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[img]https://i.postimg.cc/DyH88WMW/Kid-s-Hat-Final.png[/img] [img]https://i.postimg.cc/Zn05qZPF/Jiggy-Final.png[/img] [img]https://i.postimg.cc/L5r26P82/Star-Fox-Final.png[/img]

[i]feat.[/i]

[h3]GM[/h3]
[@Lugubrious]

[b]Level:[/b] [color=8258fa]6 (25 -> 45 -> 48/60)[/color] | [color=fed428]5 (30 -> 50/50)[/color] [color=orange]LEVEL UP![/color] ---> [color=fed428]6 (0 -> 3/60)[/color] | [color=5edaf6]4 (3 -> 23 -> 26/40)[/color]
[b]Location:[/b] Land of Adventure - The End -> Eryth Sea
[b]Word Count:[/b] 3383 (+3 EXP)

Power: [color=fed428][i]Pending…[/i][/color]
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Dragon bone cracked with sickening report under Koopa might, a ripple of shadow fanned out over The End in its death throes, sunlight broke the abyssal atmosphere, dissolving it away like photo-soluble cloud cover, and with the return of spacial ‘normalcy’, the island gave way to gravity underfoot. For Banjo and Kazooie evacuation was as simple as launching back into Flight, but could do nothing from there to help anyone else leave the doomed earthberg. Uncertain of their ability to support passengers in Flight, and unable to catch up to the plummeting landmass even in a terminal dive, it was too late for them to consider it now. They were left in the aftermath of their impulse to watch the island fall with their teammates still on it, and they could only hope now that everyone else found their own ways to safety.

Hat Kid and Fox sprinted for the nearest edge to them, neither having an exit strategy in mind, but knowing they couldn’t afford to stick around long enough to think about it. A solution for the child flew over her head as Jr took off in his hastily repaired Clown Car, to which she lept after and threw out her Hookshot at it, latching on and sailing clear of the End Stone just a yard shy of the edge. Fox, seeing no immediate alternatives and no reason to look back for one, bounded from the island into open air, opting to figure it out as he went. Even at their relatively generous height to the isles below, however, he wouldn’t have much time to do that at his current rate.

He scanned the array of still floating islands for the nearest one to him according to altitude and distance, calling in his lifetime of experience airborne to make quick, intuitive mental calculations for how best to approach it. Reaching any one of them safely (or at all) would require a well-timed boost and shield stop in the right order to allow for drift and cancellation, but that was only if a better, less risky way didn’t present itself to him in a timely manner. That looked to be the case until he noticed his flight path intersecting with that of… a flying chicken? Nevermind where it came from, or why it was there. He thought that it surely couldn’t be the better solution he was hoping for, but then saw it working for Cuphead and Linkle (whom he tried not to look too hard at when hit with a discouraging chill of negative energy). As absurd as it seemed, if it really worked that well, then there was little reason not to try it now.

Fox boosted after the fowl in a trail of white jetstream smoke, catching a hold of it with one hand for an initially unsteady descent. The sudden addition of his own weight made for a somewhat startling drop for the Cucco and Fox alike, which he rectified in a rush by getting both hands on the flying flightless bird. He tried to be as gentle with the unfamiliar creature as he could, considering the predicament, and after a second the two of them stabilized. To his surprise, it actually made for easy going from there, coasting the rest of the way down to make landfall on a nearby island.

A little at a time, the party regrouped on solid ground, amidst a hybridized biome of terrestrial and aquatic. Fox gently released the Cucco to return to its master, which turned out to be Linkle, meaning its arrival to his aid wasn’t just random coincidence. Again, he refrained from lingering his gaze on her, glossing over her and Geralt as he conducted a head count. His assessment wasn’t the best informed, however, as he hadn’t made himself aware of who and how many their group were up to that point.

[color=5edaf6]“Is that everyone?”[/color] he asked aloud to anyone who could or would acknowledge him. Though he would prefer an actual answer--be it verbal or gesture--he could take contented silence for its own confirmation. Better that than for questions to be raised of one’s whereabouts following an incident.

Hat Kid took to the Courier with a curious eye, inspecting his new draconic form with a sense of wonderment. From the front she could see his new claws, and perhaps for the first time since meeting him, his eyes beneath the shade of his hat, aglow with amethyst. She still couldn’t make out a full face though. From there she circled around to his back and tugged lightly on the tails of his scaled dragon-leather duster, then mounted his [i]actual[/i] tail (that he now had). She then crawled up onto his wings, giving them a once-over before moving to stand on his shoulders to get hands and eyes on his horns. She made a quick climb up the scaled cowboy’s form, excitedly, but impertinently, stealing a feel of his newly added dragon parts to see if they felt as they looked.

