Here it is, readers! This is the seventeenth chapter of this story!
Now, in this chapter, after Andrew meets Ms. Mowz again with his three partners, the plan to rescue the Punies before getting to the location of the Emerald Crystal Star gets underway, Andrew sees a Jabbi for the first time and finds a secret shop, and some other stuff will occur. How will this go for them? Read and find out, now!
IN THE TOP FLOOR OF THE GREAT TREE:
It was at this point that Andrew, his three partners, and Punio had made it to the highest floor in the tree. Once they had gotten out of the pipe, they were greeted by the sight of two rather large prison cells. One of them was red, the other blue. The red was on the right while the blue was on the left.
Right now, their attention was on the smaller red cell, which harbored the Puni Elder, all by herself. She was a little longer than the regular Punies while wearing what appeared to be a bandana around her neck. She was also a little hunched over, due to her elderly age.
Her eyes were half opened, there were wrinkles right where her mouth was, and her antenna was drooped over slightly. The orb on her antenna was light purple instead of yellow.
As soon as he saw the elder, Punio decided to get her attention, approaching the red cell with Andrew and his three partners following him.
"Elder!" Punio called out to her, getting her attention from her brief nap.
"Punio! Is that you?" The Puni Elder droned in such a calm and cool manner. "You're looking well."
"Why are you so calm, Elder?" Punio had to remind her. "You're trapped! And this is our daring rescue of you!"
"Oh, a rescuing, is it?" The Puni Elder murmured. "Well, thanks, I suppose. Those are quite exciting. But...I think you ought to help the other Punies before you rescue me."
It was then that Punio had to ask the obvious question. "Where are the others?"
As the Puni Elder started muttering to herself, a voice was heard in the blue cell right next to it.
"...Big brother?!" A more feminine younger voice called out. "Is that my Punio?"
It was then that Punio took notice of the blue cell that was filled up with more Punies since it was bigger. There were 89 regular Punies in the cell, and the one in front was Petuni.
She had one eyelash on both of her eyes to show that she was a girl. The orb that was on her antenna was pink, and she had a couple of dark gray spots on her back.
As soon as Punio saw her, he was relieved to see that she was alive and well.
"Petuni! Thank heavens!" Punio had to express relief. "You're here! You're safe!"
"I knew you'd come for me, Punio!" Petuni told him in a rather hopeful tone. "I just KNEW it!"
"Of course I would, dear sister!" Punio informed her. "And I've brought us a mighty ally! Look at him!"
It was then Punio motioned her to Andrew, who just waved rather sheepishly.
"Uh, yeah. That's right. My name's is Andrew. And I'm here to help you guys out along with my three partners," Andrew directed them to Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie. "This here is Goombella and Koops. And you probably already know who Madame Flurrie is."
"Nice to meet ya," Goombella greeted. "Don'tcha worry! We'll get ya out of there in a jiffy!"
"Yeah. Ummm...A pleasure to meet you," Koops agreed. "We can find a way to get you out."
"My, my, Petuni. You poor, poor dear," Flurrie had to coo sympathetically. "I swear, we will get you and your little Punies friends out of there. That I promise."
"They're right, sis," Punio agreed. "We're going to get you out of there right away, I swear. You just hold tight a second."
"OK!" Petuni called out to him.
"Andrew! Listen..." Punio then turned his attention back to Andrew. "We've got to find the cell key or we're going nowhere!"
"No problem, Punio," Andrew then saw a doorway leading to another room, which looked like the storeroom, and pointed in that direction. "I bet there's one of the keys that should be in that storeroom right there! Let's go check it out."
"You got it, Andrew!" Punio jumped slightly. "Let's go!"
"Got it," Andrew then motioned towards his three partners. "Let's go guys. Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie. We got a key to find."
His three partners nodded in agreement as the five of them headed into the storeroom that was right next to the prison cell room on the highest floor of the Great Tree...
As soon as he set foot into the storeroom, Andrew was immediately greeted by an X-Naut that was knocked out cold. This got him to jump briefly for a second when he saw someone else in the room, along with his three partners.
The someone was revealed to be Ms. Mowz, as Andrew instantly recognized her. Goombella and Koops recognized her too, but Flurrie didn't know exactly who this white female Little Mouser was.
Andrew looked towards his partners and saw that Goombella was glaring at Ms. Mowz, Koops was growing awkwardly shy around her again, and Flurrie was raising an eyebrow at her, wondering who she was and what she was doing here.
Ms. Mowz managed to lighten up as she saw that it was Andrew who walked into the room before she decided to comment.
"Oh, well, isn't this a treat!" Ms. Mowz declared flirtatiously towards Andrew. "We must stop meeting like this, don't you think?"
"It would appear so, I guess," Andrew had to cross his arms confidently. "It's a surprise to meet you again, Ms. Mowz."
"Hey! Stop right there, missy!" Goombella had to spit at her venomously. "You're that thieving girl we saw before! What are you doing here?"
"Oh! Hey! I know you!" Koops struggled to speak to her as he tried talking. "Y-You're that one girl... I-I never thought I'd see... Wait, uh..."
Koops had to clear his throat, where he felt his heart beating before he finished. "Listen. I mean, not that I'm happy to see you, but... I'll shut up now."
"Excuse me? We must what?" Flurrie had to raise her eyebrow at that. "Are you a friend of Andrew's?"
It was then that Flurrie came to a shocking revelation about Ms. Mowz's attire and lifestyle. And she seemed to be somewhat disgusted by it.
"Oh, wait... I see," Flurrie said before voicing her disapproval. "And I most certainly do NOT approve!"
"Yeah. Anyway, I'm guessing the reason you're here is for the same reason Goombella, Koops, and I ran into you last time at Hooktail Castle," Andrew remarked. "You're looking for more rare badges, correct?"
"Mmm hmm hmm hmm! Correct, handsome," Ms. Mowz confirmed seductively. "I heard there were nice badges to be found here, so I came looking..."
It was then Ms. Mowz looked downward toward the knocked-out X-Naut, frowned, and shook her head. "Only problem is, I've been running into more trouble than I expected."
"I can see that," Andrew dropped his arms and proclaimed. "The Great Tree has been invaded by the X-Nauts who are tearing it up just to find the Crystal Star that's located here. Which is one of the reasons why we're here."
Ms. Mowz nodded at that as she walked on over to Andrew, and stopped within half an inch away from Andrew and his muscular body. Then just like she did last time at Hooktail Castle, Ms. Mowz jumped up and kissed Andrew right on the same cheek that she kissed before. However, this time, Andrew didn't flinch or jump. Either it was because he was expecting it from her, or it was because of the kiss he got earlier from Flurrie, which MIGHT HAVE helped him get more comfortable with that sign of affection.
Andrew saw his partner's reaction to this. Goombella was grossed out as she was outright furious with Ms. Mowz, Koops was gawking and seemed sad as if he was expecting a kiss too, and Flurrie had to jaw-drop at this, seeming appalled by what she just witnessed.
