Author's Note:
Astral Chain is coming out today, so this chapter will be featuring a few characters from the game. Due to a lack of pre-game information for Astral Chain during the writing process, writing this chapter was a bit of challenge. And yet somehow, I came through. It wasn't as hard as I imagined, but writing the chapter was still hard nonetheless. Now, the guest reviews:
"Will the Final Fantasy VIII characters show up when the remaster comes out on September 3? Will a series of mishaps with the Smash characters and Final Fantasy XV characters occur that forces Cindy to move her car repair shop to the mansion? A scene of Edelgard interacting with Raine Sage? (Tara Platt voices them) and finally, do you plan to do a DOOM Eternal chapter when the game comes out on November 22?"
Squall and Rinoa will be in next week's chapter. Cindy won't be moving her car repair shop to the mansion anytime soon, regardless of any mishaps. That Edelgard-Raine scene might not happen. And there will be a DOOM Eternal chapter, just before Thanksgiving. Next is El pollo campero:
"1.) Is Daisy pregnant again? (I feel like she is?)
2.) Excuse my language but, will any of the DQ guys have a *ahem* Hoes mad reference?"
1.) Ooh, what a very spicy question...I'll just leave it unanswered.
2.) Hehe...hoes mad. Still trying to figure out how to put that reference into the story.
On to PinkRose4452:
"1. Will Dharkon make an appearance later down the road?
2. Will Akechi and Shinjiro make another appearance, since we don't know what happened to them after chapter 181, and maybe have Akihiko convince Shinjiro to join their side, since they are childhood friends?
3. Will Mega man and Aigis still be doing patrol duty, since the al star arc is over?
4. Will Alm, Celica, Berkut and Rinea have some more screentime?
5. Can Chrom and Yusuke interact with eachother, since they share the same Japanese and English voice actors?"
1. As of now, the status of both Galeem and Dharkon's is up in the air.
2. Being that they both came from the past, I can't see him appearing again.
3. Mega Man and Aigis have been relieved from patrol duty.
4. Alm, Celica, Berkut, and Rinea will be getting more screen time in the next chapter, and in the later chapters down the road.
5. Why haven't I done that before...Chrom and Yusuke interacting would be brilliant!
And last up is GreaterDoomerUKI:
"1) Is there going to be a Links Awakening chapter?
2) What about the Switch Lite?"
1) Already got a Link's Awakening chapter planned for next month.
2) You mean as in like a Switch Lite chapter? Uh...
Episode 193: Hacked
Link has been tormented for far too long. Whether it was having his rupees stolen from him, or being subjected to unwanted noogies by Bowser, very rarely did the Hylian have his way with anyone or anything. Every day seemed like misfortune for the famous hero of Hyrule.
But today, Link refused to remain complacent no longer. He was tired of being pushed around, being stolen from, and being the butt of jokes in a timely manner. It was time to Link to stand up for his rights, and for himself.
And how did Link plan on doing this, you ask? By going to a nearby electronics store and demanding for a refund. But he wouldn't do it alone, for the Hylian brought his best friend, Cloud, with him for backup and moral support. Needless to say, Cloud was feeling cynical about what might happen.
"This is gonna end so poorly..." the swordsman sighed, as he and Link entered the electronics store. Link marched inside the store acting like he was a man on a mission.
"Good afternoon," greeted the cashier that stood at the counter Link and Cloud had approached. It was a counter where customers could make returns, and get their refunds. "How can I help you today?"
"Hey there buddy, I just wanted to return this iPod," Link said to the cashier, digging into his pocket and pulling out a cheap Apple iPod before placing the device on the counter. Looked like it was in the price range of twenty to twenty-five dollars.
"Sure thing! Was there anything wrong with the iPod? Or it just wasn't your style?"
"The device has been acting pretty faulty, ever since I really started using it. Really sucks, man."
Cloud: Link had bought an iPod from the electronics store, so he could listen to music while he's working out. About time the guy started exercising on a regular basis. Anyways, Link was doing crunches, and was just listening to his music...until some mumble rap started playing. Rather than taking the time to add his favorite songs to the iPod and deleting the pre-programmed songs that he didn't like, Link decided to blame Apple for manufacturing the iPod...
"Do you have your receipt with you?" asked the cashier; such a question evoked a strong reaction from Link, who looked at the cashier like he was morbidly insane.
"You did remember to bring the receipt, right?" Cloud whispered to Link, already aware that things would be heading south in a hurry.
"Receipt? Why do you think I need to show you my receipt?" Link questioned the cashier, acting like he knew more than the cashier did. "I bought this iPod!"
"I just need to see your receipt, to verify that you did," stated the cashier, prompting Link to scoff and look away in disgust. Link was acting like a huge injustice was being done to him.
"Verify what, that I bought it? I'm telling you, I'M the one who bought the iPod! I don't see anyone else returning it."
"Please sir, I really don't wanna start a scene or anything...just show me your receipt, and we can put this whole charade to an end."
"You know what, how about you show me your security footage? Lemme see your camera - I could show you the exact moment where I purchased the iPod."
"I can't just let you see the security footage, that's confidential stuff. That's for the store staff only."
"Oh I see...you're scared, scared of being in the wrong. You want to think that you're a righteous person, don't you?"
"Can you please lay off the man?" Cloud whispered to Link, seeing that there was a short line of customers behind him and his friend.
"Not yet, Cloud - I'm standing up for my rights!" Link furiously dug into his pocket, and pulled out his wallet and presented it to the cashier. "Here, lemme show you how much money I lost since I bought the iPod. I can assure you that I haven't spent any money since I went to this store."
"Sir, if you don't show me your receipt, I'll have no choice but to kick you and your friend out," the cashier warned Link, who was showing him the inside of his wallet. Nothing inside.
"See? Empty. Goose eggs. That twenty dollar bill and spare change was the only money I had before I bought the iPod, and now...I'm broke."
"And you think I'm responsible for making you broke?" The cashier must deal with customers like Link on a nearly daily basis.
"No, this stinking store is responsible for making me broke! Which is why I'm asking to return this iPod, so I could make my refund. Now pay up, mister!"
"What seems to be the issue here?" asked the store manager, as he showed up; Link was super happy to see him.
"Ah, the manager, just the guy I needed to see!" exclaimed Link, as he rubbed his hands together. "Your stupid idiot employee won't let me return this iPod."
"I'm sure it was just a huge misunderstanding. Just show us your receipt, and we'll get everything taken care of."
"Yeah, about that...my friend here didn't bring a receipt with him," Cloud said to the store manager, before Link could angrily respond.
"Didn't bring a receipt with him, eh? Well in that case..."
Link and Cloud were promptly kicked out of the electronics store by the store manager, and Link couldn't return his iPod. Which meant that the Hylian would remain broke, unable to get back his twenty dollars and change.
"All they had to do was let me show them the security footage..." grumbled Link, walking with Cloud as the two swordsmen made their way back to the mansion. "...wasn't like I was gonna do a favor for some shoplifter or something."
"You could've returned your iPod had you remembered to bring your receipt," stated Cloud, who expected more fireworks from Link's exchange with the cashier and store manager. "This was your fault."
