The future has no certainty

Chapter 2: "Every Party Has a Koopa"

Tensions ran wild as dark smoke seeped out of the newly-opened shells of an ancient cryogenic freezing chamber. Somewhere within those shells lie two reborn heroes of legend. Who they were and what they looked like was a mystery, but everyone present at the sight was sure that they'd be big and breathtaking to the eye.

The tallest and bravest man present, Chief Starburn, approached the machine first. He wiped sweat from his brow and adjusted his sunglasses- yes, he still wore them, even in a darkened room as this. He got close enough to take in some of the icy air oozing out of the opened chambers. And then…

GAG! Cough! Gag! Wheeze! Cough-cough-cough-cough! Pant, pant, WHEEZE! Cough! Cough! Gag! DEEEEEEEEEEP BREATH

Starburn was taken back by the outbursts of gas and coughs; they were coming from a slender individual from within the "L" chamber. He, the small man inside, appeared to be no more than an average human with a big nose, smooth mustache, green cap, a matching green long-sleeve shirt, white gloves denim blue overalls, and brown shoes. When at last he opened his big blue eyes to the world, he realized he wasn't alone. All at once, he switched from manic gagger to a warm0smiling gentleman.

"'Ello! I'm-a Luigi!" He then extended his gloved hand to Starburn, who was at a complete loss for words except for a small "Uhh… I…"

Cough-cough-cough-cough! Gag! came from the opposite chamber moments later.

A much smaller man, with almost the exact appearance as the first one except for a red shirt and cap, a slightly more detailed mustache, and a pudgier build emerged waving smoke out of his face.

"Whew!" he gasped. "We shoulda asked da Professor to put a lil' more smoke in dere, uh?"

The green twin laughed at the joke. "Dassa good one, Mario!"

While the two men in overalls shook off their initial shock of revitalization, their audience was completely stunned. Where were the capes? The swords? The burliness? …Who the heck were these guys, they wondered.

"Um," Starburn finally spoke, "you two are…?"

"Oh!" smiled the short red one. "Scusi for no introduction. I'm-a Mario Mario, this is my lil' brother Luigi Mario."

"We've met," nodded Luigi, remembering the first thing he said.

"And together," announced his twin, "We are…"

"The Mario Brothers!" they cheered in unison, striking a pose.

Still, their audience stared in shock.

Mario then whipped out a wrench from somewhere behind his back and asked, "So, where's da fire? Or should I say da Koopa?"

Luigi, who similarly pulled out a plunger from behind his back, took the first brave step forward… only to fall flat on his face. "WAH!" Splat!

"Whoops!" Mario looked down from his chamber. "Watch yo' step, lil' brother! Hee-hee!"

"I dunna remember da platform bein' that high," moaned the flattened one.

As the smaller yet (apparently) older brother made a more graceful jump to the ground, Chief Starburn scratched his bald head. He thought he was seeing things. "Uh, hold on a second," he said. "Who did you say you were again?"

"I'm-a Mario," nodded the little man dressed in red. By now, his recuperated brother joined his side.

"You're… You're really the Mario Brothers? Of the ancient legends?"

"Ancient?" blinked the little man. "Waddya mean ancient?? We're only twenty years old!"

"Yah," frowned Luigi worriedly. "What year's-a dis?"

"…Oh boy," gulped the police chief. "I dunno how to tell you this… but it's been at least one hundred years since you two fell asleep."

The two small men dropped their jaws in utter shock; for one moment, they were so stunned that they couldn't even move. Then, the smaller one stated firmly, "Wow… I mean wow! It took us that long to be needed!? Has da Mushroom Kingdom been okie-dokie until just now?"

"Just now??" echoed the bewildered green one.

"Well, um…" the chief started to say, until he finally noticed the legends' weapons of choice. "Wh-what're you doing with that wrench?"

"Oh, dis?" mused Mario. "Dis issa my lucky wrench. I use it fer plumbing alla time."

Starburn didn't think he could get more disappointed, but now… "…Plumbers," he muttered deeply. "…You two… are plumbers?"

"I thought da plunger was obvious," replied Luigi, pointing to the object in his hand.

