My Little Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door

by Codex92

Welcome to the Glitz Pit

The group took their leave of Don Pianta's office, hoping for Francesca and Frankie as the happy married couple they would be. Leaving the shop, they made their way up through the tunnel to the station, where they could see the bullet train nearby and the blimp they needed to ride on in the distance. They approached the Cheep Cheep conductor, barring anyone from entering without a ticket.

"Hello, everyone," the conductor greeted. "Will you be joining us on our flight to Glitzville?"

"I think the answer's obvious, sir," Goombella said.

"Well, in that case, tickets, please," he said. Mario pulled out the ticket, showing the Cheep Cheep. "Wowsers! That's a group boarding ticket! You must be friends of Don Pianta's if you have something like this."

"We kinda did him a huge favor," Starlight said.

"Must be big to get something like this," the conductor said with a light chuckle. "Anyway, climb aboard, and watch your step!"

He let the group through the small fenced-in area that had a warp pipe in the center. Everyone dove in, appearing on the other side of the tracks where the blimp's landing zone was built. Ironically, it was in the shape of a huge orange Cheep Cheep, the wings flapping like actually fins, mostly as an aesthetic to make it seem like the real thing. They all stepped onto the lift, rising them up into the passenger's hull underneath. Once everyone was seated, the blimp set off, the propellers in the back spinning faster, pushing the blimp forward.

The ponies were amazed by how different this kind of blimp was compared to the airships they had in Equestria. It was a little startling to have the blimp shift as it ascended up, making them clutch their seats nervously. They all got a really good view of the land, watching Rogueport slowly disappear, even seeing some of the tracks the bullet train rides on traveling on what appeared to be several hundreds of miles along the plains. There was even Petalburg and Hooktail's Castle, and the Great Boggly Tree.

Rainbow Dash huffed, fidgeting anxiously while everyone else watched the scenery in awe. "Man, I hate how slow these things go," she grumbled. "I could get there and find the Crystal Star much faster than the rate we're at."

"And if we run into trouble and you're outnumbered, then you're not going to make it far at all," Flurrie advised. "Those X-Naut scoundrels aren't one to be glanced past with how difficult their technological warfare is."

"Don't remind me of that giant robot Crump used on us," Rainbow grunted.

"Then that's all the more why we need to stick together," Starlight said. "They kidnapped Princess Peach and Twilight, but they're quite cunning if they're able to snatch someone as magically powerful as Twilight without getting blasted. And even blocking her magic as well."

"But at least we'll get to see some fighting, not be involved with any for the sake of our lives," Rarity said.

"I agree," Fluttershy said. "...As long as it's not too painful for anypony in the fights..."

The blimp finally arrived at the floating city of Glitzville, the rockets keeping it floating active as they rotated in a circle underneath the massive platform. There were balloons flying off to the sky, let go by excited children that were down there as they died to see the arena fights inside the grand building that was the centerpiece of the city. The Cheep Cheep blimp hovered over the middle of the city as it slowed to a stop, the driver inside guiding the group to the lift as he lowered them down to the platform. The hustle and bustle of excited tourists was almost deafening, neon lights flashing from the stadium and the nearby shops, clearly perfect for a city filled with entertainment such as tournament fights. There were billboards with some of the different fighters that made a name for themselves, some palm trees to give the stadium a bit of decor along with the small pools of water, which somehow had those Nibblers swimming around. There was also a strange pig-like biped at a nearby kiosk selling hot dogs, a sign near his stand announcing a new kind of hot dog that's called "The Southern Fried Egg Dog of Tastiness". They ignored that, since Mario and his party in this world knew the ponies wouldn't want to try anything made out of meat, unless they had vegetarian options.

After stepping off the lift, it rose back up as everyone gazed in awe. "Whoa nelly," Applejack uttered. "At least this place ain't as big as Manehattan, but it's still...pretty huge."

"Shouldn't be that hard to find the Crystal Star here, right?" Koops asked.

"Not really much to search, so it should be a cinch," Starlight said.

"Let's start with the stadium!" Pinkie said. "It's the biggest building, so, by default, it should be the first place we should look!"

"And maybe catch a free fight!" Rainbow added.

Both mares looked at each other, then rushed on ahead to the stadium. The others followed after them, at a slower, more calmer pace, heading inside the building. Just from the main lobby, they can hear the audience inside cheering madly through the entrances to the center of the battle arena. Rainbow and Pinkie raced up the stairs to the upper level of the stadium, but they barely got any further inside with how packed the stadium was. They were at least still able to see the fight from their vantage point over the heads of the other audience members.

"Ooh! Ooh! Who's fighting!?" Pinkie asked, bouncing excitedly as she tried to see more of the stage while Rainbow easily hovered over the crowd.

The others caught up with them, content to just standing behind the fans blocking their way as they looked down at the battle arena. There was a fight already underway on the square stage, metal stairs on either side for contestants to step up from the big doorways, the passages for the fighters from said doors barred by metal fences to keep the audience from rushing out and interrupt the matches, lights set up on the rafters above the stage to light up the area during the evening, and there was a screen in the background that gave a closeup of the fight in action from a camera aimed at the stage. On one side of the stage, there was a Kooptarol, but his shell and skin color were a bit darker with red eyes that seemed to glow eerily. On the other was a muscular avian, his feathers and hair a pale yellow and gold respectively, wearing a silver headband with a topaz gem in the center of his forehead, yellow spandex shorts with a black belt around the waist, and gold boots.

