Super Princess Peach

Ch. 24

Peach awoke with a slap to the face. 

In shock and surprise, Peach rolled over just as the tip of a spear impaled itself in the spot Peach had been lying a split second before. Looking up, Peach saw a native man glaring down at her, struggling to rip his spear out of ground.  

"Toadonelly! Toaddette! Toader! Perry! Incoming!" Peach cried. When no one answered, she looked wildly around the tent and saw that it was empty except for her and the native man. Where in the world was her party? 

Scrambling to her feet, Peach struck the man with a roundhouse kick that sent him toppling to the ground. She grabbed up his spear and rushed outside. 

The scene was confusing. There were lots of natives running around, sifting through bags and rummaging through backpacks. Peach's eyes widened in shock when she saw Toaddette and Toadonelly and Toader sitting in a tiny circle guarded by two natives. They were all tied up tightly. Perry had a small rope wrapped around him, and he couldn't do anything but wriggle. 

"Princess!" Toader cried as Peach reached for her necklace. "Don't! They'll - " He gasped as someone struck Peach in the neck from behind. Her body seemed to shut down, and she collapsed to the ground, pain radiating in her neck. Before she passed out, the last thing she heard was the triumphant cries of the natives and her party of toads crying out her name.

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When Peach groggily awoke an hour later, she found that she and her party were trapped inside of a wooden cage.  

"Princess!" Toaddette squeaked as Peach groaned in pain. 

"Sh!" Toader snapped. "Not a sound!" He motioned to the side of the cage, where two natives were steadily walking. Peach realized that the cage was mounted on two sticks, and that the men were carrying them towards their destination. 

"What - " Peach started, but she fell to the floor of the cage again. Toaddette whimpered as Peach struggled to right herself and finally moved into a satisfying sitting position. Her hands were tied tightly behind her back, as were her legs and torso. The only thing left free was her mouth. "What's going on?" 

"I don't know," Toadonelly said, sounding frightened. "The natives captured us and threw us into this cage. They're carrying us somewhere now." 

"Princess, you're injured!" Toaddette blurted.  

Toader glared at her, but said, "Yeah, she's right. You're bleeding from the base of your neck." 

Peach slowly turned her neck and winced with pain. Her face fell as she saw that her blonde hair was stained with blood. Her heart began to race. "Am I still bleeding?" she asked Toaddette, turning slightly. 

"Yes!" 

Peach's heart plummeted. She was sure that her blood pressure had just shot up a couple of levels. "Okay, let's calm down," she said softly, closing her eyes and concentrating hard. The Calm Stone of the Vibe Necklace began to glow a faint green, and its power flowed out in a warm wave and wrapped Peach's party in soft green bubbles. Toaddette stopped shaking, Toadonelly ceased biting on his fingernails, and even Toader stopped nibbling his lip. Peach's heartbeat stopped its erratic dance. "We're in the worst possible situation right now. We're all scared, and I've been injured. But let's all know that as long as we stay together, we'll be safe." As the Calm Stone's power enveloped Peach, she felt the wound on the back of her neck scab over and seal, almost like a zipper. 

Everyone's breathing became more relaxed as they were carried deeper into the region. The air grew warmer and warmer as they strayed nearer to the deadly volcano that loomed in the distance.