Chapter 6.8: Operation: Falling Star
Alboort gathered Team Waluigi back in their meeting room. After everyone was seated, he set up his projector and floated up to the front. "Okay, okay, people. We've taken down all the defenses and have the Comet Observatory set up to leave Star-Krossed's keep in the dust." He clicked the button, and a mixed picture of a star pillar and a star showed up on the screen. "Now, all we need is for Waluigi to jump up to the top of the black palace and break apart this last star pillar."
Waluigi held his hands up. "Wait, wait, wait. I have one slight problem with this."
Ashley leaned towards Waluigi. "If it's about the Vampire Candy, I added more sugar to this batch. Not only do they have no calories, but the brief energy burst should kept you up and going for as long as you need."
Waluigi rubbed Ashley's hair and pushed her back a bit. "That's not what I meant." He turned to Alboort. "What about the vault? You always go in to bust open some vault."
"Ah, right." Alboort pushed his glasses up his face. "You see, I checked the electrical schematics for Star-Krossed's, and there doesn't seem to be a single vault in all its entirety."
Waluigi gaped at Alboort. "No vault? There's always a vault!"
Alboort shrugged and tugged lightly on his bowtie. "Well, I guess Star-Krossed just cares more about stars than gold."
Wendy popped up from the back. "What kind of idiot would care more about stars than gold!"
Roy nodded. "Seriously, this guy must be a lunatic."
Ludwig laced his fingers together. "That is, if he even exists."
"All right. All right. Clam down!" Alboort took a deep breath. "Now, I realize that this all must sound strange, but let's focus here." He paused for everyone to quiet down. "Thank you." He slapped the screen. "Now, Waluigi will go up and break apart the last star pillar. This will, inevitably, destroy the final forcefield around Star-Krossed's castle, freeing all the stars so they can fly away."
Funky Kong jumped from his chair. "Radical! Let's totally go and free the little dudes from that bogus prison."
Alboort frowned. "Funky, sit down."
Funky Kong sat down, rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry, smart dude."
Alboort nodded. "Right, now, after this happens, I predict one of two events occur. Either Star-Krossed comes out, and we'll have to fight for our lives; or there is no Star-Krossed, and we can leave this place. Either way, we should be able to blast off in the end."
Iggy adjusted his glasses. "Unfortunately, with Star-Krossed as a cosmic being, he isn't attached to any circuits, meaning that there is no proof for or against his existence."
Alboort nodded. "This also means that we have no idea what Star-Krossed is like." He turned and pointed at Captain Syrup. "Which is exactly why we need you to go as Waluigi's back-up."
Captain Syrup laid a hand on her well-developed, and her eyes grew wide. "Me?"
Ashley jumped from her seat. "Wouldn't it be better if I went? I have more experience at fighting, and we have no idea if Captain Syrup can even fight."
Alboort shook his head. "No, we can't send you. As far as we know, Star-Krossed could be thirty feet tall and magicproof."
Geno raised his hand. "Yo, Alboort. I don't want to sound pushy or anything, but I think I should be the one to help fight Star-Krossed." He bowed his head sagely. "It is my home he has threatened, after all."
"A very heroic sentiment, I'm sure." Alboort crossed his arms. "Unfortunately, we can't do that. You may have a body of metal, but you are still a star being. You would be in the most danger out of anyone we could send out."
Geno sighed. "True, as a star, I suppose going up against someone who eats stars, like Star-Krossed, would be foolish." He flicked his eyes up. "The one thing which I don't understand is why someone would eat stars. I've never heard of such an event before."
Toadsworth crossed his arms and nodded. "True. I've seen stars used in a variety of ways, but never have I seen anyone eat one."
Alboort shrugged. "I can't say why, and I can't say how. All I know is that, if Star-Krossed does exist, that we need to get rid of him."
Ashley huffed. "That still doesn't explain why you would send Captain Syrup out."
