Chapter 1, Part 1: Mario in the Clouds
Mario and the Goomba emerged, the Goomba now awake, out of Starly's flaming portal. They were in some sort of tunnel, behind them the tunnel's entrance. At the entrance were five steps leading to a brick wall. "The entrance must be blocked up behind all the bricks," the Goomba said.
The brick wall had a long, vertical crack running across it.
"Er... Mario? I never told you my name. It's Goombrian. I have the tattle ability and the headbonk attack, and I hope they serve us well," the Goomba, now Goombrian, said.
Mario nodded and they continued on their way. As they took a few more steps, three Goombas walked in their direction from the tunnel's end.
They were stranger than the average Goomba. They each had dark gray heads and the rest of their body was pure black. The three of them had an evil air. "Hey, those are the ones Twilight summoned!" the leader of the three said.
"What are these freaks talking about, Mario?" Goombrian asked, seeing that they just made a new enemy.
"What did you just call us?" a follower said angrily.
"Bah, just tell us where the Twilight spirit is before we beat it out of you!" the third yelled.
"Like we'll tell you!" Goombrian responded. "Seriously, though, how should we know where the Twilight spirit is?"
Mario took out
his hammer. A new battle had begun.
Chapter 1, Part 2
The two parties charged at each other, each expecting the other’s immediate downfall. Mario got his hammer ready and sunk it into the leader of their enemies. That Goomba was to be sent flying.
The Goomba leader only flinched.
Goombrian pulled out his book from under his umbrella hat. "Okay..." He started to flip rapidly through the pages. "'Goomba Agent'... So this was what Starly told you about... 'stronger than you average Goomba'... Mario, their attack and defense are a point higher than normal!"
Mario dodged the two follower Goombas' headbonks, but than the lead agent came back to attack.
Mario lost two
hit points.
Chapter 1 Part 3
Mario: 8/10
Mario was hit.
Goombrian was right. These Goomba agents were stronger than normal.
Mario jumped on one of the followers while Goombrian followed with a headbonk. That Goomba passed out.
At that point Mario calmed. The Goomba agent's Hit Points were the same as any other old Goomba. They just had stronger attack and defense.
The leader and his remaining follower both charged for another headbonk. These Mario and his Goomba partner both superguarded against. Just then the leader passed out as well.
Mario smirked
and held his hammer as Goombrian said, "Had enough?"
Chapter 1 Part 4
"Argh, now it's so dark, I can't see!"
Mario and Goombrian won yet another battle. The remaining Goomba agent fled, leaving his enemies the victory. Now their objective was to get to the other end of the tunnel. Looking ahead, they could only see the blackness of the hallway. The end couldn't be seen.
They walked for a while, upcoming Goomba agents only adding to Goombrian's frustrations. After a few battles, the two of them reached a dead end.
Goombrian started to mumble curses as Mario found a place to sit. "... Mario, what are you sitting on?"
Mario stood up for Goombrian to look. A warp pipe!
"Ah! There's our way out of this! C'mon, Mario!" exclaimed the Goomba. And both of them jumped in.
When they emerged, Goombrian was dumbstruck. In front of them were the tallest doors he had ever seen. Both of the doors were made of stone, engraved with pictures of clouds and soaring birds. At a high point of the two doors were engraved the words: Cloud City.
Mario and Goombrian
had made it there.
Chapter 1, Part 5
After less than a few seconds of staring, the doors burst open.
"Mario!" Goombrian tackled Mario to the side of the room as an army of Goomba agents ran out.
"Ditch this place! We'll come back later with better reinforcements!" one said. He was wearing a black army helmet and a badge.
"Aye, sir!" chorused his followers.
"But one of our commanders is still in there!" one shouted.
"Forget her! Let's just go!"
The stampede only lasted for seconds as it quickly disappeared.
"Geez... You all right, Mario?" Goombrian asked. Mario nodded. "'Kay... What was that all about?"
The two of them walked through the high, stone doors. Then they entered Cloud City.
Cloud City was a truly magnificent place. Stone towers soared high into the air, only to be overcome by the high, seemingly endless walls. The only thing that grew over the walls was an edifice buried behind many towers.
Beyond the main doors was the plaza, lined with shops, an inn, and houses with signs labeling what was what. A villager Koopa emerged from the inn.
