All right, fellow readers. Here is the 63rd chapter of this story!
Now, we're gonna be starting the interlude chapters once again. And we start with some focus on Peach. This will be the last Peach-focused interlude for this story, for obvious reasons.
In this chapter, Grodus finds out that the Shadow Sirens stole a fake Crystal Star and assumes that Andrew got the real one, in which he has to alter his plan somewhat. Additionally, Grodus finds out what's been going on with TEC, TEC reveals to Peach where the X-Naut Fortress is located, and the deeper input on Grodus's plan for world conquest, which involves the ancient demon and why Peach is needed to complete it.
And of course, Grodus shuts down TEC permanently after hearing about the treason, he announces that Lord Crump is in charge of the fort and the Crystal Star that he has, and a few other things will occur. How will this go for Princess Peach and TEC? Read and find out now!
AT THE X-NAUT FORTRESS:
In Grodus's throne room in the X-Naut Fortress, Sir Grodus himself was pretty furious about something that one of his regular X-Naut soldiers had just informed him about, and it involved the Shadow Sirens and the Crystal Star that they stole.
It would appear that Beldam and the Shadow Sirens had recently found out that the Crystal Star that they stole was a fake, and they found out when it was too late. Beldam had informed the regular X-Naut soldier about this that he had to relay straight to Sir Grodus himself.
Needless to say, Grodus was not happy about the fact that they had bungled up one simple task of stealing the Crystal Star before Andrew got it. Only for them to be fooled by a fake Crystal Star that was out in the open. Slamming the end of his scepter onto the ground, he then voiced himself on this latest screw-up.
"What is the matter with you idiots?" Sir Grodus hissed rather coldly. "Falling for a fake Crystal Star? That's asinine!"
The X-Naut couldn't help but jump at his outburst. He knew that Grodus would be furious by this, but it still kinda spooked him out. He could only apologize for the foul-up.
"Sorry, dude," the X-Naut then quickly corrected himself. "I mean, sir!"
"So let me guess..." Grodus tapped his fingers on the orb part of his scepter before asking in a dangerously ominous tone, already coming to a worst-case scenario. "This means Andrew managed to get the real Crystal Star?"
The X-Naut then felt a chill crawl down his spine. He dreaded the moment when he'd have to give him this news. He knew how outraged he'd be if he found out that Andrew got all of the Crystal Stars that he didn't have already. After gulping nervously, the X-Naut stuttered before getting a hold of himself.
"Uh, I'm gonna say...maybe?" The X-Naut guessed rather hesitantly, sweat pouring down his forehead.
Grodus then growled and slammed his scepter onto the ground again, getting the X-Naut to jump. He couldn't believe it. Andrew has been successful with getting six of the seven Crystal Stars that he wanted to claim.
Even after everything he threw at the muscular man and his friends, be it from the Shadow Sirens, Lord Crump and the X-Nauts, and the technology that he supplied to his X-Nauts to dispose of him, he still collected six of the Crystal Stars, completely unscathed. To say that he was furious by this revelation would've been an understatement.
"Urrgh..." Grodus growled before he shouted. "This muscular menace has nearly every Crystal Star now! They were mine!"
Sir Grodus then had to catch his breath and cool himself when he realized something. He has possession of the only Crystal Star that Andrew hasn't obtained yet. And considering that he has the Magical Map, their hideout will be the final location that he has to go to.
With that in mind, he realized that he had to make a few modifications to what he had planned originally since the map was no longer of any use to him now that Andrew had the other six Crystal Stars. He would come up with something that would still benefit him and allow him to use the power of this ancient demon to accomplish his plan for world conquest.
"I think I'd better alter my plan a bit..." Grodus groaned before turning around and planning to head back to his room.
"Before you do, Sir Grodus..." The X-Naut soldier remembered something else that came to his attention that he needed to know about. "I think I'd better tell you something..."
"What is it, fool?!" Grodus whipped around and barked at him, pointing his scepter into the X-Naut's face.
'Clearly', he was annoyed that his soldier had something else that he needed to be informed about. Giving the X-Naut a cold and impatient look, the X-Naut stormed over to his and decided to whisper something imperative to Sir Grodus. And it needed to be addressed as soon as possible.
"...Mumble mumble..." The X-Naut whispered indecipherable words to him, though the words 'TEC' and 'compromised' were mentioned in what he had to inform him of.
In a matter of seconds, Sir Grodus was more outraged than he ever was before. Surely this couldn't be true, could it?
"WHAAAAAAAAT?!" Grodus howled furiously before he demanded. "Are you sure?! Speak!"
