What you're about to see is a little something I worked on a while ago, though I will admit, the posting of this WarioWare short fic of mine is long overdue. It takes place at an earlier point in 9-Volt's life, shortly after the events of "The Alien Wars" but long before he would form "Team SuperVolt" alongside Princess Phoebe of Retro Dreams (my WarioWare OC), and Shirobon (Cheerful White) and Pretty Bomber (Cute Pink) of the distant Earth-like planet Bomber...especially in my "Game-Jumping Adventures" continuity.
Not to mention before the founding of WarioWare Inc. in Diamond City. On top of that, what you'll also be seeing are references to the DiC/Cloverway dub of Sailor Moon, though I am well aware that many (if not all) prefer the VIZ Media one. That is perfectly fine by me. The idea of this story is that the latter English dub hasn't existed yet, let alone in Diamond City. Nor are 9-Volt and his mom, and Mona aware of the original Japanese version of the anime itself.
DISCLAIMER: WarioWare Inc. is a property of Nintendo. Contra and Bomberman are owned by Konami (with the latter IP having belonged to the late Hudson Soft until March 2012). Sailor Moon - albeit mentioned here as a TV show - is owned by Naoko Takeuchi. All other franchises mentioned, whether briefly or within my story, belong to their respective owners. The only things I "own" in said story are as follows below:
1. Arctic Bomber, Mistress of the Cold (one of my Bomberman OCs)
2. The name "T-Bolt" for 9-Volt's late father
3. Bill Rizer and Lance Bean being 5-Volt's childhood friends
-A moment of comfort at home-
The time was October 3, 200X; roughly one month had passed since the Alien Wars. People everywhere were trying their best to forget the damage the vile alien warmonger, known to mankind only by the name Red Falcon, inflicted upon Diamond City with his namesake army at his disposal. Yet at the same time, they were thankful for the aid of two...nay, four heroes who fought hard to defeat him and his legion of demonic cutthroats. Said heroes were Bill Rizer and Lance Bean, accompanied by a teenaged angel boy and a human-like nymph - whose electric powers were second to none - the latter two being from another world. Nobody knew their names, but remained grateful for their selfless deeds nonetheless.
On August 28, hundreds lost their lives (estimated by eyewitness news reports to be over 950). Buildings were wrecked. Trees were both splintered apart and burned into cinders. Businesses that weren't grocery stores or TV stations had to close down temporarily, in addition to flights being cancelled, due to the war that would have otherwise ruined the planet Earth for years to come, had said heroes not intervened. It even came as a shock to countless survivors that this unspeakable evil had been imprisoned in the netherworld, for over 400 years, with his place of banishment being what Diamond City used to go by centuries before it was even built.
Chief among the survivors of the Alien Wars were a 4-year-old boy and a 13-year-old girl. During her usual responsibilities of babysitting the child while his parents were at work, they spent some quality time at Diamond City Park (considered by many to be second best, next to Pearl Square) after her day at Diamond City Intermediate.
[Tenderness BGM: Title Screen (Tetris 2 + Bombliss (NES/Famicom)]
It sure is nice to relax at Diamond City Park, especially with your babysitter, isn't it, 9-Volt? It's very clear with no clouds, and no chance of rain...a perfect time to go to the park. A little rest and relaxation can go a long way.
YAY! And what games are you gonna teach me how to play next, Mona?
Well, sweetie, there is one particular game I wanna show you. See, it's this game where you control a high-tech battle suit that can transform between four different modes: a big walking robot, a beep-beep-looking car that shoots laser beams like y'know, pew pew!...a slow-moving turtle that can blast all enemies on-screen, and even an airplane which is almost like the Arwing from Star Fox.
When can we play it? But before the brown-haired boy and the redheaded babysitter could delve any further in their conversation, dark clouds suddenly began appearing from out of nowhere. In just minutes, the clouds completely blotted out the sky. Mona, what's that in the sky?
[End BGM]
The girl became worried about the unusual weather change, even though the forecast displayed sunny skies for today. I dunno...but we're not waiting to find out!
Everyone in the park saw a laser beam coming from the clouds, and scattered in hopes of getting away. Mona quickly grabbed 9-Volt in a protective hug, taking him to safety just as the laser beam grew larger and shot out into the city, obliterating hundreds of innocent people and wrecking nearby buildings instantly.
[Danger BGM: Doppler Demo (Mega Man X3 (Arranged))]
Oh no! Just as I feared... Red Falcon's back!
