Author's Note:
Another two-parter episode...although that was obvious if you saw the title. Nonetheless, two guest reviews to answer:
"Can you include the characters from Final Fantasy Type-0? Is Sora ever going to stop being dumb? Are the Koopa Bros. going to be mistaken for the Ninja Turtles when they show up? Have you already included the characters from The World Ends With You? And finally, when will Sonic stop acting like a jerk?"
Final Fantasy Type-0? Never heard of it, but I'll look into the characters from that game. Sora's naivety will end...soon. Or never. Koopa Bros probably won't be mistaken for the Ninja Turtles. The WEWY crew still have yet to appear. And Sonic will stop acting like a jerk...soon. Or never. Maybe he'll undergo some character development. Now there was a tidbit from Derick Lindsey's previous review, that I forgot to answer, and so I'll answer it now...
"I can't believe it's only four weeks away for the 100th chapter, not many stories last this long I wonder if their is an endpoint like does iret go on forever or does it end after a specific amount of chapters are written?"
I have already determined when the end date for this story will be. Can't give it away, because as Master Hand would say, it would count as a "spoiler".
Episode 98: Kidnapped Part 1
For Mario, every morning in Seattle, Washington was always the same. The plumber would awaken from his nightly slumber, yawn with his arms outstretched, scratch his butt for a few moments, taking care of some business in the bathroom, and descend downstairs to the kitchen, to enjoy the yummy breakfast Peach has prepared.
But ever since the events of episode 97, Mario would have a welcoming fellow join him during his morning routine...the talking top hat known as Cappy. This talking hat, with his cartoonish eyes and stubby legs, could take on the form of Mario's cap, and could also take on the forms of the other hats Mario had in his closet...most of which he had completely forgot about, somehow.
So when Mario was fast asleep in his bed that morning, oversleeping after hitting the snooze button on his alarm clock a few times, Cappy would enter Mario's room, having to wake up the plumber himself. The hat would find Mario sleeping peacefully, likely dreaming about being on a romantic boat ride with Peach down the most romantic river you could possibly think of...but as the old saying goes, all good things must come to an end. Such as Mario's presumed dream, for example.
"WAKEY WAKEY!" Cappy shouted loud and clear into Mario's ear, waking up the plumber and startling him in the process. Mario screamed at the top of his lungs, flying out of his bed like a banshee and falling onto the floor, shivering with hands over his hand in a duck and cover position. The 1950s US government would be proud. "Mario, you have overslept for ten long minutes! You've been oversleeping a lot as of late...is there something wrong?"
"Cappy is that-a you, are-a you there?" asked Mario, looking around to see if the coast was clear after hearing Cappy's voice. The plumber rose up to his feet, and turned around, seeing Cappy looking at him. "Were you the one who scared-a me like that? Don't you ever do-a that again, I was having the best-a dream a man could-a have! And who are-a you to scold me for oversleeping, it was-a worth it!"
"Binge-watching Stranger Things on Netflix isn't worth having to risk oversleeping during morning hours. Especially if you never even watched the series before. You can't just force-feed yourself a show you've never seen, just so you could be in the in crowd and claim that you watched some lousy season premiere! Trust me, Mario, fitting in and liking what a vast majority of people like isn't the right thing to do..."
Cappy: Mario was up all night watching Stranger Things...he said that his brother Luigi recommended the show to him, and after hearing about the season two premiere, Mario was hooked! I tried telling Mario about the negative consequences of binge-watching, but he simply wouldn't listen...I'm afraid he has watched so much Stranger Things, that he might end up disliking the show, for no reason!
"Well I had nothing else-a better to do last-a night, so I think I spent-a my time very wisely," remarked Mario, although Cappy disagreed wholeheartedly. "Now if you excuse-a me, I have a morning procedure to attend-a to...but first, I must-a ask, do you know-a what Peach is-a cooking for breakfast?"
"I can't say that I do...because I didn't see Peach at all in the kitchen," replied Cappy, greatly alarming Mario. If Peach wasn't in the kitchen, then where else could she be? Perhaps she went next door to Luigi's place to fetch something. "I did hear from that Lara chick that Peach went over to the mansion, to get some cooking tips from a guy named Cilan, and I don't believe Peach hasn't returned ever since...very peculiar."
"Very peculiar indeed...however, I refuse-a to have my wife-a gone for this long. I'm willing to bet Bowser is holding up-a Peach, for whatever reason. Or maybe Toon Link and-a Young Link are arresting Peach for some-a thing stupid like 'trespassing'. I should-a go over to the mansion my-a self...after my procedure is over."
So after Mario washed his face, dried his mouth out, got rid of the ever-so-bothersome strand of facial hair on his face, and all that good stuff, he put Cappy on his head and put on his housecoat, and headed downstairs, to make his way to the mansion. On his way there, he would arrive at the living room, where he would find Lara Croft, glued to the television screen with a look of despair.
"Is there...something going on-a on the television screen?" Mario would ask the tomb raider out of curiosity, taking note of how defeated Lara looked. It was like she was watching the 9/11 attacks, only in present times.
"Just turned on the television, and this was the first thing I saw..." replied Lara, looking at Mario and pointing at the television screen. Mario would look at the television, his mouth eventually dropping agape. Cappy's eyes would appear from Mario's hat, as Cappy too looked at what was on the television, and if he had a mouth, his mouth would be agape too.
Right there on the television screen was the Four Seasons hotel, the very place where Mario and Peach's wedding reception was supposed to take place...only relatively destroyed and ruined. The program Mario and company were watching was a news program, and it cut to several shots of Seattle, such as CenturyLink Field, Safeco Field, and Olympic Sculpture Park...
...and the most common thing between those mentioned places? They were all damaged to a considerable degree, as news helicopters flew over them showing multitudes of viewers at home the damage those venues accrued. Another trait those places had in common were that these were the places Mario and other mansion residents went to during several episodes of Smash Life...meaning that however might've been responsible for these heinous attacks was trying to send a message.
"Several attacks have broken out throughout the city of Seattle, starting very early in the morning," said the news reporter, with the damaged Olympic Sculpture Park - the venue of Luigi and Daisy's wedding - being in the background. "We are not yet sure who carried out these attacks, or if this was the work of an unknown terrorist group, but we hope that these attacks will cease as the day goes on. This is a travesty Seattle was NOT ready for..."
Mario paid special attention to the background, noticing several Team Flare grunts hanging around near the Olympic Sculpture Park and exchanging high-fives. But what caught Mario's interest the most was an orange, round robot also hanging out with the grunts, celebrating in their victory. Why did the robot look like it belonged to a certain someone? Suddenly a knock was at the door; Mario would open the door, and saw Toad, who was in frantic mode.
