Mario's Crowbar (Rated T+)

[magikoopa189]

I'm back. Yea. Everyone thought I was dead, or didn't know me. I'll be able to update this everyday, so enjoy ;D
P.S. As it gets farther along, more and more random Mario referances can be noticed. True Mario masters will find em' all!

Toomai Sez: This fic has been rated T+ for realistic violence.

PART 1

A dark and stormy night- a perfect night to capture Peach again. Crash! The sound of constant lightning was all too familiar to Bowser...


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A patrol had already been sent ahead of the main group to scout out the land before Bowser set foot on it. Bowser had sent all the new members of the Koopa Troop, all the ones he didn't need, because he was sure at least 10 were to die that night. The forest was cold. Rain piercing the wind in a surreal mixture of torment. At least that was what it was like to Wes. Why were Koopas forced to join Bowser's terror army? Wes didn't really have a choice anyway. Join or die. Now here he was, LOOKING for Mario, not trying to escape him. He rubbed his lucky charm- a golden dried mushroom. Was Mario already here? The intense sound of wind from a certain corner of the forest seemed to hint at something solid- and breathing.

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"Hurry up Luigi" Whispered Mario as silently as possible for Luigi to hear him. But no, Luigi continued to bumble through the forest, tripping over roots, and stumps, and something dead sticking out of the ground. Right before Luigi got to Mario; he tripped over a final stump, making a loud thumping noise as he hit the moist, wet, squishy ground. Mud splattered on Luigi's face. Mario could suddenly hear the hypnotic sound of marching, of Koopa feet, coming from the other side of an array of trees...

"ATTACK!" The scream suddenly echoed out, bursting through the woods, coming from Wes's captain, Kan. Mario and Luigi jumped into view, and the terror was on. Already, some of the other Koopas were running away, but Wes held his guard. He rubbed his lucky charm again. He ran into the middle of the commotion, swinging his arms wildly.

STOMP! CRACK! CRUNCH! The sickening sounds repeated as Mario practically tore apart the unfortunate Koopas. Luigi had already disappeared into the middle of the hub-bub, but the sounds of Shell cracking were confirmation enough that Luigi was succeeding. The battle seemed an hour long, but soon enough, Koopa bodies were littered everywhere, Red Shells, Green Shells, Red Shells, Green-. But that wasn't a green shell. It was green clothing. "Luigi?" Gasped Mario. Mario ran over to Luigi's crumpled body.

Wes slowly moved his head up. The pain was ridiculous. "Luigi?" He heard someone gasp. He continued looking up until he could see Mario, kneeling by Luigi's side. He looked around. Everyone else seemed dead. His lucky charm must have worked. Suddenly, on the other side of Mario opposite Wes, came a cough. A strange cough. A choked up cough. Mario looked up wildly to where the sound had come from. The koopa whimpered. Mario soon slaughtered the offending Koopa, and then picked up Luigi. He carried Luigi away, into the forest. "Thank god." Groaned Wes, trying to stand up. Suddenly, Mario's forlorn and terrifying face appeared from the forest.

It was still raining. Still. The noises of the rain hitting the moist mud replayed the image of Luigi's broken body laying in the mud, with the other bodies. Body’s...Body’s... Mario watched Luigi closer. He was laying in a warm bed, eyes closed, barely breathing. Mario was afraid that if he left to get Toad paramedics, Luigi would be dead by the time he would return. Every once in a while, he would softly call for Luigi, but Luigi wouldn't respond. Instead, Luigi's heartbeat would get more furious, as if about to break. Mario would get more and more anxious every time he would call Luigi, for his swelling heart beat, seeming to try to rip out of his chest. The sound of knocking came from the door. The red door.

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The thick mud coated the inside of his throat, threatening to choke him every time he tried to breath. But he HAD to breathe. He would never go without his charms now. He was probably the luckiest Koopa alive, going face to face with Luigi, and then almost being torn apart from a grief Mario. Oh the pain... But he still couldn't get up. He couldn't call either. And more mud was being created by the storm, ready to choke Wes if it got close enough. That would be a fun death. Survive an encounter with the most terrifying enemies of Koopa lore ever, and die slurping mud. As the doom settled in, the sound of marching reached his ears. Marching. Koopa Marching. Of course! The main group of Koopas were coming, with King Bowser himself. He would be saved! Bowser and the rest of the Koopa Group marched into the once beautiful grove, trying not to groan at the terror. Bowser appeared stepping disgracefully on Koopa bodies, which continued to make crunches, perhaps a final message from the dead. "Pity. But we still have more." Said Bowser looking at the bodies, and looking at him! He had to get Bowser's attention. He tried to speak, but the mud would not permit it. Perhaps if he winked? No. He was too weak to even WINK for crying out loud! It would be disgraceful, but perhaps he could vomit? He really wanted too, but that would require even more strength then winking. "Come. We can't stare at these worthless bodies all night." Ordered Bowser. The group soon got into line, backs facing Wes. No...No. This was like some twisted scary story, where it's more the torture of the character then the scariness that makes it interesting. Wait...he could move his fingers! His fingers could go up and down! He splatted them against the mud, over and over, trying to get the troops attention, but they were already moving away... their back to him. It was time to give up.

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Windy. Cold. Raining. Bowser hated these nights, but they were always the best to capture Peach, when the moronic Toad guards have no idea. After a few miles they came to Mario's house. This was all part of the plan. This time, he wouldn't need to guard his castle, especially if Mario was dead first. Bowser snapped his fingers, summoning his 3 Magikoopas he had brought along for the affair. "Knock on the door, and don't come back without Mario's eyes." Said Bowser gruffly. The Magikoopas nodded silently, knowing this was likely going to be their last night alive. The Magikoopa with the tallest cap fixed his crooked glasses, and knocked on the door.

Mario walked over to the door, the padding of his shoes against the shiny wood on the floor creating a humble pap pap pap. Mario opened the door. "Mama Mia!" Yelled Mario as he ducked to the floor, narrowly dodging a Magikoopa spell firing over his head. The 2 other Magikoopas quickly sped in, shutting the door and forming a circle with the other Magikoopa. Just as Mario got up, all of the Magikoopas fired a deadly throat-tightening spell at Mario, yet Mario was quicker. He back flipped, landing on 1 Magikoopa with a force that killed it. The other 2 quickly formed a wall between Mario and the bed Luigi lay on, alternatively firing spells in an unprofessional manner. Mario triple jumped, hanging from a beam on the ceiling. Just as the 2 Magikoopas looked up, Mario dropped. Both Magikoopas dodged Mario getting closer to Luigi's bed, and the one with the tall cap fired at Mario. The spell hit Mario in the chest, sending him flying backwards into the wall. Thank god it wasn't a neck-tightening spell. But Mario's pain was still great, and Mario struggled to get up. The Magikoopas cornered him, preparing a gouging spell. This would finish Mario. "Mario..." Gasped a croaky voice. It was Luigi. He was alive. The 2 Magikoopas turned around in surprise, and as they turned back around, Mario kicked the tall tipped one right in the beak. It screamed in pain and stumbled backwards, and Mario grabbed the other one by the neck. The Magikoopa nervously tried to level his wand with Mario's face, but the shaking, strangling grasp of Mario's hands kept shaking the wand up and down. The last thing the Magikoopa saw was the white gloves...and blood was spilling on them. Mario threw the unfortunate Koopa to the floor, and turned to the last one, a huge crack in its beak, whimpering. Something seemed to possesses Mario, and he kicked harder then he ever had before.

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"Go faster." Roared Bowser, his troops were failing him again. They were at Peach's Castle, but dawn was starting to rise, and the rain was starting to lighten. Bowser swore he could see guards. "Go Rope Troopas!" Growled Bowser, pointing at the Rope Troopas, a set of Troopas that were skilled in climbing that always stole the princess. They soon disappeared through Peach's window, everyone anxious to get back home before, perhaps, Mario attacked, ready to bring more carnage. But that wasn't the problem. The Rope Troopas weren't returning. The windows flapped in the wind. It was almost dawn. A few more minutes, perhaps? The windows flapped again. Bowser had had enough of this; he climbed up the ropes the Troopas had left, the ropes like corpses, and climbed into the window. Bowser stared ahead, his jaw dropping. He'd had many defeats before, come Mario, come Luigi, even Peach once, but this was strange

[magikoopa189]

Rated T? I hope that doesn't scare people away! Here's another Part!

PART 2

Have you ever had sweat splash in your eye? It's a burning sensation, especially if a lot of sweat comes down. Penter swore. The sweat was too much to bear this time, feeling like it could melt his eyeballs into puddles of veins. Everyone was crowding around Mitch today. They always crowd around him, shouting, gasping, and gossiping, and sometimes pointing to Penter to say something rude and negative. Penter glared, just like he always did, and he wasn't very good at glaring, and would often be laughed at by the group around Mitch. And why did he have to work here? Beacause Princess Peach said so. That's why he hated Princess Peach as well. If a Toad was caught near Peach's grounds, she would enslave them, as she liked to say, "politely asked". The Toads would only do it beacuase of Toad's with gouged eyes out being seen, and paranoid freaks, who would only think of the mysterious terror of Peach. "BY THE BEE'S KNEES!" Yelled a voice from where Mitch's club was. Penter turned to Mitch's group, and dropped the shovel. Now Toadsworth was with them. What could be going on that was this important and fabulous? Penter, tired of working in the sun, crept over to the crowded shade, and listened to the commotion.

Darkness...Swirling Darkness...Red. Red. Everywhere. Someone, please...anyone... Luigi woke up. Instantly, the pain that had been hiding away while he was asleep had come back to torture him. Luigi groaned. The last thing he remembred was calling for someone. Who? He couldn't remember. He remembered calling someone in terror of the red...He was in a bed. That's what he could figure out. He was in his own bed. The beautiful, green cloth confirmed this. And..."Luigi, thank goodness, your awake!" Cried Mario, closing in to hug him. "NO! I mean...please don't hug me." Gasped Luigi, too tired to explain his back had a unearthly pain. Luigi turned his head, some kind of feeble attempt to block Mario's hugs, and saw the chaos on the floor. A Magikoopa with it's face crushed in. One with a broken head. Those were the only 2 he could see. Blood crawled from around the corner however. "Mario. What happened?" Asked Luigi. Mario started to explain, and then a thought he hadn't thought of occured. If a group of Koopa's were sent to scout forward, and some to kill Mario... "Peach." Whispered Mario, realizing the terrible mistake he had made. "Ma-Mario, I..." Then Luigi realized what had happened too. Bowser could already be at Peach's Castle. It was nearly dawn when the Magikoopa's had attacked, and now it was noon. Mario uttered a swear word, and rushed to the pantry. Peach could still be saved. Mario hurridly put food and drink on a table next to Luigi's bed, and rushed out the door. He jumped over a large root, and into a green pipe laying in the middle of the yard.

"Hah hah. He's alive. I know he is. It will make a fine dinner. The mud almost killed it, but it's alive." "But...it has dents in that shell thing." "They can be waxed to perfection. Either way...we have a fine meal here." "Hah hah." Darkness... fading in the twilight.

"Thank you, thank you all!" The sound of Mitch's voice made Penter shudder. He hated Mitch. He hated Mitch a lot. "Amazing!" Shouted Toadsworth in a corner. Tired of trying to hear what the commotion was about, Penter decided to ask Blibby, one of Mitch's more unactive friends. "Blibby, what did Mitch do now?" Asked Penter, trying to sound normal, but Mitch's club members shouts for joy made it difficult. "Well Penter, Mitch was up in Peach's room, bringing her breakfast and all, when suddenly, Koopas attacked! Well he went and walloped 3 Koopa's and Bowser himself!" Finished Blibby with a smile. The heat of the sun...Penter thought he was going to faint. Mitch had defeated Bowser? Nobody can defeat Bowser except for Mario and Luigi. This...this... "Is there any proof?" Asked Penter, a huge drop of sweat falling into his eye. "Of course! Bowser's screaming and shouting in the dungeon, and we're gonna have Mario execute him once and for all." Blibby tried to say something else, but all the excitement made him blubber, hence his name. Penter was going to see Bowser. He couldn't believe it. He couldn't. "Halt slave! Where are you wandering to?" Shouted a voice from above. Princess Peach glared down from the balcony, giving a glare that could melt glass. The crowd of Toad's barely noticed, but a few happened to look over. Penter was about to anwser when he remembred he HATED Princess Peach. How dare she make Toad's slaves? "I'm wandering away from you...HAG!" Yelled Penter. Now the entire crowd of Toad's took notice, gasping and whispering. But Penter started to move. He was going to see Bowser. And then something else came to mind. What if he used Bowser to protect himself? But what if Bowser wasn't actully there? "GUARDS!" Screamed Princess Peach from somewhere back, and Penter moved up a pace.

Wood. It was wood, everywhere. But he wasn't in a forest. He was in a cottage. Somewhere. Somewhere. That word had a deadly ring to it. The smell of outdated tea littered the cottage, and yet another smell...a sinister smell littered the room. "Hellooo." Said a spindly voice. An old female Koopa appered. She had tea in her hand. "Mud...where is this?" He managed to croak out. He could remember mud...and the color red. But he didn't remember anything else. Who was he? "Welcome to my beeaauuttiiffuull cabin." Wandered the spindly voice. That sinister smell again. "Who am I...?" He asked, a feeble sound. He was weak, and if this strange character wasn't going to reveal where he was, then he could be in big trouble. But did it really matter? He couldn't remember anything so he would still be lost. "Why dear, your name is Laem." There was something strange about the name. "And I'm Kooply, dear. Your mother." Laem tried to nod, but there seemed to be mud that was stopping him. It seemed to paralyze him. He couldn't move. "Have cake and tea, dear." Said Kooply, pulling cake and tea from nowhere, and walking into another room which appeared to be a kitchen. ...But there was a part of the kitchen he couldn't see. He started drinking the tea, which seemed cold, but once it went past the mouth, it went red hot. He cried out in surprise the first time, but realized it cleared away the mud. And the cakes were normal. They had a absoulutely delicous taste, but the feeling he wasn't supposed to be here wouldn't go away, and... that sinister smell again.

Air rushed past Mario's face, the wind pushing Mario's hair up. THUNK. It was more painful then it sounded. Mario had suddnely just stopped. Mario looked down to where the horrendus pain was coming from. Mario's left leg had snapped open, and his leg bone stuck out at a disturbing angle. The pipe was jammed. Junk, all sorts of trash littered the pipe. Mario couldn't stand it any longer. Mario screamed, blood rushing out of his leg, and into the junk, drying and forming, perhaps making Mario's goal even more difficult. Once the pain became JUST possible to bear, Mario looked for a escape. He couldn't go back up. It was too high. And he couldn't go down. Mario was trapped. Mario swore, pounding against the pipe wall, trying to escape, but the walls were tough. Legend had it that ancient Toad's had made the pipes out of emeralds, truly hard gemstones. Sadly, that was the truth, and as Mario tried to size up the situation, the point became clear. "I'm trapped." Whispered Mario. Another painful crack sounded from his leg.

Bowser sat in the corner of a small, musty dungeon, wrinkiling his nose, and grimaceing. Everything was going wrong. Over 30 troopas slayed, and another dozen coming right up. Most importantly, he was on the chopping block too, to be executed in 12 hours. The wait was miserable yet- If anyone came in, he could blow fire on them. That way, none of those cowardly Toad's would come down. He could even get Mario by blowing through the cages, which would be too narrow for Mario to jump through. Perfect. Only midway through his thoughts, the sound of stomping, running feet echoed through the hallway. Someone was coming. His first victim was coming. He crouched even deeper in the corner, to surprise the foolish Toad. The said Toad suddnely apperead, sweat pouring down his face. Now was the time. "There...there are spikes." Whispered the Toad in awe. Bowser was truly here. Penter knew he had to get the point across soon, as the guards could be heard coming. "Bowser! I have a pl-" Bowser, taking no heed of Penter, launched the fireball straight at him. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. The Toad Guards seemed to float in air, and tried to grab Penter, but instead managing to push him out of the way. 4 of the 5 Toad Guards were instantly killed, the last horribly burned. "Ahh!" Cried Penter as he hit the cold, stone floor. "Get away toad, or I'll kill you too." Growled Bowser. This was his chance to scare the Toad's away. Penter, stunned in terror, quickly got to a corner that Bowser couldn't flame him in. "B-Bowser, I want to help you escape. I have a rather intresting deal for you." Bowser listened, intent, as his life, perhaps a mere plot, thickened.

[magikoopa189]

Wow. Everybody's dead. That's okay. I like telling story's.

Part 3:

"Wear it always, for it will always protect you." Whispered a strange voice, cooling and refreshing, oily and sympathetic. "It is a very strong charm." Laem woke up in the cool dark wooden room. It was obviously night, and a boo could be heard laughing outside. Testing to see how high he could get out of the bed, he sat right up, and fell back over in surprise. He could move again! The cake seemed to have healed him. And he wasn't staying here. He remembered voices in his early memories (which were yesterday) that had spoken of him. Two voices. And if Kooply really was his mother, she was hiding something. Something dark. He crept out of the bed and stumbled to his feet, nearly forgetting how to walk. He wanted to see if there was something here that hinted to his past, perhaps a picture. The room closest to his bed was a small library of books. Oddly, the books were all written in a strange language. There was also a window in a corner of the shadowy, musty, library. Laem nearly sneezed so he quickly exited the library, covered with dust. He didn't want to wake up Kooply. There were 2 other rooms. He decided to go into the kitchen, guessing the last room was Kooplys bedroom. Quietly, he scuttled into the kitchen. If he thought the other parts of the house were cold, this place was antarctic. He looked at the left side of the room first, completely having his back to the right side. It was an empty wall, except for a hole in the floor. "Eh, what's this?" Said Laem quietly. He bent down to the hole, and quickly moved away. It was a stench he had smelled before. He thought that he had smelled it recently, in a group of others. And the color red... It was a horrible smell altogether, and he quickly turned around to escape it. He regretted turning around very much. Blood. Red. Blood. Everywhere. Laems mind raced, all other the floor, dead Koopas, dead goombas, dead Toads, dead Shy Guys, and countless other, horridly disfigured figures lay everywhere, and that smell. That's what it was. In the hole. The smell of corpses. The smell of rotting and fresh dead. And then Leam realized the most bone chilling truth of all. Laem was meal backwards.

