Chapter 6: Luminaries of Light

Dark Pit deftly pulled back on the Silver Bow's ethereal string, forming an inky black arrow and aiming at the erratically moving dot in the bullseye. Here I go. He released, firing the arrow which soared to its target, striking it dead center. Pit eagerly went to check it out. "That was perfect, Pittoo!"

"Aw, yeah!" It'd taken a couple of tries for Dark Pit to land it. "Now you try. Just shoot right where you think it's going to be."

Their session was interrupted by Palutena, who stepped onto the training ground from the temple's platform. "Pittoo, how are the upgrades I made to the Silver Bow?"

He absently shot an arrow at the ground in front of him. "Pretty good. It's way more reliable for riskier attacks, and it's finally better at long range. Kind of suits my fighting style." She nodded pleasantly, but it felt like there was something he left unsaid. "Thank you."

"So all I needed to do to earn Pittoo's admiration was upgrade weapons?" she asked with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Sorry it took so long. I never expected anyone to use a prototype so well, but I'll upgrade its blades form later." She turned to Pit. "And you wanted more power in your arrows?"

"That would be great!" he said, enthusiastically. "The Palutena Bow is already so awesome, I can't think of any other archery improvements!"

"'Palutena Bow'?" Dark Pit scoffed. "Still can't believe you named a weapon after yourself."

That made her defensive. "I'd never name my creations after myself! That was the army's doing. I originally called it the Luminary Bow."

Pit's eyebrows furrowed. "What's a luminary?"

"Like a star, in both senses. Something that shines, or someone inspiring." She didn't give them a chance to respond before continuing. "I'll get to those upgrades soon, but right now, I need your help." Both angels perked up. Her tone was too serious to be talking about chores. "There's a war brewing in the Overworld, and it looks like some Underworld enemies are looking to join the fray."

"Huh? I thought we defeated them a million times already!" Pit pointed out.

Palutena nodded. "Most of them are peaceful unless bothered, but some are going rogue. The Forces of Nature are taking care of that. In the meantime, I've been helping a mercenary group led by Magnus and Gaol to take out rebels in hopes of stopping the war before it starts."

"So you want us to go help?" Pit asked brightly. "We're on it! Those guys don't stand a chance against us!"

"No, you're not being asked to fight," Palutena clarified. "Magnus will be busy, and since Gaol will be with him, he needs someone to watch over things back home. That's your job."

Pit froze. "What?"

"No way," Dark Pit protested. "We're warriors. We're not about to sit around at a time like this."

"Someone has to do it," Palutena said with a shrug. "He can't leave Aurelia alone. I would have offered to look after her, but I want to focus entirely on guiding the mercenaries."

Dark Pit glanced at his twin, but he could tell that he wouldn't be of any help. "We'll get to see Aurelia again? Then I don't mind! You don't mind either, right, Pittoo?"

He did mind. He kind of liked visiting the Overworld, but he hated how much time they wasted trying to get there, not to mention that travel was boring. "Don't wanna."

"We're doing them a favour," Palutena explained. "It shouldn't take long."

"I'm sure it'll be fun!" Pit added. "Please?"

There was nothing he could do at that point. It was two against one. "Fine," he grumbled.

"Alright!" Pit cheered. "Lady Palutena, are you going to get us there? Or do we get to fly?"

"You can't go unnoticed looking like this," she pointed out. "Figure out your clothes, and I'll give you the power to conceal your wings."

"Disguises are such a hassle," Pit sighed, following Palutena inside. Dark Pit put his bow away and joined them. Still don't want to go.

"At least you don't have to change your hair colour," Palutena mentioned, running a hand through her long emerald green hair.

Dark Pit watched as they continued chatting about how long it'd been since they last visited Magnus, Gaol, and Aurelia. Pit and Palutena were always more than happy to help their human friends, and took every opportunity they could to spend time with them. You can't even tell how guilty those two feel about what happened in the war. They're way too carefree.

He perked up at the sound of his name. "Um, Pittoo?" Pit slowed down to walk beside him. "Do you remember the shortcut we took to get to Magnus' house last time? We kind of forgot."

"Why would I remember something useless like that?"

"I guess that means you're taking the long way again!" Palutena quipped.

"Oh, great. That's going to take forever," he muttered, stepping into his room. Let's get this over with already.


Pit glanced at Palutena as she placed her hand between his wings. "You're sure I'll be able to get my wings back, right?"

"Of course," she laughed, gesturing at the glow on her back as her own wings materialized. "I use it all the time, and you have experience with divine powers too. You just have to deactivate it for your wings to come back like before."

