Swordplay
bijoukaiba: Several reviewers had a little bit of confusion, so I thought before I enter into today's story, I would put in a recap of what happened previously.
Recap:
One day, fifteen warriors (counting Nana) from different times, lands, and even planets were transported to the Battle Royale Suites, a hotel and a fighting center. The staff have also come from foreign locations and are there to serve and entertain the fighters. The most mysterious of the staff appear to be two brothers by the names of Master and Crazy, who seem to be the directors of the fighting. What the "smashers" don't realize is that they have an assassin waiting to fight in exchange for his freedom and the freedom of his loved ones. His assigned target? The Hero of Time, Link. After Link defeats Pikachu, he will fight against the Hylian. The next day, Link loses to the Poke'mon unexpectedly and Pikachu is sent in his place to fight the assassin instead. Misunderstanding his orders, he loses to the Poke'mon and his loved ones are killed. Crazy and Master decide to dispose of their failed assassin by erasing his memory and drowning him in the ocean. Out of pure luck, water Poke'mon decide to rescue him. Meanwhile, everyone is fearing for their safety from the attacker- although Pikachu explains how the swordsman stopped fighting him and may be an innocent fighter. Ness decides to seek him out with some help from Zelda and her other form, Sheik. Finding him on the beach, they return him to the hospital wing for medical attention. After awakening and being unable to understand everyone else, the attacker- memory now erased- is given Translation Water and finally can communicate amidst the other fighters. He is really Prince Marth from the kingdom of Altea, and is assigned a room on the third floor with Link and Captain Falcon. Now he joins the others as another official fighter!!
(panting)
And that's how I tried to sum it up. Probably failed, too. Now that I've read my story, it kinda confused me as well. I'll try to keep things less complicated from now on. Like now, it's the summer... let's just kick back and have some fun!
As for our disclaimer... why not let our buddy Fox McCloud introduce us? That's your mission, sir!
Fox: Right! bijoukaiba doesn't own Nintendo, Super Smash Bros. Melee, or any of its related characters or games! MISSION COMPLETE!!
-------------------------------------------------------------------
Chapter 4: The First Two Days
After a shout of confusion, Marth caught himself from his off-character state. Normally, he was a lot calmer than this, but the last thing he could remember was going into a market to buy a few apples for breakfast only to black out and reawaken in the Battle Royale Suites. He briefly looked around his room. Just like the other smashers, he had a wardrobe of his preferred clothes- tunics, pants, capes, boots, gloves, and even another tiara- this one was covered in rubies so it appeared pure red, and had a small sapphire for its centerpiece. His bed was covered in deep blue sheets that had golden emblems embroidered into the covers, and the window had sky blue curtains with a horizontal ripple of pale gray through them. His entire room was painted in a pale shade of turquoise. (((Actually, this sounds a lot like my room... except for the curtains.)))
There appeared to be a smaller room with ceramic tiles of teal blue. There was a larger platform that rose from the floor and had a silver faucet that leaned over a ceramic bowl. Beside it was a ceramic bowl that was closer to the floor and water in it. Marth noted a small silver switch and pressed down on it. With a loud roar that made the prince leap, the water got sucked into it, then began refilling again. Attached to the "platform" was a roll of white paper next to the roaring water bowl.
"Interesting... I wonder if this is the-"
A knock at the door startled him.
"Just a moment!" the prince called. When he opened the door, he was greeted by the green-clad elf he had met half an hour ago.
"Oh... um... Link! Did you want to see me?" he asked.
Zelda stepped from behind Link, wearing a white dress to match Marth's pale attire.
"We both did," she explained. "We had to learn about the technology present today so we thought we'd try to pass on our knowledge to you."
He smiled and held open the door. "Come on in, because I'm plenty confused."
First thing Marth did was lead them to his restroom. "This is supposed to be... well, the toilet, right?"
"Yes, that's correct," Zelda confirmed. "And that's a sink, used for simple washing... such as cleaning the hands or face." She pointed over at the large black box across from Marth's bed. "That's a television, but that's fairly complicated... we'll explain that later."