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Luigi ripped off a crumb from the bread, the food Mario had left Luigi. He couldn't eat too much of it, as he felt it would be awhile until Mario returned. He had decided on a rule. 1 crumb per 5 hours. Fortunately, a clock was in view. Or was it unfortunate? Watching the agonizing clock. Watching it, waiting for that moment when- Oh...oh YES!-that he would get food. He drank 1 sip of water every 4 hours. It was like subscribing to two magazines, one would come certain times, another would come others and they would both be delightful. Yes, VERY delightful. And Luigi still felt some pain from the fight. Thinking of the word "fight", Luigi glanced over to the 2 Magikoopa bodies’ he could see. Poor Mario, having to go through double the fight I had to, fighting 3 Magikoopas. "Lucky Luigi" He said out loud, but he wasn't lucky. Mario was so strong. Mario was so great. Mario was so much better. And every time those jerk Toads released game recreations of Mario's adventures, they always called it "Super MARIO Bros" "Super MARIO 64". It wasn't fair. Luigi was in both of those games, but it was always Mario Mario Mario. Thinking of where he hid in Peach's Castle made him smile. That was a great hiding place. Maybe that's why they released it "Mario 64". Suddenly, 2 things happened at once. The clock broke. And the sound of a Magikoopa groan came from around a corner. The Magikoopa Luigi couldn't see

Tip Tap. Tip Tap. The noise of Peach's tapping fingers was turning even more monotonous then before, the only good thing it was doing was destroying the annoying silence that accompanied the disappearance of the Toad Guards. "Blasted guards. Can't bring me a simple Toad. Come O Guards. We're going in ourselves." The Toad guards formed a short circle around Peach, with the lead Toad Guard Tadomas in front. It didn't take long to get to the courtyard, where the screams of delight from Mitch's obsessive fans greeted them. Right when the group entered the dungeon, all the Toads formed a line in front of Peach; to make sure the crazy Toad didn't take Peach down with himself. But it was too quiet to even think. It was eerily quiet. As the group reached the end, a guard shouted in terror. "Bowser's not in his cell!" Suddenly, Peach felt the feeling of a presence behind her. Someone or something.

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Laem tried to stifle his cry as he couldn't move. He was ridged with terror. His name wasn't really Laem. It was all a lie. By a Koopa that wanted to eat him. He was going to escape. Now. He launched out of the kitchen, to open the strange wooden door. But it was locked. Extreme sweating began. How long would it be until "Kooply" woke up? He ran back into the library, he had to find a way out. But something caught his eye. On a bookshelf was a gleaming book, it was GLEAMING. He tried to resist, but he picked it up anyway. It wasn't in a mysterious language. It had a strange cover. And a simple title. "POWER" It had no author. He put down the book. It was no time to read a book when a Koopa eating Koopa was after you. Yet... a gleaming cover. Exactly like the gleaming charm he was wearing. They were both gleaming. Laem had to open the book. He HAD to. He opened it, anxious and excited. There was nothing on the first page. Only blank. Just as Laem (Is he sticking with the name?) was about to turn the page, a face appeared in the blank pages, grinning. "Hello Wes." It chanted. "What? Said Wes, frozen with interest. "I'm your new friend, Wes." Chanted the book, grinning.

2 rooms away, a thing awakened, hungry, and feeling as if something powerful was happening.

"...Wes? My name's not Wes. My name's..." He hadn't really thought of what to call himself now that he had discovered he wasn't really Laem. ...But Wes was a really nice name. He would have to trust the book for now. He was in mortal danger. "Wh-what do you want?" He asked, in no time to chat. The book continued grinning. "Do you want to be powerful? Do you want great power? Venge on those who doubt you? Build money, and shift land?" What was this book? "What are you?" He continued. "Why, I'm the book of Power Wes. I can give you what you want if you help me." It chanted its oily voice smooth and charming. Although he wouldn't normally accept the trust of a talking book, the book was obviously quite smart. "Okay... What do you want?" He asked awkwardly. "Just get me ou-" CRASH! Wes jumped into the air, and the book went flying to the ground. And a Duplighost with blood all over its sheet walked in. "YOU-! YOU ESCAPE HOW DARE MY GRASP-..." The Duplighost was lost for words, utterly confused. It was now obvious that Kooply was the Duplighost, and Wes had fitted it all together. The Duplighost was always bringing things in, transforming to the species of the traveler to gain more trust- and then eating them. "You-you wretch!" Screeched the Duplighost, flying straight at Wes. "PICK ME UP WES! PICK ME UP!" Yelled the book. Too terrified to consider wits, Wes backed up and picked up the book. "Wes! Say Power Wes! Say it!" Yelled the book. Wes was now trapped in the corner of the library, the Duplighost with fangs flying at him. "POWER!" Roared the book, seeming to take on a darker atmosphere. Pages whirling around him, and the Duplighost inches from his face, Wes shouted "POWER!"

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Mario lay on the ground. The pain had finally dumbed down, but Mario would never be able to jump on his left leg again. CRACKKK. Mario looked down, expecting his leg fully off now. But his leg was not affected. In fact, the sound had come from the Emerald Pipe. Slowly, a large crack moved down the pipe, right in front of Mario's face. CRACKKKKKKKK. A piece of the pipe fell to the jammed ground. Beyond the pipe was dirt. Mario looked at the Emerald piece, but the sound of falling emerald forced him back, stabbing a pain in his legs. A huge chunk of emerald fell right where the little piece was. Mario looked up to the darkness. It was his only chance. He would have to go back up by Emerald piece. He climbed onto the piece, until another fell. The slow and painful process

[magikoopa189]

Even though everybody here has no appreciation for literature, I continue my tale.

Part 4

"I repeat, you go on this mission, or die by the claw of your own king!" Shouted the Armored Koopa in the front. It was a die or die situation. Go on the mission, and die by... the red. Red! Do not go on the mission, and die by claw! Red? But what was red? I...I can't remember.....The whiteness slowly faded away, and the scene came back. The dead Duplighost laid in a mess less heap. The book was on the ground, covered with dust. And Wes fully came to, he was changed as well. He was wearing a black cloak/cape, with mystic threads keeping it together. A feeling of power was also present. Wes figured this all had to do with the book, and as he was about to pick it up, the surroundings caught his eyes. The entire house had collapsed. The massive forest was all around Wes, the sounds of strange creatures screeching filling the air. "I-I" But what was there to say? The word Power and the strange book combined to make a true power. But Wes wanted answers. He opened the book, shifting through the pages, but there was no face. It was gone. And Wes was in the middle of nowhere. He wasn't going to wait for some horrible creature to attack, he was moving now. He closed his eyes, spun around, and pointed in the direction of south. He slowly started moving, to a town, or somewhere. But was there a somewhere? How did this world work? Did people live in the middle of nowhere? Were towns real? Or was it a idea floating around in his mind? Wes grew anxious, and when a Goomba jumped out from behind a tree, mouth and fangs open, Wes released an energy building inside of him. BLARRACK! The sound of trees falling like dominoes commenced. Wes opened his eyes to the sight. At least 70 trees had been knocked down, the Goomba crushed by one. This was going to be interesting.

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"Ughhh..." The foul groan came again. Luigi started to sweat. A magikoopa was alive, Mario was gone, Luigi was crippled, and the Magikoopa was alive! "Mark...Mark...?" The magikoopa was starting to speak. It was recovering too fast. And Luigi couldn't see it. It could be hiding, right around the corner, about to fire a fatal shot of magic. "I...I'm alickve?" It croaked. This one must have speech impairment; Mario must have destroyed its face. "I'ck...I'ck cank movk." It's voice continuing. But was it lying? Could it be part of an immense strategy to get Luigi? Luigi started sweating again. He choked on a piece of bread, the sound coming loud and clear. A rustling sound confirmed the magikoopa could hear him. Little known to Luigi, the magikoopa was thinking the same thing as Luigi. Is he behind the corner, waiting to kill me? The air in the room grew thick with terror; you could slice a knife through the air. Then the terror ended suddenly. "Please don't hurt me." Said Luigi, being cowardice. "Pleack dok hurk meek." Said the magikoopa at the same time. The broken clock, hanging high on the wall, suddenly fell and broke with a loud crash.

"Hello Princess." The voice chilled Peach, and the cold claw of a monster soon curved around her delicate skin, drawing a little blood. Peach cried out, but Bowser continued making his escape, walking backwards, carrying Peach to the entrance to the dungeons. As Bowser entered the courtyard, he swung Peach in front of him, as a hostage in case that freak Toad attacked. Bowser did, in fact attract Mitch's attention, and he began to make his way to Bowser. "Don't even try Crap Cap." Laughed Bowser. The hot sun was uncomfortable against Peach's skin, and she really wanted to yell at a Toad. "Unhand the Princess, or I'll be on you like a Fuzzy, you scoundrel." Shouted Mitch. Bowser had a certain talent for telling true intentions, and Mitch, in reality, was a jerk Toad who was pretending a shaky, valiant act. "If you attack Toad, the princess could have a messy accident. We wouldn't want to cry over spilled Peach's, now would we?" Even if Mitch was a jerk, he had a certain loyalty to the Princess, and this nasty turtle was starting to annoy him. But could he do anything? "Show me the way out, and Peachy won't get hur-" BUMP! A Toad went flying into the air. Someone had jumped on Bowser from behind. Penter came sailing to the ground, sweating as usual. Bowser had dropped Peach, and she had scrambled away, gasping for air. Mitch couldn't believe it. That wimpy Penter had knocked out Bowser. He actually had. But he was not handing his pride away to that loser. "Wow, try not to trip on me, considering the effects." Said Mitch in a mean voice, following to spit in Penter's face. His Fan club followed suit, all spitting in Penter's face. Mitch wasn't done. He kicked Penter in the face too, just for his own consolation. His club followed. But Penter was tired of spit and sweat, which formed a sphere of imminent torture, working for the secretly tyrant Peach, or being hated upon by fellow Toads. Penter was tired of it, and never would he have to put up with it again. SMAP. The sound of a kick into Mitch's stomach. BANG. The sound of Mitch's head being kicked into the cement on the ground. CRACK. The sound of Mitch's spinal cord breaking, and suddenly, Mitch, the temporary hero of the Mushroom Kingdom was dead, murdered by another Toad. Penter looked down to the crumpled heap on the ground. Was he insane? No. No. Was he insane? No...no...was he wait...what was he? Was he insane was he? ...Yes?

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Silence. A cold silence. And then the voice spoke again. "Whook arck youk?" Came the magikoopa's voice. Luigi wasn't sure what to do. The cry of terror from earlier confirmed that the magikoopa was crippled too. But Luigi was crippled too. Everything was turning into a deadly game, and Luigi had to play smooth. "I'm Mario." He said, in a loud voice, to show he couldn't be a crippled Luigi. But he had completely forgotten that he himself had already said "Please don't hurt me." Silence... The magikoopa meanwhile was figuring the game too. His only goal was to escape before Luigi (It was very obvious it was Luigi) could somehow attack. He would need to pretend he was weak. "Whuck ark youk goik took doick tuck meek?" He gasped. Luigi could tell what he was saying. He had to scare the magikoopa into not attacking before Mario came back. Once Mario came back, everything would be solved. "If you come around the corner, I will attack." Bellowed Luigi. The magikoopa knew he was winning the game; he would just have to show just how much of a weakling he was. "Wanuck plake ake work gake?" He said. (Wanna play a word game?). Luigi didn't know why he could understand the koopa's malformed words, but this was all working into his favor. "Okay." Replied Luigi.

"Heh heh he-ACK! COUGH!" Generally, Bowser considered Toad's stupid, humble creatures that had no strength or further purpose in life. He had just been proven wrong. It was strange how close of a power that Toad's was to Mario's, as it had certainly caused some head damage (not brain damage). No matter, the Toad's had been occupied by the fight that the Toad was flaming. All the toads in the castle were in the chaos, trying to stop the freak toad. Because they were all so busy, Bowser had escaped from the castle, and was on his way back to the Koopa Kingdom. He would rebuild forces, and then attack the Mushroom Kingdom again, now that Mario had been killed. (He could only assume). But to get to the Koopa Kingdom, he would have to cross through the forest...

SNAP SNAP. The twigs crunched against Wes's feet, now strangely...more powerful. From the sign of the forest, slowly starting to unthicken, Wes could tell he was near a clearing. But then...something else was coming. SNAP SNAP. Coming from the Northeast. Wes was prepared. Wasn't he always prepared? The power of anxious curiosity always flaming? And yet... The figure stepped into view. It looked like a huge koopa, with head bruises. Horns, and spikes on its shell. Wes was prepared incase it tried to attack. "What? ...a magikoopa? Were you sent to retrieve me back to the Koopa Kingdom?" What were these words? Magikoopa? Koopa KINGDOM? There's an entire kingdom? Either way, Wes was not in the mood to bow down to anyone. He had a memory to retrieve. "I work for no one." Said Wes simply. He continued on his way. But Bowser wasn't done. "Get back crooked shell! You are a Magikoopa obviously, and magikoopas aren't accepted into Toad society." Wes ignored the words of the ugly beast. Bowser was becoming infuriated, despite his bruises. "GET BACK HERE OR I WILL RIP YOU TO SHREDS!" He roared. A fight? Wes wanted to test his ability’s. Wes turned around. "That's better, now guide me back bucket head." Said Bowser nobily. "No. You mentioned a fight." Said Wes. Bowser laughed. "You must be insane. I am King Bowser. You’re King!" Cried Bowser. "No." Said Wes. Bowser is very simple. He is angry. Or semi-angry. "WARRGH!" Bowser slashed out a claw, but Wes shot a bolt of magic energy from his mind. It hit Bowser, sending him into a tree trunk. Bowser jumped up with lightning energy, coming down at Wes. Wes fired another spell from his mind. One that disfigured. But Bowser dodged it- in the air. He was too crafty. Bowser swung back, and smashed his claw into Wes's face. Wes fired a red spell of unknown power at Bowser's chest. A brilliant flash of light followed.

***********************************************************************

Mario crawled up out of the emerald pipe. He dusted himself off. Suddenly, the pipe shattered, and all that was left was a large hole in the ground, with razor sharp emeralds at the bottom. Mario started his way to the house, but swore. The leg still hurt. Wait...it was starting to hurt less. That was a good thing, wasn't it? Mario coughed very loudly.

[shadowgoomba]

I appreciate literature and I've been keeping up to date. I just didn't want to interupt the story, but if it makes you feel like you've been doing a good thing (which you have) I'll do so. It's a good story so far, and look forward to the next enstallment!

[magikoopa189]

Okay. Thanks. I'll write for ye then!

PART 5

"He killed him!" Cried out a voice from the huge mob of Toad's that had gathered around a small scene. Penter, a Toad with a crazy look in his eyes was next to the body of Mitch, who he had killed. Other gasps and cried were whispered around the group. Some Toad's backed away, afraid of him striking out. Others tried to examine him. "Move!" Shouted the Head of the Guards, Blaine. It was the first time since Blaine had become the Head Guard that a Toad was the cause of chaos. The cloud of Toad's opened a path, in which the Guard's, led by the Head Guard, walked upon. Penter noticed the Toad's coming. He wasn't going to let them bother him. "Stay back. Or...or..." Penter didn't really hate the Toad's, as he more hated Princess Peach and Mitch. But now... "Or... I'll kill you." The Guard's didn't flinch. Instead, they started to grab him. He was just another random Toad who had gone insane, except this time, this one had actually killed. ...But was it something to worry about? It was too late to turn back for Blaine, as he had already grasped his hand around Penter's arm. Bad choice. Penter had a sudden burst of power, and swiped his fist into the Head Guard's unprotected face. And then sudden chaos. Half the guards launched forward to grab Penter, while the other half backed off in terror. A first regular guard approached Penter. He kicked the unfortunate guard in the face. The guard knocked into the one behind him, and the guard behind the guard who had been knocked into by a guard swore and fell over. Soon, all the Toad Guard's were on the ground, swiping at thin air, proving the Mushroom Kingdom's bad defenses. With all the guard's on the ground, Penter started running. Peach, who had been resting against a Castle wall the whole time noticed his escape. "You stupid buffoons! He's going that way!" She cried out, pointing in Penter's fleeting direction. But Penter was already on his way out of the Castle.

"I win!" Said Luigi. He was proving he was strong, and not to be dealt with. "Anck Ike looke." Said the Magikoopa. He was proving he was weak. Both had no idea of the others intentions. Luigi looked at his food. There wasn't much left. And the day wasn't even over. Why did the clock have to break? WHY? If Mario didn't come back soon, Luigi would starve. ...But what about the Magikoopa? As long as it was alive, Luigi could survive too, as the magikoopa had nothing. Where oh where was Mario? Wh- The front door slowly opened. Mario came inside. He was pale. His left leg had a horrifying avulsion. And Mario coughed. But he was holding something behind his back. Luigi couldn't see what Mario was holding. Mario was right next to the magikoopa. All he would have to do is turn to see it. "M-" But then Luigi saw the magikoopa. It was crawling behind Mario. Trying to reach the still open door. Did Luigi want to tell Mario? ...No. Luigi knew the second he would tell Mario, the magikoopa would be in trouble. "Luigi." Said Mario. Mario coughed again.

Each pull was another struggle. What made it worse was not being to make a sound. He couldn't let Mario hear him. But now the strength was gone from him. He couldn't move. "Luigi." Said Mario. Mario proceeded to cough. Good. Mario was distracted by Luigi. But he couldn't make it. The magikoopa had to think it over. If he was caught by Mario, he wouldn't instantly kill him. He had time. He needed backup to get him out of there. He couldn't believe he hadn't thought of it before, but he had a small phone. It didn't take long to get the number. "Helloke?" He gasped. "Helck. Tracked inck Markio's houck. Seck helck." He gasped. Mario coughed.

It was easy for Mario to hear the loud, desperate, voice. Mario coughed, and turned around to the magikoopa, who was halfway through the door. Mario stared at the creature, crawling through the door, trying to escape from the tortures of Mario's house, but they weren't over. Mario screamed insanely, pulling from a trouser pocket a silver, shining, crowbar. It didn't stay silver for long. Soon, it was red. Deep red. Mario had also destroyed the phone. Luigi shuddered. This wasn't Mario. Mario wasn't a bloodthirsty monster. Mario had something wrong with him. Something was affecting his min-. Mario coughed hideously, and turned around again. Clutching the crowbar, he slowly made his way to Luigi, stepping with his words with terrifying accuracy. "Do you like my tool Luigi? I found it in a green pipe. But who care's about-COUGH, HACK-green, huh Luigi? Red's the best. It's everywhere. It's inside everyone’s bo-HACK,COUGH-dys. Don't you want to see your red Luigi? Don't you?" Mario approached Luigi's bed.

Seigal sighed. It was another boring day in the castle. Magikoopa's bossed him around; Bowser's children abuse him, and getting terrible jobs, like waxing shells. Everyday, he would think the same thing. This is what life is. A horrible mixture of nasty tortures, with nothing to gain. And when you died, you would be trapped in your body. Trapped in a coffin. Trapped underground. Forever. Always. An- BZZZERT! CRACKLE! Seigal jumped in surprise. His current duty was to man the radio station, where other contactors could call for help, or send messages. Was it finally King Bowser? Everyone had been waiting for him. The lucky koopa was to get a higher position in the army. Seigal quickly picked up the receiver. "Hello?" He said. "Helloke? Tracked...Markio's...helck..." The transmission ended. Seigal shook with excitement. Could it have been King Bowser, trapped at Mario's house? What could be assumed was that someone was trapped at Mario's house. ...But that was it. Seigal didn't know anything about the mission with Bowser traveling to the Mushroom Kingdom, except that it was happening. Could Bowser have stopped at Mario's house to finish him in Mario's sleep? Could a fellow koopa be trapped? Seigal knew this was his big chance. He was going to rescue him-or them-right now.

