Hey everyone! If any of you were wondering, I'm NOT dead and I certainly haven't given up on this story. I've FINALLY finished another chapter for you guys. I'm so sorry it took so long. I've been really busy with college lately and just haven't had much time to write. To make up for that somewhat, this chapter is lengthier than the previous ones. I actually took a creative writing class recently, so hopefully you notice an improvement in my writing. The class also helped me with turning my ideas into writing in a much quicker and consistent way, so hopefully I'll be able to update this story a lot more, as well as start up some new stories soon. Anyway, without further ado, here's the next chapter! Enjoy!
Professor E. Gadd was rummaging through his things to find the gadgets he promised to Luigi.
After 20 minutes, Luigi yelled, "Do you need-a any help finding them, professor?"
"Don't worry, sonny! Only gotta find one more!" E. Gadd yelled back.
Lady Bow sighed. "Why doesn't he just ask for help instead of wasting time?!"
"Don't worry, I'm-a sure he'll find it soon," Luigi replied.
"I bet you've spent so much time around him that his idiocy and tendency to waste time rubbed off on you. Or is it the other way around?" said the female ghost.
"You're-a one to talk! You wasted lotsa time checking out those gadgets!"
"Well I just," Lady Bow started to say, but realizing she didn't have an excuse, said "fine, I guess you have a good point there."
"Aha! I've found it, fellers!" the professor loudly announced.
"Finally!" the plumber and the ghost joyfully shouted in unison.
E. Gadd walked over to a table and beckoned Luigi and Lady Bow over to it.
"Let's start with this feller here," E. Gadd said, placing a silver suitcase on the table.
"Umm, why are you talking like it's alive?" asked a confused Lady Bow.
"Oops, forgot to turn him on," said E. Gadd.
"Him?!"
E. Gadd pressed a button on the side of the suitcase. It grew legs and feet, then stood up. Eyes and a mouth, which formed a smile, appeared on the front of it. Lady Bow stared in amazement at the suitcase coming to life.
"Hey there, buddy! Long time-a no see!" Luigi exclaimed.
"It is nice to see you again too, Luigi!" the suitcase replied.
"Wait, you two know each other?" questioned the ghost.
"Ah, you must be Lady Bow."
"How did you -" Lady Bow began to ask before being interrupted by the suitcase.
"How did I know your name? Well, it seems that you require an explanification. My name is Stuffwell. Professor E. Gadd has recently updated my data banks with all current information within the Mushroom Kingdom, including the identities of all of its citizens. I can find out the details about anything and anyone by simply scanning them. My new silver exterior represents this major update to my systems. I was previously a simple brown color. As for knowing Luigi, the professor invented me to assist the Mario brothers on their time traveling quest to save the Mushroom Kingdom of the past from alien invaders."
"Wow Luigi, you helped Mario fight against aliens?!"
"Why-a yes, yes I did," said Luigi with a proud look on his face.
"I bet Mario did most of the work though," joked the ghost.
"Hey! I worked just as-a hard as Mario!"
"I'm just kidding, Luigi! Geez, learn to take a joke!"
"It's-a not a very funny one. Anyway, I'm-a surprised you don't-a remember the attack. Weren't you living in-a the Mushroom Kingdom at that time?"
"I was cooped up in my mansion for a while. That must be why I didn't notice anything."
"Uh fellers, maybe we should get back to the gadgets," the professor interrupted.
"Oh, right," said the plumber and the ghost in unison as they turned to focus on E. Gadd.
"Besides updating Stuffwell's data banks, I also gave the little feller unlimited hammerspace, meaning you can fit any number of items in him. I even added a feature that'll let me teleport any item into him during yer travels. I might just come up with a new gadget or two while you fellers are gone."
"Wow, those are-a some amazing upgrades! Glad to-a be working with you again, Stuffwell. You'll definitely be a great help!" exclaimed the plumber.
"Why, thank you. I am also glad to be working with you yet again. I certainly hope my upgrades will be up to the task," replied the suitcase.
