go now. Just make sure you get some rest too." Said Fox as the rest of the Smashers left.
"[For the last time, I'm a robot. I don't sleep!]" Hollered R.O.B. as the door closed shut.
It's been a couple of days since the recent arrival of the latest Newcomer, Rosalina, Even though she's new, she proved to be very popular around the Veterans, due to her looks, personality, and wonderful tales she would tell from time to time.
It was a late Wednesday. The sky was filled with stars, nebulas, planets, and all sorts of astronomical objects; it was like a starry blanket had wrapped around the planet, engulfing the WOT with its magnificent presence. On this particular night, Mario suggested to the Smashers, that they all should throw a picnic outside of the mansion. The idea was unanimously agreed upon, and they began to prepare. The field was scattered with fighters; some of them were running through the field (More particularly the kids.); so we're relaxing by the fire, cooking and eating their food; and some like Sword, Brawler, and Gunner, we're listening to the stories told from other trophies; specifically the adventures of other Smashers from their own individual worlds.
"So what happened after you pulled the last needle?" Asked the blonde blade-wielder.
Lucas smiled when he heard the question. "After I pulled it, everything went back to normal, everyone had a happy ending." After realizing what he said, his grin faltered a bit. "Well, almost everybody."
Falco sat dumbfounded until what the psychic was insinuating. "Oh…right. Lucas, I just want to say-"
"No need to apologize Falco." Said Lucas. "It happened a long time ago, even though I'm sadden to what…happened to them. I know they are looking down upon me from the heavens. I'm so glad I raised with best mother and brother in the world." The boy said to the circle of fighters.
"You enjoying this guys?" Sword whispered to his friends.
"It's interesting I'd admit. I didn't knew that all of us came from such diverse backgrounds." Admitted Brawler.
"Oh…uh, its fine I suppose." Muttered Gunner, looking off to the side, not looking anyone in the eye directly.
"If it was fine, you wouldn't be sulking every damn time some else speaks." Said the fist-fighter.
"Brawler, hush." Sword commanded to the black-haired Mii before turning to the shooter. "Gunner, what's with the sad expression? You been acting like that ever since we joined the circle."
Gunner bit her lip, breathing out two breaths of warm air into the freezing night before responding to that dreadful question. "When the Smashers, told their heroic tales. The deeds they committed in their past lives. I've realized why we've never really completely fit into the mansion."
"Fit in the mansion? You mean are struggles of adapting the lifestyle and culture of the Super Smash Brothers? Why you say that?" Questioned Brawler as he raised an eyebrow.
"Everyone here has something to add to their character: Mario is a plumber who saves the princess from being kidnapped, Ness saved his world from been swallowed whole by some formless monsters, Mr. Game & Watch was a productive member of his society. Even the villains got stuff worth talking about. But us three? There is nothing remarkable about any of us. We didn't do anything that granted us being reincarnated into this place. We don't add anything to the team. We're just…hanging around. I don't think we can even compare ourselves to the others."
"Yeah, I know how you feel." Sword said solemnly "We are lagging behind the Veterans and fellow Newcomers. It's not even a completion, they out-match us. It feel like we're dead weight."
"Now that's not true!" Spoke a voice outside the trio, based on the pitch, it was most likely Lucas. The Miis broke eye-contact with one another and looked towards the circle-who were staring at them.
"Overheard our conversation, did we? That's very rude you know." Said Brawler.
"When did you ever care of being polite?" Asked Link.
"Fair point." Acknowledge the fist-fighter. "Anyway, you were saying blondey?" Brawler questioned to the psychic.
"It's not true, you aren't a detriment to the team." Reaffirmed Lucas. "Sure, you may be…good as fighting as the others, but that's fine. No one is perfect when they start out."
"The kids right. When I started my journey, I was a simple 10 year old living with my mom." Spoke the Pokémon Trainer as he petted Squirte on the head. "It took a lot of will and sweat, but eventually…I became the one of the best trainers in all of Kanto."
"Yes, there is some truth in practicing to make yourself better, but…we're not like you guys." Gunner reasoned. "All the fighters here had been through trials and errors, that had adventures that tested their very existence; and they became heroes of their individual universes. But us three? We're not special, we haven't done anything that would classify us as heroes. We just nobodies."
"Are you saying that because you don't believe you deserve everything good that's been happening to you in that last 4 weeks?" Said Ike.
Gunner looked away from the crowd, not wanting to see their faces. "Yes."
