Shilo Burbans : Hmm... I'm thinking you might have mistaken Noki for a player in Krisetchers' story, because I remember that one of his questions involved joining a cult dedicated to violence and I don't think that was the case in this story. ^^ Don't worry for your lateness, I always enjoy reading your comments. Thanks and good luck with your own story! (I hope you'll have time to continue it soon) ^^
Cyan Comet : I'm sorry to hear about your tests. I hope you didn't fail them, it might be an impression only, you know. I often thyink I screwed up but in the end I'm doing just fine. I hope it'll be the case for you too. Thank you for your review and good luck for your story. (I saw your author note)
Cyan Comet (2) : Well, you have eight pages but you're not forced to find them all. One hour for the last clue ? Did you get the seven other pages? Some of them contain clues which can help you. Sorry I didn't update soon, but this is almost the end of this episode! Soon, we'll find out about the Mole. ^^
Kokiss : Merci d'avoir laissé un commentaire et répondu à ma requête, mais tu sais déjà tout cela étant donné que nous en avions discuté sur le forum. Content que le choix des personnages t'intéresse et merci pour ce commentaire en général. On atteint bientôt la barre des cent ! Hakima croit en nous. XD
Previously, on the Mole, the players were all tempted by Kylie Koopa. The very first Mole had the Mole's dossier in her hands, and she asked each player how much they would pay to obtain this valuable item. Bootler won it thanks to the extra coin he had bidden, but he refused to look at the dossier, keeping the twenty five thousand and one coins into the team pot. With that out of the way, Monty Mole told the players that they had won fifteen thousand coins during the last challenge, bringing the amount of money in the pot to two hundred eight thousand coins. The next afternoon, Monty Mole gave the players an envelope and disappeared immediately, their final mission was to reach him with six items in their hands. The players first decided to buy a map, once they had found their way inside the car. Afterward, they discovered that star-shaped objects hidden within the car would lead them to a series of locations where stars were awaiting them. The first location they inspected was the Duel Tower of Mario Party Advance. There, each player fought against an opponent and eventually triumphed, winning the first star.
First name : Bootler
Surname : Majordome
Birthday : September 6
Job : Butler
First name : Noki
Surname : Delphis
Birthday : August 7
Job : Air Hostess
First name : Toad
Surname : Phalloïde
Birthday : June 1
Job : Gardener
32 : Hot and Cold
Remaining Time : One hour and twenty minutes
A blue car shoot out from a green Warp Pipe onto the sandy island. The blue Noki behind the steering wheel stopped the car to look at her surroundings. The sand of the island was pure and white, the vegetation luxuriant, the water crystal clear. The players could see many young Yoshi playing in the water, splashing their friends, eating fruits and relaxing. There were also a few Birdo tanning on the sand, looking out for the smaller creatures. The scene was so mesmerizing that Bootler had to waved in front of Noki's face so that she would get out of her trance.
Noki : Yoshi's Tropical Island was sooo pretty... I wish we could have stayed longer... The place is so much more natural than Isle Delfino. I definitely want to come back here once this game is over.
"Noki, do you hear me?" Bootler called out loudly, trying to get her attention.
Noki suddenly snapped out of her confused state and smiled to Bootler. "Oh, sorry... It's just... This is so beautiful... And it reminds me of Isle Delfino," she justified, giving yet another smile. "So, what did you want to tell me about?"
"We need to take a right to get to the other part of this island," Bootler explained, giving her precise instructions. "Our next star should be there."
Noki nodded, starting the car once again in response. "You're right, we have no time to waste. Let's go!"
"Hey! I found another star!" Toad grinned happily, reaching for the item.
"Where was it?" Bootler questioned.
"It was glued in the cigar lighter space," Toad told him, leaning forward to catch the star. "I got it, only one more to go!"
"We're doing great!" Noki could not help but exclaim.