Rising from the point of destruction, the fiendish beast - a gigantic conglomeration of a skeletal dragon and a chimera - announced his return among the living. Ah, ha ha ha HA! Did you fools really think that I'd remain trapped in this hellhole forever? Your ancient heroes are long gone, and you are once again at my mercy! My vengeance shall go uninterrupted!
Since that fateful day, people from all over Diamond City wanted to forget such a horrifying event, even a young woman in her mid-20s, whose husband sacrificed himself in the line of duty as a police sergeant to protect her and other civilians, all the while Mona did her part to keep said woman's only child safe from harm.
[End BGM]
Diamond City had indeed suffered a lot of damage in its central area, but survivors were fortunate it wasn't completely destroyed when Red Falcon broke out. In fact, as it turned out, the damage level was only minor and not severe. Nevertheless, security forces and armed troops alike had given their lives to prevent the death toll on the civilians from getting any higher, whereas Bill and Lance's efforts stopped the disaster completely at its main source.
[Respite BGM: On That Day, Five Years Ago (Final Fantasy VII)]
To honor their heroic deeds in the defeat of Red Falcon, and in memory of those who sacrificed themselves to protect the innocent, the mayor proposed a "Diamond City Strong" campaign to help restore the city itself back to its former glory. It would take some time, yet the mysterious angel boy and lightning girl volunteered by lending a group of muscular, human-like Centurions to assist the construction workers (human, anthropomorphic and robot alike), and perhaps speed up the process a little.
To further take their minds off the Alien Wars, Mona and 9-Volt had been playing Super Bomberman 2 and Secret of Mana on his SNES, in addition to watching a marathon of cartoon shows through his mother's DVDs - namely The Super Mario Bros. Super Show!, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Inspector Gadget, The Powerpuff Girls, Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, and even Sailor Moon. On October 3, they were currently viewing the Season 1 finale of the aforementioned show about a group of teenage girls with the power to magically change into their super beautiful selves to fight crime.
They had already washed up and brushed their teeth before tuning in to their desired show. Mona was dressed in her Princess Ariel nightgown, while 9-Volt wore his Super Mario Bros. pajamas.
A short while later, the Season 1 finale came to a rather intensifying sequence. No, Mercury's gone too! sobbed one of the girls. We shouldn't have come!...We're not ready, Luna didn't train us right...!
That's not true, Sailor Moon, replied the black-haired girl in red. We can't quit now, we'll keep going for them!
No, let's get outta here while we still can...please...
As 9-Volt looked closer at the TV screen, he could see a red, circular aura manifesting out of nowhere beneath Sailor Moon's feet. Her blonde-haired friend, dressed in white and orange, took note of the oncoming danger. Sailor Moon, watch it! The orange heroine pushed her aforementioned friend out of harm's way just before a long, bluish-green, vine-like thing ensnared her from below ground!
At that moment, 9-Volt gasped in horror! "No! Not Mina, too! Oh no...first Lita, then Amy, now Mina..."
Sailor Venus! We'll get you down! We're not letting them get anymore of us! I'll use my tiara!
Save your energy! You're gonna need it! The large vine pulled the orange Sailor Scout down with all its might, preventing her from escaping.
What followed onscreen afterwards was a demonic-sounding voice taunting the poor heroine. Sailor Venus, is it? Welcome to the Negaverse!
"Oh no!" cried 9-Volt, "D-Don't let them kill you too, Mina! Y-You gotta get outta here!"
Venus Crescent Beam...SMAAAASH! She pointed her finger directly at her tormentor, as the episode shifted to another scene that displayed what looked to be Mina blowing herself up offscreen at point-blank range, like a bomb going off in her hands!
[End BGM]
Afterwards, another of the demonic fairies emerged from the crystallized rubble to taunt the remaining Scouts. Guess now you know why we're called the Doom and Gloom Girls.
The TV screen then turned bright-white, showing Mina - in her casual outfit - blowing a kiss with her last words echoing, I believe in you..., just before vanishing. No sooner than the scene ended did 9-Volt start bawling his eyes out in sadness. Mona quickly paused the DVD and handed her mini plushie of Sailor Venus over to the boy so he could hug and kiss it for as long as needed.
"MINA! NOOO! You can't leave us now! You guys were gonna save Tuxedo Mask and beat Queen Beryl!" He kissed the plush toy again. "Please don't die, Mina... Please...don't...die..."
