Heiwa, I Fight

Heiwa, I Fight.

Day 1
The light was only but a glimmer and very gently and gradually growing brighter. I awoken on my feet, from the ground I was plucked. I can only see a man just a bit bigger than me before me, staring at me in amazement. He looked like a curious fellow, but he knew more of me than I know of myself buy looks alone.

"Hmm, these strange creatures have an uncanny resemblance to Pikpik Carrots..." mumbled the man.

"Well, my name is Olimar, I plucked you out of this ground. Are there any more of you?"

I couldn't speak, just watched as the first thing that came into my presence in this life just approach me with a warmness. He needed to do something it seemed, and I was scared just by being here, so as he started to walk away, I joined him. Together we went around and beat pellet posies and brought it back to what spawned me in the first place- a red plant-machine in which this alien man called an "Onion."

"I think I may name you Heiwa," he said. Heiwa... what an interesting name.

As I carried the large red plant to this mystical machine, it sucked it up, and out of it, more of me came, planting themselves into the ground ready to be brought into this world.

"Fascinating," he exclaimed.

Olimar, the crew and I did what I just did for the rest of the day, soaking in the gentle breeze as we worked together to create more. We had a small army near the end of the day as the lights started fading, but it didn't fell like an army, it felt like a team, a family.

As the day neared its end, we could hear growling from the distance. Olimar retreated into his ship, and we followed suit as we gathered into the Onion. Before I knew it, we were in the skies, retreating back into sleep.

Day 2
We landed back onto this new world, where we learnt that Olimar isn't from here, and he needs our help fixing his own machine, his ship. I heard 30 days was all he had left, and considering he helped bring us into existence, we felt the need to help. He was our friend. We marched all day until we approached what was not us nor Olimar, a strange beast, in the field, looking at us.

"Oh, now what is this?" Our new friend said aloud.

The beast looked into our own eyes, with a look of amazement, and hunger. Before we knew it, it rushed after us, coming at full force. Of the 30 or so of us, it began, and ripped through the flesh on about 15 of us, each of our brethren screaming in pain as it slowly bit through and slid them down its throat. Olimar grabbed me by my leaf, and threw me into the eye of the monster, flinching it, then once we realized what was to be done, we rushed into that beast, and we beat it senselessly, breaking its bones, ripping off flesh and ramming its eyes until blind. The beast let out a cry of sheer agony as we kept pummeling until it had no life left in its body.

We lost half of our team, but we dragged that damned beast's body slowly through the fields on our backs until we arrived at base where we let the Onion take its body away and create even more brothers out of that monster's carcass. I started the wonder after if my team really died at all. We decided to back to the skies for the night, where I noticed Olimar looking down at us, a tear or two in his eyes, thinking of our loss. It wasn't his fault, it was ours... but we comforted our newfound leader, and were more determined than ever to bring him back home.

Day 5
We have repaired Olimar's ship by an amazing amount and we have traveled to another area, but with little luck there, so we returned here to the Impact Site. The 100 of us, all of crimson value, felt a dark omen among us today.

"Today... we need to be cautious my friends, I feel a dark presence here today." Olimar with a tired look in his eyes told us.

He was right, the monsters didn't hold back today, and we kept doing what we have been the last few days... today we will once again carry, fight, multiply, then be eaten... though the efforts of our leader are great, we must continue. We go forward with explosive rocks we found nearby in hand and destroy a wall. We slowly walk into the field where it happened...

A big glob of bluish goo was among us, and it was sentient. It slithered to us quickly enough that it rammed us, with only a few escaping its path.

My brother who were caught were inside the goo, the looks of misery and burning pain as the acidic, yet aquatic goo drowned them, with their nectars spewing out of their mouths as they drown in goo and their own form of blood. Their bodies melt away with their red skin melting into the water as it becomes blood red.

Olimar looked in disgust, with tears and rage overcoming his body. We knew we couldn't do much. 10 more were captured, burnt, melted... essentially eaten alive... then another 10... then another 20, and the red goo of what used to be my family slowly started melting out of the goo, a bloody mess of gushy remains, the old Pikmin never to be heard from again...

