Mushroom Kingdom Anew - Book 1

Chapter Four

Decked out in new gear, and with a new team member in their party, Xavier, Ace and Terry make their way across the Mushroom Plains. They were headed towards the castle in Dark Land, Vincent Koopa's castle, to end this awful tyranny. Xavier strode along, his arms swinging gingerly at his side as he looked at the scenery. It looked pretty much the same as yesterday's view, floating blocks and eyes on everything. It was all still a bit surreal, but seemed so real at the same time. Like a dream the teen didn't want to wake up from.

"So uh..." Terry began slowly. The boy and dinosaur turned to her curiously. She paused a second, thinking of how to break the ice. "Well uh... I dunno, the three of us were kind of shoved into a group and told to save the world. So maybe we can chat it up, tell stories and such to get to know one another better?"

"That's an idea." Xavier said, nodding. Ace raised his hand excitedly. "Ooh, ooh! Pick me, can I go first?" Terry chuckled. "Yes, Ace, you can go first."

"Okay." The Yoshi tapped his chin, then nodded. His story was in mind. "Okay, okay. So in the Mushroom Kingdom, this is a new thing by the way, a Yoshi egg is taken from Yoshi's island and stationed in Toad Town. It's a protection thing where basically, since the Mario Bros. are retired now, a Yoshi is tasked with protecting the town until their final days."

"Which is why you were the only Yoshi in the town?" Xavier asked. The Yoshi nodded.

"Exactly. And so when I hatched, which was quicker than most by the way, the King handed me the letter informing him of what exactly I was doing there. It was sent from whoever runs the operation on Yoshi's island. So from that day forward, I've saved Toad Town on numerous occasions."

"Wait wait, hold on, you knew King Toadrem beforehand? Then why did he treat you like a stranger?" Xavier asked. "Um, well... I guess it was the kingly persona...?" Ace answered cautiously. When the brunette tilted his head in confusion, the Yoshi sighed. "I have no clue, but I guess it doesn't matter now, right?" Xavier just shrugged.

"Right. So yeah, I've lived in Toad Town for about 5 years now, stomping Goombas and Koopas everyday. Luckily, Vincent hasn't either sent an army or come himself. I guess this territory isn't important to him?"

"I wouldn't count him out on that yet. He technically owns the entirety of the Mushroom Kingdom, right?" Terry asked. Ace nodded again. "Right. With the exceptions of Toad Town and Yoshi's island, but yeah. Anywho, yesterday was a day like any other. I was doing security rounds in the badlands just outside the Toad Town borders. That's when I found you, Xavier."

"Huh, guess I was lucky you came along." Xavier said. The Yoshi smiled and jumped on the spot. "Exactly! Those Goomba are known to be brutal, they've hurt lots of Toads. Now, killing you was out of the equation, but they would've probably crippled you at most. It's their style."

"Jesus christ, that's brutal." Terry murmured, to which Ace shrugged in response. "It's a harsh world. That's just how it is. But anyways, who wants to go next?"

"I guess I will." The brunette said, raising his hand. He cleared his throat before he began. "I was born in Ontario, Canada. Terry should know what that place is, but for Ace; it's basically just like this place, but everything doesn't have eyes, things don't float and it's cold as fuck. Anyways, I uh... grew up with both my folks and such. Ma died at an early age, dad got pissed at me all the time and drank. Same old same old."

"Christ... I'm sorry, Xav." Terry said quietly, a hand over her mouth. Xavier dismissed her concern with a wave of his hand. "It's fine. Actually, in a way it came in handy, because my fighting skills actually came from me wanting to defend myself against him in his drunken rage. So I guess without all that, I wouldn't be the hero this kingdom needed, huh?"