[Comfort BGM: Rydia (Final Fantasy IV)]
"Aww, it's okay, 9-Volt. Shhh... It's okay..." Mona cuddled him warmly, followed by an affectionate kiss to his head. "Mina and the other good girls didn't really die in battle. Their souls are just trapped in the confines of the Negaverse by Queen Beryl's Doom and Gloom Girls."
"B-but...I don't wanna lose you or my mommy either...like I lost my daddy..." He kissed Mona's Sailor Venus plushie a third time. "Oh, Lita...Amy...Mina...you can't die now! You're so...so...young...! A-And Raye and Serena too!"
Indeed the Sailor Scouts were young, but the fact that they were around 14 years old in the events of Season 1, meant the heroines were over 10 years older - assuming said heroines are also real, wherever they may be on Earth - than 9-Volt. He was much younger and had no experience in fighting evil at all, yet the Sailor Scouts do. Then again, the only "experience" he had was surviving the Alien Wars under his orange-haired babysitter's protection. She had saved his life not once but twice, for as long as they could remember...
Mona protected 9-Volt from a large, mechanical spider-like tank - whom she immediately recognized from Contra III: The Alien Wars as Metallican - by crushing its red "eye" with the heaviest bowling ball that she could find, when they were seemingly cornered inside a half-wrecked bowling alley. The combined force of her throw and the big ball was enough to pierce the mechanical monster's "eye" and crush its internal systems, causing it to explode like a bomb. There was no time for the redhead to rest on her laurels, though; she kept moving with the child safely in tow, in case of another spider tank (if not more) roaming the city streets.
She later protected 9-Volt from an extraterrestrial bully in the shape, size and form of what appeared to be a teenaged human girl, only said bully was another of Red Falcon's mechanized underlings; just not as dangerous as the spider tank that Mona blew up earlier. But unlike the first time, the redhead had some help from two guys (whom she recognized from the Contra games on Nintendo consoles as Bill and Lance), in addition to the angel boy and lightning girl.
"Shhhhh. I know, pal... I know... Well, whenever you're ready, we can watch how the rest of the episode unfolds." She offered to hold hands with 9-Volt, to which he accepted without hesitation. "I won't spoil the whole thing, but we'll just say Serena's best friends come right back in the climax to help her blow Queen Beryl to kingdom come. Trust me, it'll take a whole lot more than a couple of cheap shots to destroy the Sailor Scouts."
The teen babysitter gave her young friend some tissues from which he could blow his nose, and a handkerchief for wiping away his tears. "I...I trust you, Mona... Queen Beryl and those Doom and Gloom Girls are big meanies, just like Shredder, and Krang, and Ursula, and Princess Morbucks. And Dr. Claw is the meanest of meanies."
"I know, right? But it'll be okay...Whether they're real or not, I won't let them near you. I pinky-finger promise."
Minutes later, the episode had reached the climax where Sailor Moon alone was pitted against Queen Beryl herself, having tried in vain to free Tuxedo Mask from the spell of which he had fallen under. There just had to be a way to blast the evil queen to kingdom come, lest all be lost for humanity!
"Will the Sailor Scouts live again, Mona?" asked 9-Volt, trying his best not to be scared of Queen Beryl.
"Awww, of course they will, sweetie. See, they're right here for Serena to help her deliver the final blow, because think about it: if she had truly given up, Queen Beryl would've easily conquered the entire planet. And right now, the Sailor Scouts are here for you too, as am I."
"E-even M-Mina? And Princess Ariel?"
"Mm-hmm. Tell you what: I'll let you borrow my Sailor Venus and Ariel plushies when you go to bed. Just think happy thoughts about them...and they'll come over to protect your sweet dreams while Mario, Luigi, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Donatello and Raphael keep the nightmares away from you alongside the other Sailor Scouts. Don't worry if it sounds hard at first; I'll guide you through every step."
[End BGM]
"You really mean it?"
Mona winked at little 9-Volt in response. "You can always count on your babysitter...and big sister...to keep you safe and sound on your mommy's behalf. Besides, you know how I blew up the giant robot spider that was chasing us in the Alien Wars? See, he had us cornered, but then I reached for a bowling ball and slammed it in his red eye, and KER-POW! Destroyed Red Falcon's spider tank just like that...and it was before that mean ice princess showed up to bully whoever she thought would be an easy target..."
