Sector SA, Part 3

In this universe, Goombella is voiced by Lacey Chabert. So, imagine you're hearing her voice when she talks.

Chapter 3: Legends and Truth

What's up! I'm Goombella. What, you were expecting Nagisa? Hey, I like to talk to myself, too. As an intellectual, I need to hear myself think! So, uh, let's start from the beginning. I'm a Goomba, like you know. Born in a place called Roguetown, Oregon. Don't ask why it's called that, but it consists of denizens from the Mushroom Kingdom who ended up stranded here after the incident 20 years ago. What incident, you ask? You might recognize it.

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!" Arceus roared with anger and rage and destroyed the universe.

Yeah… that. It caused more damage than you think. People from other planets just plopped into this one, even after the universe was fixed. So, Roguetown was built to give us homes. And I was born there. Eleven years old and spunky!

So, if you know anything about Mushroom Kingdom, you know Goombas are the bottom rung of the ladder. We're scary-looking mushrooms with faces. All it takes is one little stomp to take us down. Some Goombas become giant, some grow wings, but even then we barely amount to much. But I wasn't gonna stay on the bottom rung. That's why I joined Cadets Next Door Training! The very first Goomba! It… was a pain.

"LEAVE ME ALONE, YOU JERKS!" Goombella ran as cadets tried to pound her with hammers.

"Come on, aren't these things supposed to go squish on the first hit?!" one of the bullies asked.

"The only people going squish are YOU." A magenta-haired girl swooped in and kicked the kids down, afterwards stomping them in the stomach.

"Are you okay?" Nagisa asked Goombella afterward.

Of course I was okay! I trained my head to take heavy blows, and now it's hard as a rock! (Well, the helmet helps, too.) So yeah, Nagisa and Morgiana helped me, and we became friends, yadda-yadda, but that wasn't the only reason I joined KND. You see, I'm an aspiring archaeologist, and I believe that all the universe's mysteries can be solved through fairytales. Learning the history of our town, people dropping here from a gigantic space rift due to an ancient god, inspired me to study truth behind legends and the secrets of our universe! And THAT'S why I'm here!

"Uh…why?" Cheren asked.

"Tell me about Majora! Duuuh!" Goombella demanded as a notebook was propped up beside her and she held a pencil in her teeth.

"Goombella, I posted my adventure on the website. Look it up if you wanna know."

"I already know that stuff, but now I need the firsthand source! Cheren, the very monster you faced – Majora – is the SAME one that appeared in the fantasy novel, Majora's Mask! The same one Nintendo made a game out of! Cheren, this very interview could mean the creation of your own game."

"I didn't know a thing about Majora other than he was a monster in a mask. He was a threat, so I stopped him. End of story."

"LAAAAAME. Cheren, the Kids Next Door has seen fairytale icons in the flesh! The Star Rod, Davy Jones, ARCEUS, the things that were only legends until your parents proved them true! And despite knowing this, you didn't give a crud about seeing the real live Masked Demon?!"

"Goombella, I don't have time to talk about children's stories that happened to be true."

"Fine, but can you at least come down to my school and tell my classmates that you actually fought him? Come on, you have the Fierce Deity Mask, that's undeniable PROOF!"

"The answer is 'no', Goombella."

"UGH! Fine, I see how it is. Here's my number." She began to write something.

"I DON'T WANT A DATE! First Kodama, now you, when I find out who started that rumor… Who am I kidding, of course it's Melody." Cheren sighed. "Goombella, if there's nothing else to say, can you please go?"

"Fine, Cheren. I won't hold back your impending rush." Goombella turned to head out of the office, where no one else was waiting. She stopped and remembered, "Oh yeah! When you fought Viridi, did she mention anyone named Aisling?"

"Go!" Cheren yelled. Goombella blew a raspberry and exited, and Cheren had to close the door himself with his Hookshot. "Sigh… It's like Sector SA is my wake-up call." he mumbled.

On her way to Moonbase Cafeteria, Goombella walked by Melody Jackson and said, "It didn't work." In the cafeteria, she saw Index trying to take a foot-long chilidog from Artie Gilligan.

"Please, I'll only take a bite!" Index bobbed up and down like a fish on a hook, but Artie kept the chilidog up as high as he could.

"Forget it! I saw you in here after you graduated, you ate THREE chilidogs in one bite! My world record is in jeopardy now!"

"Like you even had one." Haylee remarked.