"Ah! More visitors," she said. "My name's Koo-Kally. I'm the innkeeper of the local inn. This is the city of skies, Cloud City."
Goombrian responded. "I'm Goombrian and this is my friend, Mario. We're on an important mission right now. By the way, a stampede of Goombas just ran out. What the…?"
"Oh, that. They just ventured too far to the castle."
"...? Why, what's there?" Goombrian asked.
"Well..." Koo-Kally started a grimace. "There's a monster living in Cloud Castle."
Mario and Goombrian
started. A monster!
Chapter 1, Part 6
Luigi started to quiver as startled thoughts raced in his head. What happened? How could it happen? Why did it happen?
Where's Mario?
After he came to his senses, he started searching the rubble for his brother, calling his name. No success.
Then something stirred behind him.
"Is this supposed to be the house of Mario?" one riding a black cloud with a black shell asked, a scowl on her face. She wore a scarf striped with black and dark gray, and a black helmet. There were more with black shells and clouds behind her. An army-full.
Lakitu agents!
Chapter 1, Part 7
Mario and Goombrian were at in the lobby of the inn called Skyefield Inn.
The Koopa named Koo-Kally had a green shell and wore a jumper striped with shades of blue. Her hair was tied up and hidden underneath a dark red bandana.
Mario and Party listened to Koo-Kally as she told her story.
"Cloud City used to rest on a big, thick cloud," Koo-Kally explained. "Every year, the cloud lessens, bit by bit, making us descend. And once a year, the cloud is fully disintegrated. We land on the ground, only to have the cloud reform and rise the next day."
"Are we on the ground right now?" Goombrian interrupted.
"Yes, and the city's been there for restless months. It's not normal," she added, keeping her frown. "Last time we descended to the ground, we never came back up. That's because of the monster."
Mario jumped to a stand, his hammer out. He was ready to fight the monster, whatever it was.
However, Goombrian wasn't so eager. "How do you know a monster's causing all your problems? It could just be something natural..."
"A few of us, me included, went up to Cloud Castle to find out what was going on. Just then, the king ran outside, but something dragged him back in the castle. Everybody who went up there, including me, all ran." Koo-Kally paused.
"... Mario, do you think that the first brooch piece is in Cloud Castle?" Goombrian asked. Mario nodded. "Good, than we won't be wasting our time. Let's go!"
Koo-Kally called to them as they walked out of the inn. "Don't tell me you're going there?"
"Yep, we are," smirked Goombrian, "to fulfill part of our mission... and to kick that monster's butt!"
Mario and party went on to Cloud Castle, Koo-Kally's calls ignored.
Their adventure
was getting better and better!
Chapter 1, Part 8
"There it is," Goombrian said.
After navigating through the city, Mario and Goombrian finally found Cloud Castle.
Over the walls it rose, for everyone to see it- and for it to see all. It was stone like the other buildings. The castle looked nicer than the city itself, with the wonderful addition of being covered with vines.
... Vines...?
Mario gawked in amazement. Ever since he’d set foot in the cement-floored city, he hadn't seen a single garden. The king, though, had the luxury of elegant vines.
"Mario, look at that!" exclaimed Goombrian.
The vines were moving. Pulsing. Throbbing. Quaking. This was not your average plant.
Mario and Party stood frozen in wonder. The vines pulsed so much that they almost didn't notice the Goomba agent creeping up behind them.
Goombrian turned around and immediately tackled him with a charged headbonk. The agent fainted dead away. Mario nodded at Goombrian in appreciation and whacked the Goomba agent awake.
"What was that for?" the agent moaned.
"That's what I should be asking you, lad."
"I got separated from the rest of the group," the agent said, "so I thought I might as well find one of our missing commanders."
"Missing?"
"Aye, she and
her army are probably in the monster's clutches right now..." Mario and
Party sat on the floor as the Goomba agent told his story.
Chapter 1, Part 9
It was about an hour before Mario and Co. came upon the castle, the Goomba agent explained to them. The army-hatted Goomba (see Part 5) led an army of Goomba agents. Koopa agents, with black shells, were there too. Alongside the Goomba commander was the Koopas' representative.
She was a Koopa girl with a black shell as well. Her hair was long and brunette with a black-flowered headband, and she wore a black mini-skirt dress with a gray, unzipped jacket. She had a look of cute innocence and a fake smile on her face.
