Hiding in my Skin, Broken from Within

Chapter 6: By Your Side

(Can I get a motherfuggin' uhhhhhhhh new F-Zero game sometime in the next ten years? Thanks Nintendo, I really want people to appreciate the Captain more and see him as more than just meme material or a two dimensional stereotype like he is in some fanworks.)

Hiding in my Skin, Broken from Within

Chapter 6 - By Your Side

It had been several days since Captain Falcon and Lucina left Gaur Plain to train across other worlds, with the supply sack Lucina's friend Fiora gave them. The two had trained across various worlds, and to their surprise, the supplies lasted longer than they expected, a whole week to be precise. It was thanks to Lucina's survival skills that they were able to stretch their supply. Of course, by this moment in time, their supply had finally run out. As promised, they decided to head to the town of Termina to restock and see where to go from there.

"So...this is where you said we'd restock and say hello to that 'old friend' of yours, right?" Lucina asked her trainer.

"Yup," the Captain nodded. "Welcome to Clock Town, right in the heart of Termina."

"Wow..."

The town was much like the kind of town Lucina would expect to see in her world, but some details were also a bit different. The two stood just outside the doors that led to the underground waterways. Towering behind them was a giant wooden clock that did not have Roman numerals like a regular clock tower, but instead an outer rim that moved every second clockwise, causing the image in the center to shift every full cycle. Right before them was a marketplace area of sorts, sprawling with citizen activity.

"Where could he be...?" Falcon murmured, trying to scan the crowd for any trace of his old friend. Within a few seconds, he spotted them.

"Link! Over here!"

"L-Link?!" Lucina was confused at first as to why Link would be here of all places, and why the Captain referred to him as an "old friend". In a few moments, however, everything became clear to her.

"Hi Captain! Long time no see! Who's the lady with you?"

Noticing the childish boy's voice coming from below her line of sight, Lucina looked down and saw...Link. Except, he was a lot younger, close to Ness and Lucas's age, maybe even younger than that. He wore a child-sized green tunic and held a wooden carving for a shield, with a circular insignia on it, instead of the Master Shield.

"Lucina, meet Young Link," the Captain introduced her. "Although technically, he's just the Link from this timeline. He used to be a participant in the Smash tournaments, long before you joined."

"I see..." Lucina murmured. Squatting down to meet his gaze, she asked the younger Link, "I'm guessing you haven't been called back for any tournaments yet?"

"Seems that way, lady," Young Link answered her. "I miss everyone...Ness, Peach, the older me, Zelda, Pikachu...and even the Captain here. He's been like a father figure to me."

"Heh, it's true..." the Captain admitted, making a gesture that looked like he was scratching the back of his head somewhat bashfully. "I've...never had the chance to settle down and start a family, especially given my career outside of Smash. So, guiding him and hearing him out on things...I'm glad I can fill that role in his life. He's in many ways like a son to me."

"A son...?" Lucina pondered. "H-how old are you, Captain?"

Pausing for a moment, failing to see immediately how that question was relevant, he answered, "I'm 37...why do you ask?"