"Here, we'll show you around the rest of the building." Link said, gesturing to the doorway.
The Princess of Hyrule took the hand of the Prince of Altea and led him along on their tour.
-----------------------------------------
Their first stop was the cafeteria, where Mario and Peach were waiting.
"Marth! Over here!" she called to the Altean prince.
"Wait-a! Isn't this-a the same guy who tried-a to attack Pikachu?"
"What? I tried to attack him?" the prince asked.
Link nodded.
"I'm really sorry... I honestly don't remember..." Marth apologized.
"Mario, I'm pretty sure he was intended to be a fighter like us, but his memory was erased somehow after the fight with Pikachu. Joy even got him a room and everything." Link explained.
Mario scratched his chin as he stared at Marth.
"Well... I guess-a it's okay. You don't look-a like the type-a to attack the innocent-a." He turned and looked at Bowser across the room. "And trust-a me, I've seen-a the type. We'll just have to trust-a you for now."
Marth bowed slightly in a gesture of gratitude. A soft growling sound was heard. "Wow, I just got really hungry! And something smells great!" Marth clutched his stomach and laughed. "It almost feels like I haven't eaten in days!"
"Go get a few-a slices of pizza! It tastes really-a great around here-a!"
"Fantastic!" Marth agreed. "Wait, what's a pizza?"
Zelda and Link appeared puzzled.
"Maybe it's a fruit?" Zelda wondered.
Mario and Peach glanced at each other.
"We still have a lot to teach them about the present, don't we?"
Mario held up a triangular slice of bread that was covered in tomato sauce with several spices in it and was topped with melted mozzerella and cheddar cheeses, and sliced pepperoni and mushrooms.
"This-a... is a slice of-a pizza."
The aromas wafted to them and their mouths began watering.
"Pizza..." they murmured.
"Go on, all-a of you. Try a slice-a!"
Without any further bidding, they took a slice into their hands and bit into it.
"Ruby's good at cooking everything, isn't she?" Zelda commented.
"If I could have had anything to eat as my first meal here, I'm really glad I got pizza. Fate seems to be good to me!" Marth sighed happily after finishing the first bite. It was hard to restrain himself from wolfing down the pizza, but despite how hungry he was he had to remember his manners as a prince and ate slowly.
As fate would have it, Master and Crazy walked into the cafeteria. Apparently, Crazy wanted some soda and Master was feeling thirsty himself.
"And I want Pepsi, not Coca Cola!" Crazy demanded to his brother.
"Hold it." His brother ordered, freezing in his steps and halting his brother. "What's wrong with this picture?"
"Hmmm..." Crazy murmured, looking around the room at everyone enjoying their pizza. "We forgot to put Parmesan cheese at the tables?"
"Yes- what? No!" He pointed over at the blue-haired swordsman who was eating pizza and laughing with a few other people.
"Hey, he looks like that Marth person we were supposed to kill yesterd-"
His brother clapped a hand over his mouth. "It IS Marth!" Master hissed.
Marth looked up at them at the mention of his name. "Hey!" he said, smiling at them. "Come get some pizza!"
"Oh boy!" Crazy cheered. Master caught him by the ear. "You idiot! This is a trick!"
"But I want pizza..." Crazy complained.
Marth walked over to them. "Come on, you should go get some while it's hot!"
"Thanks!" Crazy grinned, following the prince to eat with Mario, Zelda, and Link.
Master stared at them. What if... that drug we injected into his neck erased more than just his fight with Pikachu?
He smirked and walked over with Crazy to their table.
"You look... familiar. Have we met before?" he asked innocently.
Marth shook his head. "Not that I know of," the prince replied calmly, wiping sauce from his lip with a paper napkin. "My name is Marth. Who are you?"
This has really worked out in my favor, huh?
"The name's Master and my brother with the white hair is Crazy. We are the directors of the fighting around here. You have been brought here to be a part of the Battle Royale Suites, a hotel and fighting center dedicated to the best fighters ever!"
"How exciting!" Marth commented. "That means I've been considered as one of them, right?"
Master nodded. "Why else would you be here, my prince?" You idiot, of course that's why!!
