A/N: Welcome back! I was surprised with the amount of positive feedback on the prologue, especially with me being so new to publishing stories! I'd like to thank DameFlemmarde, XxTerminaKonataxX, TheGameNguyener, and Fireblaze1987 for following and DalekDavros, TheGameNguyener, and XxTerminaKonataxX for favoriting!
I also will be replying to reviews, so here that goes:
TheGameNguyener: Thank you! I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations!
I don't own anything except for the plot.
As always, please enjoy!
Chapter 1: Three Months Later
Luigi didn't like to swear.
It was a personal thing, really. He found it too vulgar and rude to describe something as "damned" or "hell" when other, more generally accepted words would suit the topic at hand just as well.
Though right now, there was only one way he could describe his current situation.
They were all fucked.
He could remember the day it started like it was yesterday.
He had been staying at the Rougeport Inn, taking some time off after his Waffle Kingdom excursion. He saw Mario around quite a bit, so he figured he'd wait until Mario was finished with his adventure so that the brothers could return home together.
After saying goodbyes to his friends, Blooey, Jerry, Torque, Hayzee, and Screamy, he returned to his room at the Inn, only to come across Mario, who was on his way out.
"Hey, bro!" Luigi said cheerfully.
"Hey," Mario mumbled.
Luigi stopped. "Something wrong?"
Mario shook his head. "It's just… These X-Nauts are relentless. It's been a long journey, bro."
Luigi sighed out of pity. "I get it, bro. How close are you to saving Peach?"
"Almost there, I think. This should be it." After saying that, Mario's expression changed to one of determination. "Don't worry about me, bro. I'm gonna make sure that everyone gets out okay!"
Luigi laughed. "Always the optimist, huh? Go get em' bro!"
He waved his brother off and went up to his room. A nap was definitely in order. After all, he had just travelled across an entire nation! Climbing onto his bed, he closed his eyes and welcomed the sweet dreams that awaited him.
A few hours later, he awoke in a cold sweat. Something was wrong. He didn't even need to think about it to know that. He could just feel something… Wrong was out there. But what?
Cautiously, he went down the stairs and out into the main plaza. Upon arriving there, he found that the sky was nearly pitch black, with the only visible features being various clouds with an eerie purplish tint to them.
Mama mia, what's going on here? He pushed through the large crowd that had gathered around the area where the gallows had been.
He was utterly confused by what he saw.
What he found was Peach, standing in the middle of the clearing. But something was very wrong with her. Her normally kind, lovable expression was gone, replaced with a demeaning yet smug grin. The dark clothes she had acquired greatly enhanced the look. Her skin was deathly pale, so pale that he would have considered taking her to the hospital for blood loss. She was giving a speech of some sort, but he was too distracted and confused by all the changes she had undergone.
Then he looked behind her.
His heart skipped a beat.
Mario!?
Floating behind the evil princess was his brother, trapped in a translucent sphere of purple energy. He was badly beaten, with several bruises and blood seeping from a few gashes. His clothes were practically torn to shreds, and his iconic hat was missing.
"BRO!" Luigi screamed, rushing forward into the clearing. Before he could make it a few steps, however, something stopped him. He tried looking around, but saw nothing that was restraining his movements. It wasn't until he looked closer that he saw that he was surrounded by the same kind of energy that his brother was trapped in.
"Oh… Who do we have here?" said Peach. Luigi couldn't help but recoil at her voice. It was so similar to her old one, but with a horrible undertone that grated on his ears.
"W-What are you doing, Peach? It's me, Luigi! That's Mario! My brother!" Luigi said, beginning to shake in fear.
"Luigi… Mario's brother… Interesting…" Peach said. "He never said he had a brother." She turned towards Mario. "Why did you not inform me of this… thing?" she said, motioning towards Luigi.
Mario grimaced in pain as he tried to talk. "Bro… Run… Get out of… Here…"
Suddenly, Mario's body contorted in pain. He let out a scream that sent shivers down Luigi's spine.
"I am speaking to you," Peach said, venom in her voice. "You will answer me."
"I… Didn't want… Him hurt…" Mario mumbled.
Peach smiled cruelly. "How adorable." She turned back towards Luigi. "Listen to me, commoner. I am not this 'Peach' you speak of. I may look like her, for I am… Borrowing her body for a while. But I am not her. I am the Shadow Queen. Your new queen."
Luigi was terrified and confused. Queen? As far as he knew the Mushroom Kingdom didn't have a queen, only a princess. And borrowing Peach's body?
"W-What do you want with my b-brother?" he asked, voice trembling.