"No joke, dude," the X-Naut shook his head as he stepped away from him. "I mean, affirmative, Sir Dude. That is... I'm positive, sir!"
Sir Grodus then felt some steam blowing out from his dome head. If he had a mouth, he would be frowning with his eyebrows narrowed at the shocking news that he was told. There was no doubt about it. This needed to be addressed effective immediately before he could go forth with his altered plan.
"Hrrrrgh..." Sir Grodus snarled before he then roared. "TREASON!"
With that done, Grodus had declared that they'd have to handle the situation with TEC before they could continue their plan, which involves Princess Peach. First of all, he needed to make sure that this was true before he could go and perform the horrid deed to TEC.
He barked out an order to his X-Naut soldier to get his partner; also a regular X-Naut soldier to wait for him until he saw what's been compromised for himself. Needless to say, this might be the last time that Peach gets to see TEC like this...
MEANWHILE - IN PEACH'S HOLDING ROOM:
In the holding room, Princess Peach was waiting patiently for TEC to summon her into the computer room. She was a little curious as to why he hadn't called her yet. She was expecting him to request her to go to the computer room, but nothing happened.
Was something bothering TEC? Or was he still busy with analyzing the data that she uploaded onto the network with that Data Disk? Whatever the reason, Princess Peach was hoping to see him, seeing that she had gotten used to TEC requiring her assistance for something.
"Strange... Isn't it about time for TEC to call me in?" Peach wondered while crossing her arms curiously. "Maybe he's busy..."
After all, he did promise to inform me of the information that he was analyzing once it had been completed. Princess Peach thought. Has he looked through it yet? Is he ready to tell me about it?
Princess Peach was also hoping that he would inform her about it since it would be useful information to send to Andrew since he'd been the one collecting the Crystal Stars. She didn't know for sure, but she had this strange feeling in her gut that Andrew had collected six of them so far. And she also felt her stomach churning a bit at the thought that whatever it was TEC analyzed must be so horrifying, it couldn't possibly be fathomed by the most innocent of souls.
She was then brought out of her thoughts when the door leading to the computer room opened up. This meant that TEC needed her for something.
"Oh! Here we go!" Peach gasped, almost smiling at the thought that she'd get to see him again.
Walking away from her bed, she went out the door, passed the elevator, and headed straight for the computer room again, for what could be the last time that she ever does so. She was going to be in for some horrifying news once she got there. And she would find out about it for herself. That's for sure...
IN THE COMPUTER ROOM:
As soon as she entered the computer room, Peach looked at TEC and was interested in knowing what they were gonna be doing this time. Surely it would be something remarkable for both of them, right?
"Hello, TEC," Princess Peach greeted him. "What do you want today?"
As Peach approached him, TEC was 'really' reluctant to talk with Peach about what was on his mainframe. It was part of the reason why he didn't summon her into the computer room.
He had found out something so horrifying, that he couldn't bear to see the Mushroom Kingdom Princess get scarred by the truth. Finally, after a few moments of silence, TEC decided to comment.
"Princess Peach, I have..." TEC started to say. "I have 'reached' a conclusion."
This got Peach to gasp and jump. Did she hear that correctly? Did he just say that he 'reached' a conclusion? What does he mean by that? She hoped that she wouldn't get a rather vague answer out of it.
"...A conclusion?" Peach asked him while raising an eyebrow.
"I have struggled with whether to obey orders or...to speak to you..." TEC struggled to get that out in the open. "And...I cannot confirm...what I should believe..."
Princess Peach was now getting more concerned by this. What was going on with him? Did it involve the data that he analyzed earlier from that Data Disk? 'Clearly', there was something wrong here, and she had to find out what he was talking about.
"TEC, you don't sound right," Peach then had to ask him. "What's going on with you?"
As soon as he was asked that, TEC wasted no time in coming out and telling her what she had to do now.
"Princess Peach..." TEC came out with it. "Please escape from this place as quickly as possible."
This got Peach to jump again as she gasped. Perhaps she was hearing things, but did TEC just insist that she escape from this hideout that belongs to the X-Nauts? Why would she have to flee now?
The TEC she first met when she found out Andrew had the map would have NEVER allowed her to escape. Could it be that TEC has started caring for her well-being and wants what is best for her? Or was there another deeper reason for it?
Perhaps it could be both... Princess Peach thought as she shook her head and got back on topic.
"Escape... TEC, what do you mean by that?" Princess Peach queried. "I mean... Why all of a sudden?"
After a few moments of silence, TEC immediately came out and told her what he had found out.
"The data you procured has been analyzed," TEC told her.
