Hello all.

I apologize that this is so late… I know I did say that I had more free time in the previous chapter – well, that's what I thought, too. Anyway: I hope you all will enjoy this next chapter (and the chapters, and fics to come!).

Cheers will be further delayed – not because I can't think of what to write, mind you; the plot, first chapter, the murderer, motives, order and manner of execution are all tantalizingly and minutely planned out already – but because I do want to bring some closure to the Days of Our Lives arc. More on that at the end of Checkmate.

But for now, a large thank you goes out to Pikachu127 (sorry for replying the first time round – ) NinjaSheik, Shadow Blues, Dusk-N-Dawn, lupyne and Souldin! I really appreciate all your reviews… and as you may have figured out, you can ask me to stop replying to your reviews. I won't feel heartbroken. Not that much, anyway.

Reviews, criticism and critiques are very welcome. Particularly, I'd like your feedback about the jumping storylines – does it make the story too hard to follow?

So, without further ado, please enjoy –

hawk

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Checkmate – Chapter Five

Ganondorf had heard the lumbering of heavy footsteps behind him, and turned around in mild surprise. Behind him he saw the large figure of Bowser, as well as the significantly smaller and much less serious figure of Wario. Snorting slightly, he turned to face them completely, the Koopa stopping and glaring at him. Wario laughed his belligerent laughter.

"So, what are you doing here?" Ganondorf snorted. "Master Hand called you too?" Bowser nodded, grunting, still eying the Gerudo warily. They were standing in a little clearing, somewhere secluded in the World of Trophies. In the distance, they could see the Midair Stadium suspended in the sky, a faint twinkling of light indicating that a Brawl was going on. But where they were, all was silent, except for the wind rustling through the trees and the leaves crackling in its wake.

Wario farted.

Before Bowser could shoot the short Italian a withering look, there was a sudden rushing of wind, and the three of them turned together. Master Hand had appeared inexplicably in midair when they weren't looking, and now started to descend towards them. The trio turned to face the glove, who had now reached their height and floated several inches off the ground, facing them.

Tabuu smirked inwardly. It was easy enough to set up holograms of Master Hand, waiting for these Smashers to fall for the invitation. Promises of power, reward, and fun respectively had won these three over, and they now unwittingly were helping Master Hand to rebuild the world from the ground up… or so they thought.

Ganondorf was easy to bargain with. Putting him in charge of the entire operation and having Master Hand promise him a third of the new kingdom: that offer won the stone heart of the King of Evil. It was probably the ability to be in charge of all the Smashers, and being able to finally get that idiot elf Link to do his bidding and kick himself out of existence for good that did the job, the Gerudo hurriedly swearing loyalty to Master Hand and his plan for a new world.

Bowser was easier still to convince, the large Koopa immediately supporting the Hand's plan, even if it was just to get back at a couple of annoying plumbers. It seems, Tabuu mused, that tensions run high in the Mansion, hm.

Wario was just in it for the fun, figuring that having a Dark Cannon to defeat other Smashers with just held unparallelled excitement.

Regardless, the three Smashers were now equipped, armed to the teeth and ready to fight for what they thought were their causes. How wrong, how wrong, mused Tabuu.

With R.O.B. threatened, and the robot giving in surprisingly easy with a unexpected display of emotion, all the pieces had finally set into place. The opening part of the game was over, and all his pawns were finally aligned exactly in the position that he wanted to. Furthermore, some things had happened that were outside of what he had planned to – Master Hand's spell, for example – irritating, but it was an indicator that the Hand actually knew some tricks. Tabuu smirked.

Finally – finally – things could get interesting. Tabuu eyed two pawns of Master Hand's, moving slowly across the board. A picture of the ship one represented floated lazily above its golden base, whereas the other held the proud pose of a Smasher.

With a mere thought, a large mass of chess pawns swept across the board.

---

It was unlike Meta Knight to be surprised, although with a veritable army of Primids overrunning his ship, as well as cleverly tricking Dedede into attacking him at the exact same moment probably diluted his concentration just enough. With that lapse in judgement, Meta Knight didn't see Tabuu emerge from his own portal, flanked on either side by glowing golden lines of light.