"Index, what are you doing?" Goombella asked.

Index turned around, pointing at Artie and crying, "Children are starving in Africa and this boy won't even spare one bite of his giant sandwich!"

"By that logic, I should be entitled to it since I'm- OW!" Index bit Artie in the arm, causing the chilidog to slant in her direction. Index bit that chunk off.

"Index, you can eat when we get back to the treehouse." Goombella said. "Nagisa and Morg were supposed to go shopping."

"But Nagisa never lets me have anything from the fridge!" Index whined as they began to leave.

"Because you always eat everything. That's why we had to install the code lock. Tell ya what, if you're that hungry, we'll get something in Roguetown."

"Why are we going to Roguetown?"

"To turn in my report to Professor Frankly early! I hoped to get more information out of Cheren, but I was able to improvise."

Index saw the notebook sticking out of Goombella's Shroom Pack. She took it out and read, "'Cheren has denied any further questions about Majora, yet the look in his eye told me there was more to his story than he led me to believe. Could the Kids Next Door's leader be hiding something? Perhaps this all-kid organization has more connection to the legends than I thought.' Who is this for, exactly?"

"My teacher, of course! He's a visitor to my elementary school, but he's actually a college professor. Been here since January, looking for bright young minds, you see? And guess who's caught his eye." She winked.

"But why would he want a report on the Kids Next Door?"

"I'm not writing about the Kids Next Door. Y'see, there's one thing me and him have in common: our interest in legends and fairytales. He'll tell you all about it after I introduce you."

Roguetown Elementary

"They even have an elementary school in this town?" Index asked as they approached a building with two floors and a bell tower.

"Well, the foundation was already here. They just made a few adjustments when they built this town." Goombella replied.

"Goombella, why do all these people stay on Earth, anyway? Why not go back to Mushroom Kingdom?"

"Well, not all of them do stay. Some have actually moved here. When Mr. York asked GUN to help build this place, it was under the impression that Mushroom denizens could learn more about human culture, and vice-versa. After the Firstborn Quest, everybody understood that there were plenty of worlds besides our own, so they thought maybe it was time to be open to other worlds."

"That's really cool! An open world where everyone gets along and we can all be free!" Index twirled as they entered the building.

"It isn't that perfect, Index."

"'ey, look! It's Miss Know-It-All what wears the hat!" They were approached by a red-shelled Koopa with sunglasses, a spike-hatted Goomba, and a Spiny with rings on its nails.

"Oh, Spike, Spikier, and Not-Spiky, how are ya?" Goombella greeted mockingly. "Detention over already?"

"You're the wise gal, YOU do the math!" the Koopa, Not-Spiky retorted.

"I could, but your brains might melt."

"Don't get cocky, Pinky." Spike the Goomba countered. "You might be the acclaimed 'college professor's favorite, but you ain't goin' nowhere from here. He's a nutbrain and so are you."

"Oh, beg to differ. If we're so nutty, why have our 'delusions' been proven 100% TRUE?"

"I don't even believe those KN-Whatevers. Say, who's your friend, anyway?" He noticed Index. "You look like one of them church people. GREAT, they're bringing a CHURCH to this place, too?"

"Lemme tell you something, Sister." Spikier the Spiny said to the nun. "No one in Roguetown is worth anything, got it? Good. Now good day." The bullies walked around them and toward the exit.

"What are those jerks' problems?" asked Index.

"Forget them. Professor Frankly's office is this way!" Goombella hopped forward. Soon, they arrived at a door with Prof. Franky written on a dangling label (Index looked around the floor for a missing 'L'). Goombella kicked the door open. "PROFESSOR FRANKLY!"

"HOPSON MARBLES!" A white-haired Goomba with big swirly glasses jumped in his rotating seat. The office had shelves cluttered with books, papers, and strange items, and the cracked wood floors had papers about as well. "G-Goombella! Gracious, you scared the spores out of me!"

"Sorryyyy! Just wanted to bring my report early! Proof that the tale of Majora's Mask is true!" Goombella tossed him her notebook.

Frankly caught it in his mouth and propped it on its stand as he skimmed the pages. "Six Giants, magical masks, a parallel dimension… and you sourced this all from the Kids Next Door's website?!"

"Yep! The same group that fought Arceus and Davy Jones proved another story!"

"Goombella, you are truly outstanding! How lucky am I to have a student in the Kids Next Door, the very group that witnesses these stories come to life! With these grades you're about to get, you might as well skip a grade or two!"

