Author's Note:

This chapter will focus on two recently released games - Life is Strange: The Remastered Collection, which is finally on the Switch, and Trials From Zero...which is also finally on the Switch. (Implying that anyone wanted a Trails From Zero Switch port.) Trying to incorporate Astral Chain into this chapter contributed to my to writer's block, and because of it, the end result didn't turn out as originally intended. So if you were looking forward to an Astral Chain redux chapter...you might have to keep holding your horses. My apologies - I know that the chapter title might be misleading to some. Review time:

"Overwatch 2 is set to launch on October 4. Will we have another Overwatch chapter with more characters?"

Yeah, baby! The goal is to feature all the playable Overwatch characters. Yes, including the new ones. Another anonymous review:

"There's a joke within the Smash community where people jokingly said that Steve is OP, with some comparing him to Smash 4's Bayonetta. The same goes for Kazuya. What do you think of it, and will you acknowledge that joke in the story?"

I mean, look at the guy...how can he not be OP? But yeah, I can acknowledge that joke in the story. Next is Guy w the Jokes, who still does not have a joke for me:

"Idea: Wily will only work with E. Gadd only if E. Gadd invited him to the professors' group chat. Sounds charming?"

That sounds delightfully charming! It would only be a matter of time until Wily and E. Gadd work out their differences. David with some questions:

"Will you do a nod or reference to TMNT: Shredder's Revenge in October? (The game got pushed back to the 11th of that month). A Suikoden chapter when the remastered games get released next year? Will we still see Julius Belmont meeting Simon and Richter? Will we have more scenes of Inkling Boy and Kasumi for the Persona 5 Royal chapter? And finally, what are your thoughts on WWE possibly hinting at Bray Wyatt's return, CM Punk no longer in AEW, and Paige joining AEW? (The latter might end up paralyzing herself if she injures her neck again)."

I may have room for a TMNT reference. Could do a Suikoden chapter. The chances of that meeting happening are slim. There will be scenes with Inkling Boy and Kasumi for the Persona 5 Royal chapter. Can't wait to see how Bray Wyatt will fare in his return. Figured that CM Punk wouldn't be returning to AEW, given the fallout of that press conference. And I'm very concerned about Paige being in AEW, given her injury history and all. That AEW women's division...doesn't really have the safest workers around, I'll say that much. Last is Myriad Hopes:

"With there being a multiverse machine alongside a time machine, that opens up ways for all sorts of new franchises making their appearances. What thoughts do you have for who you would like to feature?"

Good question! Haven't thought of anything yet, but I will take suggestions. Reasonable suggestions. Moving on:

"Plus seeing as how wrestling seems to be a popular topic for you, what do you note from Japanese Wrestling. And what are your opinions of related & similar sports and their organizations like boxing, kendo, or the UFC?"

Well, I did watch plenty of NJPW a couple of years ago - so I'm familiar with the likes of Kazuchika Okada, Tetsuya Naito, and Kota Ibushi, among others. Not that familiar with any other Japanese sport. But speaking of Okada, did you know that he was in Yazuka? Look it up!


Episode 354: Support

It has been well over two years since anyone has last seen Raiden. If you might recall, the mercenary had followed Zant into a Twilight portal during the fallout of the mansion-manor treaty and has yet to find his way out.

Polygon Man figured that Raiden could be a possible X-factor in stopping Dimentio (and to a lesser extent, Zant), and so he and the others depended on the manor's Professor to build a machine that could bring Raiden back. But alas, the Professor's machine self-destructed, and by no means did the Professor wish to take a second crack at things.

It was for that reason Kratos, Sly, Cooper, and Spike asked Dr. Wily if he could access the Twilight Realm. Since he, you know, had a universe transport machine and all. But as they learned, Wily's machine can only access alternate universes - not parallel ones. The Twilight Realm was the latter kind. Still, that didn't stop Wily from wanting to do everyone a solid and upgrade his universe transport machine so that it could reach parallel universes easily.

"Stop grumbling, stomach! Hold it together," Wily shouted at his grumbling stomach as he was down in the tower basement, working hard on his machine. Lakitu heard Wily working away, as he floated down the stairs on his cloud.

"Watcha doin', doc?" the Koopa inquired, under the assumption that Wily was building a completely new machine. Wily thought for sure he had the basement door locked. "Building a time machine just so you can claim that you found one?"

"How dare you! Go away, I say!" The very moment Lakitu mentioned a time machine, Wily yelled at Lakitu - enough to send him flying out of the basement in fear. The robot inventor was hyperventilating a bit, before resuming his work.

Wily: They think that I can't make an upgraded version of my universe transport machine...but I'll show them. I'll show everyone! Even that perpetual loser, E. Gadd. Granted he may not care as much, but I will still boast in his face until he finally admits how inferior he is.

"This should do it," said Wily as he made one last minor adjustment to the machine, being delicate with the process. The robot inventor then took a step back as he admired how newly improved his machine looked. "Now to see if this works..."

Ready for the test run, Wily pressed a button on the universe transport machine to turn it on. At first, the machine started calibrating, as a portal began to form. But suddenly things took a turn for the worse, as the machine began shaking uncontrollably.

"Uh oh...that's not good," fretted Wily as he took out a remote - one that he built as a backup option just for emergency situations. He pressed the button on the remote repeatedly, but nothing was happening.

"Is everything alright in there?" Laktiu called out to Wily, as he heard plenty of noises coming from the basement. No matter how many times Wily pressed that button, the machine still was acting wonky.

"Universe transport machine, I command you to stop! Who am I kidding, it doesn't work that way..." When his relentless button-mashing didn't work, Wily checked the back of the remote as he took off the cover. "...perhaps I shouldn't have used triple-A batteries."

Soon enough the portal grew bigger and bigger, as a bunch of humanoid monsters appeared out of it. Wily was intimidated at the mere sight of them, as he fell back on the floor dropping his remote.

"Get back...get away from me!" Wily shouted at the monsters, before making a run for it as he ran up the basement stairs. The portal was up and running, as more and more monsters filed out.


"...so how do you like this look?" Waluigi asked Lakitu near the basement door, showing off his shirtless body as he donned his new pair of denim pants. The lanky man struck multiple poses, as Lakitu was cringing the whole way through.

"What's there to like about it?" asked Lakitu, as Waluigi did a few unnecessary pelvic thrusts to enhance his presentation. It was a very on-brand thing for a guy like him to do. "What's the intent?"

"The intent is to impress the ladies. Not that I'm trying to swoon anyone. I'm evolved past that stage." Waluigi struck another pose for Lakitu, not stopping until the Koopa was impressed. In which case, he'll be posing until midnight at the earliest.

As the posturing from Waluigi continued, Wily came running out of the basement slamming the door behind him. Wily was hyperventilating as he had scrapes all over his body, looking like he had been through a war.

"Dr. Wily! What do you think of my new pants?" Waluigi asked the robot inventor as he was hulking out - striking poses, flexing his muscles, the works. Little did he know that Wily was in no mood for offering compliments.

"M-M-Monsters..." stammered Wily, and it was nigh apparent that he was scared out of his mind. Well, it was apparent to Lakitu; Waluigi had yet to pick up the context clue. "...there are monsters in the basement."

"Monsters in the basement? You think they'll like my denim pants?" Waluigi was about to enter the basement, but Wily forbade him as he put his hand out. "Wah, come on, Dr. Wily!"

"You mustn't go in there! Those monsters might tear you from limb to limb." Apparently, that was a risk Waluigi was willing to take as he wrangled with Wily over finding access into the basement.

"Did these monsters come from the future?" Lakitu asked Wily, triggering the robot inventor; Wily pushed Waluigi away from him as he glared at Lakitu. Like he had stolen money from his entire bank account or something.

"How dare you imply that I was building a..." With Wily momentarily distracted, Waluigi made a run for the basement door, only for Wily to instinctively stopped him in the nick of time.

"Wah! Why do you have to be like this, Dr. Wily?" whined Waluigi, giving up hope as he backed away from the basement door for good. "I don't care if these monsters kill me."

"Well, for your sake, Waluigi I care." Wily patted the shirtless Waluigi on his shoulder, which made for an interesting sight for anyone that happened to walk into the scene. Such was the case for the visiting Rosalina.

"Um...should I even ask?" Rosalina asked Wily and Waluigi, as Wily saw what he was doing and left Waluigi's shoulder alone. It was Waluigi being shirtless that had Rosalina in a questioning mood.

"Whatever you do, don't go in the basement," Wily warned Rosalina, like the mother of Lumas had plans to go down to the basement anyway. Rosalina was just going to ask Chef Kawasaki for some season salt.

"Thank you for the tip, Dr. Wily." As Rosalina went to the kitchen, she suddenly came to a stop when she heard loud noises from behind the basement door. The noises caught her attention, as Wily was sweating nervously.

