"So you're leaving, Jagger," came a voice from the door, "going to
rejoin
the Troop, eh?"

    Jagger the terapin warrior looked over his shoulder to see the
familiar
face of First Sergeant Flutter looking back at him from his doorway.
"Yeah
sarge," he replied as he packed another piece of equipment in his
custom-armored battle shell, "I'm goin' back. This is what I've trained
for,
this is what's kept me going, and this," he stopped packing to look at
the
sky-troopa he was addressing, "is what I'm gonna do."

    Flutter's face, usually a mask revealing no emotion at all, was a
mosaic
of surprise and disappointment as he stepped into the small one-room
hut
carved into a cliff wall. "I'd be lying," he began, "if I tried to say
I
understand, Jagger. I mean, you'll be leaving your home where peace is
the
norm, and going to work in the army of an oppressive monster with..."

    "King Bowser," Jagger interrupted, "is not an oppressor or a
monster," he
paused, as if he was unable to say what was on his mind, "and this
isn't my
home."

    Flutter's eyes darkened. "Believe that if you want," he warned,
"but
remember, I was in Bowser's honor guard, I've seen what he's really
about."

    The two Koopas stared at each other for several minutes, neither
one
saying a word, each looking for a weakness in the other's argument.

    "Jagger," Flutter finally said, "you're a good man, I hate to see
you
making a decision you'll regret later." And with that, the First
Sergeant
turned on his heel and stepped out the door.

    Jagger tried to start packing again, but he couldn't get his mind
off his
short conversation with Flutter. Jagger had always seen Flutter as a
Koopa
who understood duty and loyalty, but if that was so then how could
Flutter be
so blind? He had seen Bowser first hand and he still wouldn't accept
what an
honorable king he was. What's worse, Jagger thought, is that this means
we
could even wind up on opposite sides in a full-blown war! It was a
well-known
fact that Monstro Town was in close contact with the Mushroom Kingdom,
and
the Koopas were absolutely bent on conquering the Mushroom Kingdom at
all
costs.

    Well, thought Jagger sternly, that's just how it'll have to be, and
he
began packing again. At least, he was about to when a hubbub of noise
from
out in the town square attracted his attention. Being curious, he went
outside to see. What he found was a gathering of people all trying to
see
over each other's heads toward Bowser's Keep. Weird, thought Jagger as
he
climbed up on top of his doorway and looked. Jagger did a double-take
as he
saw what everyone was looking at. It was a large black mass moving
along the
ground toward Monstro Town. No, Jagger corrected himself, it's an army
of
small black....
    .... BOB-OMBS!

    "Do you see them, Jagger," Flutter said from above him, "do you see
the
army coming our way?"

    Jagger nearly fell off of his perch atop his doorway at the
interruption.
"You could've warned me you were flying around up there," Jagger
rebuked as
he looked up to see Flutter, "and yeah, I see 'em. Must be some kind of
ambassador's escort or something. Either that or they're headed to
Barrel for
training."

    Flutter rolled his eyes. "Jagger," he groaned, "do you know what a
bob-omb is? It's a walking powder keg programmed to self-destruct and
destroy
whatever it can by doing so. You don't train it and you don't send it
to
escort ambassadors," there was a deadly earnestness in his voice as he
added,
"and they're not headed to Barrel, they're headed to Land's End. And do
you
know what the only possible target they could find in Land's End is?"

    Jagger hesitated before answering, "Well, we're the only settlement
here." He paused, still not accepting what Flutter was implying, "but
why
would Bowser send bob-ombs here?"

    Flutter didn't answer. Instead, he unfurled his wings, saying,
"think
about what I told you earlier." Then, as an afterthought he added, "And
I
would advise you to prepare yourself for battle." With that he flew off
to
prepare his troops for the confrontation he feared was at hand."