He nodded, and stood up when he lost feeling in his wings, taking a second to catch his balance. Dark Pit was next, and he seemed different dressed in a simple tunic, without any accessories or his laurel crown. Different, but not in a bad way. Pit grinned. "You look pretty good as a human, Pittoo!"

His glare was no different, though. "Shut up, and stop calling me that."

Oh, so he's still grumpy about the trip. At this point, Dark Pit only objected to his nickname when he was annoyed. "I'll try to remember the shortcut, okay? It won't take long," Pit promised. His twin responded with an irritated tsk.

It turned out that Pit was wrong. Palutena tried getting them as close to the town as possible, but she had to teleport them someplace where they wouldn't attract any unwanted attention. He couldn't find the shortcut, and Dark Pit wouldn't stop complaining about it. "This is such a waste of time."

After an hour of dealing with him, Pit was equally annoyed. "We're almost there. You don't have to be such a baby."

Their bickering continued until they noticed Magnus' house nearby. The twins rushed over with newfound excitement and Pit knocked at the door. They waited for a couple of seconds before Magnus pulled it open, his face settling into a smirk as he welcomed them inside. "Sure took you long enough, Angel Face."

Pit grinned sheepishly. "Sorry, we forgot about the shortcut."

"Start at the trail to the left of the plaza, remember? It hasn't even been two months since I showed you. You have the memory of a goldfish, or something?"

"I know what I'm doing!" he said defensively. "But a map might be helpful. Maybe I should just make a map for everywhere I've been!"

"We'll see how far that gets you, Angel Face," Magnus chuckled, turning his attention to Dark Pit. "Somebody's being moody. I still don't get how copying someone like him can create someone like you, Tip."

Dark Pit scowled. "I swear, if you call me that one more time–"

"See? He prefers Pittoo," Pit laughed. Magnus looked amused as well. They had this conversation almost every time they met, and it only served to irritate Dark Pit.

"Pit!" He looked towards the hallway with a smile, and steadied himself as Aurelia dashed over and collided with him, hugging him around the waist. "And Pittoo! You're finally here!"

"Hey, Aurelia! Sorry to keep you waiting!" He lifted her up and remarked, "You've gotten taller since last time, huh?"

Magnus adjusted the hair ties holding her pigtails in place. "Maybe, but she's grown a lot since we first met."

She smiled. "That's 'cause I came here when I was five. Now I'm almost seven."

Pit loved seeing them happy together. It had taken a lot of convincing for Magnus to consider taking care of Aurelia in the aftermath of the war, but they'd gradually become family for each other. It was the least Pit and Palutena could do for them. After all, Palutena was convinced she didn't do enough to save Magnus' child when he was fighting the Underworld Army, and Pit had to live with knowing that Aurelia's parents were only two of the hundreds of people his body killed before she saved him from the Chaos Ring.

He was snapped out of his thoughts by a sharp knock at the door. Magnus ignored it until they heard Gaol yell, "Hurry up, Magnus! Done with your makeup yet?" Pit and Aurelia stifled laughter.

Dark Pit pulled the door open. "He's getting dressed for the occasion," he explained smugly as Magnus pulled on his gloves.

Gaol wasn't wearing her so-called cursed armor, so they could see her surprised expression. "Oh? I didn't expect to see you two angel cakes here. It takes me a second when you don't have your wings."

"Or all your jewellery," Magnus added. "Do you see how much gold you and your goddess wear? Let me know if there's anything you don't need, and I'll gladly pawn it."

Pit was appalled. "Those are divine ornaments, you can't just sell them!"

Gaol was almost as tall as Magnus and had no problem whacking him on the back of the head. "Hurry up! You know I have to get my armor, right?"

"We're never going to get to our mission at this rate, are we?" he sighed.

"It would be stupid not to go in as the Dark Lord. What that armor lacks in stealth, it makes up for in raw power. And style, right, Aurelia?"

She nodded eagerly. "Your Dark Lord armor looks so cool!"

Magnus patted her on the head. "All I ask of you three is not to burn the house down. Got it?"

"We'll be super extra careful!" Pit promised. They seemed satisfied enough with that, and left quickly to make up for lost time.

"Let's play something!" Aurelia suggested, tugging at his tunic. "Like tag, or hide-and-seek!"

"Tag," Dark Pit decided. "You're going down, Pit-stain."

Challenge accepted. "We're on land, remember? Your flight speed doesn't change anything."

"Then let's go!" Aurelia cheered as they stepped outside onto the sunlit streets.


Pit handed Aurelia another wildflower, and watched in silent admiration as she weaved it into the crown she was making. He'd won the first game of tag, but Dark Pit declared so many rematches that all three of them wanted to take a break. Now they were a mercenary group, and Aurelia was making them some flower crowns.