"I deserve nothing less!" Goombella winked. "Oh, Professor, this is Index, a friend of mine. I thought I'd bring her along."

Index was looking at some papers she had picked off the floor. Complex equations were written. "You study magic?"

"Those are just some of my notes." Frankly replied. "I try to understand magic as a science. I already have a keen understanding for how element benders use their abilities, so surely magic must work in a similar manner."

"Students who do well in Professor Frankly's history class earn college credit!" Goombella twirled. "By the time I'm through with high school, I'll be already set for the University of Goom!"

Index set the papers down and noticed a row of books on one shelf. Majora's Mask was in the collection along with Father Time, Fairy Sisters, and The Guardians of Earth. "You sure read a lot of stories." Index said while flipping through pages of a book titled Land of the Amazons.

"My philosophy has always been 'Legends are pieces of history that have withered over time,' meaning these ancient legends that today are only stories have a deeper meaning. Even though Goombella has confirmed the credibility of these legends via KND's sources, it's still not enough to determine any true historical significance. I believe these books hold secret-"

"Did you know about the secret message in this one?"

"Gyebebeh, what now?" Frankly stuttered.

"I finished reading this one." Index closed Land of the Amazons. "And I noticed a lot of capital letters were bold. They didn't spell anything that made sense, but when I remembered the Caesar Cipher, I realized it was a cryptogram: 'Under the arena lies the space gem.'"

"A cryptogram hidden throughout the book?! How in the world did you figure that out so quickly?!"

"Index has a Perfect Memory." Goombella informed. "She can finish a book in minutes by flipping its pages and remembering the position of each and every word."

"Can you find a secret message in any of the other books?"

Index got Fairy Sisters and flipped through it for a few minutes. "Some of the pictures have a triangle with an eye and some tiny writing inside. The writing is distorted English letters that, when put together…" Index tapped her head, "spell out some sort of poem! It's a weird poem… maybe I missed something." She opened the book again.

"Child, you are absolutely brilliant!" Frankly hopped over to her excitedly. "I think the cooks are eating leftovers in the cafeteria, do you care to join me?"

"WOULD I?!" Index beamed at the mention of food.

"Bring a few of those books with you, perhaps we can search for more codes. I think a few detentionaires are still serving a sentence in there, but we can ignore them."

Goombella watched with a baffled expression as they left, leaving her alone in the office. "Um… W-T-H?"

Cafeteria, 15 minutes later

The cafeteria had cracked walls and floors with bugs skittering around. Children serving detention were at further tables doing homework while Frankly and Index occupied one. "In the Majora's Mask book," Index explained while chewing on a non-magic Mega Shroom, "when the author writes the time in the setting, I think they're galactic coordinates, signifying possible areas where a natural portal to Termina will open."

"Of course! One of those coordinates happens to mark this planet."

"Uh-huh. And when I think back to the masks on the Mask Guy's backpack, they look like altered faces of people from these other books."

"There really IS a connection!"

"And I noticed in some pictures in Guardians of Earth, there are thin lines drawn beside the characters' feet and other features, as well as some marks here and there, possibly indicating traits to look for when determining their descendants. Of course, Hornfels is a bit more complicated."

"Um, excuse me? Teach?" Goombella approached them.

"Ah, Goombella." Frankly greeted. "There are some Dried Shrooms in the lunchroom if you wanted to join us. I'm afraid Index took the last of the heavy snacks, hur hrm. This girl's stomach is big as her brain, I tell you."

"Yeah, but Professor, you sort of just left me hangin' back in the office. Like, the attention just switched to Index."

"Oh, I'm sorry, Goombella. Did you have more information regarding the Majora report?"

"Uh… N-Not in particular. But Prof., I could've figured those things out too, given enough time. But I'm usually preoccupied reading other things."

"It's quite alright, Goombella, you're expanding your brain. You don't have to burden yourself with helping me discover mysteries about the universe, but this young maiden has a talent! With her help, all the answers I spent years searching for could be found in days, or hours!"

"That's great and all, but… I just thought that I could be a part of it, too."

"Well, sure you can, as long as you're in KND, you can keep reaping answers from them. And you're still getting an 'A+' either way."

