REVIEW RESPONSES:
anime/videogame freak: No, honestly I didn't know what you were going to say! (laughter)
Royal Kenya: Thanks, I appreciate it. Glad you liked the chapter too! Oh, and in response to your review of Chapter 11, yeah I liked the idea of having Marth call Samus "Sammy". I thought it might represent how deep their relationship with each other is. Oh, and you're not alone: I've never had a girlfriend, so I can relate.
OperationJonny: You're just about right. This chapter isn't exactly badass, but I guarantee the next one will be. And thanks for understanding the "uneventful chapter" thing.
Elfbrat18: Glad you like how I described Samus. Yeah, she just doesn't want to get hurt again, emotionally. I came to that conclusion once I read some background information on her and when I played Metroid Fusion.
Babykoalaprincess: …wow! Yeah, I also have band first period, so it's hard for me to get up too. But hey, glad you like my story! I feel honored! But anyways, yeah I can relate to how annoying it is to read a story when the author doesn't know hardly anything about the series being written about! And don't worry, as I've said before, I'll get Link and Zelda together eventually. Just give me some time……
mew katt the sith lord: Glad you liked the comments. And yeah, Mid-Terms are Barney-evil……….be very afraid once you go in to high school.
pinkythesnowman: Very disturbing………(laughter). Glad someone liked Marth's "routine" in the morning. I kind of based that off of my own experiences, since I have the most annoying alarm clock in the world! Thanks for the tourney suggestion, I might use that later on in it. And yes, I agree with you: Mid-Terms are the bane of any high-school student's existence!
RoyalFanatic: I'm so jealous! You're graduating, and I still have two more years of school to go. NOOOOO! But oh well, at least I have more time to write stories on this site. Sorry you're not a big fan of Samus, but I am! She kicks ass most of the time! But yeah, I kept the system simple, and I'm going to have random pairings later on in the story.
KuroNeko1492: Yeah, I agree: Link and Ganondorf have to face off sometime in the story! Love the suggestions, keep them coming!
WOW, so many reviews! As always guys, thanks a lot! I'm glad you all understand how hard Mid-Terms are, but for now until June, I got more time to get chapters up! Again, thanks for the reviews, you guys rock so hard!
NOTES: I'm so happy for a number of reasons! First of all, my Mid-Terms are finally over! Yay! The other reason I'm happy is because of the strong responses you guys gave me after last chapter! I honestly didn't think that it was that interesting, but guess you guys proved me wrong. Thanks guys, and shame on myself for ever doubting my own story! (laughter) Anyways, you guessed it: the tournament starts this chapter! This also means that it's going to be a long one, but that's only because there are lots of details contained here that set up the whole tournament! I also warn you guys that it is, again, a slow chapter like the last one. I would have written more, but I wanted to get this chapter up today and get started on the next one, which I promise will have more action in. Oh, and I also got to thank the people who gave me suggestions for how to set this up. I've given it a lot of thought while taking each and every suggestion you guys have given me in to consideration, and I've come up with a system that I think will satisfy everyone in the end! (At least, I hope it will...). Oh, I almost forget to tell you guys why I wanted to update on this day. Well, it's because it's my 16th birthday today! Cheers for me, I guess! (laughter) Well, I've got nothing else to tell you guys, except go ahead now and read the chapter, my birthday present to you guys!
DISCLAIMER: Once again (sigh), I don't own Super Smash Bros. Melee, Star Fox: Assault, Metroid Fusion, or The Legend of Zelda. All of these franchises belong to Nintendo; SSBM also belongs to HAL Laboratories and Star Fox: Assault also belongs to Namco. Why does Nintendo keep threatening to sue me? I mean, I always give them proper credit. What more do they want from me, blood? Wouldn't surprise me one bit if they did. (laughter)
Chapter 15: A New Smasher
The dining hall was unusually decorated in a festive atmosphere; different colored streamers covered the walls, along with many posters promoting the "Third Annual Super Smash Brothers Tournament", or Tournament III as it was known to the Smashers.
