"May I please see the King now?"
Master Hand hovered in front of the Secretary Mii, managing the front desk in the empty waiting lobby. Two guards, a Mii and Rabbit, each with a sword in hand watched the discussion curiously from the sides of the doors leading deeper into the castle.
"I have a lot to go over, and I've already lost half of the day already. I need to see him immediately."
The Secretary typed a sentence down into her computer, before looking up to Master Hand and giving her answer of, "Let me see if he's available yet," once more to him. She pressed a button on her headphones, asking one of the guards in the throne room if King Mee could speak with Master Hand, but he was given the same response he had gotten five times before.
"I'm afraid he's still occupied in a very important meeting. You'll have to wait until he's finished, like everyone else.
Now please take a seat and wait to be called. When he's ready, you'll be the first to know."
Observing the Secretary's deadpan tone towards a God, and said God's dejected motion towards the nearest seat, the two guards were impressed by the former's cool head, and shocked by the latter's complete resignation.
Seeing it happen again didn't make it any less fascinating to watch. A normal desk jockey speaking to their creator without a care in the world, while the creator obliged like any mild-mannered citizen.
The God in question, while more annoyed than the average person, still understood the current situation, and the treatment he was getting.
After wandering around the fair grounds, and trying to search for Crazy Hand in local neighborhoods, Master Hand had decided that Crazy Hands missing presence may be more concerning than it originally seemed.
The idea of the God of Chaos disappearing on his own for a while and doing who knows what wasn't uncommon. Sometimes He could disappear for a week straight.
The issue was that there was no news about him at all. Crazy Hand, no matter what, always managed to attract attention thanks to his troublemaking nature-it had gotten to the point that seeing him do something normal was worthy of shock-and-awe. Within a day, Master Hand could hear about his brother's haphazardous activities within a few hours of him going missing all the time.
It was never as quiet as it had usually gotten with Crazy Hand, and the bizarre lack of news had gotten Master Hand just a bit worried about his deranged counterpart.
In order to remedy this situation, Master Hand had decided to speak with the local leader-in this case, the ruling monarch and his two sons-to try and get some information on the situation.
With the King's family having ruled for several generations without ever being removed from power, it showed that along with their uncannily similar appearances, the talent and willingness to rule properly had also been passed down from each generation of the Passer line. And with the general competence the current ruler had consistently demonstrated, Master Hand was certain that he would be able to help in his task.
Suddenly, a voice echoed off of the pristine walls of the castle's waiting room, " , the King is ready to see you now." At that, Master Hand moved swiftly to the chamber doors, navigating through the castle as best as he could.
Left, then right, then right again... or was it left, right, left...?
I know the last time I was here, they said that I needed to go right.
Unless, when I said left, they said right, and meant 'correct' rather than the direction. And now that I think about it, I think they mentioned taking two lefts, and I may only be remembering one...
I had better retrace my movements.
After a bit of confusion, Master Hand found his way to the chamber doors, revealing King Passer sitting at his ornate throne made of (faux) gold with an average work desk with wheels in front of him, and a few attendants bringing reports to him and taking them away, all armed for combat.
Why does the King have his guards combatting paper work? It's certainly something I'd be happy to see vanquished for good, but it's a bit below their usual pay grade.
Shaking off the thoughts, Master Hand met the King's gaze with his own, trying his best to appear friendly. Which he was, he was just never the best at emoting (for obvious reasons).
"Well I'll be-if it isn't the Big Hand himself! Good to see you, glad you're here! Please, come up, take a seat, we... well, we only have my seat, but I'm sure you'll make do. Now then, we'll get started in a moment, as soon as we get a bit more privacy. If that's alright with everyone." The Miis surrounding the King looked at each other, the King, and the papers on the desk and in their hands.
"Come now everyone, we've been busting our humps all day, I'm sure the people will allow just five minutes for me to talk to the Master Hand. The Princes can handle any issue that might pop up, and if I'm needed, I'll be there to help in no time. " Looking at the King, and then back at the God of Order, and took their leave. The King was right, and if anything happened, Master Hand would provide good protection for their ruler in case anything happened.
After everyone else had filed out of the royal chambers, the crowned Mii was delighted to see Master Hand-both as an old acquaintance, and an excuse to get away from work for just a bit.
Sighing, Kind Passer started with, "Sorry about that, things have been chaotic with all of the preparations getting thrown into motion. Whether you wield a pen or a sword, it's got just about everybody on edge, and we're all poised to leap at any issue that can be resolved."
Holding himself up, Master Hand insisted it was alright,
"It can't be helped, I've been dealing with the same thing since I started my own personal projects. Multitasking is never easy for me."
"Hahaha, while I don't think we've made anything as big as you, we do have our own hands full here. The security I've hired has even insisted on arming and training my own personal staff to make sure I'm safe from the more colorful issues that may arise. Unless it involves our favorite troublemaker running amok."