"My fault? MY FAULT? How is my fault? How am I supposed to know that receipts are valuable these days?!"
"Maybe for people who shop sensibly it isn't, but for guys like you who spend twenty dollars on an outdated Apple product..."
"Yeah, whatever...if anything, Apple was in the wrong for tainting a device I spent my money on."
Tom Nook: I had given Link some cash and change to buy himself an iPod, and after his iPod turned out to be faulty, he promised me that he'd return it for a refund and pay me back. Unless Link wants to handle Timmy and Tommy's chores, he better hold up his end of the promise, or else...
Link and Cloud kept on walking, passing by a dark alley. Out of curiosity, Link took a peek inside the alley, and happened to find someone sitting on the ground with their back turned.
"Psst, Cloud, check this out..." Link whispered to Cloud, who wanted to keep on walking but had no choice but to walk back to where Link was. Cloud looked inside the dark alley, and saw the person sitting.
"Yeah, it's some guy in a dark alley minding his own business, so what?" questioned Cloud, not wanting to bother the man. The man could be very busy. "Let's just leave him alone and..."
"HEY FAT GUY, OVER HERE!" Link called out to the man, grabbing his attention. The man turned around and saw Link and Cloud, before standing up on his feet. He wore a black mask over his face, with two X marks for eyes and a large toothed grin.
"Um, were you talking to me?" the masked man asked Link, while holding a laptop in his hand. "You weren't insinuating that I was fat, were you?"
"Uh, no...it's just that you looked fat from the way you were sitting. I, uh, have a strong tendency to call people who aren't skinny fat. It's a quirk of mine."
"Oh I was about to say...nobody, and I mean nobody, talks to Kyle Merklov like that and gets away with it! I'm a hacking legend!"
"His name sounds like it has a Russian origin..." Link murmured to Cloud, already intimidated by the large weapon that Kyle carried over his back. "...I don't trust him. We should scram."
"The fact that he called himself a hacking legend concerns me already," Cloud murmured back, before darting away from the dark alley. "Come on, let's go..."
"Hey, where are you guys going?!" Kyle asked Link and Cloud, running out of the dark alley and watching as Link and Cloud were running down the sidewalk. "Don't you wanna, I dunno, hack stuff together?"
To Luigi, it appeared as if Daisy was looking a bit bigger than usual, and it was concerning the green plumber a ton. He expressed his worries and concerns to Mario, who advised Luigi to monitor Daisy to the best of his ability. Although Daisy would feel slighted by the monitoring, Mario and Luigi both felt like it would be for the best.
Heading down the stairs and to the kitchen, Daisy hummed a happy tune with a smile on her face. When the princess went to the dish rack to pick up a clean glass, she looked over and saw four individuals - Mario, Luigi, Spyro, and Hunter - staring at her from behind the kitchen counter.
"Can I...help you boys?" Daisy asked Luigi and company, her eyes darting about in pure confusion. "Can I get you all a glass of water?"
"Nope, we were just admiring your-a beauty," replied Luigi; Daisy appeared on edge as she walked over to the fridge, and saw Luigi and company's heads turning as she walked.
"Just getting myself a glass of apple juice...no biggie." Daisy let out a nervous laugh as she opened the fridge door, before Rotom appeared out from the fridge. Daisy shrieked, nearly dropping her glass unto the floor.
"Did you know that apple juice contain plant compounds, such as polyphenols?" Rotom randomly stated to Daisy, who took the time to catch her breath. "It can also keep you hydrated, zzrrt!"
"I already know about the benefits of apple juice, Rotom..." Daisy grabbed the jug of apple juice from the fridge, before fixing her glass of orange juice. When the princess put the jug back in the fridge and closed the fridge door, she saw Yuffie standing by, with a tape measure.
"...don't mind me, I was just checking out the size of my waist," Yuffie said to Daisy, having to backpedal after the stern look Daisy was giving her. "I should go measure my glutes next..." Yuffie darted away from the kitchen, as Daisy let out a sigh.
"Luigi, sweetie, what the heck is going on?" Daisy questioned her husband, too ticked off to drink her apple juice. "You guys are all acting pretty weird today."
"Maybe it's weird-a for you, but it's not weird-a for us," defended Mario, as Daisy ignored the plumber and went to the living room, glass of apple juice in hand. Mario and company watched as Daisy was on the move, unnerving the princess.
"Seriously guys, this isn't funny..." Daisy entered the living room, having to watch her step. Mainly because there were many LEGO bricks lying about on the floor. Charles was in the living room, playing with LEGO toys.
Luigi: I've read some-a where that playing with LEGO toys makes-a you think. Gotta start-a Charles off right! Sooner or later, he'll-a be a child prodigy at Minecraft, at five years old.
"Mommy!" Charles happily squealed when he saw Daisy, who picked up the infant and kissed him on the cheek. Daisy was smiling, but all that smiling would fade away when she saw Luigi and company still staring at her.
"Don't you boys have anything better to do?" Daisy asked Luigi and company, before the doorbell was rang. With some visitors around, Luigi and his boys couldn't possibly stare at Daisy any longer.
"Alright-a boys, act natural..." Luigi told his comrades; Mario and Luigi sat on the living room couch, Spyro sat on a nearby stool, and Hunter...laid down stomach first on the floor with his mouth open, like he was a tiger skin rug.
Looking at Hunter very questionably, Daisy went to go open the front door...seeing what appeared to be five police officers standing around on the doorstep. Three men, and two women. And there was also a cute police dog mascot, who saluted Daisy.
"Good afternoon, ma'am...or should I say, princess," greeted the lead police officer, a big guy with a scar over his left eye. "I am Maxmilian Howard, and this is my crew - the Neuron Task Force."
"Neuron...Task Force?" questioned Daisy, as she furrowed her brow. For some reason, the Neuron Task Force reminded the princess of Leon Kennedy and friends. "What, are you guys like neurologists or something?"
"Not quite...we're just a task force responsible for taking down Chimeras. They're evil extradimensional folk. There isn't by any chance you've seen any, did you?"
"I don't even know what these Chimeras you speak of looks like." Digging into his pocket, Maxmilian took out a picture of a Chimera and showed it to Daisy. Had red, glowing eyes and ridged skin texture. "Nope, never seen one of those."
"Okay...in that case, have you seen anyone like this around?" Maxmilian took out another picture from his pocket and showed it to Daisy - it was a picture of that Kyle Merklov dude that Link and Cloud had encountered.
"Eh, doesn't really ring a bell. But if I were you, I'd head over to the mansion next door. Maybe someone in there knows the guy in that photo."
"We were actually just about to head over to that mansion soon. Thank you for the conversation."
"No problemo!" Daisy closed the door, and headed to the kitchen with Charles in her arms, before stepping on something...or someone.
"Heels...digging into my spine..." said Hunter, after Daisy had unsuspectingly stepped on the cheetah's back. Tears were watering in Hunter's eyes, as the pain was too much for the feline to bear.
"You know there was a sofa for you to sit in..." Daisy told Hunter, lifting her foot off of the cheetah as she continued walking. With Maxmilian and company no longer around, Mario, Luigi, and Spyro went back to watching Daisy.
"Looks like she's heading back to her room," Spyro observed quietly, watching as Daisy took Charles with her up the staircase. "Think she wants some alone time."