"Mmm hmm hmm hmm! But who cares about that?" Ms. Mowz shrugged before admitting. "LOVELY to see you again!"
"Yeah," Andrew had to admit while rubbing the cheek that Ms. Mowz kissed as he saw the female Little Mouser jump back up onto the opening, standing on the edge as she looked at Andrew in a flirty manner. "I guess it's lovely to see you again too, Ms. Mowz."
"Eww! Not another smooch!" Goombella expressed her disgust before sneering at her. "Who do you think you are, you total floozy?"
"Aww, AGAIN? Why? How?" Koops had to express his jealousy of how Andrew got another kiss as he gawked at her again. "You're SO lucky, Andrew!"
"Oh, mercy me! Andrew!" Flurrie had to express herself. "You're popular with all the girls, aren't you?"
"I guess," Andrew just shrugged at that. "I didn't think I had it in me..."
"The precious Crystal Star you're looking for is near the bottom of this tree," Ms. Mowz decided to share some more advice with Andrew. "Good luck finding it before the others!"
"Is that so?" Andrew asked her, to which she nodded to confirm it. "Well, thanks again for the advice, Ms. Mowz."
"Mmm hmm hmm! Anytime, my sweet," Ms. Mowz said to him seductively before winking at him. "And with that, take care, my handsome muscular superstar! Let's get together again soon!"
"Right. See you," Andrew said to her as she took her leave, jumping out of the opening and managing to survive jumping from that height.
Andrew knew that he'd see her again. And since he was no longer suspicious of her, there was no problem with it. He then had to hear what his three partners thought about this.
"I can't BELIEVE that girl!" Goombella yelled before groaning in aggravation. "Ugh! I can't stand her!"
"Man, she sure is cute," Koops admitted, sounding a little sad that she was gone.
"Well! Don't worry, Andrew! I'm not TOO jealous," Flurrie did her best to remain as proper and refined about the situation as she could while adding one extra sentence at the end. "What a shameless flirt, though!"
"You and I feel the same way about her," Goombella agreed with her. "She's such a floozy."
"Okay, guys. With our opinions of her to the side, she's gone again," Andrew glanced at the knocked-out X-Naut and then saw that Ms. Mowz only opened one of the chests this time. "And she did give some good advice again, just like when we needed to beat Hooktail."
"Oh c'mon, Andrew! Not again!" Goombella had to yell. "You can't possibly tell me that you are starting to like her, are you?!"
"That's not important," Andrew had to inform her. "If she's correct, the Crystal Star is at the bottom of the tree."
"But...But how do we know that for sure?" Goombella asked him. "Do we even know if it is there?"
"That's true," Andrew had to rub his chin. "I guess we're gonna need to ask the Puni Elder about this..."
"A smashing idea, Andrew," Flurrie agreed. "Now if only we could unlock her prison cell..."
It was at that moment that the X-Naut regained consciousness and got back up. He started rubbing his head before turning towards where Andrew was standing.
"Urgh, my aching..." The X-Naut then noticed Andrew in front of him. "Hey! You! You're the dirtbag who hit me from behind, aren't you?"
"Uh, no. We just came in here for the key to one of the cells," Andrew deadpanned in annoyance.
"Yeah, real fair, you scum!" The X-Naut spat, not paying attention to what Andrew just said as he was preparing to fight. "You fight dirty, you get dirty! And I'll be doing the 'dirting'!"
"Here we go again," Andrew had to sigh as the X-Naut came charging for him.
Getting out his bat, Andrew went ahead and smacked the X-Naut right on the head with the baseball bat. He followed this up by performing a Power Jump on the X-Naut, knocking him back a couple of feet.
The X-Naut shook his head just in time for Goombella to approach him, as he went and performed a Multibonk again. She managed to strike the X-Naut at least 6 times or so. Andrew then decided to try out the Quake Bat attack, by slamming his bat vigorously onto the ground, which caused the ground to shake slightly and the X-Naut to lose his balance and fall over.
Koops then stepped up and rammed into the X-Naut by getting into his shell and performing a Shell Toss, knocking him back another inch. Koops then got onto his back and did a breakdance move. Somehow, this was rather impressive to Flurrie.
"My, my, Koops my dear. You've got to tell me how you can dance like that," Flurrie had to comment. "Most of the movies I've starred in had ballroom dancing in them. But THAT! That was 'absolutely' tremendous, darling."
"Gee, ummm... Thanks, Flurrie," Koops got onto his feet before rubbing the back of his head and blushed slightly. "Koopie Koo seems to think so too..."
"Yeah, we are all impressed by his breakdancing," Andrew admitted before pointing towards the X-Naut. "Now Flurrie, would you mind dealing with this X-Naut that tried to pick a fight with us?"
"Not a problem, dearie. I'll handle this," Flurrie stepped forward, took a deep breath, and unleashed her powerful Gale Force attack.
The wind was so powerful, that the X-Naut couldn't keep himself contained. As a result, the X-Naut found himself being blown away, as he was sent out through the opening above, and was sent flying to parts unknown.
Luckily, before he was blown away, the X-Naut dropped a Red Key, which Andrew managed to catch in his right hand.
"Very good, Flurrie," Andrew congratulated her. "We got rid of that X-Naut. And he left this Red Key behind for us to claim."
"Andrew! That key is used to unlock the Elder's cell," Punio declared. "We better free her!"
"Right. But first," Andrew approached the unopened chest that Ms. Mowz didn't touch and decided to open it. "I better claim whatever is in this chest."
As soon as he opened the chest, he was greeted with a surprising sight. What was in the chest was none other, than an Ultra Shroom. This got Andrew speechless as his partners saw it.
"Holy cow," Andrew uttered. "It's an Ultra Shroom! These things are 'really' rare!"
"Omigosh! You're right," Goombella had to comment. "Wowsers! That Ultra Shroom could save our hinds if we're in a dangerous situation one day, don'tcha think?"
"Yes, Goombella," Andrew nodded as he put it into his backpack. "And that's why I'm saving it."
"Wow. Good find Andrew," Koops had to say. "Always wondered if we'd ever find one of those on our adventure."
"Mercy me, Andrew. You certainly have quite a hand in finding things, don't you?" Flurrie had to admit.
"I guess. Or I'm just getting lucky in finding these things," Andrew held the Red Key firmly in his right hand. "Now uhhh... Let's go free the Elder."
"Good idea, Andrew," Punio agreed. "Let's get going."
And so the five of them went back into the prison cell room, where they approached the red prison cell. Andrew inserted the Red Key into the padlock and turned it to unlock the door. The padlock fell off and disappeared as the door went wide open. Punio was the one who entered first as he approached the Puni Elder, who had her back turned against him.
"Elder! We're back!" Punio got her attention. "We're here to rescue you!"
This got the Elder to slowly turn around as Andrew was about to enter the cell along with Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie.
