Categories > Games > Mario > Complications
Chapter 14
0 ReviewsIn Desertland, Kammy explores the magic library. In the Mushroom Kingdom, Peach and Daisy devise a plan.
Complications
Chapter 14
The secret library was very large and spacious; containing an innumerable amount of spell books, history books, stories, myths, almost anything. Some of those books carried hidden secrets seldom known in this day and age, and others carried nothing but lies that sounded like truths, meant to confuse intruders should they come this far. The library was not guarded; but because so few people knew of its existence it was no longer necessary.
The library of magic, built in ancient times, used to be a large star shaped building, with a tall tower in its center. Eventually, the sands swallowed the star shaped architecture, leaving only a portion of the tower above ground. Bowser's Desertland castle was build around that tower many years ago, by a past Koopa King.
The troops of Bowser's ancestor had taken refuge in the tower, when they invaded Desertland to claim territory for the Koopa Kingdom. They found a group of magikoopa using the tower as their safe haven. The magikoopa acted as reinforcements for the Koopa Kingdom's army, and the battle was won. The Koopa Desertland castle was built around the tower to protect it, and a bond was formed between the royal family and the magikoopa. Since then, many advisors and caretakers of the royal family had been magikoopa.
Many years ago, numerous people tried to obtain the secrets of the magic library and were tricked into leaving with books of lies. But after the magikoopa became closely allied to the royal family of the Koopa Kingdom, not even the false books would be stolen from the library anymore. The library was willingly given by the magikoopa to the royal family for protection; few would dare to steal from them, and none could get away with it. The magikoopa continued using the library for many years, until it was slowly forgotten. Some say the elders purposely denied its existence, so that it would be forgotten and its powerful spells would not fall into the wrong hands.
As with most powerful ancient spells, a vast knowledge and precise control over the spell caster's magic was needed to perform most of the spells hidden in the library. Many of those spells could result dangerous, or even deadly, to the magic user if they were not properly casted.
Kammy touched a crystal on a wall with the end of her wand, but applying no magic to it; the contact was all the crystal needed to be activated. One after another, the many crystals that lined the walls of the library lit up, making it as bright as day. Kammy made her way towards a staircase and began her decent. A large portion of the tower had sunk under the desert sands; and the star shaped base had many basements that were originally underground, now they were much deeper bellow.
Sand had accumulated on the stairs falling slowly, like an hourglass, from one step to the next. Kammy wished there was something to hold on to, to avoid slipping in the passage; but there was nothing but the walls, which were messily covered in sand. Magic was absorbed by the crystals, whether they were active and providing light or not, consequently Kammy could not levitate. There were no magical guardians, or anything to prevent anyone from walking in if they got past the door; but the journey would not be an easy one.
Kammy was currently in the vertical center of the building, the floors above that connected to the castle were no different from a normal building without magic. From the top, it was a normal tower, the middle section of the tower past the door blocked magic, and the star shaped base of the building had magic in the air, which amplified spells.
Kammy advanced slowly, careful not to slip and fall rolling down the stairs. The sand was starting to get inside her shoes and stick to her clothes; she hated that feeling. Her foot touched an unstable stone, corroded and weakened by the constant flow of sand. The step crumbled, sending her unexpectedly into the next one. Kammy uselessly waved her right arm around, wand in hand, instinctively calling a levitation spell that she knew would not come, but couldn't help but hope for. Her left hand slipped along the sandy wall, trying to reach beyond the slippery surface and grasp the solid stones underneath. The situation proved helpless, as Kammy kept slipping down the bumpy, sandy, slide.
At the base of the stairs, there was a sea of sand; that section of the library that had been completely devoured by the desert. She had hoped that even if the structure was buried, the sad had not flooded the inside yet. The scene Kammy saw was very different from the last time she was there years ago.
Kammy made an effort hold on to the stairs, to avoid being swallowed by the sand. Finally, her wand was caught into a hole on the stairs, with the jeweled portion sticking out for Kammy to hold on to. Her breathing was heavy and uneven, and her heart was pounding rapid and wild. Maybe Kamek was right, maybe she did rely too much on magic, or maybe she was just getting old... But Kamek was older; that wasn't much of a consolation, but it was something.
