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Literature

Mortal Kombat Reborn [Chapter 88]

Shang Tsung had been sent alone to scour the Golden Desert on behalf of Reiko, his orders being to find suitable land to begin an encampment located somewhere amongst the boiling sandy lands of Outworld. Reiko claimed it was because Tsung was the only person he trusted to do this task, but Tsung knew that actually meant this was a punishment as a result of distrust between the two. Shang Tsung took on the form of the hydromancer Rain so that he could hydrate himself with ease whilst traversing the Golden Desert. He had lost track as to how many hours he had trekked throughout the lands, believing that nowhere he had seen so far was suitable due to everywhere being an open and ridiculously warm space that wasn’t worth inhabiting. This was until he spotted a peculiar structure in the distance, but he couldn’t quite make it out due to the numerous tornadoes surrounding it that were blowing dust around the hot air of the Golden Desert. Shapeshifting into Kabal, Shang Tsung utilised his

Literature

Star Wars: The Scattered Archives (Chapter 2)

The pilot of San Hill's shuttle landed on Scipio, an ice-covered planet that was the home of Hill's species; the Muun. Grievous quickly left the transportation upon landing on a bay at the bottom of a mountainous area of the planet. Grievous recalled his instructions of reuniting with his own shuttle which he named the Martyr. He would retrieve it from a nearby workshop within the village that resided on the mountains. "Leave," he ordered the pilot. "I shall retrieve my shuttle alone." The pilot nodded before taking off to return to Count Dooku and San Hill who were still aboard Dooku's Solar Sailer. Grievous now found himself alone on an unfamiliar planet. He was still unused to the feeling of his new body as he moved, taking heavier steps due to the added weight caused by his cybernetics. There were puddles of ice before the upward slope leading into the first part of the mountains with civilization. Grievous cautiously stepped on the ice, concerned that he'd slip due to his unnatural form. He was surprised to find out the added grip of his curved metallic toes that were similar to claws as they broke into the ice and kept a firm grip around the slippery material. Grievous passed the icy surface and gazed up at the mountains before him. At the highest point of the nearby range of mountains was a large and notable settlement that served as the headquarters of the InterGalactic Banking Clan. The headquarters were a giant cylinder in the centre of a large area held up by thick tubes that went down and were impaled into large chunks of the mountains it shadowed over. The mist obscured Grievous' view of it quite a bit, however, he was able to make out the sheer size of the settlement regardless. His destination was not at this settlement for the workshop was on one of the mountains below. Being near this village, San Hill made sure to become acquainted with the villagers as he gained consent for the construction of his businesses headquarters ages ago. Because of this, San Hill was acquainted with the local workshop owner who was capable of mending any shuttle regardless of damage and with a reasonable fee, which the CEO of a banking clan could certainly afford. In the days it took to cyberize Grievous, bringing him into his current state, the Martyr was also under repairs of its own and now it was ready for collection. Grievous began to head up the steep slope, quickly growing frustrated with the large amounts of snow that covered his heavy feet with each step which made walking even harder despite the fact that he could no longer feel any fatigue no matter how hard the journey was. The snow was thick and the cold was stiffening his cybernetics, even if Grievous himself felt little to no coolness due to the metal shell that he was now trapped in. Grievous out of a sudden flurry of frustration regarding his current predicament, angrily flailed his legs as he kicked snow violently all around him before accidentally slamming a foot down into the cliffside… which he found his feet powerful enough to sink into the rocks. Grievous found this curious, once again having underestimated his own newfound strength. He then had a peculiar idea, but figured it was worth trying. Grievous jumped with surprising height and agility before landing both feet into the cliffside before sprinting up the cliff until he reached the top of the first mountain. He looked around at the small village area, a wooden stairway leading up to higher mountains that still interconnected with the rest of this civilization. He cleared his throat as he walked by the small Muun village, many residents giving the cyborg concerned, scared and dirty glances. Considering he had unwillingly gathered the attention of the villagers, he figured he'd take the opportunity to question them. "Where is your workshop?!" Grievous asked as his voice echoed throughout the mountains. "So you are Grievous," a quiet reply came from one of the Muun villagers. "And you are?" "The mechanic you seek," they replied. "Mr. Hill established that I'd be met by a… distinct looking individual." "I see," Grievous commented. "Where is my shuttle?" "Follow me," the mechanic requested as they led Grievous into their workshop. "Here she is!" "The Martyr," Grievous instantly recognised the large shuttle taking up most of the open space of the mechanic's workshop which was built like a warehouse. "Good as new," the mechanic told him. "Mr. Hill has already covered payment too." "Then I won't have to kill you," Grievous remarked as he boarded his shuttle. "How kind," the mechanic muttered. Grievous