"I can't believe we lost him," Mallow unhappily said as they exited the Forest Maze. "He had no arms or legs and he still gave us the slip."

"Don't beat yourself up over it," Geno said. "Smithy was bound to discover the importance of the Star Pieces eventually."

"Besides, it's going to take him a while to get back to Bowser's Keep anyways, and we already have two Star Pieces," Mario added. "With a little luck we'll be hot on the trail of Star Piece number three by the time he even reports back to Smithy."

"Yeah, maybe. Hey look, everybody's back to normal," Mallow said as they arrived back in Rose Town. Before them toad children played, adults worked outside, and even a few looked like they were preparing to go pick mushrooms in the forest. Mallow smiled. "I'm really glad the effects of Bowyer's aeros wasn't permanent."

"Me too," Geno said. "But before we hit the road we'd better stop by the inn first. Given the circumstances I think I owe Gaz an explanation."

"Gaz is a little younger than me, though. I dunno if he'll understand."

"It's worth a try, right?" Mario said as he walked into the inn, Geno and Mallow right behind him. Gaz saw Geno walk in and leapt to his feet.

"Geno! You're back! Mom, this is the Geno I was talking about!"

"Yes dear, I hear you," Gaz's mother said as she poked her head out of the kitchen. "My, that's a fabulous costume! It must be a bit hot for the toad wearing it on a day like this, though."

"Aw, forget it, Mom. C'mon Geno, let's play!"

"I wish I could," Geno said. "But I have to leave with Mario and Mallow to search for the rest of the Star Pieces."

"Star Pieces, like bits of shooting stars? How come?"

"How can I make this easy? It used to be shooting stars made wishes come true, and everybody was happy. But now there aren't any more shooting stars, and everybody will be sad if we don't do something," Geno explained. Mario and Mallow acted out Geno's explanation to help Gaz understand better.

"I don't get it," Gaz said.

"Well, then let's just say if things stay this way, your wishes will never come true."

"What?! You mean when I grow up I won't be amazing and strong like you?!"

"Not until the Star Pieces are all found and the Star Road is repaired. That's why the three of us are going to go look for them," said Geno.

"Geno, I have lots of dreams, you gotta do whatever you can to make 'em come true."

"That's a promise!" Geno said and smiled. Gaz smiled back before running off.

"Wait a minute!" Gaz called as he left the room. A few minutes later he returned with what looked like a handful of Geno's fingers. "Tada, it's your finger shot! Mom doesn't like it around the house 'cause she thinks something will break if you use it, but it's better than your hand cannon."

"Thank you, Gaz. I'll be sure to put it to good use," Geno said as he switched out the fingers on his right hand for the finger shot. As soon as he finished the trio left the inn.

"Well, we got that taken care of. But what next? I have no idea where the rest of the Star Pieces could be," Mario said.

"I'm not real sure, but one looked like it landed somewhere near Moleville, or maybe south of there. There's another one west of Moleville I think, but I couldn't see where the other two went, maybe somewhere near or around Land's End," Mallow said thoughtfully. Mario and Geno stared at him.

"You saw the Star Pieces fall?"

"Yeah! When that sword smashed into Bowser's Keep I saw seven big stars fall. One near the princess' castle, one in the Forest Maze, two near Moleville, two around Land's End, and the last one landed in Bowser's Keep. And then a whole bunch of tiny shooting stars started falling in big clusters, but the other ones are them, right?"

"Oh no, Bowser's Keep? Then one of them is already in Smithy's possession, and there's no way to get there with the bridge out," Mario groaned.

"Let's not worry about that one just yet. For now we'll concentrate on the nearest one and head for Moleville, then go from there," Geno said as they set on down the road to Moleville. Unlike Bandit's Way and Rose Way, there were no monsters around.

"So Mallow, how come you're traveling with Mario?" Geno asked as they walked.

"Well, first Mario helped me get back my Frog Coin so I could run an errand for my Grandpa, and then I helped him rid the Mushroom Kingdom town of Smithy's minions. That's when we found the first Star Piece. After that I took him home to see Grandpa for advice and he told us about Smithy.

"But, well, after that he told me I was adopted and should join Mario on his journey to stop Smithy and find my real family, wherever they are. So that's why we're traveling together."

"I'm glad that you are, you have powerful magical abilities. And I'm just sure you'll find your family someday. If not soon, then we'll definitely arrange it in Star Haven once we repair the Star Road," Geno said.

Up ahead there was a pipe off the side of the path. Mallow walked over to it.

"Hey, it's the Pipe Vault. Why don't we check out Yo'ster Island first?" Mallow said. "It's south of Moleville so maybe the Star Piece landed there. And it's the only way to get there," he quickly added.

