Chapter Forty-Four:

Master Hand's Intervention

In the Smash Sub-Space, outside reality proper, Master Hand meditated, composing himself and gathering his thoughts and power. To wield the abilities he had, and to host the Super Smash Brothers events, it was important for the likes of Master Hand to be well-focused.

The large, sentient white-gloved entity felt peace, and tranquility in these precious moments. He hadn't been worried about anything in a long time, even as he recalled the moments Waluigi had begged to be made a fighter in Smash. The lanky Wario Brother had been persistent during his 'visits', but Master Hand hadn't seen him for some time.

For a moment, he wanted to assume Waluigi was thinking of a way to persuade him, but perhaps the Wah-Man got the message and chose to accept his status as an Assist Fighter...

Master Hand felt a cold tingle in his knuckle, and that was when he was struck with the feeling that terrible events were afoot. His meditation shifted, and the Smash host sensed it; Waluigi unleashing his powers on the inhabitants of the Mushroom Kingdom, and people were in grave danger.

And this was because of him, because of Master Hand turning him away.

However, since the day Waluigi had displayed his newfound power and briefly lost it after being accepted as a Smash fighter, the all-powerful Master Hand never forgot the power that the lanky Italian now possessed. Even from a distance, he'd sensed him using that power in many unimaginable ways.

Now, Waluigi hadn't just hit his peak, but he was crossing the line, and the world was in terrible, terrible danger unless someone acted.

"This is not acceptable." Master Hand said, and he warped himself out of the Sub-Space, ready to confront the godlike Waluigi before the whole world was consumed by his power, and he knew where to find him.

Every moment spent standing motionless, consumed by feelings of helplessness, and unable to think properly, was a nightmare.

This was how it felt for you right now.

To be still as a statue, only moving when compelled to move, to be a T-Posing husk once full of life, once known as Meggy Spletzer.

The arms you had, which you used to throw Splat-Bombs, and wield Splattershots, now ridged as they were held out like airplane wings. Your legs, which could bend when you walked, felt like they were ice, while your feet felt like they were glued and rooted to the floor.

You had no idea what would be next, but you weren't alone.

Others surrounded you, once living beings like you, and all you could hear was silence. Nobody around you talked, nobody offered comfort, and nobody tried to help. The room that was a convention hall was like a haunted warehouse, devoid of life, even with trash that lay on the floor.

How long it has been since you became trapped like this, time didn't matter. The concept of time hardly mattered to those around you. You knew nothing of human value, just as you didn't know how to find a way out of the situation unless something came up.

All you knew, all that you could feel, was loneliness, and fear, and pain.

You had no control over your body, as if you had been frozen in the iciest of depths for all of eternity, and your own mouth felt as if it had been sewn shut. Combine that with the feeling as if your vocal cords had been removed, your ability to speak was lost, and maybe that was another reason why you couldn't scream.

In such a frightening moment, you wanted to feel for your heartbeat, but not only were you motionless, you couldn't hear the sound of your heart thumping beneath your ribs.

Perhaps you would never know any form of humanity again, you would never fulfill your dreams.

Maybe you would eventually forget your whole life, from the day you met Oneshot Wren to the first time you played Turf War to the moment you met Mario that changed your life forever. Your eyes were open, but even as you could see, your eyes have no movement. It wasn't you that was seeing, it was the mushroom that made you this way.

Waluigi floated above on his throne that he created with the power of his staff, observing you and the others. You didn't look up, but you could see he was there. You could see his shadow, and he floated down so you and the others could see him.

Had you never taken the mushroom, you would have been compelled to oppose him, to fight against his terror. And yet, under the curse that had been inflicted upon you, you were compelled to answer to him. Whether you were to stand here or go out and infect other people, you were now Waluigi's toy.

You couldn't escape your new life, even if you desired to do so. This was your new destiny, to serve as a T-Posing soldier.

