XXV
Katelyn, the pink penguin, noticed instantly as the regrouped band of travelers entered Shiver City. The Glitz Pit fighters all looked perfectly fine – but it was the sight of the rest that startled her.
Goombella, Grubba, Serge, Jr. Troopa, and Ivan Bomberfield (to whom she had no clues about his identity) were all scratched, bruised, and weary. Their appearances were ragged. They looked as if they had been journeying without rest for days rather than just a few hours.
The green penguin patrol guard, Jerry, also took immediate notice upon their arrival. Adjusting his fuzzy brown official's hat, he went with his partner Pinter to question the adventurers.
"What has happened up there?" he demanded. "We noticed the avalanche… is everything all right?"
"Not as well as we'd hoped," Goombella said warily. "Please, let us get to the Toad House and we'll explain everything…"
"Erm… the Toad House…" Jerry showed hesitation in his words. "Well… why don't we go into the Shop instead? It'd be much too cramped for everyone to fit inside that toad house…"
"I suppose so," Goombella replied.
"Come on, guys," spoke up Serge.
They all quietly trudged single-file into the item shop, Katelyn observing them with extreme concern in her eyes.
-
A few minutes later they were all comfortably seated inside the shop at the little tables that had been set up. Nobody had said a word. Goombella looked at her fellow travelers before beginning.
"So… where should I begin?" she asked. "We went up Shiver Mountain. Everything was fine until… well… we encountered a clubba."
Serge and Grubba suddenly turned away. Both looked as if they never wanted to remember the incident again. Noticing this, Goombella decided to skip a little ahead in her story.
"After that, we kept going… and on our way up this ice stairway, the avalanche started. Almost all of us were flung over the edge. Professor Frankly fell to his death."
Jerry and Pinter exchanged nervous glances – they didn't know how they were going to tell her.
"When we reached the tunnel that lead to Crystal Palace," Goombella continued, "We were attacked by a group of more clubbas. However, we were able to convince them we weren't hostile, and we told them our situation – the treasure hunting and all that – and they told us that they'd caught some people trying to leave a clue behind in their palace."
She was now mainly speaking to King K, Bandy Andy and Jimbrey, as Jerry and Pinter didn't know too much about the records of their journey.
"One of them was dead. The second had apparently gotten away. The third one is this bob-omb you see sitting right here."
She indicated to Ivan, who became very suddenly uncomfortable with the way she had introduced him.
"Wait a minute!" K snarled, glaring at Ivan. "If he's one of those chumps settin' us up with clues, then what's he doing here with us?"
"Please let me finish," Goombella said softly.
K regained his senses and leaned back in his chair. He was still eyeing Ivan intently.
"Ivan here had been working with the Pianta Syndicate," Goombella resumed, amongst the reactions of her friends. "He told me everything. This whole adventure had been almost a complete scam – except that the treasure is real. We've just been led in the wrong direction."
"Pianta Syndicate?" Jimbrey sputtered. "Those… those dogs! I should've known they were up to no good! Why didn't I see this coming?"
"None of us could have," Andy responded bitterly. The others were silent.
"It isn't your fault," Goombella said to Jimbrey. "Or K's, or Andy's, or Serge's, or mine, or anybody's! We had our hopes up for that treasure. And you know what? We're still gonna get it."
"Are you nuts?" asked Jimbrey. "Just how are we gonna do that?"
"We're gonna go to the Pianta Syndicate's hideout first thing when we get back to Rogueport," Serge said, taking over for Goombella. "Me and Goombella know their new head, Frankie. We might be able to reason with him."
"And if we can't?" asked K.
"…I don't know," Serge admitted. "All in honesty, I don't know."
"I don't either," Goombella said. "But I do know one thing: I'm not gonna give up just like that. We didn't lose our friends and quest this far all the way for nothing – I'm gonna get the treasure I journeyed for, one way or the other. By force if I have to. Who's with me?"
Serge immediately stood. King K was next. Then Grubba stood.
The rest got up all at once. Even Jr. Troopa stood, although he looked reluctant.
"I totally swear I'm gonna regret this," he muttered inaudibly under his breath."
"So we're all in on it, then," Goombella said, looking from one of them to the other. "We're all together until the end."
"Until the end," Serge repeated.
"Until the end!" they all chanted.
Jerry and Pinter both looked very awkward as they stood listening to this. The item shop manager looked even more awkward – he didn't know what on Earth was going on.
"When are we gonna leave?" inquired Andy, determined.
"Right now," Goombella answered, shifting out of her chair.
At this, Jerry cleared his throat. They all turned to look at him.
"Pardon my saying so, miss," he said politely. "But I think perhaps most of you should rest before doing something like that."
Goombella turned back to her friends, and for the first time realized the conditions they were in.
"…of course!" she exclaimed. "I'm sorry, guys, I was totally unaware of how hurt we all are –"
"Don't worry yer purdy little head 'bout it none," Grubba reassured. He looked back at Jerry. "Where should we sleep, pard?"
"The warehouse should be big enough for all of you," Jerry said, thinking. "Yeah… Pinter, you've got the warehouse key, right?"
