"What's wrong Snake? Getting cold feet?"

"Cold feet?" Snake repeated. "Otacon, I'm trained for all sorts of situations. I'm fully loaded, geared up and ready to deploy for any contingency. Except for this one."

"Snake, you should be no stranger to this kind of activity, paranormal or spiritual. Though technology has advanced by leaps and bounds since the Shadow Moses Incident, surely your experience against Psycho Mantis and, to a lesser extent, Vulcan Raven, should have-"

"It's just too farfetched. Surreal, even."

On the other end of the CODEC conversation, Snake could hear his good friend chuckle.

"I don't think it's farfetched at all! In fact, it's like one of my Ja-"

Snake cut the conversation short and breathed a sigh of relief. He knew that Otacon was going to chew him out later for that, but it was worth it to not have to hear the otaku go off on one of his tangents again. Explaining a single trope in anime took Otacon an entire hour, and though Snake cherished his friend's optimism and enthusiasm, it was better to steer clear of the subject if the legendary mercenary wanted to stay sane for the day. At least Snake had his cardboard boxes to hide away in when he wanted to feel safe. Even then, a cardboard box could only do so much to ward off unwanted CODEC conversations.

The mercenary lit up a cigarette and took a long pull as he sat outside. Compared to yesterday, it was a warm, bright and sunny day, especially near Smash Beach. The invigorating scent of saltwater mixed with the bitter taste of tobacco eased Snake's nerves. Long grass at the threshold between soil and sand swayed on the gentle breeze. A dirt road led into the area Snake was and gradually faded out before being taken over by a railroad. Though it was a quiet, pleasant area, Snake could tell from the weeds and overgrown vegetation that this place hadn't been touched in nearly twenty years.

Hearing footsteps approaching, Snake stood up from his crouched position and looked to see who else was coming. Three figures came around a bend in the terrain. There was Mario dressed in his red shirt and overalls, Robin following close behind without her dark, heavy cloak smothering her and then someone Snake had never seen before. A cream-colored Shih Tzu dog wearing a green vest waddled along after the plumber and tactician with a clipboard in hand and a bright, cheery smile on her face. Bells jingled with her every step until she came to a stop in front of Snake.

"Here I am! Sorry to keep you waiting, Mr. Snake," she yipped. After a nod of her head, or perhaps a casual bow, the dog introduced herself. "I'm Isabelle. I'm the secretary to the mayor of Smashville."

Snake looked over to Mario for an explanation. He'd rather not ask which mayor this dog was working for, for as far as Snake knew there were several.

"Isabelle here helped to put all of this together."

"Oh yes! But I can't take all the credit. The mayor signed off on this as a public works project, and so it was thanks to his and others' donations that we could get the ball rolling." Isabelle's smile turned sheepish as she rubbed the back of her head. "It takes a lot of bells to fix a twenty-year-old tour trail!"

"She'll also help coordinate things for today," Robin elaborated. "So you don't have to worry about anything else other than playing your role."

"My role," Snake scoffed after another pull from his cigarette. "I told you how uncomfortable I am about all of this."

"But you're the best we have, Snake. No-one else here can-a pull this off but you," Mario reassured with a nod of his head and a confident thumbs-up. "You can do it!"

There were numerous concerns that Snake still had. He wanted to lay into Mario and Robin and let them know just how absurd their plans were. However, Isabelle's sweet smile and radiant optimism silenced the grizzled mercenary before he could even get a word in. Though Snake knew her for all of a few seconds, just knowing that she would cheer him on without question lifted his spirits. Even now she was swaying about like a flower in the wind as the bells of her hair tie chimed away.

"Yes yes! You're perfect, Mr. Snake! I know you can do this!"

"Alright, alright… Jeez, you're like a cheerleader." Isabelle's support was infectious. Already Snake could feel himself smiling wide. "If everything's all set, then bring the kid in and we'll get this over with."

"Wait, you'll need this."

Isabelle started to pat her vest and slacks, checking her pockets. The first thought was that she was going to pull out something small and sensible, but instead, she pulled out a sort of sophisticated minecart and plopped it down on the nearby tracks with a satisfying 'ping'. Nobody questioned it.

"Good luck," Isabelle said. "Please do your best to follow along with the script and any cues we might give you, but don't forget to have fun too!"

Mario, Robin and Isabelle then took their leave by disappearing into the nearby foliage, leaving Snake to ruminate a bit before the star of the show arrived. Snake could hear him approach long before he saw him, and one didn't need to be a genetically-enhanced super-soldier to manage that. The soft crunch of two pairs of sandals was drowned out by a long-winded story as Palutena and Pit came into view. At first glance, nothing seemed out of place, but Snake knew better.