The professor placed a pair of green gloves with lightning bolts emblazoned on the palms onto the table.
"I call these the Thunder Gloves. They should enhance yer Thunderhand powers, Luigi. Now, you'll be able to shoot powerful blasts of lightning, which'll help defeat enemies from a distance. I've also implemented what I call the Thunderclap ability. If you clap yer hands with 'em on, it'll create a sonic boom-like effect, sending out a sound shockwave. The vibrations it causes can stun certain foes," E. Gadd explained.
"I haven't used those-a powers in a while. I might be a bit rusty, but I suppose it could come in-a handy, no pun intended."
"What's this? You never told me you had powers Luigi!" exclaimed Lady Bow.
"Mario and I both got-a powers during our adventure to save-a the Beanbean Kingdom from an evil witch. He got-a fire powers, while I got-a thunder and lightning powers," the plumber replied.
"Well I'm impressed. You defeated aliens and a powerful witch, and on top of that you have cool powers?! I didn't think an idiot like yourself could actually be so competent," said the ghost.
"I'll take that as a compliment, I guess?" Luigi replied.
"Now for the main event, fellers!" exclaimed the professor.
E. Gadd placed what appeared to be a slim, sleek vacuum cleaner onto the table.
"This here is what I call the Poltergust Ultra!" exclaimed the professor.
"What-a happened to the numbering system?" inquired Luigi.
"Well I've made so many models that I ... kind of lost track of the numbers," said the professor, somewhat embarrassed, while rubbing the back of his head.
Lady Bow facepalmed and let out a sigh in response.
E. Gadd pretended to ignore her and explained, "It's much more aerodynamic than previous models, as you can tell by how slim and compact it is, which'll allow you to do all those fancy jumps you and yer brother are famous for even while wearing it. It also has a larger capacity for ghosts and increased suction power. The Strobulb and Dark Light are already built-in so ya don't hafta go searching for 'em again, and they're both more powerful too. I've also fortified it as well, so no ghosts should be escaping any time soon."
"Speaking of escaping, I've-a been wondering, how did King Boo escape this-a time? You didn't sell-a his portrait at another garage sale, did-a you professor?" Luigi half-jokingly asked.
E. Gadd's expression suddenly became more serious.
"Last time, after you had gone back home, I attempted to use the Ghost Portrificationizer on him to put him back in a portrait. However, the Poltergust suddenly blew up. The explosion left me in a daze and before I knew it, I was staring right at the big feller, floating in front of me. I reckon he was able to break free because of some residual energy from the Dark Moon. Before I could react, King Boo already got himself outta there. I've been making so many new models lately because I don't want that happening again. I'm really sorry, fellers. It's all my fault that Daisy's in danger now and that the Boo Fest was ruined."
Luigi placed his hand on E. Gadd's shoulder and said, "There, there professor. It's-a not your fault. There was-a nothing you coulda done to stop him. Don't-a be so down on-a yourself. I mean, you're-a helping us stop him now, right? That's-a more than enough to make up for it."
"Aw shucks, you really mean it sonny? That means a lot, feller!"
"Well at least it's a better excuse than last time," Lady Bow snarkily remarked.
Luigi rolled his eyes at her comment before saying, "Anyway, the new Poltergust sounds amazing, professor. I can't-a wait to try it."
"Why don't ya try it on now, Luigi? You can test yer jumping moves with it."
Luigi put on the ghost vacuum and then did a side somersault, a backflip, and bounced off one of the room's walls before ending with a triple jump.
"Wow, this-a really is a lot lighter! Much better than-a those clunky models I used on-a my previous adventures. I could barely move around in-a those! This one's like a Cape Feather compared to them!" Luigi exclaimed.
"I knew you'd like that part. Anyway, that's all the gadgets I have for ya. I'd best see you fellers off now. Follow me to the Pixelator so I can teleport ya to Sarasaland."
"Wow, a teleporter?! I have to admit, I kind of underestimated you professor. All of these gadgets you made are amazing!" said the female Boo.
