Grodus, leader of the X-Nauts, looked out at the minions who had returned to him after putting their guest into the lowest room of their fortress. Beyond looking their standard level of pathetic, each was uniquely beat up and bruised, their uniform damaged in various areas.
"Is our guest subdued?" He asked in his commanding tone. Each X-Naut grunt just looked at each other with unsure expressions hidden behind their masks.
"S-Sort of sir." One answered. Grodus just sighed.
"Bring her in." The back door opened up and a bunch of X-Naut grunts entered, dragging rope that seem to pull back with enough force to take anyone of the grunts off their feet. Eventually they dragged the person attached to the rope into the room.
Alice continued to pull and thrash as the X-Nauts dragged her into the center of the room, and in front of Grodus. His bulbous head gave only the sense of a man completely made of technology, and the glass panel revealing circuitry confirmed it for Alice.
"So, this is our new guest." He said.
"I don't remember RSVPing. And I don't believe in mandatory gatherings!" Alice spat back.
"Regardless, you will tell me where the map is."
"Yes, because you gave me such a good reason to help you. Now let me go, before I burn down this base!" Grodus laughed at Alice's threat as she glared at him.
"It would be in your best interest to cooperate. We can make your stay much less hospitable." This threat didn't phase Alice.
"I don't fear bobbleheads."
"Ehehehehehehehehe!" Out of the floor came the three Shadow Sirens.
"You!" Alice began thrashing even more wildly, even dragging a grunt along the floor.
"Such fiery spirit."
"I'll show you a fire!"
"ENOUGH!" Grodus slammed his staff onto the floor, sending out a powerful shockwave that even had Alice stop, "YOU WILL REVEAL WHERE THE MAP HAS GONE!"
"I don't fear you. Besides, the person who has the map isn't going to hand it over either." Alice replied with a smirk. "Might as well just give up now." Beldam snarled.
"Yes, that boy has been more problematic than I'd admit."
"A boy?" Grodus asked.
"Yes sir." One of the grunts replied. "He was the reason our first attempt to kidnap Princess Peach was unsuccessful."
"And the reason our second attempt failed." Beldam added with a hint of anger in her voice.
"Sir!" A holographic screen popped up from nowhere, displaying a lone X-Naut grunt, "We've just received a report! The crystal star at Hooktail castle was collected by Princess Peach and some black coat wearing person with a wooden sword."
"Told you." Alice said to Grodus smugly.
"Grrr…get this girl out of my sight! Send her back to her room!" As the X-Naughts around her sheepishly tried to pull her along, she realized it was probably a waste of time to try to fight them; especially with Beldam here who could just knock her out with a sleep spell. Rising to her own feet, Alice followed the grunts out of the room as they hesitantly held her bonds. "Who is that boy?"
"We are unsure." Beldam answered. "I am unfortunately feeling a bit woozy in remembering exactly what he looked like and we were unable to get his name." She rubbed at the small bump under her hat caused by Soren's bamboo sword.
"U-Um…" Vivian spoke up. "I think I heard the princess call him Soren."
"Quiet Vivian! Nobody asked for your two cents on the matter!" Beldam turned back to Grodus. "Sir Grodus, we shall hunt down this Soren and collect both the map AND the crystal star from him. Along with that princess."
"See that you do, witch. I will not tolerate further failure. While I find your ingenuity in capturing that girl admirable, it is still a failure non the less. Now go. do my bidding!" With that, the three witches molded back into the shadow of the floor, disappearing entirely.
Alice
I gave a huff of annoyance as I looked around my new room. It was basically a locker room with a bed shoved in the corner. I could even smell the previous B.O. of one of those fishy smelling X-Nauts who brought me here.
"Great way to treat a guest." I moved over to the doorway they brought me in from and banged at it, trying to open it…or at least catch some idiots attention so I could sneak out. "…Guess I'm not getting out of here that easily." I moved back and sat on the bed in the corner. My mind wandered to the report we had heard about Soren. "We've barely been here a day and he's already causing trouble…that idiot is getting an earful when I get the chance." Wait a minute! I reached into my green jacket pocket, fishing for my scroll but finding it missing entirely. "…Damn, they must have taken it with everything else I had on me." I flopped back onto the bed and took a deep inhale to collect myself, only to be hit by the worst thing in the world. My own body odor.
With a towel wrapped around my body and one scrubbing against my hair, I gave out a relieved sigh at the now peachy smell my body and hair gave off. I hate the fact that I was captured by a bunch of freaks, but at least they had access to hot water.
