Chronicles of Shovelry - Episode 1: Fueled by Hope, Part 1

Excerpt from the Journal of Shovel Knight, third entry

(Shovel Knight has just arrived in the village after more than a day's journey, and is about to leave for Pridemoor Keep) I had made all of my preparations, save for my investigation into the Troupple Chalice, but someone stopped me as I was leaving. She was a woman in an extravagant purple dress and had matching purple hair which covered her eyes. Her dainty wings were tipped with various colors, ranging from red to lime green, and her crown was ornamented with similar colors. Tying all of her whimsical look together was a wand with a glowing yellow star affixed to the end. "Oh, hello, flightless knight! I have some fun gifts for you!" she called to me. Intrigued, I approached her. "I am Madame Meeber, and I am delighted to meet you, Shovel Knight! The King me to give this to you," she explained as she levitated a beautifully wrapped package into my hands.

My curiosity was rising, so I opened the package to find a large flask filled with orange liquid inside. I removed the flask and noticed a note underneath. The note read: "Nice job; you're off to a solid start, and that deserves commemoration. This is the Fleet Flask. Channel your magic power, take a sip, and you will be running like a rodent. Keep doing well, and you'll get more relics like this one. -The King" I wanted to try the new relic for myself, so I unplugged the cork, lifted the flask, and let the liquid flow past my lips. The taste was unlike what I have previously experienced; the liquid seemed to pleasantly burn in my mouth, and its sweet flavor gave me a buzz. When the beverage went down my throat, my legs seemed to lift from under me. Before I knew it, I was barreling through the village, barely able to control myself. My greatest concern was ensuring that I did not slam into anyone, with the secondary objective being getting me to stop running. It was a joint effort to accomplish the former task, and I was eventually able to complete the latter task on my own.

When I was still catching my breath after I managed to stop, a shadow passed above me. With her wings flapping so fast that they were nigh-invisible, Madam Meeber flew to catch up with me. She giggled as she alighted on the ground in front of me, and commented, "With speed like that, you could travel across the land in no time at all! Anyways, I have one more thing you might find fun: I can summon a fairy friend to go with you on your adventure!"

"A companion to accompany me on my travels? That would be much appreciated," I responded. She waved her wand, and six points of light in the same colors as her wings and crown emerged from its tip. The lights then coalesced and solidified into what appeared to be a smaller version of myself, though with frail wings that flapped rapidly. Madam Meeber commented before I went on my way, "Oh, it's the Fairy of Shovelry, that greedy little scamp! BOOPITY BOO! Have fun, you two!"

My new compatriot is a joy to be around. Wherever I go, no matter how dangerous, he will bravely follow me, and even go ahead of me on occasion. He has a zest for adventure, and will help in whatever way he can. Usually, his actual efforts amount to very little, but simply having him around makes the journey less lonely. Madam Meeber may have called him the Fairy of Shovelry, but I find that name to be too wordy and formal for my mini doppelgänger. As such, I have decided to call him Spoon Knight, since he carries around a tiny version of my Shovel Blade, and it is common knowledge that spoons are tiny shovels.

Excerpt from the Journal of Shovel Knight, fourth entry

(Shovel Knight has defeated King Knight, and is now in the village, making preparations to pursue Specter Knight.) I was unsure if I would see Madame Meeber again today, but when Spoon Knight flew off with a with a joyful beep, I knew he was going to greet her. She spotted us, and greeted us with a gleeful "Hello, my flightless friend and my flying friend! The King sent you another present!" Like yesterday, she levitated a package wrapped in wonderful pink and blue wrapping paper in front of me, and I grabbed it. I sat down and carefully undid the splendid wrapping job on the box, and opened it to find some mechanical device that was made to resemble a fish.