He suddenly turned more serious. "But there's something I need to tell you... I don't want it to spoil the rest of your day, so I'll tell you tonight."
Marth glanced worriedly at Zelda and Link.
"Don't worry," Zelda reassured. "It's probably something minor."
Link merely nodded.
Before Marth could ask anything from Master or Crazy, they had both disappeared.
"Wait, what's the time? Oh no, I forgot! Marth, Link, I'm sorry, but you two are on your own," Zelda commented, getting up from the pizza table.
"What?" Link and Marth asked simultaneously.
"Yesterday, I agreed to spend the afternoon with Samus and Peach." Zelda explained. "Sort of a 'girls only' deal. Link, you'll have to give him the rest of the tour yourself. Think of it as a 'swordsmen only' afternoon." She smiled cutely.
Before Link could say anything, she gave the two swordsmen a hug then went off with Peach to find Samus. "Thanks!" she shouted behind her.
Link glanced over at the newcomer, who merely smiled.
"So... we're the only two swordsmen here? That's interesting."
Link shrugged, then considered something. Because there was no fighting over the weekend, Master and Crazy permitted the fighters to use the arenas as common rooms for socializing. At that moment, he spotted Fox passing by.
"Excuse me, Fox!" He called.
"Yeah?" The pilot asked.
"Where did you last see Ness?"
"I think he went to Onett to eat his pizza."
As Marth finished eating what was now his fifth slice of pizza, Link stood up from the table. "Ness? What's a Ness?" the prince asked.
"Come on," he commented, gently grabbing Marth's arm and tugging him to his feet. "I think you'll want to meet the person actually responsible for your rescue."
-------------------------------------------------
Marth gasped in awe of the scenery around him. An asphalt road ran through the middle of the arena, and across the street a few flowers were growing alongside a baseball field. There was a blue house, a yellow house with a tall tree growing behind it, a drug store with several floors, and another blue house with a clothes line. everything else was blue skies and beautiful mountains on the horizon.
"I never would have guessed... the Onett Kingdom is so beautiful..."
Link chuckled softly. Good thing Ness would be here to clarify several things. At that moment, a loud and sharp horn could be heard. Uh-oh. A large black van had come from a tunnel on a far side of the town and was now speeding towards them.
"Link! What kind of black creature is that?"
The elf glanced at the prince awkwardly. "Hey Marth... don't try to mess with it. It's a car, you can't-"
"A car? Doesn't sound that dangerous... I'll handle it." He smoothly walked past Link, whipping out a blade from his sheath. The sword appeared fairly thin, slimmest at the tip, and appeared double edged. The rain-guard (((I'm using wikipedia vocabulary!!))) held a red stone, and the cross-guard was curved. The pommel stone was an emerald, and the entire hilt appeared to be made of gold. Grasping the grip of his sword, his body began to glow blue and purple as energy began flowing into his blade.
"Marth... don't do it. You don't know what cars are capable of!"
"TRUST ME LINK!!!" Marth shouted dramatically
As the van zoomed toward Marth, Link felt a surge of adrenaline and dove at the prince, shoving him out of the way. The car continued speeding down the road. It makes you wonder if some people will ever get counseling for road rage.
Link looked down at Marth who had fallen between him and the drug store. The author sighed as she imagined a bishounen and building sandwich, with Link and the drug store as bread and Marth as the turkey, condiments, and at least three kinds of cheese in the middle. You can tell the author is hungry, can't you?
"Are you... all right?"
Marth glanced up at Link as they separated.
"Yeah, no harm done."
A smaller and softer voice was heard chuckling. "Yeah, you have to watch out for cars here. They might not look very big, but they're made of very heavy metal and hold all sorts of stuff like chairs and cup holders." he explained.
He adjusted his cap and floated down in front of Marth. "Hey, you're the guy I rescued last night!!"
"I take it, then, you must be Ness. I'm Marth, Prince of Aritia."
Marth seemed to hesitate after making the statement, before returning to a normal state as he shook hands.
