digibutter.nerr

[Almaz]

Well, it's my second time entering the dramatic Fray, my first piece being only "okay". I'm hoping to make a large impact with a full-on epic.

The title is simply a play on the fact that it involves a lot of military tactics on Wart's end of the bargain, not that Wart washes up on the shores of Kalimdor or somewhere and must defeat the Freezie King in Northrend.

It makes references to a previous work of mine, which I have included a link of below. Hey, if you don't like that it's on Lemmy's Land, that fine, but at least appreciate it for face value, not LL value!

http://www.lemmykoopa.com/lk2/lk2-679.html

So, without further adeu, I give you my prologue:

Prologue: Prisioner's Exchange

It's been five long and tiresome years since the Mario Gang conquered Sub-con, Land of Dreams, from the evil clutches of the vicious tyrant, King Wart. In those years, with the help of the Mushroom Kingdom and other allies, Sub-con has gone from a rural area to a mighty kingdom. The leader of the new Sub-conian monarchy is a wise, yet young, Subcon Fairy named Belle Sed. With her at the throne, Sub-con has become extremely powerful econimically and politically.

However, the true power of Sub-con has disappeared with the reign of King Wart. Most of the powerful warriors of Sub-con's past have either abandoned the land completely for life on Plit, or have been imprisioned for speaking against Belle by the Sub-conian Courts. The most powerful of these have been locked in the Ice Prision Center, which used to be the castle of Fry Guy. This is where a bitter King Wart resides, a five-year prisioner in his own land.

The angry ex-king bashes upon his wall, shaking the prision complex. The fairies set to guard the prision all laugh at the frog's pathetic temper tantrum. For five years, he's tried to escape through brute force. And, for five years, the walls of the castle have still stood. And yet, it seemed funnier every single time he tried to leave. With his bubble-blowing ability magically disabled by the power of the Subcon, his muscles and fat were all he had left.

"Ah...happy five year anniversery Wart!" one of the more obnoxious guards cheered as his co-workers laughed and cheered behind him. With one heavy sigh, Wart takes a seat on the floor. He was imprisioned in a rather large cell with a Triclyde, a Tweeter, and a Panser, all deprived of their natural power as well. Wart also recalled that once, his old general and most trusted friend, Clawgrip, had once joined him in this cell. However, Clawgrip had developed a weakness in the shell and died exactly a year ago. Before his death, Clawgrip spat out a single rock, hidden from the guards.

"Please...keep it...for the sake of Sub-con...free us all..." the old crustacian begged with his dying breath. The crab corpse had been removed long ago, but sometimes the stench lingered inside the cell. It was present today, and swarmed around Wart's very large nose. The frog king cried, staring at the rock on the floor. For a year, he'd kept it from the guards in hopes of a miracle, but none had ever come.

"WHAT DID YOU WANT ME TO DO, CLAWGRIP?! JUST SIT AROUND HERE AND WAIT FOR JAYDES WHILE I WENT INSANE WITH FALSE HOPE! **** YOU, MAN! ENJOY YOUR TORMENT IN THE UNDERWHERE, YOU FREAK!" Wart shouted, getting the attention of the entire prision. With that, the entire compex erupts with laugher, all of the prision guards having no remorse for the king. The Tweeter flutters over to his king and gives a good pat on the back.

"There, there King Wart. Everything will be alright" the bird consoles, trying to keep his king from having a complete breakdown.

"Thisssss will be our finesssssst hour, sssssir! We will finally take back the throne and conquer the kingdom of Sssssub-con!" the center Triclyde head stated, much to the disapproval of the other two. That Triclyde had said the same exact statement for the last three years now, and nothing had changed. The Panser groans in boredom at the conversation.

"C'mon guys, I'm tryin' to nap over here" the flower yawns out, swiftly going back to a nice little slumberland. Wart sighs in agreement. There isn't much else to do but give up and nap like Panser. He'd tried to be optomistic, he'd tried to lead his fellow prisioners into a new era, but it just hadn't worked. Maybe...it was time to finally hang up the old cape and crown and retire. There wasn't much to look forward to, except more torment from the guards and a slow visit from Jaydes. So Wart took up a very uncomfortable position on the stone ground, set Clawgrip's rock as a pillow, and tried to catch some shuteye. He would succeed, as would his fellow prisioners.

Suddenly, a siren breaks loose, waking all of the prisioners from their naps. Red lights flash from the ceiling of every floor, blinding those with awful eyes. Wart's eyes flare up in anger. "ALRIGHT, WHO IS THE WISE GUY WHO SET OFF THIS HERE ALARM!" the frog screamed, looking toward his fellow Sub-conians imprisioned. All were cowering in a corner, staring out toward an...opening? Wart looks toward his right, and sees a small hole in the wall. With his long-saved strength, he takes this opportunity to his advantage and breaks through with one, mighty shoulder-charge. His friends gather around him, cheering to their freedom from the solitude.