"So, we're the Lu… what's the word?" Aurelia asked, tying the flowers' stems to close the ring.

"Luminary," Pit responded. "Luminaries of Light."

"Said with the confidence of someone who didn't learn that word this morning," Dark Pit remarked snarkily. "But don't you think it's repetitive? Luminary already means something that glows."

"You have any better ideas?" Pit asked, and Dark Pit shrugged. Point proven.

"And… done!" Aurelia held up the last crown triumphantly. Pit crouched down as she placed it on his head. Dark Pit was less willing, but eventually accepted his floral circlet. Pit crowned her with the last one.

She nodded contentedly at her own craftsmanship, and Dark Pit admitted, "It looks better than I thought."

Aurelia bounced cheerily. "Thank you! But if we're mercenaries, we need weapons, right? Come on, let's find something!" She grabbed each of the brothers' hands, and Pit adjusted his flower crown to make sure it didn't slip as they dashed through the meadow to the town.

He liked going to the marketplace as a human. It was so full of life, and he enjoyed the little things people did for each other, from giving directions to offering a smile. That's what we call humanity. He kept an eye on his twin, though. Dark Pit didn't usually go out of his way to pick fights with strangers, but he was known to be bad at ignoring people.

He didn't have to worry this time. Dark Pit was focused on Aurelia, and she knew exactly where to find what they were looking for. By the time they went back to the field, their imaginary mercenary group had a whole arsenal of discarded materials. "Now we're ready!" she declared.

Pit placed a hand on her shoulder. "For your first lesson as a warrior, you have to know that entrances are the most important part of a battle. Okay?"

Her eyes sparkled. "Okay!" Dark Pit didn't object. A strong entrance was something they could agree on.

It took a lot of practice, disagreements, and mistakes to end up with an opening they liked. In yet another attempt, Aurelia went first, holding up a sharp plank of wood they'd fashioned into a sword, with a pot lid shield on her arm. "I'm Aurelia, Symbol of Hope!"

Pit placed an arrow on the string of his old training bow, which they'd gifted to Aurelia during their last visit. "I'm Pit, Guardian of Justice!"

So far, so good. They both watched Dark Pit eagerly. He turned his head slightly to face them mysteriously, wielding a splintered pole from one of the market stalls like a staff. "And I'm Dark Pit, Harbinger of Chaos."

That was one of the many reasons he loved his twin. It's way easier than you'd think to get him to act so extra. Aurelia tensed up as they neared the end of their flawless attempt. "Prepare to meet the light!"

Pit barely started to congratulate them when he was startled by an eerie shriek. Oh, no. There's no way… "That's… that's a Reaper."

"From the Underworld?" Aurelia panicked. "The sound came from the market!"

Pit completely missed the tunic tossed at him, and watched Dark Pit work his wings through the holes in his tank top and soar into the air for a better vantage point. "Not just one Reaper. There's hordes of them. See ya." Before Pit could respond, his twin flew straight for the battlefield, weapon in hand.

"Pittoo! You're going to fight them with a stick?" he yelled. Aurelia didn't giggle this time. Her worry was obvious, so Pit patted her head. "It'll be okay. We can finish them no problem, but I have to go help him."

He closed his eyes and tried summoning his wings. Nothing, so he tried again. And again. No no no, this isn't happening. Aurelia held his hand, but his confident smile faltered. Desperate times called for desperate measures, and if his wings weren't working, hopefully telepathy would. "Lady Palutena? I can't get my wings back!" No response. "Lady Palutena! This is important, don't leave me on hold! Please?"

Before he could try again, he was thrown onto the ground by a shockwave, and he sat up to come face to face with a single eye inside a writhing mound of flesh. Gruesome arms extended around them, ready to strike. Clubberskull. Questions could wait. "Run! I'll handle this!" Pit ordered, and Aurelia sprinted, only looking back once.

The Clubberskull made a move to follow her, which gave him valuable time to get up and grab his bow. If only I had a melee weapon– He shot an arrow right at its grotesque head– or was that its body?– and the Clubberskull flinched before moving to attack him instead. A cold feeling washed over him as his fingers didn't find any arrows left in the quiver. I'm finished.

In his panic, he rushed through his options and suddenly realized he was wielding his own bow. Sure, it was built for a six-year-old, but it was a divine bow handcrafted by Palutena herself. It could handle his arrows of light. Hopefully. Pit felt a rush of relief as the glowing blue arrow formed at his fingertips, and he fired at the Clubberskull in a frenzy, but it was faster and closing in on him quickly.

