Arcade Alliance

| 04 | Caught Red-Handed, Blue-Blurred, and Mega-Busted

CHAPTER IV
— CAUGHT RED-HANDED, BLUE-BLURRED, AND MEGA-BUSTED —

Meanwhile, in another world, Mario awoke in a grassy field under the moonlight. His head throbbed with pain, and as it subsided, he realized he wasn't in his familiar world—the one where he saved the princess and was a hero. Instead, he found himself in a place where he was a nobody.

"Mama mia! Where could I be?" he wondered aloud.

Mario looked around, twisting and turning his head to take in the unfamiliar surroundings. He tried to remember what had happened before he arrived in this strange place.

It hit him—he was fighting a mutated shadow when he was captured by its hands. It was a hedgehog-looking shadow too! After that, everything went black.

He assumed that after the shadowy fight, he must have traveled to another dimension, and this world was one of those.

As he pondered his situation, street lights turned on, illuminating the area. A little girl, who was in charge of turning on the lights, noticed him. She stared at Mario, initially thinking it might be someone in a costume. But as she approached, she realized he was real.

"H-Hey... Who are you?" she asked, still unsure.

"It's-a-me! Mario," he replied with his distinctive voice.

She was shocked to hear his voice, accent, and see his exact appearance. Still skeptical, she asked, "A-Are you a mascot? Or in a costume?"

Mario shook his head. "No. I'm Mario!"

The girl, now certain it was the real Mario, was interrupted by a loud voice from a nearby house. "Vanessa! The toilet is clogged! Clean it immediately."

She quickly returned to the house but not before giving Mario one last look. Realizing he was drawing attention, Mario ran swiftly until he found a hiding spot in a back alley, unnoticed. He then made his way into the city.

Elsewhere, Sonic found himself hidden in the grass outside a hotel. He heard voices but couldn't make sense of them. Peeking out, he saw humans walking around under bright city lights. 

Sonic thought he must have traveled to another dimension, a scenario he was somewhat accustomed to.

"But... I don't remember why I'm here.. What happened?" he wondered.

Sonic looked up at the sky and closed his eyes, trying to recall what had happened before his arrival. He remembered being with his friends—Amy, Knuckles, and Tails.

Feeling hungry, he had gone to the kitchen to help Amy and find food, but he got distracted by dots of light. He hadn't realized it would lead him to a completely different universe.

As he pieced together the events, a worrisome thought struck him. "If that light thing brought me here, it must have taken Tails, Knuckles, and Amy too. I have no doubt."

Determined, Sonic declared, "I must find them!" He dashed into the city streets.

Meanwhile, MegaMan regained consciousness. "Ugh... Where am I?" he muttered.

He was eager to figure out his location but had no idea where to start. The world seemed similar to his own, full of people and buildings, but something was missing—there were no robots roaming the city, which felt strange to him.

He looked around and realized he was in a junkyard, surrounded by old cars waiting to be destroyed and recycled. His eyes glowed brightly, catching the attention of the junkyard's owner.

"What the heck is that?!" the alarmed owner yelled.

MegaMan quickly hid among the broken cars, staying out of sight. As he hid, he began to wonder where his friends were.

He waited for the junkyard owner to leave, and after a few minutes, the man gave up and went to sleep. Seizing the moment, MegaMan decided to search for his friends.

He ran into the city until he encountered a strange hedgehog and a chubby plumber.

"YOU!" they all shouted at each other.

Cars honked as the three caused a traffic jam, but the police had bigger concerns.

"Another one of those video game freaks. Where do they even come from?" a police officer muttered.

Ignoring the police, the trio started yelling accusations at one another. They look exactly like the shadows that abducted them!!

Sonic shouted, "You! Blue robot! What did you do to my friends?! You're gonna pay for everything!"

MegaMan retorted, "Why you little...!? You, with the ugly mustache and big nose! Where are Roll and the others!? What did you do to them?!"

Mario shot back, "How dare you!? You're the one to talk. That blue rat wanted to destroy my world, and now you're blaming me for something I didn't do?"

The three didn't care about the police or what the others said, and a fierce fight broke out among them. The police backed off, fearing they might get caught in the crossfire. Some officers evacuated the citizens while others stayed hidden.

"Surrender, or we'll shoot," one officer commanded.

The trio ignored the warning and continued their fight. Just as it intensified, a purple flash zoomed in and snatched Sonic. An orange bandicoot spun in, grabbed Mario, and ran. The purple dragon returned, carrying MegaMan away.

"Fire!" the police chief ordered.

Bullets flew, but most missed their targets. The bandicoot and dragon spread golden dust over Sonic, Mario, and MegaMan, causing their eyes to close slowly.

They were hit by one bullet each—Mario in the stomach, Sonic in his legs, and MegaMan in his right hand. Blood loss made them faint and lose consciousness.

. . . . .

TO BE CONTINUED.