Unfortunately, what Andrew saw in the cell wasn't a frail old elderly Puni. What he saw was a rather incredibly furious elderly Puni.
But what got Andrew to jump was the fact that the Puni Elder grew to the size of a bulldog.
"FOOLISH CHILD!" The Puni Elder bellowed furiously before shrinking back down and glaring quite angrily at Punio after smacking him with her antenna. "Punio! Sit down this instant and keep your mouth shut!"
"Huh? What? Why? What did I do?" Punio was completely confused by this as he then explained. "Uh... Listen, Elder, I don't know why you're mad, but we came here to help you..."
"Stop your mumbling, you! And mind your elders! You whelp!" The Puni Elder snapped at him before telling him off for what he did. "How could you abandon your poor sister and run off like that... 'Absolutely' shameful!"
"But... But, Elder..." Punio stuttered, trying to say something to her. "I just went to find help... To help rescue you..."
"Oh, stop with the whining! You never interrupt an elder mid-lecture! NEVER!" The Puni Elder barked at him, wanting Punio to listen to what she had to say. "You wonder why the other Punies call you a 'doofus' sometimes? That's why. And your time to be a doofus is over because you have to lead our Puni tribe one day! That day is not far off! ...And THAT is why you need to listen! Now, first of all..."
It was then the Puni Elder started to go off on one of her long boring rants that she needed to say to Punio, and this was going to take a while...
SEVERAL HOURS LATER...
It was now shown that Andrew, Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie were asleep on the floor, all comfortable and whatnot. Andrew found himself resting his head against Flurrie's massive buxom, while Flurrie had her arms wrapped around Andrew in an attempt to cuddle him as they slept.
Goombella was snoozing right on top of Andrew's lap, which she was lying down on. Finally, Koops leaned against Andrew's right shoulder while feeling himself slump down onto his butt as he slept next to the muscular man.
This whole time, Punio was FORCED to stay awake to hear the Puni Elder's long and boring rant, which she was close to finishing by that point.
"...So you have to learn to step up and take being in charge seriously...or else! You got that?" The Puni Elder wrapped her rant up. "From now on, you've got to get your act together, Punio!"
"...Yes, Elder." Punio finally said for the first time in hours. "Yes, I understand."
"Bah! Only answer ONCE!" The Puni Elder advised him before finally calming herself down. "...But say, by the way, why are you here, anyway?"
"Uh, I was just telling you..." Punio had to tell her again. "We came to rescue everyone. We started with you, Elder."
"Oh! Is that so?" The Puni Elder understood that as she got up and was preparing to take her leave. "Well, good! In that case, get me out of here already! Criminy! This cell is cold, which isn't good for the old back, and there's this damp stench..."
As the Puni Elder continued grumbling to herself, she slithered out of the red cell and headed for the mouse hole in the pipe as she made her way back down towards the entrance, where Puniper and the other nine Punies were staying.
As soon as she was gone, Punio couldn't help but sigh as he decided to get Andrew and his three partners up from their beauty sleep.
"Uh... Well, there she goes," Punio then shouted towards Andrew. "Enough standing around!"
"Uhhh... Uhhh..." Andrew had to yawn as he felt Flurrie cuddling him, getting him to blush as he saw that he was resting his head against her breasts, getting his blush to deepen at that. "Whoa! Were we asleep for that long!?"
"'Totally' seems like it," Andrew heard Goombella yawn on his lap as she got off. "Sure seemed like it was hours. But that felt good to sleep a little bit."
"Ummm..." Koops had to sit up and stretch as he scratched the back of his shell before rubbing his eyes. "Is she done?"
"Yeah. The Elder went down the pipe, and headed back to the entrance, Koops," Andrew advised him before seeing Flurrie wake up. "I think we better help Punio."
"Why, my dearie Andrew. That was a splendid nap we had," Flurrie had let go of Andrew and floated up. "Don't you agree?"
"Yes. Yes, I do," Andrew blushed slightly before standing back up and facing his three partners. "Shall we get going, guys?"
Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie nodded their heads as they walked out of the cell and walked toward Punio, who was looking at his dear sister.
"Just 'you' wait, Petuni!" Punio told her before making a promise. "I'll be right back for you!"
"OK, big brother!" Petuni responded. "I'll be waiting."
"Right," Andrew tugged on his handkerchief. "We better head back down to see Puniper again."
"Got it, Andrew," Punio scattered towards the pipe that led back down. "We better get going."
The four of them nodded as they followed Punio back down the pipe and went right back towards the entrance where Puniper was currently...
It didn't take long for the five of them to make it back to the entrance, right where Puniper was standing. He was accompanied by the nine regular Punies from earlier, and the Puni Elder. Once they were right in front of Puniper, the fat Puni decided to comment to Punio, who stepped forward.
"Well, if it isn't Punio..." Puniper snorted before huffing. "Hmph! You heard me! Hmph! I can't say I expected you to manage to rescue the elder..."
"I told you I could do it!" Punio told him sharply.
"Don't get a swelled head!" Puniper said smugly before retorting. "This doesn't mean I'll accept you as our leader... And it 'definitely' doesn't mean I completely trust that muscular guy, either."
Punio and Andrew had to frown at that as Puniper continued.
"For starters, you still haven't rescued the other Punies yet," Puniper then had his head pointing upward in defiance. "I'm not lifting an antenna to help until you do."
The Puni Elder, for her part, did not appreciate the insolence that Puniper was displaying right in front of her. It was this kind of smug know-it-all attitude that would be the end of their existence. And she wouldn't have this happen to the future leader of the Puni tribe. She had to let Puniper know the error of his ways.
"You stubborn MULE!" The Puni Elder bellowed again, growing to the size of a bulldog before shrinking back to normal and proceeded to tell off Puniper, who was staring at her. "Deplorable! How DARE you talk like that, knowing what we're up against?! We must stand together now! We must take back our tree! Don't you understand that?"
"But... But, Elder..." Puniper whimpered, having trouble coming up with something snarky to say.
"Shut your trap, Puniper!" The Puni Elder smacked him with her antenna to get him to shut up, essentially putting Puniper in his place. "And mind me, you hear? You'll help Muscular-oo here... What'd you say your name was again? It was, er..."
"Andrew," the muscular man had to tell her.
"Andi, wasn't it?" The Puni Elder was hard 'on hearing' so it was obvious that she'd mishear his name.
"It's 'Andrew'! He's Andrew!" Punio had to speak up and tell her. "I mean, he's here to save our tree! Come on!"
"Yes, yes, simmer down, you," the Puni Elder brushed him off. "And everyone else, help Andi-roo clear out our tree!"
"Oh, all right, Elder... Whatever you say," Puniper finally gave in and sighed. "I'm not heartless or anything. To tell you the truth, I'm worried about Petuni, too. And you're right, we have no choice. We must fight! Right, everybody?"
"Right!" The nine Punies said in unison.