"Buffoons! Half-wits!" Peach's annoyed cries echoed in the distance. Penter could hear her every word. But did it matter? The point was that Penter was going to have a new beginning. Away from Peach. Away from the Toad's that support her. He was leaving the Mushroom Kingdom once and for all. He looked back to the days when he was a small Toad child. Mitch was in his school classroom. There was always a huge map of the Mushroom Kingdom and nearby areas. To the north, the cold, Icoa regions lay. To the west was the forest, which for thousands of years, has had no name. To the south, forest. But to the east... Penter looked forward. Far in the distance, a sprawling desert lay. No one knew what lay beyond the desert. It was known as the Shifting Sands Desert. Almost nobody ventured in. Penter smiled. For a life on the run, this was the perfect place to escape to. "RUN FASTER!" The screaming echoes of Peach sounded in the distance behind Penter. Behind him, an army of Toad Guards were on their way. "Time to run." Muttered Penter, running into the uncharted desert.

Seigal looked around. No one was around. Good. He continually shifted around the wall just in case, however, as there were always guards at the gates. Seigal could hear guards talking. Seigal stopped to listen in. He would have to stop for a while anyway, they were gate guards. "Haven't you heard? The planting group heard something in the forest. Some kind of explosion." Said the Guard, looking nervously around. "What's your problem Qwerty? You act so paranoid when you tell me stuff." Qwerty's anger could be heard in his voice. "I'm not supposed to tell you this stuff. It's confidential. Top Secret. However you wanna say it." What were they talking about? Explosion? "What??? It's top secret? But...it's just a explosion..." Murmured the other guard. "No, you don't understand. From the lights, they could tell it was Magikoopa. But it was so powerful. Most powerful thing in recorded magic history." Whispered Qwerty. "WHAT?" Gasped the guard, loudly. "Quiet down! We don't want everyone to hear us. Come on. Let me show you the papers. Just don't say anything, and the plan might go smoothly." Smirked Qwerty. They disappeared around a corner. Finally. Thought Seigal. He quickly escaped through the gate. Time to rescue King Bowser

[magikoopa189]

PART 6

The eerie sounds of meat being chopped up continued in the kitchen, SLAPTCH, SPLOTCH. ...With a crowbar. Luigi was in a terrible situation. The last thing he remembered was Mario swinging his crowbar at Luigi's head. Now it was night. It was raining outside. More chopping. What was Mario doing in there? Luigi turned his head to the kitchen. He immediately wished he hadn't. The Magikoopa bodies were all over the floor. At least chunks of them. Mario was chopping... blood running down the kitchen floor...the color RED. Red. Luigi had to escape. If Mario thought he was dead, then Luigi would soon be a grisly meal as well. He crept under the covers, and crawled from the bed. He could ONLY crawl, however, guaranteeing a long journey. Soon, Luigi was crawling over the blood of the unfortunate Magikoopa, red getting on his beautiful green cloths. Ugh. Mario started laughing in the kitchen. The sound of the crowbar echoed through the house, a gory song of failure, being murdered by a madman. After what seemed like 4 hours, Luigi was at the door. A small crack left it open, and he pushed the door. Outside, the rain was even more violent then it heard. Huge, fatal mud puddles were everywhere, threatening to drown a human- or a Koopa. Luigi knew he had to make it to the warp pipe, to get to Princess Peach's Castle to warn everyone of Mario's insanity. But when Luigi looked in the pipes direction, it was broken, destroyed. Then the forest was Plan B. According to a map Luigi once saw, Peach's Castle was to the Northeast. Time to crawl. Through the mud, and the drowning rain, crawled Luigi. A Raven pecked at him, but he continued, through the nasty mud. Right before Luigi got to the forest, the house door slammed open. "MEAt! WhErE iS mY mEaT?" Screeched Mario, an unearthly sound. "No." Cried Luigi, crawling faster. "MeAt!" Screamed Mario, running at Luigi with his crowbar. "No!" Cried Luigi again, face falling in mud. "ChEwY mEaT!" Screamed Mario, plunging the crowbar into Luigi's head.

"Blasted rain." Muttered Seigal, continuing across the mudflats to the Ancient Forest (It is known by this name by the Koopas). Seigal guessed that Mario's house was northwest, along with Peach's Castle. Word of mouth was that Mario's house was somewhere in the Ancient Forest, hidden in a clump of trees. SPLAT! "And blast mud too." Added Seigal. Just another unfortunate circumstance in Seigal's life. What next? Mud monsters? "Ughhhack." Gasped a voice coming from the mud. Seigal jumped back in surprise. Couldn't he get a break? A claw reached from the mud, clawing away the mud, revealing the thing underneath. But it wasn't a thing. It was King Bowser! "Ki-King Bow-bowser!" Gasped Seigal. King Bowser? In the Mud-flats? "Lack wordks." Croaked the muddy voice. "What are you doing here? What happened?" Asked Seigal, excited beyond words. This was his chance! "Waterck." He gasped. ...Water. Seigal had brought some along. He didn't need it anymore now that he found Bowser. Seigal had barely brought it out when Bowser snatched it. He downed all of it in one gulp. Then he started speaking. "Last...words... I'm too weak to live. Too many...attacks. But...you gave me water. You are making my end bearable. For that... you will be my successor." Seigal choked. This was beyond what fame he had expected. "You...here...this will prove your...royalty." Gasped Bowser. From under his huge left first claw, he pulled out a gemstone. "Th-thank..." Started Seigal. "NO! You must know what I know... there is a Black Caped Magikoopa. It has powers of a god that even it cannot truly grasp. You must...HACK!...beware it. Because...it's...still...." Bowser died.

The coffin lowered into the mushy ground, still wet from the previous night. Toad's stood in perfect files, head's down. The mood was shallow and disturbing. The Mitch fan club stood by a tree, loudly, and dramatically, sobbing. Even the men. Soon, the grave-diggers started to fill in the grave, the coffin slowly disappearing beneath soil. "Let's go now. I want that freak hunted down, and we don't have much time before he gets away."
"Which one, your highness- Bowser, or the toad?"
"Good words Blibby, but the freak we speak of is...the toad. Bowser would be impossible with his filthy troops."
"Yes, your highness."
Soon, the toads at the funeral had all journeyed back to the castle, except for the obsessive Mitch group, and the gravedigger, a lonely shy-guy. Every once in a while, a toad would jump to the grave, and start trying to dig Mitch's body back up, sobbing a storm. The grave keeper would have to wack the annoying toad, and/or toads, as sometimes 3 or 4 would leap upon the grave. It would be hours later that the toad's would finally their grave tirade, and leave the grave keeper in peace. In their obsessive way, it wasn't over yet.


SLAM! The door to the Koopa Kastle's main entry room slammed open, and Seigal marched in, clutching the beautiful gemstone. Roy jumped in his way, but Seigal shoved him away. "Where do you thin-" Seigal revealed the gemstone with 2 fingers, taunting his former bully. "Whuh-whuh-Zizix?" Gasped Roy. It was like that with all the other Koopalings he met. Other koopa's simply were stunned by the beauty, as it seemed diamond. Also walking past Qwerty, and the dim-witted guard he was scheming with. Finally, he came to Ludwig, Bowser's eldest son, the one who was, without word, guaranteed to be Bowser's successor. And then Seigal showed him it. Ludwig swore, his previous ego popped like an oversized balloon. He cursed, swore, (said every word that would ban someone that said it from gamefaqs.) Seigal knew that he had great power. He wouldn't have to wait for Ludwig to end his magnificent temper tantrum. "Stop screaming you freak. You are a son of the late Bowser, and my new General. You have great responsibility, and honor." Seigal didn't know where the words truly came from, but they worked, Ludwig slowly making his way back to the overcrowded desk, which was filled with gadgets, back to the position he was in when Seigal had walked in. Ludwig was still full of torment however, and his head slammed against the desk. "So, what exactly is this Zizix?" Said Seigal. "Revolution." Muttered Ludwig. The sound of pounding echoed from the hallway...a crowd was coming

Snap. Crack. The blood covered creature dragging through the forest was making no effort to conceal itself, but it didn't need to, its strange weapon dangling with blood, just daring any creatures to attack him. Although, some were foolish, thinking Mario's broken leg would slow him down. It cost the goomba and the wiggler their lives, only adding to the disturbing painting on Mario's Crowbar that only painted one color: Red. And, if you looked deep enough, right before Mario insured your grisly death, you could see a sinister glint of silver. Silver and Red. After 2 hours of creeping through the bland forest, Mario finally came to see his goal, a great distance away. He had traveled Northeast, thorough the forest, heading to find Peach. She was to be the next victim. He had made a slight miscalculation however, and came to the Muddy Route, the large patch of brown west of the castle. But Mario was lucky. There, in the distance, some 3 miles, was Peach and some of her Elite Toad's, making their way to the castle. They were coming from the north, from the Graveyard. They had buried fresh meat. What was wrong with them? Fresh meat is delicious... Mario would be able to catch up in an hour, stalking the Princess at a distance. Then he would wait for the Toad's to leave and... With Mario insane, he was completely oblivious to the extreme pain in his leg. He started running.


Far, far to the Southeast, another figure was in a slightly similar situation. The figure was in the forest, bleeding horribly. Only a few figures recognized the figure, and as a Koopa, the goomba's didn't attack. "Mud-no...no..." But there was no mud. Only leaves, 20 inches deep of leaves. Fall was almost over, winter was coming, but their was no mud. Not anymore. The Koopa realized this soon enough, and got up, dumbfounded and confused. The last thing he remembered was... going into battle. Kan shouting...the colors Red and Green. ...OF COURSE! He was with the new batch of soldiers, going up against Mario to scout out the land. And... Then he was horribly wounded. In the mud, crippled, rain, Bowser and the rest of the troop not seeing him... and then nothing. Everything was gone. What had happened? He couldn't remember. At least 24 hours of memory...gone. He got up. He, Wes, felt better then he looked, blood everywhere. But...there was so much blood! Some of it was somebody else's. But who? Interrupting his thoughts, a nasty laugh sounded. From the ground, a book flew over to Wes, floating in air. "What the-?" But it wasn't as much of a surprise as it should have been. He had seen this book before somewhere... "Ah, you are awake Wes." Said the book. That voice... "Where...am I?"
"You’re in the Ancient Forest of course." Said the book. It called the forest "Ancient Forest.", so it obviously had Koopa roots of some kind. "But...what's been happening...?"
"Don't you remember? We're best friends! When I found you in the Shifting Sands Desert, you were almost dead, and I nourished you back to health. And then you showed me that amazing magic trick where you say 'Power', and something good happens? And then that guy in the red hat said that Bowser was captured at Peach's Castle?" The strange book said this in a innocent voice, yet something about the book... "Bowser's at Peach's Castle?" Exclaimed Wes. If he saved Bowser, he would get a high-rank almost immediately. "That's what Mario said. And that if you said 'Power' you would be warped their immediately." This was beyond strange, his memory missing, and a book that talked. But their was no time to wait. He didn't even notice his strange clothes. "Power!" To him, it sounded like a dumb-catchphrase. Unfortunately, certain catch-phrases cause catastrophe. As in this case.

[magikoopa189]

PART 7

It was raining again. For Princess Peach, it was nothing, as she was in her warm castle, looking out the gloomy window. The rain splattered against the window ominously, chilling Peach. Her guards had gone, back to they're outside positions, and 2 outside her door. Peach listened. Then smiled. She was going to sneak out. She loved to do that. The first thing to do was always put pillows in her bed sheets, to fool any Toad's who wouldn't pull away the bedding. Peach placed pillows under the blanket, next- a feeling of worriness began to ail her. But...what is there to worry about? Thought Peach to herself. Nothing. ...But where is Mario? Peach hadn't thought of it at all. Where was Mario? Had Bowser... No, she mustn’t think such thoughts; she must wait for him, as she always had. "Oh Mario..." She whispered. THUNK. Something blunt hit the main door to her bedroom in the hallway. Someone was out there. "Be quiet! I'm trying to relax!" Yelled Peach to the guards outside. SPLAT! Another strange sound echoed from the other side of the door. Peach lost her temper. "BE QUIET! What the heck are you doing out there? I-" Peach opened the door, and time froze. It was a beautiful, ancient door, made by toads of ancient times somewhere in the misty past. It was almost a heirloom, a posseion, of priceless value. ...Not anymore. SPLATCH! A crowbar swung into the side of the ancient door, snapping it from it's silver hinges, and falling on Peach. Peach didn't even have time to scream. Above her, Mario dragged in, carrying the toad guard’s bodies. Peach, nearly out of breath, watched from underneath as Mario dragged into the room, his leg still producing disturbing amounts of blood, which turned to blood piles on the wooden floor, staining it, and creating a river of blood heading right for Peach's face. Peach groaned as the warm liquid touched her lips. HACK. Mario coughed, facing away from Peach. As far as she could tell, he could not see her. Hopefully? Mario turned to Peach's bed, and seeing the pillows-under-bed display, began swinging his crowbar violently upon the bed. Peach filled with terror. But she was stuck! The only thing she could shake was her feet. This was her only escape. Shake her way backwards and out. She started backwards, terror increasing, as Mario began to see no blood coming from the bed.

Evening. A few feet away from Mitch's grave, a band of toad's watched, paranoid eyes watching the swollen mud covering the grave, thanks to the rain. The shy-guy had finished piling long ago, and was back at his shack at the corner of the graveyard, opposite corner of the disturbing toads. Tenchai considered himself the leader of the strange Mitch crowd. It was probably due to his brother, Ryuan, who was the leader of the famous Toad Brigade, as it leads Tenchai to desire of leadership. Although, in trueness, Mitch was the true leader. He was what the grotesque-minded toad's always desired. To be him. To see him. It didn't matter why. It just WAS. And it would always be that way. Tenchai was sure the shy-guy gravedigger was a good distance away, so the operation began. "Come." Whispered Tenchai to the other toads, which started moving toward the grave. When they approached the grave, they brought forth the emblems, the symbols of their club- nay, they're cult, and set about the unholy work. Each toad had brought a shovel, and most were already digging as fast as they could. The grave wasn't very big, but the obsessive cultists had to have the body as fast as possible. Some of the toads accidentally hit each other with shovels, but they did not feel pain, for they were concentrating on the dead body, the body that feels no pain. Soon, the casket was hit, and the toad's wrenched it open. They gasped with delight as the super-fast-rotting corpse greeted their hungry eyes. They grabbed it and laid it on the ground. The ceremony of their worship could not wait. Tenchai quickly started drawing a circle on the ground around Mitch. Others drew complex shapes and math equations, all focused on the corpse of their affection: Mitch

The sound of pounding was already evident on the other side of the ornate door. Ludwig was grasping his hands with his head, the mysterious knocking breaking him down. But he was still speaking. "I have to explain this fast. That crystal, the Zizix, has been passed down through the royal Koopa family for 800 years. It was given to the ancient Koopa King, after the Age of Emperors, by a duplighost, whose name has been lost. The duplighost was a prophet, saying that 'When the Zizix be given to Koopa worth soil, destroyed will be the Koopa Royal.' My father is a fool. He has given you the Zizix, and you are a common Koopa- a Koopa worth soil- who has no power. ...Now you have it all. The fall of the kingdom means revolution, and you’re the new king! But-" CRASH! The door broke open, and showers of Koopas, Magikoopa, Paratroopas, Lakitus, Buzzy Beetles-any and all kinds of Koopas showered through, grabbing Ludwig, and carrying him out squirming. "Are you out of your mind? That's the son of Bowser!"
"Hush, King Seigal!"
"What-? What are you going to do to him?"
The Koopa's didn't respond. The door shut, and a horrible scream came from the hall. Blood rushed from under the door. Seigal felt sick. He couldn't rule a kingdom. What if Mario attacked? Or Luigi? Or...that mysterious thing that killed King Bowser? It wasn't just about being a lazy slob...
Seigal took a look at the strange Zizix. Was it only a tool of prognostics arts? Or was they're more?
"You go down that hallway. Roy will probably be there. Be creative. And you...that door. That's Wendy's room." The rest of the Koopalings were being hunted down. Were these Koopa's insane? He hadn't even ordered their deaths. Was something affecting their minds. Was there more to the magic of the Zizix? Wendy's high pitched scream echoed into the room.

Evening. An amazing paradox between the fight of day and night. CRASH! Peach's high-tipped shoe had caught onto a string that connected to a high cloth holding a small, mini-cupboard in the shape of a star. It crashed down onto Peach's leg, and she had to use all her mental power just not to shout out in pain. It felt like it was almost broken. Mario had heard, and started a festive scream filled with loud, aching coughs. The long crowbar in his hands glinted in a mysterious silver light. The crowbar. Peach had never seen it before. Before this incident. It was beautiful, a ancient work of art. But where did it come from? "GLINT!" Bellowed Mario, with-out-warning making his way towards Peach, and the rubble she was semi-trapped under. It wouldn't matter. If Mario investigated the noise to an extent, he would find her. What would happen next was something Peach tried not to think about. She started crawling backwards, the ache in her leg seeming to form a sprain. If Peach kept going backwards, she'd make it into the hallway. Then she could run, and get help. Sliding backwards, she had little time to wonder why she was sliding, and she quickly found out. Her heading coming out from under the rubble, she came into the hallway, right into the chopped up toad's, who had served her till' the end. She quickly got up, blood and a chunk of toad cap dripping down her dress. She couldn't take the nightmare anymore. Peach screamed. Mario's wild whooping came from the room, and chunks of the door came falling down as Mario chopped at the door with his crowbar. Peach started running, nearly sliding and tripping from the blood. Coming down a corner, she quickly climbed the stairs. Panic was tricking her. She didn't realize she would be trapped at the top. She climbed up the infamous endless stairs, forgetting she didn't have the Special Key with her. Although the distorted music was not real, the magic of the castle caused it to never end. Peach ran, sobbing and screaming, trying to escape from her old love. Suddenly, Mario was behind her, swinging the crowbar. Peach cried, trying to escape. But the stairs were a never-ending terror.