If the base of the library, where magic was abundant and the best books were kept, had already been claimed by the desert; then Kammy's journey had been for nothing. Before the stones around her wand collapsed and sent her to her doom, Kammy pulled herself up and began her trip up the stairs. There was no way she could dig around all that sand and search for what she needed; if the books were even preserved after being exposed to the sand.
The library had not been visited in decades, and received no maintenance ever since. The magikoopa trusted that the magically fortified walls would hold up forever, but that was not the case.
Crawling up the staircase, careful not to slip again; Kammy made an arduous journey back to the door. It was more difficult this time, since she had gravity, fatigue and the flow of sand working against her; but she somehow made it back to the door where her journey began.
Leaving a trail of sand in her path, Kammy walked a few steps away from the door and closed it. She opened it once again to confirm that there was nothing but a broom closet inside; the entrance to the library had been properly hidden. Now that she was away from the magic absorbing crystals, Kammy teleported herself back to Kamek's room.
xoxox xox xoxox
Kamek was feeling better and no longer needed an excessive amount of heat to stop shivering. In fact, he was now sitting next to an electric fan. His hat was on the floor a few feet away, the fan blew it away, and Kamek didn't feel like picking it up.
Kammy appeared before him, she looking exhausted with sand on her hair and clothes, leaving a trail on the floor. "I hate you." It was the only thing Kammy said before disappearing again.
Even if Kammy's current state and evident frustration could only mean bad news, Kamek had not laughed that hard in a long time.
xoxox xox xoxox
"Good morning!" Daisy cheerfully greeted everyone at the table. Her presence was requested back at Sarasaland but she refused to return. Daisy claimed that Peach needed her, and it would be treason to Sarasaland's alliance with the Mushroom Kingdom to abandon Peach in her time of need. The Sarasaland council knew she was exaggerating and making excuses, but when Daisy set her mind on something, she could not be stopped.
The Mario brothers had spent the night in the Mushroom Castle. They answered to Daisy's greeting in a similar carefree tone. Luigi's "Good morning" came out clearly with a marked Italian accent, and Mario's was slightly muffled by the food in his mouth. Mario could not wait to start with the pasta. It wasn't very usual to eat lasagna for breakfast, but Mario loved it and the cooks were happy to please.
"Am I the last one to arrive?" Daisy had stayed up late the previous night, thinking of ways to help Peach with her dilemma.
"It is no problem. You are on time, Mario was simply early." Early to arrive, and early to start eating; Mario did not catch the subtle hints that Toadsworth directed at him, indicating that he should wait. The elderly mushroom decided to give up, and allow the heroic plumber to eat his breakfast while it was still steaming hot. Mario would probably have seconds anyway, so he would still be there by the time everyone else settled into the table for breakfast.
Mario completely missed the true meaning of Toadworth's words. "Something this delicious can't be kept waiting."
"Now that we're all here, I have an announcement to make. Princess Peach, if it's alright with you, I would like to move the Mushroom Day Parade to this Saturday." Similar to what happened last year, Toadsworth thought it was a good idea to have the parade right after Peach had been rescued, to decrease the probability of the princess being kidnapped during the parade. Bowser usually waited a few months between his kidnappings, so the parade should run smoothly with no danger for the princess or the people who attended. Plus it was a weekend, so more people would have free time to enjoy it.
Daisy instantly got an idea; she smiled and looked at Peach, as if transmitting the idea with her expression. Peach looked doubtful for a moment, but remembered that she would listen to her heart and do what she thought was right. Peach liked the idea, she was worried about the possible consequences, but instantly understood what Daisy was silently communicating and agreed.
Today was Wednesday; there was not a lot of time left before the parade, but just enough to get everything ready. It felt odd to be having a parade with unsolved danger lurking in the shadows, but it felt wrong to put life on hold because of Kuvio. "I agree; a Saturday is a good day for the parade." Peach expressed her agreement.
"Splendid, we will start the preparations and have everything ready by Saturday early in the morning." The possibility of having a public event without a catastrophe was a blessing for Toadsworth.
xoxox xox xoxox
After breakfast was done, and the Mario brothers returned home; Peach and Daisy discussed what they had secretly agreed on during breakfast. They made sure they were not heard by Toadsworth, or anyone else who might object. "I really can't believe we're doing this, but if it's just the kids then it shouldn't be so bad, and we have Luigi and Mario to..." Daisy came to the realization that they didn't have as much support for their plan as she initially thought they did. "I don't think they'll like this."
