MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
Great update. Oh and earlier which Link controlled the ship?
-
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Quest for Destiny! (White Version)
- Thread starter Destiny Smasher
- Start date
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Stupid Jr. Troopa! He could have quite possibly ruined something beautiful...
Anyway, good chapter. The war has begun! Who will win? Obviously the good guys! But how long will it take? And how hard will it be?
We'll find out in 2005!
Anyway, good chapter. The war has begun! Who will win? Obviously the good guys! But how long will it take? And how hard will it be?
We'll find out in 2005!
*sweatdrop*
If you're lucky, we'll be 1/3 through this fic by 2005! Seriously!
~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 33- Amiss
As the rays of morning pierced through his window, he smiled and welcomed their beams lovingly. The smell of tea filled his nose, and the crisp morning air that flowed warmly through the windows joined it to soothe his lungs even more. His sparkling blue eyes gazed around the room in comfort, absorbing the images around him. He would miss this sight soon enough...He was going on a vacation.
As he sat at the plain wooden table leisurely, his arms folded over the back of his neck, he glanced at his brother. His eyes were alert and awake, scanning his newspaper hungrily. While his eyes, identical to his brothers, stayed glued to the newspaper, his free hand grasped his tea firmly, raising it up for a sip every now and then.
It was a quaint house, with nothing extravagant. A stove, a table, some chairs, a small chalkboard. Then there was the bedroom. It had a bunk bed, with a red blanket on the top, and a green one on the bottom. Two dressers, a lamp...And a small panel in the floor that led to their basement when opened. They didn't need a TV or a radio, if they wanted excitement, they could find it outside in minutes. But it was morning, not time for fun just yet.
"Yep..." the paper-reading brother began slowly. "It's in the paper..."
"You surprised?" the first brother murmured, still half asleep.
"Well, no, but..." the second trailed off. "Did you think you were gonna win, Mario?" he questioned skeptically.
The first brother, a semi-pudgy man with a thick black mustache and a trademark hat, grinned and scratched through his facial hair. He was clad in a red t-shirt and blue overalls. His right foot did the same to his left foot, and both were in socks.
"Meh..." he started reluctantly. "I dunno...I guess...I just fought and won, that's all. Doesn't matter much, everybody gets their victories."
"True, true," Luigi, the second brother, muttered with a nod. "But you really wanted to win this last time, didn't you?" His eyes stayed stuck to the paper as he spoke.
"Yea," Mario admitted with a smirk. "It's been quite some time since I won, ya know?"
"Oh, yea," Luigi agreed.
"Anything else in there besides the Melee Tournament?" Mario inquired thoughtfully.
Luigi blinked, his eyes removing themselves from it and to Mario. He blinked, sipped some tea, and responded, "Not really. Just the usual. Ya know, th-"
Just then, cutting into their conversation, a familiar voice bellowed out merrily, "MAIL CALL!!" A *clunk* could be heard as their mailbox was slammed shut, and the flapping of wings could barely be heard.
"Oh, I'll get it," Luigi declared, hopping out of his seat and dashing for the door.
Mario yawned, stretched, and almost fell out of his wooden chair.
He caught himself, and pulled himself upright again, his eyes snapping alive. It'd been a long night, indeed. His hat was crooked as Luigi came in, grasping a stack of letters.
He was sifting through them with care, not even noticing his sibling, seeing which ones were for which brother, and who had sent them.
"You got three, Mario," he announced calmly, tossing the triplet of packaged papers before his sibling. He had two for himself, and eagerly sat down to start reading them, slurping from his tea yet again as he did so.
Without even looking at the letters, Mario stared up at the ceiling, concentrating hard...
"...Goombario, Bombette..." he mumbled.
"Hm?" Luigi murmured, not even looking up.
"Malon..." Mario's eyes squinted as he tried for the last one.
"Aaand...Our niece..." he finished, satisfied. "And you," he added, glancing at his brother, "Got one from Miles and another from Daisy..."
Luigi blinked at him, puzzled as to what on Stellon he was getting at, and shrugged it off, mumbling, "Yea..." and returned to his reading.
"But you got one wrong...I didn't get one from Daisy, I got one from E. Gadd," Luigi corrected after a moment, with a small raspberry.
Mario sighed, rolled his eyes, and took to reading his documents, tearing apart the first envelope calmly. He was testing his vision...And it was correct, he was sure. If only he could tap deeper into its powers, maybe he could do other things, too...
"Dear Mario," began the first letter in a sort of sloppy writing.
"What's up? I watched the tournament last night on our new TV, you ROCKED, man! My Goompa says that he could teach you a thing or two, but that you weren't bad."
Mario chuckled to himself as he thought about the old coot of a Goomba.
"Anyway, the Dojo Master is teaching me and some other guys how to write. It's not easy when you don't have hands, but we can still do it, right? Anyway, I'm glad you won, I know you've been waiting a long time and training real hard. I've been training, too. Maybe sometime soon we can get the gang back together again, huh? Oh! By the way, Bombette's with me right now, she wants to write to you, but...She's still having trouble getting the hang of it, so I'll do it for her, OK? See ya!
~ Goombario"
Mario smiled as he remembered all those guys that he had befriended back then. They still hung out once in a while...But it HAD been a long time, hadn't it?
"Dear Mario,
How are you? I hope you're doing well, I'm trying my best. But it's been hard...I'm still looking for a home for myself. I can't live in Koopa Village forever. But Goombario's family is being very nice and letting me stay with them for a while. I'm thankful. ^_^ I just wanted to tell you that I miss you a lot, and I hope we can see eachother soon. When my writing is better, I'll write you myself, OK? Byes!" A heart was drawn, and after it the name, 'Bombette', in an even messier style of writing.
Mario placed the letter down on the table gently, an idea brewing in his head. He was going on a vacation. Not with Peach, no...He was saving that for later...A better time...Now was not a good time...But if he could gather his old pals, that would be pretty fun...
The next letter was made of a pink paper that had some texture to it, and the writing was soft and warm.
"Dear Mr. Mario,
Did you have fun last time you came down? We appreciate you coming in to help the Cuccos, I know it's sort of annoying." Mario thought to himself. But he still had fun, even IF one of them whizzed on his overalls. "I think the party went well. Can you BELIEVE it?! I'm 18! It feels kind of weird saying it, but it's true! ^_^ My father says he can't wait to start up business in Toad Town, and I get to do it for him. I'll be selling Lon Lon goods around to all those people. ^_^ I'm so excited! I've never really been to your home before, at least not for long. Will you give me a tour when I get there? Please? Do you think the townsfolk will be spooked if I bring Epona with me? I hope not, she's a nice horse once she trusts you...Anyway, we wanted to thank you for helping us with our new dog. We're not used to Chomps, but they can be really helpful once you can tame them, can't they? OH! Well, I don't have much else to do, but I'm sure you're a busy man, so I'll let you go now. Thank you for reading, I can't wait to see you guys!
~ ^_^ Malon"
Mario cracked yet another caring grin. Malon was a real sweet girl, wasn't she? Raising animals could be hard, but she was excellent at it. She could probably be a good vet, now that he thought of it. He had a funny feeling she'd love visiting Toad Town, and he'd be happy to show her around.
Then his eyes met the last envelope. He knew who it was from, and he knew that its writer was in frustration.
He carefully tore it open to reveal the sparkling silver paper that he slipped out. It was smooth and shiny, and the writing on it was a dark black. It was from his niece, Crystal. Of course, she wasn't REALLY his niece, but...well...She looked at him as her uncle, which was fine by him.
"Dear Uncle Mario,
Way to go on winning the last Melee tournament, Uncle. You really showed them, didn't you? ^_^ I watched the whole thing on TV with my friends, it was pretty cool. By the way, you haven't seen Luna lately, have you? She just sorta disappeared, and nobody knows where she went...We're worried about her.
My father says that you should come up here to Star Haven real soon, it's been a long time...Actually, I really wish you came, too, I really miss you. Could you please take me OUT OF HERE?! Geno never lets me leave alone, but I asked him, and he said that if you supervised me, it would be all right. Just between us, I'm really mad, though. Dad's been so...controlling lately! I'm surprised he lets me BREATH without needing permission!! >
I just want to break free from it, you know?
So what if I'm a Dragoshi? That doesn't mean I should be locked up my whole life, does it? I'm just so frustrated...> I mean, I'm 17 years old now, and he STILL doesn't believe in me...What should I do? How can I prove to him that I'm ready? Well, I'll see you soon, please write back when you can, or better yet, come up and see us!
Crystal"
Mario sighed deeply, nodding to himself. He knew exactly what was going on, and he was afraid of what was going to happen with his niece. She was a very unpredictable young woman, but...All the same, she was right. If she believed in her heart that she was ready to be free, then...Geno had to put more faith in her.
Doubtful about what to do about it, Mario slowly got up from the table, scooping his letters. He paced to his bedroom and placed them on his dresser with care next to some stationary he would later use to write back. As he entered the kitchen again, Luigi was hard at work jotting back to his own letters.
One had been short and simple, one sent from E. Gadd, a goofy inventor growing in fame.
"Luigi, my boy,
How goes things these days? Just wanted to send you a quick note, chap. I'm working on my newest creations, but I believe I need a few words from you. My only problem is the financial issues. If only I had enough to start things going, I'm sure I could make quite a bit to build myself a full fledged laboratory...Anyway, just wanted to poke in and ask that we arrange an appointment soon, I've improved my gasoline and dandelions soup, you should try it. Until then, lad!
E. Gadd"
The other was from another good friend of Luigi, someone who looked up to him a lot.
"Dear Luigi,
What's up? Things are goin' great here! I'm working on redesigning the Tornado, and I have some really great ideas, you need to come take a look. Other than that, nothing real big has been going on. Just the usual, I guess. Definitely no problems from Eggman...I'm starting to wonder if maybe he really did change his ways...Even Sonic isn't so sure...He did help us save Mobius before. Do you think he only did that because he still wants to control it? I dunno, but at least he's not being a problem, and that's ALWAYS a good thing. I've gotta go, Amy's screwing around with my workshop, who KNOWS what she'll mess up. See ya, Luigi, I'll stop by sometime and show you the Tornado X when it's done!
~ Miles Prower"
As Luigi's pen scribble replies on his parchment, he looked up to Mario and asked curiously, "So when are you goin'?"
Mario shrugged and mumbled, "I dunno. Probably pretty soon. But...First, how about we gather some buddies and play some tennis before I head off?" He grinned slyly at his brother, who returned the smile.
~*~*~*~*~*
"Whoa, dude, can we come, too?" pleaded the gorilla, spreading his arms out.
Mario scratched his sideburn carefully, pondering.
"Ehhh...I dunno, I mean, it's been so long since I've been on a real vacation, and...-"
"And it's been FOREVER since the cuz an' I have hung out with you!" Donkey Kong added.
Mario rolled his brilliant blue eyes, still contemplating.
"Hm...Tell ya what," he muttered, tapping his chin. "First, we play tennis. After the game, I'll let you know. I've only got a while before I'm heading off...I promised them I'd come see them today and everything..."
A smaller ape at DK's side wearing a red shirt and hat tossed his arms.
"Oh, come ON! I told 'em that I was coming back, too, with the big DK man!"
The two best pals nodded to eachother with grins plastered all over them.
"Besides," DK mumbled. "Since when did you care so much about some bunch of Pokemon?"
Mario got a bit defensive at that remark, and spat out, "They're not just 'some bunch of Pokemon,' DK, those guys are different."
Diddy shrugged thoughtfully.
"I dunno...I just wanna see Gabe again man, and catch up on my training techniques...Hehe..."
DK huffed and crossed his arms.
"I STILL can't believe you call yourself a Pokemon trainer..."
"Why not? I am one," Diddy proclaimed proudly. "I only have a badge or two, but...Ya know!" He spat out his end, he couldn't come up with anything better.
"Oh, bull****," DK mumbled, shaking his head. "Whatever, whatever. I don't care, I could use a vacation myself, tha's all I'm sayin'."
"Mama mia, what are you doin'?" Luigi asked hurriedly as he walked over to their little group. "The first match is starting in a minute or two, you need to get off the court!"
They all paused, a bit embarrassed, and meandered their way off the green- colored ground.
~*~*~*~*~*
"It's too dangerous, we really have to settle the issue right now!" Fox spat out sternly.
"Then why did you let the other guys go home?" Popo demanded gruffly.
Fox sighed and shook his head.
"Those guys live nearby, and besides, they have ways of getting back to Stellon. We all need to tell the Mario Brothers what's going on."
As Popo continued to eye Fox suspiciously, the leader added, "What if we got ambushed again? That was a close call, we need to stick around here and figure out what's going on."
The Great Fox had delivered a few of its passengers back home. Link and Zelda were dropped off in Hyrule, a planet very close to Stellon. They claimed they needed to check and see that all was in order at their home. Kirby took his trusty Warp Star back to Popstar, and Samus went off in her ship to who knew where, promising to return as soon as she could. Apparently, something had come up. Falcon, also, took off in his riding machine, which also had been docked in the hangar.
The others were still aboard. They'd all slept pretty badly, considering their conditions. But the Great Fox was now orbiting Stellon, awaiting the Mushroom Kingdom to come up down below. Then they would land safely and immediately go to the home of the Brothers and to Peach's castle to inform them of this strange attack.
As Fox defended himself from other questions, Popo huffed and walked off a little, only to have his sister explain matters further to him.
"Don't you get it, Popo?" she murmured seriously. She had jumped in front of him, blocking his way out of the control room. Her stare was stern and solemn.
"Get what?" he groaned, his arms crossed.
"There were WIRE FRAMES!" she whimpered. "Hundreds of them! Don't you think that's bad...?"
Popo tossed his arms. "Wire Frames are wusses!"
"Yes, but don't you understand?!" She slapped Popo on the shoulder briskly. "That means that the HANDS might be back! And we KILLED them, didn't we?" She brushed a couple of loose strands of her thick, brown hair from her cheeks. She was getting sweaty from nervousness.
"...Hm. Oh. Right. Yea, I guess that's a bit of problem," Popo admitted dully. "Big whoop."
Nana rolled her eyes and gave him a little push as she stalked off. He clearly didn't understand. But she did. The Master and Crazy Hands originated from Stellon, and it always seemed to be their first target when they attacked. Which meant the Brothers had to know ASAP, to prepare themselves.
"I've TRIED to call them," Slippy whined. "They aren't picking up..."
"Dammit," Fox mumbled, shaking his head. They might have be too late, something might have already happened.
"Where are we?" he demanded in a growl.
Peppy replied with an informative tone.
"We are currently orbiting Stellon, and directly below us lies a region referred to as the 'Beanbean Kingdom.' We should be just above Mario's country within the hour."
"Good. Let's get to it, **** knows what's goin' on down there," Fox muttered solemnly.
~*~*~*~*~*
If you're lucky, we'll be 1/3 through this fic by 2005! Seriously!
~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 33- Amiss
As the rays of morning pierced through his window, he smiled and welcomed their beams lovingly. The smell of tea filled his nose, and the crisp morning air that flowed warmly through the windows joined it to soothe his lungs even more. His sparkling blue eyes gazed around the room in comfort, absorbing the images around him. He would miss this sight soon enough...He was going on a vacation.
As he sat at the plain wooden table leisurely, his arms folded over the back of his neck, he glanced at his brother. His eyes were alert and awake, scanning his newspaper hungrily. While his eyes, identical to his brothers, stayed glued to the newspaper, his free hand grasped his tea firmly, raising it up for a sip every now and then.
It was a quaint house, with nothing extravagant. A stove, a table, some chairs, a small chalkboard. Then there was the bedroom. It had a bunk bed, with a red blanket on the top, and a green one on the bottom. Two dressers, a lamp...And a small panel in the floor that led to their basement when opened. They didn't need a TV or a radio, if they wanted excitement, they could find it outside in minutes. But it was morning, not time for fun just yet.
"Yep..." the paper-reading brother began slowly. "It's in the paper..."
"You surprised?" the first brother murmured, still half asleep.
"Well, no, but..." the second trailed off. "Did you think you were gonna win, Mario?" he questioned skeptically.
The first brother, a semi-pudgy man with a thick black mustache and a trademark hat, grinned and scratched through his facial hair. He was clad in a red t-shirt and blue overalls. His right foot did the same to his left foot, and both were in socks.
"Meh..." he started reluctantly. "I dunno...I guess...I just fought and won, that's all. Doesn't matter much, everybody gets their victories."
"True, true," Luigi, the second brother, muttered with a nod. "But you really wanted to win this last time, didn't you?" His eyes stayed stuck to the paper as he spoke.
"Yea," Mario admitted with a smirk. "It's been quite some time since I won, ya know?"
"Oh, yea," Luigi agreed.
"Anything else in there besides the Melee Tournament?" Mario inquired thoughtfully.
Luigi blinked, his eyes removing themselves from it and to Mario. He blinked, sipped some tea, and responded, "Not really. Just the usual. Ya know, th-"
Just then, cutting into their conversation, a familiar voice bellowed out merrily, "MAIL CALL!!" A *clunk* could be heard as their mailbox was slammed shut, and the flapping of wings could barely be heard.
"Oh, I'll get it," Luigi declared, hopping out of his seat and dashing for the door.
Mario yawned, stretched, and almost fell out of his wooden chair.
He caught himself, and pulled himself upright again, his eyes snapping alive. It'd been a long night, indeed. His hat was crooked as Luigi came in, grasping a stack of letters.
He was sifting through them with care, not even noticing his sibling, seeing which ones were for which brother, and who had sent them.
"You got three, Mario," he announced calmly, tossing the triplet of packaged papers before his sibling. He had two for himself, and eagerly sat down to start reading them, slurping from his tea yet again as he did so.
Without even looking at the letters, Mario stared up at the ceiling, concentrating hard...
"...Goombario, Bombette..." he mumbled.
"Hm?" Luigi murmured, not even looking up.
"Malon..." Mario's eyes squinted as he tried for the last one.
"Aaand...Our niece..." he finished, satisfied. "And you," he added, glancing at his brother, "Got one from Miles and another from Daisy..."
Luigi blinked at him, puzzled as to what on Stellon he was getting at, and shrugged it off, mumbling, "Yea..." and returned to his reading.
"But you got one wrong...I didn't get one from Daisy, I got one from E. Gadd," Luigi corrected after a moment, with a small raspberry.
Mario sighed, rolled his eyes, and took to reading his documents, tearing apart the first envelope calmly. He was testing his vision...And it was correct, he was sure. If only he could tap deeper into its powers, maybe he could do other things, too...
"Dear Mario," began the first letter in a sort of sloppy writing.
"What's up? I watched the tournament last night on our new TV, you ROCKED, man! My Goompa says that he could teach you a thing or two, but that you weren't bad."
Mario chuckled to himself as he thought about the old coot of a Goomba.
"Anyway, the Dojo Master is teaching me and some other guys how to write. It's not easy when you don't have hands, but we can still do it, right? Anyway, I'm glad you won, I know you've been waiting a long time and training real hard. I've been training, too. Maybe sometime soon we can get the gang back together again, huh? Oh! By the way, Bombette's with me right now, she wants to write to you, but...She's still having trouble getting the hang of it, so I'll do it for her, OK? See ya!
~ Goombario"
Mario smiled as he remembered all those guys that he had befriended back then. They still hung out once in a while...But it HAD been a long time, hadn't it?
"Dear Mario,
How are you? I hope you're doing well, I'm trying my best. But it's been hard...I'm still looking for a home for myself. I can't live in Koopa Village forever. But Goombario's family is being very nice and letting me stay with them for a while. I'm thankful. ^_^ I just wanted to tell you that I miss you a lot, and I hope we can see eachother soon. When my writing is better, I'll write you myself, OK? Byes!" A heart was drawn, and after it the name, 'Bombette', in an even messier style of writing.
Mario placed the letter down on the table gently, an idea brewing in his head. He was going on a vacation. Not with Peach, no...He was saving that for later...A better time...Now was not a good time...But if he could gather his old pals, that would be pretty fun...
The next letter was made of a pink paper that had some texture to it, and the writing was soft and warm.
"Dear Mr. Mario,
Did you have fun last time you came down? We appreciate you coming in to help the Cuccos, I know it's sort of annoying." Mario thought to himself. But he still had fun, even IF one of them whizzed on his overalls. "I think the party went well. Can you BELIEVE it?! I'm 18! It feels kind of weird saying it, but it's true! ^_^ My father says he can't wait to start up business in Toad Town, and I get to do it for him. I'll be selling Lon Lon goods around to all those people. ^_^ I'm so excited! I've never really been to your home before, at least not for long. Will you give me a tour when I get there? Please? Do you think the townsfolk will be spooked if I bring Epona with me? I hope not, she's a nice horse once she trusts you...Anyway, we wanted to thank you for helping us with our new dog. We're not used to Chomps, but they can be really helpful once you can tame them, can't they? OH! Well, I don't have much else to do, but I'm sure you're a busy man, so I'll let you go now. Thank you for reading, I can't wait to see you guys!
~ ^_^ Malon"
Mario cracked yet another caring grin. Malon was a real sweet girl, wasn't she? Raising animals could be hard, but she was excellent at it. She could probably be a good vet, now that he thought of it. He had a funny feeling she'd love visiting Toad Town, and he'd be happy to show her around.
Then his eyes met the last envelope. He knew who it was from, and he knew that its writer was in frustration.
He carefully tore it open to reveal the sparkling silver paper that he slipped out. It was smooth and shiny, and the writing on it was a dark black. It was from his niece, Crystal. Of course, she wasn't REALLY his niece, but...well...She looked at him as her uncle, which was fine by him.
"Dear Uncle Mario,
Way to go on winning the last Melee tournament, Uncle. You really showed them, didn't you? ^_^ I watched the whole thing on TV with my friends, it was pretty cool. By the way, you haven't seen Luna lately, have you? She just sorta disappeared, and nobody knows where she went...We're worried about her.
My father says that you should come up here to Star Haven real soon, it's been a long time...Actually, I really wish you came, too, I really miss you. Could you please take me OUT OF HERE?! Geno never lets me leave alone, but I asked him, and he said that if you supervised me, it would be all right. Just between us, I'm really mad, though. Dad's been so...controlling lately! I'm surprised he lets me BREATH without needing permission!! >
I just want to break free from it, you know?So what if I'm a Dragoshi? That doesn't mean I should be locked up my whole life, does it? I'm just so frustrated...>
I mean, I'm 17 years old now, and he STILL doesn't believe in me...What should I do? How can I prove to him that I'm ready? Well, I'll see you soon, please write back when you can, or better yet, come up and see us!Crystal"
Mario sighed deeply, nodding to himself. He knew exactly what was going on, and he was afraid of what was going to happen with his niece. She was a very unpredictable young woman, but...All the same, she was right. If she believed in her heart that she was ready to be free, then...Geno had to put more faith in her.
Doubtful about what to do about it, Mario slowly got up from the table, scooping his letters. He paced to his bedroom and placed them on his dresser with care next to some stationary he would later use to write back. As he entered the kitchen again, Luigi was hard at work jotting back to his own letters.
One had been short and simple, one sent from E. Gadd, a goofy inventor growing in fame.
"Luigi, my boy,
How goes things these days? Just wanted to send you a quick note, chap. I'm working on my newest creations, but I believe I need a few words from you. My only problem is the financial issues. If only I had enough to start things going, I'm sure I could make quite a bit to build myself a full fledged laboratory...Anyway, just wanted to poke in and ask that we arrange an appointment soon, I've improved my gasoline and dandelions soup, you should try it. Until then, lad!
E. Gadd"
The other was from another good friend of Luigi, someone who looked up to him a lot.
"Dear Luigi,
What's up? Things are goin' great here! I'm working on redesigning the Tornado, and I have some really great ideas, you need to come take a look. Other than that, nothing real big has been going on. Just the usual, I guess. Definitely no problems from Eggman...I'm starting to wonder if maybe he really did change his ways...Even Sonic isn't so sure...He did help us save Mobius before. Do you think he only did that because he still wants to control it? I dunno, but at least he's not being a problem, and that's ALWAYS a good thing. I've gotta go, Amy's screwing around with my workshop, who KNOWS what she'll mess up. See ya, Luigi, I'll stop by sometime and show you the Tornado X when it's done!
~ Miles Prower"
As Luigi's pen scribble replies on his parchment, he looked up to Mario and asked curiously, "So when are you goin'?"
Mario shrugged and mumbled, "I dunno. Probably pretty soon. But...First, how about we gather some buddies and play some tennis before I head off?" He grinned slyly at his brother, who returned the smile.
~*~*~*~*~*
"Whoa, dude, can we come, too?" pleaded the gorilla, spreading his arms out.
Mario scratched his sideburn carefully, pondering.
"Ehhh...I dunno, I mean, it's been so long since I've been on a real vacation, and...-"
"And it's been FOREVER since the cuz an' I have hung out with you!" Donkey Kong added.
Mario rolled his brilliant blue eyes, still contemplating.
"Hm...Tell ya what," he muttered, tapping his chin. "First, we play tennis. After the game, I'll let you know. I've only got a while before I'm heading off...I promised them I'd come see them today and everything..."
A smaller ape at DK's side wearing a red shirt and hat tossed his arms.
"Oh, come ON! I told 'em that I was coming back, too, with the big DK man!"
The two best pals nodded to eachother with grins plastered all over them.
"Besides," DK mumbled. "Since when did you care so much about some bunch of Pokemon?"
Mario got a bit defensive at that remark, and spat out, "They're not just 'some bunch of Pokemon,' DK, those guys are different."
Diddy shrugged thoughtfully.
"I dunno...I just wanna see Gabe again man, and catch up on my training techniques...Hehe..."
DK huffed and crossed his arms.
"I STILL can't believe you call yourself a Pokemon trainer..."
"Why not? I am one," Diddy proclaimed proudly. "I only have a badge or two, but...Ya know!" He spat out his end, he couldn't come up with anything better.
"Oh, bull****," DK mumbled, shaking his head. "Whatever, whatever. I don't care, I could use a vacation myself, tha's all I'm sayin'."
"Mama mia, what are you doin'?" Luigi asked hurriedly as he walked over to their little group. "The first match is starting in a minute or two, you need to get off the court!"
They all paused, a bit embarrassed, and meandered their way off the green- colored ground.
~*~*~*~*~*
"It's too dangerous, we really have to settle the issue right now!" Fox spat out sternly.
"Then why did you let the other guys go home?" Popo demanded gruffly.
Fox sighed and shook his head.
"Those guys live nearby, and besides, they have ways of getting back to Stellon. We all need to tell the Mario Brothers what's going on."
As Popo continued to eye Fox suspiciously, the leader added, "What if we got ambushed again? That was a close call, we need to stick around here and figure out what's going on."
The Great Fox had delivered a few of its passengers back home. Link and Zelda were dropped off in Hyrule, a planet very close to Stellon. They claimed they needed to check and see that all was in order at their home. Kirby took his trusty Warp Star back to Popstar, and Samus went off in her ship to who knew where, promising to return as soon as she could. Apparently, something had come up. Falcon, also, took off in his riding machine, which also had been docked in the hangar.
The others were still aboard. They'd all slept pretty badly, considering their conditions. But the Great Fox was now orbiting Stellon, awaiting the Mushroom Kingdom to come up down below. Then they would land safely and immediately go to the home of the Brothers and to Peach's castle to inform them of this strange attack.
As Fox defended himself from other questions, Popo huffed and walked off a little, only to have his sister explain matters further to him.
"Don't you get it, Popo?" she murmured seriously. She had jumped in front of him, blocking his way out of the control room. Her stare was stern and solemn.
"Get what?" he groaned, his arms crossed.
"There were WIRE FRAMES!" she whimpered. "Hundreds of them! Don't you think that's bad...?"
Popo tossed his arms. "Wire Frames are wusses!"
"Yes, but don't you understand?!" She slapped Popo on the shoulder briskly. "That means that the HANDS might be back! And we KILLED them, didn't we?" She brushed a couple of loose strands of her thick, brown hair from her cheeks. She was getting sweaty from nervousness.
"...Hm. Oh. Right. Yea, I guess that's a bit of problem," Popo admitted dully. "Big whoop."
Nana rolled her eyes and gave him a little push as she stalked off. He clearly didn't understand. But she did. The Master and Crazy Hands originated from Stellon, and it always seemed to be their first target when they attacked. Which meant the Brothers had to know ASAP, to prepare themselves.
"I've TRIED to call them," Slippy whined. "They aren't picking up..."
"Dammit," Fox mumbled, shaking his head. They might have be too late, something might have already happened.
"Where are we?" he demanded in a growl.
Peppy replied with an informative tone.
"We are currently orbiting Stellon, and directly below us lies a region referred to as the 'Beanbean Kingdom.' We should be just above Mario's country within the hour."
"Good. Let's get to it, **** knows what's goin' on down there," Fox muttered solemnly.
~*~*~*~*~*
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
Great update though I read the first part of it in the Teen Titans fic. Diddy's a pokemon trainer?
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Master Hand and Crazy Hand are back! Dun dun duuuuuuuuuuunnnn...
Cool chapter. I can't believe Diddy is a Pokemon trainer. In that lineup, he's gotta have a Mankey/Primeape and an Aipom. He he gonna be battling sometime soon in the fic?
Cool chapter. I can't believe Diddy is a Pokemon trainer. In that lineup, he's gotta have a Mankey/Primeape and an Aipom. He he gonna be battling sometime soon in the fic?
Don't worry- you'll get to see Diddy's skills in action. Gabriel Holm, however, is much more impressive.
The place where Mario takes his vacation and the Pokemon there will unravel another subplot of the whole story, and it pick up at Chapter 39 into the 40's.
Which reminds me, we're almost where I've written up to! O_o
Then you can, ya know, read my Teen Titan and Golden Sun fics if you're bored...^_^
~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 34- Shadows
His belly full from breakfast and his heart set high, Link set off toward home. No doubt his good friend Saria missed him. As he padded across the drawbridge that led out of the village, the brisk air flooded his lungs. It was clean, it was cool, it was HOME. Yes, the open fields of Hyrule were quite a place. No matter how many trips he took, Link couldn't help but recognize their beauty.
Standing firmly, Link called forth the Ocarina of Time. His lips closed over its mouthpiece, and he expertly played a happy tune called the Minuet of Forest. As the final notes echoed through the air, dancing on the grass blades, Link's body was encompassed in shimmering green light, and in the blink of an eye, he was gone.
Seconds later, he opened his eyes to find himself standing exactly where he expected himself to be. In the middle of a forest, in a clearing. A temple stood before him. To his right was a short and wide tree stump, where Saria would often play her song. Nearby, a tree stood with a small swing hanging from one of its studry branches. Memories of discussions and moments long past flew into Link's mind, but he turned around to face his current destination.
Dashing through the woods, the Hylian made his way back to where his adventuring all began- Kokiri Village.
~*~*~*~*~*
"Listen, they will be FINE, OK? I'll go back and make sure they're allright as soon as I can!!" the blue hedgehog told his pink friend. "Besides," he added. "They're on a FLOATING ISLAND. I don't think those goons are going to be getting up there anytime soon."
"Don't be so sure of that, Sonic," Knuckles' gruff tone disagreed from behind. "I've got a bad feeling about all this..."
"OK, I've got an idea," Tails declared, waving his arms. "How about Amy goes and tells them what's going on, while the three of us go back to Mobius. I'll pilot the Tornado up to Angel Island, and we'll get everybody out of there."
Sonic grinned and gave Prower a pat on the back. (Tails' real name is Miles Prower.)
"Good idea."
"You think Eggman's behind this?" questioned a curious Mobian fox.
"Who the **** else would it be?" Sonic answered, rolling his eyes. "Bad eggs never get good again..."
Tails had a bit of hope, however.
"He DID help us before..."
"Does it really matter right now who it is?" Amy whimpered. "Everybody back home is in trouble..."
"Well, all right, then. Let's go," Knuckles suggested. "No use waiting around here."
They got ready to bolt off, but Amy stopped them.
"W-W-WAIT!! What's going on?! You're all going to leave me here?!"
Sonic realized that Amy still wasn't all too familiar with Toad Toad and sighed.
"OK, listen..." he explained. "You go down THAT way," he pointed down the road opposite where they were headed. "A little ways donw, you'll see a big green thingy. Ya know, like the one we hitched on to get here. You go down that, you'll be at a house."
"Once you get there," Tails added, "you tell the Mario Bros. what's going on, allright?"
Amy blinked, still a bit pertrified.
"Do ya think you can handle that?" Knuckles scoffed.
Amy's eyes burned as she growled, "Yes!"
"Good. Don't hurt yourself," the red echidna chuckled as the three of them were gone in a flash.
Amy stood there for a few moments, fuming.
{They always leave me behind...}
~*~*~*~*~*
The cool air of the woods greeted him, but something was amiss. The drifting lights that filled the air in the Lost Woods...They weren't like their usual selves...For one thing, there seemed to be less than usual. Link had gotten to used to seeing them, and he immediately felt their lack in numbers. They also weren't...as happy as normal...Yet another bad sign. Instead of playfully floating around, they were drearily hovering...
{This is NOT good,} his instincts told him. As Kokiri village neared his sight, his keen eyes were narrow with suspicion.
His pointy nose picked up a scent. A very recognizable and familiar scent, at that- smoke.
Smoke meant there was fire. Fire burned things, like wood. Trees. Trees were made of wood, weren't they? Yes. And forests were full of trees. Which meant..
Fire + Forest = Lots of Ashes
Hm...
This all flashed through his brain over the course of a second or so, and when the solution clicked, his heart skipped a beat. A fire, in the Lost Woods?! DEFINITELY not a good thing!!
Before he realized it, his feet were rushing, his mind was racing...And his eyes were absorbing the sights laid before him. What used to be a building was a pile of rubble, what used to be a tree was a flaming pillar...From the sights of it, he had arrived just too late to stop this madness...As he dashed onward, heading for his home, he saw a charred body of what used to be a Kokiri...His heart lurched in fear and disgust as he pounded on. She'd better be all right...
He finally reached his destination- his best friend's house. It was nothing more than ashes. Fear gripped his heart as he stood there, paralyzed...No...This couldn't be...He had only been gone for a day...
His eyes welled up wildly, he began to think irrational thoughts of revenge. No...No one would get away with this...The destruction of the village...He could handle this. But not...Not...She couldn't be dead! She was still alive! Somewhere around here, he just had to look harder!!!
He scanned the area for any sign of refuge, and, oddly enough, found his home completely undamaged...Why it was fine didn't matter to him at the moment...He scrambled up the ladder, he ran in the door, and there...There he found her...Huddled on his bed. Her body was cut and bruised, traces of blood covered parts of her body...Her shirt and shorts had rips in them, her green hair was dishevled...He lunged for her, almost, placing his hand on her head, tears dripping down his face. Fight them as he may, he couldn't bear it...
But then...He saw two glorius green eyes groggily look up at him from an innocent face. She...She was still alive!
"...Link..." she coughed out, her voice raspy, her throat sore. Her eyes were wet with tears, but he was there, everything was going to be all right now. Everything turned out all right when Link was there...
"It's OK, it's OK," Link murmured, stroking her head gently. He was trying to convince himself of this as much as her. "You'll be all right..."
A plan jumped into his mind. A Great Fairy Fountain wasn't far from here, he could take her there, she'd be just fine...
After a few minutes, Saria was able to sit up and tell the tale of what had ocurred. Strange creatures had invaded...Purple creatures, marked with white lines. They looked like humans, but...Threy had no face. Hundreds of them had flooded in so fast...No one could stop them. They immediately burned down everything they could. But for some reason, they stayed completely away from Link's house...As if a barrier surrounded it or something...
Saria had watched in horror as her friends were forced away as slaves, or killed. She had been beaten badly before managing to climb the ladder to Link's home, and once she was there, all she could do was pray for his return. Sadly, he hadn't come back in time to stop them.
"Wire Frames...?" Link murmured in terror. {No...That can't be right...}
He came up with the rest of his plan. He would visit the Great Fairy, then head off back to Hyrule, to find Zelda and warn her of these attackers...Link was well respected, the King would trust his judgement. Things weren't looking up...Who knew where these hordes of horror would strike next...?
~*~*~*~*~*
The ground was rushing at him at an alarming rate, but he didn't budge. He gripped his vehicle tightly, grinning with satisfaction. No matter how many times he did it, it never got old, did it? Just before he was about to slam into the ground, he pushed himself off, into the air. He flipped in the sky and lightly landed on his feet, while his shining yellow vehicle exploded into stardust. After spreading into the air, it all soared back together into its original form- a Warpstar. The Warpstar shrunk in size and Kirby grabbed it with his hand...er...knobby appendage...
He casually stretched out his arms, glancing at his his dome-shaped house longingly. Boy...What a busy day it had been- he was exhausted. He pranced into his house, ready to fix himself a nice dinner and go to bed afterward. But no sooner had he entered his house and headed to his kitched, his door was pounded. It wasn't a knock, it was a pound. It jolted him so much that he dropped his Warpstar onto his counter and rushed to the door. He unlocked it hastily and swung it open, only to see a friendly face he knew well.
"Oh, Tuff, hey-" he greeted uneasily, noticing the boy's panting. He was about as tall as Kirby, with messy yellow hair (green-tipped) that draped over his face so you could barely see his eyes. He was Tiffany's little brother. A lot less intellectual and a lot more sneaky, Tuff was into pulling pranks. But right now, he was in no mood for jokes.
"Geez, Kirb, what took ya so long?!" he cut his friend off, dashing inside. Kirby narrowly dodged him, quite surprised, and watched him slam the door.
"...Wh-what's goin' on...?" he murmured shakily.
Tuff glared at him in despair. "We're under attack, ya nimwit! Where have YOU been?!"
"I-I just got back, I...-"
"Doesn't matter," Tuff dismissed. "But you're back, which means you have to teach these guys a lesson!"
Kirby's face grew nervous as he glanced out his window. Purple creatures he knew from somehwere were punching and kicking civilians, and ramming their transparent bodies into buildings. Kirby cried out in alarm. Wire Frames...Ooo, boy...
"What're ya doin', Kirb?! We gotta stop 'em!"
Kirby was shaking with fear. His memories of Wire Frames were not pleasant, and there were quite a lot of them. Besides, none of his Smashing buddies were there to back him up.
He quickly scanned the room, until he found his small, red phone. His Melee phone. He tossed it to Tuff.
"Just push number one on it, and tell them that we need help, all right?" he ordered, slowly opening the door.
"Uh- All right..." Tuff mumbled, fiddling with it.
Kirby lunged out the door, nailing two Wire Frames with a spin kick, and began to make his way around town, trying to help anyone he could. But to avail. Anyone he found was captured within seconds of their attempts to escape, and were dragged away, onto one of many dark blue machines.
Amidst the chaos, Kirby heard a distinctly familiar voice cry out his name. It was Tiff!!
He searched all around him, but all he could see were Wire Frames...He heard her cry out again...and again...And each time his heart hurt even more...He'd receive a punch to his gut due to lack of concentration, and he'd counter, killing it instantly. But finally, her voice faded, much to his deepest fears, and he knew she was gone.