"Please don't mind those noises...there's a rave party down there." Certainly didn't sound like a rave party, judging from the monstrous noises being made. "Isn't that right, boys? Didn't you both get an invite?"

"Dr. Wily let a bunch of monsters run free," Lakitu stated to Rosalina, as Wily hastily covered the Koopa's mouth before he could spill more beans. But it was already too late; Rosalina was hooked.

"Let me guess, from your machine?" Rosalina asked Wily, who sighed as he released his hold of Lakitu's mouth. Wily had no choice but to come clean now.

Zelda: Because the Professor from the manor couldn't get the job done, Wily volunteered to find a way to bring Raiden back into the fold. Must be a bad sign if we're depending on him. I think you know his history at this point.

Rosalina would get a taste of what these monsters looked like, as one of them came barging out through the basement door. It was a humanoid monster, and it was trying to break free. Fortunately, Waluigi was able to keep the monster back.

"Heel boy, heel!" Waluigi said to the monster, treating it as if it was a dog as he whacked it on the head with his tennis racket. Using a tennis racket with physical force was no way to treat a dog though. Eventually, the monster pulled back as Waluigi slammed the door shut.

"Sorry that you had to see that," Wily apologized to Rosalina, under the impression that the mother of Lumas was scared out of her mind. But Rosalina was oddly intrigued by the monster - couldn't help that she might've seen it from somewhere.

"That monster looked oddly familiar," stated Rosalina, who might've seen the monster in picture form. On a police officer's phone, no less. "I believe it's called a Chimera."

"So they really must be from the future!" smiled Lakitu, slowly convinced that Wily had built a time machine in private. Wily wanted to strangle Lakitu so bad, and he made a mental note to do it later.

"A Chimera, you say?" said an intrigued Wily as he stroked his mustache, not sure whether he did an awesome thing or a completely horrible thing. Could be a mixture of both. "Wonder what universe I pulled them out from."

"Mario told me about them once. He claimed that they came from the astral plane." That only made Wily more intrigued and left the robot inventor in awe of how advanced his universe transport machine had become.

"My machine can now access the astral plane? Perhaps that means I'm one step closer to..." Wily stopped speaking, as the monsters could be heard banging on the basement door. Almost like they wanted to get out.

"They picked the wrong day to leave the astral plane..." said Waluigi as he donned his tennis racket, looking all menacing and tough as he faced the basement door. Being shirtless gave him that bravado. "...save yourselves, everyone!"

"Should be you who needs to be saved..." Wily saw Waluigi as nothing more than a sacrificial lamb, should the monsters break out of the basement and wreck shop around the tower. "...what must we do, Rosalina?"

"I think there's a group of policemen that we can contact," replied Rosalina, who personally knew of no way to contact this police force - but was willing to at least make an attempt. "Ever heard of the Neuron Task Force?"


Master Hand was in for a scare when Samus showed him that footage last week. On the footage was evidence...evidence of Giovanni trying to bring back Organization XIII, the evil group of Nobodies that tried to invade Seattle. Master Hand saw Magolor try to bring forth the Organization with Giovanni's machine, only for the Captain of the New Squidbeak Splatoon to fire paint in the eyes of Gnasty Gnorc and cause him to wreck the machine.

With the possible threat of Organization XIII returning to the fold in the future, Master Hand was on alert more than ever. Not only did he have to worry about a jester, a crime lord, or the king of Twilight, but he also had to worry about a group of powerful Nobodies. With Dimentio being the ringleader of the whole brigade, Master Hand thought of a way to prevent Organization XIII from ever coming back...

"You want to arrest Dimentio? Seriously?" Link said to Master Hand, who was speaking with the Hylian, Zelda, and Mario in his room. Master Hand was explaining his master plan, and none of the three was a fan.

"Sounds a bit-a anti-climatic, don't you think?" asked Mario, who knew that a lousy police force would be no match for Dimentio regardless of how many men were in uniform. "I prefer a fight-a to the death, like in Endgame."

"Clearly you have rewatched that movie too many times," Zelda said to Mario, who was proud of the very fact; each rewatch of Endgame left Mario in more tears than the last one.

"What's wrong with the idea? It can work," argued Master Hand, who wanted to nip the Dimentio situation in the bud at the earliest convenience. "Just send a group to Dimentio's hideout, have them arrest Dimentio and his cronies, and boom! No more Dimentio."

"Not like we can send-a the SWAT team on them," said Mario, and that made Master Hand chuckle; Mario had no idea what was so humorous. "What's so funny about that?"

"We don't need a lousy SWAT team! I found a police force that can handle any issue better than SWAT could. They were recommended to me by Lloyd Irving."

"Recommended by Lloyd? We're screwed..." lamented Link, already worried about what police force - if they were even one, to begin with - Lloyd suggested to Master Hand. A knock was at the door, meaning that the dubious police force might've arrived.

"Master Hand? The Special Support Section crew just arrived," Isabelle shouted from outside Master Hand's room; a name like Special Support Section sounded promising, though Link and company still had their doubts.

"They came later than expected..." murmured Master Hand - showing up late was not a good look for any police officer, by any means. The Special Support Section had some explaining to do. "...let them in, Isabelle."

So Isabelle opened the door, and she let in four individuals - two young men, a young woman, and a young girl. For the most part, the four looked the part of a police officer, even if most of their attire didn't seem to suggest so.

"Good afternoon, Master Hand!" greeted the young man in front - a brunette wearing a blue police jacket and khaki pants. He looked like a police officer the most out of the bunch. "Sorry we were late - the ladies missed the bus."

"No thanks to you jumping the gun," said the young woman, as the brunette sheepishly smiled - no shame in jumping the gun if you were a police officer. Although doing so does get you in trouble most of the time.

"Oh my! Where are the introductions? I'm Lloyd Bannings, lead detective of the Special Support Section. And these are my comrades - Elie MacDowell, Randy Orlando, and Tio Plato."

"Is it just me, or do these guys look too...legit?" Mario whispered to Link and Zelda, having believed that the members of the Special Support Section were nothing special. Lloyd recommended them, after all.

Lloyd Irving: Totally suggested the Special Support Section to Master Hand because of the awesome stories I've heard about them. You thought my reasoning was because their leader and I share the same name? Get out of here with that crap. *pauses, leans in close to the camera, whispering* Let me know whenever Lloyd Bannings is available for a quick chat.

"I take it that Isabelle has briefed you on your mission?" Master Hand asked the Special Support Section, hoping that they were ready, willing, and able for anything standing in their way. "Do you know what you have been asked to do?"

"Yes - to take out that jester," answered Lloyd as he took out a picture that Isabelle had given to him, showing it to Master Hand. In the picture was a jester, but not the one that he and his comrades were meant to track down.

"That's a picture of Kefka Palazzo! How did she..." Controlling his anger, Master Hand took the picture of Kefka and threw it away. An honest mistake by Isabelle, though Master Hand didn't see it that way.

"So, uh, Master Hand, where can we even find Dimentio?" Randy asked the giant hand, before yawning as he stretched his arms out. "Wanna get this done soon so I can take my nap..."

"Use this map, it will show you where you can find him." Master Hand handed Lloyd a map, as Lloyd and his crew looked at the map together. There was a location dotted off and circled in red.

"This literally tells us nothing," stated Lloyd, who accepted the map anyway as he placed it in his pocket. It could be useful later. "But we'll still take it with us, might be handy later. We promise not to let you down, Master Hand!"

"If you need any help reaching Dimentio's island, then ask the Squid Sisters next door, at the Assist Tower. They've been there once before." Given that Marie and Callie reached the island with Sheldon's plane, the Special Support Section would have to use a similar transport.

"We'll definitely speak with them. Thanks for the tip!" On that note, Lloyd ran out of Master Hand's room, with Randy following after him. The two men left Elie and Tio behind, the absolute audacity.

"There they go, running off again..." Elie said to Tio as she and the young girl made their exit. Elie stopped in the doorway when she realized something. "...oh! Tio, where is Zeit?"

"STOP BITING MY TAIL!" Wolf was heard shouting from down the hallway, sounding like he was being attacked by a rabid animal. Tio felt largely responsible as she gasped. "Do you know how expensive it is to stitch it back on?!"

"Knew that one of us was missing," said Tio as she ran down the hallway, hoping to reach Zeit before he roughed up Wolf badly. "Zeit, we have a mission to fulfill! You can save the biting for later!"


When you work often at a cafe, there was always a chance that you have a favorite customer. Brewster, who worked at The Roost down at Blathers' museum, didn't have a favorite customer yet. Had yet to meet a single person that loved his pigeon milk. But Pit, a part-time barista working at Cafe Leblanc, had a favorite customer...in Cloud. For reasons unknown.

