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A Story Written by TheMarioPianist, Latios212, and Hero of Trains

Started by TheMarioPianist, August 17, 2015, 02:30:20 PM

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TheMarioPianist

And the story is off! All BBCoded up, too. Font and everything. That's how good it will be. There's still time to be a character! PM or Skype me with character details and the gaming franchise you want to represent! Hurry, before it is too late!

Remember: Only comment in the separate COMMENTS for TheMarioPianist's Story #1 thread. I want to keep this thread for the story only. If you post here, I will politely ask you to remove it before taking more drastic measures.

Another warning: I am generally a clean person, but the occasional swear word may show up in this story. There will not be any inappropriate scenes in this story, but sometimes, as a writer, I must convey emotion. And saying "What the fruit happened to your darn head?" just doesn't capture emotion the same way. Granted, these words will be few and far between, and the most vulgar words will probably never appear. But if you cannot handle a story with true emotion, please just don't read it, ok? I think most of us here are mature enough to handle a story without censoring. This one would barely need it anyway. Just a fair warning. I promise you, the swearing that appears in Chapter One is not how the rest of the book will appear. You will understand why it is that way. It fits the situation.
"I'm always here to help. Except when I'm not." ~Latios212

"If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." ~Donald J. Trump

Transcriber
M-updater
Piano player

TheMarioPianist

#1
INTRODUCTION
   
FEBRUARY 1, 2028: RENO, NV-Tension. Hatred. Suspicion. Our supposedly unified world should not suffer these afflictions. Of course, our shared utopian view of eventual cooperation between all nations has blinded us from seeing the continual corrosion of foreign relations. It all started back in 2026, when the United States did not renew the New START treaty with the Russian Federation. We ran story after story about the broken treaty and our foreign policy as a whole. It seemed like war was imminent for months. But that declaration never came. Our media hype seemed to be a false alarm. But now, it is very much possible that the entire world could be going to war for the first time since 1939.
Now, it appears that our stories about a possible World War III could have been our earliest and best warning. Malachi Leonard, who lives just outside of downtown Reno, left us with an alarming remark: "In all honesty, I think we should try any method possible to avoid war. In reality, I think our country is too feeble these days. I feel we'd be a push-over in a war." This is very unsettling for any American to hear, and it should be. Truthfully, are we ready for war? Could this become global thermonuclear war? If this occurs, no one will come out a winner. So I beg of our newly elected president: Please, avoid war at all costs. We aren't ready to lose this much...





Wow, it's certainly a flashback to see this. That's from what, 2028? Man, that's ten years old. I completely forgot about the RGJ (Reno Gazette-Journal) publishing that one. Of course, that's like the one time the press actually listened to what good old Malachi was saying. Always saying the world was gonna end somehow. One day, it's a big flood, the next its nuclear war. The scary thing with that one is, he was almost right. Well, I'm being pretty rude here; I haven't even introduced myself yet. My name is Caleb. Caleb Kelly. But most people just call me Kelly. I don't mind if you do. You may be thinking, "Does everyone in Reno have Bible names?" And the answer, of course, is no, we don't. But I think Malachi and I met for a reason, because his belief in the perpetual apocalypse and my obsession with conspiracies and supernatural events may have saved the world from certain doom. You heard that right: we saved the world. Ok, no we didn't. You caught me trying to steal that title again. But I can say this. If it weren't for our curious and suspecting nature, we would have never uncovered the true hero. Hear that, newspaper? Suspicion saved the God damn world! Sorry, I always hated those liberal reporters. If my Biblical name didn't tell you I was far right, then it would soon be revealed in my hatred towards the press. See? I already possess two of the qualities that you said would destroy the world. Who saved the world again? Oh...yea, you're right, it's not me. Hey, I've got an idea. Why don't I tell you the story? I mean, if you got the time, it's a great tale. I mean, you may already know it if you are living right now; I mean, unless you lived underground during the entire war. It's settled, then. Now this guy, unlike most other significant figures in history, actually came in with a bang...   
"I'm always here to help. Except when I'm not." ~Latios212

