Skeleton Mafia, after spending weeks being closed by the Mediterranean Sea, reached a frontier of the new kind: Indian ocean. Not a sight of land, only the endless but radiantly clear water surrounded them. Horizon seemed like a perfectly placed blue line, which meshed with the color of the cloudless sky. Two rustic boats sailed through the gentle waves of the warm ocean. Sun rays reflected on the surface, ensuring that the sea has crisp clear appearance.

Inside the capital ship, skeletons, among with George, John, Brane and Mosseau, were sitting behind the table, waiting. Anything on the table was placed somewhere else, as it was being prepared. No games were played at that time. They were all sitting like they were being ready for some kind of conference.

"So, how's your day, gentlemen?" initiated Brane to break the silence.

"Jolly good! Had a quite nice nap and dreamed of something very nice. In the dream, I caught a five meter long bass. Took a photo with it and then released it. Was kind of saddened when I woke up, though." explained John, preparing his Delamaris canned fish, Izola brand type.

"That's one big ass bass! Would make a good lunch for the family...Perhaps even profitable for Kornjača!" praised Brane as he raised his arms in glee.

"You are right, Brane, but I was just fishing for sport in the dream. It looks a bit too friendly for me to just grill it alive." clarified John.

"What was that bass even eatin' to get so huge?" asked George, crossing his arms.

"I don't know, mate. Dreams be like that." shrugged John.

George, after hearing John's words, decided to trust them something: "Well, on the topic of dreams, I had one where I was lookin' at myself in the mirror in the middle of some kind of city, looked like Los Angeles back in the day. Seemed fine and dandy, then I went away from the mirror. That thin' started to walk on its own, chasin' me. I was initially just confused and just kept walkin' away, but faster. Then I started walkin' backwards and so did the mirror. Not only that, but the location changed as the chase occurred as well. It went from Los Angeles to some kind of black barren sea with skyscrapers peeking out of the surface. Nothing about the skyscrapers screamed anything familiar to my taste, that kind of architecture looked like a cross of the ancient and allegedly futuristic. Bein' done with mirror's shit, I decided to chase it. Just when I was about to reach it, the mirror split into a X before it disappeared completely. Out of nowhere, a giant humanoid monster, seemingly made out of water and tar, appeared in front of me. It had a body of a golem, but a face of a From what I remember, it looked at me and warned me with this:

"You are but a man. Do not interfere with the forces greater than you."

Then the dream ended. It's been a long time, but it always struck with me."

"...I've heard that the dreams represent subconscious of ours. Could it be that you were afraid of something?" asked Sniper Mad John out of genuine curiosity.

"I do not know, John. Like you've said, dreams be like that." replied George, leaning back to his seat.

"Ya know, Aye've got a good one, lads!" offered Mosseau, lifting his giant rusted claymore in the air.

"...Ah, I see it's that time again." George rolled with his (lack of?) eyes as Mosseau began one of his favorite activities.

"Aye once had a dream where Aye was crossing them mountains with me former colleagues. We were singing and marching towards the bard songs about Scotland! It was also a cloudless day, so the Sun graced us with glory and joy! But then….the bloody hawk outta nowhere threw a burning twig at the forest beneath us. Didn't take long for the infernal beast to reach us, so we fought it with all of our might! Thinking that the hawk was the work of the enemy, we cursed upon that damned avian as we committed a strategic retreat. Me group came out just fine, only few slight burns, but that day, the sky became an omen for us.

That wasn't a dream, that happened. Aye never sleep otherwise. Sleep is just wasted time that could be used on joyful experiences!"

"While I haven't experienced it yet, I can confirm that hawks do tend to cause wild fires at home." added Sniper Mad John, reminiscing of his home for a bit.

"Well now, didn't expect birds to be capable of such stuff. At least birds of prey, I do know that crows can be quite thinkers!" marveled Brane at the newly learned fact.

"Bloody hell, damn these hawks!" cursed Mosseau as he slammed his fist on the table.

"...Then what do you do inside your trash can?" questioned George with a rather doubtful tone in his voice.

"Aye maintain me weapons, of course! All night!" gleefully answered Mosseau.

"That's a solid plan to use your time if I'm honest. Always a good idea to keep your arms in a pristine condition." approved George, nodding with his head.

"But Mosseau! You need some rest at times! I don't think neither mind nor body were meant to work constantly." remarked Brane, raising his finger at thim.

"Aye didn't need sleep when there was flesh on me bone, Aye didn't need sleep when Aye had an arse and Aye don't need sleep now. Aye'll be just dandy!" boasted Mosseau, laughing at the idea of sleep, let alone of hibernation.

"...Alright then. It's kind of incredible that you can pull that off. I usually need a very long nap if I have a very busy day!" laughed off Brane, placing his arms on the stomach.

"Not to disrupt, but I did have one dream as well." entreated one random skeleton, joining the conversation.

