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No Author's Note:

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Disclaimer: I don't own anything but the story idea and any OCs.

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Chapter 59:
Introducing the Masrestlers

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As everyone in the room enjoyed the party, no one realized that a certain birthday Koopa was missing.

Junior slowly peaked out from his hiding spot behind a pillar. He glanced around the room to see if anyone was watching him. Once he was sure no one was paying attention, his black beady eyes landed on his target; the large number of presents piled together on the table placed in the back.

He smiled and hid behind the pillar once more. As quick and silently as he could be, he moved over to the next pillar. He looked again; still no one was watching him which was good.

He hid behind pillars, tables, and even other Koopas until he reach his destination. His eyes beamed as he looked upon all those presents with great glee. Slowly, he reached a claw out to grab just one when suddenly…

"Junior! Don't you dare touch those presents!"

He jumped back and landed on his tail. He turned around and saw Kammy standing over him with a glare.

"Oh come on," He said. "Can't I open just one?"

"No," Kammy replies firmly. "You will open them when it is time to open them. No sooner than that,"

Junior puffed; disappointed he could get his gifts. Their attentions were drawn when Kamek entered the room to make an announcement.

"Introducing the Leader of the Masrestlers," He declared. "Chief Herold and his daughter, Brianna,"

"Oh Bree's here," Junior beamed; quickly forgetting about his presents for the moment.

He quickly got up and ran towards the entrance. Kammy sighed and shook her head in amusement. A crowd had gathered around the ballroom entrance were two reptilian figures stood in the center. The biggest one was flexing and displaying his large muscles, causing the crowd to look upon him in awe.

"Bree!"

The smaller one looked upon the crowd. She smiled when she saw Junior coming towards her. "Hi, B.J,"

The larger one, her father Chief Herold, paused from his posing and turned to greet the young Koopa heir. "Well, if it isn't the birthday boy," He smiled.

Junior stopped right in front of him and grinned. "You got it; although, I'm not a boy anymore,"

"Of course not, you're a full grown Koopa now,"

"That's right," Junior said firmly.

"Well then, how about the young Sir gives me a proper greeting and a test of his strength,"

The Chief bent down to Junior's level and tilted his head forward. Junior threw his head back and strike the other as hard as he could. The attack caused him to become slightly dizzy.

"Hmm, impressive," Chief Herold said. "You are strong, strong just like your father." He stood up and looked around the room. "Speaking of which, where is he anyway?"

"Right here, you old muscle head,"

Bowser stepped forward and smirked upon seeing his long time friend. Chief Herold smiled, "Ah, there you are; is that any way to greet your guest?"

Bowser's smirk grew as he walks over to him. The two large leader grabbed each other's hand firmly before roughly crashing their heads together. There was a bit of fiction between them as they rub their skulls against the other, each fighting for dominance.

"I see you're still as strong as I remember," Chief Herold commented.

"And you're still as thick-head as I remember," Bowser said

Chief Herold grinned and threw his head back in laughter. "Ah yes, just like old times; isn't that right brother?"

"Brother?" Luigi questioned as he and the others came up from behind.

Kammy walked up beside him. "Not quite; however, Chief Herold would sometimes call him that. They've been close friends ever since they were children."

Luigi nodded in understanding and took in the appearance of the laughing Chief. Herold was quite beefy and brawny; he resembled a bodybuilder/wrestler with reptilian traits. He had gray skin, narrow black eyes, a vaguely reptilian face covered by a wrestler mask with a short snout sticking out, and four pointed teeth visible on his upper and lower jaw. On top of its head were three, brown ridges. His arms and legs are very muscular and finely tuned. He wore tight black briefs, and a large golden belt decorated by several different jewels.

"Are you okay, B.J?"

Luigi turned his gaze onto the Chief's daughter who was attending Junior's dizziness. She was about the same height as him, probably a few inches taller. She too had gray skin, big blue eyes, and a reptilian face covered by a pink and white feathered mask that allowed her blonde hair to flow in the back. She wore a matching a pink and white jumpsuit with a shirt, white leggings and pink boots.

"I'm fine," Junior said. He shook his head to rid the dizzy spell and stood up tall. "Nothing I can't handle,"

"So, what's new around these parks?" Chief Herold said, wrapping his arm around Bowser's shoulder. "Other than the castle of course,"

Bowser shrugged nonchalantly. "Not much really, but we could talk about that later,"

"Very well then," He said. "Say, how's about a nice sparring match, uh? Just between you and me, like old time sake,"

The Koopa King crossed his arms. "As tempting as that sounds, I think I'll pass for the moment,"

"That's too bad; I guess I'll just find someone else to spar with."

"Oh, I'll do it," Junior volunteered.

"You certainly will not," Kammy scowled.

Chief Herold 'hummed' and scanned around the room, looking for a suitable sparring partner. He was going to pick between Roy and Morton when his black eyes landed on the green plumber. He blinked,

"Uhm, who's this?" He said, waking over to Luigi. "I don't recall seeing you before? What's your name, newcomer?"

Luigi took a slight step back as he addressed him. "Luigi, sir,"

"Luigi, uh?" Chief Herold thought. "Hmm, sound's like the name of a famous warrior." He smiled. "Tell me Luigi, are you a famous warrior?"

The green man rubbed the back of his head. "Uhm, I don't think so…"

The king frowned in disappointment. "Oh, that's too bad. Then again, you do look a bit scrawny and lanky,"

"Well, scrawny and lanky do tends to go together," Luigi said sarcastically.

He was a bit offended by the comment. After months of training, he had developed a lean yet muscular built. Any body fat he had before was slowly being replaced by firm muscle. Perhaps it was hard to see that under his shirt?