We ran, Olimar took the remainder of us and retreated to the ship, losing 30 more along the way from similar beasts from a few days ago. Only 6 of remained when we returned to the ship, and when we launched, we witnessed a horrible sight. One spare Pikmin, trying to catch us, running from the demons of this planet was left behind in the dark, and the monsters, surrounded him, as he screamed and cried, begging for us to come back, and they continued to go ahead and rip of the poor plant's arms and legs before whatever was left of him was swallowed.

We weren't the same... 94 dead, brutally killed by the sick beauty of this world.

Day 20
It's been a little over two weeks since the incident. Being the first one to be born, I can't imagine how I'm alive. Olimar has been despondent, but more caring towards us, rarely talking anymore and crying silently at night. We haven't lost but 11 brothers since that day, and now we have blue brothers who can swim and yellow brothers who even lightning can't touch. Our ship has been nearly completed, with only three more necessities to find.

We returned to the forest, aptly named the Forest of Hope, where we hoped to find another part to our ship. We worked long and hard here, but this time, we felt it again, that same feeling we did that dreaded day. There was another beast ahead, and it was what we named, "The Armored Cannon Beetle."

We didn't screw around today, we looked at it ahead as it approached with a fierce determination, and we made the first attack. We beat at its shell to find it as stronger than anything we've seen before, then it took in a large breath, then launched a boulder at whoever else was in it's way.

Olimar called us to the sides and avoided the boulder, with the exception of one poor yellow as it was bulldozed by the rock, with nothing left but a mass of yellow flesh and go where he stood. We had no time to look back though, we kept at it. It took a large breath once more to shoot another fatal stone, but Olimar saw through it. I knew what he was thinking, so I went to his side, and he threw me into the mouth of the beast.

The warm, dark air surrounded me and a few more behind me, out flowers on our heads dropping over in exhaustion, but we beat away at the inside, grunts of pain coming from within, and we kept at it until we heard a scream of pain from the beast. We left the body to see it hunched over, tears from its eyes as a big, red lump of muscle was opened on its back. Olimar threw us onto it, and he punched it, kicked it, bit it, ripped it, and caused this beast the very same pain we've all felt these last few weeks. Blood was pumping out of its back, but despite the crimson goo, we attacked the source, ripping away deeper and deeper into its flesh, until all the yellows and blues were red and the beast had no more left to stand with.

It dropped the third to last ship part we needed, and we carried it back, all of us soaked in the blood of victory, and we retreated to the skies above. Nature is a cruel thing we thought as we sat there soaked in blood, and maybe, just maybe, we are nature itself.

Day 24
Olimar is getting worried as we still haven't obtained any more ship parts the last few days of looking, and we felt worried and sad for him. He cries every night, in emotional agony over the lives he had caused to be lost, but he also had a family besides us, and we needed to help him. He brought us to life, and now we need to return him to his life.

We returned to the forsaken battle ground where that beast took so many lives that day... this time with blue Pikmin in hand. Olimar had a look of absolute terror in his eyes and refused to go forwards until he seen us and remembered that we will protect him, at all costs and that we will happily die for him, whether being happy is true or not. We walked forward, no yellows, all blues, except me, his original partner, the only red here. The goo came from the ground, a sickish purple, signifying that the red flesh and goo of our brothers that day are still within that demonic being. Olimar, seeing what was still left, nearly lost him temper, and with a burning rage, bombarded the demonic being with the blue warriors.

They swam through the acidic goo, unharmed until they hit the visible core, and started drilling into it, a rabid look of fury and pure hatred until the core was no more but a pile of plastic and metal scraps. An easy fight, but we hadn't realized just how long this process was, and we took that ship part it had, and went back to the skies, only one part left to find.

Day 29
Tomorrow is the last day Olimar has left before his life support runs out, but we believe we found where the last part resides, and where it is isn't a promising place to be at.

We landed at the Final Trials, where we all knew what was at stake.

"You all have done me a great kindness... I cannot thank you enough... I will do my best today, and I will protect you at all costs." Olimar, a look of sadness, yet determination, told us all.

"We shall advance forward, where many foul being await us, and I hope we're all ready for this."

All of us Pikmin cheered, ready to overcome this final challenge. We are not just your average animal, we are our own beasts, and we will prevail and prosper, we are Pikmin, and with the aftermath of the final battle comes peace... but until then I will fight.

Olimar gives us orders, and we start the final trek. As we run towards the end, Olimar looked at me, a smile barely formed on his face and told me, and only me how much I meant to him.