Still, Tabuu mused, it was indeed entertaining. As Primids fell off the rim of the Halberd's hull, they deliberately rained down upon Dedede's residence. At the same time, the Halberd's silhouette could clearly be seen from the ground, the infuriated penguin coming to the logical, but wrong conclusion. Following a series of Super Dedede Jumps, he landed heavily on the Halberd hull, and the fun began. Tabuu watched in amusement for an instant or two, and then commanded Master Hand to act.

As Master Hand moved at the end of his golden chain, much like a grotesque puppy, Tabuu felt something pulling on the Chains of Light in the opposite direction. Out of the corner of his peripheral vision, he caught sight of something struggling violently on the floor of the Halberd, but failed to see what. He suddenly felt Master Hand's spell constricting even more strongly upon him, the Hand obviously not wanting him to turn around –

There was an illuminating explosion and a resounding booom that echoed throughout the Halberd. As Master Hand swiped at the Smashers, sending them flying, Tabuu felt his Chains of Light snap and break under a powerful force. Slightly worried, the blue being restrained Master Hand, the worry lifting slightly when the Hand jerkily came to a stop.

Then what –? Tabuu's question was quickly answered when a maniacal laugh echoed, followed very quickly by the menacing popping of knuckles.

Crazy Hand raised a single finger, the entire floor below Tabuu glowing with an eerie purple. Tabuu had just enough time to have Master Hand block the attack before the floor literally blew up in his face. Swinging Master Hand around, Master Hand's palm connected squarely with Crazy Hand's fist, the impact leaving energy and electricity crackling between the two before they sprung apart.

As Master Hand spun, Tabuu finally got a glimpse of the left Hand. With burnt markings on his knuckles where the Chains once were, the Hand seemed a little exhausted but still very dangerous. What made this Hand even more formidable than the other was that he didn't play by the rules. Crazy Hand threw out of the window all acceptable rules about how combatants were supposed to behave, how to best engage one's opponent, and all but basic strategy. More was needed than mere illusions this time, because Insanity simply didn't know when to stop.

A single slap on the hull floor, and the rest of Tabuu's Primid troops were oliberated, sinking quickly into darkness and purple Shadow Bugs without so much as a yelp. Crazy Hand turned to face Tabuu, only to find Master Hand gripping himself tightly by the fingers. As Crazy Hand struggled to get free, Master Hand slipped his fingers into the spaces in between Crazy Hand's fingers, crushing his counterparts' with pure physical strength, borrowed from Tabuu.

As Crazy Hand shrieked, reflectively letting loose destructive spells that bounced upon the Halberd, Tabuu had Master Hand blast the left Hand backwards with a single gigantic shot. Airborne, Crazy Hand swiveled around, only to find himself staring at the main cannon of the Halberd.

A Primid pressed the button, a gigantic white light enveloping the Hand and launching him across the ship, landing in a smoking heap on the ship's far end. As Crazy Hand struggled to get up, Tabuu and Master Hand loomed over him, Master Hand's fingers glowing with golden light.

Golden bars of light shimmered into existence around Crazy Hand, the glove within beating upon it with ferocity. Master Hand flicked a finger, the cage floating lazily in the air as Crazy Hand attacked it furiously from within. Tabuu felt the strain of keeping the cage intact, even through Master Hand's Chains of Light. The rest of his plan could wait.

With some effort, Tabuu opened up a Subspace portal, forcibly throwing the cage (and writhing glove within said cage) through it. Entering it, Tabuu cast a quick glance around – the Primids were in control of the situation, and Meta Knight was nowhere to be seen. And now, in Subspace, no one would hear Crazy Hand scream.

Hm. Tabuu reconsidered. The Hand had provided him ample entertainment, after all – insanity did have some of its interesting aspects. Fine then, sooner or later, he'd get that Hand under control, bound away by Master Hand's own cage, lock and key, prized as a particularly rare pawn in his collection.

Sunken slightly in thought, Tabuu entered the portal, holding Master Hand with his Chains, looking all in the world like his macabre pet.