"If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." ~Donald J. Trump

Transcriber
M-updater
Piano player

TheMarioPianist

CHAPTER ONE

   
It had been a glorious night at the Bellagio. The weather was great, the food was fantastic, and the odds were definitely in our favor at the casino. Malachi, who cautioned against the idea of gambling at the start, pulled off an impressive run of ten consecutive wins at the blackjack table before he was accused of counting cards. He may have been, but I doubt it. He's very intellectual, but he has also been known to be a very lucky individual. At the age of eleven, he walked away from a serious car crash with only a couple bruises. I mean, that car rammed into his going nearly twenty miles per hour over the posted forty-five, according to the accident report. I don't know. He has just always avoided bad luck. Knock on wood.
   I guess I can't complain about him having good luck, because I was doing just as well. I scored a lucky hit on number 28 at the roulette wheel, and I really lit up the slot machines. I was a little more careful than Malachi, as I made sure I lost enough to avoid suspicion. Or so I thought. Security must have been eyeing me more closely than I thought, and my loud, drunk mouth got us kicked out of the casino. I was lucky they even let us retain our winnings.
   "So Caleb," said this one girl at the bar (we had just met this very attractive woman, and I had already forgotten her name due to my inebriation), "Looks like you and your friend there got pretty lucky tonight. What's your secret?"
   Malachi, with a sense of bravado, replied, "You see, it's about skill and risks. You gotta make sure you—"
   "Shut up, Mal," I interjected. "She don' wanna h-h-h-heeeear yo smart talk-k-k." I couldn't control my slurred speech anymore. "Mah secret-t-t, you say? Mah c-c-cump'ny builded the the the slotsss," I stammered.
   "Dude, you really shouldn't be telling people stuff like that," warned Malachi. He was simply trying to be helpful, but he was starting to piss me off.
   "Mal! Sit yer ass d-down! I c-can say wha-wha-whaddeva I w-w-want! I ch-cheated the slotsss! I ch-ch-cheated da God damn slotsss!"
   Bad move. Two big, strong security guards immediately rushed over.
   The taller one spoke first. "Gentlemen, we're going to have to ask you to leave. You are causing a disturbance."
   "D-Don't tell meeee what tah do," I retorted.
   The shorter guard replied, "Sir, if you and your friend do not leave willingly, we will have to arrest you and return your winnings to the casino."
   I couldn't control myself. "Y-Y-Youuuu don't h-h-have the the right..."
   "Caleb, cool it!" Finally, Malachi did something helpful. "Sir, I apologize for my friend's behavior. We'll leave."
   The next thing I knew, we were out on the street. As we walked back to our own hotel, we were silent for about 5 minutes. Finally, Malachi broke the silence.
   "Dude, one of these days you are going to get us in some serious trouble. How many times have I told you to quit drinking?" he inquired.
   He had asked me a lot. But I didn't care. All my other friends did. "C'mon, man. Yer the the the only one th-that don't. 'Sides, I ain't yo, wait, no. You ain't m-m-my boss."
   "Do you even hear yourself? You can't formulate a simple sentence. You are acting like an idiot just because you want to feel good!" Wow, that is the harshest attack Malachi has ever struck me with. Usually, he put up with my constant drinking and partying, but that one hurt.
   "M-Man, dude, yer r-right," I mumbled as I looked up into the sky. Suddenly, I noticed a bright light falling from the sky. This was no shooting star. "L-Look Mal! A UFO!" I exclaimed.
   "No it's not, dude, that neon sign is just blurring in your vision. Don't worry, we're almost to the—Watch out!"
   Instantly, I felt two arms grab me and pull me away from the busy street. A giant bus zoomed by; angrily honking at us.
   Malachi looked at me, panting from that short exertion of energy. "First you almost get us arrested, and then you almost get hit by a bus? What's next?"
   I had almost been hit by a bus. Watch where you're going, Kelly! I had to prove that I had actually seen something. "But Mal, don't you s-see that UFO? It's it's r-r-right th..." But the light had disappeared. Maybe he was right. I just needed to get home and sleep it off. We got to the room, and I collapsed on my bed. "This hangover's gonna suck," I murmured as I drifted off to sleep.
   We awoke to the sounds of abnormally busy traffic at 7:00AM. Well, Malachi did, anyway. He violently shook me awake after peering out the window.
   "Dude, it looks like the entire Las Vegas police department is headed up to Route 95! Wonder what the commotion is about!" He was way too excited for the way I felt.
   "Ugh, my head," were the first words out of my mouth. I forced myself to get out of bed and over to the window, but not without a fanfare of moans. I looked outside. "Mal," I said, turning back towards him, "Last time I checked, the abbreviation for the Las Vegas was not FBI."
