Post by bobsnicket on Jan 21, 2008 22:46:06 GMT -5
Chapter 10: Shadows and Stars
If you think this story has been lame and predictable so far, then I am sorry, but you either have either read far too many books to the point where nothing can fool or surprise you, or you simply have bad taste. Excuse me for interrupting this suspenseful tale; please continue.
Before the Quarterfinals
Kirby, Diddy Kong, Fox, Luigi, Ganondorf, and Sonic were the only ones remaining in their lobby (of course, there were only eight finalists total, so only two competitors were still in the other lobby). All of them were thrilled to have won 1,000 coins, but Luigi had other things on his mind. He wondered how Yoshi and his other fellow competitors who had fallen were faring. Perhaps he would attempt to visit the infirmary a second time, but maybe later. Right now, he had a question for Sonic that he really wanted to know.
“So why are you in this world, Sonic, and not in one of the other worlds?”
Yes, you heard (or read) Luigi correctly. There were other worlds besides the Nintendo World in which video game characters existed. The most commonly known foreign worlds were the Microsoft World and the Sony World. Once upon a time, these worlds used to commune with each other and characters frequently traveled between them, but times had changed. At some point, the creators of the worlds decided to keep their worlds completely isolated from other worlds, disallowing any communication or traveling between the worlds at all. Microsoft was the strictest in this manner; it even managed to steal some of Nintendo’s most beloved characters. I could describe to you the great Copyright Wars that ensued, but that would be an entirely different story, wouldn’t it?
Sonic hesitated, and then replied, “Do you remember Banjo and Kazooie?”
“Yes, of course!” Luigi said. “They were great friends! That is, until they were taken in the Copyright Wars with all of the other Rare characters to the Microsoft World. The last time I saw them they were trying to hide somewhere in the Kongo Jungle…”
“Well, I was still in the Sony World at the time. But near the end of the war, I remember me and several others found our way onto a tiny island in between the Microsoft and Sony Worlds. Among them were Banjo and Kazooie, Megaman, Conker, and Pac-man. Together we constructed a small ship and sailed away to the Nintendo World. Unfortunately, partway through our voyage we were spotted by a battleship of the Microsoft Navy. We were almost on the shores of Dreamland, but then we were attacked. Our ship was destroyed, and all the escapees except for me, Banjo and Kazooie, Megaman, and Pac-man were captured and sent back to their respective worlds.
“Now security in the other worlds, especially the Microsoft World, is extremely tight, so it is nearly impossible to get in or out. So I haven’t seen or heard from any of my comrades for a long time. Although I have heard there have been a couple breaches now and then, anyone who approaches the Microsoft World does so at their peril.”
Diddy Kong, who had apparently been listening, then spoke up. “Yeah, I know all about the Copyright Wars. You see, lucky for me and my family, we belong to Nintendo, not Rare. Same with Fox. But Lanky, Microsoft tried to take him by arguing that the only game he had ever appeared in was made by Rare. But Nintendo won that battle, fortunately, because even though Microsoft had a larger and more lethal army at its command, Nintendo had some better quality forces on their side that turned the war in their favor, eventually leading to Sony making a truce with them and Microsoft retreating back to their own land. What forces were those? Even I don’t know that, and I don’t know anyone alive in this world that would.”
The others nodded, intrigued by this information, but their minds were beginning to shift back toward concerning themselves about their next match.
“Match one of the Quarterfinals!” Wario announced even more enthusiastically than before. “Kirby vs. THE SHADOW QUEEN!” The competitors noticed that the Shadow Queen was announced much louder and with more enthusiasm, and worried for Kirby as the pink puffball determinedly walked into the stadium. Although they had not seen or faced this opponent, they had heard rumors of the impossibility of the task of defeating it.
“He’s doomed,” Fox whispered to Luigi, shaking his head.
Quarterfinals
Quarterfinal Match#1: Kirby vs. The Shadow Queen
When Kirby entered the colosseum he heard a booming chant of “Shadow Queen!” shouting from the audience. Evidently, no one expected much of a fight, as only silhouettes were immune to being pulled through the ground. But Kirby had an idea that would protect him from suffering the same fate.
