Every Stamp Tells a Story by pikatribble |  |
This week: Gormball Stamp
NEOPIAN POST OFFICE KIOSK - Hello again, stamp fans! Welcome back to Every
Stamp Tells a Story. This week, we will be looking at a stamp that celebrates
everybody's favourite game - the Gormball Stamp:
Gormball requires
both luck and skill, and is the sport of choice onboard Virtupets Space Station
(as well as being very popular throughout Neopia). For those of you unfamiliar
with the game (probably all two of you), it is played with a special ball (unsurprisingly
called a gormball) that is filled with water. Competitors stand in a circle and
toss this ball from player to player after holding it from one to five seconds.
At some point, the ball explodes, soaking the player holding it and disqualifying
them from the game. The winner is the last player to remain dry.
The Grundo featured on the Gormball stamp is none other than Gargarox
Isafuhlarg, though most of you will be more familiar with him from his
other occupation: The Grundo Chef. Yes, Gargarox is the one who creates those
tasty concoctions served in Grundo's
Cafe, such as Roast Gargapple and Spiced Apple Pie (as well as some
less than tasty creations that we will avoid mentioning).
Gargarox has always been fond of cooking, though his approach is more akin
to that of a scientist in a lab. He loves to experiment, mixing different ingredients
together to see what kind of marvellous creations he can come up with. Of course,
like any experiment, sometimes he succeeds and introduces the newest taste sensation
to Neopia, and other times he fails, and something far less spectacular is born.
Of course, even his failures are often converted to something that is at least
palatable, thanks to the Grundo Chef cookbook that has been passed down from
chefs to their apprentices over the generations. Gargarox's cookbook was previously
owned by such illustrious chefs as Vulphang Muck and the Feedish Chef, and one
day he, in turn, will pass it on to an apprentice chef of his own.
Though Gargarox began cooking as a young Grundo back on the Grundo home world,
he was forced to relearn his craft (and adjust several of his recipes) after
Dr. Sloth mutated him and many other Grundos in a plot to take over Neopia (after
all, a pinch of sugar with the larger hands of a mutated Grundo is more than
that of a regular Grundo). He worked as a cook for Sloth's army on Virtupets
Space Station, caring little for any battles raging between the evil mastermind
and the Neopians below, so long as he was allowed to practice his art. When
Sloth abandoned the Space Station, he remained behind and opened Grundo's cafe.
Unfortunately, sampling so many of his experiments began to take its toll on
the mutant Grundo, as he began to put on quite a bit of weight. In an effort
to keep himself in shape, Gargarox began to look into the various activities
available on the Space Station, and stumbled into a Gormball match. Though he
was by no means a natural at the sport, he did enjoy the exercise it offered
- a Gormball weighs a fair bit, filled with all that water - as well as the
thrill offered by the risk of the Gormball exploding in one's hands. Thus his
love for Gormball was born.
Gargarox quickly joined the NGA (Neopian Gormball Association) and began competing
regularly in the various regional and national Gormball competitions. He used
his cooking skills to his advantage even here, offering to cater the events
in exchange for the waiving of the entrance fee. As the entrance fee was usually
only a nominal amount, the NGA received the better end of this deal, but Gargarox
didn't care, as long as he could play the sport he had grown to love.
It was during the annual Gormball championships (held on the 23rd of Gathering)
in which Gargarox was competing that scandal broke in the Gormball world. The
match began as any other, the contestants some of the best in all Neopia. There
was Thyassa the Chia, widely hailed as the leading Gormball player in all of
Neopia; Brian the Scorchio, about whom there were whispers that he was cheating,
but so far there had been no evidence to bear out this claim; a mysterious alien
Aisha, who kept her name secret but seemed to have a strange way of knowing
when the ball was about to explode; the Fire Faerie, whom many thought her participation
odd, given Gormball is a game fraught with water; Cool Grundo, an enigmatic
character who kept mostly to himself; Ursula Usul, who had completely devoted
herself to Gormball and practising her skills; Kevin the Korbat, a last minute
surprise entry and an amateur to the game, and of course, Gargarox himself.
Kevin, unsurprisingly, was eliminated in the first round, followed swiftly
by Cool Grundo, the Fire Faerie, Cool Grundo and Ursula Usul. That left Gargarox,
Thyassa, Brian and the alien Aisha in the game...
