Timothy's House
Timmy Gilligan had his Celery parked on the nightstand of his sister's bedroom. Hikari slept still, her mind not even alive in sleep. The window was left open, a cool breeze stirring around the room. The stars provided faint light to the bedroom, which was otherwise shrouded in shadow. "Wiggle, wiggle!!" the Pikmin yelled.
"Huh?" Timmy looked up at their call. They were indicating another Celery and 13 Onions flying in. They landed at the foot of Hikari's bed, so Timmy slid down a zipline onto the bed as well.
"Hey, Timmyyyyy!" Rupert raced out alongside Mujika and Sector GT.
"Rupert?! Who the heck are these guys?!"
"Some operatives we rescued along with Sappo!"
"You rescued Sap-"
"INTRUDERS!!" A gigantic, fanged girl with light-brown hair POUNCED on the bed.
"WE'LL EAT YOU!!" A blonde fanged girl with a cheerier expression popped up next.
"AAAAAAHHH!" Mujika and the GT ops screamed and ducked.
"Oh, hey Berry! Lilac!" Rupert greeted.
"Seriously, that didn't even scare you?" asked the werecat with black ears and tail.
"Nah, I'm used to you eating me, Berry~"
"W-w-w-w-w-what are they?!" Ally cowered.
"Come on, haven't you ever seen a werecat before?" Lilac pouted.
"So, you're Faunus or something?" Uzu asked.
"We're not fauns, we're cats!"
"That's not what I…"
"Haha, okay, okay, let's settle down." Timmy laughed. "I think we have some filling in to do."
"That's right!" Rupert grinned. "And we brought food! Hope you're hungry for some Lithopod~"
"Oh, goody… my favorite."
…
Lilac turned on a small desk lamp so they could all better see. The tinies sat in a circle on Hikari's bed and began to share some of the prey that the Pikmin put in reserves, with the Red Pikmin heating some up to better flavor. Of course, they had also secured produce from the farm to provide a more diverse diet.
"After that, we brought Sappo to the Tree of Beginning." Rupert concluded. "We entrusted him to the operatives before coming here. He never woke up…"
"Is it possible to recover from Pikminification?" Mujika asked.
"It's nothing we ever had to deal with. What do you guys think?"
The Pikmin bowed their heads and shook 'no.' Timmy sighed. "Maybe we should go be with him…"
"Timmy, we need to sleep first. We've practically flown all around the world by now and had no time to sleep. We need to give ourselves time to rest and think…"
"Yeah, you're right…"
"Mmm, this Bulborb is delish!" Konbu drooled. "Why don't you wanna try it, Sind?"
"I just don't feel comfortable eating small creatures…"
"But you were helping us fight and capture them!" Rupert argued.
"I know! That doesn't mean…um…"
"It just makes you feel like a bug, doesn't it?" Ally smiled sheepishly.
"Tehe, it's so cute watching them nibble~" Lilac cooed, afterwards taking a bite of fish.
"At least we don't eat like animals." Rupert remarked. "Anyway, you guys are from Guatemala, right? I don't think I've heard of your sector…"
"You probably only know the top ones, huh?" Uzu asked.
"Eh, I know Sectors V and W. And I met a couple people from W7 and DR…" Rupert cringed in humility, remembering their battle with Sugar. "Otherwise, I'm really just a Pikmin Explorer in the Minish KND, so I barely know any of the human sectors."
"But how did humans wind up with the Minish, anyway?" Sind asked.
"I was lost in the forest and I wound up shrunk by some misplaced Minish Dust. Then I found a natural kinship with the Pikmin, and from then, the rest was history~"
"And he roped me and Hikari in 'cause he's a jerk." Timmy inputted.
"I know there are tiny people in the KND, but it's hard to believe normal humans would be into this." Sind viewed around the massive bedroom with a chill of unease. The 8-year-old werecats looking over them didn't help him feel comfortable. "I mean, if you guys were attacked by a powerful villain, you couldn't protect yourselves."
"I mean, we've battled a few giant villains before." Rupert shrugged.
"By 'we,' he means him." Timmy clarified. "And he's not lying. He's so good with Pikmin that he's able to take on large foes. 'Course, I don't usually go with him because… I don't wanna get crushed."