"Looks like we can't go in, huh, Captain?" she said, cheerfully. The two were staring at the vined walls.
"... I know," he replied, cursing under his breath. "… Where do you think you're going?"
"I'll go in alone," she said. "You take my army with you and report back. I know how to deal with these things."
"No, I won't," he responded. "I'm not letting you steal the brooch piece for yourself. I'll have to go in, too, with the army."
"Okay then..." she said with a real smirk.
The two commanders and their army walked in through the castle doors. Vines were everywhere, even the on the ceiling, floors, and walls. Then the two heard a roar and saw the biggest, most vicious thing they’d ever seen. "Everyone out this instant!" the Goomba commander screamed.
Everyone in the
Goomba's army stampeded out. The Koopas stayed.
Chapter 1, Part 10
"What on Plit is happening to me?" Luigi thought.
"Well? Is it?" the female Lakitu agent demanded.
Luigi only stood frozen in fear as he waited for his enemies' move. When he spoke, he did all he could to sound composed, but emitted a quaky mumble. "It was," Luigi answered. "Did you need him for something?"
The lead Lakitu agent smirked. "No, we need you. You're the hero's brother, aren't you?"
Luigi just stood there. He didn't dare to shudder.
The Lakitu realized that he wasn't going to talk. "... Lakimi. We're attacking. Now," she said. A Lakitu, scarf wrapped around her head like a hood, charged forward. "He'll make a fine hostage!" Lakimi's leader said. Lakimi pulled out and threw a Spiny egg.
Just then, a loud
noise was heard and the area filled with smoke. Smoke covering their eyes,
the Lakitus were chaotic. Luigi blacked out, hitting his head in the confusion….
Chapter 1, Part 11
Luigi stirred. Home again. The strange Lakitus, the explosion... just a silly little nightmare. Or so he thought.
He jumped back to reality as he looked around. Luigi was in a completely different room. The light blue wallpaper on the walls was peeling off. There was a bookshelf with unsorted books in messy piles, with doorframes across the room slightly cracked. A warp pipe in the corner was darkened with dust. Not to mention he was lying on a black, broken down couch with his head hurting from the black out.
Luigi's instincts flashed in. He jumped up, ignoring his head pain, and leapt into action. Though it was somebody else's home, he still had some serious cleaning to do.
Moments later, a Tanoomba came from the warp pipe. "What, is cleaning all you're good for?" he said.
Luigi stopped. "Cooking, too," he mumbled.
"Ah, be grateful. I saved you from that mess. I even got you some food..."
Luigi nodded. "What's happening?" he said, still in a mumbling tone.
"I can't say for
sure. Let Rosin fill you in," he said gruffly. "My name is Tanoon. While
Rosin threw her bombs, I was able to get you outta there after you passed
out."
Chapter 1, Part 12
The Goomba agent fled after telling his story. Mario and Goombrian nodded to each other as they finally opened the two stone doors and set foot…
Into Cloud Castle!
Before their eyes, there were floors of hexagon stone tiles and walls with cloud carvings, all covered by those throbbing, pulsing vines.
Stone doors were at the other side of the entrance room, with the room being packed with Koopa agents and, strangely enough, Piranha Plants. (Cloud City was originally groundless.)
In a flash, Mario and party fought their way through the room, to the waiting stone doors.
They fought through room after room, each having the same characteristics and enemies (including the occasional Paratroopa). When the two of them reached the mid-castle, they decided to rest after defeating that room's set of enemies.
"Mario, before our adventure, I packed a few Mushrooms." Goombrian pulled two out of his hat and passed one to Mario. The two prepared to eat. "May these serve us well on our journey!"
Mario ate his in a mouthful. Just as Goombrian was about to eat his, though, he heard a chilling voice.
"Heh, what are outsiders like you doing in a place like this?"
A Koopa agent.
And she had on the greatest fake smile.
Chapter 1, Part 13
Mario and Goombrian were surprised. With a jump, Mario took out his hammer as Goombrian took out his book.
The Koopa girl had long, brown hair and black clothing, just like the Goomba agent described. She even had the black shell and the fake smile.
"This castle doesn't belong to you," she said, giggling during short pauses. There was a silence, Goombrian fighting hard not to object. She continued. "My Koopas are honored guests here. Of course," she sensed their rising frustration, "I can convince them to let you stay here... But you're looking for the Brooch Piece, too, aren't you?"