"There you go, my Punies!" The Puni Elder had to praise them. "That's the spirit!"
It was then Puniper and the nine Punies walked over to Andrew's side where they went right behind Punio.
"All right. This is good," Andrew had to smile at this.
"Thanks, you guys..." Punio had to thank them.
It was then Andrew walked right over to the Puni Elder, with Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie following right behind him as they needed to ask her an important question.
"Excuse me, ma'am," Andrew started. "We'd like to ask you an important question."
"Yeah," Goombella joined in. "We're looking for this Crystal Star thingamajig..."
"Umm, yeah," Koops spoke up before adding. "We're looking for this thing called a Crystal Star..."
"It's a lovely gem," Flurrie then finished up for them. "Do you know of it?"
The Puni Elder took in the question and managed to answer it after ten seconds had gone by.
"The Crystal Star, eh? Hrrrrrmmmmmmm..." The Puni Elder thought for a moment before remembering something about it. "Yes, perhaps... Hidden down, down, down at the bottom of this tree is a funny-colored stone."
Whoa. Could that be the Crystal Star? Andrew thought as the Puni Elder continued.
"But what do we do with it?" The Puni Elder then recited something that she had told ages ago. "Oh, right: 'Guard it from evil and give it to a pure heart...' That's what generations of elders have been taught. Might be the Crystal Star..."
Looks like Ms. Mowz was correct once again. Andrew thought amusingly as the Puni Elder had to give him instructions.
"Andi! Or...Andi-roo!" The Puni Elder informed him. "I'm thinking you better get it before those goons do. I don't quite see how just yet, but I bet it's connected to us getting our tree back. You got all that, Andi-roo? Crystal Star. 'Bottom' part of the tree. Go to it."
"No worries," Andrew promised. "We'll get on it right away."
"Oh! Hold your horses!" It was then the Puni Elder remembered something else that she had to tell him. "I forgot something... Before you can get the Crystal Star, you must save all of the captured Punies."
"We would have done that anyway," Andrew remarked. "That's one of the reasons why we are here, after all."
"Even so, you'll never get to that gem without the help of the Punies," the Puni Elder advised him. "Not a chance."
"That also makes sense," Andrew understood this.
"So here, you'd better take this," the Puni Elder took out something important that she needed to give to him. "It's the Puni Orb. It's the symbol of our leader."
"I see," Andrew saw her hold the orb out for himself.
It was orange in color, and it resembled the shining sun. This got Andrew to raise an eyebrow at that, but he didn't question it.
"If you place this in the pedestals you see around the tree, the Punies will gather," the Puni Elder explained. "Just remember to take the orb with you when you're done using it. Because, well, if you don't, everyone'll kind of hang out and stare at the orb."
"We'll keep that in mind," Andrew graciously accepted the Puni Orb. "Thanks for this, ma'am."
"All right, guys!" Punio declared. "Let's go rescue everybody!"
Andrew was just about to walk away from the Puni Elder when she suddenly hollered to him.
"Oh, and one more thing..." The Puni Elder started.
This caused Andrew to slip and lose his balance for a second there. Thankfully, Flurrie was there to help him up and get him back on his feet as he stared at the Puni Elder.
"So sorry! So sorry!" The Puni Elder had to apologize. "I've been 'awfully' forgetful as of late."
"That's fine," Andrew then looked at her in curiosity. "Now what is it?"
"Now then, where was I?" The Puni Elder remembered what she needed to tell Andrew. "Oh, right! On your way to the Crystal Star... If you lose any of the Punies and have a hard time finding them, just come see me. What I'll do is, I'll give a [whistle] to call 'em back here. You got all that?"
"I don't think we should have too much problem with that. But we'll keep that in mind anyway," Andrew told her. "In any case, we should get going and try finding the key for the blue cell before heading to find the Crystal Star."
He then faced his partners and the 11 Punies. "Shall we get going?"
They all nodded their heads as they went back up the pipe that Andrew had come down from previously. Since he had the Puni Orb in his possession, he could use it on that pedestal he saw earlier, and it should reveal a secret to him...
As soon as they were back where that pedestal was, Andrew approached it with the Puni Orb in his hands.
"So, what do I do?" Andrew had to wonder. "Don't I just place the Puni Orb in this slot over there?"
Wanting to know if it worked, he placed the Puni Orb in the slot, which got all 11 Punies to stand on the panel on the ground, where the tally count on the pillar nearby showed the number '0'. This meant that he got the right amount of Punies required to activate it and reveal a secret to them.
It was then the ground started shaking a little bit before suddenly, a pipe popped up nearby. Andrew had assumed they'd need to take this pipe to head downward.
"Hey, guys? Look at that," Andrew pointed out to them.
"I see it, Andrew! A new pipe!" Goombella beamed.
"Yeah. That was kind of...spooky," Koops had to admit.
"My goodness!" Flurrie had to comment. "A pipe leading down."
"It sure seems like it," Andrew faced his three partners before taking the Puni Orb out of the pedestal. "Shall we go through it?"
"Yes! Yes! C'mon!" Goombella encouraged. "Let's jump in!"
"Indeed. Let's see where it leads!" Flurrie was all for it.
"Yeah," Koops said. "Let's keep moving."
"You got it," Andrew jumped on top of the pipe along with Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie.
And with that, the four of them went down the pipe while the 11 Punies followed after them through the mouse-shaped hole, as they were going to see where the pipe would lead them...
As it turns out, the pipe led them down to the room that was right beyond the electronic door the two X-Nauts went by earlier that was currently locked. Once they got out of the pipe, an X-Naut was waiting to ambush them upon exiting the pipe, and he ran over to pick a fight with them.
Andrew managed to deck him and ended the fight as quickly as it started when he saw the lock panel to the left side of the door. Andrew figured that it could help with unlocking the door, so he approached it and pressed some buttons on it.
"You know, I can't help but say just how huge this place is," Andrew commented as he unlocked the electronic door, where the red light turned green. "Anyone could 'possibly' get lost in here if they didn't know where they were going."
"I'm not surprised about that..." Koops decided to share with him. "I wouldn't be surprised if Koopook decided to hide in this place."
"Huh? Koopook?" Andrew was confused by who that was as he needed to ask.
"Ummm...right. He and I used to be neighbors and playmates when we were barely shell-high," Koops had to explain. "And whenever I'd play hide-and-seek, I'd always be it, and it would be impossible for anyone to find him. He was called the Hide 'N' Seek Koopa for a reason if I can recall..."
"Oh. I see..." Andrew had to muse as he rubbed his chin. "You know, I wouldn't be too surprised if he went to go hiding off in Hooktail Castle. Especially since we defeated Hooktail and it's not terrorizing anyone anymore."
"Good point. Sure that he'd be hiding there," Koops admitted.
"Pardon me for just a moment," Flurrie overheard that and felt like asking. "But did you by any chance mention something called Hooktail?"
