Chapter 24: Crystal, Queen of the Ice
Cap’n Torte and Mini Moi looked onward toward the giant glacier cavern they were rowing into. Genius Guy paddled the rowboat. Changling was also in the boat. A second boat was following behind with the Apprentice, Soshi, and Embert. Whomp and the Grand Glum Reaper had been left behind to watch the ship. Snow fell past Torte’s frozen smirk. The wind was harsh and cold. He slowly watched them continue into the cavern... slowly. Slowly.
“MON DIEU! Can’t you row any fasteir?!” Cap’n Torte shouted at Genius Guy.
“Um... I could try, but it’d only end up a stupid Titanic rip-off scene!” Genius Guy said.
“Yes, you’re right,” Torte answered.
Mini Moi tugged on Torte’s cape. He grunted a bit and pulled out his POCKET PAN OF PAIN. Genius Guy would have made it a POCKET PAN OF PERIL, but he didn’t have another spare Flux Capacitor. He placed it in the water behind the boat and activated the fan mechanism. Under the icy water, it worked like a motor and pushed them far forward, leaving the second boat far behind.
Genius Guy jumped up onto the front of the boat wearing sunglasses and swim trunks. “BIG KAHOONA!!!” Genius Guy shouted.
Torte smacked him hard with the PAN OF PERIL and knocked him into the icy depths.
“MAN OVERBOARD!” Changling called.
Once at the frozen dock, Torte hopped out and landed on the ice. Mini Moi proceeded followed by Changling, clad in a large parka matching the color of his robe. The second boat caught up with a frozen Genius Guy on board.
“Alright. Somevhere hidden in zis iceberg ist zat ancient artifact! Whoeveir finds it first, don’t touch it, und report to moi immediately! Zat peirson vill recieve an all expenses paid trip to ze pirate ship. Plus I’ll zhrow in an official Team of Terror Tote Bag!!!” Cap’n Torte announced.
The crowd appropriately responded with many oohs and aahs.
“Yes. Yes. It ist quite good. Now spread out und find it! If you find somezing, contact moi on our Valkie-Talkies. I’m on channel 2,” Cap’n Torte ordered.
Everyone shot out away, looking into different caverns. The hunt was on. Changling transformed into a motorcycle and sped down as fast as he could, thoughts of that tote bag inside his head, no doubt. Genius Guy and Embert paired up, as usual. Soshi went out alone, and the Apprentice followed his own path. Mini Moi and Torte also searched. But unknown to the Team of Terror, someone was watching them. They had stepped onto bad territory. And the owner wasn’t too happy about it...
Torte and Mini Moi quickly passed through crevices and canyons of ice. They barely had much to see. On the other hand, Genius Guy and Embert met lots of friendly penguins and seals in one room. Embert felt very cold in the arctic region, used to the heat of living in a volcano.
“Hello tuxedo-wearing friends! I am Genius Guy, and this lil’ fella here is Embert. He may look shy, but he’s got a red-hot personality!” Genius Guy said.
“Quack! Quack!” a penguin responded.
“Genius Guy! Those penguins can’t talk. And since when d-did penguins quack?” Embert asked.
“Shhhh! I can speak the language of birds, since I ate that dragon heart, remember?” Genius Guy said.
“But Genius Guy! Th-that was j-just in Dungeons and Dr-dr-dragons!” Embert argued.
“Oh... really?” Genius Guy asked.
“D-did I stutter?” Embert questioned.
“Well as a matter of fact you did,” Genius Guy answered.
“I did? Well gee wilickers! I’m, uh, not sure if I meant what I said anymore!” Embert replied.
“Well it doesn’t matter. I KNOW I can speak the language of seals!” Genius Guy exclaimed.
“You can?” Embert asked.
“Of course! BARK! BARK! BARK!” Genius Guy barked.
“Wouldn’t th-that be the canine language?” Embert asked.
“I don’t know. Hey you penguins, don’t seals bark too?” Genius Guy asked.
“Well yes,” a penguin answered.
“My mistake... HEY! Wait a second! You’re a penguin! You can’t talk!” Embert yelled.
“Come on, Embert! While you were talking to that penguin, this seal told me the way to a treasure! Let’s go!” Genius Guy beckoned.
Embert and Genius Guy scuddled out of the room quickly. A penguin walked up into the center of the room. “One day I’ll get that Batman! .... Quack!”
Changling was cruising down the icy path with no hesitation. His faced formed at the front of the motorcycle, like most of his non-living forms. Just then, the clumsy Apprentice walked out in front of Changling’s path. Changling tried to stop, but crashed into the klutzy chef-in-training. The two slammed into a cold, solid wall, with the humorous results of severe head trauma. (KIDS! HEAD TRAUMA IS NOT FUNNY. DO NOT PROCEDE TO TAKE A HAMMER OR OTHER SUCH BLUNT OBJECT AND BASH YOUR PARENTS’ HEAD IN. EVEN IF IT IS FUNNY.) The crash echoed throughout the caves. Changling reverted back to his normal form. “What were you doing?!” the Magikoopa yelled.
“ME?! What about you, I have the right-of-way! Didn’t you ever take Driver’s Ed?” the Apprentice yelled.
“As a matter of fact I failed and… wait! Do you hear something?” Changling asked.
They both became silent as a rumbling was heard. They looked up and dread came to them. A giant boulder of snow was falling down at them.
“RUN!!!” Changling shouted.
The two bolted like no one’s business.
Soshi, meanwhile had gone far off from the others. He was still feeling blue about being so lonely. He walked down a long crystallized cavern corridor. It was a breathtaking sight, much more decorative then the other pathways. Blue ice crystals were embedded in the white cavern walls. The path sparkled. Soshi exited the area and found a large room. In the center was a huge floating platform of clear ice, and below was a watery grave to anyone so unfortunate to slip and fall in. There were large clear ice window-like places on either side of the room. In front of Soshi, past the platform at the very edge of the room, was a small indented nitch, enough area for him to stand on.