   He rushed back to the window. "Holy Moses!" he exclaimed. "We gotta go find out what on earth is going on here! Doomsday could be approaching quicker than I calculated!"
   Reluctantly, I showered and got dressed in agony. We took the elevator down to the lobby. Nothing in their continental breakfast looked appetizing to me. Not even the bacon, and bacon is my kryptonite. After taking only a few sips of orange juice in an attempt to soothe my pounding headache, we ventured outside to see what was going on.
   The police traffic had died down, but some of the vehicles were still there, parked on the side of the road. A lone police officer, fully dressed in a dark black police uniform, was leaning against his car, writing something in a small notebook. He noticed us approaching him with uncertainty, and he put down his pen.
   He asked, "Is there something I can do for you two?"
   I took charge of the conversation. "Actually, yes, my buddy and I were just curious what all those cops were up to."
   "There was a disturbance late last night about 100 miles north of here, just east of Groom Lake," he replied with a noticeable smirk on his face.
   Malachi gave me a confused look. "Groom Lake?" he mouthed. I put my finger to my lips, and looked back at the policeman. "Must have been much more than a disturbance if the FBI was involved. What happened?"
   He raised his eyebrows, adjusted his sunglasses, and said, "I apologize, sir, but that information is classified."
   "I knew it!" I thought as I shouted with glee inside my head. "I understand, officer. Thanks for your time." I now knew that last night's occurrence was no hallucination.
   "Good day, gentleman," he said, and went back to scribbling frantically on his pad.
   We walked away. "Get the keys," I instructed Malachi, "We're going for a drive."
   "Where?" he asked, dumbfounded. I rapidly replied, "Area 51."
   Now, Area 51, of course, has always been debated by conspiracy theorists. Of course, we know that it exists, as proof of its existence was declassified almost 20 years ago, but there is no evidence as to what experiments were and are still conducted there. Of course, everyone links it with aliens, with the Roswell incident being the most popular one. In fact, amateur discoveries on Google Maps have shown startling images of possible spacecraft and alien life. But what happened in the past didn't matter. Why are we going to Area 51 again? First of all, the closest we can get is a mountain peak just off the Extraterrestrial Highway, so we couldn't actually get inside. But Groom Lake, the location mentioned by the Las Vegas police officer, is not actually a lake any more. It has been dried out for a long time and is part of Area 51. He also said it is east of the Lake, which is where are best vantage point is. Unfortunately, it is over a 3 hour drive, and by the third hour the energy that fueled our will to travel had all but vanished.
   "Are we there yet?" asked Malachi, his voice whiny and exhausted due to the heat.
   I harshly replied, "Mal, you're acting like a child again. Don't worry; we're only 5 minutes from 51 Rd." (That is the road that leads to Area 51, which is not open to the public.)
   We rode in silence for the next couple minutes, but were forced to stop long before reaching the five minute mark. There was a flagger, as FBI vehicles clogged up an entire lane of traffic. As we waited for our turn to go, we caught a glimpse of the root cause of the hold-up. An enormous object, maybe 100 feet in each direction, was covered by a massive tarp. The area surrounding this object was fenced off, and FBI agents patrolled the perimeter.
   "Holy shit!" exclaimed Malachi, and he immediately covered his mouth. That was the first and only time I had ever heard him swear. But if there was ever a moment for a first swear word, this was it.
   "I apologize for not listening to you last night, Kelly," said Malachi, in the most sincere tone he could muster.
   I couldn't have cared less. "Its fine, buddy. We're here, that's all that matters." My eyes welled up with tears, and I wiped them away to get a clearer view of the object.
   "Now that's peculiar," Malachi sputtered, fighting to keep his voice from wavering. "On top of th-that th-thing, are th-those the-the-the G-Golden Arches?" It was his turn to stutter, although he was not drunk, of course.
   "Nope, that's not what that is," I responded. I noticed the same symbol that had caught Malachi's vision, as it was not completely hidden underneath the translucent tarp. "You often forget you are colorblind, my friend. That is not yellow. That symbol you see; that there is red."
   And we continued to stare at the object in awe, but also with recognition, because we now knew our lifelong fantasies had just become a reality.
"I'm always here to help. Except when I'm not." ~Latios212

