The Adventure That Started It All

by Geekygirl24

Summary:

He couldn’t watch anymore.

 

He couldn’t watch this monster take the Power Star that kept his Kingdom thriving.

 

There had to be someone who could stop him.

 

Right?

Chapter 1

They’d heard the reports of the Koopa King’s attack on the other kingdoms after the Koopa had nearly destroyed the Cascade Kingdom in his quest to steal the Power Stars.

 

The Penguin King watched as his troops all moved into formation, straightening up when some of them turned to him.

 

He couldn’t show any signs of fear.

 

Not when he had so many of his subjects relying on him.

 

“Are the civilians safe?” He asked his second in command, who nodded firmly, “Good…and the Power Star is hidden?”

 

“As per your command Sire.”

 

“Good.” He took a deep breath, “Now all we have to do is wait.”

 

They didn’t have to wait too long, as the look-out called out that Bowser’s Flying Fortress could be seen on the horizon, lava dropping onto the thick ice and snow that lined their kingdom.

 

“EVERYONE! TO YOUR POSITIONS!”

 

He waddled over to the gates, standing firm as he heard Bowser’s army mobilising outside, smashing the small homes that lay outside of the kingdom walls.

 

“BEHOLD THE KING OF THE KOOPAS!”

 

He could only stand there, feeling the ground underneath his feet shaking as the Koopa King emerged from his ship and moved closer and closer to the main kingdom walls.

 

“OPEN THE GATES…or die.”

 

He didn’t need to shout that final part.

 

With how silent it was all around them; he could have whispered, and he would have been heard.

 

How did it come to this?

 

Straightening up, he looked behind him, seeing his loyal soldiers all standing behind him, tense, and muscles at the ready as he gestured for them to open the gates.

 

Coming face to face with the Koopa King, he became all too aware of just how small he was.

 

“You shouldn’t be here.” His own voice rang out over the still battlefield, “The Darklands was punished for previous war crimes, and it’s Power Star confiscated for this very reason, until such a time as the Darklands prove that they had atoned for their crimes of the past. You are undoing all of the hard work that your father put into place.”

 

“My father was a fool.” Bowser chuckled, “A weak fool who gave up far too easily.”

 

“He atoned for his father’s crimes, and you now you are making sure that history repeats itself.”

 

“There’s no ‘Jumpman’ to save you all now. He’s dead and gone.”

 

The Penguin King straightened up, “We need no hero to stop you.” He raised a flipper in the air, hearing his soldiers tensing, ready to spring into action as soon as he dropped his flipper.

 

When Bowser showed no signs of moving in the slightest, he dropped his flipper with a cry of “ATTACK!”

 

He wondered if Bowser thought that his soldiers would simply charge forwards and throw snowballs at them. When the giant snowballs and the sharp icicles flew over the wall, forcing the koopas to retreat inside their shells, some of the less experienced ones even breaking rank.

 

Many of these Koopas had grown up in peace, forced into roles that they were not prepared for.

 

With another raise of his flipper, he stopped the barrage, looking Bowser right in the eyes. “That is but a taste of our fury… stand down King Bowser.”

 

Silence.

 

“Do. You. Yield?”

 

Bowser chuckled, a slow smile spreading across his face. “I do not.”

 

Kamek, by his side, raised his hands into the air, the Penguin King and his soldiers all rising up into the air at the same time, before they were flung to one side, immediately surrounded by koopa soldiers and their spears.

 

The soldiers on the kingdom walls restarted their assault on the oncoming arm, not stopping even when Bowser sucked in a deep breath, blowing out a stream of flames which hit the ice of the walls and buildings beyond.

 

“NO!” He cried out, hearing the dying cries of his men and women who had been there, pulled to his feet and restrained by the koopas, “STOP THIS!”

 

It was too late though.

 

His kingdom was nothing more than melted rubble and the glow of the Power Star could be seen very clearly.

 

Looking over, he saw the delighted look on Kamek’s face and felt sick to his stomach, watching as another burst of flames exposed the star further.

 

He couldn’t watch anymore.

 

He couldn’t watch this monster take the Power Star that kept his Kingdom thriving.

 

There had to be someone who could stop him.

 

Right?

 

…………………………….

 

“We're the Mario Brothers and plumbin's our game

We're not like the others who get all the fame

If your sink is in trouble, you can call us on the double

We're faster than the others, you'll be hooked on the brothers

Uh!”

 

Luigi laughed as his brother nudged him in the side, nearly dropping his pizza to the ground, as he nudged Mario back. “Stop it! You almost made me drop my dinner!”

 

“I can’t help it!” His older brother chuckled, “I always get so excited when I hear our commercial!”

 

“…Was Dad’s accent really that strong?”

 

“Oh yeah.” Mario chuckled, “But people seemed to trust him more because of it.” He took a bite of his pizza, “It was nice of the advertising company to let us use the old advert and add some of our stuff onto it.”

 

Luigi hummed in agreement, taking a bite of his own food as he eyed the arcade machine in the corner of the room.

 

The business was picking up a little... maybe he could borrow a little to play a round like he used to when he was a kid.

 

“Do we have anything on the schedule for today?”

 

Pulling the new business phone out of his pocket, Luigi tapped on the calendar, shaking his head when he checked it. “Nothing today.”

 

Mario shrugged, stretching out his limbs as best he could in the small booth, before going to go and pay, Luigi, clearing up after them.

 

“Well, well, well...”

 

Luigi flinched at the familiar voice, rushing over to Mario, as they both glanced over to another booth, where a familiar figure was sitting.

 

“…If it isn’t Brooklyn’s favourite failures, the Mario brothers!”

 

“It’s Spike!” Luigi groaned, as though Mario wasn’t already aware of that, both of them moving to leave, passing Spike’s booth as they went. Luigi hoped that they would be able to walk right past him, but of course, Mario stopped, arms folded over his chest.

 

“Hey Spike.”

 

“It’s-a you! Mario!” Spike mocked, wiping a fake tear of laughter, “It sounded weird coming from your Daddy dearest, and it sounds even worse! Have you even gotten a single client for this shit?!”

 

“Yes!” Luigi snapped, “Lots!” He moved to pull out the phone so that he could show Spike that they had lots of appointments in the past and that the reviews on their website were mainly positive. Unfortunately, despite the bravado, Spike was nearly twice his height and therefore intimidated him to the point of his hands shaking.

 

The mobile dropped to the ground, and Luigi didn’t need to look at the screen to know that it was cracked, unable to look at Mario as Spike cackled.

 

“Good luck running a business with this idiot.” Spike wiped his mouth, before throwing it at Luigi, who couldn’t help but squeak and flinch back. No, it wouldn’t hurt, but it was the principal of the matter.

 

Mario caught it inches from his face.

 

“Say that again about my little brother, and you’re going to regret it.” He growled, throwing it at Spike and hitting him on the nose.

 

Seconds later, Spike was grabbing Mario by the overall straps and pulled him up to eye level. “Get this through your tiny brain Mario… you’re a joke, and you always will be… just like your Dad.” He threw Mario to the ground, threw some money onto the table with a smirk before leaving.

 

“Are you crazy?” Luigi hissed, helping his brother to his feet, picking up the mobile at the same time, “He’s like three times your side!”

 

“Weegee, come on….” Mario sighed, a fondness to the sound as he went to ruffle Luigi’s hair, knocking the hat from his head a little, as Luigi fumbled to catch it, “… you can’t be scared all the time, remember?”

 

“You’d be surprised.” Luigi muttered, jumping a little when the phone started to buzz, prompting him to answer it.

 

“Super Mario Brothers plumbing, how can we help?”

Chapter 2

“So here, you can see a Luigi in his natural environment… elbow deep in the engine of our broken-down van.”

 

Luigi rolled his eyes at his brother’s narrating, keeping his eyes on the engine. “Can you even take videos with that old phone?”

 

“Rude, of course I can!” Mario chuckled, “This would be good for our social media page, right?”

 

“Showing us fixing our broken-down van? No.” Luigi gave the engine a bit of a whack, sighing in relief when it rumbled to life, “Okay, that should do it! Come on, or we’re going to be late!”

 

“I still say we could have run the entire way.”

 

“Through a building site?”

 

“Parkour style!”

 

Luigi groaned, “You know I can’t do all that parkour stuff. My knees!”

 

“Don’t worry, I would have opened doors for you.” Mario chuckled, “It’s your fault for getting that last growth spurt you know, I used to be able to give you a piggyback before that.”

 

“You’re just jealous.”

 

Mario pushed at him as they headed towards the client’s home, “And you’re a pest.”

 

They pulled up outside a really nice home, that had Mario practically vibrating in his seat in excitement.

 

“Jackpot.” He whispered, “Total jackpot!”

 

Luigi could barely contain his own excitement.

 

It didn’t care what Spike said.

 

Things were looking up for them.

 

…………………….

 

“It would have been a lot worse.”

 

Luigi ignored his brother, stirring at the spaghetti, glancing over at the freezer, where he knew that there was nearly a whole tub of ice cream was still sitting there.

 

“There were very understanding about the dog situation.”

 

Ah yes… the giant dog that seemed to take an instant dislike to Luigi and stalked him around the home. If Mario hadn’t had the foresight to lock the dog out of the bathroom whilst they worked, there was a chance that everything could have gone drastically wrong. As it was, the plumbing job was simple, but when they went to leave, the dog snapped at Luigi and he jumped back, knocking something valuable over as it smashed to the ground.

 

Well, it didn’t exactly smash, but it was chipped and so, there was barely any profit from the job.

 

All because of him.

 

“Weegee- “

 

“- I know. Don’t add in any mushrooms.” Luigi pretended that he had no idea where Mario was going with the beginning of that softly spoken sentence. It was that same soft tone that Mario had had since they left the client’s home. That same tone as he watched Luigi go and get changed, grabbing an old hoodie that Mario claimed once belonged to their Dad and shoving it over his head, tied up his long hair and started cooking.

 

There was silence for a moment, before Mario was sighing wearily and reaching over to pat him on the shoulder.

 

“Alright.” He whispered, “Alright.”

 

Luigi kept his back to him, hearing Mario head into the living room, muttering something about fixing the window bolt again as a slight breeze threatened to make the temperature in the apartment drop dramatically.

 

It was a cheap apartment, all they could afford when Mario started working, the landlord sketchy enough to make sure no-one ever came looking for them, assured that they would never complain about the state of the building when he had this power over them.

 

Luigi was eighteen now.

 

They could leave.

 

“Here.” He handed Mario the plate of spaghetti, “No mushrooms in the slightest.”

 

“Thanks.” Mario gave him a soft smile, before they both tucked into their food. The slightly uncomfortable silence didn’t last very long, before Mario was clearing his throat, “You could have gone to Uni with that brain of yours you know.”

 

“…Huh?”

 

Mario shrugged, “I-I just look around this place and feel like I’m holding you back.”

 

“Mario- “

 

“You could have been a great inventor by now or-“

 

“- Mario, stop!” Luigi snapped, putting his food to one side as he placed a hand on Mario’s arm, “Nobody is holding me back, okay? Least of all you! We both know I couldn’t really have gone to- “Luigi paused when Mario cleared his throat warningly, “- Well, my anxieties would have made things uncomfortable. I’m happier being here with you, really!”

 

“…And you’re not saying that to make me feel better?”

 

“Never.”

 

Mario stared at him for a moment, before sighing and looking out towards the window, “Sometimes, I wonder if Papa would be proud of me…about all of this.”

