Chapter 18: Beyond The Sea

Meanwhile back with Isabelle's party who had taken the right path, they found themselves outside the maze upon arriving on the other side of the warp point.

"We're outside already?" Swordfighter noted.

"Is it just me or does anyone else hear the sound of the ocean?" Wii Fit Trainer pointed out when her hearing picked up what sounded like sound of waves nearby.

As the group moved further away from the maze, they soon found themselves hearing the ocean waves too. It wasn't long until they arrived at charming coastal city with a seaside palace not far from a large blue ocean that stretched across the horizon.

"Oh what a lovely ocean! Just smell that ocean breeze. It's such a shame that this world seems empty of people besides us and the Puppet Fighters. This would have been a wonderful vacation spot." Isabelle was in love with the view of the coastal city and ocean both.

"I see some islands in the distance— that must be where Galeem's latest creation landed." Marth could see the outline of an series of islands in the distance.

"And once we get rid of it, that should be the last of Galeem's defenses broken. We'll finally be able to face Galeem on equal ground and this time, we will win. We have to this time." Ryu punched his fist into his open hand.

Marth nodded. "Galeem will not allow us of us to escape if we fail again. As Megaman said, we can't repeat our mistake again. We must be prepared this time."

"Before we even start planning for our fight with Galeem...How do we get to those islands? I think it is too far to swim." Ryu asked.

"Indeed. We would be drowning at sea before we could even get halfway. There must be something we can do..." Marth agreed with Ryu's assessment and tried to think of an alternative idea of how they could reach those islands.

"Ooh, what if we build a raft?" Isabelle suggested brightly.

"That could work. I mean those palm trees over there could be cut down to build it." Swordfighter pointed to some nearby palm trees that looked sturdy to cut down to make a raft out of but would it be sea-worthy enough?

"There is a coastal city nearby. While I don't think we'll see a living soul there, we should take a look around in any case." Wii Fit Trainer suggested an idea of her own.

"Alright, let's take a look around. Maybe we'll find a ship that we could use." Isabelle nodded.

"Be careful for Puppet Fighters. For all we know, they could be lurking in there." Ryu warned.

"Pichu!"

And so the group headed into the coastal city in hopes of finding any clues or aid in their current dilemma.

As Ryu had expected, what awaited them inside the seaside city were Puppet Fighters had been hiding inside buildings and hiding from sight waiting to pounce. Thankfully for our Smash Fighters, they were able to handle the threats without much trouble. They looked high and low and even looked inside the seaside palace but alas there was not a soul to be seen.

"Yeah, as we expected. This city is completely devoid of everything but Puppet Fighters." Swordfighter sighed sadly.

"We couldn't find anything that could help us get across the sea either. You would think for a city that dwells nearby the sea, they would have a harbor or at the very least some ships near the area." Wii Fit Trainer shook her head.

"Let us not forget that this is world created by Galeem. We'll go with Isabelle's idea and try to make a raft ourselves." Ryu stated.

"I just thought of something. What about the Great Fox? Couldn't the ship just fly us over to that island?" Swordfighter suggested.

"While that's not a bad idea. I think we shouldn't involve the others or the Great Fox itself in this. Samus and Megaman's teams are still within the area and they might need back-up in an emergency. Besides it wouldn't be right to use Fox's Starship without asking him first." Marth explained.

"Ah, I see your point. Never mind then." Swordfighter understood the reasoning and withdrew his idea.

"Pi?" Pichu's ears perked up in alert as if he heard something that they other fighters hadn't.

"Pichu? What's wrong?" Marth asked in concern for the baby mouse Pokemon that was hanging on his shoulder.

"Pi! Pichu Pi!" Pichu sounded urgent and tried to gently tug on Marth's hair.

"You hear fighting? From where?" Marth asked Pichu who pointed to far eastern side of the area.

"You can hear that from all the way all over there? Wow those are some sharp ears." Swordfighter was impressed by Pichu's acute hearing.

"Could it be one of our own fighting a Puppet Fighter? Or perhaps one of the fighters still under Galeem's command." Ryu wondered.

"Well we won't know until we get there. Pichu, show us the way." Isabelle asked Pichu to lead them to the source of the sound Pichu heard.

