[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/6W7bqko.png[/img] [h2][color=FD0000]The Koopa Troop[/color][/h2] [b][color=FD0000]wordcount:[/color][/b] 4,264 (+6) [b][color=FD0000]Bowser: Level 11 [/color][/b] EXP: [color=FD0000]//////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////[/color] (196/110) [b][color=SpringGreen]Bowser Jr: Level 9 [/color][/b] EXP: [color=SpringGreen]/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////[/color] (265/90) [b][color=DeepSkyBlue]Kamek: Level 10 [/color][/b] EXP: [color=DeepSkyBlue]////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////[/color](174/100) [b][color=Aqua]Rika: Level 5 [/color][/b] EXP: [color=Aqua]//////////////////////////////////////////////////[/color] (57/50) [b][color=FD0000]Location:[/color][/b] Twilight Town [/center] Before the gang set out for another adventure, flashes of light blasted repeatedly, as the Troop did some rearranging of spirits, and Midna upgraded one of her minions. [hider=spirit shinanigens] [hider=For Junior]Notable spirit consumed: [b][url=https://i.imgur.com/WipWqam.png]B’giotahmo Bravha[/url][/b] The host has gotten taller with more humanoid proportions. His tail is longer, thinner, and has a mix of blue and orange fur running along the top of it. The host's hair is the same, a mix of blue and orange, and is a bit longer, with cat ears poking out the top. The host has a more human face, and is now wearing a white long coat with red lining. In terms of personality, the host is more calm and gentle. This spirit confers the Power [b]Healer Basics[/b]. As long as the host has some sort of staff-like casting catalyst, he can cast Cure to restore a burst of HP, Esuna to cleanse minor status effects, and Lucid Dreaming to gradually restore a third of his own MP. It also confers the Weakness [b]Dedicated Healer[/b], decreasing the power of offensive magic by 20%[/hider] [hider=For Kamek]Notable spirit consumed: [b][url=https://i.imgur.com/DRok6hB.png]Cia[/url][/b] (Head) The host's hood has taken the shape of Cia's hat, with the pointed end now going off in two directions. The scales on his face have changed color, texture, and hardness, taking on the likeness of Cia's mask, including new 'armor' plating over the top of the host's beak, which is now sharper and longer. Beneath the hood are some tufts of white hair. His glasses are now thinner, rectangular, and red-tinted. The host also has Cia's necklace. Powers and Weakness are the same[/hider] [hider=For Kamek]New Striker spiritbound: [b][url=https://i.imgur.com/aolQmEY.png]Tonberry[/url][/b] An enigmatic green critter, small in stature but inherently menacing. It has a long activity period, but also a long cooldown. When summoned, it will slowly shuffle toward its target in order to use Chef's Knife, an attack that deals immense damage. It's also very tanky, so a lot of damage will need to be dealt to it to deal serious damage to Kamek. However, its slow speed and lack of stealth means that it will be difficult for it to get into stabbing range against an opponent that is not immobilized. This makes Tonberry best used as a critical attack in conjunction with stun or down on an enemy[/hider] [hider=For Midna's Wolfos]Spirit absorbed: [b][url=https://i.imgur.com/rSfufX0.png]Rampaging Cyborg[/url][/b] The host is more bearlike in terms of body shape, with a thicker torso. Metal plates also adorn the legs, head, and lower back. In terms of personality, the host is more brutish and less intelligent. This spirit confers the Power [b]Metal Wolf Chaos[/b], granting a cannon on its back. The cannon can fire projectiles loaded into it at high enough speed to explode on impact. If not manually loaded with actual ammunition, it will extract a chunk of the host's flesh at the cost of HP to use instead/ It also grants the Weakness [b]Powered[/b]. If not powered by an energy cell, the host's cyborg parts remain inert, rendering the gun unusable and lowering its movement speed[/hider] [/hider] [color=DeepSkyBlue]”Ahhh, that’s better”[/color] Kamek sighed as he, and it was he again, stretched and enjoyed being himself again. Then there was a crack and an [color=DeepSkyBlue]”ak, my back” [/color] as the return of his old age caught up with him. Jr meanwhile was leaning out over the rim of his clown car while looking back and admiring his new longer cat tail, flicking it to and fro with a great deal of amusement. It was fortunate that he’d up gunned and upscaled his clown car because his slightly lankier proportions that he’d gotten, presumably due to having the fusion in more than just one place, would have been pretty cramped if it was still boy sized. Then he pulled out his paint brush, spun it around and pointed a finger at Kamek as his new cloak fluttered dramatically and cast [color=SpringGreen]”Esuna!”