The Wire Frames were gradually dwindling in numbers now, it had been about ten, fifteen minutes since their arrival. Kirby took to the skies, trying to locate someone...ANYONE, so long as they weren't PURPLE! The blue ships were swindling in number, having collected their cargo. He made an attempt to attack one, only to be tossed aside like a rag doll by a red creature. He was just like the other Frames, but Red, and toted a Beam Sword with him.
"Your world is ours now," he murmured cockily as he had batted Kirby away.
The pint-sized puff had landed mere feet from his front door. An untouched front door. Not damaged at all. As he returned to his feet, he realized his house was perfectly fine...In instinct, he retreated to this haven, slamming the door shut behind him. Gasping for relief, he came face-to-face with some of his friends...Gooey, Rick, ChuChu, Pitch...But none others...
"Kirby," Rick's Autralian lingo whispered. "Wot's goin' on out there, mate...?"
Kirby panted out in reply, "I don't know...But everyone's just...gone...Is..." His eyes lit up with a glimmer of hope. "Is Tiff here? What about Tuff?"
Everyone gave him a disappointed look, and he realized they were both gone. Tuff had no doubt heard Tiff's scream, too, and had gotten caught by these invaders in his efforts to help her...
His mind was whirling, his heart racing...Things were happening too fast. The past twenty minutes had felt like five...But then, he heard a cry. It was...so familiar...It was simply a scream, but he felt as if he knew it well. Something about it made him crash through his door into the outside world. Its owner was a creature that looked just like him. But they were pure white, with sky blue feet. A girl, definitely. She was trying to fend off these creatures, and Kirby eagerly gave her a hand. He kicked away one, spat out another...But he was far too tired to battle right now.
He felt like he would collapse any minute, until a blinding flash of red lit the air around him, and when he opened his eyes, all the Frames in the direct vicinity were gone. Standing before the two battered puffballs was a short, round figure with a silver mask and a sword.
"Kurdby," it bellowed. "Head folr youlr house, immediately! Take her with you! Now!"
Kirby obeyed his old friend's words, dragging the unconcious girl with him. He managed to make it to his door, and having just entered, gave in to his exhaustion, letting his body fall to the floor.
The place where Mario takes his vacation and the Pokemon there will unravel another subplot of the whole story, and it pick up at Chapter 39 into the 40's.
Which reminds me, we're almost where I've written up to! O_o
Then you can, ya know, read my Teen Titan and Golden Sun fics if you're bored...^_^
~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 34- Shadows
His belly full from breakfast and his heart set high, Link set off toward home. No doubt his good friend Saria missed him. As he padded across the drawbridge that led out of the village, the brisk air flooded his lungs. It was clean, it was cool, it was HOME. Yes, the open fields of Hyrule were quite a place. No matter how many trips he took, Link couldn't help but recognize their beauty.
Standing firmly, Link called forth the Ocarina of Time. His lips closed over its mouthpiece, and he expertly played a happy tune called the Minuet of Forest. As the final notes echoed through the air, dancing on the grass blades, Link's body was encompassed in shimmering green light, and in the blink of an eye, he was gone.
Seconds later, he opened his eyes to find himself standing exactly where he expected himself to be. In the middle of a forest, in a clearing. A temple stood before him. To his right was a short and wide tree stump, where Saria would often play her song. Nearby, a tree stood with a small swing hanging from one of its studry branches. Memories of discussions and moments long past flew into Link's mind, but he turned around to face his current destination.
Dashing through the woods, the Hylian made his way back to where his adventuring all began- Kokiri Village.
~*~*~*~*~*
"Listen, they will be FINE, OK? I'll go back and make sure they're allright as soon as I can!!" the blue hedgehog told his pink friend. "Besides," he added. "They're on a FLOATING ISLAND. I don't think those goons are going to be getting up there anytime soon."
"Don't be so sure of that, Sonic," Knuckles' gruff tone disagreed from behind. "I've got a bad feeling about all this..."
"OK, I've got an idea," Tails declared, waving his arms. "How about Amy goes and tells them what's going on, while the three of us go back to Mobius. I'll pilot the Tornado up to Angel Island, and we'll get everybody out of there."
Sonic grinned and gave Prower a pat on the back. (Tails' real name is Miles Prower.)
"Good idea."
"You think Eggman's behind this?" questioned a curious Mobian fox.
"Who the **** else would it be?" Sonic answered, rolling his eyes. "Bad eggs never get good again..."
Tails had a bit of hope, however.
"He DID help us before..."
"Does it really matter right now who it is?" Amy whimpered. "Everybody back home is in trouble..."
"Well, all right, then. Let's go," Knuckles suggested. "No use waiting around here."
They got ready to bolt off, but Amy stopped them.
"W-W-WAIT!! What's going on?! You're all going to leave me here?!"
Sonic realized that Amy still wasn't all too familiar with Toad Toad and sighed.
"OK, listen..." he explained. "You go down THAT way," he pointed down the road opposite where they were headed. "A little ways donw, you'll see a big green thingy. Ya know, like the one we hitched on to get here. You go down that, you'll be at a house."
"Once you get there," Tails added, "you tell the Mario Bros. what's going on, allright?"
Amy blinked, still a bit pertrified.
"Do ya think you can handle that?" Knuckles scoffed.
Amy's eyes burned as she growled, "Yes!"
"Good. Don't hurt yourself," the red echidna chuckled as the three of them were gone in a flash.
Amy stood there for a few moments, fuming.
{They always leave me behind...}
~*~*~*~*~*
The cool air of the woods greeted him, but something was amiss. The drifting lights that filled the air in the Lost Woods...They weren't like their usual selves...For one thing, there seemed to be less than usual. Link had gotten to used to seeing them, and he immediately felt their lack in numbers. They also weren't...as happy as normal...Yet another bad sign. Instead of playfully floating around, they were drearily hovering...
{This is NOT good,} his instincts told him. As Kokiri village neared his sight, his keen eyes were narrow with suspicion.
His pointy nose picked up a scent. A very recognizable and familiar scent, at that- smoke.
Smoke meant there was fire. Fire burned things, like wood. Trees. Trees were made of wood, weren't they? Yes. And forests were full of trees. Which meant..
Fire + Forest = Lots of Ashes
Hm...
This all flashed through his brain over the course of a second or so, and when the solution clicked, his heart skipped a beat. A fire, in the Lost Woods?! DEFINITELY not a good thing!!
Before he realized it, his feet were rushing, his mind was racing...And his eyes were absorbing the sights laid before him. What used to be a building was a pile of rubble, what used to be a tree was a flaming pillar...From the sights of it, he had arrived just too late to stop this madness...As he dashed onward, heading for his home, he saw a charred body of what used to be a Kokiri...His heart lurched in fear and disgust as he pounded on. She'd better be all right...
He finally reached his destination- his best friend's house. It was nothing more than ashes. Fear gripped his heart as he stood there, paralyzed...No...This couldn't be...He had only been gone for a day...
His eyes welled up wildly, he began to think irrational thoughts of revenge. No...No one would get away with this...The destruction of the village...He could handle this. But not...Not...She couldn't be dead! She was still alive! Somewhere around here, he just had to look harder!!!
He scanned the area for any sign of refuge, and, oddly enough, found his home completely undamaged...Why it was fine didn't matter to him at the moment...He scrambled up the ladder, he ran in the door, and there...There he found her...Huddled on his bed. Her body was cut and bruised, traces of blood covered parts of her body...Her shirt and shorts had rips in them, her green hair was dishevled...He lunged for her, almost, placing his hand on her head, tears dripping down his face. Fight them as he may, he couldn't bear it...
But then...He saw two glorius green eyes groggily look up at him from an innocent face. She...She was still alive!
"...Link..." she coughed out, her voice raspy, her throat sore. Her eyes were wet with tears, but he was there, everything was going to be all right now. Everything turned out all right when Link was there...
"It's OK, it's OK," Link murmured, stroking her head gently. He was trying to convince himself of this as much as her. "You'll be all right..."
A plan jumped into his mind. A Great Fairy Fountain wasn't far from here, he could take her there, she'd be just fine...
After a few minutes, Saria was able to sit up and tell the tale of what had ocurred. Strange creatures had invaded...Purple creatures, marked with white lines. They looked like humans, but...Threy had no face. Hundreds of them had flooded in so fast...No one could stop them. They immediately burned down everything they could. But for some reason, they stayed completely away from Link's house...As if a barrier surrounded it or something...
Saria had watched in horror as her friends were forced away as slaves, or killed. She had been beaten badly before managing to climb the ladder to Link's home, and once she was there, all she could do was pray for his return. Sadly, he hadn't come back in time to stop them.
"Wire Frames...?" Link murmured in terror. {No...That can't be right...}
He came up with the rest of his plan. He would visit the Great Fairy, then head off back to Hyrule, to find Zelda and warn her of these attackers...Link was well respected, the King would trust his judgement. Things weren't looking up...Who knew where these hordes of horror would strike next...?
~*~*~*~*~*
The ground was rushing at him at an alarming rate, but he didn't budge. He gripped his vehicle tightly, grinning with satisfaction. No matter how many times he did it, it never got old, did it? Just before he was about to slam into the ground, he pushed himself off, into the air. He flipped in the sky and lightly landed on his feet, while his shining yellow vehicle exploded into stardust. After spreading into the air, it all soared back together into its original form- a Warpstar. The Warpstar shrunk in size and Kirby grabbed it with his hand...er...knobby appendage...
He casually stretched out his arms, glancing at his his dome-shaped house longingly. Boy...What a busy day it had been- he was exhausted. He pranced into his house, ready to fix himself a nice dinner and go to bed afterward. But no sooner had he entered his house and headed to his kitched, his door was pounded. It wasn't a knock, it was a pound. It jolted him so much that he dropped his Warpstar onto his counter and rushed to the door. He unlocked it hastily and swung it open, only to see a friendly face he knew well.
"Oh, Tuff, hey-" he greeted uneasily, noticing the boy's panting. He was about as tall as Kirby, with messy yellow hair (green-tipped) that draped over his face so you could barely see his eyes. He was Tiffany's little brother. A lot less intellectual and a lot more sneaky, Tuff was into pulling pranks. But right now, he was in no mood for jokes.
"Geez, Kirb, what took ya so long?!" he cut his friend off, dashing inside. Kirby narrowly dodged him, quite surprised, and watched him slam the door.
"...Wh-what's goin' on...?" he murmured shakily.
Tuff glared at him in despair. "We're under attack, ya nimwit! Where have YOU been?!"
"I-I just got back, I...-"
"Doesn't matter," Tuff dismissed. "But you're back, which means you have to teach these guys a lesson!"
Kirby's face grew nervous as he glanced out his window. Purple creatures he knew from somehwere were punching and kicking civilians, and ramming their transparent bodies into buildings. Kirby cried out in alarm. Wire Frames...Ooo, boy...
"What're ya doin', Kirb?! We gotta stop 'em!"
Kirby was shaking with fear. His memories of Wire Frames were not pleasant, and there were quite a lot of them. Besides, none of his Smashing buddies were there to back him up.
He quickly scanned the room, until he found his small, red phone. His Melee phone. He tossed it to Tuff.
"Just push number one on it, and tell them that we need help, all right?" he ordered, slowly opening the door.
"Uh- All right..." Tuff mumbled, fiddling with it.
Kirby lunged out the door, nailing two Wire Frames with a spin kick, and began to make his way around town, trying to help anyone he could. But to avail. Anyone he found was captured within seconds of their attempts to escape, and were dragged away, onto one of many dark blue machines.
Amidst the chaos, Kirby heard a distinctly familiar voice cry out his name. It was Tiff!!
He searched all around him, but all he could see were Wire Frames...He heard her cry out again...and again...And each time his heart hurt even more...He'd receive a punch to his gut due to lack of concentration, and he'd counter, killing it instantly. But finally, her voice faded, much to his deepest fears, and he knew she was gone.
The Wire Frames were gradually dwindling in numbers now, it had been about ten, fifteen minutes since their arrival. Kirby took to the skies, trying to locate someone...ANYONE, so long as they weren't PURPLE! The blue ships were swindling in number, having collected their cargo. He made an attempt to attack one, only to be tossed aside like a rag doll by a red creature. He was just like the other Frames, but Red, and toted a Beam Sword with him.
"Your world is ours now," he murmured cockily as he had batted Kirby away.
The pint-sized puff had landed mere feet from his front door. An untouched front door. Not damaged at all. As he returned to his feet, he realized his house was perfectly fine...In instinct, he retreated to this haven, slamming the door shut behind him. Gasping for relief, he came face-to-face with some of his friends...Gooey, Rick, ChuChu, Pitch...But none others...
"Kirby," Rick's Autralian lingo whispered. "Wot's goin' on out there, mate...?"
Kirby panted out in reply, "I don't know...But everyone's just...gone...Is..." His eyes lit up with a glimmer of hope. "Is Tiff here? What about Tuff?"
Everyone gave him a disappointed look, and he realized they were both gone. Tuff had no doubt heard Tiff's scream, too, and had gotten caught by these invaders in his efforts to help her...
His mind was whirling, his heart racing...Things were happening too fast. The past twenty minutes had felt like five...But then, he heard a cry. It was...so familiar...It was simply a scream, but he felt as if he knew it well. Something about it made him crash through his door into the outside world. Its owner was a creature that looked just like him. But they were pure white, with sky blue feet. A girl, definitely. She was trying to fend off these creatures, and Kirby eagerly gave her a hand. He kicked away one, spat out another...But he was far too tired to battle right now.
He felt like he would collapse any minute, until a blinding flash of red lit the air around him, and when he opened his eyes, all the Frames in the direct vicinity were gone. Standing before the two battered puffballs was a short, round figure with a silver mask and a sword.
"Kurdby," it bellowed. "Head folr youlr house, immediately! Take her with you! Now!"
Kirby obeyed his old friend's words, dragging the unconcious girl with him. He managed to make it to his door, and having just entered, gave in to his exhaustion, letting his body fall to the floor.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
His pointy nose picked up a scent. A very recognizable and familiar scent, at that- smoke.
Smoke meant there was fire. Fire burned things, like wood. Trees. Trees were made of wood, weren't they? Yes. And forests were full of trees. Which meant..
Fire + Forest = Lots of Ashes
Hm...
This all flashed through his brain over the course of a second or so, and when the solution clicked, his heart skipped a beat. A fire, in the Lost Woods?! DEFINITELY not a good thing!!
Excellent powers of deduction. It doesn't get any more precise than that.
So the war is starting to heat up. Hostages are being taken, as well as lives. When will the Mario Bros. be aware of this growing threat?
Smoke meant there was fire. Fire burned things, like wood. Trees. Trees were made of wood, weren't they? Yes. And forests were full of trees. Which meant..
Fire + Forest = Lots of Ashes
Hm...
This all flashed through his brain over the course of a second or so, and when the solution clicked, his heart skipped a beat. A fire, in the Lost Woods?! DEFINITELY not a good thing!!
Excellent powers of deduction. It doesn't get any more precise than that.
So the war is starting to heat up. Hostages are being taken, as well as lives. When will the Mario Bros. be aware of this growing threat?
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
Great update. You didn't say if it was Meta-knight so how can certain people tell who he is.
"You didn't say if it was Meta-knight so how can certain people tell who he is."
Hmm..
Sounds to me like you answered your own question, doesn't it?
OK, I got really annoyed with editing the glitches in the formatting, so partway through the Chapter it starts lookin' messed up. To avoid that, head here instead.
~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 35- Searching
The buildings sprawled out before them were a welcoming sight. Not as big as home, not as small as Tulip Town, either.
"Shy Central," Yoshi murmured, tapping his map briskly. "This place is booming with folks, we should be able to get some leads..."
Having hitched a ride to get to Shy Isle's mainland, the four Yoshinas (term for those from Yoshina Village) set off into the wide town.
"OK, we'll split up and meet back here in an hour for lunch."
***
Yoshi and Tarts had entered a bright, 'oldies' style cafe. The front side of the building was made of windowpane, and stools were lined up
against a shiny, aluminum counter. A few ragged characters sat around the place, drinking and eating their lunches quietly.
The manager of the place was a rough Lakitu with bloodshot eyes and a scruffy beard. He sat on his cloud casually, washing the inside of a mug with a gray rag.
"What kin I doo-ez fa yoo-ez?" the gruffy bartender questioned.
Yoshi paused a moment, then answered.
"Um...We're looking for something that was stolen..."
No one in the restaurant seemed to show any interest. It was oddly quiet for a couple moments, when the tender spoke.
"We gots-a lotta shady folks 'round 'ere...Whatcha missin'?" He stared at them suspiciously.
"Well, it's flat...Gold, shiny...Like part of an Egg..."
The Lakitu glanced around the room at his customers.
"Duz any yaz knows what duh Yoshi's talkin' 'bout?" he questioned casually. A Pidget with a high, nasally voice stood from his seat.
"Eh, yea, didn' Boydee 'ave one jus' yest'day?"
The Lakitu and his cloud shared looks of deep thought, then realization. He turned to Yoshi.
"Ehhh...Yea, Boydee came rollin' 'round 'ere jes a while ago...Had summin' like ya described. Boydee's a regulah, always comin' in fer sum cawffee, ya knows?"
Yoshi and Tarts exchanged nervous glances and nodded quickly.
"Who's...eh...Boing-di?" Yoshi pondered.
The Lakitu rolled his eyes.
"Nah, not Boing-di, ya schmuck. Boydee. Ya knows, Boydee..." He flapped his arms around. "Like a boydee in da sky, ya knows...?"
Yoshi caught on and snapped his fingers.
"Birdie!" he cried out.
"Yea, sheesh...Boydee. How hard izzat ta undastand?"
Tarts sighed, her arms crossed over her chest. This place was just strange. Not to her taste, anyway.
"Well, uh....Where did this 'Birdie' go? What do they look like?" Yoshi asked.
"Meh, Boydee's a loner. Always by 'erself, ya knows? Shame, too. Good kid. Eh...She's broad, well built, gotsa funny face, but...Ah, she's too sweet. Sweet as a Rock Candy, and jus' as tough, when she hasta be." (A Mario RPG reference, just for you Mario RPG freaks like me.)
Yoshi scratched his chin, trying to print a picture, while the tender continued his ranting.
"She lives up nort', in da Fores' o' da Forgotten. Real easy t' find, jus' head up."
Yoshi nodded quickly.
"Uh, thanks, Sir."
"No probl'm, Son. Have fun up t'ere, eh?"
"We will, I'm sure!" Tarts said, trying to leave.
"Ah, nice chicky ya got t'ere, too, Sonny boy," he remarked to Yoshi.
"Lucky man ya are..."
The cheeks of the two Yoshies became slightly flushed as they took their leave. The door to the cafe swished shut slowly, and the bell hanging on it rung softly.
A few moments later, the nasally Pidget asked a question.
"Ehh...I'nt da General lookin' fuh summin' like dat?"
"...Shoah is..." the Lakitu replied. "Why I told 'em ta have fun..."
*~*~*~*~*~
"Yea, we're gonna be remodeling soon," the man muttered, sniffing his tea. "It'll be...I think the third time...Not gonna be complicated..."
He sipped a little. "Well, not remodeling, but...building from scratch, actually."
"Sounds good, Luigi," a high tone said to the capped hero. He was a short guy with a mushroom cap on his head. He also wore a blue vest and brown shoes. Two beady, black eyes were on his face, and he had skinny little arms. His name was Toad.
"So Mario's off on vacation now, huh...? And you wanna get this job done before he gets back...?" There was doubt in his words. Building a house wasn't something accomplished overnight.
Luigi nodded and slurped some more.
"Oh, yea. He said he's gonna be gone a while. Weeks...And with enough people, the job'll be no problem. We're gonna give this one away..."
His eyes widened and he wiggled a finger at Toad.
"Matter of fact...Do you know anyone who needs a decent place...?"
Toad was smiling- he looked ready to burst. It was as if Fate had thrown him the last card he needed for a Royal Flush.
"Actually, someone just rolled into town, they're lookin' for a house..." he said slyly.
Luigi had a curious look and inquired Toad.
"Really? Who's that?"
Toad's cheeks turned pink as he mumbled an answer.
"Her name's Tara, but...everybody calls her Toadette..."
The mustachioed one grinned. "Ah," he said simply, smiling.
After Toad mumbled a bit, Luigi resolved the matter.
"Well, you can tell your friend that once we get the new place done, she can have this one."
"What about a mortgage?" Toad questioned.
Luigi tossed his hand.
"Don't worry about it..." he assured calmly. "No big."
"Really?! Oh, man...Thanks! I-I'll go tell her right now."
"Go on, then." Luigi sucked in some more brown liquid. "Looking forward to meet this girl."
"Oh, you'll like her!" Toad cried as he dashed out the door, waddling
his little legs.
~*~*~*~*~*
"You sure you should be trusting a guy who can't even speak right...?"
Snoball questioned Yoshi dubiously.
"Listen, he seemed like an honest guy, and it's not like we have any
OTHER leads to follow, now do we? I just...I have a gut feeling he knew what he was talking about."
Those two words- gut feeling- were the only words that needed to be said. When Yoshi had a gut feeling, it always wound up happening that way in the end, and that was that.
"Pressing on then," Fireball murmured suddenly.
They had left town and headed into the Forest of the Forgotten. It was a relatively thin forest that lay up in the northern section of the small Shy Guy Isle they were on.
The area was relatively bright, with plenty of open space. Rays of sunshine trickled down from the canopy. It was a tidy place at the time. There was no mud, for it had not rained as of late. The dirt was soft and fertile beneath their feet, and the occasional shrub or bush was cuddly and inviting. To the west of this forest there was a clean and cold body of water simply called Lonely Lake. This lake was indeed quite lonely, for barely any vegetation rested around it, and about nothing lived within its waters. This forest itself seemed almost equally lonely. The occasional monster would give them a tad bit of trouble, but even then, the monsters themselves seemed lonely.
They paced along, which they were getting quite used to. Thoughts plagued their minds. Were the others all right? What were they doing?
How could they be helped?
Surfer noticed that Snoball seemed somewhat distressed about something- no doubt it involved their friends or her family. He reached out his hand for hers and grasped it, but only for a moment, for she threw it off. She didn't do it in a vicious way, but it still stung. Why was it that every time he tried to be cuddly with her she grew so uncomfortable? Wasn't cuddling what girlfriends did with their boyfriends, at least on occasion?
Meanwhile, Tarts was having her own emotional struggle. She stared at the necklace around her neck sadly, rubbing it between her fingers.
{Yoshi's father gave this to his mom as a display of true love...} she reminded herself. {It was the symbol of their engagement to each other. But the Queen seemed so eager to give it me...Wouldn't it mean the world to her...? Unless, maybe...Maybe she gave it to me because she thinks that someday...-}
Her nervous eyes slowly glanced up at the solemn, determined face of Yoshi, who marched along without wavering. She knew that he wasn't going to let anything stand in his way. And she was willing to do anything to see that nothing DID get in his way. She'd follow him to ends of Stellon, the ends of the universe, even. From Yoshi's Island to Cookie Mountain, Isle Delfino to the Beanbean Kingdom, Mobius to Hyrule, and back...No matter where he went, she would follow him. It didn't matter where they were, how much fighting they had to endure...So long as she was by his side. That was all that mattered to her.
{He's so sexy when he's serious,} she thought playfully, staring at him.
The green teen suddenly noticed her eyes glued to him, and he felt a bit awkward by it.
"Ehh...Everything all right, Tarts?" he mumbled. She nodded, her gaze quickly wandering off.
"Yea, I'm fine," she said calmly. "Just bored, that's all."
"Yea!" Snoball huffed. "Geez! This place doesn't even have any monsters to kick the crap out of, for Eldstar's sake!"
Fireball nodded slowly in agreement.
"You'd think the Eggshell would be surrounded by critters like it usually is," he muttered in amusement.
"Oh, don't worry," Yoshi assured them. "I'll bet that SOMETHING will wind up happening. It always does..."
~*~*~*~*~*
Pine trees went flying by in a flash as the air rushed by their faces.
Their feet seemed to fly, almost, and it sometimes seemed as if they
weren't touching the ground. The terrain was getting bumpier as rocks slowly took the place of trees. They were nearing the mountainous region of the island, and the destruction of the invaders was becoming apparent.
"How much farther is it?" a rough growl asked.
"We'll be there before ya know it, Knucklehead, just chill..." a smooth response answered.
The face of the anxious echidna frowned irritably.
"Easy for you to say, it's not your home that's being destroyed," he answered grimly.
"Knux! Cool it! We'll get there in time, or my name's not Sonic."
And then, quite suddenly, their environs changed. The ground became black, and the trees were aflame. Ashes were spread everywhere. The eyes of the 'Sonic Team' became wide with fear. It seemed that Eggman meant business this time.
"I don't like the looks of this," Tails managed, breathing hard from their running.
"No kidding," Sonic said drearily.
Things got even more grim as their trek continued. The remnants of houses were scattered about as they passed through what used to be a village. The air smelt of freshly slaughtered meat. It was a pungent aroma that stuck to their noses like glue. They almost felt like passing out from the hideous taste that formed in their mouths as they passed bloody corpses of Mobians. A duck that had been burned alive, a chipmunk that had been lacerated severely, a bear that had his arm lopped off...All of them, randomly sprawled about, their faces frozen in a contorted expression of fear.
"I don't think Egghead is behind this ****," Sonic choked out as they ventured closer to their destination. "It just doesn't seem his style..."
"Who could it be, then?" Tails pondered, his eyes watery.
"Who cares?!" Knuckles growled. "Whoever they are, they aren't getting any further!"
And then, finally, their target came into view. The Temple of Chaos.
The ancient stones sat upon a rough hill, secluded from the rest of it all. Seven pillars stood around the center, which was merely a platform raised higher than the rest, like a small pyramid. The old rocks looked worn from the many years they had endured, and many of the pillars were half crumbled away.
Hovering above each of the pillars, all at equal height, were seven shimmering stones of beauty, carved in perfect shape, like a diamond. Their seven colors radiated in the air around them. Green, gold, silver, blue, purple, red, and turquoise. The seven Chaos Emeralds, the ultimate source of power on Mobius. And in the middle, in the center of it all, there was a tremendously large stone similar in appearance. It glowed a sharp and strong green. This was the Master Emerald, the jewel that kept the other seven in balance with each other.
However, this wondrous sight was not quite so beautiful, for the screams of innocent lives robbed the air of tranquility. The conceited laughs of the monstrous creatures attacking these lives echoed over the sounds of their destruction. It was a scene of chaos, indeed. But the creatures were being held at bay, at least for the moment. The Master Emerald had created a powerful, neon green force field around the small temple. The trio of heroes couldn't make out who tremble within the barrier, for there were so many monsters smashing away at it. It looked like it wouldn't hold up much longer. There was an army of malicious purple creatures in the forms of humans. About a hundred of them, all bashing at the force field with all their might. And there, towering before them, was the largest turtle they had ever seen. He looked vaguely familiar, but...He had a large green shell with long and sleek spikes that curved downward. His legs and arms were powerful and muscular. He had ragged claws on his toes and hands, along with a built chest. His snout was kind of flat, and had a deadly set of glistening teeth. His red, flaming hair was greasy and disheveled, and his glaring, sharp eyes were bloodshot. Two gold horns shot out from the sides of his head like an image of Lucifer, and his grin was that of pure evil. This was a destructive creature bent on spilling blood.
This monstrous demon was known as Giga Bowser.
As he let out a booming cackle, he clawed at the barrier viciously.
His voice was low, tremendously loud, and growly.
"Yesss!" he hissed. "Almost...have them..."
The mass of villains had not yet noticed the small, furry critters behind them.
"...Holy ****!" Sonic gasped in awe, humbled by such a sight.
"No kidding..." Knuckles murmured, his jaw dropped.
"...Wh-What do we do?" Tails frantically questioned.
Sonic sucked in a deep breath, closed his eyes, and cleared his mind.
He pushed all his fears to the back, as he always did. After that
moment of meditation, he solemnly responded.
"...We get into that barrier...There's gotta be someone in there. Once we're in there, it shouldn't be too hard to fight them."
"How the **** do you propose we get in there?!" Knuckles demanded with worry. Sonic calmly crossed his arms over his chest, smirked, and muttered, "We break in, of course."
"GAH!" Knuckles smacked his face in dismay. "Business as usual," he grunted.
"What's wrong, Knux? You're not SCARED, are ya?" Sonic slyly asked, his eyes narrowed.
"OF COURSE NOT!!" Knuckles roared in defense. "I'm not afraid of anything!! I'll defend the Master Emerald with my life!"
"Great, then let's get going!"
Sonic hunched over slightly, readying himself for a sprint. They'd have to crash their way through this wall of creatures.
"Hope you're in the mood to play follow the leader," Sonic advised.
Knuckles rolled his eyes and huffed. {Always quick with a smart-*** remark...}
Sweat dripped from their faces, their teeth were clenched, their bodies tense. And then, like a strike of lightning, they were off, whizzing directly into the crazy crowd of maniacal beings.
Three streaks of light flashed through the air, colliding into the thick mass of purple warriors, causing them to explode upon impact.
Giga Bowser was too busy spewing a searing hot wave of flames at the green wall to notice this, and the Wire Frames weren't of great intelligence; they continued to batter away as if nothing had happened.
The three Mobian saviors tumbled through the barrier with no trouble- the Emerald didn't see them as a threat. But the Master Emerald didn't usually do this by itself- someone was willing it to do so.
They had slammed into the ground, piling on top of one another roughly.
They could feel the intensity of Giga Bowser's breath singing the air as they lay on the short grass, dazed. The seven Chaos Emeralds rested around them, hovering in place. They seemed too peaceful and serene amongst all this calamity.
"Knuckles!!" screamed a high-pitched girl as she dashed toward the three, waving her arms frantically.
She was a Mobian rabbit, with the same general appearance of her friends. She had fluffy, white fur, and a puffy cottontail to match. She had fat arms and legs, and pudgy hands hidden underneath white gloves. On her wrists were a couple of black metal bracelets. She wore large shoes that looked just like Knuckles', but hers were more of an orange. She wore a very unique skirt. It was black, with white rings about it. Inside the white rings were red circles. Her shirt, which had no sleeves, was an orange-red. She had a face similar to Tails, but her snout wasn't quite as broad. It was flat and short, and had a beady black nose on it. Her eyes were a sky-blue and matched the white of her fur perfectly. A fluffy tuft of white hair draped down over he forehead and over her eyes a tad. Her ears were long and floppy, hanging down to her ankles. Each was about as wide as her hand, and they both had two parallel black bracelets around them. Around her neck was a necklace with what looked like the gold Chaos Emerald on it. This was actually a fake Emerald that Tails had created a while back while studying Chaos Radiation. He'd given it to her as a birthday present, and she wore it proudly. Her name was Crystel Maize. Her background was a very strange, sad, and mysterious one. But in the present, she lived on Angel Island with Knuckles and served as his apprentice. She trained every day so that someday, she could take Knuckles' place as the Guardian of the Master Emerald. Although only ten years of age, she was confident in her skills. However, Knuckles often became frustrated because of her tendency to space out, and her short attention span.
+++(OK, now I'm really sick of doing this...)+++
"Maize!!" Knuckles cried out in astonishment. "Wh-What do you think
you're doing here?!"
She frowned as she helped him to his feet quickly.
"I'm protecting the temple, silly!" she declared seriously.
Knuckles gave her a weak smile that showed his pride in his student. He
would've expected her to run and find him, but she seemed to be
courageous enough to stand strong through even a mess like this.
Sonic and Tails were already scurrying up the stone steps to the Master
Emerald's spot in the center, and Knuckles was awakened to the dire
situation at hand.
As he approached the steps, the water around the temple began to
tremble. Knuckles froze in place.
"Chaos," he muttered in realization. He suddenly became aware of the
fact that tons of Chao were crying, screaming, and flying around this
way and that. Chao were small, innocent beings that radiated Chaos
energy. They were blue, roundish, had short arm and legs, and tear-drop
shaped heads. Small orbs mysteriously floated around their heads.
The water took shape into the protector of the Chao. A creature called
Chaos Zero. He had thick arms and legs, each with three fingers and
toes that were thin and long. His body glowed a neon blue, and he moved
fluidly like water. His head was tall and spiked up, and his eyes were
a deep and threatening red.
"Don't worry, Chaos," Knuckles grunted. "We're here to help..."
Chaos simply glared at him calmly, then up at the foes. He clenched his
fists tightly, for he knew that they would be coming soon. From the
other side of the temple came a strange purple creature. He was a
Mobian, as well. He was on the taller side than Crystel was, and was
mainly purple. He had a white underbelly and a ruff of white on his
chest, just like Tails. He was a badger, but a specific breed- an ink
badger. His purple fur had splotches of black on it here and there, and
his eyes matched the purple tone of the rest of him. He wore big white
sneakers with short laces. On his hands were those gloves, as well, and
his hair was very puffy. It poked up in spikes that faced ahead but off
to the left a little. His name was simply Inky. Inky Blott. He was a
creature created by Chaos Zero in order to help protect the Chao. Chaos
was his master and boss, so he did everything he could to fulfill
Chaos' wishes.
"GUYS!!" he cried to all the Chao scampering about. He frightfully
waved his hands to get their attention. "What are you doing?! You have
to calm down!" A look of pure fear was plastered about his face, and
his body trembled wildly. The Chao gradually began to answer his call,
and, one by one, fell to his side. As explosions, cracks, and thuds
traveled through the air around them, Inky gathered the crowd of
creatures up and brought them before Chaos.
"Master...?" He looked for guidance.
The cold, emotionless face of Chaos Zero glowered at him for a few
moments, and Inky nodded in reply. "All right...You sure?" he checked,
feeling a bit doubtful.
Chaos' head slowly shifted up and down to answer. Inky nodded back
quickly as sweat trickled down his face.
"OK, guys," he called to the Chao. "We've got a plan..."
"When did they get here?" Knuckles demanded to Crystel calmly.
The girl tapped her chin, her eyes wandering.
"Not too long ago...Ten minutes, maybe?" Knuckles sighed of relief. They still had some time, then.
"Right. Good." He glanced up at the flat-topped pyramid where the
Master Emerald resided. Sonic and Tails had made their way up there,
and had been greeted by a good friend.
She was a thin and fragile-looking girl, 16 years of age. An echidna,
like Knuckles. Her fur was a paled orange, though. her long, soft
quills were longer than Knuckles', and a few had rings of white tape
stuck around them. Her deep blue eyes were sad and innocent. On her
forehead, she wore a circlet. The gold piece of jewelry poked out from
her 'hair' and was visible on her forehead. Ancient markings were
inscribed upon it, and a round, blue stone rested in its center. Her
arms were thin and slender, and she wore thick, neon blue
bracelets on her wrists. White gloves covered her hands, which were
dainty and 'lady-like.' A white, sleeve-less shirt covered her 'ripe'
breasts, and a gold-sectioned necklace hung around her neck. Her shirt
covered her back thoroughly, but its edge curved upward to reveal her
belly. Over her hips was a green skirt with a frilled edge. Orange
lines ran diagonally across it. Over her fat feet, she wore old looking
sandals. They seemed a bit makeshift, created from white cloth wrapped
intricately around her foot and ankle. Her name was Tikal, and she was
a kind, passionate soul who hated violence. She was linked closely with
the Master Emerald, for certain. She was able to harness its true
powers, as she was doing currently.
Her body was draped over it in a tight and desperate embrace. Her eyes
were squinted shut, she seemed to contort with pain, and her fragile
body quivered uncontrollably.
"Tikal!!" Sonic cried in shock, rushing to her side. Tails followed,
inspecting the situation. She didn't seem to notice them, too absorbed
into keeping the barrier alive.
"She must be using the Emeralds to protect us," Tails realized. Sonic
nodded, his face serious.
"It doesn't look like she's gonna be able to hang in much longer," he
admitted nervously. "We're gonna have to do something..."
Tails agreed with him, and the two leapt off the stone platform to the
ground, landing roughly beside Knuckles and Crystel.
"We're gonna have to keep those things at bay," Sonic concluded.
Knuckles huffed rigidly as he slammed his fists into each other.
Crystel nodded, her face determined, her eyes narrowed.
"Do you think we can use the Chaos Emeralds to help us?" Tails wondered
curiously. He gave Sonic a suggestive look, and the blue hedgehog
paused to contemplate.
"I-I dunno, Tails. You sure that would be a good idea right now?" he
asked with uncertainty.
Tails' expression displayed some doubt as he figured the scenario out.
"On second thought, you're probably right. With all this energy in the
air, the Emeralds might be too reactive for us to control, and the
Master Emerald, which would keep them in check, is busy defending
us..."
"Then we'll fight them off ourselves," Knuckles declared gruffly,
glaring Giga Bowser down.
"NOW you're talkin', Knux!" Sonic cried out with a sense of thrill
about him.
"It's your turn to play the leader," he added in, giving his old friend
a thumbs-up.
"All right then," Knuckles grunted with satisfaction, grinning back at
Sonic. "Let's go!"
"Wait for me!" little Miss Maize squeaked as the trio broke out into a
run, leaving her behind. She scrambled to keep up with them as the
barrier drew nearer by the second. Their adrenaline rose to a fever
pitch as the impending hazards before them became more real. Their eyes
were determined, and it only took a few moments until they had dashed
right through the green 'wall', smashing another section of these
mysterious purple creatures to pieces. As they exploded, their purple
skin broke, clear fluid splashed to the floor, and their framing fell
apart.
In a triangle of red, blue, and yellow, the three furry saviors skidded
to a halt, only to rotate 180 and come spinning back into the crowd. A
horde of them were viciously darting toward them, but they, too, were
obliterated as the three balled-up Mobians soared right through them,
and back into their small haven. Crystel, who had battered away at a
few, stumbled to their sides, panting like a dog on a summer's day.
Giga Bowser had definitely noticed them by now, but he showed no fear
of them, and for good reason.
"This isn't looking too good," Tails muttered sheepishly. "There's too
many of them, and that monster is HUGE! How are we supposed to defeat
him?"
Sonic shook his head slowly, realizing that Tails wasn't too far off.
This fight seemed a bit too big for even them to handle...
Sonic tossed his arms wretchedly. He hated to quit like this, but there
was no point. All they'd do is give up their lives, and the Emeralds
would be taken, anyway. At least if they could escape, they could
gather help from Mario...Then they'd stand a better chance. One thought
was plaguing him, however. If Eggman wasn't behind this, then...who
WAS?
"****it," he growled in frustration. "I think he's right, Knux," Sonic admitted half-heartedly. "This fight ain't ours..."
Knuckles glared at him in disbelief.
"You're going to quit on me?" he roared in dismay. After seeing the seriousness on his blue friend's face, he frowned bitterly. "Fine, you coward. You do what you want, but I won't abandon my duty..."
He kneeled down, preparing to leap out into combat again, but Sonic halted him with his hands.
