Chapter 24:
Samus sat at her computer in her new house on Earth in the continent of North America, in the small, rural town of Maryvale. She stared at her computer screen, making the final touches to the report that she would hand in to the new Galactic Federation Chairman, Colin Williams. As she worked, she thought about everything that had happened in the last month that followed the cessation of hostilities between the Galactic Federation and the Galactic Federation in Exile. A great deal had accomplished in that month. First, and most importantly, Earth had been chosen to be the new seat of the Galactic Federation, at least, for the time being. This was cause for some concern among the human population for fear that Earth would have to be developed more, which could lead to more pollution and habitat loss for several species of Pokémon, an at least semi-sentient, possibly fully sentient species on the planet, but with written and verbal assurances from the Federation that Earth would be able to keep the planet in its current balanced state between nature and technology, they accepted.
Next, with the death of Cyrus, a new leader had to be chosen. This was made more difficult since the Speaker of the Council would have been Colin Williams, the President of the Galactic Federation in Exile. Even worse was the fact that many of the leaders in the Galactic Federation Council had been killed during the war, either in raids, or in battle. This forced emergency elections to be held, and while some in the Federation tried to ensure that their allies were elected, others countered them, saying that this type of corruption had led to Earth and several other important worlds seceding from the Federation, a Federation that had just lost a war. Many of the races in the Galactic Federation were still seething with hatred towards humanity, not only out of anger that they had been defeated by what amounted a small resistance group that had a great deal of power in their own corner of the galaxy, but due to the fact that so many of their people would be viewed as criminals and hypocrites.
With the cessation of hostilities, though, Earth and the rest of the Galactic Federation in Exile tentatively rejoined the Galactic Federation so that they could repair much of the damage that had been done; and there was a great deal of damage that had been done. During the war, many Council Members from the numerous smaller colonies had either defected, or were absorbed into their home planets' governments, leaving only one representative on the Council, oftentimes one that supported Cyrus in everything he did. This came back to haunt those governments, since the Federation had lost the war, and had to be brought to the table. Many of these officials had given the entirety of their planetary defense fleets over to Cyrus in his attempt to take over Earth and keep the Federation in Exile from taking it back before he accomplished his objectives.
To make matters even worse was the fact that Samus's logbook records and Combat Visor recordings had shown the whole series of events, from the time she rescued the Adventure in the Stars, to her infiltration and destruction of the Orbital Rings, to the final showdown with Cyrus, and later, the two Magic Lords. This data, added to the records that Earth had given to the rest of the Federation Council, had forced everyone to accept that Cyrus was evil, and that he had likely been using Elric just as much as Elric had used him. It did not also help matters that many of the military commanders in the Galactic Federation had committed war crimes and were responsible for the deaths of billions of innocent civilians.
Before any tribunals could get underway, though, emergency elections had to be held. After the elections had been held, Colin Williams, the former Chairman of the Galactic Federation in Exile, had been elected to the tentative position of Chairman of the Galactic Federation in Exile. His stay would be temporary until a more permanent solution could be found.
Once the elections had been done, they went to work on altering the Galactic Federation, making it more like the Galactic Federation of old, rather than the Federation of Elric and Cyrus, and even the Federation of former Chairman Keaton. The Bill of Rights was reinstated, granting people the freedom of speech, religion, the right to keep and bear arms, the freedom of the press, an numerous other freedoms that could not be infringed upon. These rights could also not be overturned by future amendments without unanimous approval by the entire Galactic Federation Council. Term limits were also added to the new Federation Constitution for Galactic Federation Council Members and reinstituted for the Chairman of the Galactic Federation in the hope that the culture of corruption would not spread again and cause a great many people to turn a blind eye to those who abused their power and had allowed people like Elric and Cyrus to rise to power.
