Okay now, readers. This is the 29th chapter of this story!
In this chapter, Andrew gets another threatening e-mail, a poisoned cake gets sent to him that someone else eats, X sends them on another errand involving a Presto Poster and then find a horrifying discovery on the second floor of the storage room, and they get trapped in an empty locker room, of which they have to escaped from.
Oh, and the battle against the Rawk Hawk takes place too. How will this all go for Andrew and his four partners? Read and find out, now!
IN THE MAJOR LEAGUE LOCKER ROOM:
As soon as they got back to the Major League Locker Room, they decided to register for another match. Their opponent this time was Hamma, Bamma, and Flare; which consisted of a Hammer Bro, a Fire Bro, and a Boomerang Bro, all of which were related to each other.
It didn't take that long for Andrew and his team to beat them. Afterwards, Andrew and his four partners were escorted back to the locker room, where Jolene gave Andrew his prize money and took her leave once again.
Once she was gone, Andrew's Mailbox SP started going off yet again, which got him to sigh as he took it out from his pocket.
"Wonder who it could be this time," Andrew couldn't help but deadpan.
"Only one way to find out," Goombella had to say dryly. "Might as well open it and see what it says."
Andrew then opened it and saw what the message said in his latest e-mail.
"This is your last warning! Stop snooping around about the Crystal Star! If you don't, you'll suffer the same fate as the other fighters who have gone missing..."
Then on cue, all five of them let out collective groans about the new threatening e-mail that Andrew just received.
"Oh for goodness sake," Andrew moaned. "Not another threatening e-mail..."
"Great," Goombella had to agree with Andrew on the aggravation of the situation. "Our angry pen pal again."
"He 'really' seems to know a whole lot of stuff..." Koops had to point out to them.
"Between the Crystal Star and those poor, missing fighters..." Flurrie listed off with two of her fingers. "This fellow seems to know everything we've been trying to find out!"
"I tell you what, if we find this guy, we'll have all the answers we need!" Yoshiam had to declare. "But who is this psycho?"
"I hope that we can find out the identity of our X pal soon," Andrew sighed. "This doesn't seem to be him. But the person who sent us this threatening e-mail must have some sort of a connection with X."
"'Totally' right on that, Andrew," Goombella told him. "For now, we should just continue to work our way into becoming the new champions in the Glitz Pit."
"Yeah. As of right now, we're ranked 3 in the Glitz Pit," Andrew pointed out. "We're almost there. Just a little more fighting till we get to the top."
"All right. If you're so sure about that," Koops had told him. "We can go for it... I guess..."
"I daresay, we shall just continue fighting in the meantime," Flurrie declared. "I am most certain that our fans are asking for more in the Glitz Pit."
"Can't argue with that, Flurrie," Yoshiam jumped up. "Let's register for another match!"
"Right," Andrew went over to the computer terminal screen where he then registered for another match.
As soon as everything was squared away with Grubba for settling another match, the screen turned off. As soon as it did, the door opened and Jolene came in to drop something off.
"Huh? Ms. Jolene?" Andrew had to ask. "What are you doing here?"
"Pardon me, Mr. Presto," Jolene told him. "Another gift arrived from one of your admirers."
"Another gift? Right now?" Andrew tilted his head in confusion at this.
"Yes. I'll just leave it over here if that's OK?" Jolene approached the small table. "Do with it what you will."
Jolene placed the gift on the small table and walked out of the major league locker room shortly afterwards. The gift was revealed to be a cake. It looked almost identical to the first cake that they had received earlier. The only difference was that it had pink frosting instead of yellow.
Andrew raised an eyebrow at this. Not only was it dropped off right before he had to go to a match, but something about it seemed suspicious. It's as if someone was trying to trick him into falling for a possible trap that was set up specifically for him.
By contrast, Yoshiam was very eager and ecstatic at the thought of having two cakes in one day.
"Oh boy! That looks awesome! And YUMMY! Can you believe it? We've gotten two cakes in one day, right here!" Yoshiam had to lick his lips. "LET'S EAT IT!"
"Yoshiam!" Andrew yelled, getting Yoshiam to stop before he dashed right for it. "Listen, we don't have time to eat a cake now! We have to get ready for our next match."
"Oh, Presto. It looks so good though," Yoshiam had to admit.
"I know, but we have a match to go to," Andrew pointed out to him.
Then right on cue, a Security Guard came in to escort Andrew and his team to the ring.
"Mr. Presto, it's time for your next match," the Security Guard instructed him. "Come with me."
"See?" Andrew told him. "We can do something with it after our match."
"Oh...OK, Presto. I guess we can do that," Yoshiam sighed as he walked away from the cake.
"That's more like it," Andrew then said to all four of his partners. "Let's hit the ring."
Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, and Yoshiam nodded as the five of them followed the Security Guard straight to the ring, to take part in their next match...
As it turns out, Andrew's next match was against the Chomp Country; which consisted of two Red Chomps, which as their name implies, were red-colored Chain Chomps.
They seemed pretty strong and had solid armor to protect them from most attacks. But thanks to Yoshiam's Gulp move, and Andrew making good use of his Quake Bat, the Chomp Country was defeated, landing Andrew another victory in the Glitz Pit, raising their rank to number 2.
Once they got back to the Major League Locker Room, Andrew was given his prize money thanks to Jolene. He was earning more money now since he was high up in the ranks. Despite this, he never gained an ego from any of this and remained calm and modest throughout it all.
Once Jolene left, they had noticed that the cake was gone. After that, they saw that the Shady Koopa named Shellshock was on the floor, completely numb in the head and unable to get up as he was on his back.
"Hey, Andrew," Goombella nudged him so he could see for himself. "You see what happened to our pal here?"
"You mean Shellshock?" Andrew asked. "Yeah. He's on the floor."
"That's what I mean! Take a closer look for yourself," Goombella advised him.
Andrew did just that as he saw Shellshock uttering something about cake and it didn't sound pleasant, which gave him the impression that he must've eaten that cake.
"Bluuurgh... Body...went...numb..." Shellshock moaned in pain. "Stupid...cake... Hate...cake... Never...eat...cake...again..."
After taking that in, Andrew had come to a rather shocking revelation, and it involved the second cake that they got.
"Hey guys, you know what I'm thinking?" Andrew rubbed his chin suspiciously.
"That the cake was poisoned!?" Koops had to guess with a shocked expression.
"Yeah," Andrew nodded. "Was someone trying to poison us?"
