Apologizing now isn't really going to make up for the missed out months of updating, though I am sincerely sorry that I haven't been as active as before. This is my last year in college and I graduate next year. However, now that I'm done with this semester, I can get back in the groove once more and write a bit more for each of my in-progress stories.
That is, if I'm not completely consumed by Xenoblade Chronicles X upon getting home to where my Wii U is now.
Also, I kind of did wait around this long on purpose for a reason as hopefully most of you have caught on with the latest Smash Direct. (I needed more characters to make some decent teams.)
Well, time to get things up to date!
"Have you ever felt how the months can fly over our heads without notice?" Toon Link asked.
"You could say that again," Villager jested.
"Have you ever felt how the months can fly over our heads without notice?"
"Heh, good one."
"Good one what?"
"… Uh, never mind."
Toon Link wondered why the young Smashville Mayor was pinching the space between his eyes in frustration. The both of them nearly did not notice their third friend coming down from the hallway, nor did they immediately catch the mood he was in. Only after Toon Link turned away after failing to figure out what was troubling Villager did he see something even more troubling.
"Oi, Ness!" Toon Link greeted cheerfully. "How did your match with Donkey Kong go?"
"… …" the PSI Powerhouse simply mumbled, if anything.
"Oh," Toon Link grunted before leaning close to Villager. "I didn't know he's resuming the silent protagonist role."
"He's not," Villager said in a deadpan tone, lightly pushing the Wind-Waking Warrior out of the way to investigate his sullen friend. "Ness, what's going on?"
"Sigh… I lost," Ness shared with an indifferent shrug. "So what else is new?"
"What's 'new' is that you've been off your game for a while now," Villager called out. "Your recent string of losses was against Smashers that you were on par with or even better than. Mario, Little Mac, Marth, and Robin are some examples. Wario is a joke. Heck, even against me you were careless! Don't think we haven't noticed this."
"Look, just stay out of my way!" Ness rebutted tersely, shoving pass Villager while refusing to look him in the eye. "I'm just tired is all there is."
"You're not getting enough sleep?" Toon Link inquired concernedly. "Sleeping is the most important thing to do in life aside from wrecking other people's precious jars."
Ness seemed to have paused for a moment. Villager and Toon Link were gazing upon him expectantly. The young mayor didn't want to jump to any immediate conclusions yet since this was the first time they finally confronted Ness about his recently poor performance in his matches, which was also not looking good for their future as a multi-tag team for the upcoming tournament.
But seeing the way that he appeared to be deliberating after Toon Link had thrown in his two Rupees appeared to be having a peculiar effect on him.
Was he really not getting enough sleep?
Or was there something deeper behind this seeming cry for help?
Hopefully it wasn't about wanting to wreck other people's priceless jars.
"These days, I don't want to go to sleep," Ness murmured cryptically. "It feels like any reality I imagine myself to be in becomes worse than this."
"That doesn't make any sense," Villager remarked. "Can you please expound?"
Instead of getting a clear answer, Villager received another cold shoulder from his PSI friend as he continued walking down the hallway, presumably in the direction of their bedroom. He and Toon Link noted that he has been retreating back to their room after taking care of necessary duties such as eating and randomly assigned chores from the Hands as of recent.
It was starting to make sense to Villager now that faint memories regarding Ness behaving so differently, becoming withdrawn and depressed, started to connect with each other.
"You're thinking up a heavy storm in there," Toon Link commented. "Any idea on what's the matter with Ness?"
"Not yet," Villager replied, preparing to leave towards a direction. "It's time we got to the bottom of this. For Ness!"
"For Ness!" Toon Link shouted with equal fervor, running off with Villager to some destination.
Neither of them noticed a sinister smirk in the shadows of the hallway before departing to share the news.
A little later on…
"It's all coming to plan as you wanted," Larry reported, humbly kneeling before his Koopa King and Prince. "Villager and Toon Link are at their wits' end worrying about the welfare of Ness."
"Excellent work, Larry," Bowser praised, dismissing him soon after with a wave of a hand.
Larry Koopa stood up and quickly saluted them before running off to join his Koopaling brethren. Bowser and his son chuckled maliciously over this seeming good news for them.
"Thanks so much for this, Dad!" Bowser Jr. cheered. "You have no idea how much this means to me!"
"Getting even with a rival over petty matters is the perfect reason to do convoluted evil plans, son," Bowser commended, clapping twice as a signal to summon his trusted long-time advisor, Kamek. The old Magikoopa appeared from a subtle poof of smoke as a result. "You should thank this guy and his powerful magic."
"It's definitely strong than what Iggy and Ludwig could come with together," Bowser Jr. remarked.
"It wasn't difficult at all, my liege," Kamek answered, kneeling before them. "A little dream infiltration spell was all it took to mess with the PSI boy's head. With the information Prince Jr. provided on the Smasher that isn't here and their bond from the previous installment, it was easily to manipulate his dreams into nightmares by making the boy constantly relive losing his blond friend over and over."
"And with Ness turning into a moping wreck without Lucas, he won't stand a chance in his next match against Papa!" Bowser Jr. exclaimed wickedly. "The ultimate revenge is at hand!"
"I had no doubts that Jr.'s findings would be accurate," Bowser added. "I've seen how close Ness and Lucas were during our Brawl days. Those kids were practically brothers, almost as close as those bothersome Mario Bros.!"
"Papa, easy there," Bowser Jr. urged, seeing how worked up his father became upon mentioning his hated enemies. "We'll crush them and every other hero in this place."
"Your fighting spirit is as hot as my flame breath, Jr.," Bowser chuckled, resuming his good spirits and giving his son a hefty pat on the head. "I'll make sure my team will dominate our half while your team eliminates everyone else. Sound good?"
"You bet!" Bowser Jr. concurred.