Soshi grinned and took flight. His wings felt good to be stretched. He circled the room for anything he’d missed. He got a better view of one of the crystal window-like things. On the other side he could see a large ice crystal shaped like an oval. Soshi wondered what it could be when he heard a noise from above. He looked up and saw a lot of blue ice spikes hanging down. In the center of the ceiling, a large globular blue object hung from the ceiling. A yellow spike jutted out of its bottom. His breath becoming slightly strained, the blue dragon made a landing on the ice platform floating in the center of the room. He took a moment to find his balance. Once stable, Soshi stared up and saw the spiked blue ball start to fall. Soshi dove out of the way and it crammed into the platform. Soshi turned to see it.
It was an Ice Bully, a giant spherical creature, blue in color. It had no arms, but feet. A large yellow spike protruded from its head. The Ice Bully looked furious. The massive creature got upright on its green feet, and stood two times the height of Soshi. The frigid foe rapidly pumped his feet and let loose his built energy and charged Soshi. The blue dragon tried to run out of the way, but slipped on the ice and fell flat on his face, then got smacked across the platform. The Yo’ster of the sky sank his claws into the freezing ice the ground was crafted of, trying to slow down and stop. Soshi’s grip saved him as the dragon’s lower body dangled off the edge of the arena. He pulled himself on and changed into a defensive stance.
Nearby, Cap’n Torte and Mini Moi continued their search. They ended up outside a large crystalline window. They peered inside and gasped at Soshi fighting the Ice Bully. “Mon dieu! Vat ist he doing, vasting his time like zat? Cap’n Torte wondered.
Mini Moi looked up at his clone and shrugged his shoulders.
“Stop zat shrugging!”
Mini Moi turned and rolled his eyes. Down the long white path he and his larger self had just walked he noticed two figures skipping in their direction. Mini Moi made a 180 degree turn and tugged on Torte’s cape to get his attention. Cap’n Torte, now used to this, looked down and watched Mini Moi point down the path. The Cap’n gandered down the way and saw his misfit minions, Genius Guy and Embert, hustling to reach him. When they reached the captain and his clone, Embert gave out a huge sneeze.
“Vat’s wrong, Embeirt? You got a cold? Vait a second...” Cap’n Torte pondered.
“Oh! Mr. Foreign Dude!” Genius Guy asked before getting a face full of PAN OF PERIL. “I shoulda seen that coming, I guess...”
“Yeah, of all people you should haf,” Cap’n Torte said, dissatisfied.
“Eva I saw ... ah... ah... ACHOOOO! *sniff* ... dat combing,” Embert replied, his nasals filled.
Mini Moi just shook his head in shame. Genius Guy turned away from them and shed a single tear. He wiped it up, as well as the blood leaking down his face from the aforementioned assault. Genius Guy turned back and looked at Torte. “Forgive me. Anyhoo, as they say in my homeland of Iowa...”
“Iowa?! I tawt you wa from Sub-cond,” Embert asked.
“Nope. Born and raised a moronic hick, and I hope to die as one.”
“...”
“Hey, I zought ze Grand Glum Reapeir vas back vatching ze ship!”
“Sorry, dat was me,” Embert apologized.
“Oh, enough of zis banteir! Ve’re not a bunch of Iovan hicks like Genius Guy here!” Chef Torte snapped.
“Iowan? Nope, you must be mistaken. I told you that I’m native to Sub Way. I mean Sub-con. I could really go for a chicken pizziola right now... but the point is I’m not a stupid hick from Iowa.”
All the background fades to black and Genius Guy steps forward staring at YOU. “Just kidding. We’re just playing a bit, and Iowa is one of the most efficient lands on Earth. I don’t have any actual scientific evidence of it, but I do have this tidbit. Hey, it’s not Canada.” Large rainbow wording reading “The More You Know” with a star emblem appears above Genius Guy. The background turns back to normal.
“... Genius Guy vat ze vishupow are you doing?” Cap’n Torte asked.
“Uh... nozing! I know nozing!” Genius Guy said with a wink toward YOU.
“Anyvay do you haf any news on ze treasure?” Torte asked.
“Yes! A seal told me where to locate the best treasure of all!” Genius Guy said.
“ZE BEST TREASURE?! VHERE?!” Cap’n Torte pursued.
The Shy Guy attired in a lab coat took out a laser pen and shined the red light in Torte’s eye.
“AGGAH!”
“Sorry.” Genius Guy aimed the light at Cap’n Torte’s chest where his heart would be and made a circular motion with it. “It’s right here. Right here.”
Torte sighed and shook his head. “Anymore mozeirly advice zis seal gave you?”
“Well, there was this one other thing. Always turn-”
“MON DIEU!!!” Cap’n Torte said, throwing his PAN OF PERIL at the Shy Guy again.
“Ow… I expected that one,” Genius Guy said proudly.
“Hey you guys...” Embert queried. “Do you feel *sniff* dat rubbling?”
“Rubbling? Vat ist zis rubbling?” Cap’n Torte questioned.
“Rubbling. Grr... ru...bbling. AGGAH!!! I’b trying to say... ru... ru... RACHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!”
The sneeze echoed throughout the entire complex. A sudden quake was felt from below.
“Hey, does anyvone else feel zat rumbling?” Cap’n Torte asked. “Embeirt? Do you?”
Embert snorted and rolled his eyes. The faint cries of two imbeciles came into hearing range. As the screams grew louder, Changling and the Apprentice appeared from around a corner in the distance.
“Vat are zey yelling about?” Cap’n Torte asked.
Just then the gigantic snow boulder rolled in from the same direction and chased the two. Cap’n Torte exchanged a look and a nod with Mini Moi. They both shouted out, “MON DIEU!!!”
Soshi took another blow from the Ice Bully. He tried to get a firm grip on the ice, but ended up falling. The Ice Bully charged again but stopped in his tracks when a sudden shattering sound filled the air. Soshi turned to see everyone bust out of the room they had watched from, followed by a large snowball. They landed hard on the platform, and the ball of snow landed but continued rolling. The Ice Bully tried to avoid the oncoming snow boulder but slipped on the ice. The giant snowball pushed him off into the watery depths.