Back in the clinic Pit had been roused back into a conscious state, but to say that everything was normal would be denying the obvious. The Soulscript helped narrow down the soul currently inhabiting Pit's body- a young Nicaraguan freedom fighter named Chico. Being that Chico was affiliated with Solid Snake's genetic father, Big Boss, Mario and the other fighters figured that Snake could stand-in for the infamous soldier and essentially put Chico's soul to rest. To do so, an elaborate plan was drummed up.

Rather than bombard Pit with cold hard facts and reality, the smashers figured a subtle, gentle approach was better suited to keep the angel from suffering. With Snake having the same voice as his genetic father, he could guide Pit along and humor the soul in command to keep up a facade of familiarity. Right now most if not all the healthy smashers were gathered together to give Chico a grand show, one that would help him to return to whence he came. Snake was still uncomfortable with what he saw as a Make-A-Wish stunt, but there weren't any other options.

"...and then Amanda had the idea to have a futbol match on the R&D platform. There was plenty of space, so the boss and his men set things up for us," Pit explained with a Spanish twang to his voice. "The first match was basically Costa Rica versus Nicaragua, but the next few ones had the teams filled with all sorts of different nationalities. It really made Snake happy seeing so many different soldiers come together to play futbol."

Palutena was just as uncomfortable as Snake was, perhaps more considering the darling angel she had come to treasure was someone completely different. On the bright side, Chico did not question why he looked like an angel, so that saved Palutena plenty of trouble. Plus Chico seemed like an upbeat, kind soul; the kind that could turn anyone's frown upside-down.

"And did you get to play?" Palutena asked with a playful smile on her lips as she walked alongside her charge.

"Oh yes! Mis compas always invited me. I was a really good goalie."

Once Pit caught sight of Snake he lit up and broke away from Palutena to come right up to him. The mercenary hurriedly snuffed out his cigarette in a portable ashtray and, other than the scent of tobacco wafting around him, he managed to keep it out of Pit's sight.

"Snake! This place must be heaven if there are pretty goddesses like Palutena around!"

Said goddess didn't know whether to be flattered or embarrassed by Pit's words, though she blushed all the same.

"As I told you before, this is a place outside of heaven," Snake reiterated. "It's Smash Bros. Sometimes it's a chaotic free-for-all, other times it's a massive get-together. Either way, you can expect to meet with some of the finest men and women imaginable." There was a brief pause as Snake and Pit stared at one another with the latter doing so in scrutiny. "What's the matter? Do I have something on my face?"

"I thought you only had one eye… And an eyepatch…"

Snake could feel Palutena's eyes burning into his skull. Of all the things to forget, it had to be the eyepatch. Nevermind how hypocritical it was that Pit was bringing this up, Snake had a bulletproof explanation to save his hide with.

"Uh… Nanomachines, son." Snake shook his head. "I mean, it's a bionic eye. Looks like the real thing, doesn't it?"

"Oh wow, really? That's so cool!"

"It sure is. So, Chico, are you ready to head out?"

"I am! I got my camera too," Pit chirped as he held up an old rangefinder camera. "I'm gonna snap pictures of so many UMAs!"

The two would hop into the nearby minecart and, after bidding farewell to Palutena, they would start on their expedition. The minecart was automated, so it followed the rails at a gentle, steady pace. It was a comfortable ride thanks to cushioned sides and ample space within. Leaving the edge of Smash Beach, the minecart would putt along a trail overlooking the shoreline while a rock face holding up a tropical forest made up the other side. Clearly, the focal point was the shoreline when the two had such a pleasant, elevated view of it.

Soon the first bit of wildlife came into view.

"Aw, look at that cute little guy!"

Fumbling with an apple on the sand was the yellow electric mouse Pokemon, Pikachu. A few Butterfree and Pidgeys were fluttering about as well, but none stole the show quite like Pikachu. The adorable creature managed to grab ahold of the red apple and carried it off to a small outcropping of rocks to dig in. Pit primed his camera, aimed and took the shot before moving on to the other small creatures.

"They look happy and healthy. I don't think they're mutants," Pit commented as he examined his recent photos. "Maybe they're a new species… Snake, you know what they are, right?"