"Ugh, I don't believe this," whispered the tall black man under his breath. He turned around to face his equally-stunned group. "I… I dunno what to say. They tell me they're the ones we've been waiting for, and… they turn out to be plumbers."

"'Ey!" called out Mario. "Wassa wrong wit us bein' plumbers, uh?? Who else you gonna call when you get a leak? Da pharmacist?" His twin giggled in reply.

"No offense you guys," said Starburn as he turned back to face him, half smiling; "but we were kind of expecting something a little more… well… not you."

"Dat's okay," smiled Luigi as he leaned on his plunger. "We were expecting to wake up to a beautiful princess. So, I guess we' even, ah?"

"The princess," echoed Starburn; he had almost forgotten about her!

"I'm here," replied the soft voice of a young woman. She, Princess Cherry, walked into the light to gaze upon her promised heroes. Unlike her associates, her face beamed with hope and enthusiasm. Awestricken, her heroes tipped their hats and bowed before her.

"Please," she smiled, "that's not necessary. I'm Princess Cherry, daughter of Queen Olive. On behalf of all my people, welcome back to Mushroom Kingdom."

Meanwhile, as she and her heroes exchanged introductions, Starburn was called away by Mayor Goomba. They had a much different discussion of their own.

"This can't be right," whispered the furious Goomba. "Those two can-not be the heroes of legend. Look at them! They're so short, and out of shape!"

"Pardon me sir," Starburn whispered back, "but these two did come out of the freezing chamber, just like the princess said. It can't all be a coincidence."

"Balderdash. Someone else must have known about this place and switched the real heroes with these two."

"They called themselves 'Mario.'"

"There can be hundreds of Mario's running around here."

"Sir-"

"Nope, I won't have it. If I needed a plumber, Starburn, I would have called one up, not wake him up from a century-old cryogenicFREEZING CHAMBER!"

A moment of silence fell upon the underground room; it would seem that Mayor Goomba's outburst gave him away. The Mario Brothers were particularly stunned by what they heard.

"Whadda you saying, you don't need us?" blinked Luigi dejectedly.

"No, no! We do need you," insisted Princess Cherry. "He didn't mean what he said, he's just surprised by all of this. That's all."

"Yeah, yeah…" gulped the Goomba nervously. "Uh, princess, if you don't mind, me and Chief Starburn are gonna head back to our city and inform our people of… the newcomers."

"Yes," nodded Starburn in full agreement. "Everyone should know that the Mario Brothers- plumbers or not- are back."

"Yeah!" cheered the twin brothers, who both jumped for joy.

Starburn and his Mayor made their goodbyes quickly and made a hasty retreat from the cavern. Then the smallest and eldest of Toads approached the rejuvenated plumbers.

"My name is Jeebs, and it's an honor to meet both of you! My gram-pappy Toadsworth kept you two safe from the world all this time. I'd be more than happy to inform you about all of the important details about what's happened in between your time and ours."

"Grazie!" nodded Mario with a cheerful smile.

Once Mario and Luigi were escorted out of the underground cavern, the tiny Spy Guy came diddling along on a set of thin spider legs. It was as small as an insect, so no one took notice of it as it crawled at lightning speed from one corner to the next. Its single flashing-red eye focused on the two unfamiliar figures walking alongside Princess Cherry down the great hall of the castle. It would only be a matter of time until its master would receive these images back at his base.

In time, the princess showed them family pictures of kings and queens from previous generations. It was Plum, daughter of Peach, who succeeded her; followed by her daughter Olive, and then Cherry. Cherry herself had no husband yet, but she did have an engagement ring on her finger which she proudly showed her two guests. When asked who she was betrothed to, she simply said, "Prince Bruno."

As for the other kingdoms, the plumbers were surprised to learn that Sarasa Land was no longer a kingdom, but now a set of Seven Cities, with Central City being home to the royal family. They now let the power of the land pass on to a republic, which was currently on the verge of signing itself over to The Mastermind. The Mushroom Kingdom's top priority at that point was securing the few cities Sarasa Land had left.

As for the others- Dinosaur Island, Waffle Kingdom, Beanbean Kingdom, Kong Jungle, the isle of Dolphina- they were completely overrun by Mastermind and his minions. The two plumbers were shocked to learn about this…

"Why did we not come back sooner?" asked Mario on that subject.

