Chapter Text
The stars above Towara shone brightly, its moon even brighter.
Below, two blue Poppy Bros Junior stood at their post, outside of a shifting tower. Though the tower was short compared to the skyscrapers on other parts of the planet, it was no less important to the surrounding town, which mostly consisted of cubical houses and was laid out in a very neat grid despite its size. The vegetation was sparse, mostly consisting of grass and a few trees. Along one end, not too far from its center, a river ran, bringing water to a nearby city.
The patterns cast onto the trees from the moon reflecting on the water distracted one of the Bros, the Watch Captain for the night. He stared at the dancing lights, bored out of his mind and lost in directionless thought before his partner, a regular scout, interrupted him.
“Hey…” he said. “What if...do you ever think about...what if the Grand Mam is actually just still alive somewhere? What would happen then?”
“...What?” The captain asked, snapping out of his mini-trance. “What do you mean ‘what if she’s alive somewhere?’ We all know that the Yellows killed her.”
“Well, yeah,” the scout countered, “But...I mean...I dunno, I just think about it sometimes. Like, if all this fighting between us and the Yellows is because of her dying, would it just...stop if she was actually found alive somewhere?”
The captain didn’t quite know what to make of this idea. It seemed, to him, like his partner was beginning to overtire, or perhaps, like many other Blues, he was just exhausted from the fighting amongst their neighboring tribes. He wasn’t entirely sure how to address the latter thought, given that they were both on duty, so instead he opted to dismiss it entirely.
“I think you’ve been listening to too many conspiracy theories.”
Before the other Poppy Bro could respond, they were both silenced by a rustling from behind them.
Immediately they turned, detached hands prepared to shape the bombs for which they were known. Of course, once a bomb was created, the only method of destruction was its own explosion. Historically, this had proven to be a disadvantage against non-Poppy foes, and made it difficult to adopt a “shoot first, ask questions later” mentality-- a mentality which the two found themselves very tempted to employ as they met the magenta eyes of some...creature, somehow almost completely obscured by the thin tree flanking one side of the building.
“Who are you? State your business.” Said the captain, stepping closer in an attempt to intimidate despite his species’ cutesy appearance.
The eyes responded by going dark.
For a brief moment, the Bros were confused. The scout even began to question whether or not what they had seen was real. The question was quickly answered when, slowly emerging beside the tree, a black mass made of material that could very loosely be described as “gooey” began to take form. It stepped out, bit by bit, with something that one could much more loosely described as a “limb”-- “limbs” that were unnaturally long and rounded at the points where extremities would normally be. The creature dwarfed the Poppy Bros in height and was, strangely, much wider than the tree behind which it had just been hiding.
Once again, its magenta eyes opened, staring at its inquisitors. They were just as glowy and indistinct as when they’d first seen them. After a moment, the creature shrunk to size more comparable to the Bros, though the transformation didn’t make them feel much more comforted.
“I-I asked you a question!” The captain called out again, embarrassed by a slight, fearful stutter. “Why are you here? What do you want?”
The head of the creature, more of a round nub with eyes, tilted to the side, not breaking its gaze on the Bros.
“This...this is your final warning!” The scout spoke up, bringing his hands closer together. “State your business or we’ll...we’ll…!”
As the second Bro’s threat started to stutter and fade out, the creature tilted its head to the other side, then, slowly, a hole began to open up beneath its eyes. A dark hole. A dark hole filled with sharp, white teeth. A dark hole filled with sharp, white teeth, out of which rolled a long, thin, pink tongue.
The captain froze, barely able to comprehend what he was seeing. “Wh- what in Nova’s na-!” He started to sputter, cut off by a shriek and a familiar hiss, though he found himself too paralyzed to look over.
Beside him, his partner was screaming in terror, shaky hands preparing to lob a newly-formed bomb at the thing “smiling” before them. Sensing movement, said thing released a screech of its own, extending one of its limbs past its would-be attacker and hitting him in the chest with a hard thud , sending the hapless Poppy Bro backwards into a perimeter fence, which in turn sent him face-down onto the ground, coughing from the impacts. Above him, the bomb that had been thrown from his hand exploded harmlessly.
