Post by bobsnicket on Feb 23, 2008 22:41:43 GMT -5
Chapter 10: Shadows and Stars
PART 4
It started with the storm. Even though it was a starless and moonless night, the lights from the stadium revealed angry purple clouds sweeping across the black sky, tingeing it a dark violet hue. They moved incredibly fast, soon catching the attention of the nonplussed crowd. In a matter of seconds, the sky overhead was completely covered with the restless clouds, and then it began to rain.
This rain wouldn’t have been more than a nuisance if it weren’t a sickly purple color and extremely acidic in nature. In fact, it was so acidic that in approximately thirty seconds the circular ring-shaped cover over the crowds had been breached by the acid rain through disintegration. The rain was pounding fairly heavily onto all surfaces, gradually melting away everything within its reach.
The third element of the storm was the thunder and lightning. This part, at least, was not purple, but flashing white as was normal. But the buildings of Fourside City were very tall in general, and the raging lightning almost immediately caused several buildings throughout the city to catch fire. The booming thunder simply added to the confusion.
Naturally, the audience reacted by panicking, screaming, and fleeing from the colosseum, along with everyone else inside who noticed or were able (Wario and Waluigi, however, did not leave, but joined together in the top box and looked startled at the sudden horrifying change of weather). Luckily, the majority of the crowd had been prepared with an umbrella, hood, or some other kind of cover, so despite their distraught moods, they could consider themselves relatively safe from the acid rain if they hurried inside their homes.
Sonic and Bowser, exposed to the rain in the center of the field, knew by instinct that this was no natural weather, and that it would be followed up with something worse, so even though the acid rain was fairly painful, they stayed where they were to see what would happen next.
If the terror had ended here, there might have been a next-to-zero casualty rate, and life might have resumed relatively normally the next day. But the storm, unfortunately, only signified the entrance of one of the Nintendo World’s prime villains.
Over the disintegrated cover and the wide open sky in the middle of the colosseum, a familiar pickup truck-sized hand levitated into view, white-gloved as ever. Crazy Hand was, as usual, laughing uncontrollably in a manic voice that mimicked Master Hand’s, and constantly curving his fingers in and out. These features were what signified to anyone who was still watching that it was indeed Crazy Hand, along with the fact that Crazy hand’s thumb was on the right side, since he was the notorious left hand.
Crazy Hand, laughing nonstop, seemed unaffected by the acid rain, and once he was a portion into the open area, he pointed his index finger (thankfully) at the field, and a beam of blue light shot out.
Sonic and Bowser dived forward, but it was not necessary since they did not appear to be Crazy Hand’s target. They gazed at the gloved hand and where its beam had struck, and saw that it was tracing some kind of large polygonal pattern around the field, sometimes just a curved line, sometimes a steep curved zigzag pattern.
“Sonic, we need to get out of here,” Bowser growled. “Whatever Crazy Hand is doing, it can’t be good.” But Sonic was still staring at Crazy Hand, mesmerized, almost dreamily.
“Do you think Crazy Hand serves Master Hand or works alongside him?” Sonic was so calm that you would think they were just watching a movie at the theatre.
“Sonic, now is not the time for random speculation! We have to go to the infirmary and--”
But Crazy Hand had now finished drawing his burnt pattern around them, and it only took a quick look from Bowser to identify it. A hand. Duh.
But instead of just being a normal burnt-out hand shape, the interior began to glow a dangerous white.
“Sonic!”
Sonic snapped out of his trance, and suddenly realized that there was actually something dangerous happening. He saw the glowing ground, growing brighter and brighter, and looking at the wide perimeter of the traced hand, knew it was time to stop daydreaming.
Sonic realized Bowser would be too slow to make it, so he stepped back a couple feet and slammed feet-first into Bowser’s vulnerable underside after saying, “Save Shadow and the others. Save the Nintendo World. Maybe I’ll see you again.”
After hearing this and understanding the implications of Sonic’s words, Bowser protested, “Wait, no, SONIC!!!” But as he said the blue hedgehog’s name, the force of Sonic’s slam hurled him out of the white hand, landing heavily on his belly. Bowser quickly got up and turned around. Sonic was beginning to run toward him, but the white glow grew blindingly bright, ending in a colossal white flash when Sonic was just a few yards away. Bowser closed his eyes and braced himself for Sonic’s impact, but it did not come. He opened his eyes. The flash had subsided. Chaos still echoed around him. Crazy Hand was gone. Sonic was exactly where he was when the flash occurred. But he was standing on a yellow-orange disk with the Super Smash Bros. symbol engraved upon it.