"That's right Flurrie," Andrew had to explain. "Hooktail was this giant red dragon that was terrorizing the people of Petalburg. Goombella, Koops, and I managed to defeat Hooktail and now it's no longer terrorizing anyone since we've killed it. It's where we got the Diamond Star from after all."
"Ah, I see. Very nice," Flurrie then had to admit to him. "I heard tell about the area of Petal Meadows and Petalburg. I know that it is 'absolutely' divine and fabulous over there."
"Yeah, it is. Especially since Hooktail is gone," Andrew nodded. "But that's behind us, and now we're in the Great Tree."
"Very well put, darling," Flurrie nodded in understanding.
"Omigosh Andrew," Goombella got his attention. "There's a pipe here that probably leads us to the area down below us!"
"Good eye Goombella," Andrew said. "We should check it out."
And that's what he did, as he went down the pipe along with his three partners and the 11 Punies that were accompanying him. Andrew then saw what appeared to be a pond, and it looked like it was made out of soap.
"Holy moly, what is that," Andrew approached it and sniffed it. "It smells like soap!"
"Oh, that! I didn't mention that to you," Punio decided to explain. "That happens to be the bubble pond!"
"Bubble pond?" Andrew, Goombella, and Koops queried.
"Yes. This is where we Punies come to relax and ease ourselves," Punio told him. "Heck, the Puni Elder comes here all the time during her 'me' times with needing to unwind herself. It's helped her with living as long as she has."
"Ah, it does look relaxing," Andrew had to muse before he noticed something on the other side of the pond, right inside that clear yellow box. "Guys. Look what I found."
"Omigosh Andrew! It's another Shine Sprite!" Goombella beamed as she followed Andrew across the bubble pond to get. "You scored another one!"
"Yeah... Way to go, Andrew," Koops had to add. "This is why you're the man, after all!"
"Yeah, I have been doing good with finding these," Andrew punched the block upon jumping and then held the Shine Sprite in his hand. "We now have three of these babies."
"Excuse me? Is that a Shine Sprite?" Flurrie had to query. "Why, whatever was that thing doing here in a place such as this?"
"That's right Flurrie. We've been finding these since we toured Hooktail Castle to fight Hooktail," Andrew then put the Shine Sprite with the other two Shine Sprites in his backpack. "Have you ever heard of them?"
"By the stars, yes! I have!" Flurrie had to reveal. "I have seen those things during my days as a touring actress on this one trip to Isle Delfino!"
"You've been to Isle Delfino?" Andrew had to ask her as he found a Thunder Rage in one of the bushes nearby, and he put it into his backpack. "How was it over there?"
"It was 'absolutely' marvelous darling," Flurrie told him while waving her hand in delight. "You should head there sometime!"
"Yeah. Maybe it wouldn't be bad to take a vacation there," Andrew had to muse while crossing by the bubble pond and heading to the pipe. "As long as there's no mess to clean up and vandalism taking place there."
"I hear ya, Andrew!" Goombella beamed. "We don't need to deal with what Mario was put through when he went on vacation there that one time."
"You and me both," Andrew chuckled in agreement as he went back up the pipe along with his three partners and the 11 Punies that were accompanying him. "Now, uh... How are we gonna get these Punies across this ledge? I mean, you, me, Koops, and Flurrie could get by here with no problem, but the Punies are a different story..."
"No kidding! The Punies will 'totally' plummet down there," Goombella exclaimed before directing him towards the pedestals that the Puni Orb can go into. "But if you put the Puni Orb in one of those pedestals, the Punies will gather in a group. And if someone blows on them, they should all fall over the edge... But then they'll come back up in bubbles! And then you can blow them across!"
"Blow them across, huh?" Andrew rubbed his chin with the Puni Orb in his right hand. "Guess this is a job for Flurrie, right?"
"You betcha!" Goombella beamed as she jumped on the circular platform in the center and made it to the other side.
"All right, Flurrie," Andrew had to tell the Wind Spirit as Koops jumped across to join Goombella. "Once I put the Puni Orb in that other pedestal, I'll need you to use your Gale Force to get these Punies by here into the pond. Then when they're in bubbles, you can just blow them across. OK?"
"It shall be a pleasure, darling," Flurrie told him. "Just tell me whenever you're ready!"
"Got it," Andrew jumped over to join his other two partners and then put the Puni Orb into the pedestal.
This caused the 11 Punies to flock to the edge of the cliff as they were trying to get to the Puni Orb. "OK, Flurrie! We're ready!"
"Right," Flurrie nodded as she took a deep breath and unleashed her Gale Force move to blow the Punies off the cliff and into the bubble pond.
Moments later, they rose back up in bubbles, and that's when Flurrie blew them across the gap and over to the other side where Andrew, Goombella, and Koops were waiting.
The bubbles popped just in time for the Punies to join Andrew and his two partners as he took the Puni Orb out. Flurrie floated over and rejoined with the rest of them as Andrew and his first two partners jumped onto the pipe, with Flurrie joining them.
"Shall we continue?" Andrew asked as his three partners nodded.
With that, Andrew went down the pipe with his three partners as the 11 Punies went through the mouse hole to accompany them further down into the tree...
It didn't take long for them to get out of the pipe as they saw that they were on a pathway that had an edge that led downward to another pipe below. It was then Goombella looked upward and cringed at what she saw next, and yelped.
"OMIGOSH! EEEEEEEEEEP!" Goombella shrieked in fright as she then looked grossed out.
"What is it, Goombella?" Andrew had to be concerned about this.
"There! Up there! Above you!" Goombella motioned upward. "There's a Pider right up there, ready to drop in on us! EWWWWWWWWWWWWW!"
"Hmm?" Andrew looked up along with Koops and Flurrie as he saw the Pider for himself.
It was 'basically' a black-and-white colored spider creature dangling from the ceiling with a web-like string. The 11 Punies saw this and freaked out too.
"A PIDER! EEEEEEEEEEK!" All the Punies, including Punio and Puniper, squeaked fearfully as they huddled behind Andrew.
"That's a Pider?" Andrew raised an eyebrow in confusion. "What's so bad about it?"
"You don't understand. Aside from my 'personal' fear of them, the Punies are 'totally' afraid of these Piders," Goombella had to explain. "When a Pider drops, the Punies completely lose it and bolt in every direction. You're gonna have to defeat any Piders near the path you wanna lead the Punies along."
"You're kidding, aren't you?" Andrew had a hard time believing that.
"No, Andrew! She's right," Punio told him as he came in front. "The Piders are the natural predators of us Punies! Whenever they spot one of us Punies nearby, they will drop down and feast on us, and claim one of us as their meal! We can't go near it without becoming their dinner!"
"Well, in that case, I guess we will have to beat it to get by," Andrew understood this predicament.
"But how?" Koops asked as he pointed toward how high up it was. "None of us can reach it, in case you don't know."
"Why, I do believe he's right," Flurrie had to agree. "I daresay, this could prove to be a pickle for us..."
