It was a battle unlike anything he had ever imagined. True, the Koopas were winning, killing and capturing Toads left and right, but there were just so many…soldiers! Did they not have families that cared for them? Did they not have loved ones? Did they not have lives that were being destroyed at that very moment?
These were Kammy's thoughts. Bowser cared only for revenge on the King. He couldn't take his eyes off of the nearly decapitated corpse of his sister. He was supposed to be doing all of this for her! Now he was doing it to avenge her. Her and Brank. And all Koopas!
He summoned his Flying Machine and soared to the skies. He had to dodge all of the rocketing Para Troops and Lakitus, but the view of the battle was worth it. Spears, hammers, shells, leaves, heads, limbs, blood…it was total Hell.
He looked down at the castle. He had never noticed it in its full glory before. It was surrounded by a large moat, built of white brick with red shingles covering the rooftop. The tallest tower was in the center of the building with a medium-sized crimson flag blowing in the winds of war. Two large pillars held up a magnificent window made of stained glass. It showed King Toadstool holding his sword up high with a bright star in the upper right hand corner, taking the place of the sun. It was beautiful. It made Bowser want to puke.
He wasn't watching the battlegrounds, though. A group of Toads gathered around their cannon and shot at the Koopa. His Flying Machine was struck hard and fast by a small, blue bomb. Panic filled his vengeful mind as he lost control of the machine. The flying pod went soaring this way and that, making Bowser nauseous, until it crashed through the stained glass, which shattered into a billion tiny pieces.
The colorful shards pierced the Koopa's skin as he fell from the great height into the main hall of the enemy castle. His body smashed hard onto the marble floor, creating a small tremor upon impact. Blood dripped down his nose and lips as he attempted to straiten himself out. He prayed that his spiked shell wasn't damaged; he didn't know if Kammy could provide another.
He could hardly stand because of the aftershock of the fall. He staggered around the glass-infested room for a short while until a spear pierced his shoulder. He cried out in pain as he collapsed to the ground once again. Where did that come from?
He then saw the Devil in the flesh, up close for the first time in years. Flames of anger built in Bowser's eyes as his muscles tightened and his teeth bore. Toadstool smiled.
"Bowser, you are pathetic." He grinned. "A makeshift army attacking my castle for no reason at all? Is this some sort of sick revenge scheme?" The Koopa grunted, pain searing through his body.
"You killed Brilette and…you wanted to kill all Koopas." He gasped tiredly. "I was not about to let you do that to my people."
"So you started a band of rebels to finish me off." Toadstool laughed. "Bowser, I don't know what your big plan is, but it's failing so far. Here you are, nearly dead on my floor…" He kicked the bleeding Koopa, who cringed. "…and here I am, striking you down as easily as I would an infant!"
He summoned a few Toad Troops, who chained Bowser up and led him to the prison chambers. Frustration infested Bowser's mind as he was helplessly carried into a small cage. He was no better off than all the other Koopas, destined to work for this horrid monster until death. The Toads locked up the cage and walked away, leaving Bowser alone with Toadstool once more.
'No!' Bowser thought. 'Kammy said that I had a better destiny! This…this cannot be it!'
"Kammy?"
Bowser looked up at Toadstool, surprised. Had he read his thoughts? Was this man more powerful than he knew?
"How do you know Lady Kamilia?" Bowser asked. Toadstool's eyes widened at the mention of the name, then relaxed again and chuckled a bit.
"Kamilia…now there's a name from the past…" He said almost to himself. "She always was an old bitch, wasn't she?"
Bowser roared and threw his body against the cage, attempting to break it. The clawed at the bars, bit them until his teeth shattered and bled. He wasn't about to let Toadstool talk about Kamilia that way but…why wouldn't the bars break?
"The bars are enchanted, Koopa-Crap." Toadstool said, a slight quiver of laughter in his voice. "By this."
He pulled something out of his robe pocket…something bright and gold. It was a Star! Bowser backed away from the King as Toadstool forced the Star against the bars of the cage. The King then burst out into laughter.
"To Humans, Goombas, Lakitus, Yoshis…this Star is a symbol of purity and freedom. But to Koopas it is a sign of death and despair. Do you know why, Koopa King?" Bowser didn't respond. His eyes were on the Star, which may as well been ticking bomb ready to blow him into smithereens.
"This Star is among the hundreds of Stars that were brought over from the Moon. They gave their creators great power, extraordinary power. With this power, their creators invaded the land of Het Naamkaartje. They scoped out and established each an every city in this nation.
"The good people of Het Naamkaartje were terrified of these invaders, but nobody dared take a stand against them. That is…until a young girl named Kamilia stood up to the challenge. She said that these invaders had no right in her homeland and that they should be driven back to where they came from. In case you haven't already guessed, Bowser, these invaders were those Shy Guys.
"Kamilia wanted to drive out the Shy Guys, but didn't know how. They had hundreds of enormous armies to spare. How could she take them all out? She decided to seek help from a local magician named Korallis. Now, Korallis was a stage magician and knew little more than making someone disappear behind a red curtain. She approached him, asking for help to defeat the Shy Guys. At the time, he was in love with Kamilia, so his ego influenced him to say "yes".
"He taught her how to use magic, but his knowledge was very limited. So he gave her a book, a spell book with golden glistening pages and deep violet writing. She studied this book day and night, learning everything she needed to know. She learned how to fly a broomstick, how to use a wand, how to conjure spells. She became a sorceress.
"A few years later Kamilia and Korallis got married, only to have Kamilia to discover that her new husband wasn't a real sorcerer. She was devastated and left him, only to find out a few days later that he was killed by the Shy Guys. Crushed, she knew that she needed to seek revenge.
"So the day finally came when she was to face the Shy Guy army. She approached their leader, General Guy Gombardi, and challenged him to battle. They seemed evenly matched until Kamilia unleashed an attack so powerful and earth-shattering. It killed…no…obliterated General Guy. She was satisfied, but that only made the Shy Guys furious. Now they wanted to seek revenge…in the shape of a full-scale war.
"Many thousands of people died in this war and blamed it fully on Kamilia and her Koopa husband. For her acts of wickedness they dubbed her a witch and declared all Koopas her demons. Thus, races from all over Het Naamkaartje began to despise the Koopas, and the Shy Guys cursed them by making their blood weak against the power of their Stars."
He smiled and tightened his grip on the all-mighty star. "So you are as good as dead if I simply touch you with this Star. So watch your back, Koopa."
He turned around and waved his cape. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got a war to win."
Jaw dropped and mind churning from what he just heard, Bowser didn't know what to do. He didn't know how to react to this story. This message. This war. He thought of Kamilia…how could she do that? Didn't she only try to do what was right? Didn't she just try to help? He then sat down in the cold, hard, blood-stained cage and did something he hadn't done in a long time.
Bowser cried.
r&r