The 'Shroom Spooky Scavenger
Written by: Waluigi Time (talk) and Boo1268
Art by: Waluigi Time (talk) and Ninja Squid (talk)
Website design by: Lakituthequick (talk)
'Shroom Research Lab: Hello, everyone! As our ongoing research of The 'Shroom continues, we have uncovered information about an especially unusual event in the paper's history. While sorting through a newly discovered set of old relics, we came across a peculiar-looking chest and documents about its involvement in one fateful Halloween season. According to our research, it was the catalyst for a time where the 'Shroom writers contended not with each other, but with external forces.
The night before the release of the October issue, the staff of The 'Shroom were burning the midnight oil to make their final preparations. (Literally, there was an accident in the cafeteria. But that's not important to the story.) Little did most of them know, however, that something was amiss... An ancient, malevolent spiritual force brewing deep within The 'Shroom's headquarters, sealed away in the building's very foundations, and only recently disturbed by the skittering of a certain ninja's robot. One of The 'Shroom's writers, Boo1268, a very keen fellow in matters of the paranormal, sensed this dark energy, and went straight to Waluigi Time and Sparks. The trio decided to investigate and went down to the basement, and after a bit of searching, they discovered an ominous-looking chest buried behind recently-exposed brick. According to Boo1268, it was brimming with dark, ghostly energy...
Ever one to pursue a questionable idea, Waluigi Time thought having a little extra help with the creeping deadline would be great, and asked Sparks to open the box. Unsure if this was really such a good idea, Sparks politely declined, so Waluigi Time asked Boo1268 to open it instead. He wasn't fond of the idea either, but he was curious nonetheless, and we all know how that usually goes. With one lift of the lid, the pure power of its contents erupted, drowning the basement in horrid moans and wails as ghosts surged from the chest like a spectral volcano, shaking the building to its very core. Just when they thought it was over, one last spirit emerged from the box - an imposing figure of pure darkness, known only as Krad.
Freed from the chest, he turned a sinister grin towards the trio. "AHH! FINALLY! AFTER THIRTEEN THOUSAND YEARS I AM FREE! Now! Who should I thank for this most generous gift that has been given to me?" With none of them able to muster up the courage to answer, Krad's gaze turned towards Boo1268. "Ah, it was YOU, wasn't it? You were the one who opened the chest, huh? Well then, I must thank you for your kindness. Oh please, don't be shy, as a reward for saving me, HAVE A TASTE OF MY POWER!" Suddenly, Krad possessed the unfortunate Boo, something that was apparently possible to do, corrupting him into a much more sinister-looking form... With an evil cackle, the reborn Boo1268 teleported outside, casting a sinister spell over the entire city with his scepter.
"Departed spirits lay at rest,
But even still they do protest,
To leave their tombs and rise where they stand,
And spread their terror across the land,
To wreak their havoc far and wide,
From which no mortals can dare to hide,
Fear the spirits that terror and loom,
For this October they seal your doom!
And when the witching hour is at hand,
THE LICHEN SPIRITS WILL RULE THE LAND!"
With the completion of the incantation, a dark cloud began to form over the city, plunging it into an endless night as all manner of the undead began to rise from their resting places. As if the initial onslaught wasn't bad enough... Trying to get their wits about them once more, Waluigi Time and Sparks scrambled to regroup with the others so they could figure out how to save The 'Shroom, and the whole city.
'Shroom Research Lab: Unfortunately, information on the outcome of this crisis is scarce. We will continue our research in hopes of understanding what truly happened during this incident. On a positive note, we have reason to believe that written accounts by the writers of The 'Shroom may have survived, and will be a tremendous help in shedding light on the situation if we are able to recover them.
Hello there, 'Shroom readers! Well, this is definitely a pickle we've gotten ourselves into... It's definitely not my fault, though! Anyway, it looks like we're going to need your help to deal with all these ghosts swarming around, so what better time than now to hold a good old-fashioned scavenger hunt?
There are 19 ghosts submitted by our writers and staff hidden throughout this issue! Of course, as we all know, ghosts are invisible, so you won't be able to see them by default. You'll need proper ghost-catching equipment first, and by that I mean you'll need to head on over to the scavenger hub site, enter your name if you'd like, and sign up for the fun! Once you've done that, the ghosts will be visible in your browser, and you can simply click on them as you come across them to catch them. Your progress will be automatically saved, so don't worry if you have to take a break and come back later.
As a disclaimer, for the game to work properly, it'll need to place a cookie in your browser. This requires third-party cookies to be enabled, so make sure you've done that, at least while you're playing the game.
That's all there is to explain, so without further ado, go sign up and have fun! I have a hunch that one of the wispy little fellows is very close by, so if you can see one, congratulations, it's working! If you have any questions or have to report an issue, please contact Lakituthequick on his talk page, on the Super Mario Boards, or on the Super Mario Wiki Discord server.
| The 'Shroom: Issue 223 | |
|---|---|
| Staff sections | Staff Notes • The 'Shroom Spotlight • Poochy's Picks • The 'Shroom Spooky Scavenger • Credits |
| Features | Fake News • Fun Stuff • Palette Swap • Pipe Plaza • Critic Corner • Strategy Wing |