"That's cool and all, but I was also hoping you could tell me some extra credit opportunities so I could-"

"Attention, students." The principal of the school walked in. She was a serious-looking Mushroom Toad with purple polka-dots on her cap, rectangle glasses, blonde hair, and a black suit. Her name was Rhy T.. "The exterminator we hired to take care of the bug problem is coming, so we'll move detention to the library. Oh, Mr. Frankly." She approached the three. "Who is that human in the white robe?"

"This is Index. She's a friend of Goombella."

"Miss Goombella?" Rhy T. looked at the blonde Goomba. "What are you doing here?"

"Just turning in homework early to the prof. here. I got it in my backpack, wanna see?"

"Goombella, perhaps you shouldn't." Frankly said nervously.

"It's all right." Rhy T. approached and pulled the notebook out of her backpack. "Majora's Mask? Giants? Termina? This isn't homework, it looks like fanfiction."

"It totally is homework! In fact, he said said he'd give us extra points if we did a report on Ancient History. My report is based on the exploits of a special acquaintance and proves the credibility of what we thought was a fairytale."

"Ugh. Marvin, I made it perfectly clear that you were not supposed to spread your fairytale nonsense onto the students!" Rhy T. yelled at Frankly. "I hired you to teach them real, factual history, nothing more, nothing less."

"Hired him? Isn't he a college professor?" Goombella asked. "He said we would get college credit for doing well in his class."

"You told them what?! Sigh, Goombella, Mr. Frankly was fired from his college for this fairytale nonsense. I don't know what good grades he gave you for what homework, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to erase those grades. It's not part of the curriculum and it won't look good on your permanent record."

"But it IS real!" Frankly yelled. "Goombella can prove it! It's the very reason this town-"

"YOU BIG FRAUD!" Goombella leapt and bonked the teacher on the head. "You LIED to me?! I did all that research for nothing, I read all those stories! You were my one chance to get out of this dump and GET AWAY from all these dumbasses!!"

The detentionaires whipped in her direction, offended. Index was taken aback by the outburst, too. Goombella ran out of the building in anger.

"Eh…that was unexpected." Frankly said. "OW!" Index chomped his head.

"You big jerk!" She gnawed for a few seconds.

"Stop it, I'm not a real mushroom! I have flesh and organs!"

She let go. "Goombella, come back!"

Index found her friend standing on the steps outside. "I got kind of 'Nagisa' there, didn't I?" the Goomba asked.

"That boy sets bad examples."

"Well, I'm no model student either. Wanna hear a twist? I'm a fraud, too."

"What do you mean?"

"This is my first year at this school and my grades are totally dump. The reason? I don't get ANY of this junk. All I like to do is read fantasy stories and watch cartoons. I do kind of good in history, but I had to be tops in at least ONE subject if I wanted to get out of Delinquent Elementary! You wanna know the real deal with Roguetown? The people here are poor as crud in the Mushroom Kingdom, so they gotta make homes here where the rents are cheap. Even stores have cheap items. It's also convenient because it's a good way to get rid of their bad students! Students who are so dumb that they board them on a freaking school ship and take them to a low-budget school branch on a WHOLE different freaking planet! But because I was born in this town, I had to come here! If I did good in Frankly's class, I could ride a school ship to the higher branch, BUT HE WAS TEACHING ME NOTHING!"

"Wow… I had no idea. You always sound so smart when you talk."

"Bleh, in the five months we've known each other, what super-smart thing have I said?"

Index thought back, and her Perfect Memory recalled, "You talk about stories a lot. But Goombella, I don't see why you're upset. You and Professor Frankly loved those stories and wanted to prove they were true, and you did!"

"I know, but there was more to it than that. I may not be a real brainiac, but even I know lots of Goombas grow up to be thugs. Heck, even Bowser has more Goomba than Koopa troops. And I didn't wanna be part of that tradition. University of Goom is a college run by smart Goombas and is adjusted for Goombas, so Mr. Frankly gave me hope that I could be one of the special ones. A Goomba from a low-budget school going to U Goom. But now I look like an idiot. Sigh… Index, you wanna see the rest of town? I just wanna get away."

"Okay, Goombella." Index followed her friend.

Town Square

"Goombella, if this town was built for Mushroom denizens that were poor, how do they afford a ship to another planet?" Index asked.

"I don't know, Index. I just do not know." Goombella said with exhaust. "Well, there's the guy who made it all possible. Old Man 2030."