“Hah!” The still-standing Poppy Bro cried out in shock and, admittedly, terror. This noise attracted the attention of the creature, but rather than simply batting him away, it tackled him to the ground, using its surprisingly immense weight and unsurprisingly gloopy body to surround him and keep him pinned.
The captain turned his head to the side, watching his still-recovering partner struggle to get to any state resembling standing. For a moment, their eyes met, and while it would be quite the story to say that the moment gave said partner a burst of courage that would lead him to save the day, in reality he just burst into tears. The pinned Bro sighed shakily and turned his head skyward, trying his hardest to look past the creature’s widening maw, up at the moon and stars. As he came to accept his fate, he pondered how things so beautiful could preside over something so horrible, perhaps horrors even worse than this. Even if, as inanimate objects, they couldn’t do anything, he concluded as he closed his eyes, at least they made for a pleasant last sight.
If only my last feeling could be better , he thought, reacting to what was unmistakably the tongue of his assailant grazing his cheeks. He scrunched up his face and tried to fight back tears of his own as he heard the shallow, clicking growl of an inhuman predator about to strike.
Then it stopped.
For a moment, there was absolute silence, and the captain honestly thought that he had died. But then he realized that if he were dead, he wouldn’t be able to think that he was dead. It wasn’t until he felt the hands of his partner shaking him awake that he opened his eyes.
“Are you okay?” The scout asked, panic still lingering in his voice.
“Uh…” The first Bro trailed off, fixated on the sight directly above him. The head of the creature was twisted completely around, tongue frozen in a swirling position in the air. In fact, the thing’s whole body seemed to be frozen-- not even the goop that had cascaded about its form seconds ago was in motion. If either of the Bros had to guess, it had something to do with the small, somewhat-indistinct figure perched on top of it. Said figure seemed to be withdrawing something from the creature, causing it to emit what were definitely sounds, but were impossible to describe.
With a grunt and a final yank, the figure extracted something from the creature, causing it to disintegrate before the Poppy Bros’ eyes. As it did so, it flailed a multitude of limbs outward, desperately latching onto anything it could grab. Though it easily caught the Bros, causing their panic to ignite once more, the appendages simply shrank and receded, releasing them without incident as the creature finally disappeared. All that remained was a magenta crystal, impaled on the end of a thick silver épée that glinted in the moonlight. Through the cracks in the crystal, tiny black tentacles tried to slither out, but none got very far before receding again.
As the scout helped the captain to his feet, the captain looked at the figure holding the sword. He was, surprisingly, a bit shorter than they were. His back was to them, only allowing them to see a blue cape and a white glove gripping the sword’s hilt.
Before either Bro could say anything, the stranger spoke.
“Are you all right?” He asked in a deep voice, speaking in an accent neither of the other two recognized.
The guards exchanged glances, then looked back at the figure. “Who...are you?” The captain asked, standing up fully now.
“I believe that I asked you a question first.” The figure replied curtly.
“...We’re...fine, I guess.” The scout answered. “Now who-”
“Good.” The figure interrupted. He brought the sword in front of him, inspecting the impaled crystal. “Clearly much has happened here. I imagine your Senior will be very interested to hear of this.”
“W-well, yeah, of course, but-”
“I am glad that you agree. Certainly you two would be able to afford me such an audience?”
“Probably, but who-”
“Very good. Thank you. We should be going, then.” With that, the figure began to stride toward the building.
The two exchanged glances once again, silently concluding that they were not going to get any answers. They sighed and ran to catch up to the stranger.
/*|*\
Inside the building at the center of the town, a Poppy Bro Senior paced through his office. He looked much the same as the Juniors who lived in the town under his watch, but a bit bigger, and with a pointy, multicolored, bejeweled hat. Normally he would have left long before that hour, but he was expecting news, news he wasn’t sure whether or not he was excited to receive.
On one hand, hearing that an entire battalion of Yellows were wiped out would be welcome to their cause. It’d boost the morale of the Blue forces, surely, and give them a definite advantage in the conflict. Perhaps the spirit of the Grand Mam would be proud.