"Yeah," Toad agreed. " Though I think it would have been better if we had been this good during the other challenges. We screwed up a lot," the mushroom added, emphasizing the last word.
"It could not be helped," Bootler remarked. "We had a Mole in our group. Oh, and we have arrived, you can stop, Noki."
Bootler, Noki and Toad escaped from their vehicle rapidly and looked around. A gigantic melon was situated on their right. Toad looked at a spot he used to occupy, smiling to himself. "Ah, Melon Island. Sweet memories... And sour ones. I still don't get why I had to be spat on the other island by Bubba each time the players walked on a happening space," Toad rambled.
Bootler put his hand to his mouth. "What is it that you mean, Toad? We are on Watermelon Island, aren't we?"
"Mmh... Actually, the big green fruit that you see is a melon, not a watermelon," Noki pointed out. "Why does it matter to you?" Bootler flipped through the maps of his booklet until he saw Yoshi's Tropical Island.
"I am very sorry, it seems that I made a mistake. We were supposed to stop near a huge watermelon, and I suppose I mistook the two fruits together." Noki and Toad looked at each other, eyebrows raised.
Noki : How is it possible to mix up a melon and a watermelon? Okay, they're green and round, but that's their only similarity! I can't believe Bootler made such a blatant mistake, if that's not a sabotage.
Toad : Yeah, that was kind of weird since Bootler often pays attention to details... But who am I to blame him? I bet I made more mistakes during this journey.
"Well, let's hurry back to the other side of the island. Thankfully, it's not that big so we should be able to make for lost time," Toad demanded, hopping back inside the car.
Noki nodded and quickly started up the engine, determined to make it on time. The players fastened their seat-belt and the car drove off toward the other island. Careful not to scare the children, Noki maneuvered calmly and reached the other side in five minutes. The contestants were a little worried, they hoped that their mistake did not cost them the win. Emerging from the car, they immediately saw a banner with the logo of The Mole and a blue Birdo wearing a pretty white hat with a light blue ribbon on it.
"Good afternoon, the name is Francesca," she greeted warmly. "May I ask you to follow me to your challenge?"
"Sure!" Noki smiled. Toad glanced at the Birdo as if he had seen her before. He finally settled for a nod of the head.
"It would be our pleasure," Bootler answered politely. The final three contestants and Francesca boarded a small boat. Two muscular and red Yoshi were paddling to bring them to their next task. Francesca took this opportunity to explain to the players the rules of the mini-game.
"You will be playing Mushroom Mix-Up. One of these two will play against you while the other will be the flag holder. Your goal will be to stay on the mushroom platform of the color of the flag that the red Yoshi will be holding. You will have a few seconds to make it to the right platform, for the others are going to sink after a while. The last one standing wins the game. Winning this mini-game will grant you a star as well as an addition of twenty minutes to your timer."
In the distance, the players could see seven mushrooms protruding from the sea, as well as a white one situated above. "I hope we'll win!" Noki worried.
"Oh, and after a while, the mushrooms sink faster. You should be aware of that."
"Oh, brother!" Bootler lamented.
"This should be fun!"
The boat finally made it to the white mushroom. One of the red Yoshi tied the boat to the white mushroom thanks to a rope and climbed a ladder to reach the top of the mushroom platform. He jumped on the other platforms and waited on the black mushroom. "Follow him, I'll be the one holding the flags," the other Yoshi said.
"I have a bad feeling about this..."
"Come on, Bootler, stop being such a worrywart!" Toad chided. "It's a fun game."
"I still think I will not be able to win it," Bootler countered. "However, I shall give it a try."
"That's the spirit," Noki encouraged him lightly. Soon, they were all pulled up to the central platform and waited anxiously for the beginning of the game. A disembodied voice shouted the word 'Start' from above, word they took as a cue to begin the game.
The red Yoshi started with a green flag. The players and the Yoshi all managed to make it to the green platform in time, before the other mushrooms sank. "Well, that was not too bad," Bootler noted, pleased with the game.
