(Battlefield)
Atop the mountain where Twilight and her crew had found Marth already defeated by Bowser, who was quickly joined by three more villains, the battle had just begun. First to reach one another were Twilight and Bowser Jr. Without wasting a second, the Koopa Kid sent his Clown Kart charging towards Twilight while opening its mouth and unleashing several spinning blades that Twilight was just barely able to leap out of the way of.
“Woah, this kid means business,” Twilight said as she turned around and tried to attack Bowser Jr with a powerful smash using her book. However, the prince easily blocked this attack with a gray energy barrier before spinning around and causing the mouth of the Clown Kart to open and reveal a cannon which charged for a moment before firing a cannonball at high speed towards Twilight. The alicorn dodged out of the way of this before replying with a projectile of her own, a magic blast which hit the base of the Clown Kart and knocked it back a little. This attack didn't seem to do much damage, however.
“Reenforced Metal Koopa Shell casing,” Bowser Jr taunted as he tapped the side of his Clown Kart. “You're not scratching this baby.” The Koopa Prince then leapt into the air and, out of the side of the Clown Kart, unleashed a large wrecking ball attached to a chain that he tried to swing right at Twilight. She took this hit and was flung backwards, though she was able to skid to a stop just before she fell over the cliff.
“This might be a little harder than I thought,” Twilight said as she wiped the sweat from her forehead before leaping forward and going for a head-on approach towards Bowser Jr. This time, as she charged forward, she reared her book back before delivering a powerful forward swipe that hit the prince square in the face, causing him to lose balance just long enough for Twilight to move in and deliver a powerful upward strike that sent Bowser Jr into the air. Twilight then tried to leap up and continue the combo with an aerial attack, but the Koopa prince was able to dodge out of the way of her attack and reply by striking Twilight with a wrecking ball, sending the alicorn flying backwards. However, she was able to recover before she hit the ground, allowing her to land on her hooves. It was at about this time that Bowser Jr landed as well.
“Say, you're not half bad at this,” Bowser Jr taunted. “From the princessey look, I'd have thought you'd be an easy win.”
“Well if I've learned anything from spending less than a day in this world,” Twilight replied, “it's that looks can be deceiving.”
“Indeed,” Bowser Jr said with a grin. “For a moment there, I was afraid you'd disappoint me.” He then activated the Kart function of his Clown Kart and charged forward towards Twilight at high speed.
Meanwhile, Alph was doing his best to keep up with Greninja so he could actually battle the Pokemon. However, whenever Alph would get close enough for an attack, Greninja would quickly leap out of the way, over Alph's head, and deliver a strong kick that knocked Alph forwards.
“I'm gonna have to change tactics,” Alph said to himself. He then looked to his left to see Yellow standing there idly. On Alph's right, Blue. “Okay you two…” Alph said as he grabbed the two Pikmin by their stems. “Let's show this guy what we're made of.”
It was at this moment that Greninja was swiftly moving in to deliver another attack. He quickly noticed that Alph had grabbed two of his Pikmin. “Easier to read than a Magikarp,” Greninja said to himself as he approached. The Pokemon quickly formed a blade made from water and was about to strike, but he was caught off-guard when Alph rolled over onto his back, revealing Red on his foot, before the traveler kicked Red forward, causing him to latch right onto Greninja's face. This broke Greninja's concentration to the point where he lost his water blade and was more focused on getting Red off of his face. He succeeded in grabbing the Pikmin before it could do very much damage and throwing it over the cliff towards what was more than likely Red's demise, but this distracted Greninja just long enough for Alph to run up and deliver a powerful strike with Blue that knocked Greninja off balance enough for Alph to follow up with a powerful uppercut using Yellow. Greninja felt the electricity from the Yellow Pikmin course through him as he flew up into the air, but he'd trained himself under harsher circumstances. Greninja quickly righted himself in midair and switched to diving downward feet-first towards Alph at high speed. Unfortunately, this was Greninja's mistake, since Alph quickly tuck-and-rolled out of the way, causing Greninja to hit nothing but solid ground, stunning him for a second and allowing Alph to throw Blue and Yellow, the two Pikmin latching onto Greninja and striking several times while Alph pulled up a White Pikmin and charged in to strike with that one. However, Greninja recovered faster than Alph planned for and quickly formed two water blades that he seamlessly used to strike Blue and Yellow into oblivion. He then turned his attention to Alph, who was within striking distance now. Greninja quickly threw a small water blade forward, hitting Alph square in the chest and knocking him backwards. He was able to land on his feet, however, and wasted no time pulling up two more Pikmin, a Purple and another Red, before charging back at Greninja.
While this was happening, the two kings, Dedede and Bowser, were locked in their own battle.
