July 18.

            Samus said, "Yes.  Some of us will have to go to the Mushroom World and hold back Bowser."

            Captain N took an American coin from his pocket.  "Half of us must go to the Mushroom World, and half to Tetris World.  I'll toss a coin.  Everyone get a close look, now.  This is neither a two-headed or two-tailed coin."  Everyone looked as he turned his coin around to prove that fact.  "I'll lead one group; Samus leads the other.  I shall try to practise good sportsmanship, Samus; you go first."

            Samus said, "Okay; I'll take Mario."

            "I'll take Simon."

            "I'll use Kid Icarus."

            "I'll have Luigi."

            "I'll have Yoshi," Samus said.

            "I'll have MegaMan."

            "I'll have Link."

            "I'll have Toad," said Kevin.

            "I'll have Dr. Wright."

            "I'll have the dogs.  You call the coin-end and location, Samus."

            "I'll take tails.  Winner goes to the Mushroom World."

            "Okay, so I have heads."  Captain N flipped the coin into the air.  When it landed on the floor, the tails end was shown.  "Well, Samus, you've won the toss."

            "Great!  Come on, team; let's leave through the Metroid Warp Loop."

            "I've made a warp potion which will take us to the Metroid Warp Loop and, thus, to the Mushroom World," said Dr. Wright.  "This potion will remain active until we all pass through it again."  He tossed the warp potion onto the floor.  When they passed through the warp, Samus, Mario, Kid Icarus, Yoshi, Link, and Dr. Wright were automatically passed through the Metroid Warp Loop to the Mushroom Kingdom on the Mushroom World.

            Captain N said, "Let's go, gang.  The sooner we ask Prince Lyle to let us have the Sacred Square to rescue VideoLand, the better."  He went to a passageway in the middle of the wall.  "This door is a warp zone to Tetris World."  He pressed a button on the doorway.  The door opened, and Captain N, Simon, Luigi, MegaMan, Toad, Duke, and Rush hopped through.  They were transported to Prince Lyle's room.

            * * *

            Prince Lyle's Home, Tetris World, VideoLand.

            Lyle was looking at a picture of Princess Lana.  "Lana, my sister, whatever is happening, I hope you're well."  A person of average height, he had blonde hair and blue eyes.  Like other humans but unlike the other inhabitants of Tetris, he was curved rather than polygonal.  However, he wore square clothing like others on Tetris.  As he had just gotten home, he was still wearing his security officer clothing, which he used because he helped defend the Sacred Square, one of the most powerful objects in VideoLand and the most powerful object on Tetris.  He heard the warp door opening.  "What's that?  The warp door from the palace is opening."  Out of the warp door came Captain N, Simon, Luigi, MegaMan, Toad, Duke, and Rush.  "Kevin!  Long time, no see."

            "Hello, Prince Lyle.  Allow me to introduce a couple of my new friends."  He indicated Luigi.  "This is Luigi,. . ."  He indicated Toad.  ". . .and this is Toad.  Guys, this is Lyle, Princess Lana's brother."

            "Nice to meet you two," Lyle said.

            "Likewise, I'm sure, Prince Lyle," said Luigi.

            Captain N said, "Now, as to the nature of our visit.  We haven't much time before MotherBrain gains control of all VideoLand."

            "Hmm.  Luigi and Toad, I thought you were from the Mushroom World."

            Luigi said, "That is very true."

            "Yeah, and those cruddy Koopas and MotherBrain have captured Princess Peach, Princess Zelda, and Princess Lana, and all six of the Koopalings' castles are made out of Tetrads!" Toad said.

            "So, my sister is in the hands of MotherBrain and Bowser Koopa?"

            MegaMan said, "I'm afraid so, Prince, and, believe it or not, Bowser and MotherBrain have tied the knot!"

            "The two have married?  Oh, gosh!  Captain N, where are Samus, Mario, Kid Icarus, Link, Yoshi, and Dr. Wright?"

            "I see you've heard of Mario and Yoshi," said Kevin.  "Well, all those guys went off to the Mushroom World to try to make a little progress there."

            Lyle said, "Well, you said the castles were made of Tetris blocks, right?"

            "Right.  We must hurry!" said MegaMan.

            "Well, if Mayor Squaresly approves, you can borrow the Sacred Square, which will allow you to crumble their castles."

            Ludwig warped into the room with several minions.  "That is where you are wrong, fool!"

            "Sheesh!  As if we did not have enough troubles!" Luigi said.

