Man, I feel like such a meany. I could never survive what I'm putting Sheik through. Not in a million years. Sigh. But here's the next chapter, so I hope you enjoy! I mean, you know, even though they're in the middle of a ruthless battle with creepy... things.

Sheik wiped the blonde bangs out of her face. They were limp with her sweat and the black blood that wasn't hers. Her eyes shot to Lucina. Roy and Robin F were holding her corpse, sobbing, and Marth was fast approaching them with Link, Zelda, Zero Suit, and Peach just behind them. Ike had taken his sword and was stabbing it viciously into the already dead hand.

"Sheik?"

The masked girl felt tears sting her eyes as she turned to face Peach.

"I brought the rest of the smashers. I wanted them to help… But… I was going to bring Bowser. He could have stopped that hand! I just…" Tears were dripping from her blue eyes now, wetting her dark eyelashes. "I thought he'd do more harm than good with his fire." She blinked rapidly. "I don't care! I'm going to get him!"

She turned and fled back to the mansion and Sheik heard her gasp, "She's not dead, Peachy. She's just sleeping. She's just sleeping right now. Resting…"

"Look!" shouted Corrin F.

Sheik whirled.

Corrin was crouched by Cloud, and behind them, approaching slowly, was the black blob of Core.

"Watch out!" screamed Zero Suit, running towards the two. "Cloud! Corrin!"

Corrin M was hot on her heals, limping from a wound, but determined to protect his sister.

"Master Core!"

The voice was familiar. Sheik knew the voice. She grabbed out her needles as Wii Fit Trainer dashed past her, passed Corrin M, Samus, Cloud, and Corrin F, and skidded to a halt right in front of the blob. She looked up at it and she was shouting.

"I did not sign up for this! You didn't say you'd kill someone! You don't have authority over lives like that! I am not with you! I'm not!"

Her pupil-less eyes were wide with terror as she whirled to face the smashers, most of them staring at her. "Guys, you have to run! You can't defeat him! He's too powerful! You have to run! Sheik! Run! Samus! Guys!" Her voice was growing louder into a high pitched scream. Then she dashed to the left as behind her Core began to change.

The blob seemed to dissolve into separate particles and black sparks shot from behind him as he morphed into a large giant. His eyes glowed orange and he gave a throaty chuckle. Sheik gasped in air and stayed still, watching.

Link and Ike, together, ran forward, Link just a little ahead. Both were yelling with fury, wildly dashing towards the Core and Corrin M and Zero Suit readied themselves as well.

Sheik was shocked as Ganondorf sprinted past her on one side and Zelda on the other. Both were heading towards the fight. Sheik's heart skipped a beat and she ran after them.

She reached the giant first, as the other smashers had hesitated before attacking, and grabbed at his ankle to try and trip him. Her hands went right through him, the black particles that he appeared to made of brushing against her hands. She jerked them away and somersaulted beneath his legs, standing behind him. Her jaw clenched in terror.

There was a small pink explosion as Zelda's magic fire exploded on Core. The black giant stumbled back and Sheik leapt to the side. She flipped into a handspring and vaulted a few feet away, standing just in time to see a particle fist fly out and hit Ganondorf, who was preparing some of his own magic, right in the gut.

He gave a roar of pain and fell backwards with a groan.

Sheik's breath caught in her lungs and her wide open mouth emitted no scream. But he wasn't dead. With a grunt of exertion he pushed himself back and away from the giant.

Sheik saw the fist of Core rise again to finish Ganondorf off with a crushing blow. She wanted to help him. She wanted to run. She wanted to fight. She leapt forward.

But Ike and Link had gotten there first. With vicious yells and fiercer sword slices, they hacked at the giant. The blades blew through the particles, but a spark of orange erupted at each blow, and Sheik knew they were gaining wounds.

She was frustrated with herself, even as her breathing sounded ragged in her ears and her heart pounded. She had kicks that did nothing, a body that could only escape and didn't deal much damage, and stupid needles that didn't cause much damage at all. Punches and kicks worked in the portals, but here… they didn't hurt as much. She needed a sword.

There was a horrific scream from Link as one of Core's hands shot through him. The black specks reconnected on the other side of his body and he crumpled on the ground. Sheik grabbed out her needles with a muffled cry and hurled them at the giant's back. He was distracted from the immobile Link and the orange eyes looked right into hers.

Behind him she spotted Ike grabbing Link and hoisting him over his shoulders. Then he was running away, one arm holding Link, the other holding his golden sword.

Sheik's eyes shot to Link's weapon, which lay on the grass. She ran forward, paused and dove down, somersaulting as she hit the ground, and found she was right by the sword, and right beneath the powerful fist of Core's giant.

She grabbed the sword and twisted on the ground to look straight up as she pointed the blade at the sky and the fist that was plummeting towards her. Something struck her in the side and she slid a few feet across the grass, her side alive with pain. Her red eyes glanced to the right to see what had hit her and time seemed to freeze in place. Not Ganondorf. Not right underneath that fist…

There was a crash as Ganondorf was hit, the particles spilling around him on contact. And Core raise his arm back up, a rasping laugh coming from his mouth.

"Ganon!" Sheik dropped the sword and raced towards him, as on every other side the smashers attacked.

Marth and Roy ran in, side by side, their swords drawn and fire in their eyes as they slashed at the giant. Samus fired her robotic arm-cannon and Zero Suit slashed her plasma whip across his neck. Corrin M's hand shot out as a claw that pierced right through the giant.