The Koopatrol appeared exhausted, struggling to stay up, while the avian wrestler barely had scratch on him. The unharmed fighter scoffed, pointing out to the audience, where they all cheered, clearly the star of the match as he took the time to gloat while his opponent caught his second wind.

"Yeah, that's right!" the fighter exclaimed, then aimed his pointed finger at the Koopatrol. "I think it's about time for you to FEEL THE RAAAAAAWK!" The Koopatrol growled irritably, ducking into his shell and dashed toward him. The avian simply leapt over the spike-shelled Koopa, and when the Koopa tried to kick him as he popped back out, his foot was caught in the wrestler's grip, followed by a hard toss right to the ground. The star let out a caw, jumping high, then dove down on the upended Koopatrol, kicking him right in the stomach and knocking the air out of his lungs while clutching his stomach, the crowd going nuts at the finishing blow. "And stay down, pincushion! You don't want anymore of this! No little wimp's gonna take me down!"

"Boy, he sure has quite the ego," Rarity said as the winner of the match continued to gloat and talk down to his opponent while he writhed in pain. "Reminds me of a certain pegasus we all know."

Everyone immediately looked at Rainbow Dash, though she didn't pay attention as she cheered on the avian after his finisher. As the Koopatrol got up and walked off in defeat, a Clubba walked up on stage with a microphone, wearing a fancy black jacket and green vest with a red bowtie, a pair of tinted glasses, and a fedora with a white band around the brim. Unlike the Clubba's Mario fought before, this one was blue with a small purple shell, his hair a bright orange.

"Hoooo-WHEEEE! What a match from the legendary Rawk Hawk!" the Clubba said, obviously the announcer for all the matches in the stadium. "That was a grade-A whuppin', champ! Your thoughts on the match, son!"

"You call that a match?" Rawk Hawk questioned with a scoff, snatching the held out mic out of the Clubba's hand to let the audience know. "As if! There ain't no fighter out there who can barely make me break a sweat! I'm fighting little crybabies making a mess in their little diapers! You got a bone to pick with me!? I'll fight ya with my hands tied behind my back! Might as well stick to playing your little video games, because I'll RAWWWWWK YOUR WORLD!!!!! RAWK HAWK'S NUMBER ONE, BABY! YEEEEAAAAAAAAAH!!!!"

The audience erupted in cheers, Rawk Hawk basking in their praise as he lazily tossed the microphone over his shoulder, the Clubba catching it, barely even shocked to have the mic taken away by the egotistical champion. He then grabbed what was the champion's belt the Clubba also held in his other hand, hoisting it up in triumph for his fans to see. However, what was on the large brown belt startled Mario and Co.: it was the Crystal Star they were searching for, the similar bronzeish-gold color the map depicted.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding me," Goombella uttered.

"The Crystal Star's on the champion's belt!?" Starlight exclaimed, voicing everyone's shock. Seeing the match was over, they headed back out to the lobby, puzzled by this bit of unfortunate news. "I thought these Crystal Stars were supposed to be relics split up in the region a thousand years ago and kept hidden, not shown off at a sporting event!"

"There must be some reason why that is the case," Flurrie pondered. "The only problem now is how we're going to take the belt without everyone suspecting us of stealing it. We're sure to get into serious trouble for stealing a belt that's considered a trophy to all the fighters and fans here."

"Hmm...Maybe...we can try to sign up and take the belt for ourselves!" Rainbow suggested.

"Because of course it wouldn't be that simple trying to find the Crystal Star here," Rarity muttered.

"We don't seem to have much of a choice if it's the only way we can take that Crystal Star without resorting to stealing it around a bunch of experienced fighters," Starlight said. "Mario, looks like we're going to have to sign you up and take the championship title."

Mario nodded in agreement, clearly having no other option but rise up the ranks and beat Rawk Hawk in a championship bout. The group headed downstairs, then made their way to one of the side passages that lead backstage, heading to the left-most side. One of the security guards, the tough-looking bouncers in suits and black sunglasses, kept vigilant watch of the door, making sure no crazy fans try to barge through to meet their favorite fighters. Mario asked him to let them through, letting him know he was going to sign up to join the roster.

"You want to join up, huh?" the guard asked. "Well, if you're serious, you'd better meet Mr. Grubba, the promoter. His office is just down the hall. Can't miss it."

He let them through, everyone filing into the hallway. The corridors lead in a huge square, going around the main stage from both ends of the lobby. There were some security guards standing vigilant in front of the doors in the hall, two of them leading to different locker rooms on the left while the right lead outside to the stadium. Around the corner, there were three more doorways, the one in the middle locked up while the two on the ends had guards standing in front of them. After asking the guard at the closer door, he confirmed this room was the promoter's office, letting them in after telling him Mario was going to sign up for the fights. They found Grubba at his desk, the office quite well furbished compared to the hallway outside, some bookcases with different books, a couple sofas in front of a coffee table, and a small laptop sitting on the promoter's desk.

"Hmm? Who in tarnation are all of y'all!?" Grubba questioned. "Comin' into my office without knockin'. Very rude."

"Oh, sorry, Mr. Grubba," Fluttershy apologized.

Grubba looked at the party, eyeing the colorful equines curiously. "What do y'all need of me?"

"Well, Grubba, my man," Rainbow said, flapping over to the Clubba's desk, leaning against it nonchalantly. "We're here to sign up our good friend, Mario, to be your next champion."