 

“Mario…” Luigi had never heard his brother like this, “… Mario, where did all this- “

 

“- I’m just having a maudlin moment.” Mario sighed, waving off any concerns that Luigi tried to voice, giving him a smile that was a lot weaker than usual, “Do you want to play a few rounds of that racing game that you like?”

 

“…Sure.”

 

Luigi took the out.

 

Like a coward.

 

………………………………………….

 

“Hey Luigi.”

 

“Don’t.”

 

“If you’re an American when you go into the bathroom- “

 

“- Stop – “

 

“- and an American when you come out, what are you when you’re in the bathroom?”

 

Luigi didn’t look over at his brother, just knowing that he probably had a stupid grin on his face…just like he always did when they were playing these sort of games and Luigi was winning.

 

“Eur-o-pean.”

 

Luigi groaned, eyes closing unconsciously as he questioned their entire relationship. “Why are you like- MARIO!”

 

Mario’s character over-took him seconds before the line, taking first place as Luigi cursed.

 

“H-hey!” Mario managed to splutter through his laughter, “Language!”

 

“You cheated!”

 

“I used clever tactics!”

 

Putting his controller to one side, Luigi went to try and pin his brother to the sofa, Mario easily managing to hold him at bay, still laughing.

 

It was nice to see him smiling, even if it was at Luigi’s expense.

 

As they continued to wrestle, Mario’s personal mobile buzzed on the coffee table, bringing them to a stop, before Luigi was pushed off him and onto the floor, landing with a grunt as Mario went to grab it.

 

“It’s Pauline!” He announced.

 

“As in…the Mayor?”

 

Pauline and Mario had dated for a short time when they were both in high school. It had been an amicable break up with Pauline going in for an apprenticeship with the city and Mario taking a construction job with Spike, both of them going in different directions and both of them knowing it.

 

They didn’t exactly keep in contact though.

 

“Answer it then!” Luigi hissed, just as curious as his brother was.

 

Slowly, Mario did as he was told, running his fingers through his hair, “Hey Pauline, how are you?” He frowned for a moment, before grabbing the remote and changing the channel over to the news, where a reporter was gesturing at a flooded street behind him. He then put the phone on speaker.

 

‘…sorry to bother you so late.’ Pauline sounded very stressed, ‘But I know that no-one that the council has hired actually seems to know where it’s coming from or what they’re doing. I know you’d have a better idea.’

 

“I have some idea.” Mario accepted.

 

‘Do you think that you’d be able it…and Luigi of course, he must be eighteen now, right?’

 

Luigi leant forwards, “Hey Pauline.”

 

‘Hello Luigi.’ Pauline sounded fond, ‘So, do you think that you’d be able to save Brooklyn?’

 

Luigi could practically see the stars in Mario’s eyes at the thought, his brother already getting to his feet.

 

“Consider Brooklyn saved!”

Chapter 3

“Luigi!”

 

Luigi turned his attentions away from the surprisingly starry sky, seeing his brother waving him over to a manhole. He tried not to grimace at how the water soaked into the lower cuffs of his overalls, sloshing into his boots and soaking his stripy socks.

 

“Over here.”

 

He rushed over, the equipment bag clunking against his leg as he saw Mario smirking.

 

“Pauline was right. Those city officials had no idea where they were meant to be looking.” He held out a hand, “Crowbar please.”

 

Luigi handed it over, watching as Mario removed the manhole cover, the water starting to swirl as it disappeared down into the darkness. “You are not seriously considering- “

 

Mario was already jumping in.

 

“- Oh, MARIO!” Luigi grimaced, pacing back and forth quickly taking several long, deep breaths, before holding his breath, pinching his nose shut and jumping after him. He knew that he must have let out a small cry of fear, landing with a splash as he made sure that nothing floated out of the bag, coming up to the surface with a splutter.

 

He was wet and he was cold.

 

“We’ve got to get to the pressure valve!” Mario called back to him, pointing at a small yellow wheel in the distance, which they slowly trudged through the water to get to.

 

“Mamma Mia!” Luigi groaned, squinting at the valve, seeing that the arrow was dangerous close to the red. Sometimes, he hated how right Mario was, because yes, adjusting the pressure probably would help deal with the flooding that was going on up there.

 

They came to the top of the waterfall, where a pipe stretched out across the gap between them and the valve in question. Immediately, Mario climbed onto it and started to shimmy across, clinging to it from below.

 

“M-mario!” Luigi snapped, looking down at the darkness, “Mario will you just- “ He bit his tongue, rolling his eyes, taking a deep breath and following on after his brother, watching as Mario moved to the top of the pipe, grabbing the wheel and pulling on it. It took some time, but eventually he managed to loosen it, watching as the pressure valve eased out of the red.

 

“Yes!” Mario whooped, only to hear a horrific creaking underneath them.

 

He looked down just as the pipe broke, swinging them down into a wall just behind the waterfall, crashing through it as they landed heavily with a THUNK, bricks landing all around them.

 

“Ow.” Luigi grunted, pushing himself into a seated position as Mario weakly got to his knees, and then his feet, helping Luigi up as well.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

“I-I think so.” Luigi looked at the hole that they’d just created, wondering just how they were going to get out of here, “I-I told you saving Brooklyn was a bad idea.” He teased, even though he hadn’t said anything in the slightest.

 

“Come on.” Mario chuckled, “Let’s see if there’s another way out of here.”

 

They moved further into the underground system, as Mario gasped in amazement.

 

“Woah.” Moving closer, they saw that it seemed to be an underground piping system, one not connected to the rest of the system that they were used to working with, “What is this place?”

 

Luigi shrugged, following Mario to the edge of a platform, peering over the edge to see that it seemed to go on and on.

 

“Come on.” Mario whispered, the pair of them heading down stairs, ladders and ramps until they finally reached the end, their feet on solid ground. Cobwebs and dust covered the various pipes and railings down here as they shone their flashlights around the area.

 

Walking past a giant open pipe, Luigi froze, hearing what seemed to be wind coming from inside of it. Shining his flashlight inside, he opened his mouth to call for Mario, only for the wind to get stronger around him as it suddenly gripped at him and yanked him into the darkness.

 

He didn’t get the chance to scream, but he could have sworn that he heard something dropping behind him.

 

“MARIO!”

 

The darkness faded, opening up to an almost alien sight.

 

………………

 

“It looks like no-one’s been here in years.” Mario muttered, shining the torch around, frowning at the level of neglect that he could see. When he heard the clattering nearby, he looked behind him, only panicking a little when he couldn’t see Luigi anywhere.

 

“Luigi?!”

 

He headed over to where he’d heard the noise, shining his torch into the pipe and frowning when he saw the wrench on the ground.

 

No Luigi though.

 

“Luigi.” He sighed in exasperation, “Are you in there?”

 

One day, his brother’s curiosity would get him into trouble.

 

“Luigi?”

 

He moved further into the pipe, only for a sudden breeze to suddenly yank at the wrench, sucking it into the darkness and making him stumble forwards a little, bracing himself on the sides of the bag as the wind started to pick up.

 

“What the- “ Was all he managed to say, sliding forwards little by little, until the force of the wind suddenly sucked him into the darkness, his yelp echoing in his ears.

 

The next time he opened his eyes, it was to see a rainbow of different colours swirling all around him, hovering in mid-air as he twisted and turned to try and see it all. There were several more green pipes that all seemed to connect to this current.

 

Was he knocked unconscious?

 

Was this all some sort of big fever dream?

 

“AH!”

 

Instantly, he forgot all about what was happening around him, eyes darting forwards as he searched for that source of the cry. “LUIGI!”

 

Just ahead of him, Luigi was not having an easy time of it, arms and legs flailing around as he tried to get himself at least semi-upright. When he saw Mario, his eyes widened and he tried to reach out for him, “MARIO!”

 

Mario tried swimming with the current before realising that he was getting nowhere that way. Instead, he straightened himself out as much as he could, making himself stream-lined as he reached out for his little brother.

 

“GRAB MY HAND!”

 

Despite Luigi’s flailing, he managed to grab onto him, holding them steadily as they twirled around and around.

 

“Everything is going to be okay!”

 

“HOW IS EVERYTHING GOING TO BE OKAY?!”

 

“I’m telling you! Nothing can hurt us, as long as we’re together!”

 

Luigi finally seemed to relax for a moment, a soft, almost hopeful smile spreading across his face.

 

Neither of them noticed the current getting stronger, not until it was too late.

 

With a sharp cry of fear, Luigi was yanked away as Mario was left clutching onto nothing.

 

“LUIGI!”

 

“MARIO!”

 

He saw Luigi disappearing into a pipe that seemed to lead directly into a cloud of black smoke and lava (which definitely left him unable to breathe at the thought), before he could see his little brother no longer.

 

He was spat out of the end of the pipe, hitting something hard before everything went black around him.

Chapter 4

A faint sound hit Mario’s ears. It was hard to hear through the darkness and warmth embracing every inch of his body, He waded through layers of sluggish pain and fuzziness, managing to move his right hand just a little bit.

 

He could feel grass underneath him, lightly tugging on the strands before trying to speak.

 

“Weegee?”

 

Silence.

 

He groaned, fighting to open his eyes, but with the weight of his eyelids, it was like sailing into the wind against high tides.

 

Vaguely, in the back of his mind, he was sure that he could hear a familiar lullaby being hummed.

 

‘Ninna nanna, ninna….Questo bimbo a chi lo do? Se lo do alla Befana.... Me lo tiene una settimana. Se lo do al al Bove Nero- ‘

 

“Uncle Lu?” He whispered, finally managing to open his eyes, staring up at a bright sunny sky, with blue skies and…trees? Slowly, he pushed himself up into a seated position and looked around, frowning when he saw that what he had seen, and probably been knocked out on, were not trees…but giant mushrooms.

 

“I’m dead.” He muttered, “And this is hell.”

 

He got to his feet, feeling a little woozy as he fought to try and remain on them, waiting for the fuzziness to clear before even thinking about taking a step forwards. When he felt a bit more human, and less like he was going to be sick, he turned, trying to take everything in, and possibly find a source for the lullaby.

 

When he saw no one, he sighed and shook his head.

 

“They went missing fourteen years ago.” He muttered to himself, “Unless you really are dead, why they be here, stupido!” He narrowed his eyes at a nearby blue mushroom, “What even is this place?” He reached out to poke at the mushroom, only for a small being to suddenly pop out from behind, hand waving frantically at him as he fell onto his back.

 

“DO NOT TOUCH THAT MUSHROOM! YOU WILL DIE!” Then it paused, looking down at the shroom, before letting out a cute little giggle, leaning over and gently stroking at the top of it, “Oh no, I’m sorry, this one is perfectly fine.”

 

“Mushroom man!” Mario squeaked, “There’s a little mushroom man, talking to me!”

 

“Pleased to meet ya!” The little being bounced over, holding out a hand, “The name’s Toad!”

 

And then he was gone again.

 

“Umm...Mario?” Seeing some weird ladybug type creatures toddling towards him, he quickly pushed himself to his feet and following after Toad.

 

Strange company was better than no company at all.

 

“So... this-this isn’t some sort of dream? Or hell?”

 

Toad swung around, wacking his walking staff against Mario’s arm, who yelped in pain. “Did that hurt?”

 

“YES!”

 

“Definitely not a dream…or hell, whatever that is.”

