Author's Note:
I really have nothing to say, other than that this is the second part to...well you know. Glad to finally get this two-parter done. As always, we got guest reviews:
"Is Lumina from Lightning Returns:Final Fantasy XIII gonna show up? Can you add a scene of Lunafreya from Final Fantasy XV fighting with Lightning over who gets Noctis? A Trials of Mana chapter when the game comes out? How soon will we see Donkey Kong Jr. show up and reunite with the Kong family? And finally, what are your thoughts on the Digimon Cyber Sleuth games getting a Switch port?"
Most definitely. Perhaps. We'll see. Don't know when Donkey Kong Jr. will show up. And I've honestly never heard of that Digimon game before. They'll put anything on the Switch these days...not that I'm complaining, of course. Next is Shrek is Waifu1:
"Is this finally going to be the end of the Manir arc?"
Yes, this is the end of the manor arc. Thanks for noticing. On to El Pollo Campero:
"1.) Do you ever get overwhelmed by the many requests people ask you in one review?
2.) Is Link still gonna propose to Zelda?"
1.) Never have, never will. The more the merrier!
2.) Link will propose to Zelda and marry her before this story ends. Link and Zelda is the only major couple left in the story that has yet to entwine.
PinkRose4452 has three questions for me:
"1. Will there be a Dragon Quest 11 S chapter?
2. Can Bayonetta and King K. Rool have some more screentime?
3. Since the new floor is built, can Meta Knight and Lucario have their meditation room back on the 5th floor?"
1. There will be a Dragon Quest 11 S chapter, featuring the Luminary's party. I'll try and avoid spoilers as much as I can.
2. Bayonetta and K. Rool will have more screen time. I can guarantee you that Bayonetta will have a big role in the next chapter.
3. A meditation room, in the fifth floor...that sounds pretty ideal.
GreaterDoomerUKI is back! Let's see what he's got for me this time:
1) What characters in smash life remind you of the Arrow and Flash.
2) Can you make another couple from different series like Gabon and Rosa.
3) are you able to tell alpharad in his stream to join minus world?
1) Pit and Sonic, respectively. Man that sounds so bare-bones...I'm so sorry.
2) Quick question...who's Gabon and who's Rosa?
3) I mean if Alpharad has a stream, I could convince him. (Alpharad if you're reading this, you're still my favorite YouTuber...)
Episode 191: Truce Part 2
In the previous episode of Smash Life, the Smash Mansion and Assist Tower learned of the treaty that was to be signed - between mansion and tower residents alike, and the denizens of the All-Star Manor. This treaty was announced by the head of the All-Star Manor, Polygon Man - although some refer to him as Polygon Head. Sounded more fitting.
After news about the treaty broke out, many were under the assumption that the treaty might be some kind of trap, enacted by the manor...and that much was confirmed by Raiden. The mercenary, who came to the mansion alone, was at one point throwing hands with Zant. Now, he was chained to the ankle by Mario, deciding to work with the plumber in a joint effort to stop the treaty from taking place.
Having watched the events of the previous episode unfold were the two hooded individuals - the ones who were floating around and stuff. The two individuals were gathered away from the mansion, to discuss what they had seen.
"I don't know why, but I feel like we have been...compromised," one of the hooded individuals spoke, in an edgy voice. "Do you think we should intervene, or...?"
"No, no, let's just let things play out," replied the other hooded individuals, with a more cheery voice. "Best to leave things alone, and see how everything turns out!"
Mario was riding in the passenger seat of Raiden's spaceship, which Raiden had received from Ratchet as a gift. The plumber had no idea where Raiden was headed, but he had no choice but to just sit back and enjoy the ride.
"So Raiden, why did you try to kidnap-a Joker two months ago?" Mario asked the mercenary, wondering if that was a right question to ask at the moment. Didn't want to throw Raiden off-edge, and make him crash his vehicle.
"I just...wanted to tell him something," replied Raiden, who wasn't exactly feeling like giving Mario a long-winded explanation right now. "Something important."
"Some-a thing important, eh? Like trying to entice-a him to join the manor?"
"No, why would I do that? I was never that big on recruiting, to be honest."
"Not that big-a on recruiting, eh?" Mario looked skeptical, as he furrowed his brow.
"Honestly I've grown sick and tired of how many people there are in the manor. Some of them don't even deserve to live under that roof."
"Maybe Polygon Man is pretty passive when it comes-a to inviting people, like Master Hand."
"I have no clue how you even put up with so many people inside one mansion...must drive you insane."
"Eh, it kinda does...it was part of the reason why-a Peach and I moved out, into our own-a place."
"I'd do the same thing too, I'd just leave on my own accord. Missed my window of opportunity years ago."
"Uh huh...but you never fully answered-a my question. Why did-a you want Joker?"
"Look, Mario, I don't really feel like telling you the whole story..."
"Just tell me everything I need-a to know."
"Okay, fine. The reason why I wanted Joker is...oh look, we're here..."
Raiden's ship soon entered a city that Mario knew far too well - New York City, where the plumber once dealt with plumbing issues in the city's sewers along with Luigi. The city was also home to the New York Giants, Mario's favorite team.
"New York-a City?" Mario raised an eyebrow, as Raiden flew over the city skyline. "Why are we here-a for?"
"You'll see, eventually," replied Raiden, as he flew his spaceship into an open area far away from the urban neighborhoods. It was an area full of grass, with virtually no homes present...save for one in the center.
"Woah, look at that Mario!" marveled Cappy as he pointed at some fancy-looking house, while Raiden descended his spaceship until it landed on the ground.
"That's one large-a fancy house," remarked Mario, as the hatch to the spaceship opened; Raiden hopped out, and Mario hopped out as well.
"Mario, talking hat thing...I would like to introduce to you, the All-Star Manor," Raiden revealed to Mario and Cappy the fancy-looking house, which was in fact the All-Star Manor. For the first time, Mario was standing on enemy territory.
Raiden: Polygon Man was very jealous about Master Hand's Smash Mansion - so jealous, that after he started the whole all-star battle royale thing, he wanted to one-up Master Hand by making a mansion himself. However, the landowners wasn't that down with the idea, so Polygon Man had to settle with a manor. If the landowners were smart, they would've vetoed Polygon Man's idea - but sadly, not everyone can be smart these days.
"I thought Master Hand claimed that the manor was the ugliest building in existence," Cappy whispered to Mario, while Raiden closed the hatch to his spaceship with the snap of his fingers.
"That's just-a Master Hand being super biased," Mario whispered back, knowing how much Master Hand loved bad-mouthing the manor. "I'm sure Polygon Man does-a the same thing with the mansion."
"Are you boys just gonna stand around and gawk all day?" Raiden asked Mario and Cappy, breaking them from their conversation. "I still have to bring you along with me, you know..."
As Cappy returned to Mario's head, Raiden would lead Mario to the manor - or at least to the back of the manor. Just for the sake of Mario. Raiden found the backdoor, and opened it without even having to unlock it or anything.
