-o-
The Scourge of Desert Hill vs. the Fighting Master
Location: Glitz Pit, the Arena
…
Roy hands over the white ball to Prince Mush and begins leaving the ring. Don Albino, masked with a Phanto, waits as Roy walks down the steps, Larry and a tall hooded figure also joining them both. Roy roars and flexes every step he descends, posing for his newfound, ever enthused fans.
Bago the paragoomba pushes Morton Jr., still dumbfounded with his arms drooping from his sides, towards the stage but the Koopaling barely budges. Bago then tries a headbonk, accidentally missing and hitting Draco the Fire Brother instead, who'd sneaked close enough to the Koopaling after he was summoned. Draco falls unconscious on Morton's tail, making the Koopaling react and slowly approach the ring.
Before Morton Jr. steps out into the path leading to his corner, Roy pulls him back and holds him in a headlock as he gives him rough noogies. His fangs glisten with the stage lights as he smiles while greeting his younger brother in his personal style.
"Where ya been, Big Mouth?" asks the manly, pink Koopaling. "Shoulda known ya be here! Woulda liked t' kick yer sorry tail as warm up!" As aggressive as he was, Roy is still happy to see Morton, as was Larry, who'd climbed up the suffering Morton's shell. Morton flails his arms around as Bernie the gray Doogan inconspicuously drags Draco away.
As that transpires, Prince Mush looks at the number on the ball, once more taking the mike. "18! Will contestant 18 come forth?"
Morton Jr. finally climbs into the ring while Bago waits outside at their corner. Roy goes to the locker room to freshen up as Larry runs behind him with a bag of cheesepuffs he stole from the dark skinned Koopaling.
Out of nowhere, a fwoosh cloud flies around and hovers over the arena, and from the top, a shadowy figure jumps down, elegantly and proficiently landing on the ring and thrusting his elbows backwards, ending with a stunning fight pose.
Prince Mush fanboys over the newcomer as the fwoosh cloud goes away. "I can't believe it! I should have read the participant's list more carefully, for we have a special guest here! Don't be fooled by his small stature compared to big chungus over here…"
Morton Jr. catches onto the insult as he gets inside. "Hey!"
Prince Mush continues on. "Son of a legend, and just as able; versed in the art of Kung Fu, we're delighted by this fighter's presence! The one and only: BRANDOOOOOOOOOOOOON LEEEEEEEEEEEEEKITUUUUUUUUUU"
The crowd roars, as they all focus on the red shelled Lakitu wearing a green gi. His response gets softened by the crowd's loud cheer, and only Prince Mush and Morton Jr. are able to hear. "Please, I'm nowhere near my father's level, whose name I can't sully with these lips of mine."
Back in the arena's furthest seats, Daisy ponders for a bit. "Leekitu… that name rings a bell… Ah!" She smacks her caramelized apple onto her left hand. "Whoops…"
Her doogan pilot hands her a few napkins. "I'll take over from here, your majesty. Yes, he's the son of the late Bruce Leekitu, or just Bruce Lee, a humble but powerful kung fu master Lakitu from Chai, back in Sarasaland. He kept a low profile in most of our known world, but was a sensation in our kingdom, as well as in Nimbusland and Tadpole Pond. At his passing many years ago, Mallow's father's predecessor and previous Toad Sage gifted us a statue in his likeness, and was erected at the mountain in Chai that would become Dragon Driftway."
Right around this time, Geno arrives to their place in the stands. Johnny, still wearing his fluffy disguise, puts his right pectoral fin over Geno's shoulders, his face flush red and sticking his tongue out. "Ahoy, ye mater, hic! Ye wanna shplish the mainbrace wi' the ol' cap'? Hic!" He hands Geno a bottle of currant juice as bubbles fizz out of his gills. "Mighty tashtee shtuff, mater…"
Geno looks at the brown glass bottle, and then glares at the group, though Yoshi was too invested in his seventh hot dog. "How did he get a hold of this?"
Daisy's doogan pilot shrugs indifferently. "No idea. All I know is that he just wanted something go with his Cheep-cheep and chips."