"Hmm… Not these weird butterflies or birds, no, but I know that one," Snake replied. He pointed at Pikachu and, almost as if on command, the Pokemon let out a few sparks from its cheeks. "That's a Pikachu. They can discharge electricity from their bodies."

"So… an electric mouse, huh? I can see it being useful on Mother Base, though I'd worry that Nuke would try and hunt it."

As the shoreline continued, Snake and Pit would see more Pokemon playing, hunting and sunbathing without a care in the world. Most were small, docile creatures, but once the sand and gravel got replaced by coarse dirt and rock there came a few larger types. Geodudes, Diglets, Zigzagoons and other common Pokemon scurried about or posed for pictures. As all this went on, Snake provided commentary and supplied information when pressed. So far, things were going as planned, though it was too early to celebrate.

The minecart turned away from the shimmering sea and delved into a tropical forest rich with life. With so much foliage and plenty of shadows, the coordinators hidden away could get to work. An experienced Pokemon trainer called Red looked over two of his best and brightest team players, a Squirtle and Ivysaur, and knew that they would do their part. The water-type was delegating tasks to its fellow aquatic creatures while Ivysaur barked orders and nudged the more sluggish and carefree Pokemon into position. Not everyone needed to be front and center, but to give Chico a safari to remember, they would have to be seen, even if it was only a passing glance.

One Pokemon wasn't happy with its role, or rather, the lack of one. Jigglypuff had been kept away from all the planning and for good reason. This pink balloon Pokemon could put people to sleep through its singing, and it certainly loved to sing. Snake and Pit needed to be awake so they could observe everything on this safari! Having snuck into the forest when no-one was looking, Jigglypuff caught sight of Snake and Pit in their minecart. The well-meaning Pokemon cleared its throat, stepped out onto a tree limb stretching over the railway and started to sing.

"Pokemon must be like those Japanese youkai, only much, much nicer," Pit observed as he steadied his camera on Ivysaur posing in the forest undergrowth. He took the shot and pumped his fist in victory. "Perfect shot! That's gotta be more than 1,000 points!"

"I wonder if there's any dog-like Pokemon," Snake thought aloud as he began to enjoy himself. He peered into the foliage for a good moment before some strange singing fell on his ears. "Huh?"

"What's that? It… it sounds like… is that a siren?"

The two glanced around for a split second until weariness set in. Up above, Jigglypuff was just about to get to the best part of its lullaby when a psychic force wrapped around its puffy body and tugged. With a sharp trill of its name, the Jigglypuff was ripped off of its perch and thrown deep into the forest.

"Thanks, Mewtwo," Snake sighed as he caught the altercation in the corner of his eye.

"I guess it's pretty dangerous in this forest. Just like Costa Rica, eh Snake? I sure hope we don't run into el basilisco," Pit murmured.

A few more minutes would pass with the two rolling through the tropical forest unmolested. More Pokemon, each more exotic than the last, leapt from the foliage and gave Pit enough opportunities to take pictures before they scurried away. Besides dealing with Jigglypuff, the only break in the immersion came from a sighting of Donkey Kong strutting through the underbrush. Seeing as it was hard to play off a large gorilla wearing a striking red tie as something natural, Snake convinced his cryptozoologist friend that it was Bigfoot. Pit fell for it hook, line, and sinker.

Soon the tropical forest would come to an end, but the best was yet to come. A training ground for Pokemon rested on the outskirts of this forest, one that had been scarred many times over by powerful moves. The terrain was as if a meteor had struck this place; there were no trees, no splashes of green and no man-made structures whatsoever. There were a few outcroppings of rocks and some boulders scattered about for cover, and for the water-types there were some bodies of water, but nothing too substantial. The edges of this barren, gravely waste were hitched up, further strengthening the idea that a meteor had come down here at one time.

Concealed on the other side of this crater and hunkered down behind the rise of dirt at the edge was yet another Pokemon trainer. She was a spritely sort of lass with fair skin and long brown hair, a casual, comfortable outfit and a glaring white sun hat to complete the package. Leaf poked her head up and saw the minecart with Snake and Pit approaching. After getting her cue from the other coordinators in the distance, she turned her attention to the black and blue jackal and the taller, blue bipedal frog crouched next to her.

"Here we go, guys. Red's Charizard should be on the way, so get into position."

Lucario and Greninja acknowledged the order and vaulted over the crest of the crater. All the Pokemon in Smash Bros. got along well with one another, especially with hotheaded types like Charizard and brooding loners like Mewtwo. They explored, ate and sparred together as much as they could. In this case, Lucario and Greninja were primed to provide a show to remember, and they were remarkably well-coordinated.