"I daresay, you may be right, darling," Flurrie had to gasp in shock. "Had we eaten it, we'd have ended up like that poor fellow there!"
"Yeah," Andrew then had to turn to Yoshiam. "You see, Yoshiam? Had we eaten it before we left for the ring, we might've been as banged up like him."
"Yeah, Presto. You're right," Yoshiam had to sigh. "Perhaps it was a good idea for us to pass off a free meal this time."
"I guess. But that's beside the point," Andrew told him. "If getting threatening e-mails isn't enough, now someone tried to poison us with a cake. There's no doubt about it. We 'definitely' have to be careful in the Glitz Pit if we have any hopes of getting to beat the champion."
"Omigosh! That's right Andrew!" Goombella told him. "We better be extra careful from here on!"
"Right," Andrew then decided for them to register for another match.
They were only two more matches away from being the new champs. So they might as well get this next fight done and over with...
As it turns out, their next match happened to be the Koopinator, the guy they saw lose to the Rawk Hawk earlier. He was a tough opponent, but after figuring out how to flip him over, the match pretty much fell in their favor as long as they kept jumping on him while he was down.
Afterwards, they had earned another victory, ranking them number 1 in the Glitz Pit, with the next match undoubtedly being against the champ himself; the Rawk Hawk.
Jolene gave Andrew his prize money before leaving, as usual. Once she was gone, Andrew was looking forward to the championship match in the Glitz Pit. But before he could do anything, his Mailbox SP started going off yet again. And the five of them knew exactly what this meant.
"Hey! That's another mail!" Goombella yelled in surprise. "What do you think? Our X friend or the Haterator?"
"Only one way to find out," Andrew sighed as he took out his Mailbox SP and opened it to see that it was another task given to them by X.
"rEmOvE tHe PrEvAiLiNg PrEsTo pOsTeR In ThE lObBy."
[FrOm] X
"Oh, OK. It's that X guy again." Koops said as he sounded freaked out by his messages.
"I know, Koops. This X guy still creeps us out," Andrew had to explain to him. "But he's the only source we have [in order] to find that Crystal Star."
"I must concur on that comment, Andrew," Flurrie agreed with him. "Even though he still sounds rather trustworthy, we must! Now, he wants us to peel off a lobby poster bearing your handsome muscular likeness, does he?"
"Sure sounds like it, Flurrie," Andrew nodded.
"Sounds good to me," Yoshiam was all for doing it. "Let's hit the lobby."
"OK," Andrew grabbed his backpack and pointed towards the door, from which the five of them walked out, and they headed back into the lobby to peel off one of the Prevailing Presto posters that were hanging up there.
As soon as they entered the lobby, they were greeted by the Toad father and his son, who had wanted to talk with them this time.
"Excuse me," the Toad started to ask. "But you happen to be Mr. Presto right? And that little Yoshi there is Yoshiam, correct?"
"Yes. And yes. I'm Presto and this is Yoshiam," Andrew and Yoshiam seemed rather curious about this. "What can we do for you?"
"Well, my son and I are big fans of yours, Presto," the Toad told him. "And I happen to be a big fan of Yoshiam too."
"Wow. That sounds pretty cool," Yoshiam seemed flattered by that.
"It sure is," Andrew agreed.
"Mr. Presto and Yoshiam, the title match against the champ is coming up," the Toad exclaimed. "Are you both going to give it your all out there?"
"Well, we are gonna try our very best against the Rawk Hawk," Andrew said modestly. "But the two of us, along with our other friends; Goombella, Koops, and Flurrie are hoping that we can deal with the Rawk Hawk once it comes up."
"Well, my son and I will be rooting for you out there," the Toad exclaimed. "Give it your all out there."
"Yeah! What daddy says," the Toad kid agreed. "You happen to be the coolest Mr. Presto. You and your muscles."
"Aw, come on now," Andrew had sounded rather humble with that comment.
"It's true!" The Toad's son proclaimed. "I think that you are just as cool as Prince Mush!"
"Prince Mush," Andrew turned to look towards Goombella. "He's the first champion of the Glitz Pit that you mentioned to me earlier, right?"
"That's 'totally' what I said earlier!" Goombella beamed.
"Yeah! Prince Mush was the first champion and he was the coolest fighter we ever watched!" The Toad's son cheered before he suddenly frowned. "But Prince Mush had gone missing lately and we haven't heard from him since. I wonder what happened to him..."
"Yeah," Andrew rubbed his chin. "That is a mystery..."
"In any case, good luck out in the ring against the champ, Yoshiam," the Toad father wished him luck. "And you too, Presto."
"No worries. We'll give it our all," Yoshiam declared. "And we're gonna deliver the smackdown on that giant chicken!"
"Yeah. He's very eager," Andrew chuckled lightly before telling them. "If you two will excuse us, we have some business to take care of. Hope you guys look forward to our match, OK?"
"We will," the Toad father and his son waved towards him. "Good luck Yoshiam and Presto!"
"Yeah! Good luck out there, Mr. Muscles!" The Toad son called out too.
With that taken care of, Andrew and his four partners left the Toad father and son behind them for now, as they were in the center of the lobby where that giant chandelier was. Andrew looked up to see the poster that depicted the Prevailing Presto on it.
The only problem was that all of the posters depicted the Prevailing Poster; upstairs and downstairs.
"Gosh," Andrew had to blink at this. "Everyone seems to be hyping up the match we're gonna have against the Rawk Hawk. And they expect me to claim the title and win the Champ Belt. They're making a big deal out of this, aren't they?"
"Maybe! But you're a famous fighter now, Andrew!" Goombella beamed and nudged him. "It's to be expected since we're going against the champ next."
"That's true, Goombella. But for now," Andrew had to rub his chin. "We have to remove one of these posters from the wall... But which one should we take down?"
Andrew had to think about this for a moment, as he looked at each one of them. His decision led him and his four partners to go up the stairs to the second floor of the lobby.
"Hey ummm... Andrew?" Koops was curious about this. "Why did we come up here?"
"Well, it's this poster in particular that has caught my attention," Andrew did a close examination of the Presto poster on the far left. "I bet this poster is hiding something. Flurrie, if you wouldn't mind blowing this poster off of the wall.
"I would be glad to, dearie," Flurrie went forward and used her Gale Force move to blow away that one Presto poster.
Once it was blown off of the wall, another key fell out from behind it. This one was a Storage Key just like the last one, as Andrew decided to pick it up once it landed on the floor.