            "I would think it safe to say that you have too many troubles, because I, Prince Baron Ludwig 'Kooky' von(Bowser)Koopa, am taking control of the key which leads to the Sacred Square, so I can make my castle even stronger!  I have been told by MotherBrain about the Sacred Square, and I told my father, King Bowser to you, about the secret when he had so thoughtlessly told you about that of which our six castles are made.  And you fools thought he had helped you!  Ha!  By the way, I have precisely 2 594 321� villainous minions working for me and ready to pass through that warp, so do not even think about resisting me.  I suggest you hand the key over now so that I shall not have to send in the Bob-omb brigade."  He snapped his fingers, and several Bob-ombs trotted in front of him.  [� - Read two million, five hundred ninety-four thousand, three hundred twenty-one.  This author uses a space to divide the thousands rather than commas, since all the characters in these stories do so as well.  That's also the reason for the author's use of the metric system.]

            "Let's see how good they are when I give them a RollingCutter," MegaMan said.  MegaMan produced a RollingCutter with his MegaBuster, then grabbed the RollingCutter.  He tossed the RollingCutter at the Bob-ombs and really de-fused them.  "Now see what you think of your idiotic minions."

            Ludwig laughed, "Ha!  In the words of the great John Paul Jones, I have not yet begun to fight!  Try-Clyde, give them a warm welcome."

            Try-Clyde's leftmost head said, "Yes, Prince L.!"  Then, his central head said, "Yes, Prince L.!"  Finally, his right head said, "Yes, Prince L.!"  He spat a pillar of flames from the mouths of all three heads to keep the heroes back.

            "Okay, Try-Clyde.  Stop.  Now, you goody-goods, either I shall get the key, or you will get a hot seat!"

            Simon said, "Ha!  I'll fix these guys!  Come, whip."  The end of Simon's whip left Simon's backpack and looked at him.  "All right, whippie.  Lasso Ludwig's wild animals and toss them back to his castle."  The end of the whip nodded; then, the whip wrapped up all Ludwig's minions and tossed them into the warp.  Ludwig, however, remained.

            Ludwig said, "You think that you're so bright, do you not, vampire hunter?  Well, your skills stink!  Your whip is probably computerised.  I shall take my leave.  I will be waiting for ye!"  Laughing, he exited through his warp zone.

            "Really!" said Simon.  "That von Koopa fellow can be most offensive.  Computerised whip, my foot!"

            Lyle said, "Well, there is no time to lose.  Let's visit Mayor Squaresly and see if he approves of lending you the Sacred Square."

            * * *

            Mayor Squaresly's Office, Tetris World, VideoLand.

            In Squaresly's office, Captain N and company presented their reasons for having to borrow the Sacred Square.  Kevin concluded, "So, Mayor Squaresly, basically, we must borrow the Sacred Square in order to save VideoLand by destroying the Six Tetrad Castles of Koopa.  May we borrow it?"

            Squaresly said, "Well,. . . under these circumstances, I believe I should trust my square judgement.  Yes, you may borrow the Sacred Square.  Remember, though, that, once you remove the Sacred Square, you must order it by either thoughts or vocal expressions to keep all the blocks in Tetris World from falling apart.  This must be done only once after you remove the Sacred Square; once you do that, until you replace it, Tetris World will remain standing.  Go, my friends.  Borrow the Sacred Square."  Mayor Squaresly was short and overweight, though like the others of Tetris he was polygonally shaped rather than curved.  He wore a long red tie, a sharp blue suit, a white shirt, black shoes, and a short, squarish blue hat with a red feather on the right side.

            "Thank you, Mayor Squaresly," said Lyle.  "I am glad that you have seen their side of the case."

            "Don't mention it, Lyle."  Captain N and company went to the Chamber of Tetris, the building where the Sacred Square was.

            At the Chamber, Lyle used the square key to open the guard door to let them in.  Little did they know, however, that MotherBrain and Ludwig were watching on the monitor in Ludwig Castle.

            * * *

            Control Room, Ludwig Castle, Valley of Koopa, Mushroom World.

            MotherBrain was somewhat befuddled.  "I still do not see why you let them get the Sacred Square, Ludwig."

            "My castle is weaker than my Clowncar.  I can beat their puny weapons with my Clowncar.  Then, I can squash them flat as a pancake."

            "I see!  So that is why.  N-Team, you may not know it, but you have just been swindled.  When do the six other Koopalings get here, Ludwig?"