[color=8258fa]“COOL!”[/color] she gushed admiringly, doing little to hold back her exuberance in the face of such a development. Sure, she had seen Spirit fusion before, but found the prospect and results largely unappealing (with a few exceptions) up until now. While she had a certain respect for the idea to begin with regarding its potential, she saw it similarly as something that could easily be overdone or done wrong altogether. Perhaps seeing a nigh exemplary high-level fusion was what it took to excite her about the possibilities, but not so much that she would willingly rush it. This was the kind of thing you [i]wanted[/i] to be picky about, that you wanted to be patient with. In the meantime, she thought it would be worth reexamining everyone else’s Spirit transformations to get a better grasp of its effects on others, now that she was paying closer attention to it. She dismounted 6’s head (at a rate dependent on his tolerance) and joined the Koopa Troop (and whoever else) in taking a seat by the campfire, joining in the round of marshmallow roasting and quietly relishing the opportunity for a moment of downtime.

Fox tuned in to the brief commentary between Peach and Poppi about the distinctively man-made features of the island, speculating with educated guesses as to their purpose. [color=5edaf6]“I’ll go check it out,”[/color] he added, volunteering himself for lookout and setting off accordingly. He proceeded at a leisurely pace, seeing as the matter didn’t demand his immediate attention… but would soon nonetheless have it. A few minutes passed in uneventful quietude in his search for one of the platforms in question, and as he neared one on the island, he spotted movement in the distance of another around the same time; the figures’ shapes unclear, but their action confirming. They stepped onto their resident platform and blinked away to another island, while Fox moved to make sure he kept them in visual registry. They reappeared on a closer island, their visages made clearer to him as familiar to him; one especially so.

[color=5edaf6]“Falco?”[/color] he questioned aloud with eyes narrowed on the distant subjects. Upon closer inspection, he could see his old ally traveling with two other fellow Smash veterans: Ness and a Jigglypuff. In anticipation of their arrival, he moved to the platform to meet them on the path leading from it, approaching at a matched pace to theirs. [color=5edaf6]“Good to see you too,”[/color] he smirked in reply to Falco, taking a light verbal jab at him for skipping the friendly salutations.

[color=58acfa]“What? D’ya miss me that badly?”[/color] The two anthro pilots lifted a hand in preparation as they neared each other and met them with a firm, brotherly clasp. [color=58acfa]“I figured you could handle yourself without me for a change.”[/color]

[color=5edaf6]“Better than you,”[/color] Fox teased.

[color=58acfa]“Ey, don’t get cute! Last I checked we’re even,”[/color] he retorted assertively.

They referred, of course, to all the times they had bailed each other out of trouble. Fox could vividly recount a handful of saves he’d received from his fellow wingman. The inverse of the same he’d long since lost count of. In other words, they were never even, but it didn’t truly matter to either of them. What mattered was that they were always there to help when they most needed it. That’s what it meant to have a loyal friend at your back: that you could be entire star systems apart, and you’d still never be too far away.

[color=5edaf6]“I’m glad to see you’re okay… all of you,”[/color] he directed to the entire party of three. It was then that he noticed, in the bigger eyes of the child and Pokemon, that there was something missing. No corrupting red adorned them, and grateful as he was for that to be the case, it made him wonder how. In his musings he was caught staring after a moment.

[color=58acfa]“Uh… are [i]you[/i] okay, Fox?”[/color]

[color=5edaf6]“Huh…?”[/color] he responded with a head shake as he broke from his contemplative stupor. [color=5edaf6]“Y-yeah… I’m fine.”[/color]

[color=58acfa]“You sure? Because you looked like you were tuning out for a second.”[/color]

[color=5edaf6]“It’s nothing… nothing I can explain...”[/color] he clarified, prompting a subtle, but curious look from Falco. Admittedly, this was all still new to him, so he could hardly begin to explain something he didn’t yet fully understand himself. Though there were a few waiting back at camp who could fill in the gaps for them, and he was due to have that conversation himself. [color=5edaf6]“Come on,”[/color] he instructed, gesturing headways up the path. [color=5edaf6]“There are more of us up ahead. They can catch you up better than I can.”[/color]

In the middle of their reunion the two pilots received extra company in the form of Peach. Like Fox, the princess recognized the familiar faces of all three newcomers, though more as acquaintances than friends. In the period of rest prior, she also spotted an all-too-memorable emblem adorning the floating palace from which the three ventured forth. Circular with an off-center cross, it was a symbol of remarkable simplicity that stood for something of uncommon importance. Seeing it loosened some of the memories lodged in her backbrain, and battles fought of campaigns concluded, sequestered away in her mind from her daily life of sports, parties, and getting rescued. She wanted to get down to business immediately, but she didn’t mind her comrades getting a moment to reunite. This world made for a lot of people robbed of their friends and family, after all. Something like this was not to be taken lightly. Peach approached, but only waved for now. Not for one moment did she consider that her appearance had changed drastically.