"Go on." allowed George as he performed a motion with his palm.

The random skeleton then stated: "In the dream, I was just walking down by the river when I met a contemplating philosopher. He truly looked like an ancient Greek and he was staring at this reflection. I approached him and asked him what was he doing. Then he said to me….

"What would be a skeleton if it didn't have bones?"

By that line, it just ended. His words haunted me for the rest of the day."

A minute of stunned silence followed, waiting to be broken by someone's reply.

"...Boyo, I think the answer is blatantly obvious that if the skeleton didn't have bones, there wouldn't have been a skeleton." gibed George, smacking the air with his left palm.

"Now how would it apply to humans?" piqued Brane, scratching his chin as he kept thinking about the random skeleton's dream.

"I'd imagine that we would have two options: either our muscles would strengthen and carry the weight of our bodies or we would end up as blobs of flesh. There's also an option for us to have exoskeleton but I am not entirely sure how would that function." said John, proposing his idea at them.

"Not a pleasant sight to imagine to be honest." commented George, before their discussion concluded when the doors to the room were suddenly slammed, causing a rather huge noise as the impact occurred. The cause of such action was none other than Bowser, who seemed rather pleased at that moment. There was also another skeleton with him, who was holding some kind of a black pen.

"I've got it!" shouted Bowser as he raised his fist in the air, yet to fully arrive at the table.

"Oh hello there, Don Boombox. What sort of thing did you made during the…." asked George before he looked at his watch. "...one hour wait?"

"With the help of my skeletal henchman, I have devised Skeleton Mafia's strategy of conquering!" announced Bowser, pointing at the skeleton with the pen as a sign of gratitude. The skeleton bowed down like a gentleman.

"Prepare your popcorn, boys." jested George while the center of the attention focused towards his boss. Listening to George's words, Mosseau prepared his Commandaria dessert wine in advancement.

"Show me what ye go, laddeh!" persuaded Mosseau as he lifted his bottle in the air. The skeleton with a pen brought two canvas stands to the room with each carrying set of papers that functioned as a flipping book. Both of them were titled "Bowser's awesome and brilliant strategy of CONQUEST!" in large bold letters with serifs, but each set had a different subtitle. One had "Uncontested Edition" beneath the main title, while other one had "Contested Edition" as the subtitle. Another similarity both of them shared was a drawing of Bowser on a boat, flexing like an ambitious colonist. However, "Populated Edition" had the turtle conqueror pointing at the direction of the island, who seemed to be the next victim of his expenditure.

"I shall start with the strategy of conquering uncontested islands first, since I believe it should be rather easy!" addressed Bowser before he flipped the first paper, changing them in the process.

"First, upon seeing the island, we send in the scouts to inspect the location!" said Bowser as he pointed at the drawing of two boats, one representing the capital ship of Skeleton Mafia and the other one showing a vessel similar to a military grade inflatable boat. The latter vehicle, filled with additional drawings of skeletons, seemed to head on towards the island as the drawn Bowser observed them from the capital ship with pride on his face.

"Then, after the scouts report us about the situation, we go to the targeted destination by ourselves!" continued Bowser, switching to a drawing of the capital ship parking at the shore with Bowser and his crew landing on the new soil after jumping from the ship.

"We shall explore the yet to be conquered territory!" added Bowser, shifting to a new drawing of Skeleton Mafia exploring the tropical forest. In front, there was drawn Bowser marching through the lively but perilous forest, filled with exotic flora. The other drawn members were following him, looking at the forest with curiosity.

"If it happens, then we would have to fight beasts inhabiting the island!" warned Bowser, pointing at the drawing of Bowser raising his fists as if he was preparing for a battle with his colleagues standing behind him. George was carrying his own personal revolver, Brane was using a frying pan as a shield and a kitchen knife as a sword, John was prepping up his sniper rifle and Mosseau was seen lunging himself with his chainsaw on a metal stick and a Vickers water-cooled machine gun. On the opposite side of the drawing, there were a growling jaguar, a grinning hawk carrying a burning twig, entire group of red-bellied piranhas jumping out of the river at them and a pit viper launching itself at them from one of the trees. There was also a swordfish jumping out of the river with the added notice.

"If you see this enemy, make sure that you give it twice the whooping!" advised the noticed with an arrow pointing at the swordfish.

"With everything done, the island will be declared as MY TERRITORY!" boasted Bowser while showcasing a rather very detailed drawing of Bowser being on top of the island, shouting "MINE" at the sky as the flag of Bowser's kingdom, being placed on the now occupied territory, waved through the winds of victory.

