RECAP:
Bowser and Mario had split up and managed to learn more about their acquaintances Devon and Morris in the process. While Mario was taught the origin of Dammerel's church and of humanity's historic worship of the stars, Bowser realized the troubled local chef was roommates on the island with his own mother, Wanda Koopa. Unable to maintain his composure at this revelation, the Koopa King stormed out in a fury.
Later, Mario and Bowser attended their first town hall in Dammerel. Morris and Honey revealed their past regrets and inspired the rest of the village to do the same. Bowser was asked to give a closing speech, when suddenly a pack of ravenous red wolves suddenly emerged from the shadows. Mario, Bowser, Damian, Morris and a bird named Julius banded together to fend off these mysterious assailants.
In the aftermath of the battle, a new figure emerged before them: Ludwig.
Meanwhile, back in the Metro Kingdom, Roy and the gang were preparing for their first official match in the Pleasure City tournament.
Emerging from the shower, Roy toweled off and reached for his signature sunglasses resting on the sink nearby. While he still didn't quite feel back up to his full strength, a good night's sleep and a decent meal had been enough to put him back into fighting shape for the day ahead at least. Even so, as a precaution, he decided to take another nibble out of the Maple Ultra Goombella had given him. Whatever was in this thing, it was doing immediate wonders for stripping the last remnants of soreness from his arm and neck.
The musty, dimly lit hallway outside was quiet. If this was meant to be the beginner's floor, Roy expected there to be a lot more newbies running around; waiting with bated breath for their lofty dreams of fame and fortune to take flight, only to be violently crushed by this supposedly cut-throat competition.
And yet, there was hardly anyone around - even in the late morning.
Was everyone else really that strong that they'd managed to immediately move up in the ranks? Surely there had to be someone else who was stuck at the bottom of the totem pole too. Where were all the rookies, the D-Listers, the punching bags, or the perpetual losers?
The Koopaling dismissed the question from his mind for the moment as he exited the elevator five minutes later and went to his comrades in the restaurant on the first floor. The place was buzzing with the clattering of silverware on dishes and excited chatter from the many patrons. The atmosphere was dimly lit, and it cast a warm and cozy mood within the brown and beige walls. The succulent aromas of coffee and freshly-baked pastries permeated the air.
Daisy, Larry and Diddy had snagged a booth in the back of the crowded space so they could strategize for their first match without having too many eyes on them. In between bites of the bountiful breakfast buffet, Daisy rambled on about the terribly lumpy mattresses and her shower's lack of hot water. But Larry was quick to remind her that the living conditions on their floor were meant to be terrible. After all, if it was comfortable here, what incentive would anyone have to move up in the ranks?
Roy's handheld communicator began to tremble on the table. Snatching it up and flipping it open, Iggy and Goombella materialized on the miniature screen at once.
"Well, well, you guys are looking about a thousand times better this morning than you were yesterday," said Iggy with a smile.
"If Jolene was being honest when she said she wants an alliance with us, then I'd say she's managed to live up to her word so far with the hospitality we've gotten," said Daisy. "For the most part anyway."
"Glad to hear it. Just don't get too cozy. You're not on vacation, after all."
"Believe me, the thought's never crossed our minds," said Larry with a snort. "As much as they try to prop this place up as some fancy hotel, it becomes immediately obvious how shady the whole thing is the second you set foot on the first fighter's floor."
"Yeah, and it's terrifying how little people around here seem to notice. I don't think any of the spectators have a clue how dangerous their ringleaders are inside this giant circus," Roy added.
"Then I guess it's our job to open their eyes, isn't it?" said Iggy. "Your first match is today, right?" Everyone at the table nodded. "Any idea who your first opponent is going to be?"
"Jolene said she'd tell us just before the start of the match," said Daisy. "Apparently, she doesn't want anyone getting too much prep time. It 'keeps things interesting' if we have to adapt on the fly."
"Too bad for her, we're not here to play by their rules," said Diddy.
"That's the spirit!" Goombella agreed. "As I'm sure you've already guessed, I took another look over the fighter roster this morning. With Iggy's help, we managed to hack into Pleasure City's website and snagged a ton of encrypted data from their internal ranking algorithm."
"And?" said Larry as he arched a brow.
"I pieced together that your first opponent – or should I say opponents – is going to be none other than the Goomba Bros," Roy, Larry, Daisy and Diddy all looked at one another with shared skepticism.
"Goombas? Seriously? Is this some kind of a joke?" Larry asked.
"Well, the fighters are ranked, after all. That means someone has to be at the very bottom. And how much more World 1-1 can you get than Goombas?"
"True. They're not all that powerful or capable," said Daisy. "Uhh…n-no offense," she quickly added sheepishly. Goombella laughed.
"None taken. Not to toot my own horn, but I'd like to think I'm a few pegs above the rest of my kind." Roy smiled.
"Don't have to convince us of that," he said. "Any other advice?"
"Well, it bears repeating, just don't let your guard down," said Iggy. "These may seem like garden-variety Goombas, but if they were allowed into this tournament and had to get injected with Essence too, then this probably won't be the cakewalk you're imagining right now."
"Good point," Diddy agreed as he polished off the last of his meal. "Welp, guess it's getting to be about that time, right?" Daisy glanced at the clock on the wall nearby.
"Yeah, Jolene asked us to meet her at nine," she said. "It's show-time, boys."
"Good luck, you guys!" said Goombella as the transmission ended.
At a quarter to nine, the team met Jolene just outside the elevator. She demonstrated how to use a key card to navigate the tower, and concluded her lecture with a reminder that she wouldn't always be available to escort them to the arena. So, she expected them to be fully capable of arriving for the match on-time on their own going forward. But given what Roy and the others now knew about Jolene's true nature and motives, they considered this to be more of a formality to keep up appearances rather than anything meant to annoy them or insult their intelligence.