Goombrian looked up. "What are you babbling about? You know that monster?"
"Though I would have just asked you to leave," her eyes narrowed, "I will let you die here... because of my job and the new owner of the castle..." She giggled again. "Here's a bargain. Instead of being slowly bitten to death, I'll give you the honor of dying in my hands."
As she converted
into her black, shell form, Goombrian decided to read his book. Her shell
began spinning slowly, than rapidly, as Goombrian read. Before he could
say anything, something shot a big hole in the wall behind them, the vines
moving out of the way and back.
Chapter 1, Part 14
It was her shell that made the hole. In a flash the shell came back, this time with better aim as she neared Mario. Mario narrowly deflected it with his hammer, but the shell just hit a wall and came back. This time he dodged it, but the rapidly spinning, black shell just kept on bouncing back in a pinball-like way.
This only repeated as a series of shell tosses and dodges. Quickly moving out of the way from the bullet-like shell, Mario listened as Goombrian explained the situation. "Her name's Koopia, known as the 'Giggling Bullet'. 15 HP, 3 ATK, and a normal 1 DEF. Uses a variety of shell toss attacks, and she can speak to Piranha Pla-"
Immediately he was cut off by the Giggling Bullet. Her shell hit him square in the face, and he fainted just like that. Mario became slightly confused then. Goombrian should have been stronger than that.
A short distance away, she finally stopped and landed on the vine-covered floor, converting back out of her shell. "I charge power twice as fast as every other normal Koopa. What I do is to charge, than use my Shell Pinball attack. I just keep charging every time it bounces, making my attack more powerful each time!" She giggled yet again. "Besides, he was weak from all the previous rooms. I didn't even give him a chance to recover." She went back into her shell. "You two both would make great food for the Piranhas, you know..."
Mario held out
his hammer in a battling stance. A duel began!
Chapter 1, Part 15
Luigi and Tanoon were conversing when Rosin finally appeared through the doorway. Rosin was a young, pink Squeek. (A Squeek is what Mouser and Ms. Mowz are.) The Squeek complained to Tanoon as she rubbed sleep from her eyes. "Ah, Tanoon, you're late. Idiot."
"Don't talk like that to me," he snapped. "You were asleep when I came... Do something useful and explain what happened to... er... Mr. Green here."
"Right." She turned to Luigi. "For some reason, your house was blown up. When you came to see it, you were attacked by some gothic Lakitus. Those are called Lakitu Agents. They work for a powerful yet evil spirit, the Spirit of Darkness. Many other creatures work for him, too. Your brother is currently on a quest to find the Spirit of Light and put her into hiding. Right now you have to be kept here since you may be used as a hostage."
But Luigi could not believe his ears. His brother was alive! "So my brother's really alive?" He wanted to clarify. Rosin said yes and told him to get some rest, much to Tanoon's disapproval.
______
As Luigi fell asleep on the broken down couch, Tanoon started to speak to the Squeek. "Let's keep an eye on this green guy... You never know what could happen."
"Aye," Rosin agreed. "Just like that other one... What was his name? That weird plumber had it a lot worse than ol' greenie. And look what happened to him."
______
Luigi thought as he slept, taking no notice of the words he subconsciously heard.
My brother's not dead...
... So why
am I disappointed...?
Chapter 1, Part 16
The duel went on and on, nothing breaking the cycle of shell tosses and dodges. After dodging for what seemed like forever, Mario finally snuck in a hit with his hammer. The hit sent Commander Koopia flying!
Koopia was thunderstruck. The hammer sent her, in shell form, through another hole in the wall and outside that cursed castle. She converted out of her shell and recovered. The castle door was right in front of her. Looking around, she saw the stares of four citizens who "just happened" to be passing by. Seeing them, she immediately turned to the doors and advanced, ignoring a Koopa girl's call. Her mission was not over yet.
The four citizens who witnessed the event murmured.
"Did you see that, she just blasted through the high wall?" one of the four, named Koopin, said in awe. White ribbons were braided into her long, dark blue hair, and she wore a white, knee-length dress with a green shell.
"She even survived the fall. That spot where she fell from... It's like, what, almost as high as the walls that border the city!" another named Everkoop pointed out. She had lilac hair that ended in curls and wore a frilly black dress. Everkoop had a green shell.