About half of the Smashers were assembled in that room, downing the many breakfast items that were waiting for them. The kitchen served all sorts of dishes, always at least one was to each Smasher's liking. If they didn't care for what was being served, they could also occasionally go into the town nearby for food at one of the many restaurants.
As soon as they walked in the room, Marth and Link scanned around for an empty table, or for any of their friends. As they walked around all the other Smasher's tables, all talking and discussing things in their own groups, they stumbled upon Roy and Peach, the only ones at a table near the back. The two swordsmen took up seats across from the pair, taking the plates that lay waiting in front of them and started filling them up with food. After their plates were filled, they started to eat and talk.
"So Link, where were you last night? I couldn't find you anywhere at all!" asked Roy intently.
"To tell you the truth, I have honestly no idea."
"Oh come on, not another hangover! You know what alcohol can do to you once you've had too many…"
"No, it's not like that! Last I remembered, I was training on Brinstar, trying to excel in handling the Master Sword in combat, and everything else becomes dark after that. Well, except this dream I had…"
Link then went in to a description of his "dream": How he and Mewtwo had gone to Hyrule Castle while it was underwater, how they had both been attacked by the zombie-like things created by Ganondorf, how he had fought the look-alike of Nemesis, and most importantly, how he had regained the Triforce of Courage. Roy and Peach listened without question, very interested in this supposed "dream". Marth, having already heard this story, continued to eat his breakfast while observing Kirby and Yoshi fight over the food at their table with Mario and Luigi watched them with disgust.
Roy was the first to speak after he had finished his tale.
"Hmm, strange. Hardly any of it seems to make sense. Mostly because I don't see Mewtwo the type of guy that would help out anyone, let alone you."
Peach nodded her head in agreement, looking as though she was still trying to absorb what she had just heard.
"But guys, this isn't the only thing that's weird. Look at this!"
With those words, he held up his gloved hand, the Triforce marking shimmering with a familiar golden hue; and the Courage triangle was shining the brightest.
Both Roy and Peach were speechless; they just couldn't believe what they were seeing, especially after what Link had described in his dream. Again, Roy was the first to speak.
"Well, this could mean two things: either the supposed 'dream' you had was in fact, real. Or that somehow, your training allowed you to repossess it. Both sound completely absurd, but again anything's possible."
Marth suddenly stopped stuffing his face, and joined in the conversation.
"What's it matter how he got it? He has it now, so he should be at least a challenge in this tournament, right?"
Link looked down at his untouched plate of scrambled Cuckoo eggs, unsure what to believe anymore.
'Am I going insane? Or, was that "dream", not really a dream? It seemed pretty real to me; hell, I almost believed it really happened when I woke up. Ah, best not to dwell on it. Like Marth said, at least now I'll be able to stand at least some chance in the competition. Wonder what Zelda will think when she hears about this?'
Link was abruptly interrupted from his thoughts from the obnoxiously loud voice of Peach.
"HEY ZEL, SAMMY! OVER HERE!" shouted Peach over the even louder noise of the crowds while flailing her arms in the air. Unknown to her, Marth gripped his knuckles at the use of Samus' name.
'I'm the only one who calls her that! No one calls her that but me!'
But he cooled down as they approached, not wanting to look like he was about to commit murder.
Samus and Zelda, hearing Peach's screaming ('For a little princess, she certainly has a loud voice' thought Samus), made their way through the many tables over to the foursome.
"Hey Zel" whispered Samus as they continued making their way to their table, "guess your so called 'Hero of Time' is okay after all."
Zelda just nodded, anxious for his explanation.
'He'd better have a good excuse, or else he's in for a real surprise…'
When they finished making their way towards their friends, Zelda grabbed a seat beside Link while Marth scooted downwards to make way for Samus. Zelda began her interrogation right away.
"Link, I can't believe you! Where in the name of Farore did you go? You said you would meet me right after dinner, and you never showed up! I demand an explanation!" yelled Zelda. Samus tried to muffle her laughter at the look on Link's face.
He gained a shocked expression, an anime tear drop forming next to his head. Despite all they had been through, he still wasn't used to hearing Zelda's "angry voice".