"Just as I suspected," said Luigi, as he and Mario stood up from the couch. "We shall-a continue to monitor Daisy, by spying on her through-a the bedroom door."
"Seriously? Knew I should've stayed behind with Peach...what was I thinking..."
Maxmilian stood in Luigi's driveway, with the other members of the Neuron Task Force. The police officers had already spoken with Luigi and Daisy's neighbors - Peach, Olimar, Pac-Man, Marth and Caeda, Alm and Celica, Berkut and Rinea - and were about ready to head over to the mansion.
"Do we really have to go to the mansion?" asked one of the police officers - an Asian dude named Jin Wong.
"You just don't wanna interact with anyone, that's all," a Hispanic police officer said to Wong - a woman by then name of Alicia Lopez. Wong looked away, scoffing.
"I never said that I didn't want to interact with anyone - I just want to kick some butt already."
"We'll get to kick some butt, after we pay that mansion a visit," stated Maxmilian, before he saw Link and Cloud from a far distance returning to the mansion. "Someone at that mansion might know a thing or two."
Fox and Falco sat in the Star Records room, having a meeting about Fox and Krystal's wedding. Due to what was being discussed, Itsuki took himself out of the room, out of fear of being asked to be a wedding officiant.
"Did you ask Chrom if he wanted to be the wedding officiant?" Fox asked Falco; Chrom had officiated Luigi and Daisy's wedding three months ago, and the prince thought he did much better than expected.
"I did, but he turned the offer down in a hurry," replied Falco, who was sitting in a chair with his feet on the Star Records desk, and his arms folded behind his head. "Dude clearly doesn't believe in second chances."
"What about Xander? I bet he wouldn't mind being a wedding officiant again."
"Already got Xander pegged as the wedding usher. Don't think he'd be able to pull off double duty."
"I would want to get Balthier, but I really don't wanna go through the trouble of finding him."
"Pssh, he's probably too busy doing pirate things anyways. Like looting pirate ships and stuff."
Itsuki: *standing outside Star Records room* Fox is just dying to name me wedding officiant, I can already see it coming...any minute now, he's gonna come out from that room, and tell me the "good news". I should probably save myself and leave the premises, but not at the risk of possibly hurting Fox's feelings.
Tsubasa: *approaching* Oh Itsuki, I prepped up your suit, just for you!
Itsuki: Oh no, it's already happening... *buries face in his hands, then runs away* ...why, why, why?!
Tsubasa: No, it's not what you think, it's for our date on Tuesday! Itsuki, come back!
"But you know what I think, Fox?" Falco said to his best friend, sitting up in his chair. "I don't think we really need a male officiant at your wedding."
"Yeah, you're right - male officiants are too mainstream nowadays, the more I think about it," Fox agreed with Falco, wanting to spice his wedding up a bit. "We should do things differently - do things OUR way!"
"Now we're talking! But do you think that Krystal would be fine with having a female officiant? I mean..."
"Well Krystal is a woman - she would be fine with it either way. But what are we waiting on? Let's get to searching!"
The Neuron Task Force were standing on the porch of the mansion, having rang the doorbell. Rosalina would answer the door, startled to see the Neuron Task Force - particularly because they knew what they were all about.
"Oh dear, just what we needed...police officers," the mother of Lumas sighed, knowing that someone was gonna get arrested. "Look, if this has anything to do with Wario urinating near that fire hydrant..."
"No, you got it all wrong, we're not here to arrest anyone," stated Maxmilian, as Rosalina let out a sigh of relief. "We just wanted to ask some questions. We're all members of the Neuron Task Force."
"Neuron Task Force? Hmm, never even heard of them. What do you guys do, as a part of this...Neuron Task Force?"
As Rosalina got to know each member of the Neuron Task Force by name and what they did - including the dog mascot - Isabelle walked by in the foyer, writing down on her notepad. She saw Rosalina speaking with the Neuron Task Force, knowing that the task force were police officers.
"Oh dear, this isn't good..." said Isabelle, immediately fearing for the worst as she ran down the hallway to Master Hand's room. Best to give Master Hand a heads up.
"We want to know if you have seen any strange creatures like these," Alicia said to Rosalina after the introductions were over with, as Maxmilian showed Rosalina the picture of a typical Chimera. "Any chance you seen 'em around?"
"Can't say I have, I haven't really been out as much," replied Rosalina, taking note of how frightening the Chimera looked. Definitely was the kind of the creature you didn't want to encounter in the middle of the night.
"Then I guess you haven't seen this man before," said Maxmilian, as he showed Rosalina the picture of Kyle Merklov. The whole aesthetic of Kyle's attire reminded Rosalina of the Yiga Clan.
"Nope, never seen him before. But I know a few folks here in this mansion that could help you."
"We should interrogate every person in the mansion," Wong suggested to Maxmilian, who put the picture of Kyle away back in his pocket. "As many as possible."
"Good thinking," responded Maxmilian, before returning his attention to Rosalina. "Mind letting us inside?"
Isabelle was now in Master Hand's room, warning Master Hand about the presence of the Neuron Task Force. All Isabelle had to do was say the words "police officers" to make Master Hand go berserk.
"Drat, did somebody else get in trouble again?" questioned Master Hand, wondering who the culprit could be. "Who was it this time? Bet it was Captain Falcon, for harassing that old guy that ran the post office for gift cards!"
"Captain Falcon harassed someone for gift cards?" asked Isabelle, in an utter state of disbelief. "The post office has gift cards? Why didn't anyone tell me this?!"
"Honestly I knew about the gift cards - I just never told anyone. Was gonna take them all for myself, but that Captain Falcon beat me to the punch...hopes he gets what's coming to him!"
Captain Falcon: The sweet old man that ran the post office was kind enough to give me some gift cards, after I kept pestering him for some. Got gift cards for days, my boys - Amazon, iTunes, and even Red Robin! Nowi and I will be eating bottomless fries all day...Why do the gift cards have the old man's signature on them? Uh, good question...it's just a little something for me to remember him by. Very thoughtful of him.
"Well for what it's worth, it doesn't appear that the police officers came to arrest someone," stated Isabelle, as she quelled Master Hand's worries and concerns. "They're more interested in stopping whatever evil is within the city."
"Whatever evil is within the city?" Master Hand reiterated what Isabelle had just said, becoming quite curious. "I should help them out. That evil legion of lousy door-to-door salesman must be stopped!"
"Master Hand are you available, some police officers want to speak with you!" Rosalina called out to Master Hand, knocking on the giant hand's bedroom door. Master Hand could feel the presence of the Neuron Task Force nearby.
"Those police officers you spoke of must be with Rosalina...Isabelle, be a dear and go answer the door." So Isabelle opened the door, allowing Rosalina and the Neuron Task Force to enter.
"Ah, so you must be Master Hand," Maxmilian said to Master Hand, once he stood in the presence of the giant hand. "Rosalina suggested that we should speak with you first. I'm Maxmilian Howard - leader of the Neuron Task Force."
"Isabelle, I thought you said these guys were police officers, not neurologists," Master Hand said to the shih tzu, as the name Neuron Task Force threw the giant hand off a bit. "Were you lying to my face?"