[/color] causing a light blue aura to flare up around the mage before it burst away and took something with it. [color=DeepSkyBlue]”Oh. Oh my. hmmm”[/color] Kamek said after the light dissipated, patting his shell and then standing straight once more [color=DeepSkyBlue]”Well I don’t think you fixed my old bones, but you did make it stop hurting for the moment. Thank you yonge master, that was quite thoughtful of you”[/color] [color=SpringGreen]”I, uh, well…”[/color] Jr foundered, not really knowing where that had come from despite the fact that he’d talked Kamek into giving him the power specifically so he could help and not get stuck in the same situation he had with Anneta, and so defended his ego with [color=SpringGreen]”I am pretty smart for working out that that would help, yeah?”[/color] He’d also gotten it because it would let him help out his minions when they were battling, and also so he could heal them after fights like the one he had had with Bede. Speaking of minions, Midna had modified her own one to help herself using one of the ones the mercenaries had acquired, and had gotten some kind of abominable bear pendran robot wolf hybrid thing which had lost any cuteness despite still having it’s Shiba like tail, but was just the toughest dogo now, with armored plates and scales adorning it’s body all over. Oh and it also had a massive cannon which the princess hopped up onto the back to inspect while the dumber cyber wolfbeardran huffed mechanically below her. She pulled open a hatch and found what, based on her limited knowledge, looked like a chamber for ammo, and an odd round one at that. She scratched her head, wondering what the shells were like and where they even were, before she found just the tiniest inscription of instructions handily scrawled just above it, which depicted a load of junk being shoved into the back of the bear’s turret, before same said junk was blasted out the front. [color=Aquamarine]”Wait, so it can just fire anything?”[/color] she asked, before pulling an aluminum tube out of the twilight realm, putting some electricity in it, and then finally popping it in the chamber. Then she shut the door, and there came some mechanical sounds before the hatch popped back open again. [color=Aquamarine]”Guess it’s loaded..?. Is it?”[/color] she asked her minion, and got a growl of, probably, confirmation [color=Aquamarine]”Right, so, like the train then. Two ‘shells’ one in this chamber, on in the, uh, shooty bit”[/color] she guessed, before saying [color=Aquamarine]”Well, only one thing to do now”[/color] and then doing it. There was an electrical sound and a wumf as whatever non gunpowder based system the cannon had for launching its improvised ammo went off, followed by the thunderous sound of kinetic force and thunder striking as the tube smashed into the ground a ways off hard enough that it exploded. That certainly got some attention, notably that of Jr came over to admire the mecha beast and then, once he had had it explained to him, quickly got to work on an idea he had to give her infinite ammo. His ingenious idea turned out to be a jar (the most valuable of items) with a bit of goop from his magic paintbrush at the bottom and enough space in the rest of the jar left for a single swoopin stu to form out of said goop. [color=SpringGreen]”Then you just grab this”[/color] he explained, picking the stu up by its weird head tentacles, before shoving it into the chamber [color=SpringGreen]”and use it as ammo. Then you wait a bit and boom! More ammo”[/color] Sure enough, after a little bit, another stu formed, ready to be loaded. [color=Aquamarine]”Well, if i ever run out of junk, guess i can fire these chuchu at people”[/color] Midna said doubtfully as she picked up another and shook it about [color=SpringGreen]”Hey, I bet they'll be really powerful”[/color] Jr insisted and, sure enough, when they launched the poor thing off it made quite a splash. Literally. [color=Aquamarine]”Huh, that’s a lot of slime. Does it hurt people or something?”[/color] [color=SpringGreen]”Yup, and it comes in three flavors. What do you want, poison, electricity or fire?”[/color] jr asked, and was just a bit disconcerted at how quickly and a little unhinged Midna replied with [color=Aquamarine]”Fire!”[/color] And that was the last bit of tinkering and tweaking they had time for before it was time to head off to the action. Unfortunately for them, the action decided to come to them ahead of (train) schedule. They headed down into the metro, Midna walking so as to not upset the kitties (and finding herself just a bit heavier in her steps which was a little disconcerting), and found themselves back in the bizarre and brilliant Nyakusa Metro. [color=SpringGreen]”Oh wow. There’s so many cats, it’s like Lake Lapcat up in here. Or down in here”[/color] Jr marveled, before joking [color=SpringGreen]”Guess I fit right in!”