"'Kind of'? That's-a gotta be the understatement of the year," said the green-clad plumber.
"Look, Luigi! I'm trying my best to apologize to the professor!" exclaimed the ghost.
"Geez, can't you two fellers stop bickering for one second?"
"No!" Lady Bow and Luigi shouted at the professor in unison.
E. Gadd, a bit startled, said "Boy, sorry I asked! Anyway, thanks for the compliment ma'am."
"I wish I was getting some gadgets too," said a disappointed Lady Bow.
"Sorry about that. If I knew you were coming I woulda made one for ya. But I promise I'll start working on something just for you," the professor replied.
"Really? Thank you so much, professor!" Lady Bow responded excitedly.
"No problem. Anyway, let's get you fellers to the Pixelator."
E. Gadd led Luigi, Lady Bow, and Stuffwell down the hallway lined with portrait ghosts.
Luigi saw some unfamiliar ones that he hadn't noticed before and commented, "Hey, I don't-a remember some of these portrait ghosts! Did you get-a some new ones, professor?"
"Oh yea, I still get calls to catch troublesome ghosts now and then. Caught a few recently," E. Gadd replied.
"Some of-a these new ones look really s-s-s-cary!" stammered Luigi.
"Don't worry, these fellers won't be gettin' out again anytime soon," E. Gadd assured.
They kept moving until they entered a room with a giant screen and a keyboard underneath it.
"Here we are! Just gotta set it to teleport to the Pixelator camera in Sarasaland."
"I'm-a impressed, professor! Last time you only had Pixelator cameras in-a Evershade Valley. Now you've expanded it all-a the way to Sarasaland?!" Luigi exclaimed.
"Yep, they're all over the place now. Believe it or not, Peach actually commissioned this expansion. Said she wanted a faster method of transportation to make it easier for her to meet with other kingdoms' officials and vice versa. If it works well, I might just make a business out of it soon!" explained E. Gadd.
"That's a good idea, professor. I'd say it's-a pretty helpful right now. I'll have to thank-a Peach when I get back to the Mushroom Kingdom."
After a few minutes, E. Gadd mumbled to himself, "Hmm, that could be a problem…"
"Is-a something wrong, professor?"
"It seems the Pixelator camera's broken. Some troublemakin' fellers probably sabotaged it; King Boo's goons I reckon."
"I totally knew it! I knew we shouldn't have came to see your dumb professor! We've wasted so much time! I bet King Boo's long gone with your girlfriend by now!" Lady Bow yelled at Luigi, before turning to E. Gadd and yelling, "And you! I take back my apology! You're still an idiot! Why didn't you make sure it worked before we came all the way here?!"
The female ghost readied her fan to slap both the plumber and the professor. Luigi and E. Gadd braced themselves.
"Hold yer horses, ma'am! Please don't slap us! I have a solution!" E. Gadd exclaimed.
"Fine. I'm listening," replied Lady Bow, now calm.
"I recently invented a hoverboard. It'll getcha there in a jiffy!"
"Okay, you've avoided the wrath of my fan for now. Show us this contraption of yours."
The professor wiped his hand across his forehead as he said, "Phew! That was a close call. Anyway, you fellers follow me."
E. Gadd led them to another room and showed them what appeared to be a high tech surfboard. It had handlebars on the front of it.
"Here it is. It can hover over any terrain and you can even go above treetops. It'll get ya across the big ocean between here and Sarasaland pretty quickly. I didn't completely finish testing it, but it should be safe enough."
"This is impressive! It looks like the perfect solution. My apology is now officially reinstated, professor," said the ghost.
"I don't-a know. If it hasn't been-a fully tested, it could-a be dangerous," said a wary Luigi.
"Well it seems to be our only option. I think it's worth the risk. I'm sure we'll be fine."
"Easy for-a you to say. You're already a ghost! It's-a not like you would die if it broke-a down over the water."
"It's the only way we'll be able to save your girlfriend. You do want to save her, right?"