"Now then, the tournament matches comprise of both team battles and individual bouts," said Jolene as the elevator quickly began its ascent up to the arena floor. "This creates a certain balance. It not only shows your ability to collaborate with others and create synergy, but also that you don't always need to rely on one another to win a fight. Though you shouldn't always expect to fight together, your debut match will be as a team. Your first opponents will be the Goomba Bros."
"Hold on, how does our ranking work if we could be fighting either together or individually?" Daisy asked. "If one of us loses, does that mean all of us drop in rank?"
"Potentially. You four have been registered in the system as a team with one shared rank. As you win matches, you will collectively earn points. Accumulate enough and your group's rank will increase. You'll score more points from winning a team battle than you will in a one-on-one fight, and even more if all of you are still standing at the match's conclusion. However, the opposite is also true. If any of you lose in a solo battle, your team's point total will decrease. If it drops too low, then your team's rank will fall. And even if you win in a team scenario, you'll earn fewer points than you could have if there are fewer of you left standing at the end."
"So it's kind of like leveling up in an RPG then," said Larry. "Except for the part where we could rank down." It seemed that hanging around Junior and listening to him ramble on about his favorite video games for so many years had finally paid off.
"Something like that, yes," said Jolene.
"Why would anyone register solo if they can earn more points as a team?" Daisy asked.
"Simple: accountability," Jolene answered. "If you're a talented solo act and only have to manage yourself, then it's possible to quickly rank up by winning more matches back-to-back. But if you have teammates who can't pull their own weight, they can drag you down based on the smaller number of matches you're in."
"How exactly do we 'win' matches?" Roy asked.
"The match will end when one side is unable to continue. They could fall unconscious, become paralyzed or incapacitated, forfeit either voluntarily or against their will. Or, if it really has to come down to it, when someone dies." A chilling silence fell over the tiny elevator space.
"Does it…ever come to that?" Diddy asked as his eyebrows knitted together. Jolene frowned.
"More often than you might think…," she said solemnly.
"What about a tie?" Larry asked. The Toad's eyes met his, and he saw an almost malevolent glint behind her glasses.
"Listen to me. If you really want to win this thing, never let it come to a tie. That's considered a sign of weakness around here. People will look down on you for it. Win by any means necessary. Anything and everything is fair game in the ring. Nothing is off-limits. Hit below the belt if you have to; fight dirty; throw out any notion of fighting honorably in that arena because I assure you, that is the farthest thing from your opponent's mind. No matter how unruly or dangerous a power or technique might be; no matter the risk or cost. Dig deep and pull out every last trick you've got in your arsenal. You should go into each and every match prepared to do whatever it takes to not just survive, but win."
"Do people here really wanna watch fights like that?" Roy asked.
"Are you kidding? The audience – and more importantly, my superiors – eat that up. It's ratings gold as far as they're concerned. How do you think we get enough revenue to keep this place like this up and running? People will pay top coin for no holds barred fighting."
No one was sure how much of Jolene's advice was true and how much she was exaggerating to drive her point home. But if Essence was involved, they knew they couldn't afford to doubt her severity.
The elevator jolted to an abrupt stop. As the doors slid open, the same all-encompassing noise and energy they'd first been exposed to yesterday instantly smothered them. Jolene escorted the group along a narrow corridor of shadows that was sandwiched between the stands and the wire fence of the cage's boundaries. They climbed up a small flight of stairs and slipped behind a tall, red theater curtain.
Jolene instructed the group to stay behind in the backstage area while she walked out into the gargantuan beam of spotlights to introduce them.
The tension in the dusty air was palpable and all four were doing their best not to let their nerves show. Roy straightened his back and crossed his arms, despite digging his claws into his scales to keep himself from trembling. Larry summoned one of his pistols and polished it with his shirt despite its already spotless gleam. Daisy planted herself in front of a mirror on the wall nearby and frantically combed and tidied her hair as though she were preparing for a royal ball than a cage fight. Diddy stroked his tail meticulously between his fingers and looked perhaps the least convincing out of all of them. But no one had to say a word to know they were all currently being strangled by the exact same fear.
Could they really do this?
Despite all the battles they'd survived until now, everything they'd heard from Professor Frankly, Iggy, Goombella, and Jolene about the dangers of this tournament was finally starting to sink in, it seemed. It was all real now. This would be their first fight since receiving Essence. Would that hinder their ability to fight at the same caliber? Even knowing ahead of time that they were only fighting Goombas wasn't much of a comfort. There had to be some kind of catch. It couldn't really be that easy, could it?
The boom of Jolene's words through the mic snapped them all back into attention. Their feet moved on their own. Roy took the lead while Diddy brought up the rear of their single-file march into the white abyss.
"Without further ado, may I introduce for the very first time, Teeeeeeaaaam RRRRenegade!" Jolene exclaimed in a deep octave none of them imagined her to be capable of reaching.
A wave of cheers erupted from the ocean of spectators. The thousands of spotlights ceased dancing all at once and immediately zeroed-in together on the group. Roy stumbled through the light until the giant cage and a large silhouette quickly came into his view.
With a malevolent smirk, Grubba reached over and pulled open a gate with one arm; gesturing for Roy to enter.
"Break a leg, son!" he said.
The Koopaling refused to meet his gaze. He mustered his courage and stepped inside while his comrades followed closely behind. Once Diddy had entered, the gate slammed shut with a loud clank behind them and Grubba vanished into the shadows.
