In this chapter, our heroes will look for a way to get inside Mt. Lavalava.
Good thing the ravens are there to help.
But our heroes need to be careful. Petey Piranha is hunting them down.
You remember who sent him, don't you?
His name rhymes with Jiggy.
This isn't Banjo-Kazooie though. Though Banjo Kazooie IS a Nintendo 64 game, just as Paper Mario is.
Chapter 37: Cravin' Raven
Lincoln approached the Yoshi Elder once the concert was over.
He had enjoyed the show, though he was surprised to learn that the singer was human. Humans did not visit Lavalava Island often. Perhaps they were worried that the volcano was going to erupt soon.
"Would you know how to get to Mt. Lavalava?" asked Lincoln. Perhaps the elder had a map of some kind. It would be have been oretty helpful for the Yoshi Kids if they had one…though they weren't really interested in geography anyways.
He imagined the Yoshi Elder was a smart Yoshi, so he decided to ask him.
Of course, Lisa had suggested that.
"Mt. Lavalava? You should know that traversing that volcano is perilous." remarked the elder. Though he doubted it would stop Kolorado. He'd cross a pit full of snakes to get access to treasure.
The volcano was especially dangerous since there were Magikoopas inside. Kamek had sent them to make extra sure that the Star Spirit remained safe. And they intended to do so.
"I can imagine." nodded Lisa.
"Well, there is a way, but you would need to ask the ravens. They're elsewhere in the jungle." noted the leader of the Yoshis on the island.
If they did them a favor, he imagined they would help them.
To help the heroes locate the ravens, the Yoshi Elder gave them a Jade Raven.
Bow noted that while it would look nice in her mansion, she decided that her quest was more important.
"It's shiny." remarked Lola.
Perhaps there was somewhere in the jungle where our heroes could place that.
And indeed there was.
There was a raven statue with a slot for the Jade Raven.
Lincoln placed it inside…
…and a secret passageway opened up.
"I guess this is where we need to go." noted the boy.
Spy Guys emerged from the bushes.
It was surprising how well they matched with the flora.
Luckily, our heroes overcame the element of surprise and took them down.
Mario took a few bruises from their slingshots though.
Ukikis showed up shortly afterwards.
The added difficulty was striking once again.
These foes were quick and agile, so our heroes had to be fast to land a hit in.
Oh, and they had to watch out for fruit.
"No more monkey business!" demanded Lynn as she kicked a soccer ball towards one.
The Ukiki was knocked down from his tree.
Mario remembered the time that a Ukiki stole his hat.
That hadn't been fun.
It took him some time for him to get it back.
Another Wiggler showed up.
Luckily, it turned out Luna could fire music notes at her foes.
Or she could whack her foes with her guitar at close-range. It depended on what foe she was facing.
"Ouch! These notes are making me feel sour!" remarked the Wiggler.
Charging Chucks showed up.
"Uh-oh!" exclaimed Lily.
"Uh-oh is right." nodded Lincoln.
Luckily, if they knocked off the Koopa's helmets, their defense would decrease.
They had to be careful though, because they were both fast and strong.
Fortunately, Lynn had an advantage over them, since she was no stranger to football herself.
"Oww!" exclaimed one of the Koopa football players.
He had been tricked into slamming into his partner.
After dealing with the Bowser Baddies, our heroes arrived in the hidden raven village.
"What's this? We don't see outsiders often." remarked Raphael Raven.
The Yoshi Elder knew where their village was though. Did he show them the way for a reason?
"Why did you hide yourselves away?" asked Lincoln. The Yoshis seemed welcoming to visitors, but the ravens didn't seem to want guests.
"We prefer peace and quiet." explained the leader of the ravens.
The ravens that were with him nodded in agreement.
It also helped with hatching eggs.
Lisa could relate to that, since she regularly visited the library. Though she wondered why they kept recommending picture books to her.
Lincoln was reminded of Morag, but Raphael seemed a lot more friendly than she was.
"Can you help us get to the volcano?" questioned Goombario.
"Vol-cano?" asked Lily.
"Yes…but could you do us a favor first? My people are being attacked by a giant Piranha Plant." explained Raphael.
One that spat out balls of mud.
Lincoln nodded.
Our heroes explored the jungle to find him…
…but they didn't need to go far.