Luigi grabbed his cap off of his head and squeezed it nervously as he thought, It's-a too risky. It could-a malfunction over the ocean! I'm-a too young to die. I wanna grow old, not be buried in a watery grave! Hold on, what am I even-a saying? Get a hold of-a yourself, Luigi! We're talking about saving Daisy, the love of-a your life! No risk is-a too great to save her! Besides, the professor is-a one of the smartest people you know. Even if his invention hasn't been-a fully tested, it'll get the job done.
Luigi put his cap back on and straightened it before exclaiming, "You're-a right! I need to save Daisy from those evil fiends!" while pounding his fist onto his palm, with a new look of determination on his face.
"That's the spirit, my boy! Now let's get you fellers on yer way."
Luigi, Lady Bow, and Stuffwell followed the professor, who was pulling the floating device, to the laboratory entrance.
"Thank-a you so much for helping me out again, professor!" exclaimed Luigi.
E. Gadd replied, "Always glad to be of assistance, sonny," before turning to Lady Bow and saying, "And it was a pleasure to meet you ma'am. Sorry we kinda got off on the wrong foot," as he extended his hand out.
Lady Bow shook the professor's hand as she said, "It's alright, professor. The fact that you're helping us so much makes up for it. It would've taken us forever to reach Sarasaland without you."
"BACK TO ADVENTURE!" Stuffwell piped up.
"Back? But you just joined us. How can you be going back on an adventure you weren't on in the first place?" questioned Lady Bow.
The sentient suitcase slightly blushed before saying, "Well, uh, you see, it is just a little catchphrase of mine. I am sorry if I confused you."
"Huh, a little strange if you ask me, but whatever."
"I have a pocket ready for-a you, little buddy," Luigi said to Stuffwell.
"Thank you, Luigi," Stuffwell replied before jumping up, shrinking in mid-air, and landing in a pocket of Luigi's overalls.
"He can shrink too? That's pretty amazing," said a surprised Lady Bow.
E. Gadd opened the doors and explained the controls of the hoverboard. Luigi jumped onto it and Lady Bow floated behind him before putting her stubby arms on his waist.
"Good luck out there, fellers! Stay safe!" exclaimed the professor.
"Don't-a worry professor. We'll give-a those villains what's-a coming to them and rescue my girlfriend! Thanks again professor!"
"Yes, thanks for everything professor!" Lady Bow chimed in.
With that, Luigi powered up the hoverboard, and he and his companion continued on their journey to save the princess of Sarasaland.
I sure hope that boy is right. There's no telling what that dastardly King Boo can do with something more powerful than the Dark Moon, the professor thought to himself.
Meanwhile, in Sarasaland Palace, Princess Daisy was tied up by a rope that hung from the ceiling of the throne room. The King of Sarasaland, Daisy's father, as well as the palace guards lay defeated on the ground. King Boo and the cloaked figure were trying to have a discussion, but the princess kept interrupting them.
"Get this freakin' rope off of me, you damn jerks!" Daisy exclaimed as she tried to wiggle herself free.
"Do you ever shut up? I don't know how that idiot Luigi puts up with you. I may hate him, but that's one thing I'll give him props for," King Boo complained.
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?! My darling Luigi loves the sound of my voice!"
"Ugh, how long do I have to put up with this constant yelling? I wish that stupid plumber would hurry it up. I thought you were sure he'd come rushing to save his annoying girlfriend once Lady Bow told him what she overheard, but it seems he doesn't care too much about her if he's taking this long. I wouldn't have bothered ordering my minions to destroy that idiot professor's contraption if I knew this would happen," King Boo directed at the cloaked figure.
"Hey, I heard that! Take that back, you jerk! My dearest Luigi loves me, so of course he's coming to save me!" yelled Daisy from behind them.
The cloaked figure, ignoring Daisy, replied, "Do not worry, King Boo. He will be here very soon."
"Just to clarify, why aren't we just destroying him right when he gets here again? I was so excited at the prospect of finally defeating him that I kind of wasn't fully paying attention the first time," the ghost king said, somewhat embarrassed.
