Beldam dumped Mario onto the floor in front of Grodus, who looked down at the tied-up plumber with rage. He turned to the large video display that showed his general Crump on a ship in the open water.
"You blew it again, Lord Crump. You sicken me."
"Look, I'm sorry. Seriously, we thought…we thought we had the kid and girl cornered, but…"
"Stop talking. Just stand by until my next order. Think of this as your last chance. Understand?"
"…R-Roger that."
"Then leave." The display fizzled out and Grodus turned back to the hostage and witch, "…Seems dumping him on that desolate island wasn't enough to keep him out of our hair…find a dark corner he won't EVER come out of." Beldam gave a dry chuckle.
"As you wish Sir Grodus."
"Once you've done that, find Soren and crush him. Take the princess and bring her to me. Do not fail me this time."
"Of course, sir. Your wish is our command." Extending her shadow, she swallowed Mario back up before disappearing with him, leaving Grodus alone in his control room. Taking his staff, he swung it across the room, producing a lighting strike that struck the metal floor with the force of his rage, leaving a charred mark behind.
"I have one crystal star in my hands…and that boy has five. I must take some measures." With his next steps on his mind, Grodus made his way out of the control room.
Alice
I stepped into the computer room without much worry. I was starting to get too used to this place that I didn't even get a wary feeling from the talking computer in the basement of an evil fortress anymore…I need to get out of here.
Shaking that thought from my mind, I stepped up to TEC's monitor and stared at his weird eye camera as I waited for him to talk. He gave off a weird sound…kind of like a computer speaker buffering before connecting.
"Did your voice box break?" I asked. He stayed silent for a moment before responding.
"I must ask that you do something a bit more dangerous this time."
"You saw me kick guards my first day here. I can handle any danger you recommend."
"…I would like you to sneak into Sir Grodus's room and look for a data disk." Well, still middling in terms of danger levels.
"Sounds simple. But aren't you a super computer? Don't you know everything Grodus does?"
"Although I can view all data on the network, I am unable to access the data of computers that are not linked to the network." Guess Grodus is hiding something from his own network if he's not linked to it, "Sir Grodus has information even I am unable to view…but I must know it. I must know that information." Weird to see a computer be so…insistent.
"…Alright. So I just need to grab another one of those little guys disguise and waltz into his room?"
"No one other than Sir Grodus can enter his room." Makes sense. Though it makes him even shadier as a boss, "When Sir Grodus is elsewhere, there are guards outside the room that permit no entry."
"I'm guessing you have a plan for that."
"I do. You will be fine if you act according to my instructions…I must admit my reluctance to ask you of such a dangerous task…but I have no one to ask but you." …
"…It's fine. I need to contact Soren anyway so I don't mind helping you with a favor or two."
"Very well. Then please make you way to the elevator." Turning around, I left the computer room and head for the elevator…was I really feeling sympathy for a computer right now?
After taking the elevator up for a bit, I exited onto the floor and made my way to the room TEC led me to, coming to a strange lab upon entering. Beakers of different colored liquids sat on the nearby table with various notes strewn across the remaining desk space. Picking up one of the vials I gave it a small shake and watched the red liquid sloshed inside.
"We will attempt to make a potion that turns you transparent." Wait…
"You're going to have me turn invisible?"
"Yes. You will enter Sir Grodus's room by becoming completely invisible."
"Well, if we're doing that then you should know my chemistry skills aren't that good." Even Gareth had better luck with this kind of stuff then I did most of the time.
"Don't worry. The concocter should be able to simplify the process for you." Past the lab table was a large machine with a conveyer belt and compartments for the vials to be slotted into, "The notes on the desk should tell you the order of the beakers for what we need." In between every other piece of information on them. These X-Nauts had the worst organizational skills.