Koo-Kally was one of the four. She stepped up. "Then I guess that means Mario and Goombrian are nearing the end of the castle... the high tower that soars over the bordering walls!"
"Who are you talking about, Kally?" a Koopa girl named Koonsa asked. She had short, brown-orange hair and wore a long, green scarf with a matching shirt and a denim skirt. Like most good Koopas, she had a green shell.
"Us four came here to tell the king of our crisis long ago, and instead we found those stupid vines. Then, that weird army of Goomba and Koopa goths came and invaded the place... They said they were going to find the king for us, but they probably lied. Then those two came... A man in red and a Goomba. They actually took the story more seriously, and were willing to help find our king. How can I not believe that?" Koo-Kally sighed. "They’ve got really far. Hope they'll find a way out of this." She turned to her three friends. "C'mon, let's help them out. That's what I brought you here for, anyway."
Her friends only
stared. "Are you crazy?" said Koopin.
Chapter 1, Part 17
Dark Agent Commander Koopia ran through the castle rooms, eager to catch up with Mario and Goombrian as she pushed Koopa agents out of her way.
Running while thinking, she finally thought of how Mario defeated her. "Now I know..." she said, with a rare scowl. "He slowly charged his hammer as he dodged." Koopia paused to giggle. "That copycat!"
________
Mario shook (or strangled, in Goombrian's perspective) Goombrian awake after he won his duel. "Quit it... I'm awake, okay?" Goombrian said groggily.
The two took time to recover, and advanced to the next door. The vines were getting as wide as a Goomba, and they still pulsed. Now the small, disturbing sounds from the pulsing could be heard.
"Mario, quit stomping the ground like that. The vibrations from the pulses are quite enough, thank you."
It was not he stomping the vine-covered floor, though. Something else was making the extra movements.
Mario opened the door. He looked. There was a spiral staircase in front of them, still covered in the huge vines. The two walked to the base of the stairs and looked up. They could see no end.
At that point
the floor in the room behind them burst as a familiar black figure darted
up. Commander Koopia had returned!
Chapter 1, Part 18
Mario and Goombrian were startled. Not only had Koopia survived being sent flying, but she could also shoot herself through floors.
The party and the commander stood staring at each other for a while, each second making it more ominous. Finally Goombrian gathered his senses and spoke. "Back for some more, Koopa?"
The Giggling Bullet ignored him and turned to Mario. "Actually, I was wondering if I could join your party," she declared, for whatever reason. This time she seemed serious.
Mario and Goombrian
stood dumbstruck. "Absolutely not. We're not letting you," Goombrian voiced
Mario's thoughts.
Chapter 1, Part 19
It was another day in the strange, small hideout as Luigi stared at his given breakfast. Luigi and Tanoon, who did not know the whole story himself, listened intently as Rosin explained what was going on.
"Your older brother is gathering something called the brooch pieces to bring back the Spirit of Light. The Spirit needs to go into hiding... and fast, too. This is because of the evil, scary Spirit of Darkness. He was able to possess some desperate guy and resurrect himself," Rosin solemnly explained.
Luigi looked up from his full plate. He was expressionless. "What can I do to help?" he asked.
Rosin and Tanoon were expecting him to back off and let Mario do the work, not this. "Just stay here and give your big brother emotional support. That'll be fine enough for your type, Mr. Green."
Though his face was expressionless, anger at the Tanoomba rose in Luigi's eyes. "I'd ask you to not call me that, but that's not the matter right now. And what do you mean, 'for my type’? Anyway, my twin brother is out there right now, and I'm not letting him do his quest alone."
Rosin sensed his anger and jumped in. This could turn out against her scheme. "Of course we thought you were cowardly enough to back away from this, but we were wrong," she snapped. Her voice sounded stern. "If you go out there, you'll probably be abducted by those Lakitu goths again. I'll be worried."
"What's it to you? You don't mean a word you say at all."
Luigi and Rosin looked at the objector. Tanoon stood up. "You're up to something, Rosin. I'm going with Luigi here," he said, as Rosin glared at him. Tanoon started walking towards the warp pipe. "This guy has already proven himself past our expectations."
Luigi just stood and stared, now having a surprised expression. "Let's go already, Luigi," Tanoon said. "We need to get going now if we're going to catch up with your brother."
"Oh, right, sorry," Luigi said dumbly as the two entered the warp pipe and left the Squeekmaid behind.