"Now that an island would be under my iron fist, we would make a base on it!" asserted Bowser, pointing at the drawing of the reconstructed island. While the tropical forest remained, the drawing showed a fortress. The architecture of it consisted a roof shaped like Bowser's spiky shell, entrance being supported by a large structure of his head and water filled trenches that would surround his fort. A wooden bridge, strengthened by iron, connected the lands that the trenches separated. Along with the fortress there was also a harbor with both capital ship and other ship being docked in. Unlike the fortress, the harbor consisted of a building for check-in's and a dockyard made out of wood. After that, Bowser flipped to the next paper, which said "THE END" with even bigger, bolder letters.

"That should be the end of the Uncontested Edition! Do you all agree that it's an awesome plan?" asked Bowser after finishing his first presentation.

"It's nice, but it lacks details, if I may say it, mate." responded John, pointing at the drawings on the papers.

"I don't like it when it drags on, it wastes time! I think that time spend on talking endlessly and constant flip flopping should be already spent on conquest!" explained Bowser,

"I do agree with your point on brevity, but when it comes to the general strategy, my opinion aligns more with John." noted George. "More info we have in our hands, more efficient we will be."

"Let me tell ye something, Bows. Shite intel is the downfall of any conqueror! Ye could have the biggest, most fierce army in the world and ye could still completely collapse within a single move of the enemy. It's best to know every nook and cranny of the targeted location and where to predict your opponent's moves." reasoned Mosseau, putting his wine on the table to empty his hands because he was getting kind of tired holding it constantly.

"Hmmm….What you're saying is very right. Cannot argue with that. Although I still do prefer a much briefer briefing, if I must go in the details, then I shall! But for uncontested areas, that shouldn't be an issue, right?" commended Bowser while thinking about adjustments to his plans.

"Not that much for sure. Just keep in mind for the contested ones." confirmed John.

"Alright then….Let's go to the Contested Edition!" announced Bowser as he stepped towards the other canvas, flipping the paper as well.

"It begins about the same as if the land was uncontested." explained Bowser while showcasing a similar drawing than before with only few minor unimportant details being different.

"Now comes the part when it gets spicy! If the scouts happen to find enemy forces, they must report them to us! However, they should absolutely not engage them. If they do happen to notice our scouts, then the group should return to our ships." continued Bowser as he displayed the drawing of a skeleton observing a group of enemies, who resembled old fashioned pirates as they were assumed to be encountered a lot during their conquest.

"Once the scouts return, we arrive and start our offensive!" shouted Bowser as he raised his fist during the display of a drawing that showed Bowser and his colleagues charging towards the island after getting off their ship. The drawing of the Don seemed to show a particularly gleeful expression on his face as his mouth was full of fire.

"Then we beat the ever living bologna out of the enemy!" declared Bowser, showing a detailed drawing of Bowser and skeletons, surrounded by fire, giving one hell of a whooping against the imagined enemy forces. Some of them even got launched into the sky from the displayed strikes. The pirates were seen begging for mercy, but that couldn't spare them from the wrath of an aspiring conqueror.

"After we defeat them, we take over their island!" boasted Bowser, pointing at the drawing of Bowser and his skeletal friends standing triumphantly on the island with a big sign that said "VICTORY!" over them.

"I shall declare myself as the ruler of the island and the enemy forces shall now work under my command! Every single thing, be it a building or resource, that was in their hands would belong to me! I do hope they have good ports and factories, this could be very beneficial to us." added Bowser after switching the drawing, showing him looking down on the scared enemy forces.

"And then, I will occupy every single toi-"said Bowser before stopping himself and taking a better look at the drawing that he was displaying. Much to his surprise, it was a drawing of him walking out of a Dixi toilet cabin, holding a newspaper and having a satisfied face. Behind him, there were three lines of Dixi toilet cabins as well. "...WHAT?!"

The skeletons looked at each other to see if anyone among them was responsible for it. George kept watching as John and Brane also wondered who was the one behind it. Mosseau just kept chugging his wine.

"WHO DID IT?! WAS IT YOU?!" shouted Bowser as he pointed at the skeleton with the pen, suspecting him of pulling that prank.

"No, sir." answered the skeleton with the pen without a change of tone.

"Hmmmm…then who was it?!" urged Bowser as he kept suspecting others. By then, Mosseau finished chugging the wine.

"...It was me!" admitted Mosseau after putting his wine bottle back in his trash can, sounding rather proud of being the cause.

"YOU?!….But why?!" angrily questioned Bowser

"Bows, that has a different meaning, ye see. It was not meant to make ye humiliated, but rather to show that ye have to deprive yer enemy of certain privileges. Latrines were the first thing to pop up in me mind, because Aye thought of a tactic. If yer enemy has to take their dump outside, they're left more exposed to the potential sneak attacks. It's a perfect opportunity!" explained Mosseau one of his strategies that he has invented. It left the room in silence for a brief moment.

"….Did you actually use it?" asked George, being genuinely stunned at the thing his Scottish colleague said.

"Of course, my lad!" flat out cheered Mosseau when he answered that, leaving everyone speechless.

"...You know what's the worst part about it?" confessed Bowser in disbelief.