"Hmm...you want to be a fighter, son?" Grubba asked Mario, the plumber nodding his head in response. "Heh! That does change a thing or two! I always got time for an up-an'-comer, and this place is packed to the gills with young fighters primed up and a-rarin' to go!"

"Great, so let's sign us up, boss!" Rainbow said ecstatically.

"Now, see, that kinda attitude ya got there is what I'm lookin' for...er, what are y'all?" Grubba asked curiously.

"Name's Rainbow Dash, my fighting star's manager," Rainbow said, making some of the mares roll their eyes at the charade she was playing. "My friends and I are ponies, from a place called Equestria. I'm sure you must have heard the news about our world opening up to the Mushroom Kingdom across the seas?"

"...Not really," Grubba said, making Rainbow sigh and hang her head. "But I can see y'all are ready to taste that glory of bein' a champion. I know where y'all come from." Grubba got up from his seat and approached the group. "When I was a poor pup, I didn't give a Pokey's patoot for fancy, big-city ways. But I jumped in the world of martial arts and fought my way to fame and riches! It was then I realized bein' rich and famous was diggety-dang DYNAMITE!"

"You used to be a fighter?" Koops asked curiously, finding it odd to imagine Grubba as a famous fighter.

"Sure as sugar on a tart, kiddo!" Grubba said, then sighed. "Now, I can't mix it up in the ring anymore, but I earned enough to set me for life. You readin' me, y'all? Dreams do come true, even if they ain't yours, exactly! And that's the key: dream big, and you'll GET big, the winner's way!"

"Well, ain't that a coinky-dink!" Pinkie said, hopping over to Rainbow Dash. "Dashie here had a dream of being a Wonderbolt, a stunt flying team back where we're from, and she worked her tail off to become a member! Fastest pegasus in the world, and she finally got her chance to shine, living her dream!"

"Aww, come on, Pinks, stop," Rainbow said, somewhat bashful, but she waited for her or the others to praise her. "...But seriously, keep going...Anypony?"

Grubba laughed in amusement. "That's the spirit! Now, why don't y'all follow me and I'll give ya a bit of a tour?" Exiting the office, he lead them down the hall into the opposite doorway in the back corridor, the guard stepping aside as Grubba guided the group inside a fancily furbished bedroom. There was a really comfortable looking bed in the corner, while there were also some gifts stacked up in the adjacent corner, along with a cabinet and a barbell. "Now, how do ya like this? Feast your eyes on the champion's room! You become champ, and ya get the key to this room!"

"Looks quite nice," Applejack complimented. She looked around, thinking they would see the current champion, Rawk Hawk, resting inside. "Uhh, where's that Rawk Hawk guy?"

"Probably signing autographs for some devoted fans outside the Pit," Grubba said. He moved the tour on to one of the locker rooms the party passed by earlier. The floor was tiled in a red and white checkerboard pattern, lockers kept in good condition, along with some furbished benches, and a couple beds for the fighters to rest on after a tough match. They all saw a few of the competitors relaxing or warming up, looking pretty tough in the tier they were in. There was even the Koopatrol Rawk Hawk fought in the match earlier, sitting on one of the beds, sporting a few bruises from his defeat. "This here's the major-league locker room. Not the most glamorous of rooms, but clean and comfortable for those in the top ten. I may be old-fashioned, but I care about all of my fighters."

After the brief tour, they headed back into Grubba's office, where the Clubba was going through his drawers finding a contract for his newest fighter and his entourage. "So, if we want that championship belt and that comfortable room, Mario needs to start from the bottom and fight his way to the top, right?" Starlight asked.

"Righty there, little missy," Grubba said. "Can't give any newbies the luxury they don't deserve unless they fight for it." Pulling out several sheets of paper that was the fighting contract, he laid it out on the desk for Mario. "Now, I can see you've got the makings of a champ there, pard. If you're over the newbie jitters, just sign right here and we'll get to work on settlin' y'all in!" Mario looked over the contract, making sure there weren't any crazy loopholes that could endanger him. Then again, he's faced Bowser, and the King of Koopas always played dirty to try to get his way, so fighting in a competitive show shouldn't be all that difficult after what he's experienced. He signed his name on the dotted line, then handed it back to Grubba, who looked over his name. "So, Mario, huh?...Doesn't really have much of a punch for a fighter's name."

"Well, he should be feared, because he's saved the Mushroom Kingdom from the likes of Bowser several times!" Rainbow proclaimed. "Last time, he got a little bit of help from us when he stole the Star Rod."

"Mostly 'cause we appeared by mistake thanks to Twilight's spell backfirin' when he was snatchin' that magic wand," Applejack said.

"But we did help save the day, so we're heroes in both worlds!" Pinkie said.

Grubba hummed in thought for a moment before looking up from the contract. "Hah! I found the perfect name for ya, pard! From now on, you're gonna be...the Great Gonzales!"

Everyone stared at Grubba questioningly, Mario's new fighter name clearly not so. "...The Great Gonzales?" Futtershy asked.

"Couldn't you come up with something better?" Goombella muttered. "Like 'Jumpman', or maybe 'The Mushroom Defender'?"

"It's a perfect name! A good name like that doesn't come around once in a lifetime!" Grubba said, apparently proud of his genius at nicknames. "And I'll even give your little pony entourage a group name, too: The Mane Six! Ya know, because of your hair, and you're all so colorful y'all could make up the rainbow...aside from rainbow hair over there."