"MARIO, MARIO, SOMETHING BIG IS GOING DOWN IN SEATTLE!" yelled Toad, running inside Mario's home as he knocked the plumber down to the floor. "They announced on the news that the Four Seasons hotel was attacked, and not only that, the baseball stadium in Seattle has been attacked too..." Toad suddenly looked over at the television, and saw the news program Lara was watching, slowly cooling off. "Oh...you're watching the same news program...I was watching...hehe..."
"Toad, I was informed-a that Peach went to the mansion - have-a you seen Peach?" Mario would ask Toad...such a shame we can no longer call him a drug lord.
"Nope, and I don't think she even stepped foot inside the mansion at all." This response from Toad made Mario even more concerned. "If she did, I probably would've heard about her presence."
"Breaking news from Orlando, Florida..." said the news anchor on the screen, as a breaking news report caught the attention of Mario, Toad, Cappy, and Lara. "The famous resort known as Walt Disney World has been attacked - yes, I repeat folks, attacked. Several rides and tourist attractions have been targeted, and all the visitors in Disney World have been evacuated. The park shall remain closed until further notice."
"I don't get it, first Seattle gets attacked, and now Disney World of all places? What gives?" Toad tried to figure out the answer to this question, until a horrified look suddenly grew on his face. "M-Mario, don't you think...that..."
"Hush, Toad, I'm-a trying to listen..." Mario would shush Toad as he listened to the news. It was now giving another breaking news report, this one about a supposed terrorist attack launched on Rio de Janeiro, in Brazil. Mario was slowly finding the locations being attacked, and the fact that they've been attacked on the same day, to be very suspicious...
"We do not yet know the culprit behind this chain of devastating events, but someone did supply us with a silhouette of what the culprit possibly looks like," the news anchor continued, as a picture popped up on the screen, containing a silhouette of some short, middle-aged man...
...and the silhouette looked an awful lot like Mario.
Wario: Toad's gone, which means he must not want Cilan's breakfast...meaning that I'll get to eat his share! More waffles for me!
"If you have any information about the person in the image, then don't hesitate to call," said the news anchor, as Mario looked on with a shocked facial expression. Someone was trying to set the plumber up, and for reasons unknown; no doubt Team Flare and Fawful were behind it. "We shall keep you at home tuned in with..." The news anchor would not speak anymore, for Mario grabbed the TV remote and turned the television off.
"Hey, we were trying to watch that!" Lara frowned at Mario, who did not say a word as he went back to the staircase and marched up the steps. "And where do you think you're going? Not going to stay in your room all day, are you?"
"Maybe he's just overwhelmed by the things he's seeing on TV," assumed Toad, with the shrug of his shoulders. "I'll sure Mario will just cry his eyes out, and resume his normal activities like nothing's wrong. He's done it before."
Moments later, Mario would make his way down the steps, in his usual overalls attire. The plumber looked confident, almost heroic, and it showed in his face. Feeling more determined than ever, he made his way through the kitchen, through the living room, and to the front door, before turning around to face Toad and Lara.
"Toad...Lara Croft...come-a with me," the plumber said to the tomb raider and the...mushroom hat-wearing lad. Ugh, doesn't sound right... "We have a princess-a to save!"
"How do we know if Peach didn't just wander off to places unknown?" asked Toad, the mushroom hat-wearing lad. Still doesn't sound right. "Peach is known for wandering off to places that she shouldn't. You think these attacks might have correlation to..."
"...to Peach possibly being kid-a napped? Yes, yes-a I do. I saw a few Team-a Flare grunts at the Olympic Sculpture-a Park, celebrating their attack...I'm wiling to assume-a that kidnapping Peach and holding her-a hostage is on-a their agenda. They have Lucas in-a their possession, so why not grab another hostage while-a they're at it?"
"Don't mind if I ask, Mario, but where are we going to look for to find Peach?" asked Lara, wanting to bring some reasoning to the situation at hand. "For all we know, she could be anywhere in the city, held hostage at a place we..."
"Glad you asked-a that Lara," smiled Mario, rudely cutting off the tomb raider before she could even finish. "Good thing I know a bro whose-a 'pet' could be good use..."
Mario, standing in front of Luigi's home with Toad and Lara at his side, knocked on the front door of his brother's home. After seconds of waiting, Daisy would answer the door, adorned in her yellow housecoat with a mug in her hand.
"Morning Mario, morning Lara, morning Toad," Daisy would greet the three, surprised to see them at her doorstep. She was hoping they didn't come over for breakfast; she only cooked for herself and Luigi. And Charles, he doesn't really count. "What brings you here?"
"Good-a morning Princess Daisy, I'm sure you've seen-a the news on television just-a now," Mario said to the princess, who nodded her head gently. "Lara told-a me that Peach left for the Smash-a Mansion, and Peach has yet-a to return, and I'm afraid-a that..."
"Hi, Princess Daisy, nice to meet you, I'm Cappy!" exclaimed Cappy, his eyes poking out from Mario's cap, as Lara, Toad, and Daisy looked up at the talking hat in shock and bewilderment. Perhaps no one was more shocked and bewildered than Daisy, who was scared of Cappy in an instant.
"GAAAAAH IT'S A TALKING CAP, KILL IT IMMEDIATELY!" shrieked the princess, as she grabbed the nearest broom she could find and whack Cappy repeatedly with it. While poor Cappy was suffering from the abuse, Mario was suffering just as much, with Daisy hitting the plumber's head repeatedly as he fell to his knees, covering his head.
"What's-a with all the ruckus, another cock-a roach again?" questioned Luigi as he arrived at the front door, seeing Daisy laying the smackdown on Mario and Cappy with her broom, whacking very frantically and aggressively. "Mama Mia, Daisy, control-a yourself woman!" Luigi would grab Daisy around her waist, pulling his wife away from Mario and Cappy as her aggression slowly faded away. "Daisy, what has-a gotten into you?"
"Luigi, Mario's cap, it was TALKING! And it had these huge eyes, and it was so...so weird." Unwritten Rule #88: if anything looks weird, freaky, strange, or anything of the like, whack it repeatedly with a broom to no end, regardless of any harm you done...actually, disregard that rule.
"It's okay Daisy, that talking cap isn't-a gonna hurt you, or anyone-a else. His name is Cappy and he's quite-a friendly!" Wait, how was it that Luigi knew Cappy, and not Daisy or any of the others? Did he and Cappy have a chance encounter beforehand?