"Those idiots...they're always leaving the backdoor open," grumbled Raiden, as he and Mario stepped inside the manor and entered the manor's kitchen. "Which, truthfully, only makes it more convenient for me."
"I can feel-a my stomach calling out to me," remarked Mario, as he heard his stomach growling mightily. Raiden sighed, hoping that Mario's stomach wasn't responding to the stimuli of being in the kitchen.
"Didn't grab a bite to eat before your meeting, did you?" Understanding Raiden's frustration, Mario could only respond with a sheepish grin. "C'mon, lemme see if there's something in the fridge..."
Raiden brought Mario over to the fridge, before opening the fridge door and peering inside. Looking for something that could satisfy Mario, Raiden drew his attention to a jar of apple sauce. The mercenary took the jar out of the fridge...only to notice, moments later, that Mario was eating out of a bowl of fruit salad.
"Whoever made this fruit-a salad really outdid themselves," Mario smiled in delight, as he was eating the fruit salad with his bare hands. At least the plumber was wearing gloves.
"Nice going, Mario, that was supposed to be our lunch..." frowned Raiden, watching in disgust as Mario practically finished off the bowl of fruit salad like it was his very last meal. "...Kat is going to be very upset."
"Did someone call out my name?" someone asked nearby, as Raiden panicked and threw Mario behind the side of the fridge, where the freezer was. A moment later, Kat showed up around the corner, arriving in the kitchen.
"Hey, Kat..." Raiden greeted the young woman, in an unnaturally friendly manner. Raiden was hardly ever known for being friendly. "...aren't you supposed to be in Seattle, for the treaty?"
"Ha ha, I was just about to ask you the same thing! Yeah, I'm just waiting on Clarke to get his flying ship ready. He's gonna take a couple of us with him to the Emerald City."
"Only a couple of you, huh? Well, it's better than taking nobody at all..."
"Yeah..." Kat peered over, and saw an empty bowl on the kitchen counter. "...hey, was that my fruit salad?"
"Oh, you mean this?" Raiden grabbed the empty bowl in question, holding it up for Kat to see.
"Yeah, the fruit salad I made for everyone! You didn't eat it all up by yourself, did you?"
"Well, um, you see...yes, yes I did eat it all up. I was that hungry."
"Hmm...well if that's the case, then I won't fault you for it." Kat shrugged, as she walked away from Raiden. "See you later at the treaty signing!"
"See ya." With Kat no longer in the kitchen, Raiden pulled Mario out from behind the side of the fridge. "That was a close one..."
"You sure know-a how to save a man's-a hide," Mario said quietly to Raiden, who closed the fridge door shut.
Peach: Golly, no sign of Mario since the meeting...he better not be a no-show at the treaty.
Master Hand: People are showing up outside already...and yet no sign of Mario! He better not give me that classic excuse again. Told that man to lay off those scrambled eggs...
Raiden took Mario to the dining room, which was near the kitchen. Compared to the dining room at the mansion, the manor's dining room was fairly small, but still big enough to hold all of its inhabitants. Inside the dining room were three individuals - Spike, the monkey-catching boy; Toro Inoue, the white cat with a seemingly scribbled-on face; and Sackboy, a being who was nothing more than just brown cloth.
"When did he say he would make it back?" Spike asked Toro, playing with a yo-yo in his hand. Sackboy was sitting on the dining room floor, trying to catch the yo-yo with his hands.
"Beats me - wouldn't be surprised if he's still down there," replied Toro, sitting in a chair as he moved his legs about. "Who knows if he'll even make it out of the mansion alive!"
"Yeah, I seriously doubt that he would even..." Spike suddenly looked up, and saw Raiden standing at the dining room entrance. "...hey, look who made it back!"
"Hi again, boys, sorry for the long wait," Raiden apologized to Spike, Sackboy, and Toro, who all stopped what they were doing and ran up to the mercenary. "Got myself in some trouble..."
"What on earth is Mario doing here?" Toro asked as he pointed at Mario, who kindly waved at the cat. Toro was the kind of manor denizen that Mario could actually get along with. "And how did you end up getting chained to him?"
"It's a long story - I attacked Zant, then Mario got framed, and then Mario and I broke out of the mansion. And now, here we are..."
"Did you manage to get the job done?" Raiden seemed to show some regret in response to Toro's question, as the mercenary held his head.
"Unfortunately I couldn't; Mario here kinda interrupted me. But that's part of the reason why I came back to the manor - to get you guys so we could get the job done, once and for all."
"Aw yeah, that's what I'm talking about!" grinned Spike, pounding his fist into the palm of his hand. Sackboy nodded his head in approval. "Told ya that you would be needing us!"
"Well don't feel too big-headed kid...your head's already big enough as it is."
Raiden and company would find themselves some company, when someone cleared their throat. The group turned around and saw Isaac Clarke, standing with Kat and Sweet Tooth.
"Didn't even bother ringing the doorbell, didn't you?" Isaac said to Raiden, wondering what the mercenary was up to. "Can't just sneak inside, you know..."
"Raiden, what is that punk doing in our manor?" Sweet Tooth asked the mercenary, as he pointed at Mario. "Nobody from the Smash Mansion is allowed here!"
"It's not-a what you think - Raiden here has taken-a me as prisoner," Mario said to Sweet Tooth, who didn't buy the plumber's fib even for a second.
"Yeah right, nobody in their right mind would actually admit that someone was taking them in as a prisoner. I'm not stupid. Also, I can see that you're chained up to Raiden, for some reason."
"Look everyone, it's a long story..." Raiden said to Isaac Clarke and company, putting his hands in front of him to dispel any concern. "Mario and I, we got chained up together by accident."
"Did you seriously fly to the mansion, without letting us know?" Kat asked Raiden, impressed by how Raiden was able to eat her entire bowl of fruit salad. "Why not just stay put?"
"Yeah, and why did you bring Mario of all people along with you?" Clarke interrogated Raiden, taking out his gun like he was looking for some kind of fight. "Better not show him around the manor..."
"No, I'm not showing him around this place or anything," assured Raiden, as he quelled Clarke's worries and suspicions. "Rather, I'm showing Mario...a few tricks up my sleeve."
Out of nowhere, Raiden started busting out some martial arts moves, as he kicked Clarke down to the floor and sent Sweet Tooth flying towards a wall. Despite what happened to Clarke and Sweet Tooth, Mario arguabl received the worst of the beatdown due to being chained up and all. Kat quickly got out of harm's way, as Raiden drew his sword.
"C'mon you three, let's go!" Raiden shouted at Spike, Sackboy, and Toro, who quickly followed the mercenary and Mario out of the dining room. Sweet Tooth collected himself as he walked away from the wall, while Clarke rose up to his feet with Kat's assistance.
"Crap, they're getting away!" frowned Sweet Tooth as he, Clarke, and Kat chased after Raiden and the others.
