Chapter Text
The sun was high in the sky over the territory of Smashville as the beams of sunlight beat down on a pair of children. Brightly-colored houses lined the streets as they led to a herd of soccer fields on the outskirts of town. The freshly cut grass is crisp and lush, and there is a gentle bright blue sky looking down on the fields. All was gentle on these fields, until an object suddenly hurled out of nowhere. A soccer ball was being volleyed back and forth at the speed of sound. Bright lights and elements were flying all over the field as the two kids played their favorite game; “PK Soccer.” Shouts of “PK THUNDER” and “PK FIRE” echoed across the soccer fields on the outskirts of Smashville as the two friends used their psychic and elemental powers and moves to volley the ball back and forth. The pair of friends played until the sun began to set on the horizon. Finally, with much sweat on his brow and his temples trembling, the kid in the blue and yellow striped shirt was able to finally get past his sparring companion and break the tie. After a brief cheer and a jump of jubilation, the kid in blue and yellow collapsed on the ground, with his signature red cap falling off and laying in the grass beside him. His companion joined him soon after, sporting a red and yellow striped shirt with frizzy blonde hair. Despite very different personalities and styles, the two were like two peas in a pod. Right beside each other and seldom seen without the other.
Through shortness of breath, the companion with the frizzy blonde hair speaks first, which is rare for his type of mentality. “That was a great match, Ness.” He manages to put on a smile for his friend. “You’ve gotten a lot better at this game lately, heh.” The boy with the red cap, who is named Ness, gives his friend a fist bump and allows his fist to collapse back on the ground immediately after. “Yeah, I think I did pretty okey. I’ve been practicing!” Ness manages to sit up in the grass and continue speaking. “It’s also been helpful for the tournament matches we have. I can’t wait to show my awards and progress to Paula and my mom once we return to our home universe. They’ll be so excited!” His closest friend’s eyes gaze up at the sky, as his bright blue pupils scan the expanse of the atmosphere back and forth. “Yeah, I’d bet they’re proud.”
The more somber member of the pair tilts his head towards the sides and looks towards the trees again, as if something will leap out at him. Ness turns to his companion and gently grips his shoulder. “Hey, Lucas. Are you still sad about your drop in the power rankings?” He continues to nudge Lucas’, despite there being no response. “I’m sure all the viewers back home like Kumatora are rooting for you no matter what! You’re doing your loved ones proud, bud. Please remember that, okey?”
The sky begins to turn a deep pitch black. The heavenly bodies begin to disappear left and right. There’s a lonely wind that passes over the two children as the grass begins to sway faster and faster. The silence becomes deafening for the first psychic kid. “Lucas?... Lucas? Are you feeling okey? Is everything alright?” The boy turns his friend over, and immediately jumps back. His complexion turns as white as snow as Lucas throws himself off the ground with a jolt. He shambles towards Ness as Ness continues to take steps back while holding a finger in front of him, glimmering with PK energy. Lucas’ eye sockets have gone dark as his mouth begins to open up wider and wider. There is nothing inside. The dark expanse surrounds the child, as his proclamations grow in volume. “NO HOPE… NO HOPE. YOU ABANDONED ME. YOU ABANDONED ME.” Ness continues to back away as he grabs at his signature hat. As soon as Lucas begins to run at him, Ness runs away as fast as he can. The footsteps grow closer and closer. The tempo increases to a blistering speed as Ness can feel a cold breath down his neck. He can feel Lucas’ icy hands gripping onto his shirt behind him. “Lucas… no! It’s not true! NO! LUCAS!”
…
I awake. There are a few tears coming from my eye slits as I wipe my cheeks dry. My body was trembling all over as I wiped my forehead slowly. My scalp was covered in a cold sweat as I slowly sat up in my bed. The blue and white striped pajamas on my body crawl up my skin and give me an even greater shiver. “I need to shower” I quip as I take the pajamas and throw them into the trash next to my bed. There are multi-colored baseball caps scattered around the trashcan, with flies hovering over it like vultures. I should just buy new ones with the change that I’ve saved. That is; if the capitol will even allow me.