"Hey guys," Andrew held the key up for them to see. "I found another key."
"My, my, my! Mercy me!" Flurrie was astounded. "Whatever could that key be for?"
"We're about to find out in just a second," Andrew declared as if he was expecting his Mailbox SP to go off.
Then, right on cue, it did, as Andrew took out his Mailbox SP, opened it up, and saw what X wanted them to do next.
"gO tO tHe SeCoNd FlOoR oF tHe StOrAgE rOoM."
[FrOm] X
"Well guys, you know what this means," Andrew instructed them. "Let's head back to the Storage Room."
Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, and Yoshiam nodded as the five of them headed back to the storage room. They took the door on the right this time, as they passed by some unused room.
Andrew also took notice of a fancy-looking Toad woman, who by the looks of it, lived a rather aristocratic lifestyle. There was something about her that caught his fancy and was intrigued, but he decided to put it to the back of his mind for now. They needed to get to the Storage Room.
On the way by, Andrew found a Last Stand badge in a blue box near the right entrance of the ring. Andrew put that badge in his badge kit before they continued to head back to the Storage room.
As soon as they entered the Storage Room, they went back up the stairs and headed towards the right this time.
Using the key that he just found, Andrew unlocked the padlock on the door, which fell and disappeared upon landing. He was able to open the door as he entered with his four partners into the room.
With the help of Yoshiam, the five travelers made it to the other side of some wooden crates. Andrew ended up finding a Star Piece nearby, which he pocketed before he noticed a giant yellow block that needed to be broken down.
"Well Andrew, you know what to do," Goombella informed him.
"Right," Andrew took out his Super Bat as he got ready to use the Super Bat swing on the giant block. "Let's get this over with..."
As soon as he twisted himself multiple times, Andrew spun around with the bat held out, bashing the block several times before it got demolished, and then they saw what was under it.
Nothing could prepare them for what they saw next, especially for Andrew. Words couldn't describe just how horrified they were when they saw that underneath the giant block were two rather decomposed bodies with flies hovering over them.
The two bodies happened to be Bandy Andy and King K. This got them 'absolutely' terrified by seeing them in this condition. All five of them reacted rather appropriately to the sight before them.
"HOLY SMOKES!" Andrew howled in horror.
"OMIGOSH!" Goombella had to scream in a rather shrill manner to what she saw.
"WHAT THE HECK?!" Koops yelled at the unexpected shock before them.
"OH, MY WORD!" Flurrie shouted rather dramatically.
"WHOOOOOOAAAAA!" Yoshiam hollered at this.
"YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS!" Andrew couldn't help but bellow. "This can't be true! Bandy Andy...a-and King K!?"
Feeling the need to check on them, the five of them approached the decomposed bodies of Bandy Andy and King K. Bandy Andy was able to speak to them, as he needed to give Andrew a warning about something important. And it involved the Glitz Pit ring.
"Pre... Pre... Presto... Listen...to me...URK!...man..." Bandy Andy started to warn them hoarsely. "Don't...get...near...the...ring...when...no...one...is...around... Ohhhhhhh..."
"Bandy Andy! Come on! Snap out of it!" Andrew had to tell him. "What do you mean when you say don't go near the ring?"
"Andy! Stay with us, OK?" Goombella tried assuring him.
"We're gonna get through this!" Koops added.
"Andy, honey, just hang on!" Flurrie informed him in a worried manner.
"C'mon, shake it off, buddy!" Yoshiam had to encourage him. "Don't you DARE give up on me, dude!"
"I...I...don't...think...I'm...gonna...make...it..." Bandy Andy moaned softly. "Aaaaaaargh..."
And with that, Bandy Andy fell flat, no longer conscious as the five of them were greatly concerned.
"Omigosh! This is bad! This is so 'totally' bad!" Goombella had to exclaim as Andrew walked over to King K. "What happened here?! Who could have done this?!"
"GUYS! King K got it even WORSE! He isn't talking!" Andrew had to say before he suddenly screamed. "OH NO! HE'S NOT EVEN BREATHING!"
"Goodness gracious! This is TRULY a tragic set of events!" Flurrie had to declare in a rather dramatic manner. "What kind of foul INHUMANE BEAST would be responsible for such a horrible monstrosity!?"
"I dunno..." Koops had to shake his head. "This is starting to freak me out..."
"Me too, Koops," Andrew had to agree. "We better get out of here and...huh?"
It was then he saw someone watching them while they were looking over the decomposed bodies of Bandy Andy and King K. His partners saw it too as they were able to quickly identify the person spying on them.
They approached the door and realized that it was Jolene. Once she saw that they were watching her, she stormed out of the storage room and this caught their attention.
"Whoa! Did you see that, Andrew?" Goombella asked him worriedly.
"I do believe that was young Ms. Jolene!" Flurrie had to admit.
"HOW DID SHE KNOW THAT WE WERE IN HERE?!" Andrew demanded as he felt like his sanity was being tested to the limit.
"My brain is starting to hurt trying to figure all this out," Koops had to put his hands on his head as he shook it, looking like he was one second away from having a total meltdown. "What is going ON?!"
"This is craziness!" Yoshiam had to roar in panic. "What is going ON in here?!"
"OK... OK... Let's not panic," Andrew had to take deep breaths to ensure that he could keep the team under control. "I'm sure that there is a perfectly good explanation for all of this. And it's one that we won't get the answer to until X e-mails us again."
"You're right, Andrew. We should all just calm down, and take it easy," Goombella had to agree as she took deep breaths to ensure that she wouldn't have a panic attack. "Besides, I guess I have the answers to one of the Seven Wonders of the Glitz Pit; the Stairs of Mystery, since the moaning heard from upstairs happens to have come from Bandy Andy and King K, who are currently clinging to dear life. And they're only two victims that are the Missing Ones, along with Prince Mush."
"Yeah. That makes sense. I guess these were the poor souls that Ms. Mowz warned us about earlier," Andrew sighed. "But we'll have to dwell on it later. We need to get out of here and get ready for our title match."
"A pleasant choice, sweetum," Flurrie declared. "For now, we shall take to the stage for our title match!"
"Yeah. Good thinking, Andrew," Koops told him. "We'll worry about this later, after our title match against the Rawk Hawk."
"Aw heck yeah!" Yoshiam jumped in excitement. "Time to lay the biggest beatdown on that big chicken!"
"You said it," Andrew had to smirk. "It's time that we knock that oversized bird's ego down a few pegs."