"Ye?" asked Mosseau as he looked at him.

"That I can kinda see it." said Bowser.

"Gyahahaha! Great minds think alike!" praised Mosseau, pointing at him while being filled with pride.

"...Anyway, let's continue, shall we?" said Bowser as he flipped the next paper, showing a drawing of the island being reconstructed in his own image. The architecture of the enemy forces, which looked rather bland, changed into an infrastructure resembling one that would be seen in Bowser's kingdom. "And then the occupied land officially becomes the part of my empire!...But that should be all. Are there any complaints here? Do not worry about details, that will be covered later."

"I'd say we should increase our recon capabilities, but so far, solid enough." John gave out his opinion once again.

"Just wait a little bit. I do have something so say as well!" commented Bowser, preparing to show them something.

"Not to be rude, but there is one concern that I do have." stated Brane as he tapped with his fingers on the table.

"What is it, Brane?" piqued Bowser, wanting to hear his thoughts.

"In order to keep our adventure going, we must know how to supply ourselves. How are we gonna handle that?" suggested Brane, which left Bowser stunned for a moment. However, the aspiring conqueror of a reptilian did think for a bit before getting back on track.

"The ports will serve as the means of supplying ourselves at the moment, but that does remind me of something, Brane. I've come to a realization that while I and the Skeleton Mafia are already awesome and fearsome, we still have a lot of catching up. We have only begun climbing the hill of glory, so I have decided to add something extra to the presentation." elaborated Bowser, flipping the paper and showing a new panel with "BONUS" written on it. The title was displayed with large red letters without serifs, surrounded by the yellow action lines, signifying that the title is going to get closer to the viewer.

"First, we start on land! Even though we have a decent amount of Tommies, we still need more! Our army is going to get bigger and bigger, so more arms shall be carried! Skeleton Mafia also needs more armored vehicles like tanks, jeeps and such! They must be big, strong and fast!" demanded Bowser, pointing at sketches of a rifle, resembling the classic Tommy Gun, a tank that looked similar to Leopard 2 main battle tank and an armed van similar to Bendigo. There was also a note that said "MORE!" on it, being placed on the right side of the canvas.

"Well, that should be quite easy. The world's full of strong tanks." contributed John while crossing his arms.

"Gwahahaha! That's good to hear! Now, we must focus on our maritime operations! As of now, compared to other navies in the world, we are still rather small-" continued Bowser before he was suddenly interrupted.

"To be fair, we do still have a bigger navy than some countries out there." pointed out Brane.

"Wait, really?" perplexed Bowser, turning his heads towards him.

"Yep, some countries just can't afford navies and not even because of the budgetary reasons, but rather geographical ones." clarified John.

"So something like Switzerland would just operate small boats on rivers, right?" questioned George, just that what he thought could align with what his sniper fella said.

"Indeed." nodded John.

"Hah! Take that, countries with small navies! Anyway...We still need bigger and stronger boats! I could try to bring in some of my ships there, but after seeing that destroyer, we need to get up with the times! However, the ships I could bring in could serve as a decent stopgap. I was also of thinking of adding submarines to our fleet, that could give us a big advantage! That being said, the exchange will happen when we have a decent enough stronghold." further explained Bowser, showing a similar sketch than before, but now with vessel. There were a ship that looked like 18th century warship but with Bowser's flair, a modern ship that was a clear reference to Arleigh Burke class destroyer, which also had written "MUST NEED!" beneath it, a battleship that was made to rule the seven seas and a submarine, the silent hunter. His colleagues seemed to approve the idea of having a submarine within the fleet.

"And now comes the last part of the bonus: air force! Conquering without air support is a no go, so we must work on that as well! Before anyone scoffs at the decision, I have decided to bring in the air ships from my army. Just like their naval counterparts, they will function as stop gaps...though they could be decent enough for transport, though. They will get replaced once we get helicopters and planes in our arsenal! We will rule the skies once we get an iron grip on the skies!" boasted Bowser as he showed the sketches of his own air ship, a helicopter resembling a Sea Hawk and a twin engine aircraft with two vertical stabilizers and a face paint on its nose, resembling the smile that Koopa Clown Car usually has.

"Must admit that air ships being relegated to the transport role is a good idea, but once we get really big aircraft in Skeleton Mafia, then it would be wise to replace them fully." commented John, giving him a smirk of approval.

"Aye was about to question yer insistence on using them air ships, but ye manage to get around it. Good job, Bows." complimented Mosseau as he lifted his wine bottle in the air.

"Just keep in mind to adjust and overcome any setbacks, capisce?" reminded George as he pointed at him.

"Fair enough! That shall conclude the presentation! Now, who's ready for some conquering?!" crowed Bowser, just when one skeleton barged in, shifting the center of attention towards them.

"Eyy, boss! We got an island in front of us!" reported one of the skeletons.