After a loud splash, the sore Team of Terror stood up on the platform of ice. Genius Guy walked over to the chef captain. “Hey Cap’n, why didn’t you just use the Hyper Plasma Cannon I installed in your PAN OF PERIL?” Genius Guy asked.
“Maybe because I DIDN’T KNOW IT HAD A HYPER PLASMA CANNON!!!” Torte shouted.
“Oh, well I meant to tell you. It’s the left trigger marked HPC,” Genius Guy informed.
“Zanks. Idiot,” Cap’n Torte replied, activating the H.P.C. The PAN OF PERIL glowed with a bright purple, pink, and blue. It burst out in an eruption of energy, nearly knocking the pirate backwards. Genius Guy was blasted into dust. The Apprentice vacuumed him up and placed the ashes into a jug marked “Useless Pile”. “Good verk, Apprentice!” Cap’n Torte said.
“Yeah. I’m into that whole Spring Cleaning thing too!” Genius Guy shouted from behind Torte.
“AGGAHHHHHH!!! DON’T DO ZAT!!! Und, how are you still alive?! Ve just vacuumed you up!!!” Captain Torte spazzed.
“Oh, that’s just one of my many duplicates. So let’s find us this treasure!” Genius Guy exclaimed.
Torte stared at him for a long time. “Yeah, vateveir. Moving on...”
The too-familiar sound of glass-like material shattering broke the semi-silence. The crystal window residing on the other side had now been broken. Soshi squinted and saw the oval-shaped ice chunk had been split open, and found it was hollow. A loud, abrupt flapping noise sounded from above.
“You boys are on my territory! This calls for a cold punishment!” a feminine voice threatened.
The Team of Terror turned their view upward and discovered a light-blue Birdo winking down at them. The Brido had large eyelashes and no bow on the top of her head, just a row of spikes going all the way down her back to her frosty tail. She was suspended in the air by a pair of white-feathered wings, flocking around.
“Hi there, I’m Crystal. Now it’s time for you to chill out!”
Iggy rubbed his claws together and folded his arms trying to keep in heat. His entire body was shivering, he was numb in his toes, nose, fingers, and tail. How he wanted to retreat into his comfortable shell and fall into a deep sleep.
“Oh... if only Lemmy were here... he’d actually enjoy this. Heh.” Iggy forced a chuckle.
Squinting ahead he saw a strange, almost familiar sight. He continued to stride forward, eager to find out what he was staring at. He could barely make it out... it was... a person. Someone in the distance was returning the stare back at him! But... who... or what... was it? Iggy again walked toward the figure. The size and shape was very recognizable. It stood shorter than himself, odd spiky hair, and a somewhat rounded body.
“... Lemmy?!”
The figure ahead jumped at the sound. It turned around and began running. Iggy, not sure what to make of it, forgot about his slowly dropping body temperature and pursued the figure. He chased it forever. After what seemed to be miles, Iggy stopped abruptly and fell to the ground. He had pushed himself to the limit. Whatever mischief was afoot, it bested the Koopa. Iggy closed his eyes as he felt the snow covering his body. Strange, no longer was he cold. Iggy’s last memory was the sound of crunching snow, like beneath someone’s feet...
Larry and Wendy decided to take a short break in a fairly sized room. One wall was covered in a reflective crystal; it was just like a mirror. Wendy stared into her image, posing as if modeling. Larry grunted and summoned up any heat left in him, and spat out a tiny fireball. The flaming sphere ignited in a small pit Larry had dug all the snow out of. Quickly, Larry emptied out any leaves or flammable items into the dying flames. It grew slightly in size, but wouldn’t last very long.
“Get over here before you catch frostbite, Wendy,” Larry snapped, but still looking out for his older sister.
Wendy snorted but felt happy that her brother was concerned for her health. She sidled over to the fire and hovered her claws above it. The smoke licked her hands. It was a soothing feeling, almost like a hot bath... almost. Wendy felt her head start to be kissed by the nippy weather. She reached into her shell and pulled out her classic hairbow. White with red polka dots, it rested on her head. Larry snickered. “What!?!” Wendy yelled.
“Oh nothing, sis. I was just thinking we could have used your wig to help the fire,” Larry laughed.
“WHY YOU LITTLE PUNK!!! I’M GONNA... huh?” Wendy said, confused.
Larry turned his head, curious to see what shut off Wendy’s tantrum. He eyed at the mirror wall but shook his head from side to side. “What’s the matter? What’s wrong?” he asked.
“My... my reflection. Look at it! It doesn’t have... my bow...” Wendy whispered.
Larry gave a chuckle in disbelief, but upon further inspection realized she was telling the truth. “... That’s just plain creepy!” Larry said, a shocked tone to his voice.
“It’s gotta be the cold... you can have crazy visions while in the heat, right? Well, this must be some side effect of the cold...” Wendy assumed.
“Yeah... it would also explain Lemmy’s crazy dreams of running a circus,” Larry explained. “But just in case... let’s get the shell out of here.”
“Good idea,” Wendy said before bolting to the exit.
Larry followed close behind and stopped to turn back and have one more glance. He stared at his reflection for a moment. Then it winked. Larry rubbed his eyes just in case. When he opened them again... everything was different. Almost... reversed. He looked at his reflection again. It stuck out its tongue and walked out of the room. Larry gasped and turned for the exit, but ran into a wall. “Ow! What’s going on?!” Larry asked aloud.
Taking in another glance, it hit him. Somehow... he had switched places with his “reflection”. Larry went the opposite way and entered through the opening. Inside was different than the way Wendy went. He was lost in some crazy Twilight Zone episode, was the only conclusion Larry could draw. He started searching for any way out...
The immense dark-orange foot of Roy slammed into the snow. The obese Koopa looked from side to side and snorted. “All right, where’d dat Morton wimp get off to now?”
The angered Koopa stomped through a large opening and arrived in a large descending room. He yelled and temporarily lost his balance. The portly punk clutched a nearby wall to steady himself. He took one long look down into the dark abyss. Who knows how far down it went.