Alboort held his chin. "Well, I can't exactly calculate what a battle with Star-Krossed would be like, so out best bet would be to send in someone quick, lithe, and a good enough distraction until Waluigi can come in and finish him off. Fortunately, Captain Syrup has a very similar body structure to Waluigi, so she should be able to dodge for a while. The fact that she cam fly around on Denpuu is a bonus, as it will be sure to hold Star-Krossed's attention."
Ashley sat back down. "Well, I guess that makes sense."
Alboort nodded. "Okay, everyone, this is a straightforward job. We're in, we're out. Just make sure your buckled in when we decide to blast off."
The rest of the nodded in response.
---
Waluigi stepped out of the Comet Observatory. He pulled out his Thieftech. "Okay, Alboort, so you just want me to climb up that building and break apart that last star pillar."
Alboort nodded. "Just be careful, Captain Syrup will be standing by if any trouble arises, but those walls are almost unrealistically smooth."
"Okay." Waluigi flipped his
Thieftech shut and ran towards the black palace.
Captain Syrup
walked out of the Comet Observatory. She pulled out her Thieftech and
raised an eyebrow. "Okay, Alboort, if Waluigi hasn't broken the
star pillar yet, then what am I doing out here?"
Alboort tapped several keys. "Ashley brought up a very good point. You don't have a lot of fighting under your belt."
Captain Syrup raised her free hand
defensively. "Okay, if this is about losing to Wario, I had never
fought a suicidal maniac who charged into everything head first
before."
Alboort shook his head and clicked on his mouse. "No,
it's more like how you fought Wario. You always used some special
weapon or other to attack him while you watched from the sidelines."
"Oh, I get it." Captain Syrup unslung a sword from her belt. "You think I can't fight myself, and you want to train me." She furrowed her brow and smirked. "Well, I just want to tell you that I am completely capable of fighting."
Alboort pushed up his glasses. "Then let's see what you've got."
Captain Syrup spun the sword in her hand. "Well, I prefer using the twin swords fighting style. Pressing the B button cuases me to swing one of my swords, and pressing it several times in a row quickly allows me to use a pretty effective combo."
"Okay." Alboort tapped a couple of keys. "I'll send out a Trainer-Bot now, so we can see how you use those swords."
"All right." Captain Syrup shut her Thieftech. She turned to see a Trainer-Bot walk out of the observatory's doors. She ran up and sliced it with her right sword. She slashed with her left and spun quickly, striking the Trainer-Bot with both swords, slashing it to pieces. She pulled out her Thieftech. "How was that?"
Alboort nodded. "Well, that's good, but I think it will take a few more tricks to fool a cosmic being like Star-Krossed."
Captain Syrup switched up her swords so they were in the same hand. "Well, by pressing the Z button, I can juggle opponents with my sword. It's only good against a single enemy, but it can deal a lot of damage without giving them an opportunity to attack." She began spinning the two swords in her one hand. "And by pressing the B button after throwing a foe in the air, I can bring down a sword on top of them for my deadly Guillotine move." She caught the swords and placed her hand on her hip. "It's even more impressive in the fact that I don't have to sneak up on an opponent to use it."
Alboort nodded. "That does sound pretty good." He tapped a couple more keys. "Let's see that Guillotine move used on this new Trainer-bot."
Captain Syrup sighed. "Fine." She flipped her Thieftech shut and put it away. She raised her swords as the she faced the next Trainer-Bot. She ran over and scooped the machine up with one sword and caught it by the next with the other. She smashed it to pieces on the ground. She reached in and her pocket and pulled out a vibrating Thieftech.
Alboort smiled. "That Guillotine move is pretty effective. You only attacked the Trainer-Bot, but I felt it all the way in here."
Captain Syrup Syrup laughed. "That's my style. Are you impressed yet."
Alboort tapped several keys and stared at his computer screen. "Well, I have been able to examine your body structure, and I can tell that, even though you can only double jump, you can walk on ropes and ledges like Waluigi."
Captain Syrup looked around. "Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, but there isn't much along the lines of playground equipment around here."
"I know." Alboort pushed his glasses up his face. "Rather, I need to know what you can do up in the air."