"Yeah," nodded Luigi, "We maybe coulda done-a somethin' about it."

"It all happened so fast," frowned Cherry, as the three of them sat on a bench in the castle's courtyard. "Most of Mastermind's takeovers happened within the year. And, they say that those who don't cooperate with him during the takeover gets some kind of machine attached to their head, which turns them into his personal puppets. That's probably where his name comes from."

Mario curiously scratched his chin in deep thought. "Who is dis guy really?"

Cherry answered, "He's the second-born son of Bowser the First."

The plumber brothers exchanged glances at each other; they knew full well of Bowser having at least one son… but not a second.

"Hmm," hummed Mario. "Well, dat's a lil' surprising. But if he is a son o' Bowser, den we can probably take care o' him in a day or two."

"You don't understand," shook Cherry's head. "They say he's more machine than Koopa. If what they say is true, then he must be far more powerful than any Koopa before him."

"A Cyber-Koopa?" gulped Luigi. "…I gotta admit, we never faced anything like-a dat before."

"No problemo Weegie," replied Mario. "There's nothing we can't-a fix around here."

"Yeah; but Mario, mind control? Hostile takeovers? It all sounds so-"

"Nothin' ta worry about! A Koopa's a Koopa, and we beat 'em alla time! Capire?"

Luigi furrowed his brow at his twin, whom to him seemed a little too confident for his own good. "…But, um-"

"Eccoti! Dai vieni!" growled Mario as he tugged his brother by one of his suspenders away from the startled princess. Once secluded from her, Mario leaned forward to whisper to Luigi. "I know this is all new to us, fratellino, but for Goomba's sake don't make the princess any more worried than she already is!"

"I didn't-a mean anything by it, Mario," muttered Luigi apologetically.

"…Alright, alright. Just-a try to stay on da positive side, izzat so hard?"

"…"

"Or say not'ing at all, whatever works! Great! Princess!!" Mario then marched back to Princess Cherry, who seemed perplexed in their abrupt disappearance and reappearance. He then assured her with a smile, "We just talked it over, an' Luigi an' I are more den ready to take on dis… uh?"

"Mastermind?" blinked the Princess.

"Yeah! Yeah, dat's it! We're-a ready an' willing to march right on over to dat castle right now and-"

"Oh! Wait, wait, wait," she interrupted with hands waving. "You really shouldn't go running off so quickly. Besides, I thought it'd be best to first give you two a proper introduction to the kingdom. I mean, it's been so long and I know so many people who'd want to meet you."

"Oo!" chimed Luigi. "You mean like a party?"

"Yes!" cheered the princess. "Oh, that sounds like a good plan. We'll throw a Grand Ball, a Coming-Out Ball! What do you say?"

The twins looked at each other to think it over momentarily. Sure, the times were dark, and an evil mastermind of some sort was running around rampantly… but the Mario Brothers were never ones to turn away from a party!

That night, everyone who could was welcome to the castle's grand ballroom dressed to the nines. Jeebs was among many Toad butlers serving drinks and pâté to the guests. The ballroom itself was white-walled and gold-lined all along the walls and ceiling, topped off with a giant oval chandelier covered in diamonds.

Such an event caused Mario and Luigi to dress up themselves in tuxedos, with Mario wearing a red bow tie and sash while Luigi's were dark green. Aside from the fact that they were still wearing their plumber caps, they looked more dashing than ever. It was a much more complimentary look to their reputation as legends; still, deep down, they were ready to attack the snacks and dance floor.

At one point, Princess Cherry was talking to a tall heavyset woman wearing a lavender dress and a matching mink boa, holding a wand with small glasses attached to it.

"So Cherry," said the Duchess of Water Land, "I hear you've met two young men who may defeat The Mastermind. Is that correct?"

Cherry smiled sheepishly, "Oh-ho! Word does travel fast around here, doesn't it? Yes, Duchess, they're here in fact! Wait 'till you see them; they're so charming, and decent, and…"

Just then, Mario was walking by with God knows how many pastries in his mouth. "Mm-hmm-mff-mfgh," he mumbles, crumbs dropping from his lower lip. He then took a huge gulp and proceeded to lick his gloved fingers. "Somebody outta tip da chef; these lil' taco-thingies are great!"