Before Seigal knew it, he was in Bowser's old throne. It was an ancient masterpiece, created even before the Age of Emperors, back in the Age of Lords, when the Koopa species hadn't proved its power yet. Jewels that told ancient tales encrusted it, and holes where jewels had fallen out, or stolen, were tales as well. Seigal told the guards where Bowser was, but they reported back, telling him the body had sunk into the mud. The day was strange. Everyone treated him like a King, because that's what he was. He was told secrets that only the royal of the Koopa's got to hear. He was given a secret book that told all the known secrets of the Koopa's, including the origin of the Zizix. The only thing he wasn't treated to was the affairs of the Koopalings. They were silently captured and executed. Only Roy and Lemmy had escaped. But search parties of hundred’s were already out, hunting them down. Seigal had never realized how big Bowser's army was, but there was more then 60,000, a vast army compared to how much were killed everyday. But the whole time, Seigal could not stop thinking about Bowser's words. A mysterious monster Magikoopa...in the woods... it was troubling. But was it a delusion? Tired of the mysteries, he opened The Book of Silent Terror. The secret book. Skipping to the last chapter, he came to a mystery that had puzzled him for a long time. Why capture Princess Peach? The page was sketched with pictures of Peach, and a star. Straight from the book-"Peach is known as the easiest to obtain of star kids. However, her power is hidden, and must be harnessed through spells." Seigal thought about it. Then he knew. It was his turn to capture Princess Peach.

[magikoopa189]

PART 8

CRAKA-THOOOM. Another violent thunderstorm had started in the midst of the night. Wes woke up to find himself in a destroyed room. The door had been smashed over, and the bed sheets had been torn. It was silent, except for a strange faint sound of padding feet. "What is this place?" Murmured Wes to himself. This couldn't be Peach's Castle. ...Or could it? The Power Book sprang out, the nasty grin frozen on its pages. "It's Peach's Castle, of course. Your wonderful spell worked. You're so smart Wes! But we need to get going. Bowser..." The book seemed to pause at this point. An awkward moment followed, as if something in a delicate plan had gone wrong. Then the book recovered, and began to grin even more broadly. "Bowser...he's at the top of the stairs. Here, let me show you." Wes had nothing to say. This was going to be easy. Bowser hated all things non-Koopa Troop, so he'd never expect the book to know the way. Ha ha, instant king-ship. Soon, they came to a door. The door led to long stairs. The top was beyond eye reach. Wes began the trial up. After some time, the book carried him up, with superb speed, and then, the sound of shrieking started up. 2 figures were up ahead. One behind the other. The one behind was about to pounce on the higher one. The book dropped Wes, and he continued running, but neither was Bowser. Instead, it was Mario and Peach. "Mario." Gasped Wes shocked. As the book caught up to the affair, the crowbar started glowing.

Toadsworth stumbled through the hallway, carrying tea. Toadsworth couldn't wait to please the princess. He had heard Peach enter the Long Stairway. Taking out his key, he gently placed it in the hole, and opened the door.

Suddenly, everything was chaos for the group ahead. Peach went flying into the wall. Mario hit the stain-glass window, cracking it. Wes tripped, and fell into Peach. Mario's Crowbar went flying. Right into the Power Book.

"Hm hm hm, hm, hm, hm. Hm. Hm hm hm hm hm hm hm-" Toadsworth loved humming the old ditty. It was one of his favorites. It was a shame it would be his last. BOOOOM.

The shock was amazing, the crowbar and the book went flying, the book in a face of concentration. The crowbar started glowing. The book started glowing. Then they disappeared. The shock completely destroyed the entire top of Peach's Castle, the entire tower. Mario, Peach, and Wes went flying into the dark night. The toads of Peach's Castle would never forget it, even though most of them died.

Far away, in the graveyard, as the spell was just completed, the explosion sounded. The trees blew, and the spells were glowing. The rotting corpse started floating. Lightning. A tree fell on a toad. The wind exploded and crackled. It was a magic night. But whether it was good or evil was unknown to anyone in the Mushroom Kingdom. Yet.

The journey almost immediately began the next day. The Koopa Troop was used to constant journeys, so everything seemed to go well. Instead of taking the weakest, however, Seigal took the strongest. A legion of Magikoopa's. A crowd of Koopatrols. A nasty mass of Lakitus, with almost unlimited resources of Spinys. The Troop was ready. Weaker Koopa's were left to guard the castle, with a few Koopatrol's thrown in, everything was seemed to be perfect. ...But was it? Seigal had been up all night, figuring strategy and calculations. Even when an unearthly explosion sounded to the northwest, he was busy. It was more then who go's and who doesn't. Food supplies were limited, and the Monty Moles who usually sold it from stealing from other kingdoms were busy preparing for winter. Seigal was even discouraged to stop, the problems insane and unsolvable. ...But he had read a interesting passage in the book: "Peach also contains amazing political power. No matter what she does, her people are always entranced in helping her." This was what Seigal needed. He'd capture her, and talk to her whenever an uprising or problem began. He needed Peach. There was no CHOICE whether to capture her or not. Some of the Koopa's seemed suspicious, such as a secretive duo Placenta and Qwerty. They had always been known to be trying something. But Seigal had made sure that suspicious characters came with on the journey, so they could be watched by the most powerful of Seigal's Troop. 6:00 AM It was dawn, and Seigal wanted to make sure to leave as early as possible. Reading from a great list that had all the names of everyone who was going, he finished at 11:00 AM, and seeing the time, rushed everyone going out. Without much lag, the journey began. First, they would have to cross the Koopa Marshlands. Then they would enter the Ancient Forest, and curl along the side near the Shifting Sands Desert, and then attack at an angle, surprising Peach. Taking out a distorted map, he found it unreliable, as it only mapped the area around Koopa Kastle. Cursing, he called on Placenta, the dumb, but reliable geography-master. But after some silence except the pounding of feet, Seigal called again. But Placenta was not with them. He and Qwerty had snaked off the journey, leaving the Troop, already miles away, being lost.

"Hah ahah! What a fool! The new King has already been checked!" Qwerty and Placenta were in the Library, the ancient place filled with priceless history. Reading a book, Qwerty laughed. "It's true! All we have to do to overthrow the government is to acquire the 'Zizix'. All the emperors and kings have had it, apparently. And according to this bo-" Placenta hadn't even been listening. He was reading a old storybook titled "The Legend Of Smithos".
"PLACENTA! Stop reading that! We'll be the new kings in no time!" Qwerty swiped the book, and threw it into the fire. Facing them, the pictures of a mechanical creature with a round head and star in the middle of its chest was destroying a shrine. What happened next would never be known, as the book curled up in flames. Placenta looked sick.
"Anyway, the king must always leave the Zizix in the castle. Placenta-all we have to do is find it, and we are the new kings!"
"Whuh happened to Booser?"
"Bowser you mean? I don't know. But by the time he come's back, we'll be the rulers! Ha ha ha!"
"Huh huh huh! Wuhtta short plan!"

No one would ever know if it was the lightning, or the spell itself, but Mitch was walking-again. At first, he stumbled, black eyes sightless. Then he spoke. "I...walk...again?" His voice was different. A deeper voice. "Mitch!" Cried out a toad child. The un-dead Mitch stared at the child. "Mitch?" He replied. The toad's looked closely at him. Something different about him. Beyond the rotting body. Mitch stared at his own body, and cursed. "Weaker body? Rotting and weaker?" The cult had no idea what he was talking about anymore. He was Mitch-wasn't he? "What year be it?" Rasped Mitch. Tenchai spoke up. "It's the same year as when you...fell. 6479 A.S." Mitch struck out at Tenchai, sending him sprawling. "Tis' not the same year! What is this 'A.S.' you speak of?"
"After Smithos. Time relies on the myth." Said the same toad child from before. "AFTER Smithos?" Muttered Mitch. Something was important about it. Beyond the glossy eyes, a spark of amusement and annoyance was in his eyes. "Remember, Great Mitch? The great legend...from an unspeakable dimension, Smithos came, and almost destroying the world-"
"He suddenly fell." Finished Mitch. His eyes closed. "They never knew why. And it was so mysterious; they thought it was fake, didn't they?" Whispered Mitch. The toads muttered. Something was weird with Mitch. Mitch broke the silence again. "Who destroyed this body?" He asked, the chilling air hiding a horrible secret. "You-you mean your body? The...the evil Pencer!"
"Pencer?" Said Mitch. The toads were starting to get suspicious. Opening, and then closing his eyes, he announced "Don't you mean Penter?" The toads nodded. Of course this was Mitch. How could it be anyone else? "Where has he gone? We shall hunt him down."

2 days. 2 days in the horrible desert. He had trekked for unknown miles. Now he had completely lost direction. It felt like he was going...? He didn't know. His hunger was gnawing at him. His thirst drying him up. The tiredness knotting him up. If he didn't reach the other side of the desert soon, he would be doomed, and he knew it. By now, he would rather have the toad's rip him up then be out here. But it was too late. Going back would take even MORE time. 2 more hours passed. He couldn't take it anymore. He was going down. No water. No food. No sleep. Just as he gave up all hope, and began to plunge himself into the flaming hot sands, he spotted the end. The end of the desert. It was mire. It contained WATER. WATER. WATERWATERWATERWATER. Penter flung himself in the bog, licking up the water, ignoring the disgusting mud slurping into his mouth. After a while, he got up. It was a long mile, but even with the mud, there was water. He had made it beyond the desert, he had made it farther then any- Interrupting his thoughts, he heard a long groan. The Koopaling crawled out of the mud. At first, Penter panicked. Then he thought about it. What if he joined the Koopa's? Peach was a monster. How had he never noticed before? And even if he tried to come back, the weight of killing Mitch was there. His cult would slice him to mush. He coughed. "A toad?" He gasped. "A Koopa?" Retorted Penter. Roy was being serious, however. "You-you...I don't care about the toads anymore. You can't enter here. The Koopa's...something's wrong with them. Something's altered their minds. They can't think rationally anymore. They only think about their-HACK-new king! Because Bowser died." Penter was not worried. He would convince this "New King" that he could be reliable. He pushed the Koopaling aside, and they went separate ways. Roy to the desert. Penter into the bog. He stopped, and then turned around, calling to Roy. "Who is this 'new king'?"
"They call him...King Seigal!"

[magikoopa189]

PART 9

South of Toad Town's crop fields, and west of the desert, in the massive forest, is Grove Village. It was one of those towns where everyone knew each other, and was very social and happy. Everyone always knew that Ironel was the kindest, most thoughtful of all, always happy. Something you must know, however, is that the entire village was comprised of women. No men. A few children. 2 boys. That's why it was so mysterious and shocking when Ironel was found to be pregnant. She didn't know how it happened, and swore that she knew no one. And it was true. Even more absurd, was the baby was growing so fast, that days churned like months, the baby growing faster then possible. And then...at midnight, an explosion took place, somewhere from the castle. And then Ironel gave birth.

Winter already? Was it? The frosty cold of winter stung as it hit the skin, a thousand knives falling from the sky. But how could it be winter? It was only fall, and then... Wes opened his eyes. The snowflakes that landed on his face stung the hardest. Brushing them away, he slowly stood up, the impact forcing upon him. Why was he in a desert? The last thing he remembered...that stuck-up giant Koopa. Wes looked down. His strange clothing was shredded. Was that from... King Bowser? Feeling his face, he jumped in surprise. A huge scar was on his face. This was from Bowser. After trying to figure how large the scar was, Wes looked around. Immediately, his eyes caught a ...princess? Princesses were real? Not another ...creative thought? There wasn't enough time to check, as the princess woke up, mumbling something about a tower. She didn't stay ignorant for long. "Koo-koopa!" Cried Peach falling backwards. What was her problem? "Yes, and your a-...human?" The word flung back to his main thoughts. How many hidden words were there? "Don't...don't hurt me! I've already gone through enough!" The princess sweated. Then she calmed down a little. "...You’re not like other Koopas. Most would already have captured me. Yet...you are like them, aren't you? That's the whole reason you were in that midnight blitz, right? For your nasty King Bowser?"
"King Bowser? That gloating freak?"
"Gloating, eh? You’re still an original. A NICE Magikoopa! Hah. You’re not fooling me."
At this, she started to run. He didn't really care. She was severely misinformed royalty. ...She didn't make it far in the snowy desert. From out of the white winds, a sleigh knocked right into her. Nobody even saw what happened, because of the severe winter state. Except Wes. Peach went flying, right into the deep, cold snow. The sleigh stopped, and a penguin hopped out, running to Peach. Wes, figuring he would be able to get some solid info, walked to the figures. From that point on, an unlikely trinity was born.

As the hour's grew, and the twilight set in, the baby developed even faster, hours working like months, and within 4 hours, Ironel was rushed to the small, but faithful medical house. The last baby had been born 5 years ago, and the baby's fast development didn't help the rushed doctor who ran around, yelling orders for the untrained nurses. No one had expected another child...and so soon. "No! NOT THAT ONE! The one labeled... ...I told you... it's... ...YOUR IMPOSSIBLE..." The voices faded in and out, the pain immense, even more due to it being the fastest development, in perhaps, history. As far as the people in Grove Village knew. "NO! Don't drop it... ...why'd I hire you? You’re..." Another voice "...ARrrrgh! Smithos!" Someone swore. "Do you know how much this is? Those Monty Moles have ridiculous prices! ...SO STOP DROPPING THEM!"
"Ooops!"
What were they doing? What was happening? The pain was horrible, a mixture of sores and knives, everywhere. When would it end...? Or was this hell? Did she die? And all the things no one knew she had done...had they given her hell? The pain...Yes, this was hell, wasn't it?

The cold snow blew across the chilling winds. Peach groaned for the umpteenth time. Wes smiled, and ignored the greedy princess. Or was she greedy? Was she really feeling annoyance? He glanced over. She was buried under 6 blankets. The real question was, how could she groan through those? Abz interrupted his thoughts. "-They call it The Legend Of Smithos around here. We penguins enjoy the old tales of the world. This one's my favorite out of em' all, whether 'The Sacred Scrolls' or 'The shattered-'"
"...Smithos" Muttered Wes. That name...it didn't sound familiar. It FELT familiar, as if he had felt a presence of something. He had to learn more. "Go-go on. Tell me...this 'Legend of Smithos'"
Peach groaned beneath her blankets.
"That's the spirit. Besides, I tell it to myself even when no one else is with me!"
Peach rudely groaned a 3rd time.
Abz looked a little annoyed, but began anyway.
"Many, many years ago, or if you believe in the legend...6479 years ago...the world was finally at peace, the great war that tortured the land and the people all over the planet, due to the Guyte Invasion. It had finally ended, and the Treaty of Shy Guys had been signed, stating the Guyte's could live here on this side of the world, but would have no kingdom, and to be known as Shy Guy's. And 12 months passed, that day, which the ground rumbled. From deep in the Ancient Forest, a ripped hole in the fabric of dimensions revealed Smithos, a great being, powerful beyond anything. He was unstoppable. Countless lives were lost, sadness and sorrow filled the world, as Smithos was unstoppable. ...But as the mighty Smithos began it's finally swing, the swing to take down the rest of the lives and souls on the earth..."
The silence was a torture. Was this some kind of game? Thought Wes. Abz had fallen silent. Is this to see how patient I am? Wes grew annoyed at this, and about to destroy the game, Peach's voice came up.
"What...happened?"
Abz smiled. "He fell. Destroyed. He simply fell and disappeared. No one knows why. He just died. It's a great mystery, so great, and impossible, that it is believed a fairy tale. However, it is fact that 6459 years later, the portal was opened again, in the form of Exor. Many believe that the dimension Smithos and Smithy came from was the Factory. Essentially hell. There are also some who believe that the Factory is the true culprit, creating endless Smithy’s. Peach shook. She had gone through an experience with Smithy, and like all who have, it is pure terror.

The simple plan was executed in about a hour. Placenta's blunt punching power knocked Koopa guards into unconscious. The one's guarding Seigal's room were pathetic and weak, and one was even killed accidentally from Placenta's power. Qwerty didn't really care anyway. It was all part of the plan. Qwerty and Placenta had broke into Seigal's amazing bedroom with ease, and began searching for the Zizix. It was obviously going to take precious time, as the room was annoyingly behemoth sized. Hidden closets and rooms were constantly being found, and Qwerty began to think the bedroom was larger then the castle even looked on the outside. But then he'd simply, calmly, remind himself, he was winning the game. Seigal was losing, and Seigal couldn't do anything. Because Seigal was out there. Qwerty was on the inside of Seigal's weakness, plotting, deceiving, lying, and in the end, becoming the Koopa King. But what was the greatest of all the facts was that it was so EASY. Seigal had left the weakest of guards here. He was too unprepared to be a king. Too confused. He did not know the ways and laws of the Koopa Government. In fact, he was probably uneducated, not even knowing history facts, like the years of the Age of Lords. Ha! He was such-CRASH! Actually, it was two crashes. Placenta had accidentally found ANOTHER hidden room. The wall had collapsed on him, and now he was on the ground. It was also the sound of the door to the hallway coming down. 3 nasty looking Koopatrol’s smashed in instantly head butting at Qwerty. The Koopatrol was fast, but Qwerty was faster, dodging out of the way just in time, but running into the collapsed Placenta. Qwerty swore and tripped over Placenta, flying into an ornate wall. "Oh no. The terrible Klutzy and Pathetica trying to destroy the great Seigal’s room. We knew you simple-minded rats were up to something. You think you’re so clever, but we knew you plotting all along!" The Koopatrol’s to the sides sprang out, one at Placenta, and one at Qwerty. Placenta had gotten up, but now backed up in fear, and knocked into a still crumbling piece of the passage, sending a torrent of stones on the Koopatrol. Qwerty, a Koopa of speed, jumped up just as the Koopatrol smashed into the wall beneath him. However, he landed on the spike, and jumped up into the air, landing on Seigal's soft bed. The wall to the right side of the bed suddenly moved away, revealing a passage. "Wow. You’re so impressive. Maybe you should get a metal, long tipped trophy. Get the point?" The lead Koopatrol rammed at Qwerty. Placenta picked up the Koopatrol collapsed under rubble, and threw it at the lead Koopatrol as it crossed the room. A nasty CRACK went out, and the LK screamed in pain. His skull had been fractured. The last Koopatrol didn't ram anyone however. Instead it took out a wand from its armor. Qwerty groaned. Could this get any worse?
No one was sure what would have happened if Placenta hadn't sprang into action, but it would have been bad. Picking up the still whimpering Lead Koopatrol, he threw it at the Magitrol. It also helped a window was right behind the hapless Koopas. They smashed into the window, and fell out it, the glass on the floor leaving blood stains on the carpet. "Thank...you." Muttered Qwerty, and they left it at that. The bed passage that had been opened was very short, for right inside was a small crystal. Qwerty greedily grabbed it, and observed the shining gem stone. "Kill Seigal" suddenly echoed through the castle. Qwerty put down the crystal, and looked out the window in disbelief as koopa's left the castle, going into the marshlands. What was wrong with them? Was Qwerty and Placenta the only one's not hypnotized? Or was it because they had the crystal? He watched the last Koopa leave, looking for blood. They're goal: kill the fake king, Seigal.

