The Master Hand returned them to the mansion, with only the promise that the next day would 'be even more fun' serving as a goodbye. No-one had spoken since Luigi had won his fight against Ness, but now they all made their way to the lounge area.

  Samus stripped off her armour, and let Pikachu nestle onto the lap of her zero suit. Mario sat next to Luigi, who appeared to be in a state of shock. Link and Fox watched him warily, as though worried that the strange power would flare up again. Captain Falcon sat across the room with Ness - the boy was shaken by what had happened.

  In the end, he was the one to break the silence. "What happened?" he asked.

  Luigi raised his head and stared at the Captain. "I don't know. It was like, all of a sudden, I was feeling this rush. My body felt like it went beyond the tips of my fingers, and I could just... direct it. And that's not even all." He trailed off, his thought left unspoken.

  Mario nudged him gently. "What is it, bro?"

  "I feel like there was more that I could have done with that power," Luigi said. "That attack was a way of getting rid of it, but I think I could have done more. Like there was another level to what I can do, and that power unlocked it."

  Ness sniffed. "For something that wasn't your full strength, it sure hurt."

  "Sorry," Luigi said.

  Ness beamed at him. "It's fine. It was a fight, after all. And I did hit you pretty hard as well."

  "That still doesn't answer the question of where all that power came from," Fox said. "You been holding out on us?"

  "No," Luigi said. "One thing I can tell you, that power came from this world. It didn't feel like something from home."

  "Something that Master Hand made for us?" Link asked.

  Samus's eyes widened. "No. Remember, they said that Luigi shouldn't have been able to get that power."

  Luigi gasped. He leant forwards suddenly. "I need something to draw with!"

  Ness frowned, but he reached into his pocket and pulled out a pen and few scraps of paper. Luigi grabbed them and began scribbling a shape - a circle with a cross dividing it into four uneven pieces. "This is what I saw in the stars before that power appeared," he said. "I think they might be connected somehow."

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  "That would actually make sense," Fox said. Everyone turned to look at him. "I mean, think about this place. How does it feel to be in this room?"

  "Normal," Mario said. "Right?"

  "Exactly!" Fox clapped his paws together to accentuate the word. "But what was the thing that we felt on all of those battlefields today? We all had that sense of unease, like they were fake."

  "Oh!" Ness said. "So, you're saying that since we know the battlefields are built by the Master Hand, if it built this place too then we'd be feeling the same way."

  "Smart kid," Fox nodded. "But that's the thought. What if the Master Hand didn't create this world? What if it's just using it for this game."

  "And the power that Luigi felt is something that was part of this world initially," Mario said. "Maybe the Master Hand had tried to hide it somehow, and Luigi was able to get through that block."

  Donkey Kong suddenly stepped forwards, walking on his knuckles over to Captain Falcon and putting a finger on his chest. "You. Me. Powerful." He smiled. "More powerful."

  "What's he saying?" Fox asked.

  "Right," Captain Falcon replied. "I think I felt it too. When I used the Falcon Punch against Donkey Kong, that was more power than I'd ever felt before. Maybe Donkey Kong and I were able to subconsciously tap into whatever power exists in this world."

  Samus leant forwards. "So, we have this working theory," she said. "But what does that actually change? We're still here doing what the Master Hand wants us to do until gets bored."

  "That won't be the end of it," Luigi said. "I saw... hundreds of worlds out there. And I caught a glimpse of many fighters from all of those worlds. If the Master Hand gets bored of us, he'll just bring in more toys to play with."

  There was a collective gasp through the room. Mario stood up. "We have to stop the Master Hand," he said. "That's the only way we can stop more people from being pulled into this."

  "How?" Ness asked. "He's more powerful than any of us."

  "The power from this world," Luigi said. "I think it's the thing that Master Hand can't fight against. If we can learn to harness it, then we may be able to fight back against Master Hand." He stood up to stand with this brother. "I think this might be our only chance."

  Link stood up too. "I'm in. I don't like Master Hand's kind."

  "And me." Captain Falcon joined them.

  "Pika!" Samus looked down at her lap to see that Pikachu was smiling up at her. "We're in too," she said.

  Fox shrugged. "Might as well show you all how saving the world is done."

  "And I want to help as well!" Ness said.

  Yoshi, Donkey Kong, and Jigglypuff joined the circle. They looked over at Kirby, who appeared to be asleep. "You think he knows what's going on?" Fox asked.

  "We'll ask him when he wakes up," Captain Falcon decided. "I for one don't want to be eaten for waking him up."

  They sat down, satisfied in the forming of this alliance.

  "Luigi, Donkey Kong and Captain Falcon were able to access this world's power in fierce battles," Mario said. "So we all agree, tomorrow, we fight like hell to understand this power."

  Everyone nodded.

  At that moment, Master Hand's voice tore through the room. "Well, today was fun!" it said. "And tomorrow will be even better! You'll be fighting in pairs, for even more intense matches!"

  The transparent words that listed the following day's fights appeared in the centre of the room.

  Mario and Link vs. Luigi and Ness.

  Samus and Fox vs. Donkey Kong and Captain Falcon.

  Pikachu and Yoshi vs. Kirby and Jigglypuff.