Raiden and his group headed outside, running towards Raiden's spaceship. With the snap of Raiden's fingers, the hatch of the ship opened, and Raiden and company quickly hopped on inside.
"Raiden why does your spaceship have to be some cramped?" questioned Toro, sitting in the backseat of the spaceship along with Spike and Sackboy. "I can hardly breathe back here!"
"Not my fault this ship only has four seats," replied Raiden, who honestly could care less about Toro's problems as he pressed the button on his dashboard. The spaceship turned on, hovering off of the ground. "Don't ask me why those seats are small, either."
"I forgot to mention this a long time ago, but Sackboy has some pretty bad motion sickness..." stated Spike, seeing that Sackboy was covering his mouth. Poor fella looked like he was about to vomit.
"His vomit is probably just polyester toy filling, nothing to worry about..." With everyone's seat belts locked in (well, mostly everyone) Raiden took off on his spaceship, flying back to Seattle.
Zant: The treaty signing is about ready to begin. Master Hand is here. Crazy Hand is here. Both of Master Hand's assistants, Isabelle and Miss Oribe, are here. But Mario is nowhere to be found...this is quite interesting.
The treaty signing was to begin in less than a few minutes, as people were still finding their seats. The stage was all set up, and it had turntables and a table with the treaty document on it, next to some pens. The folding chairs were all set up, and there were two sides - one side was the mansion, and the other was the manor.
"Guys, look at how few in numbers the manor is..." Zelda whispered to a few of her fellow residents, as she pointed at how few chairs there were on the manor's side. Seemed depressing, depending on how you see it.
"That's all the guys the manor's got?" jeered Waluigi, sitting with the mansion residents just like all the other assist trophies. The lanky man pointed and laughed at the manor denizens that were present, unaware that only a few more yet had to show up.
"Who are you laughing at, punk?" questioned a man, holding a gun; it was General Rodec, who was last seen falling into a bottomless pit a few episodes back. His presence was enough to silence Waluigi.
"...nothing, no one, I was just laughing at that dandelion on the ground right there." Waluigi sat back in his seat, letting out a sigh of relief. Thinking that Waluigi was a weirdo, Rodec walked away as he looked for an available seat.
General Rodec: Thanks to Ratchet, Clank, and Carmelita Fox, I was saved from that bottomless hole I fell into weeks ago. Which, honestly, wasn't that bottomless. Found a bunch of mushrooms at the bottom. Had to eat them to survive. Now, I hate mushrooms with a newfound passion...
Ratchet: Yeah, we had to ask the Piranha Plant to borrow its green pipe so we could rescue General Rodec, and bring him to the treaty. Felt pretty weird, asking someone from the mansion to do you a favor. Thank goodness you guys showed us footage of what happened to Rodec, otherwise he would've been stuck in that cave forever!
Present on the stage were Master Hand, Crazy Hand, Isabelle, Ayaha, Copper, and Booker - all on the mansion side. On the manor side, only Kratos and Nathan Drake were present. Zant stood center stage, in front of a podium with a microphone, while K.K. Slider was hanging in the back with PaRappa and PJ Berri. Think K.K. was aware that PaRappa and PJ took his record?
"Residents of the Smash Mansion, residents of the Assist Tower, and residents of the All-Star Manor...I bid you all welcome," Zant kicked off the treaty signing, as he addressed the crowd. "I would like to welcome you all, on this historic day..."
"Get on with it already, we have things to do man!" frowned Falco, as he shook his fist at Zant. The longer Zant dragged things out, the more impetuous and hot-headed Falco would become.
"Why was I even forced to attend, I don't live here..." grumbled a miserable Min Min, likely forced to attend the treaty singing by Master Hand. Participation matters, no matter how much you want to return home.
"Settle down, Mr. Lombardi, I'm getting there..." Zant said to the avian pilot, before picking up right where he left off. "Today, I greet you all not as enemies...but as friends, and allies. United together, we are here to erase the past, and look towards a brighter future."
"This guy easily has my vote for president," Pit said to Kirby, as everyone in attendance was clapping. "I wouldn't mind being his VP!"
"Our country would truly be doomed," Kirby offered his two cents; when you are friends with Pit, sometimes you have to tell it like it is.
"Thank you, thank you..." Zant thanked the crowd, as the applause slowly died down till it was silent again. "...and now, it is my honor, to welcome the leader of the All-Stars, and the head of the All-Star Manor...everyone, please give a warm welcome to Polygon Man!"
Everyone clapped once more, as a large purple curtain was wheeled unto the stage by Sir Dan and Sly Cooper. Sir Dan and Sly pulled away the curtain, revealing the person behind to be none other than Polygon Man...or as many people might call him, Polygon Head.
"Remember to control your anger, Master Hand," Isabelle advised Master Hand, as she and Ayaha were clapping. Master Hand was seething so loud, it sounded like he was taking the deepest breaths that could be ever taken.
"...I should fire both you and Ayaha just for clapping for that loser," Master Hand responded, watching in indignation as Polygon Man hovered down to the stage to the podium. Zant kindly moved out of the way, allowing Polygon Man to speak.
"Wait, what am I doing at the podium?" questioned Polygon Man, as he loudly spoke into the microphone allowing everyone to hear him. Kratos sighed, as he walked over to speak with Polygon Man quietly.
"You're supposed to address the crowd, you giant buffoon..." the demigod whispered to Polygon Man, who apparently was still very much confused.
"Address the crowd? You mean the one in front of me? Am I supposed to give them a motivational speech, or what? You know I can't motivate people!"
"Have you forgotten where you are?! We're supposed to sign the treaty..." Seconds later it finally hit Polygon Man, as the giant head's eyes went wide.
"Oh yeah, the treaty! Totally forgot we were gonna eat some burgers and hot dogs before the big shindig. My bad."
"He seems like a very bumbling person to have leading a manor full of people..." Lucina whispered to Chrom and Robin concerning Polygon Man, as Kratos returned to his post.
Samus: Who would I rather take...Master Hand or Polygon Man... *sighs deeply* ...can't believe I'm actually saying this out loud, but after what I had seen today from Polygon Man, I'd rather take Master Hand any day of the week. Those words actually exited my very lips...
"Just to be clear, we are having burgers and hot dogs after the treaty is signed, right?" Polygon Man asked Zant out of curiosity; he was a giant head, how can Polygon Man even consume anything?!
"Perhaps, although we might have other plans in mind..." replied Zant, as Min Min was starting to look antsy. The Chinese blonde could literally feel Zant giving her a side eye under his fish helmet.
"Meh, as long as we're eating some kind of junk food, I'm down. There will also be dessert along with the food, right? I could really go for some butterscotch cake."
"There will be dessert afterwards, as well. Not sure if you're entirely aware, but the mansion and tower have some incredible cooks, who'll be making desserts aplenty for all of us!"
"I never agreed to doing this," stated Palutena; She was never down when it came to last-minute plans.
"I'm not cooking for this many people," stated Dunban; if it was just the mansion or the tower, the Homs wouldn't mind.
