Sky Con

It was time for Pit's big match. The Brawl's winter tournament had been going on since the beginning of December, and only a few contenders remained. Everyone had been given their assignments the week before the semifinals, and now it was down to the last round for each pair before two were chosen for the final battle. There was a lot riding on these last matches, making the Brawlers both pumped and uneasy. The angel felt cool and confident, however. After all, there was no way he could lose today. Not only had he spent the last few days training intensely and breezing through the preliminary battles, but the match he was heading to now was to take place on his own home stage.

This'll be a piece of cake, he thought. Just knock them off the edge, destroy the stage so they can't get back, and their fall will be my victory. Easy!

He went up into the launch room and approached the teleporting machine that would take him to his destination. Walking through the large steel doors, he stepped into the teleportation chamber and started typing the name of the location in the little control panel to the right. He couldn't wait to be up above the clouds of his homeland, Skyworld. He could almost feel the breeze and the warmth of the sun's rays now. How wonderful it'd be to fly in those familiar skies…He must have been too distracted by his daydreams to punch the buttons properly because just then, his finger slipped and hit the "c" instead of the "w," even though the letters were hardly close to one another. Bright red lights started flashing, and Pit could feel himself being propelled through space and time. He could feel pressure as if he were stuck inside of a giant vacuum, and when it finally ceased, he felt a bit lightheaded. The chamber doors opened, and he stumbled out onto a soft, carpeted surface. Where am I?

The angel blinked as he took in his surroundings. Voices filled the air with various chatter. Most of them sounded excited; others were quietly discussing plans that Pit couldn't make out. It all blended together in one cheerful buzz that lightened the atmosphere but was unable to put him at ease—he was still too confused. He noticed that some people glanced at him, many even giving him a smile, but they continued on their way without taking further notice of him. The way they were dressed interested the angel. There was no consistent style of clothing. Some of the humans dressed very simple, others quite elaborate. There were some he wasn't sure were even humans at all.

"Excuse me!" a voice piped up from behind him, making him jump with surprise.

He turned around to see a short girl with long black hair and two gray cat ears sticking out of her head. A laguz, he thought, remembering the description of the feline-like people his friend Ike had described to him once. Must be the "beast tribe." The cat person was looking at him with wide, admiring eyes.

"May I take your picture?" she asked.

The angel was a bit taken aback. He knew about pictures from the snapshots that were taken in the Brawls sometimes, but he had never been asked for his photo out in public like this when he wasn't even fighting. Still, it seemed harmless, so why not?

"Sure," he said and stared at the small silver box the girl pointed at him for a moment before a bright light flashed, blinding him.

"Great! Can I get one of you posing with the bow?"

"O-ok," Pit replied, trying to recover from the brightness. He held his bow up and pretended he was ready to aim it, though for safety's sake, he didn't summon a light arrow. Another blinding flash came, and the person with the box smiled at him.

"Thanks!" the girl giggled and went on her way.

The angel blinked, still seeing a white rectangle flash obscuring his vision a bit. That was strange…

He recovered enough to survey his surroundings more carefully. The people were coming from all directions. There were long hallways and doors leading to various rooms. The walls were white and very tall, stretching up to a glass ceiling that allowed plenty of light to pour in. Across from him, there was a fascinating set of moving staircases. As the angel took a few steps forward to get a better look, some of the people started pushing past him, into the teleportation chamber, whose doors had opened again.

"W-wait, stop!" he called as the metal doors shut before him.

It was too late, though. They were gone. Pit banged on the doors desperately, earning him a few surprised looks from the people around him. One boy that had been watching him crept to the side of the metal doors and cautiously pushed a small round button, keeping his eyes on Pit the whole time. He scampered away as the teleporter chimed, and its doors opened, revealing an empty space. Oh no, Pit thought. They must have been taken to Smash Hall.

He rushed inside quickly and barred all the other people who tried to follow him in, apologizing profusely.

"Sorry, you can't come in here! Bye!"

The doors shut on the complaining and angry people, and the angel breathed a sigh of relief. His relief ended, however, when he looked at the side of the chamber where the control panel should have been. Instead of a keypad, there were numbers, the purpose of which he had no clue about. How was he supposed to use numbers to get back to the tournament? Not knowing what else to do, Pit pressed all of them, until every last numbered button was lit up. His heart beat hopefully as the chamber began to move, but when the doors opened, he was disappointed to see another group of strange-looking humans staring at him expectantly. When he didn't move, they tried to enter the chamber. Once again, he had to shoo them out.