[magikoopa189]

PART 10

Penter had ran through the Crop Fields. Crawled through the desert. And swamped through the nasty Marshlands. He had finally made his goal: Koopa Kastle. By the time he had gotten there, the last few Koopa's were leaving the castle, heading into the lands he had just escaped. But where were they going? Were they going to capture the princess? If Bowser was with them, (which would be foolish considering Bowser's horrible beating...by a toad) Penter decided that he might be able to control the castles famous traps, as too gain dominance above Bowser. ...This was all in the hope Bowser or any koopa's were in the castle. Penter took a chance and walked silently through the large door left open by the leaving troopas. The castle was cold and airy. The feeling of rot came from what Penter assumed to be the dungeons. In feeling, it was a gruesome place, an evil place. But was it evil? The Koopa Wars had been going on for at least a thousand years. Because the name "Koopa" was posted on it, it was assumed the Koopa's were the scum of the planet. ...But were they really? No one even knew how the war had begun...
"I can't imagine how it worked." Came a voice from the staircase. Penter hid behind a large statue labeled 'Laribdus the Scribe'.
"I mean...it's just a crystal. How could such a powerful enchantment be in it? It control's thousands of minds. It's simply...diabolical."
"I can't even count that high!"
"It'd be nice if it could control your stupid mind into a smarter one, Placenta!"
"Don't be so mean. If Boozer was still here, he would whip you or sometin'."
Penter had heard enough. Bowser was obviously gone. Where, who knew. But somehow, these two morons... Placenta and...? Were in charge. They talked too loud. Perhaps they could be convinced of Penter's plan. Penter stepped out from the statue. Placenta jumped, and the other one nearly dropped a strange crystal to the floor.
"A toad? A weakling? What are you looking for? We have no time for you."
"I'm here to compromise. I hate Peach too."
Qwerty didn't really care about Peach. He only wanted to be king. But this wacko toad...no toad's hate Peach. It was almost a law. All the toads loved Peach, even if she did horrible things to them. Was this guy insane? Elegantly stepping down the staircase, Qwerty confronted the toad.

Across the Muddy Route. Past Toad Town. Mitch's group had been walking endlessly, towards the Shifting Sands Desert for hours. Mitch still was acting weird, and Tenchai was getting nervous. Did the great Mitch want to kill Penter, or does he want us to kill Penter? It was a VERY serious question. Mitch seemed to have unearthly power. He just kept walking. Everyone else got tired. But Mitch wouldn't stop. Eventually, the most insolent and rude members of the cult pleaded to stop somewhere, build up strength. Mitch would ignore them. But then, Mitch showed his annoyance, and the fourth time it happened, Mitch grabbed the toads arm and twisted it to point towards the forest to the south. Completely around his back. "Where? There? Sounds interesting." Said Mitch mockingly. The toad whimpered a little, and later, the arm was found to be broken. If anything, Mitch seemed more sadistic. Even if he was like a zombie, he acted as if something great had happened that had ruined everything. Death? No, it was beyond that. After birth...before death...but...
As confirmed in the scene above, the cult headed into the forest. The toad winced, not sure whether to be happy, or sad. Soon, they had a direct course, and soon they would rest. And whether or not they knew, or if anyone knew they were, they were heading straight for Grove Village.

Revolution. It was simple to the mind-warped koopa's in the camp. Anyone who had the Zizix was the new king. The previous person who had the Zizix was a fake. But were time's always like this? Had the cycle been working for centuries, a king is overthrown and killed, because another one found a crystal? Unfortunately, yes. Seigal was already in terrible danger. The koopa's took no time. Whatever they could find, large branch, thorns, and some simply took their brawn. They were going to kill Seigal. The ones with fists got to the tent first. They smashed the tent open, and violently attacked the sleeping bag. It would be 10 minutes later they would find it empty.

Seigal was running faster then ever, even after the time he had found Bowser. It was strange, but something had woken him up. By the time he looked around, it was gone, but the moans of "Kill Seigal" echoed around the camp. Somebody had found the Zizix. As Seigal escaped through a backwards flap in the tent, and started hopping over twigs and crackly leaves, he had already figured that this was Qwerty's doing. Qwerty had escaped from the journey early, and Placenta was too reliant on Qwerty to do this. It was definitely Qwerty, and the more he thought of it, the more angry he got, and started stepping on twigs and leaves without noticing. It was fortunate that he was far away from the camp by this time, or the mindless koopa's would have heard him. And what was Seigal going to do? If he returned to Koopa Kastle, Qwerty wouldn't even have to order him to be killed. Run to Peach's Castle? The toads would probably kill him without asking questions. Where could he go? To the far north, where the penguins trusted anyone? Too cold. The south of the Ancient Forest was famous for it's deadly monsters. The east was the desert, where a few koopa's roamed. He wouldn't be safe their. Could he go anywhere? The west...it was the best one. Many different species lived in the west. It was also a dangerous place, where pirates roamed, and everyone disguised their identities near the Sea. Better then the south. And so, Seigal began his most dangerous journey yet.

"Describe...Penter"
"Umm...the one who killed you. He umm...don't you remember?"
"Of course I don't 'remember' you idiot. Why do you think I'm asking?"
"Uh...sorry. Penter is a toad, and he-"
"Describe a toad."
" ...Well your one... (?)...and we're somewhat related to-"
"Do they run and scream? Do they cower and hide? I think I may remember them."
"...? Well..."
"Yes. I remember them, running for cover, screaming for help."
"Umm...Mitch?"
"What? Why are you bothering my thoughts again."
"The patrol toad's came back. They think they found a...village."
"So? ...Oh I see. Murder is still popular, is it?"
"What?"
"Isn't that why you found a village? Too kill everyone in it? Watch their terror and sadness? I thought you said you were toads!"
"I-"
"Yes, I need to kill somebody. I feel so... old and RUSTY without it."
"Killing...rusty?"

"The baby's alive, but..."
"Don't tell me...why did you rely on those apprentices? Especially on a mother giving BIRTH!"
"It's...it's not the apprentices fault. It's mine...I gave her the wrong poultice...after that..."
"..."
Ironel listened. They thought she was dead. But she was still alive. ...But why did they think she was dead? Right before she could make herself heard, another doctor burst into the room. "Dr. Carmen! The baby's struggling...we're doing everything we can!"
"No..."
The doctor burst out of the room, and her shout of "Stats!" Could be heard from the hall. The strange visitor. Left the room, sighing. Ironel got up. She was still in her old clothes, and she had to pull a white blanket off. Why did they think she was dead? Her baby's scream echoed through the hallway, reminding her to run. She burst out of the medical room, past the small office. A secretary saw her and fainted. Fortunately, the medical clinic was VERY tiny, and there were only three rooms. Ironel rushed into the Medical room. Inside, the doctors struggled over the baby. It was screaming and choking. As the doctors and nurses rushed for herbs and expensive mechanical devices, the baby started to choke, and required attention. As Dr. Carmen made her way again, she turned and saw Ironel. She slipped and feel, sending the herbs flying...right into the baby's mouth. The baby cried and screamed...and strangely instantaneous...the baby choked. The nurses tried to get something...anything to save the baby, but they were never prepared for this. By the time a nurse decided on just using fingers, the baby died. Ironel cried out, and shoved doctors aside, and picked up the baby. "Amythyst." Whispered Ironel. But the baby was dead. When Dr. Carmen saw the dead baby, she screamed, and ran out the door. Ironel walked out, carrying the baby. Into the village square. Toads and Shy Guys, and others watched her, swaying. The mysterious baby, born early, pregnant fast. And how? "Amythyst?" Something mumbled. The baby. The baby was talking. "Wha-what?" Gasped Ironel. "Amythyst?" The baby mumbled again. The baby was alive. THUMP THUMP. The sound of marching echoed through the woods. A crowd was coming. Mitch's cult. They entered the village square, as it was the closest thing to the woods in the village. The villagers watched silently as a strange looking toad that had grey and green skin step up to the front. "What be this village's name?" Asked Mitch.
A brave Koopa stepped up. "Grove Village. The village of roses."
"I don't care what it's 'of'. Who lives here?"
"Women. ...And children."
Mitch burst out laughing. "Women...women and children? Too easy."
"What?" Murmured Ironel thoughtfully.
"Kill them all!" Screeched Mitch. The toads looked as if to confirm, then ran out with branches.
The women broke off, and ran. Ironel was paralyzed with fear.
"Except that one. Break her legs." Mitch pointed at Ironel.
"Whuh-what?" Cried Ironel.
Tenchai ran up, and punched her in the face, giving him enough time to steal Amythyst from her. Ironel screamed, and started to follow, but 2 toads smashed branches into her legs. Ironel screamed, and fell to the ground. The toads continued breaking her legs, until bones poked through. It wasn't even halfway over, however.
"Run off and kill the rest. I'll deal with her. Slowly."
Mitch took Amythyst from Tenchai, and sat down next to Ironel. Amythyst started crying.
Holding her baby, Mitch grinned evilly at Ironel. He took out a knife from his previously unmentioned belt, and stuck the knife right under Amythyst's skin. Amythyst screamed, and so did Ironel.
"NO! PLEASE!"
Mitch laughed as he started skinning the baby, right in front of the mother who could not move.
"YOU *******! YOU MONSTER! YOU FREAK!"
"Insulting me will only make it worse for your baby. A unhappy ending gone even worse."
Mitch jammed the knife harder. Amythyst screamed again.
"STOP! Please. I'm begging you... please!"
"Ha ha. All the better. Your baby almost died, and through a miracle, it survived. Look what happens to miracles."
Amythyst screamed again.
"STOP...no...WHY? WHY?"
"Ha ha. This is so fun. Your baby was so smart, wasn't it? It was going to have a successful career I suppose. And now it dies early, never having a chance."
"Stop...stop...please...what is wrong...with you?"
"There's nothing wrong with me. I'm meant to torture. I'm meant to hurt. You shall die screaming, and so will your baby!" Laughed Mitch.
At this, the cult gathered in a circle around the disturbing group. They watched silently, some trying to hold back their truths, because they knew this was wrong. ...But Mitch was doing it. ...It was Mitch, right?
Soon Mitch finished. The baby cried one last time...and then really died. Mitch kicked it into the forest, as if trash. Ironel was already in a state of crying at this point.
"Kill her now. ...But make it quick. We need to find this 'Penter'." The cultists nodded, and beat her into a ditch. Ironel screamed for mercy, but the cultists were brainless, Mitch was their brain, and it said to kill. They left her, stuck in a ditch, and shoveled bodies on her, of all her friends. Then they left the once peaceful Grove Village, where the roses used to grow.

2 hours later...
The headache was immense, but the thing that hurt the most was her legs. Oh...her legs. They really were broken. They would not help her to escape from....? Where was she? It was so...warm here. And then she realized she was buried under bodies.
"Aaaahhhh!" She shoveled bodies off, and climbed out of the pit, onto fair ground. It was now snowing, and the cold wet snow relieved some of her stress. ...But not enough. It still burned inside her. Anger. Hate. Sadness. Sorrow. Terror. Fear. Confusion. Pity. Self-pity. They were too much. So many emotions... she felt a scar on her head. A gift left by her attackers. It was large, and unpleasant. And then she noticed the body in the woods. How had she and her child survived? They both seemed dead... now she was dead. She was to die, then to live then to die again... the emotions, so powerful...
"ARRRRRRRRGHHH!"
Ironel exploded from emotions. A swirling cloud shifted around her, like something from Dragon Ball Z. It brought power around it, and a 2 ton tree went flying 70 feet in the air. The clouds crackled from lightening, and it began to rain, and storm, and snow, and fire fell into the village, because Ironel emotions were immesnefully powerful. And her scar helped...it released them, even closer to the outside, where they became forces of magic.
"AAAARRRRGHH!"
A house that had been destroyed smashed into the woods. A nearby goomba was torn apart. A shy guy ran from the place, and soon, the village was a storm of chaos and weather. A true power. A dangerous power.

[magikoopa189]

Nothing that horrible will happen again, it was just a required part of the plot.

PART 11

"Ha ha. This is a joke. You’re a spy, right?" Smirked Qwerty. This was one dumb toad, even if their were a lot already. This one was even dumber.
"No. I told you. Princess Peach is a tyrant."
"That cute princess? Ha ha. That's pretty funny."
"It's true." Said Penter coldly. He was starting to hate this 'Qwerty'. He had driven out Bowser somehow, and was being very brash about relationships.
"I'm telling you. Tie me up in chains, I don't care, just let me help you conquer the kingdom without Mario problems. You'll see I'm valuable."
"I see your trash, but you are right. I should tie you up in chains. Guards!"
Two brawn guards emerged from the dungeons, carrying huge knifes.
"You idiot! You can beat Mario, and Luigi, whoever you want! I know all the secrets-"
"Lock him in the dungeons, and...let him rot."
"NO! You-"SLAM!
"Errr...Qwerty, I don't think that was a good idea. I think he really wanted to uhhh....help us."
"Shut up. You know nothing of the matter. Besides, I'm king. And your a idiot."
"Uhh...right."
But Qwerty was getting the annoying feeling that perhaps the toad WOULD be helpful. Even if the toad tried to escape, it would probably die in the marsh. No. Such thoughts were what brought down great leaders. Leaders...that reminded him...
"Where are those blasted guards? Haven't they killed Seigal yet? They should have come back."
The only guards still at the castle were the ones that had realized Seigal was already doomed with all the guards with him, so they had come back to help their new king. Qwerty was out of patience, as the guards were very weak, except the dungeon ones, and the dungeon guards had repulsive slime all over them. They were not fit for royalty.

"And then, the scrolls-"
"There's a jump!"
THUMP!
The sled almost smashed into the ground, but the weight of the group had kept it upright. If Abz had not found the other two, he would have been crushed by the sled.
"Stop telling stories...and pay attention!" Snapped Peach, trying to fix her crown.
Abz looked a little embarrassed, and soon the sleigh started again, bound for the southwest Fahr Fahr Outpost. From there, Peach and Wes would simply have to travel south to reach Crogo City, and take the Airship to Toad Town. Wes was interested in Crogo City, as Abz had mentioned it lay next to something called a 'ocean'. A vast body of water apparently. Then, Wes noticed something that made him feel dumb.
"Err...how is this sled moved? There is no..." He was going to finish with 'Snowman' but then he realized another memory had been restored!
"I thought you'd never notice. I've got a rare Undersnow breed. They swim underground, which makes this journey much faster."
"It's already slow enough." Grumbled Peach.
SPLOOSH. The sound of wet snow splashed from under the snow. But it wasn't the Undersnow's.
"Ice Blarrgs!" Cried Abz, panicking.
"What?" Said Wes quickly, and the beast that rose from the snow came quickly too. A giant Ice Blarrg rose from the snow, and began chasing the sleigh.
"What next?" Pouted Peach.

Far, far away, on the top of the great Mountain, Cookol Mountain, Mario lay in a heap. His crowbar lay several feet from him, glowing in the cool snow. And up above, a book watched, and laughed, the sign of a collapsed plumber stating the sign of the Apocalypse. The Crowbar glowed fiercely, stating Mario as its possession. The book continued laughing. If the Crowbar was so sure of Mario's ownership, it would almost be even easier, working behind the scenes with his own project- a moronic fool named Wes. How cute. A walking duck. Both of them. Mario and Wes. ...But there was one more out there. One more object that owned a being, and used it to bend minds. Wherever it was, was a mystery to the book, however. Mario budged, and the book, sensing something troubling happening to his pawn, disappeared. Picking up the glowing Crowbar, Mario screamed fiercely. Someone else needed to die.

Pad, pad. Any Goomba’s, or Shy Guys or Pidgets that tried to bite or smack the peaceful looking creature would die a messy death-blowing up. Ironel smiled every time it happened. Her emotions were destroyed, instead causing her to get the wrong ones during moments. Next, she blew up a Piranha Plant. She burst out laughing. Everything was wrong. Ironel tripped. She screamed in fury, and blew the ground apart, trying to kill it. It was chaotic. And yet...that's what power was. Another tree went flying. Any army that bonded with her would receive valuable power.

"MY CROWN!" Screamed Peach. The fast blowing wind caught it, and it blew with it, right into the mouth of the Ice Blarrg. It didn't even flinch. "My-my-MY CROWN!" Screamed Peach again.
"Shut up!" Cried Wes, trying to figure a way to stop the monsters from eating them. Abz cowered in a corner, shouting for the Undersnow's to swim faster every once in a while.
"We're DOOMED!" Screamed Peach again.
"Shut up!" Said Wes again.
"Go faster!" Whimpered Abz again.
"Don't just cower!" Cried Wes. The sled went over a jump. The Blarrg smashed right through the hill.
"Wes...do you need some help? It's me, your FRIEND Wes. I can always help you."
It was the POWER Book. Wes jumped in surprise.
"Where have you been? I-"
SMASH
Another hill was destroyed.
"Hurry Wes! Use my power! Just say 'POWER' and all your wishes-"
"Will the sled blow up?" Said Wes. No one else seemed to notice the Book.
"No, no Wes. I'd never let you get hurt. Never ever." Said the book. It's grin slicing through him, and glinting in the sunlight

"Expensive. Expensive, and now BLOWN TO BITS!"
In the great snowy expanse of snow known as Cookol Clearing, and scientifically known as the Icoa Regions, three figures were almost buried under snow, and pieces of wood all around them. Abz dug himself out and picked up a broken piece of wood.
"Almost priceless! And the Undersnow’s..."
At first, Wes was shocked. Then he was angry, as the Book had been lying. Brushing off snow, Wes also emerged into the warm sunlight. Peach was still buried, screaming and kicking, only her legs visible.
"Now we're truly doomed. Lost out here in the middle of Icoa. And if another Blarrg comes..."
Wes shoved the snow off of Peach. She exploded out, and tripped, landing face first in the snow next to Abz. But she was fast off her feet.
"What...how in the...? How...? How did this happen??? And my CROWN!" Peach finished the tirade with a scream, and started a temper tantrum.
"That is a mystery..." Said Abz. "How did it just blow up...?"
Had they not seen the book? Nor heard the words Wes shouted? If Wes ever met the Book again, there were going to be a lot of questions.
"No matter...we must head southwest. We are fortunate that Fahr Fahr Outpost should only take a day of walking."
"A DAY?" Screamed Peach. Wes and Abz sighed, and the long hike began.

"Amazing. That felt simply amazing. She was so tortured...it was so...horrible. So disgusting...so..."
The Mitch Cult was on their way to the desert, to find Penter, and supposedly kill him. Tenchai was nervous. They had just completely obliviated a peaceful village. Everyone had died, and two were maliciously tortured. Now they were going for another death, although Penter deserved it. He deserved to be tortured. Tenchai would continually offer the idea of torturing Penter alive over and over, but Mitch would simply laugh, and make Tenchai feel he needed to ask again later.
"Are there anymore townships in our path to kill and torture?" Asked Mitch to Tenchai. Mitch seemed to finally be figuring Tenchai as second-command.
"Hmm...Only Diblis, the great Koopa City. I don't think we could take down such a large area, though."
"Ha ha ha. Ridiculous. This...'group' can take down anything."
Right at that moment, a large area of trees blew up in flames.
Tenchai jumped in surprise. Had Mitch done it? It was so powerful...had Mitch gained these powers from the dead, or had he always had these powers?