Captain Syrup flipped her swords around in her hand. "Well, after jumping, I can press the B button to perform by Pillage Plunge attack." She shrugged. "It's not exactly as strong as Waluigi's Earthquake Stomp, but enemies in range will lose balance for a few seconds." She looked up at the sky. "Or I could press the Z button to perform Sword Swirl. It's not fast, but it is powerful to take out most airborne enemies." She smirked. "Also, by holding the Z button, I can glide for great distances. And I can always press the 2 button to summon Denpuu."
Alboort nodded. "Well, we're a
little pressed for time, so I just want you to show me that Sword
Swirl technique. We don't know if Star-Krossed can fly or not." He
tapped a few keys. "Try to attack this Propeller-Bot I'm sending
out." He disappeared from the screen.
Captain Syrup stuck her
Thieftech in her pocket and looked up. As soon as the Propeller-Bot
came out, she jumped up a couple times and turned quickly. The small
robot didn't even stand a chance.
As she landed on the ground, Captain Syrup pulled out her Thieftech and smiled. "Am I good, or am I good?"
"I would have to say you're good." Alboort tapped a few keys. "Listen, I just want you to get into position. I need to go check on Waluigi."
Captain Syrup sighed and shrugged. "Very well." She flipped her Thieftech shut and stuck it in her pocket. She looked towards Star-Krossed's keep and buckled her swords. She laughed and ran towards the black palace.
---
Waluigi stood on the top of
Star-Krossed's keep. He looked up at the pillar and pulled out his
vibrating Thieftech. "Okay, Alboort, I hear you, and I'm in
position."
Alboort adjusted his glasses. "Good. Now, timing
is going to be crucial like with the other star pillars, but I want
to tell you to exercise extreme caution. Not only will you have to
come back down from the crushed pillar, but you're going to be caught
in the midst of hundreds of fleeing stars."
Waluigi waved the comment off. "Alboort, don't worry. I crushed other star pillars, I can crush this one."
"Okay, but again, be careful." Alboort disappeared form the screen.
"Right." Waluigi flipped his Thieftech shut and pocketed it. He reached into his pack and pulled out a Vampire Candy. He popped it into his mouth and jumped up as soon as the transformation was complete. He flapped his wings until he was right next to the star. He twisted his torso and span forward with a Whirl-Luigi. He began swimming his way through the air.
As the fragments of the star pillar fell to the ground, the forcefield began to ripple. It soon faded completely, and the trapped stars all started blasting straight up.
Waluigi was bumped by several stars as he swam. "Stupid stars. I can't see what's going on down on the ground.
Suddenly, the whole black castle began to quake.
Waluigi raised his eyebrows. "Somehow, I don't think that's supposed to happen."
Star-Krossed's keep blew up into massive chunks, flying in all directions. Some bounced off of Rosalina's forcefield. Others flew into off into space.
Waluigi held his hands out and grabbed onto a flying chunk to shield himself. He groaned and pinched the bridge of his nose as he floated up. "Oh, this is going to be fun."
On the ground, Captain Syrup had shielded her head and body with her hands. As the debris stopped flying past her, she lowered her arms and looked around. Castle, walls, towers, pillars, everything was gone. The only thing left was a curled mass of blue.
After a moment, the blue wad began to shuffle. It slowly stood up to reveal that it was someone in a blue cloak. A gold star was printed on the front of the midnight blue cloak. As the head raised up, three star-like points stood over a high collar. Several golden bangs fell over the right eye of the humanoid face. A black star shape snuck out on the cheek beneath the bangs, and a red star shape was printed over his left eye.
Captain Syrup crept up to the creature slowly. "Um, hello? Are you Star-Krossed."
The creature's left eye shot open. The red star began to glow as the eye widened. After a moment, he shut his eye again. "Human, presumably primitive from the waves you give off."
Captain Syrup raised an eyebrow. "Um, right." She spun her finger in the air. "If you are Star-Krossed, I know quite a few people who would appreciate it if you stopped eating stars."
