Wherein Falcon is the biggest dick. [Dated to before Master Hand's announcement]
Falcon had lost count of how many shady bars he frequented, listening in on conversations that certainly did not belong to him. It was a sort of bounty hunter grapevine, a place where everyone came incognito and left with the latest gossip: Who had a price on their head, where the targets had last been sighted, what criminals had been apprehended and by who.
As the years at Smash Academy went by, the Captain had become more and more choosy with his bounties, only going on the hunt if the price was high enough, or if the job was personal. However, he liked to keep himself in the know, so trips to these sketchy locales were always a staple, no matter how infrequent his forays into the bounty hunting game had become.
Tonight his place of choice was an old favorite, a hazy, dimly-lit bar made even darker by a pair of sunglasses. Even a futuristic mecca like Mute City had dingy dives like this where bar fights were practically a dime a dozen. Smoke hung in the air alongside quiet chatter and the thump of a bass in whatever song was pumping over the radio. Falcon sat alone at the bar, close enough to the other grizzled-looking patrons to safely eavesdrop, but far enough away for them to know he wasn't to be bothered. He nursed a drink, swirling the ice around in a lowball glass.
Listening.
No one had any idea who he was. And why should they? Everyone here was trying to be unassuming. Some did it better than others.
Eavesdropping was not a particularly difficult task. If people didn't want to be heard, they took it to a corner booth, even darker than the rest of the place, if that was even possible. Therefore, everyone at the bar talked audibly enough for the surrounding to hear, acting as willing contributors to the bounty hunter grapevine.
Falcon mostly liked hearing them talk about him.
Tonight, however, something else caught his attention.
"Fighting ring got busted up the other week."
"Really. Where?"
"Heard it was in Port Town."
Falcon was mid-sip and had to hide his surprise. A presumably illegal fighting ring in Port Town? That was his hometown, for God's sake. He scrutinized news reports, posted articles all over the hangar. There was no way he would have missed something in Port Town unless it was very under wraps. Even if the money wasn't worth it, he still kept an eye on these kinds of things.
"Illegal Pokemon battles." The first man continued. "Some hole-in-the-wall motel."
Maybe that was why he missed it. Really...super under the radar, and probably not a great payout anyway.
"Falcon get them?"
There they were. Talking about him.
"Actually, that's where this gets interesting. If he was there, he was incognito. Otherwise the whole thing wasn't his style at all, from what I heard."
Really. Falcon took a slow sip, feeling the burn in the back of his throat and trying very hard not to look positively sour.
"Weird. You'd think it'd be him. Port Town's his turf."
Yes. It was his turf. Which was why this business was very frustrating. Nabbing bounties that belonged to others was a massive faux pas in the mercenary world, a faux pas that could easily get you killed or worse. Sure, he was known to breach this unspoken rule from time to time, but he was Captain Falcon. Captain Falcon was often above the rules. What made this so disconcerting was the fact that if these rumors were true, there was someone trying to encroach on what he'd firmly established as his territory.
The wound of Arceus taking down Black Shadow still smarted, and hearing this did nothing to alleviate that sting. He did not like people taking things from him.
"So if it wasn't Falcon, who was it?"
"Not sure. Heard there was this blonde chick, though..."
He nearly spat out his drink.
"Blonde chick?"
"Yeah, tiny broad, from what I hear. No one had seen her around before. Entered the fights with a Charmeleon and then blew the place."
A Charmeleon. Really. Really.
"At least, that's what I heard."
By now, Falcon was fuming. Storming out of the place would look conspicuous, however, so he continued to take slow, large sips from his glass, wanting to leave but at the same time wanting to hear more. He tried to tell himself it wasn't her. "Tiny blonde chick" was not necessarily a unique description but he couldn't help but think...
"Don't know who she is, huh."
"Nope."
He let them continue their conversation for a few more moments before he decided it was all he needed to hear. Falcon finished his drink, paid, and was back on school grounds before one in the morning, frustrated and angry. The course of action was obvious.
Falcon had been out of the game for far too long. He'd kept tabs on bounties but hadn't acted, and now, with others...with Samus snatching his jobs out from under him...something needed to be done. Why hadn't she asked him to come along? They worked well as a team, and it was his turf. Nobody knew Port Town better than him--his knowledge would have been invaluable to her. Did she think he couldn't handle the job?
Instead of asking for answers, he was going to board the Flyer and head out into space for a good long while. Long enough for him to put away at least half a dozen of his potential targets and make an ungodly amount of credits. Reestablish himself as the undisputed best.