On the other, there was no doubt that the retaliation would be swift and fierce. Such a concern was the reason for the extra protection throughout the town that night. Who knew what the extent of their rage would be? Would it be an aggressive assault, an outburst of angry forces? Or would it be a calculated revenge, meant to slowly and strategically return what had been done to them? Aside from that, the Senior had to admit, the prospect of being the cause of several deaths weighed heavy on his conscience. Regardless of whether or not they were enemies, they were still living things, sentient, and of course, fellow Poppy Bros.
The official stopped abruptly and took a deep, shaky breath, looking over at his desk. Beside the computer monitor and keyboard, amongst all the paperwork and little decorative trinkets, a red book laid, the gold logo on its front seeming to glare back at him. He was never really sure what the logo was supposed to represent. It looked almost like a tall semi-human figure, or maybe a ridiculously fancy letter T? With...horns? He wasn’t quite sure. All it seemed to resemble right then was a Rorschach blob, and he didn’t like what it was telling him.
When he had gotten it, he was certain that it was going to be the key to victory, an advantage that the other side certainly wouldn’t have. The architecture of the building allowed for easy construction and easier concealment of the equipment, given the built-in ability for the place to shift walls and floors, and their technology was plenty advanced enough to handle the power of the Internet. While utilizing this service was a great expense, the returns in terms of what it would do for them were much greater.
Or, at least, they seemed much greater at the time.
Now, standing in his office, having ordered a killer from Nova-knows-where and siccing it on a group of people, the Poppy Bro Senior began to reconsider.
He turned sharply to his desk and didn’t bother to sit down as he flipped open the cover of the book to find the contact information just inside. With one eye on the book, he used the computer to connect to the support line.
Almost immediately, a video feed sprang to life on the monitor, taking up the whole screen. On it, a man with gray skin, green hair, and an impeccable sense of style greeted him, adjusting his orange-lensed sunglasses.
“Thank you for contacting the Night Mare Enterprises Customer Service line, where your satisfaction is our top priority!” the Customer Service rep took a brief pause, as if to discern who he was talking to. Once he did, opened his hands in a welcoming gesture. “Well, well! Senior B! Didn’t expect you to call back so soon. Is there something I can do for you?”
The jaunty, suave voice of Customer Service contrasted sharply with the anxious mood of his client. It didn’t even occur to said client to question why it was that the salesman who’d processed his order was the same person on the customer support line.
“U-uh...I need...I have...I have concerns about...the monster.”
“Do you? Please, allow me to address them.” Answered a voice from beyond the monitor.
“Is there...someone else in the room with you?” Customer Service asked.
“I…” The Poppy Bro Senior shifted his gaze away from his call, seeing that the front wall had opened. How had he missed that…?
The two Poppy Bros Junior who’d been on guard patrol in the back of the building rushed in, but he knew that the voice couldn’t belong to either of them. They each tried to stammer something out, it sounded almost as if they were relaying an event, but they were disorganized and shaken, and couldn’t seem to put a sentence together, so eventually they quieted and looked back at the figure behind them. Said figure stepped into the light filtering into the room from the window across from him.
There didn’t seem to be much to him. He was the shortest one in the room, blue-skinned with white gloves, purple shoes (or were those his feet…?), a navy cape with a white lining and, curiously, a turquoise collar. The cape was secured to his shoulders by silver-and-gold pauldrons. It was difficult to distinguish much more about him, as he was nearly completely covered by a silver-colored mask, save for a pair of glowing yellow eyes. Of course, as he had a...thingy...impaled on a brandished sword, he commanded the attention of the room.
“Distinguished Senior,” he addressed in an accent nobody in the room recognized, holding part of his cape against himself with his non-sword hand and bowing. “It is a privilege to have this audience with you. I understand you must have several questions, as I do for you.” He straightened.
“...B, your skill in wall decor is excellent , but if you wouldn’t mind coming back to our conversation…” The Senior’s computer said.
“Who is that?” The caped figure asked.