[/color] in reference to his new ears and tail. Then there came a little jingle as Bowser clipped a bell to his collar and joined in with his son’s a-mew-sment with a [color=FD0000]”hey, me too”[/color] which got them both gawfing and giggling. Whether this was culturally insensitive to the cats of the metro would remain a mystery, because right that very moment they all turned hostile anyway (those that did not turn and flee at any rate) as rush hour set in and prompted the cats seeking a quick payday to rush them at the behest of the local crime boss and, of all things, another helmeted figure. [color=SpringGreen]”What? Oh come on! Another one? Is this just going to be a thing now?!”[/color] Jr complained, recognizing the evil doer’s attire, but there wasn’t really much time to do anything about that because, as Princess Peach rightly assessed, it was time to go, and go fast. Preferably without massacring every stray cat they came across. While some, like Midna upon the back of her newly summoned wolfos (the cats were trying to kill her, no time for sensitivity) took to the rooftops to avoid the masses of the kitty swarm, the troop stuck to the streets and walkways, Bowser using his shell mounted as a mix of water cannon and squirt bottle to clear a path. Rika sprinted along after him, flanked by a pair of shadow clones of the king acting as bouncers, while up above hovered Kamek and jr, with the prince having Dazzle aid his father’s riot control with his own water attacks. It was somewhat slow going, but it worked quite well, and then perhaps too well when the suddenly burst out of the crowd and into a wide open plaza, the center of which rapidly cleared before them. Well, before them and at the behest of a cat-eared likatu floating around above them, which signaled something the cats were familiar with, but that Bowser just took to be a signal of his own success. [color=FD0000]”Gahahaha, that’s it, run kitties!”[/color] Bowser laughed, spraying a poor unfortunate strangler before storming out onto the wide avenues of the plaza, stepping out between the two fountains that dominated the large room and pausing there in-order to try and work out where they needed to go next to catch their train. [color=aqua]”Hey, do you hear that? It sounds like… roaring?”[/color] Rika suddenly asked, causing Bowser’s ears to perk up, and indeed, he did hear that sound, right before the source, or rather sources burst onto the scene. A mass of [url=https://i.imgur.com/V6bPLxD.png]metal and fury driven by a kung fu catgirl[/url] suddenly burst into the plaza and gunned straight for them. Upon spotting this Bowser grabbed Rika and pulled her aside as the hotrod careened towards them, meaning it only slammed into and road killed one of his clones instead of the ship girl who had been standing next to it. [color=FD0000]”Hey, watch where you're driving!”[/color] he roared after the catgirl. If that wasn't enough, the corridor she had come careening out of wasn’t done divulging roaring machines as hot on her heels came a whole bevy of motorized followers inducing: A [url=https://i.imgur.com/NmVtWXP.png]buff cat[/url] in a [url=https://i.imgur.com/i8kUpw5.png]golf cart[/url] A [url=https://i.imgur.com/Dsmwb2H.png]cat ear’d sparten[/url] on a [url=https://i.imgur.com/VutP7Hp.png]quad bike[/url] A [url=https://i.imgur.com/M9R54n6.png]tiger tike in a hovercraft[/url], And just a whole host of street cats in various go karts. It wasn’t just mechanical roaring that came either, because there were also a small host of sabertooth tiger pulled [url=https://i.imgur.com/1SYX05j.png]Charioteers[/url] the most prominent among which was a pharaoh looking [url=https://i.imgur.com/HXgzmdo.png]sorceress[/url] who used a [url=https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/terraria_gamepedia/images/3/3f/Thunder_Zapper_(demo).gif]lightning firing staff[/url] to actively attack the troop instead of just trying to run them down, the sorceress blasting sparks up at the two fliers, forcing them to take evasive action. These various drivers came careening after the lead driver, taking their own pass at the Bowser as he held Rika aloft. None of them had the same metal mass as the lead driver to just ram the stalwart king, but they did have gangs of street cats riding with them, double dash style, who swung at them with improvised weapons which hurt a bit, but not nearly as much as the hail of gunfire that came from the Spartan’s quadbike mounted rifles, which hammered Bowser in the chest. After they had zoomed past the king put down Rika and clutched his chest [color=FD0000]”Gah! That hurt. But at least it's over”[/color] Bowser complained after Rika thanked him for the save. Kamek was in no way so sure, because from up on high where had flown to avoid being zapped he could see the true shape of the plaza. Two large fountains, one at each end, gave the room a somewhat 8 like structure of pathways, ones, now that he cared to look, he saw where they were marred with skid marks, both old and new. [color=DeepSkyBlue]”Oh, no”[/color] he said upon realizing what was going on, before shouting down to the ground pounders [color=DeepSkyBlue]”Look out sire, we've wandered onto some kind of street racing circuit!”