'Goddesses, I forgot what her bad side's like…'
"Hey, don't start getting on his case, princess! He has an explanation, and I'm sure you'll be very interested to hear it," said Marth, backing up Link.
With that, Link went in to the same story he had told Roy and Peach. After he was finished, he also showed the Triforce of Courage symbol on his left fist. Zelda was shocked beyond belief.
"Link, this may be the chance we need to win the tournament!" Zelda exclaimed happily, and embraced Link in a hug. He was caught completely off guard, and his face turned a bright red. Both Marth and Roy tried to tell Link to also wrap his arms around her via hand motions, while both Samus and Peach tried their hardest not to laugh outloud. He managed to follow Roy and Marth's advice to their relief, before she let go of him.
"Great, now that that's out of the way, what about the tournament? You guys heard anything about how this is working?" asked Roy.
"Nope, not a thing. They're keeping pretty tight security on everything, from what I heard," said Samus.
"By the way Sam, what happened to your gorgeous hair?" asked Peach, pointing to the black smudges dotting her blond hair.
Both Zelda and Samus started giggling, remembering what had happened to Samus in their room half an hour ago.
"Fine, whatever. Obviously it's not for my ears!" pouted Peach.
Before anyone could get another word out, the room suddenly darkened. Then, two spotlights activated, pointing their bright beams at the stage at which Master Hand stood, or rather…floated.
"Hello, my Smashers! Now that you've all eaten, it's time to announce what's going to happen in Tournament III!"
Everyone in the room applauded, more out of politeness than enthusiasm.
"Now, as I'm sure you've all been wondering, I will announce how exactly this tournament will function."
With that, a hidden High-Definition widescreen TV appeared behind him, dropping in from a small enclosure in the ceiling.
"Hey, why don't we have a big TV like that in the lounge?" complained Falco, whom everyone ignored.
"Okay, now here's how things are going to work," said Master Hand as the TV turned on automatically, revealing a tournament board with all the Smasher's faces on them.
"We aren't going to go by the traditional tournament "ladder" system like last time in the Melee tournament. Instead, this is how it's going to work: each Smasher will be thrust in to random one on one battles with other Smashers. In order to move in to the final round, you need to gather as many wins as possible. All match rules will be different, so don't expect the same conditions every match. The top 12 Smashers with the most wins will move on to the final round, which I will explain when we arrive there in the next two weeks. So for now, concentrate on accumulating as many wins as possible!"
He paused for applause from the audience, which was slightly more enthusiastic this time. Then, the TV switched channels and showed what had to be thousands, no millions of screaming fans outside the Smash Mansion and around the town, all waiting for the same thing: the start of the tournament. They were holding up many signs and wearing shirts, each identifying who they were cheering for. Zelda saw Link blush badly as the camera swept past a mass of screaming fangirls, all wearing shirts with Link's face on them and holding up a green sign decorated with pink hearts, saying "WE HEART YOU LINK! YOU'RE SO HOTT!".
"Ah…as you can see, our fans are enthusiastic to meet their favorites! Remember though, our fans are our funds, so BE NICE TO THEM! Stop to sign as many autographs as possible, talk to them, shake their hands, do whatever you can to please your fans! OR ELSE CERTAIN PRIVELIGES MAY BE REVOKED!"
All of the Smashers started murmuring, each wondering the same thing: Why the hell is Master Hand being such an ass?
He silenced them quickly with a wave of his hand.
"Ah, I apologize to you all. I'm just a tad nervous, that's all. But anyways, moving on. You're all probably wondering where exactly the fighting will take place. That's obviously the next part of the presentation."
Master Hand waved his hand again, and the T.V. once again switched channels. It was a list of all the current arenas that were available in the simulator.
"As you can see, some arenas are, indeed, available in real life. As it is, last time we exclusively used the simulators only and had the fans watch from inside the nearby stadium. That old routine is, as you might guess, going to change slightly. First off, we will indeed be using the simulator for fights like last time, but not all fights are going to be staged there. Only certain arenas that either don't exist or no longer exist such as Brinstar and Hyrule…"
Link and Zelda frowned at the mention of their homeland, their fingers interlocking with one another for support.