"Potion of enlargement, potion of shrinking, confusion, waviness(?), good breath(!?)…invisibility!" Looking back to the notes every so often, I place the appropriate colored beakers into their slots, "…Set the machine for the potion…now we just let the machine run until it's done." After a few minutes and the distinct sound of a microwave running followed by the accompanying ding, a light green liquid came out in a beaker.
"That should be the correct mixture."
"Mind not sounding hesitant. I know for a fact that anytime a doctor handed me a liquid to drink and shrugged it didn't go down easy." I gave it a small wiff and felt my nose hairs stand on end. That was not going to be fun to drink.
"Please drink it all."
"Yeah, yeah…" Pinching my nose, I picked up the concoction and knocked it back, swallowing in large gulps until the glass was empty…UGH it has a weird texture going down my throat!? Looking down at the beaker to make sure I drank it all, I watched as the hand I used to hold it, suddenly faded away to nothing before my eyes. I looked to my other hand to find it gone to…but strangely my jacket sleeve was still where my arm would be…in fact, ALL my clothes were still visible.
"You have done it. You have successfully made yourself transparent."
"Not as transparent as I assumed."
"Unfortunately, the potion does not affect clothing. You will have to remove them." WHAT!?
"No no no no no no no! Not happening! This is somebody else's kink, not mine!" …God damnit! "Fine…but only because it's the only way…I don't want to hear anything about this after this whole ordeal got it!?"
"I assure you I will not."
"I'll delete it from your memory if you break that promise."
"Noted…and backed-up." He better mean the promise.
Stepping past the guard and into Grodus's office completely…invisible, I took a moment to roll my eyes at the décor. It was almost James Bond Villain level of fancy, with a piranha aquarium as his walls to match. It even had shag carpeting which felt nice between my toes but completely out of place with the rest of the base I'd seen so far. Making my way over to the computer, I booted it up and found an archaic computer screen staring back at me…it didn't have network capabilities even installed on it. Searching around the desk, I eventually came across an install floppy disc for network capabilities and inserted it. After it was installed and hooked up, I quickly covered my tracks, putting the network information into a hidden folder and layering some useless files on top of it to make it seem like basic computer program files. Dad always made sure to check my laptop to make sure it was in working order for school so I had to get good at hiding…things from him. Odds are Grodus wouldn't find out he's hooked up to the network unless he went looking for it. After everything was properly placed, I put the floppy disk back where I found it and shut off the computer. I took one more look around the office, specifically at the aquarium walls and just beyond to find the entire outer edge was lined with steel plating. No matter where I went in this place, I couldn't find a single hint of where it was relative to the world; not a window or sound beyond the bunker that gave me any clues. At this point my best guess was that I was deep underground but we couldn't be THAT deep without hitting the core…I hated not having a single clue to work off of aside from the super computer who was programed to give me as little information as possible…I think.
Sometimes it felt like TEC was just as lost as I was when it came to this whole situation…and if he's locked out of Grodus's computer then there was something about his plan he didn't even trust his super computer with…but what?
"…I shouldn't dwell here too long. I'm not going to get any answers if I end up caught if this wears off…it better NOT wear off or I'm rearranging TEC's wiring to turn him into a calculator."
Stepping back into the lab I had made the invisibility potion in, I hastily put my clothes back on…finding it particularly more difficult since I couldn't' see my arms or legs as I put them through sleeves and leg holes; but after a bit I was back to fully clothed. My skin was still translucent though.
"Thank you, Alice. I was able to acquire the data I desired."
"Glad to hear that, the floor was extremely cold and there was a draft on me at all times. How do we fix this?" I asked TEC.
"Just drink the green liquid. You will revert to normal instantaneously." Feeling out my hands, I gripped the green flask and brought it to my lips, taking a few sips and placing it back on the table. In a few seconds, my hands slowly came back into view along with my arms and legs; I gave a relieved sigh before putting my hair back into my signature ponytail. Almost forgot about it the first time through before realizing they would have seen my hair band just floating there.
"Now, please return to the computer lab."
