A/N: This story is also published on A03. There I have added notes to accompany some of the chapters.
War Games
Ludwig has his airship circle the boundaries of Bowser's new island, to give Peach a good look at the terraformed land. The island divides into multiple sections, each with a different environment. And at one end is a replica of King Penguin's Castle and at the far end Bowser's Castle. Obviously, the king spared no expense with this project.
Roy spreads his hands out dramatically for Peach. "Welcome to Bash Skulls Island!" he declares.
Peach cringes. She is certain Roy and Bowser worked together on that name. "Oh dear…. Well, I will say Bowser went all out with this…"
Ludwig nods and leans his back against the ship's railing. "Indeed. King Dad wanted an authentic experience. And he'll switch out the Koopa Troops each game. So, the Merry Men are not facing the full Koopa Army at one time."
"That's good to know." Peach admits.
"Wish we can participate." Lemmy bemoans.
"We have to get back to fortifying our towers." Iggy reminds him.
Wendy eyes Junior with a malicious grin. "And Junior has exams to take."
The boy hides behind Peach and sticks his tongue out at his cousin. "I want to stay with Mama!" He insists.
In response, Peach rubs his head to comfort him. "Junior, remember when your dad measured your height? You grew a whole inch taller, you're a big boy now. And big boys take their education seriously."
Bowser Jr.'s eyes sparkle. "Would that make me a hero?"
"Yes."
"Okay! Then I'll crush that stupid test!"
When the ship lands, Peach departs with a small, covered wagon. She spins on her heels to blow a kiss at the koopalings and Junior.
"See you later Peach." Larry calls out.
Junior adds in. "Bye, Mama!"
Peach notices Larry looking down. "Something wrong?"
Roy scolds Larry. "Larry!"
Peach looks at them in confusion. Larry looks back up and rubs his neck.
"Sorry! Junior calls you Mama but we keep calling you Peach. I've been feeling bad about it. Well, we've been feeling bad about it." The other koopalings look guilty. "It's not that we don't see you as family…"
Ludwig jumps in. "Do you mind us calling you Peach?"
Peach opens her parasol and smiles gently. By the time she met them, the koopalings knew how to take care of themselves. Suddenly having a female figure in their life is still new for them. "I don't mind at all."
"B-but you're still a great person, okay?" Wendy fumbles out. "We…like cooking with you…and stuff…."
The human blushes. "T-thank you."
Relived, the koopalings smile and wave goodbye. As their ship ascends, Morton runs above deck, demanding to know who ate all the food in the kitchen. He automatically accuses Iggy of the theft.
"I know it was you Iggy! You ate my cheesecake again!"
Iggy fires back and readies his fists. "I didn't do it!"
Annoyed, Ludwig bashes their heads together to get them to stop. "Enough! Show me the scene of the crime."
Morton takes them below and Ludwig sniffs around the kitchen. "Morton, use your nose next time! None of us were in here recently. The fiend must have been hiding in the storage area before sneaking into the kitchen."
"Is it dangerous?"
"No. I'm familiar with the scent. Nothing to worry about."
After watching the airship leave, Peach begins to feel lonely without their presence. Everyone has been busy. Vert is hard at work back home; she only saw him during council meetings. On the other hand, Bowser has been finalizing the war games. He still tries to make time for her with phone calls and visits. Eager to see her husband, Peach reminds herself to trust what he is doing and not make a fuss. With that in mind, she strides toward King Penguin's castle. Oddly, she begins to feel tired and a little nauseous.
"What's going on?"
Panic runs through her body and Peach shivers. A memory of Antasma reaching for her begin to plague her mind. On reflex she covers her neck with her hand. Peach works to dispel the thought. "No, Dreambert removed the tracker. I'm fine. Everything is fine."
The queen decides to take a seat on a fallen log. "A little rest won't hurt."
Peach looks down at her wagon. She pulls the blanket up and her nose meets with a sweet aroma. It's two cakes she baked for Hooded Robin's Merry Men. Peach feels tempted to eat a slice. As she admires her work, someone approaches.
"Yoshi?"
Peach glances up. Before her is a dirty looking green Yoshi. He is larger than the ones found in Sweet Sweet Kingdom. Likely, he is a native of the mysterious Yoshi Island.
She tilts her head. "What brings you all the way out here?"
Yoshi moves his arms around rapidly, recounting his ordeal of being marooned and stowing aboard an airship. "Yoshi. Yoshi. Yoshi!"
When he finishes the queen sighs, wishing she understood his language. Yoshi then cautiously approaches her cakes. His eyes gleam with hunger.
"I'm sorry darling! This…" Peach pauses.