 

“Then this place is…”

 

“The Mushroom Kingdom!”

 

Mario really should have guessed that, but having the confirmation didn’t make him feel any better. “Really. That… is a cruel twist of fate.” He muttered, not entirely convinced that this wasn’t some form of personal hell for him. He froze when some large, strange, two-legged creature suddenly loomed over him. “…Hello.” He waved up at it, willing himself not to pass out as it then moved on.

 

“Look, I need to find someone.” He ran to catch up with Toad, “My little brother. He looks… well, he looks a lot like me, except tall, skinny and wearing green, an L on his hat instead of an M- “

 

“- a fantastic moustache?”

 

“Yeah, well, he’s eighteen, it’ll come to him.” Mario cleared his throat, “You see the last time I saw him; he was in the same sort of…pipe that I was, but then he was pulled out of my grip and went down another…path, I suppose. It was foggy, and I think there was lava?”

 

Toad sucked in a sharp intake of breath, spinning around to face Mario.

 

The sheer expression of horror on his face made Mario’s heart stop in his chest.

 

Whatever Toad was about to say next, Mario knew that he wasn’t going to like it.

 

“That… is not good.” Toad winced, “Your brother has landed in the Darklands, they’re under…” He looked around, like someone might be listening in on their conversation, “Bowser’s control.”

 

“Bowser?”

 

There was something about that name.

 

“He’s the most, wretched, evil creature alive!” Toad continued, as they walked on, “I hope you told your brother just how much you loved him, because the chances of you seeing him again is- “

 

“- enough!”

 

Toad cut himself with a shocked, guilty look wince as Mario clasped at his chest.

 

This was just a horrible nightmare.

 

He was going to wake up back at home soon, hearing Luigi getting up to get the coffee machine started.

 

He was not trapped in a world of Mushrooms and Luigi was not in a land ruled by a creature literally referred to as evil and wretched.

 

This. Was. Not. Happening.

 

“I think I’d better get you to the princess.” Toad’s voice was soft, “She’ll be able to help, she can do anything!”

 

“P-princess?”

 

They clambered to the top of a large mushroom, and that’s when Mario saw it.

 

The palace in the distance that drew the breath from his lungs in a sharp gasp.

 

“Come on Mario.” Toad beamed, clearly trying to reassure him, “Our big adventure awaits!”

 

Breathing back to normal, heart still racing in his chest, Mario looked up at the blue sky. “Hang on Luigi.” He whispered, “I’m coming little brother.”

 

………………………………

 

Luigi groaned in pain as he slowly sat up, rubbing his head as everything blurred all around him. When everything did finally clear up, he was sure that his heart stopped in his chest.

 

“Mario?” He called out softly, looking behind him hopefully, despite knowing that it was impossible for Mario to be there with him.

 

He’d seen Mario go in a completely different direction, but there was no harm in hoping, right?

 

He picked his cap up off the ground, brushing the dirt off it, before gathering all the tools back up into the box, grabbing the torch and switching it on, shining the light around the area.

 

This place was probably… lovely when it was daytime.

 

Yeah.

 

No need to panic.

 

Still…

 

“Mario? Mario, where are you?”

 

His sleeve got caught on a nearby branch, prompting him to yank himself free, only to lose his balance and nearly tumble directly into a small river of lava. Thankfully, probably due to his own natural clumsiness and the way he automatically learnt how to correct his steps from an early age, he managed to step on a small rock and make his way to safety with a yelp of sheer fear.

 

He bumbled and fumbled right into a tree, shining his torch at it, only to drop it again when bats flew out from inside of it, wildly flapping his hands in the hope that he could ward them off.

 

They didn’t look like any bats he’d seen before.

 

Giving the torch a shake, he continued on.

 

When he heard a branch snap nearby, he spun around in that direction, only to see nothing. His heart continued to pound in his chest, breathing growing frantic.

 

He was so scared, that he was sure he was going to be sick.

 

“It’s just your imagination.” He whispered to himself, “Just your imagination.”

 

This place would be lovely in the daylight.

 

It just had to be.

 

He continued moving forwards, using his torch to light the way, only for the light to reflect off something white, red eyes flashing as the light moved over them. Squeaking, he shone the light back in that direction, only to see nothing there.

 

“This is just like when you went to see that horror film.” Luigi could hear the shakiness in his voice, “And you avoided storm drains for weeks afterwards, it’s just your over-active imagination.”

 

His torch flickered out, prompting him to hit it a few times, before aiming it in front of him again, only to freeze.

 

There was a skeleton in front of him.

 

“AAAHHH!” He screamed as the creature lunged for him, turning and making a run for it, throwing the tool kit and the now-useless torch to one side (whilst sending up a mental apology to Mario) as he continued to run. Thinking quickly, he found a low hanging branch, ducking under the branch, pulling it back and then letting it go, watching as the skeleton hit it at full speed, shattering into multiple pieces.

 

“Ha! Yes!” Luigi couldn’t help but whoop in glee, rushing over to the remains, picking up the skull and smirking at it, “You just got a-Luigi-ed!”

 

The eyes glowed red as he dropped it to the ground, he jumped back, watching as the skeleton gathered itself all back together.

 

Backing away, he tripped over a rock, falling back to the ground and watching as it shuffled closer and closer, groaning at him.

 

And then more started to come out of the ground, stepping out of the shadows.

 

He scrambled to the feet and made a run for it.

 

It was all a bit of a blur.

 

He remembered heading for the castle in the distance, jumping over another, much larger lava lake, kicking and lashing out at any of the creatures who got too close, before racing into the castle and trying to force the doors shutting, whimpering when hands continued to try and grab him. When he finally managed to close them, using the heavy wooden plank to make sure that they stayed that way.

 

Panting heavily, he stared at the wooden doors, hearing and seeing how the creatures fought to try and get in. When there were no signs that they’d be able to manage it, he let out a breathless laugh of relief, sitting on a nearby rock and burying his face into his hands, trying to calm his breathing and slow his heart rate.

 

He was aching all over from the run and the scrapes from the branches and rocks, but he was safe and that was what mattered.

 

Lightning flashed, filling the room with light.

 

That’s when he saw the shadows.

 

“AAAAHHHHH!”

Chapter 5

It was pleasantly warm in this Mushroom Kingdom, and Mario was sure that he’d been here before.

 

“This way Mario! The Princess lives just at the top of that hill!”

 

He looked around, completely and totally sure that he had been here before.

 

But how?

 

He watched other…mushroom people, bounce up to blocks to get coins, most of them narrowly avoiding being ran over by an overeager Toad.

 

“Excuse me! Coming through!”

 

He had a vague memory of being the same height as some of these people, clinging onto his…Mum maybe?

 

They were all staring at him though.

 

“Got a big adventure happening here, so just clear a path for us!”

 

When one of the toads dropped his coin, Mario was quick to pick it up and softly hand it back to them, giving them a soft smile and even softer “Here you go,” which wasn’t returned.

 

They still looked stunned to see him.

 

The human thing maybe?

 

But…he was sure he remembered seeing a blonde girl in this place?

 

Perhaps that was all just a dream that looked familiar to this place?

 

Yeah, that was probably it.

 

There was no way that he’d ever been here before.

 

“EXCUSE ME EVERYBODY! COMING THROUGH!” Toad suddenly screamed, “THIS GUY’S BROTHER IS GOING TO DIE IMINENTLY!”

 

“HEY!” Mario snapped, his voice echoing throughout the town as all the other little…Toads come to a halt staring at both of them. His breathing was coming in fast and hard, staring at Toad who looked mortified by what he’d just said.

 

“I was…just trying to clear a path, he’s going to be fine.” Toad’s smile was a little shaky, gesturing for Mario to continue following him.

 

Mario hesitated for a moment, before slowly following on after him, still trying to take in all the sights, even as his heart pounded in his chest.

 

They travelled on platforms, stepped on floating bricks (floating bricks…why? What was wrong with a bridge?) and then through pipes.

 

Mario thought he knew pipes, but nothing like these.

 

Not as bad as the one that brought him here originally, but still not fun in the slightest.

 

When he was finally spat out of the other end, collapsing to the floor, Toad was there waiting for him.

 

“There we are! Palace doors! Bing bang boom!”

 

Slowly, Mario neatened himself up, eyes widening as he stared at the palace in front of him. White and pink, but look like the ones from all the story books he and Luigi had had as children.

 

It was like he’d stepped into a fairytale.

 

“Come on!”

 

He rushed after Toad as they approached the doors.

 

“Pretty impressive, right?”

 

Mario just nodded, looking up, eyes landing on the stained-glass window that seemed to portray a blonde-haired human woman wearing pink.

 

“HOLD IT RIGHT THERE YOU TWO!” Two guards stopped them from entering, their spears blocking the path.

 

“Um hey?” Mario gulped, “I-I need to see the princess, please! My brother is in trouble, I need her help to save him!”

 

The two guards looked at each other, before looking back at him.

 

“What princess?”

 

“Yeah, I never heard of no princess!”

 

“Oh no wait, I did!” The first smirked, “Our princess is in another castle.”

 

“Oh yeah, that’s right!”

 

“You should try another castle maybe? She ain’t in this one.”

 

Mario wasn’t sure what was going on. He needed to find this princess though, because if he didn’t-

 

“Okay, they are messing with you.” Toad pulled his frying pan from his backpack, “And I don’t like it.”

 

…And then he started cooking.

 

But he was distracting the guards, which was probably the main point.

 

Slowly, Mario crept past them and hurried into the castle.

 

……..

 

Peach wasn’t fond of meetings like this.

 

Watching as Bower’s ship travelled across the maps of the kingdoms, leaving nothing but dark smoke and lava behind

 

He was coming here.

 

And she had only one idea of how to at least try and stop him.

 

Vaguely, she listened to Toadsworth leading the meeting, detailing what was happening, feeling her heart clenching in her chest at the knowledge that now that Bowser had a Power Star, there was a chance that this entire kingdom would be destroyed.

 

A kingdom that she had been entrusted with when she was barely a year old.

 

Would the previous Princess have ever let it get to this point?

 

No, probably not.

 

“Princess! What are we going to do?!” One of the council members cried out, stirring her out of her thoughts as she straightened up in her throne.

 

“I will not let him hurt you.” She reassured them quietly, making her way down the stairs, “We are going to stop Bowser!”

 

“How?! Look at us! We’re adorable!”

 

“I have a plan!” She headed over to the table, “I’m going to convince the great Kong army to help us! Together, we’ll annihilate that monster!”

 

“Cranky Kong does NOT make alliances. Not since our own previous Princess and her husband were forced to leave the kingdom.” Toadsworth sighed, “The Kongs will never agree to an alliance with us.”

 

“I can MAKE him agree… I’ll leave for the Jungle Kingdom in the morning.”

 

She turned, knowing that Toadsworth would only try and stop her as she headed to the doors, pushing them open and striding through them with a confidence she wasn’t entirely sure that she felt.

 

She WAS going to make the previous Princess Toadstool proud.

 

And then the man in red turned the corner.

 

……………………

 

Honestly, Mario knew that he probably could have gone about this a different way as he raced through the corridors of the castle, hearing the guards chasing after him.

 

When he rounded the next corner, however, the entire world seemed to slow down, skidding to a halt as his breath caught in his lungs.

 

His eyes met sparkling blue, as he and the well-dressed woman both stared at each other, neither of them moving a muscle.