Once again, the present came with a note, which said, "You continue to impress, so I'll give you something else. I heard that you met a powerful fish yesterday, so I'll make this my next gift. This is the Bait Bomb, a relic developed by one of your fellow knights. It works as an alternative to a fishing rod; it can blast fish clean out of the water! Just channel you magic, throw it, and watch the explosion. -The King" From the way it was described, I had trepidations about using the new item. I tried throwing it out into a street where no one was walking, and it whizzed along the ground for a couple of moments before exploding. It was all I needed to see; I likely will not use the Bait Bomb on account of blasting fish being a rather inhumane method of collecting them. However, I will still hold on to it in case it proves to have some other use.

Excerpt from the Journal of Shovel Knight, fifth entry

(Shovel Knight is back in the village, preparing to leave for the Explodatorium) When I finished talking to the Magicist, I heard someone call out "Yoo hoo!" I turned around to find Madame Meeber waving at me, so I approached her. "My, my, you're a productive one, aren't you? The King has something else for you," she noted, pulling out another package, this time wrapped in red and purple. It floated into my hands, and I once again opened it. This time, the relic inside was one greatly resembling my Flare Wand. I took it out of its box to read the note inside, which explained, "Two down already? Good job, Shovel Knight! My gift for you now is called the Flareo Rod. I hear you already have something similar to this, but this one works at a much shorter range, and with more explosive results. You'll likely find this useful. -The King" Eager to test the new item, I thrust the Flareo Rod forward, and numerous small explosions burst out in front of me. I knew in the moment that I had a potent weapon on my hands.

Excerpt from the Journal of Shovel Knight, sixth entry

(Shovel Knight has entered the Armor Outpost for the first time) Upon observing my surroundings in the small village, I noticed a familiar face: Madame Meeber. I called out to her, and she cheerily stated, "Hello again, my flightless friend and my flying friend! I've been looking for the two of you!"

"Another gift, I take it?" I inquired.

"Ding, ding, ding! You would be correct with that guess." Another package was floated into my hands, and this time, I opened it to find an orange dagger with secondary blades branching out from the main one. These blades appeared to be separated from the main one, and shaped in an unconventional way for a weapon; they were very similar to a propeller.

The note that came with the relic read: "Well, you've been rising quite a bit lately. To symbolize that, take this, the Rising Dagger. Hold it above you and channel your magic, and it will carry you upwards. Use this well, and it will save you from great peril. -The King" It sounded promising, but I wanted to try it for myself, so I held it up and sure enough, I started to rise. I tilted the dagger one way, and I travelled that way. I tilted it the other way, and I travelled that other way. It then stopped, and I fell to the ground. After sticking the landing, Madame Meeber commented, "Well, maybe I should stop calling you flightless since you have that relic now!" I gave a hearty laugh, put the dagger in my bag, and went on my merry way.

Excerpt from the Journal of Shovel Knight, seventh entry

(Shovel Knight has returned to the village to prepare to board Treasure Knight's Iron Whale) As was to be expected, Madame Meeber was there to see me off, again with a gift. Upon grabbing the present out of the air, I recoiled slightly by its weight. Wanting to figure out the source of this weight, I put the box down and opened it to find a large metal anchor. With some effort, I removed the anchor and took out the note, which said, "I hear you're going to a ship today. In that case, you might need an anchor. This Tow Anchor will carry you high then drag you down when you channel magic through it. -The King" I tried to focus my magic with the anchor in my hands, and it flew into the sky, dragging me along with it, then slammed into the ground. It was a rather enjoyable rush, and I figured that I might try to find a use for it.

Excerpt from the Journal of Shovel Knight, eighth entry

(Shovel Knight is making final preparations in the Armor Outpost before pressing on) To wish me a farewell before I set out to take on Tinker Knight, Madame Meeber awaited at the road leading out of town. The gift she gave to me today turned out to be a pair of pale, translucent gloves, similar to the Dust Knuckles. The note that came with it read, "You're within throwing distance of you goal now! Perhaps to test this, you could throw some punches with these, the Phantom Knuckles. Punch with them on, and a spectral fist will go ahead of you. -The King" I gave it a try, and sure enough, phantasmic replicas of the gloves flew a short distance in front of me before dissipating. I gave a respectable nod, pocketed my new relics, bade goodbye to Madame Meeber, and left.