Peach could see that Daisy was starting to have second thoughts about inviting the koopalings to the Mushroom Day Parade. She had a few doubts as well, but it was only the koopalings. Bowser didn't need to know, and that way Peach would feel that she was keeping her promise. Courage; Peach's mother advised her never to doubt the courage of her heart... "We'll find a way to make it work. I just need to figure out how to tell them without Bowser finding out."
Technically, the plan could be considered kidnapping, since some of the koopalings were still very young; but their older siblings would be with them, and Peach didn't think Bowser would mind anyway. He would want to come too, but that could cause trouble. Peach still kept the pink cell phone, enhanced with magic to have a signal anywhere. Just as she expected, Bowser's number was in the cell phone's memory, maybe they could use that to obtain a number that would allow them to communicate with the koopalings.
xoxox xox xoxox
Home, sweet home; with all the running around the Mario brothers had been doing, it was good to take a break. The first thing they noticed when they entered the house, was the old food that was still on the table from when they rushed out. Luigi threw it away, before Mario decided to test if it was still edible.
Mario glanced at the answering machine; the little red light was blinking. Mario stretched and yawned then looked at the little light again, contemplating if he should press the button or not. He might as well press it; an interesting job might have come up, interesting from a plumber's point of view. After the latest adventure, and the banquet that followed, Mario was feeling refreshed.
Unfortunately for whoever needed their pipes fixed, Mario's cell phone rang before he could press the button on the answering machine. He followed the sound to his room and dug around a pile of laundry, until he found the red cell phone. "Hello?"
"Hello Mario! It is Toadsworth speaking. I know you were just here, but it turns out that the preparations for the parade are not as ready as I thought they would be. We need help to have everything finished by Saturday. I'm sorry to ask after all you've already done, but could you come over and give us a hand? I understand if you want to take some time to rest..."
Mario walked back to the living room while listening to Toadsworth. Luigi was just about to press the button on the answering machine to listen to the messages, but stopped when he saw Mario shake his head. "It's no problem we'll be there." The plumbing jobs would just have to wait, parades took priority; parades and the banquets that came with them.
To be Continued
Disclaimer, I do not own the Mario games and characters.
Chapter 14
The secret library was very large and spacious; containing an innumerable amount of spell books, history books, stories, myths, almost anything. Some of those books carried hidden secrets seldom known in this day and age, and others carried nothing but lies that sounded like truths, meant to confuse intruders should they come this far. The library was not guarded; but because so few people knew of its existence it was no longer necessary.
The library of magic, built in ancient times, used to be a large star shaped building, with a tall tower in its center. Eventually, the sands swallowed the star shaped architecture, leaving only a portion of the tower above ground. Bowser's Desertland castle was build around that tower many years ago, by a past Koopa King.
The troops of Bowser's ancestor had taken refuge in the tower, when they invaded Desertland to claim territory for the Koopa Kingdom. They found a group of magikoopa using the tower as their safe haven. The magikoopa acted as reinforcements for the Koopa Kingdom's army, and the battle was won. The Koopa Desertland castle was built around the tower to protect it, and a bond was formed between the royal family and the magikoopa. Since then, many advisors and caretakers of the royal family had been magikoopa.
Many years ago, numerous people tried to obtain the secrets of the magic library and were tricked into leaving with books of lies. But after the magikoopa became closely allied to the royal family of the Koopa Kingdom, not even the false books would be stolen from the library anymore. The library was willingly given by the magikoopa to the royal family for protection; few would dare to steal from them, and none could get away with it. The magikoopa continued using the library for many years, until it was slowly forgotten. Some say the elders purposely denied its existence, so that it would be forgotten and its powerful spells would not fall into the wrong hands.
As with most powerful ancient spells, a vast knowledge and precise control over the spell caster's magic was needed to perform most of the spells hidden in the library. Many of those spells could result dangerous, or even deadly, to the magic user if they were not properly casted.
Kammy touched a crystal on a wall with the end of her wand, but applying no magic to it; the contact was all the crystal needed to be activated. One after another, the many crystals that lined the walls of the library lit up, making it as bright as day. Kammy made her way towards a staircase and began her decent. A large portion of the tower had sunk under the desert sands; and the star shaped base had many basements that were originally underground, now they were much deeper bellow.