Meanwhile, Johnny is shaking his balled up right pectoral fin while standing, both Geno and the doogan pilot trying to get the pirate to settle down a bit. "Arrg, harr, harr! Get the ol' cap'n over thar'; he make the landlubbers walk the plank. Hic!" Despite being very squirmy and almost boisterously blowing his cover, the crowd is fortunately also loud.
"At least the crowd is just as excited," continues Geno, as he steadies the shark. "Luckily, he's happy right now, though, my only concern is if he gets riled up while, ahem, in good spirits. He loves himself a good battle." He sits the shark down between himself and the pilot. "Anyway, I hope that Morton will pull though. Speaking of which, his fight is about to start."
Back on the ring, Prince Mush is about to step out. "This fight can go either way! Will raw power be the victor, or will kung fu prevail? We will know in 3… 2… 1…"
Not even a second passes after the initial bell ring, when the Lakitu martial artist dashes toward the hefty Koopaling. He jumps, floating gracefully like a cape feather, landing on the Koopaling's head.
"Float like a flutter [butterfly Wiggler], sting like a zinger," declares Brandon, but not one to wait to see if the traditional head stomp would stun his foe, he kicks Morton Jr. in the face, sending him straight into the ropes, and after Morton bounces back, the Lakitu palm thrusts his foe in his belly to get him to stop moving.
The crowd roars as the fight that has yet to reach a minute already has everyone on edge. Daisy's doogan pilot and Yoshi both groan, with Yoshi face palming and the pilot balling up his fists and shaking his head. Daisy begins cheering for him, waving her right fist, accidentally flinging her caramel apple into the crowd and getting it stuck on the back of an unsuspecting, random Lakitu's head. Geno didn't pay attention to the fight as he is trying to get Johnny from getting too excited with the fight and not drop his cover.
Brandon jabs two punches into Morton, and soon after kicks his knees, one after the other, into the Koopaling, sending him into the air. The Lakitu then jumps again, this time resolute to kick him a third time out of the ring. When he reaches Morton Jr., the Koopaling unconsciously wraps his arms around him tightly, making the Lakitu fighter squirm a little in confusion. When he sees that he's about to fall out with Morton, Brandon is able to narrowly slip his left arm from the tight grip, allowing him to slip under the Koopaling and kicks Morton back into the ring to get his bearings, backflipping onto the top rope. Despite the instability of the rope, he stands tall to the awe of the crowd.
"Curses! Not what I wanted!" thinks the Lakitu fighter, as he regains his bearings on the bouncing rope. "Oh well; at least I didn't slip off this top rope. Gotta be careful."
When Morton slams face first into the ring, the crowd roars even louder than before. Back with the group, they're all focusing on the travesty in the ring. Yoshi and Geno are not even reacting anymore, regretting their choice for their fighter.
The doogan pilot shakes his fists, growing more and more frustrated. "Hey Morton! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?! PUT YOUR BACK INTO IT!"
Johnny swings his left pirate's hook around, almost hurting the pilot, and takes a chug of currant juice. "Grab 'im by the claspers and squeeze, mater! Hic!" Geno and the doogan pilot blankly stare at the shark pirate as he takes another drink from his bottle.
Daisy beings echoing the statement, "Yeah, Morty! Grab him by the…"
However, Geno stops her at once. "That'll be enough out of you, Princess." He looks back at the ring. "But you're right about your enthusiasm. We have to trust he'll win, and it isn't over until we get a winner."
Back at the ring, the Koopaling flips onto his back, not realizing his mistake. Brandon flips into the corner of the ring and flips gracefully into the air, diving a solid kick into Morton's stomach, and flipping backwards into the mat. The kick barely hurts the Koopaling, but it releases a fart that surprisingly pushes him back onto his feet.
Suddenly, spectators started throwing objects and items onto the ring, confusing both fighters, and Yoshi's group. Prince Mush takes his mike and says, "No worries, our beloved spectators. Throwing items into the ring to make the fight more interesting is a normal occurrence at the Glitzpit, as long as it comes from the stands and not the group surrounding the ring. Both fighters can choose to use these items to their advantage. We still have about a minute to go."