“Oh, it’s, uh, it’s...I don’t…” The Poppy Bro Senior, despite having expected something to happen all night, did not expect this.
“If you believe that you are hiding something, there is no need.” The masked swordsman spoke again, waving his weapon slightly. “I am well aware of where this came from. And I believe I may have an idea of who it is you are talking to. It would be rude to exclude them, no?”
Sheepish, and a bit ashamed, the official turned the screen toward the other three. He had no idea why he was listening to this...person, when any bomb he could make would likely be more powerful than his weapon. Perhaps it was something about his confidence? His commanding tone? His unsettling, unblinking stare? Regardless, the Senior felt compelled to comply.
“Ah, I didn’t realize this was going to be a group meeting! I’d have dressed better.” Customer Service said nonchalantly. Though, tellingly, his gaze became set on the impaled crystal.
“You are new.” The swordsman said flatly.
“Now I wouldn’t say that. I’ve been here for the better part of-”
“So they’ve diversified the sales force.”
“Nope! Just me! No need to replace what’s already perfect.” The wink was audible.
“...Hm.” The masked figure shrugged. “So you are Customer Service.”
“That’s what they call me.” The agent adjusted his glasses again. “Now, B, about that monster-”
“Ah, yes, MSR-46767867. Impo. Indeed, we should be discussing it.”
The normally-confident salesman almost seemed to falter at this. While information like the name and serial number of a monster were listed in customer catalogues, he knew for a fact that he’d never sold to this...person.
“Impo is a versatile monster.” The...person...continued. “Its entire body can form into any shape necessary to complete its mission. Once it is assigned, it will not stop until its objective is complete...or it is forced. While very useful for certain outings, its orders must be very specific, or else you risk something going wrong. Perhaps something such as...losing your own men.”
There was a brief, oppressive silence as the Poppy Bros Junior looked down, refusing to meet the questioning, guilty gaze of their Senior.
“...It’s getting a little heavy in here, isn’t it?” Customer Service finally chimed in. “This information was available in Impo’s manual, Senior B. And of course Night Mare Enterprises always recommends the full understanding of the proper function of a monster before its use.”
“As we can see, that manual has proved quite effective against impending disaster.” The swordsman retorted. “At any rate, you are very lucky. Aside from its over-reliance on proper instruction, Impo has another, physical weakness.” He pointed the blade forward, placing the crystal in full view. “Its heart, which, as you may also know from your manual, is quite fragile.”
With that, he flicked the sword upward, sending the crystal into the air. When it fell to his eye level, he sliced it easily in half, causing it to disintegrate into shards, then dust.
“Impressive,” The salesman commented, sounding less than impressed. “You sure seem to know your stuff.”
“It is something of my life’s work.” The other man answered, taking out a small cloth to polish his barely-marked blade.
It was then that Customer Service noticed the golden star badge on his left shoulder. “Ah, you’re one of those Star Warriors , huh?”
“Indeed I am.”
“You know, it’s interesting. Usually there’s more than one of you.”
“If you are trying to discern the location of an army, there is no point. I am working alone.”
“Are you, now?”
“I am.”
“Okay, so,” The scout spoke up, “This banter, it’s all really cool-sounding and stuff, and I’m sure there’s a lot of...I dunno...exposition going on right now. But...I think I speak for everyone when I say that we’re all really confused, and would really appreciate an explanation that’s not veiled in…” he gestured broadly, “Whatever you guys have got going on here.”
“Of course.” Customer Service clasped his hands together. “Please allow me to help you guys out. As always, your satisfaction is our highest pri-”
“Distinguished Senior, I would like to ask respectfully that you end this communication with Night Mare Enterprises before we proceed.”
“With all due respect, B, we have a working relationship, and this guy just showed up out of nowhere and destroyed your monster in front of you. We don’t even know his name.”
“Ah, yes, how rude of me.” The swordsman bowed again. “I am Meta Knight. It is an honor to meet you.” He straightened. “And I would like to respectfully ask that you end this communication, as I have saved your men’s lives, and this representative put on this planet the thing that almost ended them.”