My eyes feel swollen shut. With great effort and a little pain, I open my eyes and the world comes into a semi-blurry focus. There’s a single ray of sunshine coming through the window in the back corner, shining onto the small, dark-wood table in the center of the kitchenette. A lightbulb flickers above the kitchen table, with a wind beating against the closed windows and trees softly doing a dance below the window pane. I take a deep breath, with my world coming into better focus. “Maybe this day will get better”, I fanaticize. A few seconds later, that very hope proves to be fleeting. I grip my belly suddenly, believing it to be hunger at first. But, just a few seconds later, I could tell I was in for a far worse feeling.
The heat of the room is suffocating, the pain holds my body ransom, and everything in front of me is spinning like a whirligig. I rush to the bathroom and arrive in the nick of time. The toilet welcomes my lost lunch as I climb up from my hunched position on the floor and gently grip onto the corner of the sink counter. I then see a picture of me and a boy named Lucas, sitting off to the side of the counter. He’s giving me bunny ears as my hand grips onto his shoulder, just like what happened in my dreams last night. A crack stretches across Lucas’ face, which I can’t be bothered to fix right now. As my mind continues to awake, I peer up at the mirror and stare at the image staring back at me. There are pools of tar underneath my eye sockets, and my arms are bony. Rivers begin to flow from my eyes again, but I quickly wipe them away and throw myself out of that cursed room. There is now pain coursing through my body like a wildfire destroying a lush forest. Whether it’s physical pain or heartache, I’m not really sure nor do I care all that much.
I take a big gulp of saliva to get rid of the foul stench on my breath. My limbs carry my body over to the kitchen. One of the chairs has a bum leg, with other chairs even still in the corner collecting dust. There’s only one chair that remains at the table. I grab a small protein bar and take a seat at the table. My fingers slowly rip off the wrapping as my eyes come in contact with the window. The sky is gray. The sea of the Big Blue district is gray. The capitol building erected over in the Town and City region is gray. Everything is gray.
The only thing that isn’t gray is the protein bar that has since fallen out of my hand. Going to grab it again, I stare at it. The rich brown color of the bar oozes over the top. And yet, it had 20 grams of protein and was as tasty as what you’d find in a candy store. This isn’t just a healthy snack for me, though. This is my lifeline. The drive to keep me going and to keep me sane is wrapped up in a shiny piece of foil.
My teeth take nibbles as I gaze out my window again. The capitol building has me in a trance, and my heart begins to increase in beats per minute. My blood pressure rising as my fist clenches the protein bar. “The capitol…” I mutter to myself. My mouth still feels like rubber, but my mind was as alert as ever with my feelings towards that bastion of suffering and pain. Everything in the world of Smash was running smoothly before they showed up. An exciting yet enjoyable fighting tournament circuit stretching across a wide expanse of this multiverse has morphed into a fortress of solitude and suffering. I can’t stop thinking about the one behind it all. Her green hair, her arrogant laugh, and her dominance in brackets lately all make me want to pull my hair out. I saw right through her façade, but by the time I tried to tell my friend, it was too late. I’m so angry I could kill her.
My mind continues to focus in on all of my sorrows as my head droops. There’s a fuzziness like television static going in my brain, as my head lowers and hits the power button on the remote placed right next to the dilapidated wrapper. My tv screen, located across the room, opens and blares with jubilant colors and sounds. The shade of the outside trees casts shadows between the table and the television. A familiar theme makes me sit upright and point my eyes toward the screen. A ringing then begins to blare as I run to shut off the alarm clock on the counter next to my bed. “Right…” I groan. “It’s time for the daily morning propa… I mean broadcast.” I can’t let them know what I’m actually thinking. They can hear me.
When I manage to get back to the kitchenette, I can feel my brow furrowing as the face of the brand-new world speaks with high tones. My tv screen has taken shape of a foul being, stomach-churning and heart-wrenching. “It is day 365 of the utopian project over in the world of Smash! Things are going wonderfully here as we work towards all of society being equal and to bring peace, freedom, and strength to the entire multiverse! After a year of working on this project here, we are hitting a climax and our success with having a utopian society is running smoother than ever! We cannot wait until we share this wonderful progression in society development with all different dimensions! Rest assured, your family and friends will return soon! We are all in this together as we…”
A remote flies towards the television. It hits the screen so hard that the broadcast goes black and the piece of glass shatters into a million pieces anyway. “I didn’t need that tv anyway” I mutter to myself as I begin to pick up the pieces. They call themselves “Dekagon”. These people claim they want to bring peace, but something isn’t adding up for me. I know they’re guilty of something, and I’m going to prove it. “This is for all of us… for Lucas.” As I’m picking up the pieces of the shattered screen, my jaw tightens and my fists clench together. My eyes being to well up with tears as I feel a tingling sensation within my hands. There seems to be a red liquid flowing from my fingers, and then it hits me. My legs carry me towards the bathroom sink as I run my hands under the cooling liquid of life. The tears from my eyes begin to mix with the water flowing from the rusted faucet. “I need to keep it together”, I repeat in my head to myself as I try to cleanse my hands. “I have work today.”