Standing over the center of town was a statue of Nolan York. "In hindsight, this probably cost a lot of the budget. But it was worth it." Goombella stepped closer. "Now everyone can remember who it was that gave a crud about us stranded creatures. Now Mushroom Kingdom and Earth are connected. People either come here on vacation or to live on low rent, but the second they come into some big money, they pack up and go. I hear lots of Mushroom denizens get big government jobs, pays a hefty amount."

"I figure it should be GUN's responsibility to bring these people some money and resources every month or so." Index said.

"They do. GUN makes sure the Mushroom Kingdom sends provisions, but it's still nothing fancy."

"You know, Goombella, who makes your school's curriculum, anyway? Because I figure we can kidnap them and put them through the simulator, too!"

"This is different, Index. Even if we could prove these fairytales are true, I'm still too stupid for the big schools, anyway. It's just, all the other subjects are so boring, but history is just so unbelievable and so cool! The stupid thing is all the coolest parts aren't part of the dumb curriculum!"

"…" Index's eyes furrowed, "Why aren't they? Goombella, we know for a fact there's truth behind these stories. It can't be legal to fail you for trying to research them. There's lots of history that people don't know is 100% true, we just go by what textbooks say. How are these stories any different? The magic, the supernatural creatures, a god scattering the universe? Doesn't Mushroom Kingdom run on magical Star Power?"

"Maybe it's like religion, Index. Like, your school teaches all the basics about the gods and Arceus, but normal schools aren't allowed to preach religion. Even though everyone CLEARLY knows Arceus almost destroyed the universe."

"Exactly. That's why the KND's stories are posted on their website, so we can learn from them in case they happen again."

"…!" Goombella's eyes widened. "What if they did happen again?"

"What do you mean?"

"A plan is coming to mind, Index. I just need to find the right amount of help. But it's gonna be tricky:"

Moonbase

"Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaassssssseee. . . . . ?" Goombella had big adorable eyes that were slowly touching Cheren's feels. He was annoyed.

"…Fine, I'll do it." He gave in.

"Pleeeeeeeeaaaaaaaassse. . . . ?" Index was giving the same lovely expression to Columbine Whitby, who was about to eat a large blueberry pancake.

Roguetown; sunset

"HEY! What is that thing?!" a Bandit pointed.

The whole of Roguetown was gazing horrified, Rhy T. and Frankly included. The earth shook as a colossal demon was approaching the tiny town. Its shadowed body had horns, a muscular body, and yellow glowing eyes. "Oooooo… Tremble in fear, mortals! I, MALLADUS, the King of Demons, have returned to seek my revenge! Get in an orderly line so I may devour you one at a-"

RIIIIIIINNNNG!

On closer inspection, the demon was made of miscellaneous pieces of 4x4 junk, its eyes were gazing different directions, and his mouth was propped open stupidly. "Artie, you turned it up too high!"

"Sorry, Harry!"

"IT'S A MONSTER!" a Toad screamed. "RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"

"YOU FIRST, MUSHROOM HEAD!" A Koopa pushed him aside and ran.

"EGADS!" Professor Frankly gaped. "Malladus Uno has returned from the dead?!"

"I don't believe it!" Rhy T. followed. "How do we fight such a monster?!"

"FILTHY HUMAAAAANS!" A dark reddish-pink spaceship flew in the sky. "Quake in your gravity-connectors and fall to your leg-stems before the Irken Military might!

"So says I: Tallest Giz!" The Irken KND leader was on a large body in a big red cloak. In actuality, his cousin Graab was hiding under there. "Who is very, VERY tall! No one taller!"

"YO HO ho ho!" A seaweed-green pirate ship dragged along the ground as Melody Jackson raised a cutlass, wearing an octopus mask. "Cap'n Davy Jones no longer be afraid of land, ye scurvy bilge rats!"

"Don't forget me." Zach Murphy spoke in the shadows. "The most powerful of them all: COUNT ANTULA!!" He was a teeny-tiny ant-spider hidden in the shadow of a grass blade.

"Aaaaaand that's why your sister didn't come." Anthony remarked.

"This is… unprobable!" Frankly was sweating. "Three powerful conquerors from KND's recent history… just like Goombella told me about!"

"Did she tell you how to stop them?!" Rhy T. shouted.

"D-Don't yell, I'm trying to remember! Ohhhh, where's Index when I need her—where's Goombella—WHERE'S THE KIDS NEXT DOOR?"

"Like, seriously, what's supposed to be your power?" Anthony asked Zach.

