Well, well, well. Seems like the fight scene and subsequent cliffhanger went down well! Thanks everyone who reviewed.
Saying it for what feels like the millionth time since I began the story, but I love you guys! And you all love me! Right? RIGHT?! RIIIIIIIGHT?!
Rebuilding
Chapter 22: In Which Even More Too Much Stuff Happens?!
Snake put away the gun as soon as the shot had been fired, and ignored all the whining.
Ness, Marth, Luigi, Mr. Game and Watch, Jigglypuff, Falco and Ganondorf all looked on in horror. Every one of the seven was thinking the same thing: Captain Falcon was dead, and now this guy's gonna kill us all.
It was then when the Ancient Minister appeared, holding Young Link firmly in his grasp.
"Snake?" asked the Ancient Minister expectantly.
"I did it, alright?" coughed Snake sadly, silent tears streaming down his face. "I k-killed Captain Falcon, happy?"
Jigglypuff let out a morose whimper, Ness patted her on the head as his own lip quivered.
"Forgive me my good man, but why are you so upset?" asked the Ancient Minister softly. "You've killed four Smashers – "
Ness turned to Marth and mouthed Four?! incredulously. Marth nodded sadly and made a non-verbal promise to tell Ness later.
"He was..." began Snake, choking on grief. "He was my hero fifteen years ago, and now that he's gone I realise the error of my ways..."
The Smashers smiled weakly.
"Please, mister," pleaded Jigglypuff. "Come over to the right side..."
"Human emotion!" spat the Ancient Minister abruptly. "You and that blue rat are supposed to kill all of the SSB! Look around you Snake! There are eight defenceless Super Smash Brothers – yes, a third of them – and you're too busy crying over one of their fallen to continue the job! You are pathetic!"
"I remember, one day..." began Snake, not paying attention. "...not fifteen, but sixteen years ago..."
Solid Snake walked happily out of the barber shop, patting his new haircut.
"Wow, now that I have a hip flock-of-seagulls haircut, all the beautiful women of the 1980s will be throwing themselves at me!" celebrated Snake.
"It's 1992," pointed out a passer-by.
Snake sighed.
"And the gull cut isn't old enough to be retro yet," said the passer-by.
"Well, I'm still keeping it!" protested Snake.
"Yeah great. Only Captain Falcon can pull off haircuts from the 70s and 80s," said the guy. "He's got an afro, just imagine that!"
The guy handed Snake a picture of Captain Falcon.
"Wow..." marvelled Snake, looking at Falcon's glory. "I want to be just like him!"
"I vowed to be like him," sniffed Snake. "Then seven years after that..."
The year was 1999. Snake and his buzzcut had just finished saving Meryl and Otacon in Shadow Moses Island. And so, he had returned to his tiny apartment.
"Man, I sure am tired!" sighed Snake. "Let's see what's in the news!"
Snake turned on the TV, and saw some breaking news.
"Twelve Nintendo all-stars have joined together in the first 'Super Smash Bros' tournament!" said the reporter. "Fighters range from heroes Mario and Luigi, to Hyrule's Link, even to famous F-Zero racer Captain Falcon!"
"Wow, Super Smash Brothers!" gasped Snake in awe.
"However, casting has ended for this momentous event,"
"And from that day on, I knew I wanted to be a Super Smash Brother," said Snake, in present-day. "But sadly, I was on a mission while they were casting for the second tournament,"
"What happened?" asked Marth sympathetically.
"I snapped," replied Snake. "I killed the casting agents, all of them. Video games spiralled into chaos. Crap like Adventure Journey Quest Pilgrimage 3 came out – "
"Ending? Totally not worth it," chipped in Ness.
"- until now. These people are just trying to revive a series, and we shouldn't stop them," realised Snake.
"I just wish you'd realised that sooner," came a voice.
Captain Falcon stood up, and clapped Snake on the back.
"Good of you to join us, old friend," grinned Falcon.
"I thought you died," smiled Snake. "Takes more than this old thing to stop you, huh?"
Snake indicated his gun and laughed heartily.
"No, actually, you shot my helmet," said Falcon. "I was unconscious until you said 'He was my hero',"
"How tacky," commented Snake.
"You have no idea," agreed Falcon.
"Enough of these pitiful exchanges!" roared the Ancient Minister. "If you won't kill your boyfriend Snake, then I will! The SSB must be destroyed!"
"Falcon, he's not kidding around!" called Young Link. "He's really tough!"
Falcon squinted, and raised an eyebrow.
"Young Link, what the hell happened to you?" asked Falcon, pointing at Young Link's disfigured face.
"Guilty as charged," chuckled Snake, waving an apologetic hand.
"You old lunatic!" laughed Falcon affectionately, giving Snake a noogie.
"Enough!" yelled the Ancient Minister again. "Even if Snake's went all soft on me, I still have Sonic the Hedgehog in my control! With his speed, you'll all be dead before anyone even notices! The SSB will be slain, and my empire will rise!"
"Your plan will never work," said Falcon, glaring at the Ancient Minister.
