After Dark: The Great Clancer War

Chapter 3: Sudden Recruitment

The virus-infected people all stood around Link, as if they were waiting for him to do something. Link didn't know what to do. He was dead. He was nothing anymore. He felt so cold. The heat from his body was now all gone. He was just an empty shell. But, something inside him compelled him to stand up. It was difficult as he only had one arm on his right side, but the need to feed was too overwhelming. He stood tall among his brothers. None of them paid any attention to him. They continued moaning in the direction of Samus who was standing up at the alter fighting more zombies. Link looked at her too. She was more beautiful than he had ever seen her. She was sweating, her hair was tangled in knots, and there was blood on her face. On her flesh. Her warm flesh. Link wanted her. He wanted her so badly. He started moaning with his brothers for her. He didn't know what was making him make this sick sound. He felt so cold. The thought of Samus' warm body in his only made him want her more. He started making his way through the crowd to his love.

Link held his head again. He was having another premonition.

"What is this? I thought...I thought it was only a dream. But, it seems so real. Samus isn't dead is she? I'm not dead. I can't be."

He continued to stare off in the direction Sonic ran.

"That idiot. I have no time for this."

Link felt someone tap his shoulder.

"Oh, I see. He thinks he can pull a prank on me. Well not today!" The Hylian drew his sword and turned around.

"Nice try, Sonic!" he shouted. The Clancer facing him squealed and jumped back.

"I'm sorry! Please don't hurt me!" he cried. Link realized that it was only a civilian. It wasn't Sonic. It wasn't a monster. He sighed and seethed his sword.

"Sorry about that," he said. "I thought you were someone else." The Clancer took a few steps towards him.

"Oh don't worry! Happens all the time!" he replied happily. Link examined the strange creature before him. The Clancer was about the same height as Ron (taller than Sarie) but was wearing a black top hat and an old tuxedo. He wore shiny black shoes and a red bow tie. The Clancer continued to stare at the Hylian with the same blank look as the others.

"Um, can I help you?" asked Link. The Clancer held out his hand.

"Hello there! My name is Tac Clancer! Pleasure to meet you!" Link stared at Tac's awkward greeting. He didn't even answer the question. Having nothing to say Link shook hands with the stranger.

"Hi. Uh...My name's Link."

"Link? That's a weird name."

"You'd be smart to remember it."

"I was only joking, LINK. I just like to poke fun at people. Of course you seem like a perfectly smart guy."

"...Thanks..."

"And a very good-looking one at that."

"Uh...Thanks?..."

"You're very welcome! It is my job to make people feel good about themselves! Even complete strangers such as yourself!"

"Well, could you cut it out, it's kind of creepy."

"Oh sure thing! Anyways, I was wondering if you, a perfectly good-looking and smart stranger, would be interested in a little fun at the one and only Clan Ball Land!" Link stared at Tac for a while before answering.

"What?"

"I was wondering if you, a perfectly good-looking and smart stra-"

"I got that already! What are you asking me?"

"Want to go to Clan Ball Land? You are guaranteed to have a good time!" Link wanted to ask what Clan Ball Land was, until he remembered his mission.

"Sorry, can't. I have something else to do." Tac Clancer refused to give in to his customer.

"Are you suuuurrrrreeee?" He pulled out two yellow tickets and waved them in front of Link's face. Link's eyes followed the tickets back and forth a few times before he shook himself out of it.

"Yes, I'm sure. I have prior engagements."

"Well, how about this?" Tac pulled out two blue tickets and waved them in front of Link's face. "How about Spike Land? I will give you these for FREE! That's right! FREE! What do you say about that, mister 'smart guy'?" Link gave him an unsatisfied glare.

"No."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"Positive?" Link turned around and started to walk away.

"Hey wait up, stranger!" Link turned around and stuck a finger at the salesman.

"I swear! If you call me stranger one more time, I'll shove those tickets down your throat!" Tac stopped in his tracks.

"But, I only said it three times!" Link didn't reply. Tac wouldn't understand. He wasn't there during the outbreak in Raccoon City.

"Okay, if it makes you upset, I promise not to bug you about these tickets. But could you at least help me find someone to sell these to?" The Hylian stared at the poor man for a while.

"Alright. Just please stop being annoying."

"Yay!" This gave Link a shiver up his spine. How old was this guy anyways? Did he even care about the fact that Link wasn't a Clancer? He rejected these questions. Link tried to get the memories of his vision out of his head.

"Come on, let's go." The pair continued walking through the field of grass. The singing continued in the background. After a few moments of silence, Tac decided to make conversation.