9-Volt wiped away his tears while blowing his nose with a tissue. "But two guys and two angels showed up to beat her, and you had an easy time pro...protecting me. One guy had a blue shirt on and the red thingy on his head, and the other guy wo...wore a red shirt and had this blue thingy in his big black hair."
"Yep, it was Bill Rizer and Lance Bean. Did you know they've been friends with your mommy since childhood?"
"W-Wow! Th-they're her friends? Can you and mommy tell me a story about it?"
"Tee hee hee...some other time, little brother." Mona quieted down momentarily so she and 9-Volt could finish watching the rest of the Season 1 finale. The minute it ended, she stopped the DVD player and continued her story.
"As for the angels, one of them had feathery wings, and wore this golden headband on his brown hair. A headband is this ring-shaped thing people sometimes put on their head. Anyway, the angel boy reminded me of Pit from Kid Icarus, only he looked taller than I remember...but I don't recognize the blonde girl who tagged along with him. She was pretty fierce with her electric powers, almost like Sailor Jupiter, but I could tell she has a big, warm heart. Why, I could've sworn it was like she's your guardian angel all of a sudden! Heck, we were lucky Arctic Bomber was all bark and no bite!"
[Tenderness BGM: Lively Village - Dragon Quest V (Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age (8-Bit))]
Little 9-Volt bore a toothy grin. "You should be a Sailor Scout too, Mona! You can control...uh, metal!" He was surprised to have managed to correctly say some of the hard words that weren't shown to him in preschool (like "protect", "control", etc.), as opposed to the cartoon shows and video games he'd already seen thus far.
Mona simply smiled back at him, managing to figure out whatever idea his preschool mind tried to think up. "Metal sounds like a cool superpower for a Sailor Scout! If I were to have a transformation pen of my own, I could have the power to conjure up metal shields for blocking all kinds of attacks and protecting my friends. But for attacking bad guys, I can make perfectly round bowling balls to roll or throw at them and STRRRRRIKE!"
The little boy clapped his hands with glee, his tears all gone. "Sailor Mona, the Bowling Princess of Diamond City!" He pictured his babysitter in a pretty red dress with an image of a bowling ball striking the pins up front, much to her amusement.
"Wherever evildoers cause trouble, my trusty magical bowling balls of love and justice will strike them down for you! Speaking of strike, you do have to admit that one moment where Serena was like..." Mona cleared her throat in order to do her best Sailor Moon impression. "'Alright, that's it! You're not allowed to use my butt for practice kicks!'"
9-Volt laughed heartily, leaning himself against his babysitter. "HA HA HA HA HA! It did look like Raye kicked her tushie, didn't it?"
"Yep! That's why I love watching Sailor Moon: the show's got its fair share of intense action, and funny moments too!"
The babysitter and the little Nintendo boy continued laughing with each other for another minute, before stopping to catch their breath. Then he asked, "Mona, can you teach me about bowling?"
The redhead giggled lightly and patted his head. "Sure, pal! I'd love to take you to a bowling alley and teach you some basics! But we'll have to figure out the right time since Diamond City is still being fixed up, and Red Falcon's minions pretty much wrecked all the bowling alleys as far as I'm concerned, so for right now, we'll stick with Super Bowling on SNES...Oh! And my Silly 6 Pins game set. Yeah, I brought it over to your house every week since January, remember?"
"Yep! The six pins talk funny!"
"I know, right? Well, I gotta hunch it'll be a while before we can go bowling in real life anyway, but we'll work something out."
"Pinky-finger promise?"
Mona giggled again, and held 9-Volt's pinky finger with hers. "I pinky-finger promise."
[End BGM]
With an affectionate kiss to his head, he snuggled himself into the girl's chest, closing his eyes. "I love you, Mona."
"Now that's the face Ariel and the Sailor Scouts, and your mommy and I want you to have. I love you too, little brother..." At that moment, the child yawned and fell asleep next to his babysitter, smiling serenely all the while. "Awww, he fell asleep!"
As she spent the next few minutes gently rocking 9-Volt back and forth, 5-Volt came back into the living room to check on them. "Mona, I want to thank you so much for taking your time to babysit my son, especially after all we've been through lately. I guess fate does bring us closer together sometimes, doesn't it...?"
"Yeah..." whispered Mona, being careful not to wake 9-Volt up. "I guess you could say that."