"Yeah," Pinter responded. "I keep it in my office desk dr–"
"Don't tell everyone where it is, fool!" snapped Jerry. "Go and get it!"
Pinter nodded off his hat to him in a salute and quickly waddled out the door.
-
After another few minutes they were all inside Shiver City's warehouse. The bottom floor was spacey enough, with all the supplies and boxes stacked up against the back wall. A large stairway led to a second floor. A spring had been positioned on it's side beside a few bookcases, and a ladder came down from the small tower that on the roof of the building.
"This should suit most of your needs," Jerry said as he led them inside. "I'll have the Toad House maid take care of your meals. Is there anything else I can do for you?"
"Nothing at all," Goombella replied, more cheerful than she was a few minutes ago. "Thanks a lot, sir."
"Please… call me Jerry," smiled Jerry.
The door was shut they were by themselves now.
"Man…" King K sighed, laying on the floor next to a small sleeping bag that had been set up. "I can't believe what this has come do, dogs…"
"You don't say dog anymore, remember?" teased Jimbrey.
"Shut up!" K snapped.
"It's hard to believe for me, too," Goombella muttered. "It just… I really wish things had happened differently… I almost wish none of this had happened at all. None of us would be in this situation, we'd all go on living our lives, the people who lost their lives would still have them… that's just the way life goes, I guess…"
"Well, we wouldn't be living our lives, that's for sure," snorted Andy.
"What do you mean?" Goombella asked.
"The Glitz Pit's going through… some bad times," Andy explained dully. "Jolene hit rock bottom on some contract with the RIC and they've cut off funding. A lot of fighters got early retirements, if you know what I mean…"
"Except Master Crash," Jimbrey added in.
"'course," K mumbled.
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm tired," Serge grumbled, not taking kindly to the news. "I'll sleep upstairs."
As he grabbed one of the sleeping bags and headed upstairs, Jr. Troopa found a small corner and had dozed off into a quiet sleep. Goombella, Andy, and Jimbrey each took the rest of the sleeping bags. Grubba, due to his size, didn't take one of the sleeping bags but instead got comfortable in an armchair.
"I'll sleep upstairs, too," Jimbrey said. "Have a good rest, you guys… something tells me we're all gonna need it."
"Yeah," Goombella quietly agreed. "Have a good one, Jim."
Ivan, who had been keeping to himself beside the door, finally spoke up.
"I'll be in tower," he decided. "Keep watch… just in case."
Goombella nodded, watching him go upstairs. "I understand. Try to catch some rest."
"Da," came Ivan's voice from up the stairway.
Goombella rolled her sleeping bag out and snuggled into it, while Andy did the same. Complete silence took over for a while before Andy heard Goombella's muffled voice.
"Andy?"
Andy turned over on the floor, opening his eyes. "Yeah?"
"D'you think we could get the Glitz Pit back in business with that treasure?"
Andy smiled. "Without a doubt."
"Good… that's good…"
She yawned and pulled herself into the sleeping bag and out of sight. Andy found himself to be incredibly tired all of the sudden. His eyelids drooped and shut, and blackness overcame his sight as he went into a deep slumber.
-
When Goombella woke she was surprised to find out they had slept all the way through the night into early morning. When she poked her head out of the sleeping bag she found that most of her partners were still asleep. She decided that maybe she would go to the tower and see how Ivan was doing.
Quietly pulling herself out of the sleeping bag, she tiptoed her way past Andy's sleeping bag, where he lay snoring softly in his sleep. When she reached the stairway, she raised her foot and softly pressed against the first step to see if it would squeak or not. She repeated the process for almost each step.
When she reached the second floor, she saw Serge and Jimbrey both also asleep in their own bags. Quietly she climbed up the ladder (with a little trouble) and peeked out into the tower.
Ivan Bomberfield was still awake, staring silently out into the dark morning horizon as snowflakes drifted lazily down from the sky. The sun had not come out yet. He must have been deep in thought.
Goombella reached the top of the ladder and stepped up onto the tower's floorboards, making her presence known. Ivan shifted a little, but then relaxed.
"Hey," Goombella said quietly. "How're you holding up?"
"Fine," Ivan replied simply. "Da, fine."
"That's good," Goombella muttered. She began watching the horizon with him. The town had such a peaceful look to it.
"Lovely sight, isn't it?" she asked, looking around. "Almost makes me forget about what's going to happen…"
Ivan said nothing.
She turned to him. "Did you ever regret working with the Syndicate before now?"
Looking thoughtful, Ivan replied. "Da. Plenty of times. But I did jobs because it pay good. I'm not rich bob-omb."
"I see…" Goombella said. "I'm sorry to hear that."
Ivan looked hesitant. "It… it not bad sometimes, though. Jobs not all bad. Just delivery and such… da. And sometimes the people nice to me. Treat me like friend. Like… family."
They both fell silent. Far off in the distance, the first glimmer of light was starting to appear.
"It's such a shame things have to turn out this way…" Goombella said, her eyes teary.
Ivan was aware that she was crying.
"Da," he responded.
They stood together in the tower, as the blissful town of Shiver City remained peacefully silent under the morning darkness. Somewhere, up in the sky, a single star gave one last sparkle before disappearing into space, waiting for the next night to come upon them.