The ponies gave Grubba a blank stare, Rarity quickly snapping out of the dumbfounded group name Grubba gave her and her friends. "Wait, what do you mean by 'entourage'?"

"Well, seein' how big of a group y'all are, I figured y'all would fight together in the ring," Grubba said. "I mean, some prefer goin' solo, but sometimes, the best fighters either come in pairs or groups. No rules against outnumberin' your opponents, but as long as the main star of the group is on stage, y'all can play a bit of tag team to shake up the matches a bit! You don't have to join the Great Gonzales if ya don't wanna, but you can be the cheer squad, coach, whatever ya please."

"Oh, I am so in!" Rainbow said. "I'm up for a good tussle!"

"Me too!" Pinkie said, pulling out her party cannon out of nowhere, shocking Grubba as he yelped and hid behind his desk. "And I brought my party cannon to light this party up!...With confetti, sometimes cake batter I forget I put in, maybe a cannonball if I can find one, or maybe I can find a Bullet Bill buddy and ask him if he wants to try out my-"

"Ok, ok, missy, settle down!" Grubba exclaimed, poking his head up, trying to avoid the barrel of Pinkie's personal party cannon. "Let's no have dangerous weapons like that on stage. We got kids watchin' the fights, and we try to keep it clean here."

"Aww...ok," Pinkie mumbled, rolling her cannon away sadly.

Grubba stood back up, baffled at where said cannon came from in his own office, but he cleared his throat and regained his composure. "Anywho, with the business side out of the way..." He then pressed a button on his desk near his laptop. "Jolene, could you come in my office for a minute, darlin'?"

A moment later, a Toad walks into the room, female by her professional red business suit and heels, blonde bangs hanging over her face under the pink-spotted mushroom cap, and she wore a pair of glasses. "Yes, sir? You wished to see me?"

"Sure did, hon," Grubba said. "Jolene, this is the Great Gonzales, our newest risin' star. Be a peach and take him and his team to the minor-league locker room, alrighty?"

"Right away, sir," Jolene obeyed, shifting her glasses a little as she faced the newest member of the Glitz Pit and his team. "Mr. Gonzales? If you and your party would be so kind, follow me please." The Toad assistant exited the office, the group following behind her as they walked down the hall, past the major-league locker room. "As you know, you're a contracted fighter now, so you must abide by a few rules. First and foremost, whatever Mr. Grubba says, goes. Period. And also, as per your contract, you cannot quit until Mr. Grubba releases you."

"Well, that's kind of a problem," Starlight said. "When we get the champion's belt, we have quite a lot of things to do."

"Breaching the rules in the contract will lead to a lawsuit, where you will be forced to pay a serious fine for leaving before the period of time you agreed to upon the signing," Jolene explained, making everyone gulp nervously.

"Uhh, just how bad IS the fine?" Koops asked timidly.

"For such a lucrative business the entertainment industry has, especially the Glitz Pit...Well, I'll let you figure out the numbers yourself." The Koopa looked around nervously, dreading to know how close he would be if they actually quit right after winning the belt. "There are many other small guidelines to follow, but I'll explain those as they become relevant." She then stopped at the minor-league locker room, the guard stepping aside and letting them enter. "Welcome to your locker room."

They walked inside, and to Rarity's horror, it was not as great as the major-league locker room. "Oh, sweet Celestia above!" the white unicorn screeched, getting the fighters in this league's attention as she stared aghast at the state of this room: it was filthy, some of the tile flooring and wallpaper were worn or ripped up, some of the lockers were bent, the bench had stuffing and springs popping out from where there were tears, almost as if this room was a battle arena and no one bothered to clean up the mess. "What is this!?"

"You and your group will be residing here to wait and relax before and after your matches," Jolene explained.

"Mr. Grubba said he cares about his fighters and keeps the locker rooms clean and sanitized!" Rarity argued. "THIS IS NEITHER CLEAN NOR SANITARY!!!!!!"

"Then let the state of this locker room give you the incentive to work hard to climb up in ranks to stay in the major-leagues," Jolene suggested coldly. Rarity grumbled, disliking how strict this Toad was compared to the more upbeat Clubba in charge of the whole operation. While whimpering at each step she took on the dirty floor, Jolene ignored the prissy mare and walked over to a screen on the wall near the door. There was an directional arrow pad on the left side of the device, while a couple buttons were on the right. "When you're ready to fight, log into the computer terminal here. Mr. Grubba will decide who you'll match up against, which you'll have no say in because these matches are scheduled depending on your rank and how well you perform for the crowd. You can check your current ranking, and reserve your matches here. Go ahead and give it a try."

Mario walked up to the terminal and gave it a try. Highlighting the "Reserve a Match" option, he pressed the button to confirm his choice, and a couple seconds later, Grubba appeared on the screen from the view of his laptop on his desk.

"Well, howdy, Gonzales!" Grubba greeted. "Ready to get your fists dirty already, huh? That's the spirit! Have I got a treat for you: your first battle's gonna be against the Goomba Bros.! Don't worry; they'll be a piece of cake."

"That...sounds a bit too easy," Goombella said. "Why do I feel like there's a catch?"

"Also, we want to get the crowd fired up, so appeal to them. Show off a bit and let them know who the Great Gonzales is!" Grubba continued. "If y'all have any questions, don't be afraid to ask Ms. Jolene, ok? Good luck out there, pard!"

The screen turned off, leaving Mario and his friends with their task along with their first match. "Of course. There it is," Goombella said.

"What exactly does he mean by 'appeal' to the crowd?" Flurrie asked.

