Merry Christmas? Happy New Year?
Siph: Making a lot of assumptions here. What makes you think you'll write anything and post the chapter by then?
Wishful thinking.
Disclaimer: This author's note will remain the same even if I don't post it in time.
Chapter 53: Midair Rendezvous
Ludwig immediately activated his wand. "Kamek, is that really you?" he asked as the blue gem glowed.
Some commotion was heard from the other end.
"Prince Ludwig?" Kamek answered.
Ludwig and Wendy sighed as Wendy gripped her brother's shoulder.
"Dispense with the formalities, Kamek. I'm too relieved to hear your voice again to care," Ludwig said.
"Right now, you're family who we're so so happy is alive!" Wendy added. "Who else is with you?"
More commotion was heard in the background when Wendy spoke.
"Princess—!" Kamek began. "I mean… oh Wendy, it is so good to hear from you, too! Hold one moment, let me connect Kammy. She's on one of the other ships."
Wendy looked at Ludwig. "Is he… crying?"
Ludwig looked at her, his own eyes feeling moist. "I cannot blame him if he is."
"Is that Ludwig and Wendy I hear?" the witch's voice came in clear as day.
"Yes, Auntie Kammy, it's us!" Wendy answered.
"Oh thank the Stars!" Kammy celebrated.
Another voice joined her. "Your bestie's here too, Wendy! Where have you been?!"
Wendy jumped up and down in place. "Pom Pom!"
Ludwig cleared his throat to interrupt any further conversation. "I took Wendy to the catacombs to hide," he started to recap, "but we were followed. A pipe appeared therein that we escaped through. It ended up taking us to storm drain in Big Ape City, where we were heavily injured after the tunnel collapsed and fire shot out of the pipe into me. Lady Pauline of the Mario Toy Company found us and saw us to the city's hospital. Their treatment saved our lives, regardless of how outdated they are with no magic or healing items."
"Not this again!" Kraig complained, crossing his arms.
Ludwig smirked. "After which we returned to the tunnel, found my wand, healed the rest of the way, and returned to the eerily empty castle," he ended his summation.
Silence hung on the other end.
"Kamek, Kammy, are you there?" Ludwig asked.
"Are they with you?" Kamek asked. "Lady Pauline and Kraig?"
Blue's jaw dropped. "Did he just recognize Kraig by his voice?"
"Blue Koopa, too, it seems," Kammy Koopa observed.
"THAT'S SO CREEPY!" the Ninjakoopa shouted.
Pauline took a shaky breath. "And yes, I'm here, too," she answered Kamek's question. "Pauline, CEO of the Mario Toy Company." At the sound of slight commotion on the other line, she added, "Before anyone asks, no, I don't have any merchandise with me. Ludwig told me there are avid collectors in your ranks."
At least one "aw" was heard. Then a defensive "what?"
Kamek sighed, "You took them back through the catacombs."
Ludwig sighed back, "Yes, I know, I must have broken many a law doing that, but they insisted on coming along, and I actually agree with their wishes."
"They want to see their families," Wendy defended.
"And we want to help you," Pauline added.
In unison, all five members of their party finished with, "It's what Mario would do."
Many outraged interjections came from Kamek's and Kammy Koopa's ships in response to that final sentence.
"I care not for your opinions on the matter," Ludwig growled, making all the protests go silent at once. "The fact of the matter is, we are in a crisis, we need all the help we can get, and…" he looked at Pauline. "working with Mario and his allies is nothing new for the Koopa Clan or the Troop. As a matter of fact, Roy, Larry, and Bowser are in Toad Town with the plumbers and Toadstool, and Lemmy, Iggy, and Morton are in Petal Meadows with Mario's ragtag Rogueport team."
Murmurs were heard as Ludwig mentioned each name and location, with a few celebrations as well.
"And how came you by this information, dear pupil?" Kamek inquired.
"Directly from Peach herself," Pauline answered for him, "on my cell phone."
"And we're going to meet everyone at Morton and Mom's special meeting place in Peak Land," Wendy told them. "You can come along, or you can sit around complaining that we're associating with Mario's ex."
Another commotion.
"That's Pauline, by the way," she explained. "They're still good friends, though, by the looks of things."
"That's not the issue, Your Gracefulness," Kammy sighed with a slight catch in her voice.
"What's wrong, Aunt Kammy?" Ludwig asked.
"The reason we fixed our cannons on you is because another small airship just passed through our armada a short while ago," she answered. "It fired at us to force us out of the way."
Ludwig and Wendy looked at each other, and Kraig and Blue did likewise.
Pauline clasped her hands in front of her chest. "Please don't say…"
But Kammy did. "It was flying towards Peak Land."
This chapter is a lot shorter than I'd like it to be, and there's a lot of conversation I still wanted to happen such as informing Kamek and Kammy about the nature of their foe, but ooooh that's SUCH a good spot for a juicy cliffhanger! I just had to!
Siph: And you know that J's not sorry, Fa la la la laa, la laa laa la! 'Tis the season to be troll-y, Fa la la la laa, la laa laa la! What ever are our heroes to do? Fa la laa, la la laa, laa laa la! But for now, please read and review, Fa la la la laa, la laa laa la!
Merry Christmas, everyone!