moved to the cockpit of the Matryr, having passed by what was a very familiar interior to his shuttle. The area where his Kaleesh elite called the Izvoshra once rested awaiting their journey to conclude was now empty which admittedly brought Grievous a great deal of sadness at the thought of all his Kaleesh allies being gone now. Despite this, Grievous was ready to take off as he left Scipio and headed into space in search of Count Dooku's Solar Sailer. Grievous soon arrived, deploying the Martyr exactly where the other shuttle he had taken off in had been in the hangar of Dooku's Solar Sailer. He quickly departed from the Martyr and pace walked throughout the ship, heading down one of the corridors. Peering through a wide yellow stained glass window with the colour chosen to match the brownish yellow colour scheme that the exterior materials used on the ship had. Grievous spotted Count Dooku and San Hill exchanging a handshake, their long negotiations having finally ended with the conclusion being that San Hill was now an official member of the Separatist Council. "Thank you for the opportunity, Count Dooku," San Hill expressed his gratitude as Dooku escorted him to the exit of the spacious meeting room. "The pleasure is all mine, Mr. Hill," Dooku told him as they stepped outside and immediately noticed Grievous as his shadow loomed over the pair. "I shall contact you later." "Farewell, Count Dooku," San Hill said goodbye before departing from the Solar Sailer which left Dooku to talk with Grievous. "So?" Dooku spoke to the cyborg. "Did you retrieve your shuttle?" "I did," Grievous confirmed. "How else would I get back here?!" "There's numerous possibilities," Dooku replied as he gestured for the cyborg to follow him. "I trust you still carry that lightsaber I gifted you." "I do," Grievous once more gave a plain answer. "I still care little for it." "That attitude changes today," Dooku promised as he took Grievous into an empty room with a large open space for training. "Are you ready?" "For what?" Grievous asked as Dooku ignited his crimson bladed lightsaber. "You're really going to train me?!" "You're of little use to me if you refuse my offer," Dooku revealed bluntly. "Now… ignite that lightsaber," he instructed as he pointed to the one Grievous held onto in his tight metallic grasp. Grievous complied and soon activated the weapon as the blue coloured blade once belonging to Jedi Master Sifo Dyas shot out of it. Dooku gave Grievous a few moments to wave the unique weapon around in order to become more familiar with how it felt to handle as he swiped his hand back and forth. "To begin with there is some basic information you must know," Dooku told him. "Then inform me," Grievous demanded. "I make the orders," Dooku clarified with Grievous quietly grunting out of anger. "Firstly, there are a total of seven different lightsaber forms…" "Just teach me how to slice through Jedi Slime with this!" Grievous continued to make demands as he interrupted Dooku. "I do not need nor desire your fancy forms!" "Silence!" Dooku yelled as he sent a pulse of force lightning that shocked Grievous and once more caused a coughing fit. "Enough of this!" Grievous shouted after his coughs stopped while gasping for air. Suddenly, Grievous charged forth at Dooku and began wildly swinging at the Sith Lord with his newly acquired lightsaber. Count Dooku remained in place, unimpressed and unamused as he effortlessly blocked each of Grievous' clumsy and chaotic swings. Grievous grew progressively angrier and eventually hurled the lightsaber with the blade piercing part of the plain grey coloured walls that surrounded the two. Grievous then punched Dooku in his face and sent him stumbling back. Deactivating his lightsaber for a moment as he didn't wish to tear through Grievous' cybernetics, Count Dooku attached his lightsaber to his belt before unleashing a powerful blast of force lightning using both of his hands to strike Grievous down before he could attack again. "Listen to me for a single minute!" Dooku demanded in a tone of voice which was unusually angrier from the Sith Lord as he used the force grab ability to retrieve Sifo Dyas' lightsaber. After taking a deep breath, Dooku simply returned to what he was going to say earlier, "as I was saying… There are seven different lightsaber forms and I intend on imparting my knowledge of all of them onto you. This is to ensure you are prepared for all Jedi, regardless of their skills with this weapon," he handed the lightsaber back to Grievous who had fallen to one knee. He looked up and snatched the lightsaber from Dooku and ignited it. "Which do we begin with?" Grievous asked as he became more compliant to Dooku's demands at last as he realised there was no other option… and the deal they had made was still of interest to himself. "Form II, also known as Makashi," Dooku responded, "it is my personal main choice and additionally the one I have mastered," he elaborated. "This form was designed for engagements with other skilled lightsaber wielders and is the most superior way of combating all other forms." "Sounds perfect for hunting Jedi," Grievous concluded. "Indeed," Dooku agreed. "I will not settle on you simply learning Makashi, however, for the greatest skill is to be knowledgeable of the other forms and the ability to adapt to all," he detailed as Grievous sighed heavily at the thought of all the training he would have to undergo. "Makashi is universally good at combating any form, but that shall not be enough if you want to become a General." "I will follow your instructions," Grievous promised as the two got into position to properly start their first training session. "I am now ready to learn… Master…" "Then let us begin."

