Chapter Forty-Four: The Grand Star's Ambition
Koops glanced out of one of the windows in Hooktail Castle. The sky was full of airships...most of them the standard Airship Mk. II that made up most of the imperial fleet, but there were a few of the sleeker Mk. IIIs mixed in amongst them. He gave a deep sigh.
Koops did not like what was going on. He'd hated every moment of it since the beginning, but as the war seemed to be nearing a close, a sense of apprehension seemed to be growing. The Koopa Empire had made life worse for everyone, but under the Neo Empire, people's lives would be restricted under Ludwig's iron fist. The eldest Koopaling's meticulous desire for order and control would lead to a world where non-Imperial citizens would have no rights and freedoms, and would be treated as little better than slaves under the Koopa regime.
If he'd had his way, he would've fought against it with all his might, but real life was far more unpleasant. Koops left the window and walked down the floor, which was red-coloured and covered in star patterns. He strode through a door into a larger hall with a gallery ringing around it, which was full of officers conversing. He could hear the low rumble of airships outside. The Neo Empire was preparing for what would likely be their biggest battle yet. Ludwig had given Larry an order to crush what remained of Bowser Jr's fleet. Once it was destroyed, only the Koopa Central Elite Forces remained between Ludwig and the throne.
Various officers gave Koops respectful bows as he passed. He was their superior officer after all; as a member of High Command, he was the second-highest authority in Sector One itself, with only Prince Larry having command over him. It was strange, how he, a former ally of Mario's who'd never renounced his loyalties, a Koopa with no loyalties to his ancestral homeland, had manged to move up in the ranks. Without Larry, it never would've been possible.
Koops grit his teeth as he continued to move down the hall, past the groups of officers conversing as they prepared for the battle. After he'd been captured roughly two years after Mario's death, Larry had decided to play around with him. Transforming him into the perfect Koopa Troop member had been a personal experiment of his. The experiment had worked. Koops was legendary throughout the ranks, famous for his suppression of the Metro Kingdom army which had finally granted Emperor Bowser control over the world. Koops was well aware of the fact that before Sector One had joined the Neo Empire, he was being considered for promotion to Grand General once Shelldon retired. It was a position he did not want, but even it would be better than being the commander of Larry's forces, working towards leading his people towards suppression. Koops reached around and touched a scar on his left shoulder. The scar was an ancient Magikoopa rune that Larry had placed upon him...the main reason why he hadn't betrayed him. It was a curse of devastating effect. The second he did anything betraying Larry, it would activate and cause not only his death, but the deaths of his wife, Koopie Koo, and his two children. To keep them safe, he'd do anything.
Koops stopped at the end of the hall, where a colourful group of people were waiting for him. They were figures who, in the past, had been considered famous sports celebrities, fighters who had completely mastered their art. The Iron Harriers, the Magikoopa Masters, even Rawk Hawk himself...Larry hadn't thought it wise to let the Glitz Pit continue operating with it's current roster when the majority of them had been friendly with Mario. Instead, he'd pressed them all into service, just like he had with them.
"So, we ready to rawk?" Rawk Hawk asked, crossing his arms.
Koops nodded. "Yes." he said stiffly. "Let's go."
Antonio, supreme leader of Seven Stars, sat at his desk in his private office. The office was dimly lit and spacely furnished, having in it only Antonio's glass desk and high-backed chair. The entire back wall was a window that looked over the huge central shaft of the Seven Stars headquarters, with it's criss-crossing bridges and countless soldiers and agents passing every which way, carrying out their roles as small cogs within the colossal machine that Antonio had brought into being.
Antonio leaned back and closed his eyes. There was near-complete silence within the Grand Star's office. Antonio liked silence; it helped him think. He had done a lot of thinking over the decades, laying out his plans and setting down the rules of the game, but that time was nearly ever. His pieces needed to move only a few steps more, and then his dream would finally be realized. He had come so far.
Only yesterday, it seemed, he had been that boy in Rose Town, full of dreams and ambition and wanting something more than taking on the carpenter's trade from his father, Gonzolo. He had left the small forest village at the age of eighteen, aiming to travel the world and find his true purpose in life. His travels led him to the Koopa Kingdom, where, as luck would have it, a chance encounter led to him falling in with the young Prince Morton Koopa.
Morton was a kindred spirit. The two shared the same passion for life and the same desire to put their talents to good use. Just as Antonio sought a life beyond simple manual labor, Morton something beyond becoming the king his father was trying to groom him into, and to take a more direct role in solving problems than drafting bills. The two had become fast friends, and the adventures they had had while travelling the kingdom together would be enough to fill several books. In time, he and Morton had started to work towards realizing their dreams of stopping corruption and defending both the Mushroom and Koopa kingdoms. They created an organization together, and had given it a meaningful name. Just like the Seven Star spirits granted wishes from on high and the seven Crystal Stars had sealed away the Shadow Queen and ended her reign of terror, so would their new Seven Stars grant the wishes of the people and protect the world from threats within and without.