"Hey! What're you doing?" one of them protested as the doors shut in their faces.

"I'm really sorry," Pit mumbled as the chamber moved again.

On the next floor, a tall man wearing spiky armor who was much bigger than Pit attempted to shove past him, and the angel had an especially difficult time trying to butt him out.

"I'm sorry, sir! This teleportation chamber's out of service!"

"You can't just-"

The doors closed, clamping down on something dangling around the man's neck. It looked like a piece of paper covered in plastic. As the chamber moved, it took the object with it, tearing it away from man outside the door. Pit felt horrible. He yanked the paper out from between the doors, but when they opened again, the scene had changed once again. The angel looked down at the paper guiltily. It had "Sky Con" written in large bold letters with the man's name and hometown under it. There was a picture of an odd-looking person with green hair on one side that looked nothing like the man at all. I'll hold onto it and give it back if I see him again, Pit thought. Part of him really hoped he wouldn't, though.

Pit continued to ride in the chamber, opening the doors would open to reveal his intended destination at last, but the same thing kept happening over and over again. It wasn't until the angel had visited every number on the wall that he finally realized that this wasn't going to get him anywhere. Exasperated, he finally climbed out on the same number he had come from.

Pit trudged guiltily back into the hallway, wondering what would become of those poor people who had managed to transport themselves somewhere else. There was nothing he could do, though. Hopefully they'd be able to find their way back on their own. But how will I find mine? he wondered.

The angel knew that the teleportation chamber wasn't the only way home. Whatever power it was that connected his world to the one he was in now was strong enough for him to sense, and while it had gone from the silver box behind him, he could vaguely make out its presence somewhere nearby. There had to be some other chamber or item in the area with the power to send him back where he had come from- all he had to do was look for it.

He began to make his way down the hall towards the moving staircases. He approached it cautiously and put a foot on one of the steps, quickly jumping to have the other one meet it when the step started moving away from him. Using his wings for balance, he had on tightly to the handrail and watched as other people climb on behind him. I probably shouldn't fly or do anything to stand out here. Though with the way these people look, that won't be hard. Finally, the staircase ended and deposited Pit on what looked like a more open area. He chose the direction most people were headed in and followed them. Along the way, the angel was stopped for a few more pictures and complemented on his "costume" repeatedly. When he tried to explain that these were his normal clothes, he only got a few amused laughs. The angel was slightly annoyed that the people always thought he was joking.

Finally, he arrived in a large lobby that everyone was pouring in and out of. Some people were seated on soft-looking chairs and sofas off to one side of the lobby. The rest were either moving or standing in place, trying to read maps or chatting with friends.

"The dealer's hall is this way," Pit overheard one of the humans saying. "They have so much stuff there, it's amazing."

Curiously, the angel watched to group move in the direction its navigator had indicated. Maybe this "dealer's hall" would have just what he needed to get home. He folded his wings back tightly and weaved through the crowd carefully, following the group.

Just ahead, he could see two large doors that opened up into a much larger room. A lot of people wanted to get in, so a line had formed outside, stretching back several feet to where Pit stood. He waited impatiently for his turn to come, trying hard not to poke anyone with his weapon. Once he got closer, he could see that there was a lady seated outside the door the people were going through. As each person passed, they flashed a plastic-covered piece of paper that looked just like the one the man had lost to the elevator doors. As Pit approached, the sentry looked up at him expectantly.

"Badge, please?"

The angel quickly showed her the paper he had picked up, hoping she would allow him entrance. The woman waved her hand at him in acknowledgement, and he stepped through the door into a much larger room. The ceilings were even higher than they had been in the rest of the building and the smooth, hard floor was wide, making the angel feel very small. What an enormous place! There were rows lined up in the middle with people running their own booths and selling various objects. Intrigued, Pit went to investigate.

No sooner had he taken a few steps, however, that he heard a piercing shriek of excitement coming from his right. He jumped, wings stiffening. Before he could prepare himself, he was assaulted as one hundred and forty pounds of fangirl collided with his side. Strong arms wrapped around him and squeezed tight, crushing his feathers.

"Ohmygawd, Pit!"