"No, we have nothing to do with neurology! We're just regular police officers...regular police officers whose duty is to take out monsters. I'm the leader of this group, Maxmilian Howard. These are my fellow partners-in-crime - Jin Wong, Alicia Lopez, and my adopted twins..."
"We are ready to serve!" the two twins shouted in unison, as they saluted Master Hand. Speaking simultaneously in a way that would make Timmy and Tommy proud.
"Do they speak together like that all the time? It kinda creeps me out..."
"It's just a little quirk of theirs...you'll get used to it, eventually."
"Uh huh...and who's that fool in the dog costume? Is he your pet?"
"That's our mascot, Lappy," Alicia introduced Lappy to Master Hand, who was bemused. "We're not entirely sure if he's just someone wearing a dog costume..."
"A mascot for a task force of policemen...hmm, perhaps I should look into having a mascot for the mansion. I'll see if Banjo is interested in the job."
"Have you seen any weird creatures around town?" Wong asked Master Hand as he approached him.
"Can't say I have, I don't really go around town as much nowadays. Too many weirdos and sickos roaming the streets. Why do you ask?"
"We've been checking around King county for monsters like these." Wong showed Master Hand a picture of a typical Chimera. "That right there is a Chimera. Never seen anything like this before, have you?"
"I'm confused, is that supposed to be some kind of Decepticon? Like from the Transformers series?"
"I don't see where or how you even got that observation from..."
"Or is it some kind of Nobody, like those Nobodies that Organization XIII had summoned years ago? Because that creature looks like nobody I care to deal with!"
"This is no laughing matter!" Alicia said to the giant hand, wanting him to take things more seriously. "These Chimeras could be lurking around - there might be even one inside your mansion!"
"Inside my mansion, you say? Well, if there's anything I hate more than massaging chairs, it's unwanted guests. I'll let you guys handle this whole Chimera situation. You have my word."
"Thanks for coming around, Master Hand," Maxmilian thanked the giant hand, ready to get to work. "We'll make sure to let you know if..."
"Master Hand, we have a situation on our hands!" Coco alerted Master Hand, as she stepped inside the giant hand's room. She saw the Neuron Task Force, seeing that they were police officers. "Master Hand, did you seriously get in trouble again?"
"Whaddaya mean, did I get in trouble again?" questioned a very offended Master Hand. "What would I, creator of the Smash universe, even get in trouble for?!"
"You literally kidnapped an baby whale - a Wailmer, I might add, and did it in the name of demonstrating 'virtue signaling'. That Wailmer is still down in the basement, as I speak."
"You kidnapped a baby whale...?" questioned Maxmilian as he looked at Master Hand, who was acting like Coco didn't know what she was talking about.
"Don't listen to her, she just loves starting up false rumors..." Master Hand warned the Neuron Task Force, who was suddenly wary of the giant hand. "...surfing the Web for hours can really mess up your brain."
"Uh huh, whatever you say Master Hand..." remarked Coco; someone should really save that Wailmer, if what Coco said was true. "...anyways, the computers in the computer room are acting kinda funny. Might be some kind of virus."
"Must be Kyle Merklov's doing," Alicia whispered to Maxmilian, after hearing what Coco had said. Maxmilian nodded his head affirmingly.
"I think we might have a hunch for what's going on with the computers," Maxmilian said to Master Hand. "They could be hacked, by a man named Kyle Merklov. He's a genius hacker, and at the top of our most wanted list."
"He's not supposed to be some kind of evil villain, is he?" asked Master Hand, who felt the sudden indignation to laugh. "Any bad guy whose name is Kyle, Carl, or even Courtney should never be taken seriously."
"He might not be a villain, but his hacking knows no bounds. We've been trying our best to find him, and lock him up for good."
"So how are we going about with this, Max?" Wong asked Maxmilian, not wanting to neglect the whole Chimera issue.
"You and Alicia will go to the computer room, and see what's going on with those computers. The twins and I will scour the mansion for any Chimeras."
"I really wanted to hunt down the Chimeras, get my hands dirty a little, but I'll take what I can get..."
"Follow me - I can show you guys where the computer room is," Coco said to Wong and Alicia, before leading the two out of Master Hand's room.
"Our work here will be finished sooner than you know it," Maxmilian assured Master Hand, as he, the twins, and Lappy left the room shortly after Wong and Alicia had left. That Neuron Task Force better make Master Hand proud.
"Isabelle, Rosalina...get that Wailmer out of my basement," Master Hand instructed the shih tzu and mother of Lumas.
Master Hand: The Flying Man made a very bold claim earlier this week, claiming that virtue signaling is just a myth and is something meant to destroy one's character. So just to show him up, I took it upon myself (and others) to capture an Wailmer, and have someone rescue said Wailmer to prove how much "good character" they have. (Would've went with a Wailord, but that was too big for the basement.) The person designated to save the Wailmer was King Dedede, who seems to have forgotten that we have a basement.
Thanks to Sae Niijima in the previous episode, Sonic had completely gotten over Knuckles being arrested for stealing ice cream from the store...as well as resisting arrest from the police. The hedgehog, who once was protesting for Knuckles to be released from jail, was now using his time more wisely. Such as grooming Shaymin, for instance.
Having lost the hairbrush that he typically used for Shaymin, Sonic decided to ask Mario if he could borrow the hairbrush the plumber used for Poochy. The hedgehog rang the doorbell at Mario's house, as Peach answered the door.
"Sup princess," Sonic greeted Peach, while eating a chili dog that had loads of chili piled on; large bits of chili landed on the doorstep, which caused Peach to grimace. "What's with the long face, Peach? You wanted a chili dog?"
"No, Sonic, you're just...messing up the doorstep a little," replied Peach, as Sonic stopped chewing and looked down at the doorstep he was standing on.
"How so? I'm just making a small mess, I can clean it up easily. Man, you're such a clean freak...anyways, can I borrow Mario's brush?"
"The brush Mario uses to brush his hair? I don't think that would be such a good idea - I doubt that he'd want spikes in the brush bristles."
"I mean the brush Mario uses to brush Poochy. 'Cause you see, I lost my own brush, and now I have nothing to groom Shaymin with!"
"You might want to go speak with Mario next door, at Luigi's place; he might know where that brush is."
"And you don't know where it is? C'mon Peach, you're Mario's flipping wife! You should at least know where Mario's toothbrush is, right?"
"Sometimes I wish I didn't know..." A very uneasy feeling overwhelmed Peach, as the princess got all squeamish inside. "...after he stuffed his toothbrush down his boxers, I just couldn't..."
"Woah, woah...TMI. That's a little too much. I'll just, uh, head next door...you should go disinfect some of Mario's belongings."
Sonic went next door to Luigi's house, and rang the doorbell. Yuffie would answer the door, and the ninja girl's face sank when she saw Sonic, eating his chili dog.
"Aw man...thought it was someone cool," remarked Yuffie, making Sonic feel offended. "What do you even what, Sonic?"
"One Mario, please," ordered Sonic, before taking a bite out of his chili dog. "I need to know where the man's Poochy brush is."
"I'm sorry...did you just say 'Poochy brush'? Should I even begin to question what the heck that is?"