"And babysitter or not, I want you to know that from now on...you're welcome in my house as 9-Volt's big sister. I can feel it in my heart that...that's what T-Bolt would've wanted. He was a wonderful police sergeant while he lived, setting a good example for law enforcement in Diamond City. I also know deep, deep, down in my soul...he's watching over us in spirit, in heaven. I'm very sorry about what happened to your parents, Mona."
"I know... But thankfully Joe's taking care of me. He's been their best friends since I was a baby."
5-Volt cracked a weak smile. "He's a wonderful hound dog. I imagine he couldn't return home right away when the Alien Wars broke out, which was why Dr. Crygor looked after you for over a month. So...tell you what: you're welcome to spend the night here as many times as you want. But if you're gonna do that, I'd recommend telling Joe first so he doesn't get worried."
"Yeah, I'll do that. And sure, I'd love to! But 9-Volt's bed is a little too small, so you don't mind if we use your guest room next door, right?"
"By all means, Mona, go ahead. My son will need all the love and protection he can get whenever he's dreaming, in case any nightmares show up."
Mona reassured 5-Volt with a friendly wink. "And I know just the two heroic damsels for the job." She was referring to her Sailor Venus and Princess Ariel plushies.
"C'mon pal, let's hop aboard the Dreamland Express with Ariel and Mina. The Mario Bros. and the Turtles are no doubt waiting for us with Mina's fellow Sailor Scouts. I wonder what kind of pizza Michelangelo's got cooked up in his oven to share with us in dreamland...!"
Mona really does remind my son of Ariel, his favorite Disney Princess, doesn't she? I'm glad we picked the right babysitter to help take care of him, T-Bolt. Don't worry...Bill and Lance are there to protect us, even if they aren't always here. Same with these two mysterious angels, one of whom looked strangely enough like Pit...wait, maybe that angel boy IS Pit! But who was that blonde girl that fights with lightning like Sailor Jupiter does? I guess we'll have to wait till later on to find out... Besides, I have a feeling we'll see them again someday.
[Respite BGM: Saint's Wreath (Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age (Symphonic))]
"M...Mona?" 9-Volt opened his eyes momentarily, now seeing himself all cuddled up next to Mona and her two plushies in the guest bedroom.
"Hmm? What is it, sweetie?"
"C...can you sing me a lullaby?"
The babysitter gave a light chuckle in response. "Of course I will, silly. I haven't forgotten about that part. Now, what I am about to sing to you is a little something my mom used to sing to me when I was your age. She always told me that song helps take babies to a wonderful land where dreams come true. Happy and sweet dreams, I mean."
"It can help get me to dreamland safely?" 9-Volt saw her nod gently. "Yay! You're just like Ariel from The Little Mermaid, because you have red hair like her, and you sound like her when you talk and sing, and you're not afraid to keep me safe. And you take me on lots of fun adventures with her, and Flounder, and Sebastian, and Urchin when we watch the Little Mermaid cartoon show."
"Awww, that's so sweet of you, little brother!"
"Ariel's my favorite Disney Princess! She showed us lots and lots of her gadgets and gizmos a-plenty and whozits and whatzits galore, and thingamabobs in her collection!"
Mona cracked a goofy grin on her face. "Hey, you remembered that part of the song from the movie! Good for you! I think I know which episode from the cartoon show you're talking about; Ariel was showing her friend Gabriella her collection of human objects."
"Mm-hmm, but then that big meanie Ursula had to ruin all the fun. She made poor Ariel's thingamabobs turn bad and hurt people!"
"I know... But it's a good thing Ariel and Prince Eric worked together to defeat the sea witch in the movie to save her daddy and all of Atlantica."
"D...does Ariel get her thingamabobs back after the movie?"
Mona thought about it momentarily. However many times she'd seen the animated Disney classic itself (be it on VHS or DVD - not that 9-Volt knew what either one was), she couldn't help wondering if it's possible King Triton did restore his red-haired daughter's treasure grotto, let alone the statue of Prince Eric, in his act of remorse. It is undoubtedly true he DID destroy it with his trident earlier when he had told her time and again not to visit the human world. He was worried about her safety ever since his wife, the queen, died from a tragic accident with a pirate ship. Still, from what Mona saw in the three animated films (two of which were direct-to-video prequel and sequel), King Triton shouldn't have banned music from Atlantica.