"They're called éclairs, Mario."

"Éclair?? Huh! I once heard of a princess by that-a name… Bet she was nowhere near as sweet as this." Burp! "Oo! Scusi. Gotta go get more o' dose before Weegie puts 'em all away!" He then trotted off.

Cherry blushed as she turned to face a disgusted Duchess. "Charming and decent, I'm sure. Hmph." The snotty Duchess marched off before Cherry could say anything. But then, she figured it was just as well; the Duchess always was a bit too fussy about her taste in men.

Meanwhile, Luigi was having a misadventure of his own. While couples filled the dance floor during a waltz, he was eager to meet someone knew. He didn't care who would dance with him, as long as someone would- the loneliness was almost too much to bear. Then at last, a young woman about his size came weaving through the crowd, looking for a dance partner of her own.

Luigi was beside himself with shock. He recognized her dainty doll-like face, her sparkling blue eyes, her spunky reddish-brown hair, and her- wait, that wasn't a yellow and orange dress she was wearing, it was teal and lavender this time! But that flower-shaped jewel on her dress collar… there was no mistaking it.

He batted his eyes, as if waking from a long dream. "…Daisy?"

There was no way this girl walking around could be Princess Daisy of Sarasa Land- she'd be over a century old! But Luigi couldn't help himself; he just had to see her up close and find out for sure. It took him a while to get to her, what with all the couples waltzing in the way. But he caught her right on time as she was about to step away from the dance floor.

He grabbed her wrist, which gave her a gasping surprise. "Augh! …Who are you? What do you want?" she blurted out in fear.

"Daisy," he smiled pleasantly; "it's-a me. Luigi."

"…Daisy?" she furrowed her brow.

"Don't you remember me?" he asked. "Oh, you remember my clone-papa though, don't you? He was a Luigi too. No wait, I'm Luigi 2, he was Luigi 1. Oh, anyway… Gosh, you look just as I remember you!"

"I'm sorry," shook the young lady's head, "I don't remember you."

"But it's you! I know it." He was still holding her hand, and probably didn't even realize she was trying to pull herself away.

"Let go of me, you creep! GUARDS!"

Luigi gasped in shock as he was suddenly surrounded by spears. Terrified, he let go of the young lady and grasped his chin instead. This gave the young lady a chance to make an escape, which she did.

One of the Tanooki guards hissed at him. "How dare you attack Princess Dahlia! She's our honored guest!"

"And so is he," intervened Jeebs just in time. The guards raised their spears in honor of the castle's most prestigious groundskeeper. "I assure you, gentleman, Mister Mario here meant no harm. It's all just a misunderstanding. Now go, back to your lookout posts."

The grudged Tanooki guards left, while Jeebs patted a visibly shaken Luigi on the back. "There, there sir. No real damage done, see?"

The plumber bowed his head in both humility and confusion. "…It was her. …I know it was her."

"Princess Dahlia?" blinked Jeebs. "Ooh… She's the great-granddaughter of Queen Daisy of the Beanbean Kingdom."

"Bean-bean…?"

"Yes. Don't you recall it? She married that Prince Peasley a long time ago. …You were there, weren't you? …Or was that the other you?"

It all came back to him now; Luigi nodded very slowly as he faintly remembered what happened to his clone donor so long ago. "Ooh… I… I guess you're right." Then he remembered Dahlia. "…Mama mia, I really gave her a scare, didn't I?"

Jeebs chuckled, "Oh-ho-ho. Don't you worry about Princess Dahlia. She's as much a firecracker as her gram-mama. I could introduce you to her if you'd like."

"No-no, dat's okay," Luigi shook his head sadly. "I'd probably just make a bigger fool o' myself… Thanks though." Before Jeebs could comfort him anymore, Luigi made a quick escape from the scene. He was so embarrassed with himself that he decided to clear away from those who knew him best. It would seem as though being alone was, for the time being, the best thing for him after all.