"I suppose it couldn't hurt. Let's go," Mario said as he hopped down the pipe, followed by Mallow and then Geno. Inside the path was narrow and there were more pipes all over the place. "Huh, how do we know which one it is?"

"Grandpa says it's the last one at the end. First pipe, last pipe, easy to remember, right?"

"Yeah, that's not bad at all. Pipe Land was a lot worse than this," Mario said as they started forward.

As they approached piranha plants started poking their heads out of the pipes and snapped at the trio. Mario started kicking his noknok shell into them while Mallow smacked them with the froggie stick before they could get too close. Geno used his new finger shot to shoot the piranha plants from afar. Slowly they made their way to the end of the tunnel to the very last pipe.

"See you guys on the other side," Mario said as he hopped down the pipe. Geno went next and Mallow last. Back on the surface they found themselves among a lush, tropical landscape with many yoshis and some vacationing toads as well.

"Only way to get here, huh?" Mario said as he noticed the ferry and private boats docked in the harbor. Mallow blushed a little.

"Yeah, well, we're here aren't we? So who should we ask first?"

"Mario!" one of the green yoshis exclaimed and rushed over to the trio. Mario grinned and shook his hand.

"Yoshi! It's great to see you again."

"It's great to see you again. So what brings you and your friends out this way?"

"I was going to ask you that! I thought you lived on Yoshi's Island."

"I moved here a few months ago to start working for the Mushroom Derby. It pays well and I get to be closer to my friends in the Mushroom Kingdom," Yoshi explained.

"Sounds like fun. Anyways, this is Mallow and Geno. We came here looking for Star Pieces, did you see any large stars land around here yesterday?"

"Nothing at all, sorry," Yoshi said and frowned. "Actually, we have a problem here and don't know what to do about it."

"Really, what's wrong?" Mario asked.

"You see that blue yoshi over by the racetrack?" The four of them looked and saw a blue yoshi wearing spiked bracelets and pointy sunglasses.

"Sure, what about him?"

"That's Boshi. Normally he thinks he's too cool to participate in the Mushroom Derby, but a few weeks ago he did, and won. According to the rules that makes him the boss of all the other racers, and the first thing he did was make a new rule: all races have to be one-on-one now.

"But the tourists don't like one-on-one races: they're not as fun to bet on or watch. So now people are starting to travel here less. If we don't do something and beat Boshi the Mushroom Derby will shut down and everybody will be out of a job."

"That shouldn't be too hard, I always said you were the fastest dinosaur around, remember? You and me and Luigi were an unstoppable team then," said Mario.

"But I can't beat Boshi either, no one can," Yoshi said.

"You just need a little confidence, that's all. How about I ride you again, it'll be just like old times."

"Well, I suppose, I mean it's not against the rules. I guess we have nothing to lose, right?"

"If anyone can help you, Mario can. And me and Geno can cheer you on, too," Mallow piped up.

"It's the least we can do," Geno added. "So what do you say?"

"You guys are way too generous, thank you. Come on Mario, let's get the race arranged right away," Yoshi said. Mario hopped onto Yoshi's back and they sped off for the race trace while Mallow and Geno headed for the stands.

"Look, shaved ice," Mallow said, noticing a shaved ice stall at the stands. "I've always wanted to try some."

"Me too. How about we get some?"

"Yeah!" Mallow said eagerly as they walked up to the stall.

"Welcome to Shiver City Shaved Ice, Yo'ster Island location. What can I get for you today?" the shaved ice penguin asked them.

"I'll take a coconut shaved ice, please," Mallow said.

"The Keel mango shaved ice sounds good, I'll take that please," said Geno.

"That'll be ten Coins," the penguin said as he made their treats. Mallow handed him the Coins. Once they had their shaved ice they found some seats in the stands among the tourists. Mallow saw mostly toads, but also other yoshis, lakitus, and few bob-ombs that appeared to be quite wealthy.

"Mmmm, it's delicious!" Mallow said as he tried his shaved ice.

"It absolutely is," Geno agreed. "I'm glad I finally got to try it."

"Me too. Maybe you should open a shaved ice place back in Star Haven once we find all the Star Pieces," Mallow suggested. Geno laughed.

"No, no, our work is with wishes, but that would be something, wouldn't it? Ah, it looks like they're about to start," Geno said as Yoshi and Boshi lined up at the starting line with Mario still riding Yoshi. The whistle blew and they took off running.

"Come on, Yoshi, beat that punk!" Mallow yelled.

"Go Yoshi, you can do it!" Geno shouted.

Around the track they went, Boshi in the lead by a nose. As they went around the second curve Yoshi and Boshi were neck and neck, then Yoshi pulled ahead. Down the final straightaway the gap between them widened and Yoshi crossed the finish line more than a body length ahead.