Many members of the Galactic Federation, particularly the Star Elves and most of their worlds, did not accept the new Federation Constitution since it was a majority rules, and Earth had a great number of allies in both independent planets and colonies. They, along with the Simians, Lizardians, Nalar, and several other races seceded from the new Galactic Federation, merely calling the current Federation, the Galactic Federation in Exile, merely under a different name. Earth, the Chozo, and Luminoth had responded that they were right. It had once the Galactic Federation in Exile because they were ones that had upheld the true founding principles of the original Galactic Federation, and only now had the Galactic Federation finally been restored. The others that remained in the Galactic Federation echoed Earth's sentiments. Still, when all was said and done, more than half of the permanent members, and more than two thirds of the colonies, that had once been a part of the Galactic Federation had seceded. The Federation offered no resistance to their secession, merely wishing them well and hoping that they would prosper, as long as they did not come into conflict with the Federation. Samus shared the same sentiments, but she was a little wary of their sudden secession, feeling that while their excuse of their hatred for humanity and how it now basically ruled the Federation was definitely legitimate, in their eyes, that there was something else; as if they had been thwarted somehow by Earth and the Galactic Federation in Exile. As if to confirm that there was something else going on behind the scenes, those that had seceded almost appeared to be angry that Earth and the others were not trying more forcefully to keep them in the Federation. In addition, many of their worlds had created a pact amongst themselves and were beginning to try to draw non-aligned races into it as well.
She then thought back on her personal report to the new Galactic Federation Council. She had advised them on the threat posed by the Magic Lords. She had gone into great detail about her two fights with the Magic Lords. Old Bird, Gray Voice, and U-Mos had also been present at her depositions, indicating that everything Samus had told the Council was consistent with their own histories with the Magic Lords. Old Bird had also told the Council the other names that the Magic Lords went by: the Elvanheim, their true name, Dragon Lords, Dragon Masters, Dark Gods, and others. The others then told them about their history with the Magic Lords, or Elvanheim, as they called them, letting them know that the Magic Lords had created many species during their war against the Chozo Alliance, most notably the Star Elves, Simians, Nalar, and Lizardians. They had also told them that the beings had been created using humans as the base template for their new slaves and even cannon fodder soldiers. Chairman Williams nodded and told them that the Federation would look into it and be on alert should the Magic Lords return. She could tell in his eyes, though, that he intended to keep an eye on them, as well as an eye on the Star Elf, Simian, Nalar, and Lizardian worlds that had not defected, as well as direct the military leaders to keep a close the officers of those species in the military. Even Samus was suspicious of the species as a whole, though she knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that her friends, Kreatz and Mauk, were loyal to the Galactic Federation. This began to make her wonder if, like with Cyrus and the Galactic Federation, it was merely the leadership of those worlds that were most likely to side with the Magic Lords, with the common citizens not having any real affiliation with them. In addition, the Chozo and Luminoth also promised to give the Federation Light Beam technology for their weapons, as well as help the Federation in perfecting its Wave Beam technology, so that they would have a defense against the Magic Lords for when they returned.
She then reflected on what she had read about the outcomes regarding other Federation allies. First off, the N'Kren, with the death of Hi'Gor, Ma'Kar had been placed in charge of the force that had assisted Earth, and his defection to the forces of Earth had not been forgotten. This was especially important upon hearing that Cyrus had been a criminal, and that they had been the traitors all along, they had gone to the Federation to beg forgiveness and were sending ambassadors to the Federation for peace offerings, willing to lend whatever support was necessary against the Magic Lords, should they return, in reparation for the crimes committed under Hi'Gor's command. The N'Kren who survived the fighting that had carried out some of Hi'Gor's more questionable orders, along with some of Cyrus's criminal commands, were also extradited to Earth to stand trial for war crimes. In addition, they did not ask for the head of Samus, who had used a N'Kren emergency teleportation unit to teleport a planet killer bomb onboard their flagship and killing their Fleet Commander Ka'Lok and most of the rest of the N'Kren battle fleet, not to mention several Technobles, nor for the extradition of Rodney and Virginia Aran, who had disabled several Techno Knights and a Technoble, and stood by and watched as Ridley slaughtered them.
The same thing happened with the Ylla, though they had fortunately not been present when many of the war crimes had been committed, thus, they merely gave reparations for damage inflicted and promised the Federation that they would support them against the Magic Lords since they did not have any war criminals to surrender.