"And?" Peach raised her eyebrow curiously.
"And something terrible is..." TEC cut himself off before correcting himself. "No. I will not say. But I...have found out everything about Sir Grodus's plans."
Peach now looked curious about this. Did the data uploaded from that Data Disk possibly contain information regarding Sir Grodus's plan of world conquest? How does it relate to Princess Peach and the ancient demon's spirit? Feeling that it was on her mind, Peach decided to bring it up with the computer.
"Grodus's plans?" Peach then wondered. "You mean, about conquering the world?"
"Yes," TEC confirmed. "And among those plans was the reason why you are being held here."
"What did you find out from the data?" Peach asked. "I mean, what did the data tell you about Grodus's plans?"
"I'll be willing to share it with you, Princess Peach," TEC then got started. "According to the data..."
TEC spent the next minute explaining it all to Peach. He had mentioned something about how the ancient demon requires a vessel to make its grand return to the world, where it'll then unleash nothing but chaos and mayhem into the world, which Sir Grodus could then claim as his own, at least that's what he thinks.
He also mentioned how Princess Peach was the perfect candidate to be the vessel since she happens to be a pure-hearted maiden. Needless to say, Princess Peach was not liking what she found out one bit...
SOMETIME LATER...
By the time TEC was done, Peach had sported a rather horrified and repulsed expression on her face, that she couldn't believe what she had just heard. She reacted in the most appropriate manner that she could think of.
"No... No way..." Peach gasped, sounding like her breath had hitched. "It's impossible... I don't believe it..."
"Yes. Everything is true," TEC had to confirm. "That is why you must escape from here as fast as possible."
Peach would've been all for escaping upon hearing what Grodus's plans were exactly, and what was required from her. But there was still a problem. All this time she's been imprisoned here, she had never found out the location that their hideout is exactly. She needed TEC to know this simple fact.
"But how can I do that, TEC?" Princess Peach asked before yelling frantically. "I mean, I don't even have the slightest idea where I am!"
TEC had expected that from her. After all, he never did tell her where the X-Naut Fortress was located this whole time she's been held here.
Seeing that he has changed from a mindless supercomputer who's obedient to Grodus only, to a rather compassive computer who's looking out for Peach's well-being and willing to do what's best for her. There was no way that he could keep it from her any longer.
"I will not hide anything anymore. No. Not from you," TEC came out with it. "I will tell you everything."
"OK," Peach nodded as she heard TEC make the reveal of their location.
"The place where you are currently imprisoned..." TEC wasted no time when he revealed it to her. "This is the moon."
Princess Peach now had to jaw-drop at that. She didn't just hear that. She didn't just hear from TEC himself that she was being imprisoned on the moon, did she?
As in, the moon that she sees in the sky at night, and is out in space? Surely, TEC must've been joking with her right now, right? She had to make sure that he wasn't jossing with her right now.
"The moon?!" Princess Peach asked him. "You mean, the moon that hangs up in the sky at night? That moon?"
"That is correct," TEC officially confirmed that they are on the moon.
"But that's...unbelievable!" Princess Peach then had to ask the obvious question. "How in the world am I supposed to escape?"
Princess Peach knew that, because she was on the moon, she had no way of returning to Earth safely. And she doubted that the X-Nauts had any rockets or spaceships that she could use to return home.
TEC, for his part, knew exactly how Peach could get off. And it was the same way that the X-Nauts have been getting to Earth this whole time. Rogueport, the Great Tree, Keelhaul Key, and other places. He would allow her to have access to it.
"There is a way," TEC insisted. "You can escape...but you must follow my instructions exactly."
"But, TEC... Won't they know that you helped me?" Peach was reluctant to do this, seeing that she didn't want Grodus to find out that he was helping her. "Won't you get in trouble?"
"That is inconsequential," TEC proclaimed. "I would like you to be safe. That is all that matters."
"TEC..." Peach was apprehensive about this, seeing that something along the way would bungle things up, and the X-Naut boss himself would find out about this anyway.
"I am the base's computer. No one will know of your escape if I keep silent," TEC insisted. "Please do not worry about me. Escape. Escape as quickly as possible."
Princess Peach was still feeling hesitant about doing this. Truth be told, she didn't want anything happening to TEC on the offset chance that word could get out. There were so many things that could go wrong for her and TEC, and she couldn't possibly imagine them. Being kidnapped by Bowser was NOTHING compared to this.
Unfortunately, TEC was 'really' insistent that she get off the moon and get back to Earth, away from the X-Naut Fortress and back to the Mushroom Kingdom with Andrew.
