The sky over Sarasaland was dark and solemn as the citizens stepped out of their homes dressed in black and white out of respect for the procession passing by.
From the royal palace, four royal karts carried four identical coffins, the last tragically smaller than the rest, all covered with the Sarasaland flag. Beside the karts marched the Bela Nandi, keeping watch over the bodies for the last time, as they marched in step with the priests. In front, two sisters, dressed in white walked hand in hand as the rain began to fall. The young princess walked in silence as her sister, the new queen, carried a candle and sang the song of their people, the citizens joining along in song and following behind the karts as they wished the departed souls of the royal family eternal rest.
The echos of the funeral procession filled the air as the queen's eyes shone with tears, mixing with the raindrops that fell on her face as they made their journey to the tombs of Birabuto, the newly erect tomb in sight and more guards and priests waiting to receive them.
In that moment, the crowd went silent as the guards stopped the karts and the priests began to carry the coffins into the tomb, one by one.
The princess and the citizens began to weep openly as the first three coffins were placed inside, but the queen stood still, her face wet but stoic.
That was until the fourth coffin was being taken.
"W-wait! Please!" The queen spoke, her voice hitched in emotion.
The priests paused for a moment as she approached, her form shaking as she handed the candle to her sister and stretched out her arms to take the box into her arms.
"Your majesty, are you sure? You are still severely wounded." The leader asked, concern lacing his voice. The rest of his companions murmured amongst themselves in agreement.
"Let me hold him one more time. H-he won't be able to rest without a lullaby! A-and he sleeps better in my arms." She replied, her voice breaking yet strong in her resolve.
The head priest looked at her, empathy flooding his eyes as they lowered the coffin into her arms. The princess watched in awe as her sister handed her the candle and buckled under the weight of the coffin, but never stumbled as she carried it inside the tomb and placed it on the last pedestal and sang it a final lullaby, taking the candle from the younger royal's hand and placing it on the ground.
A final nightlight to watch over the souls in their eternal slumber.
"Goodnight my sweet boy. May your dreams be sweet until we meet again." The queen whispered, kissing the small coffin before taking the princess's hand and walking away from the chamber, the priests sealing the departed inside forever.
That night, the air was filled with the heart wrenching screams of anguish of a woman mourning all that she had lost.
A woman who lost her father, her mother, her husband.
And her son.
Meanwhile, in the Darklands...
The dark castle shook as the gigantic Koopa King paced the carpeted hallways, a worried expression etched onto his maw. Smoke poured from his nostrils as clutched in his claws were the blankets that once wrapped the egg of the unhatched heir of the Darklands.
The heir that was currently fighting for its life.
The egg came as an unexpected surprise from the stork, and the king was overjoyed that his line would continue even after not finding a mate. He carried the egg everywhere, cradling it in his arms during the day and whispering the legends of his ancestors to its shell at night. The egg had already won the undying loyalty of the entire Koopa army. His dreams were filled with the life that the koopaling would have. The chaos the two of them would cause, the plots they would hatch as father and child, and their eventual reign as the rulers of the entire galaxy. It would be glorious.
That was until the koopaling's health began to fail.
No one knew what exactly happened that caused the egg's inhabitant to take a turn for the worst overnight. Some thought it was shell rot in utero, maybe the egg was too cold, maybe the egg became too warm, or maybe it was just that the hatchling was too weak. Whatever it was, Kamek and Kammy, his two ever-faithful advisors, spent the last 24 hours and all of their magic to save the king's miracle child, but it was feared that their efforts were in vain.
Unless, of course, they hatched the egg now.
The egg wasn't set to hatch for another few weeks, and if they were taken from the egg too soon, there was a chance that the hatchling would perish from being underdeveloped. However, if they did not hatch the egg, the koopaling would perish from whatever it was ailing from.
The Koopa stopped in his tracks, walking into his bedroom and standing out onto the balcony, peering out over his kingdom. Suddenly, a shooting star flew across the sky.
At that moment, the great tyrant of the Darklands closed his eyes and offered one prayer.
Great Grambi and all the stars above, please save my koopaling. I don't care how you do it, just don't let them die! Don't take them away from me. Not now!
"Sire?" A hesitant voice spoke.
The Koopa King turned around with a start. There stood Kamek, fiddling with his wand, avoiding all eye contact. It was then that the king's heart seemed to take a plunge into his stomach.
"Is it done? Will my heir live? Answer me!"
The tiny Koopa cleared his throat and nervously nodded his head.
"Congratulations, your Aggressiveness. You are the father of a beautiful baby boy."
The Koopa's anxiety was quelled slightly but quickly returned as Kamek still refused to look him in the eye.
"And? What are you hiding from me? Is my son alright?!"
"Oh! No worries there, your Anxiousness. He is a strong and healthy koopaling! However, it was the strangest thing. The prince was near death when we hatched him, but then..."
Kamek didn't get to finish his sentence as the king roughly pushed him aside and ran for the nursery, nearly knocking down the door. True to his word, in Kammy's arms laid the newly hatched prince of the Koopa kingdom as healthy and fully developed as if his egg was never in danger.
The king slowly approached the advisor holding his heir, kneeling down to take the squirming bundle in his arms. Unwrapping the blankets away from the infant's face, he was met with the familiar whisps of fiery red hair and of two little horn nubs. A perfect spitting image of his father.
"Hello, my little prince." He whispered in awe.
The newborn Koopa opened his bleary eyes, giving his father a toothless smile that made his heart melt at the sight.
Tomorrow, the kingdom will learn that their new prince has been hatched, and the days of feasting and revelry will be ceaseless.
But for now, the gigantic Koopa will steal this moment for himself, basking in the pride that only a father could have for a son.
His son.
A/N:
Hey there everyone!💗
It's been awhile, hasn't it?
It's been a very chaotic year since I've last written, so sorry about that.
Good news: I graduated from college with my B A in Theatre and I'm preparing to do something with that!🤩
Not-so-good news: I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes and anxiety, so that has taken a toll on my physical and mental health. 😣
Now don't worry my Phantom Phans!
The Phantom's Legacy is still going to be updated, but I also had wanted to try something new and what better way than with the Mario Bros!
I saw the movie and Jack Black's Bowser is just absolute perfection!
Also, this story is originally posted on Archive of Our Own and will be updated on that website first, so check it out for any new updates!
I will be posting all of the chapters I have written so far, so please don't forget to Vote, Comment, and Share and I'll see y'all next time!
M'kay, bye! 🥰
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Fiery Love Through Burning Sands
ספרות חובביםSing, Oh Mighty Ones! Sing of a tale of love and loss. Of two lonely souls joining together as one! Sing of Bowser, King of the Koopas and Tyrant of the Darklands. Sing of Taraji, Queen of Sarasaland and General of the Bela Nandi. Sing of a mother's...