Next, she reflected on the Cornerians. They were the ones most heavily affected by the recent turn of events. First off, the Cornerian Army had been humiliated in the battle, having suffered grievous losses in the fighting, greatly weakening their strength against any enemy attackers. To make matters worse, the Star Fox Team had also taken heinous losses, with the Great Fox II having been damaged badly enough that any other military organization would have scuttled the ship, but the Cornerian Army had been forced to repossess and attempt to repair. In addition, all of the personal Arwings of the Star Fox Team had been destroyed, and for their emergency Arwings, Slippy's had been shot down, while Falco's had lost a wing and had been forced to make an emergency landing when his G-Diffuser had been damaged later on in his fight against Leon. In addition, Fox had lost a Landmaster Tank and had been captured by the Galactic Federation in Exile. While he had been released at the cessation of hostilities, it was a grave embarrassment to the team; but the worst had yet to come. When it had been revealed that the Cornerian Army, and the Star Fox Team, had been campaigning for the destruction of the Earth, if not the universe, and had been fighting for an evil regime that may have been even worse than Andross', it had been devastating to the military. The public backlash against them on Corneria had been horrible. The soldiers that had managed to return had been treated horribly by the civilians on world. Many had even decided to resign their commissions, resulting in even more losses for the Cornerian military. Peppy Hare had been forced to resign in disgrace, with General Pepper, who was still recovering from his illness and healing from his Aparoid infection, taking back his position with a greatly depleted military.
The turn of events had been hardest on the Star Fox Team, though. The damage that they had suffered in their equipment losses and in Krystal's desertion had been bad enough; but when it had been revealed that everything that Samus had told Fox was true and that they had, indeed, been fighting for an organization, or rather a commander who was every bit as evil and insane as Andross had been, it had been devastating. Even worse was the loss of trust that the people of Corneria had for the Star Fox Team. Once, they were viewed as great heroes, and while their services were pricey, they had only taken on just missions. Now, they were viewed, wrongfully so, as money-grubbing mercenaries who would turn a blind eye to any evil being perpetrated by their own side if they were being paid enough money. What had really been the gut check for Fox was the revelation that Pigma Dengar had been fighting for Cyrus as well. He had been fighting alongside the person for his father's capture and possible death at the hands of Andross, all in support of an evil man. Another issue, though only in the eyes of the people, was the fact that Fox had taken Peppy back as a member of the Star Fox Team. This did not go over well with many of the civilians and, to them, it looked as if Star Fox had learned nothing from its mistakes during the war. It would take a long time for the Star Fox Team to regain their trust in the eyes of the people. That time would be a problem, though, for there were already reports coming in that strange occurrences were going on around Venom, that Andrew Oikonny was on the move once more; and there was no way that the Federation would ever get involved in an internal Lylatian conflict, especially after the Cornerian Army supported the enemy in the Galactic Federation Civil War. Corneria was on its own.
She then pondered her own experiences in the war. Ironically enough, she had been the one to escape having lost the least. If anything, she had gained a great deal. Not only had she saved the world, and possibly the universe, with some help, of course, she had gotten a tremendous paycheck for her services rendered. First, she had gotten paid for her rescue of the Adventure in the Stars, as well as having previously saved the Crab Cake 1 and retrieving its essential lost cargo. She had also gotten her normal fee for taking a mission for the Galactic Federation in Exile, plus the bonus for accepting and accomplishing an S-rank mission, as well as getting another large bounty for having driven the Space Pirates off of Earth, practically destroying them in the process. She had yet to confirm the final destruction of the Space Pirates, but given that an engine had been blown off of their escape transport in its escape, plus the fact that only ten Space Pirates, not including General Weavel and Ridley, had escaped, the Federation had considered that the Space Pirate threat was neutralized. She still went around, checking to see if the transport ever popped up anywhere, or if there was any sign of Ridley, but there was hope in her heart that she could finally rest easy, confident that Ridley and the Space Pirates were no more. Still, she had gained a great deal of renown for her actions in the war, even before she infiltrated and destroyed the eight Orbital Rings, came to Earth and practically retook the Radio Tower and Capitol Building on her own, as well as having taken down Cyrus and killed at least one, and likely two, Magic Lords. Right now, Samus had more than enough money to retire for the rest of her life and buy a small moon. The most important thing, in her mind, though, more than the money or fame, or even her other accomplishments, was the fact that she had finally found her parents and had managed to save them from the Space Pirates' brainwashing and reprogramming. They had gone to the hospital and to psychologists for further checkups, but from what everyone could see, her parents were fine and had returned back to normal. A scan from Mewtwo had also confirmed as such when he had met them just after the initial ceasefire. Their survival and return was, by far, her greatest victory ever. Everything else she had done to Ridley, Mother Brain, and the Space Pirate was merely icing on the cake.
After she was finished her reminiscing, she finished her report and clicked send on the screen. Just as she had sent the report, she heard a chime at her door. She rose from her desk and went over to the door. She opened it and her eyes lit up with joy at the sight of her parents standing before her in new civilian clothing. "Mom, Dad, you made it!"