"If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." ~Donald J. Trump

Transcriber
M-updater
Piano player

TheMarioPianist

#3
CHAPTER TWO

   
We continued to sit there, gawking at the object, as a wave of shock slowly crept over us.
   "How did that thing get here?" Malachi finally gasped, breaking the silence.
   "Well, duh, it fell out of the sky," I replied with a smirk. I really cannot control my sarcastic humor. It's gonna get me in trouble one of these days.
   "Come on, Kelly, you know I hate it when you do that. It's really annoying." And he was right. I've been a smart aleck my entire life, and I haven't ever had the ability to stop myself from acting like that. I really did feel bad, and I knew people hated me for it.
   "But seriously," Malachi continued, breaking my train of thought. "How did that thing get here?" he repeated. "It's impossible."
   Ha! I can't believe it. Impossible? Coming from a guy who incessantly tells you that the end is near? No way.
   "Mal," I insisted. "You are honestly gonna tell me that your little fiasco about the end of the Mayan calendar is more believable than Starship Mario crash-landing in the middle of Nevada?" As soon as I said it, I realized how ridiculous it sounded. But I had said it. And as soon as we both realized it, excitement shot through our bodies.
   "You really think that's what it is?" he asked me, as his voice began to tremble.
   I nonchalantly answered, "Um, yea, name one other object that has a red M on the top of it."
   He stared at me for a second, and broke into a smile. "To take a page from your book, Mario's hat has a red M on it. Mario's hat." I couldn't deny it. He was telling the truth.
   We sped home from the crash site, but by the time we arrived home, news of the crash was demanding the attention of reporters across the nation. It was on the evening news, in the paper, and all over the Internet. Fledgling conspiracy theories were already breaking out of their shells, and I eagerly read them all, which lead me to a shocking realization. No one knew what it was. Except us. We were the only ones who knew that this mysterious object was...
Ding-dong. We hadn't been expecting visitors. As a single man, it was extremely rare to have an unexpected guest. So I got up, walked to the door, and slowly pulled it open.
"Surprise!" I jumped back about 3 miles. Who were these strange people at my door? As my eyes began to focus, I started to recognize faces within the crowd of strangers. It was my neighborhood posse! That's what we called ourselves, anyway. The Neighborhood Posse. Those were some good times. Most of us stayed in the Nevada area, so we still got together quite a bit. They never cared for Mal much, but they sure loved me.
      "Oh my God! You guys didn't have to do this!" I exclaimed as they came in, ready for a party. To be honest, Malachi and I were beat, but we understood they were trying to be friendly.
"Welcome back, Caleb." A voice caught my attention from the back of the pack. It was Amelia. Besides Mal, she was probably one of my best friends growing up. As we got older, Mal and I stayed close, while Amelia kind of drifted away. We were still friends and all, but she acted pretty weird sometimes. I mean, she called me by my first name. No one did that. Really, the only reason we still hung out together is because she loved two of my favorite hobbies: video games and piano. She still had Legos, though. That, I guess, is kind of why I didn't stay close with her. She never really grew up. But hey, she is a nice girl, and she can be funny sometimes, so it doesn't hurt to have her around.
    Before I could get to Amelia, someone stepped in my way. "Hey baby, I've missed you," she said seductively. It was Samantha. Man, she looked stunning tonight. I had missed her too. A lot of single guys may rate girls from 1 to 10; she broke the scale. Especially when she wore that tight, short, black dress that she had on tonight. She might have been a little overdressed for the occasion, but I wasn't complaining. Malachi warned me in the past not to mess with her, but I wasn't about to take advice from him. What did he know about women, anyway? He is destined to be a priest; I don't know why he doesn't just go off to the seminary now.
   "I missed you too," I finally squeaked out. My heart was pounding against my chest. I was finally going to do it. I was going to ask her out. "Hey, would you..."
   But I never got there. Someone blurted out, "Hey, listen to this junk comin' outta Mal's mouth!" I thought you were too cool for drugs, Mal."
   "I wasn't high, you idiot!" Mal screamed furiously. "I'm telling you, that ship was Starship Mario!"
   Samantha turned to me. "I can't even believe you hang out with this guy," she said. "He acts like such a child sometimes." I had had enough. These guys had been making fun of Malachi for years, and it was time for me to actually stand up for him.
   "You know what?" I exclaimed. "He is absolutely right! That is exactly what we saw out there, and you won't change that!" The house was stunned silent. You could have heard a pin drop.
   Finally, Samantha uttered, "This place just got real lame real quick. I say we get outta here, and leave these losers to sort out their shit." There were mumbled voices of agreement, and the group quickly filed out my front door. I had blown it. I'd never get Samantha now.
   "I believe you," a voice said behind me. I turned around. Amelia was standing there, right where I had left her.
   "You do?" I asked. I had to be hearing things. There is no way anyone could possibly have believed that story.
   "Definitely," she replied. "I saw a picture of it. There was a red M under the tarp. Only one thing that could mean." This was incredible. My mood had completely changed. I went from depressed to ecstatic in a matter of seconds.
    "Incredible!" blurted Malachi. "You do realize that we are the only three people who know about this on the planet?" We let that sink in for a bit. That was unbelievable. We had proof that at least part of the Nintendo universe actually exists, but as far as we knew, no one else did. With this knowledge, we could...
   There was a knock at the door. "What now," I asked.
   "Pizza delivery for Kelly," answered the man at the door. How typical. They ordered pizza in my name and had it delivered to my house. Now I had to pay for it. Malachi opened the door for the guy while I pulled out my wallet. Except all that I pulled out was air. My pocket was empty. Then I remembered. I never brought it down from the hotel room that morning.
   "Mal," I began. "I hate to do this to you, but can you take care of paying? I promise I'll pay you back."
   "Sure," he said without hesitating. Satisfied, the pizza guy left. Mal looked at me, "You didn't lose your wallet again, did you?" A knot formed in my stomach. He knew me too well. I slowly nodded my head.
   "You moron! Now we have to go all the way back to Vegas to get it! We probably won't find it anyway!" He was really mad at me. I deserved this. I was a moron. Why couldn't I just leave it in my pocket all the time like everyone else? I just randomly took it out sometimes. This time, it got me in trouble.
   "This might sound strange, but can I come with you guys?" asked Amelia. We froze. "Sorry, I just really wanted to see that IFO up close."