"So, stranger-"

"What did I say about calling me that?"

"Oh right. Sorry. Um, what was your name again?"

"I told you not to forget it."

"Too late."

"Figure it out yourself." Tac studied Link's face as they walked. Link glanced at him before directing his attention back to what was ahead of him. Link actually didn't know where he was going. He was trapped on this rock until all the Chaos Emeralds were found.

Man, did he hate time travel. Even back in Hyrule when his Ocarina had the power to go forward or back in time seven years, he felt uncomfortable doing it. Changing from a young boy to a teenager in a matter of a few seconds was no easy experience. But, here, on Clance, his age did not change at all. Why was that? Was the year still 2008 on this planet?

"Hey-" started Link.

"Wait wait! I think I got it!" replied the Clancer. More silence. Finally, he spoke up. "Your name is Harold!" Link gave him a weird look.

"Harold? Do I look like a Harold?"

"Well, you did a few seconds ago. But now that I look at you from the front, you look like a Drew. Or a Steve. Or a Wario." Link stuck his tongue out at this last name. He instantly thought of the fat Italian man which this name belonged to.

"You think my name is Wario?"

"It's possible."

"Great, I forgot what I was going to ask you now."

"Wait, so your name IS Wario!"

"No it's not! My name is Link! L-I-N-K! Link!"

"Link? That's a dumb name." Link clenched a fist. Oh how he wanted to hit this guy. He was annoying the crap out of him.

"Would you be interested in buying two tickets to Clan Ball Land?" asked Tac. That was it. Link screamed as he threw an all-out punch at the Clancer. Tac was sent flying back ten feet before hitting the ground. "OW! Why did you hit me!?"

"I didn't hit you that hard! I'm surprised you flew so far." Tac brought himself to his feet.

"I thought we were friends!" he whined. Link gave him an awkward stare.

"What gave you that idea?!"

"You told me your name! Wait, what was it again?"

"Oh for God's sake!" Link stomped off in the opposite direction.

"Wait! Link come back! Hey I remembered it!" cried Tac. Link ignored him. He wasn't in the mood for jokes. All he wanted was to find his friends.

"What is wrong with this planet?"

"Will you stop please!" cried Tac.

"No, I don't want to talk to you. You don't listen to anything," replied the Hylian. Suddenly, Link saw a blue blur in the distance heading right for him.

"Oh it's Sonic. Thank God." Indeed, it was Sonic the Hedgehog. He sped past his friend. A wind of dust flew into Link's face as Sonic went by.

"CoughHey Sonic!Cough Cough" Sonic turned around and stopped in front of Link.

"Oh Link! I've been looking for you! What's taking you long!? I would have been around this planet twice by now!"

"Well, excuse me if I can't run as fast as you!" replied Link.

"Heh, good point. Look, I was thinking. Since you're so slow at running, and I am waaaaaayyy faster than you, I was thinking that maybe I should find the emeralds all by myself. You should worry about finding our friends...Well? What do you think?"

"Hold on! You didn't even give me a chance to-"

"Awesome!" Sonic sped off again.

"And without even saying a good-bye."

"Hey who was that guy, Link?" asked Tac.

"Oh, you're still here," replied Link.

"Of course I am!"

"Okay. I'm sorry I got mad at you earlier. The stress is just getting to me."

"I forgive you. Now, are you going to help me sell these tickets or not?"

"I might as well. But I still have to find my friends."

"Maybe we should try the castle."

"The castle?"

"Yep. If your friends are lost, there's a good chance we'll find them at the castle. And I'm sure the king wouldn't mind paying a pretty price for these tickets."

"You know, you're really starting to remind me of someone."

The two of them made their way to the castle on the other side of the field.

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Samus shot up straight in the bed. She was sweating hard.

"My God, what a nightmare..."

For some reason, she was dreaming about the outbreak. She remembered all the monsters and the people she encountered so clearly, it was as if she had just come out of it yesterday.

"But it was just a dream. Nothing but a bad dream."

She realized she was sitting in what looked like a bed, and a very expensive one at that. The bedposts were mad out of pure gold. Large open windows on both sides of the room allowed sunlight warm up the environment. She could hear singing. Beautiful singing voices. She threw the sheets off her and jumped out of the bed. Surprisingly, she was still in her zero suit.

"What happened? I remember Sonic and the Chaos Emeralds...And all that light...Then...what...?"

Samus didn't know where she was. She was beginning to wonder if she was back in the mansion. Back home. But she didn't recognize this room at all. Expensive furniture and dressers lining the walls, bookshelves filled to the limits. Samus knew she was in a stranger's home. Whoever this house belonged to, he was a rich guy. Samus exited the room. She found herself wandering large hallways made of brick. A red carpet lay beneath her feet as she walked.