"Man, where is Cloud?" wondered Pit as he opened the mini fridge in Cafe Leblanc, taking a cold cup of coffee out from the top shelf. "I promised to give him the coffee that he wanted to save for another day."

"Weird for Cloud to want to save a cup of coffee like that," said Kirby, as Pit closed the fridge door and placed the coffee in the microwave. Back then, Pit couldn't be trusted to use that microwave without Joker or Viridi's supervision.

"I know, right? Like I literally added pickle juice to the coffee just to ferment the flavor! But with the coffee being refrigerated and all, the cool temperature will bring the flavor out more."

"Now I see why Cloud did that..." As Pit inserted the time on the microwave and pushed start, Joker leaned in close to one of the customers sitting at the counter, Snake. Snake was still a bit sore from his fall out of the treehouse in the last episode.

"Hate to bother you but, do you know where Cloud is?" Joker whispered to Snake, wishing for Cloud to show up soon so that Pit could finally shut up about his favorite customer. No rocket science was required to find out who Joker's favorite customer was.

"He's not in Seattle," Snake whispered to Joker, who looked confused - perhaps Cloud was driving out of Seattle on his motorcycle, getting his mind right. "Did you forget just like Pit did?"

"Forget about what? What did I..." And that's when it hit Joker, as he held his forehead when the right information came to mind. "...ah, of course! He's with Aerith in that town in Oregon. What's it called?"

"You even forgot what the town was, too...what a shame." Snake shook his head at Joker, before eating a spoonful of his curry. "Don't mean to brag, but it was me who suggested it in the first place."


When Organization XIII was around five years ago, they were on the hunt for Aerith. Thinking that Aerith was in danger with the looming threat of the Organization's return, Master Hand wished to send the flower girl far away from the mansion for her own safety. The giant hand at first considered moving her to a different country, but Snake approached him and suggested a town...a seaside town that the Organization would never find Aerith in.

"'Arcadia Bay Bed and Breakfast,'" Cloud read the name of a lodging establishment out loud, as he and Aerith were standing in front of a bed and breakfast in Arcadia Bay. Cloud was asked by Master Hand to accompany Aerith in Arcadia Bay, just to keep her safe.

"What are we waiting for? Let's go in!" Aerith said to Cloud as she grabbed the swordsman's hand and rushed inside the bed and breakfast. At the front desk was a young woman with blue hair wearing a black beanie, as she was on the phone.

"Arcadia Bay Bed and Breakfast, this is Chloe Price!" the young woman spoke into the phone while being very mindful of Cloud and Aerith as the two stood by quietly at the front desk. "How can I help you? Yes, we have availability on those nights. How many in your party? Oh no, I'm sorry, no king beds. No queen either. Well, we make our own mattresses that don't conform to the traditional sizes. Closest would be twins. Thank you so much for calling! Call back again."

"Hey," Cloud said to the young woman, Chloe, after she hung up the phone. "Do you run this bed and breakfast?" Chloe looked at the swordsman as if she was seriously doubting his intelligence.

"Does it look like I would run this place?" Chloe looked angry at first as she stared at Cloud, only to loosen up seconds later as she laughed and clapped her hands together. "That wasn't too hospitable, was it? I'm just kidding."

Chloe: Max wouldn't stop droning about how I needed a job, so I got this nifty job at this lodge just to shut her up. Honestly, this place is a lot more than a bed and breakfast. It consists of tourists coming to a farm, showing them around...and then giving them a bed and breakfast. So it's pretty much...Wait, you know Max? Max Caulfield? Where from?

"Hello, I'm looking for a room," Aerith said to Chloe, as she desired to stay at the Arcadia Bay Bed and Breakfast. But what about Cloud - was he gonna bunk with Aerith or find somewhere else to stay? "I've read somewhere that you cater to young women."

"Where did you read that?" Chloe asked Aerith, furrowing her brow as she glanced at the bed and breakfast's mission statement on the front desk. Weird for a bed and breakfast to have one of those.

"Trip Advisor." Aerith used Trip Advisor? Clearly, someone was doing their homework. Good on Aerith for thinking ahead.

Chloe: Trip Advisor is the lifeblood of the lodging industry. *pauses* Well, according to my boss, anyway. A couple of bad reviews there, you might as well close up shop. That's what took down the downtown inn. One of the cutest little lily gardens you'll ever see.

"How many are in your party?" Chloe asked Aerith as she was ready to put the flower girl's name down in the records book. Aerith seemed like a one-woman army, but it didn't hurt to ask.

"Two?" answered Aerith as she looked up at Cloud, not wanting to leave the swordsman behind. Especially if he had no definitive place to stay.

"We offer tours of the fields, and of the barn. Uh, perhaps you'll be interested in, um, our table-making demonstration? I don't blame you for making those faces, that doesn't sound fun to me either."


Little did Cloud and Aerith know that they weren't the only ones in Arcadia Bay. Also present in the seaside town were Fox and Falco, who were assigned by Master Hand to spy on Aerith a bit. The two pilots were perched on high ground, with Falco looking through his binoculars.

"Of all the places they chose, and they went with a bed and breakfast?" Falco voiced his displeasure, thoroughly disgusted with the decision that Cloud mostly had made. The avian pilot almost wanted to vomit. "Also, why are they so far away...?"

"Because you're looking through the binoculars the wrong way," Fox pointed out, as Falco saw that he was indeed looking through the binoculars incorrectly. Falco quickly remedied his mistake.

"Ha, I knew that...I was waiting for you to correct me." Now that he was looking through the binoculars the right way, Falco no longer looked like a doofus. "Much rather you than my girlfriend."

"Fox? Falco? What are you two doing back here?" a young woman approached Fox and Falco, as the former turned around and saw a familiar face. Falco, on the other hand, became afraid as he nearly dropped his binoculars.

"No, Katt, please! It's not what you...think." Falco soon turned around and saw his fear dissipate, as he and Fox were greeted by Max Caulfield. An aspiring photographer they met sometime in January.

"Well, I knew something was up when I saw those Arwings parked outside. Is that what you call them?" Like any aspiring photographer, Max was holding her camera in her hands.

"21st-century transportation, baby." Falco was now playing it cool, appearing composed to eliminate any belief from Max that he was scared. "So what brings you here?"

"I was just about to ask you guys the same thing! I've been zipping around town taking pictures to add to my portfolio. Wanna help me out?"

"No can do, Max - we're on a mission," replied Fox, as Max widened her eyes with intrigue - leaving Fox with no other choice but to elaborate further. "On a mission to save the world!"

"Starting with Arcadia Bay," Falco followed up on what Fox said, fortunate that Max was following along without barely questioning a thing. Fox and Falco had Max mostly wrapped around their fingers.

"You two gonna save the world?" Max asked the pilots, as her suspense of belief slowly trickled in; the more she thought about it, nothing about Fox and Falco screamed saviors of the world. "How do you plan on doing that?"

"We can't tell you all our secrets," replied Fox as he slowly made his descent from the high ground, trying to get away from Max before the young woman questioned him and Falco further. "Our actions will speak louder than words."

"Watch the skies..." Falco said to Max as he too made his descent...only to lose a step as he slipped and fell. The avian pilot tumbled to the ground and was left in a lot of pain at the end. "...I'm okay. Don't call 9-1-1."


Waluigi had stood in front of the door to the tower basement, anticipating a Chimera to break free. When nothing happened, Waluigi got bored and decided to just tape off the basement door with caution tape. He didn't know if it would hold off the Chimera forever, but it was worth a shot.

"This will make for an excellent fashion statement," said Waluigi as he applied the caution tape to his shirtless torso, getting all the crevices and unflattering birthmarks. He had many birthmarks, it was understandable why he didn't go shirtless that often.

"Your best bet is to ask either one of Peppy Hare or Slippy Toad to take you to the island," Marie discussed with Lloyd and Randy, as she and Callie entered the foyer speaking with the two men. Lloyd and Randy caught the attention of Waluigi, who stopped applying the caution tape.

"I would go with Peppy; Slippy will annoy you to death," Callie advised Lloyd and Randy, as she was looking out for their overall sanity. "Might even do it literally, I might add."

"Then Peppy Hare it is then," said Lloyd, making his final choice as he and Randy came to a stop in the foyer. Lloyd still had the attention of Waluigi, who was scratching his chin in thought.

"Are you guys new here?" Waluigi asked Lloyd and Randy, as he was always on the lookout for new residents. "We could really use some fresh blood!" Episode 300 highlighted how desperate Waluigi would sometimes get.

"We're not the new guys - we're just policemen who came over to ask something. You can call me Lloyd Bannings - and this is Randy, my right-hand man."

"I'm his right-hand man most of the time," Randy clarified to Waluigi, whose interest in Lloyd and Randy had gone through the roof. Especially after Lloyd mentioned that he and Randy were part of the police force.