"Well, like I said before, this is it for us!" Puniper felt the need to complain. "We can't go any farther because of a Pider, and ol' Muscles there can't reach it. I guess we're all gonna become dinner for that Pider. And we can thank the big bad Punio and his hair-brained scheme for getting us into this mess in the first place."
"C'mon! Quit talking like that!" Goombella had to inform him and perk up their spirits with her preppy voice. "Andrew can help us by taking down that Pider for sure!"
It was then that Goombella looked up to see it as she grimaced and felt her face turn white. "I hope..."
"And besides, I happen to have an idea," Andrew took off his backpack. "I've got just the thing to help us with this mess. Gimme a second."
Andrew opened his backpack to grab something important that he brought along with them. When he found what he was looking for, he pulled out something sharp and silver. It appeared to be a shuriken as Goombella's eyes bulged upon seeing it.
"Omigosh, Andrew... Is...Is that a...shuriken," Goombella asked as Andrew nodded. "JEEPERS ANDREW! Where did you get that!?"
"I had tons of them back at home, and I brought plenty of them with me on this trip," Andrew held the shuriken properly and prepared to throw it upward like a frisbee. "It's easy to use. Watch."
Andrew then tossed the shuriken upward, which sliced right through the web string and cut it off from the ceiling. With that, the Pider was no longer dangling as it crashed onto the ground, and Andrew put his backpack back on.
"Wow! Mercy me!" Flurrie gasped at that as Andrew got out his bat and used his Power Swing move. "Andrew, my darling! You also seem to be quite the expert with using weapons, aren't you?"
"Well, it came from practice," Andrew told as Koops finished the Pider off with a good Shell Toss. "Not that it matters. I don't use these often anyway."
"What d'you mean?" Goombella was confused as she was grateful for how the Pider was disposed of.
"I only use these in a situation where I slow down my opponents and give us a greater advantage over them," Andrew had to admit. "I don't want to kill anyone with them."
"Ummm...that's good, I guess," Koops said shyly. "Don't wanna kill anyone at all."
"That's right Koops," Andrew walked over to him along with Goombella, Flurrie, and the 11 Punies. "Now that the Pider's been dealt with, we can get by and...hmmm?"
It was then Andrew noticed something nearby on a panel. It was a vase-like pillar of some kind. And when he touched it, it didn't feel like one at all. That gave him the indication that it was a fake. And because of that, it could easily be blown away with the help of his Wind Spirit partner.
"What is it, Andrew?" Goombella queried.
"It's this pillar. It's fake. And I bet it's hiding something from us," Andrew snapped his fingers before looking at Flurrie. "Flurrie, would you blow this away for us?"
"With pleasure, sweetums," Flurrie obliged as she blew it away with her Gale Force move, revealing a Paper Airplane Panel that he could use to turn into a paper airplane.
"Hey guys! It's a Paper Airplane Panel," Andrew pointed out as he stood on it and it started glowing. "I can use this to fly downward and find something important."
"My stars, Andrew. You have quite the tale to tell if you know something about this," Flurrie remarked.
"Yeah. Long story short, a black chest cursed me when I unlocked it in the Rogueport Sewers," Andrew told her. "And it allows me to turn into a Paper Airplane whenever I stand on this panel over here."
"How very interesting," Flurrie mused.
"There was another one, but I'll explain later," Andrew then advised his partners. "For now, can you three head down that pipe with the Punies over there? I have to check something out before I can join you."
"Gotcha Andrew! We're on it!" Goombella winked at him before looking at the Punies. "Okay, team! We're gonna go down this pipe while Andrew checks something out! He'll be joining us momentarily, but for now, let's MOVE!"
The Punies agreed as they went down the pipe with Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie while Andrew put enough focus to turn himself into a paper airplane. He flew downward onto a platform, and when he turned back to normal, he found himself standing on another Paper Airplane Panel.
He then did the same thing as he flew downward as a paper airplane before he landed on a stone platform.
As soon as he turned back to normal, he found yet another Shine Sprite in that clear yellow box. He jumped up and punched the box to get the Shine Sprite into his right hand. He then went and put it into his backpack with the other Shine Sprites he had so far.
"My, my, Andrew, my fabulous dear," Flurrie had to comment on this. "You must have some kind of gift for finding those kind of things in here."
"I guess," Andrew shrugged as he jumped back down to join the other. "I already have four, so I can get Merlon to power up Koops when we get back to Rogueport."
"Ummm...that would be great Andrew," Koops shyly admitted.
"And hey," Andrew turned his attention to Flurrie. "If I find two more, I can do the same with you, Flurrie."
"Why, that would be splendid, Andrew," Flurrie expressed her joy. "I would gladly appreciate that."
"I know. I already did Goombella before I came here, so it'd be right to do both you and Koops when we get back to Rogueport," Andrew informed his Wind Spirit partner before adding. "Provided that I find two more Shine Sprites in this tree."
"Right," Flurrie nodded along with Koops.
"Now come on," Andrew advised his three partners and the Punies. "We better head to that pipe over there in the corner."
His three partners and the Punies nodded as they continued. After dispatching two Pale Piranhas, Andrew, and his three partners jumped onto the pipe and then went down into it, with the 11 Punies following them through the mouse hole, as they went further down...
Once they came out of that pipe, they were greeted by a twisty path with ground right below them with plenty of bushes too. But what Andrew took notice of was that near the walkway closest to them was a gray mosquito-like creature.
"What the...?" Andrew uttered as the mosquito creature caught sight of Andrew.
As soon as he caught sight of the muscular man, the mosquito creature bolted into the walkway that was standing behind it. The moment it was gone, Punio had to cut through the group and get Andrew's attention about that mosquito creature.
"Andrew! Did you see it?" Punio got his attention.
"Yeah, I did," Andrew felt like asking. "What was it?"
"That was a Jabbi!" Punio had to reveal.
"That's what a Jabbi looks like?" Andrew wondered.
"That's right," Punio then decided to explain to him. "Based on what Puniper said, they're helping the intruders and trying to seize the tree."
Puniper himself had to huff and look upward with his eyes closed, indicating that he wasn't wrong about that.
"Hold up, there's something I'd like to know," Andrew decided to query. "How come the Jabbies are helping the X-Nauts? Don't they know that they plan on destroying the tree once they get the Crystal Star?"
"It goes beyond that Andrew," Punio continued to explain. "Our tribes have been enemies for a long time now. Every time we meet, we fight. A lot."
"I see," Andrew was able to figure it out. "And the X-Nauts decided to take advantage of that."
"Exactly," it was then that Punio had a sad look on his face before he said to him. "...But I used to get along with Jabble."
"Jabble?" Andrew asked.
"Yes. He's one of the Jabbi tribe," Punio exclaimed to him before wondering. "I wonder if even Jabble is my enemy now..."
"I can't say for sure," Andrew shrugged. "But I think this is one fact that I find to be imperative."