Pichu immediately jumped off Marth's shoulder and started to dash off, the other fighters followed in hot pursuit, letting Pichu guide them.

A green haired swordsman blocked yet another fire attack, using his shield to protect him from the flames.

Garbed in a green and white tunic and adorning an unique looking headpiece that looked like dragon wings.

He was currently fighting against a strange boy who was carrying some kind of red and white ball with a dragon-like creature under his command. He wore clothes that the swordsman had never seen before but that wasn't important right now, he just needed make it out of this fight first.

"Can't we talk this over? Why are you fighting me? There's no reason for us to fight!" The swordsman tried to reason with the other fighter to get him to cease his relentless attack but the other fighter didn't seem interested in talking. Or rather...it seemed like he was under some kind of possession, if that red sinister glow in the boy's eyes gave anything away. There was also a giant white hand hovering above him.

'He must be under some kind of mind-control by that giant hand. Maybe if I can get rid of that thing...?' The Swordsman tried to think of a solution but had to brace himself once again as the boy ordered another flamethrower attack by his dragon-like creature—one that also seemed to carry the same red glow so it would safe to assume that both were being possessed at the same time. However, he wasn't able to get his shield up in time so he prepared himself to get burned in the upcoming attack.

Thankfully for him, rescue came in form of a small tiny mouse that quickly fired off a thunder-shock.

"Pichuuu!" The sudden attack of electricity caused the dragon-like creature to be stunned momentarily.

Pichu became dizzy and light-headed and started to fall backwards but the swordsman managed to catch him. "Are you okay?"

"Pichuuu..." Pichu's eyes were still swirling around, too dazed to even respond properly.

"Don't worry, we're here to help!" Isabelle declared as she and the other fighters finally arrived.

"Oh Pichu, you used your electricity again, didn't you?" Isabelle picked up the tiny mouse.

"Well, what ever the little guy did—he just saved me from being burnt to a crisp just now." The green-haired swordsman responded.

"Wait...are you a Newcomer too? I haven't seen you before." Isabelle blinked in realization.

"Sorry, I'll explain later. We need to take care of the current danger first." The swordsman apologized before standing back up and getting ready to fight again. "Name's Solo by the way." He added.

"Well met, Solo. I take it you've already met Red then." Ryu greeted as he got into his attack stance.

"Red? Is this guy a friend of yours?" Solo asked.

"Yes—however—he's unfortunately under control of a being known as Galeem. Just like many of us had been until we were rescued by our fellow fighters." Ryu explained briefly.

"I see." Solo nodded. 'It's just like they warned us. Then there's only one thing to do; Uphold the promise that I made.' He called the words in his head and solidified the choice he made when he was first summoned here. "Then allow me to help, this is what I was brought here to do after all."

"...?" Ryu looked confused but shook his head, he could ask what Solo meant later.

"I'll take care of Pichu, you guys be careful." Isabelle told the others who decided she needed to look after Pichu until he recovered from shocking himself by accident.

"Don't worry, Isabelle. We've got this." Swordfighter reassured.

"Stay behind us." Marth told her.

Isabelle nodded and went a small distance away to find a safe place for Pichu to recover.

"So, I take it that if we destroy the hand that controls him, he'll return to his senses?"

Marth nodded. "Cutting the strings connecting them also does the trick too. They sometimes revert back into their trophy form or they just wake up from their control. It depends on the condition the fighter is in."

"I didn't understand any of that, but I think get the gist of the idea." Solo raised an eyebrow in confusion but decided to just roll of it. The important thing was to rescue the fighter before them.

Red decided to throw out both Squirtle and Ivysaur as well to join the fight. Both also having the same red glow.

"I don't think cutting strings is going to work this time." Ryu shook his head.

"Then we must attack the source itself. Ryu and I will act the decoys to keep the Pokemon's attention on us." Wii Fit Trainer told the others.

"And we'll take care of the hand, got it." Swordfighter nodded.

"Ready?" Ryu asked the other fighters as they prepared their attacks, on Ryu's signal, Wii Fit Trainer and Ryu charged towards the Pokemon while Solo, Marth and Swordfighter launched themselves into the air to take the fight straight to the Master Hand Clone itself.