“Hurry up and get over here, tubby!” Morton shouted.
Roy raised his head and gasped. Morton was on the other side of the pit, standing on a broken edge of long lost bridge. Roy scratched his pink cranium. “How da shell did you get over dhere?” Roy asked.
“Don’t doddle! Hurry up, here, use this to cross!” Morton called, tossing a long bronze-colored rope.
Roy reached and caught the end of it. He studied it for a second, and shook his head. “What do you expect me to do wit’ dis?” Roy argued.
“Grab a hold of the end, jump over, and then climb your way up here,” Morton said.
“Dis piece o’ junk can’t hold my uh... giant muscles,” Roy complained.
“Oh yes it can. This is a magic rope given to me by Kamek awhile back. There’s an entire story about it... in fact let me tell it...”
“SHUDDAP!!!” Roy roared.
The angered Koopa wrapped the rope around his waist, which by the way took a LOT of rope. He tied it and grabbed it tightly. Roy swallowed hard before taking the plunge. He screamed as he started falling, but was abruptly stopped with a slam into an icy wall. Roy opened his eyes and regained consciousness. He was dangling at the end of the rope, right next to the wall where he planned to go. The lightly embarrassed Koopa shrugged it off and dug his claw into the wall of ice above him. Using insane upper arm strength for his size, Roy climbed up and handed Morton the rest of the rope.
“Great, let’s go go go!” Morton said.
“Why’d I get stuck with you?” Roy asked, shaking his head in frustration. The two Koopas continued down the long frozen corridor...
Kammy and Kamek walked in silence through a poorly-lighted tunnel. Both of their wands’ gems glowed like flashlights. The path was full of things to trip over, snow to sink in, and ice to slip on. The two Magikoopas had performed a warming incantation on themselves to bare the cold. Kamek lifted his booted foot high and reached it over, expecting to crunch some more snow, but instead felt the slippery, smooth surface of ice. Kamek lost his balance and flipped on to his back. He winced in pain and groaned afterward. Kammy cackled at the klutzy Koopa. Kamek rubbed his back while standing up, and retrieved his wand from the ground. Both sorcerers waved their rods and activated a hovering spell. Kamek and Kammy’s feet lifted off the ground, and they floated across the icy floor until a more secure area. The two servants walked down a long spiraling pathway, almost like a staircase, for quite some time. When they reached the bottom, everything was dark. The freezing air was just barely making it through their heating spell. They must have been far into Proarctica by now. The sound of large footsteps came from the right. Both mages aimed their light in that direction, and uncovered a familiar face.
“Bowser?” Kamek asked.
“Yeah it’s me, Kamek. Funny running into you two here,” the Koopa King replied.
“Yes. But... Lord Bowser... why does your voice sound different? And... where is your son, Junior?” Kammy question.
“Um... well, Junior went off to... play. And my voice? Grr, I guess all this cold weather’s given me a bit of a cold…” Bowser answered.
Kammy and Kamek took one long look at the Koopa King, turned to each other, and nodded. They both fired an orb of purple electricity. It slammed into the turtle titan and shocked all over his body. Then in a poof of smoke, a different creature appeared in Bowser’s place, a strange being shrouded in mystery and a large gray cloak. It was a Duplighost. The Duplighost shifted its eyes and looked very nervous.
“Alright, what’re you trying to pull?” Kamek asked.
Kamek was answered. Not by the Duplighost but by a different voice hiding in the darkness.
“Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Leave that worm alone. It’s me you want,” the voice taunted.
Kammy and Kamek aimed their lights in every direction, looking for the source of the threatening voice. “Show yourself, quit hiding like a coward!” Kammy demanded.
“As you wish.”
The shadows that once covered the room vanished, an unknown source of light making the room visible. A very old-looking Magikoopa appeared, donning a tattered white robe speckled with blue shards of ice and wielding a long talisman of ice, the tip ending in a white diamond. A gnarly gray beard hung down from the Magikoopa’s pale chin. A sinister smile curled through the dried lips of the elderly wizard. Kamek looked at the fellow Magikoopa in disgust. Kammy sneered at the old Terrapin. His bony fingers of both hands wrapped around his scepter.
“Who are you? What is this foul play?” Kamek said with an angered tone.
“All you need to be aware of is the fact to... LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU!”
The gullible Magikoopas fell for the trick and turned. The white warlock pointed his Snow Scepter into the air and two spikes of ice formed from below, sealing Bowser’s two henchmen inside the massive stalagmites. The Magikoopa chuckled in amusement as the light faded and the darkness crept forth once again.
“Hey Poppa, which way should we go?” Junior asked.
Bowser turned his head in each direction. They had just entered a circular room from the back. There were three other paths to take.
“Well, how about...” Bowser started.
“Wait! I here voices...” Junior interrupted.
Bowser listened and heard them as well. He grinned when recognizing the annoying non-stop voice of his son Morton. Roy and the blabbermouth entered the room in front of Bowser.
“And then the rope was passed down to some loser named Gi-oshi, and... oh, hey King Dad!” Morton greeted.
“How’s it going boys? Find any Reznor yet?” Bowser asked.
“Nah, just Morton’s constantly runnin’ mouth. I preferred it when we was back on da boat,” Roy complained.
“Hey there’s someone else coming from the right, Poppa!” Junior exclaimed.
Two more of Bowser’s kin appeared from the right path. It was Wendy, who looked like she was dieing of the cold, and Larry, who seemed disturbingly comfortable.
“King D-dad! Oh th-thank goodness! We can l-l-leave and get back to the s-s-s-s-s-surface n-n-n-now, r-right??” Wendy begged.
“Sorry dear, we haven’t found the Reznor yet. Plus those idiots Kammy and what’s his face are still missing. Iggy too,” Bowser responded. “Here, give your brother Roy a big hug!”
“W-w-what?! NEVER!!!” Wendy screamed.
“Yuck! Get that thing away from me!” Roy shouted.