            Ludwig looked at his watch.  "Just about. . ."  He then heard the distinct sound of five Doomships coming.  The ominous sound of the engines cut through the air with clarity.  ". . .now!"

            "I think that they are here, darling."

            "So they are."

            Koopa entered.  "Howdy, partners!"

            "Hello, Father!  The other Koopalings are here."

            "So they are."

            "Is there an echo here?"  All the six other Koopalings entered.

            "All Koopalings are here, big brother," Larry said.  "What's up?"

            "Elementary, my dear 'Cheatsy.'  Observe."  He activated the monitor to show the Chamber of Tetris, where the Sacred Square was kept.  "Those goody-goods are removing the Sacred Square of Tetris.  That will allow them to demolish our castles, but I have more than one trick up my sleeve to skin those cats!"  The N-Team was indeed removing the Sacred Square.  When Captain N held it, he ordered it audibly to keep any blocks from Tetris World from falling out.  The square was a large, golden, glowing block shaped something like a key, with an L-block connected to a four-square.

            Wow! thought Larry.  If I could get my hands on that Sacred Square thing, I could. . . no, it would never work.�  [� - Italicised text such as this is used to indicate thought quotations.  In such quotations, the relationship between plain and italicised text is inverted; the italicised text is normal, while the plain text indicates emphasis or foreign language usage.]

            "Ha, ha, ha, ha!  They are being lured into my devious trap.  Everyone, get outside.  We should be safe from Tetris blocks on the grounds of Chocolate Island."  They exited the castle out the back and travelled out of the Valley of Koopa on Ludwig's Doomship.

            * * *

            Chocolate Island, Dinosaur Land, Mushroom World.

            Chocolate Island was just south of the entrance to the Valley of Koopa.  (The entrance looked quite like Bowser's head.)  There, the Doomship landed, and everyone disembarked.  Ludwig's Doomship was the largest and most ominous of them all.  Yet, as the flagship of the Koopa Fleet, it was also the most majestic.  Made of iron with about half a forest of wood covering most of the exterior, it was about half the size of the RMS Titanic that sank during its maiden voyage on 15 April 1912 on Earth.  Projected from the stern of the ship was a long, steel spike; underneath was a carving of Bowser's ugly head.  "Well, we're there," Ludwig said.  "I brought my equipment in my Doomship."  He went into the cargo hold.  What everyone heard from him came from inside; as he said the names of the stuff, he tossed the stuff out.  "Let's see; Larry's trick fishing line. . . my instant fold-up lab. . . Wily's Robot Masters. . . my Clowncar. . . box of instant Metroids - just add water, of course.  That should be it."  He emerged.  "Did you grab my things, Roy?"

            Roy responded, "Yes . . . but they squashed me!"

            "King Hippo, get the stuff off him. . . now!"

            "Okay."  King Hippo got the stuff off Roy 'Bully' Koopa.  Roy got up.

            "Why did you not help me, boxing-glove-breath?" Roy demanded.

            "Sorry, Prince Roy!"

            "You will be sorry if you don't help me in that kind of situation again!  You are incorrigible!"

            Eggplant Wizard said, "Yeah, and nothing will sink in, either!"

            MotherBrain snapped, "Enough!  Quit squabbling, Eggplant Wizard and King Hippo!"

            "What about Prince 'Bully'?" asked King Hippo.

            "He has a reason to be fighting with you two lame brains!"

            "Why?" Eggplant Wizard asked.

            "Because he's smarter than you two put together!  Why do you not do anything correctly?"

            "Me?  I'm just an incompetent, illiterate vegetable!"

            "We have too much work to do to be standing around here," Ludwig said.  "MotherBrain, are the princesses still tied up in the bottom of my Clowncar?"

            MotherBrain looked into the Clowncar.  "They sure are, dear."

            Ludwig said, "Good!  Let's hide behind the Mountain of Milk Chocolate."

            "Sounds like a delicious idea!  Hee, hee, hee, hee, hee!"  ��Vámonos!  {Vah-mó-nós!}  [Spanish]  (Let's go!)�  All of them moved behind the Mountain of Milk Chocolate, which was to the east.  Ludwig had hopped into his Clowncar and was flying to that location.  King Koopa had hopped into the Doomship's control room and was using the Doomship as a means of transportation.

            Ludwig felt one of the princesses scramble around.  "Oh, cut it out. This is no way to treat the future ruler of VideoLand."

