[center][h3] Franklin [/h3]
Level 2- (13/20) EXP 
Location: Peach's Castle, Kitchen ---> Scrapyard
Wordcount: 572 [/center]
[hr]
Franklin stared up at Bowser for a moment, following his hand as he pointed out the door. [color=39b54a]"Wait...aw, shit."[/color] He mentally slapped himself, immediately running out of the kitchen in the direction that Bowser had pointed him to. Bowser Jr. had already ran off to the scrapyard, where Franklin was supposed to be helping him. In his career, he had learned that a first impression can make or break a relationship. While he had no idea what Bowser's kid was like, showing up late to a job was a terrible way to make a first impression. And from what he had seen, he did [i]not[/i] want to get on Bowser's bad side. So, he ran, going down the halls as fast as possible. He ran past the battle-damaged throne room, and outside, where he spotted the silhouette of who he assumed to be Bowser Jr.

Slowing down, he came up next to Bowser's son, as he was in the process of yelling at a bunch of weird rabbit creatures. He paused for a moment, taking in the sight of what looked to him like some sort of small lizard...thing. [i][color=39b54a]Thought he'd be taller...[/color][/i] Catching his breath, he began to speak. [color=39b54a]"Sorry if I'm late. I'm here to help y'all with the, uh, karts."[/color] Looking up, he scanned the scrapyard. He vaguely remembered it from the bridge, but he didn't get a good chance to actually look at it since. It was certainly a chaotic scene, the former racetrack covered with all sorts of scrap, wrecks, and other things he couldn't quite identify. He also noticed a good amount of debris and wrecked robots, seemingly the aftermath of a fight. [i][color=39b54a]I'll have to ask Mike what the hell happened here,[/color][/i] he thought, turning back to watch Bowser Jr's attempts to recruit the rabbits. 

While they seemed to recognize him, they didn't seem very interested in what he was proposing. Franklin watched as he attempted to get them to work, seemingly with no results, until someone else came along- he recognized her, but didn't know her name- and placed a cloak over Bowser Jr., then walked off, shouting at the rabbits. The cloak seemed to get the rabbits to pay attention to him, and he noticed that the girl had rabbit ears, which seemed to also help in getting the rabbits to pay attention. Maybe they saw her as one of their own?

Whatever the reason, it seemed to get their attention, and so they began working on the carts. As the day went on, Franklin helped wherever he could, doing small tasks like helping pull carts out from the rubble. When most of the vehicles were out, he did what he could to fix faults wherever he found them, making use of his knowledge of vehicles. He had spent plenty of time modifying and repairing his own car, and working on the karts wasn't so different. He was more interested in the bikes than the karts, as the karts seemed somewhat impractical to ride around in all the time. Besides, riding a motorcycle was a [i]lot[/i] cooler than driving around in a go-kart.

He continued to work throughout the day, fixing up whatever he could and scrapping what he couldn't. As he was working on taking parts from a broken kart, he heard one of Jr's minions calling out. He followed behind, taking a look at what had been found. [color=39b54a]"Oh my God..."[/color]
[hr]
[center][h3] Michael and Franklin [/h3]
Level 3- (28/30) EXP / Level 2- (15/20) EXP (+2 EXP)
Location: Peach's Castle, Out Front
Wordcount: 1,054 [/center]
[hr]
After working all evening, Franklin was more than happy to get a good night's sleep. He simply walked to the nearest bedroom and passed out, falling into a dreamless sleep. Michael, after gorging himself at the feast, had spent most of the day exploring the castle, familiarizing himself with the layout. He figured that, if they were going to be staying there for any prolonged period, he might as well get to know his way around. The many mushroom servants- 'Toads', he learned they were called- were greatly helpful in this endeavor, giving him directions and explaining the history and use of the many rooms. By the time he was finished, it was dark out, so he headed up, finding one of the guest rooms and taking up residence there. 