"True," Noki answered.
"Oh well, you can't expect us to go all out at the very beginning," the red Yoshi taunted slightly. The platforms emerged from the water and the red Yoshi ran toward the red platform while the players stayed where they were.
"What is he doing?" Noki wondered as the flag-wielder held up a cyan flag. The red Yoshi walked toward the platform of the same color easily, but the players had to hurry to reach it. Toad and Noki decided to go to the left part of the cyan mushroom while Bootler went to its right. Bootler easily made it, but that was not the case of Noki and Toad.
"Ah!" Noki shouted as she hit the water. "You pushed me, Toad!" she yelled angrily as she swam toward Francesca's boat.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to!" Toad apologized, holding his hands up in the air. "It's just that... I was trained that way, this is how we usually play the game! Sorry!"
Toad : I really didn't mean to, I swear! At the time I didn't even realize that I was pushing her off the platform. But seriously, that's how the game is played.
Noki : Toad is so going to get it.
This time, when the mushrooms all emerged from the water, Bootler and Toad followed the red Yoshi's lead and walked to the black mushroom. Suddenly, the flag-wielder showed a navy blue color, prompting the other red Yoshi to jump on Toad so that he would reach the right mushroom sooner than his opponents. In his precipitation, Toad pushed Bootler aside and tripped over his own feet, making the both of them stumble into the water.
"Err... Absolutely sorry about that," Toad muttered, ashamed of himself. Bootler merely arched an eyebrow before swimming toward the boat, Toad right on his tail. Noki smirked a little on the boat as she crossed her arms.
"Serves you right!"
Bootler : I must admit that it was quite strange. I can understand that he panicked, but he pushed both Noki and myself into the water... We are now all drenched to the skin and soaking wet, which is not a nice feeling. In addition to that, we lost the opportunity to add a twenty minutes to our timer, so we had to hurry up.
Once the two males had reached the boat, they were hoisted aboard by the two strong Yoshi who were laughing at their misfortune. Francesca let out a small giggle as well and gave them the second star. "Here you go. Unfortunately, you did not win the challenge, so I cannot reward you with twenty additional minutes."
"This sucks."
"Indeed."
"Totally."
The rest of the voyage was made in silence, as the three players were bummed and were thinking about what their next destination would be. Once they finally docked, they hopped off the boat onto the sandy beach and rushed toward their vehicle. This time, it was decided that only one person would look for the last star-shaped item, while the other two would decipher the clues and determine their next destination. Toad opted for the search while his friends decided to prepare their route.
"Let's take a look at the next clue," Noki suggested as Bootler showed her the little stars he had stored in the compartment situated in front of the passenger's seat. He nodded and read what was written on one of them.
"It says '5 - BN – Left Spike'... Mmmh... The first number indicates that we will find our destination behind door number five..."
"What's behind door number five?" Noki asked, tilting her head at the same time. Bootler turned the pages of his booklet and let out a small yelp of terror.
"Well... Bowser's Nightmare seems to be our next destination," he answered in a hushed tone, seemingly uncomfortable. "Dream of unbearable heat and boiling lava."
"Oh boy," Noki could not help but utter, astonishment written on her face. "Is it even safe?"
Bootler shrugged. "I would assume so. We might be provided with heat-resistant gear."
Suddenly, Toad shouted loudly. "Guys, I found the last one!" He ran toward them to show them the last star. "I think we have the complete set!"
"Six stars, six destinations... I guess you're right," Noki thought aloud. "Why don't you look for the other destination while I drive to Bowser's Nightmare?"
Bootler raised an eyebrow. "But I have not even told you about our precise destination. You will have a hard time finding our next stop if you do not even know where we are going," Bootler pointed out, a suspicious look on his face.