"If you wish to rise up in the ranks, you'll have to fulfill certain conditions Mr. Grubba gives you for your matches," Jolene explained. "For example, you'll need to appeal to the crowd at least once during your fight and beat your opponents in order to go up. Fairly simple."

The group looked at each other, feeling a bit unsure about completing objectives while in the middle of a fight in order to increase their rank to reach Rawk Hawk. "...Ok...So, do we just...go up to the stage or somethin'?" Applejack asked.

"You'll wait for security to come get you and escort you to the side of the ring you'll appear in," Jolene said.

As if on cue, the guard watching the locker room door walked in. "Gonzales! Match time!" he announced.

"Right on time," Jolene said, then walked past the security guard. Before she left, she turned to look at Mario and his friends. "Try not to get completely destroyed out there."

The assistant to the Clubba promoter made her leave after readjusting her glasses. "That Toad is really strict," Rainbow said. "Bet Ms. Harshwhinny would make friends with her really quickly."

"Maybe she needs a party," Pinkie suggested.

"Good news is we got our first match, and pretty fast, too," Starlight said. "If we follow the rules and win each fight, we should beat the champion, get that belt, and take that Crystal Star."

"And Mario getting out of his contract?" Goombella asked.

"...Well...I'll figure that out when the time comes," Starlight said with a nervous grin.

---

Out in the arena, a large crowd cheered as they awaited the next match. In the ring already was Grubba as the announcer again, along with a group of five Goombas on one side of the stage.

"Alrighty, folks! Squarin' off next...are the Hoppin' Hardheads...the GOOMBA BROS.!!!" Grubba announced, walking over to the quintet of Goombas. "And they'll be facin' off against a newcomer, who has a hankerin' for a hammerin', the Greeeeeeat GONZALES!" Everyone in the stands applauded, curious to see who the newest fighter was. "Howdy do, Goomba Bros.! How are y'all doin'? You ready for a fight?"

As Grubba pointed his microphone at the Goombas, the group of mushroom creatures began to laugh as the leader of the group spoke. "Are you kidding, man!? We're ALWAYS ready to bonk a fool or two! This Gonzales guy must be pretty cocky to start messing with us just as he waltzes into the Pit! And being late is disrespectful to his senior fighters! We're gonna give a good bonking, so you'd better call an ambulance real quick!"

Not a moment later, the doors on the other side of the arena from the Goomba Bros. opened up, revealing the new fighters to the crowd as Mario and his company made their way toward the stage. Some were excited to see some new faces in the Glitz Pit, though seeing "The Great Gonzales's" entourage of ponies baffled some, thinking they were his exotic pets from some other world. Granted, most of the audience present might not have heard of the events in the Mushroom Kingdom, seeing how most people in Rogueport didn't know about the Equestrians visiting with the hero of the Mushroom Kingdom.

"Well, hot-diggety-dang, fight fans! Here's the Great Gonzales now, stridin' on up with his posse and his mascots, the Mane Six!" Grubba said, still making the ponies groan at the ridiculous nickname he gave them, along with being known as Mario's mascots. "Musta been late groomin' their hair, and hey, who says you can't be tough and have some cute things to take care of?"

"Well, we are cute, but we just got our match reserved!" Pinkie said. "I blame the security for be so slow."

"And we aren't pets," Starlight mentioned, mostly to the audience. "We are sentient creatures and will fight alongside Ma-er, the Great Gonzales, rather, as a-"

"Have a bonk, punk!" the Goomba leading their fighting team interrupted, letting out a battle cry and struck Mario in the gut with his head.

Despite how weak the Goombas were, it still caught Mario by surprise as he staggered back. "Hey, that's cheating!" Rainbow exclaimed, quickly bucking the Goomba back to his friends, who quickly caught him as he was sent flying back. "The fight didn't even start yet!"

"You guys took way too long!" the group leader said. "We're itching to fight, and we're gonna get it!"

"YEAH!" the other four Goombas agreed.

Mario's team stared at Grubba, the promoter shrugging his shoulders as he stepped back. "Well, anything can happen in the ring. Break a leg!...But not really. Entertainment terms and whatnot."

Mario rubbed his chest, barely phased by the Goomba's headbutt. Before he could let himself or his friends overpower the five Goombas, he had to appeal to the audience at least once before winning the match for them to move up and face the next ranking fighters. Pinkie beat him to it, wearing a cheerleading outfit with her mane tied up in poofy pigtails, her shirt sporting Mario's face while under the picture, the name "The Great Gonzales" was there instead of his own.

"Come on, everypony!" Pinkie said, waving around red and blue pom poms in her hooves while bouncing and dancing. "Give it up for the Great Gonzales, your next new champion in Glitzville!"

Swayed by Pinkie's energy, the crowd cheered and began chanting "Gonzales!", which didn't sit well for the Goomba quintet as they rooted for the new guy and not them. "Hey, that's not right! We're gonna clobber ya, Granola!"

The Goombas charged together, leaping up and dive bombed toward Mario headfirst. Rainbow backed away, letting the plumber handle the small fries. Mario quickly leapt back, then dashed forward and slid, kicking all five Goombas up into the air. He jumped up after them, bouncing on each of them and slamming them back to the ground with several thuds. While they were dazed, he pulled out his hammer, then dove down with a hard slam to the ground, his hands enveloped in an orange aura to increase his strength. The impact created a shockwave, sending all five Goombas off their feet with a yelp right out of the ring, sending them crashing out of bounds in a mushroom pile.