            * * *

            Section 2, Grass Land, Mushroom World.

            Captain N, Simon, Luigi, MegaMan, Toad, Duke, and Rush arrived at a battle between Mario and a Chargin' Chuck.  Stomping the Chargin' Chuck once, Mario said, "Take that, you overgrown Troopa."  He turned around.  "Luigi!  Everyone!  Am I glad to see you!"

            "Need some help, big brother?" asked Luigi.

            "Yes, Luigi.  See if you can bash that question-block.  It might have a Cape Feather."  He continued his battle with the Chargin' Chuck.

            "Okay.  Here I go!"  Luigi leapt up and hit the block in question.  Out came a Cape Feather, to which Mario promptly leapt and which he took.  He hovered over the Chargin' Chuck until it moved out of his way, then he landed.

            "Okay, Chargin' Chuck.  See how you like being spun out!"  Mario started spinning.  Chargin' Chuck closed in for the kill.  Mario charged toward Chargin' Chuck, and, when bashed by the Cape, the Chargin' Chuck got knocked out.  "See how you like those apples, Chargin' Chuck!  That'll teach you to mess with me."

            Captain N said, "We got the Sacred Square."

            "Good," Dr. Wright said.  "We are in Grass Land."

            "Where is the first castle?"

            "According to my map, it's in Water Land," said Mario.  "That is two worlds away.  Beating Chargin' Chuck allowed us to leave Section 2 of Grass Land.  There is a Warp Whistle in Section 3.  Blowing it will allow us to escape to the Desert Land.  There is another Warp Whistle hidden in Boom-Boom Koopa's Fortress to the southwest.  Section 3 is to the east.  Come on!  There is no time to lose."  They went east to a huge sign that clearly said '3.'  "This is a warp to Section 3.  See that sign to the west?  That has an 'M' on it.  That means we can pass by the Section without entering it.  We can't pass through numbered Sections without entering them.  Let's go!"  All of them entered the sign.  They entered Section 3, where a Green Koopa-Troopa saw them.

            "Uh-oh!" the Koopa-Troopa said.  "It's that meddling Mario!  I'd better finish him for Prince von Koopa!"  The Koopa-Troopa charged for them.

            "Uh-oh!" said Mario.  "A Green Koopa-Troopa!  My patent-pending spin-jump will fix him!"  Mario spun, then jumped while spinning.  He went over the Koopa-Troopa, landed on him, and destroyed him.

            Luigi said, "Nice going, Mario!  You blasted him into powder."

            "Thanks, but there is no time for compliments now.  There is an approaching Boomerang Brother."  Along came the Boomerang Brother.

            "Hey, Mario!" the Boomerang Brother said in an Australian accent.  "Stand still so I can knock you out with my super boomerangs!"

            "No way, you pest from Down-Under Land!"

            "Do not worry, Mario," MegaMan said.  "He's no match for my PlasmaBlast!"  MegaMan fired a small, powerful ball of plasma from his MegaBuster toward the Boomerang Brother.  The Boomerang Brother was destroyed.

            "Nice going, MegaMan.  Now, let's move it."  Hours later, they destroyed Roy's Castle with the Sacred Square.  They easily advanced through Cookie Mountain, the Forest of Illusion, Chocolate Island, and Valley of Koopa like a hot knife through butter.

            * * *

            In front of Ludwig Castle, Valley of Koopa, Mushroom World.

            Luigi said, "Well, this must be it:  Ludwig's Castle!"

            "Well, it will not be a castle much more, eh, Captain N?" said Mario.

            Captain N ordered the Sacred Square to demolish Ludwig's Castle.  "I don't know, gang. . . Ludwig let us get away too easily.  I smell a rat."

            "You worry too much, Captain N!" said Simon.

            Link said, "No, Simon.  Kevin is right.  There could be anything in that castle, and what's the guarantee that Ludwig's there?"

            MegaMan agreed, "Right."

            Captain N looked upon the Tetris blocks that fell to the ground.  "What a big castle!  Only MotherBrain's Metroidian Maze could possibly be bigger."

            MotherBrain appeared in a hologram.  "That is doubtful.  I believe it possible that not even mine is bigger than Ludwig's."

            "MotherBrain!"

            "I only have a song to sing to you guys, which is the following:  'You'd better not pout, you'd better not cry, you'd better not shout, and I'm telling you why:  some Metroids are coming to town!' "  As the hologram disappeared, she laughed, "Hoo, hoo, hoo, hoo, hoo!"