There wasn't any waking up from this bad dream, for the spell was too strong, and all you could do was live out the nightmare. Just be thankful you weren't destroyed by the Wah-Man, but all free will was removed from you by the mushroom, and you can no longer think for yourself. This was the pain you had been feeling the second you became one of them.

Tari's lungs felt slightly constricted after spending a while in that bin full of items, and she was lucky that she didn't wind up losing her fake Master Sword or her Link hat. Her digging ended up being worth it the second she got her hands on a special rubber duck with a wizard-themed hat.

With slight fangirl mode compelling her, the cyborg gamer dug her way out of the bin until she was at the top, allowing her to see the convention hall again as fresh air finally swept into her nostrils.

"Ooh..." She remarked, "Well, that took forever. But I found it..." Tari held up the rubber duck she'd obtained, "A rare duck wizard, and it's 50% off!"

And that was when she noticed the lack of daylight, and there weren't that many people around the booths. Tari was completely taken by surprise in that moment. "Oh, man. It's night?" She inquired, "How long was I in there for?"

Baffled by how fast time had flown, the cyborg gamer wandered around the empty convention hall, looking to find Meggy and see where she'd gone. A second later, she heard sinister laughter, and Tari threw herself behind a desk near a booth, making sure that nobody caught her.

If Glitch Con was over, then there had to be security guards in the area, even though that laugh didn't belong to a guard.

Tari peaked out of her hiding spot, and saw a large man sitting on a floating chair with a staff in hand, overlooking a group of people standing in T-shaped poses with blank expressions on their faces. And among the group was an orange Inkling with a beanie on her head.

"Oh no! Meggy!" Tari gasped.

Waluigi smiled evilly as his staff and throne gleamed with power. In the short time that followed since he'd corrupted the Glitch-Con attendees, the Wah-Man had relished in his victory. His T-Pose virus was immune to the 1-Ups, his powers were stronger than ever, and he was ready to go further.

His attack on Glitch Con, just as he planned it, was the start, after weeks of plotting in the shadows and nabbing people to make them his zombies. Now, Waluigi was poised to begin his full-scale apocalyptic attack on the Mushroom Kingdom.

"It is time, my minions!" Waluigi declared to his silent slaves, "The world will finally know what it feels like to be rejected! Everyone will know... WALUIGI! And there is nothing that can be done to stop me. Everything will be decimated, millions across the land and the lands beyond shall T-Pose until the end of time, and Waluigi will rule!"

"STOP!"

Perhaps there was one more detail to take care of. Waluigi was surprised, especially as he recognized that voice. He turned around, and was face-to-face with the host of Super Smash Bros himself.

"Master Hand?!" He exclaimed, and the Wah-Man lowered his chair as he faced the omnipotent hand of smashing power, "Explain the meaning of this!"

"I've come to put an end to this nonsense..." Master Hand declared, "I cannot stand by and allow a would-be Smash Fighter to ravage the world with such a power. You think your brand of terror would have gone unnoticed? I sensed your activity, not even the power of rejection can escape the senses of Master Hand. And so, this ends today, Waluigi..."

Hearing Master Hand's words, the Wah-Man was sweating nervously for a moment, then he started laughing and floated into the air, "You fool! Do you really think you can stop me? I am more powerful than you have ever dreamed of. I. Am. A GOD!"

"ENOUGH OF THIS!" Master Hand barked, "I WILL NOT LET YOU DESTROY THE WORLD!"

"Oh, I've been holding back on using this power... and I'm so happy I finally get to use it." Waluigi hissed, "Come on, let's-a go! Make your move, Master Hand, I am more than glad to face you in battle!"

Tari made a break for it, and hid behind another booth. She did not want to get caught in the crossfire of the impending battle. At that second, Waluigi roared with laughter, and Master Hand shouted furiously. The host of Smash had his limit with the deranged Italian "god", and he was ready to put him in his place.