"Can't argue with that," Goombella grinned at what Andrew said. "Let's get rolling."
And so the five of them left the storage room and went back to the Major League Locker Room.
Once they got back in there, Andrew took notice of something he hadn't caught notice of before. It was an Ice Storm item.
After grabbing it, he put it into his backpack, dropped his backpack in one of the lockers, and approached the computer terminal screen. He touched it and clicked the 'Reserve a Match; button on the screen. In a matter of seconds, Grubba appeared on the screen, as he seemed eager to see Andrew waiting for his next match.
"The Prevailin' Presto! Howdy!" Grubba greeted before asking. "Fixin' for a fight, huh?"
"Just about," Andrew nodded with a grin along with his four partners.
"Hyuk hyuk hyuk hyuk hyuk! Well, guess what? Your next match is...THE TITLE MATCH!" Grubba had to reveal to him. "Hoooo-WEEEEE! Darn tootin'! You're up against the champ, Rawk Hawk!"
"That's kinda what we expected," Andrew admitted.
"Now, I wanna see a fair an' excitin' match, so don't you let me down, now, you hear?" Grubba insisted.
"We won't," Andrew promised.
"Now listen, son: in this battle, I want you to use at least one special move, OK?" Grubba gave him his condition.
"One special move," Andrew repeated back.
"The crowd needs somethin' flashy, you catch my drift?" Grubba explained to him. "Give 'em a good show."
"Got it," Andrew nodded, willing to accept this condition.
"Now get in there [an'] blow the roof off, son!" Grubba informed him.
"Right," Andrew said as the screen turned off. "All right, guys. Are you all ready to face the Rawk Hawk?"
"Totally!" Goombella beamed.
"Sure thing," Koops said casually.
"Absolutely!" Flurrie swooned in joy.
"Aw yeah," Yoshiam cheered. "We're ready to do this!"
"Good to know," Andrew smiled.
It was then the Security Guard came in to escort them out of the Major League Locker Room.
"Mr. Presto, it's time for your next match," the Security Guard had to inform him. "Come with me."
"Let's do this," Andrew declared as the five of them followed the Security Guard out of the room.
Unfortunately, it looked like something was off as the guard was bringing them into the wrong direction of the ring.
"What the...?" Andrew shook his head. "Hey! Where do you think you're going?"
"Yeah! The ring's this way!" Goombella jumped in.
"Uh-huh. Isn't the ring this way?" Koops had to query.
"I do believe you're taking us the wrong way..." Flurrie pointed out.
"That ain't the way to the arena!" Yoshiam had to yell at him as the Security Guard turned around to face them.
"Yeah, uh, you go this way this time 'cause it's a special match." The Security Guard suspiciously told them.
He then walked down through the opposite way that the ring was, as they had to follow him. They were starting to get confused by this.
Where were they going? And why were they heading this way? Special match or not, shouldn't they have gone through the door that they usually make their entrance from?
"Look, sir. This doesn't make any sense," Andrew had to voice. "Exactly where are you taking us?"
"Slow down, will ya, buddy?" Goombella wondered. "WHY are we going this weird way again?"
"Hey, listen, wait up!" Koops also needed to ask. "Where are you taking us?"
"Sir, I really must protest..." Flurrie queried. "Where are we off to?"
"Hey, hold it, meathead!" Yoshiam voiced his confusion. "This doesn't seem right..."
By the time they were done asking, they were at the other end of the backstage corridor as the Security Guard approached one of the doors to an unused room, which another guard got out of the way for him to enter.
The room was 'apparently' a Minor League Locker Room that was empty. And it looked eerily similar to the other locker room that they were once in before. As soon as all five of them entered the locker room, the Security Guard looked them straight in the eye before telling them something.
"You five wait here," the guard told them, as they each had confused looks before he left and closed the door behind him.
"What the...?" Andrew had to observe his surroundings.
"But this is a minor-league locker room!" Goombella had to cry out.
"And where is everybody?" Koops queried.
"He DID say to wait here... But, darling, I can't help but think we'll miss our match!" Flurrie had to exclaim in a rather drastic tone.
"This stinks!" Yoshiam had to kick his right foot in irritation.
"Yeah..." Andrew was left thinking as the five of them remained in the locker room for the time being...
OUT IN THE GLITZ PIT:
Meanwhile, in the Glitz Pit, it was clear that everyone was getting ready for the title match with the Prevailing Presto vs. the Rawk Hawk. It was a highly anticipated match for everyone as everyone in Glitzville was watching. This included the Bob-omb family, as well as that aristocratic Toad woman.
In the center of the was Grubba, who was planning on announcing the title match to the audience.
"Now fer today's main event! The top dog of the major league... The Prevailin' Presto..." Grubba started to announce. "...Is finally gonna throw down with the champ! The one...the only... RAWK HAWK!"
Grubba then looked at the blue door to the right, which is where the Rawk Hawk will be making his appearance.
"First to enter the ring... The Feral Nuclear Reactor! RAAAAAWWWK HAAAAWWWK!" Grubba announced by pointing towards the right.
The Rawk Hawk enters as he makes his way for the ring as some of his most diehard loyal fans are cheering for him, with one person declaring that he should 'Rawk' the opponent. As soon as he was in the ring, Grubba approached him and he decided to tell him.
"Hooooo, DOGGIES! Champ!" Grubba started. "How're you feelin', son? Yer challenger's a handful!"
"He 'don't want a handful of THIS! Unh-unh!" Rawk Hawk showed off the big guns on his arms that were his muscles before snorting. "There's only one champ... and it's ME! Even if this Presto ever shows up, what's he gonna do, huh? NOTHING!"
"But the Prevailin' Presto made it to the top of the majors faster than anyone, ever!" Grubba had to remind him. "He even got up there faster than YOU did, Champ! What you got to say about that?"
"What do I have to say? PBBBBBBBTTHHHHBBTH! THAT'S what!" Rawk Hawk made a spitting sound before speaking haughtily. "Who cares what this guy did to a bunch of chumps?! 'Cause now he gets RAWKED!"
And so Grubba decided not to comment further on the subject. He could only wait for Andrew and his four partners to show up for the match.
Back in the empty locker room, the five fighters had grown fed up with waiting, as they needed to take some action right now.
"OK, they are like, totally, ridiculously late now!" Goombella couldn't help but gripe. "I'm gonna find out what's up."
"Might as well," Andrew said in agreement as Goombella approached the door. "This is getting ridiculous."