*****

    King Bowser Koopa looked down from his command room at the invasion
force
steadily marching toward Monstro Town. This, he thought with maniacal
glee,
will teach them to go AWOL on me! Bowser grinned at the prospect of
500,000
bob-ombs marching into a sparsely defended town of defectors. The only
defense they have is that ridiculous Sky-troopa wing, Bowser thought
back to
the first time he entered Monstro Town, and Flutter won't know what hit
him!
Bowser clenched his fists as he remembered Flutter, the elite
Sky-troopa who
had mysteriously vanished six years ago, was presumed dead and had been
given
a hero's funeral. Bowser fumed as he remembered what had gone through
his
mind when he first saw Flutter in Monstro Town along with an entire
town of
Koopa soldiers who had fled the Koopa Troop searching for peace. Well,
let
them enjoy their peace, Bowser thought, his heart filled with hate,
while it
still lasts!

    "Ludwig," he called to his eldest son, "prepare your Doomship for
departure," he grinned evilly as he added, "you're going to send the
citizens
of Monstro Town a little appetizer before we run those bob-ombs down
their
throats!"

*****

    "I'm telling you," Flutter stood up in the town meeting to say,
"they're
on their way here and we need to prepare."

    "I am in agreement with the First Sergeant," came the surprisingly
powerful voice of Jinx, the tiny dojo-master, "the storm respects no
fool. If
we fail to prepare ourselves..."

    "But what if it isn't an attack," Jagger interrupted, "what if this
is
just some sort of display of power?" There was murmuring as the crowd
heard
this.

    "You're forgetting, Jagger," Flutter interrupted, "that isn't
Bowser's
way. He attacks unforgivingly, he doesn't take prisoners, and he
doesn't
display his power unless he's...."

    "Sergeant Flutter," came the urgent voice of Flatton, Monstro
Town's
resident Thwomp, "There's something happening in Seaside! Come quick!"

    "I'm on my way!" answered Flutter as he ran out the door with half
the
citizens of Monstro Town on his heels, eager to see what the ruckus was
about. However, Flutter and Flatton, being a turtle and an enchanted
block of
sandstone, were much quicker, and able to leap to higher ground from
which
they could see seaside.

    "D'you see it?" inquired Flatton.

    "Yeah, I see it," answered Flutter ominously, "a Koopa Imperial
Doomship.
And it's already on the ground."

    "It's a good bet," Furthered Flatton, "that they're mounting an
invasion
of Land's End from that side too."

    Flutter nodded his agreement and leapt down to tell the others.
"What
Flatton and I have just seen," he called, silencing the crowd, "is a
Doomship
landed at Seaside." He paused to let that sink in before continuing, "I
think
it's fairly obvious now that Bowser's motives are not friendly. Now
when they
get here, I say we prepare to give them a welcome they won't soon
forget!
Who's with me?"

    There was unanimous cheering from the crowd below. Unanimous, that
is,
except for one Terapin standing on the outskirts of the crowd wondering
how
the situation could have gotten so out of hand.

*****

    "Okay Kooky," Jazzman von Koopa said as calmly as he could manage,
"explain to me why we're here again."

    "I have already explained our motivation to you," his twin brother
Ludwig
sighed, "however, It is highly unlikely that explaining one more time
would
be hazardous to my health. We are blocking the escape route from Land's
End
as part of a bi-directional tactical assault on the settlement of
Monstro
town."

    "Uh huh," Jazzman replied slowly, "and what'd these cats do to us?"

    "They are rebels," Ludwig replied matter-of-factly, "they have
departed
without leave from the Koopa troop because they are unwilling to serve
in the
armies of my father."

    "So, they don't think daddy-o's such a nice guy," Jazzman said
nodding, "
'magine that." Jazzman paused for a moment to see if Ludwig would
react. "I
don't know, Kooky," he continued, "somethin' about this plan's just not
jivin' the way it should. I mean, we're just goin' to pick up and shoot
at
these people just 'cause they're not workin' the same gig as us, and
you
think everything's swingin'?"