"Y'know, speaking of imperative," Goombella decided to ask Punio. "Punio? Didn't you say that there is a hidden shop somewhere in this area?"
"Yes, I did," Punio confirmed. "It's been hidden from sight in case the X-Nauts were to raid it for anything important. I think it's right below us. If you want Andrew, you can use that pipe to go downward and try finding the shop."
"Hmmm, good idea," Andrew mused. "And we could always stock up on supplies if we're gonna have to get further down into the tree. Let's go find it."
"Right, Andrew," Koops nodded as they all went down that nearby pipe that led to the ground below. "Let's try seeing if we can find it..."
And so Andrew, his three partners, and the 11 Punies searched the ground level to see if they could find the secret shop. After finding a Star Piece in a nearby bush, Andrew happened to come across a wall. A wall with a strange-looking paper in front.
"Look at this. I bet this paper is hiding something," Andrew declared before looking at his Wind Spirit partner. "Flurrie, if you would do the honor?"
"I shall," Flurrie then went and blew away the paper that was in the way, revealing a walkway that led to the supposed shop.
"Well, let's check this out," Andrew advised them his partners and the Punies obliged before following him.
Andrew was amazed by the shop when he went in there. The store was being run by Pungent, who was also a Puni, only his antenna was pointing upward with a light blue orb attached to it. And he had a mustache.
There were some good items in stock in front of them, with items that he hadn't seen in person before. As Goombella walked over to a nearby black log, Andrew decided to purchase some stuff. He got a couple of Mushrooms, a Mini Mr. Mini item, three HP Drains, and two Ice Storm items. Needless to say, Andrew got a good deal on them, and Flurrie seemed to agree with him.
"My, my, my, Andrew you Hunky Muscle man, you," Flurrie had to compliment him sweetly and flirtatiously. "You are quite the prepared fellow when it comes to adventuring, are you not?"
"Yeah. I've been told that before," Andrew put the items into his backpack for safekeeping. "It never hurts to have extra items on hand in case you get caught in a dangerous situation."
"Can't say that I disagree with you on that," Koops had to admit. "Better to play it safe than sorry."
"Exactly, Koops," Andrew put his backpack on.
"Hey, what the heck?" Goombella noticed someone hiding behind the log.
"What is it, Goombella?" Andrew gave her a confused look.
"Come over here, Andrew," Goombella motioned for him. "There's somebody here! Try talking to him!"
"OK?" Andrew said with a confused look as he approached Goombella along with Koops, Flurrie, and the Punies. As soon as he was in the spot that Goombella was pointing at, Andrew cleared his throat and said rather awkwardly. "Uh, hello?"
It was then something popped up and jumped on top of the black log. It was another Jabbi, only this one was smaller and looked far younger than the average Jabbi.
"Huh?" Andrew was a little confused to see this small Jabbi.
"Hey!" Punio instantly recognized him as he got in front and looked at the Jabbi. "It's Jabble! Why are you hiding back here?"
"This is Jabble?" Andrew wondered. "The one you were talking about before?"
"That's right," Punio confirmed this to be true.
Before Andrew could say something else, Pungent gasped as he let out his reaction towards this.
"Whoa! A Jabbi? Not good!" He seemed a little frantic by Jabble's sudden appearance. "That little feller's gonna get mixed up in my stock!"
However, after understanding the seriousness of the situation before them in the Great Tree, and the fact that Jabble was only a child, Pungent caught his breath before saying calmly.
"...But I suppose I can't go disciplinin' him," Pungent proclaimed. "He's still just a kid, after all."
"Yeah! He's right," Goombella agreed with him. "He IS just a kid, Andrew."
"Wait, is he a lost child?" Koops had to wonder before proclaiming. "Aw, man. That's so sad!"
"Oh, what a PRECIOUS little thing!" Flurrie had to coo in adoration at the sight of Jabble. "He hasn't done anything wrong."
"Yeah," Andrew had to look at Jabble for himself. "He seems harmless."
"Maybe we should, y'know, take it easy on him?" Goombella hoped that Andrew would see it her way.
"Hey, maybe we should let him be, huh?" Koops agreed with her.
"Andrew, we simply must go easy on the poor dear," Flurrie proclaimed.
Andrew had to get another good look at Jabble and started thinking. What was it that got the Jabbies and Punies to hate each other? Was it because this tree wasn't big enough for the both of them? Because that was entirely false since it could hold up BOTH of their clans. He didn't see what was such a big deal about it.
"You know guys," Andrew decided to say. "I think we should let the little guy go."
"I'm 'totally' with you on that, Andrew," Goombella beamed.
"Same here. My darling, Andrew, you are half the man that I hoped you'd be," Flurrie agreed.
"Smart choice, Andrew," Koops told him. "He doesn't look like he's done anything wrong to hurt us."
"No, he hasn't. And you know what? I have a hunch," Andrew decided to share with his partners as to why Jabble was hiding here. "I think Jabble was in this store because he was hiding from the X-Nauts."
"It's likely Andrew," Goombella then said. "Still, he seems so lonely... like he's watching us secretly, y'know?"
"Yeah," Koops voiced. "Doesn't it feel like he's looking at us sort of...well, longingly, Andrew?"
"Oh, what ails you, my little pudding pie?" Flurrie tried comforting Jabble before asking Andrew. "He seems so lonely, doesn't he, Andrew?"
"Sure seems like it," Andrew admitted before saying. "He looks like a lost kid who had just lost his parents and is unable to find a new home that'll take him in. What does he look like to you guys?"
"He almost looks like a lost kitty cat looking for a home," Goombella had to say before adding. "Awww! Too cute!"
"It almost looks like he fell out of his nest and is looking for a new family." Koops had to admit.
"Why, he looks like I do when I step into the spotlight and then forget my very first line," Flurrie decided to share.
"Those are all good guesses. And you're right. He does look like that stuff," Andrew agreed with them.
It was then that Goombella noticed something about Jabble and decided to bring it up. "Hey, you don't think he... He wouldn't want to join us, would he?"
Koops and Flurrie took notice of this and were quick to agree with her.
"Yeah, this might sound crazy, but... Do you think he might be hoping to join us?" Koops was able to say first.
"Oooh... Hold up, now!" Flurrie then proclaimed. "You know what? I believe he might wish to join us!"
"Really?" Andrew then faced Jabble before asking him. "Is that what you want little fella? Would you like to join us in driving the X-Nauts out of the Great Tree?"
Jabble didn't say anything. Instead, he nodded and jumped up and down. It was clear that Jabble was willing to help out the Punies in taking back the Great Tree from the X-Nauts. Jabble jumped down and joined the other Punies.
"Well, it's great to have you on our side Jabble," Punio told him, as if he was talking to an old childhood friend of his.
"Yeah. Happy to have you help us, Jabble," Andrew told him.
