Despite what the Koopa Clan believed, the people they were looking for had not lived in Rose Town. Rather, they lived in the nearby forest infested with Wigglers. The Wigglers had built an intricate tunnel system comprised of wood pipes and underground areas. Because of that and the fact that it was easy to get lost there, it was known as the Forest Maze.
The two who had just saved Rose Town had only begun living in the forest for a year. Prior to that, they were relatively ordinary (albeit human) citizens of the Mushroom Kingdom. They were adopted by a former castle guard in New Toad Town named, appropriately enough, Toad. They had no clue what their origins were, or if their real parents were even still alive, but they didn't care as Toad was a guardian that treated them as if they were his own. They were twin brothers that had more than a passing resemblance to the superstar siblings that protected the Mushroom Kingdom many years ago.
Their names were Mario and Luigi, in honor of the heroes.
To this day, nobody is sure what happened to them. On a fateful day roughly twenty years ago, the Koopa King known as Bowser risked absolutely everything to get the beautiful and wise Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom. It was the single most devastating attack on Mushroom soil. Thousands were killed at the hands of the Koopa Clan. It was the final straw, all or nothing. After an intense battle, Bowser was destroyed for good, though the mustachioed heroes seemed to have disappeared. No one knows what had happened except that Bowser was gone forever, and that Koopa Clan activity had dwindled to nearly nothing.
Five years ago, however, there was a sudden uprise. It seems as though the remainder of Bowser's followers found a new king and grew in the shadows over the years. Mario and Luigi barely fled the attack, but Toad was last seen being surrounded by Koopas. They do not know his fate, but they know the revived Koopa Clan took control of the capitol of the Mushroom Kingdom. The Princess surrendered upon seeing that the Mushroom Kingdom was no match against their forces, and the Koopa Clan began to rule over the Mushroom Kingdom. The brothers were pursued by a small group of Koopas.
The nearly-doomed brothers were soon rescued by a man going only by the moniker "Signore Super". He was an older-looking man was a strange star-shaped scar over his left eye. He took in the brothers and trained them with a unique method of defense with no specific name. This filled the brothers with a sense of hope, that there could be a way to defeat the Koopa Clan. They lived in a cottage in the Forest Maze, training every day for years so they can prepare themselves. They've begun a small resistance against the Koopa Clan already, sabotaging some of their plans to move beyond their territory.
Finally, they've reached home. Their master was waiting for them.
"Signore, we've ceased the Koopa Clan's advance past Rose Way..." Luigi bowed.
"Yeah, we kicked some shells and they all ran away!" Mario chirped in.
"Ah yes, their weakness is their shell..." The man rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Also, we dispatched a Hammer Brother. He's presumably under custody of the town." Luigi announced.
"Not a problem! It was done in thirty seconds flat!" Mario beamed.
"Impressive, taking on a small army like that so quickly. New record, huh boys?" The man smiled, but yawned. "Let us get some sleep."
"Yes. Let us." Luigi bowed his head, retiring into his quarters.
"Good night, pops!" Mario waved and went after Luigi.
Signore Super stroked his chin and thought deeper. He silently walked back to his room, tending to his own business.
--
Meanwhile...
It is a grim room. Plenty of odd gothic architecture. Sculptures of many notable Koopas form rows to the sides. At the end of a room is a portrait of the original King Bowser Koopa, and right below it is a throne. And who else is sitting on it but King Bowser?
Bowser himself is an impressive Koopa King. His huge size invokes fear to all who oppose him. His spiked collar and bracelets add to that fear. His dangerous-looking shell contains countless combat spikes. His shell and head is also mostly green. He has two large horns, fiery red hair, and mean eyes. In short, he is the spitting image of the previous king. He certainly fits the bill for a full-time King of the Koopas.
"Servants!" The King roared. "Get my sorry-ass worthless generals! Where are they!"
"T-they're coming, sir!" A lone Koopa Troopa said from the other room.
Indeed they were. Or, at least one of them. Ludwig von Koopa came through the door. His haircut is trimmed to a be very professional. He is also fairly thin. He has a cold, stoic worn on his face. He is pretty decently sized for a Koopa, but is only little more than half the king's height.
"Aren't you always on time..." The King grumbled.
"Patience, my king, they are arriving as we speak." Ludwig replied.
Wendy O. Koopa was the next to enter. She has long, flowing black hair. Her shell is entirely black with the exception of a white skull painted on the front. Her face is a sad and pathetic pale. Her height is about average, and is also quite thin. She greeted Ludwig, but was stopped by Bowser.
"Fine. Are the others coming?" The King tapped his foot.
"Whoa, wait," She threw up her arms in mild protest. "I just saw them on the way here, so chill."