“His blubber keeps him extra hot. Me, Junior, and Morton are just the right size. Big enough to be warm, but even hotter in the looks department. Am I right?” Bowser asked.
A loud annoying hoot of maleness came from the three Koopas.
“So as I was saying, if you give him a hug, I’ll get to take an embarrassing photo. I mean, you’ll get some of his blubber warmth,” Bowser finished.
“I’M NOT FAT!!!” Roy erupted.
“Yes you are. You see, Wendy, you and Larry here are too scrawny. So why don’t you both get a big hug from your blubbery big brother?” Bowser suggested.
“Well... all, all right. I won’t like it though!” Wendy hissed, immersing herself straight into Roy’s gluttony.
“HEY!!!” the chubby Koopa said.
“Larry, it’s actually quite warming. C’mon, give it a try!” Wendy suggested.
“No thanks, I’m just fine,” Larry replied calmly.
Bowser eyed his son’s strange behavior but shook any deceptive thoughts away. Someone once told Bowser he was paranoid. Bowser took the advice, but had that subject killed because he was out to get him. “Well if we each came from one of those directions, to my left is obviously where we should progress!”
The others agreed and followed King Koopa into the dark cavern. After a time had passed they entered a large room. The ceiling went very far up, and a huge cave opening was on the other side of the room.
“The rooms are getting big... we must be close...” Junior deduced.
Just then, a large white object fell from the ceiling and slammed into the ground. The impact vibrated the entire room, and all who stood in it. Then another one fell with a great boom. And then another. The three roughly shaped round objects shook violently. The things started unfolding. An arm... two legs... a head with two sinister eyes of dark blue. All three creatures stood tall, though not quite as tall as Bowser. They were warriors, equipped with white metallic armor and large staffs they held in their left hands. A single horn jutted out of the top of their helmets. Then the three mysterious White Warriors started a slow march toward the Koopas. In a matter of seconds, someone gave the first strike...
Chapter 26: Skurmish with the Supernatural
The fierce battle between the ghost pirates and our heroes was on! Banshi and Yoshi, Mallow and Long Tongue Silver, and Splooshi fought with Skullshell. Captain One-Eye Guy laughed hideously before floating through the wall, leaving the six to fight.
Yoshi instantly was forced onto the defensive as Banshi pounced on his foe. Yoshi grasped Banshi’s shoulders and struggled to move the ghostly dinosaur off of him. Banshi didn’t budge, keeping Yoshi down with his weight. Banshi wrapped his rough, cool, bony fingers around the green dino’s neck and raised his other claw into the air. Yoshi started choking, and Banshi thrust his claws forward toward Yoshi’s face. The quick-thinking dinosaur launched out his tongue and countered the oncoming slash. Yoshi tugged on the arm with his tongue, and accidentally ripped it out of its socket. Yoshi tossed the arm from his tongue’s grasp as soon as possible. Horrifically the arm began to move on its own and crawl back towards Banshi. Yoshi remembered his fruit acid stored deep in his stomach, and spewed up some pink liquid at the monster. Banshi’s dried out flesh melted away as the corrosive juice landed on his chest. Banshi cried a terrible noise, hurting everyone’s ears in a mile radius. The Yoshi Ghost leaped off of Yoshi and went to retrieve his arm.
Mallow exchanged swings with Long Tongue Silver. Silver slashed with his blade, and Mallow with his Froggie Staff. Each weapon met with a loud collision. The Froggie Staff’s wood was crafted from the most magical of trees, so not even a steel sword could chop it. Mallow threw a powerful punch, stretching his arm into Silver’s face. The Boo pirate flipped backward in the air from the hard blow. Silver jammed his sword into the ground to stop flying. Then the ghost breathed in, filling its cheeks. Exhaling, Long Tongue Silver blew out a barrage of silver flames. Mallow gasped and was hit with the entire blast. Mallow rose after the assail and coughed. He turned his head, searching for his foe. The pirate Boo spun crazily towards the Cloud Prince. Mallow jumped out of the way of the mad monster. Long Tongue Silver turned around and revealed two blades, one in each hand. Then Silver pulled out another one from inside his mouth with his tongue. He threw each sword into the air and started juggling them. Once the swords were dancing fast enough, Long Tongue Silver charged Mallow.
Splooshi jumped back as the pursuing Skullshell continued swinging his cutlass horizontally in front of him. Splooshi had to think of something, but what? The Yo’ster decided to buy some time and jumped into the air and flutter-jumped over the zombified Koopa. Luckily by mistake, Splooshi fluttered too low and kicked Skullshell hard in his head, so hard that his head detached and flew across the room. Splooshi shrieked while landing and viewed the skull hopping back to its body. Splooshi felt a stern slice in his back as the tip of Skullshell’s cutlass glided through the light blue scales, leaking out blood. Splooshi turned and was terrified again, seeing Skullshell’s body attacking on it’s own. The injured dino ran in the opposite direction, still looking back at Skullshell’s body. Most unfortunately, Splooshi tripped over the hopping head of Skullshell and fell to the ground, slamming his head into the wall...
Yoshi recovered and turned to his opponent. The zombie dino reached down and retrieved his amputated arm from the floor, and slammed it back in the socket. He turned to face Yoshi, but noticed something flawed in his reattachment. His arm was backward. Banshi growled and ripped out the arm again. Then he turned it in the correct position and wiggled his bony fingers around. Banshi’s eyes met with Yoshi’s. The two hissed at each other and dashed forward. Yoshi jumped, throwing his feet forward, and Banshi leaped, aiming his razor claws in front. The two crashed together and ended up badly injured.
Yoshi looked down at his stomach to see six bleeding claw markings. Yoshi looked away at the gruesome sight. Banshi had a worse recoil. Yoshi’s feet pushed hard at his chest and split the zombie pirate in half. Banshi opened his eyes and looked to his feet; they were to the side of him. He gave a frightened grunt and then used his arms to lift his torso off of the ground. Banshi’s bottom half jumped to its feet, and walked into a wall. The torso side of the ghost caught up to its bottom, and jumped onto the top of it. Banshi looked down and saw his back and tail; once again he had incorrect positioning. The zombie Yo’ster turned around and felt its legs to reposition itself when Yoshi’s fist came into view and smashed right into Banshi’s face. The horrid creature’s torso spun rapidly on top of its legs. Finally it stopped and Banshi resumed his normal body shape, and resumed the fight.