   "I guess," I replied uneasily, "but what is an IFO?"
   "Why, it's an Identified Flying Object," she answered. "Everyone knows that!" And just like that, we were on the road again. For the second time in two days, we had to drive all the way to Las Vegas. Luckily, we had a third driver this time, but it still was exhausting.
   About 30 minutes outside of the city, Malachi told me to pull over. "Why?" I asked. It wasn't anything special. We were just on an empty backroad, like we had been for the past half hour.
   "Look straight ahead," he instructed. I looked, and then I saw it. A hitchhiker was sitting on the side of the road. But something was interesting about this guy in particular. He did not have anything with him. He was wearing overalls, which are almost nonexistent in Nevada. In his gloved hands, he was carrying a familiar piece of headwear: a bright red cap.
   I joked with Malachi: "Would you accept gold coins as payment for the pizza bill?" He didn't answer me. He didn't need to. It didn't matter. We now had proof that what we had seen was legitimate.
 
"I'm always here to help. Except when I'm not." ~Latios212

"If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." ~Donald J. Trump

Transcriber
M-updater
Piano player

TheMarioPianist

CHAPTER THREE

   
As I pulled the key out of the ignition, Mario slowly turned around. He looked at us questioningly, and his eyes danced across all of our faces. Malachi and I hopped out of the car and walked towards him.
   His eyes opened wide with fear. "Bakku sutando! Anatahadare?" he screamed.
   We looked at each other in utter confusion. After a long silence, I replied, "It's ok, Mario. We're here to help you."
   His body relaxed, and his breathing slowed. "Ah, it's-a English you speak," he replied in his traditional Italian accent. "I get-a used to the Japanese language sometimes. But how did you know it's-a me, Mario?"
   "Well, it's pretty obvious," answered Mal, almost laughing at the question. "The red hat, the blue overalls, the white gloves; it all adds up."
   "Good point," Mario said, as he glanced around to examine his surroundings. "Mamma mia! Where am I?"
   "Just north of Vegas, baby!" Amelia piped up, eager to talk to the pint-sized hero of the Mushroom Kingdom.
   "V-V-Vegas?" he sounded out. "How far is that from Peach's castle? I haven't been this far from home in a long time!"
   I turned to Malachi and muttered, "I don't think he gets that he's on another planet yet." Looking back at Mario, I informed him of the situation. "Mario, to be completely honest, I don't even know where the Mushroom Kingdom is from here. You could be galaxies away, for all I know. But we can help you get back home. By the way, where are all your friends? The ones on the Starship with you?"
   Mario winced, as if he had suddenly been hit with a wave of pain. "I feel like such-a loser," he slowly uttered; the cheerfulness gone from his voice. "I hid, and they were taken away. It was-a really tall man who did it." As soon as the words came from his mouth, I knew who Mario was talking about. "Z." That's what he went by, anyway. No one knew his real name. No one really knew anything about him, other than the fact that he was in North Korea until fighting with its southern neighbor forced him out of the country. I'll give him credit. Z's brilliant speeches really did win the people over. So much so that even I voted for him, and I don't usually pick guys with as many holes in their story as his. He won the 2028 Presidential election by a landslide. It was impressive, actually. But something always seemed "off" about him. I knew we had to get Mario back to my place. Z would be looking for him, I knew he would.
   I got the group's attention. "Guys, there has been a change of plans. We're not going to go all the way down to get my wallet back. It's probably gone anyway. We have to get Mario home safely. I guess I will have to start cancelling..." I was interrupted by a light tap on my back. It was Mario.
   "Sir, is this what you are talking about?" I couldn't believe it! He was holding my wallet!
   I exclaimed, "Thank you, Mario! I must have dropped it on the road while looking at your starship! Thanks for retrieving it!" Man, Mario just did everything right, didn't he?
   And just like that, we were on the road again. The drive seemed to take longer than ever. I couldn't wait to get home and sleep in my bed for once. Except we never got home. Before we pulled into my apartment complex, we realized that it was surrounded by FBI vehicles. They must have known somehow that we were involved with Mario.
   "What are we gonna do?" Malachi exclaimed. "My Wii U is still in there!" Everyone laughed at that comment, even Mario. I couldn't believe that was what he was worried about.
   "Hey, I've got an idea!" It was Amelia again. "We could go to my house!" she suggested.
   We all agreed that it was the best option, as we all needed to sleep. When we got there, we made sure to put my car in the garage so that my license plate wasn't visible. Then, we all got some much needed sleep.
   The next morning, we all gathered around to plan what we would do. We all knew we couldn't go back to my place, but we didn't know where to go.
   "I still think we should go to D.C. with Mario," Amelia suggested.
   "I can't give him up to Z; we should get outta the U.S.," I argued.
   Malachi retorted, "Are you crazy? They'd catch us smuggling him over and we'd be in federal prison without Mario!"
   "Guys, guys, guys," Mario interrupted. "I still don't even know where these places are." Amelia quickly disappeared into another room and came back out with a world map.
   She grabbed a red pen and marked an X on Reno. "We are right here," she said, pointing to the X.
   "Oh!" Malachi exclaimed. "Show him where they are growing real Pokémon! He'll know what that is!" But Mario wasn't listening. He was scribbling something down on the map.
   "Whatcha writing, Mario?" asked Amelia. He handed the map back to her. Something caught her eye right by the red X.