Imagine how boring a kingdom would be, whether under the sea or on the surface, if there was no music at all! Like how video games tend to have music to better accompany the action, the adventure, or whatever situation that pops up - such as four talking animals preparing to take off in space ships to defend the galaxy from terror!
T'was only when Ariel pointed out to her father that her mother wouldn't have wanted music to be banned from the kingdom if she were still alive, that he changed his tune and lifted the ban in memory of his late wife...and the fact that he gave her a special music box that played a special song during their anniversary.
But getting back to the events of the original film, the way Ariel's father destroyed her treasure grotto was not unlike that of a parent breaking their kid's toys just to discipline them. The parent did buy said toys for their kid after all, so technically it was theirs too. And to break it into little bitty pieces for any reason, much less teach the misbehaving child a lesson, would be a complete waste. King Triton did feel bad for what he had done when Ariel ran away in tears. She wasn't being naughty or a selfish brat; she was merely collecting all sorts of man-made baubles because of her undying love for visiting the surface world, hence her curiosity in said baubles as well as her belief that not all humans are bad.
She wanted something that she could cherish happily for as long as she lived. Sure, she didn't have all the knowledge in the world about the human objects that "suddenly" come from the surface, nor did a certain goofy seagull she's good friends with. But that didn't stop her from coming up with all kinds of weird, silly, and fun ideas on what her newly-discovered thingamabobs are, and what she can do with them! For example, there was the dinner fork - identified by her as a "dinglehopper" - she believed humans use to comb their hair. Heck, she combs hers like that everyday because hey, what peppy, adventurous, fun-loving mermaid princess wouldn't?
The fact that Ariel saved the human prince from drowning underwater, and the latter returned the favor by helping her defeat Ursula...it was enough for King Triton to reconsider his hatred for the humans and become more accepting of them for good. He had indeed learned the same lesson his youngest daughter already did: Do not judge the human race by their appearance but rather the content of their character. These are all the memories Mona had of the original film and the cartoon show, perhaps one of her top favorite Disney classics (alongside Beauty and the Beast, Toy Story, etc.). The memories which she had been sharing with 9-Volt ever since she introduced him to The Little Mermaid last Christmas, back when he was 3 years old...
On top of that, if she and her "little brother", and 5-Volt were to go visit Atlantica in another dimension someday (even though interdimensional travel was still in its early stages, let alone from within Dr. Crygor's lab)...they will no doubt take comfort in the fact that Ariel's father doesn't find all humans to be bad anymore. That is, if there really is a Disney-themed dimension, like in Kingdom Hearts which Mona recently started playing...
Either way, Ariel's love for human objects and the world above the ocean will always live on in the minds and hearts of those who enjoyed the animated films and the cartoon show.
"...Yes," Mona spoke up. "She most certainly does, pal. Let's just say her daddy learned the same lesson for himself that she already did. Besides, you and I remember from the show about the cool and fun activities she did with her friends. She even introduced one of said fun activities to her sister Arista in an episode with the two naughty alligators that tried to steal the royal treasure from Atlantica."
9-Volt beamed, knowing which episode Mona was referring to. "Ariel and Arista came up with lots of booby traps to catch those thieves!"
"You're very close, pal," the redhead replied with a friendly wink, "but what I'm talking about is right after they use up all the gator traps in the palace. Well, they needed to get along at first and eventually formed a strong bond with each other, but still. I'll give you a hint: it's almost like the six pins toy set I showed you a while back."
The little Nintendo-loving boy could now tell what it was that Ariel taught Arista. "They used a big black bowling ball to knock out the bad gators for a strike!"
"That's right!" Mona cheered and clapped her hands softly. "Well, what they used as their 'secret weapon' was actually a cannonball, about as big as a bowling ball, that Ariel brought back from a sunken ship near the palace. But, what the show didn't tell us was that right after she and Arista cleaned up the royal seafloors, she secretly took the cannonball back to her treasure grotto, and has since called it an 'undersea bowling ball'.
"And the sunken ship she went inside to get the ball? That's her secret bowling alley. So all this means...ohhh, le gasp!" Mona didn't really gasp. "Princess Ariel invented undersea bowling! Neato!"
"COOL! But how come Ariel's the only daughter who can lift heavy stuff? Is she a superhero?"
"Hmm..." Mona scratched her head momentarily to think it over. "Now that you mention it, Arista did have trouble picking up a cannonball on her own, and yet Ariel was easily able to do so... I guess each of King Triton's seven daughters is unique in their own way?"