Larry scanned the crowd and took in his surroundings. Although, the intense lights made it impossible for him to make out much. He spotted a large balcony jetting out of the wall several feet in the air above. There were a series of four plush red seats lined up in a row across it. Most of the occupants came as no surprise. Wario, Waluigi, and Don Frankie sat side-by-side. But there was an unfamiliar guest sitting between them as well in the fourth chair.
A tall, slender woman in a long, red dress with wavy dark brown hair and light blue eyes met Larry's gaze for a brief moment. At first glance, she almost looked like Eris, but the colors were completely different. Still, this woman's fair, flawless skin and hourglass waist made her quite the sight to behold. Her beauty was radiant, but there was a distinct sorrow in her gorgeous face. The woman's lush, ruby lips were bent into a frown and her eyes were exuding a sense of both fear and exhaustion. If everyone wasn't so caught up in the gladiatorial spectacle, it would be obvious for anyone to notice that this woman did not want to be here – whoever she was.
How could someone so pretty look so sad? Come to think of it, why did she look so familiar?
Larry didn't have time to ponder any of this. Following the slam of a distant gate, the spotlights traced a small herd of familiar, mushroom-shaped creatures galloping towards him from the other side of the mat. Standing before the team now were five of the most ordinary-looking Goombas imaginable. They had absolutely nothing to distinguish them from any other Goombas that could be found just about anywhere in the world.
"Who are these 'Renegade' rookies? Cocky idiots, that's who! Waiting just makes us mad!" one of the Goombas shouted over the crowd.
"Let's get ready to…BRAAAAAWL!" Jolene's voice exploded from the speakers. Another surge of cheers radiated from the crowd in all directions.
The whiplash of the moment was potent. The harsh gong of a bell cut through the heavy buzz of the audience. Roy, Larry, Daisy, and Diddy immediately steeled themselves for the trial at-hand.
"Don't hold back!" said Roy. They charged toward the Goombas - whom were now stampeding towards them at the same time. The Koopaling clobbered one with his fist and hammered it down into the mat.
Diddy hopped and stomped on two Goombas' heads in quick succession. To his surprise though, they didn't flatten. Their heads simply bounced right back into the normal shape. Not even bothering to summon their weapons, Daisy and Larry each punted the last two Goombas; sending them hurdling across the arena and into the fence.
Undeterred, the Goombas quickly stood up from where they each had landed and raced towards their opponents once more. Larry stepped forward – now armed with a single pistol – and blasted each Goomba in quick succession. While they were stunned, Roy slammed his foot down onto the mat; producing a ripple that sent the Goomba hoard flying once more.
He smiled; confident that was it. After all, there was no way any ordinary Goomba could stand back up after that. Then his eyes widened.
After slamming into the fence and crashing down on the mat once more, all five of the Goombas immediately climbed to their stubby feet again.
"That all you got, chumps?!" said one of the Goombas.
"Why aren't they staying down?" said Diddy.
"Just as I thought. Somethin's definitely not right about these guys…," Roy surmised.
The Koopaling's mind immediately jumped to Essence. Surely that was granting these Goombas significantly more durability than the species normally had. But was it really that simple? There were no signs of any red mutations anywhere on these Goombas. At least not yet. They looked completely normal on the outside.
Diddy rushed in and began swatting and slapping the Goombas away. They took the full brunt of his attacks. But once again, they came waddling back for more. They eventually managed to swarm and dog-pile on top of Diddy. But he quickly launched them away from underneath; retreating back towards his teammates.
"Ha! You think you're so tough, but you can't even beat a bunch of Goombas!" another of the Goombas taunted.
"We're not getting anywhere," said Daisy. "We need to hit them with something stronger."
"But we'll look stupid if we waste even more of our energy on these guys only for them to just get back up again," said Larry. "What if that's their strategy – to widdle us down until we're weak enough that they can actually hurt us? There's gotta be something else we can try besides just pushing harder."
"No, I think Daisy's right," said Roy. "It's probably Essence that's makin' these shrimps so tough to begin with, even if it doesn't look that way. If they're really tryin' to play chicken with us, then we gotta do the same thing. Let's step up our game and go at 'em like we would against anyone stronger." Reluctantly, Daisy, Diddy and Larry all nodded.
Roy clapped and shoved his hands down into the mat. This caused a circular piece of the mat immediately beneath one of the Goombas to shoot up and launch it into the air; leaving the other four scrambling and tumbling out of the way. Daisy jumped up in pursuit and sent the airborne Goomba soaring with a kick. Roy extended his claws out, then yanked his arms back to his sides. The fence at the arena's edge followed his invisible pull and shoved the flying Goomba back in the opposite direction just as it made contact.
Meanwhile, Larry fired and stunned each of the four remaining Goombas before they could scramble away. Diddy was quick to follow up as he kicked each of the paralyzed Goombas back toward the center of the stage.
Time slowed down as the single remaining Goomba flew helplessly back in the team's direction after the fence's ricochet.
Roy placed his hands together again. As he took in a breath, he suddenly noticed a new sensation inside his body. It was subtle, and not exactly painful. But he immediately knew that he had never experienced this feeling before when it surged throughout his entire body in seconds. This foreign sensation was…not entirely unwelcome either.
The Koopaling moved without thinking as though his body were suddenly being controlled by some invisible entity. Roy lifted his arms to the sky. Larry, Daisy and Diddy's eyes all followed, and they watched small storm clouds materialize out of thin air near the cage's ceiling. Then, Roy thrusted his arms back down at the moment of an unexpected truth.
Just as the flying Goomba reached the center of the arena and was situated directly above the pile of his teammates on the mat below, a Thwomp plunged down from inside the storm clouds. The airborne Goomba had no chance of escape as it was caught in the middle of the square stone titan's path.