Sword sighed in defeat. "Maybe a little bit."
"Nope." Brawler said as he crossed his arms.
"Well stop it, you aren't going to gain anything with that line of thinking." Ike continued. "Look, just because you came from nothing (supposedly), does not mean you're going to be nothing forever. Most of us we're simple people before our adventures and we came out on top. The past is a reference point. Your history does not determine if you're good or not, it's what you decide to do in the future, that determines your character."
"*Beep boop beep boop boop beep beep booob beeeeep.*" Exclaimed Mr. Game & Watch.
"Uh…what did he say?" Asked Swordfighter.
"He said that you a may have an awesome background a after all! You just a may not be remember is all!" Said Luigi.
"I guess that make sense, thanks for saying that, it really helped."
"No problem." Replied Falco. "Now since that's done and over with, do you guys want to hear how I kicked the asses of Star Wolf with a single missile?"
The circle erupted in "Yeses" and "Do tells". Which prompted the bird to speak of his experience.
"Oh this ought to be good!" Shouted Brawler, as he opened up his fourth can of beer.
The mayor and the fitness trainer were carrying bunches of sticks and dried leaves, walking over to the child android, the star, and the space princess who were sitting by a pile of logs.
"That should do it!" Said Villager, as he and Wii Fit tossed the firewood into the pit. "Now all we need to do is light it up."
"But how are going to do that? We don't have any lighter on hand." Asked the trainer.
The boy was tapping on his chin for a solution, until a light bulb went on in his noggin. ""We can create fire the old fashion way!" Exclaimed the Smasher as he grabbed a stick of the ground. "If I can spin the stick at a certain speed, I can cause the wood the burn via friction, then-"
"Or I can just blast the wood with my flame weapon." Spoke Mega Man as he generate a small stream of fire onto the pit, causing it to burn.
"Or you can blast the wood with your flame weapon." The mayor sighed in defeat as he tossed the stick away.
"We know that we have a source of heat, I guess we can start by making s'mores." Rosalina stated as she opened the marshmallow bag with her hands. "I got the chocolates and crackers ready too."
Luma cheered on, as each Newcomers took the spongy white cylinders of sugar onto metal pokers. Hovering their snack over the flames.
Well almost everyone.
"Uh…Wii Fit?"
"Yes, Villager?"
"Why are you roasting a carrot over the fire pit?"
The yoga trainer looked down at her stick to see an orange vegetable getting cooked under the intense heat of the campfire. "I'm skipping out on the marshmallows, I'm having a healthy alternative instead."
"But…carrots?" Said Villager.
"They very good for the body; helps with strengthening your eyesight." Justified Wii Fit. "Because, I don't want to risk gain weight because I wanted to eat something chock full of sugar."
"But our forms don't change." Argued the child. "We'll stay like this forever. I mean we can't get injured so I doubt that our weight will increase if-"
"Villager, if she wants to eat a carrot, then let her eat a carrot." Spoke Mega Man.
The mayor shrugged his shoulder as he, Luma, and Wii Fit were preoccupied on warming up their meals. Mega Man let his eyes wander until he found Rosalina gazing off to the many constellations in the sky. She was so distracted, she didn't notice she extended her marshmallow too far into the fire; it was quickly getting burnt.
"Rosa, you're marshmallow is getting charred." Warned the android.
"Huh? OH!" Cried the princess; blowing hard on the burning end of her stick in an attempt to save her snack. After she was done, she inspected the food. "It's burnt all around, but it should be still edible. Thanks for warning me, Rock."
"Got things on your mind?" Asked Mega Man.
"I got some lone thoughts dancing on my brain, why'd you ask?"
"Your head was pointed towards the sky. You had this look on your face, the kind of look you make when you're trying to recollect." Answered the robotic boy.
Rosalina closed her eyes, the light of the fire shining on her face like the rise of the sun. "I was think about my home; the children I raised back on my ship."
The tone slightly soured after she said that, the Newcomers not expecting her to talk about her personal life so easily.
Villager tilted his head. "Children?"
"The Lumas" Rosalina gestured to the star sitting beside her.
"That's right, the species of the star." Wii Fit muttered to herself before making eye contact with Rosa. "I'm sorry for what happened, I can't imagine how much you miss them."
"Yes, it' saddening that I'm separated from them. How it's most likely I won't meet them in person anymore. I'm disheartened." Sighed the princess, before giving a faint smile. "But at the same time, I'm happy. I already made my peace with the universe."
"You're happy that you've been separated from your children?" Rock questioned in shock.