"My cooking isn't that good enough to satisfy everyone," stated Chef Kawasaki; at least he was being honest, for once.
"I'll make as many desserts as you need me to!" stated Cilan; that connoisseur could never back down from any culinary challenge.
"Awesome! Now, play my theme song!" shouted Polygon Man, as PaRappa selected a tune on PJ Berri's keyboard. Some k-pop music started blaring from the loudspeakers, as the lyrics "naega jeil jal naga..." were heard, sung by girl group 2NE1.
"Naega jeil jal naga", translated to English, was "I am the best". Which made the song selection somewhat more understandable. Polygon Man was seen banging his head to the tune of his "theme song",, while everyone waited for the whole charade to end.
"What kind of theme song is this?" K.K. Slider questioned PaRappa and PJ; if anything, the hippie dog should be questioning the two friends about his stolen record.
"It was literally the only song we could find that was enough to stroke Polygon Man's ego," replied PJ, with the mere shrug of his shoulders. "Honestly, none of us at the manor like it either."
"Who knew that the head of the All-Star Manor was into k-pop..." Ayaha muttered to Isabelle, while Master Hand was still seething. Being subjected to k-pop music at the hands of Polygon Man was something Master Hand didn't have in mind today.
"Lord give me all the strength to not send that man into oblivion..." Master Hand whispered almost prayerfully, expecting Isabelle and Ayaha to hold him back if he and Polygon Man came to blows.
The treaty still had yet to be signed, which gave Raiden and company more time to reach Seattle. The five were still flying in Raiden's spaceship, heading towards the Emerald City.
"Can't you drive this thing any faster?" Cappy yelled at Raiden for no reason, before slapping the mercenary on his head. Any other instance Mario would scold Cappy, but considering who Cappy had struck, the plumber couldn't help but laugh.
"I will if you stop slapping my head for no reason!" Raiden retaliated, as now Spike, Sackboy, and Toro were laughing along with Mario. "I'm kind of running low on fuel at the moment, which is why I'm driving slower than usual."
"Well nobody told you to return to the manor, to gather your stinking friends. We could've just stayed put at the mansion, and stopped the treaty as it happened!"
"Mario, can you please tell your talking hat to stop? He's annoying the living crap out of me..."
"You know I can't-a parent a hat," replied Mario, doing his best to stifle his laughter. Raiden was left even more annoyed, as he wanted to bang his head against the dashboard.
Suddenly some ammo were fired at Raiden's ship, nearly causing Raiden to lose control. Spike looked back out of the window, and saw a futuristic space ship following close behind.
"Isaac Clarke spotted at three o'clock!" Spike alerted Raiden, as the ammo kept on coming. Just what Raiden needed, some unwanted company...
"Um, Raiden, shouldn't you-a be avoiding the ammo?" Mario asked the mercenary, as he felt bullets hammering away at the spaceship.
"Shut up Mario, I got this..." Raiden confidently assured the plumber, as he saw Seattle in his sights. "...we're almost there. Hold on tight, boys!"
Villager: We would've had that treaty signed already, but apparently Polygon Man requested that his "theme song" be put on repeat. We might as well be out here until eight, at this point...
Raiden, despite Clarke firing away at his ship, kept on driving through the skies until he reached the Seattle outskirts He saw the mansion in close view, spotting it from a very far distance.
"We're almost there..." Raiden informed Mario and the others, pushing his spaceship to its absolute limits.
Finally, at long lost, the 2NE1 song finally came to an end, much to everyone's delight. With the song out of the way, it was time to begin the moment everyone had been waiting for...the signing of the treaty.
"The singing of the Mansion-Manor treaty shall now begin," announced Zant, as he brought everyone's attention to the table that had the treaty document on it.
"Is everyone hyped?!" Polygon Man asked the crowd, bumping Zant out of the way as he spoke into the microphone. Only a few people cheered. "I said, IS EVERYONE HYPED?!" More people cheered, which pleased Polygon Man greatly.
"He's stealing my shtick...he's an even bigger jerk than I thought!" remarked Master Hand, disgusted that he was sharing the same stage as Polygon Man. Zant returned to the podium after Polygon Man moved out of the way.
"Thank you for hyping up the crowd, Polygon Man. Now, before we begin, I thought I'd might share with you all a little tune. It's a tune that the manor believed was fitting for this historical occasion. Wouldn't you say, Polygon Man?"
"Most definitely..." grinned Polygon Man, before he nodded to PJ Berri. PJ, receiving the cue, took out a record, but it wasn't just any record...
"Hey, that's my record!" K.K. Slider remarked quietly, able to recognize any record of his even from a mile away. As PJ was setting things up, Polygon Man turned around and looked up, and saw something twinkling in the sky.
"Oh cool, nobody ever told me that there would be a light show!" remarked Polygon Man, as he, Kratos, and Nathan looked at the twinkling in the sky together.
"Er, Polygon Man...that's no light show," said Nathan, as he got a good look at what the twinkling in the sky was...and saw a spaceship crashing towards the stage. "Everyone get out of the way!"
Everyone on stage quickly ran away, as the spaceship eventually crashed into one of the loudspeakers. Mere moments later, another spaceship came crashing down, landing into the other loudspeaker.
"Looks like we've got ourselves some company..." remarked General Rodec, who easily recognized the two ships. Isaac Clarke, Sweet Tooth, and Kat crawled out of one of the ships...and Mario, Raiden, Spike, Sackboy, and Toro crawled out of the other.
"Mario?" Master Hand uttered the plumber's name, in complete astonishment, as Mario stood up on his feet and dusted himself off.
"Mario!" Peach uttered the plumber's name, squealing in delight as she ran up to the stage to hug her husband. "Where have you been?"
"I was a little tied-a up..." replied Mario, as he motioned to the handcuff that held his and Raiden's ankles - only to realize that the chain had finally been broken. "Mama mia, I'm free!"
"We're free?" asked Raiden, before looking down and seeing that the chain from the leg cuff was indeed broken, cut in half. "Thank goodness..."
"Raiden, what is the meaning of this?!" Master Hand questioned the mercenary, wondering why he and Mario were working together. "Where did you and Mario and the others come from."
"We came from the All-Star Manor...to stop the treaty. And the treaty, that the manor wants you to sign...it's a trap!"
Everyone on the mansion side gasped collectively, although many folks were already aware that the treaty was possibly a trap. On the manor side, everyone was looking pretty angry at Raiden.
Erdrick: As I expected, the treaty signing was a trap...not that it's a big deal or anything. Anyone could've seen it coming, from a mile away.
Banjo: No way, the treaty was a trap this whole time?! But what about that tailgating party, or the pie-eating contest? The manor has a lot of explaining to do...
Kazooie: Oh just shut up, you silly bear...
"For real?!" exclaimed Ryuji, uttering his famous catchphrase, as he looked towards the manor denizens. Everyone from the manor was ticked off at Raiden, for ruining their plan.