"And I'm not gutsy." Rupert shrugged. "Up against most of those pirate officers from the war, we might've been massacred. But the Minish KND aren't about being strong. Our job is to collect and bring gifts to children or supplies to the Human KND. It makes them happy and makes their job less stressful. That's why Pikmineering is meant to be a relaxing exercise."
"I kind of understand." Ally smiled. "It's sort of like our sector. We're giants, but we're not powerhouses. We use our sizes to defend the people around us, not just to beat up our enemies."
"We could honestly use some improvements in the strength department." Sind said.
"Maybe you guys could… Wait." Rupert frowned. "What was that about being giants?"
"Oh, didn't we tell you?" Ally stretched up to full height, posing mightily over her fellow tinies. "The four of us are actually giants! We're even bigger than this house!"
"WHAT?!" gawked Rupert, Timmy, and Mujika.
"So, the Vida… could even shrink giants down to this level?!" Mujika asked.
"You four are giants?" Berry asked, looming over them more closely. "No way…"
"Haha, it's true." Uzu scratched his head goofily. "We aren't very strong though."
"And there were Minish based in your treehouse?" Rupert asked. "Hah, I bet you guys had no idea!"
"No, we didn't…" Sind seemed to shirk anxiously. "By the way, are Doran and Biyo on Moonbase, too?"
"I assume they are." Timmy answered. "We can take you guys in the morning."
"I wanna stay with you guys." Sind said.
"Huh, how come?" Konbu asked.
"Because we have to help put a stop to this crisis! I'm tired of letting the top sectors do all the work."
"I can get that, but it's not like we're any stronger at this puny size."
"Then we'll use Pikmin." Sind gestured to the creatures matter-of-factly. "I'm sure you guys can get into it… if you want to."
"Is it like controlling remote cars?" Uzu asked.
"Uhhh…kind of?"
"We can't just sit around and do nothing." Ally agreed. "If we're stuck like this, we oughta at least try to use the Pikmin."
"What about those two?" Konbu pointed at the werecats. "I'm sure there's a ton they could do to help."
"Us?" Berry asked. "But we…"
"We're not operatives!" Lilac stated. "The KND looks too scary! It's more fun to help teeny Timmy out sometimes~" She poked the little boy teasingly.
"If trying to eat me is supposed to help…" Timmy shirked with a blush.
"I just wanna kiss you~"
"Big people have strange interactions…" Mujika commented.
"Either way, we just think the operative life isn't for us." Berry said.
"There's nothin' wrong with that." Rupert shrugged. "Ahhh…" He sighed in satisfaction after finishing his meal. "Well, you guys ready to hit the hay? I say we earned it."
"I guess so." Mujika answered. "What's on the agenda tomorrow?"
"We'll go to the Tree of Beginning to check up on Sappo." Timmy answered. "After that… we need to figure out where Plankton is. The sooner we take him down, the better."
"Yeah… I just hope he hasn't adapted with Synthia's power, yet."
Berry turned the lamp off as the tiny group lay down to rest on Hikari's bed. Lilac and Berry curled up on the carpet, but their ears were attentive in their sleep. Their sleep was peaceful and undisturbed in the breezy bedroom… but they feared what tomorrow could bring.
Aranea's House
Harvey Harper set up his sleeping bag on the floor of Aranea's room and tucked himself inside. "Do you kids need anything else?" asked Harvey's mother, Sonya.
"No thanks." Harvey answered.
"Yeah, we're fine." Aranea smiled, tucked in her own bed.
"Okay. I just hope Anthony and Fybi are alright…"
"Of course they are." Harvey said. "Whatever these monsters are, there's no way they can beat those two. We're just lucky we didn't get swept up in that." When the announcement came, Harvey's family had been at a restaurant. Since their house was next to Anthony's, and the treehouse was located in his backyard, they might have been caught in the Reduction.
"I guess you're right… but, are you sure you kids don't wanna check in with Moonbase? If all the treehouses were targeted, it sounds like they could use some full-sized operatives…"
"We'll think about it." Aranea replied. "If they really need us, they can call."
"Okay… Good night." Sonya shut the door and left.
"But honestly, if she's so worried, why doesn't she go to the shrink zone and fight the monsters herself?" Harvey wondered.
"Because adults are lazy and want their kids to do everything. Hopefully, that'll change by the end of the year."
"Will it really, though? Now that some ops are getting the Newborn, I'm starting to doubt it…"
"Well, no matter what happens, the KND have no room for non-chosen ones. I'm positive the other sectors will be convinced by the time this new crisis is over."