With a thunderous tremor, the Thwomp crashed into the center of the mat; crushing all five Goombas at once. After a pregnant, silent pause, the audience exploded with wild applause and screams of unbridled adoration.
Roy stared down at his hands. The clouds dissipated and the Thwomp magically vanished into thin air just as quickly and mysteriously as it had arrived. The Koopaling glanced up and saw that his teammates were all now staring at him with the same expression of unease he had.
"Well that was…new," said Larry.
"I'll say. You didn't mention you could do that, Roy," Daisy added.
"Didn't know I could. That was a new one for me," said Roy. What was that? A new power? It was just like…
Just as the team started to relax, they heard a voice cry out.
"N-no! NO!"
They turned to see one of the bruised and bleeding Goombas slowly standing and climbing out of the unconscious heap. "This ain't over! We're not gonna be the losers anymore!"
"You gotta be kidding me…," said Diddy. "How can they still move after that?"
The bold and seemingly invincible lone Goomba began to vibrate as he stared down Roy and the others with primal eyes. Like a hive mind, the other four Goombas also stood up simultaneously and started to visibly tremble as well. They each shared the same murderous stare. As the five angry, shaking Goombas stood together, their flesh changed color.
An eerie red mist engulfed them as their normal brown flesh turned red.
"Uh-oh…," said Larry.
"Here it comes," said Daisy.
"Alright, let's see what they've really got," said Roy as he cracked his knuckles.
Somehow, without the need for wings, one of the Goombas jumped and flew straight toward them like a bullet.
"Careful!" said Larry as he dove in its path and deflected the speeding Goomba with his newly summoned shield. After being re-directed toward the fence, the Goomba bounced off and dove immediately back down at Larry. He countered it again with his shield. But the Goomba simply ricocheted back and forth between his shield and the arena's boundaries repeatedly like a large, red pinball.
The other four glowing Goombas suddenly took flight together as well. Daisy and Diddy jumped and ducked out of the way as quickly as they could, but these sentient dodgeballs were relentless and fast. Roy met one Goomba head-on as he punched it away. At the point of impact however, a terrible burning sensation erupted across his fist.
"Ow! Son of a-!"
The Koopaling immediately retracted his hand and looked down. His red knuckles were severely bruised and quickly swelling up. He could faintly hear the sizzling of the small streams of smoke escaping from between his claws. The affliction stung as though he had just slammed is fist into burning coal.
Larry sprinted, stopped, and turned on his heels several times in a bizarre dance across the mat; attempting to not only shield himself and his comrades from the annoying airborne adversaries, but also pull himself out of the Goombas' trajectory. Somehow, it seemed the Goombas had turned into heat-seeking missiles and had specifically locked-on to him and the others; leaving no means of escaping the destructive path.
Diddy continued to duck and evade, but as the Goombas continued to bounce across the cage, they gained more speed with each bounce. Avoiding them became increasingly more difficult until Diddy was soon sent flying backwards when a Goomba struck him squarely in the chest.
Miraculously, it seemed that lying flat on his back on the ground had now positioned him out of the Goombas' reach at last as they zipped by just above him. However, this also left Diddy completely unable to retaliate. From the sheer pain culminating across his scorched stomach when he tried to sit up for more than a few seconds, he wasn't sure he'd ever be able to get up again period.
Similarly, one Goomba grazed Daisy's ankle while she was diving down onto the mat; making it an excruciating chore to stand up again. On her knees, she summoned Chomper and Bitey. Their teeth seemed to act as a viable enough defense against the Goombas' scorching exteriors. But because the little pests were able to attack with such frequency, this left Daisy with little room to do more than defend herself from the endless onslaught of burning mushroom meteors.
The group was quickly forced into a cornered formation in the ring's center. Roy carried Diddy out of harm's way while Larry and Daisy struggled to fend off the Goombas continuously bouncing towards them from all directions. Daisy let out an exasperated grunt.
"Any ideas?!"
"We can't keep dodging them forever," Diddy said weakly; still nursing his burned chest.
"Yeah, no kidding!" said Larry as he rolled his eyes. "But I'm not seeing how we can turn this around!"
"Only one thing we can do," said Roy. "They ain't gonna stop hittin' us. So we're just gonna have to hit 'em back and harder."
"How are we supposed to do that?" Larry pressed.
"Let's get 'em in the same formation as before. Larry, you keep blastin' with everything you've got. Don't let up until they've stopped movin', you hear me?"
"Roger that," he affirmed as the Koopaling summoned his other pistol.
"What about us?" said Daisy as she finally managed to climb to her feet.
"Slow 'em down so Larry can get enough shots in," said Roy. "Then round 'em up as soon as they're grounded." She didn't need to ask about Diddy as Roy had already scooped him up with one arm.
The Koopaling stomped both his feet and his remaining good fist down into the mat in calculated succession in seemingly random spots. This caused small parts of the mat and fence to jet up and out in response. With no way to adapt, the Goombas bounced off of these new obstacles, which derailed their perfectly-coordinated flight patterns.
The pelting immediately stopped. Roy sighed in relief when he realized his manipulation of the arena managed to successfully take some of the pressure off his comrades. The Goombas were forced to work a bit harder to change their trajectories mid-flight. But it was still going to take time for them to maneuver around the new obstacles impeding their paths and course-correct back towards their opponents.
Without having to immediately worry about anticipating where the next Goomba was going to strike him from next, Larry was free to focus on landing his shots. He mashed the trigger and landed a few direct stunning blasts before rolling out of the way of one Goomba that was now flying towards him again.
Not enough. The Goomba continued to soar. Larry fired at each of the other four Goombas when their paths converged on him.
After a few misses, Daisy finally managed to latch Chomper's teeth around one of the Goombas while it made a beeline towards Larry yet again. Smoke squirmed out from between the Piranha Plant's teeth. But the Goomba's speed quickly plummeted to a complete stop thanks to the resistance of Chomper's pull.