"I'm a bit confounded, Your Haughtiness," Kamek intervened. "I was sure that you and your son would be in the same team for this upcoming multi-team tournament?"
"That was part of the original plan, Kamek," Bowser explained. "However, Jr. came up with a brilliant idea that would double our chances of winning this whole shebang. If he were to form a four-man team of his own, then we can eliminate all other teams before having to face each other. At least with the rest of the competition out of the way, we'll each just give it our best go and whichever one of us comes out on top will still bring glory to the Koopa name."
"Ah, I see," Kamek mused.
"Awesome, isn't it?" Bowser Jr. added.
"But sirs, what if you both have to face each other in the first round?" Kamek proposed.
The Koopa King and Prince were too excited about their plan that they did not even notice this little hole in the plan, at least not until Kamek ripped it wider. They both blinked dumbly before glancing at each other in shock and back at the Magikoopa advisor. They certainly had no certain answer for this.
"Kamek, don't rain on our parade!" Bowser demanded.
"Yeah!" Bowser Jr. agreed.
"But sirs," Kamek continued worriedly. "I'm only saying that−."
"Enough!" Bowser interrupted with a stomp. "The teams are randomized, so the possibility of my team fighting Jr.'s team in the first round is slim to none! Got it?!"
"Y-Yes, sire," Kamek stuttered, relenting on getting the Koopa King to listen to his reason. "If there's nothing else you need from me, I'll be on my way."
"Hmm, I'm good for now," Bowser grumbled. "How about you, Jr.?"
"Bring back pretzels!" Bowser Jr. requested impatiently.
"Very well, young Prince," Kamek obliged, teleporting out of their room in a puff of smoke.
The next day…
"Man, this is bad," Villager muttered, shivering and sweating in distress. He and Toon Link found themselves back in the same hallway they were in yesterday when it came to discussing the current well-being of their PSI-using friend. "Ness is scheduled for another match soon and I still haven't been able to get to the bottom of his situation."
"Did you talk to the other Smashers Ness faced previously?" Toon Link suggested.
"Yeah, most of them either did not notice or dismissed Ness's mood as a form of homesickness," Villager explained. "And I know for a fact that he's not facing homesickness."
"How?" Toon Link questioned.
"I'm a kid far away from home too, so I know how to relate to him," Villager answered. "But that doesn't matter now. I'm worried because his next opponent is Bowser, and he's certainly not going to make things any easier for him than the previous Smashers."
"I suppose it would be too convenient if Bowser had something to do with Ness," Toon Link remarked.
At that rather ironic moment, Lemmy Koopa was passing by the two of them in an attempt to chase after a big star-patterned ball that was bouncing out of his reach. Being genre-savvy as he was and deciding to take his chances since he had no leads to go on, Villager snagged Lemmy by the wrist and pulled him to the side and against the wall.
"Hey! What's the big idea?!" Lemmy cried out. "My ball's getting away! Without it, I won't be able to have fun anymore!"
"We just want some answers," Villager said in a calming manner, trying to settle down the littlest Koopaling.
"Yeah, so you better be ready to fess up unless you want to be sent home in a box down the river, if ya know what I mean," Toon Link threatened with a strange gangster-like accent.
Villager sweat-dropped while Lemmy was visibly shaken, retreating his head into his shell as a result. Villager then gave a glare towards Toon Link while attempting to reassure the young Koopaling that nothing bad would happen to him. Truth be told, if there were any of the Koopalings that would deserve mercy, it was decided that only Lemmy would receive it.
"I got an idea," Villager proposed. "If you answer some questions for us, then we'll help you retrieve your ball. Deal?"
Lemmy stopped shaking within his shell and enthusiastically popped his head out to give an eager nod to confirm his willingness. He'd do anything for the simple pleasures of amusement in life, such as toys and sweets.
"Excellent," Toon Link whispered eerily, cracking his knuckles before receiving an elbow shove in the ribs.
"Stop trying to scare him," Villager reprimanded. "You're a hero, not a mobster wannabe."
"Not even this once?"
"… …"
A little bit later…
"Will the next combatants please stand forward?" Master Hand announced. "That means Ness and Bowser."
A small crowd of Smashers had gathered around the standard Four-Player Smash room composed of four teleporter pods and a large screen monitor overhead to display the current match. Compared to the somewhat regal decor of Smash Mansion, the style of this room, among a few others like it such as the Training Center and the Eight-Player Smash room, was futuristic chrome white and immaculate.
Bowser was already standing next to one of the teleporter pods with burly arms crossed. He snorted a cinder when he caught sight of Ness dragging his feet towards him and the rest of the teleporter pods. He made no attempts to mask his sneering delight. His son was going to be proud of him in humiliating the PSI Powerhouse the way he was now.
"Master Hand, are you sure letting Ness fight is a good idea?" Rosalina asked. "I don't mean to pry, but you have been paying attention to his recent battle performances."
"Yeah, cut the little guy a break or something," Captain Falcon added. "I'll be willing to fight in his stead."
"Me too," Lucina intervened. "I don't like that look that beast he's to face has."
"Settle down," Master Hand spoke, effectively silencing all murmurs and ongoing conversation in the room. "I understand your concerns and I have spoken to Ness about this, but he has already agreed to go through with the match."
"What?!" a good portion of the more outspoken Smashers yelped.
"Guys… it's okay," Ness reassured with a hollow smile. "I'm here to fight. That's all that matters."
"Ness, look at yourself," Fox reasoned. "You're in no shape to fight, nor have you been since your previous matches. I don't know what's going on, but it's clear to me that you need to sort whatever's holding you back first before you can fight again."
"Po-poyo poyo, Ness-poyo," Kirby agreed earnestly.