            " '. . .some Metroids are coming to town'?" Kevin said curiously.  "I wonder what she means by that."

            MegaMan looked in the castle with his infrared vision.  "I'm afraid that I know what she means."  He switched back to the visible light spectrum.  "There must be at least a hundred Metroid creatures swarming around in there!"

            Samus asked, "You have an ice ray, do you not, MegaMan?"

            "I sure do, Samus; I have the IceSlasher.  Why?"

            "The only way to destroy Metroids is to freeze them and hit them with missiles, and I have an unlimited-missile item."

            "Great!  I shall have my IceSlasher ready in three mega-short jiffs."  The Metroids began pushing up through what remained of the castle.  The Metroid-pit had been deep in the ground below the castle.

            Kid Icarus readied his bow.  "Here come the Metroids."

            "Those guys are swarming!" said Mario.  "They look just like huge jellyfish, except that they have four claws instead of tentacles."

            "No one let a Metroid cling to you," Samus said.  "If it does, it will drain all of your life-support energy."

            Simon sarcastically said, "Thanks for the comforting thought, Samus."  Everyone had weapons ready (Mario had a Hammer Brother Suit, which he donned) for the kill.  Just then, the Metroids blew the hatch.

            Captain N announced, "Heads up, everyone!  Metroid-stomping time!"

            Luigi said, "Uh-oh!  I'm cornered by a Metroid!  See how you like fireballs, you crazo!"  He destroyed the Metroid with ten fireballs.  "What a snap!"

            "It would not be so easy on Alpha, Gamma, Zeta, or Omega Metroids," Samus said.  "They are much tougher.  However, they cannot cling to your body."

            "This Omega Metroid is looking for trouble," said Mario.  "Let's see how you like hammers, sucker!"  Mario destroyed the Omega Metroid with fifteen hammers.  "Boy, am I glad that that worked!"

            * * *

            Within Ludwig's Doomship, Chocolate Island, Dino Land, Mushroom World.

            MotherBrain was watching on the monitor in Ludwig's Doomship.  "Oof!  Aargh!  Aack!  Aagh!  Whoof!  Gah!  Ugh!  Those guys - aah! - are giving me a pain - gaff! - in the brain!"

            Ludwig said, "Ugh!  Me too, - yow! - MotherBrain!  Aah!  Ooh!  Aah!  Gug!  Uuh!  Oof! Gah!  Yaa!  MotherBrain, - yow! - order the Metroids to stop - yaah! - attacking!"

            "Yeah, Ludwig!"

            Eggplant Wizard came in.  "Oh!  I didn't know you two could do the hokie-pokie!"  He started to dance.

            MotherBrain telepathically called the Metroids that were attacking - or being attacked by - the good guys.  "Metroids, retreat!  You will all just be destroyed!  Go to the warp zone to the planet Metroid and stay there!"  MotherBrain and Ludwig, in all their pain, could just barely see the Metroids entering the warp zone to the planet Metroid.

            * * *

            Within the Valley of Koopa, Dino Land, Mushroom World.

            Back in the Valley of Koopa, the N-Team was wondering about the Metroids' retreat.  Captain N said, "I wonder why those Metroids retreated so hastily!"

            "Maybe we were whipping their butts too easily," MegaMan said.

            * * *

            Within the Doomship, Chocolate Island, Mushroom World.

            Still in pain and still watching, MotherBrain said, "That and because you were causing my son and me great pain.  Ka-hug!"

            "Aw, come on!" Eggplant Wizard whined.  "I was having a great time dancing!  Do the rutabaga!  Cha-cha-cha!"

            "Shut up, you worm-eaten vegetable!"  She fired a lightning blast at Eggplant Wizard from one electric output device on top of her jar.

            Eggplant Wizard just missed the electric bolt.  "Yaah!  Okay!  Okay!  I'm sorry."

            "JUST SHUT UP, FOOL!!!  SAY NOTHING!!!  Ludwig, are you sure this will work?"

            "Sure.  Just because the Metroids failed does not mean I shall.  The Metroids are semi-intelligent beings, while you and I, MotherBrain, are very intelligent beings. . . no, the adverb 'very' is too common.  The adverb 'ultra' should be used in front of 'intelligent' instead of 'very.' "

            "Oh, well.  There was too much space inside the Valley of Koopa, anyway."