Luigi: Mario introduced-a me to Cappy a few days-a ago...he's like a knowledge companion-a of Mario's. Much like how Rotom is-a my companion.
Rotom: *from behind* WHAAAAT, you'd rather choose ME over your own pet dog, Polterpup?! Now I will admit, I feel a bit flattered...but as the old saying goes Luigi, a dog is a man's best friend, zzrt!
Luigi: My knowledge companion, that's what I meant-a to say about you, Rotom. Polterpup is good-a and all, but he's only good-a for barking, playing catch, drooling, and wagging his darn-a tail all day. He's pretty much like-a any other dog, aside from being a ghost-a of course...
"Wait, so that cap...on Mario's head...can talk now?" Daisy asked Luigi, who nodded his head with a smile. Some details were missing, such as how Cappy took on the form of Mario's cap, but those details would have to wait until later. "Did Ashley have anything to do with this, did she use any of her potions?"
"No potions were-a used at all," explained Mario, as he struggled to get back to his feet. Both he and Cappy were banged up pretty badly. "It's a pretty long-a story, one that I'd rather not-a get into extensive detail about..."
"Yes, and I should-a know - you told-a me info I probably didn't need-a to know. So, bro, what brings you, Toad, and-a Lara to our home?"
After Mario explained to Luigi and Daisy about Princess Peach, and his suspicions about Peach's kidnapping being connected to the attacks taking place in Seattle and Orlando, Luigi decided that they should notify Master Hand about the situation. So the group would head to the mansion, to speak with the giant hand himself.
Keep in mind that this would be Lara's first time stepping inside the Smash Mansion; the tomb raid only met a select number of residents from the mansion, such as Cloud, Toad, and a few others, but everyone else had no idea that the famous tomb raider was living at Mario's place, only temporarily.
"I really like how this place looks, it's so neatly organized and visually appealing," remarked Lara, already impressed as she and the others stepped inside the foyer. Lara took sight of the paintings hanging on the wall, the pieces of sculpture, and everything else the foyer had to offer.
"You can thank Mr. Game and Watch for how the foyer looks, he's this place's housekeeper," explained Yuffie, who happened to join the group because reasons. "Master Hand typically keeps him in charge of the mansion's decor, and how everything looks inside."
"Well he has done a bang-up job here, I'll give him that..." Lara took sight of a blue hedgehog walking by...that hedgehog being Sonic. The blue blur, while at times a huge jerk to others, was visibly chipper and happy...
...but after learning that his "former" best friend Tails was kidnapped, Sonic has been feeling the exact opposite as of late. He partially blamed himself for Tails' sudden kidnapping, under the assumption that if he had ended his "feud" with Tails sooner, then maybe the yellow fox would have never been kidnapped. Maybe Tails allowed himself to be kidnapped, just to get away from Sonic, to send a message to the speedy hedgehog.
"Hey Sonic, why the long-a face?" Luigi asked the blue blur, seeing him walk by. The hedgehog would make a run for it, not speaking with anyone, but that would be rude. And Sonic had a long, potent history of being rude.
"Hi Luigi, I'm just not feeling myself, as of late," replied a slightly despondent Sonic. "Tails has been kidnapped, by who-knows-who, and I'm afraid he might be in the same boat as Lucas, stuck at some desolate place being held hostage for no reason at all. Ness already has to deal with the pain of losing a friend, and now I have to bear that burden as...well." Sonic's eyes suddenly fell upon Lara Croft, and the hedgehog started to feel a little ecstatic, as his depressed spirits were magically lifted."Ay, Lara Croft, what are you doing here? Dang, you look even more smoking hot in person! You wanna come and live in the Smash Mansion, is Master Hand still giving more handouts? I would ask you out or something, but you appear too old for my tastes...also, Amy and I are kinda on the same page now, so asking out a fine babe like you would be unnecessary."
"That's...good to hear," Lara smiled weakly, her interaction with Sonic pinpointing why the tomb raider wanted to keep a low profile and stay at Mario's home. Too many people in the mansion would wind up constantly fangirling over her.
Sonic: So this whole time, the famous Lara Croft was at Mario's place, staying there until she had enough money to afford a plane ticket? Talk about storing a best-kept secret away from us mansion residents! But if Ms. Croft preferred being with Mario over being at the mansion, then I can't blame her - she could give all the dudes heart attacks with her drop dead gorgeous looks.
"Yeah, I was so bummed out about Tails that I even skipped out on breakfast - let Knuckles eat my portions," Sonic would later explain to Luigi and company. It was a hard thing to do, willingly giving up an opportunity to enjoy Cilan's fine cooking. "I was watching the news in the living room a moment ago; apparently some bozo attacked Rio de Janeiro out of flipping nowhere. Must be bitter about last year's Olympics or something..."
"Or maybe these-a attacks as of late have some-a thing to do with us...or-a me," stated Mario, as everyone focused their attention on the plumber to see what his rationale was. "Seattle, Orlando, and-a Rio were all attacked-a today. We live-a in Seattle, obviously, and Orlando and Rio are two-a cities we've been-a to. I saw-a some Team Flare guys at the Olympic Sculpture-a Park on the news-a program, with this-a orange robot, so I can only assume-a that Team Flare and Fawful are-a definitely responsible for what's-a going on...MAMA MIA!"
Mario shrieked and jumped into the arms of Toad - the nearest person around, unfortunately - as a yellow Baby Yoshi mindlessly walked past the plumber, minding his own business. The mini Yoshi would just keep on walking, before Olimar came in and scooped up the little fella before he could get away.
"Got you, you little rascal - don't you run away from me like that ever again!" the astronaut scolded the Baby Yoshi in his hands, who didn't seem to care if his deadpan facial expression was any indication. "Sorry about that Mario, these Baby Yoshis just LOVE to run away at the most opportune moment...keeping up with them requires high maintenance, and a lot of patience as well." As Toad collapsed to the floor due to Mario's weight, Olimar saw Lara, having to do a double-take to make sure that he wasn't seeing a ghost. At least he was geeking out over her, much to Lara's delight.
"Yes, Yoshi has informed-a me about how Lucas told-a him to build an armada of Baby Yoshis," said Mario, helping a now squashed Toad off of the floor. "How-a is this armada coming along? Is Yoshi a great-a general, has the power gone-a to his head?"
"Pit and Viridi have shared 'general duties' with Yoshi to ensure that Yoshi doesn't go on a power trip or anything like that. Alph and I have been keeping watch of Yoshi and his pals while we do our typical gardening stuff. Would you like to see the progress Yoshi has made so far with the Baby Yoshis? I'm willing to bet he, Pit, and Viridi are tending to those baby dinosaurs right now, assuming they've finished their breakfast."