"Policemen? Then you must be part of the Neuron Task Force!" exclaimed Waluigi, as Lloyd and Randy were understandably confused. Marie and Callie, on the other hand, were feeling second-hand embarrassment.

"Neuron Task Force?" Lloyd furrowed his brow, as he exchanged bewildered looks with Randy; Waluigi was super excited, as he pumped his fist in celebration.

"You guys sure came at the right time! There's a bunch of monsters we need you to kill." Waluigi tore the caution tape right off the basement door and brought Lloyd and Randy close to the entrance. "Go in there and kill them all!"

"What monsters? We only came to this city to..." Randy tried to tell Waluigi, only to be flung into the basement along with Lloyd. Waluigi closed the door and dusted off his hands, while the Squid Sisters were pinching the crown of their noses.

"Have no fear, Squid Sisters! Lloyd and Randy will dispatch those monsters in no time." Lloyd could be heard screaming from downstairs, and it was hard to tell if he was screaming in fear or in pain. "That's one heck of a war cry if I ever heard one."

Rosalina: According to Samus, the Neuron Task Force hasn't been here in three years. She said that the only ones who've had the most contact with them include Mario and their neighbors...and Master Hand. I'd hate for Master Hand to be a possible last resort, but if can somehow reach out to an undead knight in Astora and invite him to a Christmas party...

The doorbell rang, and Marie went to go answer it while Callie was still reeling from Waluigi's incompetence. Standing at the doorway were Elie and Tio - and their wolf companion, whom Tio had to save from terrorizing more mansion residents.

"No thanks, we're not interested in adopting," Marie said kindly to Elie and Tio as she was about to close on the two, only for Elie to stop her in the nick of time. Marie was one second away from raising her voice.

"We're not giving away our canine friend," Elie assured Marie, who had locked eyes with the wolf and felt slightly intimidated. "We're Elie and Tio of the Special Support Section. Mind if we come in?"

"Uh, sure...but make sure your pet wolf doesn't scratch me." Marie granted Elie, Tio, and the wolf access inside the tower, as the wolf was staring deep into the soul of anyone he laid his eyes on.

"Don't worry, Zeit isn't that feisty," assured Tio, embracing the wolf as she knelt down and rubbed her face against him. "Isn't that right, Zeit?" Zeit responded with a few barks, and Tio somehow understood what he meant. "Ooh! Zeit says he sees a very ugly human."

"A very ugly human? Who? Where?" questioned Waluigi as he looked to his left and right, unable to see this ugly human anywhere in sight. If only he knew. "Marie and Callie are Inklings, so they don't count."

"What are you trying to say?" Callie angrily asked Waluigi, getting all up in the lanky man's grill; Waluigi gulped nervously, fearing a massive paint onslaught heading in his way.

"Um, excuse us!" Elie shouted to the tower denizens in the lobby as she snapped her fingers, commanding everyone's attention. Callie backed off of Waluigi in an instant. "Have any one of you seen Lloyd Bannings or Randy Orlando?"

"This buffoon threw them into our basement." Callie pointed at Waluigi, who looked at Callie and clutched his pearls believing that he did nothing wrong. "Made them fight some dumb monsters."

"And you're gonna join them," Waluigi said to Elie and Tio as he was about to open the door to the basement, leaving the two ladies with little to no choice in the matter. "Step right this way..."

"How about no?" Callie stopped Waluigi from opening the door, thinking that Lloyd and Randy had things covered. She wasn't too confident in believing that, though. "Why don't you take your oddly taped-up body somewhere else?"

"This oddly taped-up body is a fashion statement, I'll have you know that..." Waluigi chose not to engage with Callie further, as he walked away strutting his stuff. The embarrassment that both Marie and Callie felt from Waluigi with their guests around could not be understated.


Wolf was in a bad mood after Zeit had attacked him, getting bite marks all over the mercenary's body. Wolf was walking through the hallway as he applied bandages to his wounds, later coming across Sonic, Crash, and Aku.

"Yikes, Wolf! You're looking pretty rough there," said Sonic, who was holding a Frisbee in his hands - he and Crash had played a game of Frisbee, where Crash showed off his...canine attributes.

"Got attacked by a wolf..." responded Wolf as he finished applying the bandages, double checking to make sure that his left wrist was properly bandaged. Now he moved on to the right wrist. "...wolf-on-wolf violence. Not ideal."

"I'll say. Sure doesn't beat hedgehog-on-hedgehog violence!" Sonic would know a thing or two about that, given the number of times Amy has bonked him on the head with her Piko Hammer. "Hey Wolf, you're still doing that matchmaking thing, right?"

"Only on brief occasion." Wolf didn't really dabble into his matchmaking affairs unless he had a client susceptible enough to be duped. Otherwise, it wouldn't be as fun. "Who's the lucky guy? Or gal?"

"It's Conker the Squirrel...so remember when I told you about his drinking habits?" Sonic mentioned Conker's drinking habits once to Wolf, during what was supposed to be a small chit-chat at Cafe Leblanc.

"Yeah, what about it? Has he finally acknowledged alcohol to be his one true love?" Wolf didn't have much experience pairing anyone with inanimate objects, so he was doubting his success.

"Well, I found out why he was drinking so much in the first place. Turns out he was depressed after breaking up with his girlfriend." That caught Wolf's full attention, as he now saw Conker as a client worthy of working with.

Wolf: Sonic has a lot of patience with Conker, what with Conker's alcoholism and everything. If I were him, I'd let Conker revel in his own problems until he hits rock bottom! That's what any bad friend would do - and I'm proud of being a bad friend. On that note, let me tell you where Pigma hides his secret stash of food. I promised him not to tell a soul!

"So what's the catch, you want me to reunite Conker with his ex?" Wolf asked Sonic, as Crash answered for Sonic by happily nodding his head. Crash would want nothing more than for Conker to receive his happy ending.

"Her name is Berri, and she's a chipmunk," Sonic provided some basic information to Wolf, providing the mercenary with something to work with. "We don't know what she's doing, or where she lives..."

"And you expect me to find out all of that and then some?" Wolf sighed, knowing that he was bound to have his work cut out for him. Didn't seem like he would get to do that much manipulation this time around. "The things that I do for love..."


Arcadia Bay Bed and Breakfast was more than just a lodge - it also came with a farm, with plenty of farmland to drive around in. Cloud was riding around the farmland on his motorcycle, with Aerith being his passenger.

"I can't believe this place is real," Cloud said to Aerith as he soaked in all the sights of the farm, spotting several farm animals fenced off. "I've heard about a beet farm in Oregon for years, but wow."

"The Beets Motel," said Aerith, citing the name of this beet motel; Cloud hoped that Aerith was just pulling his tail but for all that he knew Aerith could be deadly serious.

"The Beets Motel? That is, wow."

"Thank you. Eh. The Embassy Beets. Radishon!"

"How are you doing this?"

"I don't know!" Suddenly Aerith looked afraid, as a giant purple cat started running by the left side of Cloud's motorcycle. But it wasn't just any ordinary giant purple cat, mind you...

"Big the Cat?" a baffled Cloud asked the purple cat, as he and Aerith couldn't believe their eyes. Seconds later, Big was running on the other side of Cloud's motorcycle trying to keep up. "You're lodging at this bed and breakfast too?"

"That's my boss!" Chloe called out to Cloud and Aerith, who both wanted to believe that the young woman was lying. And apparently, she wasn't. "Say hello to Big the Cat."

"Who died and made him boss?" Cloud was asking Aerith this out of concern, as Aerith giggled as Big was now trailing behind Cloud's motorcycle.


Fox and Falco were on bed and breakfast grounds, as they were checking out the farmland. Much like Cloud, they too were shocked to learn that Big was in charge of the lodging establishment. Somehow.

"You think this is some kind of joke?" Fox asked Falco as the two pilots strolled through the corn fields; Falco was hoping to wind up at the Field of Dreams on the other side. Wherever that other side was.

"You're dang right this is a joke!" Falco agreed with Fox, as the displeasure on the avian pilot's face was palpable. "Where's the Field of Dreams at already?" The longer Falco walked, the more disappointed he grew.

"We're not in Iowa..." To Falco, it was a cruel joke to have the Field of Dreams in Iowa, a state that he deemed objectively boring. He'd even call Iowa boring to anyone living there. "...I was talking about Big running the bed and breakfast."

"Say cheese!" shouted Max as she emerged from the corn fields with her camera, scaring the pilots. The young woman snapped a picture of Fox and Falco, who were both hugging each other in fear. "Picture perfect, I'll say."

"Please burn that picture. It'll send the wrong message." But Max showed no signs of burning any picture, as she took the picture from her photo roll and added it to her collection.

"Yes, it will send the wrong message to my girlfriend," stated Falco, worried about how Katt might react to the photo. The avian pilot was wildly self-conscious when it came to his feline flame. "I prefer that you don't post it online."