'Hopefully by the end of this, it won't be on that list…' thought Link mentally.
"…will be featured at the stadium. That means that Smashers scheduled to fight in those arenas will be allowed to stay in the Mansion. But, as for the arenas that actually exist, they will be used as well."
The T.V. changed channels at the wave of Master Hand's…well…hand, into another list, but with a different title.
"Now, these are the available arenas that are available to fight in. So, in short, if you have a match scheduled to take place in one of these arenas, then you yourself must obviously travel there, unless it is not accessible due to weather conditions. If that is the case, then the match will be diverted to the stadium. Now, all of you may use any method to get to your destination, and may also travel with other Smashers. Sabotaging each other however, is not allowed. As is fighting outside the arena against other Smashers. And trust me: I'll know if any of you break these two rules. Well, that's all of the details."
The T.V. switched off and rose back up to whence it came.
"I almost forgot everyone! We have a new Smasher that will take part in the tournament! He's still adjusting to life around here, so try to at least make an effort to introduce yourselves to him. Ah, here he is!"
With that, a man with flaming red hair stepped out of the shadows next to Master Hand, taking a low bow to the floor, grinning as he did so. Some people received a bad feeling about this man, while others with slightly different morals cheered and clapped, such as Bowser for example.
"This man is known as Ganondorf Dragmire. He is apparently, from the land of Hyrule, like our own Zelda and Link!"
Ganondorf finished his bow and went back to the shadows, still grinning as he dwelled in his devious thoughts.
The enormous lounge room of both Master and Crazy Hand, which had once been only occupied by some furniture and a T.V, was now filled with things related to the tournament, from bills containing the costs that will come from using electricity to advertising company letters of acknowledgement. But one space in the room was reserved exclusively for matchmaking. Unusually, as Master Hand came in the room, he kept it dark, not turning on the light. He floated towards the matchmaking area, dwelling on who should fight who, and where.
"That went rather well, sir." a mysterious figure said from the shadows.
"Yes, it did. Have you any thoughts of who should fight who?"
"A few. All of them seem very capable of winning."
"Yes, they do. But we both know who the real victors are once this is over, right?"
"Yes. But as for who should fight who. I suggest not having the strongest fight against the strongest at first, so the fans will be appeased later on in the tournament. That way profits will be higher."
"I agree, it will also distract the Smashers and the fans away from our plans. But, also, there is a high level of excitement that radiates from the crowds when two major players face off against each other."
"Then why don't you have two of the strongest fighters face off in the first round, and have the other matches that day set up as strong against weak? It could generate good ratings for you."
"Yes, but which two is the question."
"The answer is obvious, isn't it? Which two Smashers came first and second last tournament, respectively, as you told me?"
"Ah yes, Mario and Link. Both show great promise as fighters, and also as profit-generators. It might be good if we have them face off against each other. It can be a kind of 'continuation' of their last battle."
"Yes, it shall."
"Good, I'll decide the rest of the matches later on tonight. I appreciate your help and loyalty, Ganondorf."
Ganondorf stepped forth from the shadows, his evil eyes glowing in the darkness.
"My only wish is to take revenge on the two who sealed me away for so long."
"Only one thing: make sure none of the Smashers suspect anything. If they do, well…I'll leave matters to your ever-capable hands."
"Many of my servants have been resurrected and are ready to do my bidding, so leave the dirty work to me."
"I will. You may leave now."
"Yes, my lord. As you wish."
Ganondorf took another polite bow as he left the darkened room, anxious to carry out his own plans.
So, what is really going on in this story? Why would Ganondorf help Master Hand? What are they both really up to? Why am I making up so many questions? Don't worry, answers will come in time. I just love stories that keep you guessing and wanting more. But anyways, expect next chapter sometime in the next week and a half. I'll give you guys an estimation in my profile when the time comes. Well, expect action in the next chapter, as the first match should start next chapter. Hope you liked the chapter, and please review!