The government controls your livelihood, and the process is very straight-forward. If you perform well enough in the required fighting tournaments, you are assigned a better paying job. But, if you fail, you’ll be sent to the factories and other career paths that are typically held by players trapped in the slums of New Pork City. In the end though, there’s no “good” path for me or anybody not within the power structure of the Dekagon. I’m one of the better competitors, so I really can’t complain about the café job itself. It pays enough for me to survive, but my soul is left with longing more. I’m sure plenty more feel this way, but I can’t confirm nor deny that. These questions continue to blare through my mind as I throw bandages on my hands and hope for the best.
The alarm from my bed-side blares once again. It’s time to get out of the Onett district, or what’s left of it. This is home but it’s not home. The technology of this world of Smash allows all characters to have a district that’s dedicated to their home universe. Being a resident of the Mother dimension, I’m assigned to live in the Onett district. This has to be motivation for me to do my job and to “stay in line”, as the saying goes. I’m allowed to live in a place familiar to me, but it can only be because I don’t stir the pot, right?
As I run towards the transportation station a few districts over, the streets pass by me in slow motion. Window panels are falling off the houses of the streets. There are no cars moving on the streets. I hear the wind blowing through my ears. I’m able to catch the final Big Blue ticket over to the Delfino District, where my daily grind is located. The transportation device is filled with characters, each going to different places. Some are clothed in their treasured pieces of silk, living life relatively comfortably. Others are barely holding it together and their faces show it. I’m somewhere in the middle, and it could be worse off for me. Even still, you never know what could happen next. If you step over the line even a little bit, you’re finished. This has to be true, right? I might be going crazy, but this lingering thought has placed a foothold within my brain. It has to be true. I know what happened to Lucas. Does anybody else see it?
I arrive at my stop and climb off the car. The social hub: Delfino Plaza, and it’s one of the few places left in the world of Smash that I’ve seen plenty of colorful characters going left and right from place to place. The wind over the ocean brushes against my face as I rub my cheek gently. A friend of mine, named Isabelle, and K.K. Slider pass by me on the right. On the left-hand side of the plaza, former champion Mario and his girlfriend Peach are having a breakfast date together. The white cobblestone below my feet shines bright like a diamond, as the bright red roofs of the different apartments and establishments glows bright like a star. The ocean behind me hits the beach softly as a gentle breeze continues to flow past my face, and my mind is able to find some peace in a temporary vacation landscape within my mind.
The aroma of rich coffee beans and tea leaves flows into my nose, and my mind awakens with dread. “I’ve gotta get to work”, and my legs begin to dash towards the shop right in front of me. Despite the path being simple, everything beside me moves at the speed of molasses. The graffiti on the buildings on the southwest corner of the island begin to bend, as the palm trees littered throughout the plaza begin to blend with the background. Everything seems normal, and I’m not sure why it’s that way. Does anybody else feel the way I feel? Am I on an island?
I show my ID card and pass to one of the guards, who are standing right at the front door. After a brief nod from the guard, he opens for me and a new world hits me in my face. There’s a smooth darkness in the air, with hints of fresh herbal undertones as well. Various art pieces make the wall pop with color and life. It’s one of the only walls in the plaza to dedicate its entire expanse to art pieces. The café has tables and chairs comfortably spread out, with even having a soft, light purple reading chair right in the corner, paired with a selection of periodicals. The published works section of the café is covered in works published by the Capitol, and no other publishing company can be found on that rack. Every table is filled and the line is beginning to form at the door. I have to swing left and right as I find my way to the back of the counter, where I begin to check into work for the day. An umbra witch and a light brunette princess are having a laugh in the corner, as I see a large and in charge crocodile bursting out the door with an extra-large steaming caramel macchiato in his dominant hand as he lumbers to his job. “I’m surprised that they even let him in.” I ponder to myself. “K. Rool’s a low tier.”