"Very primitive indeed." The creature, presumably Star-Krossed, opened his eye again. He wasn't looking at Captain Syrup, though. He was staring off into space. "I must have passed through a time thread." He sighed. "How could this have happened."
"Time thread?" Captain Syrup placed her hands on her hips. "Right. I think something's wrong with you."
"Something is wrong with me." Star-Krossed turned towards Captain Syrup. "But not in the sense as you understand."
Both of Captain Syrup's eyebrows shot up. "Right. I still don't understand what's up with you."
Star-Krossed shook his head solemnly. "No human from your time could understand." A shadowy hand extended from the star on his robe, and he looked up in the sky. "You know, when a star dies, it becomes stardust. All life, including humans, has a little stardust in it."
Captain Syrup rocked back and forth on her feet. "Right. I have no idea how to respond to that."
The shadowy hand clenched itself into a large fist, and Star-Krossed closed his visible eye. "However, as old stars give new life, there will eventually be those who take it."
Captain Syrup pointed oddly at Star-Krossed. "Well, I know everyone's going to die."
Star-Krossed took a deep breath. "My kind is not yet to rule. Instead, we live in the distant future." His hand raised up to the starry sky. "At least, I think that is how it is. Either that, or I am in a distant galaxy I have never heard of."
Captain Syrup tilted her head to one side. "Yeah. I don't understand a single thing you're saying. I'm just supposed to tell you to stop eating stars."
"Eating stars?" Star-Krossed nodded sagely. "Yes, I suppose you don't understand that. You probably think that I eat stars just to gain immortality." The shadowy hand curled into a fist, and he placed it against his forehead. "So primitive. So naive." He chuckled slowly, shaking his head. "I am merely the perfection created by time." He pointed at the Comet Observatory. "You see, at one time, I, too, was a Luma. However, when I evolved, I evolved into something much greater than a star or planet or galaxy." He stared at Captain Syrup. "I am a Galaxy Eater, the most powerful of all beings and the natural predator of stars."
Captain Syrup looked off to the side. "Yeah, I'm sure that's probably important in your gallaxy or whatever, but we just don't eat stars around here."
"So you wish to challenge nature?" Star-Krossed chuckled in an unusually loud and low voice. "So amusing. But I understand your human thoughts." He sighed. "For I am not simply a Galaxy Eater. While evolving, a human touched me. We melded together and became an elite even among the Galaxy Eaters." He nodded sagely. "In fact, the human part of me was what wanted that palace created. You must have thought that the defenses were up to keep people out. Actually, it was to keep me in, allowing me to eat stars without hurting anyone."
Captain Syrup's eyes grew wide. "Wait. You were supposed to be kept inside that thing?" She laughed nervously. "Well, isn't this going to be funny to tell the rest of the gang."
The red star on Star-Krossed's face began glowing a vicious red. "Oh, I'm afraid that's not going to happen." His shadowy hand snaked its way around his body and stood menacingly over his head like a snake. "You see, I never wanted to hurt anyone, but I can not forgive you for your demolition practice." Several star-shaped energy pulses floated his head rainbow-style. "For that, you will pay!" White laser beams blasted from the stars surrounding his head.
Captain Syrup dodged through the beams until she was free from the cage of light. She ran toward the galactic being, dodging from side to side as beams of light shot past her. When she got near enough, she began swinging her swords viciously.
After a moment of being attacked directly, Star-Krossed furrowed his brow. The shadowy hand that extended from his body shot down at the pirate.
Captain Syrup jumped out of the way last second. She lowered her sword and began to juggle him in the air.
Before Captain Syrup could perform a Guillotine attack, Star-Krossed flew up into the air. The stars around his head began to glow brighter, and his hand glowed a vicious purple. Several beams of starlight blasted down at the ground.
Captain Syrup ran out of the way of the beams. As she ran, she pulled out her lamp. "Okay, Denpuu, let's get going."
Denpuu popped out of the lamp. "Okay, Miss Syrup."