"Is Mario home, yes or no? I don't got all day with your questions...my Shaymin needs pampering!"
"Yes, Mario is home...he's somewhere in the living room." Yuffie would let Sonic inside Luigi's house, as Sonic entered the living room. "Not exactly where in the living room he is..."
"Hiya!" shouted Mario, jumping out from nowhere and swatting Sonic's chili dog down to the floor. The plumber then let out a sigh of relief, acting like he had just vanquished a house fire.
"Dude what the heck, I wasn't even finished!" Sonic snapped on Mario, getting all up in the plumber's grill. "If you were so jealous about not having a chili dog, then why didn't you just text me and ask for one?"
"Mario why did you even do that for?" questioned Daisy, who was sitting on the living room couch with Charles. Charles was playing with a ball in his hands. "That's no way to treat a guest."
"I had to do it, Daisy, for your own-a safety," explained Mario, stressing the importance of his "duty", as Daisy sighed and rolled her eyes. "Sonic was literally trying to tempt you with his chili dog."
"Look, just because Sonic had brought a chili dog with him, doesn't mean that he was tempting me. Stop acting so paranoid, Mario!"
"Daisy's right, you were acting like I had poison in my hands," Sonic said to Mario, trying not to feel bitter about his wasted chili dog. "You need to get a grip, man!"
Sonic: This might sounds like a very weird confession, but...I want to know what poison takes like. Not that I want to kill myself or anything, I just want to know what to expect, like at a tea party or something. If Amy was still in her crazy obsessive girlfriend phase, then my weird confession would probably be more understandable.
"Do you really wanna throw away those cheese puffs?" asked Spyro, as Daisy looked over at the kitchen. The princess got up from the couch, and saw Luigi, Spyro, and Hunter taking food out of cabinets and shelves.
"Cheese puffs are pretty high in-a fat," stated Luigi, holding several bags of cheese puffs in his hands. Dude sounded like he was a nutritionist. "They're just as bad as potato chips and-a French fries."
"What about those Oreos?" Spyro looked over on the nearest kitchen counter, and saw several boxes of Oreo cookies. "They don't look so fattening to me."
"Oh, but-a they are - and they're pretty addicting as well! Best to keep-a them out of our kitchen, for good-a measure."
"Whoever said that Oreo cookies were addictive?" questioned Hunter, who was now eating the Oreo cookies like it was his last meal on earth. The cheetah had already consumed three boxes of Oreo cookies, much to the chagrin of Spyro and Luigi.
"Luigi, why are you taking out the food?" Daisy asked her husband, as she stormed inside the kitchen. "We've already cleaned out the kitchen shelves."
"Yes we did, but that was only a month-a ago," stated Luigi, before opening the fridge and taking out some bacon and bologna. "This type-a of cleaning, is uh...pre-autumn cleaning!"
"Never heard of it," said Hunter, only to be shushed by Luigi who didn't want his cover to be blown. "Um, what I meant to say was...pre-autumn cleaning is WAY better than spring cleaning! Amirite, Spyro?"
"Yup, should've stayed behind with Peach..." sighed Spyro, as he lied down on the kitchen floor. The purple dragon already had enough of Luigi's shenanigans.
"Luigi are you seriously taking out the eggs?" Daisy questioned the plumber, who proceeded to clean out the fridge as he removed eggs, cheese, and some fish. "How are you gonna make your delicious omelets now?"
"From now-a on, we're all going organic," announced Luigi, his announcement shocking enough to make Daisy gasp. Yuffie was feeling extremely slighted.
"I suddenly decided that I no longer want to live in this house anymore," the ninja girl gave an announcement of her own, figuring that she'd be better off living with Marth and Caeda. Even if Marth was too old-fashioned for the 21st century.
"Going organic, for what?" Daisy snapped, with her hands on her hips, while Luigi nonchalantly cleaned the fridge of fatty foods. "You were opposed to going organic, always have been!"
"True, but times-a change...and when times-a change, so must we," stated Luigi, causing Daisy to groan and shake her head. Hunter saw some bologna Luigi placed on the counter, and started to eat it.
"If you want, Luigi, we could bring all this food to your neighbors," Hunter said to the plumber, eating up the bologna like it was nobody's business. "Preferably us."
"You're free to take as much-a food as you like." With Luigi finishing up cleaning out the fridge, Daisy grunted as she angrily stormed back to the living room. Luigi making such a drastic change in the kitchen was quite triggering to his wife.
"Can I borrow the brush you use for Poochy?" Sonic asked Mario, completely forgetting about his wasted chili dog. The hedgehog wanted to get out of the house, before Daisy started to lose it.
Coco took Wong and Alicia to the computer room, where best friends and tech-savvy ladies Fuuka and Futaba were inspecting the computers. Every single computer in the room was hacked; some had long lines of code, while others had flashing dialog boxes popping up on the monitor.
"So this didn't start until today?" Wong asked Coco, Futaba, and Fuuka, who had done everything to remedy the issue. Sadly, their tech-savvy skills weren't enough to solve the situation.
"Only but a few hours ago," stated Fuuka, while Alicia was trying to un-hack one of the computers. "We've tried everything..."
"This definitely could be the work of that Kyle Merklov guy," assumed Alicia, as she was closing out of every single dialog box that appeared. For every dialog box that was closed, two or three more dialog boxes showed up. "Must be trying to send a message..."
"Aw, don't tell me the computers are acting up again!" whined Pit, as he and his buddies Kirby and Incineroar entered the computer room. "How am I gonna finish my dress-up game now?"
"...you play dress-up games, Pit?" Coco asked the angel, questioning his manliness - or the lack thereof. Pit had to clear things up real quick.
"Uh, yes I do, I do play dress-up games...which are for boys, I might add. And I also watch anime on the computer in my spare time...just for research purposes."
"Oh so I guess you're the one who's always leaving the incognito window open, aren't you?" Pit just got exposed by Coco, as he bit his lip and looked away.
"...I was just trying to pass on the knowledge I've gained to others, that's all."
Pit: Don't you just hate that feeling, when you're watching an anime that appears normal on the surface, and then said anime starts showing unnecessary body parts and girls doing seductive things? *sighs* Japan really is one perverted country. Yet I keep falling for their tricks every time!
Kirby: Pit introduced me to a few anime shows he liked to watch, while incognito. Needless to say, my innocence is now forever tarnished, and my eyes still require bleach. Same could be said for Incineroar.
Incineroar: *opens mouth, before coughing out a fur ball*
"Anything yet, Alicia?" Wong asked Alicia, as the computer monitor was literally filled to the brim with hundreds of dialog boxes. At this point, there was nothing Alicia could do to make the dialog boxes go away. Unless...
"Control...alt...delete," said Alicia, pressing the three aforementioned keys together simultaneously and pulling up the task manager. Sadly, the task manager was lost in all the dialog boxes.
"Well, that got us nowhere..." Wong shook his head in disappointment, before looking over and seeing a computer monitor over Alicia's shoulder that quickly caught his attention. "Look at that computer over there!"
Everyone went over to the computer that Wong had pointed at, and saw a flashing "WARNING" message on the monitor, in red letters. It was something that not even Coco, Futaba, nor Fuuka had ever seen before.
