Chapter 14 Sage's Warning
Sage watched as Larry and Lemmy played video games in the common room. The two were in perfect sync as they raced to get to the goal. They managed to collect every star coin in sight. This was very impressive stuff indeed.
Of course, Sage wasn't very good at the New Super Mario Bros games. Despite how much Larry and Lemmy had insisted he joined, he knew that him losing lives left, right, and center would just be a detriment. So, he just sat and observed.
Suddenly, the door opened. Sage's head turned with sharp intensity toward the koopa who had entered. Alas, it was not who he hoped for. It was Ludwig, and he had a piece of paper in his hands.
"Well, I did it!" he proclaimed.
"Did what?" Larry asked.
"I finally got my name changed!" He waved the paper in his hand around. Sage had to admit that the official document didn't look that official. Nevertheless, Ludwig was grinning with a smug air to him. "Ludwig Vanessa Koopa is no more!"
Lemmy and Larry paused their game and stood up.
"That's awesome!" Lemmy said. "Can we see?"
"Uh huh!" Ludwig handed the paper to Lemmy, the same smug expression on his face. "Read it and weep!"
Lemmy, Larry, and Sage looked down at the paper. When Sage saw what was actually written, he couldn't help but let out a snicker.
"What? What's so funny?" asked Ludwig, the smugness transforming into concern. Lemmy looked at his older brother.
"Uh, Ludwig, are you sure you picked up the right paper?"
"Yeah, of course I did; why?"
"Because this doesn't say Ludwig," Larry said, failing to hide a smile as he displayed the paper. "It says Lucille."
Ludwig's eyes grew wide.
"WHAT!" He grabbed the paper and examined it. "Lucille von Koopa? Is this some sort of joke?"
Larry snickered.
"Lucille von Koopa. You know, it has a nice ring to it."
"Shut up," said Ludwig. He turned over the paper. Apparently noticing for the first time that there was writing on the back, he started to read. "Mr. Koopa,we have noticed that you have decided to break Koopa tradition and select a male middle name. So, we have taken the liberty of selecting a female first name for you to keep with the tradition." Ludwig's voice trailed off when he said the last part of the sentence. Electricity started to crackle in the air. "Oh, you have got to be kidding me!" He stormed toward the door. "I'm gonna sue that place back into the Stone Age!"
With that, Ludwig opened the door with a burning intensity. The flames around his arms calmed down when he saw who was on the other side.
"Roy? Celia?"
Sage perked up upon hearing those names. He went a little closer and smiled when he saw that Roy had his arm wrapped around Celia.
"Hey, guys," Roy said as he held Celia closer. "Did I introduce you to my new girlfriend yet?"
Larry and Lemmy sprung to their feet and approached the newly formed couple. Lemmy gasped in excitement.
"You two are dating?" he asked. His eyes sparkled like soda.
"Yep," said Roy. He smiled and approached Sage. "And I couldn't have done it if it weren't for this guy right here!"
He ruffled Sage's hair. Sage giggled as he felt Roy's strong, sturdy hand pull away.
"I'm just glad that my mission was a success," he said. He examined the couple, his face beaming. Roy mirrored the expression perfectly.
"Believe me, I am too." He smiled at Celia. "Come on, Cee, let's go tell everyone else!"
…
Sage took in a deep breath as he stared at the time machine in the lab. He started to approach it, feeling all sorts of new emotions. Most of them were joy, a little bit of them were relief. Yet, at the same time, now that his existence wasn't on the line, Sage remembered what was told to him before he left. He remembered what would befall the Koopalings before it all settled down.
With that, Sage decided that he needed to do something. He had been told not to reveal too much about his timeline to the Koopalings. Yet, he couldn't hide this. He needed to get some things off of his chest.
He found Roy in his room. He was talking to Celia, laughing and joking with her. Sage smiled, but only for a minute. He approached Roy.
"Roy. Can I talk to you for a second?"
Roy smiled.
"Yeah, sure." He got up and followed Sage as he led him back to the lab. Once they were safely within the room, Sage let out a breath.
"Roy, I'm going back to the future now."
"Oh," Roy said. There was a very real sense of disappointment in his , it was quickly replaced by a smile. "Well, I hope that you enjoy life and stuff like that."
Sage nodded.
"I will. But first, there is something you need to hear."
Roy looked at Sage in interest. The young Koopa boy took another deep breath.
"Roy, there is a lot of bad things coming toward you and your siblings. And I mean a lot of bad things. You guys will be put through tests that you didn't even imagine before."
Roy's eyes grew wide.
"What?" When Sage nodded, he looked frightened. "What kind of bad things?!"
Sage felt a very real pang of sympathy
"I can't tell you. It's classified."
Roy's fright increased.
"Then how will we know what they are? How will we get through them?"
Sage felt some form of relief. At least this he could answer with confidence.
"You guys need to stick together. You need to help each other. Can you do that? For me?"
Roy hesitated before nodding. Sage smiled.
"Good." He looked toward the time machine. "Well, I'll see you later."
AN: It took three months, but I finally finished this story. Thank you so much for tuning in. What did you think? What did you like? What do you think I can improve?
Now, here is something I've neglected doing over the past few stories: shootouts. Thank you to EAParakeet, TrimusicaDrg00n90, and LiamtheYoshi for favoriting and following. Also, huge shoutout to Amethyst Goldenwind for reviewing every chapter. Well, I will see you next time. Stay safe and stay awesome! :)