"Weird the tub was in the center of the room though." Suddenly, I felt something looking at me, and turned to find a security camera in the bathroom I was standing in…in only a towel. I quickly retreated behind the bath curtain and dried myself off as fast as I could. "Bunch of perverts!"
With my clothes back on and my hair back in its signature ponytail, I stepped back into the main room and found the door out of the room was wide open. Did someone actually just come in to check on me and left the door open on their way out?
"Sounds like they've got their own Gareth." I stepped past the threshold and into the hallway, finding only an elevator at the center left wall, and another door at the far end of the hall. I was surprised to find that there wasn't a single grunt in the hall but once I realized that I couldn't access the elevator it made a lot more sense why they wouldn't bother with guards. "Not like any of them could stop me anyway." As I approached the far door, it opened all on its own. I had to take a step back at the sudden movement before stepping through the threshold.
The inside was almost like something you'd see at an old fifties bunker. The only thing that was actually in the room was what could only be described as a super computer. It had a monitor bigger than any TV I've seen and keyboards and dials for various functions that I could only guess at.
"Lily would have loved to get a look at this thing." I off handedly commented. Almost the second I said that, the lights came to life and the computer began to whir and buzz.
"Hello Alice." The voice was stilted and robotic…was it actually coming from the computer? I looked above the main monitor to see a camera lens that seemed focused on me.
"This is strange."
"Do not be alarmed."
"Alarmed isn't quite the word I'd use in this scenario. What are you?"
"I am this laboratory's main computer. I am the TEC-XX. Many call me TEC. You may as well."
"So you run this whole place?"
"Sir Grodus created me to be a perfect computer, one that is flawless in its reason."
"Well your boss is a jack-ass." I said simply.
"Sir Grodus is a very great person. He is marvelous."
"I beg to differ." Wait, this isn't an argument to be having with his computer. "Well, I'm willing to bet you didn't call me in here to let me escape."
"That is correct. I am not allowed to let you leave this place."
"Then why let me out of my room to come see you?"
"I am…unsure. An unusual program deviation occurred when I observed you earlier. My higher brain tried to calculate that deviation but the data collected was insufficient to fully determine its cause. At that moment, an unidentified impulse sped through my processors. These events are new to me." That's more tech jargon then I was prepared to deal with, "There is more to this phenomenon, as well. I ran diagnostic programs…and their solution was…I want to know more about you. I want to observe you." This is getting too weird. "Such a compulsion has no precedence. Cause unknown. I, the perfect computer…I must diagnose this unusual situation. I will not fail. That is why I led you here." It took me a minute to fully parse out what TEC meant before it hit me.
"You're curious about me?" I asked.
"I do not fully understand these signal impulses. To qualify it as curiosity would be insufficient at the moment."
"Look, you want to know more about me. If that's not curiosity then I don't know what is." TEC went silent for a moment.
"Whatever this is…I am unable to compute it at the moment. Yet there should be nothing I cannot comprehend. I am a perfect computer." I sighed.
"Most feelings like curiosity aren't something you can entirely…comprehend…like happiness or love. It's more a gut instinct." I was not doing very well at explaining this…but how was I supposed to know I would be telling a computer about feelings today!?
"…Alice. Will you teach me about these feelings?" I was slightly shocked at his request.
"Why would you care about feelings? You're a computer."
"I am the worlds PERFECT computer. There should be nothing I do not comprehend. Nothing. That is why you must help me understand these things. These...feelings. Please."
"And why should I?" I know I'm their prisoner but that doesn't mean I'm going to roll over and bark just because they told me to.
"If there are any wishes that I can grant you in exchange, I will grant them. But, of course, I am unable to grant such a wish as letting you escape." Figures it wouldn't be that simple.
"You've really got me over a barrel here don't you. You jerks seem to think you've got the upper hand in any deal." The venom in my tone must have come through as he went silent for a few seconds.
"I understand that you are angry. That emotion I comprehend. You need not teach it to me now."
"I wasn't trying to teach you an emotion!" Jeez, he really does think I'll just agree to this!
"I must learn of this new feeling. I must. There is no alternative. I must be a perfect computer. That is why I offer you a wish, in exchange for your assistance." For a computer he's pretty persistent. I know what Soren would say in this moment…Soren…
"Fine…but in exchange: I want to be able to contact someone. Right now."