She picks up one cake and presents it to the dinosaur. He happily wraps his long tongue around it and swallows it.
"Poor thing."
Peach expects him to go on his way after eating. But Yoshi comes in close and sniffs her. He smiles, resting his head on her lap. Amused, Peach gently pets him. "You are so sweet! I'm taking you home with me!"
"Yoshi!"
The dinosaur stands up and points at his back. Understanding, Peach hops on and grabs her wagon's handle. She points in the direction of the king's castle. With a jump and kick of his legs, Yoshi takes off. Even with short legs, he is a fast runner and Peach must hold onto him to not fall off. Noticing, Yoshi slows down his pace.
"Your Gentleness!"
Peach looks up and sees the general swooping down. He hovers beside them. "I didn't know you were being dropped off at this hour!"
"It's all right. I asked the koopalings to not tell you."
The general looks bewildered. "Why!? I'm supposed to protect you!"
"I wanted you to spend time with Toadette."
Koopa General turns red in the face. "I... I only saw her at a distance."
"Have you tried being nice to her?"
The general's face contorts with disgust. Peach rolls her eyes. "Some of you koopas just love being mean…"
"It is our way! By the way…. where did you get this Yoshi?"
Peach giggles. "He just approached me."
The trio continue and make it to the Ice Palace. King Penguin runs to welcome them at the gate.
"Vanessa!"
"It's Peach…"
The king stops, shivering at the sight of the general.
"We're all friends here." Peach reassures him.
Leery, the penguin directs them inside. "I'm surprised with what Bowser did. It looks like my old castle but he glam up the insides. Said my old place looked like a shack. This place has everything!"
Penguin King pulls out a golf bag. "Wanna play some mini golf?"
Peach looks around "Well, I need to clean Yoshi up first!"
She hands King Penguin the last cake. "It's for everyone when they come to your castle."
"It smells delicious but…I can't split this with them. There won't be enough."
"Yoshi!"
"What is he saying?" the penguin asks.
Peach clasps her hands together. "I'm sorry. I gave him the second cake."
"That's all right. We'll make do." The penguin walks over to a table and begins to cut thin slices. "Wario better not complain!"
The general rolls his eyes at hearing that name.
Peach bends to look at him from the side. "I'll put in a good word for you with Toadette."
It's brief but Peach spots a hint of sadness in the koopa's eyes. She begins to regret teasing him.
"Your Highness…"
She tries to correct what she said. "There is nothing wrong with falling in love. But only if it is something you want. I won't bring it up…."
"That's not the problem." The general quickly interjects. "My … training never allowed for such thoughts. Blue shells serve the monarchy and die for the monarchy."
"…."
The general glares noticing the Penguin King trying to listen in. After asking for an inflatable pool, Peach lures the general and Yoshi away towards the inner courtyard. Unlike the rest of the castle, it's open aired and warm, allowing for the growth of flowers. Peach smiles noticing a stone plaque; Bowser had dedicated the garden in her name. The general takes a seat on a bench while Peach grabs a water hose to fill up the pool.
"Bowser told me to be careful, but he said not to be afraid. I guess he didn't want me to obsess with worry. To worry so much that I miss out on life. It's understandable you want to protect your king. But I think you can find balance too. One that isn't self-destructive."
"…. I see…"
Yoshi jumps into the pool splashing and rolling. Getting water on her, Peach giggles and uses a brush to scrub the green dinosaur. The general fiddles with his claws meditating on Peach's words.
"Balance, huh?"
Unknown to Peach, a lakitu had been following her with a camera. The video footage is transmitted to Bowser onto a digital pad. He shifts on his new throne surrounded by large weapons. The throne room is situated above lava connected to the entrance by a singular bridge.
"Lord Bowser, the queen made it to Bash Skulls Island!" the lakitu reports.
"I can see that, four eyes."
Bowser grumbles under his breath. The Yoshi race are usually harmless and mind their own business. (He heard rumors not to anger the island type ones though.) But today is all about the koopas seizing victory and Peach is distracted with Yoshi. She won't be watching her husband tear through the competition. He stares at the screen, annoyed and jealous of the little guy. In the past, Bowser was quick to remove the competition. However, he wants a happy marriage. And Peach will fuss if he removes Yoshi for a petty reason. Therefore, he decides to leave him alone.
"Oh well…" Bowser smiles impishly and rubs his hands together. "I guess it is time to begin the war games!"
The Merry Men was residing in a village near Penguin's Castle. Bowser filled the village with farmers, hired to upkeep the place. While waiting the army was practicing strategies for defending the castle. Today, Toad is cleaning the arrows for his comrades. Even though he couldn't be a main combatant, Toad wanted to do his job right. Nearby, Hooded Robin is playing the banjo. The captain looks up from his work at the scarecrow targets.
