Authoress' Notes: ...Doesn't it just suck when life gets in the way...? Well, because of that, I regret to inform you all that this is the last chapter for "BOA"... Read and enjoy. Details are at the end.
Better Off Alone
Chapter 11: Valor
Vivian opened her eyes in a murky abyss, squinting and blinking hard. She muttered incomprehensibly to herself as if she'd just come out of a horrible nightmare.
Everything around her was so... distorted... The room felt like it was spinning... She was unable to get her head straight.
It was probably on account of her body's fatigue; the fight with Grodus proved more than it could handle and resulted in her losing all vitality, rather than prevailing and gaining strength from his defeat.
"Good to see you're finally awake. I was beginning to think you were dead or something," derided a faint voice.
Tired, exhausted, and dreary, she managed to slowly raise her head, the rattling of chains sounding with every movement. "...W-where am I...?"
"I'm surprised you don't know. Maybe it's been so long, you've forgotten..."
She coughed hoarsely. Her mouth was dry from earlier. Her body was tired, but her mind was racing. Not knowing where she was or what was going on made her nauseous. Slowly but surely, she began to regain her equanimity and sort out her current position. She wasn't in any immediate danger...
But...Where was she? Why was she here? Where was Mario? ...Where was Koops? Would he be angry about her breaking her promise and leaving when told not to? ...Vivian heaved a defeated sigh, realizing her past fantasy of happily eating Couple's Cake wouldn't be coming true as soon as first thought.
Inadvertently looking over to her left, she saw Princess Peach sprawled out on the floor... which looked recognizable in its patterns and style...
At that moment, she realized...
This room... It looked vaguely familiar, but she couldn't place her finger on it. The walls were dark and dreary with age-old wallpaper slowly peeling and rotting away in some places, as well as the dingy carpet. It was quite spacious with several pillars around the inside's edge and a huge door at the far end. Apparently, the interior once belong to royalty; despite the olden sanctuary, the designs were grandiose, with the plateau taking up most of the room ideal for any king or queen to dwell on.
The scent...
She could smell it so clear, but from so long along ago. It was a scent of... blood. Old, disgusting, and tortured blood... with decayed skin, molded bones and other bodily remains. Whoever left it must've died a horrible death, as it gave her a slight hint of security and pleasure as the dampened smell coursed through her mind... her very soul... unlocking past memories of which she never thought she'd see again.
Pleasure? This smell was actually giving her pleasure? Vivian shuddered. No... What was she thinking...? That couldn't be...
Not only did the aroma reminisce of the grotesque beauty of the dead and dying, but it also gave her a vague, nostalgic feeling. A feeling of familiarity and awareness in a hazy memory that refused to leave her head...
...It was of her sisters... She was sure of it. Nothing else in the entire world had the particularly enriching scent of Shadow Siren like her own kin. Their fragrances were well-embedded in the carpet's very fabric. It was like they were all right there with her... even Lillian. She turned her sights toward Grodus sitting upon a throne, the one thing that reminded her of the being who made all this possible...
"Mother?"
"So you haven't forgotten, after all," said Grodus.
Her tone suddenly turned sour. "...What you're doing is wrong. Mario will find you... and he'll... he'll stop you..."
"I beg to differ..."
Hearing this, Vivian angrily struggled in her chains against the wall. Despite her strength, she was unable to break free. With a soft groan of defeat, she lowered her head once again.
"GRODUS!" came an unmistakable voice from the darkness. Vivian looked up in surprise to see Beldam rushing up the plateau's stairs, infuriated. "Just what do you think you're doing?"
"Putting our plan into action; I bring back your Shadow Queen and I gain custody of your errant sister for my own personal needs," he calmly responded.
"That wasn't in the plan!"
"The plan has changed, Beldam... And for the better, too..."
"What is holding this traitor captive going to prove? We don't need her!"
"You may not need her, but I do. I plan on using her as a... how do you say it? ...A trump card, if you will... The Amethyst Crystal she carries will prove quite useful."
"We've got her away from Mario, so why not get rid her? She was their key advantage to knowing our plans. With her gone, the rest will drop like flies."
"Vivian didn't know enough of anything to use against us. Knowing her, she probably never even had the audacity to tell them. Isn't that right, siren?" Grodus smugly cupped her chin and jerked her head up straight.
"Let go of me!" Vivian responded with a violent yank of her neck.
"But I see she's still a bit feisty. Your sibling has more stamina than I first imagined... Maybe too much..."
"And that's my problem because...?"
Grodus shot Beldam a dirty look. "...Very well, then. I suppose as my pet, she is my responsibility..."
"I'm NOT your pet!" Enraged, Vivian thrust a wad of spit into his glass eye.
