Right, I've got some bad news. I'm travelling back home starting tomorrow, with a four-day transit in France, so my writing time will be drastically cut, before almost being completely cut altogether when I go back to school. So these last chapters will be published inconsistently. Sorry guys.
However, on the plus side, this is the longest chapter to date, being 3000 words long. Enjoy!
Chapter 11: Breaking Up/Breaking In
TIME: UNKNOWN
LOCATION: UNKNOWN
Koops's eyes fluttered open slowly. He groaned and tried to rub his head, only to find out that he was bound tightly by ropes. This snapped him out his sleepiness and brought him into reality.
"Where am I?" he asked himself nervously. "What am I doing here?" he struggled against the ropes, but couldn't loosen them at all. He took a deep breath. "Okay Koops." he told himself. "Think." He thought for a few seconds before remembering his Hidden Blade. He flicked his wrist and unsheathed the Hidden Blade, using it to cut through one rope, then another, then another. Pretty soon, he was able to wriggle out of his ropes and took a look around. He was in an empty, stone prison cell, with gray concrete walls surrounding him and a steel, crosshatching grate on the roof of the cell. His hood was retracted into his sweater, his blue exterior still turned inside out. He reached into his shell for his Katana, but it was gone.
Koops cursed. "Dammit all! I'm stuck down here." he kicked out at one of the walls, then realized he wasn't alone in the cell. Another Koopa laid unconscious on the floor next to him, a female figure dressed completely in red, gagged and bound in ropes.
Koops's anger turned into worry. "Oh no, Koopie!" he shouted. He ran towards his long-time girlfriend and drew out his backup knife, furiously cutting through the ropes and avoiding the complex knots in the ropes. He was nearly done when Koopie Koo began to stir, groaning, beginning to wake up. Koops cut through the last rope when Koopie Koo fully woke up. He gently removed the duct tape gag that was covering her mouth. He smiled gently at her, but Koopie Koo wasn't returning the smile, instead, she lashed out at Koops, slapping him harshly across the face. Koops stumbled, taken aback in shock by what Koopie Koo had just done to him.
"What was that for?!" he asked, rubbing the side of his face where Koopie Koo had slapped her. It hurt, inside and outside. Koopie Koo looked at him with a look of pure anger.
"I can't believe you, Koops." she said angrily. "This is what you've been doing? All the times you said you were busy, you were doing this?! All the times I couldn't find you, what were you doing?! Killing people?!"
Koops felt defenceless. "No!" he replied. "Koopie, please, let me explain."
"People always say that when there about to lie." Koopie Koo cut him off. "And I've heard enough lies from you."
Koops's hurt turned into anger. "Sure, but what about you?!" he shouted back. "You've done your fair share of hiding stuff from me! Going off with Ms Mowz to hunt badges and kill people as well!"
"No Koops, you're wrong." Koopie Koo said, her face still showing no sign of letting her anger go. "I was only hunting badges, but those guys, Crystal Corruption, started chasing us. What me and Ms Mowz did was purely self-defense." She glared harder at Koops. "You were the one who went off with the intention to kill and intervene with their plans, trying to be a hero and everything."
"I was trying to save the Crystal Stars!" Koops yelled in anger. "Crystal Corruption was going to come after me anyway, because I've always kept the Diamond Star with me!" He stopped short, mind reversing, going back into memory. He quickly checked himself for the Crystal Stars, but they were missing. The Diamond, Ruby, Garnet and Gold star were no longer there.
A/N: Thanks to the author 'that one little guy' for clarifying the Garnet Star. I've never been able to remember it, always referring to it as the Copper or Bronze Star.
Koops yelled, cursing with venom and banged his head against the wall. Not only had he lost his girlfriend's trust, he'd managed to lose the Crystal Stars as well. He felt pathetic, just like all those years he spent cowering and hiding in fear after Hooktail had eaten his dad. He didn't bother looking at Koopie Koo, because he felt as if she no longer trusted him, let alone loved him. He kept his head against the wall, trying to keep his heart from breaking into a million pieces. He knew he'd failed, both in love and in his mission.
TIME: 4:15AM
LOCATION: SUBLEVEL 23, ROUGEPORT SEWERS
Ms Mowz had never suffered from claustrophobia or feared the dark, but venturing so deep into the sewers, underneath thousand of tons of rock and cement, she was starting to become quite afraid of closed spaces.
"Be brave. Be brave. Your friend needs your help." Ms Mowz whispered to herself.
Zack followed her through the labyrinth like tunnels of Sublevel 23, one of the deepest sublevels in all of Rougeport Sewers. He still held his Desert Eagle firmly in his hands, still constantly checking behind them once every five seconds to see if they were being followed.
'Seriously though,' she thought to herself, 'who builds tunnels this complex, this deep underground?!' Ms Mowz was almost certain that no one would be that committed to following them, not this deep at least.
Soon, the two of them found what appeared to be a metal platform on the ground. Zack stepped on it, and the platform started to generate a metallic hum. Ms Mowz decided to follow him onto the platform, which was just about wide enough for the two of them. The platform descended with a jolt, and the two of them started travelling down even further.
