Just a note guys,that Reviews actually do make me work faster on these. They give me motivation to do my best to make you happy. So if you could maybe review once in a while, I'd be very grateful. Sorry if I sounded a bit arrogant.
Ch 2
Ness's face lost all color when he heard the voice.
"Roy for the love of god, hide me." He begged. "She's going to kill me."
Roy looked down amused from over his sunglasses. An evil toothy grin spread across his face as he shook his head.
"You brought this on yourself Ness. I didn't say, "Don't tell your girlfriend."" His tone was teasing.
As the group bounded down the gangplank, Ness's eyes widened in horror.
"Tracey?"
His sister threw herself into his arms. Her entire body was shaking rather hard.
"Why? WHY DID YOU NOT TELL US WHERE YOU WERE GOING?" She hissed into his chest. ''We were worried.. Mom knew but she wouldn't tell us. I had to leave my BUSINESS in the hands of my second in command. You are a PRICK NESS NINTEN!"
Paula gently placed her hand on Tracey's back.
"Take five Tracey. I'll take it from here."
As Tracey headed back over to the others, Paula grabbed Ness by the front of his shirt.
"Ness Ninten, we are a TEAM." Her voice was calm. "We've spoken of this, yes? Whatever hardships you have, the four of us are a team. The five of us, now that Tracey's here."
Ness placed his hands over hers.
"I missed you too Paula." His voice was soft. "I didn't want you all to get hurt. I'm sorry."
Paula stared up at him.
"And is that your excuse?"
"Not an excuse, Roy here invited me." He gestured to Roy, who was in the process of reading. Roy put down his book and nodded in agreement.
"We needed him here quickly." He interjected. ''There wasn't time to go hunting for the rest of you."
The P.A. overhead squealed with feedback.
"Your Graces, Dinner is served. Extra places have been set for any guests we may possibly have."
As the group was lead into the massive dining room, the table was laden down with enough food to feed a small army. Rich spicy meats from Darkland, exotic fruits from Hyrule, clearly someone had gone all out to make everyone feel at home.
Raven looked over the group and felt a lurch of foreboding. Someone was missing. A very important someone.
"Love?" She gently touched Bowser's arm.
Bowser glanced down at her.
"Yeah?"
"Where's our son?"
Bowser glanced around the room. His face slowly became etched with concern.
"Ludwig?Where is your brother?" He called over to the Koopaling, who was busy writing something.
Ludwig was suddenly very interested in his papers. "U-Uh…" Ludwig never stuttered unless he was very nervous.
"Ludwig.'' Bowser's voice became stern. " .Junior?"
"Wendy and I tried to stop him Father. We really did." Ludwig finally choked out. "But he ran and..H-He's in the Cave of Trials,Father."
Bowser's glass shattered in his hand.
The Cave Of Trials was a coming of age test for the Royal Family. The test usually determined the heir to the throne. Once the trial was finished, the Heir would undergo a transformation of sorts. The problem was that it was so dangerous that very few survived. Ergo, why Koopas had such large families.
Raven looked between the two.
"I'm still not all that familiar with traditions of Koopas. Is this a bad thing?" She asked timidly.
As Bowser began to explain it to her, Raven's face lost the rest of its color, now the color of chalk.
"So he's in there right now? And he could die?"
Bowser nodded numbly.
"Any other time I probably would have screamed.I probably would have been angry. But I'm so tired of fighting. I am so tired of people being in danger." Without another word, she stood up and strode out of the room, losing herself to her grief.
Once the door had slammed shut, Wendy had finally had enough.
"What the HELL happened in Sarasaland, Old man?" She demanded of Tyrion, who was being seated nearby.
Tyrion lowered his head.
"Morton Sr. was working for the enemy..And Ariyana showed up, Bowser." His eyes met the Koopa kings.
It was common knowledge that Ariyana had no love for Raven, and the feeling was mutual.
"She threatened you, Bowser. And Raven…Well…she did the same thing you saw her do when she saw The Crystal Me. She went feral. I believe her more Koopalike attributes are finally making themselves known."
Bowser sat down in his seat, head in his hands.
"Luigi. Please go after her. Make sure she's okay." He requested.
The green plumber got up without a word, grabbing several spicy meat filled rolls. Some for him, and some for Raven. As he passed by Ludwig, he paused long enough to reassuringly squeeze the composer's shoulder.
"It wasn't your fault." He reassured him, before vanishing out the door.
-
Luigi wandered through Darkland's castle. He had been searching for Raven for a good half an hour. So far, all he'd found was her armor and weapons in Bowser's suite. There was a note saying she'd be back later.
Luigi, by this point, had taken to asking the guards if they'd seen her. After asking about ten guards, one goomba guard finally had an answer for him.
"Yeah, she said something about finding a decent bar. I recommended the Dragon's Den. It's a nightclub in town. Known for its Booze and strippers."
Luigi's eyes hardened.
"Why would you send her there? That's your King's significant other."
The Goomba let out a terrified squeak.
"H-Here's the directions. Please d-don't tell the king!"
Luigi began to follow the directions through Dragonstone. Around him, people stopped what they were doing and stared. Luigi guessed that they recognized him and expected his brother to appear soon.
The Dragon's Den loomed ahead. True to its name, a giant stone dragon was wrapped around the building.
As he headed for the entrance, the bouncer stopped him.
"Ten coins to get in." His voice was flat.
"The kings-" He started.
" .Plumber."
"I've got him covered." Came a weary voice from behind them.
The bouncer stiffened.
"P-Prince Iggy!"
Iggy stood beside Luigi.
"My future mother is in there. You're going to let us in, or Im going to have you arrested."
As the bouncer moved aside, Iggy dropped a fifty coin into his hand.
"Keep the change."