    Ludwig paused to consider what his brother had just said.
Apparently,
Jazzman noticed, because he started badgering Ludwig again.

    "Kooky," Jazzman said to his brother's face, "I can tell your
heart's
right, but your heart and your head ain't playin' the same three bars,
and
it's makin' the music sound reeeal bad, Daddy-o."

    Ludwig looked at his brother for a moment, then looked away. "I
have my
orders," he said, ending the discussion. With that he walked toward his
control panel and pressed the Intercom button. "This is Baron Ludwig
von
Koopa," he said into the mouthpiece, "all ground personnel prepare to
disembark and begin your advance." Ludwig hung up the mouthpiece and
looked
at his brother. "I have my orders," he repeated, "and I have every
intention
of carrying them out. You would be wise to do the same," and with that
he
turned and walked off the bridge of the Doomship and onto the Main
Deck,
leaving Jazzman to consider what he should do now.

*****

    "Hurry up there, you," shouted the ship's Commandant of Troops, a
stout
Rocky Wrench, "the Baron will be here any minute now, and I want you
all
armed and in formation at the boarding point when he does. Now move!"

    "Is there a difficulty of some kind, Commandant," came Ludwig's
voice
from behind him, "because if you are unable to motivate your troops to
do
their duty then I may be forced to replace you," he raised his voice so
all
present could hear him, "with somebody who will find new ways to
motivate
them!"

    There was silence on deck as the Commandant stammered, "N...no, no
sir,
B...baron sir," and turned to face the uneasy battery of ground troops.
"Now
you heard the Baron; MOVE!" The troops obviously needed no further
prompting
as they hurried about their preparations.

    Ludwig turned toward the nervous Rocky Wrench in front of him.
"Excellent
work, Commandant," he said with a tone in his voice that suggested the
incident had never occurred, "how do you do it? Now I want this battery
of
troops deployed within the hour so we can liftoff and advance to
Monstro
Town. It would serve no tactical purpose for a Doomship to arrive after
the
bob-ombs have already completed their assault."

    Suddenly, a blue-shelled paratroopa came running up to Ludwig
bearing an
official-looking sheet of paper. "Baron," the turtle shouted, "incoming
report from headquarters." The turtle handed the paper to Ludwig, who
read
over it carefully, his face turning purple as he read.

    "That is not possible!" he shouted as he finished. He then tore the
paper
in two and hurled the pieces off the side of his ship and stormed back
onto
the bridge, leaving the Commandant, the messenger-troopa and all others
who
heard very confused.

*****

    "Sergeant Flutter," called Flatton as the first wave of bob-ombs
poured
over the cliffside into Monstro Town, "they're here!"

    "Already," roared Flutter incredulously, "how? Never mind, just get
yourself and these other civilians indoors. Double-time there!"
 
    Flutter's next command was cut short by a deafening series of
explosions
as the bob-ombs hurled themselves against the walls of the
cliff-dwellings
and self-destructed. Flutter looked at the top of the cliff wall to see
rank
upon rank more falling into the small town-square. He needed to think
of
something quickly, or the town would be overrun.

    "Sergeant Hover," he called to the purple-shelled sky-troopa on his
left,
"get the wing here, double-time!" Hover saluted and flew off to
assemble the
Monstro Town Sky-Troopa wing. "And you," Flutter continued, "get
these...."
he was interrupted by a scream from the ground below. He looked down to
see a
circle of activated bob-ombs closing in on a green-shelled terapin who
was
attempting to hold them back with a saber. He was putting up a valiant
struggle, but the bob-ombs were closing in, regardless, "JAGGER,"
Flutter
screamed, as if it were some sort of battle cry, and swooped down upon
the
scene. He kicked one of the bob-ombs out of his way as he grabbed
Jagger by
the arm and lifted him off the ground just as the remaining bob-ombs
hurled
themselves at the spot where Jagger was just standing and exploded.