Literature

Super Mario: The Mushroom World War (Chapter 1)

Mario had finally returned to his home in the Mushroom Kingdom. The house was a small cozy and modest building that was located in a woodland area of the kingdom. His latest adventuring throughout the kingdom had led to some bizarre encounters, which he couldn't wait to tell his brother about. Mario walked up to the wooden porch of his home and unlocked the door before stepping inside where he was immediately greeted by Luigi. "Mario!" he cheered as he hugged his brother. "How was your adventure, bro!?" "It was a strange one, Luigi," Mario began to tell his tale. "On one of my walks I had-a found Plessie and he took me to a place called Lake Lapcat." "The island where everything is somehow cat related?" Luigi had recalled hearing about that location before in a magazine he thought. Mario nodded in confirmation as Luigi sat down on their comfortable red sofa, patting the soft material as a gesture for Mario to sit beside him, which he did. "Sounds like a strange place, huh?" Luigi continued the conversation. "Even stranger was what I found there," Mario revealed. "I found some black sludge… familiar to that one vacation I had taken to Isle Delfino." "Why do vacations always go wrong for us?" Luigi remarked. "This year our hotel stay was of course ruined by King Boo." "Thankfully that's not who I met," Mario said as King Boo was the being the Mushroom Kingdom hero feared most due to how many times he had been captured by the villainous boo. "But I did meet Bowser and Bowser Jr." "Oh no…" Luigi reacted with concern. "I'ma guessing this didn't turn out so great." "Bowser Jr. must've been playing around with that cursed paintbrush of his," Mario concluded from the events he had seen. "The black sludge had… I suppose it corrupted Bowser in a way. He seemed furious." "Sounds like regular ol' Bowser to me," Luigi quipped. "You wouldn't be saying that if you saw him," Mario claimed. "Hey!" The chipper and loud voice of Cappy suddenly interrupted the discussion the brother's were having as the Bonneter native to the Cap Kingdom floated into the living room, levitating over a couple of espressos he had made in the kitchen for his family. "Cappy!" Mario said happily as he possessed his iconic red hat and did a little dance atop Mario's thick brown hair. "Good to see you!" "I made drinks for you both," Cappy pointed out as the floating cups containing the coffee were placed in Mario and Luigi's white gloved hands. "You're welcome!" "Thank you so much," Mario said gratefully while he took a sip of the espresso. "It's-a delicious!" "Agreed," Luigi reviewed as he too took a swig from his cup. "So what happened next?" Luigi asked as he was invested in Mario's story. “Bowser Jr. of all people wanted my help,” Mario continued his story, “he wanted to bring his papa back to normal.” “You teaming with Bowser’s son?” Luigi couldn’t believe it. “Oh my!” “He is just a boy, Luigi,” Mario reminded him. “One who has done many evil things, but I couldn’t refuse to aid him.” “So you went and saved Bowser,” Luigi concluded. “That’s twice now.” “As heroes we should help anybody in need,” Mario commented. “You know this.” “I do,” Luigi assured him. “It is just-a strange.” “We have gotten wrapped up in many strange circumstances, bro,” Mario reminded him. “Just like