So this is my first story on here. I guess should say that I don't own any of these characters, except for any OCs, and those probably have species that are owned by Nintendo. Nintendo owns the Mario series, and they're great. You should support them instead of reading badly written disclaimers.

Ahem! Today…

I will tell you the story of the Rune of Elements.

Once upon a time, in a realm far from here, there lived nine great spirits who watched over the elements in the universe and kept their balance. The spirits were Terra, goddess of the earth, Aeris, ruler of air, Ignis, the god of fire, Glacies, the goddess of ice, Aqua, king of the seas and water, Arbor, the god of nature, Spiritus, ruler of the unseen, and Lux, god of light and electricity.

All would have been well if it wasn't for the ninth spirit. Nox, the goddess of darkness, resented the other spirits. She wanted control of all of the elements, and she wasn't about to let the other spirits keep control of the elements. Using her immense power of darkness, she overpowered the other spirits and trapped them in a book, sealing it away in the Earth and sending a powerful beast to guard it. But what Nox didn't realize is that the book containing the spirits still held the power of the elements and was still able to keep the balance between the elements. Without that power, Nox was trapped in her own realm, hardly able to control her own element. The book would remain undiscovered for Millenia, but not forever…

"Mail call!" shouted Parakarry from the front porch of the Mario Bros. house. After a moment, Luigi opened the door and stepped out.

"Hello, Luigi!" Parakarry said cheerfully. "I have a letter for you!" Luigi smiled and took the letter.

"Is it another letter from the Princess?" Luigi guessed.

"Actually, no." Parakarry said. "This isn't the royal seal on the letter. I consider myself an expert on these things, but I don't recognize the seal… It looks like… several colors surrounding a white pearl?"

"Well, thank you." Luigi said, pushing open the door and watching Parakarry fly away, waving goodbye. "Mario! Mail!" After a moment, Mario came out of their bedroom, looking sleepy and just a bit annoyed.

"Is it another letter from Princess Peach?" he asked.

"No, it's not, actually. Here, I'll just read it to you." Luigi answered, ripping open the envelope to read the small note that was inside.

"Dear Mario and Co.,

We of the Astral Kingdom would like to invite you to the grand opening of the Praetum Town Museum. We have compiled artifacts from all over the world for the pleasure of our customers, and you are cordially invited, free of charge. We would be honored if you and any guest you would like to bring would come to the grand opening festival. If you would like to attend, a ship that we've sent will pick you up at the Surfshine Harbor at 10:00 AM. Don't be late!"

"Do you think we should go, Mario?" Luigi questioned, putting the letter down. Mario yawned.

"I guess we should. Although these 'vacations' always end up with me having to save the world." Mario replied. Luigi rolled his eyes.

"All the more reason we should go, if there's gonna be something we have to save! Let's get down to the Surfshine Harbor!"

The two Mario brothers made their way through Toad Town and to its harbor, where they found Princess Peach and Toadsworth.

Wait, what? Mario thought. I didn't even invite them yet.

"Hi, Mario!" Peach said. "Did you get an invitation to the Astral Kingdom too?"

"Yes, I did!" Mario replied, perking up. "I didn't realize you'd gotten an invitation!"

"I just love museums." Peach gushed. "They always have such great things to see, and such fun things to do, and we're even going to another, foreign kingdom to see it!"

"Against my better judgement." Toadsworth grumbled. "Every time you leave town, you get kidnapped, Princess! I'm tired of having to babysit you and keep you from getting into trouble!"

"We have Mario for that!" Peach giggled. "You need to lighten up and learn to have fun, Toadsworth!" Toadsworth's face turned red, and he looked like he was going to respond, but then a small boat pulled into the harbor, bearing the same symbol, a circle of eight colors surrounding a pearl.

"Mario and Princess Peach, I am here to escort you, and any guests, to the Astral Kingdom." said the Toad driving the motorboat. Mario held up his invitation, and Peach did the same. The Toad on the boat nodded and pushed a button, opening the gate leading onto the boat. Mario and Luigi stepped on the boat, and Peach pulled Toadsworth on despite his protests. The motor started, and the boat sped away from the harbor and the Mushroom Kingdom.

So that's the beginning of the prologue. What do you think? Any advice or criticism is welcome. Just post your review and tell me what you think!