Saturday, October 15, 1994, 9:15 PM

Dr. Wily was, as usual, in his lab, working on his latest creation - or, in this case, creations. Ten nearly-complete robots were scattered throughout the lab. The one Wily was currently working on looked like a human in medieval armor. It was green and white in color. Instead of arms, it had two super-long, super-sharp blades growing out of its torso.

Wily laughed to himself. "At last, my creations are nearly complete! Once my new robots are activated, no one - not even the Nitwit Team - will be able to stop me!"

Kevin, Lana, and Mike were sitting on the couch in the living room. Mike had the remote and was flipping through the channels.

"Mike, just pick a station." Kevin said impatiently. "This is getting annoying!"

Mike grinned, flipping through the channels some more. "I know."

"Give me that!" Lana took the remote from Mike and turned to VNN.

"This is Cathy Bennett, reporting live from the streets of Capital City." The reporter had to shout to be heard over the screams and crashes behind her, where several people were running in different directions.

Buildings burned and collapsed. Two robots could be seen in the distance. The first one was red and orange and was setting everything it saw on fire. The second was round and gray-brown in color. It rolled over anything that crossed its path.

"As you can see," Cathy continued, "the city is once again under attack! Wily and his robots are destroying everything in sight!"

Suddenly, static filled the screen.

"Guys! We have a problem!" Rick ran into the room. "Wily - "

" - is attacking. We know." Lana turned the TV off. "Get the rest of the N Team together. It looks like Wily still has a lesson to learn."

"Duh, what's going on?" Julius asked.

He, Romeo, Stacey, Rick, Duke, Simon, Kid Icarus, Mega Man, Gameboy, Mike, Kevin, and Lana sat in a circle in the living room.

"The usual 'Wily-makes-new-robots-and-attacks-the-city' scenario." Kevin explained.

"Not againicus." Kid Icarus complained.

"This is getting old." Mega Man said.

"How many times does Wily need his butt kicked before he realizes he can't win?" Mike asked.

Lana sighed. "He'll try as long as he's able to build his robots."

"Let's get going." Kevin stood up. "Simon, Duke, you two guard the house. Everyone else, follow me. We have some butt-kicking to do!"

"Excellent! The Nerd Team is falling right into my trap!" Wily was watching the viewscreen in his lab. "Soon, those numbskulls will be gone, and I will rule Videoland!" Wily laughed evilly. "Draco, Saber, get in here!"

"You called, Doctor?" a green-and-yellow robot with the head, wings, and tail of a dragon asked.

A green-and-white robot that looked somewhat like a medieval knight followed him, rubbing his blade-like arms.

"Everything is going according to plan." Wily turned to face the robots. "Blaze Man and the others will be returning soon with our 'guests'. It is your job to make sure they're comfortable." Wily sneered.

Saber grinned and waved his blade arms. "You can count on us!"

"Excellent." Wily turned back to the viewscreen. "Now go!"

The robots left the room. Wily continued to watch his other robots on the viewscreen.

"This definitely looks like the place." Kevin walked around the street.

Buildings were still burning and collapsing. The two robots he, Lana, and Mike had seen on VNN were nowhere to be seen.

"I don't like the looks of this." Lana said, looking around.

"Me neither, but - whoa!" Rick ducked.

Two laser beams flew an inch or so over his head.

"What the heck?" Mike looked around.

A black wolf-like robot with bat wings and red eyes stood a short distance away.

"Whatever that is, it's about to become toast!" Mike fired his Zapper several times at the robot, making little more than a dent in its armor. "No way!"

Rick fired at the robot with his Super Scope. It did little more damage than the Zapper. Stacey threw her boomerang at the robo-wolf. The boomerang bounced off the robot and landed harmlessly on the ground. Romeo pressed random buttons on his Remote, none of which seemed to have much of an effect. Kid Icarus fired different types of arrows at the robot, succeeding only in breaking his bowstring. Mega Man's charged shots cut through the armor, but did little damage beyond that. Lana, Kevin, and Mike tried firing at the wolf simultaneously. That did some damage, but not enough. Julius' football worked the best on the robot, but it wasn't very effective either.

"Okay, guys, any ideas?" Kevin asked.

"None whatsoever." Rick replied.

The others shook their heads. The robo-wolf charged at the N Teamsters, who dodged. The wolf flapped its wings rapidly, sending a gust of wind toward the N Team. Kid Icarus was blown away.

"I don't like the way this is turning out." Mike said.