"It's a me, Mario!" he exclaimed. Amelia rolled her eyes.
Sensing her annoyance, he got back on topic. "Ok, sorry. Where are the Pokémon?"
She replied, "Right here. They actually call this area Pokéurope."
"Really?" said Mario, surprised at that. "I love the Pokémon! Too bad I don't get to see them that much...hey, we should go there!"
Amelia laughed. "That's kind of far away, dude! And expensive. Right now, we should focus on going to Washington D.C., which is right here. That's where the tall guy lives."
"Yay!" Mario cried. "I get to see my friends again!"
Malachi and I looked at each other, rolled our eyes, and reluctantly agreed to go. It was hard enough to change Amelia's opinion, so why should we even attempt to change Mario's?
We were all set to leave for the nation's capital when Mario pointed at the map again.
"Ace Attorney? I recognize that name!" he announced.
"Oh, wow, I had completely forgotten about Japan," I replied honestly. "I hope they aren't caught up in the Korean situation. I wonder what's going on over there, anyway..."
"I'm always here to help. Except when I'm not." ~Latios212

"If you're interested in 'balancing' work and pleasure, stop trying to balance them. Instead make your work more pleasurable." ~Donald J. Trump

Transcriber
M-updater
Piano player

Hero of Trains

CHAPTER 4

March 1st, 4:40 PM. High Prosecutor's Office, Tokyo

"So, how'd you get roped into this one?" I asked, bouncing on the couch. It was a rather nice one, with maroon velvet and a mahogany frame. I wouldn't mind having one, actually.
Edgeworth brought me back into the moment. "I didn't get 'roped into' anything, Kay. Ambassador Palaeno asked. Nicely. You were there, correct?"
"Yeah, he even gave me some cool coupons! I'm going to give them out to all the people we meet! That worked well for Babahl, didn't it?"
"No. I've said this before, Kay. We are not giving any coupons to anybody. It makes us seem unprofessional." He sighed, like always, even though it's a really good idea!
"Who else is coming? Maybe I can get them to hand out coupons for me!"
"No coupons! I don't want to get involved with any more murders!"
"That... wasn't in question." He was always trying to stay out of trouble like that, even when it wasn't related.
"To answer your question, we'll have Lana Skye and Trucy with us."
"Lana, I can understand. But Trucy? She's not going to steal your badge again, is she?"
"Phoenix asked me to watch her. It's not like I can say no."
"But you can! I have the feeling you said yes so that Gummy wouldn't have to come."
"Well, I never said that, but it is good that he's staying back here. He can clean my office for me while we're gone."
"I knew it! You do want him to stay here! Oh well, Trucy's super nice, so I don't mind!"
I hopped off the couch, ready to go. "Come on, you said we were going. Hurry up already!"
He sighed, again. What's with all the sighing? "The flight is tomorrow, Kay. We don't need to go yet, unless you want to sleep at the airport. Have you even packed?"
He got me there. I hadn't, of course, but he was being too smug for me to tell him that. "Yeah, totally! I'm just going to go back now, and, y'know, watch TV or something." Nailed it!