About five minutes later, the platform stopped in a room that looked like an aircraft hangar, one that might have been stacked high with various weapons, vehicles, ammunition and supplies. Massive lights hung from the ceiling, and the floor was bustling with activity, with various types of semi-reptillian humans hauling and moving equipment around. Ms Mowz and Zack quickly and quietly snuck off the platform and took cover behind a wall of wooden crates. Zack switched out his Desert Eagle for his M1 Carbine.
"I've never seen anything like this." he whispered. "This place is absolutely immense. It's not a base, it's a fortress. If the rest of the place is this big, I can understand what Hunter meant about people getting lost in this place."
"And this is just part of it." Ms Mowz whispered back, pointing up at a sign hanging from the roof, reading: 'Division 4: Loading Division.'
"Right, so, we need a plan." Zack said. "The exit is about a hundred feet away, there are workers and guards everywhere, presumably armed, and the alarm will be raised the second we're spotted."
Ms Mowz took some time to think it through. Charging into action and firing knives and bullets at everything was suicidal and, frankly, retarded. Sneaking around was also impossible, because behind their wall of crates was an open space with no other hiding points. Then Ms Mowz spotted a slightly large air vent about ten feet above her.
"I have a plan." Ms Mowz said to Zack, pointing up at the air vent.
Zack understood immediately. "You're going to jump up there with the rope lying in the corner, drop the vent cover into my hands so it won't alert anyone, toss the rope down to me so I can climb up and together we can sneak through the air ventage system."
Ms Mowz looked at Zack, speechless. "You took the words right out of my mouth."
Zack shrugged, not even hinting a smile. "I can understand plans quickly. Now let's put it into action."
Ms Mowz leapt off the ground, off the wall and off the crates, parkour-esque, took off the air vent cover, which was surprisingly loose, dropped it down to Zack, who caught it in his hands and laid it down without a sound, and tossed the rope down to Zack. Zack climbed up the rope and climbed into the venting tunnels, a pipeline of stainless steel panels.
"Let's see if we can get further into this fortress." Zack said. Ms Mowz nodded, heading down the tunnels, Zack in tow.
TIME: 4:25AM
LOCATION: DIVISION 3, CRYSTAL CORRUPTION FORTRESS
The venting tunnels ended promptly above another part of Crystal Corruption's massive fortress. This time around, Zack and Ms Mowz found themselves looking into a surveillance center, with a few tables stacked with alarms and phones, and a wall completely covered in flat television screens, each showing a different corridor or room in Crystal Corruption's fortress. The members who were watching the screens, there were five of them, were constantly taking down and exchanging notes. Zack thought they were probably exchanging bets over who'd get lost in their corridors first.
Zack switched his M1 Carbine for his Ak-47 and silently fired five shots with perfect aim, shooting down the five members before any of them realized what was happening. Ms Mowz then unscrewed the air vent cover, and the two of them dropped into the room. Zack and Ms Mowz examined the room.
"Division 3: Communication and Surveillance." Ms Mowz said.
"Right, so where is Division 13? Our friends are being held there." Zack said. He searched through the desks and drawers, eventually finding a floor map of Crystal Corruption's Fortress.
"Oh, for crying out loud." Zack muttered. "It's on the other side of the fortress, and their's no air vents leading there."
"Plan B, then?" Ms Mowz asked.
"Yeah, but it's not a good plan." Zack replied. "It involves us running through the corridors, fighting off anyone that comes at us."
Ms Mowz bit her lip. That was an extremely risky plan, but looking at the current situation, they didn't have much of a choice. Ms Mowz took a look at the map.
"The shortest path is through Divisions 6,9 and 11." Ms Mowz said. "It would be helpful if we knew what those divisions are designated for."
"We'll just have to find out." Zack said.
Ms Mowz and Zack snuck out of Division 3 and took off through the polished corridors, heading closer to Division 13.
TIME: 4:30AM
LOCATION: PRISON CELLS, DIVISION 13, CRYSTAL CORRUPTION FORTRESS
Koops fought desperately with the metal grate above his head, trying to move it or take it off the roof, but it was sealed shut.
"What are they planning for us?" Koops asked, knowing Koopie Koo still wouldn't answer him. Koopie Koo was sharpening her knives, not even acknowledging Koops.
Koops heard footsteps above him. Two semi-crocodile figurines stood over him, locking both their shotguns and their eyes on him. One of them unlocked the grate.
"Don't get any ideas." The second crocodile snarled. The first crocodile removed the grate, letting an exit for Koops. The two crocodiles locked Koops's hands behind his back, handcuffing him in the process, making his Hidden Blades useless. The other crocodile then locked the grate again, trapping Koopie Koo two crocodiles forced Koops down the concrete hallways.
TIME: 4:30AM
LOCATION: DIVISION 6, CRYSTAL CORRUPTION FORTRESS
Division 6 turned out to be a sleeping quarter for Crystal Corruption's members. Ms Mowz and Zack snuck quietly around the outside of the division entrance. No sooner had they cleared the entrance did twenty members of Crystal Corruption turn around the hallway corner in front of them, all carrying swords. They immediately spotted Zack and Ms Mowz and withdrew their swords, all Samurai Katana's. The swords made Zack irritated, because he withdrew his M1 Carbine and fired a round of bullets. Fifteen bullets were discharged in twelve seconds, all striking their targets, the dead members falling forward, face down and unmoving. At the same time, Ms Mowz had thrown five knives, each sinking into their opponent's foreheads, spilling blood through the wounds.