"I think I'm running out of photos," Pit groaned as he loaded in his last remaining cartridge of film. "But I've taken so many! I've got to show Amanda everything once I get back. Ah, wait… Is the safari over?"

"Not quite. Looks like we've got one last surprise in store." Bandana blowing in the breeze, Snake rose from the minecart and directed Pit's attention over to the crater they were now circling. "See that? Looks like a training ground for these creatures. I wonder what they're capable of… No human weapon could have carved all this out."

"I see two UMAs over there, Snake! I think they're fighting!"

With a camera levelled their way, Lucario and Greninja got to work. They had placed themselves at the center of the crater, locked in a grapple as they sparred. A Force Palm to the solar plexus shoved Greninja back and allowed him to capitalize on the distance with a Water Shuriken. Lucario was a hardy, disciplined Pokemon who could dish out more damage as fights dragged on while Greninja, despite its spindly stature, was as quick as a flash and struck with all the precision of a bolt of lightning. For about half a minute these two skilled Pokemon would duke it out until a familiar draconic roar ripped through the air.

Bursting out from the forest was Charizard, the flying flame Pokemon. The great creature would swoop down and land with a thunderous crash between Lucario and Greninja. Flames billowed from its razor-sharp maw. Typical for Charizard, it sought to take on the two others all by itself! Sure there was a type-disadvantage with Greninja on the field, but Charizard was powerful enough to take on anything and anyone, or so it believed.

"Dragon! That has to be a dragon," Pit exclaimed as he leaned over the minecart to snap several pictures. "This is incredible!"

As the three powerhouses battled, the sky above would shift from a beautiful blue to a cold and foreboding gray. Dark clouds swirled above the crater and seemed to be descending upon the area as if a tornado was about to touch down. Though the atmosphere had changed, at least Charizard could light up the crater with its hellfire, so in essence, all eyes were upon it. But then the clouds began to pulse as thunder rumbled throughout its mass, and soon there came a swirling, shimmering multidimensional portal stretching wide over the crater. For a moment the three Pokemon stopped their fighting to look up in confusion.

From a camouflaged position overlooking the crater, Mario turned to Robin, Isabelle and Palutena for an explanation.

"What's this? Robin, what's with the portal?"

"Hey, don't look at me," Robin replied. She took out one of her heavy tomes and flipped through the pages for some kind of reference. "I can't summon portals on a whim. And it doesn't look anything like the kind I'm used to. Really, it looks more like Palutena's doing."

"Well don't look at me either. None of us had this idea," Palutena argued.

Isabelle jumped in with an optimistic angle.

"I'm sure it's just some embellishment by the Pokemon. It's probably one of the legendaries doing this, like Giratina or Darkrai." Pleased with her reasoning, Isabelle folded her stubby arms and nodded away. "Though it's kind of scary, I think this-"

Another draconic roar cut through the air, but unlike Charizard's, this one was much more ferocious. It was deafening; the kind of roar that would cut down a man's resolve in a heartbeat. Everyone flinched and looked up to the portal in the sky to see a massive winged beast descend from its limitless depths. It appeared to be a red, black and white wyvern sporting terrible, jagged scales all over its body, a mace-like tail and claws and teeth so wicked sharp that they made Charizard feel like a Charmander by comparison. But the most chilling thing was the set of keen blue eyes that searched the crater below for prey.

Forget this being a Pokemon. This was none other than an apex monster, a Rathalos.

"El… El basilisco!" Pit cried out, too terrified to lift his camera let alone dip back down into the minecart for concealment.

"That's your basilisk?!" Snake couldn't help himself from shouting. He grimaced and touched his temple as a sharp ache shot through his head. "Argh! Deja vu, now?"

The coordinators were just as horrified.

"What in Oblivion is that?!" Isabelle shrieked before pressing herself tight to the ground, figuring that if she curled up in a tight ball the monster wouldn't see her as a morsel.

"That's a Rathalos," Palutena explained to the others. "They're vicious, highly territorial monsters. Without the proper gear, going toe-to-toe with one of them is suicide. Master Hand must have scouted this monster's habitat and forgot to close the door, and so-"

Robin groaned.

"Oh great, so now this crazy thing is seeking to expand its territory, huh? We have to get in there and beat it back!"

"Wait a moment," Mario urged only to be met with confused, irritated stares. "If we get in there, Chico will realize that this was all a set-up! We have to preserve the immersion!"

"Immersion? Why you little- To blazes with immersion!"