---

Meta Knight leaped forward, his short feet not even touching the ground as he glided. High above in the sky, his beloved Halberd was caught in a skirmish with the Great Fox, the Great Fox actually the smaller of the two ships. The battle raged on, pulling both ships in the direction of a mountainous range. The puffball glanced at the intimidating, towering peaks of rock and ice: if the only way to get to his ship was up a mountain, then so be it. The memory of the loss of the Halberd, although a long time ago, was still fresh in his mind.

Leaping from rock to rock, Meta Knight quickly scaled the mount, pausing now and then to catch his breath or plan his route. Some of the footholds gave way with the merest touch, and oftentimes he had to use his wings to glide to the nearest safe ledge. The young Ice Climbers, who had happily been scaling this particular mount as their daily practice, saw Meta Knight's ascension as a friendly challenge, the duo bounding up higher and higher and teasing the puffball once in a while – totally oblivious to the battle a couple of miles above ground level.

Children! Meta Knight thought. Don't they know what's at stake here?

Eventually, after a couple more near-misses and nearly catching up with the Ice Climbers, they reached the peak of the mountain. Nana reached the top first, yanking Popo up with their belay rope, both of them jumping and chattering about their victory. A couple of seconds later, Meta Knight reached the top, landing gracefully on the icy plateau. In spite of himself, the masked warrior allowed himself a tiny smile at their laughter.

"Hush," muttered Meta Knight, but the Ice Climbers took no notice, noisily celebrating their victory. However, a sudden tinkle of ice caught their attention, the three of them turning in unison.

Behind the icy plateau, further higher up, were spires of ice, each one higher than the last. On the very top was a familiar figure, perched precariously on the very apex of the mountain, eyes closed. "Lucario!" Meta Knight called, but the Pokémon's eyes suddenly sprung open, catching sight of the Smashers.

You're here, Lucario said simply, his voice tinged with a bit of resignation and tiredness. Leaping down from his perch, he landed on all fours in front of Meta Knight, and then put his forepaws up in a dueling stance. "What are –" Apologies, Lucario cut him off emotionlessly. I promised to defeat the one who disturbed me from my meditation… and you, Meta Knight, should know how important promises are.

The masked warrior understood, he himself living by his own code of honor. Drawing his short sword, Galaxia glinting in the snow's reflected light, he assumed a fighting stance of his own. The Ice Climbers nervously backed away, but Meta Knight put a glove between them and the Pokémon. Still facing Lucario, Meta Knight warned, "I won't go easy on you."

Lucario's expressions melted into a small, sad smile. Thank you.

Both of them leaped forward and clashed.

---

Lucario leapt backwards, the tip of Galaxia glittering dangerously close the tip of his snout. Meta Knight continued his attack, making short slashes in the air with his sword. Lucario raised a paw to block, the grating of sword metal on spike grinding in their ears. Skidding backwards, the Pokémon counterattacked, swiping the short puffball off his feet with a well-placed kick. Meta Knight quickly recovered, though, the edge of his cape fanning out into wings, allowing him to slice at Lucario's torso twice in mid-air.

Lucario stumbled backwards, his back colliding with the base of the spire. Icicles gleamed above, shaken a little by the impact, threatening to drop onto the dueling Smashers. Shaking it off, Lucario leaped forward, back into the fray, striking Meta Knight squarely in the middle of the mask, sending the puffball tumbling backwards towards the edge of the plateau.

The Ice Climbers watched nervously. The combat had gone on for quite some time now, both slowly but surely losing momentum and energy. The Pokémon, they noted, appeared to be tiring already, while Meta Knight's expression still remained unreadable underneath his metal mask.

Winded after a long battle, Lucario retreated into a corner, his paws aching from inactivity. After such a long period of meditation, he felt his physical power slowly slipping even as his Aura abilities improved. Meta Knight, however, gave him no quarter, continually scoring hits and driving the Pokémon into tight corners as much as he could. Even though he pulled off a couple of counterattacks, Lucario's movements gradually became slower, the masked warrior noticing this and capitalizing on it with a quick succession of moves.

As Meta Knight charged again, Lucario neatly sidestepped and prepared to deliver an Aura Sphere, but didn't expect Meta Knight to whip around and pull his cape about him. As the cape enfolded him, the Aura Sphere seemed to impact the cape but with a short burst of light, Meta Knight unfolded his cape, now appearing behind the surprised Lucario. The Pokémon whipped around, attempting to leap to the side, but Meta Knight delivered a strong swipe with his sword, connecting squarely with Lucario's torso, slamming him into the base of the spire he had previously been standing on.