"Whoa, cars coming, better get on the roof!!" Ness cried. He floated in a backflip motion onto the clothesline, Link leapt in a sideways backflip onto the roof, and Marth followed with a standard backflip. They watched a yellow taxi go flying down the road in the spot they had been standing.
"Well, it appears you need a lesson about the present, don't you?" the psychic boy asked, pausing to flick away a few bangs falling into his face. "I guess this would be a good time to continue with your lessons too, Link."
Ness first reviewed with Link his explanations from the previous day, giving Marth a chance to ask some questions and "catch up" on the younger boy's lessons. Marth was amazed by the vivid descriptions of TVs, computers, video games, and microwaves. He was especially impressed by lightbulbs- "longer lasting than candles, fueled by electricity, and providing much more light. No matches, spells, or flint and tinder necessary!". Right after Ness finished explaining CDs and music, Link realized they had been sitting there for well over an hour and a half, then remembered the rest of the mansion.
"Hey, Ness, I need to go. There's still a few parts of the grounds that Marth hasn't seen yet."
Ness paused with his mouth open, ready to speak, then sighed. "Okay..." He smiled. "It was nice to meet you, Marth! Maybe the three of us can sit together at dinner!"
"Sure," Marth agreed, before walking off with Link.
As they left the fighting arena, the Hylian began a different conversation with Marth.
"So, what's been bothering you?"
Marth perked up curiously. "What? Nothing's been bothering me..."
"Everytime you introduce yourself, you've been acting really hesitantly. Maybe it's none of my business, but..." he trailed off as they stepped into the elevators.
"..." Marth looked at the ground silently.
"... You're not really a prince, are you?" Link guessed, keeping his voice soft and low so he wouldn't sound accusing.
"I am," Marth said, then sighed. "Well, I was. I was exiled after the kingdom of Dolua took over Altea. It's okay, neither you nor anyone else knew. I was only going to tell them if they asked."
Link wanted to say something, but at that moment, the elevator reached the bottom floor and they returned to the cafeteria without a word. Everyone had cleared out except for a young brunette and a monkey by a bar. Sitting at the bar was a man with spiky pink hair.
"Here's the karaoke bar, you can get things to drink here. Malon, one of my friends, works here with Diddy Kong." The simion and the girl waved over to the prince and the elf. "Come on, want a drink?"
"Sure, as long as it's a small one."
"Hello Link, what's- Wow! I don't remember seeing you!" She gasped.
With an elegant sweep of his cape, Marth bowed to Malon. "I am Marth Lowell, from the kingdom of Aritia. It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Malon."
A moan was heard from the spiky-haired man sitting at the bar.
"Spike..." Diddy complained, rolling his eyes. "Will you brighten up? We have a new guest!"
Spike looked up at Marth, lowered his glasses and merely said, "Hey,"
"Anything wrong, Spike?" Link asked. When the dancer shook his head, the Hylian decided to leave him be.
"Can I get you guys anything?" Malon offered.
"I got just the thing!" Diddy offered. First he poured authentic Lon-Lon Milk into a blender, then added tri-colored sherbet in colors of pink, white, and orange. Finally, he put in a few slices of banana, strawberries, and sliced peaches before turning on the blender. Link and Marth were startled by the whirring, but after a few seconds, Diddy was pouring a brightly colored, pinkish-orange, frothy mixture into two tall glasses.
"Voila! Two Jungle Japes fruit smoothies for Link and the new guy!"
"Marth," the prince corrected.
"For Link and Marth!" Diddy repeated as he placed a white straw into each beverage and put them in front of each swordsman.
Marth put the straw to his mouth and was amazed at how sweet, creamy, and fruity the flavor was.
"Diddy, this is delicious! What did you put in it?"
Diddy tugged at his hat modestly, before explaining, "First we use genuine Lon-Lon Milk-"
"That's what makes it taste so creamy," Link commented to Marth as he took a sip of his smoothie.
"- then we use rainbow sherbet, which has the flavors of raspberry, pineapple, and orange. Then we just mix in some banana, strawberries, and peaches, and we have an artistic paradise for the mouth!"
"I don't know what you said, but I'll take your word for it!" Link laughed.