"You have always been there for me. Heiwa, since day 1, we became partners, and I want you to live... you are my strongest Pikmin, and I trust you my friend, that once all is over, you will take care of this race, this species... this planet."

I looked with gleaming eyes and a smile and I know what must be done. We will becomes a race of excellence and perfection, nothing can stop us. We believed in our leader and now, he believes in us.

The first thing we came across was a giant breadbug, who stood before us, as hungry as the name is itself, and we did what we always have... carry, fight, multiply and be eaten. We killed the bastard after losing 3 of our friends and made the monster into our new supply of brothers, and at this point, death doesn't hurt the same anymore, as they were replaced... as cruel as it may be to say that.

Nearing the end of the day, we were almost out of time, but in front of us lied the final ship part, and the one thing Olimar needed left. Our family and army slowly approached the part when the ground shook violently, and we all went flying and we saw with our own eyes, what may have been Satan himself, the Emperor Bulblax. The large grotesque creature was many, many times larger than any of us, and it has a huge mouth. Olimar tried not to be fazed, and we all stood, in our group, ready for the bloodiest fight yet.

The monster roared a roar loud enough to flinch even the mightiest of beasts, and it, with it's long, large purple tongue, licked up. and swallowed 40 Pikmin just like that. They all panicked, but kept beating away at the tongue, and slipped down the throat knowing that they died fighting for what they loved. The monster then coughed up the remains of the creatures, whose carcasses were burning in stomach acids, melting away like that day so long ago. Blue, Yellow, and Red blood everywhere in that mess.

Olimar knew what to do, with what was left, we swarmed the emperor, and when we attempted it, it jumped into the air. IT JUMPED INTO THE AIR. And the multi-ton beast landed, crushing many more, many colors of blood spewing everywhere, the eyes of many Pikmin flying out, with a couple pairs hitting Olimar right in the helmet as he watched his disgust. We caught site of bomb rocks nearby and we ran after them as a last ditch resort, slipping on the bloody messes on the way. I tripped face first into a yellow, bloody mess, and nearly vomited at getting it into my mouth and eyes.

We couldn't stop though, we grabbed the stones and threw them at the hell-demon and it was stunned, dazed as it didn't know where it was at. We swarmed it, furious at the painful deaths this thing has caused, and in a mad rage, I realized more than ever, that we weren't just fighting for Olimar... we were fighting for our brothers, our family. We didn't bother to pound at the beast, we bit and clawed our way into the skin, into the eyeballs as well, and kept digging through, drilling into the beast, swimming through the blood inside just to keep drilling. I couldn't breathe through this much blood, but I kept going. We found the heart of the beast and we bit chunks off and kept biting and biting as the monster screamed, begging for death in its agony. I was almost ready to stop, to let it suffer its final moments, but we had no more time, we kept going, until I took off that last chunk of muscled flesh that was the heart.

I slowly crawled outside of the body to see the eyes cut off, the hole in its back and the dead, bloody mess. I had too much blood in my lungs, I can't breathe well anymore. Olimar ran to me, held my body, drenched in the blood of that monster and spoke to me.

"Heiwa... you, you have all done it..."

I was coughing any blood I could out of my lungs, but I couldn't get enough out.

"It's okay buddy... you can rest now... I'm sorry..."

Everything is going black, I can't breathe... all I can feel is happiness though... we have won, and my leader gets to go home to where he belongs. I have done my job, out of the hundreds of lives lost these last few weeks, I may be the last, but I did my job.

Olimar, with tears flowing through his face as he sees everything around him, orders the rest of the Pikmin to carry the final part to the ship, where he will return home to where he will be happy again, and the rest of my kind may be able to prosper with our new knowledge and instincts. Before Olimar leaves, we returns to my body, with me still struggling to be alive. He arrives with a few leaves and a beautiful, soft rose.

"Here... please rest in peace my friend, do not suffer anymore, please."

He covers me in the lush leaves and bright, soft rose, my body completely covered and all I can see is the sunset. Olimar leaves me after a while, still crying over my condition. The night sky is starting to show, and I hear the sound of the ship turning on, and the last thing I see is his ship flying into the sunset.

Heiwa, I fight... yes, I have fought... and everything goes black.

Story by: AnimalInMe