"For now, we want him to feel a sense of helplessness. He will be powerless to save his dear beloved, snatched away from him before his very eyes by villains with unfathomable powers. This will make it easier to destroy him when the time comes," replied the figure.
"But with the Light Moon, we have more than enough power to destroy him now! Why wait?!" protested King Boo.
"You see, our plan is much larger than you realize. Luigi has an important role to play before his destruction."
"And what is this plan exactly?! What role is he going to play?!"
"Patience is a virtue, King Boo. You will know everything in due time. If you trust me and stick to the plan, you will receive what you desire."
After calming down, King Boo said, "Fine, I guess you're right. If that's the case, I can't wait to show off my new power and give that idiot plumber a taste of defeat!"
"Ha! Yeah right! My boyfriend would never get beaten by a loser like you!" Daisy interjected.
"With my newfound powers he will!" exclaimed the king.
"None of your fancy-schmancy powers can stop my sweetheart! He's gonna kick yer ass!" Daisy retorted.
"Even I am starting to get annoyed by this incessant yelling," the dark figure complained.
"Don't think you're safe either, Mr. Dark-and-Mysterious! You're getting an ass-whooping too!"
"That's it! I've had enough of this!" yelled King Boo, before calling to one of his henchmen, "Get me a roll of duct tape!"
A Boo floated over to him, carrying some tape.
"Here you go, sir."
King Boo snatched it out of the Boo's hand and quickly ripped off a piece before slapping it onto Daisy's mouth. Daisy tried to keep yelling, but to no avail.
"Ahh, finally some nice peace and quiet," said the king.
"I agree. Now, there is one more important matter we need to discuss. I question your friend's dedication to our cause. He seemed reluctant to join our endeavor."
"You mean King Dry Bones? He's one of my closest friends. Of course he would stick by me. You don't have to worry about that."
"I don't mean whether he is a loyal friend. I mean whether he has what it takes to follow our plan through to the end."
"I know he does; I'm certain of it. Otherwise, I wouldn't have suggested that he ready our forces back at the mansion," King Boo assured.
"I hope your confidence is justified. That is an important part of the plan. Are you sure it is not because you wanted to be here when Luigi arrives?" the dark figure inquired.
"No! Of course not! Why would you even think that?!" the ghostly king nervously sputtered while waving his arms back and forth.
The dark figure saw through this, but replied, "Okay then. I will trust you on this matter. But, if you are wrong, you might have to face some dire consequences."
This vague threat was enough to frighten even the king of Boos himself. He covered his face in fear with his stubby arms and turned away from the dark figure.
Oh crap! I think he's serious! King Dry Bones may be a dear friend, but he'd better not screw this up or else we're both in huge trouble! Maybe we did get in over our heads with this one! Maybe I should've listened to him and not made this deal! No, wait. Snap out of it, King Boo. Just calm down. Everything's gonna work out fine. I want to destroy Luigi, don't I? Of course this plan is going to work. I can trust King Dry Bones to do his part. I can finally give that idiot plumber what he deserves!
The king uncovered his face and breathed a sigh of relief before facing the dark figure again.
"No need to worry about that! You can count on us!"
"Glad to hear it. It is just a matter of time before Luigi arrives and our plan can commence. He will be within our grasp in no time!" declared the dark figure before letting out an evil laugh.
King Boo joined in with his own evil laugh before thinking to himself, Now that I think about it, his laugh seems kind of familiar, but I can't put my finger on it. Eh, maybe I'm just imagining it.
I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! In addition to more frequent story updates, I'm going to try to be more personal with my readers. As of now, my profile page is blank, but that's going to change very soon, so be on the lookout for profile updates! I'm also going to try to talk with you guys more. I did get a Switch recently, so I'll probably be playing a lot of that, which unfortunately will interfere with writing, but I'll try my best to not let it get in the way. On the bright side, Mario Odyssey has given my some new story ideas.
Make sure you guys review/comment! I don't care if it's good or bad, just be constructive and don't flame! Remember, your comments keep this story going!