Elsewhere, by a great staircase, Princess Cherry was taking some time away from the growing crowds. It wasn't that she was shy of her supporters, but rather she was looking for one particular guest, who hadn't appeared to show up yet. In her disappointment, she leaned on the banister of the lowest step and let out a deep sigh.

From behind her, a dark figure with bright yellow eyes appeared. With great green arms with black bracelets on them, he reached out to her, grabbed her, and pulled her underneath the stairs before she could even let out a scream. But then he wheeled her around to reveal himself to her: an impressively large Koopa with a red short-cut moehawk and a beaded black collar around his neck which matched his bracelets. Atop his head were bull-like horns.

He smiled at her with fearsome fangs. "We meet again, Princess."

There was once a time when the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom would shudder or tremble at the presence of such a significant Koopa… but not this time. "Bruno!" retorted Cherry as she crossed her arms. "I've told you before not to scare me like that!"

The young Prince of Koopas shrugged, "What? I can't help myself, Cherry… You're so fetching! Hee-hee-hee. Get it? Fetching? Heh-heh… Yeah."

She then smiled at him warmly; "I was starting to think you wouldn't show up."

"Well," frowned Bruno, "your people and mine aren't exactly on speaking terms yet, you know. I had to sneak in here from the back."

"Speaking of our people…"

"Oh, yes. My Koopa Troopas are already on the move. We're heading back to Dark Land; that's where I hope to find my father."

"Is he still alive?"

"I'd say so… At least I hope so."

The princess palmed his big scaly cheek in comfort. "Aw, Bruno… So much has happened lately. Oh! You should meet the Mario Brothers. They're here!"

"The who?" blinked the big Koopa Prince.

"Mario and Luigi- or their clones, rather. Oh, it's a long story, but I'll tell you soon. The point is they're here, and they're willing to fight your evil uncle."

"…Oh no."

"What? What's wrong, Bruno?"

"My uncle… I just remembered! He's-"

BOOM!!

An entire wall of the ballroom exploded, or rather was bombed, at that very moment. The guests fell off their feet as the ground rumbled and tossed underneath them. Debris fell from the ceiling, and smoke filled the air. It took everyone a good three minutes to realize what had just happened.

Just as some of the party guests were getting to their feet, a line of robotic Koopas marched through the hole in the wall, armed with long spears with laser nozzles at their ends. They lined up in formation, pushing everyone aside to make way for something even bigger. Just outside, one could hear the eerie sound of an airship making its landing.

There was a long pause before the sounds of stomps came forward. The good people of Mushroom Kingdom fell frozen with fear as a huge, almost fully-metallic Koopa crawled through the hole where a wall once stood. This particular Koopa seemed to be built like a Centaur, with a bipedal torso connected to a quadruped one at the hip. The frontal torso was armored and war-painted, so it was hard to tell exactly what its true shade was. Its shell spikes were actually a network of tiny clawed arms that could extend for several feet. Its long tail was forked like a vice. As for its head, it was masked with a silver replica of the old King Bowser, with red beacons glowing from its eyes and a red boa for hair.

From a safe distance, Prince Bruno held on to Cherry protectively. He gulped, "…I was going to say 'He's coming,' but he's already here."

The great centauric cyborg gazed slowly at the cowering people, until his red eyes fell on two small men approaching him fearlessly. He knew right away who they were. "So," he spoke in a vibrating voice, "these are the two 'legendary heroes' I've heard about."

Mario raised an eyebrow at the creature. "You know us?"

Not one to give away all of his secrets, the cyborg simply replied with, "I am The Mastermind. For years I've waited for someone worthy of challenging me… But now, as I look at you, I find myself a bit… disappointed."

Mario and Luigi exchanged faces. "We're not as weak as you think, you big ugly… whatever you are!" replied Mario defiantly.

"Is that so?" grinned Mastermind under his mask. "In that case, I'm quite glad I decided to crash this party. Now that I've had a good look at you, I'll know who to shoot at."

"There'll be no shooting around here!" called out Princess Cherry, quickly making her way across the ballroom. "I will not allow it!"

"Ah, Princess," Mastermind slightly bowed his head to her. "I was hoping we could discuss a treaty, that way we could avoid any future casualties."