"Who's gonna stop me?" asked the Ancient Minister mockingly. "You, the half-conscious wonder?"
The Ancient Minister rounded on the other Smashers.
"This stupid kid? Tiara man? Flatty? The old man? The bird? Some plumber? The balloon?" laughed the Ancient Minister, laughing more derisively after every name.
Young Link's Triforce glowed on his battered hand, the Triforce of Courage's space glowing a strange yellow-green color.
"G-go for it..." whispered a voice from the mark.
Young Link's jaw dropped in surprise, but then the Wisdom mark glowed blueish-purple.
"We will be with you..." said a second voice hoarsely.
"You can do it..." encouraged a third voice, from the red glow of the Power mark.
Suddenly, Young Link understood what had happened.
"Death may be a curse..." remembered Young Link quietly to himself. "But it can also be a blessing...blessing...gods...goddesses? The Triforce!"
Young Link focused, and raised his hand to the Ancient Minister.
"I'm going to stop you," said Young Link simply.
"Fool!" laughed the Ancient Minister. "You shall perish under my iron fist!"
Young Link gritted his teeth, and mustered all his courage. The green-yellow glow from the Triforce of Courage mark leapt off of Young Link's hand, and manifested itself into a ghost-like figure. The ghost emerged with a cocky grin and wide-eyed enthusiasm.
The ghost of Pichu beamed around at everyone.
"Hi guys!" smiled Pichu. "I'm dead!"
"They killed Pichu?!" asked Luigi incredulously.
"Again, all me," said Snake. "I...could not feel more remorse,"
"Nice of you to say that!" grinned the red, glowing ghost of Roy. "Just a good thing we're still around to forgive you!"
Ness gasped and looked around at Marth, who nodded sadly.
"I already knew," said Marth.
Young Link's last mark, the Wisdom mark, glowed once more, and Mewtwo's blue-purple ghost appeared.
"It is also a good thing that I was around to link back to the living world," said Mewtwo. "Solid Snake, you have destroyed us. But, you have allowed us to become more than anything else could ever be. For that, I thank you."
"Mewtwo! No!" squealed Ness, beginning to well up.
"Do not bemoan my loss, Ness. You are a capable psychic, I am nothing more than a former mentor now," smiled Mewtwo. "Now, allow me to temporarily save your lives."
Pichu, Roy, and Mewtwo exchanged a significant look, and split up. Pichu scampered around the street, every ghostly step he took making a small imprint on the ground. The squad of Primids who had swarmed the Smashers chased after him, but immediately after stepping on Pichu's ghostly imprints, they were frozen.
Roy attacked next, holding up the Sword of Seals with a grin. He brought the fire-blessed sword down onto the ground, creating a wall of fire that coursed straight for the frozen clump of Primids. All of the Primids burned horribly.
Finally, Mewtwo lifted up the burning, dying Primids, and without warning, he created a large ball of psychic energy with his mind. The energy ball enveloped all of the Primids in the street.
"What are you doing, you demon?" screamed the Ancient Minister, outraged.
Mewtwo smirked, and said "Alright, I shall stop,"
Mewtwo made the entire ball disappear with his psychic powers.
"There. They are gone," said Mewtwo.
The Smashers cheered, but the ghosts were not finished. Mewtwo, Pichu and Roy turned to face the Ancient Minister, and without warning they all zoomed through his body. The Ancient Minister fell to the ground, helpless.
"Your powers have been weakened," snarled Roy.
"The rest is up to you guys!" smiled Pichu.
"Make us proud, we will forever be a part of Young Link, able to return in spiritual form whenever he calls on us," confirmed Mewtwo.
The three ghosts minimised and went back into Young Link's Triforce imprint.
"Weakened powers..." scoffed the Ancient Minister, getting back up. "Those dead fools...ah, excellent! Sonic!"
Sonic ran into view, looking tired.
"Sorry sir, ran all the way here from Kanto," said Sonic. "Took me nearly ten minutes!"
"Yes, very well," said the Ancient Minister, not listening. "Orders are: kill as many Super Smash Brothers as you can before – well, you know..."
"What about Snake?" asked Sonic curiously.
"Snake has defected," replied the Ancient Minister bitterly.
"S-snake's with the SSB now!" stammered Luigi suddenly, gaining courage. "No way you can beat us!"
"Oh, but I can!" laughed the Ancient Minister. "Sonic, charge the green one. Don't leave him alive!"
Sonic buckled down his knees, and got ready to run...
...but he couldn't.
"I can't move my feet anymore!" panicked Sonic. "It's almost as if some kind of spiritual force is binding me to the ground!"
"Why do I feel less like I suck so bad?" asked Luigi, just as fearfully. "Young Link, is this-"
"-the advantage we're getting from the ghosts?" finished Young Link. "It must be! They're removing what evildoers prize most and giving heroes what they need most! That blue guy lost his speed, but Luigi –"
"Grew some nads," interrupted Falco.
"Well, yeah," nodded Young Link.