"No no, Mario has a point." Immediately Palutena was met with a flabbergasted grunt from Robin, yet she stood her ground. "We'll just have to work with what we've got, and that means putting our faith in the Pokemon. What we can do, Robin, is work on containing that portal. Pull up your socks and get that magic flowing!"

Meanwhile, the Rathalos had already introduced itself to Lucario, Greninja and Charizard. Dust and debris shot out in all directions like shrapnel as the tyrannical lizard landed amongst the trio before lashing out with its beak-like maw in the hopes that one of the Pokemon would serve as an appetizer. Though the trio was dazed and confused by this monster's sudden, awesome entrance, they were no dummies. They jumped away from the Rathalos' bite and struck back with their specialized projectiles, but all seemed to bounce harmlessly off the beast's scaly hide.

In response to this barrage, the Rathalos pumped its wings and launched into the air. It eyed up Lucario and Greninja before settling on Charizard as the largest target available. The king of the skies sucked in its gut for a brief moment before spitting out a flaming hunk of molten rock. Charizard managed to dodge the fireball, but the impact combined with an accompanying wave of fire tossed it up and away. Thankfully it only did minor damage, and besides, Charizard could fly as well.

Hunting an apex monster was no easy task. Choosing to rely on Charizard as the tank of the trio, Lucario and Greninja offered their support by peppering the Rathalos' wings with projectiles. In sharp contrast to the sturdy armor that encased the Rathalos' main body, the wings were vulnerable and caused the monster to recoil when hit. Another volley hit its mark, but this enraged the Rathalos and forced it to deal with the pesky bipeds on the ground. It swooped low and, as a mace swung downwards, the monster's spiked tail slammed against Lucario and knocked him across the crater like a ragdoll.

The trio was sturdy as well. They had to be able to take a beating if they were in Smash Bros., after all. Still, each one of Rathalos' attacks stung. The monster was aggressive and frustratingly implacable. For each attack that the trio landed on the Rathalos, it would return the favor tenfold. Greninja suffered poison damage from venomous talons. Lucario took a volley of fireballs head-on. Charizard was pulled from the sky and impaled into the gravel below like a spade.

Needless to say, three on one wasn't much of an advantage, and Snake was quick to realize that. A good monster hunter party wasn't complete without a fourth member!

"Chico, stay here," he growled as he vaulted out from the minecart.

"Y-you're really gonna hunt that thing? Wow, you're the best, boss!"

Unfortunately, Snake had no plan for this event, and he especially didn't have any lethal weaponry on hand. Other than his knife, Snake had equipped himself with his trusty tranquillizer pistol, a large assortment of sleeping gas grenades and stun rounds for his Nikita missile launcher. He had to be prepared in case Pit/Chico got out of hand and needed to be pacified, or if one of the Pokemon decided to not play nice. Against a giant monster like the Rathalos, it seemed that none of Snake's equipment would make a lick of difference, but this was a man who took out a tank with grenades. If anyone could do it, it was Solid Snake.

After skidding down the steep slope of the crater Snake met up with the Pokemon trio and got to work shooting tranquillizers at the Rathalos' exposed underbelly.

"Just like old times, eh Luke?"

Lucario wheezed out a reply and got back to chipping away at the Rathalos' armor. Thanks to Snake's tranquillizers and gas grenades the Rathalos' fatal, furious maneuvers steadily slowed to a point where the monster was no longer taking to the skies. On the ground, it was still dangerous, especially when it lowered its head and charged forward like a battering ram. Lucario and Greninja had no choice but to dodge to the side, but Charizard's Blaze ability was flaring and allowed it to meet the Rathalos head-on. Bathed in fire, Charizard shot forward in a Fire Blitz and stopped the Rathalos dead in its tracks.

Now stunned, the team of four laid into the apex monster with aplomb. Charizard didn't have the energy to deliver the knockout blow, but Lucario did. All the abuse the Rathalos laid onto Lucario served to power up his aura. The black and blue jackal went through the motions of his signature move, Aura Sphere, but something was different this time around. It seemed that Lucario was… really, really getting into it.

"Ka… me… ha… me…"

"Lucario, get on with it!" Leaf pleaded from her hiding spot.

A great blue ball of sizzling energy slammed into the Rathalos' head and, after letting out a shriek of agony, the massive monster crumpled to the ground in an unconscious heap.

"Let's not celebrate just yet," Snake advised as he pointed up to the portal hanging low in the sky. "Let's find a way to put this thing back where it came from."