"EXCELLENT! I shall give directions! My skeletal henchmen, be prepared!" announced Bowser as he left the room to enter the bridge. Behind his back, Mosseau rolled towards the skeleton with the pen.

"Ayy, good one, my lad!" complimented Mosseau as they gave each other a high five.

"Did it just like you've said." calmly said the skeleton with the pen.

"Here's yer reward. Consider it yer honor." offered Mosseau as he gave him a dose of his cocaine.

"….OOOOOOH YESSSSSSSS! Thank you very much, brethen!" blessed the skeleton with the pen as he went to another room to have a crack of the time.

Meanwhile in the bridge, Scrongus and Krongus were in charge of navigation, just like before. Krongus was behind the steering wheel while Scrongus kept monitoring the monitors and gauges.

"You know, if it wasn't for you, I would have won that game of Monopoly!" argued Scrongus, shaking his fist at his colleague.

"Oh yeah? Keep projecting your inability to keep money to yourself!" retaliated Krongus while angrily glancing at him as he steered the ship.

"Listen, I've had this master plan that would have launched me to victory, but you just HAD to buy Boardwalk!" fumed Scrongus while making threatening gestures at him from a far.

"Yes, because you kept buying all the other avenues. Good luck for you to constantly land on luxury tax!" quipped Krongus before the doors were suddenly slammed, by none other than their boss, ending their squabble in the process. Scrongus and Krongus stood like statues, waiting for the boss' word.

"BONEHEADS! Listen up, full speed ahead! We're gonna go for that island!" commanded Bowser in a booming voice.

"Roger that, boss!" both of them answered as they returned to their positions, with Krongus setting up full speed ahead and redirecting the ship towards the general direction of the island. Bowser then went outside to prepare himself for the docking. George, Brane, John and Mosseau joined him as well. The capital ship of Skeleton Mafia approached the island on the horizon with the considerable speed. As they got closer, a tropical forest could be seen on the island, surrounded by the crisp beige shoreline. However, territory surrounded by the ocean seemed to lack any landforms that have risen from the ground. Its size didn't seem particularly jaw dropping from a far. The ocean gently rocked both of the ships as they approached to the destination.

The ships docked ashore once they reached the island. Bowser ordered four skeletal henchmen to inspect the island before they would begin their offense. The skeletons armed themselves with Tommy guns just in case. Before they ventured on, Brane gave them his telephone. With everything set, the skeletal scouts jumped off the ship and started exploring the island. Bowser and his colleagues stayed on the ship, waiting for scouts to complete their mission. The boney recon unit walked around the shore, sometimes peeking into the tropical wilderness. The distance they could see was obscured by the various somewhat tall trees and radiantly green plants.

After about half an hour, the skeletons returned to the ships.

"Not much's there. Just sand and plants." reported the skeletons to him.

"Are you sure about that?" asked Bowser, doubting them words instinctively.

"Yes. No sign of any hostile forces." reassured the skeletons as they climbed back on the ship.

"Alright then….let's set off!" declared Bowser, jumping off the ship. George, Brane, John and Mosseau performed the same and started following him. Before they would step into the tropical forest, John sprayed them with anti-mosquito spray.

"Just in case! Those buggers can be quite bastards." smirked Mad John before putting the spray back. Bowser and Brane gave him a thumbs up, praising him for good thinking. With that done, they set forth, entering the unknown tropical forest of the island.

The luscious trees covered them from sun rays as the bracken from the ground gently touched the bypassing gang. Sniper Mad John was cutting through any plant that was deemed an obstacle with his axe. Mosseau attempted to do the same but with his claymore, but his ancient weapon was not sharp enough to cut through the bracken.

"Argh, yer crusty!" cursed Mosseau as he begrudgingly put back his claymore back in his trash can. He has subconsciously held back from using more colorful words.

As they went forth, Bowser observed the leaves being kindled by the breeze. Parrots were sitting on the branches, just minding their own business. Colorful but intimidating pit vipers were slithering on the trees, searching for their prey. A colony of ants bypassed them while the sloths on the trees were just chilling, being sloths after all. Vividly colored frogs constantly leaped from tree to tree.

"Hmm, nothing out of the ordinary here." wondered Bowser, being slightly relieved that something is familiar to him.

"Say, John. Do you think we're gonna go through a lot of islands like these?" asked George as he continued stepping over the bracken.

"Of course! We're in the tropical region after all!" conceded John, keeping hacking through the forest.

"As long as we conquer, we can go through any island, even through the same environments multiple times!"verified Bowser, stomping like an elephant.

They kept going forward to see what lies in front of them. After some time, they noticed that the density of the trees started to decrease with each step they took. Sun light pierced through the gaps as it shined on them. The view from the ever increasing gaps revealed a source of water. Light reflected from the surface, brightening their view. The gaps between the trees disappeared as they reached a glade in the tropical forest, which stored a clean lake within. It occupied most of the glade's territory. However, before they could go further, Sniper Mad John stopped all of them, putting their progress to a halt.