Bootler : I believe that she might have tried to diverse our attention so that she would be free to lead us astray from our true path. If I had not been focused, I would have probably said that it was a good idea and we would have been on our way. A sly tactic for a sly person.
"So, let's not waste any more time," Toad told them. "Where are we headed to?"
Bootler furrowed his brow as he stared at his map. Finally, he smiled to himself, a content look on his face. "Well, I believe we need to find the left tower. See, it seems to have a spiky top, which is why I think it what the clue is referring to. To make it there, you simply have to take a left at the first junction."
"Okay, will do!" Noki cheered, starting the car and driving off to Bower's Nightmare.
…
Remaining Time : Fifty two minutes
Noki was driving as fast as she could without breaking the law toward the left tower of Bowser's Nightmare. The players had only been in this Party Land for a few minutes, and yet, the heat was already too much for them. Toad was the one who took it the best, but he was used to this kind of extreme party boards.
"Wow! Careful Noki!" Bootler ordered suddenly, as he looked through his window on the right of the car.
"I think we bumped into something," Toad declared, hanging on his seat for dear life because of Noki's driving.
"Well excuse me but I'm doing my best," Noki retorted, rolling her eyes. "Stop acting like wimps, I'm sure you've had wilder rides in the past."
Bootler glanced at the side of the road, then at Noki, who was on his left. "You might want to be more careful though, for I think there are spikes protruding from the security rails. I would definitely not want our car to be damaged because of those," the ghost worried.
"Yes, but I have to drive on the right side of the road. If another car comes toward us fast while I'm driving in the middle of the road... I don't want to imagine what would happen, then," Noki explained carefully.
Toad laughed. "Well, I'm pretty sure it would truly be our Final Destination!" Bootler and Noki stared at him thanks to the rear-view mirrors in an annoyed way. Toad suddenly felt like shutting his mouth. "I was joking!"
"That wasn't funny."
"I hope you did not jinx us."
Toad : Sheesh, can't they take a joke?
"I think we're nearing the tower," Noki announced. In the distance, they could see a gigantic board with the logo of the game, confirming that they were on the right track. "I hope we aren't too late," Noki prayed as she stopped the car.
Bootler stroked his mustache, not alarmed in the slightest. "I did not keep track of the time, however I think Monty Mole would have already told us if our mission had been a failure. Like he did in Mario's Rainbow Castle."
The players all got out of the car and walked at a fast pace toward the tower where they were greeted by a Dry Bones wearing a black bow-tie. "Hello, I presume you are from The Mole?"
"Yes we are!" Toad replied cheerfully.
The Dry Bones grinned. "Okay then, follow me to your next mini-game!" He led them into one of the darkest room of the tower, where an arena shaped like a circle was all that there was. The Dry Bones opened the door of this arena and let the players walk in, as well as a yellow Hammer Sis. He then locked the door and began the preparations of the mini-game.
"So, hmm, what are we supposed to do?" Noki wondered aloud, as nobody had told them the rules of this task.
"You'll be playing the mini-game All Fired Up, and you basically have to avoid getting burnt by the Podoboo," explained the Hammer Sis. They were surprised to hear her voice since they had not noticed her at all. "Your goal is to beat me or to survive until the end of the game. If you manage to beat me before time's up, then thirty minutes are added to your timer. If at least one of you survives 'till the end, then twenty minutes are added to your timer. Got it?"
"Are we really going to do this?" Bootler stammered, very anxious about this challenge.
"Don't worry Bootler, it will only sting a little," Toad waved him off. "I'm familiar with the feeling, if you must know, because there are other mini-games where I got hit a Podoboo and as you can see I'm not dead yet."
Noki : I must admit that I was nervous at first, but Toad made it sound like it was nothing, so that was reassuring. I really hope Mario will stay true to his words and invite us to the next Mario Party like he had suggested when he was still in the game.
"So, what's the strategy?" Toad questioned. "Are we going for twenty or thirty minutes?"