 

“Princess, I- “ Mario was cut off as the guards finally managed to catch up with him, their spears slamming into the backs of his knees, sending him crashing to the ground.

 

No.

 

He needed to speak to the Princess.

 

He needed her to help him save his brother, he needed-

 

“- Let him go.”

 

The soft order had the guards scrambling away from him, prompting him to cautiously look up when he saw the Princess crouching down in front of him, a look of wonder on her face. “You…” She scanned his face, “…Why do I feel like I know you?”

 

“I-I don’t know.”

 

He was sure that he knew her as well.

 

Somehow.

 

Taking off his hat, he cleared his throat, fingers digging into the material. “Princess, I-I really need your help.”

 

“…Where did you even come from?”

 

“Me and my little brother, we-we fell down this pipe and-and we were separated.” He forced himself to breathe, “He’s my little brother and he’s lost, somewhere in-in the Darklands?”

 

She winced, “I’m sorry. It’ll only be a matter of time before he’ll be captured by Bowser. But you’re in luck, because I’m going to stop him.”

 

“Then take me with you!”

 

“Bowser is…crazy, a psycho! He’ll eat you up for breakfast, hurt you!” She shook her head, “You’re new to this world, I can’t expect you to- “

 

“- If he has my little brother, then I’m coming.” Mario interrupted firmly, “I-I don’t care if you’re the princess of this kingdom or whatever, you’re not MY princess. But that is MY little brother that he has and I’m coming with you, no matter what!”

 

She just stared at him, making him squirm in place a little.

 

‘Manners Mario’ came the familiar voice of his Papa in his head, making him internally sigh.

 

“Please?”

 

She scanned him from head to toe, before smirking. “Alright. Let’s see what you’re made of.”

 

As she walked away, Mario frowned. “Is that a yes?”

 

“No…it’s a let’s see what you’re made of.”

Chapter 6

Mario stood, leaning on the door frame as the Princess explained the situation to her advisors.

 

His whole being was filled with grief, wondering how long it was going to take for him to prove that he was able to join this quest to challenge this Bowser. How long would it take for him to prove that he was ready and able to save his brother.

 

He felt sick to his stomach.

 

There was something building in the pit of it that told him that something was wrong with Luigi.

 

“Hey.”

 

He looked up, seeing that soft smile on the Princess’s face.

 

“Come on. You want to prove you’re ready…then prove it.”

 

She led him out to a balcony, which then moved forwards over the lake that stretched far off into the distance. With the sun just starting to set a little in the distance, it was a picturesque sight. They came to a stop a short distance away from the palace, with Mario leaning over the side of the balcony to see a giant block rise out of the water, a question mark on the side of it. That block then separated off, creating what seemed to be an obstacle course.

 

“If you can get through this, you can come with me.” She turned and smirked at him, “Watch and learn.”

 

And then she was off.

 

She jumped over spikes.

 

Bounced off of blocks.

 

Dodged metallic plants.

 

Skidded under swinging balls.

 

Flew through the air, hair and dress fluttering behind her as she landed neatly on the next platform, hitching up her dress to continue running.

 

Kicked through a cardboard cutout of a monster that Mario didn’t want to think too much about.

 

Ran over blocks that disappeared from under her feet.

 

Jumped off flying projectiles until she reached the flagged pole, swinging around it for a moment, before using her dress like a parachute to gracefully float back down.

 

“That…was…amazing.” Mario felt like all the air had been sucked out of his lungs, quickly clearing his throat, “But how am I supposed to do all that? I’ve been known to take unconventional paths through the city, but that-that’s- “

 

“- You use power-ups.”

 

“…What?”

 

Peach smiled softly at him, “They give us special abilities.” She hit the yellow question mark box just above her head, as something red with white spots flew out of the top.

 

Quickly, Maro rushed to catch it, only to grimace when he saw what it was.

 

“Ugh… really?”

 

A mushroom.

 

Why was he surprised?

 

This was the Mushroom kingdom after all.

 

“Go on…eat it!” The Princess urged, as Mario fought not to make a sound of disgust.

 

He was an adult.

 

An adult didn’t throw a tantrum overeating a mushroom.

 

‘Mario, it’s just a mushroom!’

 

Luigi would love this. If his brother was here right now, he’d be rolling on the floor laughing his head off at the thought that Mario HAD to eat a mushroom in order to save him.

 

Then again, if Luigi was here, Mario wouldn’t have to save him.

 

He wouldn’t have to do any of this.

 

Still...

 

“There are other power ups, right?” He tried, “Can’t I try one of those first?”

 

She gave him an unimpressed look, which he felt was a little bit undeserved.

 

“This box only gives us the mushrooms.” She sighed, “And you are NOT ready for the other power-ups just yet. Get used to this one first.”

 

“…Do I have to eat it though?”

 

“If you want to save your brother then yes.”

 

Mario bit back the groan, pinching his nose and shoving it into his mouth, chewing and swallowing it with a grimace. It took a while before the tingling under his skin started, but it was an intensely uncomfortable feeling that had him doubling over a little as muscles and bones stretched and grew further than they ever had before.

 

It was over in seconds, but it felt like hours.

 

Swaying a little on the spot, balance still feeling a little off, he was a little grateful that his clothes and shoes had grown with him. “I-I’ve never been this tall in my life.” He whispered, looking himself over in awe.

 

“You’re strong as well.” Peach stated, as Mario looked up to see a small block of bricks above him, jumping up and breaking it entirely, “You can jump as well.”

 

Filled with a newfound confidence, he straightened up and neatened his hat, “I’ve got this, no problem!”

 

He ran.

 

He jumped.

 

He fell, hitting several bricks and then the water down below hard, sucked into a green pipe, before being spat back out onto the platform, feeling just as short as he was when this started.

 

“Ah.” Peach carefully covered her mouth to hide her smile, “I forgot to mention. When you get hit, you lose the power-up.” She hit the box again as another mushroom landed in Mario’s hands.

 

“…Great.”

 

……

 

He hit bricks.

 

The swinging balls knocked him off the course.

 

He missed jumping onto a platform…several times.

 

He couldn’t give up.

 

There was no way he could give up.

 

He was hit.

 

He fell.

 

The sun set in the sky as everything went dark.

 

He could feel the eyes of the princess always watching him, and he just knew that she was growing tired of watching him fail again and again and again.

 

Losing the power up after throwing up due to the number of mushrooms that he’d had to eat was possibly the most embarrassed that he’d ever been though.

 

Peach fell asleep, and still he refused to give up.

 

The sun was starting to rise.

 

This was his final chance.

 

He took several deep breaths, shoving the power-up into his mouth before starting the course again.

 

One. Final. Chance.

 

…..

 

The snap of the metal piranha plant around him hurt, but it was nothing compared the feeling of knowing that he’d just failed. His last chance and he blew it.

 

His hands started to shake, feeling almost delirious with the shock and disappointment of his own failure.

 

“I-I- “ He cleared his throat, not wanting to sound like he was on the verge of a meltdown, “-I-I- can I- “ His voice broke and he stopped, looking down at the ground.

 

“…We’ve got a long journey ahead of us.” Peach’s voice was gentle, catching Mario off guard as his head shot up to look at her.

 

“But…I didn’t finish the course?”

 

“You almost did though, and honestly, I think one more attempt would probably have done it.” Peach chuckled, “You didn’t sleep…. You kept going even though it hurt. All to save your brother.”

 

“Anything for Weegee.” Mario looked up at the piranha plants that were still snapping at them, “Even those things.”

 

“Hmm…besides, no one gets it the first time.”

 

“…How many trys did it take you?”

 

Peach didn’t look him in the eyes, “So many… I was so bad at it, worse than you!”

 

“…You got it right away, didn’t you.”

 

“I got it right away, but I grew up here!”

 

“You’re just trying to make me feel better.”

 

“No, no!” She bit at her lower lip, “Is it working?”

 

“…A little bit.”

Chapter 7

It wasn’t supposed to be this way.

 

None of this was supposed to happen today.

 

In hindsight, he needed to argue against Mario more, to try and tell him when something was a terrible idea.

 

Now, as he limped along behind the strange, masked figures, he wished that he’d argued more than anything. He’d fought against these strange creatures, managing to hit one, only for one of the others to knock him onto his back, stepping on his ankle when he tried to get back up, tying his hands together and yanking him up.

 

His ankle was only twisted, but it was still too painful to walk on properly.

 

“W-what’s happening?” He asked, “W-where are you taking me?”

 

His throat stung from the screaming that he’d been doing.

 

He was ignored.

 

When he slowed down a little, they yanked on the rope that bound his wrists together, as the thing behind him pushed him forwards. They clambered up a rocky outreach, as Luigi tried not to yelp in pain, pushing into the basket of a hot air balloon, which soon took flight. Pressing himself against the basket wall as much as he could, clinging onto the sides, Luigi looked over the side of it, seeing the castle that he’d tried to hide in.

 

It reminded him of some of the castles he used to build when he was a toddler.

 

He remembered when a group of older boys started pushing him about, knocking over the castle, pulling the flag from the top of it, before knocking him to the ground.

 

He’d been so scared.

 

On the verge of crying.

 

And then Mario jumped in, punching and kicking until they all ran off.

 

‘It’s okay Weegee. I’ll always be there. I promise.’

 

Turning his face away from the castle, Luigi fought not to burst into tears.

 

He wanted Mario.

 

Mario would know what to do.

 

……

 

Mario wasn’t a stranger to feeling this kind of anxiety. He barely registered the crowd that came to see him and Princess Peach off on this journey that they were taking.

 

He was a stranger in this world.

 

And so was Luigi.

 

If he was struggling with all this, then how was his little brother feeling?

 

He was practically mute as they headed through the pipe, heading back through the town, and then out into the mushroom ridden fields that towered over them.

 

“Hey.” Peach’s gentle voice broke through his internal monologue, “Nervous?”

 

“Who me?... Yes. Very.”

 

Always.

 

Despite what he said to Luigi…God was it yesterday? The day before back in Brooklyn, before all this happened.

 

He knew what it was like to be anxious and nervous all the time, but he was better at hiding it.

 

The emergence of Toad was a bit of a relief to be honest, even if he was a bit miffed that he was just allowed to come with them, without going through that hellish obstacle, training course.

 

Still, as they trudged through different lands, and travelled through various pipes, he had to admit that he was pleased he was at least a little bit prepared. As he breathlessly reached the top of a rock sculpture, he saw Peach and Toad standing there and staring off into the distance. Slowly, Mario went to stand next to them, eyes widening at the view.

 

They were high in the sky, even high above clouds that were stained pink and purple in the setting sun.

 

“Pretty incredible, huh?” Peach looked over at him with a gentle smile.

 

“Mamma mia.” He whispered.

 

“I will never let anyone ruin this.” She turned to him, “No matter what.”

 

“…I understand Princess.”

 

He really did.

 

………………………

 

‘I’m going to win this time Mario, I am!”

 

‘Yeah?’

 

‘Loser buys dinner!’

 

‘I’m buying dinner either way! Do you even have enough pocket money!’

 

‘More than you!’

 

‘...The unfair part about that, is that it’s probably true.’

 

“Mario?”

 

Snapped out of his thoughts by the soft voice, Mario looked up from his cap, seeing Peach dropping some firewood to the ground. He’d been lost in a memory, one from only a few years ago, when Mario still worked for Spike... he and Luigi were still struggling to make ends meet most of the time, but he never let Luigi see how close they were to being evicted or going time without food.