how you’ve had to save me and a buncha ghosts several times!” “And you’ve saved me numerous times as well,” Luigi recalled. “I at least hope helping Bowser’s family out means he may finally stop bothering the Mushroom Kingdom.” “I hope so too, Luigi,” Mario agreed. “Bowser seems to really care about his son after all…” “Can’t believe King Dad would neglect us!” Lemmy complained as the Koopalings sat at a dinner table in the catering area of one of Bowser’s many castles. They had asked Bowser Jr. to come and see them to discuss their father. “I can’t either!” Bowser Jr. exclaimed. “He’s always nice to me!” “MAYBE BECAUSE BOWSER JR. IS MASTERS ONLY BIRTH CHILD!” Morton made a surprisingly competent point in a voice that exceeded inside volume levels by too much, except Morton never noticed. “For once I agree with the big lug!” Roy expressed. “He adopted all us Koopalings but just to raise us into good servants.” “That’s not true!” Bowser Jr. denied. “Papa cares!” “After our numerous failures, he is already eager to replace us,” Ludwig assessed, being the oldest and smartest of the Koopalings. "Take the Broodals for example." "Those pesky rabbits!" Larry shouted as he bashed his wand against the table angrily with him accidentally smashing it into his food and spraying mashed potatoes into Morton's face as he sat beside the youngest Koopaling. "WHO DARES ATTACK MORTON?!" Morton questioned as he stood up and slammed his food tray against the table. "Calm down, Mort!" Wendy demanded. "My bad," Larry apologised. "LARRY DARES CHALLENGE MORTON?!' "I um!" Larry gulped as Morton turned to him with the size difference being alarming. "Roy!" Wendy called for the only Koopaling big enough to restrain Morton. "Easy there, Morton," Roy calmed him down as he held him back. "Our brother didn't mean to attack you!" "Can we please get back to the main matter?" Ludwig requested. "Your concerns are ridiculous," Bowser Jr. believed, to which Ludwig growled at. "If you're really worried about papa losing his faith in you lot, then do something to gain his attention!" "Ay that's a good idea!" Lemmy stated as Bowser Jr. laughed to himself as he walked off. "Thanks, Junior!" "Cya around!" Bowser Jr. said goodbye as he left the room. "So what should we do?" Roy asked. "MORTON CAN DO THINGS!" Morton chimed in. "Thank you, Morton, we noticed," Ludwig replied. "Say, Iggy, you've been awfully quiet this lunch." "I'm like Junior, I ain't really concerned about this," Iggy shared his opinion. "As long as I'm having fun, I don't care about my position." "Well wouldn't you want things to be better?" Ludwig asked. "Yeah," Iggy confirmed. "I'm an agent of chaos though, Lud, I'll do whatever," he stated. "It's not like I've ever really been obedient to him!" "Me neither actually," Lemmy admitted. "Hey, Iggy, remember our duo name?" "Hip and Hop?" Iggy recalled. "Let's bring it back and cause some real mischief!" Lemmy suggested. "That'll gain King Dad's attention!" "I'm all for mischief but let's never use those names again," Iggy recommended. "It's better than Iggy, Hop," Lemmy joked. "MORTON THINKS MORTON BEST NAME!" "Thanks again for your impeccable conversational contributions, Morton," Ludwig sarcastically thanked the dumbest Koopaling. "Mischief is what we're always up to, guys," Roy began to make his own point. "Doing the norm