"Easy! I can telepathically speak to termites!" With that, Antula focused his power, and Anthony moved his feet when an army of termites emerged from the ground. "Okay, termites! Do your thing!" And so, they charged, looking for the most delectable snacks around. And boy, did that giant walking scrap body of Malladus fit the bill. The termites all swarmed in and entered the tiny openings.

The fake Malladus stopped walking. It was still for several seconds. "… … ITCHYYYYYYY!" The demon hopped about under the control of the itching kids. Malladus fell on his rear, gripped his legs, and bounced around. His rear smashed on the back end of the tank wheels moving the Rolling Dutchman, causing the rest of the ship to catapult Melody to the sky.

She crashed through the windshield of Giz's ship as her water bottles exploded upon crash, splashing the Irken. "GAAAAH! WATER BURNS!" He began shaking.

"Hold still, Giz!" Graab screamed, wobbling from the force and falling against the control panel.

Seven pods shot down from the ship and landed before Rhy T. and Frankly. The people to pop out were none other than, "TEAM GNAA, BITCHEEEES!" Fybi dressed as Bowser, Haylee dressed as Eggman, Makava as King K. Rool, George as Rumpel Stiltskin, Dillon inside Brain's canister, and Cheren Uno as Ganondorf. Floating above was Jar Jar Blinks using his ears, dressed as Lord Gnaa.

But then Fake Malladus bounced over, smashed them under his butt, and kept going. The seven were laying flat. That's when a Star Rod, a green skull gem, and a plastic heart landed. Nagisa emotionlessly picked up the Star Rod and smashed it on the ground. "Dead." He stepped on the skull gem. "Dead." Then he got his rubber knife and stabbed the heart. "Dead."

"Nagisa, at least TRY to sound like you're saving the world." Index criticized as Sector SA appeared.

"Goombella?! What the jackal is going on?!" Frankly exclaimed.

"Fine, you got us." Goombella sighed. "I got a bunch of friends to set up this elaborate fake invasion."

"Unbelievable!" Rhy T. yelled furiously. "Throwing Roguetown into a panic all for the sake of some…some fairytales!"

"What are fairytales but stories that were based on true events?!"

"Don't try to change the subject!"

"No, she has a point." Nagisa cut in. "Goombella and Index told us about what went on a few hours ago, and I think they're right. For a minute, you all thought Malladus, Jones, and the Irkens were attacking you."

"And Team Gnaa!" Haylee grunted. "Cough!"

"I'm just saying, what would you have done if the real ones actually returned? How would you know to fight them? That the Irkens were after the Star Rod or Jones had cut out his heart? Principal, you were around when Arceus scattered the universe as well, you should have a more open mind. When that happened, weren't you afraid? Were you worried if it could happen again? I sure would be…"

Still lain on the ground, Cheren bit his lip.

Rhy T. glanced elsewhere, unwilling to admit this. "Perhaps… you truly do have a valid reason for reading these fairytales. But even if I wanted to revoke my rulings, I'm not the one in charge of the curriculum."

"Well, if the people in charge knew about any of this, I'm sure they would agree. I think you should at least give Goombella her grades back. Comparing someone's real-life experience to a fantasy novel would have to look good somewhere, if not history."

"Hmm… Very well. However, as far as the school board is concerned, Mr. Frankly's novels are not befitting for a History class. Perhaps I was wrong to entrust him with the class. I'm starting to think Language Arts is a better fit for him, and nothing helps children embrace the written word better than exciting fantasy novels." She tipped her glasses to her face. "You start your new post tomorrow. Do pick something exciting, won't you." She returned to the school.

"Wow, the solution sounds so obvious when you think about it." Goombella said sheepishly. "Sorry for bonking you, Professor. I just got a little peeved."

"I had it coming, I suppose. But you came through for me in the end, eh Goombella? If it's all the same, I would still like you to drop by more often, so we can discuss these legends. And perhaps bring Index, too!"

"Hm hm, sure Professor. I'd love to."

"So… an English teacher… I know my way around a semicolon at least; I suppose I will make do. I'll see you tomorrow." Frankly returned to the building.

"'kay, later, Professor!" Goombella winked.

As the sun slowly set below the horizon, Zach Antula smiled at the happy moment. "My work here is done. And everything worked out for everyone. Come, Estabon. To the bakery." He was lifted by a gay carpenter with an open vest, who began to skip across the field swaying his arms and hips. In the distance, Fake Malladus was still hopping on his butt.