With Sonic now joining the group, Mario and company were led by Olimar to the mansion gardens, and upon arrival, everyone looked up and saw a glass roof, high above them. This roof obviously was never seen before, which led Daisy to ask the following...
"How come that glass roof has never been used until today?" the princess of Sarasaland would ask Olimar, and she was still looking at the roof too. "In all the times I came to the gardens, I never saw it...unless you had it invisible. Which would take a lot of work, I assume."
"First of all, that roof you see up there is actually made out of sunroof material, not glass," explained Olimar; the Pikmin would surround him, right on arrival. "Master Hand was apparently too stingy to afford an actual glass roof. Secondly, the roof functions as a retractable roof; we only use it for emergency situations. With these random attacks happening in our city, Alph and I aren't taking any chances..."
Olimar: So far, we've only used the retractable roof for only three instances. First time was when that Galleon ship flew over the mansion; we were afraid that it might drop some bombs on us. Second time was during the whole Organization XIII invasion fiasco, though now in hindsight, that probably wasn't needed.
Alph: The third time the retractable roof was used, it was used for a stupid reason...and Olimar and I had no part in it. One day, it was raining hard in Seattle, really hard - it was the rainiest day of the year - and Meta Knight, looking outside, was talking about how it was "raining cats and dogs"...a harmless figure of speech, nothing more and nothing less. But Corrin, that naive fool, took the expression literally, and not only set up the roof over the gardens, but also boarded up the windows, gathered the food supply, and relocated everyone to the basement, like there was a tornado about to strike King county. Being stuck in a confined space with around a hundred people, it was so suffocating...
Olimar would lead the group to where Yoshi, Pit, and Viridi were, the threesome caretaking the Baby Yoshis. Most of the Baby Yoshis had grown in size, as they were eating the Yoshi Fruit supplied to them. Pit and Viridi were feeding the Baby Yoshis, as Yoshi watched with a proud look on his face.
"Alph and I have been instrumental in growing the Yoshi fruit, using the resources Yoshi had given us," explained Olimar, while the feeding continued. "Gave us some seeds to grow, and we grew some trees and went from there. I tried eating the Yoshi Fruit...didn't like it. Tastes bitter. Which is funny since the fruit look like actual food us humans would eat..."
"Olimar who are you trying to kid, you're not even human yourself!" Sonic said to the astronaut, speaking loud enough to grab the attention of Yoshi and company. "Name me one human, ONE human, who has elf ears and a nose like Billy from Billy and Mandy! Bet you can't, can you?!"
"Mario and friends...welcome, welcome, and WELCOME!" Yoshi would greet Mario and company with an earnest, heartfelt smile. "It looks to me like you brought a guest along, eh?" Yoshi's eyes fell upon Lara Croft, who flashed a smile as the dinosaur went over to greet the tomb raider. "Howdy, lady, Yoshi's the name. I used to babysit Mario back in my day; I'm pretty much the reason Mario is still alive...don't ask me how old I am, I hate going down that rabbit hole again."
"Lara Croft, British archaeologist and tomb raider," Lara would introduce herself to Yoshi, shaking the green dinosaur's hand. "Mario and Peach have told me all sorts of stories about you...stories that paint you in a positive light, mind you. Nothing to do with your superb writing skills!" Yeah, superb...
"I wonder if she's single," Pit leaned over to whisper to Viridi. The goddess of nature, feeling offended that Pit would dare to wonder about Lara's relationship status in the presence of his girlfriend, slapped Pit silly. "Yup, totally deserved that..."
"So, Mario, what brings you, Lara, and this lovely company to the gardens? Wanted to see the progress I've made with the Baby Yoshis? I've been raising them well, Mario, have I? Do you see how much I've done for them?"
"Yes I can-a see Yoshi, I can see-a clearly," smiled Mario with a nod, while Pit had his eyes fixated on Lara. Viridi had to nudge the angel, to snap him out of his trance. "But we're not really here-a to see the Baby Yoshis; Olimar had-a to return a runaway Yoshi, and took-a us to the gardens to see how much-a the Baby Yoshis have-a grown. We were here-a to speak with Master Hand...I fear Peach has-a been kidnapped, and I wanted to alert-a Master Hand about the situation."
"Man, first it was Lucas, then Tails, and now Peach...too many blondes being kidnapped these days. Technically Tails isn't blonde, but he has yellow fur, so he still counts in my book. How about we speak with Toon Link and Young Link, the buddy cops? I'm sure they would love to involve themselves in a kidnapping case."
Leaving Pit and Viridi at the gardens to take care of the Baby Yoshis, Yoshi and Olimar would join Mario's troupe, as the gang went over to the Links' "police office". Mario would knock on the door, and Toon Link would creak it open, only making his face visible.
"If you want in, you must tell us the password," the Hylian said to Mario, expecting the plumber to give him the password. But the plumber refused to engage himself in such shenanigans. He was the famous Mario, dang it; Toon Link should let him in regardless!
"Son you better let-a us in, if you know what's-a good for you," was Mario's reply - obviously it wasn't the password, as Toon Link closed the door on Mario. The plumber sighed, and knocked on the door again, as Toon Link opened the door once more.
"Look bro, I'm not letting you and your cronies in without a password, that's the rule around these parts. If you want, I can give you a password hint...but only if you give me your birth date." So was Toon Link a talking login system now?
"Why do you even need-a my..." Mario, ready to go off on Toon Link, controlled his anger, letting out a sigh, ass he gave the following birth date to the Hylian: "September 13, 1985." The date of the first ever Super Mario game.
"Can't verify that date with your current age, but I'll take it...now for your password hint. The password hint is...potatoes." After hearing this password hint, Mario was more that done with Toon Link, wanting to punch the young Hylian for wasting his precious time. But Yoshi was there to bail the plumber out.
"Ooh, ooh, I know this one, the password is...OCARINA!" the green dinosaur blurted out, as everyone gave him questionable looks. But Yoshi was fairly certain that the password was correct...
"DING DING DING, you got it!" Toon Link opened the door wide and pointed at Yoshi, giving him a thumbs up. "You're all welcome to come in!" So Mario and the others filed inside the "police", but not before questioning the correlation between the password ocarina, and the password hint being potatoes.
Yoshi: Ocarina, the wind musical instrument, has another name...sweet potato. Honestly I don't get it either.