Wii Fit Trainer and Ryu dodged the trio of elemental attacks coming from the Pokemon as they approached and started to deliver blows directly to the Pokemon themselves.

Wii Fit Trainer took the window of opportunity to breeze pass the three Pokemon and grab Red from behind in order to stop him from giving any more orders.

"I'm sorry about this."

Ryu on the other hand, went one on one with Charzard, locking fists against claws in a contest of strength between them, the two trying to overpower the other.

Isabelle in the meantime was trying to do all she can to try and help Pichu recover faster from his stunned condition. Isabelle pulled a palm leaf off from nearby and started to use it a fan to try cool off the heat as the sunny weather (while quite nice) was not helpful in Pichu's already overheated body due to his uncontrollable electric shocks.

Pichu started to come around as the fighters started their attacks on the hand itself. Since it was controlling both Red and the three Pokemon at once, it had no chance to defend itself so with one deadly blow from Solo's blade, the hand finally crashed to the sandy floor in defeat before exploding.

Upon the hand's defeat, The red glow in not only Red's but the three other Pokemon faded out until their usual light returned into their eyes.

"Squirt?" Squirtle looked around in confusion just as Ivysaur and Charzard looked just as much puzzled about why they were out of their Pokeballs.

Red blinked a few times before it registered that he had full control of his body again. "What? What...happened?"

Wii Fit Trainer released Red as soon as she realized he was back to normal. "How do you feel?"

"...Wii Fit Trainer? It really is you! You're okay! I feel...confused I guess? What happened to us? I remember we went to fight off Galeem at the cliff but..." Red tried to recall his memory up to the very last moment but his memory of what came after was a complete blank.

"Ah! My Pokemon! Are they okay?!" Red quickly went to check his pokeballs but found that the three Pokemon were already out and approached their master.

"Ivysaur."

"Squirtle squirt!"

Charzard simply gave a simple snort but bumped his snout on Red's hat to check on him.

"I'm so glad you guys are okay too. I guess that means we all got defeated at the same time huh?" Red was relieved to see his Pokemon were unhurt.

"It's a bit of a long story." Wii Fit started to tell Red of everything that had happened since that day.

While this was happening, Pichu had finally come out of his stunned stupor and shook his head to shake off any remaining dizziness.

"Pichu?"

"Oh good, you're finally came around." Isabelle sighed in relief before gently discarding the palm leaf that she was using previously.

"How's Pichu, Isabelle?" Swordfighter asked.

"He's just came around. How did it go with Red's rescue?" Isabelle answered before asking a question of her own.

"As you can see, he's back to his normal self again. Wii Fit Trainer is just updating him on our current situation as we speak." Marth answered this time.

"Oh that's such a great relief. And we wouldn't have known Red was nearby if it wasn't for Pichu's good hearing." Isabelle praised.

"I'll say, if it wasn't for his counterattack, I would have received the full brunt of that fire attack. Thanks for the rescue, little guy. You really saved me back there." Solo thanked Pichu with a smile while bending down on one knee to get closer to Pichu's level.

"Pichu!" Pichu beamed brightly.

"Speaking of which, Solo, there's some things we need to ask you. Is that alright?" Ryu turned to the green-haired swordsman.

Solo nodded. "I did say that I would explain myself after we rescued your friend. I think I already have an idea what it is you want to ask me though."

Wii Fit Trainer and Red (who had returned his Pokemon back to their pokeballs to let them get some well-deserved rest) soon joined them.

"I take it Wii Fit Trainer has brought you up to speed?" Ryu asked the Pokemon Trainer.

"Yeah, first thing first," Red turned to face Solo before bring both his hands together in apology before blurting out. "I'm so so sorry! I feel so bad about attacking you out of nowhere like that. I really had no idea that was happening until Wii Fit Trainer had told me what had happened!"

Solo shook his head. "It's fine, don't worry about. I had my suspicion you were under some kind of spell when we fought. That red glow in your eyes gave it away. Besides we're all still in one peice so no harm done."