(Shovel Knight is exploring of the Hall of Champions, an art museum haunted by ghosts) I entered the secured room to find it already lit up, and a breathed a sigh of relief that there were no invisishades for me to fight. Wanting to take in the breather, I looked around the room, which was adorned with three exquisite paintings. One depicted Kratos, a warrior known for his revenge quests against mythological pantheons, fighting an elderly but mighty man who, judging from the placard the museum placed below the painting, appeared to be Zeus. The placard also noted that the ruthless fighter was looking to settle down. Another of the paintings was a mural showing the Battletoads, famous for their extreme skill, performing various activities they were known for: one was riding a speeder, another was repelling down a cliffside, and the last was fighting off a horde of enemies. Its placard stated that to this day, the three of them still look for challengers as awesome as they are. The final painting had Link, one of the most legendary heroes of all time, on horseback, facing down a metal-tentacled beast of stone with a single glowing blue eye. The placard said that the painting was recently made, and that the hero was seemingly still on the depicted adventure. I walked around the room, admiring each one of them, when I noticed that one part of the floor near the edge of the room sounded hollow. Wanting to investigate, I jumped up and pogoed on the dubious section of flooring, which gave way under my technique.

I followed the path under the broken floor to find a secret room containing important museum documents. There was one chest which demanded focus, labeled "ongoing and recent important conversations." Inside this chest were four letters: two copies of sent letters, and two received letters sent in response to the sent letters. The first sent letter was addressed to Kratos, and it explained some of the high points of living in the valley. In response, the brute wrote that he would come to see for himself. The other sent letter was addressed to the Battletoads, and it discussed the powerful knights in the valley, particularly boasting about me. It's response was a simple "Yeah, we'll check it out if we're ever in the area."

The notes had the museum curator's signature, but I knew the handwriting anywhere; Shield Knight was the one who wrote them, but she is still trapped in the Tower of Fate. This might confirm my greatest fear, but at the same time, give me a greater hope; she may have become the Enchantress that I am questing to defeat, but she is in there. The Enchantress probably wrote these letters in an attempt to get me to fight an opponent that greatly outclasses me, but perhaps Shield Knight influenced her to do so, hoping that the encounters would instead give me my big break.

(Shovel Knight has defeated the threat plaguing the Hall of Champions, and is on the road again) As I barreled down the road, I saw someone in the distance. As I got closer, the armor was unmistakable: Black Knight was blocking my path. He pulled his shovel back and swung it, launching a purple fireball at me. I sidestepped to avoid the blast and tried to get in close, but Black Knight turned tail and ran away. He has always been incredibly fast with a stride that made it seem like he was running on the air, and this chase was no exception. While the Fleet Flask gave me a slight advantage, when I got close enough, he would launch another fireball at me. In this manner he was able to keep me back until the two of us got into the mountains, where he unleashed a flurry of fireballs and got away while I maneuvered out of their way.

The chase ended in front of a sort of ancient temple that I had never seen before. Unsure of what to think, I entered to find that it was supported by ornate columns and littered with fine delicate pottery. As I explored the seemingly desolate halls, movement caught the corner of my eye. Hypothesizing that my adversary had used the structure as a place to attempt to ambush me, I called out, "Black Knight, is that you? Why have you led me here?"

The cloaked figure replied, "You know not to whom you speak, gardener. Get out of my way!" The figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing the cloak to be a deep red with golden ornamentation and his face to be incredibly pale. Still convinced that this was an elaborate trick by Black Knight, I exclaimed, "Nonsense! Your disguises and trickery won't deter me! Show yourself, or be gone!"