Unfortunately Falco only got her appearance, and though he couldn’t shake a sense that he’d seen this woman before, he didn’t recognize her. [color=58acfa]“Hey,”[/color] he greeted. [color=58acfa]“So you’re one of Fox’s new pals, huh?”[/color]

[color=5edaf6]“You’ve... met, actually,”[/color] Fox corrected, considering not the tact with which to approach such a revelation until after hinting at it.

[color=58acfa]“Oh, yeah?”[/color] Falco looked at Peach in a new light, but couldn’t quite see it. [color=58acfa]“...Where?”[/color]

Peach blinked. “I’m surprised you don’t remember. We worked together to defeat Tabuu. Princess Peach?” She grimaced, realizing. “Oh, right. I forgot that my looks changed.”

As a befuddled Falco looked on, she held her arms wide to give the newcomers a good look and help them realize. A mix of pink and black, her sporty longcoat, undershirt, and jeans suggested more ‘biker’ than ‘princess.’ Her crown of thin, blonde-streaked black dreadlocks roughly resembled her old hairdo, but her rougher features and dark skin were a far cry from her origin appearance. “I absorbed the spirit of a man named Mr. Grimm. I got both some of his looks, and his power to manipulate souls.”

Falco scratched his head with his feathers. [color=58acfa]“Well, I’m sure it’ll make sense sooner or later.”[/color] He watched as Jigglypuff walked out of the conversation, going for the group of people at the center of the reef. When Peach turned to head that direction, he and Ness followed suit. [color=58acfa]“So, what’re y’all doin’? Last thing I expected after seein’ that big sphere pop was a whole bunch of people flyin’ around.”[/color]

“We just kicked the ass of this huge black dragon,” Peach told him, her smug smile not at all hidden. “Two down, eleven to go. Not just dragons, either. We’re fighting the boss of every region.”

Falco whistled, which was a real accomplishment with a beak. [color=58acfa]“Whoa. You guys are nuts.”[/color] Though given his usual company over the years, that hardly surprised him. [color=58acfa]“What’re you doin’ all that for? Fun? I know it ain’t for your health.”[/color]

Peach gave a dry chuckle, thinking of those hurt badly during this mission, and of those who’d already given their lives. Was this fun? The new part of her soul didn’t seem to relish bloodshed, and the old part certainly didn’t. “Nope. To save the world. Well, all worlds.”

The pilot looked taken aback. [color=58acfa]“What, that’s it? No more details or nothin’?”[/color]

Peach shook her head. “So that I don’t have to explain a million times, I’m going to wait to give the full story to whoever’s in charge, since you three strike me as a scouting deployment.”

[color=58acfa]“Oh. Makes sense, I guess.”[/color] The Princess proposed a curious, but plausible theory that Falco and the other two were a splinter of a larger party, much like their own, prompting silent speculation from Fox. After taking a deep breath, Falco got a little more serious. [color=58acfa]“Something tells me you ain’t jokin’. Well, if the world’s on the line, the time for smashin’s over. Count me in.”[/color]

Ness nodded his agreement, the young boy’s face solemn. Fox echoed this, happy to have his wingman back. Jigglypuff couldn’t answer on account of being amid the other heroes already, preparing to introduce herself with a song.

[hr]

Meanwhile, Banjo and Kazooie broke away early into the respite period to look around, more out of habit than necessity. After a minute or so, they crested one of the hilled ‘starfins’ of the island and gazed out at the tower; the emblem emblazoned on it familiar, and fresh in their memory. Banjo pulled out the invitation letter they received from L.O.G. (of all people) and inspected the seal on it, comparing it to the one adorning the tower. It went without saying that they were the same, but the question remained as to what lay within the monolithic structure.

[color=0aaaff]“Hm. You think any of them might know this place?”[/color] ask Banjo.

[color=f60000]“I don’t know, but let’s go ask them anyways,”[/color] replied Kazooie before they backtracked back to camp, where they would happen upon a brief exchange of slightly heated dialogue.