Both parents beamed at her and entered, hugging their daughter. "We couldn't miss seeing you before we got underway with our new jobs."
"And where will you be working?" Samus asked.
"We'll be working for General Space Dynamics, Earth. We'll be helping design new ships and make improvements on older vessels," her father answered. "It's a far cry from running a mining colony, but I think we can handle it."
"I wish both of you the best of luck on your new endeavor," Samus replied, smiling.
"Now, Samus, why don't you tell us how things are going for you and what your plans are," her mother said.
Samus took a seat and motioned for them to sit as well. Her parents sat and she then told them about everything she had done in the last month that was not classified. She answered their questions as best she could, and they did not pry when she could not answer a question due to Earth and/or Federation security reasons. She also went over what she had heard about the other groups that had participated in the fighting. She had quickly told them that the N'Kren were not demanding their extradition for what they had done under the Space Pirates' command. Whether it was because Hi'Gor had followed Cyrus more closely than others, Ridley had been the one to kill the Techno Knights and Hi'Gor, or the simple fact that they had worked for Cyrus, who was no better than the Space Pirates and had sent Rodney and Virginia to Cyrus, who handed them over to the Space Pirates, did not matter to Samus's parents. They were simply glad to be free. Samus then told them about the depositions that she had given to the new Galactic Federation Council, as well as to the Earth Senate, speaking about the Magic Lords at length.
"Do you think they'll launch an attack?" Rodney asked. "Only if you're allowed to talk about it," he added quickly.
"Hard to say," Samus answered. "And yes, I am allowed to talk about the Magic Lords," she assured them. "According to the Chozo, the Magic Lords are likely very small in number, mostly due to their War Against the PSI Aliens. They had since recovered from their loss to the Chozo Alliance. However, they pushed most of their species into the creation of an entity known as the Dark Dragon, which vanished mysteriously without a trace in the Earth's mid twenty-first century. Given the fact that they have not launched an overt attack and have tried to be as covert as possible, using intermediaries and basically ordering Elric around in the latter parts of his reign without engaging in combat until absolutely necessary, my guess is that they are still an endangered species and that any significant loss could be disastrous for them."
"So chances are that they won't launch an attack anytime soon, at least not overtly," Virginia surmised.
"That's likely the case," Samus answered, nodding. "However, this can merely make them all that much more dangerous, for they were able to get to Elric and have him do their bidding. They could be making further plans as we speak."
Rodney then asked, "Do you think that these…Arceus is it…?"
Samus nodded.
"…Arceus trophies could have been part of their plans?"
Samus shook her head. "No, I don't think so; at least, not from what I know of the Magic Lords. First of all, from what Old Bird, Gray Voice, and U-Mos have said, this is not their standard M.O. They tend to order things to happen and have never been shown to use trophies as weapons. These trophies were also not random. From what I've read recently about Legendary Pokémon, these trophies copied the powers of Arceus perfectly, in form if not in raw power. The only difference was that these Arceus were likely of the Normal type, likely because they did not have a special type of plate equipped to them."
"So who do you think made these trophies, and why do you think they handed them to Cyrus?" her mother asked.
"I don't know," she answered. "But I have a feeling that whoever made these trophies may be even more dangerous, and powerful, than the Magic Lords. From what I've seen, the Magic Lords are very haughty and that is something that someone who is on or close to their level can take advantage of in order to secure a win. The same can't necessarily be said about the force behind the trophies."
The three then sat and thought about things for a moment. "The troubles aren't over yet, are they," her father asked.
"I doubt it," Samus answered. "But for now, we have a reprieve. We've won a major victory: the Arceus Trophies have been destroyed, Cyrus's plan to create a new universe was thwarted with him being killed in the fighting, at least one Magic Lord is dead, possibly two, and the Galactic Federation has been restored, and restored to its roots. I would say that this qualifies as a major victory."
"Here here," both of her parents replied in a celebratory tone. The family then sat and caught up on the more than two decades they had been apart.