Just as the Clubberskull's arm came close enough for him to see its contorting veins, Pit was whisked off the ground and into the air with a yelp. "Stop staring! Kill it, idiot!" Dark Pit yelled, steadying them in midair.

Pit didn't have to be told twice. The Clubberskull didn't stand a chance once they were in the air. "Thanks, Pittoo! I was so close to being hit… Wait a second, why'd you come for me?"

Dark Pit shrugged. "Looked like you could use some help. Your wings don't work, or something?" Pit shook his head. "Great, so I'm the only one who can fly. And you're the only one with a weapon. Turns out you can't use a stick like a halberd against a Reaper."

"I never would've guessed," Pit said sarcastically.

"It was worth a shot. Now let's go finish them. Together."

"It's kind of hard if I'm fighting while you're holding me," Pit pointed out. "Can't move as freely."

"Want me to drop you, then?" Dark Pit snapped, flying over buildings towards the din of the marketplace. "You know what? Give me the bow." Pit was skeptical at first, but handed it to his twin, who adjusted his grip on Pit's waist. Pit held onto his arm with his free hand, just in case. "Now you fire the arrows."

He stared in disbelief. "What? What kind of a plan is that? You fire the arrows!"

"And do what with you? Besides, I don't think this bow can handle anything other than your light arrows!"

"But how're we going to choose our target?"

"Just go with it!" he shouted. Pit didn't have a chance to retort when the Reapers came into view. Their first shot was a total miss, with Dark Pit pointing the bow in a completely different direction, and they kept aiming at different Reapers. They were spotted easily, and the Reapers started summoning their underlings. This is why this is a dumb idea!

But after a couple of tense seconds of Dark Pit dodging the Reapettes swarming them, they finally got a shot right on target. And another. The first Reaper was taken out in a matter of moments. Pit grinned in satisfaction as he fired arrow after arrow, and knew for sure that Dark Pit had the exact same look on his face. "Enemies of life before us, get ready for a display of raw angel power!" Pit declared.

"Let's go!" Dark Pit agreed, swooping down and aiming the bow at the Reapers. Pit scanned the area. Everyone already escaped, so we can go all out! His twin probably had the same idea, judging by his unpredictable aiming. They were in sync for the whole fight, and the twins struck the Reapers and their reinforcements down one by one.

Pit drew back the string and fired one more ethereal arrow to kill a Reaper. "I think that's the last of them," Dark Pit confirmed, flying around the town to check. There were a few other enemies, but they were working solo and were easier to finish. "Not bad!"

"I always knew having another one of myself could come in handy! That was so– Waah!" Pit yelled in fear as he fell, but instinctively steadied himself by hovering in midair. "Oh, my wings are back!"

"Great timing," Dark Pit muttered sarcastically. "After we had to fight like that."

There was silence for a moment before both of them started laughing. "We must've looked so stupid." He stopped, suddenly remembering what happened before the fight. "Wait. I told Aurelia to run when that Clubberskull came for us. Pittoo, we have to look for her!" Dark Pit nodded.

The angels flew over the town as its people started to cautiously emerge from their homes, and came to a landing in the middle of the field. Please be okay. "Aurelia? We're here!"

He stopped at the unexpected sight he was met with. Maybe it was because of living the first few years of her life in a warzone, but that girl had no fear. She was fighting a rogue Monoeye, slashing at it clumsily but determinedly with her makeshift sword. Pit created an arrow and took aim, but before he could shoot, Aurelia landed the final hit. She turned to the angels with an accomplished smile. "Destructified!"

Pit hugged her in relief. "I'm just glad you're alright! That was so cool!"

"Not bad, Symbol of Hope," Dark Pit added.

All three of them instinctively looked up at the sound of a voice. "Pit? Pittoo? Can you hear me?"

That was Palutena trying to reach them with telepathy. "You chose a pretty convenient time to not be busy, Lady Palutena."

"I know, I know, I'm sorry. I was so preoccupied with the mercenaries, I only just realized the situation there. But it looks like you've gotten that taken care of!"

"Told you we weren't about to sit around," Dark Pit jabbed.

"Alright, I get it, Pittoo," she conceded. "What do you three say to coming back to Skyworld until the mission is over?"

"Skyworld?" Aurelia echoed. She'd only visited a few times before. "You promise?"

"Of course I promise!" Palutena laughed warmly. "It would probably be safer here. I think those Underworld enemies came for a soul harvest, but were attracted to your divinity as angels, Pit and Pittoo. They were probably after Aurelia as well; I guess being able to host an angel's soul grants you some divinity yourself. I'll bring you over."

"Alright, we're ready!" Pit confirmed as the familiar light enveloped them to take them home.