In the midst of the confusion, Red tapped Green on the shoulder as Green was cowering in a corner of the room. After some quick conference, Green leapt back up, determined again. They both ran toward Fawful.

"Fink-rat!" Fawful shouted, firing another blast at the two.

As the blast flew in, Green leapt on top of Red's head and took to the air with an astounding jump, followed by Red. The blast smashed harmlessly in the floor as Red grabbed Green's ankles in the air, and like a human spear, they landed with a mighty impact on Fawful's headgear.

Briefly unable to control his flight due to the attack on his headgear, Fawful screeched, "Now I have FURY!"

"You're about to have a lot more than that!" Hugo shouted, running in and firing his pickaxe at the caped assailant, who managed to get under control and dodge his blasts.

"What in the world is that?" the yellow-robed person exclaimed upon seeing Hugo.

"Explain later! HEY, Red Guy!" Matt shouted at Red, also running in. "Can you boost me up, too?"

Meta sighed. I thought so. "Alright, the plan is that we go fight the army of lightning hawks, but restrain ourselves, so it will look as if we're in trouble to the army of good guys that is nearby. Then, they will come to our aid and help us kill the lightning hawks, after which we will form an allegiance with them. Now, it is most crucial to this plan none of us will go all out in this set-up battle against the lightning hawks, but instead acts as if all of us were at a mere, say, 2 to 4% of our real power. We need to make the good guys believe we're in trouble and that we need help. Oh, and also, never drop your disguise. If you do so, they will find out who we truly are and turn against us. We need their allegiance to destroy the Seven. Got that?"

With Hugo and Matt both entering the battle, R.D. was the only other one among them still capable of combat. He was torn on entering the battle himself, and protecting the defenseless girls.

Meta looked at the man saying Yeah. She glared, then pointed at the woman beside the man. "You. Make sure he knows the plan. We don't wish this plan to fail." She then turned away from the pair, nodded at Gilgamesh for a moment, who nodded back, then looked at Shujou. "We're ready."

Red lowered his hands in a caged position, supporting Matt as he stepped on. With an upward stroke, Red launched the Toad in the air.

"Here I COME!" Matt shouted, raising his palm in a knifehand position. "One cut..."

The Toad slammed the edge of his hand straight down on Fawful's helmet. "TWO PIECES!" He grinned. "There is nothing I cannot cut!"

With a sweep of the headgear's tentacle and a cry of "FINK-RAT!" Matt was sent flying across the room like an empty cardboard box. "I regret NOTHING!" the Toad shouted mid-flight.

"Thanks for the distraction!" Prince Peasley remarked with a glittering smile. He promptly stabbed right through the left rocket of Fawful's headgear, immediately causing it to sputter.

"GAH!" Fawful flew backwards as best as he could. "You...all of your faces are STUPID!" He paused for an uneasy moment, as if focusing on something else, then said, "Despite the fury I have, I will leave you all to the stupid things you are doing!" He swooped low, toward the large gaping hole in the throne room doors. "I will be returning, and I will be laughing over you all!"

With a major burst of his last working rocket, Fawful shot out of the hole, and down the hallway.

The throneroom was silent for several moments, with R.D. holding the rod like a sword in his hands, staring at the doorway. After a while, he relaxed, then turned to Matt.

"Can we please have our bodies back?" he said, rather civilly, "I did not like that situation at all."

Matt stood up. "Oh, and here you are sayin' that-"-here Matt mocked R.D. with a somewhat falsetto voice-"'we shouldn't blab about the Core and crap, we gotta keep it a secret!'" In his normal voice-"That includes our current situation!"

"You're making it worse, you know," Hugo muttered.

Matt threw up his hands. "Well, EXCUUUUUSE ME, Princess! If I could switch us back to normal I would've DONE it by now!"

In a poof of white smoke, the Toads present were restored to their normal states before entering this new world.

"...huh." Matt looked at his hands. "That's pretty damn convienent."

"What the-?!" Now Yellow Robe's eyes were wide in shock and amazement. "What in the world is going on here?"

"Matt, we should help them drive back the invading forces!" Helena said, masterfully changing the subject.

"Agreed!"

"There's no need," the very large green woman suddenly proclaimed, having produced a small unit that she was now watching. She pointed the unit at the floor, and from it, a sphere of holographic energy was produced, switching between various scenes of green-skinned soldiers attacking the enemy forces with success. "Our forces are rooting out the enemy as we speak!"

"Still..." Peasley's winged board landed, and he stepped off. "I fear that Cackletta may have acquired the Beanstar from our vault!"

Edited by The Helldragon on January 12, 2007 at 20:36:23.

"Finally!" R.D. said, stretching, "Now we can fix what's wrong in this world."

R.D. then held a hand up. "First of all, what's this Beanstar you're going on about?"

"The Beanstar is an ancient artifact from long ago," Yellow Robe answered. "It has the power to grant any wish."