"You'd best silence yourself, siren!" Grodus jammed his staff into her neck, pushing hard under her chin. "You will speak only when spoken to! Is that understood?"
Vivian didn't answer.
"I reiterate: Am I understood?"
"...Yes..." the bitter response virtually marred her lips as she breathed it.
"Yes, what?"
Trembling in anger, she finally grumbled, "...yes, sir..."
Satisfied, Grodus removed his staff and stepped away... only to step forward again and jam his orb into her midsection.
With a loud groan, Vivian fell to the floor, teeth gritted in pain. The thick cufflinks binding her to the wall kept her body from sinking low enough to touch the ground, making her knuckles throb from the pressure of her weight pulling on them.
Grodus and Beldam walked away. "I assume that'll teach you to obey orders when they are given to you, yes?"
Vivian really couldn't care less of Grodus' taunting remarks. His means of punishment were just like Beldam's, a burden she'd suffered through for well over a millennium now. A punch in the stomach was nothing compared to one in the face. The stinging was already starting to cease, with her body recovering.
"Now that that's taken care of..." She faintly heard Beldam say, "What're we going to do about Mario and his pesky little friends?"
"What else? Relive him of the Crystal Stars and put them to proper use under our control."
"But now that he's acquired all seven, Mario will be quite a formidable opponent... A real pain in the..."
"Mario is nothing but a pawn to me. He depends on his friends and the Crystal Stars for all his attacks and maneuvers. Without them, he is useless. You see what happened when Doopliss took the liberty of stealing his identity?"
"Yes, and it almost worked to perfection, too..." She eyed her sibling. "That is, if it weren't for Vivian..."
"The juvenile has more value than she's worth. True, we could've beaten Mario while he was at his weakest, but he saved us the trouble of fetching the other Crystal Stars. Besides... according to what I've heard from the X-Nauts, that little incident might've been avoided if you and that other bumbling sister of yours had your act together."
"There was nothing we could do; the little brat sabotaged the whole thing," Her reply was quick and cold. "What's past has past. Mario was a small menace then, yet he's a big threat now."
"...That's why I need you to confront him and make sure he doesn't make it this far and become a definite hazard," Grodus paused. With a hint of disgust, he added, "This is a perfect opportunity for you to make up for your earlier failures."
"...Taking him down at this point will difficult... We might need some backup..."
"It will be done," he sternly interrupted.
Beldam apparently took his words in offense and threateningly turned to glare at him, only to be met with his own heartless, glass eyes. Vivian could practically feel her hatred emitting across the room.
After a bit of a stare down, the elder finally conceded and said, "Not yet. We still have one more trick up our sleeve..."
"And that is?"
"Our loyal pet, Gloomtail. A real sweetheart... if you know how to get on his good side," she answered. "He'll rip Mario to shreds for sure."
"I ponder why you are so reluctant to face Mario in battle, Beldam. Am I sensing some doubt from you?"
"If there's any doubt in this room, it'll be for Vivian."
...She didn't care what Beldam said. Not Grodus, the X-Nauts, Doopliss, or anyone else she came in contact with... She was who she was and could never do a better job being anything else.
If they hated her because of what she was... Fine, that was typical. Everybody hated Shadow Sirens; trying to convince herself otherwise seemed not only foolish, but mind-numbingly insane.
If they hated her because of who she was... then maybe that meant, in some strange sense or way, she was a priceless gem amongst a heap of useless junk. Perhaps she was special and not just because of the Amethyst Crystal Star they said she held.
It had been a long and awkward trip, coming back from the moon only to stock up on a few supplies from the conveniently-placed Underground Shop, then following Prof. Frankly to their final test of endurance: the Thousand-Year Door. Goombella warned them beforehand how dangerous it was and noted the place of eternal damnation was not to be taken lightly. This made Koops felt powerless and stupid, thinking about Vivian every step of the way.
"Koops, come on... Don't worry about it," said Goombella, seeing his slump. "Vivian and Peach are both in the same place, so if we find one, we'll find the other."
"Someone should've stayed with her... then she'd still be with us..." he muttered.
Waffles turned around. "Oh, get a grip already! You're acting like she's dead, or something! Vivian has a thing for getting into trouble, but she always finds her way outta it, all right?"
"I concur," put in the admiral. "That scoundrel probably just stole her in order to intimidate us."
Koops violently shook his head, like he was trying to clear his conscious. Why was he moping like this? Like there was no hope left and Vivian was gone forever? Not to mention he was wasting time and attracting too much attention to himself. Whining over Vivian's absence suddenly made him realize how immature it was.
"Yeah, you guys are right. Sorry about that," he meekly smiled.