Bowser was not the only one to remain in the stadium. A single row, the one Bowser had previously been sitting in, was still occupied, the occupants consisting of Pichu, Jigglypuff, Toad, Tiny Kong, and Dixie Kong. All of them had thought similarly to Sonic and Bowser, and had decided to stay to see what Crazy Hand did. After Sonic was solidified, they gasped, ran down the stands, and jumped down the wall onto the field.
“Bowser! We’ve got to go to the infirmary!” Toad called. The said creature was still in shock, but after hearing Toad’s voice he snapped out of it and snarled in agreement. Together they ran into the nearest lobby, then into the hallway, and found the infirmary door wide open.
Even Wario and Waluigi had fled at Crazy Hand’s appearance, fearing for their own welfare. This had not been part of the plan; their shady employer had just said that they were to keep people out of the infirmary at all costs and follow Master Hand’s instructions for transforming competitors into trophies. He had mentioned nothing about the city being attacked by Crazy Hand at the end.
But too greedy to leave their wealth behind, they rushed to their hotel (which happened to be empty) and dashed up the stairs to their room on the second floor.
Waluigi, who was always faster than Wario, shoved his key into the door and twisted, panting, and wrenched the door open. They dashed inside and slammed their door shut behind them, locking it. Through their window they could see buildings burning and purple figures dashing through the city streets and leaping across rooftops, some carrying torches.
But their attention wasn’t focused towards the chaos outside, but at the two mustachioed intruders in their room.
Bowser and crew found the infirmary brimming with sleeping occupants. Not one of them were even stirring; if it weren’t for the screams and crashes coming from outside, it would have been silent except for the sound of breathing. There were two rows of beds lined against the walls on either side; each bed was identical, but the patients varied from the size of a Goomba to a Charizard. The room had pure white tiled floors, walls, and ceiling, and went down at least as far as the length of three lobbies. At the very end was some sort of reception desk with papers cluttered on it, but on the desk was also a jug full of a suspicious clear liquid, and next to it was a translucent rectangular plastic container full of syringes. As they hurried down the infirmary, not bothering to close the door behind them, they began to put the picture together.
Someone was in this room during the tournament, and was using the liquid and syringes to keep all the fallen competitors constantly asleep, instead of allowing them to wake up and leave. The purpose for this? They about to find out.
“Pi-Pichu-Pi!” Pichu cried out to the others, which meant something alone the lines of, “Look, I’ve found a hatch at the end of the room!” Although most others could not understand the words, they got the point that Pichu had something to show them. Everyone gathered around the metal hatch that contrasted drastically with the white room, and without further ado, Bowser clenched the handle with one of his claws and wrenched it open.
This revealed a small staircase leading down beneath the infirmary. Single file, they went down the low stairway and opened the steel door at the end to reveal-- well, you know.
At first Wario and Waluigi thought it was Mario and Luigi. The mustaches, the overalls, the caps with symbols on them: it was all there. But everything else was completely different. One of them was about seven feet tall, wore orange overalls, and wore a blue shirt and cap with the letters M and U intersecting, similar to the initials of a football team. His body was beefy like Wario’s, but much more-- there’s no other word for it-- muscular. His face was thinner than Wario’s and thicker than Waluigi’s, and he had a jagged wiry mustache that was very thin, about as thin as an actual wire. The other figure, by contrast, was the same height as Mario, but almost as thin as Waluigi. He wore yellow overalls and a brown shirt and cap with the letter L rotated 90° counterclockwise on it. His face was fairly similar to Mario’s. However, his mustache was thick in the middle and thinner at the ends, which both curled inward and made him appear-- there’s no other word for it-- fancy. Both mustachioed figures wore brown shoes and white gloves, same as the other –ario’s and –uigi’s.
Both of them were staring back at Wario and Waluigi, arms folded, the tall one with a wild, greedy expression, and the other with a calm, cheerful smile. The shorter one spoke first, his voice the same pitch as Mario’s, but with something of an English accent.
“Dear me, what have we here? Two greedy cowards, abandoning their city, but unwilling to abandon their shiny riches. What a night, what a night, I tell you! Such rash people in this city, I must say. Daring enough to oppose Crazy Hand, and all for naught! Indeed, a little manners under his control would do these folks some good, don’t you think?”
Wario was so shocked by such a random newcomer that all he could do was shakily stammer, “Who…w-who are you?”
