[center][img]https://www.mariowiki.com/images/thumb/b/b2/Koopa_Troop_artwork.png/658px-Koopa_Troop_artwork.png[/img]
[h2][color=FD0000]The Koopa Troop[/color][/h2]
[b][color=FD0000]wordcount:[/color][/b]  1,345 (+3)
[b][color=FD0000]Bowser: Level 5 [/color][/b] EXP: [color=FD0000]///////////////////////////////////////////////////[/color] (57/50)
Stress: 45/100
[b][color=SpringGreen]Bowser Jr: Level 4 [/color][/b] EXP: [color=SpringGreen]///////////////////////////[/color]/////////// (28/40)
Stress: 88/100
[b][color=DeepSkyBlue]Kamek: Level 4 [/color][/b] EXP: [color=DeepSkyBlue]//////////////////////////////////[/color]/////// (34/40)
Stress: 85/100
[b][color=FD0000]Location:[/color][/b] Ancestral Farmstead, the Land of Adventure 
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[color=SpringGreen]”Of course they couldn’t cut it even against these guys”[/color] was Bowser Jr’s dispassionate response to his gooma swarm being slaughtered by lowly farmhands. The koopas and dry bones where more resilient thanks to their shells but they weren't really capable of harming the few remaining husks attacking them. That was left to the mage and Mimikyu, as they blasted and clawed at the husks respectively. Neither were particularly effective however, the weak rapid fire scratches of Mimikyu barley harming their foe’s stony exterior while Kamek’s fireballs and magic blasts where too slow firing to make a sizable dent in the enemy lines.

It was clear to Jr that all their subgroups power had all been consolidated in his clown car and the weapon within, which was a depressing weakness and vulnerability that had been exposed the moment he’d been knocked clear of it.  

The husks beat down Koopa after Koopa, either smashing the Drybones into bits and then seeding the remains or forcing the koopas into their shells before booting them away as they advanced. The troop’s line faltered. Then it buckled and then, at long last, it broke. 

The farmhand lurched through the gap it had punched in, trampling over the shattered remains of the dry bones it had beaten back into death with its shovel, and charged the trio that had been hiding behind it. 

[color=DeepSkyBlue]”Get back sire!”[/color] Kamek called to Jr as he back puddled away from the attacker while priming another spell within his wand. Yet instead of heeding the mage’s instruction Jr was gripped a near suicidal desire to be of some, or any, use. The boy charged forwards instead, his heart beat thundering in his ears, deafening him to shouts of alarm coming from Kamek behind him and from Mimikyu as they fell off of his shoulder (the tiny rodent impersonator having been taken entirely by surprise by jr’s sudden burst of energy). 

Jr stormed forwards, screaming wordlessly, raising his fist high and driving it into the stomach of the farmhand as the two met. The husk staggered at the blow, but quickly regained its footing as jr practically slumped against it, raising his fists up and uselessly pounding on its chest while yelling at it. Utterly indifferent to this display of anguish the farmhand raised up their weapon to strike down the petulant child, only for both the head of the shovel and the head of the husk to be severed by a bright orange glowing blade.

Jr stumbled back from the corpse as the two heads fell to the ground. The body immediately began to compact down into its vengeful explosive state, only for a great steel to caped boot crunched down onto the farmhand’s remains.

With tired eyes jr looked up and beheld his father, basked in radiant golden light that had suddenly begun to bath the hilltop in its luminous glory.

His boots and trousers were stained with dust and gore, his face was still a mess of wounds, he was breathing heavily from over exertion and he was carrying the dazed and dazzled Hat kid (whom he had stashed in his hat which he now cradled under one arm) yet after Bowser had smashed his way through the last of the undead assailing his family's location his expression showed no concern for his own state and every concern for that of his son.

[color=SpringGreen]”Papa”[/color] was all the boy managed to say, his voice utterly exhausted.

Bowser at first said nothing. Instead he flicked off the power for his mecha mit, stepped forwards and scooped jr up into a tight one armed hug.