"Wow. It's bigger than the mansion!"

Everywhere she looked she saw paintings of landscapes on the walls. Every now and then she would pass by a potted plant she's never seen before. And that was strange considering Samus had travelled all over the galaxy and recorded findings of rare vegetation. The sound of the singing died down between the brick. The air was dry and cool, but that did not stop her from pressing on.

"No doubt about it. I'm in a castle. Not one I'm familiar with, though."

She stopped when she saw a small figure turn the corner in front of her. The young Clancer did not seem to notice her. The creature was a faded green color and was wearing a sun hat on it's head. Samus stared at the Clancer approaching her.

"Hey there," Samus greeted. The Clancer looked up and shrieked. It turned around and ran back the way it came from. Samus followed it. "Hey come back! I won't hurt you!" The Clancer ran as fast as it could, trying to avoid the strange woman. Samus was slowly catching up to it. She needed answers. "Stop running!" she shouted. The Clancer disappeared behind a large set of golden doors. Samus stopped in front of them before opening them quickly. "I just want to know what the hell is going on!"

She froze when she realized that she was standing in a large room. The red carpet led up a set of stairs to a throne where a king was sitting. The young Clancer cowered behind him. Samus was about to say something until she was approached by an alien creature.

"Good afternoon, Miss. Did you have a good rest?" asked the blue colored Clancer. Samus couldn't react to this question. She couldn't react to anything. Just who were these people? They seemed friendly enough. She decided to play along.

"Um, it was good. Could I ask you something?" she replied.

"What is it?"

"Where am I?"

"Why Miss! You are on Planet Clance! I would like to be the first one to welcome you appropriately to our home!"

"Um, what?"

"Princess Ondine found you lying in the castle gardens. She brought you in and nursed you back to health. You should be grateful to her."

"Princess Ondine!"

"Your majesty, would you please be so kind as to introduce yourself to our guest?" The cowering Clancer hid behind the throne.

"You must excuse her majesty. She is a little bit shy."

"Wait, you said I was lying in the garden?"

"Yes."

"How did I end up there?"

"Well, don't you know?"

"No...I don't."

"Well, that's odd. Surely you must know something about how you ended in our world."

"I'm trying, but I'm not getting anything." Actually, Samus was getting something, but she was pretty sure this guy didn't want to know about flesh-eating monsters.

"That's too bad." The Clancer turned his attention to trhe king.

"Your highness, would you like to speak with our guest?" King Aster nodded his head slightly.

"Bring her forth, Jistr," said the king in a low voice. The fact that the mouths of these people never moved did not faze Samus at all. She had seen way more ridiculous looking creatures than these Clancers before. Samus and Jistr walked up to the steps. Jistr gave a solemn bow. Samus watched him and followed suit nervously. "Rise," said his majesty. The two did so. "What is your name, young one?" Samus hesitated before replying.

"Samus Aran," she answered.

"Well Samus, I think you should thank my daughter for finding you. Go on, Ondine." The princess poked her head around the king's throne and eyed Samus. Samus bowed again.

"Thank you for saving me," she said. Princess Ondine cautiously walked into perfect view of Samus.

"Your...welcome..." she muttered shyly.

"Now," started Aster. "I only assume you were in my garden for one reason, and one reason only."

"I wasn't trying to steal anything if that's what your thinking."

"You want to join my army!" said the king happily. Samus staggered back at this.

"What?"

"You came into my kingdom to ask if you would be recruited to the Resistance. Well, I accept your generous offer. You may now return to your room." Samus couldn't even bring the words to speak. Everything was happening so fast.

"I-I-Hey-Hold on a second!" Aster waved his hand for her to be dismissed. Samus refused to leave. "Will someone please tell me what the hell is going on!?" she cried.

"Jistr, please escort her to her room," said Aster.

"Right away, my liege!" Jistr grabbed Samus' hand and pulled her towards the doors which they came in. "This way Samus. Please, this way." Samus tried to fight back but soon felt her feet following Jistr's out the door and into the hallway. Samus didn't say anything as Jistr kept rambling on. "You are so lucky the king allowed you to join our ranks! He doesn't even know who you are! I of course would have been more than happy to join the Resistance, but my duty lies to my king and my people! You sure are a generous person, Miss Aran!" Samus held her head. Too much was happening to fast. And she still couldn't figure out how she got here in the first place. It felt like yesterday she was arriving home in her starship with her fellow smashers after surviving the events of Raccoon City. And the tournament was already over. Not only that, but she was now trapped on some alien planet. How did it happen so fast?