Hundreds of purple hands rose out of the ground around the primary one, and all of them stretched out to drag Kirby to his doom. Kirby waited for all of the small ones to be in one huge mass of purple arms, and then began the classic procedure of sucking in his enemies. Every single arm except for the first one was sucked through Kirby’s mouth, which had never been fuller. Kirby’s cheeks bulged and pulsed in places due to all of the writhing purple hands encased inside it. Then, with one huge gulp, he swallowed them all, simultaneously ridding himself of his many minor opponents and discovering one of the most powerful Copy Abilities he had ever found.
So far Kirby had discovered two new abilities within the past couple weeks: Chicken Kirby and Orange Kirby. In fact, by the end of this story, Kirby will have discovered no more and no less than five new copy abilities. But this one, Shadow Kirby, number three, is the most powerful by far. Unfortunately, Kirby would not have another opportunity to use this ability, but those who saw Shadow Kirby would be guaranteed by me to never forget it.
Kirby looked most similarly to his Mr. Game & Watch ability, but was not pure black. Purple energy and mist rippled around him, but Kirby hadn’t changed on the inside at all; he was still the lovable puffball we have always known. He faced his now-solitary opponent (still, annoyingly, in its favorite form of a purple arm), and narrowed his eyes. It’s time to avenge everyone who has been fallen victim to this monstrosity, he thought. The reign of the Shadow Queen ends now.
At this point the crowd, seeing that Kirby now possibly had a chance of victory, turned its favor to the now purple-black puffball, with the chant “Shadow Queen!” fading and rising with renewed vigor shouting, “Kirby! Kirby!” Even his opponent seemed a little startled and disconcerted at the sudden change of events (as far as its mood could be determined in the form of a purple hand).
Kirby disappeared into the ground in exactly the way the Shadow Sirens did, and appeared on the opposite side of his opponent, challenging it with a stubby purple arm. Finally, his enemy had recomposed itself and decided to attempt to end it quickly before Kirby realized the full potential of his newly-found powers. The hand suddenly shot forward at lightning speed (or almost that) at its similarly color schemed opponent. Kirby responded by jumping forward and kicking out to meet the Shadow Queen’s attack. The result was the beginning of a black-and-purple brawl that was near impossible to follow by the crowd. With the same dangerous color pattern in both enemies, the only way to distinguish them was faint outlines around each figure.
Kirby fought valiantly, but the so-called Shadow Queen was just a tad too strong for him to cope with. After kicking, punching, leaping, and many other descriptive action words, the large purple hand finally got a grasp on the comparatively monochromatic puffball. The arm spun itself round and round, faster and faster, until it was just a blur, and sent Kirby careening into the far wall at a velocity exceeding any baseball pitch ever known. The fortunate part was that Kirby did not, at least, have to share the tedious fates of Bowser Jr. and Doopliss.
Quarterfinal Match #2: Diddy Kong vs. Fox
This was one of the last matches in which the contestants fought respectably. Once again, both contestants were highly favored by the crowd (just about all the finalists were this way), but only one could walk away victorious.
Diddy began by testing the maneuverability traits of his opponent, Fox McCloud. He sent a barrage of several dangerously bouncing orange grenades, but Fox used this as an opportunity to show off to the crowd by avoiding them with dramatic acrobatic flips and jumps. Next Diddy tested the dog-related pilot’s auditory endurance with a few loud chords of his yellow and red star-shaped guitar. Fox, accustomed to loud noises from Arwings and other space crafts, was unaffected. Fox then executed a move where he jerked into a running position, and with a whoosh was suddenly on Diddy’s other side, and the Kong had been knocked to the ground. Diddy, in response, crouched with his hands over his head, began running in place, and zoomed into Fox with such speed that even the nimble fox was caught by surprise. Fox flew back about ten feet in midair, and then slid back a few feet more, landing on one knee with his right arm resting on the other. He looked up, now slightly aggravated and rushed full speed at the clothed chimp. But Diddy Kong, at the last second, ignited his double-barreled jetpack and launched into the air, Fox skidding to a halt underneath him. Diddy fired several peanuts out of his peanut pistols straight down, where Fox was standing, who rolled out of the way just in time.