Most of the Smashers in the room, mainly the female fighters, even Samus through a subdued smile, gushed over Kirby's attempt to be the voice of reason, even having the capacity to call Ness out by name. It's certainly not every day when the little pink Star Warrior could say something coherent in English words outside of copying certain powers. Fox shrugged and chuckled inwardly, feeling that Kirby has gotten everything taken cared of from here.
"You're really going to let that marshmallow talk you out of being in a match?" Bowser mocked, being one of the few clearly not affected by Kirby's charm. "You know what? Go ahead and quit so that I don't have to waste my time dealing with weaklings like you."
Ness looked up to glare at the Koopa King. The melancholy he had been feeling was subsiding and turning into rage as Bowser continued to taunt him. He was certainly not going to take that, regardless of what he was feeling now.
"Ness, wait!" Luigi called out. "Bowser's-a baiting you!"
"I don't care," Ness responded heatedly, pointing a finger at the arrogant Koopa King. "It's time I took you down a peg!"
"Hmph, fine by me," Bowser snarled with a fanged smirk, not worried about this minor uprising of fiery emotions the PSI boy had. "You'll be put out soon enough."
Without another word or exchanged banter, Ness and Bowser hopped up into a teleporter pod each while R.O.B. worked on the keyboard interface under Master Hand's direction. It was going to be a simple two-stock battle with a time limit of ten minutes. No items were going to show up in the middle of battle, not even a Smash Ball. These were the conditions previously agreed upon.
Some of the Smashers that had been previously worried for Ness started to cheer for him to take down Bowser while some of the wiser ones remained quiet. They knew that his newly awakened rage won't last long to sustain him and thus, Bowser would gain the upper hand at that point.
In any case, they still hoped for the best for the young PSI Powerhouse.
Inside the secured teleporter pods were the trophy selves of Ness and Bowser as to mark who was currently in battle. The stage for their fight was selected to be Battlefield. The Smashers in the room looked on expectantly as the monitor overhead displayed the loading screen.
3
A small wormhole opened up and Ness zipped out of it as a result of PSI Teleport, shaking off the charred face he had from impact.
2
A wreath of flames erupted on the side opposite of Ness. Bowser stomped forth out of them.
1
Both players were in battle position, waiting for the countdown to finish.
GO!
Bowser was the first to charge in, stomping towards Ness with the intent of making him suffer. He started off with a running kick, only for the young boy to react with a quick sidestep. Bowser swore under his breath as he fly right over him.
Ness then retaliated with a strong roundhouse kick of his own, causing Bowser to stumble from the hit and thus granting the PSI Powerhouse the rights as the one who landed the first hit.
"Why, you little!" Bowser growled, diving for a grab.
Ness leapt out of reach before descending back to the ground, spreading his arms out and spinning like a top to strike against the Koopa King's face. Still fueled by the rage of his insults, Ness continued his assault with simple melee attacks to rack up the damage. Bowser was losing his resistance to weak attacks and was beginning to flinch.
Everyone back at the Four-Player Smash was cheering for Ness's early lead and remarkable recovery compared to his recent battles. He was certainly putting up a better fight now than ever. Maybe Bowser did cure him of whatever funk he was in with his taunting.
Bowser managed to get in a few punches and flames before Ness snagged him into a grab, pummeled him a few times with his head, and threw him down to exert PSI power upon. The Koopa King bounced from the impact.
Ness followed up into the air with a forward PSI energy push, besetting more damage within a blink of an eye. With his remarkable midair prowess, he landed several more of such hits before forcing himself back to the main Battlefield platform.
The knockback wasn't enough to push Bowser far away. One Whirling Fortress was enough to reach the edge and climb back into battle. He was breathing heavily, as was Ness despite not having as much damage.
"Had enough yet?" Ness spat, attempting to push more inner rage against Bowser to the forefront.
"Heh, you get in a few hits and you already think you're the champ," Bowser remarked gruffly. "I'll admit that this caught me off guard."
"Admit that you were wrong about me," Ness demanded.
"How about I admit this instead," Bowser suggested, bearing a devilish smirk. "That the real reason that you've been falling behind is that you miss that crybaby friend of yours."
Ness grimaced. He felt the chill of his dark emotions freeze over within himself, pushing back against the fiery anger he had for the Koopa King. It almost seemed too convenient that he would bring this up, but Ness knew that he can't fall for this mind game. Not now anyway.
"W-What are you talking about?" Ness questioned.
"Call it a little theory if you want, but I think that it's fact," Bowser continued. "You hero types are so sentimental. He was the only one who could relate to you back at Brawl. And you were upset when you found out that he wasn't invited back."
"H-He had to rebuild his village," Ness argued, struggling against the fresh memories of his recent nightmares.
"Or perhaps that Hands saw him too weak and plain to return," Bowser rebutted.
"No! Lucas… Lucas is special… He's not weak…"
The nightmares of Lucas involved him in some sort of peril with Ness being tasked to save him. Unfortunately, all of these visions resulted with the same disastrous outcome, which Ness would get stuck with some obstacle and would wind up too late to save Lucas from his fate. Of course, he would see that his blond PSI friend was also attempting to free himself, but it just was not enough.
He was not strong enough.
Ness believed in the strength of his friends. He believed that Lucas wasn't weak, but he still couldn't help but worry what has been going on with him now since this installment of Super Smash Bros.
And while he was stuck in his doubts, Bowser stole the opportunity to send a smashing drop kick his way. Ness had no time to react and was immediately sent flying to the side. The damage he had fortunately wasn't enough to knock him beyond the boundaries, but getting back to the stage was certainly not going to be an easy task.
His powerful second jump was not enough to reach the edge, so he quickly concentrated a PK Thunder orb to send him flying back.
"It's Bowser Time!" Bowser roared, running to the edge of the stage to intercept the PSI Powerhouse.