Chief Harold laugh causing Luigi to jump slightly. "I didn't mean to offend ya, but obviously you got some guts. And anyone with guts has my respect,"

He leaned forward and tilted his head. Luigi blinked; not understanding what he was going. He turned to Wendy who quickly explained.

"You're supposed to butt heads with him," She said. "They have a weird custom where males have to clash heads with each other when greeting. It's suppose to show respect and also demonstrates a test of your strength,"

Luigi immediately understood. Not wanting to appear disrespectful or more importantly weak, he prepared himself for an effective headbutt. He took a deep breath, draw back his head, and headbutted the Muscle Chief as hard as he could. Almost immediately, he regretted it. His head started to throb painfully and his vision became blurry.

"Not bad," Chief Herold said as he stood up. "You might actually be a challenge for me," He turned to the Koopa King. "What do you say, Little Brother? Mind if I spar with him for a bit?"

Bowser shrugged. "Be my guest, doesn't matter to me,"

"Excellent, now we shall make our way to the battle ground,"

"How about you do that after you let his head clear?"

Chief Herold blinked. Looking over to the side, he saw King Adrian walking towards him. Bowser stepped in to introduce him.

"Herold, you remember my cousin?" He said.

"Of course, I haven't seen him since the last time we got together." said Herold.

Adrian nodded in agreement. "Forgive me for interrupt you, Herold, but it will seem unfair if you had went up against an opponent who isn't at their best."

Herold tilted his head slightly in confusion and turned back to Luigi. The green man was completely disoriented; Wendy had to hold him up as he painfully rubbed his aching head. Herold frowned; sometimes he tends to forget that not everyone can have the same rock hard skull as his species.

"Well, I won't want the match to be unfair," He said. "I guess we could have our match later,"

"Fine by me," Bowser came over and placed his arms around his shoulders. "Come on, let's grab a drink,"

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"Are you okay, Luigi?"

The green man groaned. At this moment, Wendy, Lemmy, and Larry were sitting at a table trying to help him treat his throbbing headache with a bag of ice. The pain was starting to fade into a dull ache but it still hurt nevertheless.

"Oh man; and here I thought Bowser had a hard head," He sighed.

"Hey, you're not the first to butt heads with Chief Herold," Larry said.

"Yup, we did the same thing when we first met him. Although, we didn't hit him as hard as you did" Lemmy joked.

"He seemed very eager to start a fight with someone," Luigi said. "Is he always like that?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Wendy answered. "I don't know why but they sort of have a habit in getting into fights."

"It's not just a habit; it's also a way of life,"

Everyone turned to the side to see the purple Magikoopa walking towards them. "Kammy,"

She nodded and offered Luigi some medicine. "Here, take one; it should help you with your headache."

"Thank you," He took one and popped it in his mouth. He washed it down with some water before sighing in relief. Within minutes, his headache started to fade away.

"Better?" Wendy asked.

"Much," He answered before turning to the Magikoopa. "So, Kammy, what do you know about the Masrestlers?"

"Plenty, actually," she replies. "For one thing, fighting isn't just a habit to them; it's a custom and a way of life. Masrestlers are a fighting race who, since ancient times, lived a rather athletic yet passive lifestyle."

"So fighting is normal for them, but they do it in a peaceful way," Larry concluded.

"Okay, I can understand that." said Luigi.

"What about their face?" Lemmy asked. "They always looked silly with their mask on,"

"Lemmy, you look silly...even without a mask," said Wendy.

"All Masrestlers wear a mask, not just the chief and his daughter." She answered. "These masks were given to them since their birth; it represents their honor and identity. To lose that mask in any way would mean to lose their honor so it is rarely taken off."

"I get it," Luigi thought. It was similar to how he felt with his cap, something he had since he was a baby. Anytime he didn't have it on, it left like a part of him was still missing.

"It's the belt that labels them as authority," Kammy said. "It's their version of a crown; not only does it signify their leader, but it also indicate the strongest among them. The only difference is that the position isn't always permanent,"

"It's not?" Luigi blinked in surprise.

"No; you see, the Belt of Chieftain is given to whoever is the strongest within the clan. Anyone can challenge the Chief for it in a declared fight. If the current leader loses, then he has to pass down the Belt to the winner who is then crowned as the new chief. The Belt can be inherited to either their off springs (gender is excluded) or their chosen successor; however, they still have to prove themselves worthy of the Belt."

"I see. Has Bowser ever competed?"

"Yes, but not for the belt; Masrestlers have multiple tournaments, even one where outsiders are allow to take part. The winner is label as The Champion and is given special rights and privileges as well as chance to fight the Chief if he chose to do so. Bowser has never take part for the Belt but he has help Herold prepared for it when his father was Chief and maintain to hold his position for many years now."

"Well, that's nice of him," Luigi commented. You would think Bowser would take any chance to rule over the Masrestlers in addition to his own kingdom. He could be using Herold to keep his place until he comes around to conquer it but something told him that was not the case.

"Yes; however, for the Championship tournament, he had been the Champion four times in a row."

"I would say I'm surprise… but then I'll be lying,"

No big surprise that Bowser won a fighting tournament. There were times were he would wonder how the great and powerful Koopa King kept getting beaten by two Italian plumbers.

'I guess life likes to make jokes sometimes,' He thought. 'Cruel, unusual jokes,'

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Ending Note:

The Masrestlers are a fictional race that I mostly based off those old cartoon shows; 'Ultimate Muscle' and 'Mucha Lucha'. I based their appearance off the Pokémon Machoke.

Brianna's outfit is similar to a pink power ranger and her mask is based off Jaycee's from the game, Tekken.

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