[color=FD0000]”It’s ok. You’re safe now,”[/color] He promised as his held his son tightly while the boy clung tightly to his chest.

[center][i]Jr relieves 22 Stress damage[/i][/center]

[hr]

Kamek sighed in relief as Bowser rejoined them just in time for a daring rescue. However, thought the King’s arrival had sent their small battle line into disarray his arrival had not quite finished the fight. What it had done was bought them a respite as he continued to stand there embracing his son and attempting to soothe the boy’s nerves, created a considerably more effective wall than the Koopas, Goombas and Drybones had done.

As the farmhands learned that beating on the massive spiny shell of the king was an effort in futility Kamek rallied what troops they had left and quickly formulated a plan in the few moments of time they had before they were attacked again.

First he asked, [color=DeepSkyBlue]”Mimikyu, can you copy this spell?”[/color] before casting the minor enlargement spell on one of the dry bones with a wave of his wand, causing it to increase in size by about 50%.

“Mmmmmm kyu!” they responded after a few moments of concentration, waving the stick that they used as fake tail like it was a wand and enlarging one of the Koopas using a [CopyCat] of Kamek’s spell.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]”Ehehehe, excellent”[/color], Kamek laughed a touch madly before quickly informing them all of the plan he had thrown together in the span of about 5 seconds.

[hr]

[color=SpringGreen]”Papa... You can let go now. You’ve still got stuff to do and I’m just,”[/color] jr was saying after the initial elation had worn off, aware that he was taking up time where Bowser could be fighting, but the king just shushed him.

[color=FD0000]”Nothing more important than looking after you,”[/color] he insisted as he used a thumb to gently rub jr’ s hair.

[color=SpringGreen]”But the zombie’s?”[/color] Jr replied. The noise of clanging of metal against armored shell was unignorable but Bowser simply shook his head before saying that, [color=FD0000]”Kamek’s can handle them”[/color]   

Jr was going to reply dismissively based on the mage’s earlier performance, but he was cut off by the sound of Kamek whistling.

[color=DeepSkyBlue]”GO GO GO!”[/color] “Kyu Kyu Kyu!” Came the shouts , causing jr to look away from his father's chest to see the remaining drybones circling round either side of him, each and every one enlarged by about 50% by Kamek and Mimikyu’s casting spree. Initially he thought they were going to perform a pincer maneuver while the farm hands were still distracted by Bowser’s bulk. A stupid plan, because though they’d have a size and strength increase they’d lose it as soon as they got hit and then it was right back to being in the meat grinder that they couldn't win. Then he saw where the Koopas had gone. Namely, into their shells which where being dribbled and passed between the dry bones as they moved into position.

[color=SpringGreen]”Wait. Seriously?”[/color], jr said a touch disbelievingly as the troops got into position, two groups on either side and a little ways away from the king and the horde assailing him. The farm hands, having seemingly realized the futility of attacking Bowser’s rear, responded to this new maneuver by disengaging from the king and charging the Koopas.

In response they received a swift volley of Koopa shell to the legs as the dry bones kicked their living brethren at their foes. The enlarged shells bashed into the farmhands, the impact damage harming the zombies while the spells enlarging the shells took the brunt of damage they would have received as it dissipated. Then the now normal sized shells bounced back and away, only to be interpreted by a dry bones, stopped and then dribbled until Kamek swooped past on his broom (with Mimikyu riding on the very end like a witch's cat) to enlarge the shell’s once again.

With Jr safely in Bowser’s arm and Kamek up in the sky the Koopa troop engaged in a running skirmish battle with the farmhands, making use of the skills they’d gained two times the mushroom kingdom had held some extremely violent football tournaments.

[color=FD0000]”See,”[/color] Bowser said with a grin as he kicked one of the flunked shell shots back to a dry bones. 

[color=SpringGreen]”That's just. So dumb,”[/color] jr said as he watched the farce, but even with his dower mood he couldn’t help but feel just a bit better about how things where going.