Using his full weight, he was able to quickly roll off the edge and send a claw right into Ness before the PK Thunder could connect. The knockback was heavy enough to disrupt his concentration and send him off stage with one less life.
Bowser then retreated into his shell for another Whirling Fortress, narrowly grabbing onto the edge and pulling himself up to celebrate his soon-to-be victory.
"Hey! That was dirty!" Pit complained, pointing at Bowser's image on the monitor. "You all heard him, right?"
"I agree," Fox said, frowning. "That was definitely a low blow on Bowser's end. Bringing up Lucas as part of Ness's turmoil is just dishonest."
"What did you all expect?" Dark Pit commented sardonically. "He's a villain, meaning that he'll play dirty somehow while still keeping himself within the set rules."
"Unfortunately, that's how most battles tend to have anyway," Lucina added. "Psychological warfare against the enemy has always been an effective tactic. I wish we can help Ness somehow."
"Actually, there is," Master Hand intervened.
"Wait, you can help?" Luigi asked.
"Aren't you supposed to remain neutral for all battles, Master Hand?" Zelda inquired.
"Please, I foresaw all of this to come," Master Hand explained, much to the bewilderment of the Smashers. "As a matter of fact, if you want additional proof, they're standing right under the doorway."
Following Master Hand's pointing finger, the Smashers looked to see Villager and Toon Link with two figures tied up before them. Actually, only one was tied up with rope while the other was trapped and concealed under Villager's bug net.
"Villager! Toon Link!" Pit greeted. "What do you have there?"
"Here's what Master Hand was talking about," Villager announced, removing his bug net from his captive.
Toon Link also kicked his captive forward so that the rest of the Smashers could have a better look at both figures' faces. A collective gasp was heard before someone decided to voice their thoughts.
"That's Bowser Jr. and Kamek," Peach revealed.
"What's going on?" Fox asked as to get back on track.
"There's a funny story to go along with that," Toon Link began. "One that will have a sweet flashback sequence."
One sweet flashback sequence…
Within Bowser Jr.'s personal room, the young Koopa Prince and Kamek watched the match between Ness and Bowser through the latter's crystal ball. Ness was surprisingly giving the Koopa King a run for his coins with that kind of an early lead.
"That's not supposed to happen!" Bowser Jr. growled in frustration. "Kamek, fix this!"
"If I try to interfere, I'll get caught," Kamek reasoned.
"Then talk to Dad in his mind!" Bowser Jr. suggested. "We need to wave in his face the fact that Lucas is no longer here."
"Understood, Your Spoiledness."
Kamek waved his wand and casted a spell to establish a mental link with his King. While the advisor communicated the plan into Bowser's mind, the door opened and Lemmy intruded while carrying his big bouncy ball upon his tiny arms. It concealed his entire upper half, as well as part of the doorway.
"Lemmy, what do you think you're doing here?!" Bowser Jr. grumbled before resuming his attention back to the crystal ball. "Kamek and I are busy sabotaging Ness! Get out of here!"
The Wacky War Machine quickly scampered off to the side, revealing two new intruders that were hiding behind the ball's visage. Neither Bowser Jr. nor Kamek noticed until they felt something tiny and blunt strike them on the sides of their heads.
"OW!" Kamek yelped, losing his concentration on helping Bowser.
"Hey! What's the big idea?!" Bowser Jr. screamed, finally noticing the pair that shot pebbles at them with their slingshots.
"The idea is that justice will find the real perpetrators, no matter where they hide," Toon Link declared dramatically, pulling back on his slingshot with new ammo.
"You don't have to do any explaining," Villager assured, also prepping his slingshot for another attack. "You already did that for us when Lemmy entered."
"Well, you bozos are too late!" Bowser Jr. proclaimed arrogantly. "My dad knows how to take down Ness now. It's his fault for being attached to a weakling. He's finally gonna get what's coming to him! And there's nothing you can do to stop this!"
"Then I don't suppose you won't mind us doing this then," Toon Link warned, both he and Villager getting ready to fire.
"Bring it!" Bowser Jr. demanded. "I'm not scared by a bunch of stones."
To a keen eye like Kamek's, he noticed that there was something unusual about the pellets those boys were about to use on them. They looked ready to blow up at any second now. It was then he was able to identify what they really were, fidgeting as a result of the revelation.
"Prince Jr., wait!" Kamek called out, extending a hand out to him in vain.
Too late.
*BOOM*
The pellets upon impact burst into a bright, stunning flash. The shockwave was quite rattling. Bowser Jr. and Kamek were rendered disoriented and helpless. The Deku Nuts have done their job.
"As it turns out, they were responsible for Ness's nightmares on losing Lucas," Villager concluded. "By burdening his emotions on top with the lack of sleep from the nightmares, they've been wearing out Ness this whole time just for this moment. His recent performances have reflected this. He's been unable to focus on any battle because of this."
"What I don't understand is why go so far?" Ike pondered.
"And again, they're villains," Dark Pit answered drolly. "Doesn't any ever pay attention to detail these days?"
"Well, duh, I wanted revenge on him and you losers for those pranks being better than mine," Bowser Jr. admitted.
"Hmm, I don't recall pulling any pranks against the Koopas," Toon Link mused.
"He's probably still upset about the fireworks incident a couple of chapters ago," Villager surmised.
"Say what now?" Toon Link mumbled quickly.
"It is what it is," Villager continued with a shrug.
"But how are we supposed to help Ness?" Pit spoke up.
"Ahem, remember me?" Master Hand coughed, prompting all eyes upon the powerful deity. "I had previously mentioned that I foresaw all this happening."
"So you're all-knowing and omnipotent, like we don't know that already," Falco remarked brazenly.
"Master Hand, you're not certainly suggesting sending in help for Ness, are you?" Zelda fathomed. "Is that even allowed?"