[/color] Jr had figured the same thing. Only instead of analyzing the environment he had just kept an eye on the races as they all went drifting round the outside of one of the fountains and came looping back around the top of the figure of 8, ready for another pass. [color=SpringGreen]”Here they come again!”[/color] he called out in warning [color=aqua]”Run!”[/color] Rika cried out as she turned to do just that, sprinting away as the races came bearing down on them once more. Bowser and his one remaining cone turned to do so too, only for said clone to also become roadkill as the kung fu catgirl ran it down as well and then yelled “get off the road!” as she blazed by. [color=SpringGreen]”Up here up here!”[/color] Jr shouted ahead of them, waving his arms floating above a high wall that led to a walkway above the plaza, which some of the cats were using to watch the race/bounty claiming attempt. As the rest of the racers bore down on them Bowser and Rika made a mad dash, and then both made a great leap up onto the balcony just in time to avoid a second drive by beating. Cats scrambled out of the way to avoid the king’s landing, but then immediately re-coalesced to beat and claw at the pair, the nimble blighters avoiding retaliation frustratingly well. [color=FD0000]”Gah!!!”[/color] [color=aqua]”Ow ow ow, jerks!”[/color] [color=SpringGreen]”Up here, up here!”[/color] Jr called out again, floating above a row of stores lining the avenue heading towards their desired trainline. With another leap and a bound, the pair got themselves above the vagrant packed streets and could, at last, take a breather. Or so they thought As jr used his new white mage magics to patch up his pappa and ship-girl companion, two of the racers showed themselves to be a bit more committed to the bounty than the rest, and they where, perhaps unsurprisingly, the ones who had brought ranged firepower to a street race. A grappling hook line shot up and tethered to the railing of the balcony, and up came the cat eared spartan, using their momentum to launch themselves up into the air and performing another grapple once they saw where their targets were to bring them closer. A moment after that, a flash of light came from below, and then the sorceress acceded up upon the back of a bizarrely fluffy [url=https://i.imgur.com/00oEfa0.png]griffon[/url] with eyes on its wings. The Spartan immediately opened fire, while the sorceress called out to some of the cat mooks “fight for me, and I shall give you stretch of arms and body that these fools won’t stand a chance!” while dramatically brandishing her staff. Rifle fire pinged off of Bowser’s shell as he gave the troop cover with his body, while at the same time a set of brave or foolhardy cats clambered up onto the roof, and where rewarded for their daring when the sorceress followed up on her words, waving her wand and engulfing their improvised weapons with a [url=https://i.imgur.com/eaktAUu.png]shimmering shocking star filled aura[/url] and their bodies with a glowing [url=https://i.imgur.com/QxEFNju.png]spheres of protection[/url] With the spartan moving to flank them, the empowered cats surrounding them far more daringly, and the sorceress flying above them on her swift steed, there was going to be no escape “We have you cornered, you little scurrying rats” the sorceress gloated “Give up now, and maybe we’ll let you live just long enough for us to collect that reward for your oh so valuable heads” [color=FD0000]”Ha, as if! You know what they say about cornered rats? Well cornered koopas are ten times worse!”[/color] Bowser shouted back before thrusting a finger forward dramatically and commanding [color=FD0000]”So no more mr nice guys! Koopa Troop take them down!”