The audience was stunned silent before erupting into applause, impressed by the new fighter's skills and how fun Pinkie was. Grubba grinned, looking over to the beaten Goomba Bros., who were groaning in pain, clearly beaten and lost the match by a mile.

"The Great Gonzales wins his first match!" Grubba announced, walking over to the plumber and his group. "Tell me, son, what's it like to get your first taste of victory?"

He held the mic out to "Gonzales" to get his comment, only for Rainbow Dash to butt in. "You kidding me!? That was WAY too easy!" the pegasus said. "Everypony stick around, because we're gonna fly through these other fighters faster than you can blink!"

"Ok!" Pinkie said as she popped up beside Rainbow, blinking once before looking around. "...Are we champions now?"

Rainbow rolled her eyes as the audience laughed, even Grubba with his chuckles as he held the mic back to himself. "Everyone, give it up for the Great Gonzales!"

The crowd cheered again for the new up and comers, the group waving to the crowd, though Fluttershy and Koops did sheepishly.

---

After being escorted back into the minor-league locker room, Jolene approached the newly signed in contenders as she walked in. "Commendable first fight, Gonzales," the Toad said. "Here's your prize money for winning the match, and with the pink one's idea of 'exciting the crowd', you're now up to rank 19."

She then handed Mario a couple coins, not much for a fighting match reward, but he figured there would be more that can be earned the higher up he goes. "Alright! One step closer to getting that belt!" Goombella said. "...Even though that was way too easy of a fight."

"You can check your ranking and reserve your next match from the terminal," Jolene instructed. "Feel free to do whatever you like until the next match. Have a nice day."

She adjusted her glasses and headed out, finished giving the "fresh meat" the rundown of the Glitz Pit. Mario and co. checked the terminal, seeing how many more groups they need to face until they can face Rawk Hawk.

"Hoo boy. Looks like there's about twenty more fighters to go until we face that Rawk Hawk fellah," Applejack said.

"No sweat," Rainbow assured. "We've beaten Bowser before. Who's worse than him?"

"Yo, Rookies." They looked over at the person calling out to them. Leaning against the wall near the beds was a yellow-shelled Koopa, wearing similar black sunglasses like the enemy Koopas they faced before had on. "Saw your first match out there through the terminal. Not too shabby, Gonzales."

"Thanks!" Pinkie said. "But...who are you?"

"You can call me King K," the Koopa said, making his way to the terminal. He then pointed at the ranked name just above "The Great Gonzales". "I'm the leader of the KP Koopas, which means we're gonna be facing each other next in the ring."

"Well, nice meeting you, King K," Koops greeted.

"How about I introduce you to the rest of the gang here in the minor-league?" King K suggested. Everyone nodded, seeing not every fighter's that hardheaded and stubborn to win big in a fighting competition. The yellow-shelled Koopa pointed to a Bob-omb on the other side of the bench, who walked over to them as he overheard King K give a roll call for the new guys. "This here's Master Crash from the Bob-omb Squad."

"Nice to meet you all BOMB!" Crash said, startling everyone with one of the strangest speech impediments they've ever heard. "Just to let you guys know BOMB, if you want a shot at BOMB rising in rank, you'd better BOMB do as Mr. Grubba says BOMB-BOMB!"

"...Uhh, is he ok?" Rarity asked, terrified of when one of those BOMBs would turn into an actual explosion.

"Crash has a bit of a speech problem, but he's got quite a lot of advice," King K said. "He's at number 11 for a reason." He then introduced the group to a green Bandit looking shifty near the lockers, making Pinkie wary knowing her own past encounters with certain thieves out in the Dry Dry Desert. "That's Bandy Andy. He's leading the Hand-It-Overs, ranked 14."

"'Sup," Andy greeted. "I'm not usually here too often, so if you ever see me out and about, don't be afraid to say hi."

"You're not stealing anything while you're 'out and about', are you?" Pinkie questioned skeptically.

"Unless you got any coin or valuables on ya," Andy said. "But, I'm more interested in some...shady stuff going on around here..."

"Yeah. That shady business mostly involving bandits...who stole my pom poms!" Pinkie shrieked, zipping up to the Bandit and poking him in the chest.

Andy smirked, then pulled out Pinkie's pom poms she used for her little cheer onstage from behind his back. "I'm just good at my job, pink thing," he boasted, Pinkie swiping back her pom poms before walking back to her friends.

"I suggest keeping a close eye on your bags, girls," Pinkie said. "I can trust Bandits as far as I can throw Chompy...and he's a big iron ball with teeth, which is REALLY heavy."

"I'm sure we can be good friends as long as he doesn't take anything important of ours," Fluttershy said optimistically. She yelped and jumped in surprise as something touched her tail, clinging onto Koops as she looked at what it was. Where she expected maybe a rat or mouse because of the state of the locker room, it was instead a green rock with a craggy face and purple shoes, similar to the Hyper Clefts Mario encountered at Gusty Gulch, only without the spikes on its head. "Oh my. You startled me."

"And this stony fellow's Cleftor, leading the Punk Rocks at number 12 on the roster," King K introduced. "He's not the friendliest guy here, but you get used to him."

Cleftor continued staring at Fluttershy, even as she climbed down from Koops's arms, the timid Koopa a bit flustered from her earlier fright. "Hello, Cleftor," Fluttershy greeted. "My name is Fluttershy."