"Technically, we never made such rules on jumping in and pulling off heroic feats," Captain Falcon offered thoughtfully. "I always figured that any with common sense would automatically adhere to some moral principle."
"Would that mean villains lack common sense by that logic?" Pit wondered.
"Of course not, chickenbrain," Kamek scoffed, appearing affronted from such an accusation. "We choose not to be good, doesn't mean we don't have common sense."
"But most bad guys disregard common sense anyway for their own selfish pleasure," Fox added.
"Guys, we're getting off topic again!" Villager interrupted. "Master Hand, what did you say we can do? Ness is getting a heavy beating out there!"
True to the Smashville Mayor's word, everybody looked back at the monitor while the fight continued. The time was down to less than five minutes. Though Bowser had over one-hundred twenty damage, he still had all two remaining stocks left. Ness, on the other hand, was nearing ninety percent and was getting careless in his fighting style.
"He's going to lose!" Fox warned.
"This is now the perfect time for us to reveal a special surprise," Master Hand announced, prompting the present Smashers to pay attention to him once more. "We've recruited a few more characters to join our Smash coalition, a couple of which are familiar faces."
"You mean, just like Mewtwo?" Luigi asked.
Master Hand then snapped his fingers, summoning Crazy Hand, who for some reason was wearing a large wig of long brown hair on top of his knuckles. The entire cast within the room fell into mortified silence while Master Hand mentally face-palmed himself.
"Oh, darling~!" Crazy Hand sang in a… surprisingly good imitation of a sweet woman's voice. "Time to show everyone what you're made of~!"
Soon after the rather unique call from the embodiment of destruction was made, small footsteps were soon heard emerging out of the corner of the room. The Smashers that found the source took in slow collective gasps. Bowser Jr. and Kamek were certainly speechless. They were certainly in for the shock of their lives.
"No… freaking… way," Toon Link gasped, his eyes widening even larger than they could possibly be.
"… Who would've thought?" Villager mused, unable to pick up his gaping jaw.
"I'm ready when you are," the newcomer announced, bearing an uncharacteristic confident grin.
Back at the Battlefield…
Bowser sent one more strong punch against the side of Ness's head, easily knocking him from one side of the stage all the way to the other. The PSI wielder landed on his back, deprived of power and motivation to continue.
He had been reduced into a mere shell of his former self.
"I rule!" Bowser roared, flaunting his nigh victory with a puff of smoke into the air. "Bwa ha ha! Time to end this game!"
The Koopa King ran forward to mercilessly deliver the final blow. He held a sharped claw up high to strike the immobile Ness.
The boy was unresponsive. He felt that there was no use in getting back up, not after falling so far from the top.
This was it…
"PK Fire!"
"Wha?!"
Bowser found himself unable to continue his outburst as a sudden PK Fire bolt blasted him backwards. There was no way that belonged to Ness. His PK Fire did not have that kind of knockback. There was only one other fighter that could use PSI powers.
There was just no way.
But seeing would be believing.
An interloper skidded in front of Ness, who was alerted by that peculiar attack cry. Through some unknown source of energy from within, he was able to stand back up on his feet and shake off the remaining repercussions from Bowser's last attack. He was certain he was hallucinating now as the person standing before him was certainly an unexpected twist.
However, even as his vision cleared up, the small blond figure clad in the orange and red-striped shirt was still there.
"… Lu… Lucas," Ness managed to say.
"What's up… Ness," Lucas replied, flashing a reassuring smile back to him. "And yes, I'm back and better than ever."
The PSI Powerhouse blinked a few times, finding himself grinning widely. But before he could reach out and embrace his returned psychic friend, Lucas held out a hand to stop him.
"Huh?" Ness grunted.
"We still have a match to finish," Lucas indicated, pointing at an irate Koopa King stomping in fury in front of them.
"No fair!" Bowser whined. "I call fowl! He's not supposed to show up out of nowhere and double-team on me like that!"
"Technically, this is still free-for-all mode," Lucas reminded. "Also, I am from Nowhere, the Nowhere Islands to be exact."
"Then allow me to dispose of you so that I can resume finishing off Ness, smart mouth," Bowser threatened, dashing forward to strike.
Both Lucas and Ness leapt out the way and onto the top platform. Bowser was then chasing after them. The two PSI users were going about in the same direction, but nonetheless, they remained successful in evading Bowser's strikes.
"Bowser's been buffed up since our last brawl," Lucas commented. "This is really going to be tough."
"What should we do?" Ness asked.
"Just leave it to me," Lucas answered, flashing a thumbs-up at his friend. "Bowser is not the only one who's improved."
As to prove his point, the Boy from Nowhere leapt towards Bowser while his entire body was sparkling with PSI energy. Bowser's eyes widened, knowing that he did not anticipate and prepare some sort of defense against the attack, and thus received quite the shock of his life.
Stumbling back from the multiple hits, the Koopa King soon found himself flying a distance after receiving a strong kick on the abdomen. Lucas ran after him before spinning on heel and leaping backwards, aiming a downward kick to spike Bowser down to his first demise.
Lucas then unleashed his Rope Snake, having it latch to the ledge and pull him back up. Every spectator that watched how Lucas had made quick work of Bowser was certainly more than impressed, disregarding the fact that his damage percentage was already in the danger zone.
Bowser soon descended from the revival platform, fury clearly etched upon his monstrous face. Resorting to vicious roars as means to express himself, his attempt at intimidation showed that he was done playing around. He ran forward while the revival invincibility was still in effect, throwing a running kick Lucas's way and knocking him aside.
Ness then leapt to action, pushing his hands out to spark PSI energy as he fell towards Bowser. Despite managing to land the attack while his back was turned, Bowser was still able to counterattack with a strong punch, bashing Ness off the stage.
It wasn't enough to knock him out of the match, but he was certainly pushing his limit.