The angel, already in a great deal of shock from being tackled by a complete stranger, stared at her incredulously.

"You…know me?"

"You're my favorite character!" she exclaimed. "I always use you!"

"You what-?!" Pit yelped, confused.

"In Brawl! I never lose with Pit! You always catch me when I fall off the edge. You're the best!"

"Thank you…?"

"Your costume's really great! Those wings feel so real," she said, stroking them.

"T-they are," Pit replied awkwardly

He gave them a good flap to free himself and prove his point.

"Wow!" the girl said, amazed. "You're really talented! How'd you make those?"

"I was born with them," the angel replied.

"Oh, a secret, huh? That's alright!" she said, amused. "Can I please get your picture?"

"Uh, sure."

This time, Pit had the sense not to stare directly at the flashing light. As soon as the picture was taken, the girl thanked him and went on her way, but not before giving him another surprise hug and a kiss on the cheek. Pit watched her go, flabbergasted. This place just keeps on getting weirder and weirder…

He resumed his journey to the booths full of merchandise. The first one he came to had a table full of small things such as keychains and figurines of people that were unfamiliar to the angel, but he remembered some of their clothing from what he had seen other people wearing in this place. It wasn't until the third booth that Pit finally saw something he truly recognized.

"K-kirby?!" he gasped, staring past the vendor to a white mesh wall of soft plush dolls.

The spitting image of the small pink brawler was hanging only a few feet away from him among the colorful assortment of characters. The vendor smiled at Pit and indicated the Kirby plushie.

"You want to see it?" she asked, taking it off the wall.

The angel took the doll she handed him and stared at it unbelievingly, squeezing it a few times. The lady was looking at him expectantly. It took Pit a moment to realize she was waiting to see if he'd buy it or not.

"Sorry, I don't have any money," he murmured embarrassedly, returning the plushie.

The vendor gave him a strange look as he scurried away from her booth. Looking around, Pit saw a lot of the same things- toys, shirts, bags, books, and mysterious thin, hard cases. He stopped to gaze admiringly at a booth selling swords and other weapons. They even had Link's Master Sword. The angel was confused how two could exist, much less how one could have ended up in a place like this. It has to be a fake…

Just then, he felt a tap on his shoulder. Turning, Pit jumped in surprise to see a familiar face. The man had blue hair, a dark green headband, a blue tunic, and a long dark red cape. He smiled at Pit, who stared back at him, stunned.

"Ike?!"

The angel was just about to express his relief at seeing the other Brawler when he stopped suddenly. This wasn't the mercenary he knew at all. His boots were plain and missing their metal toes. His hair hung limply over his headband and looked far from natural. His sword wasn't even metal at all. Instead, it looked as if it were made of…wood?

"Your Pit's great!" he told the angel. "Will you take a picture with me?"

"Okay," Pit replied, still looking at the other man suspiciously. My Pit?

The imposter Ike stopped someone from the crowd and asked them to take the photo. The two of them smiled at the flashing box, and Pit blinked as the light blinded him momentarily. He had been too distracted to remember not to stare at it. After the photo, the strange mercenary asked for one more. This time, he pointed his flimsy sword at the angel. Pit looked at it incredulously and held up his own weapons, splitting his bow into two swords. The other man raised his eyebrows in surprise as the camera flashed.

"Those are some cool swords," he told Pit. "How'd you get them to come apart like that?"

"That's just how they were made. My goddess gave me this bow to help protect Skyworld."

Ike gave him a strange look and started laughing. Pit's face turned sour. What was so funny? The mercenary smiled apologetically and gave the swords a nod of approval.

"You should come to the gathering. It starts in just a few minutes."

"Gathering?"

"Yeah, the Brawl gathering. There'll be a lot more people to take photos with. I bet the poses will get pretty ridiculous!"

"Where is it?" the angel asked.

"Outside, in front of the con," Ike replied. "I'm headed there too if you want to come."

"Alright."

Pit wasn't too sure about this idea, but he was curious about seeing other people like this Ike. He knew for sure now that this had to be someone imitating the mercenary, but how they were connected was still a mystery to him. Maybe this "gathering" would answer some questions.