The Queen laughed. "Unlike you peasants, this man," – she motioned towards Mario – "actually serves a purpose to me. He is quite possibly the only mortal on the planet – no, in the universe – who could actually pose a threat to me. For that reason, I have decided that he would be perfect for my… personal servant."
"I-I'm sorry… Bro…" Mario whispered. "I… I lost… Please forgive me…"
"No! My bro and I, we can beat you! We've beaten bad guys way stronger than you!" Luigi shouted, trying and failing to sound confident.
Once again, the Queen let out a hearty laugh. "Stronger? Than me? Clearly, you are mistaken. I am one of, if not the, strongest entity ever to have been created. Even your supposed 'hero' has bent to my will! Do not lie to yourself, scum. I am invincible!"
That was when he blacked out.
He was broken out of the memory by the pain of a hammer striking his back.
"Back to work, you pile of dirt! These statues ain't gonna polish themselves!"
Luigi rubbed at the spot where the hammer hit him, then went back to work. His job today was to clean and polish some of the newer decorations in the Palace of Shadow, which consisted of multiple statues of the Queen herself.
The hammer had come from a Hammer Bro who had willingly volunteered to join the Queen. Many ruffians did, as it gave them a position of power and let them mercilessly beat other citizens without needing to worry about a law.
There were three levels of citizenship now: the elder ones, which consisted of the abominations that lived in the Palace of Shadow, who were granted free access to wherever they wanted to go and whatever they wanted to do. There were the overseers, like the Hammer Bro, who kept watch over the majority of the people in the population. Lastly, there were the servants, one of which being Luigi.
There was rumor of a fourth level, in between the elder ones and the Queen herself. Luigi could only assume that this rank exclusively belonged to Mario, but he hadn't seen his brother since that fateful day.
The past few months had been a living hell for the servants. Some were relocated to the Mushroom Kingdom Mainland, some to Sarasaland, and some to the Beanbean Kingdom. Others, like Luigi himself, were kept at Rougeport, which also happened to be the Queen's main base of operations.
In the first weeks, there had been various riots, all of which had been quickly dealt with by the elder ones. As of late, it was looking more and more likely that these were the new living conditions across the globe.
Luigi sighed as he dipped the sponge into the soapy water. There had to be a way to fix this, somehow. He knew that there had to be. He grunted in pain as another hammer hit him.
"Next noise I hear out of you is gonna be your last!"
Luigi rolled his eyes. The overseers weren't authorized to kill the servants. The last time that happened… Luigi didn't want to think about what happened to that Magikoopa.
Through the silence in the room, a clear knock was heard at the door.
"Huh?" said the Hammer Bro. "That better be Mark coming to take over this shift…" He walked to the door and opened it without hesitation.
A decision he would immediately regret.
Without warning, a giant koopa barreled through the door, knocking the Hammer Bro unconscious. Another door opened, revealing a Lakitu, the overseer for the adjoining room. "Everything okay in here? I heard- "
He never finished his sentence. The koopa launched a high-speed fireball in its direction, severely burning it. Luigi spun around to get a better look at the newcomer.
"Bowser!?" he said. "What are you doing here!?"
Bowser gave him a sideways glance. "What does it look like? This is a robbery!"
"R-Robbery!? What is going on!? Please ex- woah!" He was cut off as Bowser lifted him up and began running back out of the palace.
"Don't struggle and this'll go smoothly. Trust me, the worst thing that I'd do to you isn't shit compared to the crap she's having you do," said Bowser. "How are you with air travel?"
"W-What do you- " Luigi was cut off again as they reached the main chamber outside the Thousand-Year Door, where there was now a hole broken in the ceiling. A Koopa Clown Car was sitting in the middle of the room atop the pedestal.
"Time to fly, greenie!" Bowser said. He jumped into the Clown Car, Luigi in tow, and took off up into the sky.
Luigi looked behind them, only to find that several elder ones, Dark Wizzerds to be specific, were giving chase to them. "Uh, Bowser, we have company!"
"Damn it, that's what I was afraid of," Bowser mumbled. He spun the car around, pulling it into a stop as he did. He pressed a button on the dashboard, causing twin Bullet Bill cannons to spring out from either side. With the accuracy of a trained rifleman, Bowser shot down the chase party one by one until the Clown Car was the only thing in the sky.
"Bwah ha ha! That's how it's done!" Bowser gloated. He resumed their course away from Rougeport.
Luigi sighed. He was scared, confused, and worst of all, stuck in a crowded space with Bowser.
The one thing he was left wondering was how things were going to get worse.