Captain Syrup jumped onto Denpuu's back. The two of them flew up until they were about level with Star-Krossed. The pirate turned the genie to shoot fireballs at the galactic being, but they got shot just as often.
Captain Syrup cringed. "This isn't working." She rubbed the lamp. "Go back, Denpuu. This isn't a job for you."
Denpuu groaned against the beams. "Very well, Miss Syrup." He turned into smoke and flew into the lamp.
Captain Syrup landed on the ground and jumped out of the way of one of the starlight beams. She ran through the attacks and was soon beneath Star-Krossed. She jumped up and Sword Swirled at the star-eyed warrior. As she landed, she dodged a couple more beams and jumped up to Sword Swirl again.
After Star-Krossed had been hit by several Sword Swirls, he lowered himself to the ground. His hand became even more ominous. It swept over the ground, smashing the remaining pebbles and rocks.
Captain Syrup jumped over the hand and ran forward. On top of the beams, she had to continue dodging the hand. When she got close, she slashed savagely. She had to keep jumping and running side to side to avoid the shadowy hand.
Soon, Star-Krossed doubled over. "So, this is you power." He chuckled. "How curious." He suddenly snapped up straight, and his hand ensnared Captain Syrup completely.
Captain Syrup winced as she was pulled
in by the giant hand.
Star-Krossed turned his opponent from left
and right, examining her. "You know, my human side tells me that,
for a female specimen, you would happen to be quite attractive." He
twisted the pirate upside down and right-side up again. "However,
as a Galaxy Eater, I don't really have use for you." His grip began
to constrict around Captain Syrup's middle. He chuckled. "My human
side wishes to apologize for the inconvenience."
Waluigi landed on the ground nearby.
"Sorry about being so late." He pointed his thumb at the sky.
"That rock jumping business isn't exactly the quickest,
though.
"Who could this be that I hear?" Star-Krossed turned
around. As soon as he saw Waluigi, his eyes widened, and he let go of
Captain Syrup. "Oh my, I most assuredly must have run into a time
thread."
Waluigi kicked forward a couple times as Syrup ran behind him. "Listen, loser, I don't take kindly to those who threaten my team." He cracked his neck. "In fact, it makes me pretty mad."
Star-Krossed tapped a shadowy finger against his chin. "Team? You worked on a team?"
Waluigi pulled out a Vampire Candy and swallowed it. As he transformed, he rushed up to Star-Krossed and gave him several choice kicks.
Star-Krossed doubled over as he backed up to the edge of the cleared off platform. "Of course, a team. That would explain a lot."
Waluig iraised an eyebrow and turned to Captain Syrup. "You have any idea what he's talking about?"
Captain Syrup shrugged. "Search me. He's been blabbering stuff like that the whole time."
"A team." Star-Krossed stood up. "Well, I suppose that I should give your 'team' my sincere apologies for causing you trouble." He bowed very low. As he rose up, a single crystal tear could be seen trailing from his left eye. "Now my human half merely wishes to give you a fond farewell." His cloak began to blow around him in a strange pattern. "Alas, parting is such sweet sorrow." He leaned backwards and let himself drift off into space.
Waluigi scratched his head as he watched Star-Krossed float away. "Okay, that guy officially made it onto my list of the top five biggest nutjobs I have ever met."
Captain Syrup nodded.
Waluigi threw his hands up in the air as he walked past the pirate. "Oh well. I guess this job is over."
Captain Syrup walked alongside Waluigi. "Yeah. I suppose."
Suddenly, a bright flash of light exploded behind them. As a sudden breeze began to blow past them, they turned around.
Waluigi pulled out his vibrating Thieftech. "Alboort, what the heck is that thing!"
Alboort swallowed. "Well, it's something that Iggy and I didn't necessarily think was significant."
Waluigi glared at the Boo. "I don't care if it's significant or not, I want to know what it is."
Alboort adjusted his glasses. "Well, given how Star-Krossed is a galactic entity, we figured there was a 2.25% chance that he could devolve into a black hole."
"A black hole!" Waluigi fumed. "I don't know about you, but black hole warnings seem pretty important to me!"
