//------------------------------//
// Part 4: The Beach 
// Story: Super Smash Bros: Harmony Rising 
// by Lance Skyes 
//------------------------------//

	Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie were making their way along the beach they had crashed on a little while ago. The latter of the two, however, thought it would be a good idea to tell a story.
“...and then I said, 'Oatmeal? Are you crazy?!'” Pinkie Pie continued. “And then he said to me 'Miss Pie, I did not mention oatmeal. Can we please get back to doing your taxes?' Man, what a party pooper that guy was. A week later, I decided to throw a 'You-Need-To-Cheer-Up-Also-Thanks-For-Helping-Me-With-My-Taxes' party for him. He didn't see it coming at all, but isn't that the point of a surprise party?” Pinkie paused for a moment to giggle before she noticed that Rainbow Dash seemed to have zoned out and was just walking straight ahead. “Hello? Equus to Rainbow Dash. I mean... whatever-world-this-is to Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie waved her hoof in front of the pegasus' face, which seemed to startle her.
“Ah!” Rainbow shouted. “I, uh... good story, Pinkie Pie.” The pegasus said this with a forced smile. “It was, um... funny.”
“Oh, that wasn't even the funny part,” Pinkie replied. “The funny part happened after I caught somepony pouring the contents of a flask into the punch bowl later during that party. That's when everypony started having more fun than I could have imagined. So, after I caught the guy, about three other ponies instantly rushed over and grabbed some punch, and after that- Hey! Look at that over there.” Pinkie pointed into the distance to see what looked like what looked like a small red thing sticking up out of the sand. “Wait a second... what's the Monado doing on this beach?”
“The Mo-what-o?” Rainbow Dash asked. Her question hit no ears but her own, however, as Pinkie Pie instantly started galloping towards the sword in the sand. “Pinkie wait!” The pegasus took off at a gallop after her friend.
Once Pinkie got close to the Monado, she saw that next to it was who she presumed to be its owner lying on a beach chair next to it. “Well hello there...” Pinkie said as she examined the creature.
“Pinkie!” Rainbow called as she got close to her friend. When she got close enough, she noticed that Pinkie was looking at... something. It looked completely alien to Rainbow Dash. It was tall, definitely taller than a stallion, lanky, mostly pale, had blonde hair and was wearing nothing but what looked like a bathing suit, swim shoes, and sunglasses. “What the heck is this, Pinkie?”
“Shh,” Pinkie said. “I think he's asleep.”
Rainbow rolled her eyes. “What the heck is this, Pinkie?” the pegasus repeated at a whisper.
“He's a creature called a Homs,” Pinkie replied at a similar whisper. “Those of his kind are native to the Bionis, which is a mighty titan that living creatures live on in a world far away. And that sword next to him, that's called the Monado, which is a weapon that was once wielded by the Bionis itself in a great battle against the rival titan, the Mechonis, which machine-like creatures live on.”
“Okay, so we're on a titan called 'Bionis' right now?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“No,” Pinkie replied with a shake of her head. “That's what's so puzzling. He shouldn't be here right now. Unless...”
Right as Pinkie said this, the Homs before the two ponies woke up and noticed the two strange creatures standing over him. “Woah!” he shouted as he quickly got up, kicking the two ponies away in the process, grabbed the Monado, took off his sunglasses, and readied himself for battle, evidenced by the fact that the sword in his hand had broken apart and a beam of blue light came out of the broken blade. “Who are you two?” he asked in a heavy Canterlot accent.
“I'd ask you the same question,” Rainbow Dash replied, rubbing her chin in the spot where the Homs had kicked her.
“To answer your question, his name is Shulk,” Pinkie Pie said to her friend. “He's the wielder of the Monado, and the hero of Bionis. Some time back, he and his friends saved their world from the evil Mechon.”
“I ask again, how do you know this stuff?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“I reply again, I don't know,” Pinkie replied with a shrug. “But what I do know is where we are now. We're in a world that's made up of several different worlds, including Shulk's. He's not here on vacation, though. He's here for a combat tournament.”