Once inside, Mario and company saw that Toon Link and Young Link had renovated their room, to look like the interior of an actual police station. On their board were pictures of several suspects, and their monikers - you had Snake as "Hugh Laurie On Crack", Tifa Lockhart as "Wholesome Fanservice", Marth as "Girly Man", Jigglypuff as "Bottom Feeder" (how fitting), Dunban as "The One-Armed New Zealander", Amy Rose as "Disgraced Psychopath Girlfriend", Final Fantasy XV's Noctis as "Poor Man's Cloud", and interestingly enough, world-renowned YouTube personality Pewdiepie as "Hipster Jack Frost". Lord knows how he of all people ended up on the board.
"Um, what did he do to end up on this board?" Yuffie would ask Toon Link, pointing at the picture of Pewdiepie, which featured the Swedish man with his new look - white hair and fully-grown beard. Which could explain the reason behind his moniker.
"My partner-in-crime Hutch, better known as Young Link, was mugged last week while we were at the convenience store, shopping for candy," explained Toon Link, as he turned on his small-screen television. "He was just minding his business, when some unnamed bozo robbed the store, punching Hutch in the face as he made a run for the cash register. While the robber was unsuccessful, he still got a piece of Hutch, before making his exit."
"And you really think that Pewdiepie, who lives all the way over at BRITAIN, was responsible." Yuffie found this extremely hard to believe.
"Pewdiepie's signature move is the brofist, and he dishes it out very well, like Sonny Liston in the clutch. We can only assume that he was the robber, given how hard Hutch was struck, and so we added him to the board of suspects - suspects who we feel also pack a punch. Marth, Dunban, and Amy were only added to even things out; we'll add more suspects soon.
"Sorry I was late Starsky, had to break up a fight in one of the bathrooms," apologized Young Link as he entered the "office"...sporting a black eye. "Lemmy should have known better than to pick a fight with a teddy bear." Young Link, who was holding the teddy bear in question, looked up and saw Lara, staring right at him. "Hot woman...standing in office...across from me...cannot function...must...must...must operate..."
And just like that, Young Link fainted, falling to the floor. This must be right Sonic was alluding to when speaking about Lara's adverse effects on the male residents of the mansion.
"Probably should have just stayed at home..." remarked Lara, as Toon Link went over to check on his buddy. "I really shouldn't be here, I already made one man faint while we were in the hallway."
"It's okay, Lara...I mean, making Hisui faint ain't that big of a deal anyways," said Daisy, knowing Hisui's ladies man tendencies. Despite the young man having some romantic feelings towards Lilith Spodumene, even though he just considered her to be a "friend". "Don't be so down on yourself because you look pretty and all."
"Hisui and Lara's looks should-a be the least of our concerns right-a now," stated Mario, wanting to bring focus back to the attention at hand. "What we should be concerned-a about is my wife-a Peach, and her-a whereabouts. Toon Link...I don't mean-a to distract you from reviving Young-a Link's senses, but do you know what-a could have happened to Peach? She was supposed-a to be at this mansion, but I suspect that she was-a kidnapped on her way here..."
"Kamek was here last week, right?" asked Toon Link, as he pulled out a pair of smelling salts and held them to Young Link's nose. "I bet you five bucks the man swooped by and snatched Peach, taking her to Bowser's castle. To do what, you might ask? To finish what Bowser started..." This understandably led to Toon Link receiving a strange look from Mario, and pretty much everyone else. "...I strongly advise that you all stay woke, for your own good."
Suddenly, a breaking news report was on the television screen. Another location in Seattle was attacked - that location being the Customer Service Center. News cameras were all over the building, as smoke and fire exited from the windows. Thankfully nobody was hurt during the attack.
"Mario, isn't that the place-a where you paid the mansion's-a utility bill, with-a Zelda?" Luigi would ask his brother out of curiosity. Mario was starting to notice a pattern; pretty much anywhere he went, it was attacked. The Four Seasons hotel, Safeco Field, Disney World, and even Rio...all of them were attacked. And the plumber desired to know why.
"Toon Link, do you know where-a I can find Layton and-a Luke?" Mario asked Toon Link, who was still trying to bring his partner Young Link back to his senses.
"I think he's in Master Hand room right now, though I could be wrong," answered Toon Link; Mario had intended to go to Master Hand's room in the first place, funny how things work out along the way...
Layton: Still playing the wait-and-see approach with Team Flare and Fawful. Seeing the attacks that have been going on in Seattle, Orlando, AND Rio, I'm expecting Team Flare to make their presence known later on in the day. Even if Team Flare reveals themselves or not, I'll be heading off to Master Hand, asking him about a plan of action to deal with Team Flare. He has dealt with something like this before...
Mario and company would arrive at Master Hand's room, where they saw Master Hand, Layton, and Luke discussing a plan for Team Flare. Layton and Luke were sitting on a bed, which was restricted without Master Hand's consent, while Master Hand hovered in the air like a G. Isabelle was also there, seated on a stool, taking notes diligently.
"So what you're saying is, Team Flare is somewhere in Seattle, watching the crap go down in the places they've targeted, in some secret base somewhere," Master Hand said to Layton, who nodded his head in confirmation. "You also believe that we should organize a 'coalition' of sorts, to find Team Flare's whereabouts and put a whole end to this mess, once and for all."
"That is what Luke and I had in mind, we even asked Knuckles about it," replied Layton, with another nod of confirmation. "We imagined he would be the best choice in leading a coalition. Has a very commanding demeanor to go with his fighting prowess..." Layton looked over at Master Hand's bedroom door, and saw Mario and company, all assembled. "Ah, Mario and friends, care to join us? We were just in the middle of a very important meeting..."
"None of you peons are allowed, this meeting was supposed to be private!" Master Hand snapped on Mario and company, before his nonexistent eyes fell upon Lara Croft. He began to soften up in an instant. "Ms. Lara Croft, you're still stuck in deadbeat town? It's good to see that my eye candy is still around, although I haven't visited you as much as you should. You're all invited to stay!"
"Changed your tune-a that quick, huh?" said Mario, as he went over to close Master Hand's bedroom door. "Only because-a of Lara...you really should have-a stayed at home, Lara. So Master Hand, what are you and the boys-a discussing?"
"Professor Layton and Luke have some ideas for finding and stopping Team Flare, and they're sharing their ideas with yours truly. Oh, and Isabelle is also here, writing down everything we say on her notepad, because she honestly has nothing else better to do."
"Actually, Master Hand, you personally asked me to come to your room to record the meeting in its entirety, just for 'future reference'," explained Isabelle, who at times resented being the lapdog of Master Hand. At least Mario treated the shih tzu assistant with more respect.