"That's just askin' for trouble," Matt remarked.

Yellow Robe nodded. "Indeed. As such, it was sealed away, deep underneath this castle. The inhabitants of Beanbean Kingdom have dedicated themselves to protecting the Beanstar from those that would misuse its power."

Matt chuckled. "Don't I know about that..." he muttered to himself.

"However, to access the Beanstar's power, it must be sung to by a person with a pure voice!" Fat Lady declared in a laughing, jolly tone. "And only Princess Peach can activate it!"

Red and Green's shoulders sagged at the mention of "Princess Peach".

"What happened to the princess?" Helena asked, noting Red and Green's expressions.

Prince Peasley grinned. "Cackletta stole her voice...or, at least, that's what she THOUGHT she did!" This caused Red and Green much visible surprise as he flipped his golden hair aside, with a noticable flash. "We arranged for a decoy to take Princess Peach's place when Cackletta came to visit, and now, the witch has an absolutely dreadful voice which will do absolutely nothing! We may have a chance just yet!"

"Excellent!" Fat Lady laughed heartily. "How soon can your sources locate where Cackletta is heading, Peasley?"

Peasley bowed courteously. "I am confident I will learn of her intended location very soon, mother."

"Excellent!" Another laugh. "So, now the game turns to you two," she said, looking at Red and Green. "You must pursue Cackletta and recapture the Beanstar!"

"Just the two of them, huh?" R.D. said, folding his arms and cocking his head to the side. "Maybe we can be of some help."

"Yeah, I mean...well, if the smoke thing didn't convince you, we've got powers and stuff too," Matt explained. "Lemme demonstrate real quick...hey, Green Dude!" He pointed at a chunk of door that had scattered near the other two humans. "Hold that up, would ya?"

Green picked up the slab of wood and held it before him at arm's length.

In a burst of speed Matt dashed foward, his fists rapidly striking the board as soon as he was in front of it. "MUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDAMUDA!" His blazing strikes instantly demolished the wood into tiny splinters, much to Green's incredible shock.

"Amazing!" Prince Peasley remarked.

"R.D. can do the same stuff," Matt said, sliding a hand in his pocket. "Of course, not as impressive as what I can do, but still."

R.D. rolled his eyes and picked up a piece of door, and threw it up into the air. As it reached the pinnacle of its throw, R.D. quickly vaporized it with a plasma burst.

"Of course, I don't run the risk of my attacks backfiring," he said, smirking, "And I sure as hell won't turn everyone into talking mushrooms."

Blazen stopped when Kalmar spoke behind him. Blazen turned to see what cause them to halt. The sun was barely peeking over the hills. The wing flapping grew more intense, though it was not coming from the angelic being from above it was too dark for that. Blazen watched the angel, hoping it would aid them rather tha-

Before Blazen's thoughts were finished the sun had dissapeared. There was a deadly pause, poisoning Blazen's mind with suspence. The flapping stopped even. Blazen looked over to the manhole to which he thought he heard the flapping before. The lid was not stirring....still Blazen knew something was wrong. His thoughts were confirmed with the lid flew off and thousands of bat like creatures flew from the darkness of the sewers. More swarms of these creatures covered the air. Thier screetching peirceing the air sharply like a hot knife through flesh.

Blazen watched as the bat like creatures came around them fiercely, faster than any car. Upon closer look these things had two pair of wings, that were edged with blades. Blazen grew a grim feeling from the blades. A swarm quickly swooped down upon the group to tear all three of them to pieces. Blazen acted as two create a dome of fire around them, the bats flew into the dome, forcing Blazen to grunt from the pressure, however the bats were burnt to ashes.

"FUUUUCK you!" was Matt's reply.

"I'm a robot, by the way," Hugo mentioned to Yellow Robe. "Do they have robots here?"

"Some...but none quite like you," Yellow Robe answered. She spoke louder to address the group. "My name is Lady Lima." She gestured to Peasley and Fat Lady. "This is Prince Peasley, and her Royal Highness, Queen Bean."

"Charmed," Peasley said, flipping back his hair again.

"And, well..." Lady Lima looked toward Red and Green. "I don't have to explain who these two are."

"Yeah, you do," Matt said. "We ain't from around here."

"You've never heard of the famous Mario and...um..." She walked over to Green. "...what was your name again?"

Green promptly collapsed.

"His name is Luigi," Peasley finished for Lady Lima. "Mario and Luigi, stars of the Mushroom Kingdom!"

Matt nodded. "I'm Matt." He jabbed his thumb over his shoulder. "Jerkwad over there is R.D., robot's Hugo, blond-hair girl is Alasea, and brown-hair girl is Helena."

Helena smiled. "It's nice to meet you all."

Alasea picked up a small chunk of wood and promptly threw it at Matt's head. "I'm a brunette, you idiot!" she said acidly.