Sand had accumulated on the stairs falling slowly, like an hourglass, from one step to the next. Kammy wished there was something to hold on to, to avoid slipping in the passage; but there was nothing but the walls, which were messily covered in sand. Magic was absorbed by the crystals, whether they were active and providing light or not, consequently Kammy could not levitate. There were no magical guardians, or anything to prevent anyone from walking in if they got past the door; but the journey would not be an easy one.
Kammy was currently in the vertical center of the building, the floors above that connected to the castle were no different from a normal building without magic. From the top, it was a normal tower, the middle section of the tower past the door blocked magic, and the star shaped base of the building had magic in the air, which amplified spells.
Kammy advanced slowly, careful not to slip and fall rolling down the stairs. The sand was starting to get inside her shoes and stick to her clothes; she hated that feeling. Her foot touched an unstable stone, corroded and weakened by the constant flow of sand. The step crumbled, sending her unexpectedly into the next one. Kammy uselessly waved her right arm around, wand in hand, instinctively calling a levitation spell that she knew would not come, but couldn't help but hope for. Her left hand slipped along the sandy wall, trying to reach beyond the slippery surface and grasp the solid stones underneath. The situation proved helpless, as Kammy kept slipping down the bumpy, sandy, slide.
At the base of the stairs, there was a sea of sand; that section of the library that had been completely devoured by the desert. She had hoped that even if the structure was buried, the sad had not flooded the inside yet. The scene Kammy saw was very different from the last time she was there years ago.
Kammy made an effort hold on to the stairs, to avoid being swallowed by the sand. Finally, her wand was caught into a hole on the stairs, with the jeweled portion sticking out for Kammy to hold on to. Her breathing was heavy and uneven, and her heart was pounding rapid and wild. Maybe Kamek was right, maybe she did rely too much on magic, or maybe she was just getting old... But Kamek was older; that wasn't much of a consolation, but it was something.
If the base of the library, where magic was abundant and the best books were kept, had already been claimed by the desert; then Kammy's journey had been for nothing. Before the stones around her wand collapsed and sent her to her doom, Kammy pulled herself up and began her trip up the stairs. There was no way she could dig around all that sand and search for what she needed; if the books were even preserved after being exposed to the sand.
The library had not been visited in decades, and received no maintenance ever since. The magikoopa trusted that the magically fortified walls would hold up forever, but that was not the case.
Crawling up the staircase, careful not to slip again; Kammy made an arduous journey back to the door. It was more difficult this time, since she had gravity, fatigue and the flow of sand working against her; but she somehow made it back to the door where her journey began.
Leaving a trail of sand in her path, Kammy walked a few steps away from the door and closed it. She opened it once again to confirm that there was nothing but a broom closet inside; the entrance to the library had been properly hidden. Now that she was away from the magic absorbing crystals, Kammy teleported herself back to Kamek's room.
xoxox xox xoxox
Kamek was feeling better and no longer needed an excessive amount of heat to stop shivering. In fact, he was now sitting next to an electric fan. His hat was on the floor a few feet away, the fan blew it away, and Kamek didn't feel like picking it up.
Kammy appeared before him, she looking exhausted with sand on her hair and clothes, leaving a trail on the floor. "I hate you." It was the only thing Kammy said before disappearing again.
Even if Kammy's current state and evident frustration could only mean bad news, Kamek had not laughed that hard in a long time.
xoxox xox xoxox
"Good morning!" Daisy cheerfully greeted everyone at the table. Her presence was requested back at Sarasaland but she refused to return. Daisy claimed that Peach needed her, and it would be treason to Sarasaland's alliance with the Mushroom Kingdom to abandon Peach in her time of need. The Sarasaland council knew she was exaggerating and making excuses, but when Daisy set her mind on something, she could not be stopped.
The Mario brothers had spent the night in the Mushroom Castle. They answered to Daisy's greeting in a similar carefree tone. Luigi's "Good morning" came out clearly with a marked Italian accent, and Mario's was slightly muffled by the food in his mouth. Mario could not wait to start with the pasta. It wasn't very usual to eat lasagna for breakfast, but Mario loved it and the cooks were happy to please.
"Am I the last one to arrive?" Daisy had stayed up late the previous night, thinking of ways to help Peach with her dilemma.