"Yeah I told her to use that as an excuse, thought it would save her from all the humiliation." Isabelle couldn't help but roll her eyes at this claim. "Anyways, Layton expressed interest in having a coalition to look for Team Flare, and they had Knuckles in mind for being the leader of said coalition. I know Layton was just dying to name himself the leader, but we all know the man can't fight, what with his lanky body and all!" Obviously Master Hand wasn't there to witness Layton kicking Team Flare butt back in episode 94.
"How come you picked my friend Knuckles over me?" Sonic asked Layton and Luke, feeling a bit salty. "Am I not good enough for you? Don't think I'm a great leader? Let me tell you, Boring Man and Small Munchkin, I'm a leader of men - the gold standard of leadership." Some individuals, such as Daisy and Olimar, had to turn away and laugh at Sonic's outrageous claims.
"We never said you were good enough for us...we just went with Knuckles, well, just because," was Layton's reply. It wasn't like the British detective was looking for certain qualifications when picking out a finesse leader.
Master Hand: From a scale from one to ten, how concerned am I about the attacks in Seattle, Orlando, and Rio...zero. If anything, those three cities should feel ecstatic about the attacks that took place. Well, Orlando shouldn't feel ecstatic, they already had a terrorist attack in their city with that nightclub shooting. That was messed up. But Seattle and Rio should feel excited, since they're both relevant now! Rio hasn't been that popular since the Olympics, and as I've said before, Seattle is a deadbeat town, feels like a cloud of depression is hovering over this crummy city. A bunch of attacks in the city should be more than enough to make Seattlites feel glad about being in the national spotlight for the first time since that grunge movement in the nineties!
"If this coalition-a is looking for Team Flare, then I would like to suggest some-a one else they should be looking for," Mario spoke up, stepping in the forefront. "Peach was supposed-a to be heading to the mansion earlier, but she has-a never returned home...and nobody saw Peach in the mansion to begin-a with. Peach might-a have been kidnapped by Team-a Flare, for reasons unknown..."
"Tails was kidnapped last week, as Sonic told me, and he might've been kidnapped by Team Flare as well," stated Master Hand, finding these kidnappings to be very puzzling, to say the least. "Are they doing some kind of ransom? If so, why would they have Peach, Tails, and even Lucas in their possession? Peach and Tails; if they're trying to make Mario and Sonic feel some type of way, I understand. But why Lucas, why him?"
"I remember when Cloud told me about Lucas looking for his mother, his mother turned out to be a fake - it was a ploy executed by Master Xehanort," explained Yoshi, recalling the information supplied to him by Cloud about the search for "Hiwana" back in episode 73. "Organization XIII apparently wanted Lucas for a reason...what if Master Xehanort gave Team Flare leader Lysandre some pointers? What if said pointers led to the whole hotel explosion and all the other stuff that transpired thereafter?"
"That sounds too illogical - I mean, Master Xehanort giving anyone free advice and pointers?" Master Hand scoffed at Ness' theory. "Man looked like an elderly, disgraced crackhead, just dressing fancy to lure some poor soul on the streets!" But to Pit, Master Xehanort will forever be an ice cream man.
"What-a ever Team Flare and Fawful have-a planned, it must be centered around-a me," stated Mario, adamant that the attacks taking place today revolved around him somehow. "Every place-a I've been to, it has been-a attacked...Century Link Field. Safeco Field. Four Seasons-a Hotel. The Customer Service-a Center. Disney World. Heck, even Rio was-a attacked! Team Flare is definitely sending a message-a to me, that I'm-a sure of..."
Suddenly a knock was at the door. Layton got up from Master Hand's unneeded bed, and went to open the bedroom door, seeing Knuckles...and many others standing behind the echidna.
"Well, well, well...I have to say, I didn't really expect anything like this," smiled Layton, as he saw people a many standing behind Knuckles - Cloud, Proto Man, Ness, Dark Pit, Roy, Lucina, Robin, Crash, Coco, Cortex, Uka, Aku, Ryu, and Jigglypuff. "Never would have imagined you would have recruited this many people as part of your coalition!"
"Yeah, all the people behind me had a reason for joining," said Knuckles before taking a deep breath, as the echidna was prepared to do A LOT of talking. "Ness wants to save Lucas, Dark Pit wants to kick some butt, Ryu thinks that fighting Team Flare will be a 'worthy challenge', Robin is only tagging along so he can be our strategist, Lucina is only tagging along to serve as Robin's minder, Proto Man only joined out of boredom, Roy refused to feel left out, Coco wanted to learn more about Team Flare, Crash wanted to support her sister, Cortex wanted to take any credit for beating up Team Flare, Aku and Uka have to serve as guardian masks, Jigglypuff just said 'Jigglypuff', and Cloud...he just felt like helping out."
"The real reason I joined is to get away from Sora," explained Cloud, who had his Buster Sword ready to go. "He can chase Sephiroth all over the whole freaking globe for all I care..."
"Cloud is that you?" shouted out Sora, much to the chagrin of Cloud. The Keyblade wielder would show up, looking at Cloud with an excited look, and ran up to greet the swordsman who did not desire his company. "Are you about to go beat up some bad guys? Team Flare, I'm assuming? Well I wanna tag along, got my Keyblade so I'm ready to go!" Sora pulled out his Keyblade, as Cloud looked at Knuckles, hoping he would tell Sora to go away.
"As long as he just uses his Keyblade, and not rely entirely on 'magic'...then he's more than welcome to join," was the echidna's reply; Sora did a fist pump, grinning all the while Cloud facepalmed out of misery. It was gonna be a long day for the swordsman...
Sora: Quite honestly, I'm not yet aware of the situation in its entirety, or what the game plan is, but it's gonna be a real pleasure getting to fight alongside my main man Cloud! *wraps arm around Cloud, who swats arm back* The two of us, we'll be unstoppable!
Cloud: Sora I'm not a psychic or anything...but I can already guarantee that we're gonna take a beating from Team Flare because of you. Just calling it like it is...
Red: Did someone say, "psychic"? *pops up behind Cloud and Sora* Allow me to show off my psychic abilities...I can see the future...I see Knuckles, and the coalition, prevailing over Team Flare!
Cloud: Red, you've become delusional, and you still dress like a ten-year-old in your thirties...you should definitely reevaluate your life.