“Perceptive, I see,” Shulk said, still ready to defend himself. (Which was honestly a rather funny-looking sight, given he was wearing nothing but a bathing suit.) “Now I'm gonna ask one more time, who are you two?”
“Who are we?” Pinkie asked. Then, a slight grin appeared on her face. “Why, I'd say we're the newest additions to the roster. And I take it you know what that means.” Pinkie then assumed a combat-ready pose of her own.
“Pinkie, what are you doing?” Rainbow Dash asked.
“Trust me, Dash,” Pinkie replied. “Greeting people with a battle is how things work in this world, especially if you're strangers. Now come on, I'm gonna need help against this guy.”
“If you say so,” Rainbow Dash said, turning and taking up a combative position against Shulk.
“Two against one?” the Homs asked. “That's ok. I've fought three opponents at once before and won. Two shouldn't be too much of a problem. Now... it's Shulk Time!” Shulk then charged forward at the ponies, the Monado in striking position.
(You Will Know Our Names)
“Dash, watch out!” Pinkie called as Shulk came at the pegasus first. Rainbow Dash quickly barrel rolled out of the way of a powerful slash. She then turned around and leapt at Shulk, striking him square in the chest with a powerful jab. The Homs stumbled back a bit from the hit, but quickly recovered.
“You hit harder than I expected you to,” Shulk complimented. “I guess that means it's time to show you the Monado's power!” He then held his blade in front of him before the circular gap near the hilt began to glow. It glowed green and had a symbol in the center, but that quickly changed to a different blue symbol, then a yellow one, and finally a purple symbol. Shulk remained stationary for a moment before the symbol exploded with light, causing the Monado to begin glowing purple. “BUSTER!” Shulk shouted as he charged forward. He then thrust the blade at Rainbow Dash. The dull edge of the inactive sword hit the pony in the chest and caused her to flinch, but that hit was nothing compared to when the blade suddenly sprang to life and the beam of light extended forward, hitting Rainbow hard and knocking her backward.
“Rainbow Dash!” Pinkie shouted as she galloped over to catch her friend. Fortunately, she was able to get to Rainbow before the pegasus hit the ground.
“Okay, that hurt,” Rainbow Dash said as she got up and shook herself off.
“That's his Monado Arts,” Pinkie replied. “In Buster mode, he'll deal more damage than normal. But his Arts can also leave him really vulnerable in some respects. For instance, his defensive power is weakened right now, so if we can manage to hit him, he'll take as much of a beating as he's giving.”
“Okay,” Rainbow Dash replied. “Then let's-”
“BACK SLASH!” Shulk shouted as he leapt forward and brought his sword down hard upon the two ponies, knocking them both backwards. “That's what you two get for dropping your guard.”
“He's right,” Pinkie said as she got up. “We have to fight this fight if we wanna win it.”
“Right,” Rainbow replied. She then charged forward at Shulk, hitting him hard with both her forehooves and knocking him backwards. Dash followed this attack up with a swift dash and a flip kick that knocked Shulk into the air. Rainbow then leapt up after him and was about to start an aerial combo, but she forgot that her wing was still injured, so she couldn't stay airborne for as long as she anticipated and quickly lost balance. Seeing his opportunity, Shulk quickly recovered in midair and readied the Monado for another attack.
“AIR SLASH!” he shouted as his sword sprung to life once more and he delivered a powerful uppercut slash that knocked Rainbow back into the air, followed by another slash that sent her flying backwards and into the ground. Shulk then descended back to the ground, where his Monado Arts wore off and the purple glow around the Monado disappeared.
“Looks like this fight's gonna be tougher than I thought,” Rainbow Dash said as she got up from the hit she took.
“Looks like you're gonna need some help,” Pinkie said with a smirk. “Time for me to take a turn.” The party pony then charged forward at Shulk, quickly drawing her party cannon from nowhere once she was close to the Homs and slammed it down right on him, which cased him to get knocked backwards a bit. Pinkie then fired her cannon right at Shulk, launching a present right into his face and sending him flying backwards and onto his back.