"Raiden, you dare expose our master plan to Master Hand and the others?" Polygon Man scolded the mercenary, frowning intensely. "What do you even have to say for yourself, mister?!"
"I'm not done yet..." replied Raiden, before pointing straight at Zant. Zant looked around guiltily, looking pretty intimidated as Raiden was pointing at him. "This guy right here..."
"Alright now, no time to be pointing fingers..." said Zant as he backed away as much as possible from Raiden, to avoid any serious injury. "I'm sure everything can be explained in a reasonable manner..."
"Raiden, that's enough!" Polygon Man shouted at the mercenary, getting all up in his grill. "Say one more word, and I promise that it'll be your last."
"Ahem..." Master Hand loudly cleared his throat, garnering the attention of Polygon Man and the manor denizens. "...due to the events that had just transpired, I feel as if we should take some...necessary action."
"'Necessary action'? Whatever do you mean by that?"
"I'm so glad you asked...EVERYONE, ATTACK!"
Right on command, the residents from both the mansion and the tower started attacking, going to war with the manor denizens. The Luminary did battle against Jak and Daxter; Fox was firing lasers at Sly Cooper and friends; and Pit and Dark Pit were involved in aerial combat with Kat and her friend, Raven. The manor was fighting against the mansion and tower, as the treaty was officially called off.
"Hey Zarok, how about you summon some zombies already?" demon-hunting vigilante Dante shouted to the evil sorcerer, as he took out Chrom with his scythe. It was safe to say that the manor was greatly outnumbered, at the moment.
"I'm trying, I'm trying!" replied Zarok as he tried to use his staff to summon a horde of zombies - only for Lucas and Ness to run by and snatch Zarok's staff. "Hey, you boys get back here!"
As Zarok chased after Lucas and Ness, Zant remained onstage, watching all the fighting and chaos go down. The treaty didn't turn out exactly as planned, which left Zant very dismayed.
"No, this wasn't how the treaty was supposed to turn out!" worried Zant, as he ran to the back of the stage to retreat. There, he found PaRappa and Knuckles, facing each other off...in a rap battle.
"Kick, punch, it's all in the mind..." PaRappa rapped against Knuckles...only to stop momentarily when he realized that he had no other material. "...crud, I ain't got nothing."
"Why can't you boys just fight like everyone else?" Zant questioned PaRappa and Knuckles, not that the Twili actually cared that much. He was only slightly curious.
"We would, but we all know PaRappa here can't fight," replied Knuckles, as PaRappa looked at the echidna feeling triggered.
"You wanna say that again, fool?!" a very offended PaRappa challenged Knuckles, as he tackled Knuckles to the stage floor. As PaRappa and Knuckles roughed each other up, Zant hurried over to the turntables, and grabbed the record.
"That idiot dog just had to ruin everything, didn't he..." Zant muttered under his breath, being overheard by K.K. Slider. K.K., who was hiding underneath the turntables, saw Zant running away.
"Hmm..." the hippie dog scratched his chin, wondering why Zant was retreating - and with the record that was played earlier, nonetheless.
Meanwhile, Sonic and Tails were dealing with many of Fat Princess' servants, taking them all down with simple Spin Dashes. After taking down the last servant, Sonic looked over and saw Zant, running away.
"Yo, Tails, look who's getting away!" Sonic called out to the yellow fox, as he motioned over to Zant. Seemed like Zant was trying to return to the mansion.
"Well what are we waiting for, let's get him!" shouted Tails, as he and Sonic started chasing after Zant. Should be more of a challenge than taking down a bunch of measly medieval servants.
Amid the ensuing chaos, Peach was escorting Mario back home to safety, so the plumber could rest. However, Peach and Mario were stopped in their tracks by Polygon Man, who appeared in front of them.
"Thought you could just sneak out of here, huh?!" Polygon Man snapped on Mario and Peach, but most especially the former. "Thought you could just expose the whole point of the treaty, and get away with it?!"
"Polygon Man...leave him to us," said a certain demigod, as Mario and Peach turned around and saw Kratos. Nathan and Dante were standing at the demigod's side. "You can go deal with Master Hand."
"Yeah, good thinking Kratos!" Eager to settle some beef with his arch-enemy, Polygon Man gleefully floated away. "OH, MASTER HAND!"
"Prepare to meet your end, Mario!" Kratos shouted to the plumber, as he leaped up with his sword and came crashing down. Mario and Peach turned away out of anticipation, fearing serious injury...
...but when they looked up, they saw Raiden standing in front of them, blocking Kratos' sword with his. Raiden was fending off Kratos, to the best of his ability.
"Peach, get the heck out of here, it's not safe for you," Raiden advised the princess, who nodded her head as she darted away. Mustering all his strength, Raiden pushed back at Kratos, sending him away.
"You DARE turn your back on the manor, craven?!" Kratos shouted at Raiden, as he now had the mercenary at the top of his personal hit list. "How could you work with someone like Mario?!"
"One, I was working with Mario out of forced obligation, we were both chained up. And two...I never gave a crap about anything the manor does. I'm my own man...I've always marched to the beat my own drum."
"So you are a traitor!" Kratos was about to charge at Raiden, only to be held back by Nathan and Dante. "Why did we let you stay at the manor for so long?!"
"Easy, buddy, take it easy..." Nathan did his best to soothe Kratos, as he and Dante were able to calm down the demigod. Kratos quickly lost his temper in an instant.
"Since you are now a traitor among us...we have no other choice but to kill you AND Mario!" Kratos took out two dual blades, figuring out whom between Mario and Raiden he wanted to kill first. "Time for you both to meet your end!"
Peach: Just saw Zant leaving with the record that was played earlier. Where is he going, I wonder? Perhaps he wanted to listen to that song was supposed to be played, in private.
"There's only two of you, and three of us," stated Dante, cracking his knuckles as he was ready for a fight. "Not like you guys can even up the odds..."
Or so Dante thought, as a grappling hook was fired out of nowhere and latched unto one of Kratos' dual blades. Not even realizing it, Kratos saw the blade pulled right out of his left hand, and pulled towards whomever was wielding the grappling hook.
"Did I hear someone mention something about...evening the odds?" said the wielder of the grappling hook...Joker, who now had one of Kratos' blades. Kratos looked furious, as Joker aligned himself with Mario and Raiden.
"So nice of you to show-a up," Mario said to Joker, as he exchanged a fist bump with the young man.
"Thought that maybe you could use a little backup...the thought that counts, right?"
"Enough!" shouted Kratos as his fury was peaking, reaching an all-time high. "This ends NOW!"
Zant was still on the run, as he reached the mansion. Before the Twili could reach the porch, he came to a halt when he saw Sonic and Tails in front of him. The two friends had already beat Zant to the punch.
"Going somewhere, Zant?" Sonic asked the Twili, as he folded his arms. Zant knew that if he turned around and run away, Sonic could just catch him easily with his super speed.