"Knuckles, don't be ****in' stupid! Those guys'll tear you apart!" he warned.
"So be it," Knuckles said calmly, shoving Sonic's hands off in anger. "I, unlike you, will take care of my responsibility..."
Miles had grabbed the echidna's jagged tail and was pulling on it forcefully.
"Knuckles, trust us! We need reinforcements! Better to live and fight another day!"
Knuckles growled in blinded rage and pushed Tails to the ground, but before he went speeding off, he froze like a statue. His pupil was standing solemnly before him, bruises covering her body. As a strong gust of wind blew in from the north, her ears and hair lightly swayed. Her expression was sad and calm. Knuckles was speechless for a few moments, his eyes wide.
"Please, Knuckles..." she said softly, just barely loud enough for him to hear amongst the clattering from behind her. "Listen to them...Your friends are more important than any stone...Aren't they...?" Her eyes watered up in distress, but she ignored them, holding the liquid at bay. "Besides...If you really care about saving the Emeralds, then you won't die now...Then I'll be by myself. I still haven't learned enough, and...Let's just go, we can save them later when we're ready..."
Sniffling, she lunged at her teacher and squeezed him tightly in her arms for a few moments, and Sonic and Tails smiled faintly from behind. Knuckles was awestruck and without words, but he managed to lift his powerful arms up and put on hand on her shoulder, the other on her head.
"...All right," he choked out, trying to sound like his usual 'tough' self.
Breaking through this sentimental moment, the ground quaked, tossing them all to their feet. Sonic flipped up immediately in a stealthy manner like that of a ninja, and he quickly scanned his environs as the others clambered up doggedly. The barrier seemed to have a crack in it- it wasn't going to hold up for much longer.
"Oh, ****," Sonic muttered under his breath, his jaw dropping, his eyes wide with fear. And then, a thought popped into his brain as the immensely frightening face of Giga Bowser stared at him with blood-shot eyes. He quickly hatched a plan of escape, one he knew would work, for it had worked before.
"Guys, c'mon!" he screamed, dragging them all to the shrine of the Master Emerald to meet their fate.
~*~*~*~*~*
Mehh...Yea, that Chapter was OK, I guess...
By the way, Inky and Crystel are two characters created by an old internet friend of mine- we lost touch a few months ago, but his characters live on in my fic, at least.
Oh, yea. I got banned from that other forum I've been visiting. No, no, no, not the one I gave you the link to, a different one. Their mods are, for the most part, not very respectable. However, though I am banned, I can still send PMs.
One thing I'm considering doing is registering a new account, and hoping that no one knows it's me- that is, until the opportune moment. Who knows? Maybe it'll work out or not. I don't know exactly what I'd do, though...But it would have to be sneaky, and hopefully involve getting revenge on the stupid person whose fault it is I got banned to begin with.
Hmm..
Sounds to me like you answered your own question, doesn't it?OK, I got really annoyed with editing the glitches in the formatting, so partway through the Chapter it starts lookin' messed up. To avoid that, head here instead.
~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 35- Searching
The buildings sprawled out before them were a welcoming sight. Not as big as home, not as small as Tulip Town, either.
"Shy Central," Yoshi murmured, tapping his map briskly. "This place is booming with folks, we should be able to get some leads..."
Having hitched a ride to get to Shy Isle's mainland, the four Yoshinas (term for those from Yoshina Village) set off into the wide town.
"OK, we'll split up and meet back here in an hour for lunch."
***
Yoshi and Tarts had entered a bright, 'oldies' style cafe. The front side of the building was made of windowpane, and stools were lined up
against a shiny, aluminum counter. A few ragged characters sat around the place, drinking and eating their lunches quietly.
The manager of the place was a rough Lakitu with bloodshot eyes and a scruffy beard. He sat on his cloud casually, washing the inside of a mug with a gray rag.
"What kin I doo-ez fa yoo-ez?" the gruffy bartender questioned.
Yoshi paused a moment, then answered.
"Um...We're looking for something that was stolen..."
No one in the restaurant seemed to show any interest. It was oddly quiet for a couple moments, when the tender spoke.
"We gots-a lotta shady folks 'round 'ere...Whatcha missin'?" He stared at them suspiciously.
"Well, it's flat...Gold, shiny...Like part of an Egg..."
The Lakitu glanced around the room at his customers.
"Duz any yaz knows what duh Yoshi's talkin' 'bout?" he questioned casually. A Pidget with a high, nasally voice stood from his seat.
"Eh, yea, didn' Boydee 'ave one jus' yest'day?"
The Lakitu and his cloud shared looks of deep thought, then realization. He turned to Yoshi.
"Ehhh...Yea, Boydee came rollin' 'round 'ere jes a while ago...Had summin' like ya described. Boydee's a regulah, always comin' in fer sum cawffee, ya knows?"
Yoshi and Tarts exchanged nervous glances and nodded quickly.
"Who's...eh...Boing-di?" Yoshi pondered.
The Lakitu rolled his eyes.
"Nah, not Boing-di, ya schmuck. Boydee. Ya knows, Boydee..." He flapped his arms around. "Like a boydee in da sky, ya knows...?"
Yoshi caught on and snapped his fingers.
"Birdie!" he cried out.
"Yea, sheesh...Boydee. How hard izzat ta undastand?"
Tarts sighed, her arms crossed over her chest. This place was just strange. Not to her taste, anyway.
"Well, uh....Where did this 'Birdie' go? What do they look like?" Yoshi asked.
"Meh, Boydee's a loner. Always by 'erself, ya knows? Shame, too. Good kid. Eh...She's broad, well built, gotsa funny face, but...Ah, she's too sweet. Sweet as a Rock Candy, and jus' as tough, when she hasta be." (A Mario RPG reference, just for you Mario RPG freaks like me.)
Yoshi scratched his chin, trying to print a picture, while the tender continued his ranting.
"She lives up nort', in da Fores' o' da Forgotten. Real easy t' find, jus' head up."
Yoshi nodded quickly.
"Uh, thanks, Sir."
"No probl'm, Son. Have fun up t'ere, eh?"
"We will, I'm sure!" Tarts said, trying to leave.
"Ah, nice chicky ya got t'ere, too, Sonny boy," he remarked to Yoshi.
"Lucky man ya are..."
The cheeks of the two Yoshies became slightly flushed as they took their leave. The door to the cafe swished shut slowly, and the bell hanging on it rung softly.
A few moments later, the nasally Pidget asked a question.
"Ehh...I'nt da General lookin' fuh summin' like dat?"
"...Shoah is..." the Lakitu replied. "Why I told 'em ta have fun..."
*~*~*~*~*~
"Yea, we're gonna be remodeling soon," the man muttered, sniffing his tea. "It'll be...I think the third time...Not gonna be complicated..."
He sipped a little. "Well, not remodeling, but...building from scratch, actually."
"Sounds good, Luigi," a high tone said to the capped hero. He was a short guy with a mushroom cap on his head. He also wore a blue vest and brown shoes. Two beady, black eyes were on his face, and he had skinny little arms. His name was Toad.
"So Mario's off on vacation now, huh...? And you wanna get this job done before he gets back...?" There was doubt in his words. Building a house wasn't something accomplished overnight.
Luigi nodded and slurped some more.
"Oh, yea. He said he's gonna be gone a while. Weeks...And with enough people, the job'll be no problem. We're gonna give this one away..."
His eyes widened and he wiggled a finger at Toad.
"Matter of fact...Do you know anyone who needs a decent place...?"
Toad was smiling- he looked ready to burst. It was as if Fate had thrown him the last card he needed for a Royal Flush.
"Actually, someone just rolled into town, they're lookin' for a house..." he said slyly.
Luigi had a curious look and inquired Toad.
"Really? Who's that?"
Toad's cheeks turned pink as he mumbled an answer.
"Her name's Tara, but...everybody calls her Toadette..."
The mustachioed one grinned. "Ah," he said simply, smiling.
After Toad mumbled a bit, Luigi resolved the matter.
"Well, you can tell your friend that once we get the new place done, she can have this one."
"What about a mortgage?" Toad questioned.
Luigi tossed his hand.
"Don't worry about it..." he assured calmly. "No big."
"Really?! Oh, man...Thanks! I-I'll go tell her right now."
"Go on, then." Luigi sucked in some more brown liquid. "Looking forward to meet this girl."
"Oh, you'll like her!" Toad cried as he dashed out the door, waddling
his little legs.
~*~*~*~*~*
"You sure you should be trusting a guy who can't even speak right...?"
Snoball questioned Yoshi dubiously.
"Listen, he seemed like an honest guy, and it's not like we have any
OTHER leads to follow, now do we? I just...I have a gut feeling he knew what he was talking about."
Those two words- gut feeling- were the only words that needed to be said. When Yoshi had a gut feeling, it always wound up happening that way in the end, and that was that.
"Pressing on then," Fireball murmured suddenly.
They had left town and headed into the Forest of the Forgotten. It was a relatively thin forest that lay up in the northern section of the small Shy Guy Isle they were on.
The area was relatively bright, with plenty of open space. Rays of sunshine trickled down from the canopy. It was a tidy place at the time. There was no mud, for it had not rained as of late. The dirt was soft and fertile beneath their feet, and the occasional shrub or bush was cuddly and inviting. To the west of this forest there was a clean and cold body of water simply called Lonely Lake. This lake was indeed quite lonely, for barely any vegetation rested around it, and about nothing lived within its waters. This forest itself seemed almost equally lonely. The occasional monster would give them a tad bit of trouble, but even then, the monsters themselves seemed lonely.
They paced along, which they were getting quite used to. Thoughts plagued their minds. Were the others all right? What were they doing?
How could they be helped?
Surfer noticed that Snoball seemed somewhat distressed about something- no doubt it involved their friends or her family. He reached out his hand for hers and grasped it, but only for a moment, for she threw it off. She didn't do it in a vicious way, but it still stung. Why was it that every time he tried to be cuddly with her she grew so uncomfortable? Wasn't cuddling what girlfriends did with their boyfriends, at least on occasion?
Meanwhile, Tarts was having her own emotional struggle. She stared at the necklace around her neck sadly, rubbing it between her fingers.
{Yoshi's father gave this to his mom as a display of true love...} she reminded herself. {It was the symbol of their engagement to each other. But the Queen seemed so eager to give it me...Wouldn't it mean the world to her...? Unless, maybe...Maybe she gave it to me because she thinks that someday...-}
Her nervous eyes slowly glanced up at the solemn, determined face of Yoshi, who marched along without wavering. She knew that he wasn't going to let anything stand in his way. And she was willing to do anything to see that nothing DID get in his way. She'd follow him to ends of Stellon, the ends of the universe, even. From Yoshi's Island to Cookie Mountain, Isle Delfino to the Beanbean Kingdom, Mobius to Hyrule, and back...No matter where he went, she would follow him. It didn't matter where they were, how much fighting they had to endure...So long as she was by his side. That was all that mattered to her.
{He's so sexy when he's serious,} she thought playfully, staring at him.
The green teen suddenly noticed her eyes glued to him, and he felt a bit awkward by it.
"Ehh...Everything all right, Tarts?" he mumbled. She nodded, her gaze quickly wandering off.
"Yea, I'm fine," she said calmly. "Just bored, that's all."
"Yea!" Snoball huffed. "Geez! This place doesn't even have any monsters to kick the crap out of, for Eldstar's sake!"
Fireball nodded slowly in agreement.
"You'd think the Eggshell would be surrounded by critters like it usually is," he muttered in amusement.
"Oh, don't worry," Yoshi assured them. "I'll bet that SOMETHING will wind up happening. It always does..."
~*~*~*~*~*
Pine trees went flying by in a flash as the air rushed by their faces.
Their feet seemed to fly, almost, and it sometimes seemed as if they
weren't touching the ground. The terrain was getting bumpier as rocks slowly took the place of trees. They were nearing the mountainous region of the island, and the destruction of the invaders was becoming apparent.
"How much farther is it?" a rough growl asked.
"We'll be there before ya know it, Knucklehead, just chill..." a smooth response answered.
The face of the anxious echidna frowned irritably.
"Easy for you to say, it's not your home that's being destroyed," he answered grimly.
"Knux! Cool it! We'll get there in time, or my name's not Sonic."
And then, quite suddenly, their environs changed. The ground became black, and the trees were aflame. Ashes were spread everywhere. The eyes of the 'Sonic Team' became wide with fear. It seemed that Eggman meant business this time.
"I don't like the looks of this," Tails managed, breathing hard from their running.
"No kidding," Sonic said drearily.
Things got even more grim as their trek continued. The remnants of houses were scattered about as they passed through what used to be a village. The air smelt of freshly slaughtered meat. It was a pungent aroma that stuck to their noses like glue. They almost felt like passing out from the hideous taste that formed in their mouths as they passed bloody corpses of Mobians. A duck that had been burned alive, a chipmunk that had been lacerated severely, a bear that had his arm lopped off...All of them, randomly sprawled about, their faces frozen in a contorted expression of fear.
"I don't think Egghead is behind this ****," Sonic choked out as they ventured closer to their destination. "It just doesn't seem his style..."
"Who could it be, then?" Tails pondered, his eyes watery.
"Who cares?!" Knuckles growled. "Whoever they are, they aren't getting any further!"
And then, finally, their target came into view. The Temple of Chaos.
The ancient stones sat upon a rough hill, secluded from the rest of it all. Seven pillars stood around the center, which was merely a platform raised higher than the rest, like a small pyramid. The old rocks looked worn from the many years they had endured, and many of the pillars were half crumbled away.
Hovering above each of the pillars, all at equal height, were seven shimmering stones of beauty, carved in perfect shape, like a diamond. Their seven colors radiated in the air around them. Green, gold, silver, blue, purple, red, and turquoise. The seven Chaos Emeralds, the ultimate source of power on Mobius. And in the middle, in the center of it all, there was a tremendously large stone similar in appearance. It glowed a sharp and strong green. This was the Master Emerald, the jewel that kept the other seven in balance with each other.
However, this wondrous sight was not quite so beautiful, for the screams of innocent lives robbed the air of tranquility. The conceited laughs of the monstrous creatures attacking these lives echoed over the sounds of their destruction. It was a scene of chaos, indeed. But the creatures were being held at bay, at least for the moment. The Master Emerald had created a powerful, neon green force field around the small temple. The trio of heroes couldn't make out who tremble within the barrier, for there were so many monsters smashing away at it. It looked like it wouldn't hold up much longer. There was an army of malicious purple creatures in the forms of humans. About a hundred of them, all bashing at the force field with all their might. And there, towering before them, was the largest turtle they had ever seen. He looked vaguely familiar, but...He had a large green shell with long and sleek spikes that curved downward. His legs and arms were powerful and muscular. He had ragged claws on his toes and hands, along with a built chest. His snout was kind of flat, and had a deadly set of glistening teeth. His red, flaming hair was greasy and disheveled, and his glaring, sharp eyes were bloodshot. Two gold horns shot out from the sides of his head like an image of Lucifer, and his grin was that of pure evil. This was a destructive creature bent on spilling blood.
This monstrous demon was known as Giga Bowser.
As he let out a booming cackle, he clawed at the barrier viciously.
His voice was low, tremendously loud, and growly.
"Yesss!" he hissed. "Almost...have them..."
The mass of villains had not yet noticed the small, furry critters behind them.
"...Holy ****!" Sonic gasped in awe, humbled by such a sight.
"No kidding..." Knuckles murmured, his jaw dropped.
"...Wh-What do we do?" Tails frantically questioned.
Sonic sucked in a deep breath, closed his eyes, and cleared his mind.
He pushed all his fears to the back, as he always did. After that
moment of meditation, he solemnly responded.
"...We get into that barrier...There's gotta be someone in there. Once we're in there, it shouldn't be too hard to fight them."
"How the **** do you propose we get in there?!" Knuckles demanded with worry. Sonic calmly crossed his arms over his chest, smirked, and muttered, "We break in, of course."
"GAH!" Knuckles smacked his face in dismay. "Business as usual," he grunted.
"What's wrong, Knux? You're not SCARED, are ya?" Sonic slyly asked, his eyes narrowed.
"OF COURSE NOT!!" Knuckles roared in defense. "I'm not afraid of anything!! I'll defend the Master Emerald with my life!"
"Great, then let's get going!"
Sonic hunched over slightly, readying himself for a sprint. They'd have to crash their way through this wall of creatures.
"Hope you're in the mood to play follow the leader," Sonic advised.
Knuckles rolled his eyes and huffed. {Always quick with a smart-*** remark...}
Sweat dripped from their faces, their teeth were clenched, their bodies tense. And then, like a strike of lightning, they were off, whizzing directly into the crazy crowd of maniacal beings.
Three streaks of light flashed through the air, colliding into the thick mass of purple warriors, causing them to explode upon impact.
Giga Bowser was too busy spewing a searing hot wave of flames at the green wall to notice this, and the Wire Frames weren't of great intelligence; they continued to batter away as if nothing had happened.
The three Mobian saviors tumbled through the barrier with no trouble- the Emerald didn't see them as a threat. But the Master Emerald didn't usually do this by itself- someone was willing it to do so.
They had slammed into the ground, piling on top of one another roughly.
They could feel the intensity of Giga Bowser's breath singing the air as they lay on the short grass, dazed. The seven Chaos Emeralds rested around them, hovering in place. They seemed too peaceful and serene amongst all this calamity.
"Knuckles!!" screamed a high-pitched girl as she dashed toward the three, waving her arms frantically.
She was a Mobian rabbit, with the same general appearance of her friends. She had fluffy, white fur, and a puffy cottontail to match. She had fat arms and legs, and pudgy hands hidden underneath white gloves. On her wrists were a couple of black metal bracelets. She wore large shoes that looked just like Knuckles', but hers were more of an orange. She wore a very unique skirt. It was black, with white rings about it. Inside the white rings were red circles. Her shirt, which had no sleeves, was an orange-red. She had a face similar to Tails, but her snout wasn't quite as broad. It was flat and short, and had a beady black nose on it. Her eyes were a sky-blue and matched the white of her fur perfectly. A fluffy tuft of white hair draped down over he forehead and over her eyes a tad. Her ears were long and floppy, hanging down to her ankles. Each was about as wide as her hand, and they both had two parallel black bracelets around them. Around her neck was a necklace with what looked like the gold Chaos Emerald on it. This was actually a fake Emerald that Tails had created a while back while studying Chaos Radiation. He'd given it to her as a birthday present, and she wore it proudly. Her name was Crystel Maize. Her background was a very strange, sad, and mysterious one. But in the present, she lived on Angel Island with Knuckles and served as his apprentice. She trained every day so that someday, she could take Knuckles' place as the Guardian of the Master Emerald. Although only ten years of age, she was confident in her skills. However, Knuckles often became frustrated because of her tendency to space out, and her short attention span.
+++(OK, now I'm really sick of doing this...)+++
"Maize!!" Knuckles cried out in astonishment. "Wh-What do you think
you're doing here?!"
She frowned as she helped him to his feet quickly.
"I'm protecting the temple, silly!" she declared seriously.
Knuckles gave her a weak smile that showed his pride in his student. He
would've expected her to run and find him, but she seemed to be
courageous enough to stand strong through even a mess like this.
Sonic and Tails were already scurrying up the stone steps to the Master
Emerald's spot in the center, and Knuckles was awakened to the dire
situation at hand.
As he approached the steps, the water around the temple began to
tremble. Knuckles froze in place.
"Chaos," he muttered in realization. He suddenly became aware of the
fact that tons of Chao were crying, screaming, and flying around this
way and that. Chao were small, innocent beings that radiated Chaos
energy. They were blue, roundish, had short arm and legs, and tear-drop
shaped heads. Small orbs mysteriously floated around their heads.
The water took shape into the protector of the Chao. A creature called
Chaos Zero. He had thick arms and legs, each with three fingers and
toes that were thin and long. His body glowed a neon blue, and he moved
fluidly like water. His head was tall and spiked up, and his eyes were
a deep and threatening red.
"Don't worry, Chaos," Knuckles grunted. "We're here to help..."
Chaos simply glared at him calmly, then up at the foes. He clenched his
fists tightly, for he knew that they would be coming soon. From the
other side of the temple came a strange purple creature. He was a
Mobian, as well. He was on the taller side than Crystel was, and was
mainly purple. He had a white underbelly and a ruff of white on his
chest, just like Tails. He was a badger, but a specific breed- an ink
badger. His purple fur had splotches of black on it here and there, and
his eyes matched the purple tone of the rest of him. He wore big white
sneakers with short laces. On his hands were those gloves, as well, and
his hair was very puffy. It poked up in spikes that faced ahead but off
to the left a little. His name was simply Inky. Inky Blott. He was a
creature created by Chaos Zero in order to help protect the Chao. Chaos
was his master and boss, so he did everything he could to fulfill
Chaos' wishes.
"GUYS!!" he cried to all the Chao scampering about. He frightfully
waved his hands to get their attention. "What are you doing?! You have
to calm down!" A look of pure fear was plastered about his face, and
his body trembled wildly. The Chao gradually began to answer his call,
and, one by one, fell to his side. As explosions, cracks, and thuds
traveled through the air around them, Inky gathered the crowd of
creatures up and brought them before Chaos.
"Master...?" He looked for guidance.
The cold, emotionless face of Chaos Zero glowered at him for a few
moments, and Inky nodded in reply. "All right...You sure?" he checked,
feeling a bit doubtful.
Chaos' head slowly shifted up and down to answer. Inky nodded back
quickly as sweat trickled down his face.
"OK, guys," he called to the Chao. "We've got a plan..."
"When did they get here?" Knuckles demanded to Crystel calmly.
The girl tapped her chin, her eyes wandering.
"Not too long ago...Ten minutes, maybe?" Knuckles sighed of relief. They still had some time, then.
"Right. Good." He glanced up at the flat-topped pyramid where the
Master Emerald resided. Sonic and Tails had made their way up there,
and had been greeted by a good friend.
She was a thin and fragile-looking girl, 16 years of age. An echidna,
like Knuckles. Her fur was a paled orange, though. her long, soft
quills were longer than Knuckles', and a few had rings of white tape
stuck around them. Her deep blue eyes were sad and innocent. On her
forehead, she wore a circlet. The gold piece of jewelry poked out from
her 'hair' and was visible on her forehead. Ancient markings were
inscribed upon it, and a round, blue stone rested in its center. Her
arms were thin and slender, and she wore thick, neon blue
bracelets on her wrists. White gloves covered her hands, which were
dainty and 'lady-like.' A white, sleeve-less shirt covered her 'ripe'
breasts, and a gold-sectioned necklace hung around her neck. Her shirt
covered her back thoroughly, but its edge curved upward to reveal her
belly. Over her hips was a green skirt with a frilled edge. Orange
lines ran diagonally across it. Over her fat feet, she wore old looking
sandals. They seemed a bit makeshift, created from white cloth wrapped
intricately around her foot and ankle. Her name was Tikal, and she was
a kind, passionate soul who hated violence. She was linked closely with
the Master Emerald, for certain. She was able to harness its true
powers, as she was doing currently.
Her body was draped over it in a tight and desperate embrace. Her eyes
were squinted shut, she seemed to contort with pain, and her fragile
body quivered uncontrollably.
"Tikal!!" Sonic cried in shock, rushing to her side. Tails followed,
inspecting the situation. She didn't seem to notice them, too absorbed
into keeping the barrier alive.
"She must be using the Emeralds to protect us," Tails realized. Sonic
nodded, his face serious.
"It doesn't look like she's gonna be able to hang in much longer," he
admitted nervously. "We're gonna have to do something..."
Tails agreed with him, and the two leapt off the stone platform to the
ground, landing roughly beside Knuckles and Crystel.
"We're gonna have to keep those things at bay," Sonic concluded.
Knuckles huffed rigidly as he slammed his fists into each other.
Crystel nodded, her face determined, her eyes narrowed.
"Do you think we can use the Chaos Emeralds to help us?" Tails wondered
curiously. He gave Sonic a suggestive look, and the blue hedgehog
paused to contemplate.
"I-I dunno, Tails. You sure that would be a good idea right now?" he
asked with uncertainty.
Tails' expression displayed some doubt as he figured the scenario out.
"On second thought, you're probably right. With all this energy in the
air, the Emeralds might be too reactive for us to control, and the
Master Emerald, which would keep them in check, is busy defending
us..."
"Then we'll fight them off ourselves," Knuckles declared gruffly,
glaring Giga Bowser down.
"NOW you're talkin', Knux!" Sonic cried out with a sense of thrill
about him.
"It's your turn to play the leader," he added in, giving his old friend
a thumbs-up.
"All right then," Knuckles grunted with satisfaction, grinning back at
Sonic. "Let's go!"
"Wait for me!" little Miss Maize squeaked as the trio broke out into a
run, leaving her behind. She scrambled to keep up with them as the
barrier drew nearer by the second. Their adrenaline rose to a fever
pitch as the impending hazards before them became more real. Their eyes
were determined, and it only took a few moments until they had dashed
right through the green 'wall', smashing another section of these
mysterious purple creatures to pieces. As they exploded, their purple
skin broke, clear fluid splashed to the floor, and their framing fell
apart.
In a triangle of red, blue, and yellow, the three furry saviors skidded
to a halt, only to rotate 180 and come spinning back into the crowd. A
horde of them were viciously darting toward them, but they, too, were
obliterated as the three balled-up Mobians soared right through them,
and back into their small haven. Crystel, who had battered away at a
few, stumbled to their sides, panting like a dog on a summer's day.
Giga Bowser had definitely noticed them by now, but he showed no fear
of them, and for good reason.
"This isn't looking too good," Tails muttered sheepishly. "There's too
many of them, and that monster is HUGE! How are we supposed to defeat
him?"
Sonic shook his head slowly, realizing that Tails wasn't too far off.
This fight seemed a bit too big for even them to handle...
Sonic tossed his arms wretchedly. He hated to quit like this, but there
was no point. All they'd do is give up their lives, and the Emeralds
would be taken, anyway. At least if they could escape, they could
gather help from Mario...Then they'd stand a better chance. One thought
was plaguing him, however. If Eggman wasn't behind this, then...who
WAS?
"****it," he growled in frustration. "I think he's right, Knux," Sonic admitted half-heartedly. "This fight ain't ours..."
Knuckles glared at him in disbelief.
"You're going to quit on me?" he roared in dismay. After seeing the seriousness on his blue friend's face, he frowned bitterly. "Fine, you coward. You do what you want, but I won't abandon my duty..."
He kneeled down, preparing to leap out into combat again, but Sonic halted him with his hands.
"Knuckles, don't be ****in' stupid! Those guys'll tear you apart!" he warned.
"So be it," Knuckles said calmly, shoving Sonic's hands off in anger. "I, unlike you, will take care of my responsibility..."
Miles had grabbed the echidna's jagged tail and was pulling on it forcefully.
"Knuckles, trust us! We need reinforcements! Better to live and fight another day!"
Knuckles growled in blinded rage and pushed Tails to the ground, but before he went speeding off, he froze like a statue. His pupil was standing solemnly before him, bruises covering her body. As a strong gust of wind blew in from the north, her ears and hair lightly swayed. Her expression was sad and calm. Knuckles was speechless for a few moments, his eyes wide.
"Please, Knuckles..." she said softly, just barely loud enough for him to hear amongst the clattering from behind her. "Listen to them...Your friends are more important than any stone...Aren't they...?" Her eyes watered up in distress, but she ignored them, holding the liquid at bay. "Besides...If you really care about saving the Emeralds, then you won't die now...Then I'll be by myself. I still haven't learned enough, and...Let's just go, we can save them later when we're ready..."
Sniffling, she lunged at her teacher and squeezed him tightly in her arms for a few moments, and Sonic and Tails smiled faintly from behind. Knuckles was awestruck and without words, but he managed to lift his powerful arms up and put on hand on her shoulder, the other on her head.
"...All right," he choked out, trying to sound like his usual 'tough' self.
Breaking through this sentimental moment, the ground quaked, tossing them all to their feet. Sonic flipped up immediately in a stealthy manner like that of a ninja, and he quickly scanned his environs as the others clambered up doggedly. The barrier seemed to have a crack in it- it wasn't going to hold up for much longer.
"Oh, ****," Sonic muttered under his breath, his jaw dropping, his eyes wide with fear. And then, a thought popped into his brain as the immensely frightening face of Giga Bowser stared at him with blood-shot eyes. He quickly hatched a plan of escape, one he knew would work, for it had worked before.
"Guys, c'mon!" he screamed, dragging them all to the shrine of the Master Emerald to meet their fate.
~*~*~*~*~*
Mehh...Yea, that Chapter was OK, I guess...
By the way, Inky and Crystel are two characters created by an old internet friend of mine- we lost touch a few months ago, but his characters live on in my fic, at least.
Oh, yea. I got banned from that other forum I've been visiting. No, no, no, not the one I gave you the link to, a different one. Their mods are, for the most part, not very respectable. However, though I am banned, I can still send PMs.
One thing I'm considering doing is registering a new account, and hoping that no one knows it's me- that is, until the opportune moment. Who knows? Maybe it'll work out or not. I don't know exactly what I'd do, though...But it would have to be sneaky, and hopefully involve getting revenge on the stupid person whose fault it is I got banned to begin with.
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
Great update. I can't believe you were banned on the other forum.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
I'm replying pretty late...
I liked the last part of that chapter with Sonic and crew. That wasn't a bad chapter at all.
Banned from a forum, eh? That definately sucks... I like that plan of infiltration, though. Just make sure no one from that forum site comes here.
Heh, it's funny how only the three of us managed to get this thread up to seven pages with 90 replies. Most of the work was done by DS, but I feel proud of our accomplishment!
A round of applause for us all!
I liked the last part of that chapter with Sonic and crew. That wasn't a bad chapter at all.
Banned from a forum, eh? That definately sucks... I like that plan of infiltration, though. Just make sure no one from that forum site comes here.
Heh, it's funny how only the three of us managed to get this thread up to seven pages with 90 replies. Most of the work was done by DS, but I feel proud of our accomplishment!
A round of applause for us all!
Yea...Come to think of it, this forum has been constantly up at the top...Not a BAD thing, that's for sure...
Thing is, I'm running out of Chapters...
~*~*~*~*~*
Chapter 36- Wildflowers
The atmosphere was clear, clean, and warm...The skies were dark, as they always were in this wonderful place. Distant celestial bodies were always visible when you looked up. But the places around you were just as beautiful as the sights above you. People of all different shapes, sizes, and colors were roaming around everywhere you looked. Metal poles with glowing chunks of yellow rock provided as streetlights, while often the ground itself glowed from the material this ground was made of.
This was Star Haven, a bustling place filled with all types of souls. It was the home of the re-knowned beings known as the Honorable Star Spirits. Their ancient temple rested miles away, but the deeds these leaders wished to be carried out were constantly being fulfilled. It was the duty of all the Spirits on Star Road to meet their duties to their planet, Stellon. Star Haven was the capital city of this grandiose place, and it was where most of the populace lived.
With an odd combination of raw technology and magical energy to run the place, Star Road was quite a wondrous place. It had a modern city feel, but a fantasy touch.
In this particular area of Star Haven, there were table arrange all around. Bright chunks of Orionite, a type of stone that emits light energy constantly, were placed next to every table on those metal polls.
This was an outdoor restaurant clearly, with waiters running along this way and that. The ground was composed of a dark green marble with white wisps running through it. People were walking all around outside of this area, going about their business. A warm feeling covered all, and conversations floated through the air like the air itself.
And sitting together at one edge of this cafeteria was a group of unique characters, all together at one table. The tables were round, composed of a very smooth and sturdy type of wood, as were the chairs. For the moment, there was no food before the four of them, but that would soon change. Off in the background, travelers were pacing about this way or that, complementing the busy atmosphere.
A small yellow star with a face and a tie drifted over to them, holding a notepad before him with some unseen force.
"Ah, hello, ladies," he said kindly. "What would you like today?"
"I'll just take a nice watermelon."
"I'm in the mood for some salad. Lots of tomatoes, please, with ranch dressing..."
"Um...Could I have a hot bowl of tomato soup?"
"Yea...I'll take some of that, too. Gimme a nice hunk of steak on the side."
"How would you like it?"
"Ehh...Um, medium done, I guess..."
"Ah, very good..." He jotted on his paper with a pen that floated and moved with his will. "And what would you like to drink?"
"Chocolate milk..."
"Can I have some root beer?"
"With SALAD?" the one who had just ordered muttered with doubt.
"Yes, with salad," the other defended dully. The first one dropped her tongue out in disgust for a moment.
"Wine..." the third answered quietly and calmly, not even looking at the waiter.
"...What kind?" he checked.
"Whatever you have..." she responded dully.
"Yes...And you...?"
He turned to the girl who had ordered steak, who was almost salivating at the thought of it.
"Uhhh...Give me some...Milk, I guess..."
"Ah...Very well. Your meals will be here shortly, ladies."
And with that, he floated off to his next destination.
The four young women at the table were silent for a few moments, staring off at this and that.
They were an interesting group, indeed. All were Yoshies- at least, basically. But all were radically different from your average Yoshi.
The first appeared like any other Yoshi at first glance, but she definitely had originality to her. For one thing, her skin was a shiny silver. Not quite metallic. More like polished, silver leather. Upon her neck, she wore a necklace with a green, ovular medallion. This medallion was made of an emerald gem that almost glowed, and a gold frame surrounded it. Oddly enough, she had gold earrings hanging from the sides of her head. Yoshies, like other reptiles, didn't have ears, per say, but had hollow areas in the side of their heads were sound came in, similar to an ear. This girl had plain gold rings pierced right through the skin and back out, right where her 'ear' would be. Their appearance was quite elegant. Her eyes were the same light green as her medal. And she had hair, too. A puffy yellow bang curved over from the back of her head, just behind her eyes, and flopped over in a lazy type of fashion. On the back of her head was an assortment of soft, pink 'spines' that were much more like hair. The only other thing she wore was a pair of sky-blue boots with gold soles. Her name was Luna.
Sitting beside Luna was the girl who had asked for a salad. She had innocence about her just in the way she looked. Her adorable eyes radiated kindness. She had skin of a light blue tone, which complimented her persona well. Her arms were thin and slender, too. She, unlike Luna, had the general form of a human, though she had a Yoshi head. A strip of white skin ran down her front side, just like a normal Yoshi. Her hands were Yoshi hands. But she had no tail at all. Like a female human, she had budding breasts, concealed by a unique piece of cloth, slightly lighter in color than her blue skin. It wasn't really a shirt, however. It covered what it needed to, and was held up by thin straps that hung a little loosely from her shoulders. Just below her little belly button were her comfortable and baggy navy-blue jeans. They started out tight at top to stay to her skinny body, but widened at the end like bell-bottoms. Her midnight-blue boots were partially covered by them. Her form was very thin built and skinny. She had hair, too, only hers was MUCH more like human hair. It flowed gracefully down past her shoulders a bit. It created a rounded edge at the tip when all the strands were placed side by side. (Wow, I can only hope I'm describing this semi-properly.) Two sets of bangs of it poked out at diagonal angles, barely overlapping her eyes. It was very amazing in the fact that it ranged in color, too. The top of it started out as orange and red, and as it got down to the tip, it was green, then purple. A name as equally sweet as the girl described her. She was Sparkle.
Sitting across from Sparkle and at Luna's right side was the quieter one. Her deep, dark blue eyes were hiding some secret, the others knew. She had the same basic form as Luna, just like most other Yoshies. But she was slightly larger than Luna. Her tail was slightly longer, her arms and legs thicker...She was built much more like a standard Yoshi. (By the way, in case you haven't caught on yet, I'm picturing Yoshies with a human-esque feel about them. They don't walk like raptors, they look a lot like Yoshi does in Double Dash!!, the Party series, etc. but with bigger bodies, longer legs, etc.) Her skin color was just like her silver friend's, however. A leathery, shiny shade that glistened in the light. Despite her similarities to Luna, she had many differences as well. For one, in the middle of her chest rested a very amazing object- a stone. It was a part of her, this rock that jutted out of her chest. It was like a gem, its shade a blood red. Its shape was a fine oval, but only half of it was revealed to the open air, while the other half rested within her own body. It was smooth and solid, like a jewel sought after by treasure hunters. It seemed to be held in place by a metal rim that just barely covered its border. When she was young, this outline had been melded to her skin to help protect this stone from being ripped out of her chest. This mystical stone was called a Dragon Gem, and it was crucial to the creature's survival, for it contained her Essence, the very energy of life.
As if this unique feature were not enough to distinguish her from others, the spines on the back of her head were formed in an abnormal fashion, as well. There were three of them running down the back of her neck. The bottom and top two were a sky blue, the same as Sparkle's skin, and had rounded edges. The top one, however, spiked up in a sharp triangle tip, another inch above the other two. Its was gold, as the blue of the other two gradiented into this color.
Then, the most obvious and notable of all her features- her wings. Yes, she had wings, and quite awe-inspiring ones at that. They were long and flowing, and she could wrap her body in them, at that. They were like a Dragon's wings, leathery yet tough. Their backs were the same silver as the rest of her, (excluding her underside, of course.) but the fronts...The fronts of her wings were a sight to behold. In between the frame working of her wings, this skin was similar to mother of pearl. It glimmered all the colors of the rainbow all over, and the colors transitioned from one to another. The shape of her wings, however, was not the traditional triangular arc. They curved up and swayed back down, rounded and elegant. At the tips, they slightly swerved up again. In the middle, where the fold of the wings laid, small black claws poked out. When she wrapped her wings around herself, these claws latched onto each other, holding each wing in place. This girl was different than the other three, as well as everyone else she knew, but with them, she felt like she fit in. Her name was Crystal.
Lastly was no doubt the one of the pack who was most noticeable in a crowd, not only because of her looks, but her behavior. Like Sparkle, she was another 'anthro' Yoshi; she had a human form, and she was the tallest of the four. But, unlike Sparkle's body, hers was much more...developed in its 'maturity.' She had a thin stomach with widened hips, creating that 'hour glass' shape. Her breasts were more advanced in their growth. Many considered her to be quite an attractive creature, to be blunt. Her skin was blue, as well, but a darker color, like a navy-blue. Her arms were slender, but not quite so thin. They looked like they possessed more muscle to them than Sparkle's did. Her hands were thin and fragile-looking, just like a human woman's. But for fingernails she had small black claws. A few metal bracelets of black and gray were wrapped around her arms near the wrists. Her fleshy and 'buoyant' chest was conveyed by a tight, jet-black T- shirt. This shirt only went halfway down her front side, (Which was white, of course, like a Yoshi) its edge leaving plenty of space for her firm stomach and 'inney' bellybutton. Hugging her hips was a pair of black polyester pants. Though they were strongly wrapped around her waistline, they were very loose and baggy, conveying her long and no doubt slender legs. She wore big, white, rounded sneakers to fit her Yoshi feet.