Alboort held his hands up defensively. "Now, now. Calm down. All you have to do is run towards the safety of Rosalina's forcefield."
Waluigi growled. "I'll talk to you later." He flipped his Thieftech shut and turned to Cpatian Syrup, holing his hat down. "Run like your life depends on it, because it does." He turned towards the Comet Observatory and began running.
The two purple-clad thieves ran as rocks, dust, and other space debris flew the other direction. They jumped over several particularly large rocks, running forward the whole time.
As the two approached the blue forcefield, they could see Ashley standing in front of the doors. When they were within inches of the forcefield, they found that the black hole was preventing them from going forward anymore. They strained to reach the blue energy's safety.
Ashley calmly walked down the stairs, glaring at Captain Syrup the whole time. She walked up right in front of the pirate and silently stood there a moment, arms crossed. She shrugged and, never taking her eyes off Captain Syrup, walked over and pulled Waluigi into the forcefield.
Waluigi didn't even talk. He turned, grabbed Captain Syrup by the wrist, turned and grabbed Ashley by the wrist, and ran into the Comet Observatory, pulling both girls behind him.
---
Funky Kong jumped up and down beside a massive crystal ball filled with stars. "Okay, little dudes. Shine. Shine! Ahahahahaha!"
Waluigi, Ashley, and Captain Syrup ran into the main room.
Waluigi flung his hands in the air. "A
black hole! You guys couldn't take the time to tell us about a
possible black hole!?"
Alboort cowered behind Iggy. "Well,
you're safe now. It's not like you actually got sucked in."
Iggy adjusted his glasses. "Well, that's not entirely true. You see, until we can get the observatory out of the black hole's gravitational pull, the whole observatory still has a possibility of getting sucked in."
Lumas began to spiral around Rosalina.
Rosalina ran towards the crystal ball. "Oh my, I hope the stars will work for us."
Polari floated around Rosalina's head. "Now just calm down, princess. The stars will do their work when they're ready."
Waluigi stepped over. "What are you guys talking about that this tub might not even mo-" The sudden burst forward sent Waluigi and miscellaneous other members flying against observatory walls.
As things inside the Comet Observatory stabilized, everyone looked out the windows.
Alboort laughed to himself. "Well, it looks like we'll be safe now."
Iggy winced. "Not exactly." He pulled out his notepad. "You see, like Waluigi and Captain Syrup almost got pulled into the black hole, other space debris will be pulled in as well. If too much of it hits our forcefield, it could go down, leaving us at the mercy of the black hole."
Alboort slammed his forehead against the window. "Great. If the black hole doesn't kill me, Waluigi will."
Geno stood next to Iggy. "Yo, don't worry about it. I can take care of anything coming at us."
Iggy turned to Geno. "Are you sure? I mean, sure, you'll be protected by the forcefield, but you're still a little out of practice. Do you think you can destroy an entire fleet of meteors."
Geno ran towards the observatory's doors. "Don't worry. I've got it." He ran out of the building.
As Geno walked outside, he jumped onto the sideways observatory's wall. He ran forward towards the end of the building and pulled out his Thieftech. "Okay, now, I can just blast these meteors out of the air in cannon mode, right?"
Iggy adjusted his glasses. "If you're feeling lucky, you can use your Geno Whirl technique to blow the meteors away."
Geno nodded. "Right. I'll think I'll stick with Geno Flash for now, though. It's easier to aim."
"Probably a good idea." Iggy looked through his notebook. "Now, there's no need to charge up the blasts for the smaller ones, but take them out as fast as you can and move up to the larger ones. But you're better at judgment, so you decide which ones to blast first."
"Yo, I got it." Geno flipped his Thieftech shut and put it away. He looked up at the flying space debris. "Okay, space rocks, prepare to get squashed." He jumped up and turned into a cannon, landing heavily on the observatory's side.
Cannon Geno aimed towards the storm of meteors being sucked towards the Comet Observatory. He blasted a multitude of the smaller rocks that were close to forcefield. He adjusted his aim and charged up a blast to take out a couple of larger rocks.