"I think we won't be swimming in the lake, mates." cautioned Mad John as he squinted more at the lake.

"What makes you say that?" asked George before he saw a wild hog in front of them, who just happened to step out of the forest as well. Bowser's gang hid themselves in the bracken as they watched the hog approach the lake, preparing to take a nice sip of the fresh water. Placing its mouth in the water, the hog started to drink. Nothing but silence followed after the hog was in the process of satisfying its thirst.

Suddenly, a saltwater crocodile jumped out of the water and grabbed the hog by its neck with mouth. The hog squealed in agony as the scaly beast dragged the thing into the water. It desperately tried to run away, but the grip on the hog was affirmed. Then, the crocodile started rolling, splashing water all over the place. Within a moment, hog's life ceased to be. As the saltwater crocodile ended its death roll, it started tearing of flesh of its prey, happily eating it. Soon, two additional saltwater crocodiles joined in the feast.

"That was me steak!" chided Mosseau, shaking his fist at the crocodile, which was just enjoying its lunch.

"Iz bijesa!" shouted Brane, completely stunned at the scene.

"Oh, it's just crocs." said Bowser, being relieved that it turned out that it was something that he considered normal for once.

"We have the homeboys here, mates." warned Mad John as he kept his eye on the crocs. Despite all noise, the crocodiles were still too busy with consuming meat. Suddenly, another saltwater crocodile appeared, but instead of feasting, it chose to go on land. More it crawled out of the water, more of its absolute size was revealed. Even when all of its four legs got on land, the tail have yet to be revealed.

"Look at that lad go..." marveled Mosseau at the crocodile. "Yer are forgiven for stealing me kill!"

"Gator's got nothin' on this one." concurred George.

"Woah, didn't expect them to be so massive! Always thought they were smaller!" wondered Bowser at the same sight.

"Fortunately, this is the largest one. They're quite common in Straya." elaborated Mad John, still keeping the gang from stepping into the territory of saltwater crocodiles.

"Ah, so this is just the biggest of them all. Phew...Perhaps they're just native here." pondered Bowser.

"Nah, they swam over there, for sure." corrected John.

"….What?" Bowser was left dumbfounded after learning a fact of the day. "Are you telling me these crocs can swim in the sea as well?"

"Yep." confirmed John.

"How?!" demanded Bowser, wondering on how did they do it.

"Well, one day salties went "Yeeeee, G'day, wankers. It ain't enough for me to be twat on land, so I'm gonna be a real twat in the sea as well!" and thus these crocs now cross the ocean like it's nothing." rattled on John while making gestures. Just be coincidence, one of the crocodiles looked at them for a moment before returning to eating the hog.

"It's best to let them just be." suggested John while proposing to go around the glade without entering their territory.

"Good idea, my friend!" approved Brane as they went as John suggested. Crossing the forest once again, the bracken and other plants that they had to deal with not long ago returned as well.

Their trip through the jungle ended once they stepped on the beige beach once again. The plants they had to deal with before was gone, replaced by the soft sand. Exploration of the island abruptly ended, thanks to its size.

"….That's it?" asked Bowser, desiring more.

"Seems so." answered John.

"Hmmm...let's go back to our fleet...quickly!" ordered Bowser as they started sprinting towards their vessels. Bowser quickly got the lead, but Mosseau was rapidly catching up with his wheeled trash can. It felt like the island was constantly hit by small earthquakes when Bowser ran towards his destination. Sniper Mad John and George were running at the same speed while Brane was being a bit of a Captain Slow.

10 minutes passed as Bowser and Mosseau reached their wanted goal. Latter was inches before his boss when he reached the ships. Not long after, George, John and Brane arrived to the ships of Skeleton Mafia as well. Bowser ordered them to gather around him as he prepared his speech.

"MWAHAHAHAHA! Gentlemen, I think all criteria is fulfilled! This island is now under MY RULE! It shall mark the first territory conquered by Skeleton Mafia!" boastfully announced Bowser as he spread his arms like a king of eagles, letting out a laugh full of villainy. His colleagues gave him an applause for "conquering" the first territory in this world.

"So, Bows! How does it feel?" asked Brane, curious to hear what would he say.

"...It was kind of underwhelming, to be honest." lamented Bowser, taking a look at the island once again. His answer surprised everyone but Mosseau.

"What's wrong?" piqued John, looking concerned for his friend.

"I mean, don't get me wrong, it's still really exciting that we actually conquered in this world without any setbacks and I'll GLADLY take the island as MINE,...but it feels kind of a cheap victory. Like, we just stomped in and said "THIS IS OURS!". Expected a little bit more challenge." elaborated Bowser.