The fancy mustachioed intruder spoke again. “Oh! My apologies, Wario, my good sir!” He tipped his brown hat in a mocking gesture. “My companion and I seem to have forgotten our own manners! I am Lario (rhymes with Mario), and I disagreeociate here is Mauluigi (rhymes with Waluigi). We have entered this world but recently, and have sided with the stronger side. From what we’ve heard, you and good Waluigi here are also in service to our great leader, Master Hand.”
At this, Wario and Waluigi relaxed, hearing that they seemed to be on the same side.
“Unfortunately,” Lario continued (Wario and Waluigi snapped back into attention, fear drifting back into them), “it seems that Master Hand is no longer in need of your services. So he has sent us, Mauluigi and me, to replace you.”
At this, Wario and Waluigi began to sidle towards the locked door, but one low Wario-ish growl from Mauluigi sent them swiftly back to their original positions.
Lario cleared his throat. “But cheer up, lads! There is some good news! Master Hand has decided you are worthy of his grand collection, and has also sent us to make you part of it.”
Waluigi gulped. “C-collection?”
Lario nodded in a friendly way and smiled even wider. “Correct! Now this shouldn’t hurt a bit…” he nodded to Mauluigi, who took out a remote with a big red button on it and pressed it.
Wario and Waluigi cried out and looked at the shining outlines below their feet, both the shapes of hands. Their last thought before the white flash was of what would become of their money.
As Bowser, Pichu, Jigglypuff, Toad, Tiny Kong, and Dixie Kong entered the sleek black room under the infirmary, they stopped and took in the sight in amazement. First they saw the complicated machine in the middle, and then they noticed the life-sized trophies crowded in the corner (including Samus, Chunky Kong, Birdo, Darknut, Megaman, Andrew Oikonny, Ridley, and lastly-- Captain Falcon). But they did not notice the steel door and barred window in the far wall until someone called, “Over here!”
Instantly they hurriedly crossed the room to where they could see through the barred window several faces looking out at them.
“Mario! What are you doing here?” Bowser and the others had been in a position where they could not easily see the box where Wario was, so they had not been aware of those who were with Bottles when they arrived.
Bottles answered for him. “We’ve been here ever since I tried to get the crowd’s attention! I’m not sure what’s going on here, but we need to get out and warn the city about Master Hand!”
Bowser laughed. “Too late for that! Crazy Hand’s army is rampaging around us as we speak!”
The occupants in the cell gasped. “Well, in that case,” Zelda said, “we need to help drive them away. Please, let us out of here!”
“I’m not sure you quite understand,” Bowser said as Pichu inspected the lock on the doorknob on their side. “There are hundreds or even thousands of weird-looking Wire Frames out there, not to mention Crazy Hand and a few metal characters. We need a plan to escape. This city is doomed.” Pichu then started using his tail to pick the lock.
“Regardless,” Bottles replied, “if Fourside falls, Crazy Hand will not want to stop. We will be chased to the east coast and end up cornered if we flee now. These Wire Frames are not that smart. Perhaps we can enlist in some help. I don’t think we need to worry about the tournament conspiracy anymore, because this is it. I propose we split up and search for assistance. A couple of us could stay here and ask any conscious competitors to fight as well. So what do you say? Teammates?”
Pichu finished picking the lock, and Bottles pushed the door open and held up his hand to Bowser.
As much as Bowser hated working together with Mario and shrimps like Bottles, he had a greater ache to avenge Sonic and fight against Master Hand. “Teammates,” Bowser agreed, shaking Bottles’s hand with his claw.
So the 19 characters split up, and most of them exited the colosseum to face the Wire Frames. Some worked alone, some in pairs, and some in small groups. Pichu, Jigglypuff, Toad, Tiny Kong, and Dixie Kong stayed in the infirmary in case any competitors woke up. Mario and Zelda headed out with Luigi and Young Link (who had just woken up) a short while later, intent on finding Crazy Hand (Luigi’s hat had somehow been restored). The Rito Postman, however, simply flew off away from the city.
The night raged on. With the most of the city in ruins, the majority of Crazy Hand’s army was focusing on the area around Fourside Colosseum, where there was considerable resistance. Wire Frames crowded through the city streets, surrounding those who were openly fighting them. Bowser sent streams of flames through rows of Wire Frames. Popo and Nana, reunited at last, froze enemy after enemy and then smashed them to pieces with their hammers. Fox and Falco were facing off with Metal Ice Climbers inside the lobby of the Grande Snifit’s Hotel, completely mutilating the interior, but for a good cause. The storm of purple clouds, lightning, and acid rain continued to add to the chaos and destroy some of Fourside City’s prominent office buildings. Not a single star shone in the sky, so the only sources of light were the moon and the fires. Most of the citizens who were unable to defend themselves had evacuated themselves at this point. Crazy Hand soared over the scene, laughing manically and firing missiles, laser beams, and purple bomb-like objects.