Geno kept blasting through all the debris as it came hurtling towards the blue forcefield. The cloud of rocks wasn't exceptionally thick, but Geno was still kept busy by the assortment of rocks.
After a while of shooting meteors into space dust, something even larger approached. A meteor even larger than the forcefield-enshrouded Comet Observatory came hurtling though the sky.
Geno returned to normal. "Now that's
what I call a meteor." He pulled his arms back, and a glowing disk
appeared in between them. After several seconds, the disk began to
glow white.
"Geno Whirl!" Geno thrust his hands forward, and
the disk shot forward in a whirling pattern of destruction.
As soon as the glowing disk hit the massive meteor, the rock exploded into gold and white dust.
Geno watched the dust as it cascaded over the forcefield. He took a deep breath. "Well, that certainly is beautiful."
Suddenly, a massive flash of white exploded from behind Geno. The puppet turned around and looked to see nothing behind the observatory. He took hold of his chin. "Yo, that has got to be the weirdest thing I've ever heard of." He shook his head. "I've seen plenty of things disappear into a black hole, but I've never seen a black hole disappear before." He watched as white, gold, and green waves flew from where the black hole had been. He raised one of his eyebrows. "Strange phenomena." He ran towards the door. "I wonder if it would mean anything to the others."
---
Geno entered the main part of the observatory. "Yo, guys, seems like we're safe now. That black hole just up and disappeared." He closed his eyes and nodded. "I would assume that he returned to his own time."
Alboort adjusted his glasses. "What do you mean? You understand the origins of Star-Krossed?"
Geno crossed his arms. "It's not like the guy didn't spit it out himself." He looked at Alboort and shrugged. "But I suppose that it's a little difficult for you to understand at this time. I'll explain later."
Waluigi walked up to Rosalina. "Speaking of Star-Krossed, we did get rid of him." He crossed his arms and smiled. "So how do you plan to repay us?"
"Repay you?" Rosalina blinked a couple times and smiled. "Well, I don't think that I could ever repay you for all you've done."
Waluigi snapped his fingers. "Don't worry about it. A healthy wad of cash, and we're out of your hair."
"Cash?" Rosalina tapped her cheek
in thought. "I'm afraid I don't have any money. It's not very
common around here."
"No money!?" Waluigi turned around and
leaned down towards Alboort. He took hold of his chin and frowned.
"You know, we seriously need to discuss payment before we take on
these jobs."
Alboort shrugged. "I guess I didn't think about it."
Waluigi clenched his fists. "Yeah, you haven't been thinking about a lot lately."
Rosalina placed a hand on Waluigi's shoulder. "Please, I did not mean to offend you."
Waluigi turned back to the star matron, snickering. "No offense taken at all." He pulled a blue rose out of his hat and handed it to Rosalina. "Just a bit of economic misunderstanding."
"Oh." Rosalina took the rose and held it close to her heart. "Thank you."
Rosalina looked Waluigi square in the eye. "If it's no trouble, could you and your team stay for dinner? The Lumas and I would be honored if you'd stay."
Waluigi snapped his fingers. "Sure, we'd like to stay." He turned to the others. "What do you think, gang? Dinner on the princess?"
Roy pumped his arm in the air. "No kidding. I'm starving."
Wendy nodded. "Severe distress always makes me hungry."
Toadsworth raised his staff in the air. "Here, here. It would be a pleasure."
Rosalina clasped her hands together. "Oh, how nice. I hope you all like Star Bits."
Waluigi held his chin. "Star Bits?" He threw his hands up in the air. "Ah, what the heck, I'm willing to try anything. I've got the stomach for it."
Rosalina kept her finger on her chin in thought, staring unblinkingly at Waluigi.
Waluigi took notice of the big blue eyes trained on him. "What?"
Polari flew from beside Toadsworth and towards Rosalina. "I say, my dear. It is rude to stare at people.
Rosalina put her hand down. "Oh, I'm sorry." She continued to stare at Waluigi. "It's just that you don't seem to have a special one."