Fox backed up and followed Diddy’s flying form carefully. To the shock and angered cries of the crowd, Fox got out his potentially lethal laser gun and started aiming at the flying monkey. Meanwhile, Diddy followed up his first peanut attack with a barrage of dozens of more peanuts, a few of them even following Fox’s now-dodging figure. One sneaky peanut snuck behind Fox and hit him in the back, knocking him down face-first. Fox, now red-eyed and fully agitated, leaped back onto his feet, took careful aim, whispered, “Enjoy your 1,000 coins, Diddy; and your trip down!” and fired his laser, striking Diddy’s left jetpack barrel, which didn’t completely explode, but burst into flames, singed Diddy’s brown fur, and sent him careening downward. Fox ran full speed and jumped at Diddy feet first to finish him off, but while falling, Diddy saw Fox and managed to let loose one last orange grenade, which replaced Fox’s intended target. While Diddy thumped rather painfully but still consciously onto the cement ground, Fox’s target exploded and sent him flying 20 feet higher, over Diddy, and landing unconsciously a dozen yards away.
Quarterfinal Match #3: The Shadow vs. Luigi
Luigi was astonished. He knew that the shadowy figure who had invited them to enter the tournament had also entered it himself, but it didn’t occur to him that he might end up fighting it. Luigi was weary from the hammer duel of his last match, and was concerned as to what this opponent may have in store.
But instead of revealing itself like Luigi expected, The Shadow simply said, “You’ve come a long way, Luigi. What a long way to fall.”
“Oh, but it a-won’t be a-me who will be falling!” Luigi then bent his knees, put his hands in a fighting pose, and tipped his head forward, preparing to launch one of his famous Green Missiles.
The Shadow dodged aside effortlessly as Luigi sped forward through the spot where he had just been standing. The cloaked figure turned around to watch Luigi continue to zoom away from him. “You can do better than that, Luigi!” But the grin that had formed on The Shadow’s hidden features faded as the Green Missile did a vertical U-turn in mid-air, reminiscent of the features of an Arwing.
Luigi sped right back at The Shadow, catching it by surprise. The Shadow barely escaped Luigi’s fiery green fury by diving out of the way, but his cloak, noticed easily in the near-nighttime darkness, had caught fire. Green fire, to be precise. As Luigi maneuvered himself to go in for another Green Missile attack, The Shadow shook his brown cloak to put out the fire, but the stubborn flames persisted to eagerly eat it up. Meanwhile, Luigi’s Green Missile had once again redirected itself and was once again speeding towards the mysterious advisor. The Shadow leaped high into the air as Luigi passed underneath, going much higher than Luigi had expected. In mid-air, the sizzling green cloaked figure drew out three large silver metal disks, and fired one after the other (rather wildly) at Luigi’s flaming form.
The first disk dug harmlessly into the ground where Luigi had left a path of green flames, sticking out of the cement. The second sliced off the majority of Luigi’s classic green hat, severing off the L and even part of Luigi’s brown hair. The third one, slightly misdirected, shot off into the audience, generating screams as a Lakitu’s fishing line was cut and a Pianta’s popcorn bucket was split in two, spilling popcorn onto the seats and sending the buttery substance flying into the air as the turquoise-skinned Pianta leaped out of his seat in fright, knocking down two Goombas sitting behind him in the process.
Luigi, tired of using his Green Missile, did a flat U-turn and began skidding on his stomach (rather painfully) towards the still-burning cloaked figure, which had by now landed back on the ground. All The Shadow saw was a fiery green mass approaching him at a highly dangerous and not recommended speed, but he knew it would not bode well for him to remain still. His cloak now burned more than halfway through, The Shadow fled at an equal speed on his white shoes, pursued by Luigi’s unrelenting fiery skidding form.
It was quite a spectacle for the crowd to watch: a blurred black form being pursued rapidly by a flickering and flashing green plumber. Around and around the field they zoomed, Luigi leaving a dying trail of green flames in his wake. Finally, The Shadow was cornered in a small area near the wall with green fire barricading possible escape routes.
Luigi, furious and flashing, had but a blurred vision, but his heart rejoiced when he had finally trapped his secretive informer near the wall, and almost sightlessly sped into his opponent. Only it was too late when he realized that his opponent was no longer on that particular spot; all that lay there was The Shadow’s burning cape. Before Luigi, unable to control his direction in time, slammed into the wall, he caught out of the corner of his eye the shape and identity of his conqueror with his color-distorted vision…
Sonic?