Just one shot! This will be easy!
Toad cautiously lifts a bow and aims an arrow at a target. He releases the arrow and the shot goes way off. It flies past the target, headed for a walking Waluigi!
"Waluigi, look out!" the captain shouts.
Waluigi immediately pulls his tennis racket out and deflects the arrow. It flies towards Wario and Toadette, the duo is eating lunch in front of a sandwich shop.
Toad chews on his fingers. "Wario and Toadette!"
The pink shroom blocks with a platter. The arrow bounces off the plate, ricochets off a pole, and straight into Hooded Robin's backside.
"AHHHHHH!"
He dances in pain as Toad runs over to him, mortified. "Oh mushrooms! I'm so sorry!"
"Toad what were you thinking!?" Toadette demands as she advances towards them.
"I didn't mean it! I'm a good shot with my laser gun so …"
Wario yanks the arrow out and Robin screams even harder.
"Doctor! We need a doctor!"
The village doctor arrives and commit Hooded Robin to the hospital. He is unfit for battle. Waluigi grabs the sides of his head, looking into the sky. "We hadn't even started the war!"
Toadette looks around. "We need someone new to lead."
Wario stands proud and flexes his arm. "Time for Wario to shine!"
"Actually, I think Washingtoad would be a better fit." Waluigi counters.
His ego deflated, Wario walks away. "You never believe in me, beanpole!"
"Keep crying!"
Toadette is about to tell Waluigi off when she hears a familiar shout. The general flies over and drops a parcel on Wario's head.
"Hey!"
"You jerk!" Toadette yells.
The koopa sticks his tongue out and flies away.
Wario opens the parcel. "Hey look! A letter from King Penguin!"
The Merry Men gather around to hear the contents read.
"Dear Chump Troop,
Please come to the castle. Also, Peach brought cake!
From,
Penguin"
Washingtoad looks up and towards the castle. "It is time for our destiny. Forward my people! Remember your safety gear and badges."
Everyone looks to ensure they are wearing the badges over their heart. Once the battle begin, a fighter must keep theirs intact. A destroyed badge would mean they are "dead." Afterwards, the group marches from the village and through the forest. They arrive at the castle, bypass the walls, and enter the structure. But no one was inside.
Waluigi looks under the furniture. "Hey, where's my cake!?"
Suddenly, Bower's clown car bursts in. King Penguin is dangling from the car by a rope.
The penguin releases an ear-piercing scream. "HELP!"
Bowser roars. "If you want to see him again, dorks, come to my castle! If you dare! GWAHAHA!"
Yoshi enters from the courtyard, with Peach sitting on his back. Before leaving Bowser hovers around them, blowing Peach a kiss, and sticking his tongue out at Yoshi. He then rushes out of the castle. Wario looks at Yoshi.
"Is this guy on the payroll?"
Before they can talk to Peach, they hear a horn.
"The koopas are here already!?" One person cries out.
"Close the gates!" Washingtoad orders.
"But we lost the king!"
The old toad slaps the nearby soldiers one by one. "Focus! We must repel the enemy! Then we will save him!"
The koopas rush to the ice castle and surround it. Battle hungry they are eager to infiltrate and take down the Merry Men. Fortunately, Wario gets the gates closed. The team then works to barricade themselves in. Toadette leads some to fire arrows, from the wall, at the koopas who return fire. One penguin is struck in the badge, and the arrow electrocutes him. The penguin passes out in front of a disturbed Toad.
"Is he dead!?"
Lakitu flies by Peach with a tv screen projecting Bowser. "Don't be alarm, honey bun! It's perfectly harmless!"
Yoshi grunts in doubt.
"Not harmless he says…" Toad complains as he runs back and forth restocking the weapons. He pauses to make sure his helmet is on tight.
"You have this Toad!" the queen calls out and he gives a thumbs up. Peach has Yoshi jump on a tower so she can watch without interfering.
"Their climbing the walls!" Toadette calls out while sniping a koopa with a well-aimed shot. Waluigi runs for the kitchen.
"I got something for them!"
While the siege rages, King Penguin dangles, in a cage, next to the throne with a bottle of water and a bag of chips. "How generous." He mumbles.
The general lands nearby and Bowser gives him new orders.
"My King, you summoned me?"
"General, you're on the force. I'll keep an eye on Peach."
He gleefully salutes and leaves.