Waluigi held his staff dramatically, and Master Hand arched his hand in a fierce manner, the latter was ready for a rematch after testing Waluigi's powers that day.

Rogue Italian God

Waluigi

Master Hand summoned his powers, raising a shield of energy around him, just as Waluigi launched an attack. The Wah-Man thrust out his staff, and purple lightning shot towards the floating hand before bouncing off the shield. Master Hand lowered his defenses, and snapped his fingers, prompting a statue of Nightmare from KIRBY'S ADVENTURE to appear.

With another finger snap, Nightmare's statue came to life, becoming a more live version of the real deal. Nightmare swooped towards Waluigi at max velocity, and rammed into the Wah-Man, sending him for a little spin while the Wah-Man howled with surprised fury.

Nightmare lifted a finger, and his Nightmare Stars came flying at the dazed Waluigi. However, the super-powered Wario Brother recovered in seconds, and twirled his staff, which fired off a couple of beams of purple energy that dispelled Nightmare's stars. Waluigi raised his weapon high, and pointed it at Nightmare, summoning every ounce of his strength.

A purple glow surrounded the demon, and Master Hand shouted furiously as Nightmare began exploding, just as the real Nightmare had when defeated by Kirby on the moon. Right as Nightmare vanished from existence, Master Hand rushed towards Waluigi, and slapped him across the face.

His move accomplished nothing.

"Mama mia!" Waluigi sneered, "Did you actually think that would work? I believe it's MY TURN now!"

A blast of purple energy erupted around the area, shaking the convention hall, and knocking Master Hand back by several inches. Waluigi bellowed with laughter as his eyes flashed in the most menacing manner yet, and twirled his staff before flicking it once more, summoning a terror from the past;

Dinosaur Goombas, class of 1993, and right from Dinohattan.

And the worst part, nobody had ever forgotten the live-action SUPER MARIO BROTHERS movie which spawned those things.

Waluigi issued a command to the Dino-Goombas, and the reptiles, with purple auras surrounding their bodies, rushed Master Hand, who was infuriated to see Mario movie representation used by Waluigi. The Dino-Goombas pulled out flamethrowers and shot at him, but the super-powerful hand dispelled them, and swatted at the reptilian humanoids.

One-by-one, the ugly Goomba variants crashed to the floor and vanished in a blink. Master Hand grunted, expressing his dislike for how the Mario film had turned out, and he glared angrily at Waluigi.

"Did I strike a nerve?" Waluigi asked, "Yeah, the movie sucked, but it has its fans and merits."

"YOU NEED... TO SHUT... UP!" Master Hand thundered.

He made another run at Waluigi, his fist clenched and ready to knock him into oblivion. The Wah-Man smirked, and held up his hand as he channeled his strengths. Right as Master Hand came closer, a purple aura surrounded him, and he froze in seconds, unable to move. Waluigi lifted his staff, and clenched his fist with a growl.

Master Hand twisted around, and his bones cracked as his fingers twitched painfully. He found himself moving around against all of the will that the gloved hand possessed, and the scream echoed through the halls, rattling Tari's ears as she listened and watched.

"Master Hand..." Waluigi purred, "Who is your master?"

He was helpless, unable to fight, and all of the strength he had left was gone. The Wah-Man was just too powerful.

"Y-You are, W-Waluigi." Master Hand gasped, succumbing to the rogue Italian's influence.

"Excellent!" Waluigi declared with a mighty laugh, "With the power of mind control, and with the most powerful entity in Super Smash Brothers bent to my will, I am now unstoppable! LET US BEGIN THE APOCALYPSE AND LET THE T-POSE VIRUS GO FORTH AND INFECT EVERYTHING THAT LIVES AND BREATHES!"

'No...' Tari thought with dread, she clutched her duck intensely, and tears welled in her eyes. The only one who could have stopped that man had just been neutralized and corrupted. The end of the world was inevitable, and it all started here, with the T-Pose...