It was time to get serious. Being in this place, the so-called 'Palace of Shadow', proved to be a serious risk and maybe even a fatal grave for those who refused to tread lightly. So far, they'd encountered several rotating lines of fire, intimidating enemies, a room where spikes ejected from the carpet with each step taken, and just recently fought through a horde of Dry Bones to catch their leader for, as the Dark Bones liked to call it, a skeleton key.
He hadn't seen Ms. Mowz since they left the moon and almost believed she didn't come back with them. But she was there... In some small way or other, she was always there. Always being the type to know when to leave and when to appear, she was merely avoiding contact with him for the time being. After how he acted on the moon, it was no wonder...
Aside from his circumstances, Koops suffered from a severe dislike of this place. As its name implied, it was dark and murky; only a few lit torches lead the way on the numerous amount of staircases and he couldn't even begin to count the number of times they got lost.
One of the rooms they entered was like a puzzle, with two staircases going left and right, leading to two other doors along with the one on the ground floor. Bobbery proposed the team split up all try all three, but that proved to be a careless mistake. The whole group either ended up getting through the correct door, reentering the current room, or finding themselves in the previous chamber. It didn't take long before chaos ensued as they started opening doors, closing doors, slamming them in irritation, or running through a door, quickly jumping downstairs and picking a door at random, hoping to get through.
After a while of utter confusion, Mario noticed the correct door in each room always had a torch lit next to it, leading into the next room. Following his assumption, everyone soon found themselves in a spacious, concrete area with a large moat, a mysterious building, and Red Chomps bouncing about in their standard, fuming temper."We did it! Finally!" Waffles cheered.
Flurrie took in the area's cold, damp scent. "But now where are we? Looks like some underground metropolis..."
"That's exactly what it is, Flurrie," said Goombella, makimg her way to the moat. "This is the very part of that ancient city the demon destroyed over a thousand years ago! It's so perfectly preserved! There're even still some footprints on the pavement!"
"Then what's that ghastly-looking tower over there?"
"Huh?" she turned and frowned. "Weird... I don't remember that being in the history books..."
"Maybe that means history ain't all it's cracked up to be..."
"Waffles!"
"Well, it could!"
"Doesn't look like there's any way to get in there," said the Bob-omb, peering from the moat's edge. "The door looks to be locked."
"Now what?" asked the Yoshi.
Koops surveyed the vast setting, suddenly realizing a door was on the far end of the east wall. "Why don't we try that one? Over there?"
Goombella squinted. "I guess it wouldn't really hurt if we just checked it out."
"And what if it's like that crazy stair maze in the other room, huh?" Waffles frantically questioned. "We could be trapped in there forever!"
"Not if we adhere to dear Mario's instructions, like last time," said Flurrie.
Fortunately for Waffles, the path behind the door proved to be a simple one. It led down a few long corridors with the sporadic Chain Chomps and Phantom Embers loitering about. The sequence of carpeted hallways finally stopped at a door. Suddenly, Koops began shivering as they neared it...
Something was wrong. Very wrong... He sensed a terrible force from behind the entrance... Not to mention how eerily dark and cold the hall suddenly became...
He could hear someone... something... breathing deeply... growling quietly... The rhythms of its breaths were displayed in short bursts of transparent, green mist seeping through underneath the door...
"Guys... wait a second..."
Goombella stopped. "Huh? Why? What's wrong?"
Koops quickly rubbed his shoulders with trembling hands. "Something... something awful's in there..."
"Not this again! Vivian did the same thing on the moon!" Waffles pointed out. "Are you trying to be a slacker?"
"...No... It's like... an omen... Whatever's in there... I have a bad feeling about it..."
"Do you want to wait out here, then?" inquired the Goomba.
That made Vivian look bad. The only reason she didn't fight back in the X-Nauts' Fortress was due to a serve illness.Sure, he was scared, but he wasn't sick...
"No... It's all right. I'll go..."
Convinced they were ready, Mario pushed open the heavy door; the loud squeaking and groaning of its rotted hinges didn't make Koops feel any better about venturing into the immense obscurity. The team set forth into the pitch-black room as the thick door slammed shut with a quick squeak, followed by a frightening thud.
With the chamber void of all light, Koops had to rely on his hearing to pinpoint everyone's location and tell exactly who was doing what.
"It's so dark in here..." said Goombella. Her voice sounded far off, indicating she was further away.
"And stinky..." came Waffles' voice, which sounded closer.
"Yeah..." Koops strained his eyes to focus. The citadel already lived up to its name of 'shadow' but this room was ominously gloomy...
And the smell... That odor... It was so foul, but Koops swore he'd smelt it before... Dank, barren, and musty, it reeked of danger... It reeked of evil... It reeked of...