"To be perfectly honest, I have no idea," Bootler stated, still surprised by the requirements of the challenge.
Noki took a few steps toward them and beamed. "I say we go for thirty. I don't know how hard this game is but it shouldn't be that hard to push the girl into a Podoboo, while trying to survive could be tiresome and difficult."
"How do you suggest we push her into the fire? I trust you have a plan?" Bootler inquired, arms crossed. "I doubt this fine Koopa will let us push her around without retaliating. Besides, she is not here for nothing. I would bet that she is very experienced."
"The game will begin shortly," came the voice of the Hammer Sis from behind. The players decided that it was better for them to get started for the challenge. They mimicked the Hammer Sis and stood near the barrier of the arena, when suddenly a familiar voice shouted 'Start' and the game began.
A rain of Podoboo flooded the center of the arena, the players all decided to go along the security rail in order to not get touched by the fiery flames whereas the Hammer Sis stood in place watching intently their formation. The Podoboo then returned to the center of the arena and left the players dubious. "What the heck is happening? The game's over already?" Toad interrogated the other players who were as confused as he was.
"I doubt i-Oh my god!" Bootler yelled in a rare moment of surprise. The Podoboo had formed a circle which was expanding rapidly toward them. The Hammer Sis stood in place whereas Toad charged forward and jumped over the obstacle. Noki and Bootler followed, eventually joined by the Hammer Sis.
"Hey! That's a perfect occasion! Let's push her!" Noki suggested in a small yell. Toad smacked his forehead when he saw that the Hammer Sis had taken several steps away from the group. "Whoops."
Bootler : We had the perfect opportunity, but Noki ruined it. It is hard not to call that a sabotage.
"Well, now she knows what our true intentions are, so... We'll have to improvise," Toad sighed. "And we-Oh, look out, they're coming back!" Toad and Noki successfully jumped over the circle of fire, but Bootler mistimed his jump and ended up hopping on the Podoboo. A second after that, he let out a scream and was ejected from the arena.
"Oh, that must have hurt," Noki commented, wincing, as she saw Bootler's flight. "But we still need to end this game as fast as possible," she whispered as she approached Toad.
"Yeah, I know that!" he responded while jumping over a dangerous Podoboo.
"How about we try to pressure her? If we circle her, she'll have nowhere to go, right?"
"Well, this is a very good idea, except that we're two and we can't surround her."
They stopped talking as they saw the Podoboo going toward the center of the arena. They formed a cross of fire which was very hard to avoid. Toad and Noki did not have much space to maneuver since they were together in less than a fourth of the arena. A quick change of rotation from the cross almost got them, but thankfully they jumped back in the nick of time.
"Well that was a close call if I ever saw one," Noki grinned slightly, as the Podoboo finally returned to the center for a third time. "I think we can't do anything with this formation."
"Yeah, too risky," Toad approved. "Let's move while we can!"
The Noki and the Toad ran in opposite directions when suddenly, the Podoboo created yet another formation : a rope of fire. Unfortunately for the three remaining players, the rope was right behind them. Noki was on one half of the arena while Toad and the Hammer Sis were on the other half. Then, everything happened quickly.
Toad took this opportunity to jump on the Hammer Sis, but since the both of them were trying to push each other in the Podoboo, they never really realized that it was very close and they got burnt by the flames. However, almost simultaneously, a Podoboo touched Noki's rear and she flew along with Toad and the Hammer Sis, outside of the arena.
…
"Who won?" an anxious Noki asked, knowing full well that the success of their challenge depended on the addition of the thirty minutes to their timer. Bootler and Toad were as hopeful as she was.
"Well... We don't know actually," answered the Dry Bones, pacing back and forth. "We think your mini-game ended up in a draw, so there's no true winner. However, Monty Mole decided that you would be awarded with the full thirty minutes to your timer, so you can thank him for that."
Remaining Time : One hour and sixteen minutes.