Back at the Ice Castle, the koopas climb the walls but Waluigi dumps cooking oil to make them slip. Eventually, the enemy pulls up catapults, shooting bob-ombs over the wall. Peach fights the urge to join and kick them back over. Toadette calls out to others to aid her in taking on the invaders. As soon as they take care of the bob-ombs, someone notices the ice walls warping. The koopas have lit their arrows on fire and are melting them!
"They'll break through soon!" Toadette shouts. "How come they only gave us plain arrows!?"
Soon, an arrow falls from above and strikes Washingtoad. Electrocuted, the toad dramatically falls off the wall.
"NOOOOOO!" Toad screams.
"Bowser! He…" On cue the lakitu glides up to Peach and shows her a smug Bowser waving the Merry Men's contracts. Peach turns the screen off with a huff.
Looking for the culprit, Toadette grabs a pair of binoculars and spot the general. He is the one who fired the shot! Knowing she is watching, the general snickers. She swears revenge. "I'll get him!"
A distraught Toad runs over to his fallen leader. Meanwhile, the koopas use their shields to smash through the weaken ice walls. They swarm in with a battle cry. The general marches in after them. "You know what to do!"
One by one, the koopas strike down the Merry Men. Despite the odds, Waluigi and Wario battle the invaders, taking out many. Toadette shouts to Toad for more ammo only to realize the general is pressing an arrow against her badge. Toadette panics and he smiles. She then shuts her eyes accepting her fate. But he pulls away and orders a retreat.
"Next time." The general teases.
The koopas, still standing, rush out as Wario runs up to Toadette to help her up.
"Toadette! I thought we lost you!"
The mushroom gnashes her teeth. "He was mocking me!"
Waluigi cheers. "But we did it! We repelled the invaders."
The survivors look around and see half their group is out of the game. All with arrows to the heart.
"It was a slaughter…. WAHAHA!" Wario admits. Toadette looks at her brother who is still holding their leader.
"It's not funny Wario! Our leader is down!" Toad cries out.
"You must… go and save the king." Washingtoad utters.
"No! We can't do it without all of you!"
"I'm mortally wounded."
Waluigi rolls his eyes. "He's off the clock now, Toad."
Tears stream down Toad's face as the old toad continues, "You must follow Wario, captain."
"But I'm just support!"
Washingtoad slaps Toad. "Are you a man or a coward, Toad!?"
The mushroom cries out. "I'm a man! I'm a man!"
"Then go…" Washingtoad then closes his eyes.
"NOOOOO!"
Yoshi gets agitated at the sight and Peach rubs his head. "It's okay, Yoshi."
They jump off the tower and scoop up the old toad. Peach shoos Toad and the others out of the castle like she is sending kids to school. "King Penguin is waiting for you. I'll call the doctor for your friends."
The "survivors" of the Merry Men look out at the landscape before them. They can faintly see Bowser's Castle in the distance. Toad is now carrying a bow and plungers. He had arrows but a lakitu rushed in and replaced them on Bowser's orders. Can't lose another leader to friendly fire!
"If we lose, we won't get that bonus." Wario says ignoring Toad's scowl.
"The general…" Toadette mutters. "We're going to win!"
"WAHAHA! That's the spirit."
Wario leads the army across harsh lands. Unfortunately, their numbers dwindle in the swamp region from battling bands of koopas. By the time they make it to a canyon region, the team consists of Wario, Waluigi, Toadette, and Toad.
"I'm beginning to see why the koopas conquered this world." Waluigi notes as he spots Peach and Yoshi at a distance. A lakitu presents to her a bagged lunch with a love note from Bowser. The queen splits her sandwich with Yoshi. She is grateful he came along when he did. She still isn't feeling well but she is determined to support the event. And Yoshi is more than willing to carry her around.
Just as the Merry Men begin to move again, they hear laughter. They look up and see the general air dropping Mouser. The rodent grins and pulls out a massive bomb in midfall.
"Is that a little excessive?" Peach inquires while chewing.
"Run!" Toadette shouts and carries Toad.
"Special delivery for the Fools Troop!" Mouser jokes and hurls the bomb.
The gang runs into a cave as the bomb explodes. Soon, boulders cover the entrance. And Bowser slaps his face.
What was Mouser thinking!? Any more of this and Peach will divorce me!
Meanwhile, Peach stares trying not to say anything.
Trust Bowser. Just trust him.
Inside, the group stares at the blocked entrance. Wario can remove the rocks but they don't want to risk Mouser throwing another bomb. So, they move towards the back. However, Wario spots a mine and goes to dig for gold. Annoyed Waluigi leads the gang to the outside. They soon realize they are in a desert region. A maze stretches out across a sea of moving quicksand. And rolling along the maze are massive toy boxes. All sides have faces except one side with a square hole.