"We have you now!" a low bass voice laughed.

A blue robot walked up to the N Team, followed by the two Lana, Mike, and Kevin had seen on VNN. A dark violet / yellow-orange robot with the head, wings, feet, and tail of a falcon and a green robot followed the first three.

Mike stared at the robots. "Oh, crap."

"You are in big trouble now." the humanoid / falcon robot said. "Hydro, now!"

"Right!" The blue robot fired a huge bubble at the N Teamsters, capturing them.

"What the heck?" Mike fired his Zapper at the bubble's wall. The blast bounced around in the bubble a few times before disintegrating. "This ain't right!"

The green robot laughed. "Wily said you guys would be a challenge!"

"Let's go." the red-and-orange robot ordered, opening a warp to Wily's lab.

"You'll never get away with this!" Kevin shouted.

"We already have." the round gray-and-brown robot sneered.

Hydro carefully pushed the bubble into the warp. The other robots followed him through.

Simon and Duke were in the Communications room. Duke paced around the room while Simon stared at his reflection in his hand-held mirror and combed his hair.

Suddenly, an image appeared on the viewscreen - an image neither of the N Teamsters liked.

"Wily!" Simon yelled. He put his comb and mirror away.

Duke walked over to the viewscreen and growled at the image of the mad scientist.

"Once you've seen what's happened to your friends, you'll change your attitude." Wily sneered.

His image disappeared and was replaced by a cell in the dungeon, where most of the N Team was being held.

The image then changed back to Wily. "You see? There is no way you can stop me from taking over Videoland now!" Wily laughed and ended the transmission.

"Crazy little S.O.B." Simon muttered. "Looks like it's Simon Belmont: Vampire Hunter to the rescue again, but first..." He called up Li's house, knowing he'd need help.

"Li?" Michael walked into the doctor's room.

Li was curled up under the covers, asleep.

Michael gently shook her. "Dr. Shiroshi?"

"Hmmm?" Li slowly opened her eyes.

"Simon Belmont's waiting for us at the N Team's house."

"What happened?"

"Wily."

"Joy." Li crawled out of bed and grabbed her gun. "Well, let's go!"

"What's taking her?" Simon wondered, pacing around the room.

A portal opened right in front of him.

"Hi, Simon." Li and her robots walked out of the portal.

Simon smiled. "Li. The N Team's been - "

"I know." Li interrupted. She turned to her robots. "Jazz, Tempo, stay here and help Duke guard the house. Michael, you're coming with Simon and me. Let's kick some robot posterior!" Li ran out of the room.

"Hey! Who made you leader?" Simon half-joked. He and Michael followed Li.

"Drat! I forgot about her!" Wily scowled. "No matter. Those nitwits won't get far." He turned to his robots. "Well, what are you waiting for? Kill those pests! They must not interfere with my plans!"

Simon, Michael, and Li stood near the entrance to Skull Castle.

"That was almost too easy." Michael said. "You'd think Wily would've attacked us by now."

"He knows better than to mess with the great Simon Belmont." Simon said.

"Great compared to a trash compactor maybe." Michael said.

"You're one to talk, you walking piece of scrap metal!" Simon yelled at the robot.

"Guys." Li stepped between the two. "We're supposed to be fighting Wily, not each other! Now come on, the N Team's counting on us!" Li walked towards the door.

"Not so fast!" came a voice from behind the group.

Li turned around. A dark violet / yellow-orange robot with the head, wings, feet, and tail of a falcon approached the group. The black robo-wolf was with him.

"No one enters unless they can get past me!" He flew into the air and dove at Simon, who dodged.

Simon swung his whip at the robot. The whip curled around its left leg. The human / bird-like robot slowly lifted Simon into the air.

"Hang on, Simon!" Li ran up to the vampire hunter and grabbed the whip. She and Simon slowly pulled the robot to the ground.

Michael, meanwhile, was fighting the robo-wolf. His shots had little effect on the wolf's armor, but his fists seemed to do a fair amount of damage. He and the robo-wolf took turns attacking and dodging until Michael managed to pin the robo-wolf to the ground. He smashed the robot's head in, making wires pop out and circuits fly in all directions. The robo-wolf's red eyes stopped glowing, and its body became limp. The wires sparked for a few more seconds, then stopped.

By this time, Simon and Li had somehow managed to bring the other robot to the ground. Simon did his best to hold it still. Li examined the robot's armor.