A quite uncommon feature she owned was a tail- a very long and smooth tail. It started out thick and powerful, about as thick as one of her legs. It gradually grew thinner and thinner, until it reached the tip, which was about as thick as two of her fingers. It was of a fair length, too; if erected, it would reach about the top of her head. Her head was a round and pudgy head, just like any good Yoshi. She had a round nose, though hers was flatter than average. Her eyes were big and ovular, with little dots in them, like all three of her comrades. Dark rings seemed to always rest underneath her eyes, though, but not necessarily of fatigue. Covering her head was a mess of 'hair'. It was composed of soft 'quills' of different colors, all mixed together randomly. Their shades ranged from a dark blue to a light blue. Each flowing 'quill' of hair was about six inches long, and they poked out in all directions. Some flopped over he eyes slightly, while most mainly draped down, almost reaching her shoulder, but not quite. Every movement of her head made them all shift around a little.
Lastly, she, too, had the wings of the Dragon. Hers were much more vicious- looking than Crystal's, in the more classical triangular arc frame. Their tips had black claws, as well, but also more ferocious than graceful. Their undersides were a very dark shade of blue, as well. These wings appeared to be tough and leathery, which they were. All in all, this girl was probably the most eye-cathing of the four. She was Cirrus.
And together, all four sat at this table in this haven, eagerly awaiting their lunch. They were all being strangely quiet, though, and this bothered Sparkle quite a bit, like a splinter in her mind.
"So..." her sweet and gentle voice piped up, trying to break the iciness of the situation. "Um, did you guys have a good night...?"
Cirrus was staring off into the sky thoughtfully, while Luna gazed at the table in a trance, and Crystal gaped into the crowds of people, as if she were searching for someone.
"It was OK," Cirrus murmured dully with a yawn. "Didn't get enough sleep, though," she added groggily.
"Yea, tell me about it," Luna grumbled, glancing up at Cirrus' stretching. She was drumming her fingers on the table methodically.
"Mm," Crystal hummed simply, returning her gaze to her friends.
Sparkle eyed Luna suspiciously, noting the lack of merriment she had been displaying as of late.
"No..." she whispered in dismay. "He DIDN'T..."
Luna's slight frown grew even worse, her eyes glued to the wood patterning of the table.
"He DID," she growled firmly.
Cirrus placed her hand over her mouth in shock and disappointment. Crystal sighed sadly, shaking her head, and Sparkle rubbed Luna's shoulder to console her.
"...That sucks..." Cirrus mumbled apologetically. "But...You were too good for him, anyway. You deserve better..."
Luna rolled her eyes and shook her head at that comment, continuing to glare at the same spot.
"Oh, Luna," Crystal moaned, leaning her head near the table so she could stare at her friend's grouchy stare. "Don't be so down about it. There's plenty of good guys up here...You'll find another."
"She's so right," Sparkle added, trying to pep her up. "You're bound to meet Mr. Right sooner or later..."
Luna sighed deeply, closing her eyes, as if her head hurt.
"Well, I'm done," she said simply and calmly. Her friends were quiet for a moment, not fully understanding. She ranted on, still with closed eyes and a frustrated expression. "I am just so sick and tired of all this crap. Over and over, the same old bull****...I'm done with guys...Romance isn't all it's cracked up to be..."
Sparkle, her face filled with sorrow, leaned her head on Luna's shoulder, giving her a friendly hug. Her puffy hair draped down over Luna's back gently.
"Ohhh...Don't say that..." she whimpered. "Just give yourself time to move on...I'm sorry, Luna...I kind of got you involved with him, didn't I...?"
"No, Sparx. It's not you. Don't worry about it," Luna muttered, still refusing to look up. "He really is a nice guy, and I'm glad you got us hooked up. It's just...It won't work between us. It was a long distance relationship, and they just don't work well, ya know...? I mean, we hardly knew each other, I'll bet..."
After a moment of thought, Cirrus jumped in.
"Well, maybe you didn't give the two of you enough time, ya know? Why did you break up?"
"...He just...-" She huffed, trailing off. "I WANTED to spend more time with him, but he just complained that he couldn't wait so long, he felt that I needed to quit this Star business and...Things have just been so rushed, I even started getting out of my job to see him...I've been being pulled in so many **** directions lately, I just...-" Tears were welling up, and one dripped down her cheek. Crystal moved a wing slowly, and placed it on Luna's left hand. Luna sat drearily, sniffling. She stared at the wing's tip on her hand, and smiled weakly. Finally, she glanced up at her three good friends, wiping her tears quickly.
"Everything will be all right," Crystal whispered, trying to smile herself.
Breaking into their sentimental moment, the waiter, accompanied by a Toad waitress, arrived with their meals. They were placed gently in front of them all, while the Toad carefully set down their beverages.
As they were all starving, the chatter halted for a minute or two as they each dove into their food. Crystal slurped at her soup slowly, her mind wandering elsewhere. Sparkle tossed her salad around, making sure it was thoroughly drenched in ranch dressing. Luna eagerly gnawed away at her watermelon. She would take a big bite, chew and swallow, and then spit out a set of seeds on her plate. Cirrus grabbed her steak with her bare hands and chewed at it savagely, like a wolf takes to a dead animal. Cirrus had sharp teeth, and her canines were elongated, like a vampire.
"Geez, Cirrus. You hungry?" Sparkle giggled as she dunked her fork into her greens.
Cirrus merely grunted in response, continuing to tear at the cooked flesh.
Crystal didn't seem to be all too hungry, however, as she was dully stirring her spoon in her thick, red soup.
"Looks like I'm not the only one in a crappy mood," Luna muttered, setting her watermelon aside. "Crystal? What's wrong?"
Crystal didn't seem to even hear her friend; she was so lost in thought.
Cirrus, having downed her whole steak in a few bites, wiped her mouth briskly and showed concern as well.
"Is there something up with you, too?" Realization struck, and she sighed sadly. "Does this have to do with Morph?"
Crystal frowned sadly, having snapped out of her trance. "No, it doesn't," she replied grimly. "I told you, nothing happened between us. I'm not interested in him. He's a good friend and all, but..." She trailed off, not caring to talk about that matter much longer.
"Then what is it?" Sparkle asked, narrowing her eyes.
Crystal gazed up at all her friends' curious faces, and gave in to them.
"It's...It's about my dad...We got into another fight last night," she mumbled sadly.
There was silence for a few moments at the table. They all knew that Crystal and her father weren't on the best of terms lately. Geno was a very busy man, with lots of responsibility.
Geno was a very famous and well-known Star Spirit who had helped save Star Road a few years back. He had possessed a wooden doll in order to help the world re-knowned Mario thwart an evil man named Smithy. After performing this deed, Geno was given the highest rank a Star Spirit could reach beside the Honorable Ones themselves- a Stellar Spirit. Geno wasn't Crystal's biological father, of course. She was adopted. She had no real mother figure to look to for guidance, but...She made due with her friends.
Crystal was a member of the race of Dragoshies, a blend between Yoshies and Dragons. Dragoshies, however, were practically extinct, as most of their kind had been wiped out in the War of the Hands years ago...Crystal had miraculously survived, and Geno had taken her in as his own. He'd raised her as if she were his life- which she was. But Crystal was getting older, she wanted more freedom, and Geno was strict in not giving it to her. Crystal was the last of her kind known to Star Road, and her kind was very rare, if there were even any left.
Crystal's friends had known for some while that she longed to leave Star Road and search for her own kind. They didn't want to say good-bye to their friend, but they also wanted her to be happy. They were thankful that nothing too bad had happened thus far, but with every passing day, Crystal longed to leave even more.
"Oh, Crystal..." mumbled Sparkle. "This just isn't good...What was it about this time? Same old, same old?"
Crystal shrugged as she sipped her white wine, hoping that maybe it would intoxicate her brain into ignoring all of her problems.
"Sort of...It was just...more serious." She closed her eyes slowly, shaking her head. She was getting a headache, its origin she couldn't decide- the wine or her feelings? "It started out with the same garbage, but..." She frowned angrily as she grumbled on. "I'm just so sick of all this ****, too, Luna. You're not alone."
Luna felt a little pale as Crystal said these words, for she felt that her problems were nothing compared to the Dragoshi's.
"I don't know what to do anymore, I don't..." she mumbled, squinting from her pain.
"Crystal, we're all here for you," Cirrus murmured sadly. "You don't HAVE to do anything, we'll do it for you..." Cirrus scooted her seat over some so she was closer to her silver companion. She almost squashed her own tail in the process, and tucked it off to her side on the ground casually. Crystal was beginning to tear up as Luna had, but fought viciously to hold back their flow.
"...Crystal...? You DO know that, right?" Cirrus asked shakily as she rubbed her friend's back warmly. "Please tell me you know that..." She rested her head on Crystal's shoulder, her soft 'quills' draping over the girl's shoulder a bit.
Crystal sniffled, but she refused to cry in front of her friends. She was so sick of looking weak and vulnerable, she wasn't going to stand for it anymore.
"...I-I know, Cirrus...I know..."
There were no words for a few minutes as they all slowly ate their food, their appetites diminished. By the time they were done, they were in better spirits, and began to chat about the little things that had happened to them in the past days. They continued to eat their meals quickly, and by the time they were done, the mood had been lifted somewhat. Suddenly, Sparkle caught sight of a familiar figure amidst the hordes of pedestrians. Her eyes lit up like a Christmas tree, and her jaw dropped.
{Is that really him?! Oh, Stars, it IS him...Ohhhh...He's such a hotty...}
She folded her hands up to her cheek, captured by the man's physical form. Her eyes were glazed and dreamy, and Luna sighed as she noticed it.
"Oh, boy, it's the look again," she groaned, shaking her head.
"OH! He's here?!" Cirrus squeaked, perking up and searching around alertly. Sparkle, still in a daze, pointed a trembling hand out into the crowd of people.
Standing about fifty feet away, the target was in a conversation.
He was a firmly built creature with blood-red skin and an orange underbelly. He was like a dragon in appearance, and many considered him the same, though he wasn't truly. His long, rough wings were extended out as he stretched them, their underside a tough and leathery bluish hue. He had a strong chest, and though his arms were relatively thin, they still looked quite capable. Three fierce fingers came out from each hand, and each finger had a sharp and smooth white claw on it. His legs were quite mobile and built for his kind, though they were still short and a bit hard to use. He had a slightly elongated neck, and at the end of it was his face. To Sparkle, it was like a sculpture. It had two long, horn-like appendages on each side, at the top, and a long, flat nose. Two fangs jutted out of his mouth, and two slits for nostrils were above them. His eyes were a deep blue, like the skies at night. Those eyes were like those of an eagle- noble, solemn, and strong. His tail was similar to Cirrus', but while Cirrus' was more fleshy and slender, his was more muscular and firm, and it was shorter in comparison to his size. Like Cirrus', its bottom was the same color as his chest and stomach, as the stripe continued downward. But, at the tip of his tail was something unique to most living beings. A large flame burned strong from the tip of this tail, as if fueled by some unseen force. It was big and bright today, a sign that he was in good health.
People in Star Road referred to this man simply by his last name- Hyblaze. Few knew of his first name, such as these four girls. He was a mystical creature known as a Charizard, a species of beings called Pokemon.
He was speaking with another Pokemon, but this one was of another class. It had a basic anthrope form, but it had smooth, blue skin. Its feet and hands were webbed and clawed. A small tail poked from the back. His eyes were a maroon color, and radiated seriousness. His mouth and nose were in the form of a flat beak. On his forehead was implanted a small stone bearing the color of his eyes. His head was topped by a design of odd 'spikes.' He was a Golduck, a water-type Pokemon. And he was referred to as Yoh.
Sparkle let out a dreamy sigh as she felt her heart melt while staring at the Chairzard. Well, it wasn't really her heart melting, it was her hormones running rampant.
Cirrus smiled devilishly and nodded.
"****. He IS pretty hot..." she admitted calmly.
"Too bad he's a bit too old for you, Sparkle..." Luna added in a grumble, crushing Sparkle's fantasy moment.
"I can dream, leave me alone!" she whimpered, brushing her hair back briskly and glancing at the table with embarrassment.
"What do you think he's talking about...?" Cirrus murmured curiously, staring at him carefully.
"Who knows? Probably something important..." Sparkle whispered solemnly.
Crystal, who had been silent this whole time, glanced back at the two talking monsters through the crowd of citizens and guardians.
"Most likely about his son," Crystal mumbled, as if it were common knowledge.
"What?" Sparkle's eyes widened, and she glared at Crystal expectantly. "He...H-he has a SON...?" It was as if her dreams had been shattered and built back up again.
"Yeaaa..." Crystal muttered uncomfortably, seeing the glow in Sparkle's eyes. She didn't want to smash at her fantasies, but she didn't want her to have false ones, either. "He's a little younger than us, and...He's really short- he's still a Charmander..."
"REALLY?" Cirrus squealed. "Oh, those guys are SO adorable!"
"I can wait if it means he'll be a hunk like his dad someday," Sparkle added in, drooling slightly.
Luna huffed and glared at her empty plate, irritated by this conversation. All this was doing was reminding her of her ex-boyfriend she had just broken up with.
Crystal sighed, shaking her head. She let her wings out a bit to give them some circulation as she continued.
"Well, Sparkle, you're in good company, he seems to be quite popular with the girls..." Crystal added with a smile and a slight giggle.
Sparkle was overjoyed to see her friend laughing, and slammed at the table, but not with too much force.
"Great, I've got competition. I'll gnaw them all to pieces..." she added with a humorous grimness.
"I'll help, but you have to share him with me," Cirrus pitched in with a chuckle.
As they all (or at least ALMOST all) snickered and joked about the matter, Luna was only reminded more of her lost love. Could she even call him that? Did she really ever love him? Looking back, she wasn't so sure anymore.
The waiter from before arrived with their bill and bid them good day.
"All right, so who's takin' it this time?" Cirrus asked, glaring at them all. "I got it last time, so don't even look at me..." she added quickly.
"I'll get it," Sparkle volunteered, raising a hand. She inspected it, checking to see that it wasn't overpriced, and nodded in satisfaction.
"...Hm...24 coins...? That's not too bad," she muttered as she raised up her right arm into the air. She snapped her fingers, and extracted the amount from herself and placed it on the table with care.
(NOTE-I believe I explained Stellon coins, but just to re-cap...They are made of Stellamentite, a magical metal. When collected, they become one with the owner's soul, and can be brought out in physical form when they will it.)
"So, uh...Where do we go now?" she asked slowly as they began to scramble to their feet, pushing their seats in.
"I've got things I need to do," Luna grumbled irritably.
Cirrus stretched out her arms doggedly, and let them droop down. Her tail was flopped on the ground behind her, and it dragged as they walked.
"I barely got any sleep last night, I was so busy," she groaned.
Her friends all became quite nervous. Cirrus was not the person to be around when she was lacking sleep. Then again, Cirrus was not the person to be around in MANY cases.
Cirrus had a very two-faced personality. In one hand, she was a kind, compassionate, and all around warm-hearted girl. But sometimes she could become quite a vicious animal. This usually happened when she felt her food was in threat of being taken, when she lacked sleep, and when she was otherwise over-stressed. When she was like this, it was usually her bottled up anger escaping her in a very violent form. Although a very unhealthy habit, Cirrus had trouble working on it. The problem was that other people were trying to bend her their way. The Honorable Star Spirits saw this habit as a threat, and were trying to get her to go to counseling sessions. Cirrus was not pleased with this is the least. To make matters worse, Geno, Crystal's father, seemed to have a strong grudge against her. She pretended as if it were nothing, but it really hurt her inside to think that such a generous and caring soul looked at her as if she were scum of Stellon. She didn't quite like not being able to control herself, but she would change when she was ready.
"Yea, I kinda...I should get going, too..." Crystal mumbled. "But...ya know, before I go and everything...-" Her voice was shaking, her legs wobbled a bit. She seemed incredibly nervous.
"Could we have a group hug first?" she meekly asked.
"Of course!" Sparkle cried. Cirrus cheered and dragged Luna into it, and the four good friends gave each other a tight and warm embrace. It would be the last time in quite some while that they would all be together, and Crystal treasured the moment as if it were an invaluable gem. Leaving her friends behind wasn't going to be easy, but she had to do it. She just had to keep telling herself that she'd come back, and they'd still be there, her pillars to lean on. But when one pillar falls, often do its neighbors.
~*~*~*~*~*
OK, a Chapter with the main focus on introducing some new characters and ideas...Yea, I know, I'm bombarding ya with new characters, but...Well, I hope you like it...I'm going to try to focus on the cast we've got for a while before I bring in any more new faces.
These four are fairly important, however, as are Geno and Hyblaze.
Crystal was created by me, by the way...
Cirrus is a character created by a good friend of mine who's a friggin' awesome artist.
Luna, of course, was created by the awesome Yoshi artists Luna. ^_^
I got permission from those two to use their characters, but...
Sparkle is a friend of Luna's (or used to be), and was created by...herself...or whatever...I tried to contact her, but couldn't. However, I'm giving full credit to her for the creation of her character.
And ya know what? I couldn't give a crap if you used any of my characters, so long as you give me credit for their creation.
If you guys are interested in seeing pics of Luna, Cirrus, or Sparkle, I can hook you up...Crystal? Well, I drew her myself, and I think I have a copy of the pic on my com...I'd have to mail it ya if you were really interested.
Cirrus promised me she'd draw out a scene from this Chapter for me. I can't wait- she's a really good artist.
And I also could post links to the songs I've assigned as their 'themes'. At least Crystal's. Hers is a commonly mixed VG song.
Thing is, I'm running out of Chapters...
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Chapter 36- Wildflowers
The atmosphere was clear, clean, and warm...The skies were dark, as they always were in this wonderful place. Distant celestial bodies were always visible when you looked up. But the places around you were just as beautiful as the sights above you. People of all different shapes, sizes, and colors were roaming around everywhere you looked. Metal poles with glowing chunks of yellow rock provided as streetlights, while often the ground itself glowed from the material this ground was made of.
This was Star Haven, a bustling place filled with all types of souls. It was the home of the re-knowned beings known as the Honorable Star Spirits. Their ancient temple rested miles away, but the deeds these leaders wished to be carried out were constantly being fulfilled. It was the duty of all the Spirits on Star Road to meet their duties to their planet, Stellon. Star Haven was the capital city of this grandiose place, and it was where most of the populace lived.
With an odd combination of raw technology and magical energy to run the place, Star Road was quite a wondrous place. It had a modern city feel, but a fantasy touch.
In this particular area of Star Haven, there were table arrange all around. Bright chunks of Orionite, a type of stone that emits light energy constantly, were placed next to every table on those metal polls.
This was an outdoor restaurant clearly, with waiters running along this way and that. The ground was composed of a dark green marble with white wisps running through it. People were walking all around outside of this area, going about their business. A warm feeling covered all, and conversations floated through the air like the air itself.
And sitting together at one edge of this cafeteria was a group of unique characters, all together at one table. The tables were round, composed of a very smooth and sturdy type of wood, as were the chairs. For the moment, there was no food before the four of them, but that would soon change. Off in the background, travelers were pacing about this way or that, complementing the busy atmosphere.
A small yellow star with a face and a tie drifted over to them, holding a notepad before him with some unseen force.
"Ah, hello, ladies," he said kindly. "What would you like today?"
"I'll just take a nice watermelon."
"I'm in the mood for some salad. Lots of tomatoes, please, with ranch dressing..."
"Um...Could I have a hot bowl of tomato soup?"
"Yea...I'll take some of that, too. Gimme a nice hunk of steak on the side."
"How would you like it?"
"Ehh...Um, medium done, I guess..."
"Ah, very good..." He jotted on his paper with a pen that floated and moved with his will. "And what would you like to drink?"
"Chocolate milk..."
"Can I have some root beer?"
"With SALAD?" the one who had just ordered muttered with doubt.
"Yes, with salad," the other defended dully. The first one dropped her tongue out in disgust for a moment.
"Wine..." the third answered quietly and calmly, not even looking at the waiter.
"...What kind?" he checked.
"Whatever you have..." she responded dully.
"Yes...And you...?"
He turned to the girl who had ordered steak, who was almost salivating at the thought of it.
"Uhhh...Give me some...Milk, I guess..."
"Ah...Very well. Your meals will be here shortly, ladies."
And with that, he floated off to his next destination.
The four young women at the table were silent for a few moments, staring off at this and that.
They were an interesting group, indeed. All were Yoshies- at least, basically. But all were radically different from your average Yoshi.
The first appeared like any other Yoshi at first glance, but she definitely had originality to her. For one thing, her skin was a shiny silver. Not quite metallic. More like polished, silver leather. Upon her neck, she wore a necklace with a green, ovular medallion. This medallion was made of an emerald gem that almost glowed, and a gold frame surrounded it. Oddly enough, she had gold earrings hanging from the sides of her head. Yoshies, like other reptiles, didn't have ears, per say, but had hollow areas in the side of their heads were sound came in, similar to an ear. This girl had plain gold rings pierced right through the skin and back out, right where her 'ear' would be. Their appearance was quite elegant. Her eyes were the same light green as her medal. And she had hair, too. A puffy yellow bang curved over from the back of her head, just behind her eyes, and flopped over in a lazy type of fashion. On the back of her head was an assortment of soft, pink 'spines' that were much more like hair. The only other thing she wore was a pair of sky-blue boots with gold soles. Her name was Luna.
Sitting beside Luna was the girl who had asked for a salad. She had innocence about her just in the way she looked. Her adorable eyes radiated kindness. She had skin of a light blue tone, which complimented her persona well. Her arms were thin and slender, too. She, unlike Luna, had the general form of a human, though she had a Yoshi head. A strip of white skin ran down her front side, just like a normal Yoshi. Her hands were Yoshi hands. But she had no tail at all. Like a female human, she had budding breasts, concealed by a unique piece of cloth, slightly lighter in color than her blue skin. It wasn't really a shirt, however. It covered what it needed to, and was held up by thin straps that hung a little loosely from her shoulders. Just below her little belly button were her comfortable and baggy navy-blue jeans. They started out tight at top to stay to her skinny body, but widened at the end like bell-bottoms. Her midnight-blue boots were partially covered by them. Her form was very thin built and skinny. She had hair, too, only hers was MUCH more like human hair. It flowed gracefully down past her shoulders a bit. It created a rounded edge at the tip when all the strands were placed side by side. (Wow, I can only hope I'm describing this semi-properly.) Two sets of bangs of it poked out at diagonal angles, barely overlapping her eyes. It was very amazing in the fact that it ranged in color, too. The top of it started out as orange and red, and as it got down to the tip, it was green, then purple. A name as equally sweet as the girl described her. She was Sparkle.
Sitting across from Sparkle and at Luna's right side was the quieter one. Her deep, dark blue eyes were hiding some secret, the others knew. She had the same basic form as Luna, just like most other Yoshies. But she was slightly larger than Luna. Her tail was slightly longer, her arms and legs thicker...She was built much more like a standard Yoshi. (By the way, in case you haven't caught on yet, I'm picturing Yoshies with a human-esque feel about them. They don't walk like raptors, they look a lot like Yoshi does in Double Dash!!, the Party series, etc. but with bigger bodies, longer legs, etc.) Her skin color was just like her silver friend's, however. A leathery, shiny shade that glistened in the light. Despite her similarities to Luna, she had many differences as well. For one, in the middle of her chest rested a very amazing object- a stone. It was a part of her, this rock that jutted out of her chest. It was like a gem, its shade a blood red. Its shape was a fine oval, but only half of it was revealed to the open air, while the other half rested within her own body. It was smooth and solid, like a jewel sought after by treasure hunters. It seemed to be held in place by a metal rim that just barely covered its border. When she was young, this outline had been melded to her skin to help protect this stone from being ripped out of her chest. This mystical stone was called a Dragon Gem, and it was crucial to the creature's survival, for it contained her Essence, the very energy of life.
As if this unique feature were not enough to distinguish her from others, the spines on the back of her head were formed in an abnormal fashion, as well. There were three of them running down the back of her neck. The bottom and top two were a sky blue, the same as Sparkle's skin, and had rounded edges. The top one, however, spiked up in a sharp triangle tip, another inch above the other two. Its was gold, as the blue of the other two gradiented into this color.
Then, the most obvious and notable of all her features- her wings. Yes, she had wings, and quite awe-inspiring ones at that. They were long and flowing, and she could wrap her body in them, at that. They were like a Dragon's wings, leathery yet tough. Their backs were the same silver as the rest of her, (excluding her underside, of course.) but the fronts...The fronts of her wings were a sight to behold. In between the frame working of her wings, this skin was similar to mother of pearl. It glimmered all the colors of the rainbow all over, and the colors transitioned from one to another. The shape of her wings, however, was not the traditional triangular arc. They curved up and swayed back down, rounded and elegant. At the tips, they slightly swerved up again. In the middle, where the fold of the wings laid, small black claws poked out. When she wrapped her wings around herself, these claws latched onto each other, holding each wing in place. This girl was different than the other three, as well as everyone else she knew, but with them, she felt like she fit in. Her name was Crystal.
Lastly was no doubt the one of the pack who was most noticeable in a crowd, not only because of her looks, but her behavior. Like Sparkle, she was another 'anthro' Yoshi; she had a human form, and she was the tallest of the four. But, unlike Sparkle's body, hers was much more...developed in its 'maturity.' She had a thin stomach with widened hips, creating that 'hour glass' shape. Her breasts were more advanced in their growth. Many considered her to be quite an attractive creature, to be blunt. Her skin was blue, as well, but a darker color, like a navy-blue. Her arms were slender, but not quite so thin. They looked like they possessed more muscle to them than Sparkle's did. Her hands were thin and fragile-looking, just like a human woman's. But for fingernails she had small black claws. A few metal bracelets of black and gray were wrapped around her arms near the wrists. Her fleshy and 'buoyant' chest was conveyed by a tight, jet-black T- shirt. This shirt only went halfway down her front side, (Which was white, of course, like a Yoshi) its edge leaving plenty of space for her firm stomach and 'inney' bellybutton. Hugging her hips was a pair of black polyester pants. Though they were strongly wrapped around her waistline, they were very loose and baggy, conveying her long and no doubt slender legs. She wore big, white, rounded sneakers to fit her Yoshi feet.
A quite uncommon feature she owned was a tail- a very long and smooth tail. It started out thick and powerful, about as thick as one of her legs. It gradually grew thinner and thinner, until it reached the tip, which was about as thick as two of her fingers. It was of a fair length, too; if erected, it would reach about the top of her head. Her head was a round and pudgy head, just like any good Yoshi. She had a round nose, though hers was flatter than average. Her eyes were big and ovular, with little dots in them, like all three of her comrades. Dark rings seemed to always rest underneath her eyes, though, but not necessarily of fatigue. Covering her head was a mess of 'hair'. It was composed of soft 'quills' of different colors, all mixed together randomly. Their shades ranged from a dark blue to a light blue. Each flowing 'quill' of hair was about six inches long, and they poked out in all directions. Some flopped over he eyes slightly, while most mainly draped down, almost reaching her shoulder, but not quite. Every movement of her head made them all shift around a little.
Lastly, she, too, had the wings of the Dragon. Hers were much more vicious- looking than Crystal's, in the more classical triangular arc frame. Their tips had black claws, as well, but also more ferocious than graceful. Their undersides were a very dark shade of blue, as well. These wings appeared to be tough and leathery, which they were. All in all, this girl was probably the most eye-cathing of the four. She was Cirrus.
And together, all four sat at this table in this haven, eagerly awaiting their lunch. They were all being strangely quiet, though, and this bothered Sparkle quite a bit, like a splinter in her mind.
"So..." her sweet and gentle voice piped up, trying to break the iciness of the situation. "Um, did you guys have a good night...?"
Cirrus was staring off into the sky thoughtfully, while Luna gazed at the table in a trance, and Crystal gaped into the crowds of people, as if she were searching for someone.
"It was OK," Cirrus murmured dully with a yawn. "Didn't get enough sleep, though," she added groggily.
"Yea, tell me about it," Luna grumbled, glancing up at Cirrus' stretching. She was drumming her fingers on the table methodically.
"Mm," Crystal hummed simply, returning her gaze to her friends.
Sparkle eyed Luna suspiciously, noting the lack of merriment she had been displaying as of late.
"No..." she whispered in dismay. "He DIDN'T..."
Luna's slight frown grew even worse, her eyes glued to the wood patterning of the table.
"He DID," she growled firmly.
Cirrus placed her hand over her mouth in shock and disappointment. Crystal sighed sadly, shaking her head, and Sparkle rubbed Luna's shoulder to console her.
"...That sucks..." Cirrus mumbled apologetically. "But...You were too good for him, anyway. You deserve better..."
Luna rolled her eyes and shook her head at that comment, continuing to glare at the same spot.
"Oh, Luna," Crystal moaned, leaning her head near the table so she could stare at her friend's grouchy stare. "Don't be so down about it. There's plenty of good guys up here...You'll find another."
"She's so right," Sparkle added, trying to pep her up. "You're bound to meet Mr. Right sooner or later..."
Luna sighed deeply, closing her eyes, as if her head hurt.
"Well, I'm done," she said simply and calmly. Her friends were quiet for a moment, not fully understanding. She ranted on, still with closed eyes and a frustrated expression. "I am just so sick and tired of all this crap. Over and over, the same old bull****...I'm done with guys...Romance isn't all it's cracked up to be..."
Sparkle, her face filled with sorrow, leaned her head on Luna's shoulder, giving her a friendly hug. Her puffy hair draped down over Luna's back gently.
"Ohhh...Don't say that..." she whimpered. "Just give yourself time to move on...I'm sorry, Luna...I kind of got you involved with him, didn't I...?"
"No, Sparx. It's not you. Don't worry about it," Luna muttered, still refusing to look up. "He really is a nice guy, and I'm glad you got us hooked up. It's just...It won't work between us. It was a long distance relationship, and they just don't work well, ya know...? I mean, we hardly knew each other, I'll bet..."
After a moment of thought, Cirrus jumped in.
"Well, maybe you didn't give the two of you enough time, ya know? Why did you break up?"
"...He just...-" She huffed, trailing off. "I WANTED to spend more time with him, but he just complained that he couldn't wait so long, he felt that I needed to quit this Star business and...Things have just been so rushed, I even started getting out of my job to see him...I've been being pulled in so many **** directions lately, I just...-" Tears were welling up, and one dripped down her cheek. Crystal moved a wing slowly, and placed it on Luna's left hand. Luna sat drearily, sniffling. She stared at the wing's tip on her hand, and smiled weakly. Finally, she glanced up at her three good friends, wiping her tears quickly.
"Everything will be all right," Crystal whispered, trying to smile herself.
Breaking into their sentimental moment, the waiter, accompanied by a Toad waitress, arrived with their meals. They were placed gently in front of them all, while the Toad carefully set down their beverages.
As they were all starving, the chatter halted for a minute or two as they each dove into their food. Crystal slurped at her soup slowly, her mind wandering elsewhere. Sparkle tossed her salad around, making sure it was thoroughly drenched in ranch dressing. Luna eagerly gnawed away at her watermelon. She would take a big bite, chew and swallow, and then spit out a set of seeds on her plate. Cirrus grabbed her steak with her bare hands and chewed at it savagely, like a wolf takes to a dead animal. Cirrus had sharp teeth, and her canines were elongated, like a vampire.
"Geez, Cirrus. You hungry?" Sparkle giggled as she dunked her fork into her greens.
Cirrus merely grunted in response, continuing to tear at the cooked flesh.
Crystal didn't seem to be all too hungry, however, as she was dully stirring her spoon in her thick, red soup.
"Looks like I'm not the only one in a crappy mood," Luna muttered, setting her watermelon aside. "Crystal? What's wrong?"
Crystal didn't seem to even hear her friend; she was so lost in thought.
Cirrus, having downed her whole steak in a few bites, wiped her mouth briskly and showed concern as well.
"Is there something up with you, too?" Realization struck, and she sighed sadly. "Does this have to do with Morph?"
Crystal frowned sadly, having snapped out of her trance. "No, it doesn't," she replied grimly. "I told you, nothing happened between us. I'm not interested in him. He's a good friend and all, but..." She trailed off, not caring to talk about that matter much longer.
"Then what is it?" Sparkle asked, narrowing her eyes.
Crystal gazed up at all her friends' curious faces, and gave in to them.
"It's...It's about my dad...We got into another fight last night," she mumbled sadly.
There was silence for a few moments at the table. They all knew that Crystal and her father weren't on the best of terms lately. Geno was a very busy man, with lots of responsibility.
Geno was a very famous and well-known Star Spirit who had helped save Star Road a few years back. He had possessed a wooden doll in order to help the world re-knowned Mario thwart an evil man named Smithy. After performing this deed, Geno was given the highest rank a Star Spirit could reach beside the Honorable Ones themselves- a Stellar Spirit. Geno wasn't Crystal's biological father, of course. She was adopted. She had no real mother figure to look to for guidance, but...She made due with her friends.
Crystal was a member of the race of Dragoshies, a blend between Yoshies and Dragons. Dragoshies, however, were practically extinct, as most of their kind had been wiped out in the War of the Hands years ago...Crystal had miraculously survived, and Geno had taken her in as his own. He'd raised her as if she were his life- which she was. But Crystal was getting older, she wanted more freedom, and Geno was strict in not giving it to her. Crystal was the last of her kind known to Star Road, and her kind was very rare, if there were even any left.
Crystal's friends had known for some while that she longed to leave Star Road and search for her own kind. They didn't want to say good-bye to their friend, but they also wanted her to be happy. They were thankful that nothing too bad had happened thus far, but with every passing day, Crystal longed to leave even more.
"Oh, Crystal..." mumbled Sparkle. "This just isn't good...What was it about this time? Same old, same old?"
Crystal shrugged as she sipped her white wine, hoping that maybe it would intoxicate her brain into ignoring all of her problems.
"Sort of...It was just...more serious." She closed her eyes slowly, shaking her head. She was getting a headache, its origin she couldn't decide- the wine or her feelings? "It started out with the same garbage, but..." She frowned angrily as she grumbled on. "I'm just so sick of all this ****, too, Luna. You're not alone."
Luna felt a little pale as Crystal said these words, for she felt that her problems were nothing compared to the Dragoshi's.
"I don't know what to do anymore, I don't..." she mumbled, squinting from her pain.
"Crystal, we're all here for you," Cirrus murmured sadly. "You don't HAVE to do anything, we'll do it for you..." Cirrus scooted her seat over some so she was closer to her silver companion. She almost squashed her own tail in the process, and tucked it off to her side on the ground casually. Crystal was beginning to tear up as Luna had, but fought viciously to hold back their flow.
"...Crystal...? You DO know that, right?" Cirrus asked shakily as she rubbed her friend's back warmly. "Please tell me you know that..." She rested her head on Crystal's shoulder, her soft 'quills' draping over the girl's shoulder a bit.
Crystal sniffled, but she refused to cry in front of her friends. She was so sick of looking weak and vulnerable, she wasn't going to stand for it anymore.
"...I-I know, Cirrus...I know..."
There were no words for a few minutes as they all slowly ate their food, their appetites diminished. By the time they were done, they were in better spirits, and began to chat about the little things that had happened to them in the past days. They continued to eat their meals quickly, and by the time they were done, the mood had been lifted somewhat. Suddenly, Sparkle caught sight of a familiar figure amidst the hordes of pedestrians. Her eyes lit up like a Christmas tree, and her jaw dropped.
{Is that really him?! Oh, Stars, it IS him...Ohhhh...He's such a hotty...}
She folded her hands up to her cheek, captured by the man's physical form. Her eyes were glazed and dreamy, and Luna sighed as she noticed it.
"Oh, boy, it's the look again," she groaned, shaking her head.
"OH! He's here?!" Cirrus squeaked, perking up and searching around alertly. Sparkle, still in a daze, pointed a trembling hand out into the crowd of people.
Standing about fifty feet away, the target was in a conversation.
He was a firmly built creature with blood-red skin and an orange underbelly. He was like a dragon in appearance, and many considered him the same, though he wasn't truly. His long, rough wings were extended out as he stretched them, their underside a tough and leathery bluish hue. He had a strong chest, and though his arms were relatively thin, they still looked quite capable. Three fierce fingers came out from each hand, and each finger had a sharp and smooth white claw on it. His legs were quite mobile and built for his kind, though they were still short and a bit hard to use. He had a slightly elongated neck, and at the end of it was his face. To Sparkle, it was like a sculpture. It had two long, horn-like appendages on each side, at the top, and a long, flat nose. Two fangs jutted out of his mouth, and two slits for nostrils were above them. His eyes were a deep blue, like the skies at night. Those eyes were like those of an eagle- noble, solemn, and strong. His tail was similar to Cirrus', but while Cirrus' was more fleshy and slender, his was more muscular and firm, and it was shorter in comparison to his size. Like Cirrus', its bottom was the same color as his chest and stomach, as the stripe continued downward. But, at the tip of his tail was something unique to most living beings. A large flame burned strong from the tip of this tail, as if fueled by some unseen force. It was big and bright today, a sign that he was in good health.
People in Star Road referred to this man simply by his last name- Hyblaze. Few knew of his first name, such as these four girls. He was a mystical creature known as a Charizard, a species of beings called Pokemon.
He was speaking with another Pokemon, but this one was of another class. It had a basic anthrope form, but it had smooth, blue skin. Its feet and hands were webbed and clawed. A small tail poked from the back. His eyes were a maroon color, and radiated seriousness. His mouth and nose were in the form of a flat beak. On his forehead was implanted a small stone bearing the color of his eyes. His head was topped by a design of odd 'spikes.' He was a Golduck, a water-type Pokemon. And he was referred to as Yoh.
Sparkle let out a dreamy sigh as she felt her heart melt while staring at the Chairzard. Well, it wasn't really her heart melting, it was her hormones running rampant.
Cirrus smiled devilishly and nodded.
"****. He IS pretty hot..." she admitted calmly.
"Too bad he's a bit too old for you, Sparkle..." Luna added in a grumble, crushing Sparkle's fantasy moment.
"I can dream, leave me alone!" she whimpered, brushing her hair back briskly and glancing at the table with embarrassment.
"What do you think he's talking about...?" Cirrus murmured curiously, staring at him carefully.
"Who knows? Probably something important..." Sparkle whispered solemnly.
Crystal, who had been silent this whole time, glanced back at the two talking monsters through the crowd of citizens and guardians.
"Most likely about his son," Crystal mumbled, as if it were common knowledge.
"What?" Sparkle's eyes widened, and she glared at Crystal expectantly. "He...H-he has a SON...?" It was as if her dreams had been shattered and built back up again.
"Yeaaa..." Crystal muttered uncomfortably, seeing the glow in Sparkle's eyes. She didn't want to smash at her fantasies, but she didn't want her to have false ones, either. "He's a little younger than us, and...He's really short- he's still a Charmander..."
"REALLY?" Cirrus squealed. "Oh, those guys are SO adorable!"
"I can wait if it means he'll be a hunk like his dad someday," Sparkle added in, drooling slightly.
Luna huffed and glared at her empty plate, irritated by this conversation. All this was doing was reminding her of her ex-boyfriend she had just broken up with.