[magikoopa189]

Oh crud. Now it's T+...

PART 12

"It's a secret to everybody!" Laughed the Jester. He was the most boring, most pointless Jester that Qwerty had ever seen-at least to Qwerty's perspective. Placenta was laughing ridiculously at the Harleyquin, oh well...he was mindless anyway.
"...and then Dimentio said-"
"Get out. You’re banished. You are to never be in the Jester business again, your jokes foul and unfavorable."
"But I AM a Jester"
"Shut up and get lost."
The Jester slammed out, sour at the new King Qwerty. He didn't even understand how the Koopa's had just gone insane over him. It was disturbing.
"Buht I liked dat guy."
"Shut up."
It was true; Qwerty was in a horrible mood. Some moron ancient emperor had ordered the dungeon be right next to the bedroom. And since this was the first prisoner in years, (As Bowser had killed most, and Seigal had even worked with any) Qwerty was the only one to enjoy the screaming of the prisoner.
"PLEASE! YOU IDOIT! I CAN HELP YOU!"
"Shut up!" Roared Qwerty, stuffing his head under a pillow. It didn't help. He had eventually left the room, and gone to the entertainment room to watch pathetic Jesters try out for the Royal Jester position.
Another one came in.
"Heh-heh-hello, I'm-"
"ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGHHHHHH!"
The annoying scream came from the dungeon. Qwerty slapped his hand over his face.
"Placenta...get the prisoner."

CRACKLE. Aaaahhhh!
Another Toad was crushed by a brick. Toad's scattered from the unfortunate one, tripping on bricks and other junk that had broken off from the castle. It was a nightmare. Toadsworth’s body had been found, as well as Peach and the entire top Tower exploding off. The Toad's were chaotic, screaming, tripping over things; and-having bricks fall on them.
The Toad Brigade, which had been off exploring the forest, had come back at the exact right time. They had helped clean up, and offered to look for Peach. Everyone agreed that the Toad Brigade should go. They were known as the bravest Toad's in the local Mushroom Kingdom. (Toad's in the Western Lands are tougher.) They finished up cleaning up the castle, and as they said their goodbyes, and left, Ryuan stopped, and went to a Toad, who just happened to be Blibby.
"Excuse me...uh..."
"Bluh-Blibby!"
"Uh...Blibby, have you seen my brother...Tenchai?"
"Tenchai? The last time I saw him, he was at the...Graveyard. ...He-he didn't come back."
Ryuan nodded, and left with the others.
"I have a feeling she's in the Graveyard...let's go."
"Are you sure? If she's not, she could be in peril...

"I was wondering when you were going to get the idea."
"Don't act mature now. Your screaming already proves your true feelings."
"That's nothing close to my true knowledge. If I hadn't screamed, you would still be sitting, wondering what you could of had."
"Just tell me what I want to know. If you don't, you'll get to enjoy the sweet embrace of cold, wet, stone. ...Actually, your screaming would be better left at the guiloti-"
"You won't need it. You keep forgetting I'm a TOAD. I know things about Peach's Castle. ...And the true weakness to Toad's."
"I don't need a true weakness. Toad's are weaklings already."
"Yes, but if Toad's have weapons, they can take out precious amounts of the Koopa Army."
"True."
"And since this 'Era of Toad Brigade' has started, Toad's are actually arming themselves with more, and more spears. Sooner or later, the Toad species will be a replica of the Koopa's, if they use the technology they are offered by..."
"E. Gadd... He's on everyone’s side though. Like a dirty Penguin."
"Yes, but since more and more of these...'Humans' are wandering onto the planet through Warp Pipes...and since most of them take the Toad's side...E. Gadd. is joining them as well."
"Disgusting. ...And annoying. ...But you know the Toad's weakness?"
"Yes...yes, I do..."

"No, no really. I don't need your help. I- OOOF!"
Abz slipped on ice again, and the crate landed on the ground. Peach sighed, and Wes watched the distant Cookol Mountain.
As soon as they had begun walking, Abz had found a crate, unbroken, and half covered with snow. The only surviving luggage of the sled. The others had wondered what it was, but Abz had simply said building material. Strangely, the crate slightly glowed. Abz said it was SPECIAL building material. Wes knew that it wasn't. He couldn't tell if Peach knew. Her face was screwed up from the cold, and every once in a while, she would start crying.
Getting up for the 5th time, and starting to walk again, the journey continued.
"Special building material? It glows like a Starman." Said Peach, through midst of showering tears.
"Starman? What's..." Said Wes.
"Your really stupid for a Magikoopa, you know that?" Said Peach. "It's like you were born a day ago."
"It seems like it." He replied.
Peach sighed. "Starmen are the most dangerous weapons in the world. Around 3 years ago, horrible massacres were started by the mysterious serial killer, The Yellow Mask. He used Starmen by the dozen, and destroyed entire cities. He was unstoppable. Eventually, the greatest leaders in the world agreed that Starmen be destroyed and outlawed forever. They smashed, and crushed, and soon, not many were left in the world. The Yellow Mask tried to find them, but only found two more. Without Starmen, he could not do much, and he disappeared. No one ever caught him. But his rein of terror is over..."
Wes couldn't see Abz face, but the crate glowed brighter. And Wes started to remember the terrors of colors...Red, Yellow, Green...
And the cold wintry land's winds blowed, and blowed.

"Shy Guys"
"...What? Did you say..."
"Shy Guys. That's it."
"That's...ridiculous...why..."
"Their cloaks. There's...theirs something horrible in the fabric."
"But..."
"It doesn't kill Toad's. It stabilizes them. They can't fight back. Like when the Shy Guys attacked Toad Town..."
"And then all we have to do is spear them?"
"I wouldn't advise killing them. You could use them as slaves."
"...And you?"
"Keep me as your advisor. Because I have more I can tell you. Once you conquer the Mushroom Kingdom, you will be the most powerful Koopa King ever."
"Not as much as the emperors."
"If you keep conquering, Bean Bean, Sarasaland, Jewel, Dinosaur land...all of those kingdoms can be yours. Just keep winning."
"Obviously, but..."
"You know the weakness. THE weakness. It's all easy from here."
Suddenly, a guard crashed into the room, sweating.
"Kih-King Qwerty! The...the patrol found something...a Toad, but...it...."
"Just say it!"
"It...It blew up 4 guards!"
"What???"
"You...you...have to see this. It's chaos!"

Never stop running. Never. Never. You never stop running. You just keep running. And what happens when you reach your goal? You realize there is no goal, and you keep running.
Through the forest, Seigal sped through, past the tree's, past the rocks. Past everything. Nothing was nothing except running. Seigal was getting great exercise from it all. But it didn't matter. What mattered was...? Seigal didn't know anymore. It was like everything had melted. His kingship had mulshed into...running. The world was nothing, because all of Seigal's goals. Had been destroyed. Now, all that was left was...Crogo City? The place of chaos and excitement? Where all sorts of different creatures blended together, and had fights, and speciesism was always...was that the life Seigal was forced to have? Or would he cross the unofficially named Crogo Ocean? Find a place where no one knows him? A distant island? A-BUMP!
Seigal had tripped on a huge rock. He went flying onto it, sprawled out painfully.
"Could this get any worse?" Muttered Seigal, getting up. But different from other times, things were actually better. The huge rock was actually a massive plateau, so far, you could not see it's end. And far away, with glittering lights, and far away shouts, Crogo City.

[magikoopa189]

PART 13

"It's like time and space has been distorted...it should have taken us two days to get here."
Somehow, the trio had made it across the great Cookol Clearing in 4 hours. According to Abz, it should have taken longer, and with the description of Ice Blarrgs, which lived in the center of Cookol Clearing, the Bob-omb residents of Fahr Fahr Outpost agreed. Upon arrival, Peach had immediately ordered the Bob-ombs to care for her. It was met with negative response, but Peach still got what she wanted. After greetings, and setting up a train appointment for tomorrow, Abz safely guarded the strange box in the middle of the village, glancing around, and pushing it a few feet every once in a while. Wes, who was behind a statue of a cannon, pretended not to notice, but it was hard, as Abz would start pushing away, more and more often, as it seemed like no one was outside anymore. After 1 more minute of looking, Abz quickly pushed the crate around a corner, and disappeared into an alley. By now, Wes was briskly sneaking behind him. Abz was a few feet away as he entered a wooden door. Wes wasn't sure whether to open it or not. But soon, he could hear speaking inside...

"What have you been doing? Talking to the bombs?"
"Of course...they would get suspicious if I didn't." That was Abz. The other Wes couldn't recognize.
"It doesn't matter anyway. Just give me the cargo."
"The cargo...I...something..."
"Where's the cargo? There-there's more then that measly package, correct?"
"The...the sled blew up and..."
"You lost the cargo? You only have one left? ONE. LEFT."
"I'm sorry. Really. I had...passengers. This Magikoopa-"
"What? What do you waste my time with now?"
"He calls himself Wes...he doesn't know it, but I know he blew up the sled."
"Did he have a reason?"
"I...I don't know."
"Magikoopa's just don't blow up sleds containing cargo...unless they know what's inside. ...Did you tell it?"
"No...No! Definitely not...if he knew our plans..."
"It's not 'our' plans. It's my plans. You simply brought the cargo...one box left. You do remember I told you specifically I needed 3? I NEED 3. With only 1...I can only destroy Fahr Fahr Outpost..."
"Wait...you needed two for Crogo City?"
"OF COURSE I DID! What do you expect? The biggest city in the world...except for Diblis..."
"You can still destroy Fahr Fahr Outpost, right? Won't that be enough attention for the Council?"
"No. Plus, I needed 5 for Diblis...and you bring 1. Even if I destroy Fahr Fahr Outpost, I won't have any for Diblis. You ruined everything...now I'll-"
"NO! ...No. Let me find 3 more..."
"You won't be able to. Besides...you worked so hard already. Don't you want to-"
"NONONO! No. No. Get away from me. I can find 3 more. I promise. If I don't, you can do whatever-"
"Yes. Yes...whatever..."

It was chaos by the time they got there. Bodies were strewn everywhere, and in the center of the blitz was a deranged-looking Toad, heaving and muttering gibberish. Qwerty sighed.
"What the-?"
The guard shook and spoke. "It...It just...blew up! And it's still alive...like a Bob-omb." Said the guard, and then he ran off.
The bodies on the ground were obviously dead, and Qwerty was starting to get nervous around the shaking, gibberish Toad.
"You...what's...your name." Addressed Qwerty.
The Toad looked up and smiled. "I'm Ironel. I'm so happy right now. Aren't you?"
The smell of rotting flesh due to the marsh toxins sliced into the thick air.
"What...are you? A...mutant Toad?" Murmured Qwerty. He could already picture what happened. The sour guards had been stalking around the Marshlands...(...Why?)...and had come across a mysterious Toad, walking through the Marsh, past Diblis. ...Heading straight for my castle.
"Me? Oh, I'm taking a happy time stroll you CREEP? WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?"
The Toad's sudden emotional change slammed into Qwerty's stomach. The Toad had a severe issue. It was interesting how the scar on it's head seemed to be letting out air, like a fissure. ...But what if it could be used as a weapon? Against the other Toads? Was it demented enough?
"Would you like to join me...?" Qwerty waited for the screaming response.
"Jowin? What's jowin?" It asked, confused now. "Join...me. On a...quest."
"W00t1111! I lovez teh quezts! Yez! W00t!!!!"
Although strange, and mental, this "Ironel" was going to be easy to use.

"Name." Muttered the gruff Tokotoko at the gate. It was a huge gate, and very appropriate as the entrance to a large city- Crogo City. "Uhh..." Seigal knew he couldn't give his real name. He would have to take a chance. "...Zizix." Muttered Seigal.
"What kind of name is that?" Sneered the guard. "...But it doesn't matter anyway. Get in. You'll find plenty of ways to die in there, coward. I can tell your one of those weak Koopas."
Seigal had found a strange cape outside the city walls. He had put it on to disguise himself, as the rumors of Crogo City were strange. Along with powerful Toad's and Shy Guys, stranger species such as Kumo's and bizarre powerful Koopa's called Nokobons. They were apparently fugitives from the terrible place known as Sarasaland, the place rumored by misfits to be the place beyond the impassable Whirlwind Desert. The great Mario had even said he had been there once, a terrible place of terror, and torture. Even worse then the state the Mushroom Continent was in now.
Seigal stepped into the muddy streets of Crogo City, and looked up at the huge Airship Station jutting out of the city. The real adventure began now

The door slowly creaked open. Wes quickly hid behind a huge trash can, watching as Abz walked out, looking around, and sneaking around again. He had left the cargo inside, and the door slowly creaked closed, whether by wind or by hand. Wes creeped out and watched Abz enter the warm Inn. Abz.... a traitor the whole time. The cargo...it was obvious that it was the famed and feared Starmen, or, Starman, as there was only one. But even one...as Abz had implied, it could destroy Fahr Fahr Outpost. But should Wes warn the Bob-ombs? Did it really matter? Wes slunk back into the cool shadows of the alley. He had no life. His memory lost to...? A accident? Or a attempted murder? RED. It burst into his thoughts, obscene and unwelcome. But what did it mean? Blood? That's all Wes ever saw. The blood of those eaten by Kooply. (What was the sheet things real name?) The blood of the giant in the woods, that Wes had almost killed...which left Wes with the scar. The soon to be blood of Fahr Fahr Outpost...wait. Bob-ombs...they don't have skin. They're machines. Nothing. But Peach would die. And if Abz found more Starmen...Crogo City would be next. But it wasn't really Abz doing it...the thing in the room. Wes looked at it. Would he go in? Confront whatever was in there? The shadows rose from the door, and heavy breathing arose from inside. Wes looked at the door for a long time.

A monstrous Nokobon stormed out of a bar and shoved at Seigal. He quickly dodged, and the Nokobon fell in a dirty mud puddle. Crogo City was a dangerous place, filled with foreign creatures, always twice as powerful as you. And many of them drank at bars, where they would swagger out, and become violent. Every moment was exciting, but dangerous, and Seigal had no coins. He couldn't buy anything. Would he have to go so low as to steal? He didn't even want to try. Suddenly, a huge Kumo smashed through the streets, and jumped at him. Seigal sprinted past it, but it jumped after him. A few Nokobons cheered, on the cracked sidewalks, and even one of the guardians of the Airships, a powerful Pionpi stood on the sidelines. They cheered: "Crush the ant! Crush the ant!" Seigal slipped down an alley, and the obsessed spider chased after him. Seigal started running so fast, he slipped into his shell, flying and bouncing off the walls. The Kumo jumped back, and, surprised at the sudden rebellion, retreated. After a few minutes, Seigal stopped, and rested against a huge black wall. He couldn't stay here long. This place was filled with horrifically violent monsters. He looked at the sky. Far above, an Airship left for an eastern destination. It was time to escape, and the answer was clear.

[magikoopa189]

PART 14

"Come-come on! We...we don't have much time...I...-"
"Abz...where's your cargo?" Asked Wes casually. He wanted Abz to be slowed down, as Abz was only leaving to escape his partner...almost guaranteed to be The Yellow Mask.
"My...cargo...? It...I...don't...need it. ....Anymore." Abz finished with a growl, and he shoved Wes into the sled (The kind Bob-ombs had gave them a new one). Peach was already in, her desire to return to her castle turning her stale and bitter.
"Hurry up Wes! You and the penguin have to get me to my castle! RIGHT. NOW."
Abz ambled into the sled after Wes, and climbed to the front. Somewhere in the town, a door slammed open. Abz immediately grabbed the reins, and quickly snapped a whip. The sled went slowly, as they had been given Bleezards, which better running. However, by the time Abz had been told this, he had put them underground. A tirade of curses had followed.
"Go...GO!" Murmured Abz, the Bleezards going ridiculously slow. Abz started to sweat, and Peach started to pout. Only Wes was looking at Fahr Fahr Outpost when a bizarre number of things happened. First, Ice Blarrgs attacked, exploding right under the sled, and sending the Bleezards flying, and right onto the ground, where they started to speed on the ground. Peach almost went flying off the sled. Just as Peach was grabbing the sled to stay on, buildings in Fahr Fahr Outpost started to fall, and crash to the ground. Screams echoed from the place, and thousands of explosions erupted from the falling town. Peach turned in surprise. Abz never even looked. A Blarrg smashed into the sled again, instead sending the sled even faster to the south, towards the massive Crogo City

"What do you want?" Growled the gruff Pionpi. Pionpi's guarded the Airships, and some controlled the ships as well. It was hard cold fact that Pionpi's were one of the most powerful creatures in the world. "I'd like to take a flight...where are the landing ports?"
"Heh heh heh. A disgusting squirt like you...what...a...Koopa? Want's a ride on a Airship? Bwah hah hah hah!"
"Yes. I would."
"There are only 2. Don't get your worthless hopes up. Besides...you'll never have enough money in your entire LIFE to get on ere'."
"Oh really...how much coins?"
"Humph...500 per passenger."
"Whuh-" Seigal stopped himself. Airships WERE new technology, and these were new, not the old kind like the Koopa's used to have. Those who actually got on, such as Mario, claimed it was even greater then the Axem Ranger's technology, a mysterious group of robots, created by the great Smithy. But Seigal didn't really believe it. According to most, the Smithy Gang was god-like.
"You have something to say?" Smirked the Pionpi.
"No." Said Seigal silently. He had to get on a ship, and this meant one thing...he had to sneak on.

"What...how..." Peach's words tripped and stumbled, getting nowhere to the point of why a town-like area had just literally exploded.
The Blarrg seemed to have disappeared, perhaps with a head injury.
Meanwhile, Wes struggled with whether to reveal Abz's secret to Peach, or the fact that he even knew the plot to destroy the cities to Abz. But when the additions and negatives came to view, Peach's extreme wealth would help in the quest to find his memory. Abz only USED to have a wealth, and the cargo was illegal anyway.
"Abz...it's a strange coincidence we managed to escape the city in time...don't you think?"
Abz grunted. He was starting to realize the scarred Koopa knew what was really happening. An escape from the invincible Yellow Mask.
"Isn't it strange that the explosions match those of the Starman attacks...?" Wes didn't really know what a Starman attack looked like, but he was getting the reaction he wanted from Abz, as he was starting to shake.
"And...They never caught the Yellow Mask...right?"
"Be quiet." Whispered Abz.
"Your getting worried Abz. You know where I'm going. I heard you. Talking with HIM."
Peach looked up. This was starting to get interesting. To Wes, it was part of the plan. Gaining Peach's trust was all in the schedule.
"No. I..."
"Hmm...Bargaining with the serial killer himself? He must pay much for your 'Building materials'. More like killing material's, eh?"
"That...he never said he would kill..."
"DESTROY. And what? For some council...?"
This really caught Peach's attention.
"You...you're...this was all a plan to distract the Council?" Said Peach.
Abz groaned. The complex plan was melting like butter to fire.
"Just...shut up. I have nothing to do with this...I was only delivering the cargo-"
"So the Yellow Mask could attack?" Said Wes.
Peach gasped. "The...that was a Starman back there? That..."
"Abz, you’re a traitor. Why did you even bring us along, huh? Some kind of puppets in your little game?"
The sled hit a bump.
"IT'S NOT MY GAME. I DIDN'T EVEN KNOW IT WAS THE YELLOW MASK-"
"Who else could it be?" Shouted Peach. By now, everyone was standing up, and Abz wasn't paying attention to the direction.
"I...I'm sorry! I really..." The sled hit a giant bump and practically started flying. It smashed onto the ground, and it started to break up.
"I'm...so sorry. Really...I'm..." The sled hit the ground for a final time, and broke into pieces.