The duo had been enjoying their smoothies so much that they remained silent until they finished their treats.
-------------------------------------------
Eventually, Link was able to lead Marth throughout the mansion to the various floors and their features. As expected, Marth had appeared surprised about sharing a shower room with other guys, and was awestruck by the beautiful view from the balcony on the fifth floor. At last, they returned downstairs for grilled salmon, Caesar salad, white rice, and iced tea, water, or lemonade as their dinner. As Marth and Link figured, Ness was saving seats for them. Kirby was also sitting at their table.
"Hey! Hey! Marth, Link, we saved you seats!" Ness chirped, waving a hand high in the air. Everyone- minus the ones who had already met him- in the dining room gasped and turned around, staring at the blue-haired swordsman.
"I thought he was the deadly assassin?" Bowser asked
"Yoshi arara hup?" (Then what's he doing here?)
"Guys, relax..." Link reassured. Marth had stepped behind Link, trying to hide after the negative welcome. "The whole assassination thing was a mistake. Marth wasn't sent to kill Pikachu, he was supposed to be a fighter like us!"
Pikachu bounded over from his table, leapt onto Marth's head, and stood up defensively.
"Chu! Kachu pika chu ka pichu ka pikapi chuka pi pi! Cha pika chu pi pikachu!"(Yeah! He stopped fighting in our battle when he saw me getting beat up! He doesn't want to hurt anyone!)
"Does-a he look dangerous-a to you?" Mario asked.
"Not to mention, he's very sweet..." Zelda added.
"It's okay if they don't trust me," Marth commented softly. Shouts of "I trust you!" from Ness and Captain Falcon made him smile briefly. "but I swear I'm not going to hurt any of you."
The cafeteria was silent, until Samus spoke.
"Well? You must be hungry. Why don't you get some food, Marth?"
The Aritian and Hylian exchanged a grin.
"Don't mind if I do!" he cheered. Everyone laughed.
Marth stepped in the cafeteria line right behind Fox. The vulpine had reached for the iced beverage, when he noticed the newcomer behind him.
"Hey, do you like tea?" he asked. Marth shrugged and nodded. "Take mine." Fox passed the tea to him and reached for lemonade instead.
"Thanks!"
Marth couldn't stop smiling as he sat down with the Pop-Star warrior and the PSI-gifted boy. He had expected a much more hostile greeting, but he had already met more than half of the smashers and things went more smoothly than he had hoped. He enjoyed dinner pleasantly, getting greeted by Fox once more, then Samus, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, and even Bowser had muttered a hello under his breath. He had been having so much fun, he nearly forgot to speak with Master and Crazy after dinner.
"I'll catch up with you guys later, okay? Master and Crazy wanted to tell me something. I wonder why they have those names? Bye!" Marth had already become a lot more social.
Zelda smiled as she watched him walk off.
"I'm glad he's so happy... everyone seems to like him too! If it wasn't for Link, he might have never warmed up to anyone. But if it wasn't for Pikachu, we wouldn't have gotten to meet him at all, either! I don't know if he'll ever be any happier..."
"Zelda!" Donkey Kong ambled over. "Hey, they've got Oreos and milk, you should get some before they're gone!"
She glanced back in the direction Marth had walked off in, before following DK for some cookies.
---------------------------------
After a stroll along the shoreline with Zelda, Fox, Donkey Kong, and the Ice Climbers, Link decided to retire to his room. "Good night to you too, you guys," Link spoke softly as he walked down the hall to his bedroom. As he turned his key in the lock, he heard a soft noise nearby. It sounded like sobbing. And it was coming from Marth's room.
Silently, Link slowly approached the door and pressed an ear to it. Sure enough, the crying was coming from Marth's room. He had seemed so happy earlier... why was he so upset now? Then Link recalled what Master had said earlier about a serious discussion with Marth.
What should I do? It's none of my business to pry. Maybe I should leave him alone. And yet... maybe I should say something. He can't sit in his sorrow all night.