"Who are you?" boomed a thunderous voice.
Startled, Koops slowly looked up to see it...
It was her... Inching from the shadows... That ugly face... Those nasty teeth... Those malicious eyes... It was like his nightmare coming true all over again...
He saw it... It was happening again...
Scarring his face in the rough dirt... His mother being torn apart... Hooktail turning her enormous head just enough to smile at him with blood-stained teeth...
"What the... WOAH!" Waffles tilted his head back so far, he fell over.
"Who dares disturb me in my sacred domain of darkness? SPEAK NOW!"
Goombella did a double take. "Wait a minute! Hooktail...? What's she doing here? I thought we already defeated her!"
"WHAT?" the dark dragon growled. "You did what to my little sister?"
"...Sister?"
"Nice going, Einstein," Waffles grumbled.
Koops fell to the ground, face pale and trembling. His memories began taking control of his whole body, blocking out the realization that this dragon wasn't the one responsible for ruining his life...
No... Hooktail was dead! She was dead! He saw Mario's Hammer whack her good on the toes! And she was in so much pain, with the cricket's sound of his badge! There was no way she could've survived...!
"Pitiful Koopa..."
He looked up again. "No..." Everyone was gone now. The only thing visible was Hooktail's snout slowly inching from the shadows...
"I may've been defeated, but that does nothing for you..."
"That's not true!" he screamed, close to tears.
She seemed to take sadistic pleasure in his pain. "How dare you try to exact revenge by calling on your little pals? What a coward..."
"I'm not a coward... No... I... I went there... I-I helped defeat you!"
Her nasty grin shone through the bleak abyss. "I could've devoured you just like I did your mother, but you had to cheat..."
"No..."
"That fight was just between us you know it... Defeating me with the help of others yields no honor for you..."
"Dude!" Waffles called as he shook the Koopa. "What is wrong with you?"
Goombella winched at him sitting in a fatal position in a wall's corner. Koops looked like his very soul had been ripped right out of him... His expression was blank and lifeless; his face was pale, with shaking knuckles clutching his jacket in horror. Sweat drenched his brow as his eyes brimmed with tears.
"Waffles... leave him alone..."
"Huh?"
"Leave him alone... He has some problems..."
"What problems? What are you talking about?"
Problems... Is that what they called them? When you're forced to live on after your mother was killed and your father abandoned you?
"I see..." the dragon smiled, showing his ugly, yellow teeth. "It takes a strong soul to venture this far into the Palace of Shadow... Your efforts should be commended, but you must not value your lives too well, as you stand before the great Gloomtail, your very fate!"
His words seemed to slowly fade in and out of Koops' hearing... He wasn't even all there anymore...This thing... It killed his mother... and tore his family apart. Why couldn't it have been him? He was an outcast because of her...
By now, he knew this monster, while resembling her, wasn't actually Hooktail... But his mind refused to let go. Instead, it replayed all sorts of images through his mind... His mother doing all the things she used to love so much...
Picking flowers in Petal Meadows for a vase over the kitchen sink...
Carefully hanging his wet shirts out to dry on a clothesline...
Gently polishing his shell's scratches whenever he fell on it...
Offering him milk and cookies after a long day of playing outside...
Gently consoling him with words of wisdom when he felt lonely...
Reading him and Koopie Koo bedtime stories about Yoshies who always played together on their fun-filled island...
He knew those blissful times wouldn't last forever, but... did they have to be cut so short...? So soon...?
...Koops was suddenly pulled from his memories as a feeling came over him... The feeling that someone was watching his every move from a concealed location.
Coming back from his dismal recollections, he glanced around only to notice was still in same dark abyss from before, except Hooktail was gone and replaced with...
"...Ms. Mowz?"
"Yes... I've come to relieve you of your pain..."
He looked down in defeat. "Oh, Ms. Mowz... I'm so sorry about..."
She placed a finger on her nose in a shushing manner. "Apologies are for the guilty, not the mislead."
"I thought I got over this... I really did..."
"You'll never get over it as long as you love your mother... That's what makes you the stronger warrior."
He lifted his head. "...What?"
"We all make mistakes and you're no exception... But you can redeem yourself by standing up to your fears. You have to keep this in mind... That's not Hooktail, for she is gone and never coming back. You defeated her once before and you're not going to show her brother any mercy."
He resumed his sulking position. "That's easier said than done..."
Seeing the message wasn't getting through, the rodent lowered her tone. "...I know the past can hurt, but when push comes to shove, you can either run from your problems... or learn from them."
"I don't think that's possible... I can never learn enough to forget about what that monster did to me... I can't get it out of my system..."
"...Would you do it for Vivian? If she were here, would you do everything in your power to make sure she'd be safe?"