With a bit of guard dodging and elevator riding, I was back in TEC's room and stepped up to the lit monitor. He seemed to be going through the data but it was going too fast for me to look at; made sense, super computer and all that.
"What was the data you were after?" I asked.
"I am still analyzing it. The data is very heavily encrypted. But if my prediction is correct…" I cocked my eyebrow at him as he paused, "…No. I cannot afford any mistakes or assumptions. I will let you know when my analysis is complete. Now, please us the communicator, if you wish." Good, I didn't take my clothes off for nothing…geez, that sounds wrong in ANY context. Stepping up I thought about what I wanted to tell Soren this time before typing it out. I was a bit light on any new details this time so just telling him I was okay seemed like enough for now. I made sure to give it a quick once over to make sure everything was right.
"Alright, go ahead and send it."
"…The message has been sent. We are done for now. Please go back to the room."
"See you next time." Turning around, I made my way to the door.
"…Thank you, Alice." I stopped at him saying that and felt a bit flustered…I honestly didn't expect him to just outright say it like that…had me almost forget he was a computer for a moment.
"S-Sure. No problem TEC…I'll see you later." I hastily made my way out of the room feeling a bit bashful all of a sudden. I didn't even get a chance to catch what he said last as the door closed behind me…damn it, this shouldn't get this complicated…
Gareth
The moonlit sky was a strange sight given it was mid-day. We had stepped into someplace called Twilight Town after wandering around aimlessly for a few hours. Bowser was at a loss as to where to head next and didn't want to admit it. So, we wandered around for any clues on the Princess, asking any random shmuck we came across who wouldn't run in terror. That still didn't leave us many clues, and now we were in a weird town. Looking over I saw Lily examining around us with her usual look of fascination as Bowser and Kammy trudged along to the center of the town.
"Bleck! What is this place?" Bowser asked. "Why is the light so weird here? It's spooking me out!"
"The light's odd because this is Twilight Town, my lord. The entire area is awash in some strange form of magic that perpetually-"
"Cut to the chase crone!"
"Y-Yes my lord. Apparently, there should be a treasure here somewhere…let's put the screws to the locals and locate a crystal star!"
"Sounds good to me haggy."
"Can you finish what you were saying?" Lily asked Kammy and the old turtle looked absolutely touched at her interest in what Kammy was talking about. Bowser rolled his eyes before trudging off to talk with one of the terrified looking locals. I gave a small yawn and turned to see some pudgy looking guy in a red cape searching through the grass.
"I'm pretty sure Beldam said she lost her superbombomb somewhere around here...this…stinks. Really. This whole deal is exTREMELY BAD! BAD! BAD! BAAAD! I gotta cowboy up and make a serious comeback here. Or else…" I had to stand there and watch him shuffle around in the grass looking for his thing; something about him just scratched at the back of my brain…did I see him somewhere before? He came to a stop before standing back up and holding what looked to be an honest to god grenade with a skull on it, "Bam! Got it! I am the MAN! Now we can crush Soren and get the Crystal Stars in one fell swoop! Hot-diggity-DOG!" Soren? I turned to Lily and tapped her on the shoulder to grab her attention.
"Did Soren tell us to be on the look out for someone like him?" I pointed to the guy gleefully holding the grenade. Lily jumped for a sec at seeing the grande in his hand before opening up her book and skimming through it.
"Um…Purple-horned helmet, black suit with a white X, and a red cape…I think that's Crump. Soren said he was also after the stars and part of the group that took Alice." Well, if that weren't enough of a reason to pound this guy into the dirt for information. Brandishing my bat, I made my way over to him…only to be intercepted by Bowser and Kammy.
"You there! Suspicious guy! You know something about the Crystal Stars, don't you?" Kammy interrogated as best she could. Crump turned around to face them with confusion.
"Buh? Somebody there?" He tensed up as soon as he saw Bowser but didn't falter…props, "Hey! What's the big idea, turtle boy? You looking for the Crystal Stars, too? Sweet! This'll help the Crump comeback!"