"No treaties," warned Mario. "We're gonna settle this once an' for all, the old fashioned-a way! Let's take this outside!"

"Much talk from someone so small."

"Hey," warned Luigi with a raised voice. "You better watch what you say, he's-a sensitive about his height!"

"Let's-a go. Right now!" growled Mario as he put up his dukes.

"Oh, by all means!" replied Mastermind. "Let us finish each other in front of all of these innocent bystanders…" He waited for Mario to lower his fists in regards of the helpless people around him. "I thought so," nodded Mastermind. "We will finish this, gentlemen, but we'll do so on my terms. Come to my lair on Dark Island if you dare; it'll be the last place you'll ever see."

"Uncle!" cried out a voice. Everyone turned to see another big Koopa coming their way, only this one was a lot smaller and less threatening than The Mastermind.

"Bruno," hissed the big cyborg. "I should have known you'd come to your princess."

Mario and Luigi quietly reacted to this enlightenment with a pair of dumbfounded faces.

"Leave them alone, Uncle," warned the young Koopa Prince. "This should just be between you and me. Leave the Mario Brothers out of this."

"I would, dear nephew, but it seems they insist on going to war. Feel free to join them in their doom… At leas then, you'll be reunited with your father."

Dragon breath puffed through Bruno's nose in fury, but Cherry held him back from charging fully at the cyborg.

"Well, this has been fun," mused The Mastermind, "but it seems I've outlived my stay. Robo-Troopas, fall back to the airship!" His mindless soldiers obeyed and marched back out of the leveled wall. "Until we meet again," Mastermind bowed to his enemies, and with fully-metallic back legs he crawled out of the scene and into his parked airship outside.

The Mario's, along with Prince Bruno and Princess Cherry, followed quickly behind him, but watched from the ground as the dark airship quickly launched itself into the air.

"Che mostro!" screamed Mario as he threw down his cap in fury.

"Mario," chirped Luigi nearby, "watch the blood pressure now."

With his anger still unsatisfied, Mario turned his attention to the only Koopa left present: Bruno. "You! Why didn't you stop him from attacking da castle!?"

Bruno defensively raised his claws. "I couldn't- I mean I tried to…"

"Please don't blame Bruno," frowned Cherry. "He's got nothing to do with this."

Mario looked back and forth at the princess and the large green Koopa. "…You're engaged to this guy?"

"…Yes?" she replied nervously.

Again, he looked back and forth at the human girl and the reptilian male. "…ARE YOU CRAZY!?"

"Mario!" snapped Luigi.

"Look at this… Look at da mess that guy made here! Da castle's been attacked, Luigi, an' we're supposed to stand here and do nothing? I- I outta… Augh!"

Bruno bravely stepped forward once Mario had slightly calmed down. "Now you know how desperately we need help. I'll be glad to assist you, but first I need to find my father, the true King of Koopas. He's been missing, you see."

Mario sighed deeply as he hung his head in exhaustion. "…You' right. I'm-a sorry I snapped at you."

"It's okay, I'm used to it."

The little man then turned to the princess apologetically. "I'm very sorry, bambina mia."

"It's alright," she nodded. "And don't worry about the wall. We can get this place cleaned up in no time."

The little plumber balled a fist in determination. "I'm-a not gonna let 'im get away with dis. Luigi, starting tomorrow we're gonna join up with the police force an' start our own army of resistance fighters. Mastermind wants a war, ah? Then we'll give 'im one he'll wish he never started!"

"Yeah," Luigi replied with his own balled fist. "Um, but first let's-a clean up da mess, ah?" Mario nodded; if there was anything else they were good at besides plumbing, it was also carpentry. They headed off to get tools right then and there.

Meanwhile, the young princess clasped hands with her fiancé and gave him an assuring smile. "…If those two really are as the legends describe, then this kingdom is in good hands."

"I hope you're right Cherry," Bruno gave her a half smile. "I so hope you're right…"

TO BE CONTINUED

Italian Translations:

-Capire?: Understand?

-Eccoti! Dai vieni!: Here! Please come now!

-Fratellino: little brother/ kid brother

-Scusi: Excuse/Pardon me

-Che mostoro!: What a monster!

-Bambina mia: My child