"Too bad, it'll be on my online portfolio for your girlfriend to see," said Max as she walked away with a smile on her face, aware of how greatly incensed the pilots were with her. "Thanks for your cooperation, by the way."

Max: I have gotten plenty of comments online about Falco when I posted those pictures of him on my portfolio. The online commenters couldn't help but notice how...seductive he looked with his poses. Maybe the pictures I post of him today will paint him in a different light. Don't want anyone to get the wrong idea. *lightly snorts*


Wily was relaxing from all the hard work he had done in the basement, upgrading his universe transport machine. Thinking that the Neuron Task Force had arrived and were handling the Chimera, the robot inventor would stop by the basement to see how things were coming along.

"That black tea really does hit the spot," remarked Wily as he was a foot away from the basement door, with a cup of black tea in his hand. He took a sip and smiled with glee a second later. "Too bad the Black Knight was too chicken to give me the whole teapot."

Wily suddenly jumped back, as the basement door came crashing down. Lloyd and Randy fell through the doorway, as a Chimera grabbed Randy's leg and tried to pull the young man in.

"Lloyd, help me!" Randy shouted to the police officer, who came to Randy's rescue as he leaped to action. Lloyd fought off the Chimera with his tonfa, causing the monster to drop Randy.

"And stay out!" Lloyd shouted at the Chimera as he pushed it back inside the basement before slamming the door shut. The police officer then took Randy by the hand and helped his friend up to his feet. "You alright, Randy?"

"Would've been a goner if it weren't for you," Randy responded with a smile, with high certainty that the Chimera down in the basement would've devoured him, limb for limb. Those monsters did not mess around.

"Ah! You must be the Neuron Task Force," Wily said to Lloyd and Randy, as he pointed at the duo; Lloyd and Randy both looked confused, able to see that some miscommunication was afoot.

"We are NOT the Neutron Task Force," Lloyd corrected Wily, as he checked his body for any bruises or scrapes that the Chimera got on him. "We're the Special Support Section, and we have been asked to find Dimentio and arrest him."

"BLASPHEMY! Rosalina said that the Neuron Task Force would be here today." Wily was ready to pull on the hairs on his head, as he now had a major bone to pick with Rosalina. "Where is that woman?"

"Have you seen any...and he's gone," said Randy as he was about to ask Wily about Elie and Tio's whereabouts, only to watch the robot inventor storm out of the tower while also sipping his tea. Perhaps that black tea could soothe Wily's temper.

"You think that Elie and Tio are with the Squid Sisters?" Lloyd asked Randy, who saw no reason to think otherwise as he shrugged his shoulders. Lloyd and Randy were already at the Squid Sisters' digs.


Big was apparently the boss of Arcadia Bay Bed and Breakfast, and as the boss, it was his job to assign Cloud and Aerith to their room. The purple cat had the two in the lobby, with Cloud and Aerith sitting together on a couch.

"We have three rooms, each with a different theme," Big explained to Cloud and Aerith, as he had his clipboard and pen ready to go. Cloud was super untrusting of Big, as he kept a very close eye on him.

"What are the themes?" inquired Aerith; picking the right theme would make or break her and Cloud's experience at the bed and breakfast. Gotta make the right choice.

"American, Irrigation, and Night-Time." Those three choices didn't sound so bad to Aerith...for Cloud, not so much. He was going to let Aerith have this one.

"Irrigation." Irrigation was Aerith's final choice, and Big was satisfied with that choice as he happily wrote it down on his clipboard. Cloud didn't care.

"I'll put you down for Irrigation. Well then, do you have any special needs or dietary restrictions?"

"Yes; we will be requiring a bedtime story," Cloud made his request known to Big, interested in how the purple cat would respond. To his surprise, Big shook his head no. "Not even Harry Potter?"

"No. Cloud, come on."

"But you promised."

"Chloe, bags. Now!"


While Lloyd and Randy were probably speaking with the Squid Sisters right now, the trio of Elie, Tio, and Zeit returned to the mansion. There they spoke with Peppy and Slippy in their bedroom, hoping that either pilot could fly them to Dimentio's hideout.

"Who's a good doggy? You're a good doggy!" Slippy said to Zeit as he gently petted the wolf, while Tio oversaw the frog. Wouldn't want Slippy to do something to Zeit that he shouldn't - like holding his snout, for instance.

"Woof, woof!" barked Zeit, likely trying to tell Slippy to stop petting him - but that only encouraged Slippy to pet the wolf even harder. Didn't help that Slippy was petting Zeit's back in the wrong direction.

"Zeit says that he doesn't like you that much," Tio translated Zeit's barks to Slippy, who appeared despondent at first but then gave Zeit a hug just to give him a change of heart. Zeit was growling. "Now he says that he wants to kill you..."

"I could take you all in the Landmaster," Peppy offered to Elie and Tio, more than happy to take the two ladies (and Zeit) to Dimentio's island. The hare loved doing favors for others. "Since I have little room in my Arwing."

"Great! So that means you can take us, right?" Elie asked Peppy, smiling with his hands close together; Peppy lowered his head, making his answer painfully obvious to Elie and Tio.

"Thing is, I can't operate the Landmaster without Fox or Falco's permission. They're in Arcadia Bay; I've called them multiple times, but they keep going straight to voicemail!"

Peppy: Fox's voicemail isn't so bad, but Falco's...it leaves me with a lot of questions. Let me play it for you. *calls Falco's phone, waits as the dial tone rings* Give it a moment...
Falco: *voice coming from Peppy's phone* What up, world? It's Falco Lombardi. The real Lombardi, not the guy they named the Super Bowl trophy after. If you wanna leave a message, then go ahead; if you're Katt Monroe, then you better text me soon, babe. Don't play hard to get with your boy. Aight, peace.
Peppy: *ends call* Why do I feel like Falco is so unconfident when it comes to Katt?

"You can try calling them now," Elie said to Peppy, believing that Fox and Falco weren't busy. So Peppy took a crack at it as he whipped out his phone and gave Fox a call.

"Let's see if Fox will answer..." said Peppy after pulling up Fox's number and pressing the call button. The hare waited around for seven seconds, and after those seven seconds were up he ended the call. "...nope, they didn't answer."

"'They'? Aren't you going to call Falco next?" Elie grew upset as Peppy put his phone away, seeing that calling Falco wasn't worth the time or effort. For Peppy, it was Fox or bust.

"No point in doing so. If Fox doesn't answer my call, then neither will Falco. That's the way the cookie crumbles." Peppy wasn't being stubborn, in his opinion - he just didn't want to waste Elie and Tio's time.

"Maybe Falco will respond to me," said Slippy as he took out his phone, with Zeit relieved that Slippy was no longer touching him. "I can give Falco a call!"

"No thank you," Peppy, Elie, and Tio (and probably Zeit as well) all said in unison, as Slippy moped and put his phone away. Elie and Tio knew better than to trust Slippy...the Squid Sisters taught them well.


After Chloe got Cloud and Aerith's bags (they didn't bring that much stuff, honestly), it was time for Big to show them their room. Big brought the two to the irrigation room, as he brought their stuff inside.

"Here we are, the Irrigation Room!" Big announced as he led Cloud and Aerith inside their room, which was very old-fashioned and old-timey. Even lived up to its name, as it had pipes everywhere. "A very special room. So I'll come to get you before the table-making demonstration. And as of this morning, we are completely wireless here. But as soon as I find out where Chloe hid all the wires, we'll get that power back on. All righty!"

So Big closed the door, as he allowed Cloud and Aerith to enjoy their room. Aerith sat on her bed, while Cloud was checking out the pipes from the ceiling.

"Mm..." said Aerith, testing out her bed as she was bouncing on it a little bit. Based on her little test, the bed seemed sturdy enough to support her.

"Hmmm, I'd say one in six," Cloud said to Aerith, who crinkled her nose at the swordsman. Cloud sounded oddly confident when he said that. "Oh, I thought you asked me what our chances were of being murdered here tonight."

Cloud: You know, I've just realized, this is Aerith's and my first night away together. I use to play it over my head, and it was just a little bit different. Maybe a, uh, nice hotel. Or a romantic dinner. Wine...uh but, a wine that wasn't made out of leeks. Didn't think Big would be involved at all. And uh, I always imagined less manure. I mean, some manure, just...less.
Big: *in the background* Chloe, what are you doing? No, Chloe! Put the...put the manure down! Put it down! Do not throw it! DO NOT THROW IT! Ouchie!
Chloe: *throws manure at Big* C'mon, Big, fight back! *chuckles*


One way to find out what somebody was up to was by looking them up on social media, such as Facebook. Wolf was in the computer room with Sonic, Crash, and Aku, looking for any sign of Conker's ex-girlfriend Berri.