There was a still silence before he rose his head again, tears dried on his cheeks. "...Of course I would... I'd... I'd give anything for her..."
"Then get up," she demanded. "And prove it. You said you wanted to be brave, Koops, and if you don't take a stand for what you think is right... then maybe should just go back home."
She saw his eyes widen at the crude remark. He turned to her with a tortured visage. "...What're you saying?"
"That you're a coward..." Her face was overshadowed and emotionless as she whispered those horrible words to him. "...That's what I'm saying."
He smiled at her... laughed, even. His smirking practically overflowed with the delusion and torment of harsh reality. "I always thought you were supposed to be some sort of an omen, a guide, or a sage... But right now, you're doing a pretty cruddy job..."
"I'm here to show you the path of enlightenment. I never said it was going to be pretty. The truth is actually very ugly... Ugly, indeed..."
His sarcastic smiling was gone now, replaced with a nasty scowl. The rodent could've cared less of the Koopa's reactions. He was currently going through a difficult stage, meaning he needed to be confronted with the cold, hard truth before showing progress.
"The day your mother died was the day you lost your common sense. You now blindly follow your faulty intuition, going for the things you want, not need, and refusing to mean what you say!"
"That's not..." he paused and glared at the misty floor, realizing how angry he sounded. "That's not true..."
"The truth hurts, Koops... But the lies also have their fair share of pain... The pain of denial."
It didn't make any sense. Why was she doing this? Was she really trying to help him...? Or break down his very will to fight for some inhumane purpose...?
Another tear ran down his cheek. "I'm so confused..."
"When lost, the confused find their way out of a forest, but the delirious stay there forever, following that same tree they thought they passed on the way in."
His shell trembled and he lowered his head again, hands clutching his head. It was only a matter of time before he went back to his fatal position.
"I think it's time I took my leave... Goodbye, Koops," she turned to begin her departure. After walking a few feet, she stopped. "I know you love Vivian, but there is a difference between love... and obsession. Which do you think you have?"
After a moment, she heard, "Can you blame someone for being desperate? For wanting something to make up for their pain so much, they forgot what they were doing in the first place...?"
"...I guess I can't..." she answered with a chuckle and continued walking. "There's hope for you yet, Koops... There's hope for you yet..."
In a flash, his vision ended. Ms. Mowz's image faded into the mist and Koops found himself back in the black beast's dungeon. From the looks of things, the battle had already started with Mario and the others at a big disadvantage, due to their shortage of members by three.
"Your endeavors are enough to make me laugh myself into defeat!" taunted Gloomtail.
He lifted a gigantic foot, as everyone darted away from the oncoming earthquake. Catching her handkerchief between her feet, Goombella fell over before getting far enough to safety.
"Goombella, look out!" shouted Waffles.
She got up and ran again, but just wasn't fast enough to escape the dragon's large claws. Goombella could practically feel the foot's weight slamming down, crushing her tiny body and ending her life abruptly. Yet all she could do was hope he'd miss...
With the force of a hundred Bob-ulks, Gloomtail drove his foot into the ground and snorted. "There! One down, four to go!"
Lifting his foot, the behemoth was shocked to see nothing of Goombella remaining. Not a trace of her was on his toes or the floor.
...Goombella opened an eye. Was she dead? Was her life over? Did she really bite the dust? Yeah, she was probably dead... and what a way to go, too...
She frantically glanced around her murky surroundings, looking for a sign of something until she noticed...
"Koops!"
Shaking the rubble off his head, Koops stood, holding her in his arms. "And you say I'm not careful."
"Then that means... I'm not dead?"
He smiled. "I guess not, huh?"
Waffles dashed over. "Whoa, dude! What a comeback! Goombella would've been a goner for sure if it weren't you! I mean, you were like a rocket, man! I didn't even see you and..."
"Koops...?" she eyed him worriedly, as Waffles went on with his ramblings. "You sure you're okay with this?"
"Yeah, it's fine... There's nothing else I can do about it... So I'm just going to let it go... and concentrate on helping you guys instead!"
"So, I suppose we have you back then?" asked Flurrie.
"Wonderful!" Bobbery said. "I think I feel a comeback in our future, yes?"
Gloomtail growled loudly for attention. "So, you've convinced the Koopa to come out of his shell? Fine! Have it your way! The more of you, the better!"
With those final words, the long fight with Gloomtail continued, proving its worth in difficulty as in its lengthiness. According to Goombella, the sound of crickets didn't affect the older brother. This unfortunate setback didn't seem to faze Mario as he continuously pummeled away. The rest followed as well, throwing everything they had at the dragon.