"Jistr, could you-"

"Escort you to your room? Most certainly!" At that, Jistr opened up a door and tossed Samus inside. He gave a wave and shut the door. Samus was back in the room where she started.

"Why won't anybody listen to me!?" she cried. Samus fell onto the bed and stared up at the ceiling. "What am I doing here!? Where is everybody!?" She put her hands on her face to cover her eyes. She didn't want to be here. She had no idea what was going on.

"And I know for a fact that this isn't a dream."

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.

"Who is it?" asked Samus without even moving. There was silence for a while before an answer.

"It's me. May I come in?" It was the princess. Samus didn't want to answer, but for some reason, she did.

"It's unlocked," she replied. The door slowly creaked open and the young Clancer princess in the sun hat entered the room.

"Hello..." she greeted.

Samus raised a hand as a sign of greeting, but she still remained on the bed.

"I'm..sorry...for what happened earlier. I get kind of shy when talking to strangers." Samus took a peak at Ondine.

"You think?"

"I know for a fact."

"I was being sarcastic."

"Oh. Okay. I'm sorry for how my father acted. He's not usually like that. It's just; the stress that the war is putting on him is making him do unnecessary things. I don't even know how he could even think of recruiting you. For all we know, you could be working for the empire."

"Wait. What are you talking about?"

"The planet is going to break into civil war soon. The Resistance has been doing all they could to recruit troops. I guess when you came out of no where, my father couldn't resist."

"A king isn't supposed to make reckless decisions."

"I know. That is why I need your help, Samus Aran."

"You need my help? I should be asking you that question."

"Why?" Samus sat up in the bed.

"I have no idea what's going on right now. All I want to do is find my friends. We got separated a while ago. I don't know where they are. I don't know how to get home. You should be the one helping me."

"I see your problem. You are not born of this planet like I am. You come from a land far away from here. I understand your situation. But you must understand mine, too. If this war is not put to an end, my people will suffer."

"Wait, you said that there's going to be a civil war?"

"It's already begun. It's subtle, but it won't be long before the armies clash on the field of battle."

"Who is the enemy?"

"The dreaded empire. They want to take over the planet. They want to bring a new order. This is absurd because my father has ruled the planet for over 200 years. They can't change things now."

"Is the empire more powerful than the Resistance?"

"Yes. It is impossible to match their brute strength. They have recently mastered the technology to open time rifts to allow monsters to invade our villages. Esperance suffered a loss just a few hours ago."

"So, you think that I can make a difference for you?"

"Possibly. Clancers are naturally vulnerable to attacks. Anything that can harm the body physically is considered dangerous to us. But you. You are not of Clancer blood. You are human. You may be the advantage we need over them."

"Just because I'm human, doesn't mean I'm all that powerful. And since when do you know what a human is anyway?"

"There are three humans leading our armies into battle. The only remaining ones on the planet. The other two that protected us from the empire years ago disappeared."

"So, that's it? Three humans?"

"Yes. Well, there is a fourth one that was spotted out in the fields earlier today. I don't know much about the issue though. My brother was sent out to retrieve him."

"What did it look like?"

"Jistr described it to me as a human with "pointy ears." I thought that that was ridiculous of course, because I know for a fact that humans are not supposed to have pointed ears. You don't."

"Pointy ears? Wait..." Samus thought for a while.

"Could it be Link? What are the odds of him ending up in the same place as me? It could be someone else entirely. Then again, how many humans are out there with pointed ears? It has to be Link!"

Samus opened her eyes and faced the princess.

"Was this human wearing some kind of green outfit?" she asked.

"I'm not sure. Jistr didn't go into much detail on it."

"Hmm....What about a sword? Was he carrying a sword?"

"I think he was. The human managed to slay a Clancer Worm in a matter of a few swings of his weapon. That is one of the most incredible things I ever heard of."

"Then there's no doubt. That human is Link."

"Who?"

"That human. He's one of my friends who went missing. I have to find him." Samus stood up and was about to leave the room, but Ondine blocked her path.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"I need to find my friend. Stand aside."

You cannot talk to me like that. I command you to sit down."

"Look princess, I don't orders from no one but myself. Like you said before, I'm not of this world, so why should I care what comes out of that black hole of yours?"

"My brother will see that your friend joins us. We need his strength on our side."

"And what if Link says no? I'm sure he is more worried about my well being than some civilization he never heard of. How can you be so sure if he'll even join you?"

"If Link refuses to join, Teran has direct orders from my father. He will exterminate him.