Orange streaks of what seemed like lava formed cracks through the entire body and the particles collapsed on the ground.

Sheik grabbed Ganondorf's face in her hands. "Ganon?"

He looked at her; eyes half open. "I don't mind dying, Sheik. I really don't," he breathed in his deep voice. It was very weak.

"You have to!" she argued, a sob cracking her voice. "You have to."

"Sheik, don't stop fighting now."

"I can! They killed him! We can focus on you now. We can get you to a doctor. Doctor Mario can help. You won't die. Just hold on."

"You were a good friend, Sheik," he murmured, as he closed his eyes. "Don't stop."

"No! Ganondorf!"

"Sheik, watch it! He's coming for you!"

Marth's voice pierced through her haze of grief and she glanced up to see a giant, black, scorpion-like animal clumping towards her. Master Core hadn't died. He was still alive. And she would kill him!

With a scream of rage, she jumped up and punched him through. Her hand sank into the first leg, but she pulled it out, jumped over his head and gaping mouth and fiery orange eyes, and landed on his back with a downward kick. Her legs sank into the beast up to her knees and then she was hurled back and off of him. She did a back flip and landed in a crouch, eyes still blazing; but now with fear. Anger couldn't last long with something that big and invincible.

"Falcon Punch!" shouted Captain Falcon, dashing towards the beast with a roar. His huge fist collided with the side and sent some particles flying out into the air. They melted into the grass and Core gave a screaming roar while Falcon beat a hasty retreat.

Samus dashed in, her orange suit gleaming in the sunlight. With an audible, robotic grunt, she supported her cannon arm with her other one and fired. The blue flash from her cannon mixed with the orange lava that seemed to flow through the scorpion's body. One bat of a foot and Samus had tucked herself into an armadillo-like ball and was rolling away.

The scorpion gave a rasping scream and whirled so that it's back was to Sheik now. His mouth opened and she saw Roy tumble out of the way just in time. Ike gave a roar of pain and Sheik found the black tail hurling right for her.

She leapt up with a stifled cry and felt the rush of wind as it swiped beneath her, striking Ganondorf's motionless body. He gave an agonized cry as he tumbled away and lay still nearby, like a teddy bear that is dropped on the floor in an unnatural position.

Sheik couldn't believe the scream that erupted from her throat was her own. It was hoarse and filled with anguish that she wasn't prepared to deal with. She jumped up, flipped forward and landed on his head. She stomped down and then did a back handspring onto his neck. With a jerk of her hand she'd pulled out her chain from her sleeve, let it out, and threw it, like a loop, over his neck. Grabbing the other end, she pulled with all her might.

Instead of going all the way through the particles, the chain was stopped halfway through and Sheik found herself wrestling with Core's head, which wagged back and forth as he breathed fire; scorching the grass in front to a black, smoky deadness.

She felt her face turn red and she took a gasp of air, pulling harder and bracing her feet against the moving pixels on his back. The head was pulled straight up into the air and through the pillar of fire it shot towards the sky Sheik spotted Zelda rushing in, Link's sword gleaming in her hands. With a feminine scream she jabbed the sword up and into the neck.

A black sheet of fragments rained down on top of her and Sheik's chain slid through the neck. The head, now a shapeless mass, collapsed on top of Zelda and Sheik felt the chain leave her grasp as she hurled backwards, down, down, down towards the ground.

She hit something hard, but comfortable, because it caught her. And the it was a he and the he was Ike. She looked at him and gazed into his eyes, trying to discern what was in there. Was he a maniacal killer or…

"Careful," he said. His voice was low and angry and sad all at the same time.

She turned away to see Marth and Robin M rushing over to Zelda. Core seemed to have dissolved into the ground and the young woman's motionless body lay there. But as Sheik watched from Ike's arms, she briefly lifted her head and Marth scooped her up as he and Robin M backed away from the scorched grass that showed where Core seemed to have died.

"He's not dead."

Ike's voice was hoarse by her ear and he placed her gently on the ground. "Look."

Sheik followed his finger and saw four large lines in the sky above them. Particle blades. Master Core.

"How do we defeat something that doesn't even bleed! It doesn't even have a heart!" She was screaming like a little girl and she didn't care.

"We can't stop," growled Ike, and she suddenly noticed that he was bleeding and scraped on his face and the shoulder not protected by his armor. His breathing was coming in ragged gasps.

"It's going over there," she said, pointing.

"Guys!" Ike's bellowed. "Watch out!"

His cry of warning was lost in the screams as different smashers went flying into each other. Sheik turned away with a muffled sob as one blade sliced right through Dark Pit.

"I can't!" she screamed.

"I can't either." Ike's voice was dead and she looked at him, standing there, his sword blade touching the ground as it hung limply in his hands. His shoulders were slumped.

"No! Luigi!"

"Rosalina! Watch out!"

"Ness, no! What are you doing out here?"

The cries and screams were deafening and Sheik narrowed her eyes, gritted her teeth, tucked her bangs back in her mask so they wouldn't obstruct her vision, and started forward, pulling out more needles and scooping up her chain as she ran to help.

Yes, she would die, but so be it. She'd fight until her heart wasn't beating. Even if her life blood was draining she would fight until she was dead. And there was the steady thud of Ike's boots as he ran into battle beside her.

Augh! I don't know what to say. Ganondorf... Lucina... Dark Pitt... Who is next? I guess that's not the point. When on earth is the battle going to be over and everyone can relax? If you think about it, they're going through a lot without any water...

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