“What on Bionis is this pony's deal?” Shulk asked as he got back up. As he got back up, however, Pinkie Pie, who had once more made her party cannon disappear, galloped forward and gave him a jab to his chest, followed by an uppercut, a skyward buck, and then a flip kick that sent him flying back behind Pinkie.
As Shulk was flying, he found himself flying over the present that Pinkie had fired before. Without warning, however, the present exploded open and Pinkie Pie leapt out to give him a powerful punch that sent him flying skyward.
“Not this time,” Shulk said to himself as his vision ended. He quickly righted himself in the air just as he flew over the present, which Pinkie promptly exploded out of. However, before the pony could hit him, Shulk pivoted in midair, which caused Pinkie's attack to just barely miss him. The Homs then took his opportunity and delivered a speedy counter slash that sent Pinkie flying backwards and into the sand below.
“Woah!” Pinkie said as she got up. “I totally forgot he could do that.”
“What did he just do?” Rainbow Dash asked as she galloped over to her friend.
“It's the Monado's power,” Pinkie replied. “It lets him see visions of the future, especially if that future involves him taking a particularly painful hit, so that he can change the future in his favor. Even my unpredictable actions aren't immune to that power. The only drawback, though, is that he can't use it several times in a row, and if he tries to, the visions will gradually get weaker and weaker.”
“So what do we do in that case?” Rainbow asked. “Just try to keep the heat on him and hope he doesn't have another vision?”
“That seems to be the best option,” Pinkie replied with a nod.
“Then let's take him on together,” Rainbow said. “I've always been one for a fair fight, but I think two-against-one balances out the power to see the future.”
“Right,” Pinkie replied. “Now let's go!” She and Dash then charged forward at Shulk.
“Don't think you can beat me that easily,” Shulk said as he readied the Monado to activate another Art. He only changed the symbol once, however, before stopping on the blue symbol. A blue light burst from the Monado, but rather than the sword beginning to glow, Shulk's feet began to glow blue. “SPEED!” he shouted as he charged forward at the ponies at an incredible speed.
“Look out!” Pinkie warned as Shulk charged towards Rainbow Dash, giving the pegasus a powerful slash before she had a chance to react. Rainbow fell backwards, but she was able to quickly recover since the hit didn't do that much damage. Pinkie Pie, on the other hoof, was completely defenseless as Shulk quickly turned to her and delivered a punch, a kick, and an upward slash that knocked the earth pony back and into her friend.
“So now this guy can move fast?” Rainbow Dash asked. “Jeez, how many powers does this guy have?” Her question went unanswered, however, when Shulk quickly ran in to deliver another volley of attacks. Rainbow Dash was able to react quickly this time, however, and moved in to deliver a sweep kick that connected with Shulk's feet and sent him flying forward into the sand face first, where his Speed Art quickly dissipated.
“Good move, Dash,” Pinkie complimented.
“Thanks,” Rainbow replied as she watched Shulk get up. “Time to show this guy what a real combo is.” The pegasus then galloped forward towards Shulk and gave him a powerful dashing elbow right to his gut, followed by two punches, and finished with a mule kick that sent the Homs flying backwards.
“This isn't good,” Shulk said to himself as he righted himself in midair and landed on his feet. “Looks like I'm gonna have to change tactics.” He then reactivated his Monado Arts, only this time, he stopped at the first green symbol. Like with Speed, his feet began glowing, only this time, his feet were glowing green. “JUMP!” he shouted as Rainbow Dash began flying towards him. Before the pegasus could reach Shulk, however, the Homs leapt high into the air and out of the way.
“Why can't this guy just pick one ability?” Rainbow Dash asked in a very annoyed tone.
As Shulk descended towards the ground, he quickly realized his mistake. Pinkie Pie was waiting for him below. Before Shulk could gain some extra air with Air Slash, Pinkie quickly leapt up and began spinning her body around, hitting Shulk several times with her hooves before delivering a headbutt that launched him. “Rainbow! Now's our chance to finish him!” Pinkie called. “Launch him back over here before he can recover!”