[/color] Rika, who had never really understood why they weren't just slaughtering the cats, was first to open up, targeting two cats and unleashing a volley of fire at each. Jr meanwhile deployed his car’s wrecking ball and swung at another, Kamek blasted one with a fireball from his wand and Bowser himself just tried to punt the closest cat to him off the roof with a steel toe capped boot. Unfortunately, the shimmering spheres of protection worked as advertised. Shells and bullets thudded harmlessly into the barriers, while the wrecking ball and foot strikes were soffend from crushing blows to light knock back. Emboldened by their seeming invincibility, the cats lunged forwards, raising baseball bats, chains and a folding chair, all engulfed with starlit power that did a mix of elemental damage on top of testing Bowser and Rika’s electrical defenses as they tried to inflict shocks on them. A test Bowser failed spectacularly due to the water typing he’d gained from one of his pokemon spirits, electricity coursing through his nerves and slowing his movements greatly and making him vulnerable to further electric damage. Such as more shocks. One of the cats, however, had not joined in the beat down. Instead that cat had been sent running away, his pants on fire, as Kamek’s fireball had cut right through the sphere of protection. [color=DeepSkyBlue]”Burn them, your royalnesses!”[/color] he called out, but unfortunately Bowser was getting zapped too much to follow through, and Jr was too concerned about his dad to go on the offensive. [color=SpringGreen]”Esuna!”[/color] the prince called out, using his new magics to relieve his father, only to be forced to duck down a moment later when gunfire rattled his clown car chassis. The spartan was, after all, still out there, and he was taking potshots at the fliers, forcing them to concentrate on their own survival rather than helping the ground troops. Which meant the cats could just reshock Bowser with more blows. Then came some far too close range explosions as Rika started furiously punching cats with her gauntlets. The actual blows did little but the impacts did splatter them with slime that detonated into fiery chemical explosions a few moments later. It was at that point the cats realized they weren't invincible, causing some to bail, and the rest to be more evasive, avoiding Rika’s big swings and frankly just the girl herself entirely, focusing instead on the big easy target. This opened Rika up to start trading fire with the spartan, the ship girl blessing off gun and cannon fire across the street, only to have the spartan activate some jet boosters on their suit to launch them to the side and out of the way of her shots. They then returned fire, which Rika used a combination of gauntlet and hull blade blocking in conjunction with her bullet slowing sunglasses to avoid the worst of. Free from suppressing gunfire due to the shooter being engaged in a gunfight with Rika, Bowser’s family could now help hi., Jr recasting Esuna on his pappa while Kamek summoned copies of the king to help him. Three swaths of flame burst out, sweeping over the cats and sending them, in a manner reminiscent of a certain plumber, running and jumping away while clutching their burnt butts. [color=FD0000]”Ha! What are you going to do now that your help is gone!”[/color] a beaten but still in one piece Bowser gloated up at the Soruceress, only for a [url=https://i.imgur.com/hhgrwtK.png]hypnoytic swirl[/url] around the heads of his two shadowy dopplegangers “Why, then I’ll just take yours!” she replied, as the two clones turned on the original [color=FD0000]”Aw not again!”[/color] the king moaned as he was assailed by foes wearing his image for at least the second time in his life. “As for you, little wizard, let me show you how little your magic compares to the power of a sorceress!” the woman declared, brandishing her staff dramatically. [color=DeepSkyBlue]”We shall see”[/color] Kamek replied, brandishing his wand as the magic duel began in the air above the rest of the troop. Below, Jr and Rika were both contending with the lone Spartan, who was causing them no end of trouble. Between grappling hook and maneuvering jets they were highly mobile, while a personal energy shield and a deployable energy barricade meant that even when they did clip them with their own shots the futuristic warrior could simply take cover and renew their own defenses without getting even a scratch on the paintwork of their armor. Meanwhile, the pair only had evasiveness and Jr’s new healing magics to keep themselves alive, and the latter was rapidly running out. He’d already used lucid dreaming to start restoring his mp, and if they did not finish this fast they were dead meat. Still, the amount the battle had dragged on did have one advantage on the Troop’s side: [color=Aqua]”All out assault, next shot”[/color] Rika called out to the prince, but holding out on unleashing it in case he could come up with a plan, and come up with a plan he did. [color=SpringGreen]”Hold it. Hold it. Now!”