"I was just going to get some help," replied Zant, looking around for any available options for escape. "I've heard that there's a Pokemon sanctuary in that mansion...we could use a few Pokemon to..."
"If that's the case...then why do you have that?" questioned Tails, as he pointed at the record Zant was holding in his hands.
"Good question...I was just checking to see if this was the right record. For all we know, the wrong one could've been brought to the treaty signing..."
Suddenly a large fist came from behind, striking Zant in the back of his head. Sonic and Tails moved out of harm's way, as Zant was sent flying to the mansion's front door and collided against it. Zant fell down, falling unconscious, as Sonic and Tails looked at the person who sent out that large fist...Min Min.
"Got him..." said Min Min, as she retracted her fist. Must be some kind of retribution of some sort for the Chinese blonde.
Back at the site of the treaty signing, the trio of Mario, Joker, and Raiden were fighting against Kratos, Nathan, and Dante. Joker fought Nathan, Raiden fought Dante, and Mario had his hands full with Kratos.
"Stop dodging my attacks, and fight me like a man!" Kratos shouted at Mario, swiping away with his blade. Mario would duck under each swipe of the blade Kratos did, making sure not to lose his head.
"Now, Mario!" shouted Cappy, as Mario tossed the talking hat at Kratos. Cappy landed on Kratos' head, and Mario eventually took over the demigod's body.
"Wow, I feel like...an actual man," marveled Mario, as he was getting used to Kratos' body. Something about being Kratos made Mario feel super empowered. "I FEEL LIKE AN ACTUAL MAN NOW!"
"What in the world was that for...?" questioned a bewildered Sweet Tooth, who was even more bewildered by the mustache and Mario's cap that Kratos was sporting. If only the clown knew the truth...
As it turns out, Zant wasn't rendered unconscious, but the Twili was...a little out of it. Zant rested against the front door on the porch, moaning in pain, as Sonic, Tails, and Min Min were checking him out.
"Wait, so you aren't working with Zant?" Sonic asked Min Min, who gave the hedgehog an inquisitive look. Min Min was so taken back by Sonic's question, that she initially had no idea how to react.
"Where did you get that from?" asked Min Min, furrowing her brow. As stated before, the thought of Min Min working with Zant seemed so out of place.
"Sonic and I saw speaking with Zant outside, before the treaty began," stated Tails, as Min Min suddenly remembered the conversation she had with Zant. "And Sonic thought that Zant was trying to recruit you."
"Recruit me for what? All Zant ever wanted from me was my noodles. He wanted some noodles to be served after the treaty signing...and he wanted them to be poisoned as well."
"Yuck, poisoned noodles?" grimaced Sonic, as he made a very disgusted face. "How disgusting! The heck is wrong with that Zant?!"
"Yeah, that's why I had to turn his offer down. But that's not all...apparently he wanted to serve those poisoned noodles to the guys from the mansion and tower, and serve the manor guys the normal ones. He was trying to kill you guys!"
Min Min: Am I still angry with Spring Man and Ribbon Girl, for not holding up their end of the promise they made? Yes, yes I am. Would I want them to die from some noodles? I want Spring Man and Ribbon Girl to have some comeuppance, but not THAT kind of comeuppance.
"Zant was trying to kill us?" said Tails, as he now had a changed perception of Zant's evil motives. "Guess that sorta explains everything."
"But there's more...the whole treaty thing was his idea," Min Min further explained - things were starting to make sense for Sonic and Tails. "Said he proposed the treaty thing to Polygon Man, and Polygon Man was happy to oblige."
"Propose the treaty to Polygon Man, ask Master Hand to be the mediator of both sides, and then plan on killing innocent people..." Sonic summarized everything Min Min had told him and Tails. "...yep, sounds right up Zant's alley!"
"Ugh, my head..." mumbled Zant, sitting himself up as he took off his helmet and rubbed his head. The Twili realized that he wasn't alone, when he saw Sonic, Tails, and Min Min staring at him.
"Zant finally came back to his senses...perfect timing." Sonic cracked his knuckles as he neared Zant, along with Tails and Min Min. Zant was about to get it.
"No, no, back away you three...please, spare me..."
Chaos was still taking place at the site of the treaty signing...and yes, the manor was still greatly outnumbered. As expected. Joker and Nathan were still coming to blows - involved in a gunfight of sorts - while Raiden and Dante dueled with sword and scythe, respectively.
"Hey, where's Mario?" Raiden looked around for the plumber, as he dueled with Dante. Mario would leap down from the sky, in Kratos' muscular body, as he landed on top of Dante.
"How does it feel, to be tackled to the ground by a REAL MAN?" Mario asked Dante, who was understandably confused in every sense of the word.
"Kratos what has gotten into you, why are you wearing Mario's cap for?" questioned Dante, only for Mario to snatch the vigilante's scythe and break it in half with his manly strength. Mario then got off of Dante, before picking up the vigilante and tossing him away.
"Are you feeling alright, Kratos?" asked Nathan,; Mario would respond by running up to the archaeologist and kneeing him in the gut, before grabbing his neck and chokeslamming him unto the ground.
"Get some!" Mario taunted Nathan, who was left writhing on the ground in pain. Having your back slammed against the earth was never a great feeling.
"What has...gotten into you..." Nathan would soon realize the truth, when Mario decaptured Kratos and left the demigod's body. Nathan watched as a dazed and confused Kratos teetered around, before falling and landing on top of Nathan himself.
"Why does my head hurt so much...?" Kratos asked groggily, feeling a fairly intense headache thanks to Cappy. Mario stood over Kratos and Nathan, as Joker and Raiden joined him at his side.
"That takes care of them," remarked Raiden, thoroughly impressed by the great job Mario (and Cappy) had done. "Only thing that's left to do is..."
A very loud shout was heard, as Raiden and company looked up in the sky. They saw Zant, flying in the air and flailing his arms, seemingly being launched from the mansion. The Twili was flying towards the treaty site, bracing impact.
"Stand back boys, I got this!" Link said to Mario and company, popping out of nowhere as he stood in front of the others. The Hylian had his hookshot ready, as he fired the chain at Zant. Latching unto Zant, the chain quickly brought the Twili down to the ground, with a giant thud.
"Ow..." the helmet-less Zant muttered, his voice mumbled as he was lying face-first on the ground. Link celebrated his "accomplishment", as he pumped his fist.
"Yes, I did it, I actually got Zant with my hookshot!" the Hylian cheered, leading Mario and company to assume that he was crazy. "I actually did it!"
"So that was what Link has been dying to do, for months?" Joker asked Mario, who shrugged; at least Link finally got his wish. Now was time for the Hylian to brag.
"Hey Cloud, you won't believe what I just did!" Link called out to the swordsman, who just took out Sir Dan with his Buster Sword. To be fair, Sir Dan was just nothing but a rack of bones.
"You finally realized that you're borderline insane?" asked Cloud, as he stood over his felled victim Sir Dan - lying on the ground like he just got shot multiple times.