Suddenly, our heroes heard the sound of flying.
"What is that noise?" asked Sushie.
Was it a Paratroopa?
"It's not me." answered Parakarry.
Mario gasped.
It was none other than Petey Piranha.
He was all too familiar with him. The Piantas had been frightened of him back at Isle Delfino. But luckily Mario straightened things out.
But it seemed that he was now on Lavalava Island. Presumably he flew there. Petey was unique among Piranha Plants for his ability to fly.
"That's one b-big Piranha Plant." remarked Goombario.
"Is that Petey Piranha?" asked Lincoln. He had raced against him a few times in Mario Kart.
"Sure is!" exclaimed Iggy. He was riding his clown copter.
The middle child of the Koopalings was nearby, eager to watch the action unfold.
"He picked a good environment for Petey to fight us in." noted Lisa.
A cold environment wouldn't be a good idea, but a jungle was another story.
Petey Piranha started by shooting a ball of mud from his mouth. Mario was familiar with them.
It rolled directly towards our heroes.
Everyone dashed to avoid it, except for Lana, who took the hit dead-on.
"That was awesome!" exclaimed the girl in overalls, who was now covered in mud.
Petey Piranha scratched his head.
Seemed his mud attack didn't work on Lana.
He needed to try something different.
Petey spat out seeds, which became Putrid Piranhas.
"He's getting reinforcements!" warned Lincoln, his eyes widening.
"I don't want to be plant food!" bellowed Lola. Who would have thought that herbology could be so dangerous?
Our heroes were forced to deal with the putrid plants as well as Petey himself.
Luckily, Lana was still immune to their toxic breath.
Luan zapped the plants with electricity.
However, they did not go down.
Petey let out a roar, knocking Lana and Lola off their feet.
"He really roars loudly, doesn't he?" remarked Parakarry.
Bow nodded. He sure did.
He then headbutted Lynn.
"Oww!" exclaimed the sports player.
Recognizing Mario as his enemy, Petey sent a twister at him.
In the process, he also hit Lily.
"Wheeee!" exclaimed Lily as she was sucked inside the twister.
"Mamamia!" bellowed Mario, who narrowly held onto his hat.
Petey Piranha spat another mud ball at Lincoln, knocking him down.
"Oof!" exclaimed the boy.
Petey then began to move towards the white-haired boy…
…which a certain rock star noticed.
"Leave my brother alone!" demanded Luna, gripping her guitar.
The diapered Piranha Plant ignored her and continued approaching Lincoln.
Angered, sparks of flame suddenly appeared in Luna's hands.
"Whoa! I'm starting to think that my roommate might be a bit too hot for Petey to handle!" exclaimed Luan.
"You think?" replied Lucy.
Luna suddenly tossed a fireball at the giant Piranha Plant.
It hit him directly in the back of his head.
Petey Piranha screeched as he felt the flames. Luna was not someone to be trifled with.
It looked as if Luna had discovered Petey's weakness.
Naturally, it was fire.
Though there were some Piranha Plants that could tolerate heat. It depended on what environment they were adapted to.
Petey Piranha turned around, only to be hit with another fireball.
He let out a roar.
The Putrid Piranhas attempted to attack Luna…
…but Luna ignited the gas that they spewed out.
"Uh-oh." remarked one of the Putrid Plants.
The Putrid Plants were sent flying.
Realizing that his reinforcements were gone, Petey began to feel rather nervous.
He then noticed Luna was charging another fireball.
Petey gulped.
Luna hit him with the fireball…and the big Piranha Plant was down for the count.
Shortly afterwards, the brunette rock star leveled up.
She lifted her hands in the air.
Steam came out of Iggy's ears.
"This isn't over, Mario!" exclaimed Iggy Koopa.
He would get him next time.
The green-haired Koopaling flew away back to the volcano.
Lily let out a cheer.
"How many Koopalings are there?" questioned Lynn.
It seemed like there were a lot of them.
"I think seven. Including the one who's here in the Jade Jungle." explained Lincoln.
Raphael Raven was grateful for the heroes' help.
"Right, you requested to go to Mt. Lavalava, correct?" asked Raphael.
Our heroes nodded.
"Well, consider it done." assured the raven.