Suddenly, a figure drops in front of King Wart. The King prepares to strike the figure, until he identifies it. "MOUSER!" Wart exclaims at the sight of his old tactation.

"Reporting for duty, my leige!" the mouse jokes, causing a laugh to erupt from everyone's mouth. Well, everyone but Panser, who happens to have just slept through the entire ordeal. Suddenly, Wart takes out a small, red sack hidden in the corner of the room. With extreme speed, he fastens what previously was a sack into its true form: a cape, and puts the crown he hid inside on top of his head. Once again, Wart had been adorned with his royal robes.

"So...I'm assuming you broke us out, Mouser?" Wart laughed, erupting bubbles from his throat. It felt good...apparently, whatever magic kept those bubbles in had subsided. However, the mouse let out a frown to this comment.

"No, sir, I was broken out...by THAT!" Mouser exclaimed, pointing back into the cell. He was pointing directly at...

"Panser?" Wart asked, never imagining that the sleeping plant could ever break out of his own little world of Z's, much less this powerful prision complex. Mouser gave a resounding facepalm to this remark.

"No, behind him!" Mouser insisted. So Wart looked beyond the flower and, there in plain sight, was a tiny little Sidestepper on the other side of the cell. However, as one of the Subcon guards charged at it with a pitchfork, the Sidestepper's claw grew to an enormous size. It then quickly grips the charging fairy in its grasp...and crushes it with its pincer. The other guard runs away in fear as Wart stares in awe. Suddenly, the crab turns toward him, causing a long silence between the two.

After what seemed like hours, the Sidestepper broke through the bars and waddles up to Wart. With a child-like wonder in its eye, it exclaims, "DADDY!" at the top of its lungs. Wart sighs in relief that it won't hurt him, yet looks at the child bewildered.

"How...could...you...me?" Wart stuttered. He stared at the Sidestepper as it looked into its "daddy's" face. Suddenly, an idea occured to the crab, and it quickly started taking pieces of scattered rock on the ground together. This reminded Wart of Clawgrip's rock, but it was nowhere to be found. Oh well, Wart thought, knowing that it was of little use anyway. After about two minutes of work, Wart found Clawgrip's Rock...fully reconstructed by the Sidestepper, who was proudly standing on top. King Wart finally relised that this...amazing child had come out of that rock.

Wart walked over to the crab and put it on his shoulder. With a motion toward Mouser, Wart stated, "Summon the freed Pidgits and Trouters, and get everyone out of this place that's loyal to me!" the king demanded. With a nod, Mouser left to follow his ruler's bidding. "And pick up Rip van Winkle over there, will ya, Tweeter?" Wart asked, mocking the sleeping Panser.

With the Sidestepper on his shoulder, Wart looked out to a Sub-conian sea. The sun was just raising over the ocean. "This is a new day for Sub-con..." the frog began, looking at the crab, "...together, we shall usher in a new era! Prepare for the ultimate nightmare, Plit...King Wart's about to reign over your parade!"


Currently, I have six 1/2 chapters of the story written (the prologue being included as a chapter). The chapters shift from group of characters to another group in this order: Wart, Wario, Koopas, Mario Gang. Other groups may appear for a few chapters due to separation, and I may skip a group due to having nothing interesting to say.

Please, I'm very bad at writing introductions to stories. I always want to get in on the action...which is why I made it in a prision cell so I could at least do a slightly-mysterious jailbreak. I need constructive criticizm, and I know you're just the ones to help me with that. So...could you please lend me a hand?

Thank you for all nice compliments and comments on how to improve in advance.

[Tails Doll]

That's actually a nice way to start out. Oh, Mr.I, about your LL account, guess that makes another Drybones fan.

[Goomba]

Woah, very impressive, Mister I! You should really get a job with this!

Hmm, I though very hard about this...and I thought hard. I have come to the conclusion that I cannot find anything wrong with this. It was very well written, and quite long, but it was good. You felt like you got to know the characters a bit and you feel like you are actually there.

Now, when the action dies down, try to allow the reader to feel like they know the character, with such things as flashbacks.

Thats really all I can say...

[Almaz]

Thank you...I thought this was going down without a post for an hour...but that makes me happy

I made the account when I was a Dry Bones fan, devoted and loyal. My tastes are now digesting the form of Whomps and Jelectros and obsqure minions now, but DB will always be cool.

Flashbacks...gotta remember those!

Here's chapter 1, much briefer. Mostly, the chapters involving the Wario series characters are basically comic relief, until we get a hero vs Wario showdown, probably DK VS Wario...