It got even more ridiculous when Goombella tried opening the door. But as it turns out, it wasn't budging. That meant one thing; the door was locked, and they were locked in there. Goombella had a shocked expression on her face as she had to tell Andrew and the others this right away.
"Omigosh! Omigosh! Andrew! It's locked!" Goombella panicked. "The door's locked! We're 'totally' trapped!"
"What!?" Andrew couldn't believe what he was hearing, as Koops needed to check it out too.
"Ohhh...crud. She's right, Andrew," Koops had to tell him in a worried manner. "This door's been locked."
"WHAT!?" Andrew bellowed before all five of them yelled simultaneously. "We're trapped in here!"
Back in the ring, Grubba looked towards the door that Andrew usually goes through with the ambition of announcing his arrival right now.
"And now for our challenger... The Speedy Determinator..." Grubba then announced. "THE PREEEEEEVAILIN' PRESTO!"
Unfortunately, no one came through the door when he shouted that. A couple of minutes later, still no one. And a couple of minutes after that, still no one.
Grubba had to adjust his shades at this as he was wondering about something; where was Presto? And why hasn't he shown up?
"...Hold the phone, folks!" Grubba had to ask. "What the hey's going on? What happened to the Prevailin' Presto?!"
"Harharharharharharhar!" Rawk Hawk laughed in such an arrogant manner. "I'll tell you what happened! He fears the RAWWWWWWWK!"
"Hoo-WEE!" Grubba had to express these sudden changes of events. "What a stupefyin' development, folks! Did the Prevailin' Presto 'really' turn yella an' head fer the hills like a dog?! I tell you what, folks... If he [don't] show soon, he's a-gonna forfeit the match!"
And so everyone was heard murmuring and gasping in worry as to how the Prevailing Presto hadn't shown up yet. All they could do was hang onto their seats and pray that he'll show up soon before he forfeits the match.
In that empty locker room, the five travelers were desperate with needing to find a way out of this locker room.
"Correct me if I'm wrong, darling, but won't we forfeit if we don't show up?" Flurrie had to ask Andrew.
"Yes Flurrie," Andrew told her. "We'll forfeit the match if we don't make it to the ring."
"In that case, we gotta break outta here, man! Right now!" Yoshiam declared.
"Right. Let's try to figure this out," Andrew did some thinking before he noticed something on the wall to the right.
It was a Princess Peach poster, which seemed suspicious as to how anyone in Glitzville has one of those. More importantly, it looked like it held something secret for them.
"Hey guys! Do you see that poster over there!?" Andrew pointed out to them. "That poster of Princess Peach?"
"Huh? Omigosh! I didn't notice that there before," Goombella had to blink. "Then again, why am I surprised? This minor-league locker room is just as gnarly as the one we were in. If you check the lockers or behind the posters, I bet there are stains and graffiti."
"Stains and graffiti might not be the only thing behind this Peach poster," Andrew declared. "It might hold the secret of getting out of here! Flurrie, if you wouldn't mind getting rid of the poster for us?"
"I'll be more than glad to," Flurrie stepped up and used her Gale Force move to blow away the poster.
As soon as it was gone, the five of them saw a walkway that they went right through. They were now in a locker with a headlamp above them, a table with a green cup with some used napkins on it, and an red old-fashioned TV.
"Golly. Who'd have a TV in a locker such as this?" Koops had to query at this.
"I dunno. But there's a door that'll get us out of this locker room," Andrew pointed towards the yellow locker door.
The five of them opened the door and walked right out of the locker. They then ended up in an empty major-league locker room.
"So, is this a major-league locker room?" Andrew scratched his head.
"That's right. It's opposite the other one," Goombella proclaimed. "Why was there a hidden room behind the lockers, anyway? What would it be used for? Mysteries are 'totally' everywhere in the Glitz Pit!"
"And more of them will probably be unveiled to us in due time," Andrew then saw the door that led out of the locker room. "Hey look. A door. Is this one locked too?"
"I shall check," Flurrie floated over to try opening it, only for this one not to budge either. "Drat! Locked as well!"
"This stinks!" Goombella yelped in fear as they had no idea how they got into this.
"I'm freaking out!" Koops felt his eyes swirling as he held his hands up to his head.
"They thought of EVERYTHING!" Yoshiam bellowed while shaking his fist angrily at the door.
"OK, guys. This is a minor setback. But there should be another way out of here," Andrew then looked around and saw a bathroom on the other side of the room. "Hey guys! It's a bathroom. I hope this one isn't occupied."
Andrew walked over and opened it up. To his relief, the bathroom wasn't occupied. He was able to enter it along with Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, and Yoshiam. All five of them were in the bathroom together as they looked down the toilet which had its seat up.
"Eww. Who'd leave the toilet seat up like this?" Goombella gagged as she shook her head. "That's just gnarly."
"Probably someone who was a man that used it last," it was then Andrew came up with an idea as to how they'd get out of here. But it was going to be messy. And it wouldn't be the most sanitary idea he came up with.
"Guys? There's only one way we can get out of here," Andrew sighed before revealing to them. "We'll have to go down the toilet and use it like we use the pipes."
"You can't be serious," Goombella thought she was hearing things as Andrew got on top of the toilet.
"I'm afraid so," Andrew told her. "Now let's go guys. We need to get out of here."
"Oh. Fine," Goombella moaned as she got up onto the toilet with Andrew.
Koops, Flurrie, and Yoshiam followed suit as all five of them were on top of the toilet.
"You guys ready?" Andrew asked, to which the four of them gave him a brief nod. "OK. Here we go."
From there, Andrew flushed the toilet. As soon as he did, the five of them went down the toilet like a few sheets of toilet paper. Once they went through it, the seat went down, as if it had just eaten the five of them.
In the backstage corridor, the Security Guards were confused by the sound of someone traveling through the toilet system. Despite this, they decided not to investigate it.
By the time that they had gotten out, they emerged from another toilet which was in the major league locker room that they were familiar with.
They jumped down from that toilet as the partners had different opinions on the experience. Goombella and Flurrie were disgusted and grossed out by having to travel by toilet.
"That...was maybe the grossest thing I've ever done," Goombella had to gag while sticking her tongue out in disgust. "Uh-huh."
"I should like to request that we NEVER do that again," Flurrie had to agree with her.
Koops and Yoshiam, meanwhile, were a little more intrigued by how they traveled from toilet to toilet.