Penter clawed at the dungeon bars, outside, the muddy land was ugly, but it was freedom. Now that Qwerty had formed an alliance with Ironel, Penter had been thrown into the dungeon again, the reality that he would die. These thought's clouded through his head, and as he looked in the distance, a interesting scene caught his eye. A wandering group of what appeared to be Toad's headed this way. The leader, even from far away looked familiar. As they came closer, Penter nearly lost all hope in the fragile world that made sense. Mitch's rotting eyes stared back at him.

It was a stupid idea. A REALLY stupid idea. By the time Seigal had thought about it a little more, he was already in the storage barrel, which was being carried by Pionpi's to an Airship. It had all started 40 minutes ago. While leaving the Airship Dock, he noticed a load of cargo being transported to the Airship. When two of the Cargo men had knocked into each other, they started arguing, and soon, a fight had started. Seigal took this time to get into the barrel. When he got in, he found himself nearly covered in Erb Juice. By then, it was too late to get out. The two Pionpi's started working again, promptly picking up his barrel first. As he was being carried, the thought that he didn't even know where the Airship was going spoiled things even further.
"[darn]." He muttered. He would have to escape again. Or let fate take him wherever it wanted. Fate had already thrown him into ruler ship, and out of it...perhaps it could take him back in. Of course! If he could devise a plot to take back the Zizix...build an army, and take the Zizix back...then the tables would be seriously turned. Qwerty would be the one in prime danger, and Seigal would rule again. Even then...should he continue trying to get Peach? What about Mario? Or...Luigi? It was getting complicated, and the fact still remained that Seigal didn't know where the Airship was going. He knew that there was an Airship base in Diblis, but would that be where he would be taken?
"Shhh...Captain Durob doesn't know yet."
"What? ...Why? You think he care's about illegal products?"
The voices were two Pionpi's. They seemed to just happen to wander near the Barrels.
"These he does. Gives you...invincibility."
"No. I thought they destroyed them all."
"These are the last two...it seems, in the entire world. Enough power to destroy Crogo itself."
"We should get rid of them. They could be a problem."
"No. We're taking them to Diblis for Bowser."
"Bowser? You didn't hear he's dead?"
"What?"
"A mysterious chain of events...now the leader's some character called Qwerty."
"What kind of name-"
"That isn't the point...we can give Qwerty the Starmen. He is the new king anyways..."
"Shh...! I think Durob's coming."
The voice's faded away.

Crunch crunch crunch. The snow under Mario's feet melted away, the glowing Crowbar almost seemed to magnify Mario's skin, making it warmer. It made sense, as Mario's mind had already been bent into a chaotic storm of terror. Mario approached a group of broken buildings, they smoked as well. Metallic, round, bodies laid on the ground everywhere. But the culprit had already left, after his cohort who had ran away from the scene. Mario prodded bodies with his Crowbar. They didn't move. Mario whacked anyway, shrieking and screaming. There was no meat to be had, and Mario eventually gave up, wandering through the buildings, screeching and whacking things. After 10 minutes, the Crowbar glowed impatiently, and Mario smelled the ground. 4 blobs of meat had moved to the south. Mario didn't want to miss out. He continued his trek, the Crowbar glowing warmly.

[magikoopa189]

PART 15

"Wake up...please...wake up." The whining voice could only belong to Peach.
"What...the snow..." The snow on his face burned like a raging fire. ...But Wes got up anyway. They were still in the Icoa Regions, but in the distance, a city glowed.
"Wes...we're almost there." Said Peach. It had to be Crogo City. It was huge, and from within, screams echoed. Above, an Airship prepared to leave.
"What...where's Abz?"
"He's knocked out cold. It doesn't matter. We have to get out of here."
Wes got up. The chilly winds were starting to break him down. He had to get to Crogo City soon. ...But could the penguin prove important?
"No...We can't just leave him here."
"What does it matter? He lied to us, and plotted to destroy Fahr with The Yellow Mask. He's almost insane."
"He get's proper justice."
"Are you kidding?"
Wes grabbed Abz. Abz was strangely easy to carry. Was Abz weak, or was Wes powerful?
"You are not carrying that...that..."
Wes ignored her. She stumbled after him, annoyed.
A long silence followed.
"Why'd you wake me up, princess?" Muttered Wes.
"Because...I can't get to Crogo alone."
"You can see it from here." Smirked Wes.
More uneasy silence.
Far away, a figure sped after them.
Beyond that, another figure trudged after them.

"It's this one!" Said the excited Pionpi, pointing at Seigal's barrel. The ominous Captain Durob stood over it.
"It was heavier then the others...I bet a sneak's on board, just like-"
"Shut up." Muttered Durob. The Ocklot Incident was an issue that couldn't be let out. "...Just open it."
Seigal quickly resorted to shell form, and held breath. It was a great way to hide, and when the top opened, the Pionpi's didn't see anything.
"Grab around in there." Ordered Durob. Seigal couldn't dodge this one.
CRASH!
The barrel tipped over, and rolled away. "ARRRrGH!" Screamed the Pionpi, his hand nearly ripped off. Seigal's problems weren't over yet, however. The barrel was rolling towards the edge, and the ship was taking off. Falling off the edge was 300 feet drop. The ship tipped back, however, and the barrel was flying straight at Durob.
"WHO'S STEERING THE SHIP?" Roared Durob, nearly dodging the barrel. His cohort, however, was hit full-force, and went flying off the ship, also breaking the barrel.
Seigal grabbed onto a Cannon, pointing off the ship. Then he noticed 6 glowing barrels. The Starmen. But how had they gone unnoticed by Durob? ...It didn't matter. If Seigal could get one, he'd be invincible. It wouldn't matter if he flew off the ship. The barrels started rolling towards open air. Seigal grabbed at the barrels, and was knocked off the Airship with them.

1 hour and 30 minutes after the previous events...

It was a huge gate, and very appropriate as the entrance to a large city- Crogo City. "Uhh..." Seigal knew he couldn't give his real name. He would have "Uhh..." Wes wasn't sure what to say. He knew he couldn't give his real name. He would have to make up a name...until Peach blurted it out. "He's Wes...and I'm Peach. Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom. That thing Wes is carrying is-"
"I don't care about the names of bodies. What organs are you selling?"
Peach blanched at the question. Wes acted on like everything was normal.
"Heart...and brain. For the Nipper Plants."
The guard burst out laughing, and allowed them to pass. They continued along the roads, looking for the Airship route.
"Nice. That was great. I'm not sure if they let organ-er's onto Airships."
"Mmumphm." Muttered Wes. Ignoring the lump in the middle of the road.
"Ahhack!" He tripped over, and Abz landed in a mud puddle.
"Get...off of...me!" Growled the lump. It was actually Seigal, who had landed in his shell, only knocking him out. It was cracked now, and faint traces of blood were oozing out.
"Wes...come on. Some nasty homeless Koopa." Murmured, Peach, grabbing Wes.
Wes turned back to the Koopa. He looked familiar...very familiar...memories...of an army. Everyone was scared. But one Koopa was chosen to stay behind at the Castle, before the rest were sent to...march? This was him...this was...?
"Wes...! And...Peach???" Now it was getting weird. Seigal remembered Wes. The only Koopa with a "Luck Charm". The other Troopa's had thought it was funny. They must have been captured by Peach, or...but Peach was right there.
"Do you know each other?" Said Peach. "I might have enough...to take us all back." She showed a glimmer of gold coins.
"Yes...he becomes the Prime Servant of the lot." Said Wes. "It's starting to come back..."
"You've lost your memory?" Asked Seigal.
Peach felt awkward, being nowhere in the conversation. "Come on...we'll take an Airship back to my castle...we can sort everything out there."
"No...The Airship...it..." Seigal didn't know what to say. But he was slowly being pulled along the flow. He was getting somewhere.

Heavy breathing filled the air.
"Name." It was a huge gate, and very appropriate as the entrance to a large city- Crogo City. SLAM. He slammed his fist into the Nokonoko's face, instantly killing it. Even though the Yellow Mask was powerful, he still needed that extra power of the Starmen. And there, a crate of them lay, broken. 6 of them. Brilliant. Just brilliant.

Silence...they had all left. All of them. About an hour ago. Qwerty, Placenta, the deranged Ironel and the entire Koopa Troop had left. All of them. No one guarded the castle. Only Penter was left, to rot in the prison cell. Since no one was guarding the castle, Mitch's Cult was already breaking in, to kill Penter. And Penter knew it. He tried to break the iron chains that hooked him to the cold, stone wall. Trapped like a mouse in a game. It depended how long it would take Mitch to find him.
The thoughts disturbed him. He clawed at the chains. All the while, the sounds of Mitch approaching kept him awake. Mitch was very obsessive. He came back from the dead, just to kill him.
"I smell something!"
His group had found a 1-up Mushroom? Weren't there none left?
"It's down here! In the dungeon...rotting..."
And he had traversed the vast desert, his horde behind him...
"Down...down...down..."
Just...to...kill...me... because he had killed him. Penter couldn't remember if it was a accident. It just happened.
Penter's thought's ended immediately. Mitch was down in the dungeon, the rotting freak. It was so impossible...
"Are you...Pentercz?" Gasped Mitch. A chunk of meat fell off. It was horrifically revolting, and tears came from Penter.
"Yes..."
And why didn't Mitch remember what Penter looked like? Perhaps his rotting eyes could not see? Or perhaps...
Immediately, Tenchai brought a hidden knife to Penter's throat, and slowly started cutting. Mitch proved his chaotic thoughts right, and from inside Tenchai's body, created a explosion. It affected no one but the now dead Tenchai. His gore everywhere. Penter started to sweat. He was obviously next. ...What could he say? He DID kill Mitch. And...Yes...on purpose. Death was undeniable. ...Unless...
"I am sorry for that. He was a fool, and did not know the strategy's of conquest."
Could Penter stay alive?
"What are you here for Mitch...? Don't waste your time with apologies."
"Yes...'Mitch'. That's what he used to be called, wasn't it?"
This was getting bizarre. The cult members who had seen this strange side of Mitch were starting to grow seriously uneasy. 3 members were currently plotting to escape.
Mitch continued. "Yes. I must thank you...Pentercz. For you have brought me back from the void of time...you have valuable knowledge...of plots..."
This wasn't Mitch. It was obvious to Penter. The cult members were struggling to believe it was Mitch. But most had already found out that something else had taken the chance when a free body was resurrected...
"Pentercz....help me. To destroy the Mushroom Kingdom...and further."
It was perfect. Penter hated the world. And this thing...'Mitch'...wanted it destroyed. And Mitch's explosion proved power enough. It wasn't Mitch, and it was good enough for Penter. Everything was being rushed now...because nobody had time anymore...something big...of this period of time...was affecting everything.

[magikoopa189]

PART 16

His parents...they screamed and cried. They begged the little boy to join the army. They had trained him for months, to join the army. But the little boy was no longer little...he was big. He refused to move. He watched as his parents were sliced like salami. Blood everywhere. The threats and screams of the soldiers, ordering him to go, or share his parent’s fate. The boy said nothing. He rubbed the small charm, and left with them, crying all the way.

Heaving. Always heaving. Always in Crogo. Was it still Crogo? He looked up. He had a headache. It was killing him. And nearby, the Yellow Mask was hunched over, heaving, and breathing hard. He had fulfilled his plans. Now the city was destroyed. Bodies everywhere. And he laughed. And laughed. And Wes got up. And the air grew dense, and Wes knew that he was the only survivor. Everyone else had died painful deaths. He was the last. Of all. Except for the Yellow Mask.
"Ehh....a survivor? Heh heh. You must be quite powerful." Gasped the Yellow Mask. He had turned around, his face still hidden.
"You killed everyone." Said Wes, emotionless. What now?
"Heha hah hack! I...I brought them to salvation. This world is bad. Now they are in happiness."
"You killed them...to bring them happiness?"
"Now...now they live in Star Haven. All the good people."
"And what of the bad ones...?" An insane spiritual man?
"They deserve their fates in burning hell. They scream for help, and the Ztar tortures them forever."
"You...you're insane. You killed them all..."
"And what of you? You must die too...to live in Star Haven?" Continued the Yellow Mask. He was acting like a priest now. It could only get more disturbing from here.
"What if there is nothing afterwards? What if they are gone forever? All those you killed?"
"Do you not believe in the Star Spirits? You will live with the Ztar then, for you do not care for your brothers and sisters."
"...All things in this world don't really matter...for I remember nothing of what it really means."
Said Wes. A building burst into flames

"You must die. You will not accept the word of the Star Spirits." That was all the Yellow Mask had to say. He swung his meaty fist at Wes. From nowhere, a magical wall protected Wes. The fist bounced off.
"Wes...I'm here to help you...your friend." The Power Book had finally returned.
"Where have you been?" Murmured Wes. The Yellow Mask smashed his fist through the wall.
"WES! Concentrate. How much you hate this thing." Whispered the book.
Immediately, The Yellow Mask blew into the air, right into a fiery building. His costume and mask went flying off. And...Wario got up. His eyes blitzed in fire.
"7 years I've hidden. Defeat after defeat. I align myself with the Star Spirits, and I recovered. But..." The next part was a whisper. "...You know my identity. ...YOU WILL DIE. Not only will you die, you shall burn! BURN!" He was screaming now. Rather like Mario did. In rage, Wario snatched a Starman.
"6 more!!! HAHHAHAHH! I only need 1 for you however. And you will die. And you will wish you believed in the Star Spirits!" Wario immediately ate the Starman. With an explosion of light, Wario glowed in an unholy aurora.
"Concentrate...hate him. HATE HIM! HATE HIM! HATE HIM! Screamed the Book. Wes already hated him. He hated everyone. They had to die. He had to kill them. And the book...
"SHUT UP!" Roared Wes, not sure who he was talking to, considering Wario wouldn't be quiet either. By the time the spell hit Wario, he was running at Wes. It fired Wario into one of his own victims, blood exploding. And the Starman...disappeared. In an event of unequal magic, Wes had destroyed the powers of a Starman. Wario was shaking. This...this was almost powers worth the Star Spirits. One more spell...Wario would die. It just depended...an agonizing spell...or a quick spell?
"No...No...Please....please....OH SPIRITS...GET AWAY FROM ME! AUUUUGHGHHGH!" What happened to Wario is still unknown.

After 20 minutes, Wes lay in the middle of a chaotic heap. Everyone was dead. His friends...were they friends? Were they? He barely knew them...
"Wes." The nasty voice whispered. The book.
"What." Said Wes. He had no life. He still didn't know whwho he was. Just bizarre dreams...
"Wes...I know how we can bring them back to life." Whispered the book.
"Just touch me...and commit yourself."
"What....?" Said Wes. It didn't sound good.
"Commit yourself Wes. Commit yourself. Just say you commit to me." The book whispered.
"What do you mean...?" Said Wes.
Wes was wasting time, so the book forced him to commit. It was too bad none of his "group" had really died.

The dusty wind blew around the crooked, smashed buildings. A trail had formed in the snow; someone had left the destroyed city. Most of the beings in the building had been killed, the ruthless attack quick and merciless. ...Yet three survived. They had been kept in a magical force field, for hidden reasons, and the savior just as mysterious. And it was not coincidence that they were all about to board an Airship, or that they had a bizarre relationship with Wes, all short, except for the princess, who had just began to 'get used' to him. Yet now he was gone, and like before, Peach was the first awake. Like before, it was frightening. The prospect that she might be the only one that had survived, the sled, the city. And at first, she didn't remember what happened. About to board a ship, and...? But the memory came back, and the question hanged in the air.
"Was she the only survivor?" Unbeknownst, No.
It was confirmed as Seigal got up, bruised, with an aching head. He had found Abz, under a heap of metallic roofing. By now, Abz was so thrown about, it was impossible to tell whether he was actually alive or not. Peach carried him this time, as she was feeling stronger and Seigal had no idea who Abz was. They almost said nothing, and they followed the tracks in the snow...the tracks, perhaps, made by Wes. He had gone this way, heading towards the castle. It seemed like a direct route, and they carried on, right through the forest, and onto the Muddy Road. The castle was miles away. But how? It normally should have taken hours to cross the wide, flat area between Crogo and The Muddy Road. Yet it took only 1 hour. Time was almost distorted. Something big was coming. The duo continued trudging, until Abz suddenly woke up, perhaps in an inconvenient time.

If you were looking at a globe of the world, and spun to the side that held most of the Mushroom Kingdom, and bits and corners of bigger, yet less interesting kingdoms, you would notice a number of essential groups, all heading in the same direction. From the Koopa Kastle, and now near where a Duplighost pretending to be Kooply, was a massive, savage, Koopa Troop Army. Behind them, a small cult was following, and in the two groups, a massive thread of hatred was spun, from Ironel to Mitch. She didn't even know he was following her. From the west, a tiny group of three traveled, and they were the second closest to the final destination. Behind them, one, insane individual followed, dragging a Crowbar, which still glinted, because the fun was almost to begin, and the man carrying it screamed for meat. And already reaching the castle, a figure and its book, which the figure held closely entered the castle. A innocent Toad exploded. They're screams of terror were soon ended. Only one Toad escaped. And the figure climbed the castle, heading for the Tower, his book grinning insanely. They were all heading for the castle, and only one group could win control of destiny.

[magikoopa189]

PART 17

"Let...go...of...me!" Abz shoved off Peach, sweating desperately.
"What...what the hell happened?" He sputtered. By now, they were all near the castle, close to the outside Dungeons, where Bowser had been kept days ago. From here, they could see a stream of blood creeping around the corner from the entrance to the castle. Someone had already come here. Killed the Toads, and was now in the chamber they had desperately rebuilt. The chamber to the Tower. But the Tower was still gone. It was too difficult to rebuild, and the Toad's never had enough time, before the warped creature had come.
"Where in the...?" Abz continued his confused rant.
"We had to carry you. Me and Wes. Of course, Wes is gone now, and-"
Peach walked into a puddle of blood. "Ahhhah!" She screamed, falling backwards into the red mess. It soaked into her dress, becoming a dark red color.
"What...has happened here?" She cried, standing up, the blood dripping off her dress.
Seigal suddenly demonstrated a secret talent. "Whatever did this...was with magic." They turned the corner, the bodies horrifically mangled. And a trail of blood leading into the castle.
Abz already knew it was a lure. He knew it had to be Wes too, and Koopa's were always trying to get the princess. If he could trade with him...
"To show you how sorry I am, I want to help you with this...problem." Abz suddenly piped up.
"Your choice. If we can reason with...whatever, I'm still taking you to the Dungeon. And you will rot." Peach wanted Abz to run. He was a bumbling idiot, and not really evil. Just...dumb.
"That's okay." Said Abz.
Peach was so shocked by the carnage that she didn't really notice Abz's hidden, but easily seen plan, scrawled across his face. They began following the trail.