Chapter 1: The Sleeper Schemer

Grunts and screams erupt from a castle, secluded from all sides by mountains, lakes, volcanoes, and many other trecherous dangers. It is the castle of the self-proclaimed greatest man in the world. It is the castle...of the mighty evil plumber, Wario. After actually striking it rich a few times with his brother, Waluigi, he'd purchased the third-most naturally gifted base on Plit, not to mention the absolute largest castle on the planet! But, with all this protection, money, power, and festering greed, there was only one thing left to ask...

"WHAT IN GRAMBI'S NAME AM I SUPOSSED TO DO WITH THIS CRUD?!" Wario roars from his throne. He'd already done his daily session of "Gold Digging" from the comfort of his chair, and now he was bored. While he had a castle and power, there was no kingdom for him to rule over! Just some stupid brother, a few punks he took with him from Diamond City, and a big pile of coins...and, of course, THAT. But Wario isn't about to test himself with THAT again...the adventure was far too annoying.

So, from his rage appears his most depressing and dark friend, Ashley. The girl was a young witch with long, black hair, and a small pet demon that could change its shape into whatever Ashley wished. "Abysmal...screaming only reveals our location and wastes oxygen. Honestly, why I even bother staying here is a disgustingly awful mystery." Ashley admitted in a monotone voice.

Wario's eyes fill with anger at what he assumes to be an insult. "Oh, and like YOU could do any better, Ash Tray? No...this is WARIO'S WORLD! And the great Wario will decide what he wants to do with it, loser!" the evil plumber shot back. He was obviously determined to do something...but what that something was is the question at hand.

Another one of Wario's old friends appears with the spin of her scooter. She jumps off her motorized bike, waves her crimsion hair off her face, adjusts her biker's hat, and jumps right before Wario. That is, before she goes up and hugs him. "THAT'S my Wario!" she says lovingly, not releasing her grip. Wario struggles away in confusion while Ashley just shakes her head in disgust.

"MONA, GET OFFA ME!" Wario exclaims toward the girl. The lovestruck Mona instantly obeys without a question. "Jeez, if you were Bowser and I were a princess...well, let's just say your kidnapping record would actually exceed once per day!" Wario joked around, much to the amusement of Mona. And that's when it hit him: the perfect plan. It would come as a curveball to the world, and not even the Mario Bros could guess who did it or why...they'd be too busy trying to take care of Bowser.

"LET'S KIDNAP US A PRINCESS!"

And with that exclaimation, the decision was final.

[Almaz]

Here is the next chapter, about Bowser Junior and Iggy Koopa. Suprisingly, the Koopa chapters have been the most dramatic yet.


Chapter 2: The Price

While the Kings of the Seven Kingdoms of the so-called "Mushroom World" were technically considered the rulers of their respective lands (Grass, Desert, Water, Giant, Sky, Ice, and Pipe), it was rather obvious to anyone who would pay attention that the seven eldest Koopalings were in charge of each of the lands. The youngest, Bowser Junior, was in charge of keeping all seven in check. This was Wednesday, so it was time for the young Prince Junior to check on Giant Land. "Oh well...at least Iggy's better than Wendy" Junior whined, wincing about yesterday's check-up on the Koopa Princess. Though he was well-respected, his older brothers and sister still had free reign on whatever they wanted to do with him that didn't end his life...and Wendy was rather painful yesterday.

"Jelectros sure do hurt..." Junior muttered as he strolled into the castle of Giant Land. Suprisingly, instead of Iggy placed on the throne, ready for inspection, there was the great figurehead of Giant Land, King Hugo. The gigantic mushroomer towered over Junior, reaching the ceiling of the 20-foot high palace.

"Hello Prince Junior! Iggy's not in right now!" Hugo reported. Hugo's pet parrot flew in through the window, chanting, "Iggy's not in! Little idiot's out and about! SQUWARK!" BJ nodded toward the mushroomer and took his leave. This perdicament was certainly strange for Iggy...the little nerd was usually just so organized and well-mannered. He was the first to every family gathering, and always the first to have his quarters all clean...until Roy messed it up, anyway. Not being on time for Junior's weekly inspection was a big shocker.

"Wonder where that brother of mine is." Junior began, gazing into the sky. That's when he made the mistake of running straight into a Sledge Bro.

"HEY! WHATDA YA DOIN' THERE, PUNK?!" the towering Hammer Bro questioned. He had a bluging bloodshot eye, which he uses to his advantage as he leans toward Junior. The Koopa prince jumps back from his disgusting eye condition.

"Uh...I'm Prince Junior and, uh...I'm uh..." Junior tried to let out. Truth be told, he was scared stiff by the gigantic Hammer Bro, and the Sledge Bro could tell. He let up on the crow's eye and fell back on his shell, laughing.