"Whoa. Is that what plumbers do?" Koops wondered in amusement. "I had no idea, man. Wow."
"Dude, I have got SO much respect for plumbers now!" Yoshiam declared.
"And to think that the Mario Brothers do this sort of work regularly," Andrew shook his head, indifferent about the experience. "Regardless, it wasn't the most sanitary experience for us. But the important thing is that we got out of those locker rooms. Besides, this might be one of the Seven Wonders of the Glitz Pit, Goombella. Isn't it the Man-Eating Toilet?"
"Omigosh! That's true, Andrew!" Goombella gasped and realized that he was right. "It's rumored that a toilet in a major-league locker room is said to devour anyone that attempts to use it. The toilet we just went through was possibly the toilet it's referring to when we used it to get out of the locked-up locker rooms as we used the "man-eating" toilet to travel to the toilet here. In this bathroom that's strangely occupied by someone."
"Exactly," Andrew nodded before opening the bathroom door. "Now, shall we make our way to the ring?"
"Gotcha Andrew," Goombella beamed. "Let's get to the fight!"
"Let's go!" Koops proclaimed.
"To the arena!" Flurrie declared in a dramatic sense.
"Now let's get Rawk Hawk!" Yoshiam cheered.
Andrew nodded as the five of them left the bathroom before leaving the Major League Locker Room, where they then headed straight for the ring on their own, using the red door that they were used to using by this point...
As for how things were going in the arena, Grubba was just about to give up, when suddenly, the red door to the left opened up, which caught his attention.
Entering the arena were Andrew and his four partners. This got Grubba psyched up as his star player had finally shown up to the match. He decided to make this clear to the audience.
"The moment you've been waitin' for, folks!" Grubba announced as he directed the audience towards Andrew. "The Prevailin' Presto just entered the arena!"
Everyone's spirits were lifted in the audience as people were heard chanting 'PRES-TO!' over and over again, with most of them hoping that he'd claim the champ title from the Rawk Hawk. Andrew, for his part, was rather amused by this.
"Wow. We made it in time. And talk about a crowd pleaser," Andrew had to rub his chin. "Looks like the crowd has been waiting for us to show up."
"And listen to those cheers, Andrew!" Goombella encouraged him in her preppy manner. "They love you!"
"Listen to all those cheers! Your fans are out in force!" Koops agreed.
"It certainly sounds like the fans approve!" Flurrie was in awe at hearing them chant. "Ah, it reminds me so much of my time on stage!"
"No kidding there!" Yoshiam had to admit loudly. "The crowd is LOVING US! We are STARS, baby!"
"I know," Andrew had to smirk. "You guys ready to do this? Let's knock this giant chicken's ego down several pegs!"
"Aw yeah! Let's go lay the smackdown on that big chicken!" Yoshiam declared.
All five of them jumped up the stairs and now were standing in the ring across from where the Rawk Hawk was standing. With Grubba backing up and standing in the center, giving them room to fight.
"Just listen to this crowd hoot 'n' holler fer the challenger, Prevailin' Presto!" Grubba decided to announce the beginning of the battle. "Will his battin' of hurt 'n' harm be enough to rock the Rawk Hawk's socks? Now, at long last, the battle to end all battles is here! Let's keep it clean, boys!"
"Got it," Andrew told him right as the bell rang.
The battle against the Rawk Hawk was just about to begin. As some rather hard-rocking heavy metal tune was playing that sounded grungy, Andrew and his four partners stood in front of the Rawk Hawk, who looked like he was towering right over them. Despite this, Andrew was eager to get the fight going.
"OK, guys. This is it. The title match," Andrew declared. "Don't hold anything back!"
"You know it, Andrew! A match with the champ!" Goombella beamed in agreement. "Let's destroy this guy!"
"Right," Andrew and his other three partners nodded in agreement before they heard a haughty laugh.
It was revealed that the Rawk Hawk was laughing haughtily as he had his arms crossed confidently.
"Harharharharharhar!" Rawk Hawk did his trademark laugh before he made a rather startling reveal to them. "You wimps should've stayed locked up, safe and sound!"
Now this caught Andrew and his partners by surprise. Was the Rawk Hawk implying exactly what they thought he was telling him?
"What do you mean by that?" Koops had to ask before Flurrie stepped in.
"Am I to understand that it was you who got the security guard to lock us away?" Flurrie had to ask him in a rather proper but stern manner.
"You're darn right I did!" Rawk Hawk admitted with no shame at all. "I also sent you that poisoned cake, suckers!"
"Uh, you do realize that you're revealing this to us in front of an entire crowd of people, right?" Andrew had to deadpan in annoyance, pointing out that he could be disqualified for pulling such a dirty trick like this.
"Well tough break!" Rawk Hawk snorted. "That's what happens when you mess with me, baby! You meet the pain train!"
Andrew couldn't help but furrow his eyebrows at this, as Yoshiam came to a horrible conclusion before he snapped at him.
"So YOU'RE the coward who's been sending nasty e-mails about the Crystal Star!" Yoshiam bellowed at him.
This got the Rawk Hawk to raise an eyebrow at this. What was the little runt telling him? Something about a Crystal Star?
"Huh? I have no idea what you're babbling about now," Rawk Hawk wondered. "What's a Crystal Star?"
Before anyone could answer, the Rawk Hawk brushed it off and snorted. "No, wait... I DON'T CARE! I may not play exactly fair, but I've got skills, punks! And now, you're about to meet 'em all, baby! Prepare to be RAAAAAAAAWKED!"
"And now you're about to see what happens when you manage to underestimate us," Andrew declared before looking towards Goombella. "But first things first Goombella? Would you mind looking this guy up for us?"
"I'm 'totally' on it," Goombella already had her Tattle Log out as she looked for the page that had the Rawk Hawk in it. "Oh! Here it is!"
"OK. Let's hear it," Andrew encouraged her to share.
"Gotcha!" Goombella beamed before reading it out loud for Andrew to hear. "That's Rawk Hawk! He flips, flaps, and slaps! ...That's what the book says."
"Seriously? It does?" Andrew raised an eyebrow. "Did the Rawk Hawk write his own Tattle Log entry?"
"I would think so," Goombella made that 'pffft' sound with her lips before she continued. "Anyway, he's 'really' good at aerial maneuvers, but other than that, he's pretty... meh. One thing you should know is that Rawk Hawk NEVER fights above the board."
"Which would explain why he locked us in a locker room and why he tried poisoning us with a cake," Andrew deadpanned.