"But still-! I feel awful about it. I promise I'll make it up to you someday. Thank you for helping me and my Pokemon break free from Galeem's control everyone. I would still be completely unaware of what I was doing if you guys hadn't come when you did."

"Well, it was Pichu who heard your fighting from afar." Marth smiled.

"So I heard. Thanks Pichu." Red smiled at the small baby Pokemon.

"Pichu, Pichu!" Pichu jumped up on to Red's shoulder and gently rubbed his head against Red's cheek.

"Heh, I see you haven't changed at all." He then turned back to everyone else. "So if I heard right from Wii Fit Trainer...we all lost our fight with Galeem and we all got captured then used as part of Galeem's army force?"

"In a nutshell, yeah. A lot of us would have still been under Galeem's control if Kirby and the other Newcomers hadn't come to our rescue saving the first of us. We've been gradually saving everyone we find since then." Swordfighter added.

"The other Newcomers? Are they alright?" Solo became alert at this.

"Oh, that's right, we've been meaning to ask you. Are you a Newcomer too? You seem to know about the other Newcomers already so I just assumed..." Wii Fit Trainer finally asked the question that all the other fighters wanted to know.

Solo nodded. "I'm not the only one, there were others just like me that were summoned by the behest of a being you call Master Hand."

"Master Hand?! You mean the real one right? Not the countless clones of them that we've been fighting?" Marth pressed for answers.

"It must have been. The Master Hand I remember wasn't hostile at all. Nothing like the one we just defeated." Solo shrugged.

"Do you know where the Real Master Hand is then?" Wii Fit Trainer asked.

"I wish I could answer but I really don't know what became of them. It's complicated to explain without retelling the whole story. I like to believe though they would not give up the fight so easily—even in their weakened state."

"Solo, it seems you remember more than your fellow newcomers. They've all suffered from memory loss of how and why they were brought here. All they remember is a bright light before arriving in this world. Please, you must tell them and us what you know. It's important for them to remember what they might have forgotten." Ryu recalled.

Isabelle nodded earnestly. "They've been trying so hard to remember but it's been difficult for them, if you can share what you know with them, it would mean so much."

Solo sighed. "Ah...So they did end up forgetting everything that happened back there. I was afraid of that. I know the reason why they have those gaps in their memories. But as I said, I would have to explain the full story of how we got summoned here and what happened to us before we ended up getting separated and scattered across the two worlds. We originally ended up in a place called the World of Darkness first."

"Two Worlds? I assume you mean Dharkon then, Galeem's exact opposite if what we heard of them is correct." Ryu crossed his arms.

"So Galeem's and Dharkon's worlds are interconnected somehow. Is it like a mirror world? I remember Princess Zelda talking about a dark world that laid intertwined with Hyrule back where she came from." Marth summarized.

Solo nodded. "That's the best way to put it. They're two sides of the same coin, the only difference between them is one's ruled by Galeem and the other by Dharkon. Master Hand summoned us here to help and aid you guys in fighting back against these two deadly forces that could threaten everything that we hold dear. They warned us that if we don't stop them here and now, there will be countless other worlds that will suffer the same fate as yours did."

"We can't let that happen! I don't want the same thing to happen to the worlds that our new friends came from." Isabelle spoke up with determination.

Marth nodded in agreement. "I would never wish such a fate on my worst enemy, let alone the homes that our new friends hailed from."

"That's why we're here. Master Hand wanted us to aid you in not only defeating Galeem and Dharkon together, but also restoring your own worlds that Galeem had robbed from you. I could tell you the whole story here if you wanted." Solo offered.

"Hmm, perhaps you should save the full story for when we return to the Great Fox, I feel like this something that our new friends need to hear from one of their own—especially one who remembers everything that they've forgotten. Ah, right, it's up to you if you wish to join us or not." Marth reasoned.

"Of course. If you would have me, I would be glad to join. It's the reason why I'm here after all. Besides, any journey is made better with companions." Solo nodded.

"Wonderful! Welcome to the team, Mr. Solo! I'm sure the others will be so happy to see another Newcomer." Isabelle cheered.

"Ah, just Solo is fine, Miss Isabelle." Solo corrected.

"Oh, then in that case just call me Isabelle. We're all friends here so there's no need for formalities." Isabelle chirped in response.