Before the Goomba could break free of the Piranha Plant's fangs, Larry continuously fired at the Goomba until it eventually succumbed to the paralyzing effect of his weapon. Once its body went limp, Chomper opened its jaws and its prey immediately dropped to the mat like a rock. Daisy trapped each of the four remaining Goombas within her Piranha Plants' mouths until Larry was able to ground them all.
The pair turned to Roy for further direction and noticed he was already positioned in the same stance as before. Dark clouds blanketed the top of the arena again. As they now anticipated, a Thwomp rushed down from within the clouds and flattened the Goomba pile into the mat once more with a tremor that left even the audience speechless.
But he didn't stop there.
Roy gritted his teeth and aggressively raised and lowered his arms over and over like a maniacal conductor. The Thwomp silently obeyed his directions as it rose and slammed down upon the Goombas again and again. Diddy, Larry and Daisy watched helplessly from a distance in shock. Unbeknownst to them, their leader was literally seeing red.
A sinister fog had engulfed his vision. Heat coursed through his veins. Boiling sweat rolled down his cheeks and snout. All he could hear was the thunder of his might crushing the ones who deserved his wrath. Roy's mind was completely empty.
No other thought could dwell in this space except a malevolent, primal voice urging him to kill…kill...KILL!
"Roy stop! That's enough!" Larry called out.
Roy snapped out of his trance at once. The detail and color of the world returned to his vision. The entire arena had fallen eerily silent. The Koopaling glanced down to see that Larry was now tightly clutching his arm. Daisy and Diddy were staring at him in horror.
The Thwomp vanished and the clouds which had summoned it also disappeared. Nestled within the box-like crater that was once the middle of the arena were five unconscious Goombas. They were sprawled out completely motionless. Whether or not they were even still alive was anyone's guess.
Roy and the others practically jumped out of their skin when the audience immediately burst into cheers, screams and overwhelming applause.
"We have a winner!" Jolene's voice boomed through the microphone. "TEAM RENEGADE!"
Roars of adulation poured into the cage and filled the group's bodies; making them heavy and still. It took a minute for them to register that the match was actually over. A group of red and gray Shy Guys wearing paramedic hats rushed past them and began loading the lifeless Goombas onto stretchers on the other side of the arena while a few security guard Spikes dawning sunglasses and ties ushered Roy and the others wordlessly out through the gate.
Up on the balcony, Alpha, Omega, Grubba, and the woman in red were all applauding slowly.
"Not too shabby, all things considered," said Grubba.
"The Essence seems to be taking effect quite nicely, at least in the large one," said Alpha.
"Way too early to tell how they'll fair against the others though," said Omega.
Contrary to her malevolently optimistic captors, Pauline watched silently as the four rookies were escorted backstage and vanished behind the curtain. In her mind, she quickly squashed the tiny modicum of hope that had been starting to sprout in her mind. It was far too early to think anything substantial of these newest combatants. After all, in the short time this place had been around, she'd watched far more promising prospects than these claw their way to the top of the ranks with far less effort.
Sadly, the current champions lacked the sense of unbridled justice she'd been secretly hoping to spot; the kind that was sorely missing from this lawless prison of a tower. The last people Pauline had hoped might see this place for the evil it really was and tear it down had managed to reach Champion status in almost no time at all. But when they'd achieved the power and fame that came with the title, what had they chosen to do with it? Absolutely nothing.
They could've taken a stand; could've helped her. But they didn't because they had no clue of the dangers that were really taking place here. That or they simply didn't care. To make matters worse, there was still no sign of Leanna anywhere. So, Pauline refused to get her hopes that this "Team Renegade" would be anything special. And obviously, she'd learned better than to voice her opinions about any of this to anyone.
Even so…she was still genuinely curious deep down as to what Daisy, Diddy Kong and two of Bowser's kids were doing in a wretched place like Pleasure City.
"Now I wouldn't go writin' 'em off too early, pard," Grubba contested. "After all, our lil' beauty Jolene seemed ta acclimate 'em to our ways in record time. And speak 'o the devil!"
At that moment, Jolene emerged from the curtains behind the seats and stood amongst them. Grubba was prepared to give her a hardy pat on the back, but quickly had second thoughts when her icy stare pinned him in place. Jolene stood off to the side of the chairs without so much as a glance at any of her colleagues.
"Well done, Jolene," said Don Frankie. "Gotta hand it to ya. Really know how ta pick 'em."
"Thank you, sir," Jolene flatly replied; avoiding his gaze.
"Here's hopin' dese lil' fletchlings'll spread dere wings buhfore long and rise to da very top. It's been too long since we had anybody who could really give your boys a run for deir money." Jolene adjusted her glasses as she watched Roy, Larry, Daisy and Diddy being escorted down the same shadowy corridor they'd entered from.
"Yes, I suppose we'll see."
The Security Spikes continued to shove Roy and the others incessantly and refused to answer their questions about where they were being taken or what was to happen next. Roy was about ready to fight them back with his good hand when the guards abruptly stepped back and disbanded. The group found itself positioned right back outside of their sleeping quarters in Rookie Hall.
"What, that's it?" Diddy said as he tossed his hands up. "Now we just go to bed and come out when it's time for our next match like some circus animals?"
"More or less," a voice answered with a soft laugh. They turned to find Jolene strolling down the hallway towards them carrying a small first aid kit under her arm. "Nice job out there. It's been a while since the crowd has gotten that riled up over a debut match."
The Toad flipped open her case and motioned for Roy to present his burned hand to her. The Koopaling hesitated at first and winced at the burning sensation of her spray, but ultimately submitted.