Meanwhile, in a realm outside of the Nintendo Universe, the Magic Lord War Council sat inside their palace to discuss the recent events that had unfolded in Milky Way, most notably, the death of two of their own kind. With less than one hundred full-grown adults, and only four hundred youth and adolescents remaining, at least half of them being clones, they knew the dangers of having two of their most promising natural born members killed. Eleven Magic Lords, the strongest of their kind, save for the absent member, who was currently away on assignment, sat around the center of the table. The Lords that sat around the table were both male and female, as well as having a variety of skin, hair and eye color depending on their whims. They also wore a variety of armor types and carried various types of swords ranging from shorts swords, to broadswords, to long swords, each made from a different type of metal. A bowl at the center of the table soon it and a wall of light reached up to the ceiling. An image appeared in the center of the bowl. The image soon turned into the holographic figure of the twelfth member of the council. This Magic Lord had light brown hair and red eyes. In the background, there were wooden crates, each with writing in English, the most highly spoken, and official, language of Earth, on them.
"Aizen," one of the Magic Lords, a male with blond hair and green eyes began. "What is your report?"
"My fellow War Council members, I have both exhilarating news and troubling news. First for the troubling news: my two children were killed by a human bounty hunter, Samus Aran, and Mewtwo."
"Yes," said another Magic Lord. "We sensed their passing. What concern is it of ours?"
"They were Magic Lords!" Aizen retorted. "Their power did not pass to anyone else of our kind, meaning that they were not killed by fellow Magic Lords! That makes it a grave concern. Two Earth creatures managed to kill them! Earth creatures!" he roared. He took a few moments to catch his breath before continuing, "However, this also brings up the exhilarating news. The Galactic Federation, while it had re-formed and returned as a far less corrupt political entity than it had been when our servant, Elric, had infiltrated it and later taken control, it suffered tremendous fleet and personnel losses during its civil war, particularly the planetary military forces that had been absorbed into Cyrus's military for his assault and conquest of Earth. Earth also had its defenses noticeably weakened. Now is the perfect time to strike. With your help, I can kill Samus, this Mewtwo, the Chosen Pikachu, and the Chosen Pokémon Masters and rid the galaxy of some of the greatest threats to our existence since the PSI Aliens and even the Chosen Four!"
"But the threats of the Mario Brothers, Link, Kirby, Meta Knight, the Fire Emblem Lords, and others," countered another one. "Earth is not the greatest of our threats. Hylia is. And even if we eliminate Earth, the Galactic Federation and the Chozo Alliance are both still out there. Earth is but one planet."
"But Earth can become a significant threat, especially if the Chosen Four ever return," Aizen retorted. "We have an opportunity to eliminate a great number of threats to us by destroying Earth and killing them now. If we sit here and do nothing, then you will regret it."
"If you feel so strongly about Earth's threat, and the threat posed by Mewtwo, Samus, and the others, then deal with them yourself," the first Magic Lord declared. "We have other things to worry about."
Aizen gritted his teeth. "Very well, I will," he seethed. "But if I fail, know this. It will be to your sorrow. Earth is weakened, but it is not weak, nor is it stupid. They will not dismiss what the Chozo have to say about our existence as out of hand. They will listen. The Federation will listen. If we strike at Earth now, we have a much better chance at infiltrating the Federation. Earth was the reason we failed. Without Earth, the Federation will be malleable. We will be able to direct it without having to directly intervene."
"We understand," the Lords replied. "But we still have other issues that must be dealt with. If you wish to strike at Earth and its defenders, you will do it alone."
Aizen grimaced and then left them with this final warning, "The time will come when you will regret not helping me deal with Earth. And it will come sooner than you think." With that, the image of Aizen vanished.
"Will we regret not helping him?" one of the Magic Lords asked, the concern in his voice quite evident.
"We cannot afford to deal with Earth at the moment. We still have to make the final plans for the creation of a new Dark Dragon," another answered. The rest of the Council echoed the sentiment.
"I still think that we are taking a tremendous risk by not dealing with Earth," the first said a little more forcefully. "Even though the Chosen Four have yet to return, if they do, it will spell trouble. Aizen's survival is critical to our plans, though, for the new Dark Dragon we plan to create will be significantly weaker than the one the Chosen Four dealt with in the mid-twenty-first century. Aizen was trying to find a way to neutralize our crippling weakness to psychic powers and the Light. If we were able to find a way to do so, it would allow for this new Dark Dragon to become strong enough to destroy our enemies. If not, though, then even this Mewtwo, along with help from a few other strong enemies, would be enough to destroy the Dragon. Our slave races share our weakness, and the only others that might be willing to join us, Weavel and the few Space Pirate survivors, are nowhere near strong enough to destroy any of the stronger Chosen Heroes. It is even debatable if some of the weaker Chosen Heroes would be able to defeat him and his handful of Pirate survivors."