The confused figure shouted at the heavens, "Athena! Is this yet another test? Am I to face this foolish peasant, without even a proper weapon?" He then threw his cloak aside, revealing himself to be legendary warrior Kratos. He jumps down from the column, draws a pair of blades with a golden sheen, and stated, "Then so be it . . . Prepare yourself for the Spartan wrath of the Blades of Chaos!"

Kratos slashed out with his blades, using their long chains to give his weapons more reach. In reaction, I jumped up and readied my shovel below me to get the drop on my foe, so to speak. This proved effective, so I continued to employ this strategy. I was able to keep up the pressure, despite him launching me into a column, creating a whirlwind of blades centered around himself, and grappling around the arena, though not at the same time. As I chipped away at him, he reached a breaking point at which he went berserk. His eyes widened, and he let out a hearty yell as lightning struck him, the pottery broke, and blue and red orbs of energy flew into him. After this, his fighting became overwhelmingly aggressive, with quicker slashes and even throwing sections of the pillars at me. I was barely able to edge him out, and as I thought he was about to go down, he slammed down, destroying the floor below us. On the whole, the fight remained roughly the same, though the two of us were now maneuvering between falling sections of columns. Eventually, I was able to edge him out.

We landed unharmed. Despite being defeated, my foe seemed unfazed, despite having taken a knee. He mustered the energy to shout "Enough! In your hands, a mere farmer's tool burns with the wrath of Hades! Surely, you must have the Gods' favor. I shall call you the Ghost of Shovels."

I respectfully responded, "You as well are formidable, Ghost of Sparta. Your technique is unlike any I've seen. I bid you good fortune in your quest, whatever it may be."

"My fate lies...elsewhere. Take this gift. If properly honed, it could uproot the olive trees of Olympus." He then pulled something out of his own Hero's Burden brand bag, being a rusty, broken shovel, and handed it to me. It was definitely in poor condition, with the blade being rusty and the handle being bent out of shape, but I figure that I will heed his words and bring it to the Shovel Smith when I next visit the Armor Outpost, so I stowed it in my bag. As he pulled on his cloak and walked away, he questioned, "While I'm here, what places would you recommend I visit?"

"Pridemoor Keep is the most luxurious castle in the land, and a warrior of your caliber would surely be welcomed, the Lost City is an ancient wonder, provided you can find a good tour guide, and the Troupple King is someone that one would be shameful to miss seeing. For the latter, I advise that you take this." I pulled out my spare Troupple Chalice and handed it to him, which he stoically accepted. After giving him directions to the Troupple Pond, we both set off on our merry ways.

(Shovel Knight encountered Black Knight, and defeated him in battle on the way to Clockwork Tower.) I breathed a sigh of relief to find that I was finally on my way to the Clockwork Tower, but I realized that the next member of the Order would have to wait a while longer; In the distance, an airship, made to look like a bird and painted blue all over, was visible. Unsure of what I was seeing, I looked over to the armor outpost, and sure enough, the Aerial Anvil was still there. With that failing me, I turned to where Propeller Knight usually parks his Flying Machine, but it also was in its usual spot. I resolved to investigate it immediately.

(Shovel Knight fought Reize on the way to the airship, and the two of them decided to investigate the airship together.) I arrived at the mountain the airship was swooping around with Reize in tow. When the ship came around, it came close to the ground and stopped immediately overhead. Three large, muscular toads exited using ropes to lower down to the ground. The one closest to me asked his comrade, "Hey, Pimple, I thought we were just going out for a burger and flies! Where'd that crazy space warp take us?"

The toad next to him commented, "Whoa, Rash, get a load of that shovel dude!" The names they used sounded familiar, and I realized that I was likely dealing with the famous Battletoads. Considering that I was the subject of their discussion, I saw it fit to introduce myself, stating, "...er...greetings, amphibians! I'm Shovel Knight, on my quest to defeat the Enchantress!"

The one who addressed me, whom I determined to be Zits through process of elimination, noted, "Well, that's a neat story! Anyway, we're the Battletoads!"