 

He always protected Luigi.

 

“Thinking about your brother?”

 

Sighing, he rubbed his thumb over the M sewn into the front of it, casting his gaze over the field of fire flowers (a baffling thought) that they were spending the night in. “We’ve never been apart for this long.” he whispered, “It’s...it’s been us against the world for so long.”

 

“…Tell me?”

 

Mario chuckled, “Our Mama died not long after Luigi was born… I-I don’t know how but we were raised by Papa and Uncle Lu. I was eleven and Luigi was four when they went missing.”

 

“Missing?”

 

“Missing…we never saw them again, so we were labelled orphans.” Rubbing at his eyes, Mario shook his head, “We were allowed to stay together, and then when I turned eighteen, I was expected to just… leave Luigi. Let him be adopted and live my own life.”

 

“You weren’t going to do that though.”

 

“Never. I was his older brother; how could I just leave him?” Mario felt himself start to tear up just a little bit, “How-how could I just…let him go?”

 

‘Nothing can hurt us as long as we’re together!’

 

“Mario.”

 

He looked up, seeing Peach crouched in front of him, one hand reaching out as though to pat him on the shoulder.

 

“We’re going to save him.” She assured him, waiting until he returned her gentle smile, before bending down to a nearby fire flower, gently pressing her fingertips to the middle of it, not flinching as the flames washed over her, pink turning to white. She bounced a little fireball in the palm of her hand for a moment, before setting the firewood alight.

 

Mario stared at the flames in amazement for a moment, before putting his hat back on his head and clearing his throat.

 

“You know… you don’t seem like you’re from around here?”

 

Peach chuckled, “There are actually more humans than you think…just not many in the mushroom kingdom.” She shrugged, “I don’t know exactly where abouts I come from, but-but Toadsworth took me in when I was only a baby. He raised me like I was his own…took care of me through thick and thin, even when he was busy working for Princess Toadstool, I never wanted for anything.”

 

“…Princess Toadstool wasn’t your mother?”

 

Peach shook her head, a wistful look on her face, “No… she wasn’t.”

 

“How- “

 

“- Did I become Princess?” She sighed, “It’s a long story, and I don’t remember a lot of it. I know that she married a hero of the kingdom, but the council disapproved of the marriage. They let her choose her heir and therefore new Princess…and she chose me.”

 

Chosen by a Princess to rule.

 

Mario was in awe.

 

“How old were you?”

 

“Barely two years old.” She whispered, “I-I have vague memories of her and her family, but they’re…foggy for some reason.” She looked away for a moment, “I know she left, but I don’t know where.”

 

“Hey, maybe she settled in my world.” Mario teased, as Peach rolled her eyes fondly.

 

“There’s a huge universe out there, with a lot of different worlds and galaxies…but maybe you’re right.”

 

As Toad played music softly in the background, the pair stared off into the distance, the fire flowers swaying in the breeze all around them and for a moment, just for a moment, Mario felt calm.

Chapter 8

Luigi forced himself to remain upright as the balloon approached a horrific looking castle that seemed to be floating through the sky, his breathing heavy and ragged, the slightest whimper occasionally breaking free as he tried not to either have a panic attack or burst into tears….or both. He curled in on himself a little, already feeling his eyes filling with tears as the balloon slowly came to a stop, the masked being getting to their feet and yanking at his bindings.

 

His breathing turned even more shallow.

 

“Please.” He begged, “I-I don’t know what I did wrong?”

 

They ignored him as he was pulled off of the balloon, stumbling forwards as his ankle gave way out from under him.

 

“P-Please- “

 

He was just pulled to his feet and pulled along, none of them saying a word to him.

 

He looked around as they pulled him along, trying not to whimper when he saw the stone statues of a terrifying, dragon/turtle-like creature in various poses.

 

Clearly thinking that he was moving too slowly, one of the masked creatures kicked the back of his leg, making him stumble forwards, car falling down over his eyes. Somehow, the darkness was scarier than the statues…of course, being blind, meant that he didn’t expect the next tug that sent him sprawling onto the ground, landing heavily on his front with a cry of pain.

 

“We found him in the Darklands.” He heard someone hiss, taking deep breaths as he pushed himself to his knees and pushed his cap back up on his head, only to flinch back with a shaking exclamation of fear.

 

It seemed like the statues weren’t an exaggeration or some kind of…weird fascination.

 

Sitting on a large throne, was a dragon/turtle…monster, eyes narrowed at him, looking nothing short of pure fury.

 

“You.” The creature snarled down at him, as Luigi fought not to shrink back, seeing the monster get to his feet, “You dare to- leave him to me!”

 

It started to make its’ way down the steps towards him, as Luigi pulled his cap back over his eyes, hoping that this was all just a dream.

 

A nasty, nasty dream.

 

There was a flash of colour beside him, prompting him to look up, seeing a smaller creature dressed like a wizard. With a wave of the staff, the ropes binding him disappeared and some force lifted him into the air. He yelped as he was moved closer to the large creature, the hot breath from his nostrils already making the unbearable heat, even worse.

 

“You dare to come back here?”

 

Luigi frowned at the question, “I-I- what are you- “

 

“- He is too young Sire.” The wizard simpered, “This can’t be him.”

 

“THEN WHAT IS GOING ON?!”

 

Luigi whimpered at the bellow, as the wizard bowed frantically, “Some kind of time magic or- “ A look flashed across his face, “- perhaps it is merely a coincidence sire!”

 

The creature sneered, turning back to Luigi, “What is your name?”

 

“L-Luigi?”

 

He flinched as the creature turned back to the wizard.

 

What was going on?

 

…

 

What was going on?

 

When he first heard the news of the red-capped man travelling with the princess, he hadn’t thought about it twice. So, she was training him...big deal. How could he possibly compare to Bowser.

 

But now...with Luigi here.

 

Something was definitely going on.

 

….

 

“Do you know who I am?!”

 

“N-No?”

 

“I’m the guy, who’s about the rule the world. Overthrow all the pathetic little kingdoms and take it all for myself.” One dangerously sharp claw traced its way across Luigi’s cheek, as he squeaked in fear, trying to nod, only for the magic to stop him.

 

“Y-yay?”

 

“There’s just one problem…” The claw dug in a little, “… you have a twin, right?”

 

“No?”

 

The creature frowned, “No?” He paused for a moment, before continuing, “Well, the human who’s currently travelling with a particularly rebellious princess looks a lot like you. Except in red.”

 

Mario.

 

Luigi kept his mouth shut.

 

“Do you know him?”

 

“N-No!”

 

That answer didn’t sound as certain as he wanted it do.

 

“Tougher than you look, hm?” The creature dug the claw in further as Luigi felt a trickle of blood running down from the slight puncture wound, “I love it when they don’t talk.”

 

Luigi could feel the tears already running down his cheeks as the clawed hand moved to wrap around his throat instead, lightly squeezing, as though to remind him that with one hard squeeze, he could break Luigi’s neck in an instant. He fought back a whimper, opening his mouth.

 

“That’s just how humans dress.” He pleaded, “O-Overalls, hats with the initials of their first name on them! Please! I-I don’t know him!”

 

The grip tightened for a moment before the magic disappeared and the other hand grabbed his body, holding him in place, cutting off his breathing at the same time. The claws on the other hand then moved closer to his eyes.

 

“YOU KNOW HIM!”

 

“I-I don’t!”

 

“He dresses the same.” The wizard stated matter-of-factly, “It’s possible… that this is an older brother. Not just a twin.”

 

Luigi fought not to react, but there must have been something in his eyes that betrayed him. He yelped as he was thrown to the stone ground, feeling his green shirt rip a little at the force. He managed to push himself up a little, only to try and scramble away when he saw the creature stomping towards him.

 

“Well, let’s see how brave and tough big brother is, when I KILL HIS BROTHER IN FRONT OF HIM!”

 

……

 

Mario woke up with a scream, one hand clutching at his chest, body feeling like it was aching all over.

 

“Weegee.” He whispered, the word sounding very loud in the quiet of the fire flower field.

 

…..

 

It felt like there was a fire in his lungs, even as he shivered.

 

He yelped a little as the cage he was in dropped violently, clinging onto the bars as he fought not to be sick. He wasn’t sure how long the creature had spent taking out his frustrations on him, but it felt like hours.

 

Vaguely, he could hear voices talking to him, turning his head slightly in that direction.

 

“…Child! Monster!”

 

Fighting, Luigi opened his eyes, frowning when he saw a penguin wearing a crown staring at him in concern.

 

Was he really that hurt?

 

“He needs a healer!” The penguin called up, “He will die in here!”

 

Luigi opened his mouth to ask what was going on, only for the words to turn into a coughing fit, spitting up blood for his trouble. He was sure that it was nothing internal or anything like that, but he knew that he bit his tongue at some point during the beating, so it was probably that. He looked up at the top of his cage, letting out a slow breath, only to have another coughing fit which only seemed to make the other prisoners panic.

 

He wanted to cry, but he felt like he didn’t even have the energy for this.

 

“Do not close your eyes young one!” The Penguin called out again, “You must fight the urge to sleep!”

 

“I-I’ll try.” Luigi felt the first tear move down his face, “I’ll try.” He looked over the edge, quickly seeing that the source of the overwhelming heat, was the lava underneath him, “What-what is this place?” Hearing a giggling coming from his right, he flinched, only to yelp when the pain kicked in. When the pain passed and he finally felt like he could breathe again, he focused on the creature in the cage a little above him, frowning when he saw that it was a glowing, blue star-like thing.

 

His hallucinations were getting odder and odder.

 

The star stared at him. “You’re home.”

 

“Pay him no heed.” The penguin king sighed, “He’s cute but he’s a bit- “ He made a ‘tapped in the head’ gesture

 

“In an insane world…” The star floated around its’ cage, “…it is the sane who are called crazy.”

 

A paper windmill was produced out of nowhere, flying free from the stick and falling into the lava.

 

“H-how long have you guys been in here?”

 

“Time, like hope, is an illusion.”

 

“Please!” The King snapped, “We are depressed enough!”

 

Luigi peered over the side again, before trying to look around. There must be some sort of lever system in here. “There’s got to be a way out.” He whispered, only for the star to speak up again.

 

“There is no escape. The only hope is the sweet release of death!”

 

The words were met with an outcry of disbelief from the other prisoners

 

“Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me!”

 

Luigi groaned, resting his head against the bars.

 

Maybe…maybe some sleep would help.

 

“Hey! Hey, don’t fall asleep! HEY!”

Chapter 9

Mario was prepared for a lot of things.

 

Talking monkeys wearing sport jackets, driving carts at frightening speeds and Kings who sneered down at him, were so far from what he was prepared for.

 

“I know you!” King Cranky pointed at him, making Mario take a step back.

 

“Me?”

 

“Yeah!” Cranky leant forwards, eyes narrowing at him, “Not sure how you managed to look younger when I turned into...this, but you always were a bit of a prick! Couldn’t share the secret of eternal youth with me, huh? Your best friend?”

 

“...What is going on right now?”

 

“And why do you sound funny?!”

 

“Funny? This is my accent!”

 

The King limped down from his throne, getting right up in Mario’s face, scanning him from head to toe, before laughing. “Ha! And here I thought you’d never find your way back here!”