"So Ariel is a superhero! YAY!"
"Well, not exactly. Kinda more like she inherited her daddy's superhuman strength besides her late mother's singing and musical talent. Then again, we'd be surprised what really happens behind the scenes of the movie and cartoon show." Mona paused to gather her thoughts. Maybe the "Disney-verse" does exist for real, just like in Kingdom Hearts...
"Anyway, when Ariel and Flounder met Scuttle later on in the show and talked about how they're gonna rescue Sebastian, as well as Prince Eric, from a pirate ship, she defined 'awesome' in a big, big way. When Scuttle does his part by getting Sebastian out onto the docks, the vicious-looking, hungry little rats come chasing the crab. But just when things look bleak for him, da-da-da-da, da-dah! Princess Ariel to the rescue! She goes bowling again, only this time she shoves a pile of cannonballs...erm, undersea bowling balls, straight at the rats aaand..."
"STRRRRRIKE!" the babysitter and child whooped in unison, high-fiving each other.
"And now we know singing, dancing, horseback riding and playing music aren't the only things Ariel's good at. Goes to show us that she also kicks some serious butt playing bowling, don't it, 9-Volt? Whether it's under the sea, or at a bowling alley on the surface, she's got the skills! Eeeyup, those nightmares better watch out, cuz if she catches them trying to destroy your sweet dreams, they'll learn the hard way what the word 'strike' means!"
9-Volt giggled at the ruffling of his hair. "Can Ariel teach me how to bowl? She can help you teach me and Michelangelo can show me his skateboarding tricks! I wanna skate just like him too!"
"Hmm...maybe. It's your dream, after all."
[End BGM]
The redhead and her "little brother" yawned simultaneously, all the more ready to catch some Z's...though not before she began singing a lullaby. "Looks like it's beddy-bye time for both you and little ol' me, pal..."
Somewhere over the rainbow
Way up high
There's a land that I heard of
Once in a lullaby
Somewhere over the rainbow
Skies are blue
And the dreams that you dare to dream
Really do come true...
With 9-Volt's eyes closed for the night, Mona hummed the musical notes for the remainder of her song. When she came to the end, her humming had quieted down. "Good night, 9-Volt. Your mom and I won't let anything bad happen to you again...that's a promise I intend to keep as your babysitter...no, your big sister, for as long as I live..."
She kissed his head affectionately and stroked his hair for the next few minutes, before falling asleep herself. "We love you, pal. Sweet dreams."
THE END
(Ending Credits)
Young 9-Volt - TARA STRONG
Young Mona - RACHEL LILLIS
5-Volt - CRISTINA VEE
Usagi "Serena" Tsukino (TV) - TERRI HAWKES
Rei "Raye" Hino (TV) - KATIE GRIFFIN
Minako "Mina" Aino (TV) - STEPHANIE MORGENSTERN
Red Falcon/Emperor Demon Gava (flashback) - DAVID KAYE (voice like Megatron from Transformers: Armada)
[End Credits]
Well, there you have it! Better late than never, I always say (even if I goofed off too long). Now first off, the blonde girl with lightning powers is, in actually, Phosphora from Kid Icarus: Uprising. The idea is that there was no such thing as the 3DS or the aforementioned game in my story's time period.
By the way, I've always had this theory for the Contra games that some - if not all - the bosses have either nicknames (organic) or codenames (mechanical). For example...
-Shadow Beast Demon Statue Dethgerbis (or simply Dethgerbis) - nicknamed the "Temple of Terror" for its skeletal appearance
-Multi-Cannon Sweeping Machine Bosco Spider (or just Bosco Spider) - codenamed "Metallican"
-Great Awakening Robo Big Fuzz (mostly Big Fuzz) - codenamed "Robo-Corpse" for his obvious resemblance to the Terminator robots
Basically, the idea is that the characters in my story (let alone 9-Volt, Mona and 5-Volt) don't know Red Falcon's real name is Emperor Demon Gava...yet. You know how supervillains tend to go by their iconic alter egos, yet aren't always addressed by their real names, right? Like how Darkseid's is Uxas, but he isn't always referred to by other people as the latter. Hope that cleared things up!
Oh, and notice how I had "in case of another spider tank" in a sentence? There actually was more than one Bosco Spider, one of which Bill and Lance took out in "The Alien Wars". For the other, however, Mona was simply lucky to have found something hard and heavy enough to penetrate its red eye and blow it up from within!