"All these women look like tramps with a pretty face," observed Wolf as he was scrolling through a page full of Facebook profiles. Since Berri had no last name, Wolf just typed her name in the search box and feared for the worst.

"What if this is all for naught?" pondered Aku, presenting this worst-case scenario to Wolf and company at the worst possible time. "What if Berri doesn't even have a Facebook page?"

"You really want to ask this now?" Wolf felt like taking Aku and smashing him against the computer until the floating mask was nothing more than just a small piece of wood. "Save the cynicism for later."

"I dunno, Wolf, maybe Aku has a point," Sonic said to the mercenary, who was nearly done with life as he facepalmed. Nobody was on Wolf's side, it seemed. "We should've just asked Conker where his girlfriend lives."

"That's what you should have done already..." Wolf ran his hand down his face, withholding the urge to strangle both Sonic and Crash. "...but thanks for wasting my time." Crash patted Wolf on his shoulder, and Wolf swatted Crash's hand away. "I was being sarcastic, Crash."


It was lunchtime for Cloud and Aerith, but due to the establishment they were staying at, their lunch was mainly breakfast. The two sat at a table while their breakfast was served by Big.

"Thank you, Big," Aerith thanked the purple cat, who was serving crispy-fried bacon to his patrons. Nothing better than perfectly-cooked bacon in the morning...or in the noontime.

"Everybody poops," Big randomly stated as he cleared his throat, believing that this important information deserved to be shared. Cloud felt awkward as he had a blank stare on his face.

"Yes, they do," stated Cloud, unable to think of anything to contribute to the conversation. Big's profound statement left quite a mark on him.

"There's no other...way to get rid of the food."

"Where's Chloe?"

"Gone. But only for a minute, though."

"Where'd she go?"

"Her day place." On that note, Big casually walked away, leaving Cloud and Aerith baffled by his lack of control over his lone employee.


Fox and Falco had lost track of Max, which was a good thing for them since Max couldn't snap unflattering photos of them. But as the pilots traversed the plentiful farm fields, they heard some giggling nearby.

"I hear it coming from over there," Fox said to Falco as he pointed at a garden shed, which had the door creaked open. The pilots went to the shed and took a peek inside, catching Max sitting on the floor with Chloe and showing her the pictures she took.

"Here's one of Fox scratching his butt," Max said to Chloe as she showed her friend the picture in question; Chloe had to stifle her laughter as she covered her mouth and looked away. "Him bending over really adds to the shot."

Fox: She really took a picture of me scratching my butt. That chick has no class whatsoever.

"Give me that!" Fox said to Max as he snatched the picture out of her hand, before threatening to rip the photo into shreds. Before the pilot would get the first tear in, Chloe stood up and tried to look all intimidating.

"You were saying something?" Chloe asked Fox, who did the right thing as he handed the picture back to Max. Getting sucker punched by Chloe would be a bad look for Fox. "That's what I thought..."

"I promise not to post this on my online portfolio," Max promised to Fox...while holding her fingers crossed behind her back. Chloe saw Max's fingers crossed as she sat back down and lightly snickered.

"You better not," Fox pointed at Max, and Falco did the same as he and Fox backed out of the garden shed. Once the pilots were gone, Max returned to showing Chloe the photos she had taken.

"Is that him trying to drink out of a water fountain?" a laughing Chloe asked Max, who was showing a picture of Falco drinking out of a water fountain. Based on how Falco looked, Chloe should put a bit more emphasis on the word "trying".


Lloyd and Randy were on a wild goose chase, as they had to be reunited with their comrades Elie and Tio. They spoke with the Squid Sisters, who told them that their friends went to the mansion to speak with Peppy. (Neither Inkling dared to mention Slippy.) But when Lloyd and Randy spoke with Peppy at the old hare's room...

"What do you mean, they already left?" Lloyd asked Peppy, as he was growing frustrated by the minute. The police officer was afraid that Elie and Tio might've left for Dimentio's island without him and Randy!

"They're looking for any flight mode of transportation," explained Peppy, doing nothing but adding more fuel to Lloyd's growing fears. The mission may never be completed at this rate. "I told them to speak with Captain Falcon."

"Peppy, I'm starting to think that I'm allergic to wolves..." Slippy said to the hare, before letting out a big sneeze. Peppy flat-out ignored Slippy, and so did Lloyd and Randy, who were slowly learning.

"Take us to Captain Falcon!" Randy demanded to Peppy; he wanted to get the mission over with so that he could take his precious nap.

"Okay, I will! You could've asked nicely..." responded Peppy as he led Lloyd and Randy away. Slippy was left alone, as he let out another big sneeze.


Once they were done with their lunch, Cloud and Aerith were chilling outside and enjoying the sun. The two were sitting on a bench, Chloe was in a rocking chair, and Big...was bouncing on a trampoline.

"Cannonball! Lemon bomb!" exclaimed Big, bouncing up and down on the trampoline as he felt like Froggy. Also felt like a little kid again. "Cloud, Aerith, watch! Cloud, Aerith, watch! Cloud, Aerith, watch!"

"Okay, we're watching, Big!" shouted Aerith, as she and Cloud gave Big their uninvited attention. It was time for Big to deliver the big finale.

"Okay, go Dodgers!" Big did one big bounce, as he expressed his support for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He might've legitimately jinxed that team from winning the World Series this year. "I'm a war hero!"

"You're doing great, buddy!" Cloud commended Big for his efforts, as he and Aerith were now looking away. They gave Big enough attention.

"Name's Big the Cat, buddy! Chloe, should I stop? They're not even looking."

"Yeah, go ahead and stop," Chloe suggested to Big, who was bouncing away without barely even losing his breath. Big was an absolute pro. "You guys, you should really be looking, he's working his butt off over here.

"I'm sorry, did we or did we not pay for a show?" Cloud said to Chloe, as he put the young woman in her place. Chloe had nothing to argue against that.

"Okay, go ahead, they're right." And so the show went on, as Big had to really impressed if he wanted to regain Cloud and Aerith's attention.

"Large spins!" exclaimed Big as he performed a big spin while bouncing on the trampoline. It was a miracle that the trampoline hadn't collapsed yet.

"More spins," demanded Cloud, who still wasn't watching Big bounce to his heart's content; that meant Big had to keep stepping up his game.

"Helicopter!" Big did an even bigger spin than before, this time almost making himself dizzy. But if it was to gain Cloud's attention - and some of his respect - then the dizziness was surely worth it.


Wolf was scouring for Berri on Facebook, and he had no luck so far in finding the chipmunk. He had glossed over every profile that had Berri's name in it and was still left with goose eggs.

"Try typing in 'Berri the Chipmunk,'" Aku suggested to Wolf, who thought against the idea as he kept on searching. Aku had been tuned out by Wolf too many times to count.

"Anyone who uses their species as a last name is an idiot," stated Wolf, as Sonic gave the mercenary an offended look. Wolf didn't take back his statement, despite how Sonic felt. "I meant what I said..."

"What are you doing sitting in my seat?" a certain bounty hunter asked Wolf, who stopped what he was doing as he slowly turned around and saw Samus. Sonic and Crash also saw Samus and were understandably afraid.

"I was...trying to find Conker's ex on Facebook," Wolf explained to Samus, willing to move out of the chair if it meant saving himself from a knuckle sandwich. "Not that I'm interested in her or anything."

"We think that Conker was drinking so much because of his breakup," Sonic informed Samus, who recalled how Conker was acting at that tailgate party. She figured that the squirrel was showing signs of withdrawal, but never said a peep.

"Want to reconnect Conker with his ex? I might look into it," said Samus, before taking Wolf and shoving him to the floor. Wolf landed on the floor face-first with a thud, as Samus took her seat.

"Much appreciated, Samus..." Wolf said to the bounty hunter, his voice muffled as he was lying on the floor. He'd happily let take Samus to take over the reins.

Samus: I may not be much of a caring person, but I do know a personal trainwreck when I see one. And Conker is one trainwreck that I never want to see go off the rails. Doubt that a simple breakup could make anyone drink that much...obviously something more than that happened between Conker and his ex.


Lloyd, Randy, and Peppy had caught up with Elie, Tio, and Zeit, who were outside with Captain Falcon. Captain Falcon was revving up his Falcon Flyer, after agreeing to fly the Special Support Section to Dimentio's hideout.

"Nice work securing a ride for us," Lloyd commended Elie and Tio, as Captain Falcon was pouring some fuel into his Falcon Flyer. The Special Support Section's best bet now was flying in the Falcon Flyer and hoping to reach Dimentio soon.

"It's the only ride that will have enough room for all of us," stated Elie, happy that Captain Falcon came through - anyone other than Slippy.

"Alright, just need one more fuel tank," Captain Falcon said to the Special Support Section after tossing an empty fuel tank away, before grabbing the last full fuel tank available. "Then we'll be good to go..."