Crystal sighed, shaking her head. She let her wings out a bit to give them some circulation as she continued.
"Well, Sparkle, you're in good company, he seems to be quite popular with the girls..." Crystal added with a smile and a slight giggle.
Sparkle was overjoyed to see her friend laughing, and slammed at the table, but not with too much force.
"Great, I've got competition. I'll gnaw them all to pieces..." she added with a humorous grimness.
"I'll help, but you have to share him with me," Cirrus pitched in with a chuckle.
As they all (or at least ALMOST all) snickered and joked about the matter, Luna was only reminded more of her lost love. Could she even call him that? Did she really ever love him? Looking back, she wasn't so sure anymore.
The waiter from before arrived with their bill and bid them good day.
"All right, so who's takin' it this time?" Cirrus asked, glaring at them all. "I got it last time, so don't even look at me..." she added quickly.
"I'll get it," Sparkle volunteered, raising a hand. She inspected it, checking to see that it wasn't overpriced, and nodded in satisfaction.
"...Hm...24 coins...? That's not too bad," she muttered as she raised up her right arm into the air. She snapped her fingers, and extracted the amount from herself and placed it on the table with care.
(NOTE-I believe I explained Stellon coins, but just to re-cap...They are made of Stellamentite, a magical metal. When collected, they become one with the owner's soul, and can be brought out in physical form when they will it.)
"So, uh...Where do we go now?" she asked slowly as they began to scramble to their feet, pushing their seats in.
"I've got things I need to do," Luna grumbled irritably.
Cirrus stretched out her arms doggedly, and let them droop down. Her tail was flopped on the ground behind her, and it dragged as they walked.
"I barely got any sleep last night, I was so busy," she groaned.
Her friends all became quite nervous. Cirrus was not the person to be around when she was lacking sleep. Then again, Cirrus was not the person to be around in MANY cases.
Cirrus had a very two-faced personality. In one hand, she was a kind, compassionate, and all around warm-hearted girl. But sometimes she could become quite a vicious animal. This usually happened when she felt her food was in threat of being taken, when she lacked sleep, and when she was otherwise over-stressed. When she was like this, it was usually her bottled up anger escaping her in a very violent form. Although a very unhealthy habit, Cirrus had trouble working on it. The problem was that other people were trying to bend her their way. The Honorable Star Spirits saw this habit as a threat, and were trying to get her to go to counseling sessions. Cirrus was not pleased with this is the least. To make matters worse, Geno, Crystal's father, seemed to have a strong grudge against her. She pretended as if it were nothing, but it really hurt her inside to think that such a generous and caring soul looked at her as if she were scum of Stellon. She didn't quite like not being able to control herself, but she would change when she was ready.
"Yea, I kinda...I should get going, too..." Crystal mumbled. "But...ya know, before I go and everything...-" Her voice was shaking, her legs wobbled a bit. She seemed incredibly nervous.
"Could we have a group hug first?" she meekly asked.
"Of course!" Sparkle cried. Cirrus cheered and dragged Luna into it, and the four good friends gave each other a tight and warm embrace. It would be the last time in quite some while that they would all be together, and Crystal treasured the moment as if it were an invaluable gem. Leaving her friends behind wasn't going to be easy, but she had to do it. She just had to keep telling herself that she'd come back, and they'd still be there, her pillars to lean on. But when one pillar falls, often do its neighbors.
~*~*~*~*~*
OK, a Chapter with the main focus on introducing some new characters and ideas...Yea, I know, I'm bombarding ya with new characters, but...Well, I hope you like it...I'm going to try to focus on the cast we've got for a while before I bring in any more new faces.
These four are fairly important, however, as are Geno and Hyblaze.
Crystal was created by me, by the way...
Cirrus is a character created by a good friend of mine who's a friggin' awesome artist.
Luna, of course, was created by the awesome Yoshi artists Luna. ^_^
I got permission from those two to use their characters, but...
Sparkle is a friend of Luna's (or used to be), and was created by...herself...or whatever...I tried to contact her, but couldn't. However, I'm giving full credit to her for the creation of her character.
And ya know what? I couldn't give a crap if you used any of my characters, so long as you give me credit for their creation.
If you guys are interested in seeing pics of Luna, Cirrus, or Sparkle, I can hook you up...Crystal? Well, I drew her myself, and I think I have a copy of the pic on my com...I'd have to mail it ya if you were really interested.
Cirrus promised me she'd draw out a scene from this Chapter for me. I can't wait- she's a really good artist.
And I also could post links to the songs I've assigned as their 'themes'. At least Crystal's. Hers is a commonly mixed VG song.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Girl-talk chapter...
Boring...
1/10...
Nah, I'm just kidding! I liked this chapter. I can't wait to see how Crystal and her crew are going to be involved in this chapter.
I'm glad you mentioned that pictures of these unique Yoshis are available. I'd be very interested in checking those out.
Boring...
1/10...
Nah, I'm just kidding! I liked this chapter. I can't wait to see how Crystal and her crew are going to be involved in this chapter.
I'm glad you mentioned that pictures of these unique Yoshis are available. I'd be very interested in checking those out.
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
Great update. So Hyblaze was created by who?
O_o
Hey, now!
I really enjoyed writing this Chapter, you know. And furthermore, I tend to feel more comfortable talking with girls than guys- at least, when I'm not scared of them, as I have been lately. (Thanks a lot, Lacy and Crystal!!!)
I don't have time to do ANYTHING right now, and I won't until tomorrow, methinks.
However...
Hyblaze is a Charizard, so technically he was created by Nintendo.
All the Pokemon characters to be introduced pretty soon (besides ones from teh show, etc.) were 'created' by me.
Hyblaze and his son are very important to the general plot. You'd be surprised at how they tie in with some other characters.
Hey, now!
I really enjoyed writing this Chapter, you know. And furthermore, I tend to feel more comfortable talking with girls than guys- at least, when I'm not scared of them, as I have been lately. (Thanks a lot, Lacy and Crystal!!!)
I don't have time to do ANYTHING right now, and I won't until tomorrow, methinks.
However...
Hyblaze is a Charizard, so technically he was created by Nintendo.
All the Pokemon characters to be introduced pretty soon (besides ones from teh show, etc.) were 'created' by me.
Hyblaze and his son are very important to the general plot. You'd be surprised at how they tie in with some other characters.
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
Let me guess...his son's trainer was DIDDY!!! just a guess since I found out he was a trainer and you said he is important to the plot. Either that or Diddy was Hyblaze's trainer...though I could be wrong.
Um...Wrong and wrong. 
Diddy is a trainer, and you WILL get to see a bit more about that, but it's not important. Hyvlaze's son IS important.
Diddy is a trainer, and you WILL get to see a bit more about that, but it's not important. Hyvlaze's son IS important.
Part two of our Triple Header...
For the next two Chapters, we'll be going back in time a bit to the day BEFORE the last Chapter- the same day May and her friends meet with Gabe. I guess this isn't really that important, but I just want you to know, considering we left off where Yoshi and his friends find Birdo.
----------
Quest for Destiny! (White Version)
Chapter 42- Platoon
"These past few days there have been some very suspicious people around. Shy Guys, all over the place. I don't know what they're up to, but...It's probably not good..."
Birdo poured some tea into her mouth, letting it slide down the odd tube and into her throat.
"Hm...I think I know what they're after," Yoshi suggested, nodding to the shimmering Eggshell piece on the mantle of Birdo's fireplace.
"It's that important, is it?" she murmured.
Yoshi and Tarts nodded.
"You said you found it WHERE?" Yoshi asked again.
"Right in my mailbox," Birdo answered slowly. "I found it there a few days ago..."
The group of Yoshies seemed puzzled about this, but all the same, they had to have it back.
"It's very important," Tarts explained to Birdo, feeling somewhat intimidated by the innocence that she portrayed. "We need to have it back- it's ours, after all."
Birdo slowly rose from her rocking chair and walked over to her mantle. She scooped up the piece of gold in her clawed hands carefully and presented it to her old friends.
"It's no trouble, I can give it back. As long as it's being put to good use."
Yoshi, beaming, grabbed it from her hands. He stuffed it into his pack eagerly as he thanked her.
"Oh! Sweet! Thank you, Birdo. You have no idea how valuable this is!"
Birdo's eyes glowed as she assured him, "No need to thank me. It wasn't mine to begin with."
"Well, eh...If that's that, then we really need to get going," Snoball mumbled, feeling uncomfortable in this cozy cabin.
There was a mass commotion of Yoshies shuffling around to the door as Birdo rushed ahead to open it for them.
"Sorry, we're just really busy, we have a lot of work to do," Yoshi muttered hastily, hoping he hadn't made her feel bad. They were grateful, but he wasn't sure if she knew that.
"It's OK," Birdo assured, though you could sense the disappointment in her voice. "I understand." As she reached a clawed hand for the doorknob, everyone in the room jumped as a knocking hit their 'ears' from the door. Someone had knocked it from the outside. After a moment of silence to let her heart start beating again, Birdo wrapped her fingers around the knob, her claws lightly clacking against it. She turned it slowly, and the polished door squeaked open.
Surprised, the group of creatures glanced down to see a Shy Guy in white military clothing staring up at them. He was all by himself, standing with his arms folded behind his back. He stood tall and stern- at least, as tall as a Shy Guy could be.
"Is there a Miss 'Boydee' taking occupancy in this residence?"
He had a strict voice, but it was kind of high and nasaly- Shy Guys often sounded like this.
After a moment's hesitation, Birdo shyly answered, "Y-yes...I am Birdo...Um...The people in town call me Birdie..."
The Shy Guy eyed her suspiciously and tilted his body to take a glance at the Yoshies behind her.
"Yes...Very good," he murmured. After setting his eyes back on Birdo, he introduced himself. "I am General Sterling of Shy Platoon 76- the Toy Boxers..."
General Sterling had caused some trouble a couple years before when he had moved his Toy Box into an abandoned house in Toad Town. His army of Shy Guys had begun to run amuck in Toad Town while he guarded one of the Honorable Star Spirits for Bowser. Mario had infiltrated the Toy Box and defeated General Sterling and his army, freeing Muskular. Afterward, Sterling made like a shadow and hid under the radar, preparing to make a comeback.
"I was sent here to investigate the appearance of a strange metallic object..."
Birdo glanced back to Yoshi, her eyes expressing her worry.
{He must be one of those guys she was talking about,} Yoshi realized.
"Oh," Birdo simply murmured, turning back to him.
"...Do you know anything about this?" Sterling asked, his tone clearly showing his suspicions.
Snoball burst forth from behind Birdo.
"What's it matter to you?" she demanded. "This isn't your property...Unless you've got a good reason, you can piss off."
Sterling glared at her, quite annoyed with her attitude, but his speech remained calm. From his point of view, women weren't supposed to be to headstrong. They were supposed to stay home and sweep the house and bake bread.
"I was sent here by my superiors to look into the matter of a strange golden object raining from the sky..."
Before Birdo could respond, Sno spat out some more harsh tongue.
"Listen here, Mr. Military Man. That 'object' isn't yours, anyway, so go tell your SUPERIORS that they can go and **** themselves..."
{That's more like the old Sno,} Yoshi noted mentally.
Sterling gave her a dagger glare through his white mask.
"Very well...I shall be taking my leave..."
And with that, he rotated 180 degrees and marched off into the distance, quite speedily.
"There goes your problem," Snoball arrogantly announced, dusting her hands off together as she slammed the door shut.
"...Um...Thank you," Birdo mumbled, still feeling a bit worried about how she handled the matter. "So, um, where are you all going, anyway?"
As they filed out the door one by one, Yoshi replied, "We're headed for the town down south...Wanna come with?"
Within the realms of her mind, Tarts growled at Birdo as she merrily answered, "That would be wonderful!" As the tube-faced creature bounded by, Tarts mocked her from behind, mimicking her sentence like a toddler would.
----------
A pudgy Shy Guy garbed in camoflage surveyed the group carefully through the brush, slowly moving the binoculars in his little hands to keep up with them. After they were out of earshot, the Shy Guy whirled around and sneaked a few feet through the bushes to General Sterling, who was standing in wait.
"They're heading for Shy Central, Sterling, Sir. Your command?"
"Mmm...Leave them be for the moment. We'll wait until their guards are down in the city, then strike. Gather the Squad, we'll regroup at the city outskirts..."
As the soldier obediently went off to run his errand, Sterling stopped him for a moment.
"Oh! And call in our Anti Guy. We can't take any chances."
"Yessir."
----------
"Solid Stellamentite, my friend! This helm will resist any-"
"Don't want it," Yoshi growled at the Fungiade merchant who was waving a golden-colored helmet before him. He was wading his way through the marketplace of Shy Central, located at the core of the city. His friends had gone shopping, and they'd been separated. He was having a ****ed time finding them.
"Dear Sir, perhaps you'd be inclined to purchase this-"
"Not interested," the green dino snapped at a pesky Lakitu with a tie. He didn't even care to notice what he was peddling. With his eyes narrowed, he scanned the crowd, shielding his eyes from the sun that was setting in the west, which was straight ahead of him.
He suddenly heard a familiar voice tear through the cloud of sounds- it was Snoball. He couldn't see where she was at first, but he could hear her. Her high voice was easy to pick out.
"Yoshi!! There you are, you dipstick! We've been lookin' for you!"
Yoshi froze in place and rotated his head to examine his surroundings to find her. She tackled him from the left, making him stagger a little and almost trip.
"Man, Yosh, you REALLY need to work on your reflexes," she laughed.
"Where are the other guys?" he wondered, eager to get out of town.
"Yea, they're this way," Sno mumbled as she snatched his arm in her own- her grip was amazingly strong- and she pulled him through the throngs of merhcants to the small array of colored Yoshies he knew well.
"Hey, dude," Surfer greeted him, sticking out his fist. Yoshi slammed his knuckles into those of the sky blue.
"Are we LEAVING yet??" Fireball groaned.
"Yea, I'm getting SO tired of all these annoying idiots trying to sell me crap I don't want," Tarts grumbled, her hands crossed over her chest.
"Let's head out of here, then," Yoshi muttered, tightening his pack. "Roll out."
However, as they began to head toward the west exit of the town, they were halted by a pack of Shy Guys in navy blue. They had formed a square of five-by-five before them no more than thirty steps since they'd went to leave.
"You'll be rolled out, all right," one declared in the front row, his voice not nearly as intimidating as his words. He had that irritating pitch that most Shy Guy's possessed.
The sets of large, adorable eyes of the Yoshies blinked down at the small soldiers with surprise.
"Ummm..." Yoshi began to carefully tread around them, and the others followed. The Shy Guys paused, confused by this action, but quickly attempted to redeem their honor by scuttling in a pack toward their enemies, shouting out at them all at once.
"HEY!!" the one who seemed to be the leader cried out.
Tarts cringed as the persistent buggers scrambled around them, bumping into her legs and swarming them like insects.
"We ain't done with you yet!!" he threatened.
Yoshi sighed as he kicked one away, and laughed as it rolled across the ground and bowled over a couple of its comrades.
"Riiiight," he chuckled as he lifted his right leg high up and placed it on the ground before him, trying to avoid stepping on the critters. The group followed his lead, chortling and cackling as they did so. And then, suddenly, Snoball winced out in pain.
"HEY!!" she growled afterward, quickly glancing around at the flowing mass of red Shy Guys. "Which one of you little assholes hit me?!" she hissed, rubbing her shoulder.
She suddenly noticed one was armed with a slingshot, and it was still pointed at her.
"Toy Box Platoon!!" the little leader cried. "Prepare for combat!"
As the small legion alligned themselves in an arrow formation before them, about ten feet away, the Yoshies began to understand what they were getting themselves into. As every mini warrior in the army drew out a sling shot from what seemed to be nowhere, every one in their opposing party got an unsettling feeling in their stomach.
"Unless, that is, you wanna negotiate..." the stout head of the small group suggested. Seeing Yoshi's eyes narrow with anger, he explained.
"You seem to be in posession of something our organization needs..." he slyly told them, taking away all the slack he could from his slingshot's band.
"Really?" Yoshi growled back between clenched teeth.
"...If you don't wanna cooperate, then things might get messy..."
Yoshi, bending over slightly with his arms in ready position, opened his right palm slowly.
"Yea...I guess so..." The Elemental Orb was summoned to his hand and he lashed it out into the air like a whip and called forth a Magma Bomb spell, which pelted a large chunk of firey stone into the throng of little Shy Guys, dispersing them in random directions.
"See? I KNEW it," Fireball groaned as he readied himself for battle. "It wasn't going to be that easy. OOOHHHH, no..."
"Oh, shut the **** up and make yourself useful," Snoball snapped at him as she pounded one into the ground with her bare fists.
As chaos ensued in the town square, citizens fled like cattle, trying to get out of harm's way. Screams and shouts filled the background of the tiny war as small pebbles went sailing through the air in one direction, and magic went flying in the other.
High atop a coffeeshop's roof, a dark figure was hiding in wait, ready to strike when the time was right. His cold face eyed all the action from a safe distance. He was awaiting commands to strike from white-garbed general who was planted firmly behind him. The black assassin slowly pulled out a simple slingshot, or so it appeared, and began to aim it down at the conflict below. With the skills of a sniper, he had his target set on Yoshi's face, ready to pelt his head with stones.
"No," Sterling calmly commanded from behind. "I need to see if my infantry has improved since our last efforts..."
The highly trained figure in shadow lowered his weapon silently, ready to draw it at a moment's notice.
----------
"Taught those little *******s, didn't we?" Snoball bragged, kicking one limp Shy Guy aside.
"Um...Yea...Those guys were...kinda wussy," Tarts mumbled with suspicion.
"Exactly," Fireball moaned, his narrow eyes darting around the plaza, which was filled with the bodies of knocked out ****** soliders. "Something's up. It wouldn't be that easy...There's always some big, bad *** who wants the dumb thing..."
"Maybe it's not always going to be like that," Tarts said quickly as the group tip toed over the felled combatants. "We should be thankful it was that easy and get outta here before someone DOES show up..."
"I agree," Yoshi said slowly, feeling uneasy. "Come on."
No sooner had he taken another step from speaking did he feel a sharp and sudden pain smack the back of his head. A crack could be heard from the impact of a small stone when it collided with his noggin. It bounced off and sailed through the air past Surfer's face and landed in a random spot on the cobblestone plaza.
"OWW!!" Yoshi growled, his hand jumping to the injury. As he rubbed his head in a slight daze, his eyes whizzed around, seeking out the culprit. "What-...?"
"Are you OK?!" Tarts gasped out, inspecting the small bruise that had formed.
"...I think so," he grumbled, quite irritated.
"What the **** was-?" Snoball's sentence was cut off short as a pebble smashed into her shoulder and she froze, sucking in air between her teeth. "All right, who's the little ******* who did that??" she roared, looking up to the rooftops. As she massaged her aching shoulder, she threatened, "Wherever the **** you are, you'd better get your coward *** down here!!"
Everyone was overcome by a hushed silence as they carefully formed a circle, their backs to each other. They knew that whoever it was, they were on the move. They could feel the presence of their foe in the air, and they could all pick up a suspicious scent with their keen olfactory organs.
"I am a coward, you say?"
In an instant and in unison, all five Yoshies jumped in shock and fear, intimidated by the heavy latino-accented assassin that stealthily snuck toward them.
"Watch out, guys," Yoshi warned them quietly as their formation tightened slightly. "We don't know what-"
Yoshi's sentence was cut off quite abruptly as he felt his legs go soaring into the air and the world around him fly upside down. A flurry of cries filled his ears as he scrambled to his feet. As he regained his balance, he saw the nimble Anti Guy hopping with great swiftness between Surfer, Snoball, and Fireball, dodging all of their blows with ease as they flung out attacks in a frenzy.
Tarts had immediately checked Yoshi to make sure he was well as she awaited his command.
"We're gonna need a defensive strategy on this guy," he hypothesized carefully. "Tarts...You be ready for healing..."
"Yea," she said quickly, preparing herself for spellcasting as Yoshi called upon his Elemental Orb. He levitated it into the air as a sliver of brown flew out and splashed into Yoshi's hands. He pointed his palms at Tarts, and a cloud of brown dust rose from between the cobblestones at their feet, enveloping her within it. 'Sturdy Sand,' as the spell was referred to, beefed up Tarts' defense so she could focus on healing without worry.
Tarts flicked her wrists forth to spew out a barrage of beams of pink light that shrouded her allies in an aura of warmth. As they brimmed with energy, the Anti Guy seemed to have disappeared. Yoshi, however, was certainly not going to wait around until he struck again. He pondered what action to take next, and it popped into his mind as he watched Fireball get pelted by a few pebbles zipping through the air at a high velocity into his head.
He snapped his fingers as he summoned a unique item he'd purchased in the market earlier. It would serve them well. It was a brown cap that was shaped into a style like that of the famous plumber Mario, but it seemed to be made out of stone. It was, in fact, a Stone Cap- an item that, when worn, would turn its host into stone for a short while. He whipped the thing through the air at Snoball who barely caught it. It wasn't as heavy as a rock, but it was certainly not light, either.
"Whoa...What-?"
"Put it on when I say so," Yoshi commanded. He looked to Fireball and told him, "You start building your offense, and get ready for a strong fire attack. Surfer," he gave the 'dude' a quick nod. "You whip up that spell that crushes defense..."
"Right on, Dude!" He flashed a thumbs-up.
Yoshi took a deep breath as he concentrated on retrieving another cap from his pack for his own use. His plan was set into action before he could manage it, however, as the assassin struck Surfer without warning, flinging him to his back like a rag doll.
"NOW, SNO!!" he roared as the fierce combatant mowed down Fireball with a ferocious kick.
The white Yoshi plopped the hat onto her head- not exactly a comfortable fit, but the effects still kicked in, and her body became a solid statue of brown stone. The Anti Guy came flying smack into her, trying to do an aerial kick. With a sicking 'thud', the soldier bounced off of her cold, motionless body and onto his back.
Tarts sought the opportunity to add her own element to the battle plan and blasted out a 'Shockwave' spell- pink pulses of electricity drifted from her fingertips and paralyzed her foe on the spot. Meanwhile, Surfer and Fireball were getting back on their feet again, ready to serve up some revenge.
Surfer swiped his fist from the air to the ground, calling forth a 'Water Pillar' attack. A cylindrical slab of water sprouted up from the ground in an instant, its height about ten feet. Surfer gave it a quick kick, and it began to tilt, eventually falling over right on its target. The water flew everywhere, and the impact damaged the Anti Guy while dropping his defenses to physical blows. Fireball has wasted no time in souping up his own spell to add to the combo, and no sooner had the 'Water Pillar' struck did he pull off one he had recently learned- 'Falcon Kick.' He bounded straight up into sky and arched his body in a diagonal angle so that his right leg was stretched out to aim at the masked man. He willed his body like a torpedo toward the creature, his foot shrouded in bright flames. The collision was a small explosion, and the Anti Guy rolled about twenty feet away as Fireball backflipped from the kick onto his feet with an arrogant laugh.
Yoshi had already taken on and put on the item he had planned on using, and his allies didn't know where he had went to- he'd vanished into thin air.
"...Yoshi!!" Tarts shrieked, worried that something awful may have happened. "Where-?!"
"DUDE!" Surfer cried, pointing an index finger out to the Anti Guy. He was stumbling around, his body still recovering from paralysis.
"I am not down for de count just yet..." he bellowed in a groan. But he was quite surprised- as were the Yoshies, when he was slammed onto his face by an unseen force. He immediately jumped back to his feet and spun around to face his foe, but he saw nothing- at first. Then, a vague outline of a Yoshi met his eye- he was using cloaking of some sort. The Anti Guy readied himself for a blow, but none came. He decided to launch the offensive and dive forward, but by then Yoshi had whirled around him. As he dove into the air, Yoshi grabbed him by the feet and spun him 180 degrees. He skidded into the pavement fiercely, his body rolling around like a soccer ball.
Snoball blasted out of her rock-solid state, and with unbridled glee, she dashed for him and stuck out his right leg to swing it in an arc, punting the Anti Guy into the airat Surfer. Surfer, who was ready, stuck out his chest to slow the 'ball' down. He bounced it on his feet a little and smashed it to Fireball, who moaned as it pelted his gut.
"OHHHHHHhHhHhHhhh...." He grabbed his stomach in agony as the black and white mass landed on its back in a daze.
"Oh! OH!" Tarts skipped over to the poor creature and booted him with her toe in the direction Yoshi had been, feeling his presence was still there. "OW!" She hopped a little from the pain that ran down her foot afterward.
The Anti Guy 'soccer ball' was caught by two invisible hands and laid on the ground neatly. As it sat there, the Yoshies couldn't quite see what was going on, but when saw his body get squashed and a loud 'FWOMP!' echoe through the plaza, they knew that a good 'Pound the Ground' had been put to use. Tarts beamed, clapping her hands. Fireball coughed, still feeling woozy, but he managed to murmur a "wOOOoOoOoooot..."
The image of a green Yoshi with a tan backpack gradually came into view, particle by particle.
"How did you do that??" Tarts demanded in awe.
Yoshi smirked, rubbing his knuckles on his chest. "I picked up a Vanish Cap from a merchant earlier...Figured it'd be helpful..."
"No kidding," Snoball said as she shook her head, impressed.
Up on a nearby rooftop, a lone Shy Guy General stared down in shame at his fallen platoon and shook his head. The head in command would be sorely disappointed. He could lose his position over this...
/\/\/\/\/\
"Nice doin' bitness wit' ya, Yosh..."
"Yea, man...No prob."
"So...Ya say dis here Birdo chick is out in da woods by 'erself?"
"Well, yea...Why?"
"'Sall good...I'm jus' gonna go drop by, a'ight?"
"Yea, sure, Boshi...She's real timid, though..."
"Yea, yea...Sounds like she needs to see da world, right?"
"...Um...Sure...I guess..."
"Yoshi!! We're LEAVING!! The boat is GOING NOW!!"
Yoshi sighed and shook his head slowly.
"Heh...Your lady friend is calling ya," Boshi chuckled. Yoshi sighed at the comment.
"It's not like that," he said, shaking his head.
"Oh...Whateva," Boshi shrugged it off.
"Well, we'll catch ya later, Boshi." Yoshi stuck out his fist, and Boshi jabbed it with his own in a farewell gesture.
"Fo shizzle," he replied with a grin.
As Yoshi caught up with his pals, he felt more at peace. Boshi would take good care of Birdo- he knew it.
"So where are we off to next?" Tarts wondered as they leaned on the rails of a small ship they were charging for transportation.
"Well...I guess we're headed for the jungle..." he muttered.
"Great," Tarts huffed. "That should be just dandy..."
"It'll all work out fine," Yoshi assured her, casting the worry aside.
"Yea," she agreed as she stared at the disappearing island with him at her side. The sun was still high in the sky, but from the looks of things, they'd be 'roughing it' for the night once they hit shore.
----------
For the next two Chapters, we'll be going back in time a bit to the day BEFORE the last Chapter- the same day May and her friends meet with Gabe. I guess this isn't really that important, but I just want you to know, considering we left off where Yoshi and his friends find Birdo.
----------
Quest for Destiny! (White Version)
Chapter 42- Platoon
"These past few days there have been some very suspicious people around. Shy Guys, all over the place. I don't know what they're up to, but...It's probably not good..."
Birdo poured some tea into her mouth, letting it slide down the odd tube and into her throat.
"Hm...I think I know what they're after," Yoshi suggested, nodding to the shimmering Eggshell piece on the mantle of Birdo's fireplace.
"It's that important, is it?" she murmured.
Yoshi and Tarts nodded.
"You said you found it WHERE?" Yoshi asked again.
"Right in my mailbox," Birdo answered slowly. "I found it there a few days ago..."
The group of Yoshies seemed puzzled about this, but all the same, they had to have it back.
"It's very important," Tarts explained to Birdo, feeling somewhat intimidated by the innocence that she portrayed. "We need to have it back- it's ours, after all."
Birdo slowly rose from her rocking chair and walked over to her mantle. She scooped up the piece of gold in her clawed hands carefully and presented it to her old friends.
"It's no trouble, I can give it back. As long as it's being put to good use."
Yoshi, beaming, grabbed it from her hands. He stuffed it into his pack eagerly as he thanked her.
"Oh! Sweet! Thank you, Birdo. You have no idea how valuable this is!"
Birdo's eyes glowed as she assured him, "No need to thank me. It wasn't mine to begin with."
"Well, eh...If that's that, then we really need to get going," Snoball mumbled, feeling uncomfortable in this cozy cabin.
There was a mass commotion of Yoshies shuffling around to the door as Birdo rushed ahead to open it for them.
"Sorry, we're just really busy, we have a lot of work to do," Yoshi muttered hastily, hoping he hadn't made her feel bad. They were grateful, but he wasn't sure if she knew that.
"It's OK," Birdo assured, though you could sense the disappointment in her voice. "I understand." As she reached a clawed hand for the doorknob, everyone in the room jumped as a knocking hit their 'ears' from the door. Someone had knocked it from the outside. After a moment of silence to let her heart start beating again, Birdo wrapped her fingers around the knob, her claws lightly clacking against it. She turned it slowly, and the polished door squeaked open.
Surprised, the group of creatures glanced down to see a Shy Guy in white military clothing staring up at them. He was all by himself, standing with his arms folded behind his back. He stood tall and stern- at least, as tall as a Shy Guy could be.
"Is there a Miss 'Boydee' taking occupancy in this residence?"
He had a strict voice, but it was kind of high and nasaly- Shy Guys often sounded like this.
After a moment's hesitation, Birdo shyly answered, "Y-yes...I am Birdo...Um...The people in town call me Birdie..."
The Shy Guy eyed her suspiciously and tilted his body to take a glance at the Yoshies behind her.
"Yes...Very good," he murmured. After setting his eyes back on Birdo, he introduced himself. "I am General Sterling of Shy Platoon 76- the Toy Boxers..."
General Sterling had caused some trouble a couple years before when he had moved his Toy Box into an abandoned house in Toad Town. His army of Shy Guys had begun to run amuck in Toad Town while he guarded one of the Honorable Star Spirits for Bowser. Mario had infiltrated the Toy Box and defeated General Sterling and his army, freeing Muskular. Afterward, Sterling made like a shadow and hid under the radar, preparing to make a comeback.
"I was sent here to investigate the appearance of a strange metallic object..."
Birdo glanced back to Yoshi, her eyes expressing her worry.
{He must be one of those guys she was talking about,} Yoshi realized.
"Oh," Birdo simply murmured, turning back to him.
"...Do you know anything about this?" Sterling asked, his tone clearly showing his suspicions.
Snoball burst forth from behind Birdo.
"What's it matter to you?" she demanded. "This isn't your property...Unless you've got a good reason, you can piss off."
Sterling glared at her, quite annoyed with her attitude, but his speech remained calm. From his point of view, women weren't supposed to be to headstrong. They were supposed to stay home and sweep the house and bake bread.
"I was sent here by my superiors to look into the matter of a strange golden object raining from the sky..."
Before Birdo could respond, Sno spat out some more harsh tongue.
"Listen here, Mr. Military Man. That 'object' isn't yours, anyway, so go tell your SUPERIORS that they can go and **** themselves..."
{That's more like the old Sno,} Yoshi noted mentally.
Sterling gave her a dagger glare through his white mask.
"Very well...I shall be taking my leave..."
And with that, he rotated 180 degrees and marched off into the distance, quite speedily.
"There goes your problem," Snoball arrogantly announced, dusting her hands off together as she slammed the door shut.
"...Um...Thank you," Birdo mumbled, still feeling a bit worried about how she handled the matter. "So, um, where are you all going, anyway?"
As they filed out the door one by one, Yoshi replied, "We're headed for the town down south...Wanna come with?"
Within the realms of her mind, Tarts growled at Birdo as she merrily answered, "That would be wonderful!" As the tube-faced creature bounded by, Tarts mocked her from behind, mimicking her sentence like a toddler would.
----------
A pudgy Shy Guy garbed in camoflage surveyed the group carefully through the brush, slowly moving the binoculars in his little hands to keep up with them. After they were out of earshot, the Shy Guy whirled around and sneaked a few feet through the bushes to General Sterling, who was standing in wait.
"They're heading for Shy Central, Sterling, Sir. Your command?"
"Mmm...Leave them be for the moment. We'll wait until their guards are down in the city, then strike. Gather the Squad, we'll regroup at the city outskirts..."
As the soldier obediently went off to run his errand, Sterling stopped him for a moment.
"Oh! And call in our Anti Guy. We can't take any chances."
"Yessir."
----------
"Solid Stellamentite, my friend! This helm will resist any-"
"Don't want it," Yoshi growled at the Fungiade merchant who was waving a golden-colored helmet before him. He was wading his way through the marketplace of Shy Central, located at the core of the city. His friends had gone shopping, and they'd been separated. He was having a ****ed time finding them.
"Dear Sir, perhaps you'd be inclined to purchase this-"
"Not interested," the green dino snapped at a pesky Lakitu with a tie. He didn't even care to notice what he was peddling. With his eyes narrowed, he scanned the crowd, shielding his eyes from the sun that was setting in the west, which was straight ahead of him.
He suddenly heard a familiar voice tear through the cloud of sounds- it was Snoball. He couldn't see where she was at first, but he could hear her. Her high voice was easy to pick out.
"Yoshi!! There you are, you dipstick! We've been lookin' for you!"
Yoshi froze in place and rotated his head to examine his surroundings to find her. She tackled him from the left, making him stagger a little and almost trip.
"Man, Yosh, you REALLY need to work on your reflexes," she laughed.
"Where are the other guys?" he wondered, eager to get out of town.
"Yea, they're this way," Sno mumbled as she snatched his arm in her own- her grip was amazingly strong- and she pulled him through the throngs of merhcants to the small array of colored Yoshies he knew well.
"Hey, dude," Surfer greeted him, sticking out his fist. Yoshi slammed his knuckles into those of the sky blue.
"Are we LEAVING yet??" Fireball groaned.
"Yea, I'm getting SO tired of all these annoying idiots trying to sell me crap I don't want," Tarts grumbled, her hands crossed over her chest.
"Let's head out of here, then," Yoshi muttered, tightening his pack. "Roll out."
However, as they began to head toward the west exit of the town, they were halted by a pack of Shy Guys in navy blue. They had formed a square of five-by-five before them no more than thirty steps since they'd went to leave.
"You'll be rolled out, all right," one declared in the front row, his voice not nearly as intimidating as his words. He had that irritating pitch that most Shy Guy's possessed.
The sets of large, adorable eyes of the Yoshies blinked down at the small soldiers with surprise.
"Ummm..." Yoshi began to carefully tread around them, and the others followed. The Shy Guys paused, confused by this action, but quickly attempted to redeem their honor by scuttling in a pack toward their enemies, shouting out at them all at once.
"HEY!!" the one who seemed to be the leader cried out.
Tarts cringed as the persistent buggers scrambled around them, bumping into her legs and swarming them like insects.
"We ain't done with you yet!!" he threatened.
Yoshi sighed as he kicked one away, and laughed as it rolled across the ground and bowled over a couple of its comrades.
"Riiiight," he chuckled as he lifted his right leg high up and placed it on the ground before him, trying to avoid stepping on the critters. The group followed his lead, chortling and cackling as they did so. And then, suddenly, Snoball winced out in pain.
"HEY!!" she growled afterward, quickly glancing around at the flowing mass of red Shy Guys. "Which one of you little assholes hit me?!" she hissed, rubbing her shoulder.
She suddenly noticed one was armed with a slingshot, and it was still pointed at her.
"Toy Box Platoon!!" the little leader cried. "Prepare for combat!"
As the small legion alligned themselves in an arrow formation before them, about ten feet away, the Yoshies began to understand what they were getting themselves into. As every mini warrior in the army drew out a sling shot from what seemed to be nowhere, every one in their opposing party got an unsettling feeling in their stomach.
"Unless, that is, you wanna negotiate..." the stout head of the small group suggested. Seeing Yoshi's eyes narrow with anger, he explained.
"You seem to be in posession of something our organization needs..." he slyly told them, taking away all the slack he could from his slingshot's band.
"Really?" Yoshi growled back between clenched teeth.
"...If you don't wanna cooperate, then things might get messy..."
Yoshi, bending over slightly with his arms in ready position, opened his right palm slowly.
"Yea...I guess so..." The Elemental Orb was summoned to his hand and he lashed it out into the air like a whip and called forth a Magma Bomb spell, which pelted a large chunk of firey stone into the throng of little Shy Guys, dispersing them in random directions.
"See? I KNEW it," Fireball groaned as he readied himself for battle. "It wasn't going to be that easy. OOOHHHH, no..."
"Oh, shut the **** up and make yourself useful," Snoball snapped at him as she pounded one into the ground with her bare fists.
As chaos ensued in the town square, citizens fled like cattle, trying to get out of harm's way. Screams and shouts filled the background of the tiny war as small pebbles went sailing through the air in one direction, and magic went flying in the other.
High atop a coffeeshop's roof, a dark figure was hiding in wait, ready to strike when the time was right. His cold face eyed all the action from a safe distance. He was awaiting commands to strike from white-garbed general who was planted firmly behind him. The black assassin slowly pulled out a simple slingshot, or so it appeared, and began to aim it down at the conflict below. With the skills of a sniper, he had his target set on Yoshi's face, ready to pelt his head with stones.
"No," Sterling calmly commanded from behind. "I need to see if my infantry has improved since our last efforts..."
The highly trained figure in shadow lowered his weapon silently, ready to draw it at a moment's notice.
----------
"Taught those little *******s, didn't we?" Snoball bragged, kicking one limp Shy Guy aside.
"Um...Yea...Those guys were...kinda wussy," Tarts mumbled with suspicion.
"Exactly," Fireball moaned, his narrow eyes darting around the plaza, which was filled with the bodies of knocked out ****** soliders. "Something's up. It wouldn't be that easy...There's always some big, bad *** who wants the dumb thing..."
"Maybe it's not always going to be like that," Tarts said quickly as the group tip toed over the felled combatants. "We should be thankful it was that easy and get outta here before someone DOES show up..."
"I agree," Yoshi said slowly, feeling uneasy. "Come on."
No sooner had he taken another step from speaking did he feel a sharp and sudden pain smack the back of his head. A crack could be heard from the impact of a small stone when it collided with his noggin. It bounced off and sailed through the air past Surfer's face and landed in a random spot on the cobblestone plaza.
"OWW!!" Yoshi growled, his hand jumping to the injury. As he rubbed his head in a slight daze, his eyes whizzed around, seeking out the culprit. "What-...?"
"Are you OK?!" Tarts gasped out, inspecting the small bruise that had formed.
"...I think so," he grumbled, quite irritated.
"What the **** was-?" Snoball's sentence was cut off short as a pebble smashed into her shoulder and she froze, sucking in air between her teeth. "All right, who's the little ******* who did that??" she roared, looking up to the rooftops. As she massaged her aching shoulder, she threatened, "Wherever the **** you are, you'd better get your coward *** down here!!"