[/color] Jr commanded the next time the spartan deployed their wide forcefield barrier. Rika pulled the trigger, and an impossible wave of shells blasted out of her cannon from that single pull, annihilating the barrier and sending the spartan running. Then grappling, only to have to jet boost another way when Jr had Dazzle fire off a slew of explosive bubbles. At this point, with all the sparten’s tools spent, Jr could have tried to gun him down, but the shield was still up and it would give their foe enough time to find cover. So he didn’t use a fireball, or his new crank operated machine gun. No instead he launched out Hook, who soared through the air, hooked around the spartan's waist and hauled them closer. Because he was pretty sure their foe had no major melee capability to speak of. He was somewhat wrong in that assessment, as Jr got a rifle butt to the face for his efforts, allowing the Spartan to escape the grapple. They did not escape the second, however, as Rika slammed a gauntleted fist home, breaking his shield, hacked down their foe’s gun with her hull blades, and then introduced hyper advanced armor to the industrial tool attached to the front of her rifle. Metal and then a person screamed as the chainsaw bayonet tore through everything, and then there was silence and ash. Behind them, Bowser wrestled with his dopplegangers, but though he was hurt, these stooges could not stand up to the OG Koopa king. Ironically, this was because they were clones of his original form, while the king himself had an absolute pile of enhancements on top of their base forms. Cat and power claws racked at one to his side, as it came in and then when it grappled him the king deployed guns from the side of his shell and blasted it straight in the gut, causing it to dissipate. The second didn't even last that long, as Bowser fired up his kinetic strike module and punched it clean off of the roof and into the crowds of kitties below. He was in the midst of celebrating his victory when a [url=https://i.imgur.com/LVLazKX.png]fist of magic energy[/url] formed and then smashed into him. [color=DeepSkyBlue]”You witch! Focus on me”[/color] Kamek called at his magical nemesis, or rather, 5 kameks called it, before they all added [color=DeepSkyBlue]”If you can”[/color] tauntingly. “Humf. I don’t need to, you are just that far beneath me” the sorceress huffed, before swooping forwards and trying to have her griffon mount claw Kamek and his indistinguishable clones, only for them to scatter, blasting at her as they went, and then form back up again a ways away. “Coward!” She cried out, before meyowling in alarm as gunfire clipped at her mount’s wings as Rika, having finished sawing her foe in half, turned on the one remaining one while Jr rushed to aid his hurt Pappa. “On second thoughts, I think your heads are beneath me. Others are certainly more valuable than your ugly vissages” she decided, before hypocritically beginning to turn tail and run. [color=DeepSkyBlue]”Oh no you don’t. You set this cauldron a boiling, you deal with the consequences when it overflows!”[/color] Kamek called after her “Be quiet” the sorceress yowled as she backed off, retreating strategically while covering herself with blasts of lightning from her staff and summoned [url=https://i.imgur.com/zh5Z3e1.png]phantasm warrior[/url] who formed a defensive shield wall between her and the troop, their ethereal nature allowing them to shrug off Rika’s gunfire much the same way the barriers had let the cats do the same. [color=DeepSkyBlue]”No, you”[/color] Kamek retorted childishly, or at least that was what it seemed like right up until a gunshot rung out from Quiet (one of Kamek’s strikers)‘s rifle, the expert sniper placing the bullet right between her guards, shields, past the griffon mount’s wings and head, and right between the sorceress's eyes She dropped without a final word, ash and spirit falling onto her steed’s back. The summoned beast and warriors went wild at the death of their master, charging forward with reckless abandon, but without her magical support they were quickly cut down. Being magical constructs, they left no spirits, but the troop did retrieve the sorceress herself, and the one of the spartan. Oh and also the two street cats Rika had blown up. The ship girl pocketed her own kills without comment, while Kamek took the sorceress’s spirit that her steed had helpful delivered to them in its death charge. They took a few moments to get Bowser back on his feet and more or less in one piece, and then set off once more before any other determined hunters or racers could come after them, leaving the street circuit behind as it turned from bounty hunt to actual race. Unless someone else stumbled into it of course.