"Of course not. If I had it any other way, I would have stayed with the Lumas." Explained the female Newcomer. "The reason why I'm somewhat happy, is because I know their safe."
"What makes you think their safe?" Said the trainer, taking her carrot out of the fire.
"Remember what we've been taught? We're not ourselves, we're clones. Our original selves are back in their respective worlds. Including my own." The princess began to press the marshmallow between two crackers and a piece of chocolate. "And I know that the original Rosalina would protect her family, no matter the costs. They're in good hands. Not to mention the fact I'm not alone here after all, a little piece of them came with me." Rosa answered as she petted the Luma.
"And that's the reason you're happy?" Mega Man said; taking out his marshmallow from the pit.
"No. There is one more reason." She continued. "I honestly think, eventually, I will be able to see them again."
"Didn't you say that it unlikely you would see them in person again?" Questioned Villager, finishing his s'more.
"Yes, in person. We can't cross to other realms physically, but that doesn't mean the path is closed for good. I believe someday, somehow, I'll see my children once more."
"You know this for fact?" Spoke Wii Fit.
"No, it's a feeling. Just a feeling." Rosa said softly before grinning to the Newcomers. "But never mind that, now's the time to relax our bodies and minds." She took her s'more and presented it to the Smashers. "Let's touch our snacks together and call it toast."
The other fighters were more than happy to oblige as they pressed their s'mores (and carrot) together. Eating their delicious meal with satisfaction as they listen to the crackling of embers
Snake, Lucario, Mario, Samus, Fox, Mewtwo, and Marth were waiting by the steps of the front door of the mansion; they either stood up against the metal railing, or sat on the white stone.
"How long till he get's here? We don't have all night." Grunted Snake; tapping his utility belt impatiently.
"He'll a get here when he a get's here Snake. Let him a take he's a time!" Said the plumber in red.
The front doors open slowly enough for it creak. The fighters turned around, a saw the robot in the (metallic) flesh. "[Sorry, I had to make sure that the tests were absolutely correct.]"
"It's okay R.O.B." Spoke Marth. "So what did you find?"
"[Well it not your normal computer program that's for sure." Explained the robot. "There's a quite a bit of information, I don't know where to begin.]"
"Let's start with it's components, more specifically it's make. Is it purely made out of data, or is there a magic influence of some kind?" Asked Mewtwo.
"[The main structure of program was definitely made with binary code, but there are small traces of magic in the core of the software.]"
"Magic. Who ever could have guessed?" Snake sarcastically said. "Did you have Zelda do her thing on it?"
"[Already had, she couldn't make heads of tails of it; this magic was completely foreign to her.]" Explained R.O.B. "[She couldn't interact with it; she couldn't even make the energy budge one bit. Whatever this magic is, it's resilient, and it's powerful.]"
"This is the first time magic has been used in FW's inventions; could our guy also be a magic user?" Pondered Fox.
"Hopefully we'll know in due time." Lucario commented. "How about the three colored boxes, have you figured out how they work?"
"[I data-mined it; the only thing I uncovered about the text boxes were that they we're on some kind of timer.]" Answered the Veteran. "[The red box in particular is scheduled to be activated sometime next week.]"
"The time of the next Newcoming." Said the solider.
"Is it a possible, that he has a something planned next a time?" whispered Mario.
"I'm willing to bet my life on it." Affirmed Samus. "One last thing R.O.B., has the pencil shown any new changes?"
"[No, it relatively stayed the same when we had it under our possession. I should know. I made daily checks on that object, but the results are the same.]"
"Still don't understand why I gave us a pencil, just doesn't make sense." Fox shook his head. "Anyway, we should tell the others about this. They need to know what's going on."
"Should we a wait till the night is over?" Asked Mario.
"It's best to do it now, just to get it out of the way." Said Snake. "So who should break the news?"
"I'll do it." Answered teleported to the field where everyone was hanging out. When he materialized, he communicated with everyone with his Telepathy. "Attention everyone!"
All of the trophies turned towards him, wondering what the Pokémon had to say. "Sorry to disturb you from your activities. But I got an announcement to make."
"Is it about how much off an asshole you are?" Hollered Brawler.
"Quiet you miserable man.." Seethed Mewtwo before continuing. "No, I'm here to tell you we found more info about FW."
The crowd opened the eyes with awe, as the psychic told them all about their findings, they couldn't believe what was happening, but unbeknownst to them. This is just a taste of what's to come.