________
After the two left, the Squeek emitted an unnatural snicker. "Those two can leave," she thought, clenching a black pendant tightly. "I'll just find some other moron to take me to them."
________
"Hey, there he is!" The Lakitu agents and their commander spotted Luigi and the following Tanoomba.
Luigi looked onward.
Many battles were ahead of him. He hated every bit of it. "No more backing
out, Tanoon," he said, letting his crazed wrath take control of him. "Heh...
I was always like this, wasn't I? I suppose fear got ahead of me every
time... But not anymore..." He raised his hammer and charged. "I'm not
letting Mario do all the work this time!" And he hit the nearest Lakitu,
ignoring his victim's scream.
Chapter 1, Part 20
Mario and Goombrian power-walked up the high, seemingly endless spiral staircase. They walked as fast as they could but dared not run, as they would trip over the vines and have their stalker catch up with them.
Koopia was following them. "You could at least here my reason," she yelled. The former commander was perfectly aware of their rejection.
The three stopped. "Well, why do you want to join us?" Goombrian called.
"To find something to oppose it."
"That doesn't make any sense!" he called back.
"It's better than finding it yet being under its control."
Goombrian had enough. He turned to Mario. "She's not making any sense at all. What do you say, Mario?"
With a sigh, Mario shook his head. He’d had enough, too.
"Fine," she pouted. "I'll find this one alone..." And she trodded down the steps.
Goombrian was annoyed from the previous event. "At least that's over," he sighed. "Mario, what are you looking at?"
The duo reached the top of the high
staircase and gawked at what was in front of them. In front of them was
the biggest Piranha Plant they’d ever seen!
Chapter 1, Part 21
The boss battle of Cloud Castle was finally here! Towering high above the Mushroomer and the Goomba was a huge, dangerous, and hungry Piranha Plant. In the room that was supposed to be stone-walled, the vines were getting bigger than Mario's height, not to mention they were pulsing much faster now that the Piranha saw its next meal.
Scanning the high-roofed area, Goombrian's eyes met what they were looking for. "Mario, the Brooch Piece. Look," he mumbled, cautious at the sight of the humongous plant.
Mario looked forward. Goombrian was right. Behind the gigantic Piranha and amidst a cage of big vines was a faint glow- the Brooch Piece!
It was then that the Piranha charged forward on her long, thick stem. Her mouth watered at the sight of two coming to dinner. Mario and Goombrian backed up just in time, out of her reach. A step forward instead, and they would have been that ravenous Piranha's meal!
In a flash Goombrian was scanning that book of his as the big Piranha Plant squirmed, trying to get food in her reach. “Cursed Piranha... A Piranha Plant cursed by the effects of a Brooch Piece... 25 HP, 15 ATK, and... Hm. Its defense is infinite..." The Goomba turned to the plumber. "Mario, we need to retreat and find a better plan to get the Br-Agh!" Standing on top of the pulsing vines, it was only natural that he would stumble. In his case, the throbbing was more like some small earthquake. He fell forward...
...just within the cursed piranha's reach. Lifting the Goomba gently with her teeth, she faced the ceiling and fully opened her mouth, letting the squirming Goomba drop in.
Goombrian was eaten before he knew it!
Mario cringed in disgust. This was not
good.
Chapter 1, Part 22
Koopia intended to have her Koopa agent army leave the city of clouds as soon as possible. She had her own plans.
"Go home. I cannot have the lot of you stay here for too long, there are more missions to be done. You, Koons!" she called out to one. "Report that the Brooch Piece has been taken by an angry clan of Bloopers. That army-hatted freak would believe anything!"
A protesting voice rose out from the leaving crowd. "You never found it, did you?!"
Commander Koopia's eyes immediately found the scoundrel. She glared at him as he chose to leave. As he left, a Piranha Plant's vine somehow rose out of the cement-covered ground, and jammed into the back of the guy's head.
Koopia turned back to the castle. "My, I've got to stop doing that," she panted.
Eventually her army was out of view, and she slowly strode off to the castle to rejoin the duo as soon as she could. "I do hope the two retreat from sweet Floravi. After all, I know her weakness," she said. "My, I even gave the Piranha a name. I really do need to get a life, don't I?" She chuckled to herself.