"So, why were you on the beach in the first place?" Swordfighter wondered.

"When I came around, I found myself here on this beach. I could have sworn that I saw one of our allies fall on those islands too. I was trying to find a way to reach those islands beyond the sea so I can go to their aid. But then...well...Red happened." Solo explained.

"Hahaha...right. That's when we got into our fight isn't it?" Red sheepishly finished.

"Yup." Solo nodded.

"Then we are of the same mind then, we're trying to get to those islands too." Wii Fit Trainer informed the green-haired swordsman.

"No kidding. Talk about fate working in strange ways. I'm going to guess that you guys had no luck either on how to get across the sea either?"

"Yeah...we thought we could find a ship or something but there's nothing here but Puppet Fighters." Swordfighter sighed sadly.

"There has to be a way for us to reach the islands." Solo tried to think of a solution to their current problem of their lack of transportation to get to those islands.

An idea clicked into place in Red's head. "Oh! I've got it! I might have the solution to our problem. Isabelle, you guys have said you've been exploring this area right? Have you seen anyway with a beach shallow enough for access to the ocean?" Red turned to Isabelle.

"Hm...I think there was a section of beach like that but why do you want to know?" Isabelle tilted her head in curiosity.

Red chuckled and detached a Pokeball from the Pokeball belt he wore around his waist. "I have just the Pokemon for the job. They don't call me the Pokemon Trainer for nothing." He winked.

"...Pokemon Trainer?" Solo raised an eyebrow.

"That's the name he goes by in the Smash Tournaments. We call him Red outside of those events since that's his real name." Ryu explained with a small smile.

"Ohhhh...I see. So it's like an official title of sorts. While Master Hand did explain some of the details, I admit I still feel a little confused." Solo slowly nodded.

"C'mon. Let's go. I'll show you exactly what I mean when we get there." Red beamed.

Everyone was still puzzled but they decided to trust in Red's idea and head to the section of beach that Isabelle was describing. It wasn't like they had any better ideas other than attempting to build a raft that might not even make out to sea.

Upon reaching the section of the beach that was on the other side of the seaside city that they just crossed just to reach here, Red scanned area to see if the place was perfect to release his Pokemon in.

"I can't believe Galeem created that whole seaside city with a palace included and not a single soul in sight." Solo commented.

"Tell me about it, the only thing we found in there were Puppet Fighters. We cleared them all out earlier though." Swordfighter shook his head.

"It is such a waste too. It seems like such a lovely city. I have some friends back home who would love to visit this place." Isabelle sighed.

"Let's not forget that Galeem probably stole that city from a world that they destroyed." Ryu reminded.

"I wonder what it was like back when it was full of people." Wii Fit Trainer wondered.

"Yeah, this is perfect! Okay, come on out Lapras!" Red declared happily before taking his Pokeball out and releasing the Pokemon inside of it.

In a glow of red, a large-sized blue Pokemon that looked like a hybrid between a turtle and an ancient sea creature gave out a happy cry, seeming happy to be in the water after so long.

"...I don't remember you ever using that Pokemon in the tournaments, Red." Marth blinked in surprise.

"I was half-expecting Squirtle to be honest." Wii Fit Trainer added.

"Oh right. You guys probably haven't met them yet. This is Lapras, one of the Pokemon I caught back home. Master Hand forbade me from using Lapras in the tournaments, they said I wouldn't be able to take part if I did." Red laughed sheepishly as he explained, he also stroked the neck of his Lapras as he talked. Lapras welcomed the attention and even headbutt their trainer affectionately.

"I see. So that's why in the Tournaments, we've only ever seen you use Charzard, Ivysaur or Squirtle." Ryu nodded.

"Thankfully, Master Hand did say that I could keep Lapras with me if only just to look after it in my free-time in-between the tournaments. Who knew that I would end up using Lapras in a place like this?" Red continued.

"I've got to say, I don't know what a Lapras is but I think it looks incredible." Solo complimented.

"It's so cute!" Isabelle squealed in delight.

"Piiii..." Pichu was hurt and became teary-eyed.

"Don't worry, Pichu. You're still the cutest one." Isabelle reassured with a bright smile.