"WHAT?! You guys haven't left yet?" boomed Master Hand, showing up outside along with Link and Zelda. His loud voice was enough to spook Captain Falcon and make him drop the fuel tank, wasting its contents on the ground.

"Dang it, Master Hand! That was my last fuel tank." Captain Falcon could only seethe as the fuel tank was lying on the ground nearly empty, the contents leaking out and getting all over the soil. "How am I gonna fly these four now?"

"Don't you have enough fuel already?" Link asked Captain Falcon, as he saw a pile of empty fuel tanks next to the Falcon Flyer. Captain Falcon grabbed a fuel tank from the pile and angrily spiked it to the ground.

"You know Falcon can't stand to drive his Flyer when it's not on a full tank," Zelda informed Link, failing to understand Captain Falcon's logic. Suddenly, Kapp'n was flung out of a window in a tower, drawing everyone's attention.

"I'm okay!" Kapp'n assured those looking at him, as he got up and dusted himself off. The turtle casually walked away from the tower, as Link and Zelda exchanged looks with one another.


While in their room, Cloud and Aerith heard a loud noise coming from upstairs. Given where they were staying, and who was in charge, they had every right to be genuinely worried.

"Wait, you're going up there?" Cloud asked Aerith, who was bravely going up the stairs to investigate. The noise was a thudding sound, and Aerith was still curious as to what was going on.

"Yeah, coward," Aerith playfully responded as she went up the stairs, before taking a look outside through the window. The flower girl saw Big sitting in an outhouse, on a toilet, as the wind beat against the outhouse door. "Oh my...what century is this?"


Rosalina: Much to my surprise, Master Hand has no way of contacting the Neuron Task Force. Said that he would call their leader on his iPod, but he gave up after attempting multiple times. Is calling somebody on their iPod even possible? But anyway, I chatted with Mario, and he suggested bringing forth the Neuron Task Force with the teleportation device. Why didn't I think of that before?

Rosalina was with Mario in the teleportation room, overseeing Bass as he was using the teleportation device to summon the Neuron Task Force. All Mario told Bass was that the Task Force resided in the Ark, and...that was pretty much it.

"No clue who this Neuron Task Force is, but I'll just pretend that I know what I'm doing..." Bass muttered to himself as he keyed in the coordinates, not caring in the slightest if he was keying the right ones. Mario heard his phone ring, as he answered the call.

"Hello, Waluigi?" Mario spoke into the phone, receiving a rare phone call from the unofficial man of the tower. If Waluigi was calling Mario, then something major was taking place at the Assist Tower.

"Mario, HELP! These monsters are beating me up!" Waluigi was heard screaming, with monstrous sounds heard in the background. The lanky man was screaming for mercy. "Thought that my shirtless body would scare them off, but..."

"Clearly you thought-a wrong." Mario turned his attention to Rosalina, as Waluigi's loud cries for his mom came from his phone. "Looks like the Chimera broke-a out of the basement."

"Hurry it up, Bass!" Rosalina shouted to the robot, putting some extra pressure on his shoulders. But Bass felt no pressure whatsoever, as he was totally phoning it in on his job.


The Chimera got out of the basement at the tower, and many of them were in the lobby terrorizing the denizens. Link and Zelda entered the tower lobby, where they saw the likes of Waluigi, Skull Kid, and Bomberman being attacked by the Chimera.

"Stop biting my head, I'm not that tasty!" Shovel Knight shouted at a gorilla-like Chimera, who was trying to bite off the knight's head with its sharp teeth. "I've tasted myself, so I would know..."

"You what?" Skull Kid questioned Shovel Knight, as a Chimera had him pinned to the floor; Link and Zelda both watched the violence unfold, as the Special Support Section joined them at the doorway.

"Now they know what we have been through," commented Randy, amused by the sight of a Chimera dragging Waluigi across the floor. Link took out his Master Sword, while Zelda too got on the offensive. "You seriously aren't going to fight them, are you?"

"Somebody's gotta do it..." replied Link, seeing that none of the tower denizens were up to the task. The Hylian and his wife jumped into the fray, attacking the Chimera with all their might.

"Ha, your loss," chuckled Lloyd as he was about to turn back...only for Elie and Tio to whip out their weapons. Zeit was in a fighting mood as well, as he was growling intensely. "Really, guys?"

"He said somebody's got to do it," Elie said to Lloyd, giving the police officer a smile charming enough to make him consider. "At least you'll have us!" Lloyd heaved a sigh, as he and Randy whipped out their weapons.

"Guess we'll never get to arrest Dimentio at this rate..." The Special Support Section joined Link and Zelda in their efforts, as they fought off the Chimera. Captain Falcon, not wanting to be left out, entered the tower.

"Hey, wait up for me!" Captain Falcon shouted as he hopped in on the action, with a few Falcon PUnches saved for the Chimera. And maybe even a few Falcon Kicks, if needed.


Dusk was slowly approaching Arcadia Bay, and Cloud didn't know how much more he could take of the bed and breakfast lodge. The swordsman desired to take Aerith somewhere else, and so he spoke with big near the front desk.

"Mm..." moaned Big, who was on the couch taking a nap. Most likely having a dream about going fishing, or being with Froggy. Or both. Cloud poked Big multiple times just to wake him up.

"Did I ever tell you why I'm in Arcadia Bay?" Cloud asked Big as he leaned in close to the purple cat, who was stirring from his slumber as he rubbed his eyes.

"No, you didn't." Big was mumbling incoherently, as it took him a few moments to bring himself back to reality. Soon enough, he was fully awake.

"Yeah, I didn't think I had. Well, it was all about Aerith. Organization XIII might be back soon, and Master Hand panicked, so he had me accompany Aerith to this town. Since he thinks the Organization might be after her."

"So are you like her bodyguard? Her knight in shining armor? Her prince charming? I can go on, you know."

"Bodyguard...that's the best way to describe it, I guess. But anyway, I just realized that Master Hand doesn't want us to stay together."

"Aw, does that mean you have to leave soon? I was really enjoying your guys' company. Especially with Chloe being...well, Chloe."

"Yeah, that's what he told me before we left. He didn't want us playing house, so to speak. So I have to find a temporary home for..."

"It's okay, I understand." Big got up from the couch and wrapped his arms around Cloud, embracing him in a hug. Cloud felt awkward as his eyes were darting left and right. "Go where your heart takes you."

"Thanks for the advice, buddy...I mean, Big the Cat." Hearing Cloud correcting himself made Big smile, as he tightened his hold on the swordsman. "Now can you please let go already?"


With Captain Falcon fighting the Chimera, his Falcon Flyer was for the most part left unattended. That meant anyone could hijack the vehicle - or even destroy it outright! One Gnorc who crept unto the mansion premises had the latter idea in mind, as Gnasty Gnorc was snooping around.

"Why hello there precious..." Gnasty smiled when his eyes fell upon the Falcon Flyer, as he rubbed his hands together evilly. The Gnorc tiptoed over to the Flyer, getting a good closer look.

Gnasty: Dimentio and his boys want me to prove my worth to them, and so I'll do just that my terrorizing the mansion! My last attempt didn't turn out as expected, but as long as that stupid dragon stays out of my way, I should be good. *nods his head* I should be good...

"Such a nice aircraft," remarked Gnasty as he was gently stroking the hood of the Falcon Flyer, before getting down to business as he wielded his hammer. The Gnorc held his weapon up high. "All the merrier to..."

"Aha! This oughta do the trick," said a nearby Wily, as Gnasty put his hammer away and ducked behind the Falcon Flyer. Peeking from behind the vehicle, Gnasty saw Wily walk by while working on his remote with a screwdriver. That remote was the one Wily used for the universe transport machine.

"Hmm, which would prove my worth more? Vehicle assault, or elderly abuse?" Gnasty mulled over his choices, as both options were tantalizing to him. Long as he got to use his hammer, Gnasty didn't mind either one.

"Eureka!" Wily was all done, putting his screwdriver away as he held up his remote like it was a prized possession. "Now, with one press of a button, I can send any miscreant back to their universe."

"One press of a button?!" Gnasty had now made up his mind, as he feared Wily sending him back to the Dragon Realms with those dragons. Elderly abuse it was, as Gnasty wielded his hammer and confronted Wily.

"Time to see if it will actually work." Before Wily had the chance to press the button, the robot inventor was ambushed by Gnasty. Gnasty sent Wily to the ground, putting all his body weight on top of him.

"Hand me that remote!" Gnasty reached for the remote, which Wily held out of the Gnorc's grasp. The Gnorc grabbed Wily's face in an effort to make him drop the remote at once.

"You'll never have it! Nyuh!" Wily threw the remote away, as it landed a fair distance away from Gnasty. It was still in reaching distance, as Gnasty got off of Wily and crept slowly to the device.