The ravens set up a pulley system for our heroes to use.
"Oh, by the way, you're going to want this." said Raphael.
Raphael handed the heroes the Ultra Stone.
That way our heroes would become stronger.
It would certainly be helpful for the trials up ahead.
"Thank you, Raphael Raven!" exclaimed Lincoln.
Everyone left the village, except for Kolorado.
"Would you know where to find treasure?" asked the Koopa gentleman.
"Well, there's a Bub-Ulb willing to provide a gift if you ask nicely." answered Raphael.
Kolorado wrote that down, before rejoining the heroes.
Using the pulley, the Star Gang found themselves at the foot of the volcano.
"You ready to go inside?" asked Lincoln.
His sisters nodded. They imagined they could get past the lava.
Maeio and his partners nodded as well.
Meanwhile, Iggy wasn't pleased that Petey Piranha had failed.
He stomped his foot in frustration.
Seemed that one of the Loud sisters could use fire.
And plants didn't usually do well against flames.
He didn't think that his sister would be so strong.
Iggy realized he was going to have to try something else.
Luckily, he had a backup plan. He had gotten the idea when he had seen Kolorado was with the heroes.
He decided he would hire the nemesis of the treasure hunter to take care of the do-gooders.
His name was Paris.
Apparently, not everyone thought treasure belonged in a museum. Some would rather sell the treasures they find for some quick cash.
Though Iggy Koopa himself had gone to museums sometimes.
Mostly Koopa museums though.
Personally, Iggy didn't really show interest in learning about Toads. He would rather help Bowser conquer the Mushroom Kingdom than learn about it.
"So, what do you need help with?" asked a Koopa treasure hunter.
Hopefully it would make things worthwhile.
Notably for a Koopa, he had a white shell.
He also wore a black hat.
And he had a white mustache. And a monocle on his left eye.
His name was Paris, and he was Kolorado's nemesis. The two has an unpleasant history together…much like Mario and Bowser.
Paris didn't have an army though, though every now and then he would hire mercenaries to get the upper hand against his nemesis. Sometimes he would get the treasure before Kolorado, but sometimes not. It depended on how lucky he was.
No matter how much money he got from treasure, he always seemed to want more.
Some people just didn't realize that money wouldn't buy you happiness.
"I sure hope you have something that will make this worth my while." recommended the Koopa in white.
Even though he was already rich, he was always looking for a way to make a quick buck.
He was kind of like Wario…though Wario was not a Koopa. Bowser could probably hire him with money if he wanted to though.
"Did you know your nemesis Kolorado is exploring this volcano?" asked Iggy.
"He is?!" exclaimed Paris.
No doubt he was searching for treasure to put in a museum.
Well, that treasure wasn't going into a museum exhibit if he could help it.
He was going to sell it for cash. He would decide what he would spend it on…later.
"Uh-huh!" nodded Iggy.
"Well then, perhaps I can give you a discount. I was looking for an opportunity to get rid of my rival." remarked Paris. He was always getting in his way.
That way he could have all the treasures in the world for himself.
"Just keep in mind he's not alone. He has these friends with him." warned the skinny Koopa.
"Duly noted." answered the Koopa treasure hunter.
Even though Kolorado was not alone, he still felt he could defeat his rival.
He just hoped that he could get the treasure in the volcano before he did. It would be aggravating if he didn't.
Alternatively, he could snag the treasure from him at the last minute. His reaction would be priceless. That would be harder to pull off though.
Iggy handed Paris some cash. 64 coins, to be precise.
Lava Piranha would be pleased to know someone else would take care of things.
Iggy let out another wicked laugh.
Nearby…
"Why do I feel a chill in my bones?" asked Kolorado.
"I don't know. We're in the middle of a volcano." pointed out Kooper.
It was kind of unusual for his idol to feel that way.
Still, perhaps it was best if they stayed alert. That chill had to have come from somewhere.
One of Bowser's guardians was inside the volcano, after all.
"Here goes nothing!" exclaimed Kolorado.
Yes, I'm featuring an original character.
I figured I would think outside the box for this one.
He is based off another character though, just as Kolorado himself is.
In the next chapter…our heroes will face Paris. But you probably knew that already.
And yes, I gave Luna the ability to control fire. Just like Luan can control lightning.