“You don't seriously think you can defeat me, do you?” Bowser growled as he delivered a powerful punch that knocked Dedede backwards and onto his back.
“I dunno,” Dedede said as he saw Bowser approach for a follow-up attack. “Does our encounter in the Subspace War ring any bells?” Right as Bowser was about to strike Dedede, the monarch of Dreamland swung his hammer in a circle around him while getting up, knocking Bowser backwards in the process. Dedede then pulled out a Gordo and launched it at Bowser.
“Too predictable,” Bowser said as he rolled backwards and onto his feet before giving the Gordo a solid punch, sending it flying back towards Dedede at high speed. Dedede was able to dodge out of the way of his own Gordo, but this left him open to Bowser running forward and delivering a powerful flying kick that hit Dedede square in the gut and caused him to release a bullet of air that hit Bowser in the face and knocked him off balance for a little while, though it dealt little damage.
“Yeah… I learned that one from Kirby,” Dedede said as he recovered his breath. The penguin then rushed forward and was about to strike Bowser with his hammer, but his foot apparently caught something and he tripped. Fortunately, however, not only did Dedede trip right onto Bowser, but he did so with enough force to knock the Koopa King backwards a bit. Seeing his opportunity, Dedede got up quickly and then leapt into the air, where he hovered for a moment before coming crashing back to the ground, striking Bowser powerfully from above and knocking him further away, where he got hit by a small star that materialized when Dedede landed. “You had enough, Bowser?”
“Grr…” Bowser growled as he got up. “You will be sorry for this.” With a roar, Bowser charged at Dedede once again.
Meanwhile, Charizard was busy fighting Captain Falcon. No matter what she tried, however, she just couldn't seem to be able to keep up with his moves.
“Hold still, human!” Charizard roared as she attacked Falcon with a Flamethrower. However, he was able to easily leap out of the way of this before flying behind the Flame Pokemon and delivering a backhand attack that knocked Charizard off balance long enough for Captain Falcon to turn around and deliver a powerful elbow jab that sent her flying backwards. However, Charizard was able to regain her footing.
“Heh, based on the Charizard that one kid had last tournament, I'd have thought you'd be a challenge,” Captain Falcon taunted.
“Grr… I will not allow you to taunt me in this way,” Charizard growled. She then charged forward and delivered a flying kick that knocked Captain Falcon into the air. She followed this attack up by flying upwards and delivering a powerful downward strike with her claw, sending Captain Falcon into the ground. He was able to recover, but not before Charizard flew down to join him before striking with her claws twice, followed by her reaching down and grabbing a chunk of earth before smashing her head into it, striking Captain Falcon not only with the flying rock shards, but also with her head, sending the pilot flying backwards.
Meanwhile, Bowser Jr had just struck Twilight powerfully with one of his wrecking balls, sending the princess flying backwards. Though Twilight would hate to admit it, she was actually taking quite a beating from this little koopa. She had to struggle back to her hooves, and she felt like if Jr got one more solid hit on her, she'd be sent flying off of this mountain.
“What's the matter, pretty pony princess?” Bowser Jr taunted. “Had enough already?”
Twilight held her book close to her and looked up with a serious expression. “I'm not going down as easily as you think,” she said. “I don't know what you have planned for this world, but I won't let you or your friends go through with it. And I'm going to fight with every last breath in my-”
Twilight wasn't able to finish her speech before Captain Falcon came flying into the fight, slamming right into Bowser Jr, knocking the koopa prince and his Clown Kart over on their side. “What the-?” Twilight asked as Captain Falcon quickly got back to his feet.
“Twilight, I'm passing the baton,” Falcon called. “I'll take care of Royal Pain, here. You think you can handle Morning Breath?”
Twilight smiled and nodded. “I could use a break from him,” she said. “Thanks, Captain.”
“Thanks are for later. It's still fight time.” Captain Falcon then turned around to face Bowser Jr, who had just righted his Clown Kart.
“Grr… you're going to pay for that,” the young koopa growled.
With a smile, Captain Falcon replied, “Then show me your moves.” With that, the pilot dashed forward and delivered a powerful shoulder tackle that Junior shielded against. Following this shield, Junior grabbed Falcon using an extendable arm from the Clown Kart and twirled around before throwing him backwards and off the cliff. However, Falcon was able to grab the edge before falling, which Bowser Jr. didn't notice before approaching the cliff to observe Falcon's supposed fate. Large mistake on the young koopa's part, for as soon as he got close, Captain Falcon pulled himself up halfway before spinning around and delivering a sweep kick onto the plateau that knocked Junior backwards and into the air. Falcon then got up, dashed forward, and reared back for a Falcon Punch that would have finished Junior. However, the prince recovered and landed just in time to shield against the attack. Unfortunately, his shield was already weakened from the attack blocked earlier. Barely weakened, but still enough for a Falcon Punch to shatter the shield, knocking Junior into the air and making him dizzy.