 

“What are you- “

 

“Come, come, come!” The King grabbed his arm, pulling towards the throne, “I’m not surprised you don’t remember me, you were barely bigger than Diddy when you left. Little hurt that you don’t remember, I’m not going to lie to you brat. Especially with how many blueberries and bananas you and DK used to con out of me when you were tots. I had to remind you both to chew, because you just used to swallow them whole and that was a choking hazard and a half!”

 

Mario did like blueberries.

 

“And no matter what your Daddy says, ‘yummy’ was your first word, not Mummy.”

 

“You knew my Dad? How, you- “

 

“- He was my best friend, weren’t you listening earlier?!”

 

Mario had no idea what was going on, looking back at Peach, whose eyes were wide as she watched the King pulling him away.

 

“Umm…Sir? What about the army? Stopping Bowser…saving my little brother?”

 

Cranky Kong stopped. “Ah…I forgot about the baby. Big blue eyes…jumped at nearly everything. Cute kid.”

 

“You knew Luigi?”

 

“Obviously!” The King scoffed, “If I knew you, I knew your brother, even if he was barely sitting up when you all had to leave.” He then chuckled, “Of course you’d come back to fight that Bowser brat. There were only two people who could ever keep that boy in line, and one’s dead, the other forced out after that.”

 

“…Is he going to hurt my brother?”

 

There was a moment of silence, before Cranky sighed, looking over at him. “Honestly, I don’t know….but with Mario coming to rescue him, how can he be worried?!”

 

“Ummm...”

 

“- You need to show me how much you’ve improved from when you were a kid!” The King slapped him hard on the back, nearly sending him flying forwards, “You and DK, in the arena! He’ll be thrilled to see that you’re back, and I reckon you can probably knock him down a couple of pegs.”

 

What was going on?

 

…….

 

“He’s talking like he knew me.” Mario muttered, looking up at Peach who was scanning him from head to toe, “Like I’ve been here before?”

 

“I think…we might need to talk.”

 

“Is something wrong?”

 

She eyed him for a moment or two more, before turning away and shaking her head, “I can’t believe I didn’t see it before.”

 

“See what before? What’s going- “

 

Trumpets blared and a gorilla popped his head into the room.

 

“Princess Peach. Are you going to be taking your seat?”

 

“Yes.” She got to her feet, smoothing out her dress, “Of course. I have to have a little talk with your King before the match.”

 

…..

 

“You’re not going to let this army thing go, are you?”

 

Peach looked over at the King, who was giving her a curious look.

 

“You have HIM on your side…his Dad never needed an army.”

 

“…He doesn’t remember this world. He doesn’t remember how to fight, or how the power-ups work.” Peach sighed, “I-I knew there was something familiar about him. Anyway if I’m being honest…I don’t think he overly cares about his past. He just wants to save his brother.”

 

“All the more reason why I don’t think you need my army.” Kranky scoffed, “I remember what his Dad was like when the green one got hurt or captured. Nothing would get in his way. He wasn’t like that with the Princess when she got captured, that was just part of the routine…but that brother of his- “ He whistled, “- I liked the Green one. He was nice.”

 

“Luigi is his world. I know that you don’t want to get involved in all this, but Bowser is determined to control all worlds, including yours. Surely joining forces would be beneficial to you as well?”

 

“Hmm…tell you what.” Kranky chuckled, “If Mario Junior can beat my son in a fair fight, then my army is yours.”

 

“…You had high hopes about him winning before.”

 

“Then you’ve got nothing to worry about, right?”

 

Peach somehow suspected that it wouldn’t be that easy.

 

…..

 

Bowser wasn’t an idiot.

 

Barely listening to Kamek as he reported that this red-hatted stranger had made it to the Kong Kingdom, Bowser thought about the one in his dungeon.

 

How could this have happened?

 

It wasn’t…him.

 

But then why were they so similar?

 

“They’ll use the Rainbow Bridge to try and cut me off.” He snapped, cutting his adoptive father off, “Cut them off instead and bring the big brother to me.”

 

“Of course Sire.”

 

He then moved to the barred window, out of sight from the prisoners, but giving him the perfect view of them.

 

Luigi was awake now, listening to whatever the Penguin King was saying to him.

 

Who was he?

 

Why was he even here?

 

What did this all mean?

 

….

 

Mario looked up at the gorilla that was currently making his pecs dance, having battered Mario to the ground. The fight had been going on for a little over ten minutes now, and Mario wasn’t sure that the King had been telling the truth about he and this…Donkey Kong ever being friends.

 

“Come on!” Donkey Kong scowled at him, “You’re no fun anymore!”

 

“This is fun?!” Mario groaned, pushing himself to his feet, determined not to give up, even if he was faced with impossible odds.

 

After the disaster that was the blue mushroom (why wasn’t he told about all these power-ups?), he was filled with a large amount of self-doubt.

 

He couldn’t beat a gorilla…how was he meant to defeat this Bowser?

 

He needed to get higher.

 

There had to be better power ups the higher up he went, right?

 

He just had to focus.

 

Focus on what was important here.

 

He needed the Kong army to defeat Bowser and free Luigi.

 

He needed to see his brother curling up with one of his books, sipping on some coffee as the world faded around him. He wanted to see him tending to the plants in their pathetic little garden on overcast days, losing himself in the process, not even realising that it was raining, until Mario called him in.

 

Even then it used to take a while though.

 

Unless it was an actual thunderstorm, Luigi quite enjoyed standing out in the light rain.

 

He had to see all that again.

 

Taking a deep breath, he raced to the higher levels.

 

It was time to end this.

 

…"Meow?”

Chapter 10

Mario walked across the decking of the hut, wincing as he poked at the bruise that was forming around his eye, groaning when his hip ached. He went to rest against the railings, only to straighten up when he saw Princess Peach emerge from inside the home.

 

“How are you feeling?” She asked softly.

 

“Sore but, yay…” He raised one fist into the air, “…I won.”

 

Not in a dignified way, by any means, but a win nonetheless.

 

“You were amazing!” She gushed fondly, “You kept getting knocked down, but you never gave up! Not even a little!”

 

“That- “ Mario paused, taking in the words, “- Huh, I’ve never heard tha described as a positive thing before.”

 

“What?”

 

“The whole ‘not knowing when to quit thing’.” He shrugged, “When Luigi and I were in the orphanage, I was always getting into fights…usually with kids who were a lot bigger than me. Usually, the ones that picked on him and pushed him around.” He sighed, “There was one time, we’d all gone on a trip to the zoo… some of the older boys were hanging Luigi over the side of a gorilla enclosure, threatening to drop him in as Luigi screamed.”

 

“But- “

 

“- The gorillas in my world are a lot different than they are here.” Mario chuckled, “A lot, lot different. Needless to say, they’re not as clever…or loud, and would easily kill a child if they thought it was a threat, or if they’d been riled up.”

 

“What did you do?”

 

“They put him back down when one of the orphanage workers looked over, but by that point…” Mario shrugged, “…I had the guy on the ground. If it hadn’t been for the fact that he was nearly three times my weight and size, I would have held him over the edge of the enclosure. He easily got control, but I didn’t stop. I was going to win, no matter what.”

 

Peach was silent, staring at him with a soft look in her eyes. When she did finally open her mouth to speak, the door slammed open and DK swaggered out to them.

 

“Just so you know man, I LET you win.” DK seemed very casual about it though, shoving a banana into his mouth, smirking with his mouth full at Mario, who wasn’t sure how to react, “Surprised you went for the cat one though. You hated getting that one when we were kids. Used to run into walls to make it disappear.”

 

“Huh… It was pretty useful actually.”

 

It was weird that this gorilla knew more about him than he did.

 

“Yeah. You and your cousin used to have these big fights, and he used to carry dangly things around with him to try and distract you, in case you got that power-up…like the little cheat that he was.”

 

“Cousin?” Mario whispered, “I have a cousin?”

 

Another one?

 

He knew about Wario and Waluigi, the idiotic pair back on Earth…but to have one here?

 

DK frowned at his reaction, opening his mouth to say something, only for his fathers’ staff to lightly hit him on the arm, stopping him in his tracks. “Are we here to gossip or to plan? We’ve got an army to fight, come on!”

 

…

 

Mario was going to die.

 

The plan itself was simple enough, and the cart building was a lot more fun than he expected it to be…but there was no end to this road.

 

“Umm, I don’t mean to alarm anyone!” He called out, hoping that someone heard him over the roaring of the engines, “But the road ends!”

 

King Cranky roared with laughter at the comment, as he pulled up alongside Mario, leaning over, “Hold on and floor it kid! It’ll all come back to you!”

 

One his other side, DK pulled up, “Race ya!”

 

There was a primal part of his brain that was triggered by the statement, watching as DK zoomed out ahead of him. Pressing his foot hard against the accelerator, he sped forwards.

 

It was just like the racing games he and Luigi played.

 

It was all about control and taking risks.

 

He closed his eyes, pushing his foot down as far as it would go, not wanting to watch the end (just in case this was the end). He heard his engine rev, feeling himself going completely weightless for a moment. For a moment, it felt like he was flying.

 

A familiar feeling.

 

A wonderful feeling.

 

It seemed to end all too soon, grunting as he landed back on a solid surface, hands gripping at the wheel to keep the kart steady, the wheels spinning left and right for a moment or two before it straightened out again.

 

“Wahoo!” He cheered, the noise sounding cartoonish even to his ears.

 

He didn’t care though.

 

They were going to do this.

 

….

 

Bowser had loved his parents very much.

 

He remembered his Father’s rumbling laughter, how it bounced with such zest and joy that it never failed to make him smile as well. He remembered his Papi’s voice, how it lulled with such love and care that always made him feel better, no matter how he was feeling. He remembered their warm smiles.

 

Most of all, he remembered their hugs; how warming they were, giving him complete reassurance that he was safe, that he was loved.

 

Cold red eyes stared down at the prisoner in the cage, watching that head loll from side to side, the other prisoners trying to wake him up.

 

He looked like-

 

His mind wandered to the memories of his childhood, to the memories that he had long kept buried, even the fuzzy ones that he couldn’t fully bring to the forefront of his mind.

 

It had been eighteen years since he’d lost them.

 

Head dropping forwards, he took several deep breaths.

 

“Your Horribleness?”

 

Schooling his face back into a frown, he looked over to see Kamek standing there. “What?” He hissed.

 

“The Kongs, the human and the Princess are on Rainbow Bridge, moving to cut us off.”

 

“…Launch the attack.”

 

The Mushroom Kingdom would be his.

 

These worlds would ALL be his.

 

….

 

Luigi weakly looked around, hearing those booming footsteps walking away.

 

His brother was coming for him.

 

He had to get out of here.

Chapter 11

It was hard to believe that this week had started out so normally.

 

Luigi groaned, thinking that dawn couldn’t be too far now, judging from the light coming in from the very narrow windows high up in the sky. The creature that they called Bowser was gone, and had been for a while, leaving minimal guards behind.

 

“I don’t like this.” King Penguin muttered, “Something big is going on.”

 

“The attack on the Mushroom Kingdom!”

 

Panic erupted.

 

Struggling to keep his eyes open, Luigi fought not to black out, getting to his feet and scanning the area. These cages were lowered and pulled up using a winch system, hanging freely…They weren’t particularly strong…with one good strike, he could probably free a few bars from their places.

 

No, too risky.

 

Swinging ran the risk of the chain breaking and sending him down to the lava down below.

 

There were very few guards hanging about that he could see, and certainly none that he could try and knock out to take their keys like they did in all the cool spy films.