Staff members? Well, at least the King isn't trying to have the guards doing any unusual tasks.
Again.
While I'm sure they might know how to make a good meal, that's not what they're around for, and I certainly home King Passer understands that.
Master Hand's land has always had its own series of issues popping up here and there, and its own Mii divisions whom trained themselves to handles such jobs. Fighting against hordes of zombies, taking of the Gold Bone Gang as a member of Mii Force, or defeating evils such as the Dark Lord and his forces, the Miis were capable of handling themselves. It was another reason that Master Hand had considered allowing them to join-as members of his world, many of them have stood up against huge odds, and having representative fighting against heroes of different worlds seemed like a good idea.
The only issue was the formation of any sort of cohesive force. The Subspace Emissary proved how the various Mii Fighters, mercenary's, survivors, etc., were very much part of their own groups. Due to the lack of coordination and communication, the Subspace Army had gotten a strong start and a massive foothold in their world (with other factors that he didn't feel like thinking about). The Smashers were able to band together partly thanks to the bonds that were established before.
The Miis needed this as well, and they had formed it, with the King being one key figure of information, given his status as a ruler of a land. While he and his family could be a bit ditzy, the fact that they weren't dethroned by any displeased citizens said much about their capabilities, especially given the fact that his was one of the few familial monarchy's to still exist. The people had the power, and King Passer did well not to garner their wrath.
"Yes, of course, I only need to..." Master Hand paused, "Wait, 'favorite troublemaker'?"
King Passer nodded sadly, "Yes, he can be so well-meaning sometimes, but Crazy Hand can be such a-"
"You know where he is!?" Master Hand leaned in close, and King Passer backed into his chair,
"Oh um... yes, we had someone visiting from the Cross Connection Facility telling us about how he's been causing problems there."
"How long?" Master Hand stated, leaning in closer,
"I-I'm sorry?"
"How long has he been there?"
"Erm... th-three days... I'd be happy to tell you what's been going on, but while Crazy Hand is here, you're, well, just the slightest bit, in my personal space. If you could just..."
Backing up, Master Hand turned to the side, and started pacing back and forth, and the King adjusted himself into his seat again.
"I'm sorry, it's just that I've been looking for him all over, and I haven't heard anything about him in... three days-three days he's been gone and I never had a clue! I'm supposed to keep him in line, and I don't even know what he's doing!"
Giving Master Hand a sympathetic look, King Passer stated, "Well, you're only one being, and there's just so much you can do. You've been busy, haven't you?"
"Yes, and I have a good reason, and I can't be everywhere at once, but that doesn't make it any less aggravating when someone like Crazy Hand has evaded me for so long."
"I understand. But, there's a silver lining to all of this-" Master Hand mustered up the best deadpan stare he could give to the King, "Well, alright, there's a 'not-terrible' side to this-he hasn't been destroying anything, and Crazy hasn't had a chance to do what he's been trying for the Tournament."
Master Hand looked at King Passer, his annoyance replaced with curiosity. He could still provide useful information and was a good, if slightly annoying, King who just wanted to aid him. He shouldn't be misdirecting his anger, there was no time for that.
For now, he was going to find out just what has been going on with Crazy Hand-and what compelled the God of Chaos to maintain such a low profile for so long.
Jigglypuff, the Balloon Pokemon,
When working to create a large event, one of the main concerns typically had is how to attract the most amount of people. How to spread information, draw people's attention away from other activities, and convince them that whatever one offers is worth their valuable time.
A facet just as important is maintaining the interest of a crowd. Keeping people around to enjoy and appreciate your work is just as much of a challenge as grabbing a large audience.
In the case of the Super Smash Bros. Tournament, interest is maintained by the constant additions of new elements to the fights, from worlds both old and new. Along with this, thanks to the history that the Tournaments have garnered, many characters have established a legacy with the Miis, making names for themselves and attracting dedicated fans.
You Jigglypuff have made yourself known as not only an underdog of the fighters, as well as a performer in your own right.
Despite standing up against many skilled warriors, you never let yourself be pushed around by anyone, even when they were stronger than you. You always got back up on your feet and stood your ground-for both yourself and those watching.
As I understand it, you have never had a strong interest in fighting itself, so much as you do in having an audience. You enjoyed entertaining others, giving people a good time as they watched you and your opponents face each other with everything you both have.
With a new Tournament comes new faces, both in the arena and on the sidelines. For the sake of helping to keep both the participants and the audience entertained, you have been invited once more to the Super Smash Bros. Tournament. I hope to see you put on a show once more, and not only give the fighters a good challenge, but give the Miis one more Hero to admire and root for.
Sincerely, Master Hand,
"Ji... ggly-puuuuuff..."
A pink puffball stood tranquilly in the middle of a forest, a tree stump for its stage, and let loose a soothing melody that found its way to all of the wild Pokemon nearby.