"Nope, even better - I took out Zant with my hookshot! Roughed him up so bad..."
"Oh you did? Well, uh...congratulations, I guess. Good for you. Proud of you, man."
Cloud: Heh, I'm surprised that Link didn't botch the whole thing. Which was what I was kinda expecting. Now, I won't be able to hear the end of it. Wonder if Travis Touchdown has any extra room in his bunker...
Zant slowly lifted himself off the ground, as he looked up at Mario, Joker, and Raiden. All three looked like they wanted to send the Twili through a world of hurt.
"Gah!" grunted Zant, as he tried to run away. The Twili would trip and fall, when he tripped over a long white piece of rope - held by Sackboy and Toro. Right after Zant fell, Spike managed to catch him with his trusty monkey net.
"Nice work, you two!" Spike commended Sackboy and Toro, exchanging a high-five with the sack of cloth and the talking cat. "Say, Raiden, what do you want us to do with Zant here?"
"Bring Zant to the stage," ordered Raiden, as Spike headed up to the stage and dropped Zant down from the net. Raiden and the others then joined Spike onstage, so they could deal with Zant.
"So, Raiden...why were you beating up-a Zant earlier?" Mario asked the mercenary, repeating the same question he had asked in the last episode.
"This man...this man is the guy who came up with the treaty," answered Raiden, as he pointed his sword at Zant; Zant backed away out of fear.
"No, don't believe him, he's lying..." Zant said to Mario and Joker, before backing up into PJ's turntables. The Twili had nowhere to go.
"He came up to Polygon Man, and told him that the manor should sign a treaty with the mansion - as some sort of trap. So the whole treaty signing was Zant's idea."
"But what was the purpose?" asked Joker, who had returned Kratos' blade back to the demigod. Gotta be mindful and considerate of your enemies.
"The purpose was to lure you guys into signing the treaty, and then kill you guys off for good." That would explain why Zant asked for Min Min to poison the noodles for the mansion and tower residents. "That was the end goal of Zant's master plan."
"Kill us, but why?" asked Mario, who obviously wasn't ready yet to die. The plumber had so much more to accomplish - especially as a father.
"Because you guys would get in the way of his plan...of taking over the world. With a coalition, no less."
"I'm sorry, did someone say...coalition?" asked Link, overhearing the conversation as he gleefully climbed up unto the stage. "So the coalition is actually LEGIT?"
"Yep, it's a real thing alright...and Zant just so happens to be a part of it." Just hearing that gave Link so much validation.
"Ha, so the coalition does exist! Oh man, I can't wait until I tell Cloud...but wait, how did you know about this coalition in the first place?"
"Some chick told me all about this coalition, and what they planned on doing. She actually came to me, a few years back."
"A few-a years back?" inquired Mario, as Joker dug into his pocket and pulled out the picture that Raiden had given him in episode 181. "Are-a you implying that his girl-a is...from the future?"
"Most definitely so - could've been giving me a warning of what was ahead. Obviously I couldn't keep that info to myself, so I had to relay it to someone else..."
As Raiden finished his sentence, the mercenary looked towards Isabelle, who was still standing on the stage with Ayaha and keeping away from the action. Mario noticed this, as something suddenly sparked in the plumber's mind.
"...you were trying to warn-a Isabelle in the past, weren't you?" Mario asked Raiden, as he brought the mercenary's attention back.
"Guess you could say that's why I was trying to 'kidnap' Isabelle...I was only intent on warning her about what will happen," replied Raiden, referencing the events of episodes 9 and 10. "I was close to doing it, too."
"But then you teased-a us with giving her back! I mean, the whole-a thing with Heihachi, and you disguising yourself..."
"That whole tease thing, I was just...testing you. The manor desperately wanted Heihachi back in their fold, and they asked me to do it. I only obliged, if it meant relaying some juicy info to Isabelle."
"Then there was that one-a time when you kidnapped-a Lucas and brought him to Jakob, as part-a of Dr. Eggman's evil plot..."
"I imagined that Lucas would be a trustworthy person to tell about the coalition, so I only agreed to kidnap him for that very reason. But right before I could tell him anything, Jakob had already turned Lucas in to Eggman. Waited too late..."
"And then you tried-a to kidnap Joker two months ago, when Joker and his friends were-a having that party. I take it you were trying to warn-a him too?"
"Indeed, and I was so close, too...until you came along and tried to stop me. Had to leave Joker with a little something before I bailed out."
"Like this picture?" Joker asked Raiden as he showed him the picture he received from episode 181.
"Yeah, that's the right. Since I couldn't tell you anything, I left you with that picture instead. It'll mean something soon."
Joker: *looking at picture* This girl in this picture...she could be the one that traveled back through time and warned Raiden about the coalition wanting to take over the world. If only I can find out who she is...
"Point of the matter is, I've been trying to warn you guys ever since my encounter with that girl from the future," explained Raiden; in hindsight, maybe Raiden wasn't that much of a bad guy after all. "But my opportunities were limited, whether it was because of the manor or something else."
"You could just tell-a me the information, Raiden," Mario said to the mercenary, sensing that now was a perfect opportunity. "I would-a be all ears."
"True, but I figured that you were always constantly busy, much like how I was always busy. Didn't want to distract you or throw you off-course. Lord knows you and the other guys have been through a lot..."
"Hehe, we've had our fair share-a of trouble..." Mario giggled sheepishly, as he scratched the back of his head. "...so, you gonna lay the info on us, or what?"
"No...that's enough...enough from you..."
Mario and company looked towards Zant, who collected himself as he used PJ's turntables to pull himself back on his feet. The Twili then summoned a Twilight portal, above in the sky.
"What's he trying to do?" asked Link, as he and the others braced themselves. "He's not gonna send out some Twilight monsters, is he?"
"He could be trying to escape," assumed Raiden, as he saw Zant floating up towards the Twilight portal. "No way I'm gonna let him escape..."
Rushing to action, Raiden teleported himself to Zant, as he grabbed the legs of the Twili. Zant saw Raiden holding unto him, and was trying to flail his legs about to get rid of the mercenary.
"Get...off...of me!" Zant yelled at Raiden, who was punching away at the Twili and trying to bring him down. "Let go of me!"
"Raiden, no!" Mario shouted at the mercenary, as he saw Zant floating closer towards the Twilight portal. Once Zant entered through the portal, bringing Raiden along with him...
...the portal finally closed. Mario fell to his knees, as his one chance to learn about the coalition was blown.
"Dang it, we were-a so close too..." the plumber sighed, shortly after Zant and Raiden were gone. Link came over to comfort Mario, putting his hand on his shoulder.
"At least Raiden's gonna take care of Zant...that should be somewhat reassuring," remarked Spike, looking on the bright side of the situation.
"You knew-a about the coalition, didn't you?" Mario asked Spike, figuring that Spike and pals were supplied with some information by Raiden.
"Raiden didn't really tell us about it until a weeks ago. Sadly, we only have basic information - nothing major or anything."