As I take my favorite red cap and place it on the coat rack, I can see a blue blur whizzing back and forth out of the corner of my eye. He’s the best barista we have. He’s the fastest player in this world and it shows in his work. With a confident yet polite grin and a voice as smooth and warm as butter to boot, the café receives more traffic than any other place in the land, probably because of the service he delivers. I’m shocked that he can have such a pleasant demeanor, considering how he dwells on his best friends all the time. His fox buddy and echidna friend must be worried sick about him back home, in his home universe.
I swap out my hat for the café signature hat, which is covered in a rich green color and has the world of Smash symbol on the center of the cap. There are grease stains covering the brim, thanks to the panini press and latte maker. A salt line is also entrenched within the head-piece. It can get hot in here. As I’m about to put the hat on my brow, a wind from the counter knocks the hat onto the ground. Leave it up to the blue blur to rush over and pick it up while he’s holding three black coffees in his hands and arms. “Woah! Sorry about that, little buddy! The wind must’ve knocked your hat clean off!” He gives a chuckle and hands the three coffees to a trio of Pokemon, who are attached at the hip to their master. They glare at me, and I glare back at them. The come in here every day and give me the same exact stare, and I hate how they look at me, for whatever reason they do. Before I can continue marinading on my emotions, I feel a tap on my shoulder.
“Is my favorite PK kid ready for the day?” The blue hedgehog lovingly nudges me as I prepare to activate the second counter. He’s got his signature grin on, with his face swirling with bright colors. There’s a brightness to his eyes that beams like the sun, and his stature stands upright, like he could lift all the weight in the world. “Yeah, I think I am. Thanks, Sonic.” Of course, I say that I am but it’s like he can see right through me. The beats per minute of Sonic’s foot are fast yet regulated. “Ness, don’t lie to me, man. There are bags under your eyes again. Have you been having nightmares?” I gently rub the back of my head and feel my face turning red hot. It felt like I just swallowed a chili pepper. My tongue fumbles and trips as he gives me a pat on the back. “Hey buddy, it’s alright. You’ve been going through a lot lately. It’s alright to feel the way you do! The subconscious is really weird, anyway.” I rub my temples as I step up to my register. The traffic continues to move at break-neck speeds. While this café is very popular, you’re only allowed to have 30 minutes of time in here, unless you’re working. Once your 30 minutes are up, you are required to leave and head to something “productive”. It’s one of the many regulations released by the Capitol. Despite the lack of freedom, I do appreciate this café. The two sanctuaries for me are this café and my home. Nowhere else is safe for me.
Soon after the shift begins and the orders begin flowing in for me, I see the umbra witch and her princess companion nod to each other. The witch in particular is holding a special kind of envelope; a kind of envelope that has an odd blue and white pattern to it. “That’s odd, the letters from the government are always coded in orange and black. Those are the approved colors for all envelopes in the mailing system. No other color is allowed to be used for envelope designs, especially after the ‘GreenBro Scandal.’” As the two tall, thin women turned and left the café, my eyes take a glance at the walking path they’re taking. I’ve seen them in here before, but they’re not headed north or south, which is where their careers and homes are. Instead, they’re headed west. This is towards the New Pork slums. “What are they headed there for?” My puzzled brain keeps searching for answers as my co-worker friend taps me on the shoulder. “Hey, Ness. Would you mind waking up from Dreamland? We’ve got a line out the door!” I facepalm as I notice that what Sonic is saying is true, and my face turns beet red. The customers are now going out of the door, and the checking of watches and the crossed arms continue to increase in magnitude. “Sorry, Sonic. I’ll do better.” He gives a chuckle towards me. “Happens to the best of us!”
A new work shift has dawned, but that question continues to linger in my mind. “That envelope and the mail inside can’t be government approved. Something is going on here.” I could feel fireworks going off in my brain. Curiosity was ready to kill the cat, and I can feel my brain getting ready to do some investigating. I will follow those two into the slums and find the truth.