Link reached for the doorknob, then drew back. It was like fighting against his own conscience. He gently placed his handle over the knob and slightly turned it. The door was still unlocked. Glancing down at the Triforce of Courage on his right hand, he took a deep breath and cautiously entered the room. Marth was sitting on the bed, hunched over as he sobbed softly, his arms wrapped around his legs and his chin tucked just above his knees.
"Marth?" Link asked softly. The prince stopped between sobs and glanced up at the elf standing in the doorway with tear-filled cerulean eyes. "Are you okay?"
It was probably a bad idea to talk to him... their conversation was private and it's supposed to stay that way.
"No..." Marth softly replied. "Master just told me very regrettable news."
Link sat down on the edge of the bed, sympathizing with the new swordsman. Much to Link's surprise, Marth explained what Master told him.
"My sister, Ellis, and a close friend of mine, Sheida, were supposed to be coming to the Battle Royale Suites... Sheida was probably going to be a fighter and my sister was probably going to get a job working here." Marth paused briefly, trying to regain his composure before continuing his story. "... They got into an accident on their way here... and they were both killed."
Link looked down at the floor sadly. "I'm sorry..." He gently began rubbing the prince's back when an idea came to his mind. "Tell you what. If you'd like, we'll hold a mini funeral for them tomorrow morning. We'll invite the others along, bring flowers, say a few words..."
Marth smiled briefly. "I appreciate your suggestion, Link, but I'd like to keep this as private as possible. I'd only like you, Zelda, and Ness to go."
He patted the prince on the shoulder then left the room, saying, "There's a very rare flower that grows in Hyrule, and Zelda has some in her room. I think I'll ask her to bring some of those for the service."
"Hey, Link?"
The elf paused in the doorway, then turned around. "Yeah?"
Marth wiped away a few more tears that had fallen down his flushed face, but this time he smiled at Link.
"Thank you."
--------------------------------------
The next morning, prior to breakfast, Link, Marth, Ness, and Zelda had come to the Fountain of Dreams arena for their funeral. After the crying he had done the previous night, Marth had an easier time holding back his tears. Even though the other three had never met Sheida and Ellis, they still tried their best to compliment them, saying how much Sheida's friendship must have meant to Marth, or what a great sister Ellis was.
Although there were a few other people already in the cafeteria when the funeral had ended, none of them were suspicious as to why Marth's face was a little flushed, or why Link and Ness appeared better dressed than usual.
Link and Marth sat down at a table together, with French toast, sliced strawberries, and Lon-Lon Milk on their trays. Ness was invited to sit with Mario and Fox, and Zelda sat with Samus, Donkey Kong, and even Bowser.
"So," Link commented, "Would you like to do anything after breakfast?"
"Sure! I'm just not sure what..." At that moment, Captain Falcon walked over behind Marth.
"I didn't mean to overhear," he commented, "but a few of us are going to play some baseball after breakfast. Care to join us? I'll explain the rules to you, if you're interested."
The swordsmen nodded and the racer sat down and explained the world of baseball.
---------------------------------
Everyone drew straws to decide who would be captains in baseball. As there were sixteen fighters, the teams would now hold an even eight. That's why the author refrained from any team sports prior to Marth's arrival.
Yoshi and Mario had won the draw, so they were named as captains.
"Yoshi hup oshi!" (I'll take Donkey Kong!)
"I want-a Peach!"
"Yoshi!" (Bowser!)
Whew! He took Bowser! "Hmm... I want-a Samus!"
"Oshi hur hup!" (Captain Falcon!)
"Dang it," Falcon muttered. Lol, the author knows why.
"Link-a!"
"Oshi!" (Zelda!)
"I pick-a Marth!"
"Hup!" (Fox!)
"Come on-a over, Ness!"
"Arara, Yoshi hup!" (I choose you, Pikachu!)
"Then I'll-a take Popo!"
"Hur hup!" (Kirby!)
"Nana!"
At that point, Master and Crazy had stepped outside. "Baseball, huh?" Master mused. "That sounds like fun..."
"ARA YOSHI!" (DIBS ON MASTER!)
"Drat-a..." Mario muttered as Crazy walked (and twitched) over to him.