"This guy's made of the same stuff as Michael, Jazz, and Tempo." Li observed. "No wonder the N Team got captured so easily! Not even my ray gun can penetrate this!"

"How are we supposed to defeat these robots if they're invincible?" Simon asked.

"Well, there should be a panel or something back here somewhere." Li searched the robot's back. "Ah, here we go!" She pried a rectangular piece of metal off the robot's back while Simon struggled to keep the robot pinned. "On the count of three, step back! Ready?"

Simon nodded.

Li took a few steps back and aimed her gun at the open spot in the robot's back. "One, two, three!"

Simon stepped back. Li fired several shots at the spot. The robot exploded.

"Wily's robots are becoming increasingly annoying." Simon commented.

"Hey!" Michael called to the two humans. "Why are we just standing out here? Let's go!" He entered the fortress.

Simon and Li followed.

"Michael, see if you can find where Wily's holding the N Team." Li ordered once she, Simon, and Michael had entered Skull Castle. "Simon and I are going after Wily."

"Who made you leader?" Simon placed his hands on his hips.

Li smiled. "No one. I've just done this before." She ran through the corridor that led straight ahead.

Michael took the corridor that led to the right.

"And I haven't?" Simon asked.

He followed Li down the corridor and into a large room.

Spikes covered most of the floor in the room. Blocks disappeared and reappeared in various places.

"Not this." Simon complained.

Li watched the blocks appear and disappear for a few seconds, then jumped on the nearest one. Simon joined her. They jumped from one block to the next as the blocks appeared and disappeared.

The blocks led them to another large room above the one they were just in. A ladder hung five feet in the air in the center of the room. The two humans climbed up the ladder to a platform seven feet below the ceiling. They walked across the platform to a gate. Simon touched the gate and it opened, revealing a Y-shaped corridor with a gate at each end.

"Okay, Simon." Li looked down the corridor at the gates. "Which one do we go through? Gate number one or gate number two?"

"I have a good feeling about gate number one." Simon started to walk towards the left gate.

"Then we're taking gate number two." Li touched the gate on the right, and it opened, revealing yet another large room. Li walked into the room.

"Hey!" Simon walked through the gate on the right. The gate closed behind him.

"Well, look who's here!"

Two robots approached Simon and Li. One was tall and thin with green armor. The other was a little smaller with red-and-orange armor.

"I see." The red-and-orange-armored robot looked at the humans. "Only two this time. This should be easy."

"Think again!" Li fired at the robots.

The shots had little effect on their armor. The green robot fired two vines at the doctor, who dodged.

Simon approached the red-and-orange robot. The robot shot a stream of fire at Simon. Simon ducked. The fire singed his hair.

"My hair!" Simon looked at his reflection in his hand-held mirror. "That's it! You're going back to the scrap heap where you belong!"

"Simon, move!" Li tackled Simon.

Two vines shot past where Simon had been standing a moment ago. The vines wrapped around the red-and-orange robot. The green robot struggled to pull the vines off of the red-and-orange robot.

"These guys aren't too bright." Li commented. "Simon?"

Simon nodded and snuck behind the green robot. He pried the panel on the robot's back open. Li did the same to the other robot. Simon stepped back. Li fired at the robots from a distance. The robots exploded. The two humans walked through the gate opposite of the one they had come from and continued through Skull Castle.

Michael ran from room to room, shooting the Mets, Joes, and any other robots that got in his way. He ran from room to room until he came across a room with a gate that was guarded by two robots.

The first robot looked like a medieval knight with blades instead of arms. The second was green and yellow with a dragon head, tail, legs, arms, and wings.

"Hey, you!" the knight-like robot called to him. That robot charged at Michael, swinging his blade-like arms.

Michael dropped to the floor and rolled at the robot's legs, tripping him. The second robot opened its mouth and released a stream of fire at Michael. Michael dodged. He picked up the blade-armed robot and threw him at the other robot. Both robots fell to the floor. The blade-armed robot charged at Michael again. Michael stepped aside, then grabbed the robot's neck from behind. He slammed the robot into a wall before it could react, sending metal flying everywhere. Michael dropped the partially-destroyed robot and looked at the dragon-like robot.

"Wily is not going to be happy about this." The dragon-like robot teleported away.

Michael touched the gate the two robots had been guarding. The gate opened, revealing a small corridor. Michael walked through the corridor and into a large room filled with cells. Michael walked over to the cell to the far left, where the N Team was being held.