Mallow stepped back in defense as the approaching Long Tongue Silver insanely juggled three sabers in his direction. Mallow continued back until he felt himself walk backward into a wall. Silver had him cornered! The pirate poltergeist increased his speed and dove for Mallow. Mallow reached his stretchy arms upward and grabbed onto a pipe. He pulled himself upward and dangled below the pipe, watching as Long Tongue processed what had happened. Mallow’s thoughts turned to the pipe. There may be water inside, and if it was frozen, the damage could be devastating. Mallow summoned up his magic force and transported the power of ice through his hands grasping the pipe. The pipe became very cold and started gathering ice crystals on it. Soon the entire pipe was covered in thick frost. By then Silver discovered Mallow and tossed his swords up at him. One stuck Mallow’s cape to the wall. The second one missed, and the final one stabbed into the pipeline. Mallow’s eyes widened as the icy water began to drip out. He let go of the pipe to fall to the ground, but stayed in the air, attached to his stuck cape. The pipe burst and the freezing water poured on Mallow’s entire body.
Splooshi’s eyes opened, and he shook his head. He yawned and sat up, wondering where he was and why his back hurt. Then it hit him. Well, then Skullshell hit him. A vertical swing chopped Splooshi’s saddle in half; the two pieces fell to the ground. Splooshi shouted and ran in the opposite direction. Skullshell pursued the frightened dino. Splooshi tried to think of something to do. The light blue Yo’ster had an epiphany and reached into his yellow cap. He pulled out the Fire Flower Mallow had given him, and pointed at Skullshell. Splooshi fired the item and the creepy Koopa was battered with the fireballs. As the Fire Flower ran out of flames, the result wasn’t promising. Skullshell was blackened in most areas, but that was the only visible damage done. Splooshi bit his lip. He was out of ideas. What else could he do to this thing? He had no items left, and he wasn’t very strong or good at all in close combat. Splooshi looked to either side of him; across the room his two friends were busy dealing with their own problems. Splooshi looked forward again, seeing Skullshell moving slowly toward him. The blue dino looked down in dismay, and noticed his lavender shoes...
Yoshi felt the warm liquid excavate from the pit of his stomach and rise up his esophagus. It was a disgusting feeling that he’d experienced many times before, but it didn’t get any easier each time. Yoshi tasted the bile he conjured up and sprayed it with great force at his enemy. So far this had been the most effective attack against the zombified Yo’ster pirate. Banshi recoiled and screamed its deafening shriek once again. Yoshi continued to spew up fruit acid, despite the painful cry. Smoke rose from Banshi’s chest as the corrosive juice vaporized his body. The monster fell limp and collapsed to the ground. Yoshi coughed up one last bit of fruit juice, and swallowed a convenient pack of Tic Tacs to get the awful taste out of his mouth. Turning to his fallen foe, Yoshi examined the body after the smoke dissipated. Banshi’s chest was no more, and a hollow inside was visible. It wasn’t a very comforting sight, but Yoshi breathed a sigh of relief. But his serenity was ended when Banshi’s arm jolted out and grasped Yoshi’s leg, pulling it from under him. Yoshi fell hard on his bottom and was slashed in the face with sharp claws before he could react. The green dinosaur then stood up and looked about him. Where was Banshi? Then he got his answer with a kick to the back of his head, and a plummit into unconsciousness...
Mallow was drenched with the frigid water, and literally pushed to the ground by the force of it. After it had all leaked down upon him, Mallow started shivering like crazy. He tried to wrap himself up in his cape, but it provided no warmth. Then something else wrapped around his body, something much thicker and smoother. It was moist but warm, and almost like a blanket. He must have fallen asleep and was dreaming, because the Cloud Prince felt as if he were floating in the air. Then hot gusts of air rhythmically crushed against his cold body. Mallow opened his eyes slightly during a yawn and saw a brief glint of silver. SILVER! Mallow’s eyes widened and the puffy prince realized he was being constricted by Long Tongue Silver’s long silver tongue! He scrambled to get free of the crushing force, with no success. Mallow had to think of something; he felt his organs push up against his exterior as the tongue slowly crushed him...
Splooshi looked up again and saw Skullshell nearing him. He had to throw something at him. His shoes were the only objects worthy of the job that he still possessed. Hey, it was something. Splooshi reached down and quickly pulled off each lavender sneaker. He stood up and hurled one at the approaching antagonist. It slammed into his right shoulder, and broke his arm off. It was the arm holding the cutlass, and it fell to the floor with a loud TWANG. Skullshell turned to look at his amputated arm, when Splooshi shot his other shoe at him. This shoe packed a real kick. It collided with his ribcage and shattered his entire body into several pieces. Splooshi smiled triumphantly, until he noticed all of Skullshell’s shards starting to shake. Then they began hopping toward each other, to reform the body. Splooshi rushed over to where they started to gather, and kicked all the parts in different directions across the room. They continued to hop together, while Splooshi was stuck in the middle. What could he do to stop them once and for all?
A gleam in the corner of his eye attracted Splooshi’s gaze. The cutlass was still on the ground, surpassed by Skullshell’s fragments. The blue dinosaur hopped over to it and pulled it up with both hands. Splooshi stepped back a few feet as he lifted it into the air. Then he turned and looked for the source of the beast. Where was his head? The hopping skull of the sea demon slowly made its way to where other pieces had already started reforming the body. Splooshi dashed toward the head of Skullshell. It noticed the oncoming dinosaur and gasped. The skull started hopping frantically in the other direction. Splooshi ran as fast as he could, trying to catch it. Meanwhile the rest of Skullshell’s body was completely reformed, and started searching blindly for Splooshi.