At that moment Pit came running down the edge of the crater with a few olive green satchels in hand. His camera dangled from his hip while rolls of the undeveloped film now decorated his tunic like grenades. Snake wasn't sure how many pictures were taken of the fight with the Rathalos, but seeing Pit's beaming, astonished smile he could only figure that there was more than enough to last a lifetime. The soul-swapped angel skidded to a stop near the group and handed off the satchels to each Pokemon before reporting to Snake.

"Pi- Chico, I thought I told you to-"

"Here Snake! You can use these!"

"A Fulton Recovery Device…? I never thought I'd see one of these," Snake said as he inspected the satchel. He took it in his hands and gave it a good, long look as if he were holding a relic before looking back up at Pit. "Where did you get these?"

"The alien over there gave me some," Pit replied as he pointed to the edge of the tropical forest.

Snake followed Pit's finger and saw Mewtwo shooting him a familiar gesture while Diddy Kong drank a soda nearby.

"Nobody's gonna get that reference," Snake muttered to himself with a shake of his head. "Anyway, let's put these things to work."

Showcasing sheer intuition, the Pokemon trio and Snake attached the Fulton devices to the Rathalos. Head, wings, and tail were properly secured all the while the great beast slept. When everything was set the four deployed the large balloons contained within and watched in awe as the Rathalos was lifted into the sky. Up it went until the Rathalos was sucked back into the portal from whence it came. In an instant, the foreboding clouds dissipated as the portal closed in on itself, soon disappearing entirely thanks to Robin and Palutena's magic.

The group breathed a sigh of relief.

"Well… I suppose that's mission accomplished. That also concludes the safari." Snake dusted his hands and turned back to Pit. "So, what did y- Huh?"

Pit swayed where he stood as weariness seemed to set in. He closed his eyes and tilted forward on a collision course with the ground, but Snake was there to hold him steady.

"Hey, Chico, are you alright? You didn't touch those talons, did you? Chico…?"

A short period passed where Pit didn't respond. Concerned, the coordinators came out from their hidden positions and gathered around. Good fortune soon smiled upon the fighters as Pit then started to shift about before opening his eyes once again. He looked up at Snake and the others and, without the Spanish twang in his voice, he spoke up.

"Why's everyone looking at me?"

"Pit!" Palutena practically ripped the angel out from Snake's hold and wrapped him tight in a crushing embrace. Overwhelmed by the gesture, Pit squeaked in protest but didn't dare break free from his goddess' hold. "You're back!"

"I'm back? W-where did I go? Ack! Lady Palutena, y-you're smothering me!"

"They say you shouldn't celebrate too soon," Robin started as she looked on, "but I say take your victories as they come. Your crazy plan worked, Mario!"

Mario blushed at the praise and shook his head.

"Oh come now," he reasoned, "it was a group effort! I may have been around long enough to remember the Snap-a Course back in its heyday, but it's thanks to all of us that we were able to get it up and running again."

Typical Mario. The plumber was always such a team player, even if he stole the limelight from time to time. Pleased to see Pit back to his usual self, the smashers looked on as Palutena carted the angel away with profound joy radiating from her very form. At first, Pit had several questions; certainly anyone would after 'waking up' amongst a crowd of fighters in a battle-scarred crater. But when Palutena diverted Pit's questions and promised him a large celebratory feast, the angel perked up and bounded along after his goddess like the chipper captain he was.

"Now that her holiness has been appeased, let's get to work on the next one," Robin chirped, much to everyone's chagrin. She pulled out the Soulscript, that mythical catalogue of souls, and started to flip through the pages. "Between Chrom and Lucina, I'm thinking that-"

"Hmm… You know, hearing Palutena talk about a feast made me realize that I've hardly eaten all day," Mario mused aloud.

The rest of the smashers, Pokemon included, nodded in agreement.

"Yeah. Can't march to the next objective on an empty stomach."

"I could really go for a Brewster-blended coffee right now."

"If there's a feast, I want a serving. Maybe two. Maybe fifty."

In a heartbeat Robin found herself standing alone as the others trotted off after Pit and Palutena. She stamped her foot and huffed in disgust.

"You lazy, good-for-nothing jerks! The fate of the universe could be at stake and you're just going to go stuff your faces? Come on! I bet Chrom's treatment is going to be much easier compared t-" As Robin got to Chrom's entry in the Soulscript several pages dropped down like a glorified pinup poster. She took one look at it, gulped and closed the heavy tome. "Oh… On second thought, let's go eat…"