"Oh, yer the great Prince Bowser Junior, eh?" the Sledge asked. Junior, a bit angered by the laughter, began furiously nodding his head. More laughter came out of the Sledge Bro afterwards. "Oh, that's just rich, kid! You...you're pathetic!"

Junior had reached his boiling point. He took a deep breath, spun around in his shell, and jumped high into the air. "What the..." the Sledge Bro began, until Junior unleashes a large scream. The soundwaves are so powerful, they're actually visible, and all of them surround the Sledge Bro. Spinning around at the speed of sound, the waves compress into the Sledge Bro, and explode. Junior, having landed from his attack, strolls over to where the Sledge Bro once stood. In its place is an extremely tiny Hammer Brother, about the size of Junior's pinky finger.

"Now tell me, little guy, where's Prince Iggy?" Junior asked his shrunken victim. Scared, the tiny Sledge Bro pointed to the right, directly toward a casino. "Thanks. You should return to normal size within an hour. Don't get squished!" the youngest prince mocked. He left the Sledge Bro be with a smile.

Iggy was currently slumping around Grate Guy's Casino. When Junior arrived, he saw Iggy twitching oddly next to a rulette table. BJ gasped at his brother's state. He knew that Iggy had a gambling problem, but this...this was probably serious. He quietly strolls over to his brother and gently taps his shoulder. "Iggy? Buddy?" Junior squeaks out.

The older brother turns to his younger sibling with bloodshot eyes. "WHATDAYAWANTPUNK?! IDONTWANTNOTROUBLE!" Iggy blurts out. Junior looks to Iggy's left, where ten Posion Shroom Shakes lie discarded and empty on the ground. Now it was REALLY serious.

"Bro? How's the gamblin' going for ya? Bad?" Junior tries to console, doing his best to keep the Posion Shroom-crazed Koopa under check. But Iggy seems a bit too wild to listen to reason. He glares at Junior, and begins to form a blazing ball of fire in his throat. Junior, scared for his shell, dives out of the way as Iggy launches a fireball at him. However, before he can unleash another one, a small, blue rock flies out from nowhere. It hits Iggy quickly and, in a flash, the glasses-wearing Koopaling is frozen in a large cube of ice.

Junior, still starestruck, just gasps in awe as he is saved from his own brother. However, a figure emerges from the shadows, rolling on a ball toward Jr. "Lemmy?" Bowser's offspring askes the figure. However, the ball-rider just gives off a laugh and reveals his true form.

"Nope Junior, but pretty close! How about 'Grate Guy'?" the ball-rider asks. Junior gives off a heavy sigh of relief as Grate Guy appears before him. He knew that the magician wasn't exactly on the Koopa's side, but he kept everything in his casino safe at the very least.

"So...how bad is the damage?" Junior asks.

"Heh, you just get right to the point, doncha? You're in a casino, bud. Lighten up and play a game while we chat." the casino owner replies, inviting the Koopa Prince to a quick game of poker. Though he normally has bad luck in all of these situations, Junior complies and puts up 100 coins.

Both of them are dealt five cards, aces wild. "I'll repeat my question: how bad is the damage?" Junior asks, showing himself a ten of clubs.

"My, SOMEONE is all business when they're on the job" the jester jokes, looking at a hand of three aces and two kings.

"King Dad told me this was business. The more professional I am, the better I'll be to rule the Kingdom someday." Junior explains, revealing a jack of clubs.

"Ah, a wise choice by your father there, I must admit" Grate Guy replies, laughing at his great luck.

"So, for the third time, how bad is the damage?" Junior asks, extremely annoyed as he reveals a queen of clubs.

Grate Guy's gaping smile turns into a huge frown. "You're no fun, Prince Junior" he whines. He liked toying with his fellow players, but Junior apparently had a good poker face. "Bad" the jester finally replies.

Junior's eyes swell up with both fear and excitement as he reveals the ace of clubs in his hand. With a king of clubs, he'd win this hand for the first time. More importantly, he'd be able to get whatever Grate Guy took out of Iggy back. But, business came first. "How bad?" Junior asks, flipping over his final card.

"Well..." Grate Guy starts. Junior slowly flips over his card, and is struck with two harsh blows. As if his brand-new three of hearts was saying it, mocking him, Grate Guy finally admitted, "He lost 10 billion coins and put your King Dad's castle up for collatoral."

Bowser Jr was shocked as Grate Guy took his 100 coins away. "I'm...truly sorry." Grate Guy lies. I mean, the jester won Dark Land from Iggy Koopa! What's there not to be excited about? Tears begin forming in Junior's eyes as he quickly takes his brother's frozen body and dashes out. With lightning speed, he takes out a Bowser Phone and dials the number.

"King Dad...we have a HUGE problem!"