 

“..d? Kid?”

 

He looked over at King Penguin, wincing at his aching muscles, seeing that there were several people staring at him.

 

“I- “

 

“- They’ll be coming round with water soon.” One of the penguins reported, not sounding overly sure about it, “You’ll feel a little better then.”

 

“…We need to get out of here.”

 

“Yeees, but- “

 

“- if we can figure out how to get up there.” Luigi pointed at where he was sure the pully system to be, “Then the rest is easy.”

 

“We’re in the middle of Bower’s ship!”

 

Luigi didn’t answer that.

 

They had to think positively about this after all.

 

….

 

“They’re dead.”

 

Peach heard the words faintly as she was forced to keep going. Vaguely, she could hear Toad cursing Bowers out as the Kongs were all carried away. They hadn’t expected the ambush from Bowser’s troops, and nor had they expected the Blue Shell Trooper to blow up the Rainbow Road, sending DK and Mario to the water down below.

 

The chances of their survival was slim, but she couldn’t focus on that.

 

She had to get her people to safety.

 

She would face down Bowser until the bitter end, just as Mario had.

 

She wouldn’t give up.

 

She wouldn’t give in.

 

….

 

There were lights coming from the upper north platforms.

 

That seemed to be the least used pathway, with the south being the most heavily travelled.

 

Get out of the cages and go north.

 

That was two steps of a very incomplete plan.

 

Avoiding eye contact with guards that was flying past, Luigi tried to focus on the first part of the plan, over-hearing them talking about the destruction of some… Rainbow Road. Brushing his sweaty hair back under his hat, wincing as it pulled at bloodied head wounds, he took a deep breath.

 

Focus.

 

Hissing as his burnt skin pulled a little, he got to his feet, peering up at the high platforms.

 

Monkeys. Penguins. Floating stars. Mushrooms and turtles.

 

All trapped together and together, they should be able to stand up against this Bowser, right?

 

“You would have thought these cages would be bigger.” The ape with the crown on his head stated, pushing himself to his feet with a grumble.

 

“Fresh meat for the grinder! The tighter the cage, the more tender the meat!”

 

Luigi felt a little ill at the words.

 

“Wow.” The ape muttered, “Who’s this ray of sunshine?”

 

“There is no sunshine! Only darkness!”

 

As the rest of the prisoners ordered the little star to shut up, Luigi tried to tune them out, ignoring how every bit of him ached. When an accidental hiss broke free, everything went silent for a moment.

 

“Jeez, Bowser’s beating up kids now?” The ape muttered, before his eyes widened, “Oh…it’s little Luigi.”

 

“I’m taller than Mario.” Luigi muttered, only flinching a little when the ape burst out laughing.

 

“Yeah, that’s doesn’t take much. You must have got lucky.” He eyed Luigi, “You look a lot like the other one in green, that must have driven Bowser nuts.”

 

Luigi didn’t know how to respond to that, his wounds aching as he turned his attentions back to trying to figure out a way to get out of here.

 

“You look like a man with a plan.” The ape stated, “Don’t suppose you can figure this out before Bowser destroys the Mushroom Kingdom?”

 

“Is there no chance of outside assistance?” King Penguin asked.

 

“Not unless the other kingdoms hear about this and can somehow teleport. One of Bowser’s minions blew up the Ranbow bridge, and there’s very few pipes that’ll help.”

 

“Did I hear you mention a Mario?”

 

“Yeah, you probably remember him as the kid who kept throwing you off hills because you liked sliding down them. You always acted like he was throwing you off of a cliff though.”

 

“…He left.”

 

“Yep. The whole family forced to leave.” The ape held out his arms, “He comes back and Bowser- “ He cut himself off quickly, looking over at Luigi, who stared back at him.

 

“What?” Luigi’s voice cracked a little, “What did Bowser do?”

 

“…Kid, I’m sorry.”

 

Luigi felt like he was going to be sick. “Sorry?” His voice came out strained, “Sorry for what?!”

 

“When the Rainbow Bridge was destroyed, my son and your brother…they fell into the sea below. I’m sorry kid, but there’s no way that anyone survived that.”

 

“M-Mario can swim though/”

 

“Maybe...but there are sea creatures in there that wouldn’t even consider him a crumb.”

 

“Cranky!” The King Penguin hissed, “Not helping.”

 

Luigi barely heard this though, the words coming through like they were having to push through fog first.

 

Mario... was dead?

 

Gone?

 

Feeling his heart racing, breathing unsteady, he collapsed back to the floor of the cage, burying his head into his hands.

 

“Kid...I’m sorry.” The older ape sighed, “I- “

 

“- We need to get out of here.” Luigi interrupted, voice weak, “I’ll take any plan that you can think of.”

 

“You’re more red, black and blue than the colour you’re supposed to be, you couldn’t- “

 

“- Can you take out one of the guards?”

 

For a moment, there was nothing but silence, until Cranky smirked. “You got your brains from your Mama kid. Yeah, I can do that.”

Chapter 12

Mario felt like he was going to be sick.

 

The stench was enough to practically suffocate him, hugging himself tightly as he sat with his back to DK.

 

He couldn’t breathe.

 

But he knew that death wouldn’t come that easily… they’d probably starve to death in here first. He would die with the knowledge that he failed to save his brother. Tears rolled down his face, feeling like acid against his skin.

 

“So, this is the end, huh?”

 

It was like Donkey Kong knew what he was thinking.

 

“Being slowly digested by an eel whilst sitting next to a guy who’s just given up.”

 

“…My brother is going to die because of me.”

 

“At least you’re not going to die with your Dad thinking you’re a jerk.”

 

“…At least you still have your Dad.”

 

“...He was a hero, how could he have just gone missing.” DK looked around, “Unless he got swallowed by a giant eel as well?”

 

“We don’t have giant eels, none that can swallow someone anyway.”

 

“Lucky.”

 

Mario curled in a little further on himself.

 

His parents would be so disappointed in him right now.

 

"Are you really going to stay here and feel sorry for yourself?" DK tried again, "I don't remember a lot about your Dad, but I know that he wouldn't just- "

 

"- Leave me alone!" Mario snapped, "Just...go in a corner and smash something you-you smash-monkey!"

 

"HEY! I am more than a guy who just smashes things!"

 

They glared at each other for a moment, before they heard a rumbling from further inside the eel, both of them slowly turning and watching as it came towards them, the force of it sending them flying back, impacting heavily with something.

 

When Mario finally got his breathing back under control, he turned to see what they had hit.

 

DK’s kart.

 

With a rocket still attached.

 

Slowly, he turned to look at DK, who had an identical look on his face.

 

Yeah.

 

He could see why they used to be friends.

 

….

 

A good plan had several parts to it, all of which should lead to a success.

 

At the moment, this plan was mostly a success.

 

The ship had stopped for some reason and the vast majority of the guards were somewhere else, meaning that after the tricky step of getting out of the cages, getting out of the dungeons was relatively simple.

 

Luigi felt like he was going to pass out soon though.

 

He took six more steps before collapsing against the nearest wall, the group ahead, stopping in their tracks to look back at him.

 

“You okay kid?”

 

“I-I- “

 

“- His injuries are great.” The Penguin King frowned, “Do we know where there are any power ups?”

 

Power-ups?

 

Luigi wanted to ask questions but didn’t think he could summon the breath to do so.

 

“It’s not like Bowser’s just going to leave them lying around.”

 

“He might!”

 

The two bickered, and Luigi could feel himself losing consciousness.

 

He couldn’t let it.

 

He had to help the others get out of here.

 

He couldn’t fail.

 

He just could just see the letters now.

 

‘Sorry Mario,

 

Your brother failed to save a lot of people, whilst you were trying to save him.

 

Sincerely, all the people who he failed to save.’

 

“Little one?”

 

He looked up, seeing the Monkey King standing there, reaching out and pulling him to his feet.

 

“One step at a time alright?”

 

“A-alright.”

 

“The good thing is, is that we did actually find some power-ups. Take one of those and then all these bruises and bumps will be gone in a flash, you just watch.” And then he handed him a mushroom…with a face, “Eat that.”

 

Luigi stared at it for a moment, before taking it and shoving it in with a grimace, only for his eyes to widen when the first bite had it exploding all over his tongue in a burst of odd flavour.

 

He straightened up with a groan, only to realise that nothing hurt anymore.

 

“Wow.” He muttered, “This is amazing.”

 

“Good aren’t they, now, what’s the plan?”

 

It was then that Luigi realised that everyone was looking right at him.

 

“Well…a ship this big has to have some sot of ventilation system, right? We can…probably travel through there?”

 

“Let’s find us a vent entrance then!”

 

They all rushed forwards and Luigi took a deep breath.

 

He was back in the game.

 

…..

 

He was not fully back in the game.

 

He as good as stumbled out of the vent once the coast was clear.

 

There had been very little sign of any guards hanging around, which was both a relief and worrying. Despite the mushroom, he was exhausted, bone-tired and his body ached a little. He was sure that one wrong step, and his leg would snap out from under him.

 

They were out though.

 

He had to focus on that.

 

And then they stumbled across the Toad citizen.

 

….

 

Toad’s shoulder slumped after having visited the princess in her cell.

 

She seemed optimistic, and he wanted to share that optimism but-

 

“Aah!”

 

“SSSH!”

 

Toad clutched at his heart, looking up at King Cranky and then over at the Penguin King, “Don’t do that to me!”

 

“What are you doing out and about?” Cranky scowled, “We heard that the Princess was taken captive.”

 

“…Because of me.” Toad looked down, “Because he didn’t want to see me hurt.” He shook his head, “But I’m going to make sure that Bowser doesn’t get the chance to destroy my home, with these.” He held up the bouquet of flowers.

 

“We’re saved.” Cranky rolled his eyes, “Is there an actual plan.”

 

Toad explained it as quickly as he could, vaguely hearing the two royals musing over it as his eyes landed on a figure dressed in a green version of a very familiar outfit.

 

// “Look, I need to find someone! My little brother. He looks… well, he looks a lot like me, except tall, skinny and wearing green, an L on his hat instead of an M- “ \\

 

// “I-I need to see the princess, please! My brother is in trouble, I need her help to save him!” \\

 

// “We’ve never been apart for this long.” he whispered, “It’s...it’s been us against the world for so long.” \\

 

“Oh my god.” He whispered, pointing one shaky finger at the man, “Oh my god! Y-you’re Luigi!”

 

The young man stared at him, eyes wide.

 

“Oh my- WOW!”

 

Ignoring the hisses from the others for him to keep quiet, Toad rushed over to the other man, “You look just like him…except taller and no moustache or anything!”

 

“You-you knew my brother?” Tears were building up in Luigi’s eyes, and Toad felt instantly guilty.

 

“Yeah….he was my best friend you know. He always talked about you!”

 

Was that too far?

 

It didn’t seem like it when Luigi moved a little closer, “Not-not anything embarrassing, right?”

 

“Nah!”

 

There was a slightly tearful smile, and Toad felt a little bit better.

 

Mario wasn’t here…but he was going to save his brother and that’s what Mario wanted, right?

 

Of course he was right!

 

He was Toad!

Chapter 13

Luigi wasn’t sure for how much longer he was going to last.

 

The first couple of minutes or two after meeting with Toad weren’t too bad, but now, even with the power up, he was starting to ache.

 

These corridors were far too long.