"Very well. That wish I can grant." Good. Honestly, it's the only thing I want right now. "You may use my communicator to send wireless mail to anywhere you want. Use the keyboard in front of you, enter the recipients address, and message." Alright. I stepped up to the keyboard and entered Soren's email address.
"I'd better let him know I'm at least okay…although that's debatable given I don't know where I am…I'll just tell him not to worry too much. I'm sure I'll bust my way out eventually."
"I would not count on it. I am programmed to keep you here after all."
"Quiet from the peanut gallery." With a quick type of my name at the end of the message I stepped back from the keyboard. "Alright, send it."
"…The message has been sent." Good. Now at least one of us will be a bit less worried. "For the time being, you may return to your room. I will call you again when I want to ask you something." The door I came in from opened back up. As I stepped towards it, I suddenly remembered the security camera hanging in the bathroom.
"Hey…was that your camera in the bathroom of my room?"
"Yes. I was told to monitor you while you were here. In case you tried to attempt an escape." He was watching me shower!?
"Perverted computer!" I grumbled as I stomped out of the room.
"Goodnight, Alice."
Lily
"And that's all the information we've got." I said finishing up our explanation to Bowser. He sat in his throne, taking in the information we had given him and looking deep in thought.
"Huh…a magical map huh? Of course Peach would find something like that and share it with that plumber."
"Actually she sent it to Soren." Gareth corrected.
"Whatever! The point is that there's treasure in the world and I haven't got it yet!"
"Damn shame I know." Gareth was not helping.
"We were supposed to grab Mario and head to Rogueport but we got dumped here."
"Of course you did!" Bowser said standing up and towering over us. It had me quite terrified. "Who else is better to get that treasure than me! King Koopa!"
"I'm sure the treasure the map leads to is some powerful artifact that was put away for being too powerful." Gareth might be right…
"M-Maybe we shouldn't take it then." I offered feeling my fears creep in at the ideas of what it could be. Bowser's commanding stomp had me jump and scramble behind Gareth.
"I should take it! A powerful artifact is just what I need!" All we're doing is digging a deeper hole!
"Well we can't do anything without the map." Gareth said.
"Then we'll just need to grab it from Soren and Peach. Once I have it, I'll just follow the path to the powerful treasure." Just because we said it might be a powerful artifact doesn't mean it is. These two were in there own little world.
"Lord Bowser!" A withered voice had us turn to see an old koopa woman shamble in on a cane. She moved forward until Gareth and I had to step to the side to let her through at which point she kept moving until she was in front of the King. "I've returned from my recon mission on Mario." Recon at her age?
"Spit it out Kammy. I haven't got all day."
"It is my displeasure to report that Mario, that scum, is off to a town called Rogueport with that Alice girl."
"Seems she got put in the right place." Gareth said. "Wonder why we didn't."
"Don't know but that means were really far behind both Soren and Alice." I brought up.
"Yeah, might be a good move to get there as quickly as possible." But how? If I remember correctly, Mary said we had to catch a boat just to get there. Bowser let out a mighty roar.
"MARIO ISN'T IMPORTANT RIGHT NOW! Where is the princess and that black coated punk!?"
"Well, I believe I last saw them when I was passing by Petal Meadows."
"Damn, dude's starting the hunt without us!" Gareth said with a hint of jealousy in his voice. "We can't miss out on that!" Regardless of Gareth's envy, he had a point. It was probably best to rendezvous with Soren and meet Alice when she docked at Rogueport.
"By the way sire, do you like fried eggs?" Huh?
"Love em! Why?"
"During my recon, I realized that Petal Meadows was a lovely spot for a picnic. We could gather everyone there and have a picnic." I looked over and saw Gareth's mouth slightly watering. It made me giggle and he looked away bashfully.
"Well…we need to keep our energy up."
"Of course." I replied.
"AIRHEAD!" Bowser shouted, making me yelp. "We don't have time to goof off! You clowns are always wasting time when we could be focusing on beating Mario!" He began stomping making me recoil back at what could happen. Kammy was the first to speak up.
"Oh dear, lord Bowser, please calm down. Remember your blood pressure!" Out of the corner of my vision, I noticed a magic koopa approach Kammy, they then whispered something into her ear before shuffling away. "Lord Bowser! Terrible news! Someone in Rogueport seems to have defeated Mario and stone that black-haired girl!" WHAT!?
"Alice was kidnapped!?" I yelled in shock.