As time passed, the infuriated army pushed on all sides, forcing most of the fighters into a large four-way intersection. Back in the hotel, Metal Nana was melted, but Fox was knocked unconscious, leaving the fight between Falco and Metal Popo.
Most were surprised by the unique appearances of the Wire Frames, with all of the added features and fighting styles that were previously not present. This made it harder for them to fight each one, for each Wire Frame now had a different style of attacking, and so different weaknesses. They came to notice the nature of the Wire Frames’ bodies. Wire Frames did not have blood; the framing that made up their shape was like thick metal wire. All the space in between the wires was a solid slightly jelly-like substance, except for the heart beating in the center. No one could tell amidst the confusion whether anyone besides Wire Frames had fallen.
The four dozen or so fighters in the center were valiantly making a great stand, but no matter how many Wire Frames they destroyed, a seemingly endless supply of them poured out from the corners. Link rapidly used every weapon in his current arsenal to fend them off. Meta Knight flew overhead, slicing boldly where he could. Banjo and Kazooie worked as a fearful team, letting off dozens of eggs that exploded, froze, burned, etc, with Bottles brandishing a ray gun in each hand close behind. Pit Icarus hovered with his wings high above, letting loose a volley of arrows. However, at some point, a fierce bolt of lightning struck his right wing, and he painfully fell onto a roof. Goombario and Professor E. Gadd were perhaps having the most fun during the battle. Goombario was using a record-breaking Multi-Bonk to bounce across the crowd of Wire Frames on his head, flipping himself on each hit. The professor, meanwhile, was hiding in a dumpster in a remote alley and controlling a personalized robot with the appearance of himself, and was testing out its zapper, flamethrower, karate chop, bulldozer, and other such capabilities.
The night was now at its deepest; fallen Wire Frame bodies and a few freedom fighters were heaping around the rebellion’s circle. More competitors were waking up in the infirmary, and so far not a single one had declined to helping out, but the fighters were becoming weary, and the army showed no sign of stopping or retreating, like a relentless blizzard. The only group outside that was not fighting was the one made up of Mario, Luigi, Zelda, and Young Link. They were trying to discreetly follow Crazy Hand’s movements by creeping through empty alleys. However, when the moon was high overhead and Falco had finally disposed of Metal Popo, something critical happened.
Crazy Hand, who was actually following behind Mario and the others nearly the entire time, swooped down into the narrow alley where they were watching the sky in the opposite direction. Seconds later, a manic laugh was heard along with a piercing shriek of terror. Mario, Young Link, and Luigi turned around at the sound. But there was nothing there. Including Zelda. They soon turned quickly back to the sky, and saw Crazy Hand flying away laughing, with something clutched in his huge white fingers.
“Oh,” Luigi said.
The infirmary was quite a boring place, with someone waking up only once in a while, and nothing very interesting in the room besides the characters themselves. Toad and the others had just dismissed Super Toad to the battle when Tiny Kong had a sudden thought.
“Hey, why aren’t we fighting? We can fight, even if we’re small! We don’t all have to stay in here, do we?” Tiny Kong, after helping Diddy Kong come to himself and leave to face the Wire Frames, had grown impatient, as had some of the others.
“Pichu!” Pichu agreed. “Pichu-Pi!” This meant something like, “I agree. There must be something else we can do to help!”
Then Toad had an idea. “I have an idea!”
TO BE CONTINUED...
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Character Locations
Fourside City (Battling): Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, Bowser, Yoshi, Roy, Prince Peasley, Young Link, Donkey Kong, Lanky Kong, Mr. Game and Watch, Popo, Kirby, Fox, Ganondorf, Bomberman, Diddy Kong, Falco, Nana, Goombario, Bottles, Banjo and Kazooie, Professor E. Gadd, Pit, Metaknight
Fourside City (Near Crazy Hand): Mario, Luigi, Young Link, Princess Zelda
Fourside City (Infirmary):Pichu, Jigglypuff, Toad, Tiny Kong, Dixie Kong
: The Shadow Sirens, Shadow, Rito Postman
Trophy: Pikachu, Princess Peach, Samus, Chunky Kong, Sonic, Wario, Waluigi, Captain Falcon-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sorry, but I had to split the remainder of Chapter 10 into 2 parts. And if the part with the Lario Brothers seemed VERY strange, that's good because it's supposed to be!