            "Right.  There would not have been much space, had those goody-goods not stopped me from getting the Sacred Square.  Oh, well.  Just a minor technicality."

            "Well, you should get Wily's Robot Masters ready."

            "Ah, yes, MotherBrain!"

            * * *

            In the Valley of Koopa.

            "Why has Ludwig not attacked yet?" wondered Samus.

            "He must be on vacation!" Mario said.  "Come on.  The sooner we exit, the safer I'll feel."  They all swam ashore to the shore of Chocolate Island. . . all except MegaMan, who used Rush's Submarine.

            * * *

            Upon the shore of Chocolate Island.

            Upon their arrival on the Chocolate Island, Kevin exclaimed, "Oh, my gosh!  Thirty Robot Masters!"

            MegaMan said, "All are Wily's creations, I'll bet!  Let's see. . . CutMan, ElecMan, IceMan, FireMan, BombMan, GutsMan, AirMan, CrashMan, MetalMan, BubbleMan, HeatMan, WoodMan, FlashMan, QuickMan, MagnetMan, HardMan, TopMan, ShadowMan, SparkMan, SnakeMan, GeminiMan, NeedleMan, DustMan, SkullMan, DiveMan, DrillMan, ToadMan, BrightMan, PharaohMan, and RingMan.  Yes, they are all Wily's creations."

            Dr. Wright said, "I have been studying, and I believe that there is only one weapon which will be able to beat them each with a single shot.  I have had time to create it, but it is still experimental.  I have the adapter for it."  He handed the adapter to MegaMan, who plugged it into his MegaBuster's CPU.

            "What is the name of this device?" asked MegaMan.

            "MasterRay is what I call it."

            "All right!  I'll wipe you all out!  No Robot Master is a match for me!"

            "It also has unlimited energy."

            "Ha, ha!  Say good-bye, freaks!"  He fired thirty blasts and destroyed all the Robot Masters.  Dr. Wily and ProtoMan had been behind the Robot Masters.

            "Great, Wily," said ProtoMan.  "My mega-bro whacked your robots."

            Dr. Wily cried, "No!!!  You will pay for this, Dr. Left and MegaMuffinhead!"  He ran to the Doomship, which was still behind the mountain.  "Only Ludwig can stop you now!  And he will!  Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!"

            "The only disadvantage to that ray, MegaMan, is that it will only work on Robot Masters," said Dr. Wright.  "You will need to use other weapons on other robots."

            Captain N felt several small quakes, indicating stomps.  "Uh-oh.  I do not like the way those stomps feel!"

            Ludwig came along, stomping the ground and approaching in the Clowncar.  He stopped in a hover.  "Why, hello, guys!  Look at my Clowncar.  Just in case you do beat me, I have the three princesses here for you, but I doubt that you'll beat my 50th attack.  It is quite literally murder!  Ha, ha, ha, ha!"

            Mario said, "What do you mean just in case we beat you, 'Kooky' von Koopa?  We shall beat you!"

            Ludwig said, "I should be amazed if you did beat me.  If you do, my main MotherBrain will have a special attack just waiting for you pain-in-the-drain good guys!"

            Koopa came out from behind the mountain.  "Yes.  You have no hope of beating us this time.  I know that I must have said this ten quintillion times before, but, this time for sure, you will be flat, and the princesses' kingdoms will belong to MotherBrain, Ludwig, and me."

            "You've said it, King Dad!"

            "None of you will have access to Ludwig's main weakness."

            "That is right.  You cannot stomp me.  Not even the Mechakoopas will beat me in the final round.  So, let's play!"

            Koopa held up a green flag.  "Get your weapons ready,. . ."  Everyone readied their weapons.  ". . .get yourselves ready,. . ."  Everyone got into a special position.  ". . .GO!!!"  Bowser Koopa brought down the green flag.

            Ludwig began flying around in an erratic pattern.  "My Clowncar can withstand two hits per attack, and I have 50 attacks.  I'm ready for action!"  He ducked down into the Clowncar, grabbed two sceptres, and emerged.  "My only question is, 'Are you guys ready for action?'  Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!"  He fired both sceptres at the ground in front of the good guys.  One Mechakoopa popped up for one sceptre, and one for the other.

            Captain N aimed his Zapper at one Mechakoopa.  "Let's make short work of these robots!"

            Just before Captain N fired, Mario said, "Wait, Kevin!  We need to stomp them, grab them, and throw them up at that mad Koopaling!  Uh, oh!  I just said the 'M-word'!"