He made a specific note to track down some very important space pirates and blow them to space bits.
----------
Business trip. Gotta jet. I'll be back when I'm back.
----------
Take care, okay? I'll be back before you know it. Anything you want me to bring you?
As the years at Smash Academy went by, the Captain had become more and more choosy with his bounties, only going on the hunt if the price was high enough, or if the job was personal. However, he liked to keep himself in the know, so trips to these sketchy locales were always a staple, no matter how infrequent his forays into the bounty hunting game had become.
Tonight his place of choice was an old favorite, a hazy, dimly-lit bar made even darker by a pair of sunglasses. Even a futuristic mecca like Mute City had dingy dives like this where bar fights were practically a dime a dozen. Smoke hung in the air alongside quiet chatter and the thump of a bass in whatever song was pumping over the radio. Falcon sat alone at the bar, close enough to the other grizzled-looking patrons to safely eavesdrop, but far enough away for them to know he wasn't to be bothered. He nursed a drink, swirling the ice around in a lowball glass.
Listening.
No one had any idea who he was. And why should they? Everyone here was trying to be unassuming. Some did it better than others.
Eavesdropping was not a particularly difficult task. If people didn't want to be heard, they took it to a corner booth, even darker than the rest of the place, if that was even possible. Therefore, everyone at the bar talked audibly enough for the surrounding to hear, acting as willing contributors to the bounty hunter grapevine.
Falcon mostly liked hearing them talk about him.
Tonight, however, something else caught his attention.
"Fighting ring got busted up the other week."
"Really. Where?"
"Heard it was in Port Town."
Falcon was mid-sip and had to hide his surprise. A presumably illegal fighting ring in Port Town? That was his hometown, for God's sake. He scrutinized news reports, posted articles all over the hangar. There was no way he would have missed something in Port Town unless it was very under wraps. Even if the money wasn't worth it, he still kept an eye on these kinds of things.
"Illegal Pokemon battles." The first man continued. "Some hole-in-the-wall motel."
Maybe that was why he missed it. Really...super under the radar, and probably not a great payout anyway.
"Falcon get them?"
There they were. Talking about him.
"Actually, that's where this gets interesting. If he was there, he was incognito. Otherwise the whole thing wasn't his style at all, from what I heard."
Really. Falcon took a slow sip, feeling the burn in the back of his throat and trying very hard not to look positively sour.
"Weird. You'd think it'd be him. Port Town's his turf."
Yes. It was his turf. Which was why this business was very frustrating. Nabbing bounties that belonged to others was a massive faux pas in the mercenary world, a faux pas that could easily get you killed or worse. Sure, he was known to breach this unspoken rule from time to time, but he was Captain Falcon. Captain Falcon was often above the rules. What made this so disconcerting was the fact that if these rumors were true, there was someone trying to encroach on what he'd firmly established as his territory.
The wound of Arceus taking down Black Shadow still smarted, and hearing this did nothing to alleviate that sting. He did not like people taking things from him.
"So if it wasn't Falcon, who was it?"
"Not sure. Heard there was this blonde chick, though..."
He nearly spat out his drink.
"Blonde chick?"
"Yeah, tiny broad, from what I hear. No one had seen her around before. Entered the fights with a Charmeleon and then blew the place."
A Charmeleon. Really. Really.
"At least, that's what I heard."
By now, Falcon was fuming. Storming out of the place would look conspicuous, however, so he continued to take slow, large sips from his glass, wanting to leave but at the same time wanting to hear more. He tried to tell himself it wasn't her. "Tiny blonde chick" was not necessarily a unique description but he couldn't help but think...
"Don't know who she is, huh."
"Nope."
He let them continue their conversation for a few more moments before he decided it was all he needed to hear. Falcon finished his drink, paid, and was back on school grounds before one in the morning, frustrated and angry. The course of action was obvious.
Falcon had been out of the game for far too long. He'd kept tabs on bounties but hadn't acted, and now, with others...with Samus snatching his jobs out from under him...something needed to be done. Why hadn't she asked him to come along? They worked well as a team, and it was his turf. Nobody knew Port Town better than him--his knowledge would have been invaluable to her. Did she think he couldn't handle the job?
Instead of asking for answers, he was going to board the Flyer and head out into space for a good long while. Long enough for him to put away at least half a dozen of his potential targets and make an ungodly amount of credits. Reestablish himself as the undisputed best.
He made a specific note to track down some very important space pirates and blow them to space bits.
----------
Business trip. Gotta jet. I'll be back when I'm back.
----------
Take care, okay? I'll be back before you know it. Anything you want me to bring you?