"Yeah… and besides, what's even the point of stopping crises, anymore."
"That said, I wouldn't be surprised if at least the Brotherhood of Evil caught wind of this incident. We might start hearing about raids."
"I'm sure GUN or somebody can take care of them."
"Probably. Well, good night, Harv."
"You, too."
The next day; Los Angeles
A horde of Fishmen were destroying the shopping district with laser-powered tridents. The Fishmen were all identical; dark-yellow scales with grayish abs and round head, and bright yellow, scowling eyes. "Remember, my perfect brethren: do not roam near the treehouse. While the Ocean Princess skitters helplessly in her base, this town will fall under the rule of TRIDENT!"
A camouflaged girl in a black and green, froggy jumpsuit flew forth and KICKED one of the Tridents from behind. Tsuyu Asui's camouflage wore off, but she jumped two other Tridents' lasers. Kotoko Utsugi, the pink-pigtailed girl in platform shoes, flew in next with a whirling kick, knocking those Tridents down with superb strength. "Ew, I think I got fish slime on my shoes!" Kotoko cringed.
"I think that's mine." Tsuyu said. "From when you kick-boosted me just now. Relax, it washes off." She caught another Trident in her long tongue and slammed him against the ground. "I think I've heard of this villain. Trident's a narcissist who likes to clone himself. Unfortunately, mass-produced clones don't have long lifespans!" She dodged another's lasers and pounced him with a headbutt.
"How do we find the real one?" Kotoko leapt onto one's head and choked him.
"We'll just have to beat down every one we see." She snatched a Trident's weapon with her tongue and snapped it in half.
"I just wish we could check on the sector without getting shrunk!" Kotoko's shoe whipped up to snap a trident while kicking the Trident's chin.
"I'm sure Melody's fine. But if I'm gonna transfer to this sector, I have to prove I have what it takes!" Tsu spat mucus in a Trident's face, blinding him enough for her to attack—but the Trident grabbed her anyway and slammed Tsu to the ground. Kotoko gasped and flew at him like a cartwheel, but Trident dodged and shot a laser.
Karakura, Japan
Two villains had attacked a collector's store and made off with several swords modeled after those from anime. One was Katarou, a baldheaded man in a black robe with red edges, and another was Tubbimura, an obese ninja in dark-red attire with an exposed belly. "Say, Katarou, don't you think it's too predictable of us to steal martial arts weapons? I'm starting to think we should change things up a bit. Rob a Dairy Farm or something."
"These weapons would go to waste in some manga geek's bedroom! What would they use them for, discussion videos?"
…
"Achoo!" Tekking101 sneezed in the middle of recording. He was holding a model of the Black Sword, Shusui. "Phew, where did that come from? Oh, and speaking of sneezing, check this out!" He placed on a reddish top-hat with a broken antler. "I bought a new version of Chopper's hat with the antler chipped off! Only costs 50 dollars, so not as much as these 60-dollar Vivre Cards." He held up a bunch of small pieces of plain paper.
…
Tubbimura sensed danger and drew a sword in defense against a flaming baseball—the ball poofed to his side and struck his head, his fat receding as he yelled in pain. "Drop the swords, Fatty and Baldy!" declared Masaru Daimon. Beside him were Yuzu Kurosaki and a Sheikah girl named Koko.
"Return them to their rightful owners!" Koko demanded.
"Operatives!" Katarou gasped. "That one is Yuzu, the KND's star chef! I don't recognize the other two."
"It is unwise of the Firstborn Guardian to show herself like this."
"We'll see who's unwise after we're through with you!" Yuzunite retorted. "And FYI, the Firstborn ain't here!"
"So long as we have you, that is enough!" Tubbimura readied two blades, blocking Yuzu's Soul Arrows and Masaru's fireballs as he charged at them. Koko leapt around to throw kunai at Katarou, who dodged and leapt to deal a palm thrust at the Sheikah. She was flung back, but used Substitution with a car tire, leaping to punch him in the head.
Quahog, Rhode Island
"YEEHAW!" Similarly to Trident, Quahog was being invaded by a swarm of clones, resembling a thin man in a red unitard with a division sign on the chest. "This goes out to Mammoth and all the other fellers we lost in Aincrad!" Billy Numerous declared, his clones splitting up to raid separate stores. "Them game geeks will pay for what they did!"
