Chapter 1: The Torus and the Disc

The Mushroom Kingdom was currently enjoying another period of peace and prosperity. Not that any of the kingdom's subjects were harbouring any delusions that the Koopas wouldn't make yet another invasion attempt once they'd recovered from the one Mario & Luigi thwarted last month. For now, at least, happy times reigned.

Wary of having their princess kidnapped for the twenty-eight...no, twenty-ninth time, the leading member of the famous plumbers was accompanying her on her trip to the country's borders. As part of the post-war efforts a team of skilled Toad carpenters were in the process of converting Bowser's crashed flagship Doomship into something a little more benevolent. If the effort proved successful, then the Mushroom Kingdom would gain the mightiest non-Koopa airship in the world, which would make scouting for future signs of imminent invasion much easier. Just once it would be nice if Bowser's army DIDN'T gain a huge foothold in the kingdom before being beaten back by the moustached heroes. By the time the Mushroom People finished demolishing the Koopa fortresses, ghost-busting the haunted mansions, restoring the trap-filled roads to normal, and replacing the flags on every single flagpole in the country...yet another legion of Koopas were ready to pour across the border. Sure, employment rates had never been higher, but if things went on like this the Mushroom Kingdom would be bankrupt in half a decade.

Being the supreme ruler of one of the leading countries in the world meant more than looking pretty in pink and being tossed back and forth between reptilian and Italian suitors. Mario had only been following Princess Peach for a week now, and so far the experience had been dull, dull, DULL! So many ambassadors to chatter with, so many regional rulers to reassure, so many speeches to give, and the paperwork! Mamma mia, the paperwork! He'd thought playing the personal bodyguard for a while would be a vacation after fighting through Bowser's army for the umpteenth time, but instead he found himself longing for the simple challenge of bouncing across a lava field pursued by half a dozen Paratroopas. Thank goodness for this trip to the Ex-Doomship construction site. If only Toadsworth had stayed behind, and by association - the dreaded paperwork.

Dozing off in his seat at the back of the pink royal airplane carrying the Princess and her escorts to the outer edge of the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario overheard a few snatches of conversation.

"...and sign here to authorize the reconstruction of the Mushroom Highway. Good. And here, let me see, yes, the Pipers League needs her majesty's permission to treat the North Donutville pipelines with fire flowers to deal with the extensive Piranha Plant infestations. Good, and your signature on this page as well. Thank you, Princess. Now, on to other business. Let's see. Ah, yes, the regent of Sand World sent yet another unfriendly proclamation regarding your stance on accepting Koopa defectors. Shall I send the standard letter back? Respecting his views but having to consider what's best for the country and so on...?"

The Princess's reply was drowned out by the snore coming from the row of seats behind her. Toadsworth frowned indignantly, but Peach merely giggled. She was well aware of how far from reality her frequent-rescuer's idea of her job was. She'd once tried to explain how badly the work piled up every time she was abducted from her post, but it was obvious that all of it was as alien as the back of the moon to Mario (or maybe not - hadn't he been there twice already?). Letting him see first-hand how much she actually did for the kingdom might inspire a little more respect.

"Never mind him," she said. "Continue."

The elderly Toad harrumphed, adjusted his glasses, and reached for the next document in the very large pile. Before he could grab the paper, however, the plane suddenly shook violently, throwing him off balance and scattering papers all over the interior of the aircraft. Mario got a rude awakening as he hit the ceiling nose-first, then a slightly more pleasant one as he fell back into his seat and the princess fell on top of him.

"Ai ai! What's happening?" Mario asked, raising his head over the seats.

Mario looked out the windows, but couldn't see anything but grey fog. Then Toadsworth fell on top of him.

Although the most disoriented of the trio, Toadsworth got his bearings first.

"Master Mario! You'll find proper supplies and an exit in the back room that way," he exclaimed, pointing his stick in the wrong direction. "Get to the bottom of this calamity before it endangers the Princess!"

Not a stranger to bizarre exceptions to the rules of gravity, Mario bounced up and ran along the floor, walls, ceiling and floor again as the plane performed a sickening spin in mid-air. He managed to get through the door not quite successfully indicated by the elderly attendant. True enough, it was stacked with 'proper supplies'. Floating question mark boxes, happily staying rigid and safe in the air relative to the unpredictable floor, were there.

Given a choice between a beaver tail, a yellow cape, a winged cap, and a bizarre bee costume, Mario went for the less showy choice and donned a Wing Cap before opening the airlock.

"Wee-hee-hee!" the plumber shouted, as he leapt to the skies. Or rather, leapt into grey featureless oblivion.

It turned out to be an unnecessary trip, as the plane cleared the turbulence field even before Mario managed to fly to the edge of the strange cloud. He did, however, get the best view of the phenomena...

It was a...a ring? A halo? A hoop? A loop? A giant donut cloud. Yes, that was it. A big grey donut shape. The violent disturbances on the plane must've been caused by the way the steamy substance revolved in on itself at such an unnatural speed. Occasionally the outer rim of it lit golden as yellow lightning flashed inside the giant donut. Giant golden white-glazed donut with sparkly sprinkles...

The discovery would likely have been more dramatic if Mario hadn't skipped lunch before witnessing the Torus.

"Mamma mia, what-"

"-is that?"

The Tornado 2 circled around the giant flat circle of energized air again. The curious boy genius hadn't taken long to make up his mind about going to take a look at the strange signal himself. None of his advanced radar systems had been able to get a proper scan of the phenomena since it appeared. Even seeing it with his own eyes didn't help.

Far beneath the Disc the sea roared and crashed against itself. The calm waters for miles around somehow sparked massive waves from the moment they reached the shadow of the anomaly.

When technology failed, the fox pilot knew of only one place to turn.

"I'd better find Sonic," Tails said to himself.

Mario caught up with the royal plane a few minutes later, just as his power-up was starting to fail. Even if his grasp of the English language was far superior, he wouldn't have been able to explain what he'd seen or why it seemed so familiar to him. Well, apart from reminding him of a baked treat, of course.

"I'll summon additional escorts from the castle," Toadsworth suggested. "This strange sign could be indicative of another nefarious scheme from Bowser."

"So soon?" said Peach.

"I trust you'll stay on your toes, Mario. It is imperative that the construction of the airship Vigilance is completed without delay. It is the key to ensuring the long-lasting safety of the Mushroom Kingdom."

"Issa no problem," Mario responded reassuringly, ignoring the foreboding he felt.

End of Chapter 1