I'm taking a break from my other story, due to the unending case of writer's block I've been dealing with. I'm having a bit of trouble articulating certain scenes, and overall, I've been rather inconsistent with Luigi's character. This should help me get the creative juices flowing. This will be your standard 30-day writing challenge, but I'll be allowing myself to go at my own pace.
Here are the rules: I pick a quote that I like from a random storybook on my bookshelf. The chosen quote has to be the opening line of each chapter I write. I'll try to keep quotes intact, but I may have to change names and such in some cases. I'll also be listing the original quotes at the end of each chapter, as well as the book it came from and the author's name.
"Never laugh at live dragons, you fool!" Dimentio sang, having to raise his voice due to the noise of the raging battle. Mr. L couldn't take his focus away from the fight long enough to manage a retort; the man in green just barely stepped aside in time to dodge a bellow of flames.
Mr. L knew it was a bad idea to ambush the heroes in Flipside; it was their home base, so of course, they'd be fully rested and prepared for battle, even if they happened to be taken by surprise. But he couldn't pass up the chance to take out even one of the heroes, which would nullify their chances of combating the Count's plans. It would take all of them to stop the Void, after all. So when he and Dimentio found Bowser wandering Flipside with a grocery bag of mushroom shakes, they decided to act. Not without a bit of Mr. L's typical heckles and insults towards the Koopa, either.
Big mistake.
"Oh, that's it. I'm gonna KILL you!" Bowser roared ferociously, stomping forward at an alarmingly fast rate. His red eyes were firmly locked onto the unfortunate Mr. L. "Your game is over, little man!"
"E—enough stupid metaphors!" Mr. L finally managed to yell in Dimentio's direction, ducking under a pair of clawed swipes. "Help me out here!"
The jester laughed airily at the other's plight, hovering above the fray in a taunting manner. "Oh, Mr. L… Such weakness on your part. It's only one of the heroes." He smirked behind his mask. "Shouldn't someone as great as you be able to handle this yourself?"
Mr. L stomped and faced Dimentio fully, seething with rage, before being knocked aside by Bowser's tail. "JUST SHUT UP AND HELP ME!" he screamed as he leapt out of range of another firey attack.
Dimentio sighed, visibly disappointed. "Oh, alright." He snapped his fingers to create a rectangular, translucent barrier around Bowser, stopping ramage short. The Koopa banged upon his prison with his fists, cursing and swearing at the two. Mr. L plopped onto the sidewalk and immediately laid down in exhaustion. Dimentio set foot on the ground and ceased hovering, peering down curiously at his comrade. "Interesting you chose to nap there, my friend. Wouldn't your bed be a better place to rest?"
Mr. L glared at him, but couldn't muster the energy to create a snarky comeback. Instead, he nodded, closing his eyes and sighing deeply. Nodding, Dimentio winked at Bowser, who was still making an incomprehensible ruckus. Bringing his middle finger and thumb together, Dimentio grinned. "Perhaps another time, arm-flailer."
With a quick snap, the two minions were warped away, and the barrier trapping Bowser faded from existence. The Koopa grew quiet, staring down the place where they were last standing. He didn't break from his trance until he felt a hand shaking him gently. "Bowser, Bowser! Are you alright?!"
Bowser huffed, turning to the voice. Peach stood there, a worried expression on her face. Mario stood beside her with Tippi upon his shoulder, both of them looking around in faint shock. "We heard the fighting," Tippi wavered, "but it looks like we got here too late to help…"
"I knew we should've stayed together," Peach muttered through gritted teeth. She held Bowser's hand up and began scanning his arm and shoulder for injuries. "You're not hurt, are you?"
"Nah, I'm fine." Bowser simply shrugged dismissively, lumbering over to pick up the overturned bag of mushroom shakes. "Just got caught by surprise is all. I don't think they'll be trying that again, considering I kicked their asses."
"Whose… asses did you kick, exactly?" Tippi questioned.
"The jester. And the green guy in the mask."
"...Mr. L?" Mario suddenly gasped, his eyes widened. " He was here? D—did you hurt him?!"
Bowser grinned smugly, clearly missing Mario's panicked tone of voice. "He ran away before I could draw blood. I definitely scared him, though." The Koopa chucked. "Too bad he's a wimp. It could've been fun had he stayed."
At that, Mario let out a breath he was holding. Peach frowned, noting his interest in Mr. L. This wasn't the first time it came up, either; Mario also seemed hesitant to fight Mr. L during their first encounter. But he didn't seem to be in the mood for questioning, so she left him alone, mindlessly nodding along to Bowser's retelling of the 'floor-mopping' of Bleck's minions. She silently reminded herself to ask about Mario it later.
She hoped he was alright...
"Never laugh at live dragons, Bilbo you fool!"
The Hobbit, JRR Tolkien
Chapter 14