Ms Mowz and Zack looked at each other. "Good teamwork." Zack said.
"Thank you." winked Ms Mowz.
Zack and Ms Mowz leaped over the dead bodies, Ms Mowz withdrawing an access card from one of the dead bodies, while Zack snapped the spines of two dead members with a sickening crack, before withdrawing a Katana, as a weapon to give back to Koops.
TIME: 4:35AM
LOCATION: DIVISION 13, CRYSTAL CORRUPTION FORTRESS
A Klaxon alarm echoed through the fortress. "INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDER ALERT. INTRUDERS SPOTTED BETWEEN DIVISION 6 AND DIVISION 9. DEAD BODIES LOCATED. ALL MEMBERS STAND ON GUARD."
Koops felt a strange surge of hope. Could somebody be trying to break him out? Could it be Zack? He wouldn't be surprised if that was the case. Zack had treated him almost like a brother, he'd probably do anything to help him out. The thought was pushed out of his head when the two crocodiles guards pushed him against the wall, forcing him down and tying his handcuffs to a chain above his head.
"Don't worry, we'll be back for you." laughed one the crocodile, following his fellow guard down the hallway, which took them out into the main corridor. They didn't make it to the end of the hallway. Two silver throwing stars shot straight through their skulls, bringing both of them down, dead. Koops saw that behind their dead bodies stood a Yoshi he hadn't seen before. This Yoshi was dark-grey and white, with a spiked collar and black sunglasses. He walked towards Koops.
"Who are you?" Koops asked.
The Yoshi gave him a grin. "I'm Spike. I'm an assassin. And I've heard of you Koops. Or maybe I should call you Hunter?" Koops was a little stunned. "How did you...?"
Spike laughed. "Hey, I know a lot of things. Now let's get you put of here." Spike brought out a knife and cut through Koops's handcuffs as if they were made from clay. Koops got up and flicked his wrists, bringing out his Hidden Blades and brought his hood over his face.
"Before we get out, could you do me another favor?" Koops asked Spike.
"Depends, tell me what it is." Spike said.
"My, umm, friend is trapped in that cell down there, could you get her out?"
Spike smirked. "Sure thing." He sprinted down the hallway, going impossibly fast. Koops remembered that Spike was a Yoshi, and that Yoshi's could run like the wind.
Koopie Koo sat alone in her cell, trying to get Koops out of her head. She couldn't believe that both of them had kept secrets from each other, but she couldn't believe Koops was an assassin. He'd always seemed so shy and timid, a little scared of the outside world sometimes. An assassin? Seemed laughable. Now Koopie Koo knew the truth, but she didn't want to accept it. of course, she'd kept her secret from Koops as well, but she saw it perfectly acceptable.
'Of course, it's about me.' she thought. 'But what about Koops?'
'Just stop thinking about him.' her subconcious told her.
Koopie Koo was snapped out of her thoughts by the sounds of moving metal. A dark-grey and white Yoshi with sunglasses and a spiked collar stood over the hole.
"Hello there, need a hand?" he said, holding his hand out. Koopie Koo grabbed Spike's hand and got out of the prison cell.
"Thanks." she said.
"Don't mention it. The name's Spike. I'm an assassin for the good guys." Spike told her.
"I'm RazorRose." Koopie Koo said. "Badge Hunter."
"I got a request by a friend to get you out. He's waiting at the end of the hallway." Spike said.
Koopie Koo's feelings turned from relief to anger. "He's not a friend anymore." she said. "He's lied to me too many times." Koopie Koo took off in the other direction, heading towards an alternate exit of Division 13.
Koops saw Spike return, but Koopie Koo wasn't there with him.
"Where is she?" he asked.
Spike sighed. "She doesn't want to come with you. Geez, it's like she's got a hell of a grudge against you or something.
Koops felt bitter, and he couldn't prevent it from showing on his face. He really had lost Koopie Koo, the love of his life, forever.
Spike saw his face and sighed. "Yep, I should've stayed in Minecraftia, no love to screw up there."
"What are you talking about?" Koops asked.
"Never mind." Spike said. "So, should we get out of here or not?"
Koops shook his head. "I'm not leaving until I can get back the Crystal Stars."
Spike raised his eyes. "Crystal Stars? Sure then, let's get them."
Spike dashed into the main corridors. Koops took one more look behind him, remembering the happier times with Koopie Koo, then followed Spike through the maze of corridors, searching for the Crystal Stars.
END OF CHAPTER 11.
A/N 2: Spike is yet another OC request from EPICYOSHI39000, and I mean it this time when I say I'm not adding anymore OC's. The reason I added Spike was out of persistence and the fact that my storyline is shifting into a direction I didn't imagine at the start of the story (It's actually turning out better than I ever would've hoped!).
Parakarry out (hopefully not for long!).