The players were ecstatic and celebrated their win until they were reminded that they had a challenge to complete. Toad grabbed the star and absorbed it as the final three went back to their car, looking for their next destination. Noki sat at the steering wheel, Bootler to her right and Toad behind her on the backseat, as per usual.
Bootler took a star in his hand and inspected it. It read '6 – SL – CL'. Nodding to himself, he opened the map booklet. "This time, it seems like we need to go to Snowflake Lake located behind Gate Six. However, I do not know what 'CL' could mean," he explained, his mustache twitching.
"Show me the map," Toad demanded, taking it from Bootler's hand. "Okay, so what here could be abbreviated 'CL'?" he asked mostly to himself. "Definitely not the snowmen, not the Chomp, not the ice rink..." He furrowed his brow, only to smile a few seconds afterward. "Could it be the Chair Lift? I'm guessing it is," he told the others, handing Noki the booklet.
The inhabitant of Isle Delfino looked at it thoroughly. "I don't see anything else that could have 'CL' as its initials, so we might as well go check it out," she declared, starting the car. Bootler took the map and started to give her directions.
Toad : In spite of my minor screw up during Mushroom Mix-Up, we managed not to waste that much time. It was all thanks to Bootler and his ingenious plan to get a map before even starting the challenge, but at the same time, I noticed that he wasn't helping much. I mean, he was pretty much sitting on his seat the entire time. Well, Noki didn't help much either, we almost lost last challenge because of her yelling our plan.
…
Remaining Time : One hour and one minute.
Noki was driving the car with some difficulties. Somehow, the car was always going to her left and she constantly tried to keep control of it, but it was starting to confuse the three of them. They were nearing their destination when a Mr. Blizzard wearing a police uniform halted their car and asked them to get out. The players were not reassured one bit and already, a thousand questions were popping in their mind.
Noki : We were on our way to the chair lift when this Mr. Blizzard arrested us. I really thought we were going to jail or something. I mean, just the uniform is already intimidating, so when a policeman arrests you, the fear increases tenfold.
"What did we do?" Bootler wondered aloud.
"Did we drive over the speed limit?" Toad inquired.
"Or did we drive over someone?" Noki added quickly. The policeman could not help but chuckle.
"Not at all, but I can't let you drive in these conditions. You have a flat tire." The Mr. Blizzard beckoned to them and showed them the deflated tire. It was the rear one located on the left of the vehicle.
"That's why the car was a little hard to handle," Noki realized instantly.
"I would assume so," Toad replied, uneasy. "But what are we supposed to do now? We're in a game and we have to get going otherwise we'll lose our final mission. Can't we just say that you've seen nothing and be on our way?"
The Mr. Blizzard noticed the cameraman following our three finalists and smirked a little. "No, that won't do. One, I'm doing my job. Two, I don't want to be fired. Three, and it's the most important point, it isn't safe for you to continue driving in these conditions. You have to fix it."
"I also believe it would be the best course of action," Bootler nodded, pleased with the policeman's attitude. "Why would we not go to the chair lift by foot? We are almost there. Meanwhile, one of us could stay here to fix the car. What do you say?"
"Is it allowed? So far, the three of us had to play in a mini-game to win time and stars," Noki remarked, looking at Bootler suspiciously. The old Boo shook his head, shrugging at the same time.
"We will not know until we try."
"It's okay Noki, you can go with Bootler, I'll stay here to change the tire. Have fun!" Toad smiled before addressing a final nod to the policeman who decided to leave them afterward. The mushroom opened the trunk and took the spare tire.
"I guess we're leaving, then," Noki tried hesitantly, before following Bootler who was already on his way. "Oh god, we're freezing!"
"Let us make haste!"
…
Remaining Time : Forty-Eight Minutes
The Boo and the Noki rode the chair lift and easily stepped down when they reached the ski resort. Analyzing the field of snow before them, they did not know where to go until Noki spotted a green flag in the distance.