Lucas came from behind and retaliated with flying kick charged with PSI energy, slamming his foot on the back of Bowser's head. The Koopa King stumbled at that time, signaling his weakening resistance to minor attacks.
Enraged, Bowser attempted to snag Lucas for a Flying Slam, only for Lucas to roll back and send his Rope Snake forward. Bowser was caught by his long-ranged grab and before long, he found himself half buried into the ground.
"How the?!" Bowser yelled, though muffled underground.
He wriggled to get free, getting a grip with his arms on the outside and pulling the remainder of himself out. However, his attempt in getting free was overpowered and had resulted with him in being airborne.
Lucas was quick to send an upward headbutt into Bowser's stomach. The Boy from Nowhere then attempted another kick, but Bowser was able to evade the next move.
As the both of them landed back on the ground, Ness ran in and used a PSI-powered push to zap Bowser off balance. Of course, this resulted in the Koopa King getting even angrier than ever.
He swung an arm at him, only for Ness to narrowly sidestep. This left him vulnerable for Bowser's next move, which was one of his personal favorites as indicated by the sinister gleam in his eyes.
Lucas anticipated what he was about to do and jumped in front of Bowser as the latter reared up for his infamous Fire Breath. Right at the moment the first burst of flame was spat out of his mouth, Lucas held out his hand and activated his PSI Magnet over Ness.
The blue energy magnet field absorbed the flames Bowser unleashed while Ness remained unharmed. The Koopa King growled furiously behind his Fire Breath and unleashed more flames, thinking that it would overpower the PSI Magnet.
Apparently, someone did not take the basics class of PSI.
He eventually exhausted his supply of flames for the moment while both Ness and Lucas remained unscathed from his assault. Moreover, Lucas received the absorbed energy from the flames and lowered his damage percentage by a lot.
"I told you that Lucas is strong after all," Ness concluded while still inside the PSI Magnet.
"Okay, now I'm beyond mad!" Bowser bellowed, charging in.
The two PSI users nodded to each other before enacting their final plan. Ness leapt out of the way while Lucas waited for Bowser to get close enough. Blinded by his own fury and contempt towards these troublesome children, he did not notice that Lucas disengaged the PSI Magnet right as he ran into it, receiving quite the momentary paralyzing shock.
Bowser lost his footing from the aftereffect. Taking a moment to regain his bearings, he reopened his eyes to see Lucas brandishing a big stick. His face fell upon realizing what the blond boy was planning to do with said big stick.
*THWACK*
He was slammed hard towards the other side of the stage. It would've been a relief if the pain would stop there. However, Ness was waiting for him on the other side, holding up his baseball bat, which was clearly thicker and sturdier than Lucas's smashing stick.
"Here we go," Ness quipped, charging up his side smash to full power.
"Why me?" Bowser mumbled, knowing that he was unable to avoid his imminent fate.
*CRACK*
This blunt hit combo nearly matched the harmony that the Mario Bros. would usually enact in their battles with Bowser, as much as he hated to admit after Ness sent him flying. As he soared back in the opposite distance from the hit, the Koopa King swore in incoherent growls that he would remember this before exploding off in the distance, eliminating his last life stock.
"And that's game!" Ness exclaimed in triumph, placing his bat back inside his backpack.
"For Bowser, that is," Lucas clarified, hesitatingly clicking his index fingers together, much to Ness's confusion. "With my addition into this match, it's not over until one of us remains or the time limit runs out."
"Oh," Ness sighed, scratching the back of his head. "Well, this one was between me and Bowser, so I'm happy to beat him and get my groove back, though I really couldn't have done it without you. Thanks for coming back, Lucas." An afterthought came into mind and he appeared to have frozen in fear. "You're back for real, right?"
"Yep!" Lucas affirmed cheerfully. "I'm actually one of the newcomers to Smash Bros., along with a few others waiting back at the mansion."
"A few others?" Ness repeated. "Who else joined with you?"
"Well, I was asked not to say lest I accidentally steal Master Hand's job," Lucas explained with a sheepish grin. "Anyway, you'll meet them for yourself once this match ends in ten seconds. I think there's a Smasher that you were familiar with from the past too."
Ness's eyes shot wide open, having momentarily forgotten that the match was still going on. He only noticed the timer reaching the last five seconds and the countdown was loudly announced. With Lucas's status being ahead of his, Ness knew that he wasn't going to win this one. But having his friend back was the best victory he could have here. The PSI Powerhouse then nonchalantly placed his hands on his hips and gave one of his well-known phrases.
"Okay."
A little bit after the match…
All current Smashers have been gathered into the main meeting hall. On the stage before everyone's view were the Hands, as well as Lucas, who stood between them with his head held high. Various conversations echoed throughout the whole. With the exception of the fuming Bowser and his son, the reception in regards to Lucas returning was majorly positive to neutral.
"Good news, everyone!" Master Hand called out, commanding for silence. Once all attention was back on him, the ceremonial deity of creation resumed. "As many of you have seen from the last match we held, we have a returning fighter rejoining our ranks."
"Lucas comes out of Nowhere!" Crazy Hand chimed proudly, inciting a bit of applause.
The boy being praised went back to his bashful self, still not accustomed to all of this attention. Nonetheless, he was glad to be back and that the others were happy for his return. He noticed somewhere within the middle of the crowd was Ness cheering loudly for him, along with another old friend, Toon Link. There was a third in their group with short brown hair and wearing a red shirt.
He must be a newcomer that arrived when this installment started, Lucas thought curiously. He must also be one of Ness's newer friends too.
Just as the applause was settling down, a new voice rang into the meeting hall, much to Marth's surprise. A few of the older veterans also reacted, but not to a big extent as the Hero-King's.
"Don't forget about me!" this voice called out.