ain't gonna help!" "Which is why we should-" Ludwig went to make a suggestion but was immediately interrupted. "Then let's channel our mischievous behaviour into something meaningful!" Wendy suggested as the Koopalings roared in approval… except for Ludwig who sighed. "Like taking down those Broodals!" Roy added onto Wendy's idea. "That'll make pop have to appreciate us!" "Or we can form a proper alliance with the Broodals to expand our ranks, thus making us stronger and allowing us both to coexist as major-" Ludwig's attempt at a suggestion was cut off once more… by a very loud voice. "MORTON IS IN FAVOUR OF NOT LUDWIG'S IDEA!" "Yeah!" cheered the other Koopalings… except for Ludwig again of course! "Then it's settled," Wendy said after the votes had been made. "Brothers, let's go to Rabbit Ridge in the Dark Side and teach those bunnies a lesson!" As the Koopalings headed out of Bowser's Castle to travel to the home of the Broodals, Bowser Jr. had stepped inside his father's throne room. Bowser was clearly saddened by recent events as he leant back in his throne, resting his face in his large hand as he observed the lava pool which his pet Lava Bubbles played together within. Bowser Jr. performed a bow in the presence of the Koopa King, albeit he almost tripped over whilst bending over. "Junior?" Bowser acknowledged the arrival of his favourite son. "Are you alright?" "I'm fine, papa!" Bowser Jr. replied happily and carefree. "I'm still sorry about what happened earlier on Lake Lapcat," Bowser apologised to his son once more. "Stop apologising, papa," Bowser Jr. requested. "It started because of me anyway." "So long as you're alright," Bowser commented as he appeared less saddened seeing Bowser Jr. in his usually joyful state despite recent events. "I sure am, papa!" Bowser Jr. confirmed. "Let's move on from what happened!" "If you insist," Bowser agreed. "Anything you want, my boy?" "I came to ask you about your next plans for conquering the Mushroom Kingdom!" Bowser Jr. explained which made his father frown. "What's wrong, papa?" "I have no plans, Junior," Bowser admitted. "That's unlike you, papa!" Bowser Jr. told him. "You're always scheming!" "Junior, I truly haven't made any new plans since my attempt to marry Princess Peach went awry," Bowser stated the truth. "I'm sorry, son." "It's okay!" Bowser Jr. assured him. "I'll come up with something myself!" "That's my boy!" Bowser supported Bowser Jr's attitude. "I'm sure whatever plans you come up with will be very usable, Junior." "They will be!" Bowser Jr. promised. "I gotta go think them up, papa!" "Have fun, Junior," Bowser said as his son waved goodbye while he excitedly ran out of the throne room as Bowser remained slouched in his throne, completely bored and unmotivated to make up new plans himself. "Your Stinkiness!" Kamek called for Bowser Jr. as he flew through the halls of Bowser Castle's on his magic broomstick. "What are you up to?" "I'm scheming on behalf of papa!" Bowser Jr. told the Magikoopa who served as Bowser's advisor and often acted as a parental figure to Junior, like he was to his father long ago. "I am a wise Koop, Your Smelliness," Kamek told Bowser Jr. "Perhaps you could use my own expertise with coming up with dastardly plans?" "Sure!" Bowser Jr. approved of Kamek's suggestion. "You got anything in mind?" "I do…"