Both of the teams, the "Mario Heroes" and the "Yoshi Dinosaurs" (Bowser, Captain Falcon, and Zelda weren't too hot on the name "Yoshi Eggheads") huddled with their fellow players.
"All-a right. I'll-a be the pitcher. I'm good-a at throwing fastballs-a," Mario planned, "Crazy, you can-a be in centerfield. Popo, you'll-a be in left-a field, and Nana will-a be in right-a field. Fitting, isn't it? Peach, you'll-a be catcher..."
"Perfect!" she agreed.
"Samus-a, you'll be on-a first base. Ness, you're-a going to be on-a second. Link, you'll-a play on third-a base, and Marth, you'll be our-a shortstop."
Taking their positions out on the field, Kirby was the first one to bat. Sure enough, Mario managed to strike him out quickly.
"Wow, he really does have a good arm!" Nana exclaimed.
Next up was Master. He demonstrated threatening batting power, but a fly ball sent halfway into centerfield proved easy to catch for Crazy. He laughed as his older brother dropped the bat angrily and marched off to sit in the grass.
Finally, Captain Falcon was sent to bat. He earned a strike and a ball before finally hitting a powerful shot into rightfield. Still being so little, Nana had to throw the ball, run over to pick it up, then throw it again, only to have it sail a short distance. Giving up, she picked it up and began running towards the base.
Falcon smiled, running up to Samus's base.
"How was that?" He asked, as he merely walked the final steps to first base.
"Yeah," she commented. "impressive hit, Falcon."
He flexed his muscles briefly and added, "Have you ever played baseball? You appear to be pretty strong, you'll probably be a good batter... but take caution, I'm going to be pitcher!"
"Really?" Samus asked, smiling cutely. "I'm sure you'll get to see how well I bat in the next... few seconds."
"Few seconds?" At that moment, Falcon felt something hard nudge him gently in the hip.
"You're out!" Nana commented.
"What?" He looked down. Sure enough, he had never stepped onto first base.
"I got him out, I got him out!" Nana giggled in delight.
Samus took the ball from Nana and handed it to Falcon. "Show me your moves, Captain."
He shook his head and stepped over to the pitcher's mound. Bowser, walking past him to second, was furious.
"HOW COULD YOU LET THAT HAPPEN?! YOU WERE INCHES- NO, CENTIMETERS AWAY FROM A BASE HIT!!!!" He roared in the racer's face.
"Aren't you over-reacting? It's just a game. Look, I'm sorry. I guess I got a little-" he glanced over at Samus, sitting patiently in the grass, awaiting for her turn to bat. Nana was chatting excitedly with Popo about her 'big play'. "- a little... distracted, that's all. Besides, look how happy Nana is!"
"Well, I don't care if she's happy or not, I just want to win! Next time, don't let cute little kids or sexy ladies distract you!" He muttered. "Mammals... GRR!!!"
Captain Falcon ignored the overgrown turtle and threw a curve-ball to the first batter, Mario. "Strike!" Zelda called, tossing the ball back to him.
Next, Falcon tried throwing a fast pitch. Mario whacked the ball into centerfield, where Yoshi picked it up and tossed it to Pikachu on first, right before the plumber could curve to second.
Oh no, not her! Falcon thought internally as Samus stepped up to bat. No distractions, no distractions...
He threw a pitch to Samus, and she whacked it over everyone's heads.
"It's a home-a run!!" Mario cheered. Mario and Samus ran the bases then high-fived several of their team mates.
Popo went next to bat and was quickly struck out. The same thing happened to Nana, although Falcon felt pretty guilty about it. Ness managed to hit a triple, and Peach's sacrifice fly was enough to get a third run for Mario's Heroes before the exchange.
Five innings passed and only a few more runs had been scored. Bowser had hit a home run, Fox earned a double, and Zelda gave them an RBI. Captain Falcon redeemed himself with a triple. With surprising power, Pikachu hit a home run as well.
Link had watched it sail out of the field and commented, "He really is much stronger than he looks,"
Mario's team hadn't scored since the first inning, but the unfamiliar players had improved. After a strikeout in the third, Link swatted a base hit into centerfield. Marth had nearly hit a home run in the fourth, but a strong leap from Yoshi allowed the dinosaur to catch the ball.