March 2nd, 8:00. Airport Entrance

"So, we're all here?" Edgeworth was looking around at us. "Let's try not to run away. Or die. I've taken preventative measures, like-"
"Really? Those leash backpacks? We're not little kids, you know! I'm the CEO of my own company! I can handle myself perfectly well! This is completely unnecessary, and I find it degrading and in violation of my personal rights as a citizen!" Trucy was absolutely livid. I mean, the backpacks were a joke. (I put him up to it, which is the only way he'll ever make a joke.)
Of course, he replied in his usual fashion, saying only "You're most definitely Phoenix's daughter." Trucy huffed, but relented.
I spoke up, telling her it was a joke. She laughed out loud. "Does Mr. Edgeworth even make jokes? Daddy said that he was the stiffest prosecutor he had ever met." Edgeworth obviously didn't like this, but he hid it well, adjusting his cravat. Actually, that kind of proved Trucy's point.
Lana pulled us through the sliding doors, saying "Hurry, there might be some unforeseen difficulties in Security, so we should get in early."

March 2nd, 8:10. Airport Security

Well, at least Lana warned us. They had us both taken away for private questioning. Of course, Edgeworth was annoyed, but someone had to stay with Trucy so that she didn't relieve everyone of their valuables while we were in questioning.
I knew why I had been taken. They actually found the Yatagarasu's key that I had kept in my carry on, which is more than I expected, as they usually can't catch my lockpicks. (They're technically not illegal, but considering how they take people's water bottles, I'm not sure how happy they'd be about lockpicks.) But this was a knife, so it may have been a bit more serious. But why did they take Lana? She was apparently a pretty law abiding detective, except for some case Edgeworth apparently doesn't like to remember. I decided to peek into the other room. I told the person interrogating me that it was just a prop, apologized insincerely, and walked out.
Of course, the metal detectors still went off, because of everything else I had on me. I passed it off as some zipper on my clothes, and waited until the alarm stopped blaring to go check on Lana.

March 2nd, 8:12. Inspection Table

Was that Officer Meekins? What was he doing at the airport? He was  whining about something to Lana.
"Oh, Detective Skye, I'm so sorry. I was a security guard, but then I was let go after I lost the keys three times in two shifts. And then I worked at the Parking Garage in the Prosecutor's Office, hoping some nice prosecutor would decide to hire me-"
"You'd have to go to Criminal Affairs to do that." Lana interjected, "And why wouldn't you just ask? I know at least Detective Gumshoe has a soft spot for you, although he has a soft spot for everybody."
Meekins, if it really was him, continued his story even more frantically. "But that's just it! I was hired again, but then got fired after I lost the whole case record for three cases! Now I'm stuck here, but at least it's work." Here, he seemed to yank on his bullhorn, which he had for some reason. A loud whine filled the room, and Lana cringed.
"You're telling me about job disappointments. Just finish looking through my bag, I don't want to be late for my flight." Lana was obviously impatient, and she pulled out a package of snacks and started munching. Meekins stood to attention, and opened up the backpack.
"Do you have anything that isn't illegal in here?"
"MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH"
Meekins looked away, and started pulling things out. He pulled out five spray bottles. The nearest to me was called Luminol, and there was one labelled "atroquinine detection". Next he pulled out three different types of what looked like fingerprinting powder, and a container of plaster. The last item gave him pause, though.
"Is this a police issued gun? I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to have this."
"MUNCH MUNCH MUN- Oh, that? I'm allowed to carry it. The reason being-"
At that moment, a security guard walked by. "Where are you supposed to be, miss?"
I didn't answer and hurried back out, where Trucy and Edgeworth were waiting. I told them all about Lana's weird behaviour. After I was finished, Edgeworth sat silently for a bit. He was obviously thinking very hard about something.
Lana walked through the hallway and into the room where we were waiting. She was munching angrily on another bag of those snacks.
"Everything is MUNCH settled now,MUNCH we can get MUNCH on our way. MUNCH MUNCH MUNCH"
Edgeworth had a small smile on his face, and I knew he had figured something out. "I'm glad you managed to sort it out with the officer, Ema. Now how much of your scientific equipment did he allow you to keep?"
She stood there for a second, until she broke into a smile. "I should have known you'd figure it out sooner rather than later. And he let me keep all of it, scientifically speaking."
Trucy had just now realized what was going on. "Mr. Edgeworth, why can't you be more dim-witted, like Polly? I actually get to figure stuff out first sometimes when I'm with him. Actually, all the time."
All three of us laughed, while Edgeworth just shook his head. He looked like he wanted to be with anyone else, anywhere else.
Quote from: Dudeman on May 22, 2015, 06:24:42 PM
See guys? Trains isn't nice all the time.
Quote from: also Dudeman
Trains is so nice that I'm sure she'd resurrect herself for a few minutes to compliment you back