“Now to finish this,” Captain Falcon said as Junior landed in front of him, quickly getting up but able to right neither his own vision nor the balance of his Clown Kart. Falcon reared hack and down, charging an upwards kick. Once fully charged, Falcon leaped up and delivered two upward kicks that hit Junior and sent him flying into the air. However, rather than clear the young koopa, the kicks sent Junior into the air and then straight back down. “Looks like this kid has some fight left in him,” Falcon said to himself as Junior tuck-and-rolled backwards as soon as he hit the ground and faced Falcon once again.
Meanwhile, Greninja was still battling Alph, who was now down to just a Red Pikmin. “Give it up, Alph,” Greninja said as he fired a Water Shuriken that struck Red dead-on, delivering a fatal blow and leaving Alph with no more allies. Greninja then rushed forward and vanished in a puff of smoke before reappearing behind Alph and unleashing a powerful kick that sent the rookie pilot flying backwards and almost off the edge, but he was able to grab the edge and save himself from falling. He pulled himself up, but quickly found himself faced with a razor-sharp water blade. “Any last words, spaceman?”
Alph froze for a moment before seeing something. “Actually, yes,” he said. “Duck.”
“Duck?” Greninja asked. “What do you mean by-?”
“INCOMING!” Dedede shouted from a distance. Greninja turned around just in time to see a high-speed out-of-control Gordo flying right at his face. One half-second later, the Gordo hit Greninja and sent him flying.
“Thanks Dedede!” Alph called as he pulled up more Pikmin, (Blue, Yellow, and another White), before rushing to Dedede's side. “That won't take him out, but it seems you drew his aggro. We'll handle Bowser.” The Pikmin nodded in response to this.
“I knocked Bowser away after I distracted him with that Gordo, but he'll be back,” Dedede warned before turning and running towards where Greninja was about to recover. Meanwhile, Alph turned around and shielded just before Bowser ran up and hit him with a flying kick. The attack didn't scratch Alph thanks to the shield, however, and the pilot quickly responded by sending Blue forward and having him grab Bowser.
“Rule number 1, Mr. Koopa King,” Alph said with a smirk. “Never open with a dash attack.” Alph then commanded his Pikmin to throw Bowser into the ground, where he bounced into the air, allowing Alph to run in with his Yellow Pikmin and deliver a powerful forward strike that sent Bowser flying. Alph knew Bowser would recover from the attack, but what happened instead was that the Koopa King, after just flying over the edge, was instantly meteor smashed off the mountain and towards the ground below. Alph was too far away to see exactly what happened, but once the culprit of Bowser's defeat was in view, Alph gasped.
Meanwhile, Twilight was still duking it out with Charizard. “How is it that I haven't burned that annoying little book of yours?” Charizard growled as she fired a Flamethrower, which Twilight shielded easily.
“Magical energy field,” Twilight replied with a smug look. “What? You thought I'd fight a dragon without making sure I couldn't get burned?”
That comment struck home for Charizard. “How dare you use that word in my presence!” she roared before coating herself in flames and lunging forward with a powerful Flare Blitz. Twilight was barely able to Teleport out of the way, quickly turning around and firing a Magic Spark that hit Charizard right between her wings. This attack didn't do much, however.
“I'm curious about something, Charizard,” Twilight said as the Pokemon turned around. “What exactly are you fighting for?”
“Isn't it obvious?” Charizard asked in reply. “I'm fighting for Overlord V, of course. I'm fighting so that we can rule this universe.”
“Really?” Twilight asked. “Well, you sure don't act like that's what you're fighting for.”
“What?” Charizard growled. “How dare you!”
“It's all in your blows,” Twilight continued. “You're fighting like you're forced to fight. I'd taken so much damage from Bowser Junior, you should have been able to take me out with one solid attack, but you haven't. Why not? What are you hiding, Charizard? And how can I help you?”
Charizard took a step back, a shocked expression on her face. “You…” she shook her head. “You can't help me, Twilight Sparkle. I don't need your help!” She then charged forward and was about to attack, but was stopped when two objects suddenly fell from the sky between the pony and the Pokemon. Specifically, Trophies depicting Bowser and Greninja. “What? How can this be?”