He'd been so hopeful and altruistic those days, Antonio remembered. They'd brought in more members to their organization...like his brother Giovanni, and the former hitman and thief, Skallz Fortiscule. With the organization steadily growing, working from the shadows, Antonio was able to free the Mushroom Kingdom from the control the Pianta Syndicate had gained over it. King Alfred Toadstool had been a weak ruler and had relied on the Piantas for loans, but striking from the Shadows, Seven Stars had dealt the syndicate a blow that not even the legendary "Don of Untimely Death" had ever been able to recover from.
Seven Stars had blazed a trail of peace for the two kingdoms, striking down crime syndicates and corrupt politicians and corporations. But when Antonio's life had never looked brighter, everything had suddenly collapsed. King Yoser, Morton's father, suddenly died, forcing Morton to ascend to the throne of the Koopa Kingdom and leave his seat at the Seven Stars Board of Directors. Antonio continued without him, of course, continuing to defend the Mushroom Kingdom from the shadows. That was, of course, until the great famine of the Koopa Kingdom. Perhaps the sense of harsh justice Morton had gained when working with Seven Stars led him to take action. While the Koopas were in desperate need of new land to re-grow their food supplies, the Mushroom Kingdom had never been better and King Alfred refused to give the Koopas aid. So, Antonio knew, Morton had come to the conclusion that King Alfred simply had to go. The Mushroom Kingdom would become part of the Koopa Kingdom, under Morton's rule.
Antonio had never had much love for Alfred Toadstool, but he did love the Mushroom Kingdom. Not only would it lose it's identity, it would be stripped of resources and used to rebuild the weakened Koopa Kingdom. He'd tried to appeal to his old friends, but they fell on deaf ears. So began the conflict that became known as the First Koopa War.
The war had been long and taxing. As a result of the intense training they'd done during their younger years, Morton and Antonio had become several times stronger than anyone else on either side, and their clashes had been enough to change the landscape itself. When in the past they had been best friends, in the war they became the worst of enemies.
But those days had not been all bad, Antonio remembered, allowing himself a slight smile. He'd met a beautiful woman named Evelina, who stood by his side as he defended the Mushroom Kingdom against the Koopa forces. They were married, and Evelina gave birth to twin brothers...all while the war was raging around the kingdom. At this point the battle was even, and no one could tell which side would triumph.
Then had come that fateful day. As usual, the two armies clashed and Antonio and Morton met hand to hand, burning the forests and shaking the mountains as they exchanged blows. The battlefield was five miles away from the small village Evelina lived in with baby Mario and Luigi, but in a fight of that scale, that meant nothing. Perhaps he had done the deed, perhaps Morton had...either way, the village had been destroyed, razed to the ground by a combination of their blasts and the tremors created by their blows. When the Koopas had finally been driven off, Antonio had found his wife, dead in the woods the surrounded the village. She had crawled away, heavily wounded, desperate to get her children away from the danger.
Full of rage, Antonio had led the Mushroom army in a fearsome campaign, smashing the Koopas and engaging with his former friend in a climactic battle, finally ending the life of Morton Koopa Sr. When the dust cleared, the Mushroom Kingdom was ravaged, mountains and forests destroyed by their great strength.
Most people in the kingdom believed Antonio, too, had been killed, and Antonio found it best to take advantage of that and disappear. As he had looked over the ruins of the kingdom he had tried to protect, he had realized the truth of things. People had become too powerful, and it had cost the lives of Evelina and millions of others. If all were equal...if there was no magic, no wishes, no great minds or people of great ambition, the world would at least know true peace. To achieve this end, Antonio, with his chief lieutenants Giovanni and Skallz, disappeared into the shadows, creating the new Seven Stars and obtaining supremacy throughout the international underworld. Antonio trained and amassed weapons, doing nothing as the Shroobs descended from the skies to conquer the world.
To achieve the first step of his plan, there would have to be another great war between the Koopa and the Mushroom kingdoms. As such, he had started these conflicts by ordering the murder of King Bowser's wife, which caused him to begin his kidnapping of Princess Peach. To his disappointment, it took many years for the conflict to reach critical point, but when it had, after the wedding of his son Mario and the Princess, everything finally began to fall into place. Soon after the apparent death of Mario, Antonio had been contacted by a...certain someone, who had given him the tools to achieve his final plan.
Antonio called it the Starfall. It was an event of apocalyptic proportions, which would destroy even Star Haven itself. When it was over, every person in the world...no, the universe itself, who had potential to become a person of note would be dead. The powers of magic, wishes, even power-ups would cease to exist, and at last there would be true, blissful...silence.