"Hey, you guys okay up there?" Fox asked Mario and company, climbing unto the stage along with Falco.
"Yeah we're fine, we're good," replied Link, looking out and seeing that the chaos was starting to die down a little. "What about you?"
"Eh, could be a bit better. But those manor guys are starting to retreat. Boy we sure had them outnumbered!"
"TAKE THIS!" Master Hand shouted from afar, as he threw a wicked sucker punch into Polygon Man's face. The punch was strong enough to send Polygon Man flying.
"And it looks like Master Hand just took care of Polygon Man. Not that it's that big of a deal, since Polygon Man is probably weaksauce."
"Get back here, you!" Knuckles shouted at PaRappa, as he chased the rapping dog unto the stage before tackling him to the stage floor. "Ha, got 'em!"
"PaRappa!" Spike exclaimed the dog's name, as he came over. Toro and Sackboy also came over, to pry Knuckles off of PaRappa. "You okay?"
"Yeah, man," replied PaRappa, helped up to his feet by Spike as Sackboy and Toro took Knuckles away. "Where were you guys when the treaty signing began?"
"We were...handling some important business with Raiden. He followed Zant into some portal and now he's gone."
"Why was he chasing Zant for?" That's when Spike whispered into PaRappa's ear about Zant and the coalition, and anything else PaRappa needed to know. "Oh snap! So this whole treaty was just a ploy?"
"Just a ploy meant to kill off the mansion dudes. That was Zant's goal - he just wanted to play us like a fiddle, like chess pawns."
"Dang...the more you know. So where do we go from now?"
Mario looked out across the stage, and saw that none of the manor denizens were around. The only ones left were Spike, Sackboy, Toro, and PaRappa; pretty much everyone else had retreated.
"Sir Mario, are those boys from the manor?" Isabelle asked Mario concerning Spike and company, as she came over to the plumber along with Ayaha. "What do you plan on doing with them?"
"We should take-a them back home..." replied Mario, knowing that this was the most sensible thing to do. "Get some-a one to boot up the teleportation device."
"Teleportation device?" inquired PJ Berri, who came out from underneath the keyboard he was hiding under. "You can just teleport us back? Huh..."
"Isabelle, Ayaha Oribe...inform-a Mega Man and tell him we need-a to send five youngsters back home!"
Master Hand: I know you guys were unable to see most of it but my fight against Polygon Man, while partially one-sided, was epic! Or at least until Crazy Hand hopped in. Poor Polygon Man thought he was all gangsta until Crazy started roughing him up. Man, that guy loves to overestimate himself.
Moments after Polygon Man and the manor retreated, Mr. Game and Watch and Dark Pit took down the stage, while Volnutt returned the folding chairs to the shack. PaRappa, PJ, Spike, Sackboy, and Toro were all teleported back to the manor, which was now missing a resident after Raiden had followed Zant into the Twilight Realm. Everything was back to normal at the mansion, as the feud with the manor now came to a close.
With things back to normal, Mario returned to looking through the scrapbook with Jennifer. Peach came over to Mario, eating from a bowl of ramen noodles.
"Those noodles sure smell-a good," smiled Mario, as the aroma emitting from the noodles entered his nostrils. "Where did-a you get them from?"
"I got them from Min Min," replied Peach, before eating a spoonful of her noodles. "I heard that Min Min finally opened up to letting us eat her noodles - provided we live close to the mansion."
"Min Min is-a giving away free noodles?! Get out!" Mario was so astonished, he was about to drop his scrapbook AND Jennifer to the floor.
"Yep! At first the noodles were meant for just the tower only, but thanks to some convincing from...Sonic and Tails, she changed her mind."
Sonic: I'm not ashamed to admit that I eat Mintendo's noodles. Sometimes eating them helps me go to sleep! I can never sleep on an empty stomach, which is why I usually slurp noodles at four in the morning every now and then. Tails doesn't mind.
Tails: *shakes his head* So many sleepless nights...
"Thank-a you Sonic and Tails!" exclaimed Mario, placing the scrapbook and Jennifer on his sofa. Spyro walked by, wondering why Mario was so jolly for. "Spyro, watch-a Jennifer for me - I'm gonna grab-a some noodles!"
"Your wife is right there, can't she do it?" questioned Spyro, only for Mario to run out of the house happier than a little kid on Christmas morning. "Oy vey..."
Mario: Judging off of what Raiden had said, I'm assuming that this whole world-a domination plot by this evil coalition won't happen-a from a year now, or a few-a years even. Which is probably good, because it'll give us enough-a time for rest and relaxation before we get down-a to the nitty gritty. Knowing Impa, if she were here, she'd be all-a like, "We have no time to waste, we must act quickly NOW!" *laughs* So glad I whipped-a that woman up to shape.
K.K. Slider: Shoot! I forgot to PaRappa and PJ to give me that record. Unless Zant still has it...for whatever reason.
As Mario happily ate his noodles outside, with a few mansion residents, the hooded individuals from earlier watched from afar. The individuals likely had seen all of today's events, from Mario looking through the scrapbook with Jennifer to the manor denizens hightailing out of Seattle.
"...missed me?" someone asked, as a Twilight portal was summoned near the hooded individuals. And guess who came out of it? Zant. Had his fish helmet back on.
"About time you returned, Zant..." the hooded individual with the cheery voice greeted, as the Twilight portal went away.
"I told you both that you couldn't just let the manor do things. As I've told you before, everyone at the manor are nothing but useful pawns. All they needed was someone to lead them...like myself."
"And yet, your motive in the end was a failure," stated the hooded individual with the edgy voice. "What do you even have to say for yourself?"
"What I had in mind was far better than the manor's plan of destroying Master Hand. While the manor had planned on Master Hand's destruction, I had my eyes set on eliminating anyone that would get in our way."
"But you failed in that regard. Surely you have something to show for your failures."
"Probably not, but I did manage to secure this while the fighting outside took place..."
Zant reached from underneath his cloak, and pulled out a record - the same record he snatched earlier.
"Really? Some lousy record?" questioned the hooded individual with the cheery voice, sounding disappointed.
"Not just any record," replied Zant. "I sampled this record during my initial visit at the manor, and found some...'incriminating' audio on it. It was part of my 'Plan B', in case the whole 'poisoning the residents' plan never came to fruition."
"And this will be useful to us, in what way?"
"We could use it as a fail-safe option, to tear the mansion residents from the inside out. What do you say?"
"Hmm...we could do a better job at causing discord among the residents better than the manor could. Just hold on to that record, for now."
"When will we start putting our plan into motion?" asked the hooded individual with the edgy voice, as Zant placed the record back under his cloak.
"Rushing to action would be very unwise. There's still a lot more work to be done, and more people to recruit into our coalition. We might even have to wait until next year and start, if we have to. Regardless, we'll strike when the moment is right!
So there was in fact a coalition, consisting of Zant and those two hooded guys. Who else was in the coalition, and who has yet to join? Only time would tell...