"Bootler, I see it! On the left of that chalet!" she yelled as she ran toward her destination, Bootler hot on her tail. The two players reached the flag and looked around, but there was no sign of any producer.
"Did we misinterpret something?" Bootler wondered, sitting on a wooden plank.
"There's a green flag here, though," Noki pointed out. The two of them glanced at the flag a few seconds doing nothing, when Bootler spoke up.
"However, there is nothing written on it, unlike the previous flags and boards," he noticed. "Is it really the place we are looking for?"
Bootler : I was very skeptical. Something being green does not always mean that it is related to the Mole. Furthermore, it was definitely not in Noki's habits to jump to conclusions like that. I thought there was more to it.
"I see someone waving to us in the distance," Noki commented as she stared at the person who was motioning for them to come, shielding her eyes from the sun. "Might as well see what they want, don't you think?"
Bootler nodded and stood up. The two of them walked at a fast pace toward the waving person who was actually an Eerie who was wearing an icy blue bonnet. "Hey, you're from the Mole?"
"Yes, indeed," came Bootler's reply.
"Then follow me, your mini-game awaits you! I thought you'd be three, but oh well, we can still play it. You'll just have less chances to win it," the Eerie told them as then went down a narrow path, careful not to slip. The Eerie smiled as he faced them. Bootler and Noki glanced at each other worriedly.
"This mini-game is called 'Avalanche!'. All you have to do is ski down the slope and reach the final jump first to win the game and add twenty minutes to your timer. Since there are only two of you, one additional player will compete against you, did you get it?"
"I'm kind of wondering why this game is called 'Avalanche'..."
"Oh well, because your goal is to escape an avalanche, my dear!"
"Are you serious about that?" a flabbergasted Bootler asked. "I do not think that it is safe."
"Nonsense! It's a popular attraction around here! So sure, it can hurt a little, but you'll never die. The avalanche isn't too big, so you can breath even if it touches you, and as soon as you're touched, you'll basically roll down until you land on a cushioned floor. Trust me, I've seen no accident in five years of work." The Eerie took a deep breath and tipped his hat. "Besides, Monty Mole wouldn't allow you to do something risky."
Bootler : We were doing all these crazy things, things that I would not have imagined doing in my life before entering this game. This, is the magic of the Mole. It is too bad that Toad was not with us at the moment because I am quite sure he would have liked to play with us.
Noki : Escaping an avalanche? Are you kidding me? And the man said it so casually... Wow, Mario Parties must be fun...
Bootler put on red skis and took matching red ski poles while Noki equipped blue ones. Once they were settled, they glided toward the beginning of the slope, griping tightly the iron barriers which prevented them from falling before the start of the game.
"I must say that I am somewhat nervous," Bootler dared. "I have never skied in my life."
Noki's eyes grew wide. "Really? I'm not much of a skier either. Let's just hope that we'll win this challenge otherwise..." she trailed off, unsure.
"Yes, I understand what you mean," Bootler agreed. "We will do our best."
The Eerie from before came back and told them that the race would begin shortly, however, Noki and Bootler did not hear him. They barely heard the familiar voice saying 'Start' and gave their opponents – a red Cheep Cheep wearing a cowboy hat and a Monty Mole with a big brown mustache – a head start.
"Holy mackerel!" Bootler mumbled to himself as he realized that the others had started before him. Tempting a look behind him, he realized that the snow was approaching him dangerously. He started using his ski poles frenetically, however he was not used to them and, in an off-guard moment, he did not catch sight of a snowman and went straight for it. Bootler was so dazed that he did not have the time to pull himself together and was swallowed up by the avalanche.
Bootler : That hurt slightly. I really was not proud of my performance, I thought I could have done a better job if I had paid attention in this challenge.