Splooshi chased Skullshell into a corner and raised the cutlass, with the point aiming down. Right as he was about to send it slamming down to end the fight, two bony claws wrapped around his neck, cutting off his air supply. Splooshi dropped the cutlass, just missing Skullshell’s head. The dinosaur reached back and tried to release the grip on his neck. He pulled with great strength and ripped the arms out of the socket. Unfortunately they continued choking him. Splooshi couldn’t break free of the arms, he had to destroy Skullshell to save himself. Struggling to stay alive, Splooshi grabbed the cutlass in both of his scaly hands again. He turned and gave Skullshell a jumping kick in the face, which had reattached itself to his body. The head of the crazed pirate ghost flipped off and across the room. Splooshi amazingly rushed across the floor, despite not being able to breathe, and reached Skullshell’s head. With his last ounce of strength, he lifted the cutlass and slammed it into Skullshell’s head. Then Splooshi blacked out.
Mallow’s body was in extreme pain, and it was about to get worse. The Cloud Prince attempted to cry in pain, but was cut off. Mallow looked around at the metallic tongue... wait, metallic? An epiphany came over Mallow. How could he have been so dumb? Mallow summoned up his energy and released all the electricity he could muster. It was only the strength of a mere Thunder Bolt attack, but was increased tenfold due to the metal tongue. Long Tongue Silver’s entire body was consumed by blue bolts of lightning, zapping everywhere on him. The grip on Mallow was released and he fell down to the floor. Mallow crawled out of the way and turned to watch as Long Tongue Silver continued to fry. Silver’s exterior began bubbling, his eyes rapidly changing to random colors, and his tongue kept eliminating a formation of the lightning bolts reading “Eat at Joe’s”. The boils on Long Tongue’s body started bursting, spewing out purple flem. In one final explosion, Long Tongue Silver was no more, and Mallow got smothered in the disgusting purple goo. Yet he still managed to smile.
Yoshi’s vision returned abruptly. Slowly the image of Banshi faded in. Banshi had one claw raised very high and was about to send it down. Yoshi reacted hastily and rolled to the left. Banshi stabbed his hand into the wooden floor and just missed Yoshi. The green dinosaur got to his feet and unraveled his mighty tongue. It snapped out and roped itself around Banshi’s body, and pulled him in. The cheeks of a Yoshi are quite complex. The insides are made of an elastic-like material, which allows for huge objects to be inside them. Thus, it was possible for Yoshi to have slurped up Banshi. The green dinosaur chomped down on his enemy. It tasted terrible, but was effective. Then Yoshi summoned up his stomach acid again and kept his mouth closed. Though he would need to guzzle down an entire tube of toothpaste to get rid of the aftertaste, he swished it around his mouth while biting down on Banshi. Then after he could take no more, Yoshi spat out everything in his mouth that wasn’t connected. A smoking hunk of melted flesh was the only remain of Banshi, and it was doused in the fruit acid. Yoshi scratched at his tongue with his hands, attempting to rid the awful taste. The green dinosaur was horrified when a hand touched his shoulder and Yoshi jumped away in fright. He turned and laughed, seeing it was only Mallow.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you,” Mallow chuckled.
“It okay, it okay,” Yoshi said grinning. His look became concerned suddenly. “Where’s Splooshi?”
“I’m right *cough* here…” a weak Splooshi gasped from behind.
Splooshi walked up to his two friends, rubbing his throat with one hand. The other dragged the cutlass behind him. Yoshi and Mallow walked over and helped him stay balanced. Mallow pulled out a green aluminum can. It was some refreshing Kerokero Cola. He took a long sip and passed it to Yoshi. The green dinosaur gulped down a small amount, and gave the rest to Splooshi.
“Thanks guys,” Splooshi said, slurping down the majority of the soft drink. Splooshi’s energy rapidly came back to him, and he gave a tiny burp when wiping his lip. Yoshi and Mallow laughed and Splooshi joined in. Their good mood was shattered with a familiar laugh.
“Oh ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho ho!” Captain One-Eye Guy rose from the floor again, his long saber in hand. “An’ just what do ye think you’re celebratin’? Once I finish ye off, I’ll use yer dead bodies fer my mates’ new ones. But that doesn’t mean I won’t cut ye to shreds!”
Chapter 27: The Internal Struggle of Stario
Luigi sighed as he stared down at his unconscious brother. Well, the reincarnation of him, as Stario. In his hand he held the map and information given to him by Gary the Traveling Nodimouse. Stario’s eyelids were twitching frantically. Luigi recognized this as a sign of someone dreaming. His face looked frightened, and confused to Luigi. “What is-a happening to you?” Luigi asked aloud.
Deep, deep down inside Stario’s body, his mind, his spirit, his soul, something was happening. Stario awakened then, but deep inside of himself, in a realm that each person has inside themself. Stario’s mind awoke first, then his vision and other senses were restored. Finally his physical form appeared. Stario floated precariously in this realm. His mind was perplexed. Where was he? Was he dead? All that was surrounding him was a dark fog of mystery. Slowly he took it in. His memory started kicking in, and this place began seeming very familiar. But when was he here before? That’s when it hit him. This was the place of his birth! But how could he be here? He had been here once before when he was born, when Mario and the Crystal Star had combined into one, himself. But during that time, the realm wasn’t dark. It was composed of pure light. What had happened? Stario didn’t like the new change. The Heroic Hybrid tried to move himself, and flipped forward suspended in the air. He tried to move again, and this time was able to control himself. He started drifting around the strange world, looking for anything that might clear up some confusion.
After hours and hours of floating around aimlessly, Stario found something hidden in the darkness. From where he was he could only see a twinkle, but he was sure something was there. He flew forward to it and studied the object. It was his Star Saber, only it had been split into several pieces. Tiny fragments of ruby, sapphire, emerald, diamond, and star littered the area around the blade. The Star emblem on the hilt of the sword had lost its golden glow, and now was a ghastly gray. Stario reached a hand out to touch it, but his arm passed straight through the sword. Stario pulled back his arm in frustration. Now he was becoming angry, what was going on? Why was he here? As these thoughts filled his head, Stario felt like the room closed in on him. He turned and searched for the Star Saber, but it had vanished. The majestic hero continued flying onward through the darkness, hoping to find something of relevance.