Antonio opened his eyes and stood up, placing his hands upon his glass desk. Yes...the time for the meeting was about now. He allowed himself a small smile. People might try to fight it...but in the end, it was inevitable. No matter what complications, his plan would succeed.
Antonio stepped into the Seven Stars council room. It was a medium-sized oval chamber, in which the walls were made up completely of screens showing live views of various places in the Mushroom World. Toad Town, Koopa Central, Ludwig von Koopa's palace...Seven Stars could observe them all effortlessly. The only piece of furniture in the table was a long glass table with seven seats. Five out of the seven were filled, and their occupants rose as Antonio arrived.
"Thank you." Antonio said, as he eased into his tall chair at the head of the table. The entire room was lit with dark orange lights, which made the glass table glow like fire. "Now let us begin."
At Antonio's right hand was seated a man who bore a striking resemblance to his son Mario. He wore green overalls and a blue shirt and cap, and on his cap was the letter "G". The man was, of course, his younger brother Giovanni, who held the rank of Blue Star. Giovanni's left hand rested on the table. He had lost it during the First Koopa War, so he'd replaced it with a mechanical one. Giovanni had a great many scientific talents, and there were reasons other than blood that he was Antonio's right-hand man.
"The Koopa fleet and the Neo Empire are ready to clash above the Blooper Sea." Giovanni reported, twirling his waxed moustache. "I predict a significant Neo Empire victory."
"Don't underestimate the newcomers, Giovanni." Skallz smiled. He was seated at Antonio's left hand, and had his hat resting causally down so it covered most of his face. "I haven't had so much fun fighting somebody since old Morton died."
"Those idiots can't possibly change the course of this war." Sthnadlash growled from further down the table. "I faced them myself...they're above average, but far below our own levels."
"Enough." Antonio silenced them, raising his hand. "It does not matter who wins the war. All that matters is that the final conflict escalates. Once the war reaches breaking point...that is when we will strike."
"I am pleased to report, Grand Star sir, that Fire Flower is at the end of the rope!" Toadificus, the moustached Toad who held the rank of Green Star spoke up. "We won't need to work with Yoshi much more."
"Excellent." Antonio nodded. That was good...as a Star Child, Yoshi could not be allowed to escape the Starfall.
"Grand Star, sir..." Krezena said, glancing at the empty seat next to her. "When do you think the Red Star will be ready to join as at the table?"
"Not yet." Antonio replied firmly. It was best not to rush these things. The seat of Red Star, originally filled by Morton Koopa Sr, himself, had been filled by a few people over the years, but it had been vacant for a long time. Once his son joined him in his mission, things would truly be complete. He would soon. Twenty years worth of power augmentation and mental manipulation would finally pay off. "However..." he smiled, and turned his gaze on his brother. "Giovanni...it's time we make use of our...other asset, don't you think?"
Giovanni's eyes widened. "The Princess?" she exclaimed. "Now?"
Antonio nodded. "Her appearance will be the final push we need to to ensure all of our pieces are in position. After the dust clears...the Mushroom World will see it's last battle." Antonio propped up his elbow on his armrest and rested his head on his fist. "Try to change your destiny, my unworthy younger son and Morton's brat. No matter what either of you do, the world as you know it will come to an end."
The fleet of battleships moved through the air, breaking through the thick clouds above the sea, their flags fluttering in the wind. It was nearly the size of Bowser Jr's original fleet...although there was one crucial difference. This was all the reserves, all the ships assigned to patrols and guard duty, even a few ships that had just come out of the factories and didn't have their paint jobs yet. If this fleet was destroyed, only the Koopa Central Elite Force stood between Ludwig and the throne.
Cobal and Strike stood next to a window, watching their fellow ships in the fleet float by. "Is it weird being back with the Koopas, but on our side?" Cobal asked the scarred Fire Bro.
Strike shrugged. "That doesn't matter to me." he replied calmly. "I was going to fight in this battle either way, and the opinions of others don't really bother me."
"I dunno..." Cobal said, continuing to gaze out of the window. "I can't help but to feel...you know, real nervous about this." he glanced back at Strike. "I've fought in war before, but this is a whole new level!"
"It's an air battle." Strike replied. "It's not exactly the same. Most of the fighting is done by the pilots and strategists on the bridge and the gunners manning the Bill Blasters. We just have to make sure nobody boards our own ship."
"And lemmie guess...maybe do a bit of boarding ourselves?" Cobal asked, glancing down the window. There was nothing but ocean below them. "You know, I'd hate to fall from this hate."
Strike smiled dryly. "Best keep fluttering those legs of yours, kid. You're going to need to."
Cobal took a deep breath. He didn't know why, but he had a bad feeling about this fight. Plus, the words of the strange woman kept grating on him. Abandon the people of the Mushroom World to their fate. No way he'd do that, right?"