Everyone was overcome by a hushed silence as they carefully formed a circle, their backs to each other. They knew that whoever it was, they were on the move. They could feel the presence of their foe in the air, and they could all pick up a suspicious scent with their keen olfactory organs.
"I am a coward, you say?"
In an instant and in unison, all five Yoshies jumped in shock and fear, intimidated by the heavy latino-accented assassin that stealthily snuck toward them.
"Watch out, guys," Yoshi warned them quietly as their formation tightened slightly. "We don't know what-"
Yoshi's sentence was cut off quite abruptly as he felt his legs go soaring into the air and the world around him fly upside down. A flurry of cries filled his ears as he scrambled to his feet. As he regained his balance, he saw the nimble Anti Guy hopping with great swiftness between Surfer, Snoball, and Fireball, dodging all of their blows with ease as they flung out attacks in a frenzy.
Tarts had immediately checked Yoshi to make sure he was well as she awaited his command.
"We're gonna need a defensive strategy on this guy," he hypothesized carefully. "Tarts...You be ready for healing..."
"Yea," she said quickly, preparing herself for spellcasting as Yoshi called upon his Elemental Orb. He levitated it into the air as a sliver of brown flew out and splashed into Yoshi's hands. He pointed his palms at Tarts, and a cloud of brown dust rose from between the cobblestones at their feet, enveloping her within it. 'Sturdy Sand,' as the spell was referred to, beefed up Tarts' defense so she could focus on healing without worry.
Tarts flicked her wrists forth to spew out a barrage of beams of pink light that shrouded her allies in an aura of warmth. As they brimmed with energy, the Anti Guy seemed to have disappeared. Yoshi, however, was certainly not going to wait around until he struck again. He pondered what action to take next, and it popped into his mind as he watched Fireball get pelted by a few pebbles zipping through the air at a high velocity into his head.
He snapped his fingers as he summoned a unique item he'd purchased in the market earlier. It would serve them well. It was a brown cap that was shaped into a style like that of the famous plumber Mario, but it seemed to be made out of stone. It was, in fact, a Stone Cap- an item that, when worn, would turn its host into stone for a short while. He whipped the thing through the air at Snoball who barely caught it. It wasn't as heavy as a rock, but it was certainly not light, either.
"Whoa...What-?"
"Put it on when I say so," Yoshi commanded. He looked to Fireball and told him, "You start building your offense, and get ready for a strong fire attack. Surfer," he gave the 'dude' a quick nod. "You whip up that spell that crushes defense..."
"Right on, Dude!" He flashed a thumbs-up.
Yoshi took a deep breath as he concentrated on retrieving another cap from his pack for his own use. His plan was set into action before he could manage it, however, as the assassin struck Surfer without warning, flinging him to his back like a rag doll.
"NOW, SNO!!" he roared as the fierce combatant mowed down Fireball with a ferocious kick.
The white Yoshi plopped the hat onto her head- not exactly a comfortable fit, but the effects still kicked in, and her body became a solid statue of brown stone. The Anti Guy came flying smack into her, trying to do an aerial kick. With a sicking 'thud', the soldier bounced off of her cold, motionless body and onto his back.
Tarts sought the opportunity to add her own element to the battle plan and blasted out a 'Shockwave' spell- pink pulses of electricity drifted from her fingertips and paralyzed her foe on the spot. Meanwhile, Surfer and Fireball were getting back on their feet again, ready to serve up some revenge.
Surfer swiped his fist from the air to the ground, calling forth a 'Water Pillar' attack. A cylindrical slab of water sprouted up from the ground in an instant, its height about ten feet. Surfer gave it a quick kick, and it began to tilt, eventually falling over right on its target. The water flew everywhere, and the impact damaged the Anti Guy while dropping his defenses to physical blows. Fireball has wasted no time in souping up his own spell to add to the combo, and no sooner had the 'Water Pillar' struck did he pull off one he had recently learned- 'Falcon Kick.' He bounded straight up into sky and arched his body in a diagonal angle so that his right leg was stretched out to aim at the masked man. He willed his body like a torpedo toward the creature, his foot shrouded in bright flames. The collision was a small explosion, and the Anti Guy rolled about twenty feet away as Fireball backflipped from the kick onto his feet with an arrogant laugh.
Yoshi had already taken on and put on the item he had planned on using, and his allies didn't know where he had went to- he'd vanished into thin air.
"...Yoshi!!" Tarts shrieked, worried that something awful may have happened. "Where-?!"
"DUDE!" Surfer cried, pointing an index finger out to the Anti Guy. He was stumbling around, his body still recovering from paralysis.
"I am not down for de count just yet..." he bellowed in a groan. But he was quite surprised- as were the Yoshies, when he was slammed onto his face by an unseen force. He immediately jumped back to his feet and spun around to face his foe, but he saw nothing- at first. Then, a vague outline of a Yoshi met his eye- he was using cloaking of some sort. The Anti Guy readied himself for a blow, but none came. He decided to launch the offensive and dive forward, but by then Yoshi had whirled around him. As he dove into the air, Yoshi grabbed him by the feet and spun him 180 degrees. He skidded into the pavement fiercely, his body rolling around like a soccer ball.
Snoball blasted out of her rock-solid state, and with unbridled glee, she dashed for him and stuck out his right leg to swing it in an arc, punting the Anti Guy into the airat Surfer. Surfer, who was ready, stuck out his chest to slow the 'ball' down. He bounced it on his feet a little and smashed it to Fireball, who moaned as it pelted his gut.
"OHHHHHHhHhHhHhhh...." He grabbed his stomach in agony as the black and white mass landed on its back in a daze.
"Oh! OH!" Tarts skipped over to the poor creature and booted him with her toe in the direction Yoshi had been, feeling his presence was still there. "OW!" She hopped a little from the pain that ran down her foot afterward.
The Anti Guy 'soccer ball' was caught by two invisible hands and laid on the ground neatly. As it sat there, the Yoshies couldn't quite see what was going on, but when saw his body get squashed and a loud 'FWOMP!' echoe through the plaza, they knew that a good 'Pound the Ground' had been put to use. Tarts beamed, clapping her hands. Fireball coughed, still feeling woozy, but he managed to murmur a "wOOOoOoOoooot..."
The image of a green Yoshi with a tan backpack gradually came into view, particle by particle.
"How did you do that??" Tarts demanded in awe.
Yoshi smirked, rubbing his knuckles on his chest. "I picked up a Vanish Cap from a merchant earlier...Figured it'd be helpful..."
"No kidding," Snoball said as she shook her head, impressed.
Up on a nearby rooftop, a lone Shy Guy General stared down in shame at his fallen platoon and shook his head. The head in command would be sorely disappointed. He could lose his position over this...
/\/\/\/\/\
"Nice doin' bitness wit' ya, Yosh..."
"Yea, man...No prob."
"So...Ya say dis here Birdo chick is out in da woods by 'erself?"
"Well, yea...Why?"
"'Sall good...I'm jus' gonna go drop by, a'ight?"
"Yea, sure, Boshi...She's real timid, though..."
"Yea, yea...Sounds like she needs to see da world, right?"
"...Um...Sure...I guess..."
"Yoshi!! We're LEAVING!! The boat is GOING NOW!!"
Yoshi sighed and shook his head slowly.
"Heh...Your lady friend is calling ya," Boshi chuckled. Yoshi sighed at the comment.
"It's not like that," he said, shaking his head.
"Oh...Whateva," Boshi shrugged it off.
"Well, we'll catch ya later, Boshi." Yoshi stuck out his fist, and Boshi jabbed it with his own in a farewell gesture.
"Fo shizzle," he replied with a grin.
As Yoshi caught up with his pals, he felt more at peace. Boshi would take good care of Birdo- he knew it.
"So where are we off to next?" Tarts wondered as they leaned on the rails of a small ship they were charging for transportation.
"Well...I guess we're headed for the jungle..." he muttered.
"Great," Tarts huffed. "That should be just dandy..."
"It'll all work out fine," Yoshi assured her, casting the worry aside.
"Yea," she agreed as she stared at the disappearing island with him at her side. The sun was still high in the sky, but from the looks of things, they'd be 'roughing it' for the night once they hit shore.
----------
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
Great update. That was a cool battle.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
And after a four-month hiatus, we now return to Quest for Destiny.
Cool chapter. It feels good to read the words of Yoshi and crew once again. But who knows when I'll be able to do that again...
I just feel I must point this out: you skipped six chapters (!!!). I'm not complaining because after a while, I couldn't take the wait and headed over to FF.net. Maybe one of these days, you could post up the missing elements to your grand tale.
Hopefully, it doesn't take another four months for you to update again...
Cool chapter. It feels good to read the words of Yoshi and crew once again. But who knows when I'll be able to do that again...
I just feel I must point this out: you skipped six chapters (!!!). I'm not complaining because after a while, I couldn't take the wait and headed over to FF.net. Maybe one of these days, you could post up the missing elements to your grand tale.
Hopefully, it doesn't take another four months for you to update again...
Whoa! Skipped six chapters, did I?
Well, you can't blame me too badly...
After all, no one was replying- I took a guess that this was because there was nothing new for me to post up...
Yes, maybe I should do that sometime within the next couple of days...
Oh, well. Lack of interest is to blame for them not being posted here yet.
Four months? I hope not...
Once I can manage to pry myself away from Paper Mario 2...
Oh, but I have plans to introduce Megaman X, focus on Bowser, his kids, and Kamek's plans in the next Chapter.
Well, you can't blame me too badly...
After all, no one was replying- I took a guess that this was because there was nothing new for me to post up...
Yes, maybe I should do that sometime within the next couple of days...
Oh, well. Lack of interest is to blame for them not being posted here yet.
Four months? I hope not...
Once I can manage to pry myself away from Paper Mario 2...
Oh, but I have plans to introduce Megaman X, focus on Bowser, his kids, and Kamek's plans in the next Chapter.
Dude, my fic has a five-star rating?
That owns.
Too bad nobody really, ya know, READS it, or anything...
Surprisingly enough, I (HOLY CRAP!) have an UPDATE and stuff, not that anyone seems to care at this moment in time.
Ah, well.
----------
Quest for Destiny!
Chapter 43- X-Cited
"Man...What a ****in' piece of ****..." A heavy groan followed by a wave of vulgar grumbles spilled forth from his enormous mouth as he trudged his way through the bustling street. Stepping on cobblestones in a rundown town, Bowser glanced to his right to see a very welcoming sight- a gallows was placed up in the square, right at the heart of the city.
"What kind of town IS this ****-hole, anyway?" he moaned to himself, ashes littering his body. "Of all of the **** places for my crap car to take a ****..."
He suddenly noticed the paralyzed Goomba that stood before him- he was wearing a pointy green hat, but looked like most other Goombas otherwise.
"Hey, you!" Bowser growled gruffly at the already stiffened creature. "Where the **** AM I?"
"…I-I...Wh-...Y-You're...Th-this is Rogueport," he squeaked after a verbal struggle.
"Right," Bowser grumbled. He couldn't recall much on this place. Bowser was never really concerned with foreign affairs. The Mushroom Kingdom, the Beanbean Kingdom, and the Waffle Kingdom...They were all just big chunks of land to conquer to him. Names didn't really matter. "Any idea where I could find a **** mechanic?"
The Goomba's jaw was left agape, his eyes wide and his expression frozen. As he noticed that he'd milked the poor guy for all he could, Bowser stomped onward to the next passer-by he could find. What he got was a Bandit who looked to be in a rush.
"YOU!!" Bowser roared as the masked man almost dashed by. After coming to a skidding halt, Bowser's observed that this one wasn't as weak-hearted as the last. "Is there a ****in' mechanic in this hellhole?"
The Bandit chuckled at his comment. "This is a hellhole all right," he agreed. "You lookin' for a fixer?" He shrugged. "Well...I can give ya that information...-" his eyes twinkled slyly, "-for a PRICE."
Bowser glared at him dully, and it almost seemed as if flames burned within his eyes.
"How about I beat the **** outta ya? Ya like THAT price?" he hissed, balled up his clawed fists.
The Bandit kept his cool, though. "Whoa, hey, there, big guy...You do that, and you'll be S.O.L., eh?"
Bowser groaned and rolled his head a little. "FINE, OK? *******...How much?"
The smooth talker replied, "Ehhh...Twenty coins. Not too much, right? I mean, you look like the kinda guy who'd be packed. I could go harder on you..."
"I could go so hard on your ****in' ***," Bowser growled between grit teeth.
"What's that? Not int'rested? Well, your call, big guy, but-"
"OK!!!"
Bowser snapped his finger as he held out his palm, and a stack of twenty Stellamentite coins formed in it. The Bandit swiped them and they were absorbed instantly.
"Great, den. OK, tough man, follow me." As he began to lead the goliath through the rundown city, he asked curiously, "So what's your mess?"
"My piece of **** car broke down on me," Bowser moaned as he dragged his feet.
"Gotcha, big guy...What kind? Wheels? Rockets?"
"Propellers," Bowser grunted.
"Ahhh..." His guide nodded. "Well, whatever it is, these guys can fix it, I tell ya. Even if it ain't BROKE dey can fix it. They're new around here- just came in last week- but dey sure ain't new to the business. I tell ya, you've never seen anybody like 'em."
"I'll bet..."
~~~~~~~~~~
The beat pulsed through the room, its waves flowing out of the open, metal double doors and into the cold hallway. It was an invigorating song that filled the gloomy hallway, and the chunky figure with wavy blue hair couldn't help but be attracted by the lovely techno beat.
"Ahh...Hm. 'Kick Your A,' I presume?" he muttered to himself in his sophisticated accent as he waltzed into his brother's extensive bedroom. There, on the marble floor, he could see two of his siblings moving their feet around swiftly as they tapped them onto symbols printed on pads below them. A blazing fast array of piano notes echoed through the air, and Ludwig was captured by the tune.
"Yes, quite right," he confirmed his guess as he journeyed in to see Iggy and Wendy staring at a TV screen. Arrows were flying from the bottom to the top, and the two Koopalings were stepping on the corresponding keys on their pads, trying to keep in rhythm. Ludwig was overwhelmed by the way their clawed feet moved, and he quickly realized that this video game certainly required practice. "Must be more of this 'Dance Dance Revolution' they've been raving about..."
"Having a jolly time with that DDR, hm?" he asked them from behind as he approached them on the black marble, his bare feet smacking the floor with each step. He got a grunt from Iggy as an answer as the little guy scrambled to keep up with his sister.
"Yes, I see. Quite a unique game, indeed," Ludwig noted to himself as he observed. "Getting very 'jiggy with it,' I see...Yes."
The song came to a slow stop, and the two Koopalings immediately plopped down on the ground afterward, panting wildly as sweat dripped down their faces.
"Oh, come on, come on," Iggy chanted, staring at the screen intently.
"Woo," Wendy breathed. "Wow...I think I beat you, Iggy..."
Iggy slammed his fist into the smooth, shiny floor as he saw the final scores tally up. Two letters scrolled into the upper corners of the screen.
"MARVELOUS!!" boomed a voice from the screen.
A proud, "Heh!" came out of Wendy as she grinned.
"...A double 'A'??" Iggy whispered in awe. "I got a 'D'!!"
"Yup...You need more practice, brother..."
"Very fascinating," Ludwig murmured, scratching his chin.
"You wanna try, Ludwig?" Wendy asked him, wobbling off of the right side pad and offering it to him. "You can play Iggy...I need a BREAK..." she panted.
"Yes...Well, then, dear brother, shall we?" Ludwig said as he eagerly hopped to his spot. "Now, then...These arrows...-"
"You'll see the arrows on the screen, and-" Iggy stomped lightly on a square on his pad. "...Yea. OK. See that?" He pointed to the screen as a song started playing. Ludwig nodded in response. "See, the arrows will come from the bottom, and you have to step on them right when they hit the top..."
"I see, now. Thus, you step to the beat of the music..."
"Yea...Hey, whoa...Yea, you got it...Wow..." Iggy simply watched as Ludwig found this task to be quite simple. Wendy was giggling in the background, and Iggy noticed the bar at the top of his side turn red, and the word 'Boo' appearing repeatedly. He jumped and began to pound his feet along, struggling to catch up.
"Woo!" Wendy cheered. "You go, Ludwig!"
A rumbling flooded into the room, though, cutting the song off midway. It was the rest of the lot of Koopalings, and they all looked shocked and worried.
"Whoa, guys," Iggy muttered, ignoring the onscreen prompts. "What's going on?"
"Yea, you look like you saw a Big Boo," Wendy noted, curious.
"Oh, MUCH worse," Lemmy muttered.
"Ol' Grampa's havin' a party," Roy announced solemnly.
"...Yea?" Iggy mumbled, confused.
"A party to celebrate the beginning of something he's calling 'Malocution,' or something..." Larry grumbled shakily. "It doesn't look good, I can say that..."
Ludwig was already on his way out the door as he called back to them, "Then let us away and discover the details, hm?"
"..." Iggy was frowning thoughtfully as the group shuffled out.
"What do you think?" Wendy asked him quietly. "Should we?"
"Of course," Iggy replied. "But...Maybe we should ask Grandpa about all of this directly."
"Do you think he'll tell us?" Wendy wondered doubtfully.
"Has he ever lied?"
"...Well, no..."
----------
The building's interior was clean cut all around- at least the room Bowser had found himself in. The whole place was practically sparkling from its smooth, clean surfaces. The ground, the walls, and the ceiling were all made of metal, so a loud clanking sound was heard with every step Bowser made toward the reception desk. As he dragged his wary feet through the large, relatively empty room, he noticed the girl at the large desk before him. Her desk was shaped in a semi circle with maroon plastic. The girl appeared to be, to Bowser's surprise, a human. She had a very warm smile as she greeted him with a cheery, "Hello, Sir!" Her eyes were light blue and very catching. Her cheeks were a little on the pudgy side, as were her hands. She had a ponytail of blonde hair that was tied with a green ribbon, along with some square bangs. She wore a red dress of sorts, but not a very flashy one. It was just a simple red with a skirt that went down to her knees. Bowser couldn't see her feet, but they were rather large for her size. They looked like huge black boots of some kind.
"How can we help you today, Sir?" the girl asked politely with her charming tone.
"Uhhh...I got a car, needs fixin'," Bowser grumbled. "Heard this was the place to be..."
The girl gave him a charismatic grin, flashing her pearly whites, and nodded her head.
"Oh, yes. We here at XYZ Repairs can nurse any damaged equipment back to health. So..." She pressed a small button out of Bowser's view and a holographic display of green lettering appeared before her. "...What kind of repair do you need?"
"...Well, ugh, my car gave out on me, see-..."
"Vehicular," the girl murmured to herself as she tapped a section on the display, causing it to rearrange as another screen came up. "...What kind of vehicle, Sir? Ground, air, water...?"
"Uh...Air, I guess," Bowser mumbled awkwardly, amazed by the technology before him. After the blonde clicked a few more times with her fingers, she asked another question.
"What type? Rockets?"
"No, uh...Propellers," Bowser answered quietly. For some reason, a propeller-car just didn't sound very...'Dark Lord-like'.
"Ahhh," the girl said with a slow nod, her eyes glued to her screen as she tapped a few more times. A bunch of small squares appeared before her and she turned her head to Bowser quickly. "Your name, Sir?"
"...Bowser..." he grunted.
"...Last...?"
"...Gah...Kooparius," he grumbled reluctantly. He hated to say his own last name. It brought back bad memories.
"OK, Sir, thank you." She rapidly punched the name into her database, and she eyed her screen carefully for a few moments as she read some text. Her blue eyes slowly grew wider as she read, and her mouth opened slightly. "Oh, wow," she whispered. "It seems you're famous around here, Sir." She bit her lip as she contemplated. "Or...infamous," she corrected.
"...So what?" Bowser demanded calmly.
The young woman jabbed at the screen a few more times, and her worried expression got worse. "Oh, my...Are you...a criminal...?" She seemed very eager to take a step away from him, but she didn't.
"...I-..." Bowser let out a groan. "Yea, OK? So what? Are ya gonna fix my **** car, or not?!" The girl flinched at his outburst as she checked her screen in a rush for a few more seconds.
"...It seems that your, um...Your record is riddled with felonies, but...Fortunately," she added hastily and quite shakily, "-we can overlook that, because your record has been excused by a higher authority."
"...Huh??" Bowser mumbled, confused.
"...Your record has been approved by Mario of the Mushroom Kingdom...In other words, you've been pardoned for your crimes, so...I-I don't see any reason why we can't serve you..." She shut her screen down and tried to make business continue its flow.
"...S-so, then...Um...Where IS your vehicle, Sir?"
Bowser stood silent or a few moments, aghast. Mario...? What was with this 'pardon' business?
"It's lying outside of town, here..." he murmured, letting the thought go. "Why, do you need me to get it?" he wondered. He was certainly willing to do so.
"Oh, there's no need," the girl assured, regaining her cheer from before. "We can tow any vehicles within a one mile radius for free." She leaned over slightly as she raised a small microphone from behind the desk. "X, Zero...We've got a customer in need of a tow. Report up front, please."
She placed the communication device back and folded her hands neatly on the desk, flashing another bright smile.
"They'll be with you in just a moment," she said sweetly.
Sure enough, after a few seconds, a mechanical door slid open from the back of the room to the right, and two figures stepped toward them. Bowser was shocked by their appearance- they both looked like humans, too, but in robotic armor. He didn't know what they truly were, though, as he could only judge by appearance.
The first one was covered in blue plating, and his helmet had a red gem embedded into it that was connected to a smooth ridge that ran vertically. Two round, crater-shaped objects were built into the helmet, where his ears would be. His white hands were larger than the average human's would be, and his feet were enormous, too. His eyes, very serious and focused, were a dark blue.
His partner was dressed similarly, but his color scheme was red and white. His helmet had the same earpieces, while its gem was much larger, shaped into a blue triangle. The edges of his helmet resembled feathers. He, too, had overly large boots. A messy ponytail of yellow sprouted from the back of his helmet, running in a very poofy mass down his back. His green eyes radiated enthusiasm, but also a sense of duty.
A third person had followed them into the room- a brunette woman with brown, sad eyes. She had a long, fluffy ponytail, as well, but it was different in style than Zero's. Hers was as long as his, but it wasn't loose and messy. Instead, it was neatly fit into small rings of metal that were placed every six inches or so, and made a chain down her ponytail, holding every strand of hair together as one. Her metallic armor fit her feminine form, including a skirt made of metal plating, as well. Like the others, she also adorned very big feet that looked robotic, as well as big hands. The bangs that draped over her head were thick and almost hindered her sight.
All three of the workers had trace amounts of grease on them from their day of labor, but they still had steam in them.
"All right." The blue one eyed Bowser and nodded. "So where is it, Sir?"
"It's, eh...-" Bowser took a moment to remember its position. "It's just outside of town, on the west side..."
"Got it," the red one replied coolly. The bodies of the two males shifted into bright bars of light as they shot upward, straight through the ceiling, leaving no marks.
In awe, Bowser gazed up at where they had once been moments before.
The brunette girl turned to the blonde and spoke to her in a gentle and shy voice with a British accent. "Repairs are complete on Mr. Grubba's laptop."
"Oh, good, Iris," the blonde one replied. "We'll have it shipped to Glitzville as soon as possible, then."
"...Where are you people FROM...?" Bowser murmured in shock.
"...Um...Well, not from around here, exactly," the blonde replied.
"Indeed," the brunette giggled.
Bowser blinked at them, his mouth ajar.
"That reminds me, Sir," the younger looking one- the blond- began. "You haven't heard any word on a person name 'Sigma' at all, have you?"
"What?" Bowser answered, lifted a furry brow. "No ****in' clue..."
The two girls displayed slight signs of disappointment. "That's OK, thank you for your help," the first girl said to him. "They'll be back shortly with your vehicle. I can almost guarantee that they'll have it fixed by tomorrow...I would suggest you spend the night at the local inn down the street. It may not be very luxurious, but-..."
"Not very luxurious..." the older girl muttered to herself with a small giggle. "Yes, that phrase does suit this town..."
"All right," Bowser grumbled as he glanced to the door, getting ready to leave. "So, uh...How much is this gonna COST, anyway?"
The blonde girl tapped her chin as she tried calculating in her head. This was relatively easy for her, though.
"It's difficult to say for certain, but...I would estimate around 100 units of the local currency- what the people refer to simply as 'Coins'."
Bowser nodded, scratching his head. "Gotcha...Yea...All right...So, I guess I'll catch you people tomorrow...n' stuff...See ya."
"Good evening, Mr. Kooparius!" the blonde called to him, waving her arm in the air.
"Rest well!" the British-sounding girl added.
----------
"Nope, nope, nope," the dull witted Toady muttered, shaking his head quickly. "Can't. Nope. Can't. Not s'posed ta let anybuddy troo..."
"Oh, but come ON," Wendy whimpered. "We need to find out what's going on..."
"Uhhhhhh...Nope," he replied slowly, though it did seem his slow brain required some time to process the idea.
They in a dark hallway and were trying to enter the main section of the castle, but wherever they went they were denied access. Even if they were to sneak by this dim-witted Toady, there was no doubt there would be some Koopatrol further down. Gaining entrance to this meeting would prove to be difficult. Kamek, it seemed, didn't want his grandchildren to have anything to do with it. After a half hour of wandering corridors and trying to get in, the Koopalings re-grouped in their bedroom hallway.
"All right, guys, what's your plan? You ALWAYS have some plan," Wendy muttered.
"Oh, we've got a plan, all right," Lemmy assured her deviously, rubbing his palms together. "But we're gonna need Iggy to make it work..." Everyone shifted their eyes to Iggy, who leaned back a little.
"So what do I need to do?" Iggy asked.
"Wellll..." Lemmy eyes glowed with mischief. "You know that remote-controlled Paratroopa you've got...?"
"Ummm...Yeaaaa..." Iggy murmured, oblivious to where this was going.
"And you know that mini camera you use in your bedroom?" Roy added slyly.
"...Yea, but-...Hey! Wait, how do you guys know about that? I have that set up so that if one of you guys tries messing things up I've got it on tape!"
"Must not've done its job, then," Larry snickered.
Iggy huffed and tossed his arms. "Whatever...What's your point?"
"I believe that they are suggesting that you incorporate the two together to create a device to go undercover," Ludwig theorized.
"Bingo," Lemmy said with a smirk and thumbs-up.
"Oh," Iggy mumbled. "Well, I think I can get that to work. I'm gonna need a little time, but not much. Give me fifteen minutes and we should be ready to go. In the meantime, someone needs to find out a good path from here to where we're going so I know where I'm headed when we're ready."
Most of the Koopalings swarmed off down the hall like insects to seek out a clear entryway, while Wendy remained behind to help her brother with his task.
----------
"We locked down yet, Roll?"
An exhausted sigh spilled out of the mouth of the blonde girl as she rubbed her forehead.
"Yea, X," she called back, trying to sound cheerful. "Security's been initialized..."
"Good," he said as he walked into the entrance room, rubbing oil off his right arm with a cloth. He glanced up to see his companion's tired out face and slouching demeanor. "You all right, Roll?"
She took a deep breath and moaned out, "It's been a long day. My circuits are fried..."
"You'd better get some rest then," X suggested. "Go shut down for the night. I can take care of the rest here."
She looked up at him with her bright blue eyes as a relieved smile crawled across her face. "Really?" she murmured. "...No, I couldn't," she added hesitantly after a moment of thought as guilt swept through her. "No, it's my job, you've been busy all day. You guys have been doing all of the hard work, I've just been standing here at this desk, and-"
She stopped when she felt his hand on her shoulder, and she turned her head to see his solemn expression.
"Your systems need to recharge," he informed her calmly.
"I know," Roll whispered, bobbing her head. "But I just feel bad about making you take on my responsibilities..."
X gave her a befuddled expression. "I don't understand what there is to 'feel bad' about."
"Well," Roll began to speak quickly and in a frustrated manner. "We've been here for quite some time now, but we hardly know any information. It's my job to try and get data from our customers...All I've been able to find out is that Sigma is up north in a region that the locals call the 'Koopa Kingdom'."
"That's more than we knew when we got here," the blue-helmeted boy told her.
"But I've checked, and that area is extensive. We're going to need more information if we hope to find him..."
The blue one shook his head and grabbed the blond girl by both shoulders, trying to settle her down. "Are you sure your systems are running properly? I'm serious, Roll. We can handle everything. Don't worry about our mission. When the time is right, we'll take action. For now, you need to calm down and give yourself some time to reboot for tomorrow."
Roll huffed and ran her hand down her face as she was slowly eased out of the room. She wanted to stay and continue her duties, but her drained body couldn't react very well at this point.
"...Megaman," she mumbled, her eyelids beginning to droop. "What if we don't uncover enough data in time? Who knows what Sigma could do to this planet, especially if he's seeking aid?"
"I can't comprehend why you keep scrambling your mainframe over this," the blue bomber mumbled as he led her to the back chamber of the building where the recharging capsules rested. "We're biding our time until the opportune moment to strike. Once Sigma shows up, we'll know where he is, and then we take him out."
"I guess," Roll murmured as the clear case to a sleeping pod slowly opened with a hiss.
"Good night, Sis," Megaman X said quietly as he went to exit the room, shutting down the lights.
"..."
He didn't receive a reply, as Roll Y had fallen fast asleep within seconds. A smile crawled onto X's face as the metal doors slid shut behind him, enveloping the room in darkness.
----------
"Just-! What-? RRR!! Hands off!" Iggy cried at his brother Lemmy, who was pawing at his controls.
"Geez, man, take a chill pill," Lemmy grumbled, rubbing the shoulder that Iggy had just pelted.
"So is it working?" Larry wondered, staring at the blank television that rested on the marble floor of the bedroom.
"It should be," Iggy replied as he tweaked his remote control to make sure that his makeshift spy-bot was operational. "Turn it on and we'll find out."
After Larry pressed a fat button at the bottom, the screen burst to life with color. The Koopalings, who had gathered around to watch, all waited to see the image develop on the screen. What they saw was a yellow foot with white claws.
"What da-?" Roy mumbled, lowering his sunglasses so he could see well.
Iggy chuckled as he turned his winged shell device to the wall.
"That was your foot, Roy," he laughed.
"**** it, it's SPIKE, man," the bald Kooparius teen grumbled.
"If you get to be Spike, I get to be Homestar," Larry said with a toothy grin.
"I get dibs on Strongbad," Lemmy put in with a laugh.
Morton let out a grunt and scratched his stomach lazily.
"That makes you Strongmad," Lemmy added with another snicker.
"OK, guys," Wendy said to try and calm her siblings down. "This is serious. Are you ready, Iggy?"
Iggy nodded with confidence as he pressed a button on his controls to turn the remote-controlled machine on. The wings fluttered alive like those of a hummingbird, and they lifted the red shell from the ground to hover in the air. The camera was hidden within the shell, its lens barely poking out.
"You guys cleared a way, right?" Iggy asked as he moved his thumbs around and the device sped out of the room. He moved himself to sit directly before the screen so he could operate it- it was like playing a first-person video game of some sort. The Koopalings gazed in amazement as he steered it carefully through the hallway.
"Yea, ya head out the door at the end of the hall and go left," Lemmy instructed. "Should be able to fly over the guard that's at the stairs and head down to the lobby from there. Yea. Yea, there ya go," he said as he nodded at Iggy's path.
After a few quiet minutes of hushed impatience, the pictures on the screen that were at first familiar started getting quite UN-familiar. Strange people that the Koopalings had never seen before were conversing with one another in the main hall before the entrance to the central lobby. The room was very massive and full of commotion and noise, so Iggy's device was hardly noticed. As he panned out to get a glimpse of the gathering from farther away, the whole group was disturbed at the sight they saw. Lined along either side of the long room were two rows of mysterious purple beings shaped like humans. They were arranged in a Male-Female pattern, and stood silently with their arms at their sides. They had no real faces. Instead, blue symbols were printed on their heads- a blue rectangle with a horizontal and diagonal slash cut through it. These were Wire Frames marked with the symbol of Kamek's slowly growing army, and the Koopalings were about to find out about it. Though they didn't understand the group of bizarre characters before them, some did look familiar, and they certainly knew what Wire Frames were.
"Holy ****," Roy murmured. "Are those...?"
Morton growled from his side, his eyes narrow.
"Wire Frames...?" Wendy whispered in shock. "What are-...? I thought that the Master Hand created them..."
"He DID," Iggy muttered suspiciously. "I thought that the Super Smash Brothers and Sisters killed the Master Hand..."
He exchanged worried glances with his sister, who sat at his side.
"Maybe they didn't," Wendy guessed with a nervous shrug.
"Whatever the case may be...Why are they HERE?" Ludwig wondered.
The Kooparius children began to chatter to each other quietly until they heard the sound of thunder boom from the television. Iggy, who had been carefully zooming in and out the whole time to inspect individuals, watched as the lot of them quieted and began to shuffle into the main lobby in the next room through the massive doors of red steel.
The main lobby was surprisingly warm and inviting. A stairway with lush, red carpeting towered over the inhabitants of the room. Its thick base split into two smaller staircases that formed bridges that ran over the room in front of the stairs. Thick supporting pillars of marble held the bridges up and made the room feel less empty, though it was getting quite crowded as figures piled in. Iggy buzzed around carefully like a hummingbird high above to room as he observed a large, white flag that dangled down from the ceiling. Printed on its vast surface was the same blue image that had been plastered onto the faces of the Wire Frames earlier. All of Bowser's children sat and watched in silence at what began to unfold. The camera tweaked around as some small chattering slowly developed in the room. It puttered out abruptly as a figure appeared on the stairway before them, his arms behind his back. It was Kamek, standing in a very formal posture with his chest out slightly and his head pointed up a bit. His silver glasses hid his eyes, and he nodded slowly to the crowd as an applause rolled across the lobby like a wave. He pulled his arms from behind him to reveal his golden wand with a sphere of legendary Stellon Stone resting at its tip. Half of the red jewel was cased in the gold end of the staff that was shaped like a bowl to wrap around it. He stood his staff at his right side and lifted his left palm at the crowd to usher them into silence.
Iggy, his eyes wide and his jaw dropped, zoomed the camera in to see the old Magikoopa up close. His old wrinkles seemed to have vanished, and his whole demeanor looked as if it had been charged with life. From his smooth face to his strong hands, he looked as if he'd aged backwards by a considerable margin.
"Whoa...Looks like he got a facelift," Larry squeaked as they all seemed to squeeze together to get closer to the TV before them. It was a pretty big one- a fifty-inch screen, approximately- but they were all entranced by the events unfolding to worry about their eyes.
"Good evening," Kamek said calmly, his voice not quite as raspy as it had been a week ago. "I'm very pleased to have you all here tonight. I'm sure you'll all very impatient and wish to get straight down to business."
"Enough foolishness! Why are we here?" roared a British toned crocodile from the left side of the room. Kamek turned his head to the overweight creature. He had a very round and flabby stomach with shining gold skin on his stomach. He wore a crown and a red cape, as well.
"I believe, Sir Rool, that I made that very clear when I sent you an invitation. You are all here because you were interested in my offer, I would assume..."
King K. Rool was the infamous ruler of Krem Kountry, a nation down in the southern hemisphere of Stellon. His name was pronounced like the word 'cruel', but Kamek referred to him by his true last name- Rool. He was the guy who was constantly pestering Donkey Kong in an attempt to steal a treasure called the Crystal Coconut.
"Yes," Kamek said in response to the raised sword of a very short figure at the front of the crowd. Iggy searched the audience to find a spherical man who wore a shining metal mask with a slit cut into it for his glowing yellow eyes. It was Meta Knight. He spoke out with his Spanish-tinted accent.
"About thees...'offer'...You said you were looking for an army...What are your intentions? What do you plan to do when you have built one?"
"My plans?" Kamek rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Oh, I have plans...But there is still so much more to BE planned. I suppose that the main idea is to build an empire to join three planets under one power...Maybe even more if opportunity smiles."
"Three planets...?" Meta Knight murmured in confusion. "You would need quite an army to accomplish-..." He left the rest of his sentence in the air, now understanding why such a meeting had been called.
"Any other questions that need answering?" Kamek projected to the crowd.
"What's in it for us?" Ganondorf, a burly man from Hylia, wondered. Iggy whirled the view around back into the crowd and zoomed in on the curious face of the Gerudo man.
Kamek smiled a toothy smile and replied, seeming eager to do so.
"If we have a vast kingdom that sprawls over PLANETS, how do you expect one man to rule over it all?" he asked slyly. "If you unite and join my cause, you shall be rewarded, I assure you. You wish to control the country of Hyrule, correct?"
Ganondorf nodded solemnly, crossing his thick arms over his chest.
"Then if you join our ranks, that is what you shall receive in the end, and more so." He cleared his throat and tapped his staff against the ground. "It's rather drafty in here," Kamek said as he noticed his audience getting unnerved. "Come! Let us retreat to the conference hall and continue this conversation. We shall speak of specifics."
Kamek proceeded to turn around and head up the right flight of stairs. The other thirty or so followed his lead. The chaotic pounding of feet echoed through the large room as they made their way up the stairs and to the pair of bridges. Iggy was still in shock as he realized that his device might be spotted, as it was hovering between the two bridges. As the two waves of sinister beings rushed by, he panicked and lowered the Paratroopa-cam, trying to steer it out of sight. The screen suddenly flickered as it bumped back first into one of the stone support columns of a bridge. The Koopalings cried out and gasped as they experienced the freefall on the TV. Iggy tensed up and winced as the device hit the floor and the screen turned into black and white static.
KSSSSSHHHHHH!!
The volume had been turned up considerably to pick up the sounds from the camera, and when the static came in, it caused them all to jump in fright. Iggy scrambled for the power button and frantically pressed it, watching the light on the screen turn into a dot and slowly vanish.
There were a few moments of complete silence as the Koopalings absorbed what they had just seen. They observed the worry, doubt, and fear on each other's faces during those moments, until Roy put the thoughts of everyone in the room into two words.
"Holy ****..."
Everyone in the room slowly nodded in unison to his comment. They all felt that this phrase described the situation perfectly.
----------
Do tune in, my friends, as we wind down to Chapter 50, where Tenochtitlan will finally debut.
As for my parting words at this time...
Paper Mario 2 fans...
Ever wonder where the X-Nauts came from? :D I've got the answer- at least, in THIS universe. And you'll get to find out by Chaptrer 50, I'm sure.
At least they didn't come up with names like Grodusman, the Eggnauts, and Bewilder Bear...-_-'
That owns.
Too bad nobody really, ya know, READS it, or anything...
Surprisingly enough, I (HOLY CRAP!) have an UPDATE and stuff, not that anyone seems to care at this moment in time.
Ah, well.
----------
Quest for Destiny!
Chapter 43- X-Cited
"Man...What a ****in' piece of ****..." A heavy groan followed by a wave of vulgar grumbles spilled forth from his enormous mouth as he trudged his way through the bustling street. Stepping on cobblestones in a rundown town, Bowser glanced to his right to see a very welcoming sight- a gallows was placed up in the square, right at the heart of the city.