"Despite the current level of animosity in our group," R.D. said, ignoring the insult, "We're a damn fine team."

The amnesiac teen gave Matt a sidelong glance.

"... and the battle will be pretty much won if someone pisses off our fearless leader here. Last guy who pissed him off that badly got his face crushed."

Edited by RisingDragon on January 13, 2007 at 1:27:27.

Meta drew her zweihänder after she had let go of the cat. "It would be good if a few of us would act as if they had been wounded by the lightning hawks. If you can, decrease your natural defenses by as much as you can! Humans are naturally fragile!" Those were her last words, before she slashed at a lightning hawk, soon after being electrocuted by another that attacked her back.

"You two, duck!" Blane said as he hit the deck,"Kite, I could use some assistance over here!"

"I'm on my way, Blane..." said the wandering stranger as his peed picked up randomly.

"Details do not interest me!" Matt declared melodramitcally. "The basic deal is that we'll help you out with Cackletta." He raised a fist in a dramatic motion. "Indeed, we are also punishers of villians!"

"Very well!" Queen Bean laughed. "Once we know where Cackletta is headed, you may accompany Mario and Luigi!"

"Oh, and, uh, you might want to call off the guards. We kind of pissed them off when we scaled the castle wall," R.D. explained, "And... uh, also might want to replace the window that Matt broke."

Edited by RisingDragon on January 13, 2007 at 12:53:17.

"Oops." Matt rubbed the back of his neck. "Um...sorry about that." He held out his hands. "I can totally remake it."

"Into what, a window monster?" Hugo asked.

"Shut up."

"Well, I'm off to survey the damages," Peasley said, stepping back onto his winged board. He looked toward the group. "Please, take some time to prepare for your journey. Lady Lima will help you with whatever you need." Lady Lima nodded in acknlowedgement.

As the board rose, Peasley flipped back his hair. "I will return soon." With that, he easily coasted foward, out of the hole in the throne room doors.

"Food does sound pretty good..." Matt remarked. Mario and Luigi certainly looked pleased at the idea.

R.D. shook his head roughly. His body being morphed from one creature to another had given him a headache. "Well, once we've had something to eat you can tell us who this Cackletta broad is," he said.

Kalmar created a dark shield around himself as the bat-like creatures swarmed over the group. He drew both arms back, promptly flinging them forward to send a large beam of corrupted fire at the bat swarm. A large tunnel of the creatures disintegrated, but the gap was quickly filled by more of the swarming bats.

Upon hearing the angel's remark, he held his hands out to his sides, increasing the power of his shield.

"Do what you have to, or i'll do it for you!" he shouted, the swarm's assualt battering his shield.

Edited by Fallen on January 15, 2007 at 9:29:18.

Lady Lima lead the group to the dining area, and after sitting them down, she ordered a chef to bring them all a light meal. She sat as well, and related the story.

"We do not know where Cackletta came from," Lady Lima began. "All we know is that she has lived quite a while, and possesses powerful magic. She's been attempting to get the Beanstar for a while now, but until today she's never been so foward in her attempts."

"But she can't activate it without Princess Peach's voice, so it doesn't mean anything," Helena said.

"When she discovers that she has a false voice, Cackletta will scour the countryside for the real Princess," Lady Lima replied. She looked to Mario and Luigi. "Princess Peach will be arriving at Beanbean International Airport today, so you must do all you can to protect her until we can escort her to a safe location."

And just like that, R.D. got a bad feeling. "I wonder how things are going to get screwed up this time," he muttered, not caring who heard him.

Thankfully, the light meal looked like food they all recognized-all leafy greens and other vegetables. Matt found himself wishing for some meat on his plate as the servant passed it all out, and from what he could tell, Helena seemed apprehensive about the food before her.

"I think they're vegetarian," Matt muttered under his breath to Helena.

"Matt, I need some meat," she replied in a whisper. "I'm a carnivore."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah." She shot a quick glance at Lady Lima to make sure she wasn't noticing them talk out of the side of their mouths. "Dragons don't normally eat greens."

"I don't normally eat this stuff without Catalina dressing. You're not all dragon, though," Matt replied. "Try some of it."

"I'm guessing people of this world don't eat meat, do they?" R.D. asked, also wishing for some meat.

"Oh, no," Lady Lima said. "We require different things than, say, Mario and Luigi."

Luigi didn't seem disappointed with his salad, eagerly digging in as Mario ate more slowly. Matt took a poke at something that resembled iceberg lettuce. "So...forgive me for asking, but why are you so renowned, Mario?"

"He's defeated the evil King Bowser many times," Lady Lima explained. "Every time he's come up with some plan to kidnap the princess, but Mario always manages to stop him."

"What about Luigi?"

"Who?"

Luigi's face hit the table.

"Well, I'm sure Luigi's done a lot of brave things, too," Helena said cheerfully, successfully managing to cheer Luigi up a bit.