"Grack! Cleftor like pink hair," Cleftor said, shocking King K with how he seemed to like someone else in the Glitz Pit.

"Oh, well, thank you," Fluttershy said sheepishly, flicking her tail slightly in embarrassment with a slight pink blush on her cheeks from Cleftor's flattery.

"Hey, I have pink hair, too!" Pinkie said as she bounced in front of the Bald Hyper Cleft, showing off her wildly curly tail.

"...Cleftor like other one hair more," Cleftor said, making Pinkie's mane and tail deflate in shock.

"But I'm all pink! And my name is Pinkie Pie! Pink is in my name!" she argued, but Cleftor ignored her and continued admiring Fluttershy's longer, straighter tail.

"...Well...that's...a bit of a surprise," King K said.

"Yeah BOMB!" Crash agreed. "He hated me when BOMB my team blew his team to pieces BOMB-BOMB!"

"She's made stranger friends with some dangerous creatures back where we're from," Rainbow said.

The others introduced themselves to the minor-league crew, the ponies letting them know about their world in Equestria and how they knew about the Mushroom Kingdom across the seas. After befriending their fellow fighters, Mario reserved his team's next match, though Grubba gave them an odd objective for the match against King K and the KP Koopas; seeing how big the Great Gonzales's group was, he'll have to limit his party in the ring every so often, but they can watch from the sidelines to cheer him on. And what he wanted Mario to do this match was to let his teammates do the fighting so everyone can see how well their partners can do.

A couple security guards came in not a moment later to gather both teams, one of them guiding King K to the other side for his team's entrance. "Alright. Good luck in the arena, guys," King K said before leaving.

"Don't go easy on us!" Rainbow called out.

"As if I was gonna just because we started to be friends!" he said back before disappearing around the corner.

---

Mario decided to bring Koops and Rainbow as his party against King K, the trio stepping up onto the battle arena while the others stood on the side to watch. He chose right as King K and his trio climbed up the steps, arriving with another two Koopas with yellow shells and shoes, one grounded like him while the other was a Paratroopa.

"Welcome back, folks!" Grubba announced. "Fer our next battle, we got the Merciless Executioner, the GREAT GONZALES, and the Shell Machines of Doom, a fight to finish with the KP Koopas!"

"Meet my homies, Gonzales!" King K said, his two partners ready to square off with their opponents. "Give us your best shot!"

"Oh my," Koops uttered nervously. He took in a deep breath, ignoring the crowd as he focused on their goal: getting the Crystal Star from the champion's belt. "L-Let's go!"

"Bring it on!" Rainbow goaded.

"Get yourselves ready to...BAAAAAAAATTLE!!!!" Grubba said, starting the match as a gong signaled the fight to begin.

King K and his grounded buddy quickly got behind their Paratroopa partner, both Koopas simultaneously kicking him as he hid in his shell as they fired him at Mario. The plumber knew he shouldn't be the one fighting, but Rainbow snatched his hammer and got herself ready to smack the flying yellow shell with wings back.

"Batter up!" Rainbow said, hitting the shell back straight toward the two Koopas, both diving out of their friend's way, who popped out of his shell after a fair distance, flying back to his team. The crowd cheered, startling Mario a bit with her surprise assist. "Well, he said YOU can't attack. That didn't mean we couldn't borrow whatever you have on you." Keeping Mario's hammer, she flew over to Koops, who got an idea of what she was planning as he ducked inside his own shell, giving himself a spin to help lay on some damage. "Never played tennis with a shell, but I bet it'll be even more fun than with a ball!"

Winding up her shot, Rainbow smacked Koops hard, sending him flying toward King K. "Whoa!" the KP Koopas' leader yelped, quickly diving out of Koops's way. He was about to taunt the pegasus, only to get struck from behind by the spinning green shell as it boomeranged back to Rainbow, who struck it back to one of his teammates. "Holy cow. Is that kid a Koopa from Petalburg!?"

This time, Koops struck the Paratroopa, bouncing off him and headed straight for King K, popping out of his shell and skid to a halt before the yellow Koopa. "Darn right I am," Koops said, boasting a little bit from the grown confidence he's been building up.

"I need to learn how to ricochet like that," King K said. "But I'm not all about tossing myself." He surprised Koops with a swift kick to his gut, knocking the wind out of the younger Koopa. "This is a fighting ring. Gotta fight in any way as long as it's not illegal."

Koops coughed, catching his breath, then caught King K off guard with a headbutt, sending him staggering back with a startled grunt and slightly bruised forehead. "That's not illegal, right?" he asked. King K rubbed his forehead, Rainbow fighting off the other two Koopas on his team in the background, zipping around in a rainbow blur using her hooves or the hammer she borrowed, keeping them away from Mario as he let his team fight for him by Grubba's orders. King K leered at Koops with a playful gaze, clearly underestimating the Petalburg Koopa's nature with how strong he was. "I might be a nervous wreck, but I'm not a crybaby. If these fights are on the air and my girlfriend watches me, I'm gonna show her just how strong I am after I helped take down that dragon that terrorized my home."

"Heh. Bold words, kid," King K said. "Let's see if you really can back them up."

Both Koopas rushed forward, fists and feet flying as they got in a one-on-one scuffle. Ironically, the camera was locked on their fight, which was shown on the screen for the audience to get a better view from their seats.

---

Back in Petalburg, Koopley was shifting through channels on his T.V. while lounging on his couch. "Must have missed a lot of my favorite shows back then," he mumbled to himself. Koopie walked into the living room, visiting her possible future father-in-law if her relationship with Koops gets more serious. "Not one of the ones I know are on anymore. I hope there's VHS tapes of all the episodes I missed."