"...Jigglyyyy~yyyypuuuuuuuff!"
As the song finished, Jigglypuff looked around at the other wild Pokemon to see them all asleep, knocked from her Sing. And upon seeing this Jigglypuff puffed herself up, before letting out a short breath and calmly walked away.
Moving through the woods, Jigglypuff navigated through the natural obstacles, such as cliffs to float down from, or water to float across, and moved to where the next step in her training would take place. With the knowledge that her voice was as effective as ever at putting others to sleep, Jigglypuff could begin focus on honing her main attacks for the upcoming Tournament.
She wanted to be at her best for her adoring public, and had been training harder than ever to prep for the fights to come. With an audience that would never doze off on her, and countless spectacles to make and experience, the show that she could put on for everyone watching her alongside the other fighters was well worth the training (and the minor irritation of having any nearby company pass out of her during vocal exercises).
Passing over a toppled tree, Jigglypuff considered what she would excercise first. She mainly focused on melee attacks, with her Pound and Rollout being the most effective-but effects don't matter much if they don't reach an opponent, and her foes ranged from being as speedy as they were strong.
Wwth smaller, more nimble characters, Jigglypuff had no reservations with facing them head on. They were likely to use their light weight and speed to their advatage, but so could she.
Mid range fighters such as Ness and Zelda would generally require a balance of maneuverability and close combat to throw them off and take them down, respectively. Trickier, but still within Jigglypuff's skill range.
And now came the least pleasant considerations off all.
Ruefully, she thought about the heavy weights, the power houses such as Charizard and King Dedede. Her attacks could stun other opponents without much issue, but the larger fighters could take even Rollout without much issue. Add to it the strength that they possessed and Jigglypuff's weight-class, and once more, she knew who she needed to focus on preparing for.
After hopping over several more fallen trees as she walked, Jigglypuff looked around to see the clearing that she had found, and expanded with her training on the local plantlife. Careful not to poke any of the splintered stumps, Jigglypuff turned her side toward the the large rock with a spherical dent in it, and decided that it would be useful for practice.
"Jiggly..." rotating sideways, Jigglypuff spun faster and faster, kicking up dirt until- "Puff!" She launched herself at the stone, slamming right into the indent that was made before, leaving herself caught in the center of the rock.
After a few moments of wiggling, Jigglypuff looked at her handiwork and nodded with satisfaction, before positioning herself towards a new spot to do it all again. Thankfully, the stone was strong enough to take it, and even managed to stay up after Jigglypuff's continuous Rollout's.
Jigglypuff was happy with the strength she had gained, and was satisfied with her plans for training, but only because of what she could do with this training.
Many Pokemon preferred to spend their time with trainers to fight for them against others, or enter Contests. Jigglypuff never felt like getting caught by anyone, and fighting against different Pokemon alone didn't entice her. Contests piqued her curiosity, but due to being a wild Pokemon, she wasn't able to join in on any of them (Jigglypuff knew she could have done well, even at the risk of upstaging everyone else). It was a shame, but one that she was able to overlook when interacting with wild Pokemon.
In the wild, Pokemon tended to fight each other all of the time for various reasons, whether it be over food, territory, or even just the sport of it all. Where she lived, the latter was typically the main reason, and at the insistence of many other Pokemon, she would participate in fights, and usually manage to use her skills to make the fights unique. It wasn't until battling a certain Pikachu and his trainer that Jigglypuff fully committed to fighting.
The reason why was due to her love for entertaining others, and hearing the audience chant her name. It made the combat, and all of the unpleasantness that came with it worth enduring. It was the whole reason she trained herself so hard to begin with; she wanted to be at tip-top condition for everyone to enjoy. Not only did she have crowds to please, but fellow fighters to show up in the Tournament.
Yes, while she mainly did this for the show that she put on, she was always more than happy to prove to her fellow combatants just how strong she really was-especially, again, the most powerful fighters out their.
As Jigglypuff Pounded another dent into the rock she was working, she thought of the sheer joy and satisfaction she got in the arena's. The thrill of surpassing an enemy who seemed so unbeatable, the rush she felt when the crowd roared at her triumph, and she could only feel more energy pour into her as the pushed on to do more training.
Before Master Hand's letter had even hit the ground, Jigglypuff's decision on whether or not to join was clear.
A bit of a long time coming, but I'm happy to finally present Jigglypuff in all of her pink and floaty glory! Also, something is up with Crazy Hand-what could it be? Well, you'll find out next chapter. I'm planning to try and draw and write more, and finish at least something once a week for each, even if it's just a really short story, or a sketch for practice. Hopefully it will involve this series too, so I can get chapters out to you fast.
For now, last but not least comes the final of the first twelve characters, Ness! Until then, I'll be doing my research, and making sure that his chapter is far more than just 'Okay'.