Suddenly Koopia froze as she heard someone mumble to her inside her head. "Of course you need to, you pathetic babbler... They never were your friends."
"Ever since that big earthquake, you've been talking to me a lot..." she thought. "Ah, well. Prepare to be opposed. I'm going to find the cause of you and flush you out of my head, spirit."
"Or maybe you're just mentally ill."
"Shut up," the Koopa girl snapped.
Chapter 1, Part 23
Mario was in great trouble. Though he attacked the stem many times, his attacks had not done a scratch. Mario groaned. He was not retreating, if Goombrian already was digested. He hoped very much that the Goomba would use his brains to find some way out of the carnivorous plant.
_______
At that precise moment Goombrian did not spare a thought to how he could escape. In panic, he mindlessly jumped from the stomach up to the high entrance, barely getting a small fraction of the intended height. As he fell to the floor for the twentieth time, he hit his back against a rock.
A rock? Goombrian felt what he landed on. It was a Koopa shell. He knocked on the silent shell, hoping for a reply. In fear, he called out to the stationary Koopa. "Who on Plit are you?"
At last the Koopa heard him and his head, arms, and legs came out of his shell. Hearing the voice, Goombrian could tell he was an old man. (Of course, it was too dark to see.) "I am known as the Cloud King. What do you need of me, Goomba?" Goombrian could tell that he discriminated against non-Koopas.
"I'm just looking for a way out of this!" the ticked-off Goomba yelled. Forgetting the old king, he turned and jumped again. As he fell to the floor, he froze in surprise as he felt a tight grip on his shoulder.
_______
Koopia came back to the scene as Mario continued to attack the Piranha in vain. In a flash, Mario was flung out of the way by something out of his view, and crashed near the Brooch Piece. Koopia than used her special move, the shell pinball. And this time, it was charged.
She yelled out, "Minus three!" Mario watched in shock as Koopia darted to the vines. She bounced back as the Piranha flinched, and darted to the vine-covered floor with amazing speed. "Four! Five!" The Piranha cringed in pain as she darted from vine-wall to vine-floor. "Six! Seven!" The Cursed Piranha squealed.
The Koopa finally popped out of her
shell as she landed. "Five hits total! Twenty-five!" The Piranha, and all
its vines, dried up. The vines pulsed no more.
Chapter 1, Part 24
Mario and Koopia looked at the Piranha's dried-up corpse. With the help of Koopia's shell pinball attack, they had won the battle. "The vines were really the roots, Mario. Of course, she kept the city to the ground by being rooted to earth, but some extra vines clung onto the castle. Anyway, the vines were her vulnerable point, unlike the stem," she explained.
Mario nodded and easily broke the cage of vines surrounding the Brooch Piece with his hammer. He gently grabbed it, and with a final mystic glow, the red shard was pocketed. He had found it.
But Mario looked solemn and Koopia noticed. She was going to ask why, but the spirit her mind hosted already knew. "His companion perished in battle. Try to make him feel better or something of the sort," the spirit advised.
Guided by the spirit, the Koopa spoke up. "Your friend and fellow warrior perished in this battle, but let it be known that he died alongside you, the hero. Mario, get over it," she unsuccessfully consoled.
Suddenly Goombrian was hurtled in the air, breaking through the Piranha's lifeless stem. As he lay unconscious from shock, an old Koopa, proven to be the Goomba's thrower, followed him.
"Hey... I'm known as the King of Clouds," he declared. "Who are you, and what are you doing in my castle?"
________
Koo-Kally prepared herself. An army of Goomba agents was heading to the plaza, so she decided to fight back with the army of citizens she gathered.
Armed with bow and arrows, Koopia remembered about when she told her friends her plan to fight back. Her friends immediately rejected the idea.
The Goomba general was nearing, but
when he set paces from the defensive citizens, a volley of arrows suddenly
showered upon his army. He and his army left the place in retreat.
Chapter 1, Part 25
Mario and Party now rested at the Skyefield Inn, recovering from their battle. They woke to find a breakfast feast in the lobby. Before the three could tell of their adventure, Koo-Kally excitedly told them of how she gathered an army and defeated the opposing group of Goomba agents.
Then, Mario told her that they found the Cloud King, and she immediately rushed off in joy to the castle with a goodbye.
As they were still eating their breakfast, Goombrian asked, "What do you plan to do now, Koopia? The Dark Agents probably won't let you rejoin." But then he already knew the answer before he said it.