    "First Sergeant, are you nuts?" Jagger asked incredulously, "I
mean, you
just kicked an armed explosive out of your way! Do you know what
could've
happened?"

    "I know what would've happened to you if I hadn't," Flutter replied
as he
set Jagger on the ground near the door to the bunkers inside the cliff,
"and
that wasn't an option, kid." At Jagger' puzzled look he added, "One day
you'll understand that I didn't leave the Troop to betray my people, I
left
to save them from Bowser's betrayal." Having said this, Flutter flew
quickly
away to begin his counterattack on the bob-ombs, leaving Jagger with a
lot to
think about.

    Flutter looked around from his post high in the air. "Where are
they," he
wondered out loud, "the Monstro Wing is supposed to be the
fastest....." His
thoughts were interrupted by the sound of beating wings. He looked
behind him
to see the valiant Sky-trropas of the Monstro Wing descending with
explosives
of their own upon the bob-ombs still atop the cliff. "Yes!" he shouted
victoriously as he swooped down to lead the assault.

    "Glad you could join us, sir," greeted Hover as Flutter arrived,
"for a
minute we were worried that you might have gotten caught in an
explosion."

    "You can't get rid of me that easily," Flutter joked, "Now then,
left
flight, deploy, now!" As he said this the Sky-troopas to Flutter's left
dropped their explosives on the bob-ombs below. There was a brief
pause, and
a resounding BOOM as the explosives hit the ground and destroyed an
entire
rank of the walking death machines. "Odd," mused Flutter, "shouldn't
they
have exploded and taken out the rest when they got hit?" Flutter was
about to
fly low to take a closer look when a shadow fell over the battlefield.
Flutter looked up to see a Doomship gliding at low altitude over the
town,
cannons ready. As Flutter saw this he said the only thing his brilliant
military mind could  think of; "oh, CRUD!"

*****

    "Ludwig," Jazzman pleaded as he looked down from the bridge onto
the
helpless denizens of Monstro Town, "don't do this, please. If you start
rainin' fire on 'em now it'll be a slaughter." Ludwig stood motionless
at the
controls. "Look," continued Jazzman, "haven't we done enough? I mean,
the
joint is packed with bob-ombs, and there's still those cats we let off
back
at Seaside. There's no need to do this."

    "I am fully aware of the ramifications of the actions I am about to
undertake," was all Ludwig said.

    Seeing no way to convince his twin that what he was doing was
wrong,
Jazzman stood by, watching helplessly as Ludwig prepared to open fire
on the
defenseless town below. Finally, one last tactic came to him. But will
it
work, Jazzman thought as he watched his brother at the controls.

    "Extend the main cannon." Ludwig called into the intercom
mouthpiece.

    It's worth a gamble, decided Jazzman. "If Karma were here," he
murmured
just loud enough for Ludwig to hear, "she'd have a fit."

    Ludwig paused what he was doing at the mention of Karma's name.
"What...what did you say?" he asked, turning to face Jazzman.

    "I said," coaxed Jazzman, "that if your Met was here, she'd go nuts
at
what you're about to do, daddy-o." Jazzman stared at Ludwig for a few
seconds
that seemed like hours, waiting for his reply.

    At length, his reply was cut-off by the voice of the ship's gunner
over
the intercom. "We are prepared to fire, Baron," he boasted, "and
awaiting
your orders." Ludwig stared at the intercom as if he had never seen it
before. "Sir," came the gunner again, "we cannot fire without your
orders."
Slowly, Ludwig stepped over to the intercom and picked up the
mouthpiece.

    This is it, thought Jazzman, c'mon, Kooky, say it. Just say "abort"
and
it'll never've happened.

    "Transfer weapons operations to the bridge," commanded Ludwig, "I
will
control the firing process myself."