Taking advantage that Morton Jr. was stumbling about, Brandon steadies his stance, alternating hops between his feet. He goes in for another blow against the Koopaling.
Roy watches the battle from the bench in the locker room, laughing at event unfolding. "Ha! Chubby McChubby ain't just bad. He's whack! I wish I was the one telling him what's up." Larry laughs with Roy on his big brother's shoulder, while Don Albino, still donning the Phanto mask, stares intently at the screen.
Back at the ring, the fighter Lakitu dashes at blinding speed, elbowing and nearly pushing the corpulent Koopaling off the ring.
"Time to end this!" says Brandon.
Morton Jr. rubs his hurting belly, but shakes his head before glaring at his swift opponent. Brandon Lee rushes him again, but this time, Morton Jr. counters with a clumsy karate chop. The Lakitu gracefully dodges by jumping over and landing on the ring. The flashing of cameras is accompanied by loud cheering and flowers getting thrown at the ring.
The Koopaling charges at his counterpart, who then picks up a pair of Smoke Balls. Morton thinks Brandon pulled out Bob-ombs instead, and skids to a rough stop, almost falling off the ring again, and covers his face with his arms.
"Wait a minute! I've seen those in Smash tournaments! How did he get a hold of those?" Yoshi comments from his place in the arena.
Geno replies, "Remember that some things got tossed into the ring. Hopefully it doesn't end our quest for the book."
Back in the fight, Brandon throws the Smoke Balls at the Koopalings feet, exploding in an array of colorful smoke. Amidst the confusion, Brandon begins pummeling Morton Jr. The Koopaling has a hard time keeping up with the speedy Lakitu, and even tries to hit him a few times, to no avail, being successfully dodged every single time.
When Morton Jr. tries to swing his tail at Brandon, the fellow back flips behind the Koopaling, leaving a Bob-omb present on top of Morton's head, though, Morton can't see what it. His arms can't move to reach it, since they are sore from the assualt.
"You fought well, but now it is time to forgo victory," says Brandon Lee the Lakitu.
Morton sees a Fire Flower and goes to grab it, but trips and accidentally swallows it, and the bomb falls and rolls towards Brandon who kicks it away, landing near the judges' panel; Jynx quickly defuses it.
Morton gets up too quickly and gets dizzy, and seems like he is on the last leg. The martial artist gets ready to deliver the final blow, when Morton burps a torrent of red fire at him, which he did not expect, and jumps backwards. He gracefully lands outside of the ring, much to his surprise.
Prince Mush jumps up and exclaims in the microphone, "I can't believe it! What a turn of events! Despite all odds against him, Morton Koopa has emerged victorious! Give it up for MOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORTOOOOOOOOOOOON!"
The crowd cheers loudly regardless of how badly Morton fought. The Koopaling is still confused with the turn of events, when he is greeted by Bago the paragoomba so they can get off of the ring; Morton burps again and burns his "manager".
Once Morton was declared the winner; Yoshi, Geno, and the pilot slump into their stands with a sigh of relief. Daisy went over to Johnny and hugged him in celebration, while the shark pirate shakes his right fin and fizzes from his gills, spraying the stands in front of them with the foam from his gills and drink.
"That was too close," sighed Yoshi, "Next time we do something like this, it's star, flower, mushroom between me and you Gee."
"No kidding, Yosh," he replies, "And we still have one more round to go this day…"
Right about this time, a burned Bago the paragoomba shows up with a golden colored ticket. "Ha, ha! Guess who bet on Mr. Big Bones and racked in the coins? Guess it paid 50-to-1 to have faith on the kiddo! Because I won big, dinner's on me!"
Yoshi smiles, while Geno interjects. "You left Morton by himself. If you want, I can go and…"
"You worry too much, Dollface," interrupts Bago. "Gonna make new bets this second round, and it's back next to Tubbs again. Toodles!" And just like that, he flies away laughing.