She sighed and was willing to go with this, on the condition that Andrew is informed about her location and what Grodus needs from her to resurrect the demon's spirit.
"...OK, TEC," Peach then finally said. "But I must inform Andrew about all this before I go... This is no longer just my problem..."
"Understood," TEC allowed this to happen.
Peach then approached the communicator and started typing her latest e-mail message to Andrew. She was hoping that she could send it to him safely as she did with the past five e-mails she sent to him.
Sadly, right as she was halfway done with writing her e-mail, the door opened up and a couple of people walked into the computer room. It was then a sudden voice shouted out to her.
"Hold it right there, Princess Peach!" That voice belonged to Grodus.
This got Peach to stop typing her message as she felt a chill go up her spine. It couldn't be him. That can't be who she thinks it is, can it? As a result, she yelped and turned around to see who it was.
"Eeeeeeeeeek!" Peach screamed in panic at who was in front of her. "You!"
It 'really' was Sir Grodus, and he was accompanied by two regular X-Naut soldiers. He had found out about how TEC had been aiding Peach instead of keeping her imprisoned. Not to mention how the data that came from the Data Disk had leaked onto the network that TEC could access, and it had officially been compromised. Needless to say, he was not pleased with the act of betrayal.
"TEC... You miserable machine," Grodus barked at him quite coldly. "We all know what you're up to, traitor."
"Sir Grodus... I..." TEC trailed off, realizing that he's been had.
Grodus approached Peach and TEC, with that scepter in his hands as he then made the declaration.
"In my most paranoid moments, I never thought my 'own' computer would betray me," Grodus remarked most callously. "Well, it doesn't 'really' matter in the end, I suppose... Especially since it ends here."
Princess Peach was 'really' starting to get angry with him. Did Grodus have something horrible planned for TEC just because he decided to aid Peach instead of keeping her stuck in this hideout unharmed as he insisted?
"You monster!" Peach snarled at him, narrowing her eyebrows at him. "What are you planning to do with him?!"
Grodus, of course, was completely unfazed by that. 'In fact', he was able to brush that off with his trademark laugh.
"Gaaack ack ack ack! Only one thing to do with a malfunctioning computer!" Grodus declared with no shame. "Cut the circuit and delete all the programs and data that caused the malfunction!"
It was then Sir Grodus gave Peach a cold look before he continued. "'Obviously', all data relating to Princess Peach must go, as well... Yes, we must be 'absolutely' sure nothing like this ever happens again..."
Peach was horrified by what she was hearing. So basically, Grodus was planning to shut down TEC permanently, so he could never see the light of day again. To the Mushroom Kingdom Princess, what Grodus was about to commit was 'basically' murder. He was subtly planning to murder his 'own' computer.
"No... I am... I am normal..." TEC tried defending himself. "There is no malfunction..."
"Pipe down, TEC," Grodus spat at him before ordering his two X-Nauts. "X-Nauts: at the same time, press the red buttons on TEC's sides."
"Got it, sir!" One of the X-Nauts saluted him along with the other as they both went and performed that duty.
Once they were in front of red buttons on both sides, the two X-Nauts hastily pressed the button, which resulted in a rather permanent shutdown for TEC. Peach turned around and had a horrified look on her face.
"TEC! NO!" Peach yelled in horror.
Thankfully, TEC was able to send the incomplete e-mail that Peach was writing for Andrew straight to Andrew's Mailbox SP in its unfinished state. That wasn't enough to deter the horrid action that Sir Grodus had committed.
"Mail...sent..." TEC proclaimed before weakly uttering his final words to Peach. "Princess Peach... I... l...o...v...e... y...o...u..."
TEC was heard making a couple more robotic hums and beeps until he stopped making noise. In a matter of seconds, he went silent completely. The deed was done.
"Deletion complete." A robotic voice from nowhere announced.
At that moment, TEC's monitor screen went black, and all of his technical parts stopped blinking as well. It was official. TEC was permanently shut down. And Peach couldn't believe that it was happening.
"TEC!" Princess Peach screamed in bloody murder at how TEC was shut down like this.
"Gaaack ack ack ack!" Grodus clearly showed no empathy or care about his rather heinous act. "Too bad, Princess Peach. TEC is no longer with us."
Princess Peach then whipped around and faced Grodus. She then gave him the most venomous glare that she could muster up in his direction. From the looks of it, Grodus had just committed the most horrible, sinful, and unspeakable act to be ever pulled off.
"No! You inhuman beast!" Peach snarled at him angrily. "How could you?"