Twenty minutes later, he was sitting on the bed in his boxers, looking around the room. The toads had been kind enough to take away his dirty, bloody suit to be cleaned, even promising to sew the bullet holes in it. Some spare clothes would be nice to have, but his suit was specifically made to carry his weapons. Lying down, he took a deep breath, looking up at the ceiling. [i][color=00aeef]So...first night here. The castle's nice, but I still wish I was home. But, I guess we're stuck here until we take out Galeem.[/color][/i] He took another deep breath, studying the lines and curves on the ceiling. [i][color=00aeef]You know...what happens if I die here? What about those spirits? When Galeem goes, do they all just...go back to normal? Will I even remember any of this, when I get back?[/color][/i] He continued to study the ceiling, before he turned to his side and grabbed his phone from the nightstand. [color=00aeef][i]Ah, fuck it, who cares. I bet if I die, that dick in the cowboy hat is gonna turn me into a rifle or something.[/i][/color]

Reaching back over to grab his earbuds, he plugged them in before turning the phone on, the screen lighting up. [i]97%[/i], the battery read. If he used it sparingly, it might last a while. He had a charging cable, but with nothing to plug it into, it was just a useless paperweight. Slipping the earbuds in, he tapped the music app, scrolling through the list for a moment before coming to what he was looking for. Pressing play, he laid back, sighing as a [url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azdwsXLmrHE]familiar tune[/url] began to play.
[hr]
When he woke up, Michael found his suit, washed and repaired, folded neatly at his door. Walking down to the kitchen, he found Franklin, who had also had his clothes cleaned and repaired, and sat down with him. Michael had a much lighter breakfast, with the large amount of food he had yesterday filling him up plenty. The two mostly focused on their food, and soon enough, a Toad came around to tell them that Peach had something to say out on the front lawn. 

The two headed out to the lawn, standing with the others. The first thing Michael noticed was the array of karts that had been brought out of the Scrapyard. He cringed as he noticed that some of the rabbit creatures from yesterday were hanging around, still under Galeem's influence by the looks of it, but not hostile. [color=00aeef][i]Hope they don't recognize me...that could be awkward.[/i][/color] Turning to Franklin, he began to whisper to him. [color=00aeef]"So that's what you were working on?"[/color]

[color=39b54a]"Yeah. Most of 'em are in good shape, so it should make travelling a bit easier...if you don't mind going in a little kart."[/color] He chuckled. [color=39b54a]"Personally, I got my eye on that one bike there."[/color] He pointed towards the Wario bike. [color=39b54a]"It's the most...normal out of them."[/color] Before Michael could respond, Peach began to speak, cutting their conversation short. 

The Princess began by announcing who would be staying at the castle, a list of some familiar names and some unfamiliar ones. She also mentioned some newcomers, including a man named Donnie that the two had missed. [color=00aeef][i]Reminds me a bit of the Centurion. Another medieval type, I'm guessing.[/i][/color] She also pointed out a bear-and-bird duo that they had also missed, Michael raising an eyebrow at the odd sight. Weird as it might have been, it still wasn't the strangest thing he had seen so far. She also listed off the names of the newcomers from the bridge, Franklin raising his hand as his name was mentioned. 

Then, another newcomer appeared, Peach introducing him and saying that he wanted to talk about "Pokémon", whatever that was. Despite their total unfamiliarity with the subject, the two listened with interest. Apparently, there were certain creatures that could be tamed with a "pokeball" and made into pets, or allies in combat. It sounded very helpful, but they had no idea of knowing what a "Pokémon" looked like. Michael got a kick out of when he said he'd be setting up a shop for Pokémon related items. [color=00aeef][i]Looks like even in the apocalypse, capitalism is alive and well.[/i][/color] Still, he'd want to ask the guy about the creatures when he got a chance. 

Then, Peach began to talk about something the Master of Masters had apparently found. They watched with curiosity as Peach took out a box, then put- [color=00aeef][i]the hell? Where'd she get a five from?[/i][/color] into the box. It popped out a few seemingly unrelated items, most interestingly a strange blue pistol. Franklin looked over at Michael. [color=39b54a]"You got your wallet, right?"[/color]

[color=00aeef]"Yeah. Guess we're in luck. You have yours, right?"[/color] Franklin nodded, answering the question. After Peach explained where they would be going, the two walked up to the box. Michael picked up the pistol, looking it over. [color=00aeef]"Uh...anyone mind if we take this?"[/color] He looked around for a moment, before tossing the pistol to Franklin. [color=00aeef]"Keep it. You need a new gun."[/color]

Franklin looked it over, holding the strange weapon in his hands. It felt a bit weird to hold, and he got the feeling that it wasn't designed for human hands. While he didn't know what exactly it was, it was a gun, and he knew how to use a gun. [color=39b54a]"No idea what this is, but it looks like some alien shit."[/color] Shrugging, he placed the gun in his belt. He had a feeling he would have ample opportunity to use it soon.