 

He kept silence as the others all talked around him, focusing on keep one foot in front of the other as they headed down into the cells.

 

“Toad!” A feminine voice exclaimed, “What are you doing here? I thought you were going to- “

 

“- I got it, don’t worry!”

 

“Ssh!”

 

Luigi hung back a little as the flowers were shoved through the bars, his eyes widening as there was a flash of blue light and the bars of the cell were suddenly frozen shut, shattering with a sound that made him yelp. Seconds later, a blonde woman in a blue dress stepped out, brushing her dress out a little. She looked a little stunned to see Cranky and the others there, eyes scanning over them.

 

“How did you- “

 

Then her eyes landed on Luigi, and one hand moved to cover her mouth. “Oh.” She whispered, “You’re- “ She cut herself off, moving quickly towards Luigi, who had to admit to a little flinch, barely able to relax when she wrapped her arms around him, “You’re here.” She sighed in relief, “You’re here and safe, Mario will…He would have been so happy.”

 

Luigi could feel himself on the verge of tears again, as they pulled apart and she held him at arm’s length.

 

“We’re going to get you out of here.” She promised, “I swear to you. we’ll get you home.”

 

Home.

 

What was the point when his brother was dead.

 

Luigi said nothing though, and simply nodded.

 

She then turned to the others, “Do we have a plan for getting out of here?”

 

“Ask the kid.” Cranky smirked, “It’s good that one of them got the Momma’s brains.”

 

All eyes turned to Luigi, who gulped.

 

....

 

Falling from such a height after being shot out of the sky wasn’t Mario’s idea of fun, but he was seriously starting to bond with DK.

 

The koopas looked alarmed at the sight of them, some of them moving to stand protectively in front of the boxes they had been moving.

 

“Race ya!” He pushed DK to the ground as the gorilla whooped and gave chase.

 

Up on the ship, there was a battle waging.

 

…

 

He thought they’d be able to get out this way.

 

Finding the boxes had been a blessing and now everyone had some sort of power-up, with some back-ups stashed…but he had no idea that Bowser would be here.

 

There was so much hatred in his eyes as he stared them down.

 

“Don’t worry kid.” Cranky whispered in his ear, not looking away from Bowser, “Thanks to you, we have the upper hand.”

 

It really didn’t help.

 

Peach leapt forwards and everything descended into chaos.

 

….

 

“What’s going on up there?!” Mario yelped as he struggled to fly in the racoon power-up that he was now using, swaying from side to side as he focused on flying straight.

 

“Dunno! But I bet it’s going to be fun!”

 

…

 

Luigi yelped as he hit the wall, feeling the power-up vanish in a second.

 

The ground shook as Bowser headed towards him, the slow and steady pace making Luigi panic as it got closer and closer.

 

“Poor…little…Luigi.” Bowser hissed, “Cowardly little Luigi.”

 

He tried to push himself to his feet, not daring to take his eyes off of the creature, knowing that as soon as he tried to run, he would probably be dead.

 

As it stood, it didn’t help.

 

A fist grabbed him by his shirt, throwing him into the ground, pinning him there as he screamed in pair. There was a strange ringing in his ear, and from the wetness in it, he was sure that it was bleeding.

 

Another slam and he was sure that something in his knee popped.

 

Another.

 

He couldn’t hear anything, the ringing getting higher and higher to the point where it was unbearable.

 

He was yanked to his feet, feeling dazed and confused, seeing Bowser lashing out at other people... he was roaring, but Luigi couldn’t hear a thing. He stumbled a little, only for Bowser to grip at his hat and hair, instead of his shirt, making him yelp.

 

Or at least, he was sure that he yelped.

 

And then he was looking right into the glowing mouth of the monster, before being dropped to the ground, wincing at the impact. He tried to move back as best he could, but was unable to go far as a clawed foot sped towards him.

 

His hearing recovered just as it made contact.

 

“LUIGI!”

 

And then he was falling.

 

Below him, the floor was glowing in ominous shades of red, orange and yellow.

 

....

 

“LUIGI!”

 

Mario heard the cry, looking up to see a green shape suddenly get launched over the side of the ship.

 

Luigi.

 

No.

 

“LUIGI!”

 

…..

 

Huh.

 

The sky was so blue here.

 

A sharp contrast from the reds down below.

 

Time seemed to slow down all around him, and with the weightlessness of falling, he finally felt like he'd stopped hurting.

 

And then something grabbed his hand, stopping his fall in his tracks and making him cry out in pain at the sudde action, the other arm moving up to grab at whatever was now carrying him away from the danger.

 

Through tear-filled eyes, he looked up, blue eyes meeting blue.

 

“Weegee!”

 

“Mario?!”

 

He clung on as Mario flew them to safety, placing him back on the deck, where Peach seemed to have frozen Bowser into a solid block of ice. He didn’t have time to focus on that though, not when Mario was looking at him like he couldn’t believe he was actually standing there, hands still on his shoulders, unable to let him go.

 

“See?” Mario’s voice cracked a little at the tearful whisper, “What did I say. As long as we’re together, everything will be okay.”

 

Luigi felt the tears building up in his own eyes, lunging forwards and wrapping Mario up in a hug, ignoring the sharp pains that raced through every nerve in his body.

 

“You’re alive.” He whispered, “You’re actually alive.”

 

Or he was dead.

 

But in that moment, he didn’t care what the truth was.

 

Mario was here.

 

….In a bear suit.

 

Hearing the others rushing closer, Luigi pulled back a little, wiping at his eyes. Before anyone could say anything though, there was a horrible cracking sound.

 

Like ice breaking.

Chapter 14

He had never felt so angry.

 

Not when his dad died.

 

Not when his Mama went missing, right after promising him that he was going to teach him how to repair his own little ship.

 

Seeing the victorious smirks, like they’d already won, the anger bubbled up and there was no chance of stopping it now.

 

…

 

When all this was over and he was alone, Luigi knew that he would hear the sound of the ice cracking and the bellow of rage that followed.

 

It was a nightmare that he knew would not leave him be.

 

“DESTROY THE MUSHROOM KINGDOM!”

 

What looked like a large bullet was fired and then his brother was gone, flying after it desperately, as Bowser broke free from his ice prison and charged after them all.

 

“Luigi!” Peach grabbed his arm, pulling him towards shelter, “Stay here.”

 

“I-I can- “

 

“- Please.” She pleaded with him, “I couldn’t forgive myself if Mario just got you back, only for you to be hurt again.”

 

She was probably right.

 

He was sure that he was bleeding from somewhere…one more hit from that creature and he would probably-

 

He cut his own thoughts off, not wanting to send himself into a panic over it.

 

He nodded, and watched as the princess ran off to continue fighting the group.

 

How did it come to this?

 

That was all he could think about now, staring in horror as Bowser bellowed at his attackers. His insides were frozen in terror, his lungs gulping down shallow breaths that did nothing to bring much-needed oxygen to his numbing limbs.

 

Was this how this adventure ended?

 

He raised his hands to cover his face in a final, futile attempt to block it all out.

 

He was weak.

 

He was a coward.

 

…And there was a chance that his brother would die because of it.

 

“WE’RE GOING TO CRASH!”

 

Luigi braced himself as best he could.

 

….

 

He heard the panicked cries first.

 

Wearily, Mario pushed himself up from the ground, vision blurred as he looked around the apparent crash site.

 

He could make out vague shapes, but nothing concrete.

 

There were several shades of green, but not the one he was looking for.

 

“Luigi?!” He coughed out, “Luigi?!”

 

“Mario! Look out!”

 

He looked up, seeing Bowser charging towards him. So battered and bruised, he didn’t get the chance to dodge or anything like that.

 

Bowser rammed right into him, and Mario was sure that he actually heard his arm snapping at the force of it. He got to his feet, refusing to back down, even though he was terrified and still, he couldn’t see Luigi anywhere.

 

The rest of the group were fighting Bowser’s minions and where not doing well by the looks of it.

 

He had to help them.

 

He had to find Luigi.

 

He had to do something!

 

In the middle of his panicked thoughts, he barely noticed that Bowser had spotted him, the creature beyond furious at having his plans completely and totally ruined. Throwing DK to one side with no effort, he charged at Mario, who was forced to scamper back, dodging the attacks as best he could.

 

With no power-up though, there wasn’t much of a chance that he was going to-

 

A wrong hit to the shell, and Mario was sure he heard his fingers breaking.

 

His other hand felt like it broke entirely when he tried again.

 

The tail hit him in the mid-section, sending him flying through air, fair out of the sight of the main fight, where he lay on the grass for a moment, feeling nothing but pain.

 

He was sure that there was something actually sticking out of his lower leg.

 

As he lay there, letting the weight of everything settling into his bones, he wondered if this was what it was like to give up.

 

He could hear the roaring of Bowser.

 

HIs vision was starting to blur a little.

 

‘You need to get up kiddo.’

 

“Papa?” He squinted, trying to figure out where the voice was coming from, “I-I can’t- “

 

‘- Of course you can. One foot in front of the other, remember?’

 

His chest tightened at the words, as he pushed himself to his feet, rubbing at his eye, wincing when he felt just how swollen it was. He knew that he was trembling, but all he could hear was that voice.

 

‘One front in front of the other. Weegee needs you, remember?’

 

Luigi did need him.

 

“I know Papa.” He murmured, “I know.”

 

‘Use the star.’

 

Mario had no idea what his Papa meant, too focused on moving towards the sound of the fight.

 

“YOU ALL REALLY THOUGHT THAT YOU COULD STOP ME?!” He heard Bowser a little clearer now, “YOUR HERO IS A WORTHLESS, WEAK LITTLE NOTHING! TOO SCARED TO COME OUT AND FACE ME!”

 

He was close.

 

He took a deep breath, “Lets-a-go.”

 

He entered the wreckage site, just in time to see Bowser overpowering DK, punching the gorilla, grabbing him by the throat and lifting him up into the air, baring the claws on the other hand as he went to finish DK off.

 

But that was Mario’s friend.

 

He wasn’t about to let that happen.

 

“HEY!” He snapped, “LEAVE HIM ALONE!”

 

…

 

Luigi was slightly ashamed to admit that he’d been hiding since the crash, feeling like he couldn’t fully move anyway.

 

He hadn’t moved when Mario was thrown into the wilderness.

 

He hadn’t moved when the others all started to fight Bowser.

 

He just…hadn’t moved.

 

‘It’s okay kiddo.’ He heard someone say close to his ear, making him flinch and turn, seeing no-one there.

 

‘You’ll know what to do’ The voic then said, ‘Remember to use the star.’

 

…What?

 

“HEY! LEAVE HIM ALONE!”

 

“M-Mario?”

 

……

 

Bowser dropped DK, letting him fall to the ground, "You just don't know when to quit!"

 

"Yeah." Mario shrugged, "I've been told that before.

 

He glanced over at Peach, who was smiling softly. She then looked over at the star that was by Kamek.

 

"Mario!" She broke free of the Koopa Troopas, kicking a green shell, which knocked into the star, sending it flying over Mario's head, landing behind him, "The star!"

 

'Use the star.'

 

He was running before the sentence was even finished, pushing past the pain as Bowser bellowed in rage behind him.

 

"NO! That's MINE!"

 

There was a deep intake of breath, just as Mario fell a short distance before the star, his leg giving up on him.

 

He saw the flames building in Bowers' throat...and closed his eyes.

 

"MARIO!"

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 1 of Super Mario Bros AU