Geno smirks, and chuckles as he starts walking away. "Hey, Yosh, I think I'll be visiting our friend at the locker rooms. I'll be right back."
…
The rest of the first round fights come and go. Prince Mush was an upset in the first round, losing to the gray Shyguy named AntiGuy. Then finally, the second round comes with 8 fighters, including Morton Jr. Geno stays with Morton, since Bago forgot about him and went back to the group.
Morton Jr. trips and sits on both Goomba Bros. Jagger, Mario's and Jynx' apprentice plucks Piranha Plant. Bernard Fox the gray doogan tricks AntiGuy with a lemon tart candy and throws the hard-hitting Shy guy out of the ring. And to conclude the night, Roy defeats Gonzalez Jr., who gave him a good fight but ultimately lost. These fights also come and go and conclude at sunset.
Yoshi and his group cross back to Nimbusland, making sure Johnny is well covered and under control, despite being tipsy and a little riled up from watching the fights. Once back in their respective rooms at the inn, Draco and Bernie walk in and are discussing about themselves as Bernie invites Draco in to his room.
"I see, so you were originally a Fire Bro from Desert Hill," he says as he closes the door. "And you mentioned that Lemmy the Koopaling ice blasted you into the sky?"
"As weird as that sounds…" begins Draco nervously, looking at the ground as he sits on a chair near their inn room's dresser.
"Not at all, Draco. I came from lands far in the south to search for the truth of things happening in our world. Hearing your description of this Koopaling, it seems to me that he may be possessed."
"I know, right? Like, how can a small fry like that who is famous for using circus balls as an attack have a deep voice and use ice magic? Although, I did hear from the troop while I was still allied with them that he did like cold places and having an ice castle, so the later checks out."
He rubs his chin, when he sees Bernie offer him a Croaka Cola. "Thanks. So yeah, in trying to save Hitatsu, my former partner, I lost the Warp Whistle and got sent flying. I lost consciousness, so when I woke up, it was very wind and cold. I got up quickly when I realized I was sore all over, and that I was on Don Pianta's balloon. It was starting to get turbulent, so I snuck inside through an open window and found a healing item before hiding until we arrived near the Pit. I then got off at Glitzville, but was found out by Larry Koopa, and got chased into the locker rooms."
"Interesting," replies the doogan while his counterpart begins drinking. "I just find a certain group with the Koopaling Morton Jr. interesting. And the personage with the fluffy cloud outfit smelled too much like a shark. Once I win this tournament, I'll mosey on over and get acquainted; they seem like we were fated by the stars above to meet me."
"Umm… I don't think I should meet them," replies the Fire brother, when he gets interrupted.
"But we can think about that until after winning this. I really want to discuss tomorrow's strategy. I think you accidentally becoming my manager was also fated by the stars. Your strategies really got me out of a bind. Morton and Jagger are fighting, and I got Roy against me. You were acquainted with Bowser's Minions; let's make a strategy before going to sleep."
The night passes, and the sun rises again.
…
-o-
Finally the first day of the tournament is finally over. Our heroes are finally taking a break from this ordeal, and prepare mentally for tomorrow's events. However, what is happening over at Ludwig's side, I wonder? We find out next chapter, so see you all then.
The "star, flower, mushroom" bit was supposed to reference "Rock, paper, scissors", in case that wasn't clear.
Brandon Leekitu was inspired from the Lakitu statue from Dragon Driftway in Mario Kart 8 and the Bruce Lee reference from the SNES Super Mario RPG. I know it got taken out in the remake, but I had to include it.
I also know Johnny is a creature inhabiting a shark costume, but for the sake of this story, he will remain a shark pirate. Also, claspers, ahem, pertain to shark anatomy… I'll leave it at that.
A/N: Firstly, my apologies for not updating for too long. I didn't have inspiration for a decent fight scene for years and got very busy with life. Thanks for sticking around, for all of the likes and follows, and reviews. And before I forget, and FYI… With the SMRPG remake already here, I will stick to most of the newish lore and the rest of the story will get retconned accordingly.