Pimple, the only one of them to not have spoken yet, questioned, "Wait a minute, Zits, is this guy talkin' about the Dark Queen, bros?! Lemme at her!"

I chimed in, "Well, I suppose one might think of her as a dark queen of sorts..."

Rash then pointed out, "Well, lemme tell ya we know a thing or two about fighting dark queens, and no offense, tadpole, but you look like you could use some help! How about we give you some training, Battletoads style?"

Feeling rather humorous, I answered with a simple "Toadally!"

Zits then said, "Dija hear that, toads?! He said yes!!"

Ready to begin, Rash commented, "Righteous! Okay then, let's hop to it!!!" They each jumped into formation, striking a pose, and Rash jumped up and slammed the ground, knocking it apart. I looked back to Reize to find him safely on the ledge. I was glad that he would not have to deal with what would certainly be crazy training.

As I began to fall, a rope dropped in front of me. I clutched it in one hand and drew my shovel in the other. Zits came down on a rope of his own said that we would fight to begin the training. As we constantly descended through what seemed to be some extension of the Lost City, his fist met my shovel, and his wreaking ball form met the wall behind me. It was actually rather exciting to drop down and weave around my adversary. As the fight progressed, he left me to square off against propeller rat, wizzems, which I was able to avoid and dispatch without issue. He later reentered, fighting me while I faced these enemies, which proved to be more of a challenge. I was able to force him to retreat, but many propeller rats then cut my line.

Conveniently, I fell onto a speeder that was just my size, with Pimple on another speeder next to me. He explained that like before, the two of us would spar as we navigated the passage. The speeders then started going. It was fast. It was tense. It was exhilarating. After getting my bearings, I began to swing at Pimple, and got a few good hits on him. He then sped up and began weaving through obstacles ahead. I had to think quickly to not hit any of the stone slabs that blocked my path and gun it as I jumped on the ramps. The obstacles continued to get more complex, with obstacles and ramps floating in the air, and propeller rats dropping them in front of me. There were some close calls, but I made it through. Eventually, I caught up with Pimple, and the duel reinitiated. We fought, now dodging the stone slabs and jumping off of the ramps. As the battle went on, I damaged his speeder in such a way so that he was sent flying off, and upon hitting a bar held up by two small columns, so was I.

I landed face-first outside the ruins to a building of some sort, with Rash waiting for me. With a single point, I knew that I was in for a final showdown. He went all out, throwing punches, ramming into me, slamming into the ground, and calling in help from his fellow Battletoads, who swung by as a wrecking ball and zoomed past on a speeder respectively. I kept my distance, striking whenever I could. It was a close fight, but he eventually gave in.

All three Battletoads stood around me now, but Rash was the first to speak, saying "Wow, Shovel Knight, you've got some crazy moves!"

Not wanting to boast, I awkwardly replied, "Er, I... Thank you, kind sirs!"

Pimple chimed in, "Well, all this turbo training was draining. We otta bug out and find some grub! Care to join us, Shovel Guy?"

I politely answered, "I...I'll pass, thank you!"

Zits commented, "Your loss! Oh hey, meet us back at camp, though. We want to give you a little token of toad gratitude!" The three then ran off, and I concluded that I would be stuck taking the long way back to the surface.

Some hours later, I found the Battletoads back where I initially met them. They beckoned me closer, and Zits declared, "Most righteous Shovel Bro, we hereby declare you an honorary toad! To aid you in your battle against your own dark queen, we bestow upon you this most excellent toad gear! Now you'll have cool moves just like us!" They then handed me a green suit of armor, which I went off for a moment to don.

Finding that some others, including Reize, have settled down for a while around the airship, I decided that it was getting late and made camp for the night. I guess I will have to pursue Tinker Knight tomorrow. I may not have defeated another member of the Order today, but I have made new allies that I could possibly call upon in a time of need. It seems that sometimes life does not go the way that you expect, but it might just end up being better. I hope that there are more days like this in my future.