"Yep, this definitely smells like Merklov..." remarked Alicia, as she backed away from the monitor. "...he must be hiding somewhere around the mansion, I bet."
"Thank goodness we're getting some action today," said a slightly amped up Wong, wanting to put his police skills to good use. "Thought our trip to Seattle was looking like a complete waste..."
"This Merklov isn't that threatening, is he?" asked Futaba, grateful that Wong and Alicia were handling Kyle themselves. "Especially if he's a hacker..."
"He has a pretty big weapon he likes to use. Best not to get TOO reckless when dealing with him."
"You ladies watch over the computers, we'll go look for Merklov," Alicia said to Coco, Futaba, and Fuuka, before she and Wong left the computer room.
"But how am I gonna play my dress-up games...my very masculine dress-up games?" Pit asked Alicia and Wong, right before the police officers could head down the hallway and handle their business. "What about my anime?"
"Eh, you'll live, kid...just hold your horses," replied Wong, as he and Alicia walked down the hallway. Feeling desperate Pit looked towards Coco, wanting to borrow the bandicoot's laptop.
"Don't even think about it..." Coco said to Pit, who then looked towards Futaba and Fuuka who both shook their heads no.
Maxmilian and his adopted twins...and Lappy...were scouting the mansion for any sign of Chimeras. The police officers were on the fourth floor, inspecting every nook and cranny.
"Seems like the fourth floor is in the clear," announced Maxmilian, once he and the twins were done inspecting the floor. Lappy did nothing but ogle at the paintings on the wall. "Let's see if the fifth floor has any sign of..."
"Look, over there!" the twins shouted, as they pointed at Ridley. The space dragon was walking with Touma, and his eyes were glowing red, instead of yellow.
"Hmm, could that be a Chimera?" wondered Maxmilian, as he stepped closer to get a better look at Ridley. "I mean it's got the red eyes, and the ridged skin..."
"That Chimera must be stopped!" The twins went down the hallway, armed with their weapons and ready to teach that Ridley a lesson.
"Wait you two, we're not even sure if that thing's an actual Chimera or not!" Maxmilian chased after the twins, with Lappy trailing after him.
Touma: For the next saga in my awesome Force Five show, Ridley is gonna have red, glowing eyes, to signify his descent towards true malice. Why the change? Because yellow is a weak color. The more I think about it, nobody would be scared of anyone with yellow eyes. The color yellow is always associated with goody two-shoes people. Whereas the color red is meant to show how cool and awesome and dominant you are. Which goes to show you why my own hair is red. It's all about the aesthetics!
"Man, Ridley, you look so awesome with those red contacts on!" Touma complimented Ridley, seemingly being the space dragon's best friend. Whether Ridley liked it or not. "You're gonna look so good on my show..."
"'Take one pill a day, before bedtime'..." Waluigi read a prescription bottle, having wandered from the tower to the mansion. His wandering caused him to run into Touma and Ridley, the latter frightening the lanky man.
"Hey Waluigi, don't you think that Ridley looks intimidating with those red eyes?" Touma asked the lanky man, who was doing his best not to wet himself. He had just washed his overalls yesterday.
"No, please don't eat me, I'm too pretty to die!" Waluigi pleaded to Ridley, before he saw Cortex and Uka pass by. Waluigi quickly grabbed the former, and presented him to Ridley. "Eat him instead, he's uglier!"
"He doesn't know what he's talking about!" Cortex said to Ridley, before grabbing Uka and presenting the floating mask to Ridley. "Eat him, he's the ugly one! Uglier than myself!"
"Not saying much..." muttered Uka; the floating mask had nothing to worry about, for he could tell that Ridley wasn't in a hungry mood.
"Prepare to die, Chimera!" shouted Maxmilian's twins, managing to catch up with Ridley. They had their chains out, ready to subdue their target.
"I'm confused, were those two speaking at the same time just now?" Touma asked the others, seeing that the twins were the kind of folk he shouldn't mess with. "Also, who's the Chimera?!"
"Got no clue, let's just back away..." said Waluigi, as he and Touma backed away as much as possible. Ridley, however, stayed put...
...and that left him out in the open, as the twins rushed towards the space dragon with their chains. The twins tried to wrap their chains around Ridley, who was fighting back. Samus and Lloyd appeared at the opposite end of the hallway, watching Ridley being subdued.
"Woah Samus, look at that!" Lloyd said to the bounty hunter as he pointed excitedly at Ridley wrangling with the twins. The swordsman knew how much Samus was enjoying the moment.
"Stay right here, I need to document this..." Samus said to Lloyd as she left, likely to retrieve her phone so she could record Ridley for her own viewing pleasure.
Fiddling around on his laptop in a dark alley, Kyle Merklov now wandered off to the mansion premises, perhaps to stir up some trouble. Or maybe hack some more computers, after he had presumably hacked the ones in the mansion.
"Nice digs," remarked Kyle, getting a good look at the mansion. The hacker then wandered off to the basement entrance, seeing Ike and Soren carrying a Wailmer out from the basement. Rosalina and Isabelle looked on.
"Ike, when you said that we would be 'saving the planet'...this is not entirely what I thought," Soren told the swordsman, having returned to the mansion so he could hang out with his best buddy.
"Well technically this still counts!" responded Ike, as he and Soren carried the Wailmer away from the basement. "Just need to throw this bad boy in the lake, for now..."
Kyle wandered away from Rosalina and Isabelle and the others, arriving at the backyard. Before the hacker could wander further, two police officers he recognized showed up.
"Gah!" shrieked Kyle, hiding behind a tree when he saw Alicia and Wong appear. The hacker sighed in relief, grateful that he wasn't caught.
"Any sign of Merklov?" Wong asked Alicia, while Kyle hid behind the tree with baited breath.
"Don't see him anywhere," replied Alicia, as she and Wong looked elsewhere in the backyard. "But he can't be that too far off."
"I'm so screwed..." Kyle muttered to himself, with a great fear that he would be caught soon.
Because Link couldn't return his iPod, the Hylian couldn't get back his refund. Which meant that he couldn't fulfill his promise to give Tom Nook back his money. After Link attempted to hide from Tom Nook for most of the day, Zelda brought the Hylian to the foyer so he could speak with Tom Nook, face-to-face.
"So Link, did you return that iPod or not?" Tom Nook asked the Hylian, while Zelda stood by sternly with her arms folded.
"Yup, sure did!" confirmed Link, with a grin that anyone could easily see through. "Got your twenty bucks and spare change."
"Uh uh...and where exactly is my twenty bucks and spare change?"
"In my pocket!" Link dug into his pocket, making it seem like the money was misplaced. "Oh no, it's not there...must be in my room."
"Would that be the reason why you were trying to hide from me?"
"Whoever said I was hiding from you?" Nervously smiling, Link looked towards Zelda. "You didn't tell him, did you?" Link asked the princess.
"You know I had to do it," replied Zelda; if she were in Link's shoes, the princess would confess without any hesitation.
"Spit it out already - did you return the iPod or not?" Tom Nook asked Link, who sighed as he pulled out the iPod.
"No I didn't return the iPod..." confessed Link, holding his head in utter shame. "...all because I didn't bring my stupid receipt with me. Like it was that important..."