Gloomtail had a few tricks of his own, sometimes using his ominous Megabreath attack. He'd occasionally lash out to try and take a bite out of anyone unfortunate enough to be in the way. He even used his weight to his greatest advantage by jumping around the room, almost to the point where the ceiling collapsed.
Koops thought about Vivian throughout the entire fight, mostly on how great need they were of her Veil's protective effects. Then again... she'd be so stressed and worn before even launching an attack. She couldn't shield them all at the same time, so maybe it'd be better she didn't take part in the battle.
After a few more hits, Gloomtail angrily thrashed his head back and forth. "You bothersome little pests! First you barge in here, disturb my sleep, destroy my dear, sweet sister, and dare to make me this mad?! I swear I'll make sure you never make it out alive!"
He thrust his three hook-like tails into the wall, causing a massive tremor. Everyone was able to avoid the attack, but the quaking made Koops lose balance and fall on his rounded shell.
The Koopa silently cursed to himself for being incapable of getting up. He rocked around his shell, trying to land on his other side, but to no avail; while his shell was his greatest weapon, it also proved to be his greatest weakness.
Gloomtail's snout hovered over him. "Now, payback time, huh? I think I'm going to enjoy a nice, tasty Koopa for my first meal in aeons!"
"Ow!" Vivian's eyes snapped open in pain. A sharp sting went though her head. What was that? An itch...? Cramping? She wondered.
...Probably nothing... It was gone, anyway... She closed her eyes again to try and resume her dozing.
But instead of darkness, she saw Koops helpless on his shell in front of Gloomtail. The grungy walls covered with remnants of the dragon's Megabreath attack.
Gloomtail stopped dead in his tracks, a big foot nearly ready to crush Koops.
"What...? What is this?" he growled, barely able to move his mouth. "What is this... sorcery? Are you doing this?"
Koops knew whatever was happening to Gloomtail wasn't his intention. He was actually planning on using a Shell Slam in hopes of a quick escape.
She didn't know how it happened... She really didn't. It was like... almost natural to her. Like she'd done it once before...
"But that can't be..."
Although Gloomtail and his siblings were born to obey the Shadow Sirens, only Beldam and Marilyn could manipulate them with advanced witchery.
"You have been defeated..." she whispered. "Your energy has been drained... You have nothing left... The intruders were only a figment of your imagination..."
"I have been defeated... Energy has been drained... Nothing left... Intruders... Only a figment of imagination... " Gloomtail mindlessly repeated.
"You will sleep now... Go back to your dreams of peace... Your discomfort has ended..."
Gloomtail's eyes became heavy. With a loud groan, he backed away from Koops and toppled over. The following thud of his collapse made the whole palace quake. After the shaking ceased, Goombella broke the uneasy hush.
"Koops? Did you... did you just defeat Gloomtail?"
"Maybe the fighting tired him out..." he answered, unsure of what really happened.
"I don't think so. With us on the verge of losing, you'd think he'd..."
Waffles stood prominently. "We weren't on the verge of losing!"
"Well, whatever happened..." Bobbery looked about warily. "He's out of our hair now, wouldn't you agree?"
"Yeah..." Quickly rocking his shell, Koops sprung forward with all his might and landed on his stomach. "That's one less thing we have to worry about..."
"But we have another thing to worry about in place of that!" groaned Goombella.
Flurrie sighed. "What's that, now?"
"We had to use nearly all our items on that big blowhard! All we have left is a Super Shroom!"
"Behind Gloomtail..."
"Huh...?"
"There's a large crack in the wall. Send Bobbery over to blow it open... There's more than enough stuff there to help..."
Was that Vivian's voice? ...Was she talking to him through her mind?
"...Vivian?"
She heard him. "Koops?"
Fear cut into her consciousness, breaking her focus and ending their conversation...
Suddenly enlightened, Koops turned to the admiral. "Bobbery?"
"Sir?"
"Over there... On the other side of Gloomtail... there's a crack in the wall... Can you go blow it open?"
The Bob-omb seemed skeptical, but agreed. He blew apart the wall and squeezed through the tight opening as told. A moment later, he returned with an Ultra Shroom and a Jammin' Jelly.
"This is great!" Goombella grabbed the Ultra Shroom. "This is more than enough to go around! But... how did you know it was there?"
Koops flashed a sheepish smile. "I guess you can say it was a... lucky guess..."
Vivian opened her eyes. She keep her gazed fixated upon the floor, afraid her captors found something amiss. They didn't notice, did they? Holding her breath, she slowly looked up... and heaved a sigh of relief to see neither paying her any mind. A loud thud from somewhere else in the palace told her the spell had worked and Gloomtail was no longer a threat.
"It seems that Mario has defeated you pet," muttered Grodus, knowing what it was.