Roy Koopa pounded through the door. He is the second largest of the generals after Ludwig. His shell is purple, and he is never seen without his characteristic sunglasses. He gave a high five to the earlier generals, then shook a rude fist at the king.
"I better not be missing my wrestling match if it's a garbage meeting!"
"Watch your tongue, Roy. Know your place!" The King commanded.
Roy opened his mouth as if to say something, but looked at Wendy, who sheepishly nodded her head. He folded his arms and sat down.
Next up was Morton Koopa Jr. He's a brown Koopa with white head with a birth defect on his face. He wears clown-like makeup to cover it, but it tends to cause itching. Still, he now likes his new look and finds his defect shameful. He is the third largest of the generals.
Morton blabbered, "Did I miss anything? Anything good, great, wonderful? Or something bad, wrong, or downright unpleasant? Am I late, tardy, or perhaps even unruly? Or am I on time, made it, perfect? And if so, did I do a great job, a landmark, a ten-out-of-ten? Or did it all go-"
"Enough, silence, cease, stop!" Bowser paused, then roared in annoyance. "Confound it all, now I'm starting to sound like you!"
The next general to arrive was Lemmy Koopa. He was really pint-sized compared to the rest of the generals. His shell is dull and mechanical. It serves as a life support system due to an accident, which means that he cannot take it off for extended periods. His eyes always seem to look into two different directions at once, though this does not bother Lemmy, and he has adapted to it since birth. His hair is straight and rainbow-colored, and he has red markings on his face.
"Sorry," Spoke the timid turtle. "I was practicing my routine..."
"Well, you'd better get here by my routine from now on!"
Larry Koopa came next. He looked positively exhausted. He is the second shortest general, but he was easily at least three or four times the height of little Lemmy. He has no shell, instead opting for a grass skirt as his only article of clothing. His blue hair is wild and messy.
"Pills. Purse. Pennies. Don't ask." Gasped Larry.
"Just. Don't. Be. Late. Again." Bowser mocked.
The next five minutes was spent waiting. Some generals stood in silence, while more bored ones chatted amongst themselves. Finally, from the light of the doorway stood a familiar figure; Iggy Koopa. He looked very unorganized, and has a few cracks in his thick glasses. His shell is scratched and dirty. His hair is very unclean, too. He appears to be very disturbed and confused, and uttered but a single word.
"... Bad?" Iggy asked in guilt.
"Yes! Very, very bad, Iggy! I'm not supposed to be bored! I think it's illegal!" Bowser cried.
Iggy suddenly changed expressions and snickered. Bowser ignored and continued.
"... Right. Well, here we are. Generals, no doubt you've heard about the rumored rebels."
"Yeah. They're fake, though! Just a lazy excuse from the lower ranks!" Roy interrupted.
"Quiet, you... Rest assured, they exist. We've received a recorded transmission on Koopa Receiver recently. Listen..."
A Koopa Troopa walked in and played the recording from a radio. It started out as a mission to infiltrate a lowly town, but then they heard gasps of excitement and yelling. They heard further speech like - "It's them!" and "Just as my dad described them!" Everyone gasped. Bowser decided that they heard enough, so he motioned for the Koopa Troopa to turn it off and go back to his post, which he did. "Truthfully, the Rose Way team was assembled for this very purpose - to confirm the existence of the rebels after so many complaints. And it is all, indeed, true."
"Yeah, whatta we do about it?" Roy inquired.
"Oh, nothing." Bowser said quickly. "We wait for them. Your forces can take them, and they'll show up eventually."
Ludwig was the first to speak. "Sir, are you sure that's wise? I don't think we're quite prepared."
"Oh, we are!" Bowser laughed. "We're more than ready! We've had plenty of time! We're unstoppable! Now, out meeting is over. Resume the current plans. Just keep a sharper eye out. Exit and use the fifth airship, it'll reach your destinations. Report back at the end of each day so we have an update on our status. Now go!"
"... I see..." Ludwig lamented as he left.
"Okay, if we have to." Lemmy sulked out.
"Time for some excitement!" Roy flexed and strode out.
"Heheheh..." Iggy jumped around and found his way out.
"Here goes nothing." Wendy sighed as she departed.
Morton blabbered, "Time to travel, marvel, gravel! Spectacular! Now I can finally experience a new breath of fresh air in which I breathe, to see, to think, to touch, to live! Now it the time where we all say goodbye, adios, ciao, farewell, moving on, so long, have a nice life, have a nice day, take a big-"
Bowser quickly grabbed Morton and threw him out the door.
"Well, at least I won't do it the artificial way if I cross them." Larry muttered and he skipped out.
"Well, they're all gone..." Bowser mused, "Except one..."
Bowser gazed upon the portrait of the late king, and it almost seemed to stare right back at him.
"Father..." Bowser cried. "Watch me. I will fulfill your legacy..."