"Agreed, Bows me lad. Easy victory done with strategic and tactical synergy is the greatest thing ever felt by man, but a handed over victory is like breaking a plastic egg." added Mosseau while holding his claymore triumphantly.

"Don't worry about it, Bows. There's still plenty of islands to visit." reassured John as he pointed at the sea.

"That's right! As of now, this island will serve as a rest area. A simple dockyard and a hut or two would be enough, not much to do here. When we finish, we will head off, seeking for a bigger island. This won't take too much time, so be prepared when we head off! Any objections?" Bowser gave out an order to them.

"Nah, it's fine enough." approved George.

"Good! Then let's get to work!" commanded Bowser before he jumped on the capital ship. "Skeletons! Come here!".

Skeletons from both ships arrived to the scene, gathering around Bowser and his colleagues in order to hear his command. They were unsure on what to do until Mosseau whipped out two of his chainsaws and rolled towards the edge of the forest. Cackling like a madman, he started to cut down trees in order to obtain wood. The skeletons saw what was he doing and began working. Bowser and his colleagues assisted them as well, transporting the wood and building the things they desired.

The once shining sun hid itself below the horizon as Bowser and his henchmen finished building a simplistic dockyard and a decently sized hut. Some of the logs stood out of the surface, so that the ships could be tied there. The size of the bracken roofed hut compensated for the complete lack of equipment it had inside. Bowser and both his colleagues and henchmen looked at the construction with solid amount of satisfaction. Forest lost some of its area, but enough to be considerable.

"Well done, boys! You will get a raise for this!" praised Bowser as skeletons cheered upon him before they returned to the ship in order to do their activities, such as playing card games.

"You have also performed excellent job! Less than a day and we already made the island as we see fit! You also get a raise!" Bowser turned towards his colleagues, to which all of them reacted to the reward with pleasure. "But now, let's call it a day."

And so they went to sleep with smiles on their face.

Next day, all of them woke up quite early. Bowser, George and John checked the area to see if the hut and dockyard were still there. Luckily for them, they were proven right. Mosseau planned to go cutting more trees, but his boss ordered him that there is currently no demand for wood. Meanwhile, Brane was preparing some cooked fishes for their breakfast. There were some Delamaris tin cans as a back up food. As the chef, who kept making every single moment when he cooked the most life-changing moment ever, prepared food, he noticed that two 10 liter bottles were empty. A skeleton bypassed just in time.

"Eyy, friend! Come over here!" invited Brane, to which skeleton did just like he said. "Tell them that we need someone to get water."

"Of course, my man!" approved the skeleton as he grabbed the bottles and went outside of the ship. "Eyy, boys! Anyone up to get some fresh water?"

"Give me them!" immediately responded Bowser, signifying with his hand to pass the bottles over. "I ain't afraid of no crocodile!"

"Do not piss them off." warned George with a little snark in his tone. Bowser smirked at him, knowing that he was pulling a jape.

"Good luck!" said John before Bowser went inside the tropical forest, crossing it like the day before. Due to route being already familiar, time passed much quicker for him. Once he reached the lake, he nonchalantly walked towards it, despite him already noticing that saltwater crocodiles were peeking from the surface. The observing reptiles raised up their guard upon witnessing a stomping turtle conqueror, unsure if they should identify it as a threat or a feast of the year. Upon reaching the edge of the land, Bowser opened both bottles and started them filling simultaneously. During his task, he looked at the crocodiles, which were just staring back at him motionlessly.

"...What?!" bellowed Bowser at the crocodiles as he was still filling the bottles. "Do you think you're in charge?"

His question got no responses from the watchful crocodiles.

"Guess what? You're not! I am in charge now, capisce?" badgered Bowser, pointing at them. The crocodiles kept being silent, being rather confused at him. They haven't seen something like that in hundred million years.

"You are under my command and I say….Do not attack and we won't attack you! Is that clear?!" ordered Bowser, to which he also received no response. By that time, the bottles were already full.

"...I'll take that silence as "yes"." said Bowser before he went away from the lake in order to get back to the ship. Crocodiles returned their normal schedule of waiting for the prey to take a sip of fresh water and tear it into pieces.

However, one crocodile took a particular notice of Bowser. The reptilian predator dove underwater and secretly swam away from the group. Once that particular crocodile sneaked out of the water, it followed Bowser through the jungle.

By the time the king of boasting returned to the Skeleton Mafia's settlement, Brane was placing all the cooked fish there as some kind of storage. The scent of cooked food pleased everyone around it.

"Brane! I've got it!" reported Bowser, lifting both bottles up in the air with ease.

"Just in time!" proudly said Brane as he brought a rather big buffet of fish to his colleagues.

"Any croc pissed?" asked George, crossing his arms in a rather jesting way.

"Nah, they were cool." affirmed Bowser. "They know who's the real head honcho now!"

"That's good to hear." mused John as he sat down near the buffet. "But now, let's have a good one!"