While channel hopping, he briefly glanced at a channel recording live matches in Glitzville, but Koopie noticed a familiar Koopa in the middle of a fight with another. "Wait, was that Koops!?" she asked. Not even waiting for a response from Koopley, Koopie snatched the remote out of his hands and quickly changed it back to the fighting match. Her suspicion was right when she saw Koops fighting a yellow-shelled Koopa, both of them exchanging blows with their fists on occasion while ducking, dodging, or blocking the other's strikes. "Oh my gosh, it is!"

"Well, that's a surprise, ain't it?" Koopley asked. "What's he doing in a fighting match? Ain't he off with Mario and his friends finding those other Crystal Stars?"

Koopie was speechless, plopping herself down on the couch next to Koopley and watched the action. Koops seemed to be losing as King K was far more experienced with hand-to-hand combat, but that wasn't going to stop the Koopa from winning. Koops was knocked back by another punch to the face, sending him on his back, seemingly helpless on his shell. The yellow Koopa was about to deliver a dive kick on Koops's exposed stomach, but he ducked and shell tossed himself out of harm's way. He stopped, but continued spinning, going faster and faster until he was nothing but a green top. King K turned to face him, only to be met by a speeding green shell that sent him flipping rapidly in midair.

It didn't end there as Koops continued tossing himself repeatedly into King K, making him flip faster with each passing blow. After doing this several more times, Koops stopped and popped out of his shell beside King K, still spinning as he leapt up alongside him. With a perfectly timed kick, he struck the yellow Koopa's stomach hard with perfect accuracy, sending him flying off toward Rainbow, who bucked both of the other KP Koopas toward King K after knocking them for a loop. The trio of yellow Koopa Troopas ran into each other with a painful smack, collapsing in a heap as they were bested by the pegasus and Petalburg Koopa.

Both Koopley and Koopie's jaws dropped after seeing Koops best the KP Koopas' leader with a move neither of them expected him to be able to pull off. "And we have our winners; without even so much as lifting a finger and letting his team handle it themselves, the GRRRRREAT GONZALES!!!!" Grubba proclaimed as the audience in Glitzville went nuts. The Clubba approached Koops, panting heavily while rubbing his neck sheepishly, seeing the crowd was mostly cheering for him. "Young Koopa, that was quite a display! Y'all were born to fight! Let the world know your name, son!"

"Uhh...M-My name's Koops," he said, only to wince when he thought he heard Grubba wrong. "Wait, did you say 'the world'?"

"Indeed, son!...Well, not exactly all the world. Just the region around Glitzville and the Glitz Pit," Grubba stated. "Now, there anything you wanna say to someone out there who might be watching you and that spectacular shell tossing skill?"

Koops nervously looked at the camera, Grubba holding the mic in front of him for his words to be heard clearly over the roaring crowd. "...Uhh...I-If she is watching, w-which I doubt...H-Hi, Koopie," he said, waving to the camera. He stammered a bit, his cheeks red as he tried to look cool to the rest of the people watching, though felt like he was embarrassing himself as he pointed to the camera with both hands. "H-How...awesome was that?"

"Uhh, super awesome!" Rainbow said, landing beside him as she posed along with him. "You should meet a Koopa friend of ours named Kooper! You two could make an awesome tag team with how good you both are!"

Koopley was laughing at the awkward attempt his son made by trying to act sly and cool, trying to impress his girlfriend live on T.V. Koopie was still stunned, unable to believe Koops was really that strong after Hooktail was dealt with, but now she witnessed how much better he was than even herself.

"My boy's a hero AND a star!" Koopley exclaimed joyously. "He could have just left it there with a hello, but that pose..."

Her snorted and laughed in amusement some more. Koopie snapped out of her daze as the live feed went to a commercial break. She grinned and giggled a little, finding the little bit he did adorable.

"I'm really impressed, Koops," she uttered to herself. "You were already awesome to me before, but you surprise me more and more..."

Comments

[prism heart]

I can't wait for more of the Glitz Pit!!!

[MLPMekarm]

True love can make anykoopa do great things in the heat of the moment.

[Luigifan64]

This is going to be one long chapter like it was in the game

[Skyeheart]

I wonder what you're going to name the yoshi?

[SwitchRun]

I am looking forward to more chapters! I can't wait until Mario has to face a certain Nameless monster in Chapter 4.

P.S. I look forward to The Pit of 100 Trials.

[GamePlayer64]

9662939
Yoshi Jr or Junior. That's what I named mine, Also I bet Codex will pick green since it's the main color. Also I wonder how Rainbow Dash will feel about losing to the Iron Clifts, poorly I will say

[TheRevenantWings]

Hmmm... The name of Gonzales Jr. can be a trifling matter... It mostly depends on what color you go with, but even then the considered canon name is usually Spike funny enough.

[Codex92]

9674030
Was Spike really the Yoshi's canon name? Well, there's our small reptilian sidekick to join the new Mane Six in this story, but I'm not gonna name him Spike. I got a different name that would seem to fit his personality better, especially with how feisty he is and raring to tussle with anything big or small in his line of sight.

[TheRevenantWings]

9674131
It's not TRULY considered canon, but it is the mutually agreed upon name subconsciously just because of his usually spiky hair style. It's even used in some TTYD fanfics that actually get to the Glitz Pit.