Literature

Mortal Kombat Reborn [Chapter 60]

Tetsurri and his newly acquired army were ready. Ready to siege Zaterra and take back what he lost to Queen Sytholin all those years ago. Tetsurri had never anticipated being brought back to his physical form by Shinnok of all people. Tetsurri had already been well aware of the Fallen Elder Gods existence as a result of his and Raiden’s first clash that nearly wiped out the Saurians along with the dinosaurs.) Tetsurri observed the men and women who all lined up mindlessly, having all received word from Shinnok to obey Tetsurri’s orders. He saw some unfamiliar faces but recognised most. He saw some of the Saurians who opposed his

Literature

Super Mario: The Mushroom World War (Chapter 2)

To begin creating their plans, Kamek led Bowser Jr. to his infamous Tantalising Tower, which had an exterior made almost entirely out of golden bricks with Kamek casting a material changing spell to give his personal abode such a fancy appearance. Near the top of the tower was a library where Kamek kept not just magic spells written down in enchanted books, but also rare tomes depicting historical events within the universe, the Mushroom World in particular.  "I believe that by revising schemes of your father's past shall aid in forming new ones," Kamek explained to Bowser Jr. as the Magikoopa observed a dusty bookshelf and used his wand to telekinetically pull books from a high shelf that he couldn't normally reach down with Bowser Jr. catching one of the heavy old books in his small arms.  "Archives of the Dastardly Duo," Bowser Jr. read the title of the book aloud. "What's this?" "Ah! The Dastardly Duo," Kamek remembered the old nickname of what was once a deadly alliance. "This duo was that of your father and King Boo, ruler of the Paranormal Dimension." "Oh I remember him!" Bowser Jr. recalled the leader of the Boos. "He was helping me and papa on Isle Delfino." Kamek shook his head, denying Bowser Jr's statement, "that was a mere Big Boo who had taken the role of King momentarily," Kamek explained. "The one true ruler of the Boos was captured at that time… and despite making a couple escapes since he is still in captivity to this day as far as I know." "Then let's break him out!" Bowser Jr. suggested. "Where's he at?" "One moment, Your Rudeness," Kamek replied as he summoned a scroll documenting a relevant incident. "Sometime ago, Princess Peach had published a report regarding events involving King Boo…" "Get on with it!" Bowser Jr. demanded as he was very excited to begin enacting his plans.  "Peach stated she had been captured in a painting due to an elaborate trap set up by King Boo and some loyal Ghosts serving him," Kamek continued to detail the events that had been written by the Mushroom Kingdoms Princess. "These events had taken place on her vacation to the Last Resort, a hotel once owned by a Ghost named Hellen Gravely." "Is it still around today?" "It collapsed after the conflict that led to King Boo's capture once more," Kamek revealed, "but it was rebuilt in the image of Professor Elvin Gadd and now inhabits friendly Ghosts as well as serving as a prison for the not so friendly Ghosts too." "Then that is our next stop," Bowser Jr. concluded. "Can you take me there?" "I know where it is," Kamek confirmed, "and I shall be happy to give you a ride on my magic broom, Your Evilness." "Then let's get to it!" Bowser Jr. requested, still incredibly eager to get to work.  "Hold on!" Kamek instructed once more. "How do you expect us to deal with an entire hotel filled with powerful Ghosts?" "C'mon! We won't be caught!" Bowser Jr. believed.  "I promised your father that I would not put you in unnecessarily dangerous predicaments," Kamek told him. "I must inform part of the Koopa Troop of this expedition." "We don't need anyone else!" Bowser Jr. insisted.  "I will see if Captain Koopa Troopa and his squadron are available to aid us," Kamek decided, regardless of Bowser Jr's complaints. "In the meantime, you should locate Boom Boom and Pom Pom as additional support and we'll meet back up at my tower." "Ugh… fine," Bowser Jr. complied. "As long as it assures our victory then I will." "Excellent!" Kamek replied. "It shall be of use, Your Ugliness!"  Kamek jumped on the spot, his magic broomstick forming beneath him with Kamek soon shooting out of his tower and to the nearest barracks where many of King Bowser's soldiers, being of the Koopa Troopa species, would train. Koopa Troopas themselves were actually just a small fraction of the overall Koopa Troop, the organisation of armed forces that were loyal to Bowser.  