    Jazzman's heart sank in despair. He was about to do it. Ludwig was
about
to slaughter an entire town full of innocents, and there was nothing he
could
do about it. Well, thought Jazzman, Daddy-o sent me to play along on
this gig
to learn how they swing here, and I'm learnin' more than I really
wanted to.
Maybe the cats back at Yoshi's Isle were right about these people.

    Ludwig raised the targeting mechanism to his eyes and scanned the
battlefield below until he found a suitable target, and pressed the
button on
the controls marked "Lock."

    "Target acquired,"  came the computer's voice and Ludwig hit the
Fire
button. "Firing in three...
                                ...two...
                                    ...one..."

    There was a thunderous roar as a terrifyingly powerful energy bolt
shot
through the barrel of the main cannon and struck the ground below,
followed
by an Earth-shaking Ba-BOOM!

    Despairingly, Jazzman moped to the window and looked down on the
town to
see...
            ...What, he thought as he gazed upon a huge crater at the
top of
the cliff containing the charred remnants of a bob-omb battalion.

    "Kooky, what..." Jazzman stammered, "I mean, I thought...." he
looked at
his brother, confused, "so how're ya goin' to write this one off?"

    Ludwig looked absent-mindedly away as his hand found its way to the
targetter. "Oops," he murmured as he ripped the focussing mechanism out
and
hurled it out the nearest garbage chute, "it would appear that an
individual
has sabotaged the weapons array. Oh well." he looked at Jazzman
grinning and
Jazzman grinned back as Ludwig pointed his Doomship back toward Seaside
to
gather the invasion force and return to Bowser's Keep.

*****

    "Is everyone alright," Flutter inquired as he stepped into the
residence
of Goomb, the shopowner.

    "Just fine, First sergeant," Goomb answered nonchalantly, "we've
been
prepared for this day since Bowser first discovered we were here." He
walked
over to one of the solid-rock walls and commented, "These are 6 feet
thick!"

    "It looks like you had more insight than anyone in the town,"
Flutter
mused, "did you ever think of joining the regiment? You're just the
kind of
leader we need."

    "No," Goomb disagreed, "We already have just the kind of leader we
need,
General."

    "General," Flutter looked confusedly at Goomb, "No, I....I..."

    "I think," interrupted Goomb, "that protecting the town against a
half-million bob-ombs is grounds for a battlefield commission."

    "I second that," came a voice from the door. Flutter turned to see
Jagger
holding two shoulderboards each bearing four silver stars, with Hover
and
Flatton standing on either side of him. "And I'll tell you, General,"
he
continued, "that the town has already voted on this, and the vote was
unanimous. So," he began a standard Koopish commissioning speech, "by
order
of the citizens of this settlement of Monstro Town you, First Sergeant
Flutter are hereby requested and required to accept the rank of
General, with
all the authority thereof, effective immediately." Jagger stepped
toward
Flutter, placed the stars in his left hand and snapped to attention.
"present,
" he called over his right shoulder, "ARMS!" Hover saluted, and
Flatton,
having no hands or arms, remained motionless.

    Flutter clicked his heels together and returned the salute. "I
hope," he
began, "that I can count on my board of command here," he motioned
toward
Jagger, Hover and Flatton, "to help prepare the town in case this
happens
again." He turned and looked sternly at Jagger, "but then again, I
suppose
you'll be returning to the Koopa troop, won't you?"

    "No sir," Jagger shook his head, "You were right about Bowser, and
I
can't believe I didn't realize that." he paused before adding, "and you
were
right about something else."

    "What's that?" Flutter inquired.

    Jagger smiled as he answered, "This is my home."

THE END
.
 turned and looked sternly at Jagger, "but then again, I suppose
you'll be returning to the Koopa troop, won't you?"

    "No sir," Jagger shook his head, "You were right about Bowser, and
I
can't believe I didn't realize that." he paused before adding, "and you
were
right about something else."

    "What's that?" Flutter inquired.

    Jagger smiled as he answered, "This is my home."

THE END
.
 
 

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