"Is there another way around?" Toad asks.
Hearing one second of Mouser's bizarre laughter and they push forward on the maze. They wait until a box passes and race along a path. But Mouser throws a smaller bomb at them. To escape impact, Waluigi (holding the toads) leaps to another path over quicksand. But it puts him in the direct path of a toy box. Spotting the hollowed square, he times it and allow it to drop over them. Focused on them, Mouser fails to see a toy box right on top of him until the last moment. Instead of timing it like Waluigi or throwing a bomb, Mouser leaps on impulse. He misses the ledge, falls into the quicksand, and is sucked under screaming! Waluigi, Toad, and Toadette stared blankly at the quicksand. They then look up at Peach.
"We didn't do it!"
"Don't worry, I'll talk to Bowser about this."
Now safe and with a clean conscious, Waluigi and the toads exit the maze. "Finally! The castle is just beyond that hill!" Waluigi declares. "We just have to wait for Wario."
Wario exits the mine and runs up to the maze. Toadette cups her mouth and shouts. "Wario, you have to time the…"
Wario punches the toy boxes and keep moving.
"Of course…" Toad mumbles.
"What do you mean the troopas are attacking Peach and activating traps on her!?" Bowser yells to the lakitu.
"She's making her way through the castle."
"But she is … are all you trying to ruin my happy marriage!?"
Soon Peach and Yoshi arrive in the throne room and Bowser braces for an argument. He holds up the contracts like a shield.
"Peach! Now let's talk about this…"
To his surprise Peach laughs. "The guards told me it wasn't personal. But I had fun if I'm being honest!"
"Yoshi!"
Bowser lifts an eyebrow. "You had fun too, egghead?"
"You understand Yoshi?"
"Two-year course."
Peach giggles and looks over at the trapped penguin. "They're on their way."
He shrugs. Peach's face becomes serious. "Mouser is okay, right?"
"Y-yeah!" Bowser gets off his throne and opens his phone. "Did you idiots find that cheese brain, yet?" He whispers.
"We're still looking, My King! I'm sure he can hold his breath until then."
Bowser hides his phone and smiles broadly at his wife. Peach gets off Yoshi petting his head. "Yoshi is a natural at storming castles. No one could stop him!"
Can't be better than me! Bowser thinks. But a new mischievous plan hatches in his mind. This could be the guy I'm looking for! He grabs Yoshi and throws him down a nearby clear pipe.
"Let's see you start all over again, dino breathe. Welcome to the Nerd Troop!"
"Yoshi!?"
Peach attempts to run to the pipe. "Oh no, Yoshi!"
"You walked right into a trap, missy!" Bowser wraps his arms around Peach to stop her from following. "If your little buddy wants to see you again, he needs to fight me!"
"You are a brute!" Peach remarks.
"GWAHAHA!" He playfully nuzzles her neck and whispers, "You're mine until then…"
A squeak escapes Peach's mouth and he chuckles. "Bowser…"
"Ahem!" King Penguin coughs aloud while covering his eyes.
"Sorry, man." Bowser throws him down the same pipe and phones a minion to shut down the artificial warp pipes.
"This is going to bite you in the shell! Yoshi won't take this lying down!" Peach argues.
Bowser rests his chin on a flustered Peach's head, humming a romantic tune. "I'll take that chance…"
Yoshi ends up outside the castle and pipe's opening closes. He looks back in fury. Lacking context, in his mind he thinks this is a battle between the gentle rulers Penguin and Peach vs. the sinister Koopa King. And Yoshi fears for Peach's safety.
"Yoshi!"
This world has a quiet and warm feel. The sky is starlight with shooting stars appearing every so often. There is no signs of intelligent life. Antasma can hear birds singing though. There are no cities here but villages, observatories, and destroyed space crafts. Long ago, the people explored the cosmos and would return to this planet. Now nature has overtaken their communities and the homes also show signs of ravaging fires long gone. Signs of a world ending. The bat levitates around until he finds what he seeks: a field of gravestones. With the caretaker long gone, vines have covered the headstones. Antasma pulls at the vines seeking two specific stones. Complaints spill out of his mouth as he struggles with the mess. But Antasma's persistence pays off when he finds the two stones labeled 'Aster' and 'Cheryl.'
Eyes glow with delight as he runs his claws over the names. "Don't worry about little Amora. Your daughter is galaxies away, safe with the toads like you wanted. They call her Peach." His eyes soften. "She is loved."
Pulling out a large hammer, Antasma now scans the graveyard with a dark glare. "Just wanted to tell you that."