"I'm going to join your party, silly," she giggled, patting, or in the Goomba's case, hitting, him on the head.
"Fine," he said, smarting from the "hits". "I just wonder how we'll get back to Starly."
As in a reply to Goombrian's wonder, Koo-Kally's three friends walked into the inn.
"We thank you for saving this city," Koopin said gratefully. "We'll show you an exit if you please."
"Gladly," Koopia replied. Mario and Party followed the Koopa trio to the main doors, which once connected the plaza to the tunnels. As the doors were opened, Mario, Goombrian, and Koopia were dumbstruck.
Because the city wasn't rooted to the ground anymore, it quickly rose up on its cloud. In front of the trio was endless blue, with no horizon. When they looked down, they saw the meadows of clouds.
Everkoop broke their awe as she said, "I hope you enjoyed your visit to the city, but now you must leave." She leaned to them so her companions could not hear and whispered, "There's a portal right below the clouds that Twilight created for you. Go quickly before my friends see it through the thin cloud."
Goombrian piped up. "Hm? How do y-"
But he could not say anymore as the lilac-haired Koopa pushed the trio
off the city and through the clouds, much to her friends' shock. As they
fell in surprise, Mario began to see the flaming yet safe portal again,
through which Twilighter Starly waited for them.
The Princess and the Koopa, Part 1
The Koopa Kruiser flew threw the starless night. Princess Peach sat in her chair as Bowser paced in front of her. She pouted in frustration. Kidnapped again.
"Where on Plit is Mario?" she voiced her thoughts. "Toadsworth sent for him, but he should've been here by now. And whatshisface… Luigi didn't even come as a replacement."
"Not to worry, Princess. I've sent some Goomba idiots to blast his house away. He'd be too occupied to pay attention to the likes of you," Bowser said.
"Shut it, you shameless Koopa," Peach snapped. "Mario has a brother, you know." Bowser froze. "You're the idiot here," she continued as Bowser tried to ignore her. "You forgot that Luigi would patch things up like he always does while Mario comes to save me." Peach sighed. "I just hope he comes soon."
Bowser tried to ignore her, lest his concentration would break. He was in a bad situation. His ship was being tailed by several darkened airships.
Suddenly, a Hammer Bro burst in with urgency. "Lord Bowser, the enemy airships closed in on us and their leader boarded the deck. She has something to ask of you," she said. Bowser rushed out, leaving Peach to sit alone.
The princess decided to explore the ship and find some way out of this. The door behind her, the only exit, was locked. Peach decided to find some other exit. She scanned the room to find an air vent or something of the sort. When Peach finally saw one, she realized that it was very high up the wall.
_________
Bowser stood with Kammy Koopa and his best minion, Sparks the Fire Brother. The Koopa King did not like the situation one bit.
The leader of the black airships was a Paratroopa agent, though she chose to keep her wings folded as she stood on the ground. She wore a hood, sleeveless shirt, and pants with heavy eyeshadow. And of course, she had a black shell. The Paratroopa was backed by countless Paratroopa agents, all on their black ships.
"What do you want with us?" the Koopa King demanded.
Her voice was dark and raspy. "... Princess... Peach..."
_________
Sparks scurried down flights of stairs as he quickly shouted out orders. Bowser ordered him to get the princess as fast as he could. It was a bad event for the Fire Bro Koopa, but it was what he was ordered to do, and he was bound by duty.
Finally he reached the princess' solemn room. The Fire Bro then saw a sight he never wanted to see. "What on Plit are you doing?!" he yelled at her.
Crates and other cargo were piled up to the high air vent, and Peach was just about to get inside and make her escape. "Princess, get down here this instant!" he demanded.
Her response was simple. "No!"
"You could get hurt!" Sparks called out.
"I'm not being trapped again! Besides, you, your king, and the rest of his idiot minions wouldn't care a bit for my welfare!" she responded.
"That's not true!" he called back. "King Bowser cares for you. I do, too."
The princess scowled in disbelief. "Where did that come from?" she thought.
"So please... Just get down here, Princess," Sparks urged.
Peach gave up. She was just about to come down when the two heard a hard rap on the door. Sparks and the princess froze as Paratroopa agents burst in. Peach could have escaped through the vent, but a Paratroopa crawled outward from there. The duo were trapped.