The impact proved too much for Lucario to handle, and he heard the slight cracking sound as his Shield gave way. As his back collided with the spire, he felt an odd, cold sensation spreading, unlike the chill of winter or the snow on the mountain. The sensation quickly enveloped his entire being, Lucario starting to topple forward. Trying to stretch out a paw to steady himself, he found himself unable to control his limbs, immobility already locking them and rendering them motionless. The high-pitched yells of the Ice Climbers reached his ears, Lucario starting to panic. Darkness began to creep into his vision from the sides, and his hearing subsided, Lucario still frantically trying to swing his forepaws out.

The last thing he saw was Meta Knight standing on the plateau, the wind curling his cape behind him, the Ice Climbers shouting voicelessly behind him, huddling and shivering together in their parkas.

---

Three pesky Houndoom guards circled around the Pokémon, growling menacingly. Lucario would have glared at them, but the sand they kicked up earlier had blinded him, rendering him fighting blind, forcing him to screw his eyes shut, trying desperately to blink the sand out of them. Fortunately, his Aura vision allowed him to detect them all the same, the Aura Filters on the back of his head rising up. This allowed him to blast the leader with a well-placed Aura Sphere, the surprised Pokémon flying three feet backwards and two feet up.

The other two howled, leaping forward with fangs bared. Leaping into the air, Lucario landed behind them, forcing them to screech to a halt and hastily turn around, only to find a couple of Aura Spheres travelling swiftly in their direction. The resulting explosion flung them both backwards, knocking them unconscious; but not before allowing a cloud of sand to assault their eyes. Despite himself and the circumstances, Lucario smirked inwardly at a favour returned.

Now that the imminent threat was over, Lucario ran off, still mentally calling out for Sir Aaron. The war was about to break out, the two warring factions achieving neither peace and compromise, and finally all civilities and diplomacy had melted down as they marched towards each other even now. Lucario had quickly hailed Sir Aaron, who no doubt should have been rushing down to mediate peace, but where was he? Lucario ran swiftly back towards Cameron Palace, hoping to find Sir Aaron along the way –

Suddenly a familiar Aura came into Lucario's line of vision, the Pokémon coming to recognizing it at once. Standing atop a tall rock formation, much like the one they used to practice wall-clinging on, was the unmistakable Aura of Sir Aaron, and with it was the outline of his tall wooden staff with a blue jewel on its tip. Redoubling his efforts, Lucario charged towards him.

Sir Aaron! Lucario started. I knew you would come – but the Aura Pokémon was stopped dead in his tracks by Aaron's voice. He was merely blinded, but this made him wish he was deaf.

"Don't call me that." Lucario's expressions swung between puzzlement and bewilderment. He was his Master, hadn't he? Was he? Even if he had been mistaken about his identity, the staff was his signature, this would definitely been the Master he knew –

"I'm not going back to the Palace. I've deserted the Queen and the kingdom," Aaron's voice suddenly broke out, grating horribly against Lucario's ears. But –wait – Lucario protested, taking a step forward, but Sir Aaron leaped from the rock to another, past Lucario, and made to run off into the distance. The Pokémon took after him, attempting to chase after his fleeing Master.

Sir Aaron turned around, seeing Lucario move. Hurling the staff he held, it flew like a javelin to stab the ground right in front of Lucario, the Pokémon skidding to a halt.

He didn't really know what happened next. All he recalled was shouting his Master's name, calling for him to return, before there was a constricting, nearly suffocating feeling, and a bright flash of light that appeared even in his Aura vision, overwhelming him for a couple of seconds. When the light finally faded, his vision was fragmented, as though looking through a blue-tinted crystal, much like the one on the end of the staff –

With a sudden realization of where he was, he felt his consciousness gradually slipping away, as though he was starting to drown in the crystal. He tried slamming his paws against the hard crystal walls, but it didn't move, leaving Lucario still trapped and drowning fast.

And then he was calling, crying out Why!, the normally calm Pokémon crying out for his Master whose silhouette was now rapidly disappearing behind a distant cliff.

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And then everything went black.