“Okay!” Rainbow called as she quickly leapt up flipped herself backwards so her hind legs would collide with Shulk, and kicked off of him the second he made contact, sending both fighters flying in opposite directions.
“Now to finish this!” Pinkie shouted as a trio of small confetti cannons appeared on her back. Right as Shulk flew over her, Pinkie fired the confetti cannons, launching Shulk skyward at high speed.
“AHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh...” Shulk shouted as he vanished into the sky above.
(song end)
“Woah...” Rainbow Dash said as she rejoined Pinkie and looked up at where Shulk disappeared. “How did that just happen?”
“When Shulk's in Jump mode, he becomes much easier to launch,” Pinkie explained.
“Okay...” Rainbow said. “Back to one of my first questions: how do you know this stuff?”
“I'm telling you, I don't know,” Pinkie replied. “Maybe it's in our best interest to ignore that right now, though. Especially since Shulk's coming back down.”
“What?!” Rainbow Dash shouted. “We have to save him before he crashes!”
“Oh, I wouldn't worry about that too much,” Pinkie said. It was right then that two ponies heard something falling. Sure enough, Shulk came crashing down. However, once he hit the ground, Rainbow Dash instantly noticed that there was something drastically different about him. For one, he was finally clothed in mostly red and black clothes that sort of reflected how the Monado looked. Beyond that, however, he seemed to be frozen in a statue-like state, seeming like he was in a backwards leap position atop a gold-colored disc, similar to the one Twilight was on before. As well, he seemed completely unaffected by the fall.
“What happened to him?” Rainbow asked as she examined Shulk.
“We defeated him in battle,” Pinkie replied. “And whenever that happens in this world, the defeated combatant turns into a Trophy.”
“But is he ok?” Rainbow asked. “Is there any way to get him out of this state?”
“Yeah,” Pinkie replied with a nod. “Just tap the Trophy Stand he's on and he'll be back to normal.”
“Just tap the Stand, huh?” Rainbow Dash asked. “This same thing happened to Twilight earlier. Would saving her be as simple as tapping her base?”
“Uh-huh,” Pinkie replied. “But if we're gonna save Twilight, we're still gonna need help.” Pinkie then walked over to Shulk.
“Woah! You're gonna free him?” Rainbow asked. “What was the point of fighting him if we're just gonna wake him back up?”
“'Cause we've defeated him, so he might be willing to help us out,” Pinkie replied. “If we explain the situation, I mean.” The earth pony then reached down and gave the base a tap, causing Shulk to start glowing brightly. Once the light faded, the Homs returned to normal, except he was unclothed once more.
“What the-?” Shulk asked. He looked down to see both ponies staring at him. “Huh... looks like I underestimated you two.”
“We don't have time for compliments,” Pinkie said. “We need your help. You see, we're not supposed to be in this world, and we have a friend who's been captured by two fighters who are from this world. We don't know what they plan to do with her, but we're going to need help to get her back.”
“And you're asking me for help?” Shulk asked.
“Well, you were actually the first one we've stumbled upon,” Pinkie replied. “But yes, we're going to need your help.”
“Well... I guess I've got nothing better to do,” Shulk said with a shrug. “Do you know who it was who took your friend?”
“I think one of them was Meta Knight,” Pinkie replied. “Whoever captured her used the Halberd to bring her here.”
“The other one was Dark Pit,” Rainbow added.
“Ah, those two,” Shulk said while rubbing his chin. “I'm not sure what they have planned, but they were among the fighters who disappeared after Overlord V revealed himself.”
“Who's Overlord V?” Pinkie asked, cocking her head to the side and donning a curious expression.
“I'll tell you,” Shulk replied. “But first, let me go get dressed. Then I can explain everything you need to know as we walk back to meet some of my friends.”
“Okay,” Rainbow said. With a nod, Shulk turned and walked back to where is chair was. Once the Homs was out of hearing range, Rainbow turned to Pinkie. “Are you sure we can trust this guy to help us get Twilight back?”
“Pretty sure,” Pinkie replied. “But it won't be just him. He's our first step in getting some new friends together to help us save Twilight.”
“If you say so...” Rainbow Dash said.