Beldam seemed tentative. "...Only a minor setback. Gloomtail has apparently lost some of his luster after being down here for so long... Probably tripped over his own feet and knocked himself out, the big klutz..."
"You hesitance sickens me..."
"...And yet you seem hesitant to rid us of this problem yourself..."
"Excuse me?"
"We're supposed to be working as a team, Grodus; however, you continue to badger me about this Mario! I didn't get smacked on the head by a hammer for nothing, mind you! So, maybe if you stopped pestering me, I can do something about this problem!"
"You dare raise your voice at me? Don't tell me you're thinking of joining your insubordinate sister over there!"
"I already told you to get rid of that idiot! She's dead weight to us now!"
"She has the Amethyst Crystal Star!"
"That doesn't matter as long as we bring the Shadow Queen back!"
It was plain to see that Beldam and Grodus were becoming more and more cross with each other by the second. Vivian knew how easily her sister got mad, never being afraid to show it. Grodus wasn't so quick to anger, but he did go a little off the deep end when annoyed. Maybe if she was lucky, they'd end up destroying each other before Mario got there...
Enraged, Beldam cast a blizzard spell on Grodus, who countered with a wall of whitish-bluish flames. Twisting his staff, the Grodus X were summoned to attack her. She responded by freezing them in their tracks and disappeared. Foreseeing this tactic, Grodus turned to aim his staff at the reemerging siren, but was stopped as she appeared too close and froze part of his staff. He quickly stabbed the rod's pointed side into the ground, nearly piercing her hat as she disappeared.
Gazing past the feuding pair, Vivian saw Marilyn and Doopliss standing near the door, as if they were guarding it. Their presence had been completely neglected until now. She couldn't remember ever seeing them earlier...
"Beldam, we must bring an end to this madness!" Grodus finally shouted. "For if we don't, we could end up destroying ourselves over a pitiful little irritant!"
"Your words don't persuade me," echoed her voice from the shadows.
"Don't you see? This is exactly what Mario wants us to do! To destroy ourselves in rage of nothingness, while strides in here and claims what's to be ours!"
"I don't think you understand our power. You may be in command, but enough is enough... You in our domain now, if you haven't forgotten..."
"But you can't remove the seal placed upon your queen's tomb..." he retorted haughtily. "Only a creature not born into shadow can do so. All others are rendered helpless."
Realizing he was right, Beldam reappeared from the shadows on the other side of the room. She and Grodus engaged in another intense stare down before the X-Naut supreme cleared his voice.
"We have to keep our cool. Fighting one another like this is absurd..." he walked over to the plateau's middle, freeing his right arm from clutching the rod. "Mario will be here soon. Now's not the time to bicker when we're both so close to getting what we want. Truce?"
Beldam gave in as well, meeting Grodus in the room's core. "I'm not letting our sacrifices be in vain... Truce..."
The two seemed to be shaking hands, but it looked more like some kind of arm wrestling match to Vivian. Deviously grimacing to each other, Beldam and Grodus squeezed palms tightly in the way a pair of old rivals would, each respecting the other for their great strength.
"Now... What should we do?"
"Marilyn, Doopliss, and I will put a stop to this nonsense once and for all," she turned to the Duplighost and her portly sister near the stair's bottom. "Gloomtail was actually supposed to be guarding a key that leads into Riddle Tower, that big building surrounded by the moat in the heart of the palace. If Mario ever gets out alive, we'll ambush him there."
"Is it some kind of torture chamber?"
"I suppose you could put it that way... We used to enjoy putting our victims in there and watch from the shadows as they went insane trying to find the Palace Keys to lead them out. Only residents of this palace know where they are and how to get them."
"Good. Your plan appears to have no flaws, but what if I added a little... safeguard to it?" Vivian felt her heart skip a beat as X-Naut leader eyed her with dishonest intentions.
Beldam joined him in staring. "...You want to use the brat? You know she'll only bungle everything like last time..."
"Don't worry about what she'll do, for that is up to me to decide."
She swallowed hard. What exactly did he mean by that? Why was he coming over to her? What if he started torturing her until she joined with Beldam again?
Vivian's heart pounded frantically at his approach, her breaths quickening in horror. Knowing it was useless, she made another vain attempt to escape from her imprisonment. Regrettably, the effort ended in failure for the umpteenth time.
Grodus inched closer and closer, looming menacingly over her. "With Doopliss on their side, there's a chance we might prevail over Mario, but just for a bit of added insurance... I want you to go with them."
"You can't tell me what to do... Beat me up, if you want... but I refuse..." she snapped, keeping her focus on the floor.