"No way! How did anyone sneak up on her?" Gareth asked in astonishment. We figured the only person who could successfully kidnap Alice would be Alice herself. Most people who grabbed her shoulder left with at least three broken fingers. Our outcry seems to have startled Bowser as he stopped stomping. I rushed over to Kammy and crouched to meet her eye level.
"Do we know who did this? And what happened to Mario?"
"I'm afraid we don't have that information quite yet. Apparently, Mario disappeared shortly after the girl did." Oh no…so both of them are missing.
"GRAH!" Bowser yelled out. "I will NOT stand for this! The only one allowed to be a nuisance to Mario is me! Which starts with kidnapping the princess!" With that, he stomped around us and out the front door. Before any of us could follow him, he burst back through, this time on what looked to be a flying vehicle with a clown face on it. "Let's get moving!" Before I could even oppose to the idea, I felt Gareth wrap his arm around my waist and jump up to grab onto Bowser's air vehicle before he took off. He tossed me indies and then climbed in himself as Bowser crashed through his own castle wall and into the sky. Bowser looked back at us with a snarl.
"Hitching a ride big guy. Don't worry about us." Gareth said confidently.
"Fine…but for now, you are my minions and will do as I say." Gareth just grinned as I silently wondered if this choice of action would help Soren and Alice or hinder them. Both were equally possible but given Gareth's next comment, I was willing to bet on the latter.
"This is gonna be fun."
Soren
Koops and his father were kind enough to let us stay at their place for the night, seeing as how we had helped take out Hooktail they were very insistent. Although half of the fun was seeing Koops get both the loving attention of a man who came back to war from Koopie Koo as well as the cold shoulder considering he didn't listen to her.
When we got back, she practically threw herself into his arms. Wrapping him in a deep hug.
"I'm so glad you came back safe Koops!" But then dinner came around and she served us a nice salad with delicious dressing…except for Koops who got a single leaf and tomato.
"U-Um Koopie Koo?"
"Yes? Do you have SOMETHING you want to do?"
"Don't you mean say?"
"NO." It was bizarre to watch but the weirdest part was how Peach and Goombella seem to chuckle at this.
The next morning, while we were gathering up our stuff to head back to Rogueport, Koops was quick to catch up with us on our way out the door.
"I'm coming with you guys!" I was a bit shocked.
"You sure?" I asked and he nodded confidently.
"Yes. I don't feel like I've truly learned how to be courageous…but I know I'll find out if I keep traveling with you some more." I couldn't help but chuckle at his resolve and outstretched my hand to shake his.
"Then we'd be glad to have you." As he returned my shake, I felt the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
"KOOPS." The voice of his girlfriend had Koops's eyes go wide in terror as he turned around to face her. She rushed forward and gave him a tight hug, "Make sure you come back alive…okay?"
"I will. I promise." She gave him a peck on the cheek and stepped back.
"How sweet." Peach commented. She stared at me for a moment and I felt my cheeks heat up before she pouted. "I can't do it…not after that thief did it." I wasn't sure what she meant by that but it was probably better not to delve further.
As we walked through Petal Meadows on our way back to Rogueport, I felt my scroll suddenly vibrate in my jacket pocket. Pulling it out I was surprised to find an email from Alice.
"I was wondering where she was. I figured she would have caught up by now." I flipped it open and was surprised by the first line. "WHAT!?"
"Something wrong?" Peach asked with a worried tone as Goombella and Koops turned their attention to me. Guess I should read it aloud.
"Soren,
First off: I've been captured by some X-Naut weirdos. I was taken to some weird secret base while I was unconscious. Some old crone hit me with a sleep spell and I didn't wake up until I was already here.
Secondly: Don't worry. All their grunts are terrified of me and I've got access to a computer so I can send you these emails. Not sure that return mail is possible though. But I'll find a way out. So, stop worrying and just focus on collecting those crystal stars. Seems the X-Nauts are after them too so keep an eye out for those freaks. I'll send you another e-mail soon.
-Alice-"
I let out a small sigh of relief.
"If she can send me an e-mail, then at least she's not tied to some death trap." I said putting my scroll away.
"So she'll be okay?" Peach asked.
"Hopefully. I know she can handle herself at least." Honestly I was more worried about the people keeping her hostage then Alice herself. "Come on, let's keep going. If we're quick enough we might even meet her while she's trying to break out." What that thought in my mind, we kept our pace as we made our way back to Rogueport to grab the location for the next crystal star.