Giant fingers dropped from the sky and started squishing each of the clones. "Ha ha ha~" Jataro laughed, sitting atop a building as he stuck his hand into a photo of the street. "Squish~ Squish~ Squish~" The photo projected a giant hand in reality—
But it was then that Jataro's bruise seemed to ache, and the memory of Kazuma's beating flashed in his mind. With a flinch, he pulled his hand back. Jataro looked over the squished clones, which seemed to dissolve into a clay-like goo that disappeared. "…" Though his effort did no fatal damage to anyone, Jataro hesitated to attack again.
The H.I.V.E. Five agents were terrorizing other parts of town, commanding squadrons of H.I.V.E. Soldiers. However, blue paintballs were suddenly exploding against the soldiers as they fell over. "What the crud?!" shouted Gizmo, the bald boy genius. "It's a sniper! See-More, where are they?!"
See-More, a villain with a single eye under a green helmet, and a white unitard, skimmed the surrounding area with his enhanced vision. "Over there! On that building—whoa!" He dodged before Shino could shoot him.
"Just point me where he is!" Gizmo whipped up a rifle of his own.
"Over there! But I think she's a chick."
"Looks like I've been spotted." Shino smirked. "Heh, my first mission in the real world. This is really fun!" She ducked down before Gizmo could shoot her, then crawled to a different location.
"Gizmo, look out!" See-More grabbed his friend and dodged before a Gas Bomb could crash down.
The bomb was launched by Shingetsu of the Hope Pirates, having assumed his skunk form. "How did the Brotherhood of Evil know of the KND's incident? What do you even have to gain with all these attacks?"
"None of your business, Stinkhead!" Gizmo snapped.
"We just lost a few of our buddies in Aincrad, so we need to vent some anger!" See-More stated, launching a huge eyeball in attempt to trap Shingetsu. The skunk ran in evasion, only for Gizmo to shoot him in the stomach.
Rozeland, Virginia
All the restrooms in all the stores and shops were suffering with overflowing toilets and mummies made of toilet paper. But if that weren't bad enough, the lightbulbs were being sapped of their energy, casting the stores in darkness except for the areas that were close to the windows. Alas, the people couldn't flee the buildings as crates were dropping to block the doorways. "At long last, our moment has arrived!" Dr. Light said to his friends, Toiletnator and Box Ghost. "Now that Sector RZ is too puny to stop us, Team Cubicle will rule this city!"
"I guess we'll just have to stop you instead!"
The villains perked up and looked left: there stood Wendy Marvell, a blue-haired mage with a blue and yellow dress, and Atsuko Kagari, a red-eyed witch with brown hair, an orange top, and black shorts. "Hey! Isn't that the blue-haired girl from the first time we were here?" Toiletnator asked.
"It's nice to see you guys again." Wendy smirked. "We'll be protecting Lee's town in his stead."
"Yeah!" Akko dashed forward. "So you can just hop off!" She shrank down as her upper half became a bunny and the rest of her a snake. She nimbly dodged their attacks and wrapped herself around Toilet and Light's legs, causing them to trip.
"Sky Dragon's ROAR!" Wendy bellowed a powerful cyclone that sent the two flying, while Akko escaped from the gust.
"WAAAAaaaaahhh!" They flew directly to Sector RZ's treehouse and shrank with a flash of purple.
"Noooo!" Box Ghost cried. "My comrades have gone the way of dust on an unopened box! I will defeat your accursed lungs with my Tetris Tower!"
"Laaaaa, la la laaaaa, la laaaaa…"
"Oh…" A gorgeous melody caught his attention. A spectacled girl in a light-blue dress and round, orange-blonde hair was singing. "What a heavenly melody…" The ghost stared and smiled dreamily. "I would love to ignore conventions and construct a heart-shaped container for her-"
Akko KICKED him in the head and knocked the ghost out. "Phew, that was easy! I think he fell for you, Lotte~"
"I think I'm too young for him…" Lotte Jansson blushed.
Tree of Beginning
Team Rupert returned to the tree as soon as they were fully awakened. Rupert, Timmy, Sind, and Mujika headed to the room where Sappo was brought, meeting up with Lenari once there. Sappo appeared to be squirming under his leaf blanket, his antenna rapidly flailing. "W-what's wrong with him?" Sind asked.
"Sappo? Hey, Sappo… you okay?" Rupert asked.