"Yes. But right now, we must focus on dealing with our enemies as we find them," the second answered. "While we should consider recruiting General Weavel and the Pirates that crashed on Kandar, she should hold off doing such for the time being. We are Magic Lords! We have the power to eliminate any single enemy that might come against us. With the power of the Dark Dragon, we will be able to eliminate all that stand in our way."
A third then declared, "There is nothing that can stop us. We are the ultimate power in the multiverse now that the PSI Lords and Giygas have been destroyed. While there are powerful forces all throughout the multiverse, they shall be dealt with soon and we shall reign unopposed!"
This declaration served to convince the first Magic Lord that he was merely worrying about nothing. Once the third Magic Lord had finished his proud declaration, the entire group rose and gave a cheer. Little did they know that their position in the multiverse was actually quite precarious and that there were enemies other than the Nintendo Heroes that had their sights set on them.
Meanwhile, in the void between the stars, Ridley and six critically injured Urtragian Space Pirate Troopers drifted through space. The septet had been lost in space for what seemed to be an eternity, though in reality, it had only been for about a month. Ridley had shut down most of his bodily systems, so as to conserve energy and to try to prolong his life. He was now running on the last bit of energy he had, his already damaged body beginning to shut down, both due to the injuries that he had sustained in his battle against Samus, and due to the lack of nutrition. Floating beside him were the six injured Space Pirate Troopers. Each of their suits had been modified with a stasis unit that had activated as soon as they had entered outer space. While it had not slowed down time entirely, it had done so enough so that they could enter a state of hibernation and hope to survive for as long as possible before they either succumbed to their wounds, or their stasis units gave out and they died due to both their injuries and starvation.
The six Pirates and the Space Dragon did not notice the purple explosion erupt in the void a few kilometers away. However, whatever had caused the explosion had certainly detected them, for an invisible force was drawing the seven closer to the explosion. It took ten minutes for the seven to move close to the explosion, which was large enough to hold an Olympus-class battleship. Once they were close enough, a deep masculine voice echoed through Ridley's head, awakening him, booming, "Greetings Ridley."
Ridley's eyes immediately opened and he feebly turned his head, searching for the source of the voice. "Who said that?" he croaked. Much to his surprise, though, while he was very much aware of his injuries, he did not feel his life slipping from him as he had until he heard the voice greet him."
"I am Master Hand," the voice replied calmly.
"Where are you?" Ridley asked in a strained voice. When no answer was forthcoming, he demanded, "Show yourself."
His head was then drawn to the large, round, purple explosion. His eyes went wide with wonder at the energy contained inside the explosion. Looking more closely, he found that the explosion was not really an explosion, but a portal, for he saw various figures inside the globe. They looked to be wearing green uniforms and had purple and black beads emerging from them like exhaust from a vehicle. In the center of the globe, he saw a faint flicker approach. The flicker grew in size until it was large enough for Ridley to identify as a white gloved hand. He looked to see what the hand was connected to but there was no limb. It was just the hand. The hand approached Ridley, growing in size until it was merely a few dozen meters away. "Welcome, Lord Ridley," the hand said, his voice echoing through Ridley's mind.
"Are you Master Hand?" Ridley asked.
"I am," the hand answered.
"Then state your business," Ridley demanded, though he was still weak and it came out as barely a croak.
"I have brought you and the surviving Space Pirates here for an important purpose."
"You've got guts summoning someone like me," Ridley commented. "Most of those that do don't live very long if I reject them."
"You are in no position to reject the offer I have for you," Master Hand said matter-of-factly.
Ridley growled. "We'll see about that," he proclaimed as loudly as his weakened voice would allow as he tried to power a blast of plasma, only to find that he was unable to do so.
"Don't let the fact that you don't feel like you're dying confuse you, Ridley," the hand told him. "There are forces at work that are keeping you alive, and in your current condition right now that are beyond your comprehension. Suffice to say, if I release you, you will be left to float in space until you die…and die you shall."
Ridley gave a humph. "What do you want?"
"I want you to join my army; the Subspace Army," Master Hand replied.
"Subspace Army?" Ridley asked, almost as if he were about to break out into a fit of laughter.