"May I speak-a with them for a second?" Mario asked Layton, who stepped aside as Mario faced Knuckes and his group of allies. "I have-a something I must tell-a you all. First off...good-a morning. If it's still-a morning, that its. But anyways, my precious Princess Peach has-a been kidnapped, and I suspect Team-a Flare to be behind the kidnapping."
"How do we know if Peach had to go shopping at the store or something?" asked Roy, totally unaware about the Peach situation. "I mean, you can't blame EVERYTHING on Team Flare...like how I once blamed this hideous zit on my face on Team Flare. Maybe I should start taking care of my face more."
"Peach didn't even have-a the opportunity to go to the store...she was supposed-a to head to the mansion, but she never reached-a the mansion, nor did-a she ever return home. That is why-a I sense some foul-a play from Team Flare."
"Are you insisting that we should find Team Flare AND Princess Peach?" asked Knuckles, fearing a change of plans. "We have our minds dead set on Team Flare - ain't no way I'm splitting up my group. Peach's your woman, she's your trouble, so you'll just have to find her yourself!"
"No, she's not my-a trouble...she's OUR trouble. Think-a about it - Peach has done-a so much for us, and the things that she has-a done have been underappreciated. Her motherliness, her caring and loving nature...it's irreplaceable. And you can't-a replace Peach. We're all gonna work-a together to find Peach, and stop-a Team Flare...you, me, your 'coalition', and the folks-a behind me. It will be a grand-a effort."
Although Mario's mini-speech was cheesy at some points, the plumber still had a point - Peach was irreplaceable. You'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who showed more care towards others than Peach. Peach obviously meant a lot to Mario, and Mario refused to let her go.
"Fine, fine, you got yourself a deal...we'll look for Team Flare, and Peach, and we'll do it together," Knuckles agreed to Mario's terms. "My squad, your squad, and anyone else who wants to join...we'll join together as a large pact, and finish off...you know what, this is getting cheesy, so I'ma just stop talking..."
"If we are to find Team Flare's whereabouts, we must first find a mode of transportation," stated Master Hand, hovering over to where his presence could be seen by everyone. "I'm not using the teleportation device - MegaMan .EXE messed it up trying to warp Snake and the others back from Georgia. Snake said that there was some "crazy old farmer" hot on their heels, I'm pretty sure it was just some creepy trick-or-treater. Can someone ask Fox and Falco to boot up their Landmasters?"
Mario and the coalition were outside, in front of the mansion, waiting for Fox and Falco to finish prepping their Landmasters. The avian pilots - but mostly Falco - would have their vehicles fully prepared already, if it weren't for Lara distracting them.
"Must...remain...faithful...to Katt..." said Falco, vowing to be faithful towards a woman he had yet to ask out, trying not to look at Lara. The tomb raider was quite the popular attraction, as everyone was speaking with her, with many dying to get a chance to speak with the British woman. "Dang it Fox, why did Lara have to be so fine and pretty? I can't take it anymore, man!"
"Dude, just do what I do and close your eyes, then you won't think about anyone and you won't put yourself at risk of checking another lady out," replied Fox, offering Falco a method the avian pilot was skeptical of. "Watch for yourself!" Fox would close his eyes, and expertly work away on his Landmaster, like a pro. He could do what he was doing blindfolded, but that would make the now salty Falco even saltier.
Falco: Why haven't I asked Katt Monroe out? Because...because reasons. My relationship with Katt would be a long-distance relationship, and by long-distance, I really mean long-distance. Also, Katt and I...we really never "clicked", so to speak. But we will soon. Soon.
Lara: Hmph, I never realized I was that popular until I stepped foot inside the mansion for the first time. Must have dozens of accomplishments known by many people that I apparently don't know of. Either that, or I just live inside my own bubble too long...
"So Robin, what is our strategy for tracking down Team Flare?" Ryu asked the mage, who was glossing over a map of Seattle placed on the ground. Robin was studying every street, every building, and every named location on the map, including the map elements that weren't even that important. "In preparation for days like these, I've been eating protein bars and shakes, so that my muscles will be stronger and more powerful than before!"
"Good for you Ryu, you practically eat those things everyday..." murmured Robin, as he circled a place on the map in red marker. "I'm guessing that Team Flare are currently hiding in this building, right here. That's the building Organization XIII used as their hideout during the whole invasion thing."
"Yeah, and that's pretty much why Father will forever remain a lovable dork in my eyes," Lucina was speaking with Daisy as they approached Robin, throwing her father Chrom under the bus for the nth time. She and Daisy would see Robin looking at the map, looking at it very intently. "Robin, what does it say 'search Lucina's phone for pics' at the bottom right-hand corner of the map?" Robin looked down, and say the saying, written in red marker, sheepishly smiling as he scribbled the red marker over the blatantly visible message.
"Oh, uh, Wario, he definitely wrote that, that closet pervert...man has no shame. First he has an affair with some chick in high school (who I'm assuming already graduated by now) and now he's writing messages about his personal desires on other people's belongings...what shame!"
Lucina was about to open her mouth and jaw out Robin, but before she could, a large shadow would fall over her, Daisy, Robin, and pretty much everyone else outside of the mansion. Everyone looked up at the sky, seeing a very massive object.
The very massive object, you might ask? It was a gigantic, metallic sphere, one that hovered menacingly in the air, a couple meters or so away from the mansion. It couldn't possibly be a planet, otherwise the earth would act all wonky.
"Well, it looks like we won't have to fly anywhere..." remarked Fox, dropping his wrench to the ground as Falco nodded in agreement. Cappy's eyes would pop out from Mario's cap, and he would look up at the large hovering object...
"AAAAAHHH THERE'S A LARGE THING UP IN THE SKY!" Cappy exclaimed, screaming at the top of his lungs as he sprung up from Mario's head in exclamation. Everyone was looking at Cappy, and everyone saved for those who met Cappy were stunned.
"AAAAAHHH MARIO'S CAP HAS EYES AND CAN TALK!" exclaimed Ness, pointing at Cappy, as Crash screamed and ran inside the mansion out of fear. Coco sighed, as she went to retrieve her older brother. Better find him before Mario and company make their move.
"That thing up there...it looks awfully familiar, don't you think Knuckles?" Sonic, who had Shaymin and Suzie with him, asked his best friend, who also believed the sphere up above looked familiar, if his facial expression was any indication.
"It sure does, Sonic...it sure does," replied Knuckles, wondering why the metallic sphere was at the mansion all of a sudden. Many questions were running through the heads of many right now.
"There's a good-a chance that Team Flare, as well as Peach, Lucas, and maybe even-a Tails are up in there," said Mario, looking up at the sphere with a determined look on his face. "But how-a do we even get inside?"