Bowser and his other colleagues gladly joined in the feast. Each of them took what they desired at the moment. However, as the gang was busy feasting upon seafood, the saltwater crocodile appeared from the jungle. As it sneaked behind their backs without them noticing, crocodile entered the hut and took a look at the every available food there: plenty of fish, be it cooked or canned. The scaly hunter decided that cooked fish seemed much more suited for its taste, so it started happily eating on Brane's work.

The gang finished their buffet, feeling quite full. John laid down and looked at the sky while Mosseau chugged a bit of wine as an additional appetizer.

"Excellent as always, Brane!" complimented John, giving him a thumbs up.

"Thank you, thank you, my friend! As always, I try my best to make my food the best!" responded Brane, making some boastful gestures with his arms. "Do you want more?"

"Nah, we good." everyone else responded before they continued chatting about things in life.

"Roger that! Gonna see if everything is place!" said Brane before he went to the hut in order to check. What he saw inside was something beyond his imagination.

"…..DOVRAGA!" he shouted out loud at the sight of a saltwater crocodile eating his fish. Bowser and his colleagues quickly stood up and sprinted towards him to see what happened.

"Oh...Oh my." said John, being slightly surprised at the sight. George gave Bowser a look that implied that he was behind something while Mosseau was busy marveling at the croc. One who kept eating all the fishes was nearly as long as the entire interior of the hut.

"YOU?!" snarled Bowser as he angrily pointed at the crocodile. Upon hearing his words, the crocodile turned towards him and started strutting as best as such reptile could do. It lifted its head towards him and started making noises similar to an engine starting up.

"What, you seeking for a fight? Come and get it then!" threatened Bowser, already preparing his battle stance. The crocodile, despite being face to face with him, still kept making noises. John, upon closer inspection, noticed something in crocodile's behavior that he felt it was kind of odd.

"Mate,….that's not a territory call." clarified John when he tapped Bowser on the shoulder. Brane, Mosseau and George got interested in what John was about to say.

"Then what it is?" asked Bowser in a rather grumbling tone.

"..."

"...I think she likes you, mate."

The amount of dumbfounded responses from all sides was immeasurable the moment when they heard John's word before Mosseau and Brane bursted into laughter. George couldn't help but chuckle at the idea.

"...Are you for real, Mad John?" questioned Bowser, still left dumbstruck at what he just said.

"Absolutely, I'm not having a giggle at the moment." affirmed John, even he was stunned by his own word. However, Bowser let out a huge laugh as he heard that and shifted his attention towards the crocodile.

"Well then! Seems that you have good taste! You are welcome to be here, but there is something that I do wanna see from you." chortled Bowser as he picked up one of the cooked fishes and guided the saltwater crocodile outside. The gang followed him as Bowser stepped in the water, holding the fish up the air. The crocodile, as if she knew, entered the sea as well and swam towards the slightly deeper water. She adjusted her position, looking directly beneath the fish.

"Show me what you got!" prompted Bowser, only for him to be met with a vertical leap of the largest crocodile on the world. She seemed to be larger than Bowser when she jumped. It was met with the applause of his colleagues.

"Woah there!" he said upon seeing the jump. After finishing her leap, the crocodile happily ate the fish and returned on land.

"Good job!" praised Bowser as he just casually patted the crocodile's head, which made John's eyebrows raise from surprise.

"Congrats, Bows. You've got yourself a fan in animal kingdom." jested George, still amused at the sight.

"Anyone's welcome in my fanclub!" joked Bowser as well. The crocodile turned towards the direction of the sun and laid down on the sand, opening its mouth. Then Bowser and his colleagues laid down as well, looking at the sky.

"That's life! Chilling with my friends and a crocodile!" chuckled Brane while looking at the vast but cloudless sky.

"Never in my life have I ever thought that I would be chillin' on the beach next to a croc." admitted George.

"Sometimes life be like that. I must say, it's nice seeing something familiar for once." said Mad John.

"Lassie, make sure ye bring me a good boar next time!" suggested Mosseau to the crocodile, which was just sun basking like all crocodiles do.

"I'm very glad things went normal for once! I can't wait to visit other islands as well!...but lets enjoy a moment, shall we?" commented Bowser before all of them focused their thoughts on the sky, thinking about their futures.

Evening came to be. Bowser and his colleagues were approaching their ships, but the crocodile waited on the shore. Due to his gut feeling, Bowser turned back towards her.

"Don't worry there, I will be back!" promised Bowser as he gave her one more pat and a fish for a snack. The crocodile gulped the fish like it was nothing before Bowser waved her goodbye and jumped on the ship. Bowser, George, Brane, John and Mosseau waved at the island as they went towards the descending sun. More adventures were awaiting them ahead.

But what was going through the crocodile's head to acts such way, unusual for her kind? Well, perhaps there is a close approximation of her thoughts….

"Macho…."