The angel followed Ike out of the dealer's hall and back into the central part of the building. They passed through the crowd and made their way to the doors leading outside. Pit could already see a colorful group of people gathering in the chosen area. Some were sitting on benches, chatting with each other, while others were already posing and having cameras flashed at them. Pit looked around at the people curiously and saw a multitude of imitators -some more convincing than others- all dressed as the Brawlers he knew. There were even multiple impersonators of the same fighter. Two Samus impersonators talked with each other- one wearing a suit and the other dressed in blue. There were people who looked like they were trying to imitate Pokemon but were still obviously human to the angel. Then came the greatest shock—there were people here dressed as him!

"W-what's going on here?" the angel asked shakily, watching the other Pits. "How do they know me?!"

"Huh?" Ike asked, confused. "Oh, well, 'Kid Icarus' isn't that unknown. Thanks to Brawl, a lot of people recognize it now. Pit fans will spawn from all over without anyone having ever played the game except old-school veterans!"

Pit didn't really understand what the blue-haired man was babbling about, but this place was really starting to freak him out. He took a step back and was just about ready to retreat back into the building when all of a sudden, something interesting caught his eye. It was large, round, colorful…and was being bounced around the crowd by whoever managed to hit it. A Smash Ball!

Pit couldn't believe his luck. If he broke that smash ball, Palutena would come, and he could ask for her help getting back to the Brawl, and then he would…But as quickly has his heart had filled with hope, his wings drooped in disappointment. The Smash Ball was fake too! As it was bounced closer to him, he could see that it had been crafted by someone…and it wasn't even glowing. How could he have ever let himself be fooled? And yet- there was a strange power coming from it that he couldn't identify.

Cautiously, Pit made his way closer to the crowd. The Ike behind him had wandered off to talk to another group of Ike and Marth imitators. Above him, the angel could see the false Smash Ball being knocked high up into the air. He could sense the power being emitted from it stronger than ever. That's definitely my link home…

He ran after it, but every time he came close to where the Smash Ball was headed, it would get knocked in a completely different direction. He got some amused looks as he chased the ball back and forth through the crowd. Finally, he stopped, panting. This isn't getting me anywhere. I guess I'm just going to have to wait for it to come to me.

The angel picked a spot to wait and prepared himself. Grabbing his bow in the middle, he split the hilts of his swords apart and locked his gaze on the ball. Some of the people around him turned to watch curiously as he spread his wings and took on a ready stance. Some even snapped some photos. Pit ignored the flashes and waited for just the right moment. As soon as the Smash Ball was directly above his head, the angel leapt, flapping his wings for an extra boost. He swung his right sword high and brought it down with a powerful slash, cutting right through the sphere. The last thing he heard was the unbelieving gasps of all the imposters below him as he disappeared in a great burst of light.

Pit felt himself being sucked through time and space again. It was disorienting, but he was just glad that the Smash Ball link had worked. After a short while, the brightness faded, and he found himself standing in a familiar place. He was standing within the teleportation chamber he had gone to the strange place in. The doors were open, revealing a large stadium and the shocked faces of several Brawlers. They had all gathered before the doors and were staring at the angel as if he had just appeared from outer space. They wouldn't have been too far off.

"Pit!" Ike gasped, pushing past the other and coming face to face with him. "Where have you been? We had to postpone the match because you never showed up!"

Pit glanced around, seeing that the stadium seats were empty. The bleachers that usually hovered around the selected stage had come back down to the arena, and all the people that had been expecting a match had gone home. Disappointment burned within him, but the angel was too out of it to get very upset.

"S-sorry," Pit stammered, looking dazed. "I accidently transported myself somewhere else and couldn't find my way back until just now…It was so strange. There were people dressed like us, and everyone wanted my photo, and I was attacked by strangers, and…Hey, Ike?"

"Yeah?" the mercenary asked, leaning closer.

After studying him for a moment, Pit leapt up and seized his hair. Ike let out a cry of pain and pushed the angel off him, looking at him incredulously.

"What was that for?!"

"Sorry," the angel laughed sheepishly, "just checking."

The explanations would have to wait. For now, Pit was just exhausted. He trudged back into the teleportation chamber and pressed the button to close the door. The grandness of the stadium disappeared, and he found himself surrounded by four metal walls once again. He was a bit wary of being in here after what had just happened, but it was the only way he knew to get to the Brawl Lounge, where he could rest. Shakily, he began to type his destination into the panel. B…R…A…and then, his finger slipped.

The End