At last the fated ninth inning had come, and Yoshi's team was up 6-4. There was one out, Marth was on third, Link was on first, and Crazy had come up to bat. After a lot of insults from Bowser and general weariness, Captain Falcon and Yoshi decided to switch spots as pitcher and centerfield. Just as the ball came hurtling toward Crazy, Marth decided to take a chance and surprise everyone- especially Yoshi. He attempted to steal home. As fate would have it, Crazy earned a strike, Zelda dropped the ball, and Marth tripped but went sliding straight into homeplate. Mario and Peach were screaming in joy.
"Six to five, no pressure," Marth said to Crazy as he brushed some dust off his black tunic.
Crazy earned another strike, but the Yoshi's aim was off on the third pitch and hit Crazy in the left hand. He collapsed on the ground.
"OOOOWWWW!!!! MY HAND!!!!" He screamed. He was writhing around madly in the dirt. Anyone would think he'd be rolling in pain if it hit him in the chest, head, or groin- but this was only from his hand.
"It's a walk," Zelda sighed.
Crazy dragged himself on the ground with his right arm, crawling towards first while Link stared at him awkwardly as he jogged to second.
"FAKER!" Bowser yelled from second base. "It only hit your hand! It's not like your whole life depends on your left hand, does it? QUIT BEING SO OVERDRAMATIC!!"
"Pfft. Fine," Crazy muttered, as he stood up and limped to first.
Mario stepped up to bat and faced his friend for twenty years. He felt sweat forming in his gloves. This game would change his life forever. Well, not really. But it adds to the excitement.
Yoshi threw the ball to home plate...
And then, without much elaboration, Mario hits a home run, he earns three RBIs, yadda yadda, then after they exchanged positions, Yoshi's team strikes out and Mario's team wins the game. Go figure. Sorry for the lack of detail, but hey- you knew it was coming!
"And to think, bijoukaiba didn't even let me bat once," Donkey Kong sighed.
-----------------------------------------
For lunch, the smashers dined on gourmet sushi. Those too chicken to try were given salad. Poor fools didn't know what they were missing.
A few board games later, the time came to announce what the matches for the next day were.
"Due to the uneven number of smashers, one person will have a 'free day' tomorrow. We randomly select that person, and their name will show up on screen. So first, we'll show you who gets the day off,"
After a few moments of watching names flickering at high speeds on the screen, it finally stopped and displayed: Link
Link appeared surprised. "Well, I suppose it had to be one of us... I'm just not sure what to do tomorrow..."
The rest of the match-ups, stages and times displayed on screen.
Termina: 10:00 am
Zelda vs. Samus
Corneria: 10:45 am
Pikachu vs. Mario
Fountain of Dreams: 11:30 am
Marth vs. Ice Climbers
Jungle Japes: 1:30 pm
Peach vs. Kirby
Yoshi's Island: 2:15 pm
Donkey Kong vs. Captain Falcon
Poke'mon Stadium: 3:00 pm
Yoshi vs. Bowser
Princess Peach's Castle: 4:00 pm
Ness vs. Fox
"Well then," Joy commented as the names finally disappeared from the screen. "Any questions?"
There were no replies.
"Very well then. We're having lasagna for dinner, I hope you'll enjoy it!"
The nurse stacked up some paperwork and went off to run an errand elsewhere.
Marth glanced over at Popo and Nana.
I wonder how they'll fight? I don't intend to underestimate them, but they seem so much younger than me...
"Hey Marth, do you want dinner or not?" Samus teased.
"Coming!" Marth answered. Several of the smashers chuckled.
Yet they were wondering... what kind of swordsman would Marth turn out to be, anyway?
The answer... would come tomorrow. All they could do now was wait...
-------------------------------------
bijoukaiba: ... for the next chapter. Sorry I've been dead! I've been on vacation for almost a month, and my brother's a computer hog. I'm going out for about a week, and school starts soon, so it may be harder for me to update.
I still hope you'll enjoy Swordplay!