“I took the liberty of calling in a little bit of backup,” Dedede chuckled as he chucked a Bowser Jr. Trophy onto the other two. It was at this moment that Captain Falcon and Alph walked up beside the king, followed by a small figure about Alph's size leaping up from behind Dedede, doing a frontflip, and landing perfectly at the front of the group, blue bandana blowing in the breeze and spear in its stubby little hand. The figure rose up and began twirling the spear in intimidating fashion before stopping and aiming the spear right at Charizard.
“Care to make that a pile of four?” the figure asked in a squeaky but surprisingly intimidating voice.
Charizard raised an eyebrow. The figure looked unfamiliar. A small almost spherical body that was mostly orange except for a light brown face that had two beady eyes but no mouth. “Who are you?” Charizard asked.
The figure twirled its spear a couple more times before bringing it to rest, butt-end on the ground and head facing upwards in a perfect guardian manner. “Captain of King Dedede's Royal Guard, one of the Heroes of Ripple Star, and a lot more well-traveled than you,” he said. “Bandana Waddle Dee, at your service.” He said that last part with a bow. Then with a shrug, he added, “Or you could just call me Bandana Dee to save syllables.”
Charizard looked confused. “I… don't recall seeing you at the beginning of the tournament,” she said. “How did you get here?”
“Turns out Master Hand is accepting late applications this time around,” Dedede said. “Figured I'd vouch for my right-hand man right here.”
“Unluckily for you, though,” Bandana Dee continued as he picked up his spear and aimed it at Charizard. “Now, you have two options. Option A: You fight all five of us, lose, and we take you and your friends back to Ridley. Option B: You escape with your friends, and return to Overlord V with a message. That message: We're not letting him gain any more ground. This is the part where we start pushing back. And by the time the tournament's over, either V surrenders, or we take him down ourselves. Now then… which option will you choose?”
Charizard looked on at the four foes in front of her. She looked down at her three Trophy'd allies. She looked behind her at Twilight Sparkle, who knew more than what was comfortable for the Pokemon. “Fine,” Charizard growled. “You win this round.” Charizard then picked up her comrades and began flying into the air. Before she left, however, she called, “But make sure you send Ridley a message from Overlord V. We haven't played all our cards yet either. We're not going down anytime soon. In fact, I suggest you prepare for you 'new advantages' to quickly become evened out.” Charizard then turned and flew away at high speed.
There was a moment's pause on the mountain before King Dedede spoke up. “Dang, Bandana! Sure was a good thing you got here when you did! Even I was starting to worry we wouldn't get through that fight.”
“What would you do without me, my king?” Bandana Dee chuckled. He then turned to the others. “It's great to meet you all. I've heard a lot about you from the king.” The Waddle Dee eyed Twilight. “Not you, though… are you a newcomer as well?”
“I am,” Twilight replied. “I'm Twilight Sparkle of Equestria.”
“Twilight, huh?” Bandana asked. “You kind of remind me of a friend of mine. You wouldn't happen to have a knack for art, would you?”
Twilight shook her head. “No, magic is more my forte,” she said.
“Alright,” Bandana said with a nod. “Anyway, let me give you all the sit-rep. My king, your Dedede Rider is parked at the base of the mountain. Marth's already loaded up.”
“Alright,” Dedede said. “Wait a second. How did you get the keys to my Dedede Rider? And how'd you bring it here?”
Bandana Dee chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his head. “I kind of let Dyna Blade into the castle so she could break into the garage for me,” he said. “And, I kinda put her in charge while everyone was gone. But the whole place is back on lock down. Don't worry about that.”
Dedede shook his head, but smiled. “There's the mischievous little Waddle Dee I've been raising myself,” the king said.
“Hey, you wouldn't happen to have done anything with the Falcon Flier, have you?” Captain Falcon asked.
“I hadn't seen it,” Bandana replied while shaking his head. He then turned away from everyone. “Well, now that my work here is done, I'd best be off.”
“Wait!” Dedede called. “You don't wanna come back with us and join the Renegade Alliance? We have cake.”
“Sorry, my king, but this is the one time I must defy you,” Bandana replied. “I'm needed elsewhere. When the time comes, however…” He turned around and winked at everyone. “You'll see me again.” The Waddle Dee then began running towards the cliff before leaping off in a graceful dive. Everyone quickly ran over to see if he needed saving, but when they got to the edge, they saw Bandana Dee floating away with a red and white parasol carrying him.
“Well…” Twilight commented, “he's an interesting one.”
“There's definitely always been something different about him,” Dedede replied. “Ever since the Crystal Shards incident, he's been… strange.” Dedede shook his head. “But enough about Bandana Dee. He'll turn up when he turns up. For now, we'd best get back to base. Luckily, it'll be an easy ride thanks to the Dedede Rider. That is, if you all don't mind riding in the back.”
“Shotgun! Called it!” Alph quickly shouted.