Hero of Trains

CHAPTER 5

March 2nd, 9:15, Airplane

Walking in, I knew there was something different about this plane, but I couldn't tell what. Until I realized that the seats weren't usually so puke green. Edgeworth was standing there, stunned. Of course, he had told me all about that flight attendant's plans to make a line of airplanes, but his descriptions of "a threat to humanity as we know it" and "an abhorrent example of what passes as art in modern society" were enough to convince me that it would not have actually happened in real life.
"The first time I try iFly airlines again, and it's this. Of course." Edgeworth sighed, and you could tell he was regretting every decision he made.
"Wait, didn't you give Gummy a suitcase with this same color scheme?" If he bought it, he couldn't have thought it was that horrible, right?
"Yes, it was an unwanted gift, an expression of thanks that, while not unnoticed, had to be dealt with as soon as possible." His look of intense regret continued, and he stared at the flight attendants, shocked that they would even allow this.
"MUNCH MUNCH Hey everyone, I've found a way to compress our luggage almost infinitely, so it'll fit right below a seat! And it's not that dangerous at all, scientifically speaking." Ema was already at our seats, messing with some device that didn't look like it belonged on an airplane. Or anywhere in the general area of human beings.
"Hey, I can do one better. I can make everything disappear! Pass me your prosecutor's badge, Mr. Edgeworth!" Though Trucy was obviously excited, Edgeworth would have no part in it. He simply started walking to where Ema was standing, presumably by our seats. We followed him, dodging a variety of strange characters.
"Are you sure this plane is just a normal one going to the United States? It looks like there's an awful lot of shady characters." I was, of course, the first to question this, as I have dealt with my fair share of shadiness in the past. "I bet if we robbed them, nobody would be the wiser, don't you?" I said this, of course, to annoy Edgeworth. Everyone knows that the Yatagarasu steals only the truth! Before I started a speech to all the people on the plane, though, Edgeworth interrupted me with a curt "No, Kay, that's immoral and you know that."
"I don't know about that. For all we know, this could be a plane full of gangsters. But if you tried to rob them, even my science wouldn't be able to save you." Ema was apparently listening, even though it seemed like she was just messing with delicate instruments that could be important for takeoff.
"If we're surrounded by gangsters, I'm sure Mr. Edgeworth could fight them off, right?"
"Yeah, go get 'em!"
"Use the power of logic to defeat all foes!"
"Stop." Edgeworth seemed calm, but he... probably was, actually. "These people are not gangsters, or criminals, or people you can rob. They are most likely just normal people trying to go about their daily business, which we are disturbing. Trucy, put Mr. Hat away. Kay, get out of that ridiculous pose. Ema, please don't damage any crucial instruments."
"Not to worry, I've put everything absolutely necessary back together already! It should be perfectly functional! Probably." Ema started looking over at Edgeworth's seat, which wasn't particularly reassuring to anyone.
"I also advise that you refrain from taking things apart in the future that don't belong to you."
Ema simply pouted and went to her seat, munching on some Snackoos.
The rest of the flight was relatively uneventful, except for when Trucy made Ema's fingerprinting powder disappear. Apparently it was worth a hundred dollars, so I'm not sure why she had it out in the first place. I had the feeling that Trucy wasn't used to Edgeworth's relatively strict personality, being raised by, well, Phoenix Wright. But, as I said, it was uneventful, a welcome break before everything that happened after we touched down in Washington.
Quote from: Dudeman on May 22, 2015, 06:24:42 PM
See guys? Trains isn't nice all the time.
Quote from: also Dudeman
Trains is so nice that I'm sure she'd resurrect herself for a few minutes to compliment you back