"Link, they can't tell whether you bought the iPod or not if you don't have a receipt with you," Zelda explained to her boyfriend, like he was five years old. "It's basic common sense."
"So it's basic common sense to completely overvalue some meaningless piece of paper with numbers on it? Yeah, sounds legit..."
"I'll give you one more chance to return that iPod," Tom Nook said to Link before walking away, hoping to get his money back very soon. "Make sure you have your receipt the next time to come back to that electronics store..."
Cloud: Apparently Link told me that he shredded that receipt after he purchased that iPod. Said the receipt was worthless to him. I guess Tom Nook won't be getting those twenty dollars back anytime soon.
"Hope you have that receipt lying around somewhere," Zelda said to Link, who was nervous to admit that the receipt was already shredded to pieces. "Tom Nook looked like he really wanted those twenty dollars back."
"You know what, I'll pay Tom Nook back a different way," said Link, as he headed to Master Hand's room. "I'll see if Master Hand wants this stupid iPod."
"Why do you think that he would even want it...?" Zelda's question didn't stop Link, in the slightest.
Breaking the tradition, Fox and Falco had their eyes set on finding a female officiant for Fox's wedding. Not expecting to have their offer turned down, the pilots spoke with the one person they could trust the most...Ema Skye.
"Give me one reason why I should be interested in this...female officiant duty," Ema demanded from Fox and Falco, who were standing at the doorway to the forensics expert's room.
"It's all about making a statement," explained Fox, doing his best to convince a very cynical Ema. "But it's more than just making a statement. It's also about being a good Samaritan, a good friend!"
"Too bad, because I'm not interested. Granted, there have been plenty of female wedding officiants before, but I'm not adding my name to that list."
"You mean to tell us that you don't want to make history?" Rather than continuing the conversation with the ignorant Fox, Ema closed her bedroom door, returning to her previous activities.
"Always knew that Ema wasn't a feminist..." Falco shook his head as he crossed Ema's name off of a list of potential candidates. Samus and Palutena's names were scratched off already.
"We still need to find a female officiant, and fast," said Fox, leading Falco away from Ema's room. "Somebody's gonna have to answer the call."
Link, trying to get rid of his iPod, was presenting the Apple device to Master Hand in the giant hand's room. While Link ran his mouth about the iPod, Master Hand pretended that he was listening.
"Not only that, but this iPod also has a touch screen!" explained Link, demonstrating the iPod's touch screen to an uncaring Master Hand. "You can touch it to your heart's content!"
"Wow, no way, so it's just like...you know, all the smartphones and tablets in the world," marveled Master Hand, with fabricated excitement. "Say it isn't so!"
"And the sound quality for this iPod is out of this world! Truly amazing!"
"I sure hope the sound quality is good, the thing's called an iPod for a reason..."
"Er, Master Hand...I think we found a Chimera in your mansion," Maxmilian alerted the giant hand, returning to the room along with Lappy. Master Hand was delighted, as he flicked Link away from him.
"Oh you did?" asked a now relieved Master Hand, after Link collided against a wall and fell to the floor. "Bring it in, I wanna see!"
So Maxmilian beckoned to his adopted twins, who dragged a chained up Ridley inside Master Hand's room, and Ridley was trying to break free. Master Hand, who was excited to see a Chimera in person, looked disappointed.
"The twins here believe that they've caught a Chimera," explained Maxmilian, while Ridley grabbed the chains wrapped around his snout. Couldn't pull them off. "Given the red eyes, and ridged skin, this beast could qualify as one!"
"You fools...that's not a Chimera, that's Ridley!" stated Master Hand, as the twins looked dumbfounded. "He's a space dragon, and one of my mansion residents."
"Wait, so this thing ISN'T a Chimera?" the twins questioned, astonished. Using his brute strength, Ridley was finally able to pull the chains off of him.
"Sheesh, and I thought Tommy and Timmy speaking in unison was creepy enough..."
Maxmilian: As it turns out, the beast those twins captured was not a Chimera, but just some lousy space dragon. I know we haven't scoured the fifth and sixth floor, but it appears that this residence, along with Seattle and the rest of King county, is free from Chimeras. Which means that our work here is done...almost done, I should say.
"Ridley, they're not hurting you are they?" Touma asked the space dragon, having caught up with Maxmilian and the twins in Master Hand's room. "I got this knife from the kitchen, so I could cut off those chains..."
"What did I tell you about putting those red contacts on Ridley, Mr. Akagi?" Master Hand asked Touma, who looked confused before he took a look at Ridley's face. More specifically, the dragon's eyes.
"What's wrong, Master Hand - not digging those killer contact lenses? You gotta admit, the red makes Ridley look more fearsome!"
"This whole time the dragon was wearing contacts?" questioned Maxmilian, as Touma took the contact lenses off of Ridley's eyes. Had to be very gentle; Ridley could be prone to throwing a violent fit. "Guess that explains everything..."
X walked through the hallway, checking out something on some wrist device on his arm. The pacifist robot passed by the computer room, where he saw Pit and Coco in a tug-of-war over the latter's laptop. Kirby, Incineroar, Futaba, and Fuuka looked on.
"Please just let me borrow your laptop!" Pit pleaded to Coco, bringing the bandicoot's laptop closer to him. "I promise to close out all of the windows! Even the incognito ones!"
"No way, I trust Crash with my laptop way more than I trust you!" retorted Coco, bringing the laptop closer to her. X watched the tug-of-war unfold, refusing to let it linger anymore.
"Woah woah woah, break it up you two!" the pacifist robot shouted as he entered the computer room. Coco would win the tug-of-war battle, as she pried Pit's hands off her device. "What's going on here?"
"Pit here apparently wants to use my laptop," Coco explained to X, holding her laptop close to her chest. "Not that it's a bad thing, but Pit cannot be trusted by any means whatsoever."
"I just want to play my dress-up games...my manly dress-up games, and watch anime," whined Pit, feeling like he was being dealt with a big injustice. "Thing is, all the computers are acting funny..."
"You don't say..." said X, looking around and seeing all the computers in the room acting up. The computer that had the "WARNING" on the screen caught the robot's attention the most.
"We think that the computers might've been hacked by someone," Futaba said to X, who walked over to the computer that had the warning message.
"Hacked? I wouldn't go that far..." X immediately hopped in a lab chair and pulled himself up to the computer, before typing away on the keyboard. Could X be the one to fix all the computers?
Unable to feel safe due to the presence of Alicia and Wong, Kyle Merklov retreated to Luigi's house, hoping that he wasn't seen. The hacker pressed his ear against Luigi's front door, hearing some commotion from inside.
"Aw, Luigi, you can't get rid of the popcorn!" Daisy told her husband, her strained voice heard from behind the front door. "I need my nighttime snack."
"Don't worry, you'll get the popcorn-a back at a later time," Luigi assured his wife, before Daisy was heard letting out a moan.
"You should keep the popcorn at Mario's place," Hunter suggested to Luigi, having some ulterior motives. "For, you know, safekeeping..."
"Can you please stop talking about hoarding Luigi's food for like, one second?" Spyro asked Hunter, growing tired of Hunter's freeloading ways.