More time passed, but here time didn’t exist. Stario only felt his impatience growing. After what seemed to be centuries, Stario found something. There were two figures in the distance, unmoving. Stario floated forward and gasped at the sight.
One of the figures was Mario, floating in the air. His eyes were closed, his mouth shut, and his arms, legs, and head hung down. His skin was a frightening color, a sickly gray. It was the same as the Star emblem on the hilt of the Star Saber. Mario’s clothes were tattered and torn, in the same condition as they were when he was fighting Vuljiin. Instead of the “M” symbol on Mario’s cap, there was nothing in the white circle. Stario shook his head, this was insane. Everything was insane. How could he and Mario co-exist like this? What had happened to Mario? Stario turned his vision to the other figure floating next to Mario. It was much smaller in size. It was the Crystal Star. Stario examined the ancient treasure carefully. Thin, dark cracks like lightning bolts covered the Crystal Star. It was the same gray as Mario, and its eyes were dark and distant, like the same darkness that acted as a canopy to the realm where Stario existed now. When Stario looked at both the Crystal Star and Mario, he saw the exact same thing. They looked in the same condition, the same emotionless expression, the same distant feeling. What did this mean?
“Stario...” a voice came from behind.
The powerful plumber turned around quickly and found no one. The voice spoke again, it sounded faded and elderly.
“Stario, I am your ancient ancestor.”
A brilliant golden glow illuminated the entire world of darkness Stario existed in. The golden glow shaped itself to be a rather large Star, bigger than any Star Spirit. Two black eyes appeared above the center of the front of the Star.
“I am the Champion of the Cosmos, I am the defender of Plit. My name is unspeakable in your native tongue, so you should simply call me Defender,” the ancient star spoke, now more youthful.
Stario took a few minutes to comprehend Defender’s words. “How... how can you be my ancestor? You’re a Star!”
“Ah, child. I meant ancestor not as in blood, but as in spirit. You see Stario, I am the crafter of the Star Saber,” Defender responded.
Stario looked to Defender’s right point, which was used like an arm. Above it floated the broken Star Saber. Defender closed his eyes and with a white flash, the Star Saber was reassembled. Defender held the majestic weapon in his “hand” and pointed it upward. A multicolored glow shot out from the sword and the realm’s darkness vanished. It was now an eternal world of white.
“Stario, only those chosen by the heavens can wield my weapon, to vanquish the very essence of evil,” Defender said. “And as you know, the Star Saber is with you as we speak.”
Stario reached back and unsheathed the Star Saber. It hadn’t been there before. He looked up and Defender no longer held the weapon.
“However, Stario, though you may posses my blade, it was not intended for you. It was meant for another.”
“What? Who?” Stario asked.
Defender’s gaze turned from Stario to behind the hybrid. Stario turned slowly and saw him looking in Mario’s direction.
“... It was for Mario?” Stario asked.
“Yes. Mario was the one chosen by the Stars, but he made the mistake of combining with the Crystal Star, and this is how you came to be,” Defender told Stario.
“I still don’t get it, I thought only those chosen by the Stars could use the Cosmos Crystals...” Stario asked.
“This is true, and Mario did use it, he created you. He was so close to death, he could not use the power for himself, but created a completely new identity to use it...”
“And that’s me...” Stario mumbled.
“Yes. This seemed to be fine as you fought with Vuljiin and obviously had the upper hand. But now something terrible is happening. Though you, Stario, appear to be fine, the two forces making you exist, the Crystal Star and Mario... are dieing,” Defender warned.
“What?!” Stario shouted.
“Yes. Do you not see the state of their bodies? They are completely dead on the outside. Now they’re struggling to stay alive on the inside. And if they die, you die. Then Vuljiin will easily conquer this world, and the rest of the universe.”
“... I don’t see what... what I can do to help. Why are you telling me this, Defender? You’ve practically just told me I am going to die, all my friends are going to die and it’s my fault. What’s wrong with you?” Stario screamed in his rage. “I HATE YOU!!!”
Stario thrust the Star Saber forward and fired a beam of golden light at Defender. The Champion of the Cosmos teleported away from the blast and behind Stario.
“Listen to me. I am not telling this to you because I wish it upon you. I’m telling this to you, because you still have a chance to stop Vuljiin,” Defender argued.
“What? I do?” Stario said, calm now.
“Yes. All your friends, Plit, the universe, all of that can be saved. Your strength is decreasing, Stario, and Vuljiin knows this. This is why he’s taken shelter so far away.”
“My strength is decreasing?” Stario said, ignoring the last bit of Defender’s information.
“Yes. Don’t you remember the battle with Ekin? You could have easily destroyed him with the power you had when fighting Vuljiin. But he defeated you easily,” Defender said.
“Ekin... oh no! I collapsed on the ground, what happened to me and Luigi?!” Stario asked.
“That is not of importance now. All you need to know is that you are safe, and Ekin is dead. Now heed my words. Vuljiin is hiding from you, because he knows there is still a chance that you can defeat him. If you hurry and find him, you will be able to save everything from his grasp, and possibly, save yourself,” Defender replied.
Stario thought for moment, and looked down at the Star Saber. It was restored to its original shape, but the Star emblem still did not glow.
“Do not worry about that, child,” Defender said, reading Stario’s thoughts. “Its light will come back when you are ready for it to. But you must stop Vuljiin before Mario and the Crystal Star reach their eminent demise.”
“Defender...” Stario started. “How can I beat Vuljiin, with my limited powers? I couldn’t even defeat Ekin...”
“Trust in your comrades, Stario, even those who are not there. They are as worried about you as you are of them. Now Stario, it’s time for you to rest. Yes, fall into a deep sleep and regain your lost power. We will meet again...”
Stario reached his hand out as Defender’s light dimmed and eventually disappeared. Stario placed the Star Saber back into its sheath and closed his eyes as the darkness enveloped the realm again...