Grodus was 'clearly' not up to dealing with this, as he was completely unfazed by her reaction in regards to how he permanently shut down TEC.
"Princess Peach...just stop it," Grodus told her coldly. "This is no time to be worrying about a computer."
Grodus then shook his head and pointed his scepter at her, before telling her darkly. "We have some very important things for you to do now... Yes, VERY important..."
Peach's anger had vanished in a heartbeat. It was quickly replaced with fear. She knew what he meant. She knew what he had planned for her once Andrew collected the final Crystal Star. And it involved being a vessel for this ancient demon's spirit.
"No!" Princess Peach yelled in horror.
"Gaaack ack ack ack!" Grodus cackled madly before he gave his next order to his two X-Naut soldiers. "X-Nauts! Go and deliver Lord Crump the news! I'm putting him in charge of the fortress! And also tell him that I am giving him the Crystal Star that I have in my possession."
He then did some thinking for a moment before he added. "And lastly, inform him that he will be given full authorization to the latest upgraded version of the Magnus von Grapple mecha robot!"
"With all due respect sir, you told him that he wasn't any use to you," one of the X-Nauts had to remind him. "You told him that when he failed to claim the Crystal Star that Andrew got from Keelhaul Key, and how he destroyed the Superbombomb in Twilight Town! How can you be sure that he'll be able to trounce Andrew this time!?"
"I don't. 'In fact', with how much of a threat this Andrew menace has become, I have no doubts that Lord Crump will lose the Crystal Star to him," Grodus told him coldly. "Not like it matters anymore. Andrew has the other six Crystal Stars while I have the last one."
Grodus then turned around to face the two X-Nauts before revealing in a dark and ominous voice. "Andrew will be doing me the favor by collecting the last Crystal Star that I'm entrusting to Lord Crump, so he can open the door for us."
Grodus cleared his throat before he continued gloating about the new master plan that he had in mind regarding the Thousand-Year Door and the ancient demon's spirit that was resting behind it.
"He will officially lead to the fate that I have in store for Princess Peach once he obtains the last Crystal Star. The end is near now, fools! Gaaaack ack ack ack!" After letting out that trademark laugh, Grodus then boomed his order while pointing his scepter at them. "NOW GO! TELL LORD CRUMP THE NEWS THAT I WANT YOU TO GIVE TO HIM!"
"Yes sir! Right away, sir!" Both X-Nauts saluted him before high-tailing it out of there to tell Lord Crump the news that Grodus wanted them to give to him.
"As for you, Princess Peach. You're gonna be a good girl and stay under my supervision," Grodus told her snidely. "That Andrew will get the last Crystal Star soon. And once he does, we'll make sure that you're in perfect condition for the ancient cataclysm to make its long-awaited return to aid me in accomplishing world conquest."
"N-N-No..." Peach stuttered in complete fear as she was unable to move in the slightest.
"Gaaack ack ack ack!" Grodus let out one last cackle before he went down to business with Peach while waiting for Andrew to come and claim the final Crystal Star.
Needless to say, it seems like things are starting to 'really' heat up in the X-Naut Fortress. And things were going to turn terrible for everyone else. Andrew and his friends will find out about this for themselves before long. And once they do, they'll be too late. That was a guarantee...
END OF CHAPTER 63...
Yeah. That's it for this chapter. It's 'definitely' shorter than the previous chapters since it focuses on Peach. Still, I hope you all enjoyed it.
I have to say, this is one of the most intense chapters that I've written for this story thus far since it's the last Peach interlude-focused chapter for this story.
Grodus shuts down TEC permanently in an outright callous way. And I think I depicted it in the most despicable manner possible. Grodus is a horrible person and we're supposed to hate him for his horrid acts. Not to mention there's a hint of foreshadowing here too, in case you caught notice of it.
Anyway, with that said, the next chapter will focus on Bowser and Kammy Koopa again. In that chapter, Bowser has to go through an area that is akin to the castle levels of Super Mario Bros.
Additionally, Bowser and Kammy Koopa stumble into a secret room not shown on the maps, which happens to be the Rawk Hawk's training exercise room with the Champ Belt and the fake Crystal Star on it.
Other things that'll occur include Bowser meeting the Rawk Hawk up close, calling him a weakling, flattening him, and the fake Crystal Star breaks, leaving Bowser empty-handed once again. And a few other things will occur too. How will things go for them? Find out next time, readers!
For now, only if you're up to it, you can leave a review and let me know what you thought of this chapter overall.
Aside from that, that's all I've got for now. So until next time, I do hope you all will take care of yourselves. And on that note, thanks again for reading, everyone!