"So, were your bosses satisfied?" Daisy asked. She held out her ankle for Jolene to administer the medicine to her injury as well.
"More than you might think," said Jolene. "Especially when your Roy tapped into his Essence. As sickening as I think this whole thing is, I can't deny that these people love the carnage." Diddy winced and suppressed a scream by stuffing his fist in his mouth when Jolene applied the spray to his burned chest.
"So that's what that power was," said Larry. "I knew it had to be Essence. Roy's never done something like that before."
"Yes, it's pretty hard to miss. The effects it produces vary from fighter to fighter. But the red aesthetic is a dead giveaway, and it has a fascinating way of escalating the intensity of matches fairly quickly. When it happens, the audience can't get enough. It's what they've come for after all."
"Then are they under some kind of spell or something?" asked Daisy. "People are probably dying out there all the time, right? And you're really telling me everyone around here just goes along with it and no one ever thinks it's too much? I'm pretty sure I saw some kids in that crowd for crying out loud!"
"I can't deny that being exposed to Essence as often as the people in the stands are likely does have a negative impact on their tolerance for violence. But even so, they paid good money for those seats," Jolene explained. "They know what they're getting into. If they really wanted to watch cleaner fights, then they'd spectate elsewhere."
"It's not just the crowd though…," Roy said as he examined his claws. "I felt it too. It was like somethin' came over me back there. I couldn't think about anythin' else other than crushin' those Goombas into dust…" Severity overtook Jolene's face.
"Don't be afraid of the power. Remember what we talked about before. You can't hold anything back in the ring. You have to use everything you've got. As you saw, this contest is not about the competition being inherently strong on its own. Essence can turn even a Goomba into a serious threat."
"Y'know, for someone who claims to be against this whole set-up, you sure are defending it a lot," said Daisy. Why is that?" The Toad tipped her glasses and stared at her.
"Just because I'm proctoring these fights and know all of the inner workings doesn't mean I agree with any of it. But then I ask you, what is the alternative? Standing outside the tower with a picket sign in protest? That isn't how you tear an establishment like this down. We have to do it the same way you won that match." Jolene was looking at Roy now. "You have to fight fire with fire. So no matter how uncomfortable it is, you have to use Essence if you want to survive against the competition, let alone make it to Champion rank." She turned on her heels and proceeded to walk away. But she stopped after a few feet and glanced back at the team one more time. "Just…don't get too carried away, if you can help it. Using Essence too much….it can turn you into something truly ugly."
"Well, it would be helpful to know where exactly that line is so we don't cross it," said Larry.
"The only way to know that is to get a feel for it, and that involves channeling it. Roy using Essence played a significant part in the positive reception you received today. In fact, I'd say the reason you're even standing here talking to me right now is because of it. It was your first match, so my superiors are likely letting it slide this time. But they expect to start seeing the rest of you using it too. As early as your next match, ideally. Otherwise, the team will appear lop-sided. That would not bode well for your rank."
"We'll keep that in mind," Daisy said as she folded her arms.
"Good. Now then, you're dismissed for the rest of the day. Feel free to relax or head down to the ground floor and enjoy some of the attractions, if you'd like. But stay close tomorrow morning. After the first impression you made today, I'm sure the crowd will be begging to see you in the ring again as soon as possible.
"We'll keep the celebrating to a minimum then," said Roy. Jolene's tiny lips curved into a smile and she adjusted her glasses.
"Good. Well, I must be going now." Jolene turned and briskly walked back down the hallway; vanishing into the shadows where the hall lights couldn't reach.
"I dunno about you guys, but I'm starving!" said Diddy. "How about we head back down to that restaurant?" Larry and Daisy both nodded.
"You guys go on ahead," said Roy.
"You're not coming?" Larry asked.
"In a minute. I gotta check-in with Iggy first and let him know we're still alive." He sent the trio off towards the elevator with a wave before stepping inside the dorm room.
The noise in the restaurant almost rivaled the arena in sheer volume. It appeared that Jolene was not exaggerating about the team's first impression. As far as they could tell, every booth and barstool in the place was taken with patrons chatting obsessively about the day's matches. It seemed like even a construction site couldn't be as noisy as this place was right now.
A sign near the entrance told them to seat themselves, so the trio meandered into the chaos. After several minutes of searching, Diddy spotted an empty table in the corner of the restaurant.
"Quick, over there!" he said. Daisy and Larry quickly shuffled after him.
Diddy prepared to dive into the booth when a large yellow boot immediately jetted out in front of his path. As he slid to a stop, the trio saw that this boot – which was now perched on the corner of the table – belonged to a large, muscular yellow bird. They recognized him immediately as one of the champions they'd seen in the ring the day before.
The bird was staring down at the three of them; arms folded, with narrow, determined black eyes. His beak was curved into a large smirk.
"Not so fast, pee-wee!" said the bird. "This table's reserved for the champs!"
"I don't see your name on it," Larry countered.
"You must be new meat then," said a new voice. Standing next to the bird was the Yoshi with red hair whom they'd also seen before. "Most worms around here know to step aside the second they see our faces coming through."
"Well you clearly don't know us if you think we're just gonna walk away when our friend here saw the table first," Daisy said as she gestured towards Diddy.
"Do you have any idea who you're talking to right now?" the bird asked as he stared her down with mild disbelief.
"I could ask you the same question, big boy. You wanna find out?"
"I don't like this chick's attitude," said the Yoshi as he cracked his knuckles. "I think we oughta teach her some manners."
"Go ahead. Make our day, eggs-for-brains," Larry retorted; stepping up to Daisy's side. The Yoshi scowled and locked eyes with Larry.