"Pichu!" Pichu perked up at that.

"So what can Lapras do that can help us get across the sea? Wait, do you mean you want us to ride it?" Marth was still confused at first what Red had in mind until it finally dawned on him upon further thinking.

"Yeah, Lapras won't mind. They carried me all the way to Cinnabar Island plenty of times. I'm sure we can all fit on Lapras too." Red reassured.

Lapras who seemed to be intelligent enough to understand their words also nodded in agreement.

"Well...If Lapras has no complaints neither do I. We appreciate your help, thanks." Solo thanked the Pokemon.

"Oh this is so exciting, let's hop on board!" Isabelle approached Lapras.

Luckily, all the fighters were able to board Lapras with Pichu sitting on Lapras' head.

"Alright, hold on tight everyone. Lapras, take us to those islands." Red gave the order to his Pokemon to swim ahead to the islands in front of them.

With a cry, Lapras started moving their fins rowing them forward, slowly departing the beach towards the great open sea before them.

"I hope there aren't any Puppet Fighters at sea. We'd be sitting ducks, literally." Swordfighter fretted.

"All will be well, Swordfighter. Come, mediate with me, the soothing sound of the ocean makes this place ideal for deep breathing exercises, great for one's mental health too." Wii Fit Fighter was crossed legged as she begin her deep breathing exercises.

"Nothing fazes you at all, does it?" Swordfighter was in awe at how calm Wii Fit Trainer always seemed to be. "I suppose a little training wouldn't hurt." Swordfighter mimicked Wii Fit Trainer's pose and copied her movements.

"While we're sailing to our destination—would you like to hear some sea shanties that I learned from a friend back home? They're all really fun to listen to." Isabelle offered cheerfully.

"We would love to, Isabelle." Solo nodded.

"Okay, please enjoy," Isabelle cleared her throat before she started to sing one of Kapp'n's songs that he would love to sing whenever he was ferrying anyone in his boat. They didn't know when they'd arrive at the islands but at least they were now on their way to those islands in order to search for the friend Solo mentioned and find Galeem's creation that also fell on those islands.

But little did they know that the creature that Galeem recreated from one of the many worlds it had consumed was force unlike any other they had faced so far. And the only thing on it's mind right now was hunting prey.

Alright, another chapter done! =D

This is last one that I had written down in my notes so now I just need to progress in my game in order to make more chapters. =p

I was originally going to call this chapter "I Need A Hero" (Part 1) and do part 2 next but then I remember that we need to check in on Samus' team so I decided to change the chapter title since this story is done in an episodic style, having part 1 and then part 2 a few chapters later would mess up the flow of the story and could confuse some readers.

But don't worry, I'll be saving that title for a later chapter. Mwehehehe. :D

Anyway, time for review corner. =D

.:Review Corner:.

Super Saiyan Crash: Thank you for the review! It's been so long since I've played Melee, but probably not. Bowser and Ganondorf do their own boss fights in World of Light the only one who doesn't is Mewtwo sadly. XD

Guest: Glad you noticed my little fourth-wall joke with Pac-Man. XD I wasn't aware Banjo and Kazooie were notorious for fourth-wall breaking too, something to consider. =D And yes, Pit will making some fourth-wall breaking himself when I get the chance. :P The Gummi joke was kind of one-time joke, but I could make it recurring if I find a chance to reuse it. :3

Unknownnights97: Thank you for your review! There will be at very least three more appearing in the World of Light. After that the remaining newcomers will be in the World of Darkness. :3 Who those three newcomers are, I'll leave it to your imagination on who they could be.

Guest 2: We'll have to wait and see. :3 As I've explained before to other readers, I write down the events that happen in my play-though of World of Light in notes on my Ipad so I can then write it out as a proper chapter.

Of course while writing out the chapter, I expand on the chapter and add a few fluff moments when I can. So I'll see if I can fit it in where I can but I would have to continue my play-though before I can try. XD

.:End of Review Corner:.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, liked and followed the story to this point. I hope you continue to enjoy the story as it continues. :3

So until next chapter, happy reading everyone! =D

Moogle Empress out!

Moogle: Kupo!