Luigi woke that morning on the floor. His head felt groggy, but he just brushed it off as sleepiness. He looked over and noticed Mario's bed was empty; it often was by the time he woke up, but his bed was always made. He blinked and stood up, attempting to stretch his aching limbs. Maybe Mario just forgot? No, Mario never forgot anything. He must've left in a rush. Maybe there was a kitchen fire or a fight or something. Mario was always busy.
He glanced at the clock. 3:24 is what it read. That couldn't be right, could it? Mario would've came up to wake him at around noon. What happened?
He dashed from the room, pj's and all, and downstairs. He screeched to a halt when he passed the living room, shocked at what he saw. There was a small group of brawlers–still dressed in pajamas, just like him–all looking frightened and confused. He tentatively stepped inside, surveying the meek supply of fighters that had been left behind. Meta Knight, Jigglypuff, Nana, Squirtle, and Lucas. Including himself, that was six. He covered his mouth to silence a gasp, the expressions on their faces telling him everything he needed to know.
Meta Knight looked up at him, his glowing yellow eyes revealing his frustration. Besides Lucario, he had the most heightened senses of anyone in the house. He was clearly angry about being snuck up on, without a chance to defend himself, or Kirby, who he'd grown fond of. Meta Knight was probably angrier that he hadn't been taken, so he couldn't face these enemies himself, or possibly because he assumed they didn't see him as much of a threat. It was most likely both–Meta Knight was kinda high-and-mighty like that.
Nana was most upset about the loss of Popo, her closest friend. They fought as a pair, one could even say he was her other half, and she was devastated without him.
Squirtle was in a similar state. Without a trainer to instruct him, he'd never know what attacks to use or what to do or where to go. He wasn't exactly a smart creature; he needed guidance, like most Pokémon. His trainer was like his brain, and he felt almost as if it had been ripped from his skull, leaving him as just an empty body. He sat, head bowed, not moving, not really feeling much of anything. Just loss. Horrible loss.
Lucas missed Ness. He felt vulnerable without the other boy around, and that kind of security was something he sorely needed right then. He cried silently into one of the sofa's pillows, squeezing it as if it could bring some sort of comfort.
Jigglypuff, on the other hand, suffered the most. Aside from being a delicate and sensitive creature, she was friends with many if the smashers and was usually cheerful and energetic. With so many friends missing, she was brought low, her normally bright cyan eyes had gone dull and her ears drooped.
Luigi's heart broke at the sight. What about Mario? His twin? His better half? What happens when there's no leader there to help them through these tough times?
He froze as realization set in. As his brother, he was second-in-command. It all fell on his shoulders now. He opened his mouth to speak, but Meta Knight beat him to it.
"Well? Aren't you Mario's brother? Say something to these poor souls."
Luigi cleared his throat.
"I..I'm.."
He couldn't get any words out. What could he possibly say that would help them at a time like this? Mario would know what to say–he always did.
Meta Knight sighed loudly.
"We're doomed."
Luigi stood there another second, still struggling to find his voice, then clenched his fists. Screw words.
He rushed forward and first pulled Lucas into his arms, Nana second, Jigglypuff third. Soon they'd all been caught in a group hug, though Meta Knight had joined reluctantly. When he finally released them, Lucas clung on a while longer, sobbing into his shoulder until he could calm down. Then he smiled weakly at him, grateful for his kindness, and Luigi felt tears sting at his eyes. Meta Knight was refusing to look at him, but anyone could tell it just meant he was grateful too. He needed more comforting than he let on. Luigi took a deep breath and sat on the floor across from them, indian-style.
"I'm a-not gonna lie. We got a crisis on our hands. But now-a is not the time to feel sorry for ourselves. We need a plan. Our friends are still out there somewhere, scared-a and confused. This is up to us."
Meta Knight would've raised an eyebrow if he had one.
"Yeah, how? I'm not sure if you noticed but..we don't know where to start!"
Luigi waved a finger at him.
"That's-a no way to think about it. Snake had a camera in his-a room, remember?"
Meta Knight eyes flashed briefly, and he jumped off the couch and began heading down the hallway. Luigi followed close behind, the others right on his heels. He paused just outside Snake's room and turned around. The other three were more shaken up than he and Meta Knight–he didn't want them to watch one of their comrades get kidnapped. It would just make matters worse. He instructed them to wait outside as he and Meta Knight entered. Snake's room was normally locked and bolted to the teeth, but he supposed it would be open after the break-in. The thought was eerie, that even Snake could be bagged and tagged so easily.
The room looked almost empty, except for the bed. Meta Knight reached underneath it and pulled out Snake's laptop, opened it, and entered the password. Luigi gave him a strange look.
"You must-a be like a ninja, yeah?"
Meta Knight chuckled.
"Actually, he trusted me with this information. He was the one who taught me to use a computer.." he sighed. "He was a good man."
Luigi raised an eyebrow at this.
"Was? He still-a is a good man. He's not dead. None of-a them are," he insisted, though his expression said otherwise. He was still so worried about Mario. He refused to give up hope.
Meta Knight pulled up the video and snorted.
"You still believe that? Why haven't they broken free yet, huh? If they're still alive, they'd be home by now. There's no cell that would hold them."
Luigi's face fell, and for a second he actually was convinced. He clenched his fists.
"So what? We just-a give up? We are not done until I say so! I'm in-a charge now, so you'll just-a have to deal with it!"
Meta Knight growled like an animal. One thing was for sure, he did not like being bossed around. At this point, the video had loaded, so instead of saying something he'd sorely regret, he clicked 'play'. After a bit of fast-forwarding, they came to the right scene. Snake was asleep, snoring, and Meta Knight almost laughed. A dark figure came into the room, dressed in a cloak, followed by others in similar attire. The first one pulled out a white towel and a bottle, pouring its contents onto the towel (and some onto the floor) and abruptly pushing it in Snake's face. Snake didn't react much beyond a silent groan, and the figures–who were rather short, he noticed–hoisted Snake up off the bed and out of the room.
Luigi covered his mouth in horror, and Meta Knight looked away from the screen before slamming it shut.
"Mama mia.."
"So they drugged us. All of us," Meta Knight spat. "Weaklings."
Luigi opened the computer again and hesitantly rewound it, looking more closely at every detail. Meta Knight saw it first.
"There! On the shoulder, there's a symbol."
It was an F in some sort of fancy writing, surrounded by a golden band. Luigi stared at it a second.
"Is there a way to–"
"I'm on it," Meta Knight replied, nudging him out of the way. He pressed a few keys, and a machine on the other end of the room whirred. Meta Knight removed the photo from the printer. It was clearer, as if he'd enhanced it somehow. Luigi gawked.
"How did–?"
"You can thank Snake," Meta Knight said, tucking the picture into his cape and moving towards the door. Luigi shook his head–he found technology both confusing and fascinating at the same time.
They joined the others and Luigi began leading them down a series of hallways.
"Where are we going?" Nana asked.
Luigi glanced at her, then the rest of them before giving Meta Knight a meaningful look.
"We're-a rebuilding the battleship Halberd."