"Yes," Master Hand answered. "We have a large number of disposable troops for battle, but we lack generals to lead them. So far, we only have one general; the top general, subordinate only to me."
"Then why do you need me?" Ridley asked.
"Because we need more generals, particularly field generals," Master Hand answered. "We need generals that can fight and have a good track record against their opponents. Of all of the candidates that we are looking into, you have some of the best credentials. You have achieved victories against your enemy, the Galactic Federation…"
"Marred by disastrous defeats at the hands of Samus Aran," Ridley scoffed. "Really, why me?"
"For the reasons that I have already stated," Master Hand answered. "Why are you so resistant to my offer?"
"What offer?" Ridley demanded. "All you've said is that you've chosen me to become a general in your army. I've worked as an underling before and it has never ended well for me."
"Precisely why we want you," Master Hand answered. "You know how to command troops, and are a strong fighter. If you join us, you'll be able to command these troops in battle."
"What would I do should I join your army?" Ridley asked.
"Precisely what you would expect," came the hand's answer. "You would be a general commanding our forces in battle against our enemies."
"And who are your enemies?"
"The great heroes," Master Hand answered. "Among them are Mario Mario, Luigi Mario, Link, Samus Aran, and others." The hand knew that he had Ridley at the mention of Samus, or at least he thought he did. Ridley had other ideas.
"Why should I join? What's in it for me?" he demanded.
"We will repair your current body and enhance it," the hand answered. "And you will be given new troops to command. We will also save your comrades floating beside you and create a new army of Space Pirates that you will command, under our auspices. In addition, you will be able to get your revenge against Samus Aran, who has so recently humiliated you and inflicted such horrible pain upon your body. While you will also be called to deal with other opponents, we will give you one final crack at Samus as well as a bonus, one way or another."
Ridley grinned and thought over Master Hand's offer. He wanted to confirm what the hand said and asked, "I will be given a chance to kill Samus?"
"Yes," came Master Hand's answer. "What is your decision?"
"I accept," Ridley answered. With that, the Space Dragon, along with the six other gravely wounded Space Pirates were drawn into the portal. Once they had entered, the portal closed, leaving no trace of them.
A couple hours later, on Smash World innumerable lightyears away from Earth, Master Hand, a large white gloved hand that was large enough to grab and engulf a human floated and watched as four Primids, dark skinned beings with dark purple blobs of energy leaking from them, wearing green uniforms and hats, hauled Ridley into a revival chamber. He knew that the damage done to the Space Dragon would be too great for the chamber to heal completely, but he had other ways to not only heal Ridley, but also improve on him in ways that even the Space Pirates could not imagine. A line of Primids then came along carrying the six wounded Space Pirates. Master Hand directed the Primids, "Place the Space Pirates into revival chambers and wait for them to be restored. Once they're restored, we'll begin cloning them to build some more cannon fodder troops."
The Primids nodded and went about their task. As they were going about their task, a green-robed figure with glowing red eyes came up to Master Hand from behind. "You wished to see me, Master?" the figure asked.
Turning around, Master Hand saw the Ancient One approach. The Ancient One was a ROB, a gray robot that looked like a toy, but was actually quite formidable. This particular ROB was once of the Ancients hailing from the floating Island of the Ancients. When Tabuu had attacked, he had cast his lot in with Tabuu, along with the Ancient Minister. Unlike the Ancient Minister, though, he had been loyal to Tabuu during the Subspace War, even after the Trophies had defeated Tabuu's probe. However, after the Ancient Minister's betrayal, the Ancient One had ascended to the rank of Ancient Minister and had been instrumental in helping Tabuu get his revenge on the Trophies without revealing his true power. The Ancient One was a very useful lieutenant for the Subspace Army. "Yes," Master Hand said in reply to the Ancient One's question. "What is your report?"
"First off, Ganondorf is heading through the time portal to bring Porky Minch to the Island of the Ancients. Second, I have overseen a meeting that the Magic Lords had with each other. They are highly concerned about the recent turn of events regarding the deaths of two natural born Magic Lord adolescents at the hands of Samus Aran and a Pokémon named Mewtwo." He then paused before continuing, "If I remember correctly, there was a Mewtwo Trophy in Smash World, but it was destroyed before the first Subspace War."
"That is correct."
"Well, based on that lost Trophy, there should be no way that Mewtwo should have been able to defeat a Magic Lord, much less those two Arceus Trophies that you gave Cyrus."