"Guys, maybe we should all just chill out, hehe…," said Diddy with a nervous laugh. "C'mon, we can find another table."
"Why?" Larry said without shifting his stare away from the Yoshi. "If we beat these guys down right now, then that'd automatically make us the new champions, right? I'd say this thing just got a whole lot easier."
Roy arrived the restaurant and immediately came to a halt when he was met with the noisy, impenetrable barrier that made up of the crowd. He glanced around, hoping to find the others waiting for him at a table somewhere in this mess. No such luck from what he saw so far.
Was this a restaurant or a rock concert?
The fatigue from the afternoon was starting to set in as his muscles ached. His ravenous appetite was feeding on Roy's patience until he could get some actual food in his gut. He didn't have time to fight his way through all of these people. But if Larry, Daisy and Diddy were in fact sitting somewhere inside already, they'd never notice Roy standing all the way out here. Blowing out a breath and gritting his teeth, the Koopaling approached the chaos.
As he wedged his claws in between the backs of distracted patrons, Roy slowly pried his way through the narrow openings he was forming within the ocean of warm bodies with measured, but assertive shoves and shuffles. The people around him barely seemed to pay Roy any mind as they remained glued to their conversations; not noticing the bulking turtle that was brushing and pushing past them. Roy was grateful nobody said anything so he didn't have to waste time turning to acknowledge and apologize to each of the dozens of people around him for having the nerve to occupy the same space as them.
As Roy swam deeper through the sea of people, he scanned the restaurant for his familiar faces, but they still hadn't come into view yet. He surmised they must be at one of the tables in the back, if they were even still here at all. They had to be. They couldn't have left due to not getting a table, could they?
The Koopaling couldn't believe how crowded this place was tonight. Had they really made that much of a splash in their first fight today? What else could all these people be so jazzed up about? About halfway through the dining hall, Roy came to the realization that not only was this crowd not thinning out, it seemed to be getting even thicker somehow.
The deeper inside the crowd Roy dug, the louder all of the humming and chatter grew. It quickly turned into snickers and jeers. People were gathering around something just a few feet ahead of him. Roy had to shove with greater force to squeeze through the audience now. There was some kind of other event happening within this one. Roy was already headed in the direction anyway, so he figured he might as well see what all the commotion was about.
He reached the opening at last and saw the scene unfolding right in front of him.
Larry was standing off with a tall, green Yoshi with red hair. Roy recognized him as the same one that fought as part of the trio they'd watched before. The two were staring at one another with eyes like daggers. The Yoshi towered over Larry, but the Koopaling looked ready to summon his pistols any second now.
"Last chance, turtle face," the Yoshi said. "Back off before I make you."
"You don't scare me, lizard lips," said Larry. "But if you're really so great that you can get any table you want, why not sit somewhere else? Like I said, we were here first." The Yoshi hunched over until he was now at eye-level with Larry. But the Koopaling didn't budge an inch.
"Because I want this table."
"What makes this one so special?"
"Nothing. It's about sending a message. I wanna teach you that I always get what I want. So stomping your ugly blue hair into the floor is gonna make sitting at this table unbelievably satisfying."
"First time for everything, including you being wrong." One of Larry's pistols materialized in the hand behind his shell. Roy spotted it at once out of the corner of his eye and immediately jumped between Larry and the Yoshi.
"Larry, chill out," he said.
"Stay out of this, Roy!" Larry exclaimed.
"Who's this? Your daddy here to bail you out, little man?" the Yoshi taunted. Larry whirled his arm around to aim his gun at the Yoshi, but Roy gripped his wrist and stopped it mid-flight.
"I said chill out!" Roy repeated.
"Why should I?"
"Cuz it ain't worth it! Let's just go somewhere else."
"Mind your own business!"
"Better listen to papa bear here before you get hurt," teased the Yoshi with a smirk.
"GJ, give it a rest, will you?" a new voice said.
Suddenly, the entire restaurant froze all at once. An eerie silence overtook the massive room. As if on command, the audience broke up slightly to allow a newcomer to step onto the scene. It was the blonde-haired Toad.
"Oh come on, Mush! He started it. These chumps were tryin' to swipe our table," the Yoshi said. "Just let me-"
"Save it. We don't pick fights outside the ring. You know that. Or are you really so bored that you're looking to get us disqualified now?"
"Reeeelaaax, they won't kick us out. We're the kings around here."
"I don't need to remind you whose place it would be to decide that. They could find new 'kings' to take our place just like that if you give them a good enough reason," the Toad said as he snapped his finger. He raised both of his palms into the air above his head.
Roy and Larry both flinched slightly; still expecting a fight to break out any second. Instead, the Toad turned to address the audience.
"Alright, break it up, all of you! Nothing to see here. You want a show? Go buy tickets and watch it upstairs!" he declared. "Go on, clear out!"
With the occasional grumble or snide whisper, the crowd quickly dispersed. Within minutes, the entire restaurant was visible again. The people who'd actually come here to dine returned to their tables to eat and converse amongst themselves.
"Sorry about that," said the Toad as he turned to face Roy and Larry and extended a hand. "Despite his size, my friend is still relatively young. He can get carried away at times and manners still aren't quite second nature for him yet. I'm Mush."
"Roy," the Koopaling said as the two shook hands. "And this is my brother Larry."
"So, are you guys really the champions?" Larry asked. Mush smiled.
"Sure are. We're a trio. This is Gonzalez Jr., but we just call him 'GJ' for short." The Yoshi whom Mush was gesturing towards with his thumb was now sulking off to the side with his arms crossed; utterly refusing to make eye contact anymore. "And then there's…hey, where's Rawk?"
"Yeah, and where'd Daisy go?" Roy asked as he gazed around as the sudden realization struck him. Larry pointed over his shoulder towards one of the tables behind him.