The first to be eliminated was the alien Aisha. The remaining three would all
receive prizes, but the colour of the medal was yet to be determined. The action
was fast and furious as the ball was passed quickly around between the three,
when suddenly...BAM!...and Thyassa was out of the game. Mere moments later,
Gargarox found himself soaked, and Brian was declared the winner.
Brian's victory sparked a great deal of controversy, and the debates could
be heard erupting from the stands of spectators almost immediately. Brian was
one of the lower ranked players, and for him to beat out the better Gormballers
was somewhat suspicious, though not impossible. After all, luck as well as skill
plays a part in Gormball Still, the immediate outcry from the public and some
unease on the part of the game officials (as well as rumours that Brian was
a less-than-honest player) caused an inquiry to be held, delaying the announcement
of the official game results.
The remains of all the exploded gormballs were closely examined for tampering
by a team of investigators from the individual lands of Neopia. The results
of the investigation were inconclusive...with one exception. The investigator
from the Haunted Woods, a Skeith who studied the Gormball used in the final
round, stated unequivocally that the final Gormball was unaltered, making the
last round completely fair. Brian was definitely the winner, and the results
were made official...
And perhaps they would have remained that way as well, if the investigator
from Mystery Island had not decided to get a light snack just before the awards
ceremony. She was walking towards Grundo's Cafe, when she spotted Brian and
the Haunted Woods investigator whispering conspiratorially in a dark hallway.
She slipped into the shadows, watching as Brian passed a package to the Haunted
Woods official, then the Skeith and Scorchio went their separate ways.
Quickly, the governing members of the NGA were called together, confronting
the Skeith official. It was learned he had a strange fondness for flakyshrooms,
which were becoming scarcer and scarcer every day. Brian bribed the Skeith with
ten flakyshrooms, in exchange for lying about the condition of the last Gormball,
which was visibly tampered with, no doubt by Brian himself.
With this new information, Brian was immediately disqualified (and the lying
Skeith investigator was banned from the NGA). Gargarox was declared the new
winner, with Thyassa in second place, and the alien Aisha in third.
The awards ceremony, which had been delayed until the investigation into the
events surrounding the competition was completed, was rescheduled, and on the
day the medals were to be given out, the stands were filled to capacity with
cheering crowds. Third place was awarded first, and the alien Aisha happily
received her bronze medal. Next, Thyassa graciously accepted the silver. Finally,
Gargarox's name was called. The mutant Grundo approached the podium, and then
did what no one in the history of the NGA had ever done before...he refused
his medal.
Gargarox insisted that he did not want to win unless the match was fair, and
although the results on all the gormballs used in the rounds prior to the final
one did not show obvious evidence of tampering, there was little to prove that
they weren't tampered with...and Brian wasn't talking. Gargarox said the only
way to be certain the match was fair was to have a rematch with all the competitors
(less Brian, of course). NGA members and Gormball fans alike were stunned...but
after much debate, for the first time ever, a rematch was called.
Gargarox placed third in the rematch...behind the alien Aisha and Thyassa,
who kept his title as undisputed Gormball champ. As Gargarox approached the
podium to accept his bronze medal, the crowd and his fellow competitors alike
rose to their feet for a standing ovation, and the mutant Grundo accepted his
bronze medal with pride. This one he had earned fairly, and he happily returned
to his first love - cooking.
Some months later, the board of directors of the Neopian Post Office approached
the NGA about producing a Gormball stamp. They wanted to feature one of the
star athletes upon the stamp, and as the reigning champ, Thyassa was their first
choice. However, the NGA convinced the directors to allow the NGA's membership
to determine the athlete to be featured upon the stamp. The NGA sent out a ballot
to all their membership asking for their votes. When the ballots were tabulated,
one athlete had collected nearly 96% of the votes...Gargarox. It was felt he
represented the best attributes that they wanted to the stamp to convey...not
championship...but honesty, integrity, fair play and the fun of the game. Even
Thyassa himself is rumoured to have voted for Gargarox, though as the ballots
were secret, that rumour cannot be confirmed.
So the next time you visit the space station, be sure to stop by Grundo's Cafe.
Maybe you can even challenge Gargarox to play a game of Gormball with you and
your friends. Win or lose, you know you will have a fair, and most importantly,
fun game.
Until next time, happy stamp collecting! |