"You of all people should know that the Trophies were merely based off of the heroes, not the other way around," Master Hand chided. "Make no mistake, the real heroes are far stronger than their Trophy counterparts."
"I see," the Ancient One said. "Will that be all?"
"No," Master Hand answered. "There is one more thing I need of you."
"What is it?"
"I am setting up a Super Smash Brothers competition for all heroes that have proven their worth. Once the Chosen Four arrive, I will have Ganondorf send an invitation to them. However, there are others who have proven their worth as heroes already. One such hero is Samus Aran, the one who defeated Cyrus and has all but annihilated the Space Pirates. I want you to send her an invitation to the Super Smash Bros. tournament."
"It shall be done," the Ancient One said. He then bowed before Master Hand and turned to leave. As he was leaving, Master Hand called back, "One more thing."
"What is it?" the Ancient One asked.
"How is the restoration of Andross coming?"
"It is coming along nicely, but his temperament is still terrible. He is constantly demanding to be allowed back to Lylat. Why do you ask?"
"I think that we should acquiesce to his demands and send him back," Master Hand answered.
The Ancient One's eyes went wide, or as wide as a robot's eyes could go. "Are you serious?"
"Yes," the hand answered. "We need to have a foothold of some sort in the Milky Way galaxy."
"But why now?" the Ancient One almost demanded. "The Lylat system is in shambles after a large portion of the Cornerian fleet was sent to Cyrus, and later destroyed. The Star Fox Team has been decimated, with numerous fighter losses, an all but dead mothership, and one of its team members leaving. We could probably take over, ourselves."
"But then that would reveal us to the Federation," Master Hand answered. "If we send Andross, he can take over Lylat and allow us a beachhead where we can amass troops and launch our eventual attack on the Federation, and Milky Way." And to give the Star Fox Team a chance to redeem themselves and force Corneria to call upon them once more, Master Hand thought to himself.
"I see," the Ancient one said, conceding to Master Hand's wisdom. "It shall be done."
"Good," the hand answered.
With that, the Ancient One bowed and departed. Once he had departed, Master Hand looked back at Ridley and shook in disgust. He had studied Ridley's history and hated the very thought of working with him. However, Tabuu had demanded that Ridley be a Subspace Army general, and Master Hand could not refuse his master. He only hoped and prayed that Samus and the others, combined, would be powerful enough to take down Tabuu, freeing him from the Subspace Emissary's control. He then thought about the prospect of Samus killing the Space Dragon once and for all and would have grinned if he had a face. He then left the scene and prepared for the arrival of Porky Minch, as well as the expected arrival of the Chosen Four.
Back on Earth, a few days later, it was a hot summer afternoon. Samus walked out of her house and went over to her mailbox. While paper mail was increasingly rare, some important documents were still sent by regular mail. Opening the mailbox, she reached in and found that she only had one letter. She pulled it out, closed the box, and went back inside, not wanting to stay out in the blistering heat for too long.
Once she was inside, she opened the letter and read it. It read:
Dear Samus Aran:
Your daring exploits and feats have not gone unnoticed throughout the universe. As a result of your tremendous feats of saving the Earth, and the galaxy, time and time again, you are cordially invited to participate in the first ever Super Smash Bros. Competition that will begin starting in May year. The Super Smash Bros. Competition is where the greatest of heroes from all around the multiverse assemble to see just who among the best is the best. There are many competitions ranging from fighting, to breaking the targets, to homerun contests, to stamina matches, and more. There is an attached pamphlet to further explain the various contests you may partake in in the Super Smash Bros. competition, as well as a return envelope for you to mail your response in. Please send us your response by the thirty-first of December of this year if you plan to attend. Should you wish to attend, we will mail you all the information regarding the location of the competition. Should you wish to attend, your family will be automatically allowed to attend the competition as spectators. We hope that you will attend this prestigious event and bring your skills to this challenging competition.
from,
The Super Smash Stadium
Samus folded the letter and reached into the envelope. Inside, she found the pamphlet that was attached to the letter. She then sat down to read about the various events that were taking place at the competition. After reading it through, she placed the pamphlet and letter on the table next to her chair. She would have to think about whether or not she would attend, but she had a good deal of time before the deadline. However, she had a feeling that if something did not come up, that she would definitely attend. Testing her mettle against other great heroes sounded very appealing to her.