"Well, now I've seen it all..." Pungent decided to get out. "From Madame Flurrie to them Jabbies... Yeah, there's no doubt about it. Andrew here has a lot of potential in him. And he can win over the hearts of anyone and everyone!"
"Oh come on. There's no need to say that about me," Andrew had to say modestly. "I'm just a guy who's doing the right thing by helping the Punies drive the X-Nauts out of this tree, which happens to be their home. That's all."
"Even so, Andrew, he ain't entirely wrong," Goombella had to digress. "You are a great and sweet guy."
"You're also considerate of others," Koops added in agreement.
"And you're quite the handsome fella too at that," Flurrie informed him with that suggestive smile.
"OK. OK. Enough with the compliments. I get it," Andrew had to put his hands up and inform them. "I've just never been on this adventuring business before, you know."
"Yeah, Andrew. But you shouldn't turn down a gift straight from the horse's mouth, if ya know what I mean," Goombella had to tell him.
"I guess so," Andrew sighed as he decided to get them back on track. "Well anyway, now that we bought what we needed, we might as well take our leave. Let's go."
Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie agreed with that as they followed Andrew out of the store, along with the 11 Punies and Jabble, who was going to aid them in driving the X-Nauts off.
As soon as they left the store, they decided to head back up the pipe that they came down through and head for the walkway that the Jabbi fled into before. They were now in another hallway with nothing important to it.
However, the one thing Andrew saw ahead of them was a hive that had a camouflage pattern, completely gray. There were some hives near it, and a small mouse hole right in the center bottom of it.
Once Andrew walked close enough to it with his partners, the Punies and Jabble, the siren started going off and flashing a red light. Coming out of the hive was ten Jabbies, and this caught Punio's attention.
"Everyone! It's the Jabbies!" Punio declared to the other Punies and Jabble. "It's a 10-Jabbi squadron! Uh... Let's get them! Come on, Andrew!"
"Do you want me and my partners to assist you in fighting off the Jabbies?" Andrew offered his assistance as Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie were willing to help out as well.
"Uh, that won't be necessary," Punio shook his head. "But I suppose Flurrie could blow the Jabbies back to give us an edge on them."
"You got it," Andrew nodded. "Ready to do this, Flurrie?"
"'Absolutely', dearie," Flurrie smiled as they got close to the Jabbi army.
It was then a battle started to ensue as Flurrie started blowing the Jabbies back a bit.
"Whoa, nelly!" Punio had to say as he and the other Punies, and Jabble charged and started attacking the ten Jabbies.
As soon as Flurrie stopped using her Gale Force move, she joined Andrew, Goombella, and Koops, who were standing off to the side and watched as the Punies and Jabble took out the ten Jabbies themselves.
After a couple of minutes of fighting, all ten Jabbies were taken down, and Punio was ecstatic about how they beat the Jabbi army.
"Wow! We did it! We defeated every last Jabbi here!" Punio then declared. "Now we have to destroy the Jabbi hive fortress!"
With that, Punio stormed for the mouse hole, being joined by Puniper, the other nine Punies, and Jabble as they worked on destroying the fortress so that Andrew and his three partners could get by.
After the ground started shaking several times, they blew up the fortress as the hive got blown to bits, revealing another walkway that Andrew could get by.
"Thank you, Punio," Andrew thanked him and the Punies, and Jabble. "Now, shall we see what's in the room over there?"
"Good idea, Andrew," Punio agreed with him. "Maybe if we're lucky, we can find the key that goes to the blue cell where Petuni and the other Punies are being locked up."
"We'll just have to find out for ourselves," Andrew then directed his three partners to follow as they went into the room.
The next room they went into had what appeared to be four Puni-shaped statues with plates on their heads, which could be used to walk over them.
Andrew also saw four images in a specific order on a rectangular-shaped stand. From left to right, it showed Puni, Star, Moon, Sun. Andrew had to muse at this as he started thinking again.
Something tells me that this is gonna be important to us later... Andrew thought.
Near his feet was a wooden panel that was black and white. And not far from that was a treasure chest, which Andrew thought could have something important for them.
"Hey, look at that chest," Andrew pointed. "Wonder what could be inside of it."
"Only one way to find out," Goombella advised him with a smirk. "Better open it up and see what's in it."
"Got it," Andrew approached the chest and opened it up.
To his surprise, the item that was in there was a Blue Key. And from the looks of it, it must be what they need to unlock that blue cell they saw earlier, which has the rest of the Punies trapped in it.
Once Punio saw the Blue Key for himself, he seemed to be a little over the moon about it, as he knew what it was for.
"Yes! With this key, we should be able to open the cell my people are locked in," Punio declared. "Hurry! We have to free my sister and the others!"
"You got it, Punio," Andrew nodded. "Let's get going back up to the prison cell room, guys."
"Gotcha Andrew, we're right behind you," Goombella beamed as she stayed close to him.
"Ummm...We might as well," Koops agreed. "The other Punies need to be freed if we're gonna get that Crystal Star."
"I couldn't have said it better myself," Flurrie remarked proudly. "Let's go free the other darling Punies, Andrew."
"Great. We better get going," Andrew made his way back up for the way out.
Andrew then left the room along with Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, the 11 Punies, and Jabble as they were planning on using the Blue Key to unlock the blue cell and set free the other 90 Punies that were being held captive. They could only hope that they'd get to Petuni and the other 89 Punies in time...
END OF CHAPTER 17...
Yeah. That's it for this chapter. It was starting to get long here, so I had to cut it short. Still, I hope you have enjoyed the chapter and everything that I could come up with for it.
Anyway, I decided to have Jabble accompany the other Punies in taking back their tree, seeing how some people who played the game remembered about Jabble in the secret shop. So I'm having him stick with the Punies.
Also, I kinda had fun writing out the interactions that Andrew has with his current partners and their comments on a particular situation. It helps build up between Andrew and his partners. Besides, the more partners he gets, the more interactions that'll be shown, and they'll be very interesting too. Just wait.
Lastly, I decided to have some extra traits about the partners, from Koops knowing a Koopa named Koopook who was a neighbor and childhood friend of his, to Flurrie being a touring actress back in the day, which makes sense, and several others too. I think it helps build depth in the characters not shown in the game, kinda like the part where I had Goombella be interested in archaeology since she was a little girl from chapter 6. I have more plans for them, so I also hope that you look forward to it.
Anyhow, next time the 90 Punies are freed and Punio and Petuni reunite happily, as Andrew now has 101 Punies and Jabble. Additionally, they get trapped again and Andrew and his three partners have to find out how to spring loose the Punies and Jabble, Andrew gets a new pair of boots, they get to the bottom of the tree, find the Emerald Star, and Crump snatches it and activates a time bomb detonator. How will this go for them? Read and find out next time, guys!
For now, only if you are interested, you can leave a review and let me know what you thought of this chapter overall. I'm starting to get into the interesting stuff, personally.
Otherwise, I have nothing else to say. So until next time, do take care of yourselves. And on that note, thanks again for reading, everyone!