"O…kay?" Sappo replied mid-squirm. "Of course I'm… not okay. Plankton… he killed my sister… and turned me into this. And right now… he's trying to call me to him. He used one of his Onions to transform me… I'm guessing he's like us, Rupert. He has a telepathic connection with his Pikmin…"
"Please just resist it, Sappo." Lenari said. "Plankton can't get to you here. We won't let him!"
"A telepathic connection?" Sind repeated.
"Basically, Pikmin Masters can summon or order their Pikmin at long distances." Rupert answered.
"It's like how we tracked Rupert down." Mujika remembered. "The Pikmin could sense where you were, so…!" She gasped. "That's it!"
"Oh!" Rupert perked up. "Sappo… you can lead us to Plankton!"
"What?! No! If I get too close, his control could get stronger! I won't become his puppet… that bastard…"
"Sappo, we won't let him. If we could just figure out his approximate location, we'll bring you back here. Then we'll stop him before… Wait." Rupert glanced down in thought. "Plankton's a Pikmin… that I created. And if he can do this to you, wouldn't that mean I can command him?"
"You can?" Sind questioned.
"Well, I didn't think to try… but even if I can't, we still need to find him. Please, Sappo?"
"I don't want to… Just leave me alone."
"Uuuhh? Uuu-uuuh?"
A small squad of Pikmin were humming concernedly in the doorway. A couple Reds, Wings, Yellow, Blue, and a White. They marched in and around the operatives, joining Sappo at either bedside. Their wide, soulful eyes peered at him. "You're… our Pikmin." Sappo said.
"Yeah." Lenari smiled. "Some of them were taken by Plankton, but you still have the other ones. After they brought that nun back, their antennas were all drooped. One of their masters was gone, and they felt something bad happening to their other master."
The Pikmin jumped up on the bed, making little cheers and jumps. The sounds of their voices seemed to calm Sappo down.
"Sappy, let's make lots of Pikmin today!" A 5-year-old Gibli cheered.
"How many, Gibi?"
"Ten-hundred!"
"That's way too many! We ain't gonna make that much in a driveway!"
"But I wanna have lots of Pikmin!"
"We only got one Onion."
"Then let's find more!"
"Mom says we aren't ready for that. Besides, Wings can go anywhere!"
"I hope we can fly someday!"
Ever since they were kids, all they ever wanted was to make Pikmin. They wanted to collect tons of Pikmin and teach other kids the art. Working with them always put their minds at ease. But with Gibli gone… it was up to Sappo to watch after their Pikmin. The Pikmin they built up together. "You…you want revenge on Plankton, too, don't you?"
"Mmm, mmmm." They nodded.
"Of course you do… because I want it more than anything. It's probably what Gibli wants, too… why wouldn't she? Sigh…alright." Sappo pushed himself out of bed. "I'll follow Plankton's signal and lead you to him. But I still don't wanna get close. I don't want him to have me… or them."
"Hey, would Plankton be able to sense his location, too?" Sind considered. "Wouldn't he be able to tell we're coming?"
"Plankton's got Pikmin scattered all over the farms." Lenari reasoned. "If he tried to sense them all, it would hurt his brain, unless he's just that good. If anything, he could assume you're just an ordinary Pikmin. Still, if we're going to chance this, we need to prepare backup. Maybe I'll wait on standby as well. Rupert, are you taking these three with you?"
"Well, I'm definitely taking Mujika… but I'd still prefer only one other person, so between Sind and Timmy…"
"I don't mind being on standby as well." Timmy said.
"What about my team?" Sind asked. "They'd like to help, too, but they're not exactly Pikmin experts."
"There are still some farms we need to cover." Lenari replied. "But the best we could do is hook them up with some Pikmin and have some trainers teach them basics."
"Heck, even after we beat Plankton, you could stick around and help us wrap things up!" Rupert grinned.
"Hah, I guess so." Sind blushed. "But for now, let's go after him."
You can now select between the GT operatives, Mujika, Timothy, or Rupert to be on your team! The GT ops can use Pikmin in different ways: Sind can kick Rock Pikmin at far ranges and do additional damage. Konbu can throw Purple Pikmin at better heights, allowing them to collect heavy items at higher reaches. Ally can help Wing Pikmin become more resistant to wind. Uzu can help White Pikmin run faster.
Bonus levels have been unlocked!