Quarterfinal Match#4: Ganondorf vs. Sonic
Sonic was full of energy, ready to fight even the toughest opponent. He was even in the mood to fight a legendary King of Evil, or perhaps a titanic monster or two.
Ganondorf, on the other hand, was still slightly weary from his excessive physical activity in his previous match. Sonic had been running much more, of course, but endurance running was what the hedgehog lived for. Ganondorf was made to sit upon a mighty throne and mercilessly strike down rebellions now and then, not for constant movement and relentless effort.
Sonic, seeing the sweat glinting on the Gerudo’s dark forehead, was further encouraged by the notice of his opponent’s tiredness. Without much pause, Sonic leaped into battle.
Ganondorf, who still possessed his gigantic sword glinting with dark energy and aching to strike something, had at least had several minutes to rest in between battles, so had plenty of energy to drive off Sonic’s comparatively feeble jabs and kicks.
Sonic cried out in pain as the huge sword tipped against his shoulder, the tiny contact with the deadly sword singeing his blue fur. Sonic realized he needed a different strategy. Then he remembered one of his oldest but favorite tricks that almost never failed against ambitious opponents with deadly weapons. He suddenly turned and ran away from Ganondorf and near the ten foot high walls enclosing the field. He jumped a few feet high, actually landing sideways on the wall, and began running across the wall, picking up speed each second. As he traveled round and round the field, he went faster and faster until a blue blur was all that could be seen by both Ganondorf and the crowd. It was especially hard to see since the sun had now completed its journey below the horizon, and hundreds of tiny stars sprouted in the deep blackness of the sky, even with the stadium lights now switched on, illuminating not much more than the back rows of the crowd, the box where Wario sat, and the center of the field.
Ganondorf unexpectedly laughed loud and hard. He knew of this strategy, even though he had never experienced it himself. The typically speedy opponent would run round and round, hoping to confuse and make the target dizzy, and then catch them off guard with a sudden blow. No doubt the hedgehog also hoped that he would hurl his sword at the wall and leave himself somewhat defenseless. Apparently what they said about teaching an old dog new tricks was true.
The Gerudo shoved his sword several inches into the cement ground, and then used his hands to amass his classic ball of writhing and crackling energy. He began chucking several of these balls at random spots along the walls, hoping to either hit his elusive opponent (unlikely) or trip him up with the gaps created by his magical attacks (more likely).
Inevitably, Sonic found these attacks an unexpected problem. When a certain ball of energy shot towards the spot he would be a fraction of a second later, Sonic halted, falling back to the ground after losing his speed. Sonic turned towards the center to see Ganondorf staring at him triumphantly and laughing, and then reach toward the giant sword stuck in the ground. This was his only chance. Sonic jumped back onto the wall, and this time leaped off of it in his opponent’s direction, the momentum giving him immediate speed. At the moment when the evil king forced the sword out of the ground, Sonic landed a kick at the hilt of the sword, simultaneously smashing Ganondorf’s hand and disarming him, sending the sword spinning and soaring towards the unfortunate portion of the crowd that was closest. The sword, glinting and flaring, produced yet another batch of screams from the crowd, and finally seared straight through the center of something, its contents flowing onto the seats and ground.
The same unlucky Pianta stared wide-eyed at the blade of the large sword halted an inch from his wobbly nose, ignoring the fact that his second 30 coin popcorn bucket had been split open. He then sidled sideways away from the sword, and pushed and shoved his way out of the colosseum, muttering something about karma and the Pianta Parlor in Rogueport.
It was at this point when the real fight ensued. Ganondorf’s punches were heavier and more deadly, and Sonic’s were swifter and lighter. Finally, Sonic jumped onto Ganondorf’s chest and pushed away, sending the Gerudo toppling to the ground. Not wanting to allow the evil king to get back up, Sonic leaped high and pounded down upon Ganondorf’s chest, cracking several ribs and knocking the wind out of the groaning figure.
During and After the Quarterfinals
Waluigi was exhausted. While Wario got to sit on his lazy bum and chomp down twelve buckets of popcorn, he, Waluigi, was stuck doing the dirty work (watching over the prisoners, pretending to care for the hospitalized competitors, keeping people out of the infirmary with his pathetically high-pitched fake voice, waiting for orders to turn someone into a trophy, etc.). He deserved at least one third of Wario’s pay in addition to his own, but that matter could be dealt with later. Meanwhile, he had other matters to attend to.