“B, I had no intention of leaving you high and dry with this monster. You called me because you needed my help, didn’t you? And who would be able to help better than the guys who know these things inside and-”
Smack! Smack! Smack!
Everyone in the room turned their attention to the Watch Captain, who’d struck the keyboard repeatedly in such a way that it ended the transmission.
Before anybody could say anything, he bowed, barely missing the desk with his head. “My Senior, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to act out, it’s just...I almost lost my life today, and...I couldn’t listen to that anymore. I can’t bring myself to trust anybody who’d make something like that... thing .”
“Indeed,” Meta Knight chimed in. “That company, Night Mare Enterprises, is not to be trusted. They deal in death and destruction, and even if that is something you desire...though I cannot imagine why...it will not be long before you find it turned back onto you, as in the case of the monster you ordered, which I discovered attacking these guards.”
“You seem to know...a lot about them.” The Poppy Bro Senior said.
“As I said before, knowing and defeating their monsters is my life’s work, as it is for many Star Warriors. NME manipulates customers into using their services, which in turn allows them to station their forces throughout the universe. Every purchase, every beast brought into existence directly leads to their growth, and with their growth comes a further risk of being subjugated. They do not care who they scam, they do not care who they endanger.” Meta Knight pointed the tip of his sword at the Senior, causing all three of the Poppy Bros to assume a defensive position. “If you value your planet, if you value your people, if you value your freedom, you will destroy whatever it is that you used to bring Impo here.”
At this, he glanced around the room and sheathed the blade at his side.
The Senior did not appreciate being threatened, especially by someone who had made an incredibly compelling point that was very difficult to refute. “If I do…” he said, “then we’re going to be fighting for some time.”
“Even so, your battles are best fought on your own.” Meta Knight, satisfied that he had made his point, turned on his heel and began to walk away. He’d just reached the entrance of the building when the Watch Captain approached him.
“Hey!” He called. “Hey, wait!”
The Star Warrior stopped and sighed, turning to face his pursuer.
“Hey, uh, hi.” The captain cleared his throat and straightened. “I wanted to thank you for saving us. I had a duty to protect the patrol, and I failed. Very hard. And if it weren’t for you, we’d be dead.”
“This is correct.”
“Oh, uh…” The Poppy Bro Junior wasn’t quite expecting such a...response.
“Of course,” Meta Knight continued, turning back away from him, “I would not blame you for the events of tonight. Your superior gave in to a dark impulse for the sake of a victory. In a way, it is understandable. It would appear that he believed he was doing what was best for your tribe, but such desires are easily corrupted. You are all very lucky that you did not face the full consequences.”
“Yeah, uh, for sure, which is why I’m thanking you.”
“I see.”
There was a short, awkward silence. The knight used this opportunity to start to leave again, but he was once again halted by the captain.
“One more thing...I’ve been curious. Why did you come here, anyway?”
“I travel many places for many reasons.”
“... Okay. What’s the reason for here?”
“I simply needed to stop at a place, as sometimes occurs when one travels.”
The Poppy Bro was surprised. “So this was just...a coincidence?”
“Perhaps...but also not quite. Star Warriors have ways of determining where it is that monsters appear.”
“So wait, you looked for a place where monsters were to stop at?”
“No.”
“So it was a coincidence?”
“As I said, not quite.”
The captain was beginning to see why maybe this...person...traveled alone. He sighed and asked one last question. “Will we see you again?”
Meta Knight glanced up at the sky, yellow eyes briefly flashing green. “Nothing can be said for certain. Although, if we do meet again, it will likely be under much worse circumstances.”
“Do you mean...if Our Senior gets ahold of another monster from that place?”
“Perhaps, or perhaps not.”
“...Guess we’ll see, then.”
“Indeed.”
There was another pause.
“...Until then, I guess,” the captain said, clearly restraining some sort of emotion in his voice, “Good-bye, Meta Knight.”
“Farewell.”
Once again, the Star Warrior departed, this time uninhibited, leaving the Watch Captain and, eventually, Towara-- with its shining moon-- behind.