"Come to papa..." Just when Gnasty was about to reach the remote and grab it, a purple dragon beat him to the punch...Spyro the Dragon. "...dang it! Knew I should've crept faster."

"Were you looking for this?" Spyro asked Gnasty as he picked up the remote, rueing the fact that he had to see Gnasty's face again. "Don't think that I didn't see you through the window, Gnasty."

Spyro: No joke, Gnasty stopped by the mansion like three times this week, trying to get in. All while wearing the worst costumes possible, no less. His costumes were so laughable and see-through, that even Team Rocket was laughing at him.

"Spyro, please don't press that button!" Gnasty begged as he held his hand out to the purple dragon, who was taking a gander at the remote wondering what it does. "It will send me back to the Dragon Realms..."

"Oh really?" asked Spyro, who was especially tempted to press the button after hearing what Gnasty had just said. "You'd rather let the dragons back home kick your butt rather than me?"

"Hurry, they're gaining on us!" Lloyd shouted to Elie, holding the young woman by the hand as he, Elie, and Zeit ran out of the tower. They were being chased by a horde of Chimera, who had the trio cornered at the Falcon Flyer.

"Spyro, quickly! Mash that button!" Wily commanded the purple dragon, as Zeit was keeping the Chimera away from Lloyd and Elie by barking at them. Gnasty looked toward Spyro, dissuading him by shaking his head.

"Whatever you say, doc..." replied Spyro as he put the remote on the ground and pressed the button with just his paw. Soon a giant ring appeared around the Chimera...

...and the Chimera instantly disappeared, as they were likely sent back to the astral plane. Gnasty, who flinched when Spyro pressed the button, opened his eyes and saw that he was still intact.

"I'm here...I'm still here..." the Gnorc marveled as he looked at his hands, before laughing delightfully as he felt his face and body all over. Spyro was cringing oh so much. "...forget you, Dragon Realms!"

"Haha! It worked to perfection!" gleamed Wily as he hopped up for joy; the robot inventor ran to his remote and picked it up, kissing it like a newborn baby.

"The rumors were right...you do have issues," Spyro said to Wily, as he walked away from the robot inventor...but not before turning his attention to Gnasty, as he looked to send the Gnorc packing.

"Uh...I should be going now!" Gnasty said to Spyro, looking to make a run for it before Spyro inevitably kicked his butt. But as he tried to make his getaway, Gnasty ran into Lloyd, Elie, and Zeit.

"Going somewhere?" Lloyd asked Gnasty as he had his tonfa pointed at the Gnorc, stopping him in his tracks. "We might have enough in us to beat up another ugly monster."

"Who are you calling ugly?" Gnasty glared at Lloyd as he wielded his hammer, refusing to let the police officer intimidate him. "I'll have you know that..."

"Ooh, I know what he wants to tell you," Wily said to Lloyd, as he was ready to burst Gnasty's bubble. "He wanted to say that he's a close ally of Dimentio!" That got Lloyd even more determined to lay a beating on Gnasty's behind.

"Is that so?" Lloyd asked the nervous-looking Gnasty, as he dug something out of his pocket. "Then you must know where Dimentio is hiding on this map!" The object that Lloyd pulled out was the map that was given to him, and he tossed it in Gnasty's face. "Get him, Zeit!"

"Woof woof!" barked Zeit, taking advantage of Gnasty while the Gnorc was blinded by the map. The wolf tackled Gnasty to the ground and was biting away until Gnasty threw him off.

"You were right about the map being handy," Elie said to Lloyd, who smiled as Zeit barked and chased Gnasty away from the mansion grounds. Zeit stopped at the side of the road barking until Gnasty was out of sight, as Spyro later joined him at the roadside.

"And stay..." Spyro was about to yell at the retreating Gnasty, before saving his breath as he walked away. "...eh, what's even the point?"


Following his conversation with Big, Cloud was ready to check him and Aerith out of their room. The two entered the lobby with their belongings, and they approached Chloe at the front desk.

"We're ready to check out," Cloud said to Chloe, who couldn't be bothered right now as she was noodling around on her phone. Chloe paused her game as she looked up at Cloud and Aerith. "Have you checked Trip Advisor recently?"

"Nope," answered Chloe as she pulled out the records book and checked off Cloud and Aerith's names. "Maybe I will, on my lunch break or something."

Aerith: We wrote a good review. Under comments, we wrote, the natural aroma of the beets drifts into the bedroom and makes you dream of simpler times.
Cloud: The dawn goose walk will tug at your heartstrings.
Aerith: Table making never seemed so possible.
Cloud: You will never want to leave your room.
Aerith: The architecture reminds me of a quaint leek farm.

"I'm glad you enjoyed your stay," Big said to Cloud and Aerith as he stood at the bed and breakfast entrance, waving to the two. A part of him wished that he had Froggy with him so that his amphibian friend could also wave.

"We really did; it was fun," Aerith said to Big before she and Cloud left the Arcadia Bay Bed and Breakfast for good. Even after his guests were gone, Big was still waving, through the window.


Thanks to Wily's handy remote, the tower was now free of the Chimera. Link and Zelda inspected the tower for any possible damages and convened with the Special Support Section in the lobby once they were done.

"Sorry you couldn't get the chance to arrest Dimentio," Link apologized to the Special Support Section - not that the Hylian had any confidence that Lloyd and his comrades could even arrest Dimentio. Dimentio would easily refuse to go out like that.

"At least we got to scare off one of his cronies," responded Lloyd as he looked down at Zeit, who was being embraced by Tio. The bond that Tio had with Zeit was almost unbreakable.

"You're such a good boy!" Tio said to Zeit, who was returning the favor as he embraced the young girl by rubbing his head against her. "You'll get another chance at that green goblin soon!"

"That was a 'Gnorc', Tio...or so I've been told." Still figuring out what a Gnorc exactly was, Lloyd returned his attention to Link and Zelda. "...if Dimentio ever gives you any problems, tell Master Hand to let us know."

"Some bad-a news, you guys," said Mario as he arrived at the lobby, hating to be the bearer of bad news. "Bass threw an angry fit and-a was unable to..." The plumber stopped speaking, seeing that everything was in one peace.

"It's all good, Mario," Wily assured the plumber as he emerged from the basement, holding his remote in his hand. He might have that remote in his hand until midnight. "My remote here fixed the mess that I have created with my machine."

"That's-a good!" If Mario had relied on Bass to summon the Neuron Task Force, the tower would've been left in smithereens. "Maybe you won't make that mess-a again if you reconsider working with..."

"NEVER!" Wily hissed at Mario, knowing who the plumber was about to mention as he returned to the basement. Wily slammed the door behind him, letting the others know how he felt.

"Don't mind him - it's possible that he might have dementia," Zelda told the Special Support Section, providing a cover for what was really going on with Wily.


Aerith hadn't left the grounds of the Arcadia Bay Bed and Breakfast yet, as she stood in front of the lodge admiring it one last time. Cloud was a far-off distance, likely lost in his own thoughts. Once he came back to reality, though, the swordsman returned to Aerith.

"Hey, I was thinking about dinner..." Cloud said to Aerith, only to be caught completely off-guard when Cloud grabbed her face and kissed her. Once the kiss was over, Aerith was looking at Cloud all starry-eyed.

"Ah, dinner. Maybe we should try the new Italian place, with the drive-in," Cloud suggested to Aerith, totally aware of how shocked beyond words the flower girl was. That kiss took a hold of Aerith, and it left her with a feeling of wanting more.

"Okay."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah."

"Okay."

So Cloud and Aerith walked away from the Arcadia Bay Bed and Breakfast, with Cloud wrapping his arm around Aerith. Big watched the two from inside the bed and breakfast, before closing them when he saw the camera crew recording him in broad daylight. You're not fooling anyone, Mr. Big.

Aerith: Cloud's just really passionate about Italian food.

Cloud: Yup, I'm very passionate about Italian food. In fact, um, I'm in love with Italian food.


Fox and Falco could not believe it...they saw Cloud kiss Aerith, straight-up! And the pilots had front-row seats of the action, too, as they were down the street when the kiss happened. It was a moment that would be ingrained in their minds forever...or for at least a couple of weeks or so.

"Did you catch that, Max?" Fox asked the young woman, hoping that she took a picture of Cloud kissing Aerith. Max was busy looking through her photo roll when she heard Fox speaking to her.

"What's the big deal? It was just a kiss," replied Max, downplaying the event that had occurred; Fox looked at Max in pure disbelief, while Falco was shaking his head in dismay at the young woman.

"You just don't get it, do you?" Falco said to Max as he distanced himself from the young woman, getting up and walking away. Fox would follow soon, as he was still staring at Max.

"What, did you want me to take a picture of them or something?" Max chased after the pilots, who quickly picked up the pace. The young woman could do a do-over.

But Cloud kissing Aerith was...quite the interesting development.