"My, aren't we impatient," Master Hand jested. "Since our next newcomer wants to make his return, it looks like we have no choice."
The two Hands managed to pull off a shrugging gesture despite having no shoulders. Nonetheless, their esteemed second newcomer leapt from the shadows of the stage to join Lucas and momentarily take the spotlight off of him.
"It's Roy!" Marth exclaimed, prompting his fellow Fire Emblem warriors to look upon the one who weld the Binding Blade.
"This is the man who's also known as the Young Lion?" Lucina inquired. "I'm amazed. You know a lot of powerful allies, Hero-King Marth."
"Lucina, I mean no disrespect, but you know there's no need for formalities," Marth reminded.
"And you know she can't help giving this much respect, Lord Marth," Robin intervened.
"All this talk about titles is making my head spin," Ike remarked. "Isn't it time we welcomed one of our own back into Smash?"
At the Radiant Hero's prompt, they impelled another round of applause among the Smashers in welcoming back another veteran from his fighting reprieve since his last melee. Roy stood right next to Lucas and placed a hand on the younger boy's shoulder while bearing a pleased grin, encouraging him to accept all of these rightfully deserved accolades, love, and respect instead of being so bashful about it.
Despite having returned to Super Smash Bros. as a more confident fighter, Lucas was still rather quiet and very humble at heart. He certainly had the qualities and makings of a true hero, for sure.
"Moving on!" Master Hand bellowed. "We have an outsider joining in!"
"And by outsider, you mean?" Little Mac decided to speak up.
Instead of answering the Bruiser from the Bronx directly, the Hand decided to snap his fingers as a show of dramatic flair. Calm, heavy footsteps were heard arriving from the shadows of the stage. A muscular man clad in a rather tattered white fighter gi, fingerless red gloves, and red headband took the stage. Much of the Smashers were in complete silence from the appearance of this wanderer.
Mega Man, in particular, was surprised by this twist of events.
"No way!" the Blue Bomber exclaimed.
"Here comes a new challenger!" Master Hand continued. "Ryu!"
"So this is Smash," Ryu stated, coolly gazing upon all of the legendary fighters that have joined this major event as they clapped for his addition. His eyes soon fell upon the short boxer, who equally stared back with fiery determination. Both he and the Tireless Wanderer exchanged challenging smirks to one another. Those around them immediately determined a new rivalry was just formed. "Now I'm glad I found this place. I'm expecting a good fight out of this."
"I wouldn't expect anything less," Little Mac quipped back.
With the friendly rivalry established and settled in, the rest of the Smashers began talking among one another on how these newcomers were going to make future battles interesting. But before they could resume conversing, a loud and timed clap disrupted their thoughts.
Apparently, the Hands were not done just yet.
"But wait, there's more!" Master Hand and Crazy Hand interrupted.
"How many more fighters can there be?" Link inquired. "I mean, not that it's a bad thing, but it's a lot to take in."
"I think I liked you better when you were silent," Crazy Hand commented offhandedly.
Link merely grunted in irritation as a result, right eye involuntarily twitching while Zelda looked on concernedly. Ganondorf had no reserves in laughing raucously at his nemesis's brief humiliation.
"You wouldn't want to turn an eye away from this newcomer," Master Hand resumed. "Like Ryu, this warrior too hails from a faraway land. And I do mean faraway."
Similarly to how the wanderer arrived upon the stage, this next newcomer also stepped up to the stage cautiously. He took the side next to Ryu. He appeared to be nothing more than a young man with messy spiky blond hair and dressed in dark clothing. However, the detail that was most notable about this fighter was the huge sword on his back that was practically the same size and height as he was.
Both Ike and Shulk inadvertently thought about their own swords compared to that belonging to the new guy.
It's huge! Ike and Shulk both thought, reluctant to admit it out loud.
"Want to take the tagline this time, brother?" Master Hand asked.
"I sure do!" Crazy Hand replied enthusiastically, forming himself in a fist and swinging over everyone's heads in an eager gesture, much to the fright and annoyance by Smashers that nearly got their heads launched off. "Cloud storms into battle!"
"I never imagined myself in this place," Cloud remarked as his opening words. "Certainly a lively bunch to be with."
"He doesn't sound as lively about being here," Sonic joked within the applause. "Don't know why, but this guy's attitude almost reminds me of Shadow back home. But I'm sure he's still a good guy deep inside of all that tight-lipped bravado."
"He's definitely from far away," Diddy Kong concurred. "Aside from Ryu, who I only know because of Mega Man telling me minutes ago, I have little knowledge of Cloud."
"You only need to know that I'll be the one who'll take him down," Link intervened between them, bearing a wolfish grin.
"Not so fast," Zelda said, pulling the Hero of Hyrule back by his tunic collar. "Tensions are already high because of the rivalry between Little Mac and Ryu. Another one will set off an immediate brawl."
"These are no longer brawls, Zelda," Link replied, gingerly taking Zelda's hand off of him while keeping it in his hands. "It's a matter of glory now. And I'm raring to test my blade against his."
"Still, you don't know his hidden strengths," Zelda warned. "That sword of his isn't just for show, you know."
"It makes the fight a lot more fun that way," Link answered. "Plus, he likely doesn't know my strengths."
"In any case," Zelda sighed, knowing that it would be impossible to dissuade him at this point, "you can't let yourself be careless. I trust you, Link."
"All the more," Link finished, gently patting the top of her hand.
While they shared a tender moment within another active moment of discussion, the Hands were preparing to reveal yet another newcomer into their ranks.
"Quite the representation we've been getting, eh, Bro?" Luigi jested, lightly poking his older brother to the side with an elbow.
"We're not-a done yet, Luigi," Mario reminded, pointed back up to the stage where yet another new fighter is making his debut.