"Actually-" I interjected stepping up, "We'd also like to know where Alice is. If you don't feel like talking, I'm more than willing to give you a few bumps on the head to jog your memory!" I grinned as I brandished my bat at him." He gave a loud and boisterous laugh, "Other way around scrub! You'll be telling me everything you know, NOW!" I love when they don't want to cooperate. Bowser gave a growl.
"Actually, it's YOU who's gonna spill every bit of info out of your big, ugly head! Don't expect me or the brute to show you any mercy either!" Guessing he meant me but I was fine by that. Guess at the prosepct of fighting both of us, Crump faltered a little.
"Wh-Whoa there, big guy…I mean…NO!" He quickly shook his nerves back in place, "What am I afraid of? Two chumps and chumpettes? Buh! Buh! Buh huh huh! If you think you can take me, then try it!" He stuck two fingers in his mouth and gave out a sharp whistle that cut through the air, "ALL TROOPS! REPORT!" A low rumbling could be hear distance, getting louder as a hoard of red and white suited grunts filed in behind Crump. Lily gave a small whimper at the numbers in front of us, reluctantly drawing her staff and readying herself.
"Why can't it ever be simple?" She mused.
"No clue. Way more fun though!" I replied psyching myself up for the oncoming fight.
"Buh huh huh huh huh! Let's see you take on all my troops! Unless you feel like talking all of a sudden!"
"Ha!" Kammy returned raising her staff and firing off a flair, "Koopa Clan! FORM UP!" To my and Lily's shock, an army of armored Koopa's filed in behind us and Bowser, all looking ready for a war.
"Buh huh huh! Well played!"
"So what's it gonna be, tough guy?"
"How about an armistice?" Lily offered.
"We haven't even STARTED fighting." Bowser pointed out.
"Even then, I have the upper hand!" Crump declared loudly, producing the grenade and pulling the pin, before tossing it towards the center of the field. Lily was instantly ready to pop up a magical barrier between us and the grenade as the whole army cowered…yet nothing happened. As Lily dropped her barrier, Bowser scoffed.
"That was it? That was your big weapon? It didn't even go off!" He let out a triumphant laugh, "This is how you do it, amateur! Watch and learn!" In a show of power, Bowser let off a powerful breath of fire…and we all watched in horror as it seemed to ignite the grenade.
"Oh, crud…" Those were the last words I heard from Crump before Lily deployed the magic barrier around the four of us as the entire field filled up with a white field that still sent us flying backwards and upwards.
Soren
With Cortez's help and ship, we were back at Rogueport in only a few hours. I'm taking a ghost ship for any voyage from now on with speed and comfort like that. I was half tempted to kiss the pier as soon as my feet got off the ship.
"It's nice to be back." Peach commented as she adjusted her adventuring outfit. I was glad to be back to wearing my old clothes and jacket. It just felt weird to wear summer clothes for more than a few hours at a beach.
"I never want to end up deserted on an island again." I said giving a relieved sigh. "On that note, we should grab something to eat that isn't fish or drowning in preservatives."
"Oh! Maybe we can grab some ingredients and make a big feast at Zess T.'s!" Peach offered.
"Oh, that sounds great right now-" The sound of an explosion caught our ears. Sounded far off in the distance…
"What was that?" Koops asked looking worried
"Sounded far away." Bobbery added.
"Oh…" Vivian looked a bit conflicted, "Could that have been…the superbombomb?"
"I though it was a dud?" I asked and she seemed to get more concerned.
"W-Well…if it were ignited…" …Don't tell me.
"Should we be worried?" Peach asked coming to the same conclusion. The sudden vibration of my scroll had me pull it out to find a photo message from Gareth of the group in a magic bubble…followed by one from Lily perspective with a much more terrified expression.
"…I think they're fine. Possibly traumatized and bruised but alive." …How did they end up THAT far in the air!?