Daisy and the giant yellow bird had locked hands and seemed to have been in a fierce arm-wrestling bout the entire time. Despite Mush's protests, they still seemed to have a few onlookers for an audience. The glass and silverware rattled loudly while the two combatants quaked the wooden table with their elbows. Golden feathers around the bird's face glistened with sweat while Daisy's tongue was firmly camped out on one side of her lips. Their eyes were locked squarely on one another almost as tightly as their arms.
"They've been at it for almost 45 minutes," Diddy said from another table close by as he repeatedly flicked the up-turned corner of a napkin. "At first I was impressed. But now I just want someone to win so we can eat."
"Oh I see how it is!" said GJ. "When I try to have fun, it's wrong. We'll get kicked out. But it's A-OK if Rawk Hawk wants to arm-wrestle?"
"Rawk's not putting anyone in the infirmary. You probably would have if I'd stepped in a few seconds later," said Mush.
"I doubt it would have been that easy," said Larry. Mush smirked at this, but GJ rolled his eyes.
"You guys new?" Mush asked.
"Sure are. Just had our first match today," said Roy.
"Well, you must've done alright for yourselves if you've still got some fight in you. Congrats."
"Oh please. It was a cakewalk compared to what we're used to. We're gonna take this thing easy," Larry boasted.
"Pretty talk," said Mush. "But it's a looong way to the top, you know. And the competition's only gonna get tougher from here."
"It's nothing we can't handle," Larry objected. He noticed that GJ was glaring at him once more, so he gave an equally icy stare back.
"I think what my bro is tryin' to say is we're lookin' forward to the challenge," said Roy.
"I'm looking forward to seeing what you're made of. Maybe we'll check out your next match," said Mush. GJ was pretending to throw-up in his mouth, complete with fake gagging sounds. "But for now…Rawk, it's a draw! Pack it up so we can go eat!"
At that moment, Daisy slammed Rawk's bicep into the table; sending small plates and utensils flying to the floor and shattering with a clatter.
"This isn't over! You hear me, girly?"
"Looks pretty over to me. And I told you before, my name's Daisy!"
"Whatever! Next time I see you, you're gettin' RAWKED!"
"Whatever you say, chicken tenders. I'm quaking in my heels."
Diddy and GJ worked to pry their respective teammates away from one another before another round could erupt from the banter.
"This probably goes without saying, but I'll tell you anyway, Roy, since you seem to be the most sensible one of your bunch. I didn't just talk GJ down for our sake," said Mush. "I don't know if my sister told you or not, but fighting outside the ring is illegal. If they catch you mixing it up with anyone here outside of a designated match structure, your whole team could get banned from the competition altogether."
"That's surprising," said Roy.
"Is it?"
"Yeah, this place seems pretty lawless. With how much they let us roam around between fights, I don't see how they could enforce a policy like that."
"You'd be surprised how tight Security can be in this place. But if you're smart and plan to stick around for the long-haul, don't cross them. Trust me."
"We'll keep that in mind."
The group watched as the champions departed. Mush gave Roy a pleasant wave, but Larry, GJ, Daisy and Rawk Hawk were all still glaring as though expecting each other to charge back around any second to get a few more blows in before Mush and Roy could stop them.
Diddy went off to fetch a server so they could finally put their order in while Daisy slid into the booth they'd been feuding over in the first place. Larry and Roy locked eyes with one another as they took their seats.
"Just say it, you know you want to," said Larry as he tossed up a hand.
"Say what?"
"Say how lucky I was that you were here to stop me from getting us disqualified on our first day. After all, it's your job as my 'big bro' to keep me in line, right?" Roy opened his mouth, but the words died on his tongue. His sibling's sarcasm behind that last statement was not lost on him.
Truth be told, that was exactly what he wanted to say. But he instantly remembered the mental state his brother was in right now. After their last talk, scolding Larry like a child was probably the least productive thing he could do at the moment. After all, Larry was already demanding Roy to give him some distance. A lecture would probably only irritate the issue further.
"Well…I guess if I were to give you a hard time about losing your temper, that sure would be a pretty big case of the pot calling the kettle black, huh?" A slight chuckle spilled out with Larry's breath. "So I'll spare you the speech. But let's just take it easy from now on, alright? That goes for all of us, myself included. Don't go startin' something. You heard what Mush said. It could screw up our whole operation."
"But I didn't-"
"I know. I'm sure that GJ guy was probably just tryin' to push your buttons. But it seems like Mush can keep him under control. So don't play his game, okay? That goes for you too, Daisy." The princess looked up at him with mild shock by this not-entirely-unfounded accusation. "We'll get our chance to settle things with them. But it has to be in the ring. So let's stay focused until then."
"Fine," said Daisy, blowing a lock of hair out of her face.
"Whatever," said Larry.
Roy glanced back at the restaurant's entrance one more time. Mush and the other champions were long gone. But their presence still lingered vividly in his mind.
The Koopaling knew it wasn't practical to judge these so-called champions before seeing what they could do in combat. But based on first impressions alone, Rawk Hawk seemed to be kind of a meat-head with not a lot of brains. Gonzalez Jr. appeared to have a short fuse and was probably prone to anger pretty easily. Under the right circumstances, both of these guys could be dangerous, even without Essence. But his team could surely work these weaknesses to their advantage somehow.
That said, Roy believed Mush was probably the most dangerous one out of the three of them all simply because he appeared to be the most level-headed. Just imagining what someone who is competent, disciplined, and wise could do on their own was intimidating. Then there was the matter of picturing what that someone could do with Essence under their control. It was enough to make even Roy's heart race.
The prospect of a dangerous Mush with Essence seemed far more threatening than Contemno could ever be.