Waluigi blinked a couple times. "Right. I have no idea what that means." He held his arm out to Rosalina. "So let's see about dinner."
Off to the side, Ashley blushed furiously as she watched the interaction.
Captain Syrup patted Ashley on the head. "Calm down. You're going to get sick if you blush that inconsistently."
---
On the rocket back to Earth, Waluigi, Ashley, and Captain Syrup sat up front.
Waluigi turned to Ashley. "Say, Ash, you mind if I ask what happened back at the observatory?"
Ashley turned to Waluigi. "What do you mean?"
Waluigi held his chin. "Well, it'd have been one thing if you just grabbed me instead of Maple, but you stalled and stared at her a moment. What was up with that?"
Ashley shrugged, but a blush was evident on her face. "Speculation. Calculating who would have been more important to save." She held up a knowing finger. "Seeing how you have done a lot more critical work than Captain Syrup, I figured you would have been more important to save."
Waluigi turned to the rocket's windshield. "Well, seeing how it's you, I guess I'll believe that." He shot a sidelong glance at Ashley. "But it still seems like you've been acting strangely lately."
"Speaking of acting strangely," Captain Syrup sat herself between Ashley and Waluigi. "What was up with that Star-Krossed guy?" She turned to Waluigi. "He practically froze in his boots when he saw you. He also mentioned something about the timestream. It was like he knew you from somewhere."
Waluigi shrugged. "Don't ask me. I was home-schooled, and my mom didn't feel like it was important to teach me about the space-time continuum." He pulled the steering wheel to one side. "Besides, that Star-Krossed guy was a complete nutjob. Honestly, anyone who'd waste the time to eat stars obviously isn't in his right mind, especially if he goes around talking about being part off future or past or whatever."
Captain Syrup held her chin. "I suppose that's a good point."
Alboort watched from the back of the rocket. He looked around the rocket to see the various other members wither sleeping or watching the stars go by outside. He took in a deep breath and pulled his laptop. He opened it and clicked on his cyber-journal icon.
Well, this is perhaps the strangest job we've had yet. Sure, we've faced some guys who could kill us, but this has to be the closest we've ever been to actually being killed.
Oh well, that's all in the past. For now, I think we should be in for a much simpler life. Space is a nice place to visit, but I don't think we should make any more extended trip. Yes, from now on, we're going to keep it on the road and seas instead of the stars and inky blackness of space.
However, I have been able to discover something recently with my satellite. I'll spring the good news when we're safely back on the ground. For now, I think I'm going to see about taking a nap. It's not common for us Boos, but I need to unwind a bit.
Mission complete,
signed,
-Waluigi
-Alboort
-Ashley and Red
-Toadsworth
-The Koopalings
-Funky Kong
-Captain Syrup
-Geno
---
Yeah, I know it sounds like Star-Krossed died, but you know these cartoon villains. They could die a hundred times, and they'll always be back later. You'll see a little more of him later, but don't ask how.
Anyways, let's see what the team is: A thief, a Boo, a witch, an old Toad, several dragonic Koopas, a funky monkey, a pirate, and a cosmic super doll. What am I going to do with these? You'll have to wait until the next chapter. It will be both an entirely new location and a new villain.
Speaking of new villains, let me be entirely clear about Star-Krossed's appearance. He pretty much wears a midnight blue cape/cloak that covers most of his body with a large gold star in the front. His hair is supposed to look like a large gold star, but the bottom two points are covered by his high collar. His face looks like a mix between Rosalina and Geno's. Well, it's not quite as feminine as Rosalina's, but it's not like he has an exaggerated nose like Mario and Waluigi. A red star shape is placed over his left eye, and a black on is placed on his right cheek. An eerie arm will extend from the gold star on his cloak, but his true body structure is unknown. It can be assumed that it looks like a cross between Waluigi and Geno's, but it could just as likely be that his true body is a black hole.
As for the new character? Well, you'll just have to stay tuned.
Please enjoy and review.