Kamek landed within an open courtyard space filled with various pieces of training equipment for the soldiers to practice with. He soon spotted a group of the turtle-like species and quickly approached, soon spotting the red flag inserted between the back and shell of Captain Koopa Troopa, as a way of distinguishing him from the other green and red shelled creatures.  "Continue to train, even if it seems as if it's about to rain!" Captain Koopa Troopa demanded, rhyming being an unusual quirk in his speech pattern but he felt like this made his orders far more memorable and would as a result increase the chances of them being carried out correctly. "None of you soldiers should stop the fight until it turns to night!" "Captain!" Kamek called out for as he pushed through the crowd of fellow Koopas.  "Kamek?" Captain Koopa Troopa recognised the Magikoopa. "The advisor who uses magic?" "It is I," Kamek confirmed. "Both myself and Prince Bowser Jr. request your aid!" "Royalty once more needs the services of me?!" Captain Koopa Troopa reacted with both shock and excitement at the opportunity. "How can I disagree!" "The Prince has a plan that requires the aid of your finest squadron, Captain." "Oh, the Prince has something planned?" Captain Koopa Troopas beady eyes widened with intrigue. "How can I play a hand?" "There's this hotel where an important old ally of King Bowser is currently imprisoned," Kamek continued to share relevant details.  "A friend of King Koopa?" Captain Koopa Troopa asked with Kamek nodding to confirm he had heard correctly. "Then you shall receive the aid of ol' Captain Troopa!" "I'm pleased to have your support," Kamek told him. "However, do you always do that?" "Do what?"  "Nevermind…" "Tell me of the threats that lie in this hotel," Captain Koopa Troopa requested, "so we can make sure we break this ally from their cell." "The residents of the hotel are Ghosts and they shall try to stop our plans if they spot us," Kamek revealed with the Captain immediately gasping at the thought of the supernatural species.  "Gh-Ghosts!" he exclaimed nervously. "Defeating them would certainly give my squadron the right to boast," he considered, "but how can we face them without being toast?" "They're vulnerable to attack if you do not gaze at them, Captain." "My squadron would have to fight from behind?" Captain Koopa Troopa seemed opposed to the idea. "I've never trained any soldiers to fight blind!" "Then I shall offer you all one of these," Kamek suggested as he summoned a small but very clear mirror and presented it to Captain Koopa Troopa. "Use these to look at the Ghosts." "Wow a mirror!" Captain Koopa Troopa spoke as he admired his own face. "It really does shimmer!" "Do I now have your support for certain?"  "Sure do!" Captain Koopa Troopa confirmed as he and Kamek shook hands. "My faith in this plan just drastically grew!" "Excellent!" Kamek said happily. "Will this be the squad accompanying us?" he asked as he looked at the group training in the courtyard.  "Soldiers, we've got a mission!" Captain Koopa Troopa declared. "Our task is to vanquish some apparitions!" "Follow me, everybody," Kamek instructed as the soldiers marched behind himself and the Captain as they headed back to Kamek's Tantalising Tower to wait for Bowser Jr's return.  Bowser Jr. himself meanwhile had returned to the nearest castle after going over a bridge crossing a stream of lava that connected one of his father's castles to the land that Kamek's Tantalising Tower had been built upon. Not only were Koopa Troopas training at this time in the nearby training academy and barracks, but Bowser Jr. expected that Boom Boom and Pom Pom would be too at the castle's training grounds.  Bowser Jr. flew on his hovering clown car to the training grounds, an open rectangular space where warriors could test their skills in practices while facing in the open arena that was made up of usually differently elevated parts of land on a flat cobblestone base, however, a switch could be activated to pull the base back and turn the arena into a dangerous lava pit for the most experienced fighters. Bowser Jr. approached as he saw Boom Boom and Pom Pom, two of King Koopa's greatest henchmen, challenging each other in a sparring match.  Pom Pom, being skilled in the ways of a ninja, drew a large pink shuriken with a pretty ribbon wrapped around it before making several identical decoys that each stood on one of the platforms as Boom Boom flailed his arms wildly in the centre base. The Pom Poms all appeared identical both in their actions, and their physical appearance. But there was one flaw in the decoy constructs, and that was that they couldn't replicate the colours of Pom Pom's shuriken and would instead replicate a generic silver metallic shuriken instead. Boom Boom, being an aggressive warrior, never paid attention to this detail and instead he wanted to brute force his way through the decoys.  