The leader raised his staff as it began to emit a bluish glow. Moving it about in an odd manner, he spoke, "You will obey me and do what I say... You will not question me in my commands and will always react without a moment's hesitance..."
Seeing what he was trying to do, Vivian frowned and turned away. "No! No! I won't!"
"You will heed my orders and do what you're told..."
"No..."
"Your insubordination has to stop... and it will stop! So says your master..."
"...N-no..." Not looking into Grodus' orb wasn't working. Vivian felt herself... her body, her mind, her self-control... being drawn from her grasp of power and into the dark void of his hypnotizing spell. It was like losing consciousness all over again.
"Don't try and fight it, siren. Doing so will only hurt you more."
Vivian soon came to the horrible realization that she didn't possess the strength to fight off his incantation. It was evident she was slowly losing the battle of keeping her wits. Her thoughts were melting into nothing but blank spots in her mind... Her fear, her anger, her sorrow... they were gradually becoming nothing more than mindless devotion to her new master. It was useless to struggle and pointless to try and escape.
Powerless, she squeezed her eyes harder; a tear sparkled on her eyelash.
"I'm sorry, Koops... I'm so sorry..."
The tear flowed down her cheek, dropping off her face and onto the dingy carpet, making a soft, pattering sound in the quiet room...
Koops sat up, looking around in a panic. Waffles saw this and leisurely questioned, "What's wrong with you now?"
"It was Vivian..." came the startled whisper. After a slight pause, he went on. "I heard her. She said she was... she was sorry..."
"Yeah... right. I'm sure she did..." Waffles backed away and twirled his finger near his head, indicating Koops was starting to lose it.
"I'm not crazy!" he snapped. "I heard her! I swear I did!"
Flurrie put a hand on his shoulder. "Maybe you're just thinking of Vivian too hard, precious."
"Or he could be right; this crazy place may have played a role in manipulating thoughts," added the Bob-omb.
"Well, Gloomtail's done with and we've got this key, so I guess we're supposed to go to that weird tower we saw out there," said Goombella.
Everyone agreed and got up to leave Gloomtail's chamber after taking time to recuperate. Their minds made up and coordinates set, everyone ventured out the solitary door and back down the hallway from whence they came. Koops placed a hand on the exit to open it, but froze in his tracks as he heard a faint clapping sound...
"Bravo, Koops, bravo. I must congratulate you on you endeavors, for they were something to be desired."
He didn't move an inch. "Ms. Mowz... Back there... with Gloomtail and all... I didn't mean to bite your head off like that..."
"Your heart was in the right place, but your mind was not. And as they say, no harm, no foul," She appeared beside him. "But you've done your part for now. It's time I offered my assistance."
"What do you mean?"
"You did not truly defeat Gloomtail."
"Then, what happened to him?"
"It was Vivian."
"Vivian...?" he looked surprised. "But she's not here. She couldn't have done it."
"Vivian and Gloomtail's soul were two of many formed from the Crystal Stars. Because of that, Vivian merely communicated with his mind and lulled him into a dormant state."
"You mean... she can do that?"
"Her sisters can, but Vivian hasn't the experience to accomplish such a feat. It was instinct... Out of pure concern for her friends. She saw your peril and came to your aid... because you did the same for her."
"But..."
"Hmm?"
"Just a minute ago... I heard Vivian say she was sorry. She sounded so sad."
The white rodent walked away. "Just keep yourself in check and you won't have to worry about her location."
"But, I thought..."
"That doesn't matter now. I assure you, you'll see Vivian very soon..."
Koops watched Ms. Mowz casually follow everyone else out the door and close it behind her. He hoped she was right. He hoped Vivian was safe, wherever she was... And he hoped he could find her before it was too late...
Authoress' Notes: Well, as much as I hate to say it, "BOA" is officially over. It was fun writing it and I'm very sorry for the inconvenience. I've just realized I'm starting to lose interest in "PM: TTYD" altogether. It's still a great game, but it's not what it used to be anymore. I'm also sorry to say that I'll end the story on a sour note: Koops eventually leaves Vivian after realizing how their love can never be and has kids with Koopie Koo. Vivian kills herself while Beldam and Marilyn mourn their loss and disappear from the Mushroom Kingdom, never to be seen again. The end.
...APRIL FOOLS! XD Ah, I've been waiting all year to do that! ...Okay, okay... I know probably some people are mad at me for this, but it's all in good fun. "BOA" is nowhere near over, if it bothers you that much. And I still play "PM: TTYD" nearly 5 times a week, lol. Also, didja see the quote I got from a prestigious movie? The rodent says it. Can you guess where they're from? Also, 2 years ago today, news of "PM: TTYD" was released into public, but not belived because it was April Fools Day? XD Good thing that wasn't a hoax, huh?