"What kind of town IS this ****-hole, anyway?" he moaned to himself, ashes littering his body. "Of all of the **** places for my crap car to take a ****..."
He suddenly noticed the paralyzed Goomba that stood before him- he was wearing a pointy green hat, but looked like most other Goombas otherwise.
"Hey, you!" Bowser growled gruffly at the already stiffened creature. "Where the **** AM I?"
"…I-I...Wh-...Y-You're...Th-this is Rogueport," he squeaked after a verbal struggle.
"Right," Bowser grumbled. He couldn't recall much on this place. Bowser was never really concerned with foreign affairs. The Mushroom Kingdom, the Beanbean Kingdom, and the Waffle Kingdom...They were all just big chunks of land to conquer to him. Names didn't really matter. "Any idea where I could find a **** mechanic?"
The Goomba's jaw was left agape, his eyes wide and his expression frozen. As he noticed that he'd milked the poor guy for all he could, Bowser stomped onward to the next passer-by he could find. What he got was a Bandit who looked to be in a rush.
"YOU!!" Bowser roared as the masked man almost dashed by. After coming to a skidding halt, Bowser's observed that this one wasn't as weak-hearted as the last. "Is there a ****in' mechanic in this hellhole?"
The Bandit chuckled at his comment. "This is a hellhole all right," he agreed. "You lookin' for a fixer?" He shrugged. "Well...I can give ya that information...-" his eyes twinkled slyly, "-for a PRICE."
Bowser glared at him dully, and it almost seemed as if flames burned within his eyes.
"How about I beat the **** outta ya? Ya like THAT price?" he hissed, balled up his clawed fists.
The Bandit kept his cool, though. "Whoa, hey, there, big guy...You do that, and you'll be S.O.L., eh?"
Bowser groaned and rolled his head a little. "FINE, OK? *******...How much?"
The smooth talker replied, "Ehhh...Twenty coins. Not too much, right? I mean, you look like the kinda guy who'd be packed. I could go harder on you..."
"I could go so hard on your ****in' ***," Bowser growled between grit teeth.
"What's that? Not int'rested? Well, your call, big guy, but-"
"OK!!!"
Bowser snapped his finger as he held out his palm, and a stack of twenty Stellamentite coins formed in it. The Bandit swiped them and they were absorbed instantly.
"Great, den. OK, tough man, follow me." As he began to lead the goliath through the rundown city, he asked curiously, "So what's your mess?"
"My piece of **** car broke down on me," Bowser moaned as he dragged his feet.
"Gotcha, big guy...What kind? Wheels? Rockets?"
"Propellers," Bowser grunted.
"Ahhh..." His guide nodded. "Well, whatever it is, these guys can fix it, I tell ya. Even if it ain't BROKE dey can fix it. They're new around here- just came in last week- but dey sure ain't new to the business. I tell ya, you've never seen anybody like 'em."
"I'll bet..."
~~~~~~~~~~
The beat pulsed through the room, its waves flowing out of the open, metal double doors and into the cold hallway. It was an invigorating song that filled the gloomy hallway, and the chunky figure with wavy blue hair couldn't help but be attracted by the lovely techno beat.
"Ahh...Hm. 'Kick Your A,' I presume?" he muttered to himself in his sophisticated accent as he waltzed into his brother's extensive bedroom. There, on the marble floor, he could see two of his siblings moving their feet around swiftly as they tapped them onto symbols printed on pads below them. A blazing fast array of piano notes echoed through the air, and Ludwig was captured by the tune.
"Yes, quite right," he confirmed his guess as he journeyed in to see Iggy and Wendy staring at a TV screen. Arrows were flying from the bottom to the top, and the two Koopalings were stepping on the corresponding keys on their pads, trying to keep in rhythm. Ludwig was overwhelmed by the way their clawed feet moved, and he quickly realized that this video game certainly required practice. "Must be more of this 'Dance Dance Revolution' they've been raving about..."
"Having a jolly time with that DDR, hm?" he asked them from behind as he approached them on the black marble, his bare feet smacking the floor with each step. He got a grunt from Iggy as an answer as the little guy scrambled to keep up with his sister.
"Yes, I see. Quite a unique game, indeed," Ludwig noted to himself as he observed. "Getting very 'jiggy with it,' I see...Yes."
The song came to a slow stop, and the two Koopalings immediately plopped down on the ground afterward, panting wildly as sweat dripped down their faces.
"Oh, come on, come on," Iggy chanted, staring at the screen intently.
"Woo," Wendy breathed. "Wow...I think I beat you, Iggy..."
Iggy slammed his fist into the smooth, shiny floor as he saw the final scores tally up. Two letters scrolled into the upper corners of the screen.
"MARVELOUS!!" boomed a voice from the screen.
A proud, "Heh!" came out of Wendy as she grinned.
"...A double 'A'??" Iggy whispered in awe. "I got a 'D'!!"
"Yup...You need more practice, brother..."
"Very fascinating," Ludwig murmured, scratching his chin.
"You wanna try, Ludwig?" Wendy asked him, wobbling off of the right side pad and offering it to him. "You can play Iggy...I need a BREAK..." she panted.
"Yes...Well, then, dear brother, shall we?" Ludwig said as he eagerly hopped to his spot. "Now, then...These arrows...-"
"You'll see the arrows on the screen, and-" Iggy stomped lightly on a square on his pad. "...Yea. OK. See that?" He pointed to the screen as a song started playing. Ludwig nodded in response. "See, the arrows will come from the bottom, and you have to step on them right when they hit the top..."
"I see, now. Thus, you step to the beat of the music..."
"Yea...Hey, whoa...Yea, you got it...Wow..." Iggy simply watched as Ludwig found this task to be quite simple. Wendy was giggling in the background, and Iggy noticed the bar at the top of his side turn red, and the word 'Boo' appearing repeatedly. He jumped and began to pound his feet along, struggling to catch up.
"Woo!" Wendy cheered. "You go, Ludwig!"
A rumbling flooded into the room, though, cutting the song off midway. It was the rest of the lot of Koopalings, and they all looked shocked and worried.
"Whoa, guys," Iggy muttered, ignoring the onscreen prompts. "What's going on?"
"Yea, you look like you saw a Big Boo," Wendy noted, curious.
"Oh, MUCH worse," Lemmy muttered.
"Ol' Grampa's havin' a party," Roy announced solemnly.
"...Yea?" Iggy mumbled, confused.
"A party to celebrate the beginning of something he's calling 'Malocution,' or something..." Larry grumbled shakily. "It doesn't look good, I can say that..."
Ludwig was already on his way out the door as he called back to them, "Then let us away and discover the details, hm?"
"..." Iggy was frowning thoughtfully as the group shuffled out.
"What do you think?" Wendy asked him quietly. "Should we?"
"Of course," Iggy replied. "But...Maybe we should ask Grandpa about all of this directly."
"Do you think he'll tell us?" Wendy wondered doubtfully.
"Has he ever lied?"
"...Well, no..."
----------
The building's interior was clean cut all around- at least the room Bowser had found himself in. The whole place was practically sparkling from its smooth, clean surfaces. The ground, the walls, and the ceiling were all made of metal, so a loud clanking sound was heard with every step Bowser made toward the reception desk. As he dragged his wary feet through the large, relatively empty room, he noticed the girl at the large desk before him. Her desk was shaped in a semi circle with maroon plastic. The girl appeared to be, to Bowser's surprise, a human. She had a very warm smile as she greeted him with a cheery, "Hello, Sir!" Her eyes were light blue and very catching. Her cheeks were a little on the pudgy side, as were her hands. She had a ponytail of blonde hair that was tied with a green ribbon, along with some square bangs. She wore a red dress of sorts, but not a very flashy one. It was just a simple red with a skirt that went down to her knees. Bowser couldn't see her feet, but they were rather large for her size. They looked like huge black boots of some kind.
"How can we help you today, Sir?" the girl asked politely with her charming tone.
"Uhhh...I got a car, needs fixin'," Bowser grumbled. "Heard this was the place to be..."
The girl gave him a charismatic grin, flashing her pearly whites, and nodded her head.
"Oh, yes. We here at XYZ Repairs can nurse any damaged equipment back to health. So..." She pressed a small button out of Bowser's view and a holographic display of green lettering appeared before her. "...What kind of repair do you need?"
"...Well, ugh, my car gave out on me, see-..."
"Vehicular," the girl murmured to herself as she tapped a section on the display, causing it to rearrange as another screen came up. "...What kind of vehicle, Sir? Ground, air, water...?"
"Uh...Air, I guess," Bowser mumbled awkwardly, amazed by the technology before him. After the blonde clicked a few more times with her fingers, she asked another question.
"What type? Rockets?"
"No, uh...Propellers," Bowser answered quietly. For some reason, a propeller-car just didn't sound very...'Dark Lord-like'.
"Ahhh," the girl said with a slow nod, her eyes glued to her screen as she tapped a few more times. A bunch of small squares appeared before her and she turned her head to Bowser quickly. "Your name, Sir?"
"...Bowser..." he grunted.
"...Last...?"
"...Gah...Kooparius," he grumbled reluctantly. He hated to say his own last name. It brought back bad memories.
"OK, Sir, thank you." She rapidly punched the name into her database, and she eyed her screen carefully for a few moments as she read some text. Her blue eyes slowly grew wider as she read, and her mouth opened slightly. "Oh, wow," she whispered. "It seems you're famous around here, Sir." She bit her lip as she contemplated. "Or...infamous," she corrected.
"...So what?" Bowser demanded calmly.
The young woman jabbed at the screen a few more times, and her worried expression got worse. "Oh, my...Are you...a criminal...?" She seemed very eager to take a step away from him, but she didn't.
"...I-..." Bowser let out a groan. "Yea, OK? So what? Are ya gonna fix my **** car, or not?!" The girl flinched at his outburst as she checked her screen in a rush for a few more seconds.
"...It seems that your, um...Your record is riddled with felonies, but...Fortunately," she added hastily and quite shakily, "-we can overlook that, because your record has been excused by a higher authority."
"...Huh??" Bowser mumbled, confused.
"...Your record has been approved by Mario of the Mushroom Kingdom...In other words, you've been pardoned for your crimes, so...I-I don't see any reason why we can't serve you..." She shut her screen down and tried to make business continue its flow.
"...S-so, then...Um...Where IS your vehicle, Sir?"
Bowser stood silent or a few moments, aghast. Mario...? What was with this 'pardon' business?
"It's lying outside of town, here..." he murmured, letting the thought go. "Why, do you need me to get it?" he wondered. He was certainly willing to do so.
"Oh, there's no need," the girl assured, regaining her cheer from before. "We can tow any vehicles within a one mile radius for free." She leaned over slightly as she raised a small microphone from behind the desk. "X, Zero...We've got a customer in need of a tow. Report up front, please."
She placed the communication device back and folded her hands neatly on the desk, flashing another bright smile.
"They'll be with you in just a moment," she said sweetly.
Sure enough, after a few seconds, a mechanical door slid open from the back of the room to the right, and two figures stepped toward them. Bowser was shocked by their appearance- they both looked like humans, too, but in robotic armor. He didn't know what they truly were, though, as he could only judge by appearance.
The first one was covered in blue plating, and his helmet had a red gem embedded into it that was connected to a smooth ridge that ran vertically. Two round, crater-shaped objects were built into the helmet, where his ears would be. His white hands were larger than the average human's would be, and his feet were enormous, too. His eyes, very serious and focused, were a dark blue.
His partner was dressed similarly, but his color scheme was red and white. His helmet had the same earpieces, while its gem was much larger, shaped into a blue triangle. The edges of his helmet resembled feathers. He, too, had overly large boots. A messy ponytail of yellow sprouted from the back of his helmet, running in a very poofy mass down his back. His green eyes radiated enthusiasm, but also a sense of duty.
A third person had followed them into the room- a brunette woman with brown, sad eyes. She had a long, fluffy ponytail, as well, but it was different in style than Zero's. Hers was as long as his, but it wasn't loose and messy. Instead, it was neatly fit into small rings of metal that were placed every six inches or so, and made a chain down her ponytail, holding every strand of hair together as one. Her metallic armor fit her feminine form, including a skirt made of metal plating, as well. Like the others, she also adorned very big feet that looked robotic, as well as big hands. The bangs that draped over her head were thick and almost hindered her sight.
All three of the workers had trace amounts of grease on them from their day of labor, but they still had steam in them.
"All right." The blue one eyed Bowser and nodded. "So where is it, Sir?"
"It's, eh...-" Bowser took a moment to remember its position. "It's just outside of town, on the west side..."
"Got it," the red one replied coolly. The bodies of the two males shifted into bright bars of light as they shot upward, straight through the ceiling, leaving no marks.
In awe, Bowser gazed up at where they had once been moments before.
The brunette girl turned to the blonde and spoke to her in a gentle and shy voice with a British accent. "Repairs are complete on Mr. Grubba's laptop."
"Oh, good, Iris," the blonde one replied. "We'll have it shipped to Glitzville as soon as possible, then."
"...Where are you people FROM...?" Bowser murmured in shock.
"...Um...Well, not from around here, exactly," the blonde replied.
"Indeed," the brunette giggled.
Bowser blinked at them, his mouth ajar.
"That reminds me, Sir," the younger looking one- the blond- began. "You haven't heard any word on a person name 'Sigma' at all, have you?"
"What?" Bowser answered, lifted a furry brow. "No ****in' clue..."
The two girls displayed slight signs of disappointment. "That's OK, thank you for your help," the first girl said to him. "They'll be back shortly with your vehicle. I can almost guarantee that they'll have it fixed by tomorrow...I would suggest you spend the night at the local inn down the street. It may not be very luxurious, but-..."
"Not very luxurious..." the older girl muttered to herself with a small giggle. "Yes, that phrase does suit this town..."
"All right," Bowser grumbled as he glanced to the door, getting ready to leave. "So, uh...How much is this gonna COST, anyway?"
The blonde girl tapped her chin as she tried calculating in her head. This was relatively easy for her, though.
"It's difficult to say for certain, but...I would estimate around 100 units of the local currency- what the people refer to simply as 'Coins'."
Bowser nodded, scratching his head. "Gotcha...Yea...All right...So, I guess I'll catch you people tomorrow...n' stuff...See ya."
"Good evening, Mr. Kooparius!" the blonde called to him, waving her arm in the air.
"Rest well!" the British-sounding girl added.
----------
"Nope, nope, nope," the dull witted Toady muttered, shaking his head quickly. "Can't. Nope. Can't. Not s'posed ta let anybuddy troo..."
"Oh, but come ON," Wendy whimpered. "We need to find out what's going on..."
"Uhhhhhh...Nope," he replied slowly, though it did seem his slow brain required some time to process the idea.
They in a dark hallway and were trying to enter the main section of the castle, but wherever they went they were denied access. Even if they were to sneak by this dim-witted Toady, there was no doubt there would be some Koopatrol further down. Gaining entrance to this meeting would prove to be difficult. Kamek, it seemed, didn't want his grandchildren to have anything to do with it. After a half hour of wandering corridors and trying to get in, the Koopalings re-grouped in their bedroom hallway.
"All right, guys, what's your plan? You ALWAYS have some plan," Wendy muttered.
"Oh, we've got a plan, all right," Lemmy assured her deviously, rubbing his palms together. "But we're gonna need Iggy to make it work..." Everyone shifted their eyes to Iggy, who leaned back a little.
"So what do I need to do?" Iggy asked.
"Wellll..." Lemmy eyes glowed with mischief. "You know that remote-controlled Paratroopa you've got...?"
"Ummm...Yeaaaa..." Iggy murmured, oblivious to where this was going.
"And you know that mini camera you use in your bedroom?" Roy added slyly.
"...Yea, but-...Hey! Wait, how do you guys know about that? I have that set up so that if one of you guys tries messing things up I've got it on tape!"
"Must not've done its job, then," Larry snickered.
Iggy huffed and tossed his arms. "Whatever...What's your point?"
"I believe that they are suggesting that you incorporate the two together to create a device to go undercover," Ludwig theorized.
"Bingo," Lemmy said with a smirk and thumbs-up.
"Oh," Iggy mumbled. "Well, I think I can get that to work. I'm gonna need a little time, but not much. Give me fifteen minutes and we should be ready to go. In the meantime, someone needs to find out a good path from here to where we're going so I know where I'm headed when we're ready."
Most of the Koopalings swarmed off down the hall like insects to seek out a clear entryway, while Wendy remained behind to help her brother with his task.
----------
"We locked down yet, Roll?"
An exhausted sigh spilled out of the mouth of the blonde girl as she rubbed her forehead.
"Yea, X," she called back, trying to sound cheerful. "Security's been initialized..."
"Good," he said as he walked into the entrance room, rubbing oil off his right arm with a cloth. He glanced up to see his companion's tired out face and slouching demeanor. "You all right, Roll?"
She took a deep breath and moaned out, "It's been a long day. My circuits are fried..."
"You'd better get some rest then," X suggested. "Go shut down for the night. I can take care of the rest here."
She looked up at him with her bright blue eyes as a relieved smile crawled across her face. "Really?" she murmured. "...No, I couldn't," she added hesitantly after a moment of thought as guilt swept through her. "No, it's my job, you've been busy all day. You guys have been doing all of the hard work, I've just been standing here at this desk, and-"
She stopped when she felt his hand on her shoulder, and she turned her head to see his solemn expression.
"Your systems need to recharge," he informed her calmly.
"I know," Roll whispered, bobbing her head. "But I just feel bad about making you take on my responsibilities..."
X gave her a befuddled expression. "I don't understand what there is to 'feel bad' about."
"Well," Roll began to speak quickly and in a frustrated manner. "We've been here for quite some time now, but we hardly know any information. It's my job to try and get data from our customers...All I've been able to find out is that Sigma is up north in a region that the locals call the 'Koopa Kingdom'."
"That's more than we knew when we got here," the blue-helmeted boy told her.
"But I've checked, and that area is extensive. We're going to need more information if we hope to find him..."
The blue one shook his head and grabbed the blond girl by both shoulders, trying to settle her down. "Are you sure your systems are running properly? I'm serious, Roll. We can handle everything. Don't worry about our mission. When the time is right, we'll take action. For now, you need to calm down and give yourself some time to reboot for tomorrow."
Roll huffed and ran her hand down her face as she was slowly eased out of the room. She wanted to stay and continue her duties, but her drained body couldn't react very well at this point.
"...Megaman," she mumbled, her eyelids beginning to droop. "What if we don't uncover enough data in time? Who knows what Sigma could do to this planet, especially if he's seeking aid?"
"I can't comprehend why you keep scrambling your mainframe over this," the blue bomber mumbled as he led her to the back chamber of the building where the recharging capsules rested. "We're biding our time until the opportune moment to strike. Once Sigma shows up, we'll know where he is, and then we take him out."
"I guess," Roll murmured as the clear case to a sleeping pod slowly opened with a hiss.
"Good night, Sis," Megaman X said quietly as he went to exit the room, shutting down the lights.
"..."
He didn't receive a reply, as Roll Y had fallen fast asleep within seconds. A smile crawled onto X's face as the metal doors slid shut behind him, enveloping the room in darkness.
----------
"Just-! What-? RRR!! Hands off!" Iggy cried at his brother Lemmy, who was pawing at his controls.
"Geez, man, take a chill pill," Lemmy grumbled, rubbing the shoulder that Iggy had just pelted.
"So is it working?" Larry wondered, staring at the blank television that rested on the marble floor of the bedroom.
"It should be," Iggy replied as he tweaked his remote control to make sure that his makeshift spy-bot was operational. "Turn it on and we'll find out."
After Larry pressed a fat button at the bottom, the screen burst to life with color. The Koopalings, who had gathered around to watch, all waited to see the image develop on the screen. What they saw was a yellow foot with white claws.
"What da-?" Roy mumbled, lowering his sunglasses so he could see well.
Iggy chuckled as he turned his winged shell device to the wall.
"That was your foot, Roy," he laughed.
"**** it, it's SPIKE, man," the bald Kooparius teen grumbled.
"If you get to be Spike, I get to be Homestar," Larry said with a toothy grin.
"I get dibs on Strongbad," Lemmy put in with a laugh.
Morton let out a grunt and scratched his stomach lazily.
"That makes you Strongmad," Lemmy added with another snicker.
"OK, guys," Wendy said to try and calm her siblings down. "This is serious. Are you ready, Iggy?"
Iggy nodded with confidence as he pressed a button on his controls to turn the remote-controlled machine on. The wings fluttered alive like those of a hummingbird, and they lifted the red shell from the ground to hover in the air. The camera was hidden within the shell, its lens barely poking out.
"You guys cleared a way, right?" Iggy asked as he moved his thumbs around and the device sped out of the room. He moved himself to sit directly before the screen so he could operate it- it was like playing a first-person video game of some sort. The Koopalings gazed in amazement as he steered it carefully through the hallway.
"Yea, ya head out the door at the end of the hall and go left," Lemmy instructed. "Should be able to fly over the guard that's at the stairs and head down to the lobby from there. Yea. Yea, there ya go," he said as he nodded at Iggy's path.
After a few quiet minutes of hushed impatience, the pictures on the screen that were at first familiar started getting quite UN-familiar. Strange people that the Koopalings had never seen before were conversing with one another in the main hall before the entrance to the central lobby. The room was very massive and full of commotion and noise, so Iggy's device was hardly noticed. As he panned out to get a glimpse of the gathering from farther away, the whole group was disturbed at the sight they saw. Lined along either side of the long room were two rows of mysterious purple beings shaped like humans. They were arranged in a Male-Female pattern, and stood silently with their arms at their sides. They had no real faces. Instead, blue symbols were printed on their heads- a blue rectangle with a horizontal and diagonal slash cut through it. These were Wire Frames marked with the symbol of Kamek's slowly growing army, and the Koopalings were about to find out about it. Though they didn't understand the group of bizarre characters before them, some did look familiar, and they certainly knew what Wire Frames were.
"Holy ****," Roy murmured. "Are those...?"
Morton growled from his side, his eyes narrow.
"Wire Frames...?" Wendy whispered in shock. "What are-...? I thought that the Master Hand created them..."
"He DID," Iggy muttered suspiciously. "I thought that the Super Smash Brothers and Sisters killed the Master Hand..."
He exchanged worried glances with his sister, who sat at his side.
"Maybe they didn't," Wendy guessed with a nervous shrug.
"Whatever the case may be...Why are they HERE?" Ludwig wondered.
The Kooparius children began to chatter to each other quietly until they heard the sound of thunder boom from the television. Iggy, who had been carefully zooming in and out the whole time to inspect individuals, watched as the lot of them quieted and began to shuffle into the main lobby in the next room through the massive doors of red steel.
The main lobby was surprisingly warm and inviting. A stairway with lush, red carpeting towered over the inhabitants of the room. Its thick base split into two smaller staircases that formed bridges that ran over the room in front of the stairs. Thick supporting pillars of marble held the bridges up and made the room feel less empty, though it was getting quite crowded as figures piled in. Iggy buzzed around carefully like a hummingbird high above to room as he observed a large, white flag that dangled down from the ceiling. Printed on its vast surface was the same blue image that had been plastered onto the faces of the Wire Frames earlier. All of Bowser's children sat and watched in silence at what began to unfold. The camera tweaked around as some small chattering slowly developed in the room. It puttered out abruptly as a figure appeared on the stairway before them, his arms behind his back. It was Kamek, standing in a very formal posture with his chest out slightly and his head pointed up a bit. His silver glasses hid his eyes, and he nodded slowly to the crowd as an applause rolled across the lobby like a wave. He pulled his arms from behind him to reveal his golden wand with a sphere of legendary Stellon Stone resting at its tip. Half of the red jewel was cased in the gold end of the staff that was shaped like a bowl to wrap around it. He stood his staff at his right side and lifted his left palm at the crowd to usher them into silence.
Iggy, his eyes wide and his jaw dropped, zoomed the camera in to see the old Magikoopa up close. His old wrinkles seemed to have vanished, and his whole demeanor looked as if it had been charged with life. From his smooth face to his strong hands, he looked as if he'd aged backwards by a considerable margin.
"Whoa...Looks like he got a facelift," Larry squeaked as they all seemed to squeeze together to get closer to the TV before them. It was a pretty big one- a fifty-inch screen, approximately- but they were all entranced by the events unfolding to worry about their eyes.
"Good evening," Kamek said calmly, his voice not quite as raspy as it had been a week ago. "I'm very pleased to have you all here tonight. I'm sure you'll all very impatient and wish to get straight down to business."
"Enough foolishness! Why are we here?" roared a British toned crocodile from the left side of the room. Kamek turned his head to the overweight creature. He had a very round and flabby stomach with shining gold skin on his stomach. He wore a crown and a red cape, as well.
"I believe, Sir Rool, that I made that very clear when I sent you an invitation. You are all here because you were interested in my offer, I would assume..."
King K. Rool was the infamous ruler of Krem Kountry, a nation down in the southern hemisphere of Stellon. His name was pronounced like the word 'cruel', but Kamek referred to him by his true last name- Rool. He was the guy who was constantly pestering Donkey Kong in an attempt to steal a treasure called the Crystal Coconut.
"Yes," Kamek said in response to the raised sword of a very short figure at the front of the crowd. Iggy searched the audience to find a spherical man who wore a shining metal mask with a slit cut into it for his glowing yellow eyes. It was Meta Knight. He spoke out with his Spanish-tinted accent.
"About thees...'offer'...You said you were looking for an army...What are your intentions? What do you plan to do when you have built one?"
"My plans?" Kamek rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Oh, I have plans...But there is still so much more to BE planned. I suppose that the main idea is to build an empire to join three planets under one power...Maybe even more if opportunity smiles."
"Three planets...?" Meta Knight murmured in confusion. "You would need quite an army to accomplish-..." He left the rest of his sentence in the air, now understanding why such a meeting had been called.
"Any other questions that need answering?" Kamek projected to the crowd.
"What's in it for us?" Ganondorf, a burly man from Hylia, wondered. Iggy whirled the view around back into the crowd and zoomed in on the curious face of the Gerudo man.
Kamek smiled a toothy smile and replied, seeming eager to do so.
"If we have a vast kingdom that sprawls over PLANETS, how do you expect one man to rule over it all?" he asked slyly. "If you unite and join my cause, you shall be rewarded, I assure you. You wish to control the country of Hyrule, correct?"
Ganondorf nodded solemnly, crossing his thick arms over his chest.
"Then if you join our ranks, that is what you shall receive in the end, and more so." He cleared his throat and tapped his staff against the ground. "It's rather drafty in here," Kamek said as he noticed his audience getting unnerved. "Come! Let us retreat to the conference hall and continue this conversation. We shall speak of specifics."
Kamek proceeded to turn around and head up the right flight of stairs. The other thirty or so followed his lead. The chaotic pounding of feet echoed through the large room as they made their way up the stairs and to the pair of bridges. Iggy was still in shock as he realized that his device might be spotted, as it was hovering between the two bridges. As the two waves of sinister beings rushed by, he panicked and lowered the Paratroopa-cam, trying to steer it out of sight. The screen suddenly flickered as it bumped back first into one of the stone support columns of a bridge. The Koopalings cried out and gasped as they experienced the freefall on the TV. Iggy tensed up and winced as the device hit the floor and the screen turned into black and white static.
KSSSSSHHHHHH!!
The volume had been turned up considerably to pick up the sounds from the camera, and when the static came in, it caused them all to jump in fright. Iggy scrambled for the power button and frantically pressed it, watching the light on the screen turn into a dot and slowly vanish.
There were a few moments of complete silence as the Koopalings absorbed what they had just seen. They observed the worry, doubt, and fear on each other's faces during those moments, until Roy put the thoughts of everyone in the room into two words.
"Holy ****..."
Everyone in the room slowly nodded in unison to his comment. They all felt that this phrase described the situation perfectly.
----------
Do tune in, my friends, as we wind down to Chapter 50, where Tenochtitlan will finally debut.
As for my parting words at this time...
Paper Mario 2 fans...
Ever wonder where the X-Nauts came from? :D I've got the answer- at least, in THIS universe. And you'll get to find out by Chaptrer 50, I'm sure.
At least they didn't come up with names like Grodusman, the Eggnauts, and Bewilder Bear...-_-'
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
hmm that was a really good update. I hope they didn't notice the spy the kooplings sent. Or they would be in HUGE trouble.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Man, I like where this is going. A bunch of my favorite villains were in this chapter!
And scheming various acts of mayhem!
Excellent, excellent.
Your Bowser is a whole lot more vulgar than I remember, though. And I thought mine was bad...
I was also surprised you bought X and Zero in this story. I shoulda figured. It seems like all the popular video game heroes are going to make some type of appearence in this story.
I'm still waiting to see how you're going to tie all your fics together. This is going to be one GRAND event!
It also seems you're upset about putting so much effort into your stories only to have one or two people respond to it.
Welcome to my world.
I wouldn't get too crazy about it, though. As least you're getting replies, right? And positive replies, at that!
Just take it easy. You'll get the recognition you deserve one of these days. I can guarantee you'll have at least one constant reader.
And scheming various acts of mayhem!
Excellent, excellent.
Your Bowser is a whole lot more vulgar than I remember, though. And I thought mine was bad...
I was also surprised you bought X and Zero in this story. I shoulda figured. It seems like all the popular video game heroes are going to make some type of appearence in this story.
I'm still waiting to see how you're going to tie all your fics together. This is going to be one GRAND event!
It also seems you're upset about putting so much effort into your stories only to have one or two people respond to it.
Welcome to my world.
I wouldn't get too crazy about it, though. As least you're getting replies, right? And positive replies, at that!
Just take it easy. You'll get the recognition you deserve one of these days. I can guarantee you'll have at least one constant reader.
One constant reader...
As far as I know, I have NO reader is who is reading ALL of my fics. Not that I know of.
Also, the only reader I've had since the beginning was Evil Pichu...I have no idea where the he** he is, but he has a life, too.
I'm not complaining about you guys in particular. It's just that a friend of mine can put just as much though into his fic and write just as much me but get over a THOUSAND reviews merely because it's about InuYasha and the InuYasha section of FF.net has TOO MANY FRICKIN' PEOPLE IN IT.
It makes me want to write an InuYasha fic just to see that happen.
Actually, if you're up to speed with a Thousand Needles, you'll soon realize that video game characters are certainly not the only ones I use.
How it all ties together? That's what great- everything ties in together. Everyone's stories are part of the big plot, and everyone's stories affect the others in some way or another.
You'll have to wait a little while to discover the link to the Winds of Fate Chapters. I'm sure I'll have covered that by Chapter 100. Very sure. I just can't say how soon.
Bowser is as violent as I've made him since I started the White Version, he's just a bit crankier now. Do you BLAME him?
Paper Mario 2 fans will recognize the way I plan to write the back story for the stage the game takes place upon, as well as Mario Sunshine.
Did you ever wonder where Grodus came from, or how E. Gadd started his own company? You will in time.
I always try to leave suspense and curiosity in the air. What happened in the past, and what's GOING to happen in the future? I want my readers to constantly question that, while I throw in so many characters that you're bound to find a chunk of them you like a lot.
Me? I like EVERYBODY to some degree or another, even those who I technically 'hate.'
You haven't seen the start of Malocution. Feh. Kamek's got BIG plans, my friends. And the Gold Egg was a mere trinket to get the ball rolling.
As of now...I'm working on finishing the next TTX Chapter (FREAKING LONG) and I hope to finish the next Golden Sun Chapter and maybe even the start of my Sonic fic by weekend's end. I hope...-_-'
Next in Q4D!...
We get to visit Sierra again (remember her) as her mission begins to pick up as we see it link to some of the others I've recently dropped down on you.
She arrives in a mystical place called the End of Time, where she happens to bump into two warriors who are investigating the suspicion of the ressurection of a great cataclysmic creature known as Lavos...
Name that game!
As far as I know, I have NO reader is who is reading ALL of my fics. Not that I know of.
Also, the only reader I've had since the beginning was Evil Pichu...I have no idea where the he** he is, but he has a life, too.
I'm not complaining about you guys in particular. It's just that a friend of mine can put just as much though into his fic and write just as much me but get over a THOUSAND reviews merely because it's about InuYasha and the InuYasha section of FF.net has TOO MANY FRICKIN' PEOPLE IN IT.
It makes me want to write an InuYasha fic just to see that happen.
Actually, if you're up to speed with a Thousand Needles, you'll soon realize that video game characters are certainly not the only ones I use.
How it all ties together? That's what great- everything ties in together. Everyone's stories are part of the big plot, and everyone's stories affect the others in some way or another.
You'll have to wait a little while to discover the link to the Winds of Fate Chapters. I'm sure I'll have covered that by Chapter 100. Very sure. I just can't say how soon.
Bowser is as violent as I've made him since I started the White Version, he's just a bit crankier now. Do you BLAME him?
Paper Mario 2 fans will recognize the way I plan to write the back story for the stage the game takes place upon, as well as Mario Sunshine.
Did you ever wonder where Grodus came from, or how E. Gadd started his own company? You will in time.
I always try to leave suspense and curiosity in the air. What happened in the past, and what's GOING to happen in the future? I want my readers to constantly question that, while I throw in so many characters that you're bound to find a chunk of them you like a lot.
Me? I like EVERYBODY to some degree or another, even those who I technically 'hate.'
You haven't seen the start of Malocution. Feh. Kamek's got BIG plans, my friends. And the Gold Egg was a mere trinket to get the ball rolling.
As of now...I'm working on finishing the next TTX Chapter (FREAKING LONG) and I hope to finish the next Golden Sun Chapter and maybe even the start of my Sonic fic by weekend's end. I hope...-_-'
Next in Q4D!...
We get to visit Sierra again (remember her) as her mission begins to pick up as we see it link to some of the others I've recently dropped down on you.
She arrives in a mystical place called the End of Time, where she happens to bump into two warriors who are investigating the suspicion of the ressurection of a great cataclysmic creature known as Lavos...
Name that game!
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Aww man... You're gonna use the End of Time in your story, too?
Bah...
Whatever, there's other hellish dimensions I can use.
I'm glad you're bringing Sierra back. I was wondering when she was going to make an appearence again.
And you're starting a Sonic fic? You're crazy ambitious! That makes five fics now? There is no possible way I'd be able to keep up five fics at the same time. I'm having trouble trying to finish up the one I started! But I'm almost done (with the first part in the trilogy, at least...).
Oh yeah, when I said one constant reader, I meant one constant reader for the stories you've seen me reply to. The only reason I haven't read your other stories yet is because I'm (quite possibly) years behind and there's a lot to catch up on. And college doesn't allow me enough time to get properly aquainted, so... you get the point.
Bah...
Whatever, there's other hellish dimensions I can use.
I'm glad you're bringing Sierra back. I was wondering when she was going to make an appearence again.
And you're starting a Sonic fic? You're crazy ambitious! That makes five fics now? There is no possible way I'd be able to keep up five fics at the same time. I'm having trouble trying to finish up the one I started! But I'm almost done (with the first part in the trilogy, at least...).
Oh yeah, when I said one constant reader, I meant one constant reader for the stories you've seen me reply to. The only reason I haven't read your other stories yet is because I'm (quite possibly) years behind and there's a lot to catch up on. And college doesn't allow me enough time to get properly aquainted, so... you get the point.
Dude, you could read all of my fiction in a couple days if you had nothing better to do, I assure you.
What the he** are you talking about with the End of Time? Um...So WHY, exactly, can't you use it, again?
Anyway, you just don't get it...I'm not REALLY writing 5 different fics.
I'm writing one FREAKING HUGE ONE, but splitting it up into different fics for different audiences and different purposes.
I COULD do the whole Sonic in flashbacks, but...No, that wouldn't work well...
What the he** are you talking about with the End of Time? Um...So WHY, exactly, can't you use it, again?
Anyway, you just don't get it...I'm not REALLY writing 5 different fics.
I'm writing one FREAKING HUGE ONE, but splitting it up into different fics for different audiences and different purposes.
I COULD do the whole Sonic in flashbacks, but...No, that wouldn't work well...
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
I'm not using the End of Time for two reasons:
1) Actually, I was stuck between either the Darkness of Time (from Chrono Cross), or the End of Time.
2) I don't like using the same ideas as other people. That's just me.
So your five stories are actually one humongous story divided into five parts, huh? What I thought was that around Chapter 100 of this particular fic, you'd find a way to assimilate the other fics into each other, and at that point, you'd finally be able to devote your time to one fic instead of five, or so, parts.
I guess I was wrong.
Whatever.
But since you clarified you grand scheme, now I wonder: will you ever combine ALL your fics in the sense that they will ALL be under ONE thread or story, or will they ALWAYS be separated into five different parts?
1) Actually, I was stuck between either the Darkness of Time (from Chrono Cross), or the End of Time.
2) I don't like using the same ideas as other people. That's just me.
So your five stories are actually one humongous story divided into five parts, huh? What I thought was that around Chapter 100 of this particular fic, you'd find a way to assimilate the other fics into each other, and at that point, you'd finally be able to devote your time to one fic instead of five, or so, parts.
I guess I was wrong.
Whatever.
But since you clarified you grand scheme, now I wonder: will you ever combine ALL your fics in the sense that they will ALL be under ONE thread or story, or will they ALWAYS be separated into five different parts?
Um...OK, that's just hilarious...
First of all...
In using either of those ideas (End/Darkness of Time) you already ARE using someonelse's ideas...-_-'
That kinda happens in fanfiction. The point is that you expand, you change, you make it your own.
As far as my 'grand scheme,' you still don't get it.
You were right in your assumption that they will all join together. The nib is that they already ARE, don't you see?
Maybe not under one thread, but why should they be when the whole idea is to concentrate on specific audiences and reel them in to my work...?
All of the Winds of Fate stories end at the SAME POINT IN TIME. They were not given that name by mistake. All Winds of Fate fics end at the same place, at the same time (not exact moment, you catch my drift).
As unlikely as that may sound, it's the truth.
I think a better estimate would be more like Chapter 60-80 -ish.
Then, yes, when I do finish the Winds of Fate, I will have but one fic to work on. But that's not for a while. Besides, I may branch off again later on, anyway.
The whole frickin' idea to my fiction is that it's many stories that are interwoven to tell one large one. What some characters do affect others.
Sierra's story is directly linked to Bowser's. Bowser's story is obviously connected to his children and his wife. His wife is, believe it or not, closely connected to Sonic via plotline. The story of Sonic's past involves the ancestors of Cream and Ifalna. Cream and Ifalna have an important role to play in the story of 'Isaac' and Jenna, and their story has effects that reach Toad+Toadette, as well as Malon, who also has a part to play in Lloyd and Sheena's tale. Lloyd and Sheena are tryng to save Kagome, linking InuYasha in. InuYasha is trying to find Metal Mario to save Kagome, and Kagome is VERY important to the people of Weyward, some of whom have come to save her (Mia, Garet, Ivan, Sheba) Metal Mario, of course, is in league with the Squad of Malocution, who affect just about everyone in this whole story.