This next fighter was another swordsman, closely reminiscent to the Fire Emblem warriors. Clad in white armor with a bit of black segments, blue cape, lack of shoes, and wielding quite the crafted sword with fiery jagged sides, this fighter boldly took his stance in contrast to the previous two newcomers.
"I have decided to join Smash!" he declared. "That much, I know I won't hesitate in deciding."
"You heard it here!" Master Hand followed up. "Corrin chooses to Smash!"
"Another swordsman?" Falco snorted. "Well, I guess it must be time for me to get a sword to replace my blaster."
"You're not serious, are you?" Fox questioned.
"As if!" Falco continued.
The four Fire Emblem fighters within the crowd, as well as Roy on stage, observed this newcomer expectantly. Corrin was still a mysterious being to them, but in one way or another, he was promised to be an interesting Smasher for sure.
"Are you getting tired yet with all these announcements?" Master Hand asked wryly. "I can promise you one more new addition!"
"After much research and information gathering, we found another fighter that will likely boost up our reputation further worldwide," Crazy Hand explained, sounding as sensible as he could ever be.
"All of these new fighters is getting me itching for a battle with them right now, Lady Palutena!" Pit exclaimed.
"I think you're itching because you need a bath," Dark Pit quipped, inciting a giggle from Palutena nearby.
"Hey! Don't go stealing my lines now," Sonic reprimanded.
"Yeah! Though I could use a good hot spring soak, so I'll take that as my bath later," Pit countered thoughtfully. "Anyway, what Sonic said, it's already bad you've stolen my look."
"Or maybe you stole mine," Dark Pit replied drolly.
"Now, now, children," Palutena intervened playfully, coming in between the two bantering angels. "Let's just look out for the last Smasher challenger, okay?"
"Now I know I made the right choice stopping by!" a refined, feminine voice echoed mysteriously throughout the hall. "A couple of angels ripe for the picking!"
"Who dares?!" Dark Pit beckoned, stepping up next to his light counterpart.
A sensation occurred in the high space between the audience and the stage. A flurry of bats from the darkness congregated together. In their place, a tall womanly figure dressed in fashionably black couture and quipped with guns on hand and on the backs of her heels descended to the ground.
Flashing out a few fabulous moves before backflipping onto the stage, perfectly behind Lucas, the woman flashed a seductive grin.
"Shall we dance?" she jibed.
"Oh me, oh my! What an entrance!" Master Hand introduced. "Bayonetta gets wicked!"
Loud cheers were certainly prominent among the male population. As for the female Smashers, there was a bit of a conflict of interest in regards to someone like the Umbra Witch joining them.
"She may have great taste in style, but those manners of hers are so atrocious," Peach commented disdainfully. "There are children here! She's not a good influence on them!"
"Lighten up, Peach," Samus scolded. "I'm not too fond of the idea of her showing off like that either, but she is strong. I'll give her that."
"Huh?!" Peach gasped.
"More women Smashers are welcomed in my book," Samus continued. "I don't have to like or be friends with them. If they're worthy of respect, then it is what it is. And if I were you, the children's innocence would be the last thing to worry about with her."
Still confused on what the Chozo-raised bounty hunter was talking about, Peach was guided by Samus to look back onto the stage, where Bayonetta was showing a remarkably sweet side to Lucas, who in turn was quick to open up and smile to her despite having been surprised by her wicked entrance.
In addition, Samus directed Peach to look at Mario, who among other most of the male Smashers, were enchanted by Bayonetta's charms. While thinking of a way to get back at him, she happened to look over to where Zelda and Link were, discovering the latter having a large lump on his head and laying down on his stomach before Zelda's feet. The Princess of Hyrule held her nose high to the air, failing to pretend indifference.
"I can see that I've caused quite a bit of commotion with my presence," Bayonetta added, grinning casually. "But I'm here for those angels over there." Pit and Dark Pit stepped up in front of a slightly worried Palutena, forcing other Smashers near them to back away. They were just as eager to appease the challenge as the Umbra Witch was. "Anyone else, I also welcome the challenge since it looks like I'll be here for a while. Hope you don't mind."
She concluded her opening statement with a flirtatious wink, inciting more cat calls and wolf whistles from the male Smashers.
"Despite their… eccentric personalities, they appear to be promising to appease my desire for powerful foes," Mewtwo commented to himself.
Master Hand loudly cleared his disembodied voice, regaining control over everyone once more.
"And there you have it!" Master Hand concluded with him and Crazy Hand showcasing all the latest additions on stage, inciting one more round of applause. "And as a result of all of these Smashers joining us, I will be extending the team submission deadline for one more week so that all of you can figure out who you want in your teams, if any of you were lacking a fourth member, and so on."
"So go socialize and make friends!" Crazy Hand added.
"Meeting adjourned!" Master Hand announced.
Both Hands vanished from the stage, allowing Smashers to converse freely with one another while ushering the newer Smashers to join them. New teams were made and arranged.
The main team of this story has just found their fourth member as Lucas and Ness embraced each other in a brotherly hug with Villager and Toon Link watching the reunion of these PSI users fondly.
This foretold multi-member team tournament was certainly going to be promising.
I had this chapter finished for a while, but I purposely waited for the final Smash direct so that I could get all of the newest additions tied in cleanly. I personally like all of the new additions and have no preferences on who gets in, though if I were to be honest, the only one I wanted to return was Wolf.
Ah, well.
So yeah, I know this chapter is late to what's been going on as Lucas, Roy, and Ryu have been released for over half a year now, they haven't had their proper introductions here and I didn't want to randomly add them in (And if you haven't guessed, Lucas is going to be the fourth main character with Ness, Villager, and Toon Link. I have even changed the cover to reflect this now).
Now it's them, with Cloud, Corrin, and Bayonetta as the newest Smashers with the latter two available February 2016 and Cloud available after the December Smash Direct.
Please review!
L-ater!