"Michael!" Lana greeted the robot. "Is Li here?"

Michael nodded. "She and Simon are looking for Wily." He backed up until his back touched the far wall. "Everyone stand back!"

The N Teamsters stood by the far wall. Michael rammed himself into the bars. Some of the bars gave away, leaving a hole big enough for the N Teamsters to climb through.

"Thanks, Michael." Lana said once everyone was out of the cell.

Mike Vincent grinned. "Now it's butt-kickin' time!" He led the group back through the corridor.

"We're getting close." Li said, opening another gate and walking into the corridor.

"I hope so!" Simon opened the gate at the other end of the corridor.

He and Li walked through the gate and into an empty lab.

"Stop right there!" The blue robot pointed his arm cannon at Simon and Li.

"This is as far as you go." The round gray-and-brown robot rolled over to the blue robot and stood beside him.

"Game over." the human / dragon-like robot walked up to the other two robots.

"Think again!" Kevin shouted. He, the other N Teamsters, and Michael ran into the lab.

Mike grinned evilly. "It's payback time!" He fired at the blue robot.

"Mike." Li put her right hand on Mike's left shoulder. "You have to get rid of their armor if you want to destroy these guys. The easiest way to do that is by prying the back panel loose."

"No problem." Mike said.

While Mega Man, Michael, Simon, and Li fought the gray-and-brown robot, and Kevin, Lana, Gameboy, Rick, and Kid Icarus fought the human / dragon-like robot, Mike, Stacey, Romeo, and Julius faced the blue robot.

"Okay, Romeo, Julius, try to hold this guy down." Mike walked around the robot.

Romeo and Julius grabbed onto the robot and tried to hold it still. They only partially succeeded.

Mike pried the robot's back panel off. "Okay, Julius, use your football!"

"Duh, right!" Julius threw his football at the robot's back, making it explode.

By this time, Mega Man, Michael, Simon, and Li had destroyed the gray-and-brown robot and were now helping the others with the human / dragon-like robot, which was destroyed within the next minute.

"My creations!" Wily yelled, running into the lab. "You'll pay for this!"

"Like, in cash or credit?" Stacey asked, holding up her boomerang.

"I'll get you for this!" Wily climbed into his spaceship and flew away.

Simon growled. "He always manages to get away."

"Like, at least we destroyed his new 'bots." Stacey said cheerfully.

"Come on, guys, let's go home." Kevin opened a warp to the N Team's house.

Everyone walked through.

"Phew! I'm, like, exhausted!" Stacey laid down on the couch.

She, Mike, Rick, Romeo, Julius, Kevin, and Lana were watching TV in the living room. Duke was taking a nap on Kevin's bed. Kid Icarus, Mega Man, Gameboy, Tempo, Michael, and Jazz were playing basketball. Li was working on a small device on the kitchen table.

"Li?" Simon walked into the kitchen.

"Hi, Simon!" Li put the device she was working on down and walked over to Simon.

"Um,...Li, I,...uh,...oh, heck!" Simon pulled Li as close to him as possible and touched his lips to hers.

The two engaged in a long, passionate kiss.

"Simon..." Li looked at the vampire hunter once the two had pulled apart from each other.

"Li..." Simon stared at the doctor.

Li stared back.

"I...love you..."

After a few moments, Li smiled and hugged the vampire hunter. "I love you too, Simon!"

Simon smiled. He and Li just stood there, holding each other tightly.

VGM concerts were usually packed. This one was no exception. The chairs and floor were filled with loyal VGM fans. The N Team, Li and her robots, and Dr. Right and his robots, as usual, sat in the front row.

Jazz walked up to the microphone. "And now the moment you've been waiting for! May I present to you tonight Captain N & The Video Game Masters!"

The audience cheered and applauded. Jazz hopped off the stage and took her seat.

Kevin, Lana, Mike, and Stacey walked onto the stage and set up their instruments. Kevin and Lana tuned their guitars. Then they all turned on their microphones.

"Thank you!" Kevin yelled. "It's a pleasure to be here!"

"Our first song tonight is dedicated to Simon Belmont - " Lana was interrupted by the audience's cheering and applauding. " - and his new girlfriend, Li Shiroshi!"

The audience cheered and applauded some more. A few whistles could be heard.

"Ready?" Kevin looked at his fellow band members, all of which nodded. "All right. 1, 2, 3, 4!"

The band played the ending music to the first Mega Man game. The audience cheered loudly after the last note had been played.

GAME OVER