"Luigi," said Mr. Game and Watch conversationally. "Didn't the Game Boy Horror say there was, oh I dunno...a huge freaking bomb in this place?!"
"Exactly!" bellowed the Ancient Minister. "And now that those hand ghost things have taken away my mechanical prowess, I can't turn it off even if I try! Your plan backfires, SSB! If we die, you die with us!"
"Are you serious?" asked Marth incredulously. "I've already been through physical hell recently without being blown up..."
"Wait, can that Game Boy thing track the timer on the bomb?" asked Ganondorf. "Because we know where it is! It's in that tower!"
Luigi checked the device. "Ten minutes, looks like they were anticipating a longer fight here,"
The Smashers were interrupted by a robotic beam that narrowly missed Luigi, and the Ancient Minister chuckled sadistically.
"We will all perish! Subspace and SSB alike! All of us, dead!" laughed the Ancient Minister maniacally.
The Smashers ran for it, diving in alleys in small groups of two or three.
Luigi found himself sharing an alley with Young Link, Falco and Mr. Game and Watch.
"Guys, we're not the only ones in the city," said Luigi. "Look at the Game Boy Horror! There's some animal here too, and it's heading right for all of us!"
"That's not so bad," replied Falco.
"Look at the name though," said Luigi. "Ultimate Chimaera...a firey death monster, and it's ultimate? We really are gonna die here..."
"Okay, I have one small plan," revealed Mr. Game and Watch. "Falco, I'm gonna need your help,"
"What's the plan?" asked Falco eagerly.
"I want you to confront the Ancient Minister," began Mr. Game and Watch.
"Yeah?" asked Falco uncertainly.
"And offer yourself up as sacrifice," finished Mr. Game and Watch.
"Good plan," said Young Link fearfully.
"...let's not use that one," replied Falco. "Besides, even if we kill the Minister and the blue rat, Duon and Galleom are still in the tower to guard the bomb,"
"That's right," replied the Ancient Minister, who had been behind the four, listening.
"Aww crap," cursed Falco.
"Here comes the Chimaera!" cowered Luigi.
"What foolish name is th-" began the Ancient Minister, but a heavy breathing sound behind him made him turn around. A flaming pinkish-red beast was snarling down at him. Young Link, Luigi, Falco and Mr. Game and Watch barely made it out of the alley alive.
"We need to stop that bomb!" stated Luigi. "Where's the others?"
Ness, Marth, Falcon, Ganondorf and a reformed Snake ran out of the Hall of Memories, looking battle-worn.
"Duon and Galleom are down," grinned Marth.
"Where's Jigglypuff?" asked Falco.
"Oh, she said she was gonna save us from the Subspace bomb," replied Ganondorf. "We all know she can't do it, but we might as well humor her,"
The group decided to climb the tower into the Hall, where they saw Jigglypuff playfully tapping the bomb.
"Look! I fixed it!" smiled Jigglypuff. "It's even got a timer until it turns off, and I sped it up!"
"Great, nice going leaving her alone!" fumed Mr. Game and Watch, turning to Marth.
"Oh, like this is my fault?" asked Marth heatedly.
"Yes," said Ness.
"Sort of," nodded Falco.
"I'd say so," replied Luigi.
"Yep," smirked Snake.
"Yeah," admitted Falcon.
"Yes, it certainly is," agreed Ganondorf.
"Yeah, Marth!" reprimanded Jigglypuff. "Now we're all going to die!"
"And it's all because of you!" put in Falco. "You irresponsible son of a-grah, I'll kill you!"
Falco charged at Marth, but Ganondorf and Mr. Game and Watch held him back.
"Hey, what's that thing?" asked Ness, pointing at something out of the window. But nobody was listening.
"Twenty seconds!" panicked Luigi, looking at the timer.
"There's a ship up in the sky..." noticed Snake, looking up out of the window.
"No, but look at that on the ground-" began Ness, but he was interrupted.
"Ten seconds!" continued Luigi frantically.
"This is the end!" yelled Falco.
"I think the thing on the ground's moving, guys," said Ness, but nobody paid any attention.
"Five!" screamed Luigi.
"It's been great to be part of you, Super Smash Brothers," said Snake. "Now it's time for me to pursue my next dream of being alive,"
Snake jumped out of the window, and whipped out a flying camera. The others watched as he flew towards the large ship in the sky.
"He'll send for help, right?" asked Ganondorf.
"The guy down there's coming in!" panicked Ness, pointing out of the window.
The 'guy' burst into the room. "Get ready to be saved, my name is Luca-"
Luigi interjected, "Um, we've got a problem,"
"What?" asked Falcon.
Luigi pointed at the bomb. "Time up,"
Wide eyes all around, but then the stranger threw out his arms and -
The bomb exploded.
And that ends the Subplot saga! Next chapter we'll finally get back to the main plot! I realise some of you may have preferred the main plot, so sorry to keep you waiting for it so much!
Keep reading and reviewing, tell the family, friends, goldfish, and more!
Buh-bye. And T-Tow! (cookies for reference?!)