"A bunch of crazy people in that house..." remarked Kyle as he backed away from Luigi's door...before backing up into two people he did not wish to encounter. Alicia and Wong.
"Going somewhere, Merklov?" Wong asked the hacker, who jumped away in fright before holding his hands up in innocence.
"No, please don't arrest me, I did nothing wrong!" pleaded Kyle, who was holding his laptop in his right hand. The laptop slipped out of Kyle's hand, before landing on the ground.
"Were you the one that was hacking the computers at the mansion?" Alicia asked Kyle, as she picked up the laptop. "Tell us the truth..."
"I had nothing to do with any hacking whatsoever! I was just in town, minding my own business, and I just wandered over here! Honest!"
"Should we believe him?" Wong asked Alicia, who shook her head no. Both police officers had a gut feeling that Kyle was lying.
"Tell me the password to your laptop, or else I'll break it," Alicia commanded Kyle; would Kyle give in or not?
"You wouldn't dare..." snarled Kyle, only for Alicia to hold the laptop over her knee. "Fine, fine! The password is...password is Hermits! With a capital H!"
"What a very interesting password..." Alicia typed in the password and logged into Kyle's laptop...before seeing something that caught her by surprise.
"Why the surprised face?" inquired Wong as he looked at the laptop screen; he too winded up looking surprised. "Is that a to-do list...?"
"Yes, it's a to-do list - a list of things I had planned to do around town! You seriously thought I was gonna go around hacking things, without my underlings?"
Kyle: Still not quite sure how I ended up in Seattle, but the city is quite unique. It just feels so...so modern, you know? I mean on the Ark, I have to put up with those crazy Chimeras. Whereas in Seattle, the only crazies I have to put up with are tree huggers and fish salesmen. Got struck by a large flounder earlier, and the fish salesman claimed it was an "accident". Fortunately for him, I was in a good mood...
"And you guys thought I was up to no good..." chuckled Kyle, as he folded his arms - only for Wong to handcuff him. "...hey what are you doing?!"
"Up to no good or not, you're still coming with us," Wong said to Kyle, as he walked him to the mansion. "You're still a culprit."
"A culprit? All because I wanted to let loose in Seattle?! This is absolute madness!"
While Alicia and Wong took Kyle to the mansion, Ike and Soren were hanging out with Rosalina and Isabelle, looking at the Wailmer. The Wailmer was happy and lively, swimming around on the water surface.
"Yo, Rosa, you got a minute?" Fox asked the mother of Lumas, as he and Falco showed up. "It's about my wedding."
"If it's some kind of wedding role, I'm down," replied Rosalina, anticipating what kind of role she would receive.
"Cool! We were wondering if you wanted to be the officiant for Fox's wedding," said Falco; Rosalina, who was at first nonpartisan, wasn't looking so keen anymore.
"What significance would having a female wedding officiant at the wedding be?"
"Nothing much - we're just looking for the perfect candidate. You might be the one!"
"I see...I'll take it into consideration. I'll get back to you with my final decision."
"Glad to see that you're at least considering it," said Fox, giving Rosalina a thumbs up as he and Falco walked way. "Expect to hear from you soon!"
Rosalina: By no means am I seriously considering the officiant role at the wedding. But I don't want to hurt Fox and Falco's feelings, so I'll just keep my mouth shut until those two get a clue. Not the most reasonable option, but it's better than not doing anything...which is essentially what I'm doing, when you think about it.
Shortly after Fox and Falco had left, the Flying Man showed up. As always, the Flying Man was in the mood for saving others, no matter the circumstance.
"Pardon my tardiness everyone, but I've been told that there was a Wailmer that needed saving," the Flying Man told Rosalina and company, unaware of the Wailmer that was in the lake. "Where can I find it?"
With Alicia and Wong reunited with Maxmilian, the twins, and Lappy, the Neuron Task Force went to the computer room, to check out the issue. Alicia and Wong brought Kyle with them, to ensure that the hacker wasn't responsible for what was happening with the mansion's computers.
"None of the computers were hacked - they were just acting up thanks to the mansion's security system," X explained to the Neuron Task Force, having remedied the issue himself. The computers in the computer room were functioning normally again. "The system is connected to the mansion's router, so when the security system cuts up...so does the computers."
"Ha, told you I was innocent!" Kyle said to Alicia and Wong, still handcuffed; Maxmilian smacked Kyle on the head.
"Thankfully instances like these only happen very rarely. It was a good thing I solved the problem in time...otherwise we would've been in big trouble!"
"Good thing that's been dealt with," said Maxmilian, as the work of the Neuron Task Force was done fully completed. "We should be heading back to the Ark now."
"I could give you guys a shortcut back to this Ark, if you like. I can just teleport you there..."
The Neuron Task Force (and Kyle) were in the teleportation room, with X getting the teleportation device booted up. Link, who was trying to get rid of his iPod, would have a quick word with Maxmilian and company.
"Take this - it can be something for you to remember the mansion by," Link told Maxmilian, handing him the iPod. Maxmilian had no choice but to accept it.
"Er...thanks, I guess," responded Maxmilian, as he placed the iPod in his pocket. He sure won't be using that device anytime soon. Feeling proud of himself, Link walked out of the teleportation room...
...before encountering Tom Nook. Perhaps the last person the Hylian wished to see.
"Hello again, Link," Tom Nook greeted the Hylian, who was about to make a run for it. "Did you find that receipt, for the iPod?"
"Sadly I can't seem to find that dumb slip of paper anywhere," fibbed Link, while tightening his fists. "I know it's around here somewhere..."
"Take your time, no rush. I really need those twenty dollars back, and that spare change too. Better to have a couple of bucks on you than nothing at all, know what I'm saying?"
Tom Nook would continue on his way, walking past Link. Once Tom Nook left the premises, Link sighed in relief and headed down the hallway.
That night, with the Neuron Task Force up in the Ark and the Wailmer back in the lake, Peach was in the kitchen cleaning the dishes. She would be interrupted when she heard someone knocking on the screen door.
"Who could that be, at this time of night?" wondered Peach, as she walked away from the kitchen sink and to the screen door - finding Daisy, standing on the patio. Peach quickly opened the screen door.
"Sorry if I'm bothering you, but I'm really hungry right now," Daisy whispered to Peach, clutching her stomach. "Had a very light dinner, thanks to Luigi...only thing I ate was salad."
"I have some leftover Chinese food, from our dinner." Peach looked behind herself, to make sure that Mario, Spyro, or Hunter weren't around. "How does some Chinese pepper steak sound?"
"Sounds awesome! Give me all you got!" So Peach grabbed a paper plate from the kitchen and piled it with rice and pepper steak and egg rolls, before covering the plate with a paper towel and handing it to Daisy. "Thanks, Peach, you're the best!"
"You're welcome!" Satisfied, Daisy closed the screen door, before retreating back to her house. Seconds later, Mario entered the kitchen, inspecting the food.
"Huh, I thought we had more-a pepper steak than this..." the plumber observed the food, while Peach returned to washing the dishes...albeit with a mischievous smile.
Although it appeared as if Luigi was trying to help Daisy lose some weight, Daisy wasn't willing to back down without a fight.