Sierra's fate quickly becomes intertwined with Malocution, and touches into the plot of Blaze, who is crucial to the story of Crystal, who is an ENORMOUS factor in Geno's story. Geno, in turn, is very important to the story of Star Haven, and the Smashers all arrive in Star Haven, so they're all affected by this, too.
So, yes, the End of Time relates to EVERYTHING in the Destinia Saga to some degree.
Such is life. What you do or say to people around you will inevitably echoe and affect those around them, etc., etc.
So if you happen to stumble upon a fic that resembles mine, please let me know. I have yet to even hear of one that matches my degree of cross-over-ness.
Ambitious? I guess that's a good word. Too bad hardly anyone reads my work.
Mwaha. Stick that in your warp pipe and smoke it.
First of all...
In using either of those ideas (End/Darkness of Time) you already ARE using someonelse's ideas...-_-'
That kinda happens in fanfiction. The point is that you expand, you change, you make it your own.
As far as my 'grand scheme,' you still don't get it.
You were right in your assumption that they will all join together. The nib is that they already ARE, don't you see?
Maybe not under one thread, but why should they be when the whole idea is to concentrate on specific audiences and reel them in to my work...?
All of the Winds of Fate stories end at the SAME POINT IN TIME. They were not given that name by mistake. All Winds of Fate fics end at the same place, at the same time (not exact moment, you catch my drift).
As unlikely as that may sound, it's the truth.
I think a better estimate would be more like Chapter 60-80 -ish.
Then, yes, when I do finish the Winds of Fate, I will have but one fic to work on. But that's not for a while. Besides, I may branch off again later on, anyway.
The whole frickin' idea to my fiction is that it's many stories that are interwoven to tell one large one. What some characters do affect others.
Sierra's story is directly linked to Bowser's. Bowser's story is obviously connected to his children and his wife. His wife is, believe it or not, closely connected to Sonic via plotline. The story of Sonic's past involves the ancestors of Cream and Ifalna. Cream and Ifalna have an important role to play in the story of 'Isaac' and Jenna, and their story has effects that reach Toad+Toadette, as well as Malon, who also has a part to play in Lloyd and Sheena's tale. Lloyd and Sheena are tryng to save Kagome, linking InuYasha in. InuYasha is trying to find Metal Mario to save Kagome, and Kagome is VERY important to the people of Weyward, some of whom have come to save her (Mia, Garet, Ivan, Sheba) Metal Mario, of course, is in league with the Squad of Malocution, who affect just about everyone in this whole story.
Sierra's fate quickly becomes intertwined with Malocution, and touches into the plot of Blaze, who is crucial to the story of Crystal, who is an ENORMOUS factor in Geno's story. Geno, in turn, is very important to the story of Star Haven, and the Smashers all arrive in Star Haven, so they're all affected by this, too.
So, yes, the End of Time relates to EVERYTHING in the Destinia Saga to some degree.
Such is life. What you do or say to people around you will inevitably echoe and affect those around them, etc., etc.
So if you happen to stumble upon a fic that resembles mine, please let me know. I have yet to even hear of one that matches my degree of cross-over-ness.
Ambitious? I guess that's a good word. Too bad hardly anyone reads my work.
Mwaha. Stick that in your warp pipe and smoke it.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Bah, I give up.
I'm just going to sit back and watch all one trillion parts of this increda-story unfold. It seems that only then will I understand.
I'll definately let you know if any story I read is more interwoven than yours. As of now, your tale of tales is the most interwoven story I've ever read.
I know I'm already taking other people's ideas, since I'm writing a fanfic. What I meant was since you're using the End of Time, I don't want to be using it as well.
Get it?
Grand. Like I said before, that's just me. Plus, more people know about the End of Time than the Darkness of Time. I like using lesser-known ideas.
And... I'm done.
There seems to be passing trend of me missing certain points. Let's see what I'm wrong about this time!
I'm just going to sit back and watch all one trillion parts of this increda-story unfold. It seems that only then will I understand.
I'll definately let you know if any story I read is more interwoven than yours. As of now, your tale of tales is the most interwoven story I've ever read.
I know I'm already taking other people's ideas, since I'm writing a fanfic. What I meant was since you're using the End of Time, I don't want to be using it as well.
Get it?
Grand. Like I said before, that's just me. Plus, more people know about the End of Time than the Darkness of Time. I like using lesser-known ideas.
And... I'm done.
There seems to be passing trend of me missing certain points. Let's see what I'm wrong about this time!
Increda-story...
Hmmm...I like it...
Ya know, I wasn't going to say anything, but...Since you said that one bit, I can't resist.
You DO realize that many other fics have used the End of Time, correct?
The thing about the Destinia Saga is that you don't have to read ALL of it to understand. The only single person I know of who has read all of it so far is ME.
If you like complexity, there's plenty of little touches I add to make it more realistic. I'll go back and look up the specific name of a street I randomly came up with when I write a news report that uses that same location to give it more authenticity (TTX 13), and tons of other stuff like that.
But if things get too complex, you can always just take things as they come and focus on the characters you like.
I try to throw in anyone I find worthy so that some random reader who likes the character(s) will go, "OH!! HEY! I know him! That's SOOO cool!"
Spekkio? Oh, yea, you'll get to see him, all right, Chrono Trigger fans. And if you remember the way Spekkion works, you may reach a realization when he appears.
Magus? He** yes. Sephiroth? Why NOT?!?!
Chrono Cross/Trigger fans will get to see some cameos come next Chappy.
Metal Slug fans (I'm a new cult member, my friends) may be pleasantly surprised when they get a cameo later on...Where? When? Good question. I'm not sure yet, but you know I'll come with something.
VG Cats? HEHEH!! I've even developed a logical background for the characters that actually makes sense, believe it or not, and I have every intention of throwing them in here (with Scott's permission, mind you).
So many ideas...so little time...
Hmmm...I like it...
Ya know, I wasn't going to say anything, but...Since you said that one bit, I can't resist.
You DO realize that many other fics have used the End of Time, correct?
The thing about the Destinia Saga is that you don't have to read ALL of it to understand. The only single person I know of who has read all of it so far is ME.
If you like complexity, there's plenty of little touches I add to make it more realistic. I'll go back and look up the specific name of a street I randomly came up with when I write a news report that uses that same location to give it more authenticity (TTX 13), and tons of other stuff like that.
But if things get too complex, you can always just take things as they come and focus on the characters you like.
I try to throw in anyone I find worthy so that some random reader who likes the character(s) will go, "OH!! HEY! I know him! That's SOOO cool!"
Spekkio? Oh, yea, you'll get to see him, all right, Chrono Trigger fans. And if you remember the way Spekkion works, you may reach a realization when he appears.
Magus? He** yes. Sephiroth? Why NOT?!?!
Chrono Cross/Trigger fans will get to see some cameos come next Chappy.
Metal Slug fans (I'm a new cult member, my friends) may be pleasantly surprised when they get a cameo later on...Where? When? Good question. I'm not sure yet, but you know I'll come with something.
VG Cats? HEHEH!! I've even developed a logical background for the characters that actually makes sense, believe it or not, and I have every intention of throwing them in here (with Scott's permission, mind you).
So many ideas...so little time...
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
So where do the Teen Titans fit in?
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Despite all the crap I said about not using the End of Time in my story, I'm using the End of Time in my story.
I'm such a hypocrite.
Yeah, I know billions upon billions of other fics have used the End of Time. And why shouldn't they? The entire concept of the END of Time is mind-boggling. I just didn't want to join the ranks, but look what I done did...
Oh well.
I got into VGCats a while back. I'd love to see how you integrate those guys into your story, especially the hobo! Hopefully, Scott will be all for the idea. If he is, he might even spread the word about your fic.
That would be pretty freaking cool. His fanbase is gynormous!
Well, good luck with that.
I'm such a hypocrite.
Yeah, I know billions upon billions of other fics have used the End of Time. And why shouldn't they? The entire concept of the END of Time is mind-boggling. I just didn't want to join the ranks, but look what I done did...
Oh well.
I got into VGCats a while back. I'd love to see how you integrate those guys into your story, especially the hobo! Hopefully, Scott will be all for the idea. If he is, he might even spread the word about your fic.
That would be pretty freaking cool. His fanbase is gynormous!
Well, good luck with that.
First of all, the Titans are more loosely connected, but they're still connected. How? You'll just have to wait and find out.
As for the VGC crew, of COURSE I have ideas. You'll be amused, I think. And, of course, I got Scott's permission to use them.
I WILL tell you this: They live on Mobius. That was the location that made the most sense to me. However, I still have to ask Scott about my ideas and see what he thinks. There's an idea. I should do that soon. Dr. Hobo? Well, he's a hobo, of course.
I need to include Pantsman, as well. Duh. Jonny Evilguy will play an intersting role, as I somehow stumbled upon a very ideal role for him. Aeris, Leo, and Krug will obviously be there, too. I'm gonna have a lot of fun with Aeris and Leo. Everyone's going to be complimenting them on 'how cute a couple they are.' They're NOT. Although, I honestly want to hear Scott's view on such a thing ever happening. I can't see it, but...all the same...
I could never see Raven and Cyborg, either, but THAT changed.
I sure as he** could never see Jinx and Cyborg...
And I mean, Nana and Young Link? I don't even know where the frick that idea came from, but I like the way it'll work out.
And Bomberman being a love guru? Psh. Isn't that so obvious? Oh, wait...You guys haven't met him yet...You will.
Oh, yea...I need to think of how to throw in a Metal Slug cameo...Hm...I have two ideas...Which one to go with...?
Either way, I HAVE to use this line:
"Do you know what it's LIKE to die OVER and OVER again???"
"...Yea, dying's a bit**. Thank God for quarters."
As for the VGC crew, of COURSE I have ideas. You'll be amused, I think. And, of course, I got Scott's permission to use them.
I WILL tell you this: They live on Mobius. That was the location that made the most sense to me. However, I still have to ask Scott about my ideas and see what he thinks. There's an idea. I should do that soon. Dr. Hobo? Well, he's a hobo, of course.
I need to include Pantsman, as well. Duh. Jonny Evilguy will play an intersting role, as I somehow stumbled upon a very ideal role for him. Aeris, Leo, and Krug will obviously be there, too. I'm gonna have a lot of fun with Aeris and Leo. Everyone's going to be complimenting them on 'how cute a couple they are.'
They're NOT. Although, I honestly want to hear Scott's view on such a thing ever happening. I can't see it, but...all the same...I could never see Raven and Cyborg, either, but THAT changed.
I sure as he** could never see Jinx and Cyborg...
And I mean, Nana and Young Link? I don't even know where the frick that idea came from, but I like the way it'll work out.
And Bomberman being a love guru? Psh. Isn't that so obvious?
Oh, wait...You guys haven't met him yet...You will.Oh, yea...I need to think of how to throw in a Metal Slug cameo...Hm...I have two ideas...Which one to go with...?
Either way, I HAVE to use this line:
"Do you know what it's LIKE to die OVER and OVER again???"
"...Yea, dying's a bit**. Thank God for quarters."
Well...I actually bothered to finish a Chapter.
By the way, this one's about Sierra...Remember her?
Yea...Um...Turns out, she's actually a wolf and not a unicorn. Geez. With Legend of Mana, it's hard to tell.
Anyway, I'll have togo and switch that around sometime...
Here ya go...Not that great...
Next chapter is about the Yoshies, though.
----------
Quest for Destiny!
Chapter 44- Chrono Break
The guidance of her Dragon, Vadise, had led Sierra into a place she had only heard of. She'd never known for sure of its existence, but she was sure now. It was eerie at first, but after she had spent some time in it, it began to feel cozy, in some bizarre way. She didn't know how long she'd been waiting here to see the two warriors Vadise had told her about, but did it really matter? Time didn't exist here. This was the End of Time.
Smooth, brown stones served as a foothold in this unworldly place. The skies were nothing- pure black. The only light in the place radiated from an old-looking street lamp. A mysterious man who looked aged leaned against the street lamp. He'd been doing so ever since she had arrived, but she hadn't attemtped to talk to him. He was sleeping, after all. She didn't feel right here, and she wanted to get out as soon as possible. An ominous wooden door loomed behind the lamp post, and Sierra was itching to look inside. However, she wasn't sure how good an idea that would be. After spending what felt like hours in this barren 'sidewalk' that was literally in the middle of nowhere, Sierra decided to poke around into the room she had entered when she first landed here. It was a square room that felt very empty. Beams of light shot up from the floor, and they were arranged in neat rows. Sierra was entirely sure about their purpose, but she knew that she had arrived through one. She reasoned they were a method of transportation.
She wandered back out across a stone bridge, knowing that she was to wait here until the two men arrived that she waited to meet. Sierra snorted apathetically as she headed for the door, ready to swing it open.
"You should think twice before you enter," a wise and gentle voice echoed from behind her. She froze, her furry hand on the door. As she dropped her arm, she turned her head to see him and fully recognize his existence. She brushed a loose bang of shining, purple hair as she examined him.
He looked to be in his seventies or so. His head was round, and he wore spectacles. He was dressed like he was from a Britain in its stereotypical era. He wore a brown hat with a round top, he held a wooden cane, and he wore a tan vest over a white shirt with brown pants.
"Forgive me for asking, but do you know where you are, Miss?" he asked her once he had received her attention.
"This is...The End of Time, isn't it?" she grumbled. "I'm supposed to meet someone here..."
"Ah, I see...An appointment. Yes, quite right..." He nodded and tipped his hat. "Perhaps who you seek stands beyond that door. Perhaps they have yet to arrive. But, then again...Maybe they are late...Or maybe you are early...? Hmhm. In a place such as this, such questions have very elusive answers."
Sierra eyed him suspiciously. "How long have you been here?" she wondered. "Are you waiting for someone, too?"
"Oh, hoho." He shook his head. "I have been here forever. I have been here for no time at all."
Sierra huffed, blowing her floppy bang from her eyes. She didn't have time to have a philosophical conversation with this man. If he was right, though, then she had all the time in the universe, or none at all. Deciding to dismiss the old man and head toward her goal, Sierra walked to the door and pushed it open slowly.
As she peered inside, she could hear voices. A large, square room was what met her eyes. A metal bar fence surrounded the room, and there seemed to be some abnormal beam of light cascading into the center, while the corners quite dark. There were three people standing in the beam of light, forming a triangle. What Sierra didn't notice at first was that they were surrounding a small white creature. She slowly neared the conversing group, eavesdropping on their conversation. Her nose twitched as she sucked in air in quick sniffs. She examined them with her keen eyes and acute smell like a wolf, and she came to the conclusion that they were not who she was looking for.
"We've been looking all over for clues, but we can't figure out anything," a man explained.
"Yea! They're both just...gone..." a young woman grumbled.
"What are you doing here, anyway?" the man questioned.
"She has the right to be here, as do you," an older woman informed the man.
The man looked relatively young, but as far as fighting experience went, he looked aged. His head had a mess of greasy hair of an olive color. On his left cheek, he wore two scars that formed an 'X.' His entire body otherwise was covered in an suit of armor. A long sword was sheathed at his waist, and his left arm had a small, round shield attached to it. His name was Glenn.
The older woman- though most would not consider her to be 'old'- looked very mysterious. She was dressed in what appeared to be royal garbs of some sort; a priestess' clothes, Sierra guessed. Her snow white hair was held in a ponytail that ran down her back, and two sets of long bangs that reached her chin rested on either side of her face. A circlet with a green jewel was placed on her tan forehead. Almost like that of a vampire, a very tall red collar surrounded her head. The majority of her complex outfit was omposed of white silk, including a pair of gloves that covered her arms past her elbows. She was called Steena.
The third figure, a girl in her twenties, was even more eccentric than the other two. Brown hair that fell to her shoulders, and stringy bangs reached down just above her fuzzy eyebrows. She had big, blue eyes, and wore a sleeveless shirt of blue and white; the shirt was odd in design, as a very short, blue 'cape' of sorts flopped over her back. She wore skin tight shorts of brown, and bizarre shoes. They crawled halfway up her shins, and her legs fit in loosely. They formed a high-hell and platformer combo of sorts with blue soles. What most would notice about her immediately, however, was one of two things- her giant, floppy ears, or her huge cotton tail. Her ears, witch protruded from where a human's normally would, had a thin layer of brown fur on their backside, and each one could cover her whole face. Her tail was fluffy and light brown; moreover, it was so big that it practically covered her entire rear. The rabbit-girl's name was Janice.
The three beings were hovering around a small, white ball of fur. He had bare-skinned feet, a face clear of fur, and above his beady eyes were two pointy ears, but every other inch of his body sprouted white fur.
Sierra stood in the doorway, having not closed it fully, as she was trying to listen to the conversation.
"Leena said she hasn't seen Serge in weeks," Glenn mumbled, his voice gruff and solemn.
Janice lamented, "I bumped into him not too long ago, but he didn't stay and talk. He left before I could get the chance to say 'hi.'" She had a very peppy attitude about her, brimming with energy.
"No doubt he has gone in search of Kid," Steena reasoned calmly, her hands on her hips.
"Why are you mortal fools worrying about him?" the ball-shaped creature finally burst out irritably.
"We're worried about him," Janice whimpered, her long ears sagging downward.
"Ha! You should be more worried about your OWN *****," he chuckled heartily.
"And you!" he shouted out, glaring at Sierra, who blinked at him in shock. "If you're going to come in, then come in! Close the door already!"
Sierra, a bit stricken, quickly closed the door and stepped forward, feeling quite foolish, but keeping her rock-solid demeanor in her movements. This puny little beast somehow emanated a powerful force. The three people forming a triad around the little furball jumped in surprise, for they had not realized the mysterious wolf woman's presence. Sierra was feeling a bit impatient amidst all of this unworldly mystery. She was here for a specific purpose, and she intended to carry out her duty.
Heading straight to the point, she demanded, "Where are they?"
The round, white ball chuckled and replied, "They should be coming any moment. They won't do you any good if you rush into battle as if your tail was on fire."
Sierra snorted and rolled her eyes, swerving her silky tail sharply as if to say, "Piss off."
"You speak as if you are a wisened warrior," Sierra noted, both intrigued and stupefied.
"Of course," the beady-eyed beast arrogantly agreed. "I'm the Master of War."
Sierra smirked at such a remark and nodded. "I believe you," she told him with a hint of a smile, cocking her head at a slight angle.
"Where are you from?" Janice squealed with delight, admiring the large mass of silky, purple hair on the woman's head. Sierra said not a word in reply, but glanced at the beaming girl with a lifted brow and slits for eyes.
"I came for the ones named Crono and Glenn," she announced, eyeing each of the three suspiciously, though she was certain that neither warriors were amongst them. By examining the looks on their faces, Sierra could tell that they knew not of her plans.
The man in the bronze armor spoke out after a moment, asking, "Why do you wish to see me?"
Sierra paused and stepped closer to him while he informed her, "I am Glenn." She got dangerously close to him, sniffing his neck sharply. Leaving him petrified, she huffed through her nostrils, pushing warm air onto his throat. Removing her nose from him and leaving his intimate space, she shook her head solemnly.
"A Glenn you may be, but not the one I seek," she concluded quietly. Realizing that the task of meeting her goal was going nowhere here, she turned to leave, stepping out of the dim beam of light..
"Halt, Dragoon!" Steena cried, standing still. Her words captured Sierra, though the wolf-knight didn't quite understand why. With her back facing the mysterious woman, Sierra twitched her ears slightly, awaiting the advice she was about to receive. "Your Master asks me to relay a message."
Sierra bobbed her head a bit and stared at the cold, stone floor before her in the shadows. Vadise, the dragon she served, could no doubt connect with this priestess.
"She says, 'No matter how strong or sturdy, all mountains fall after time. Water flows with other water and never loses its identity. Mountains stand alone, but water is all connected as one.'"
The words of Vadise through Steena's mouth sank into Sierra's already overflowing mind, but she didn't budge an inch for a moment or two. Then, finally, without giving a thanks of any kind, Sierra exited the room through the wooden door, keeping her head tilted downward the whole time.
She placed her hands on her hips as she pondered what her Dragoon meant by such words. Whether she was lost in thought for a moment or an hour as questionable. Either way, she was brought back to her senses when a scent flooded into her nostrils. With only one quick sniff, Sierra recognized that it was the smell of an amphibian. Her violet eyes immediately darted around the room to locate the origin of the smell. To her relief, two strangers had entered the 'room' where she stood from a pathway to her left. Sierra had checked that path earlier, but it had only led to a dead end--a pennisula of stone that dipped out into the black abyss of space.
The two men walking her way appeared to be experienced warriors, indeed. The first was a human with wild reddish-orange hair that spiked in all directions. He wore a blue band around his forehead, a blue tunic, and white, baggy pants. A katana was sheathed at his side, and his eyes burned with determination.
The other was a sight that reminded Sierra of home. He was a frog in a human-like form, wearing armor and toting a broad sword over his back. He was a bit pudgy, and his amber eyes protruded from his head like any amphibian's would.
"You've come," Sierra murmured, giving them both a nod.
"Thou art Sierra?" the frog questioned curiously, his voice surprisingly human.
Sierra replied with a quick nod. "Mm." She stepped toward them cautiously, her nose twitching as she confirmed their scent. "You are Crono and Glenn?"
"We are," Crono, the orange-haired young man, grunted in response.
"You're not what I expected," Sierra concluded, lifting a brow.
"Doth thou believeth that thou art an expected sight?" Glenn countered slyly.
Sierra rolled her eyes and smirked, her palms still glued to her hips as she tilted her weight to the side a bit.
"Vadise has informed you?" she checked.
"We're ready," Crono solemnly declared.
"Then let's get the hell out of here," Sierra decided, brushing by the two of them as she slipped inbetween. "I was told you had an impressive vehicle," she added as she strolled into the distance down the hall.
Crono and Glenn exchanged nervous glances, and Crono shrugged.
"Like a butterfly," Crono mumbled with a snicker.
"You're coming, aren't you?" Sierra barked back at them, her tail whipping about impatiently. "I hope you know that you're going to teach me how to drive!"
"Aye," Glenn agreed in a groan. "'Tis a butterfly blowing kisses of death."
-----
"How long is it going to take for us to get to this...'Stellon'...place?" Crono grumbled irritably, already beginning to feel constricted in the small ship.
"If I hear any more whining, I'll give you something to really whine about," Sierra threatened in a growl. Crono huffed and squirmed a bit in a futile attempt to find comfort as they jetted through space.
"I implore thee, Honorable Dragoon, that thoust inform us as to the whereabouts of our destination," Glenn insisted. He was becoming uneasy at the idea of this vicious woman driving them through space. Though he had been told to trust her, he was now noticing that this would prove to be a difficult task.
"Stellon is a large planet in a nearby solar system," Sierra grunted, staring grimly at the streaks of starlight that passed them by. "All of our mission objectives reside there: the rest of our crew, the Kooparius family, and the lair of the enemy."
"This enemy," Crono muttered, "is a powerful threat?"
The white, elongated face of the mystical warrior piloting the sleek and compact ship nodded with wide eyes.
She answered with a single word: "Quite."
"The swine hath gathered great evils from many lands to unite them as one," Glenn explained to his partner, who seemed to be less educated on the subject.
"He's building an army as we speak," Sierra dully, tweaking the controls on the compact vehicle to send it speeding to their right by a small degree.
Crono scratched the back of his head nervously, his eyes gazing into the blurring lights outside.
"So...What are WE going to do?" he mumbled with doubt.
Sierra's mouth curved upward in a devilish grin as a canine protruded from her lips.
"We're going to build a BETTER one."
----------
I know it's not that great a Chapter, despite the wait. I should be getting more up soon as I have the next week off.
In the meantime, I'm still working on other things.
Check out my FF.net profile from time to time to see what I'm working on.
By the way, this one's about Sierra...Remember her?
Yea...Um...Turns out, she's actually a wolf and not a unicorn. Geez. With Legend of Mana, it's hard to tell.
Anyway, I'll have togo and switch that around sometime...
Here ya go...Not that great...
Next chapter is about the Yoshies, though.
----------
Quest for Destiny!
Chapter 44- Chrono Break
The guidance of her Dragon, Vadise, had led Sierra into a place she had only heard of. She'd never known for sure of its existence, but she was sure now. It was eerie at first, but after she had spent some time in it, it began to feel cozy, in some bizarre way. She didn't know how long she'd been waiting here to see the two warriors Vadise had told her about, but did it really matter? Time didn't exist here. This was the End of Time.
Smooth, brown stones served as a foothold in this unworldly place. The skies were nothing- pure black. The only light in the place radiated from an old-looking street lamp. A mysterious man who looked aged leaned against the street lamp. He'd been doing so ever since she had arrived, but she hadn't attemtped to talk to him. He was sleeping, after all. She didn't feel right here, and she wanted to get out as soon as possible. An ominous wooden door loomed behind the lamp post, and Sierra was itching to look inside. However, she wasn't sure how good an idea that would be. After spending what felt like hours in this barren 'sidewalk' that was literally in the middle of nowhere, Sierra decided to poke around into the room she had entered when she first landed here. It was a square room that felt very empty. Beams of light shot up from the floor, and they were arranged in neat rows. Sierra was entirely sure about their purpose, but she knew that she had arrived through one. She reasoned they were a method of transportation.
She wandered back out across a stone bridge, knowing that she was to wait here until the two men arrived that she waited to meet. Sierra snorted apathetically as she headed for the door, ready to swing it open.
"You should think twice before you enter," a wise and gentle voice echoed from behind her. She froze, her furry hand on the door. As she dropped her arm, she turned her head to see him and fully recognize his existence. She brushed a loose bang of shining, purple hair as she examined him.
He looked to be in his seventies or so. His head was round, and he wore spectacles. He was dressed like he was from a Britain in its stereotypical era. He wore a brown hat with a round top, he held a wooden cane, and he wore a tan vest over a white shirt with brown pants.
"Forgive me for asking, but do you know where you are, Miss?" he asked her once he had received her attention.
"This is...The End of Time, isn't it?" she grumbled. "I'm supposed to meet someone here..."
"Ah, I see...An appointment. Yes, quite right..." He nodded and tipped his hat. "Perhaps who you seek stands beyond that door. Perhaps they have yet to arrive. But, then again...Maybe they are late...Or maybe you are early...? Hmhm. In a place such as this, such questions have very elusive answers."
Sierra eyed him suspiciously. "How long have you been here?" she wondered. "Are you waiting for someone, too?"
"Oh, hoho." He shook his head. "I have been here forever. I have been here for no time at all."
Sierra huffed, blowing her floppy bang from her eyes. She didn't have time to have a philosophical conversation with this man. If he was right, though, then she had all the time in the universe, or none at all. Deciding to dismiss the old man and head toward her goal, Sierra walked to the door and pushed it open slowly.
As she peered inside, she could hear voices. A large, square room was what met her eyes. A metal bar fence surrounded the room, and there seemed to be some abnormal beam of light cascading into the center, while the corners quite dark. There were three people standing in the beam of light, forming a triangle. What Sierra didn't notice at first was that they were surrounding a small white creature. She slowly neared the conversing group, eavesdropping on their conversation. Her nose twitched as she sucked in air in quick sniffs. She examined them with her keen eyes and acute smell like a wolf, and she came to the conclusion that they were not who she was looking for.
"We've been looking all over for clues, but we can't figure out anything," a man explained.
"Yea! They're both just...gone..." a young woman grumbled.
"What are you doing here, anyway?" the man questioned.
"She has the right to be here, as do you," an older woman informed the man.
The man looked relatively young, but as far as fighting experience went, he looked aged. His head had a mess of greasy hair of an olive color. On his left cheek, he wore two scars that formed an 'X.' His entire body otherwise was covered in an suit of armor. A long sword was sheathed at his waist, and his left arm had a small, round shield attached to it. His name was Glenn.
The older woman- though most would not consider her to be 'old'- looked very mysterious. She was dressed in what appeared to be royal garbs of some sort; a priestess' clothes, Sierra guessed. Her snow white hair was held in a ponytail that ran down her back, and two sets of long bangs that reached her chin rested on either side of her face. A circlet with a green jewel was placed on her tan forehead. Almost like that of a vampire, a very tall red collar surrounded her head. The majority of her complex outfit was omposed of white silk, including a pair of gloves that covered her arms past her elbows. She was called Steena.
The third figure, a girl in her twenties, was even more eccentric than the other two. Brown hair that fell to her shoulders, and stringy bangs reached down just above her fuzzy eyebrows. She had big, blue eyes, and wore a sleeveless shirt of blue and white; the shirt was odd in design, as a very short, blue 'cape' of sorts flopped over her back. She wore skin tight shorts of brown, and bizarre shoes. They crawled halfway up her shins, and her legs fit in loosely. They formed a high-hell and platformer combo of sorts with blue soles. What most would notice about her immediately, however, was one of two things- her giant, floppy ears, or her huge cotton tail. Her ears, witch protruded from where a human's normally would, had a thin layer of brown fur on their backside, and each one could cover her whole face. Her tail was fluffy and light brown; moreover, it was so big that it practically covered her entire rear. The rabbit-girl's name was Janice.
The three beings were hovering around a small, white ball of fur. He had bare-skinned feet, a face clear of fur, and above his beady eyes were two pointy ears, but every other inch of his body sprouted white fur.
Sierra stood in the doorway, having not closed it fully, as she was trying to listen to the conversation.
"Leena said she hasn't seen Serge in weeks," Glenn mumbled, his voice gruff and solemn.
Janice lamented, "I bumped into him not too long ago, but he didn't stay and talk. He left before I could get the chance to say 'hi.'" She had a very peppy attitude about her, brimming with energy.
"No doubt he has gone in search of Kid," Steena reasoned calmly, her hands on her hips.
"Why are you mortal fools worrying about him?" the ball-shaped creature finally burst out irritably.
"We're worried about him," Janice whimpered, her long ears sagging downward.
"Ha! You should be more worried about your OWN *****," he chuckled heartily.
"And you!" he shouted out, glaring at Sierra, who blinked at him in shock. "If you're going to come in, then come in! Close the door already!"
Sierra, a bit stricken, quickly closed the door and stepped forward, feeling quite foolish, but keeping her rock-solid demeanor in her movements. This puny little beast somehow emanated a powerful force. The three people forming a triad around the little furball jumped in surprise, for they had not realized the mysterious wolf woman's presence. Sierra was feeling a bit impatient amidst all of this unworldly mystery. She was here for a specific purpose, and she intended to carry out her duty.
Heading straight to the point, she demanded, "Where are they?"
The round, white ball chuckled and replied, "They should be coming any moment. They won't do you any good if you rush into battle as if your tail was on fire."
Sierra snorted and rolled her eyes, swerving her silky tail sharply as if to say, "Piss off."
"You speak as if you are a wisened warrior," Sierra noted, both intrigued and stupefied.
"Of course," the beady-eyed beast arrogantly agreed. "I'm the Master of War."
Sierra smirked at such a remark and nodded. "I believe you," she told him with a hint of a smile, cocking her head at a slight angle.
"Where are you from?" Janice squealed with delight, admiring the large mass of silky, purple hair on the woman's head. Sierra said not a word in reply, but glanced at the beaming girl with a lifted brow and slits for eyes.
"I came for the ones named Crono and Glenn," she announced, eyeing each of the three suspiciously, though she was certain that neither warriors were amongst them. By examining the looks on their faces, Sierra could tell that they knew not of her plans.
The man in the bronze armor spoke out after a moment, asking, "Why do you wish to see me?"
Sierra paused and stepped closer to him while he informed her, "I am Glenn." She got dangerously close to him, sniffing his neck sharply. Leaving him petrified, she huffed through her nostrils, pushing warm air onto his throat. Removing her nose from him and leaving his intimate space, she shook her head solemnly.
"A Glenn you may be, but not the one I seek," she concluded quietly. Realizing that the task of meeting her goal was going nowhere here, she turned to leave, stepping out of the dim beam of light..
"Halt, Dragoon!" Steena cried, standing still. Her words captured Sierra, though the wolf-knight didn't quite understand why. With her back facing the mysterious woman, Sierra twitched her ears slightly, awaiting the advice she was about to receive. "Your Master asks me to relay a message."
Sierra bobbed her head a bit and stared at the cold, stone floor before her in the shadows. Vadise, the dragon she served, could no doubt connect with this priestess.
"She says, 'No matter how strong or sturdy, all mountains fall after time. Water flows with other water and never loses its identity. Mountains stand alone, but water is all connected as one.'"
The words of Vadise through Steena's mouth sank into Sierra's already overflowing mind, but she didn't budge an inch for a moment or two. Then, finally, without giving a thanks of any kind, Sierra exited the room through the wooden door, keeping her head tilted downward the whole time.
She placed her hands on her hips as she pondered what her Dragoon meant by such words. Whether she was lost in thought for a moment or an hour as questionable. Either way, she was brought back to her senses when a scent flooded into her nostrils. With only one quick sniff, Sierra recognized that it was the smell of an amphibian. Her violet eyes immediately darted around the room to locate the origin of the smell. To her relief, two strangers had entered the 'room' where she stood from a pathway to her left. Sierra had checked that path earlier, but it had only led to a dead end--a pennisula of stone that dipped out into the black abyss of space.
The two men walking her way appeared to be experienced warriors, indeed. The first was a human with wild reddish-orange hair that spiked in all directions. He wore a blue band around his forehead, a blue tunic, and white, baggy pants. A katana was sheathed at his side, and his eyes burned with determination.
The other was a sight that reminded Sierra of home. He was a frog in a human-like form, wearing armor and toting a broad sword over his back. He was a bit pudgy, and his amber eyes protruded from his head like any amphibian's would.
"You've come," Sierra murmured, giving them both a nod.
"Thou art Sierra?" the frog questioned curiously, his voice surprisingly human.
Sierra replied with a quick nod. "Mm." She stepped toward them cautiously, her nose twitching as she confirmed their scent. "You are Crono and Glenn?"
"We are," Crono, the orange-haired young man, grunted in response.
"You're not what I expected," Sierra concluded, lifting a brow.
"Doth thou believeth that thou art an expected sight?" Glenn countered slyly.
Sierra rolled her eyes and smirked, her palms still glued to her hips as she tilted her weight to the side a bit.
"Vadise has informed you?" she checked.
"We're ready," Crono solemnly declared.
"Then let's get the hell out of here," Sierra decided, brushing by the two of them as she slipped inbetween. "I was told you had an impressive vehicle," she added as she strolled into the distance down the hall.
Crono and Glenn exchanged nervous glances, and Crono shrugged.
"Like a butterfly," Crono mumbled with a snicker.
"You're coming, aren't you?" Sierra barked back at them, her tail whipping about impatiently. "I hope you know that you're going to teach me how to drive!"
"Aye," Glenn agreed in a groan. "'Tis a butterfly blowing kisses of death."
-----
"How long is it going to take for us to get to this...'Stellon'...place?" Crono grumbled irritably, already beginning to feel constricted in the small ship.
"If I hear any more whining, I'll give you something to really whine about," Sierra threatened in a growl. Crono huffed and squirmed a bit in a futile attempt to find comfort as they jetted through space.
"I implore thee, Honorable Dragoon, that thoust inform us as to the whereabouts of our destination," Glenn insisted. He was becoming uneasy at the idea of this vicious woman driving them through space. Though he had been told to trust her, he was now noticing that this would prove to be a difficult task.
"Stellon is a large planet in a nearby solar system," Sierra grunted, staring grimly at the streaks of starlight that passed them by. "All of our mission objectives reside there: the rest of our crew, the Kooparius family, and the lair of the enemy."
"This enemy," Crono muttered, "is a powerful threat?"
The white, elongated face of the mystical warrior piloting the sleek and compact ship nodded with wide eyes.
She answered with a single word: "Quite."
"The swine hath gathered great evils from many lands to unite them as one," Glenn explained to his partner, who seemed to be less educated on the subject.
"He's building an army as we speak," Sierra dully, tweaking the controls on the compact vehicle to send it speeding to their right by a small degree.
Crono scratched the back of his head nervously, his eyes gazing into the blurring lights outside.
"So...What are WE going to do?" he mumbled with doubt.
Sierra's mouth curved upward in a devilish grin as a canine protruded from her lips.
"We're going to build a BETTER one."
----------
I know it's not that great a Chapter, despite the wait. I should be getting more up soon as I have the next week off.
In the meantime, I'm still working on other things.
Check out my FF.net profile from time to time to see what I'm working on.
MewtwoMaster2002
ミュウツーマスター2002
Great update. Hmm...how can it be the end of time if it isn't. That confuses me .
.*sigh*
Nevermind. -_-
Don't ask me, ask Square--they created Chrono Trigger, not me.
It's just as confusing in the game.
Nevermind. -_-
Don't ask me, ask Square--they created Chrono Trigger, not me.
It's just as confusing in the game.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
Ah yes, the End of Time. Quite possibly the greatest location in all of video game history.
Psych.
Not a bad chapter. Like you said, not much to it, but at least we get a little more depth into Sierra's story.
And yes! Crono and Frog (Glenn)! I find it kinda weird to see him actually talking since I got so used to his silent ways in Chrono Trigger. I kept him silent even in my fic.
So when's the next update? Sometime next month? Two months? I kinda miss my boy, Fireball...
Psych.
Not a bad chapter. Like you said, not much to it, but at least we get a little more depth into Sierra's story.
And yes! Crono and Frog (Glenn)! I find it kinda weird to see him actually talking since I got so used to his silent ways in Chrono Trigger. I kept him silent even in my fic.
So when's the next update? Sometime next month? Two months? I kinda miss my boy, Fireball...
Silent? Frog? He seemed to talk quite a bit when I played through Chrono Trigger...
Of course, I liked Glenn so much that I killed off Magus...Oops. I thought was cool enough where he wouldn't actually die, but...I guess that maybe Frog was cooler, 'cuz he didn't...
Oh, well. Three year-old regrets, give or take.
Actually, the next update is already in the works. About the Yoshies, it is. I won't make any promises (again) but I may actually have it done by tomorrow, since I'm on break and don't have too much of anything better to do.
We'll see.
Of course, I liked Glenn so much that I killed off Magus...Oops.
I thought was cool enough where he wouldn't actually die, but...I guess that maybe Frog was cooler, 'cuz he didn't...Oh, well. Three year-old regrets, give or take.
Actually, the next update is already in the works. About the Yoshies, it is. I won't make any promises (again) but I may actually have it done by tomorrow, since I'm on break and don't have too much of anything better to do.
We'll see.
ZeekeXIV
Smash Journeyman
I find it kinda weird to see him actually talking since I got so used to his silent ways in Chrono Trigger.
I was talking about Crono. I know Frog couldn't keep his mouth shut.
I forgot everyone has a vacation this week except me. Stupid, stupid college... I'm glad you will (or plan to) update again so soon. I'll definately be here to check it out.
I was talking about Crono. I know Frog couldn't keep his mouth shut.
I forgot everyone has a vacation this week except me. Stupid, stupid college... I'm glad you will (or plan to) update again so soon. I'll definately be here to check it out.