Springing from the middle of the arena, Boom Boom smashed his massive mallet-like fists down on one decoy which faded into a puff of pink smoke. Boom Boom then leapt over to the nearest decoy, also pummelling them into the same smoke. Before Boom Boom could find his next target, he felt a sharp object smack into the back of his head and turned around to see the real Pom Pom retrieving her shuriken as it returned to her after striking Boom Boom like a boomerang. Boom Boom angrily jumped onto Pom Pom's platform with such force that it pushed the platform down into the lava, causing the two unique Koopa warriors to have to leap into the air to avoid being melted by the magma beneath them. While in the air, Boom Boom grabbed Pom Pom by her shell, but she suddenly turned into pink smoke and passed through Boom Boom's body before emerging on the platform behind them. Boom Boom dashed while in the air to avoid falling into the lava before diving at Pom Pom and tackling her as he crashed down, landing his heavy body on her. Pom Pom used her ability to fade to smoke to get Boom Boom off of her, but once she tried to emerge from behind, she had already been wacked in her face due to Boom Boom's wild flailing.  Pom Pom fell to a lower platform while Boom Boom climbed to the highest and went to land atop Pom Pom with a massive splash, but Pom Pom rolled aside while Boom Boom crashed to the ground. Boom Boom retreated into his shell and began spinning around with Pom Pom leaping over him the first time, but being smacked in the back the second time. Pom Pom stumbled to the edge of the platform, but did a backflip to move to the next. Boom Boom emerged from his shell before charging at Pom Pom and the two grappled as the gap between the two platforms they stood on grew wider as they were so strong they were moving them as they floated on the lethal lava.  "You've fought well, brother," Pom Pom complimented.  "Boom Boom will win!" Boom Boom himself declared.  Pom Pom suddenly faded into a puff of smoke once again, causing Boom Boom to slip as he had been leaning forward in the grapple, and he was about to fall into the lava before Pom Pom emerged from behind and grabbed him by the shell.  "Oh?" Pom Pom spoke, "you will win?" Boom Boom tried shaking Pom Pom off so she decided to simply release her grip momentarily before grabbing him again, this time he could feel the heat of the lava on his thick yellow face.  "Uh…" Boom Boom panicked as he realised there was nothing else he could do. "Boom Boom yields!" He finally conceded defeat and his sister pulled him away from the lava.  "Bravo!" Bowser Jr. applauded as he hovered over to the two henchmen of his father.  "The Prince?" Pom Pom realised as they looked up to see Bowser Jr.  "How can Boom Boom help?!" Boom Boom asked eagerly.  "And I too," Pom Pom offered her additional support.  "I have an important mission and was told I should get your guys' help," Bowser Jr. explained.  "What's the occasion?" Pom Pom wondered.  "I shall explain along the way," Bowser Jr. promised as he gestured for them to follow him. "We need to go!" he said impatiently.  Pom Pom and Boom Boom loyally agreed to follow Bowser Jr. who explained the situation as they headed back to Kamek's Tantalising Tower to reunite with the sorcerer and the squadron of Koopa Troopas that waited alongside him. Once everyone had grouped up and Kamek detailed his plan to everyone, Bowser Jr. used his Magic Paintbrush to open a portal, combined with magic from Kamek to take it to the fields of grassy land outside of the Last Resort hotel as Kamek was the only one aware of its location. Bowser Jr. and Kamek then headed through the large portal, with their allies soon following. Bowser Jr. grew even more excited than earlier, for it was now time to begin enacting the first step of his and Kamek's grand plan on behalf of his father!

Literature

Mortal Kombat Reborn [Chapter 32]

Raiden, Liu Kang and Kung Lao returned to the cathedral via another of Raiden's teleportation lightning with the Special Forces already on their way to meet them at New York as Raiden didn't have enough strength to teleport all the soldiers along with himself, Lao and Kang so the Special Forces agreed to stick together as they travelled to the cathedral. Raiden and co were greeted by a few police who were still hiding out in the cathedral due to injuries. "How goes your battle with the Tarkatans?" Raiden inquired. "Last time I was out there we were just picking them off one by one," an officer being bandaged by a medic replied. "They'