[color=58acfa]“I’m sorry, [i]YOUR[/i] ‘army’?”[/color] Falco responded defensively to Bowser, none too keen on his conscription attempt. [color=58acfa]“Well, I hate to turn you down [i]’Your Highness[/i],”[/color] he emphasized mockingly, [color=58acfa]“but I’ve seen your armies; what they’re worth. Not interested.”[/color]

[color=5edaf6]“At ease, Falco,”[/color] Fox calmly interjected. [color=5edaf6]“He’s on our side this time.”[/color]

[color=58acfa]“What if he is?!”[/color] he replied rhetorically. [color=58acfa]“If he really wants to help, that’s fine,”[/color] he turned his attention back to Bowser, [color=58acfa]“but I don't work for you! I ain’t one of your flimsy goons, and I ain’t gonna be! So you can forget talkin’ at me like it. That goes for the rest of us. ‘Got it?’”[/color] He ended his declarative rant by repeating the Koopa King back to himself, letting the last word hang for a second before backing off to allow the tension to deflate. The following accosting of Bowser by a cleanup/makeover crew was sure to see to that. In response to the awkwardly timed silliness, Falco just hung his head with a resigned sigh and withdrew from the scene. Just as well, his piece was said, his point made (maybe), and caring little either way if the Koopa communicated an understanding or not (fully expecting ‘not’), or for whatever he otherwise might have had to say about it in response. To him, the “biggest, baddest villain” was little more than a big, delusional pushover with a bloated ego and sense of entitlement to match, and Falco was just one among a [i]shocking[/i] many who wasn’t afraid to [url=https://youtu.be/oU2CzynZqmI?t=1685]challenge him.[/url]

[color=58acfa]“What was that about us being ‘free’ anyway?”[/color] he turned to ask Peach and Fox; whoever could best answer that for him. Fox opened his mouth to try, but was cut off just ahead of his attempt.

[color=f60000]“Forget whatever [i]you’re[/i] all arguing about,”[/color] chimed Kazooie, loudly. [color=f60000]“Banjo and I just found something, [i]of course[/i].”[/color] The snarking Breegull had the attention of the space animals, as well as an open ear from Hat Kid, with surely more.

[color=5edaf6]"Let’s hear it,”[/color] said Fox.

[color=0aaaff]“Erm, well… you know that place we saw on the way down?”[/color] Banjo started. [color=0aaaff]“Would any of you *ahem*... [i]fellow[/i] ‘Smash’ guys happen to recognize it?”[/color] Besides the new arrivals, that qualified only four of their troop to potentially answer their question: Fox, Peach, Bowser and Jr.

“I saw the symbol,” Peach mentioned. “Don’t recognize the building.”

[color=58acfa]“Weeell, allow me to enlighten ya,”[/color] Falco said. [color=58acfa]“That tower’s the place where the Super Smash Brothers fighting games have been happenin’. We’ve been runnin’ tournaments, brawls, Smash Run, you name it. And thanks to the sim rooms, we’ve been doin’ it on stages from all sorts of worlds. The joint’s got livin’ quarters, gym, cafeteria, hospital, you name it.”[/color]

Peach put a hand on her hip, her face questioning. “You said ‘we’. Who else is there?”

[color=58acfa]“Fighters, admins, and some randos. All us fighters are from past tournaments, and the admins keep things runnin’. Then there’s just some people who hang around, not doing much.”[/color] Falco broke down the inhabitants of the tower, which only gave a real idea of some of their identities to those who also participated in these ‘past tournaments’.

[color=5edaf6]"And… you’re out here?”[/color] Fox asked, implying a ‘why’.

Falco crossed his wings. [color=58acfa]“Just to see what’s goin’ on. When the bubble popped, the lookout spotted a bunch of people flyin’ around. There’s enemies around here sometimes, and refugees other times, so we pay attention.”[/color]

Hearing all of this struck with Fox for more reasons than one. Described seemed to be a city built around a colosseum, with the local culture centered around it, and one apparently providing asylum for those in need of it. By the sounds of it, Falco and co. had been here for some time, with cited memory of their exploits dating back presumably farther than a day--several, perhaps. Fox had only ‘woken up’ a little less than an hour ago himself, so he could assume they’ve been up for longer than him at least. Yet, somehow, his wingman was distinctly less aware of the situation at large for the outside world than he was, which was saying something. For that reason, he couldn’t help thinking something might be amiss. As much as he’d like not to shirk the duties of his new mission, whilst finding the prospect opportunity to ‘play’ again dangerously tempting, it was clear to him that there was a better reason to go. They needed only agree to. He looked to Peach, his perceived peer among the adventuring party, believing her to share his (or similar) thoughts on the matter, and silently expecting joint approval on venturing there.

Peach already had a plan in mind. “We’ll go with you back to this facility of yours shortly,” she told Falco. “We’ve got a lot to discuss with the people there.”

Fox nodded his concurrence in kind, then looked back at those gathered around the fire resting, disrelishing the idea of asking them to break camp so soon after setting up. It wasn’t as if they could settle in regardless (and would be impractical to try, considering where they were going), but he did try to empathize a little for those who didn’t share his stamina or propensity for seeing a mission straight through with little to no pause.

[color=5edaf6]“We’ll gather everyone on your call,”[/color] he said to Peach, entrusting the order to her. Having been with this party for longer and better acquinting herself with them, it stood that she would better know when they would be ready to set off.