"Carelessness leads to lifelessness, y'know!" Goombella finished up for him as she smiled.
"No kidding," Andrew nodded before he noticed the Rawk Hawk was about to do his Double Flip attack on all five of them. "Guys. We better SCATTER!"
And with that, all five of them had to scatter out of the way to avoid the Rawk Hawk's Double Flip attack. Out of all five of them, Yoshiam was the one who got a taste of the Rawk Hawk's boot while barely avoiding most of his attacks. This got him to skid several feet in the ring.
"Oh no! Yoshiam," Andrew gasped before glaring at the Rawk Hawk. "All right, you asked for it!"
Without wasting a single breath, Andrew jumped through the air and performed a Power Bounce attack on the Rawk Hawk's head. He struck him at least 9 times or so. Goombella then followed with her Headbonk attack, landing two successful strikes.
The crowd was already getting excited as Yoshiam stood back up and shook his head. 'Apparently', it would take a lot more than a strike from his boot to knock him out.
By now, Koops had landed a Shell Toss hit on Rawk Hawk, using his breakdancing technique to get out of the way of his Slide Kick and to get the audience more excited.
Flurrie soared through the air and landed a Body Slam attack on him, leaving behind a good amount of damage. Feeling like he had gotten a hold of his head, Yoshiam leaped for the air and flutter-jumped towards the Rawk Hawk until he was right over his head.
As soon as he was, he performed his Ground Pound move, hitting him at least four times. Andrew then grinned at this as he took out his Super Bat and landed a successful Power Swing on the Rawk Hawk. He was impressed that his team was doing so well so far.
Rawk Hawk shook all of this off as he then gave Andrew a haughty stare.
"Pbbbth! Not too shabby!" Rawk Hawk huffed. "You're better than I thought. This may 'actually' be fun!"
"Now you know better than to underestimate me," Andrew told him sharply.
"Don't get your head swelled, though, 'cause you got a ways to go! Check this out!" Rawk Hawk then held his right-handed index finger up, looking as if he was about to boogie. "TIME TO RAAAAAAAWK!"
He then took to the air and performed what is called his Superman Slam attack; the same Lucha Libre-styled move he used to take down the Koopinator.
He made contact with Andrew, which caused him to be sent flying. Luckily, Andrew was able to maintain the balance of his feet as he did several backflips through the air, allowing him to land and skid onto his feet.
"Nice try," Andrew frowned. "It'll take a lot more than that to stop me!"
Andrew then charged and did a Power Jump on him, landing a successful attack. Goombella then cackled in excitement as she went ahead and performed her Multibonk attack on the chicken hawk. She hit him on the head at least 7 times.
Koops was able to hit him again with a Power Shell, before skidding onto the center of the ring, in his shell, before he met contact with his Double Flip attack. Koops then got onto his back and did his breakdancing move again for the audience.
Flurrie then approached him from behind as she performed her Lip Lock attack by kissing him and draining some of his energy to add to her own.
"All right, Yoshiam," Andrew got his Super Bat out again. "Ready to do a Gulp-Super Bat swing combination attack?"
"I'm on it, Presto!" Yoshiam then approached the Rawk Hawk launched his tongue out and wrapped it around him. He then spat the Rawk Hawk out towards Andrew, who swung his Super Bat right when the Rawk Hawk was in close range of being hit. The Rawk Hawk was sent flying before he fell onto the ground, skidding onto it face-first.
By the time the Rawk Hawk got up, he was starting to become aggravated. These chumps were now becoming an annoyance to fight. They were 'actually' Rawking the Rawk Hawk. Letting out a growl and a sneer, Rawk Hawk glowered at the five of them.
"Man, you're kinda annoying!" Rawk Hawk told them angrily. "How DARE you turn the Rawk back on the Hawk?!"
"How does it feel having your ego being brought down several pegs?" Andrew asked calmly with a smirk as he crossed his arms.
"I should've just taken care of you before the battle," Rawk Hawk retorted. "I'm getting lazy, I guess. Well, since it's come down to this, I guess I got no choice but to..."
He then slammed his feet onto the ground and caused a beam to lower from the ceiling. Jumping up to grab onto the bar of the beam, he then started shaking it to cause stuff to fall on top of them, pulling what appeared to be a Prop Drop attack.
"We better take cover," Andrew advised his four partners.
The five of them got out of the way before props fell right on top of them. Andrew then realized that the Rawk Hawk wasn't going to come down from there. Looks like he had to make good use of his bat yet again.
"I think this calls for a Quake Bat to get that big chicken down," Andrew got out his bat as he approached the center of the ring.
Holding the bat over his head, he then slammed it into the ground, causing a tremor that was felt up to the ceiling. This caused some damage to the Rawk Hawk, as he fell before the beam collapsed and fell right on top of him.
Rawk Hawk still had some energy to push the beam off of him. He didn't have time to react when Goombella landed another Headbonk to the head. Rawk Hawk then did another Slide Kick aimed at Koops, who dodged it by getting into his shell and sliding out of the way.
Remaining in his shell, Koops performed yet another Shell Toss on the Rawk Hawk, doing his breakdancing routine for the crowd yet again.
Flurrie followed up with her Body Slam attack, which made contact, and Yoshiam landed another Ground Pound on his head, striking him four times in a row.
Rawk Hawk then performed his Superman Slam attack again directed towards Andrew. Thankfully, Andrew was able to dodge that one as he then performed his Spin Jump attack on the Rawk Hawk.
Rawk Hawk could only wipe his beak as he sneered at them.
"GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR! Bah!" Rawk Hawk brushed that off. "I've only just begun to RAAAAAWWWWWWK!"
"And I'm going to end it, too," Andrew declared.
"Huh?" Rawk Hawk was confused by what he was saying.
"Watch THIS!" Andrew took out his Magical Map and he then summoned the Diamond Star to perform the Earth Tremor attack on Rawk Hawk. "OK, guys! Get on!"
Goombella, Koops, Flurrie, and Yoshiam obliged as all five of them stood on top of the Diamond Star. Then just like before, Andrew put enough concentration into it so it could get big enough to complete Rawk the Rawk Hawk entirely.
Thanks to this, the Diamond Star eventually grew six times its normal size as it started slamming itself into the ground, creating multiple tremors in the process. This caused the Rawk Hawk to get struck by each one that made contact with him, sending him upward several times in the process.
Once this was done, the five of them hopped off the Diamond Star and it then disappeared.
