Mario, Solid Snake and Princess Zelda stared from behind the judging panel. Their faces were all filled with disbelief over what they were seeing before them.

The three judges had seen a lot of different contenders come into the studio to audition for the next Smash tournament. They had reviewed all their talents and fighting skills before deciding together on whether to accept or turn away. People, animals and creatures of different kinds had come and gone - but not one of them had been anything like what had just arrived now.

In front of the panel was a small purple dragon. The judges looked over him quietly to take in the horns on his head, the wings on his back - and the smile on his face that was filled with confidence that he was going to impress them enough to be accepted into Smash.

"Let's a-see!" Mario broke the silence as he took a glance at his notes. "You are Spyro-a the Dragon-a, no?"

"I am!" The dragon nodded with a wide grin. "The one and only! You've heard of me, I'm sure!"

"Aww!" Zelda's twinkled adoringly at the young reptile. "You look so cute!"

"Don't be fooled! I may look adorable!" The tips of Spyro's sharp horns glistened as he took a fighting stance. "But I am one tough dragon you don't wanna get fired up!"

"You appear to have quite the gaming history behind you!" Solid Snake remarked, glancing at the notes he was holding.

"You bet!" Spyro boasted. "All with different bad guys! I've taken on Gnasty Gnorc, Ripto, the Sorceress, Red the Elder and many others! So I'm very experienced in combat! I'd be a very worthy addition to Smash!"

"You think so?" Snake mused. "Here's your chance to prove it, little dragon."

"What a-moves do you do?" Mario asked.

"I can charge!"

Spyro proceeded to sprint around in a circle. His head was lowered as he pretended to use his horns to take on a fighting opponent who was foolishinf enough to stand in his way.

The three judges stared. To them, it looked more like Spyro was just running around. Without someone to let him demonstrate his charge attack on, they couldn't get an idea how tough his horns were.

"Er, do you do anything else?" Solid Snake asked.

"I can fly!"

Spyro stopped running as he flapped his wings. They lifted him up into the air. He hovered before the judges, certain they were wowed by what he was capable of.

"Well…" Zelda forced a smile, not having the heart to tell Spyro that a dragon who could fly was nothing unique. "Anything else?"

"Do you have any a-special moves?" Mario questioned.

"Sure!" As he dropped from the air to land back in his feet, Spyro narrowed his eyes as he smirked at the judges. "I can breathe fire!"

With a deep breath, Spyro below out a huge blast of flames. Everybody began to yell and shriekd in terror as the room set on fire. The flames burned away at their surroundings, threatening to toast the studio - and barbecue everyone inside.

"Emergency! Everyone evacuate the building immediately!" Solid Snake shouted to the screaming studio audience. "Get yourselves outta here immediately!"

"I'll go activate the sprinklers!" Zelda cried.

"No a-need!" I have the the tool for a-this! Let's a-go!"

Mario leaped over the judge's table - which F.L.U.D.D. had been stored under. The Italian plumber strapped the water shooting machine to his back before beginning to spray away. A clear column of of water squirted out of the nozzle of F.L.U.D.D. It struck the flames to put them out.

As he watched all the chaos going in around him, Spyro beamed. He was confident he had shown what a powerful dragon he was who deserved to be in Smash. The little reptile was confident the judges would not turn him away and would allow him to join the tournament with all the other legendary game characters.

It didn't take long for the fire made by the dragon to be extinguished. F.L.U.D.D. sprayed over the last flickering flame until it died down. Everybody in the studio finally calmed down once the danger was over - before casting their looks towards the one who had caused it.

"Well?" Spyro grinned. "Do I get to join Smash or what?"

"I'm sorry, Spyro." Snake shook his head. "The answer is no."

"What?!" Spyro's face fell, having not expected the answer he'd received. "Why?!"

"I'm afraid we cannot possibly allow you to join Smash if you're gonna be breathing fire everywhere," Zelda explained apologetically. "It's a health and safety violation."

Dismay filled Spyro's face. He couldn't believe his powerful abilities that made him a dragon prohibited him from joining Smash. He found it so unfair. How was his blazing breath any more dangerous than some of the lethal, deadly moves performed the players who'd been in Smash since it first begun.

"So that's it then?" he asked, praying there was a speck of hope he could still join. "You're abseloutly sure that I can't join Smash?"

Mario affirmed that the decision the judges had made was final by shoot the last bit of water left inside F.L.U.D.D. - straight into Spyro's mouth, causing him to splutter and gag as all the fire inside the little dragon was extinguished.