Meanwhile, Noki was faring way better than Bootler. She was in the lead as the Monty Mole hit a rock and started rolling down the slope, and she knew that the Cheep Cheep was way behind her. She swerved to her right, carefully avoiding another rock, and then glided on her left, her shoulder brushing against a snowman. "I'm having so much fun!" she shouted, grinning from ear to ear.
Noki used her ski poles in order to gain momentum, however, she did not realize that her speed would hinder her path changes and what had to happen happened : as she noticed a ski jump, she tried to correct her direction so that she would jump in a straight line, but since she was picking up so much speed she could not turn as easily as she wanted and the ski jump propelled her into a snowman, which definitely halted her progress.
Noki : Oh my, it was so exhilarating! Definitely a unique experience, and I'll gladly do it again in the future. Knowing that you are safe from any harm also helps enjoying this game.
Thus, with no one else around, the Cheep Cheep won the mini-game.
…
Bootler and Noki landed with a big thud, and it was a little shaken that they met up with the Eerie, now at the bottom of the slope. "I'm sorry, but you didn't win, unfortunately," he announced gravely. "However, you still get this star for trying! I hope you're not too groggy!"
Remaining Time : Thirty Eight minutes.
Bootler gladly accepted the star and shook hands with the Eerie. "This was a wonderful experience. Unfortunately, we must get going. Farewell!" Noki nodded politely and followed the old Boo. Together, they went back to their car, only to meet Toad halfway through.
"Hey guys!" he greeted them animatedly. "What did you do?" he questioned, stopping the car and letting Noki take her seat back.
"It was great! We had to tear down a mountain with an avalanche right behind us!" Noki responded excitedly.
"Awesome! Did you receive a star?" Bootler nodded and handed him the object.
"I do not know how you absorb it," the ghost justified himself quickly. Toad took it in his hands and it disappeared from their view.
"How did it go?" asked Toad.
"Well, about that... We lost the mini-game," Bootler confessed.
"It was really hard since we're not used to skiing," Noki added afterward.
"Oh..." Toad muttered, seeming disappointed. "Well, I guess it's time to give it our all!"
Toad : I was a little bummed because I wasn't sure we'd have enough time to make it to the finish line. Especially since we still had two other mini-games to partake in. We could kiss our fifty thousand coins goodbye if we lost one of them.
"Toad, do you still have the little stars we found in the car?" Bootler questioned, opening his booklet where figured the different maps of the Party Lands.
Toad gave him the remaining two stars. "Here you go."
"Let us start with this one," he stated, choosing the one in his left hand. "It reads '4 – GGG – PA', so obviously we need to go to Gate Four... Then, I assume the triple 'G' stands for 'Goomba's Greedy Gala' and 'PA' for Pink or Purple Area.," he explained calmly. "The casino being split into four parts, I suppose this is our next stop."
"Okay, I'm fine with that," Toad smiled. Noki nodded and began driving back to Pipetown.
"If we hurry up, we still have a chance!"
This is the fifth chapter of the last episode, and it's very likely that the next chapter will be the final quiz. I was thinking of adding a part to the challenge, but then thought against it. I would only make the story longer and isn't very relevant.
I've also been quite lucky, because, counting the worth of the different challenges, I realized that the players could have won a total of five hundred thousand coins in all (that is, excluding the bribe Flurrie took, but that doesn't really count as money the team could make).
I also wanted to thank you for voting on my polls and reviewing, it really pleases me so much when I see people interested in this kind of story. Not to say that it doesn't please me when it's about parodies, but a mystery will only be good if it's a mystery and when different people have a different point of view on the matter. ^^
I've also made a cover for this story (located on my profile, just after the summary for the story), however there is no clue on it. I know that I screwed up some characters (Birdo's ring is on the wrong finger (you can't see it but...) and Kooper's bandage isn't visible ).
And that's about it! I'll probably leave the poll until the revealing, so you can still vote if you didn't. And root for your favorite character. ^^
Until next time!