"It is no problem. You are on time, Mario was simply early." Early to arrive, and early to start eating; Mario did not catch the subtle hints that Toadsworth directed at him, indicating that he should wait. The elderly mushroom decided to give up, and allow the heroic plumber to eat his breakfast while it was still steaming hot. Mario would probably have seconds anyway, so he would still be there by the time everyone else settled into the table for breakfast.
Mario completely missed the true meaning of Toadworth's words. "Something this delicious can't be kept waiting."
"Now that we're all here, I have an announcement to make. Princess Peach, if it's alright with you, I would like to move the Mushroom Day Parade to this Saturday." Similar to what happened last year, Toadsworth thought it was a good idea to have the parade right after Peach had been rescued, to decrease the probability of the princess being kidnapped during the parade. Bowser usually waited a few months between his kidnappings, so the parade should run smoothly with no danger for the princess or the people who attended. Plus it was a weekend, so more people would have free time to enjoy it.
Daisy instantly got an idea; she smiled and looked at Peach, as if transmitting the idea with her expression. Peach looked doubtful for a moment, but remembered that she would listen to her heart and do what she thought was right. Peach liked the idea, she was worried about the possible consequences, but instantly understood what Daisy was silently communicating and agreed.
Today was Wednesday; there was not a lot of time left before the parade, but just enough to get everything ready. It felt odd to be having a parade with unsolved danger lurking in the shadows, but it felt wrong to put life on hold because of Kuvio. "I agree; a Saturday is a good day for the parade." Peach expressed her agreement.
"Splendid, we will start the preparations and have everything ready by Saturday early in the morning." The possibility of having a public event without a catastrophe was a blessing for Toadsworth.
xoxox xox xoxox
After breakfast was done, and the Mario brothers returned home; Peach and Daisy discussed what they had secretly agreed on during breakfast. They made sure they were not heard by Toadsworth, or anyone else who might object. "I really can't believe we're doing this, but if it's just the kids then it shouldn't be so bad, and we have Luigi and Mario to..." Daisy came to the realization that they didn't have as much support for their plan as she initially thought they did. "I don't think they'll like this."
Peach could see that Daisy was starting to have second thoughts about inviting the koopalings to the Mushroom Day Parade. She had a few doubts as well, but it was only the koopalings. Bowser didn't need to know, and that way Peach would feel that she was keeping her promise. Courage; Peach's mother advised her never to doubt the courage of her heart... "We'll find a way to make it work. I just need to figure out how to tell them without Bowser finding out."
Technically, the plan could be considered kidnapping, since some of the koopalings were still very young; but their older siblings would be with them, and Peach didn't think Bowser would mind anyway. He would want to come too, but that could cause trouble. Peach still kept the pink cell phone, enhanced with magic to have a signal anywhere. Just as she expected, Bowser's number was in the cell phone's memory, maybe they could use that to obtain a number that would allow them to communicate with the koopalings.
xoxox xox xoxox
Home, sweet home; with all the running around the Mario brothers had been doing, it was good to take a break. The first thing they noticed when they entered the house, was the old food that was still on the table from when they rushed out. Luigi threw it away, before Mario decided to test if it was still edible.
Mario glanced at the answering machine; the little red light was blinking. Mario stretched and yawned then looked at the little light again, contemplating if he should press the button or not. He might as well press it; an interesting job might have come up, interesting from a plumber's point of view. After the latest adventure, and the banquet that followed, Mario was feeling refreshed.
Unfortunately for whoever needed their pipes fixed, Mario's cell phone rang before he could press the button on the answering machine. He followed the sound to his room and dug around a pile of laundry, until he found the red cell phone. "Hello?"
"Hello Mario! It is Toadsworth speaking. I know you were just here, but it turns out that the preparations for the parade are not as ready as I thought they would be. We need help to have everything finished by Saturday. I'm sorry to ask after all you've already done, but could you come over and give us a hand? I understand if you want to take some time to rest..."
Mario walked back to the living room while listening to Toadsworth. Luigi was just about to press the button on the answering machine to listen to the messages, but stopped when he saw Mario shake his head. "It's no problem we'll be there." The plumbing jobs would just have to wait, parades took priority; parades and the banquets that came with them.
To be Continued
Disclaimer, I do not own the Mario games and characters.
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