"Fortunately I have a solution...I have hoverboots, so I'll just fly everyone inside the sphere, one-by-one!" suggested Cortex, hoping that his idea would be given a chance by Mario. "Charging five dollars per flight for each person...and ten dollars for each animal. Yes, that includes you too, Jigglypuff."
"You would try and-a make a quick buck, would-a you Cortex...we need a more-a effective method." Mario started to look around for a solution, until his eyes fell upon a relatively unused vehicle near the driveway...Captain Falcon's Falcon Flyer. "Bingo..."
Zelda: Link is still getting better...slowly but surely. He should be back to being a hundred percent by next week. I would keep him company, but Yuffie told me that she and many others are hunting down Team Flare, and she could really use my help... *turns into Sheik*
Sheik: A third ninja is going to join Greninja and I, to take Yuffie's place. It's a good thing I know the perfect candidate. *runs off*
Midna would find Link in his room, sound asleep, with a glass of water on his nightstand. The imp, carrying a bottle of some substance, entered the room, grabbed the glass of water, and poured the contents outside the window. She then poured the contents of the bottle into the glass, and sat the glass gently back on the nightstand, before patting Link on the head.
With the deed accomplished, Midna left Link's room, and flew to the Flying Man's room, where she saw the Flying Man also fast asleep. As he has been ever since he participated in that football game. There was an empty glass on the Flying Man's nightstand, and Midna would enter the room, still carrying the bottle.
"This elixir of Cilan's better do its thing..." Midna said to herself, as she filled the Flying Man's glass with the bottle's contents, before placing the glass where it was and flying away. Remember what the elixir did for Cilan?
Using Cappy's capture ability to good use, Mario would capture Captain Falcon's Falcon Flyer, which carried the entire coalition, and flew it into the metallic sphere. With everyone now in the sphere, looking for the whereabouts for Team Flare and Peach was the mission that needed to be accomplished.
"You know Mario, we could have just used our Landmasters to get here," Fox told the plumber, with the Falcon Flyer crammed into the wall of the sphere, leaving behind a big hole. "But if you wanted to be a showoff, then Falco and I wouldn't blame you for doing so."
"That new cap of yours still creeps me out Mario, just wanna let you know that," Coco informed Mario, having found Crash just in time before everyone hopped aboard the Falcon Flyer. Imagine if Crash and Coco missed out, but not Cortex...Cortex would enjoy his last laugh for months on end.
"Not a new-a cap Coco, just my old-a one, but an-a improved one, I should-a say," smiled Mario, before a grumbling sound was made. The plumber looked down, and grabbed his tummy. "Hmm, should have ate-a some breakfast this-a morning...ah well. I, or we, have more important-a business to attend to anyways."
With Mario and company now inside the giant sphere, Toon Link and Young Link would exit the mansion, with Young Link finally waking up. But he wouldn't be awake much longer, when he looked up at the sky...
"IS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE A FLYING PLANET?!" the young Hylian screamed, before fainting yet again as he fell. Toon Link would try and revive his buddy cop yet again, as Sheik, Greninja, and Asuka stepped outside, the ninja trio on a mission.
"A-Are you sure you guys want me to tag along?" Asuka asked Greinja and Sheik, feeling rather timid. What she was about to embark on would be a far cry from her Microwave Idol Mamorin appearances. "Don't think I'm cut out for this..."
"Asuka, you claimed you fought hundreds of evil ninjas before, so you shouldn't be complaining," Sheik told the ninja girl, hopping down from the porch and looking up at the sphere. "So how about you suck it up, and quit being such...a worry wart." Sheik would stop speaking and looked in awe at the sphere...but it wasn't the size of the sphere, or its slight rotation, or the Falcon Flyer still stuck in it that caught her attention.
Rather, it was the very distinct mustache on the sphere, one that belonged to someone you might recall appearing a LONG time ago.
Sheik: If the exterior of that sphere is anything to go by... *shakes her head* ...then Yuffie and anyone in there will be in for a VERY rude awakening. Wish I could find a way inside and alert them...
Mario and company kept walking in the sphere...and by golly, they were all bored. No Team Flare grunts, no Fawful...just walking through the sphere, seeing if anything exciting would happen.
Suddenly, the group would find a large, spacious room, and entered therein. This room looked like it would belong to an evil villain, like it would be fit for Darth Vader. Mario and the others looked around, slightly expecting something to jump at them...but still nothing happened. For a giant sphere that looked intimidating on the outside, it sure was tranquil from the inside.
"Don't think there's anything in this sphere, someone must've parked this thing in front of the mansion by accident," remarked Proto Man. "What a buffoon, that guy must be..." He could definitely say that again...if he even felt like repeating himself, that is.
Just then, some girly giggling was heard, from up above. Everyone looked up, and saw a blonde-haired princess, standing on a high platform. It was Peach! The giggling sounded like it would come from her, so it had to be the real deal.
But when Peach turned around...everyone was disgusted to see Fawful, wearing a Peach wig and a pink dress, laughing in the face of Mario and company as he tore off his ensemble. But the Beanish wouldn't be alone...
Joining Fawful on the platform would be Jakob, looking bandaged from the beating he suffered two episodes back. Appearing in-between Jakob and Fawful was Lysandre, the leader of Team Flare who had his grunts doing his dirty work. But just when it seemed like Mario and company were ready to fight, a hole in the floor opened up, as a platform rose up from the opening. On one side of the platform was Peach, stuck inside a cage. On the other side of the cage was Tails, also stuck in a cage.
But standing in the middle of the platform was a man who caught the attention of everyone, but especially Sonic and Knuckles. It was a tall, round man, whose body shape was physically impossible, with a brown mustache, blue glasses, red jacket, black pants, and white gloves. He would laugh heartily, as Sonic, Knuckles, and pretty much everyone else wanted a piece of him.
"Ah, Mario and Luigi, so good to see you both again!" greeted the man, with a grin on his face. "Same to you, Sonic and Knuckles, my old friends! Welcome, everyone, to the Death Egg! Now I see that you and Peach have healed since that freak wedding explosion, Mario...but it's a good thing I had a backup plan in mind, in the event my original plan didn't go as...expected. But if it wasn't for Jakob and Team Flare, my plan would have never come to fruition! But at least you're here, Mario, for me to seek my revenge...and you've dragged your friends along, to be witnesses, how lovely! Oh, Mario, you shouldn't have"
The man, standing on the platform, was known very well by Sonic and Knuckles, and known by one name, and one name only...
...Doctor Ivo "Eggman" Robotnik.