The Koopa Army came next. They had smashed through Toad Town, stealing food, and just trashing everything. Qwerty already knew that Peach had gone in, her delicate shoe-prints were in the snow. They noticed the body's, but knew the offender was seriously outnumbered.

Next was the insane Mario. The smell of blood lured him to the corpses, and then the smell of alive meat heading up the castle continued his trail.

And last, Mitch's cult. They're plan: To take over the Central Government of the Mushroom Kingdom. From there, the bloodthirsty destruction would be even easier.

And far, far away, Blibby crawled into the Ancient Forest, his wounds would soon cripple him, trapping him in the dark woods.

Drip. Drop. The scene was gruesome. Above the throne, a Toad hanged from the ceiling, his numerous wounds dripping onto the floor, right in front of Wes, whose face was now hid by a shadow created by the dark cloak he wore. On an armrest, a certain book laid, face down. Literally.
"I...I'm...so...glad...you...could...make...it." Gasped the choking voice within the cloak.
"What...why? Why did you do this? These Toads...they served my every whim. I needed them, to do my every bidding." Peach was starting to realize how lazy and pathetic she sounded.
"This...is so..." Seigal couldn't find a word. Just hours ago, Wes was an unknown, yet nonviolent individual. Now he was a seemingly insane monster.
"So...what...Seigal? Death...is...for...those...who...are...weak. Only...the...strong...sit...back...and...Watch."
Within a microsecond, an cursed circle, like the one used on Mitch, went around Peach and Seigal. Abz was left out. Suddenly, his plan was crashed. Wes already had Peach. ...But Seigal? He would have to escape. Abz immediately began running for the hallway outside, and easy escape it should have been. Instead, Abz was hit by an invisible force, and smashed to the ground, before Wes. He would soon figure out he was held to the ground.
"Now...a...end...to...the...worthless." Murmured Wes. He snapped his fingers. Abz appeared dead.
Peach and Seigal couldn't move, but they could still speak.
"Wes...you...you even said...justice. You're..."
"I...didn't...kill...him...I...destroyed...his...soul."
Peach started screaming. However, the chaos hadn't even begun yet.
Qwerty burst in, his army behind him, filling the room.
"Peach, I have come to capture you..." Qwerty stood shocked. Placenta and Ironel, his unofficial generals, came from behind. Ironel stood no chance.
"I...will...take...you...as...well...Ironel." Gasped Wes. An invisible force pulled Ironel into the ghastly circle of light, trapping her. It was obvious she was trying to emotionally escape. It wasn't working. "ATTACK!" The scream suddenly echoed out, just like the beginning of the tale...

Immediately, the soldiers fanned out, many different species flooded the room. Most couldn't fit through the door. Wes used powers to slam the door shut, locking out the rest of the army. Some headed for the force field, to break it, and rescue Ironel. Some attacked Wes, but were blown up in the Ironel fashion. Qwerty had backed into a corner, contemplating escape, next to a window. No. He couldn't leave his men. BOOM! A scream. Even though Wes was a supernatural force. As he started to back away, everything got worse. Mario's Crowbar broke through the door, but Mario had already killed the outside soldiers. Mario screamed, wildly swinging his Crowbar everywhere. Another Koopa was blown up, but the shell survived, smacking into Placenta, who flailing backwards, knocked into the stunned Qwerty. He fell backwards through the window, falling onto the moat. His fate was unseeable.
"I...I..." Gasped Placenta. He didn't have long to gasp. Mario sliced through his head, flying through the insane frenzy of soldiers, discouraged, seeing all 3 commanders conquered within 2 minutes. Some tried to escape. Wes blew them up. The ones that attacked anyway were killed too. It was hopeless, and soon, it was obvious, everyone would die, no matter what. Some slinked into corners, and will kill anyway. Then...
CRASH! Through the broken door, Mitch slinked into the blood filled room, as well as Penter, and the cult. An invisible wall sealed the cult away, however, and they scratched the wall to join Mitch.
Mitch noticed the book on the throne.
"So...we meet again." Smirked Mitch. From somewhere, a creepy hollow laughing echoed.
"Meet...again...?" Gasped Wes. But hidden in his voice, he knew Mitch was right.
"I'm not talking to you weakling." Laughed Mitch. "The great book...the downfall..."
More laughing.
"No...More...you...all...will...share...the...same...fate." Gasped Wes. The force tried to pull Mitch in, but he stood in one spot, laughing. Penter was affected however, and scratched at the floor, scrabbling to stay upright. He too, was pulled into the force-circle, glowing with unholy light.
Both Wes and Mitch and the hollow laughing all laughed. The time had now come. The four who had been spared were only side notes to the true battle that was about to begin.
"Mitch...help." Gasped Penter. He couldn't believe he was asking his hated enemy for help. Now it was all over...
"Good...bye." Laughed Wes. The force glowed, and the four disappeared, not to be seen again.

[magikoopa189]

PART 18

They didn't have to wake up. In fact, they were suddenly standing up, in a grove, in a darkened forest. It was obviously night, as the distant calls of Pider's echoed in the distance. Seigal hadn't even called his attention to Mario...but Peach had. She was mumbling to Mario, almost unintelligible from fear.
"Please...Mario..." Mario stood upright. It was hard to tell whether he was awake or not.
"Peach...Peach..." Muttered Mario. He wasn't screaming anymore. It was also interesting to note that the Crowbar was gone.
"Mario...Mario..." Cried Peach. "Please...are you...?"
"Peach...what's happened?" Muttered Mario. He was not insane anymore.
"Mario!" Cried Peach, slamming into him. Seigal stood back, never even knowing Mario's situation. Penter stood thoughtfully. Where HAD Mario been this whole time?
"Peach...why...? Why...are we here...? My mind...I can't remember anything...except...Luigi."
"Mario...you...you've been scary! No...That’s not a good way to say it...you've been..." Peach blubbered.
"I...just...don't remember anything." Muttered Mario. Peach knew she couldn't tell Mario what had happened. He would be...
"Where are we...?" Said Mario. He was acting rather mindless at this point, although it was a good question.
"It seems to be the Ancient Forest." Said Seigal, who finally spoke. Penter examined the area.
"That's what you call...the forest...right?" Asked Peach. She was starting to think of coporating this into Mushroom Kingdom knowledge as well.
"Yeah..."
A moment of silence passed.
"Well...we have to get back to my castle...and..." It wasn't really a plan. Wes had ridiculous power. Penter knew Mitch did too, and it could be a factor that they joined forces.
"Let's find something." Said Mario, still confused. Especially the part where a Toad was a near a Koopa, and was not screaming in fear.
"Well...c'mon." Said Peach, annoyed.

2 hours of hiking passed. The whole time, Mario had been trying to figure things out. Something finally registered. "BLOOD GROVE!" Mario shouted, making everyone else jump.
"That...that place we were in...That was Blood Grove!" Cried Mario. But the bodies were gone. It seemed some time had passed.
"Blood...Grove..." Said Peach. That was the name of the ancient war grove. It was zoned out as a piece of history, back when the Tribes fought for territory.
"Yes...I remember. I was fighting with Luigi, and Luigi got hurt, and then I gave him food, and..." Mario suddenly realized he had left Luigi in his house.
"Oh no...if that was Blood Grove...we've been heading Northwest...my house should be ahead...MOVE!" Mario shoved Seigal out of the way. The rest hurriedly ran after him.

The wood had rotted, and the brown paint was peeling off, leaving a disgusting cross between yellow and brown.
"Mario...Mario! Stop running!" Cried Peach, stumbling after him. The rest shifted coolly. Neither really had a history anyway, so anything could go for them.
Mario smashed the door open, crashing through, into the house. A smell of Snifits lurked out. The rest slowly followed, the smell crushing and choking.
Mario was leaning on a wall, staring at the carnage inside the kitchen. It was better then before now, since all the bodies were now skeletons. 4 of them, one Luigi's.
Mario said nothing, biting his lip. At the door, Seigal climbed through, noticing a broken receiver.
"Hello?" He said. "Helloke? Tracked...Markio's...helck..."
The surreal voice from what seemed months ago struck back. Seigal shivered, and stepped near the door. He wasn't taking chances.
"How could this have happened to your house so fast...Mario?" Penter asked.
Peach glared at him, desperately trying to hide a fury hate inside. She still hated Penter, and only because of Orbix would Mario not allow a Toad to die. If only Orbix hadn't...
"He's dead." Sniffed Mario, finally speaking. "Luigi...he's dead...but...but..." Mario still didn't know how Luigi had died. Peach knew, and wondered if she should reveal what had happened to Luigi.
Mario punched a wall, and it came cascading down, revealing a family of wild Snifits. Mario slammed down on them, with a classic jump, breaking another wall, revealing the stairs, on the other corner of the large wall. Mario stayed silent, and they ended up staying the night. Mario fell to a bed from tire. The rest fiddled around with a damaged Television they had found, trying to find the news, perhaps to see if a Search Party had gone out yet, or if Wes was making an influence. Penter wasn't even sure. He was convinced they were in an alternate dimension. Everything was strange, and foreboding. Seigal had told the rest about the receiver, which was foolish anyway, but Penter found it interesting. By this time, the body's still should have been rotting, not already dry bones. Yet...
"This crud is worthless!" Cried Peach, showing her snotty side again. It DID seem to be true, though, as all it did was wildly crackle. Peach kicked it to the floor, and grabbed the last bed, as they’re only two.
"You didn't have to do that!" Growled Penter after her, knowing it was pointless anyway. She would simply ignore him. Penter mumbled, and went upstairs, looking for something to rest on. Seigal continued watching the crackling Television, as it sparkled and cracked. He eventually dozed off from boredom.

2 hours later, Seigal jumped up. A voice was coming from the machine, very stringy, and hard to make out.
"I...shel...Big...out...woods...come..."
Seigal quickly pulled a knob, even though he had no idea what it did.
"Star...Carni...shelter...direct...uth...of....cas...BZZERT." The TV blew off, and fell, shattering the glass. It had finally broken, but fortunately right before leaving an important message.
"Thank you." Whispered Seigal, and began preparing for another journey.

"This really sounds fake to me...did anyone else hear it?" Mumble Peach, still crabby from being woken up early. It WAS early, the sun only just appearing over the trees, although it could already have been noon, the trees shading the land.
"Whether it's fake or not, it will take us somewhere, instead of staying in that rickety shack." Muttered Penter, who wanted to leave anyway, as Mario forced them to bury the bodies. Penter had really thought it was a waste of time. Mario meanwhile, was still trying to figure out why he couldn't remember anything of the past 4 or 5 days. ...And why no one would tell him what had happened. He knew they were lying when they said that they weren't there. They HAD to be, and the lie was so obvious, it almost seemed to hint at something. Continuing the trek, the 4 continued the journey, unaware of the upcoming group.

"This is so ridiculous...this must have a deeper meaning." Complained Dirgivous, stomping down the road, poking at grass with his spear, which he was actually borrowing for the day.
"I mean...we're only children! And...They send us to the Outside?"
"It's a punishment Dirgi. And it's YOUR fault. They only sent ME out so I could protect you. Why did you have to steal they're stuff? They were keeping us safe! And you had to-"
"Shut up!" Yelled Dirgivous, trying to save his weak position in the argument. "YOU are my last guardian anyway! They sent you out because you should have taught me not to-"
"You realize you’re downgrading yourself, right." Sighed Grific, speeding up to catch his annoying younger brother.
"That's what Dad used to always say..." Muttered Dirgivous.
"I knew it! You listened to our private conversations, you rat!" Growled Grific.
"It's not fair that you got to talk to Dad before the-"
They walked right into the other group.

[magikoopa189]

PART 19

"Ahhhgh!" At the same time of the scream, an immense explosion let out, blowing snow to the distance. The sudden change in temperature had shocked the Toad into pain, everything felt like she had fallen into lava, deep and hot, and forever painful. The emotional, extreme, explosions cast it away eventually, and she rested, slowly being buried in snow, breathing painfully. Why she had been separated from the 4 others, was a mystery, and she was all alone in the windy, flat, emotionless land. Warming herself with mental explosions, she began her way to the south, hoping for a sign of life.

"Watch where you’re going!" Growled Dirgivous, forgetting the facts of the world. Grific simply watched in awe. The group essentially copied Grific, staring at the beings they had finally found. Within a second, Seigal grew defensive by ancient instinct, for these were neither Koopa nor Toad. "Yoshi's. ...I haven't seen them in a long time." Murmured Peach. Her shock was shared by the others. The Yoshi's almost had the exact same reaction.
"Surviving Outsiders?" Said Grific. "Dirgi...if we turn them in...We might be accepted back in...There hasn't been any Outsiders since the-"
"Outsiders!" Shouted Dirgi, jumping up and down. "We thought everyone else was dead, and-"
"What...is going on?" Asked Mario, his confusion growing. And his nervous feelings.
"Red hat...Blue overalls...-"
"Don't get me started." Droned Mario. This usually happened every time he went on a complicated quest.
"I can't believe this...everyone thought you were dead. And...You don't even look older!" Said Dirgivous, finally getting an important word over his older brother.
"It hasn't been very long..." Said Peach, speaking before Mario could get a chance to question her again.
The Yoshi's looked at each other. This was a bizarre quartet. Mario, Peach, a Toad, and...A Koopa?!? And now, it seemed as if they had lost they're memories. Or...something like that. Dirgivous wasn't sure.
"But...Mario...Peach...you've been missing...for...10 years!"

Peach fainted, her delicate thoughts shattered like a rock to a glass house. It was almost like she fell asleep in mid air, her shoes tipping her from falling over. It was a queer moment, and this aggregated Mario further.
"Is this a joke to you...?" He yelled. But everyone else knew it was the truth, the apocalypse feeling world was slowly closing in on them. Only Mario had not seen the horrors of Wes, or been on a chaotic quest, each with different purposes.
"Mario...you and Peach...and the others, you all have to come with us to the Ballyhoo Dome." Said Grific. Outsiders would be a key to an early return.
"Ballyhoo Dome...?" Muttered Mario. He knew MC Ballyhoo, the annoying, screeching freak who had bothered him, 3 years ago, when the Star Carnival came by. Peach tried to guarantee it a vacation, and Toadette, who was an idiot, tried to convince him candy was healthy. In the end, it was another disgusting trip, everyone acting drunk, too much candy and Erb Juice, and even the MC himself had swigs of the stuff. It eventually ended in disaster, when a drunken Hammer Bro threw a hammer at the tent walls, thinking he was playing Gun the Runner. The walls blew down, and the Star Carnival hurried away, embarrassed, towards the Festive Beach, near Crogo City. Mario always figured the nasty creatures in Crogo had attacked it. Apparently not.
"Someone...give me a painkiller." Muttered Mario, wishing he remembered the old recipe used for the Viruses.
The Yoshi's took it as a joke, and pleaded the group to come with them. They still easily came anyway, and Dirgivous even offered to carry Peach, which he did. The rest of the time was filled in silence, the Yoshi’s guaranteeing that the Master of the Carnival could answer all of they're questions. Mario stayed silent, wishing Peach would wake up. Seigal wondered what the Koopa Kingdom was like, now that Qwerty was supposedly dead. Could he take over again? Penter questioned what had exactly happened to Penter and Mitch's alliance. Had Mitch lied all along? Was he united with Wes? Or were they both there at the same time by coincidence? And Peach dreamed of a withering Toad, talking to a shadowed figure. The Toad was crippled, using long wooden poles to support himself. He aligned himself with the figure, asking for health, and in return, a plan. A plan for what? It almost seemed as if the Toad saw her, and Peach cried herself into another nightmare.

Dirgivous emerged from the forest, in front of a massive Dome. It was really a dome, a giant glass circle covering what looked like tents inside.
"What are you doing back here?" Shouted the angry guard, sitting in a glass perch on the wall. He hated Dirgivous more then he hated anyone else in the Ballyhoo Dome.
"We bring new outsiders!" Shouted Grific back and Dirgivous fully emerged, with the collapsed Peach on his back.
The guard was sincerely shocked, but still hated Dirgi, and wanted the process to take as long as possible. "I'll have to check with the Prime Guard-"
"These are OUTSIDERS. Are you not listening? The Parchment orders that Outsiders are immediately brought in for questioning."
Seigal started to feel nervous again, balanced between Mario and the strange peoples of the future. What had Wes done to the world?
"This is a special case, Yoshi. You were ordered to leave this place for a year, fend for yourself against the Deltas."
"Then take them inside." Sighed Grific. "What about us?" Whined Dirgivous.
"Whatever you say." Laughed the guard, opening a huge glass door for the quartet. Mario carried Peach inside, and the door was shut again.
"Better go find some food." Laughed the guard, sitting comfortably in his perch.
The duo left fast, as it was almost nightfall, and the Delta's would be out.

Although beautiful and complex on the outside, the inside of the Ballyhoo Dome was nothing special. Toads with raggedy clothes and Koopas with chipped shells wandered in the abysmal tents. A Shy Guy with no mask hid in a corner. The guard led them past the tents, towards a massive tent which Mario remembered as the Star Battle Tent.
"Go in there, and wait." Muttered the guard, and he went back to his post.
"Thanks." Said Penter silently. The guard laughed.
The inside was colorful, with a stage and a few tables. At the back was a door with complex markings. Someone could be heard mumbling inside.
Peach seemed to wake up by this, and quickly asked question, most of which couldn't be answered anyway. She eventually slumped in a chair, listening to the chants.
An hour passed.
"Ugh..." Muttered Peach, bored as ever.
"Be patient. He might be able to answer our questions." Spoke Mario watching the door.
"Yes...I can answer ALL of your questions..." Said the annoying voice of MC Ballyhoo. Mario always hated the name. In fact, Mario always hated everything about Ballyhoo. Those feelings rose again as the annoyance danced over to the table.
"Helloooo!" Said Ballyhoo in his most annoying voice.
"Hello." Muttered Mario. Mario glared at Ballyhoo, and then continued. "After an hour of waiting, I'm sure you know that we're 'Outsiders' or whatever. And I'm sure you know we have questions that must be answered."
"Yes...I know all...even how to..."
"I don't care. You’re going to answer our questions...and then you can play games." Growled Mario.
Ballyhoo laughed, but on top of his head, Big Tops eyes burned with intense rage into Mario. Big Top was Ballyhoo's hat, which was bizarrely alive. Big Top continued glaring, and Ballyhoo continued laughing. Half and half, bottom and top. Two different feelings, in one.