"Woo HOO!" Yoshiam cheered. "That was AWESOME! Who knew that Crystal Stars could do that!?"
"I daresay that was a rather pleasant experience," Flurrie agreed. "So I am to believe that the Crystal Stars are capable of doing many things."
"That's right," Andrew said as he looked at the Rawk Hawk. "Looks like we've done it, guys."
At that moment, the Rawk Hawk fell flat onto his back, unable to get back up, as he was pretty much defeated by Andrew and his team.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Rawk Hawk yelled in defeat. "I... Rawk Hawk... The champ... The undefeated master... I've lost to...such losers... Yuuuuuurgh..."
At that, the Rawk Hawk was unconscious as the crowd was roaring cheers from all over at how Andrew and his crew took down the Rawk Hawk.
"I don't believe it. We 'actually' won," Andrew said calmly.
"Darn right, we won!" Goombella beamed excitedly. "This is so 'totally' AWESOME! WE ROCK!"
"Folks, I feel like my eyes just popped outta my head!" Grubba decided to comment on how Andrew pulled through against the Rawk Hawk. "We got ourselves a miracle! Technique versus technique! Raw power versus raw power! A clash of superhumans! Folks, this was truly, honestly, without question, no doubt, 'absolutely'... The most legendary, amazin', improbable, history-makin' bout of all TIME!"
Grubba then approached Andrew intending to direct the crowd's attention to him. "And the victor in this match fer the ages was... THE PREEEEEEVAILIN' PREEEESTO! Congratulations, Presto! Yer the champion, son! Give him a hand, folks! The new Glitz Pit champ! THE PREEEEEEVAILIN' PRESTO!"
"Thank you everyone. Though, I'm not that great," Andrew spoke in a modest tone. "Not alone, at least. I'd like to give my biggest thanks to my team, who also helped make all of this possible! To each of my partners; Goombella. Koops. Madame Flurrie. And my recent partner, Yoshiam. These guys deserve just as much credit if not MORE than I do! So I appreciate their assistance! I'd like for everyone to give them a round of applause too!"
And that's what the audience did as they chanted for his four partners, in addition to Presto. All four of his partners were pretty impressed by how much they enjoyed their fight, and how they are now the official champions in the Glitz Pit.
"Well, it's like I said, the five of us ROCK," Goombella beamed in a preppy manner. "There's nothing we can't do. And WHY?! Cause we are an amazing team!"
"Gosh...Wow...Ummm...Golly. We won," Koops was still taking in the fact that they defeated the champion. "We're now the official champs of the Glitz Pit."
"I certainly had zero doubts that we could make it. There's a reason for Andrew being called the Prevailing Presto," Flurrie told them in a proper dignified manner. "He has a handsome set of muscles, and he showed it to everyone watching our show when we defeated the Rawk Hawk."
"No kidding! The five of us are champions now!" Yoshiam cheered as he jumped up and down before throwing the goat with both hands. "We rocked this crowd's socks off when we took down that giant chicken!"
"Yes. And we did it together," Andrew had to admit with a smile on his face.
It didn't take long for Andrew and his team to be escorted out of the arena and brought back to the Major League Locker Room, where Andrew would be given the Champ Belt and then escorted into the Champ's Room...
IN THE MAJOR LEAGUE'S LOCKER ROOM:
Andrew was wearing his backpack again on his back, as he knew that he and his four partners would be escorted straight to the Champ's Room. Grubba had accompanied them to the locker room in addition to Jolene, as Grubba felt that it was fitting for him to hand the Champ Belt to Andrew.
"Well, you finally did it, son!" Grubba had to congratulate him by shaking his hand. "Today's yer first day as the new champ! Here's yer belt!"
He then handed Andrew the Champ Belt that had the fake Crystal Star on the front of it.
"Thank you, Mr. Grubba," Andrew thanked him as he put the belt on around his waist.
"Tell you what: I'm gonna go ahead [an] get you set up in the champ's room right away," Grubba informed him.
"That's a pretty good idea," Andrew smiled.
"I thought so," Grubba then took a glance towards Jolene before telling her. "Ms. Jolene, be a peach an' show Presto here the champion's room, OK?"
"'Absolutely', sir," Jolene obliged as she then instructed Andrew and his four partners to follow. "Well then, Mr. Champion... Would you follow me, please?"
Andrew and his four partners nodded as the five of them followed Jolene out of the Major League Locker Room and they headed straight for the Champ's Room, which is where they would be staying for the rest of their time in Glitzville.
IN THE CHAMP ROOM:
It took no time for Jolene to escort Andrew and his four partners into the champ room, which looked the same as it did when Grubba showed it to them the first time. There was a giant poster of the Prevailing Presto hanging right above the bed of the Champ Room.
"Congratulations again, Mr. Champion. From now on, this is where you'll stay," Jolene advised him. "It's your room now, so make yourself at home."
"OK. We can try to do that," Andrew told her sheepishly while tugging on his handkerchief.
"You will use the terminal as you always have, of course," Jolene told him. "Will there be anything else?"
"Nope. That's about it," Andrew smiled, as did his four partners.
"Well then, have a nice day, Mr. Champion." Jolene adjusted her glasses before she left the Champ Room.
Andrew and his four partners were left in there to take in everything that had happened, and how they would be able to find the real Crystal Star. But what they didn't know was that they were about to unearth a terrifying secret, which would also include some betrayal from the eyes of the muscular man. He would find that out for himself soon enough...
END OF CHAPTER 29...
Yeah. That's it for this chapter. I hope you enjoyed it, and I hope you enjoyed the fight with the Rawk Hawk that I wrote out here.
Honestly, I think I did a pretty good job with writing out the fight Andrew and his team had with the Rawk Hawk in the arena. Along with the events that came before it.
Anyway, looks like we've reached the climax of Chapter 3. With that being said, the next chapter will be the chapter to wrap up all the stuff in Chapter 3.
In the next chapter, Andrew and his four partners get one last favor from X, break into Grubba's office, and find a terrifying secret in his drawer that leaves Andrew feeling a sense of betrayal before the five of them get to fight the boss of Chapter 3.
Jolene also reveals the truth to Andrew and his friends as they find out who had the real Crystal Star, and some other stuff will occur. How will this go? Find out next time, readers!
For now, only if you like, you can leave a review and let me know what you thought of this chapter overall.
Otherwise, I have nothing else to say. So until next time, I do hope you'll take care of yourselves. And on that note, thanks again for reading, everyone!