Master Hand’s personal messenger, a specially designed Female Wire Frame with bat-like wings exactly the same purple pattern as the rest of her body, had landed in the long dark alley behind the colosseum where Waluigi had been told to periodically check for messages. Since neither Wire Frames nor Metal characters had the ability of speech, it simply handed him an envelope sealed with one of Master Hand’s white glove stickers, and flew away swiftly and stealthily with no sound except the beating of its wings.
Waluigi ripped open the envelope and removed the single piece of paper enclosed inside it. Usually reading the message in a bored manner and mechanically reentering the building to carry out its instructions, after reading this exceptionally brief message, Waluigi was stunned.
Change of plans. Not just the original 25 and finalists. Every competitor. Retrieve those who have already left if possible. Begin immediately.
Well, better get started, Waluigi thought.
***
The Shadow Sirens had had no choice but to leave their companions before they were captured. If they had, their enemies would surely have found a way to keep them from disappearing. But still their consciences weighed upon them as they reappeared out of the ground a good distance away from the colosseum, staring back at it, and ignoring the nighttime clamor of the city around them. Now that they had separated from the group, they had no perceivable way of locating them without storming through the colosseum, which could not end well. Perhaps if they were lucky, their friends had really been ejected like Wario said, but somehow they doubted it.
Vivian, the sweetest and most charming of the three, was especially crushed. For a few precious minutes she had been reunited with her longtime friend Mario, who she secretly had a deeper liking for, but had banished it from her mind, knowing Mario and Princess Peach were destined to be together. But now that thought had reawakened with his reappearance, and she was not ready to cast the opportunity of his presence aside so easily.
“Sisters, we need to help Mario and the others!”
Beldam, although changed from her evil ways, still had a skeptical and accusatory tone. “Why? There is nothing in this for us, and I don’t see how we can help them if they are stuck in there. I suggest we hitch the nearest ship to the Sony Kingdom and leave this doomed world to be crushed under Master Hand’s dominating rule, and forget this stupid affair.” Evidently Beldam’s personal therapist wasn’t making much progress in the selfishness category.
“SISTERS!” Vivian yelled threateningly. “May I remind you that if it wasn’t for Mario, we would be subject to our terrible aunt the Shadow Queen?”
“Well, that wouldn’t have been that--” Marilyn began to point out (Marilyn’s personal tutor focused primarily on teaching her to speak properly, and had worked wonders on her).
“SISTERS!!!!! Regardless of what you thought of her, may I also bring to your attention that the Master Hand’s greed will not be satisfied by this chunk of earth and a few puny planets? If we leave Master Hand to conquer this world, we will by no means be safe in the Sony World either! We must help our friends and assist them in redeeming this world from a terrible threat! Now let’s see how well they’re guarding this place…” Evidently Vivian’s personal therapist had made progress in the assertiveness and standing-up-for-oneself categories.
So the Shadow Sirens slunk smoothly and silently (try saying that five times fast) towards the Fourside Colosseum, and after eventually locating a spot where they could see the front entrance unseen, found the security system pitifully lacking, eventually reaching the door to a lobby and using their unique abilities to creep inside. By the time they entered the lobby the Quarterfinals had just barely ended, but the trouble was, they were not in the lobby of Sonic and Diddy Kong, but where the other two remaining finalists resided.
TO BE CONTINUED...
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Character Locations
Fourside City (Colosseum): Slippy Toad, Peppy Hare, Pichu, Jigglypuff, Toad, Diddy Kong, Tiny Kong, Bowser, Sonic, Wario, Bomberman, Chunky Kong
Fourside City (Infirmary): Yoshi, Roy, Samus, Prince Peasley, Young Link, Donkey Kong, Lanky Kong, Mr. Game and Watch, Popo, Captain Falcon, Luigi, Kirby, Fox, Ganondorf, Waluigi?
Fourside City (Holding Cell): Zelda, Link, Falco, Nana, Goombario, Mario, Bottles, Banjo and Kazooie, Professor E. Gadd, Pit, Metaknight, Rito Postman
: The Shadow Sirens
Trophy: Pikachu, Princess Peach, Samus-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
END OF PART 1
So, are ya likin' it? I told you the chapters would get longer...
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