Mallow and Geno cheered the loudest in the stands alongside the yoshis. As some of the fuss subsided they went down to the track where a small crowd had gathered around the racers.

"But we don't need a boss," Yoshi said as they walked up. "That's why not only are group races back on again, from now on there won't be any more race bosses."

"Hmmph, if you want to be lame about racing then, go ahead. But don't expect me to race much," Boshi grumbled before walking away.

"You did a great job, Yoshi," Geno said.

"Yeah, you were super fast, it was awesome," Mallow added.

"Why don't you come with us?" Mario asked as he hopped off his back. "You'd be a great help in our search for the Star Pieces,"

"Thanks, but I can't. Now that group racing is back I'm needed here at the race track for now. But someday we'll team up again for sure,"

"Yeah, definitely. We need to get going now, but if you ever need anything just ask," Mario said.

"Goodbye Mario, Mallow, Geno. It was nice meeting you. Good luck finding the Star Pieces!" Yoshi said as he waved goodbye. The trio waved before heading back down into the Pipe Vault.

"So I guess the Star Piece must be somewhere near Moleville, then," Mallow said as they walked back through the Pipe Vault. "I hope you don't think we wasted time going to Yo'ster Island.

"Naw, just seeing Yoshi again was worth it, not to mention the Mushroom Derby is obviously important to the island. I'm glad we got to help them out."

"Helping others is always worth it," Geno said as they exited the pipe and arrived back at the road to Moleville. "Even if Smithy wasn't involved, even if we didn't get a Star Piece, it was still worth it. It's what granting wishes is all about."

"I didn't mean to make it seem helping Yoshi was unimportant. I'm just worried about the rest of the Star Pieces. What if Smithy gets them first?"

"We already plan on taking him out, right? And we know he has one of them already, too. The way I see it it's not too different from rescuing Toadstool from Bowser."

"But you're used to fighting Bowser, though," Mallow pointed out. "You know what to expect from him. We don't know anything about Smithy."

"Yeah, but there was a first time I had to fight Bowser, too. I didn't know what to expect then, and still won, didn't I?"

"Yeah, I guess so, huh?"

"Just focus on one thing at a time," Geno said. "And right now that's just getting to Moleville and finding out where the Star Piece landed."

As they talked the land got more rugged and the vegetation grew sparse the closer they got to Moleville Mountain until at last they reached the foothills, and arrived in Moleville. Mallow looked around as they stepped into town. There was not a single mole to be seen among the low built houses.

"That's weird, there's nobody here. Even on a workday there's still moles working in town. I wonder where everyone went."

"I wouldn't say there's nobody around, look over there," Geno said and pointed near the entrance to the coal mines. Bowser was standing there surrounded by a few of his minions. That's strange, he looks worried, Mallow thought.

"C'mon, let's hear what they're saying," Mario said as he ducked behind a building close to the mine entrance. Geno and Mallow joined him as well and listened.

"Bowser, most of the troops have deserted us. What'll we do?" one minion asked.

"We've only had experience fighting Mario! These new guys are too much for us!" another minion said.

"Everybody just shut up!" Bowser stamped the ground. "I'm the biggest, baddest boss around and don't you forget it! But if Mario hears I've been kicked out of my own castle, my reputation will be ruined! And if you think only my kids are in trouble for letting Smithy take it over, just you wait for what I have in mind for everybody that doesn't help me take it back! So let's go show 'em who's the real boss of the Mushroom Kingdom! Move out!"

Bowser snapped his fingers and he and his dwindling troops marched out of Moleville. Once they were gone Mario turned to the others.

"So they're having trouble fighting the Smithy Gang. I can't say that doesn't surprise me."

"Do you think that means the rest of them are a lot tougher than Mack and Bowyer?" Mallow asked.

"Hard to say, Bowser and the Koopa Troop aren't nearly as strong as they think. Come on, let's see if there's at least someone in the item shop."

The trio headed into the item shop, where there was one mole woman behind the counter, as well as the town's children.

"C'mon in, don't be shy," the mole woman said. "Everyone's up on the mountain, but I'm stuck mindin' the store and the kids."

"Why, what's going on? Where is everyone?" Geno asked.

"It's an emergency! A shootin' star crashed into the mountain and Dyna 'n little Mite are trapped in the mines!" one of the mole children said.

"Oh no! Are they okay?" Mallow asked.

"We dunno yet, nobody can get in 'cause the entrance collapsed," the mole woman explained. "What, what can I getcha?"

"Three mushrooms and six maple syrups to start. What do you have for gear?"

The group examined what the shop had to offer. Mario selected a new glove for punching while Mallow picked out a set of cymbals. Geno decided not to get another set of finger shot fingers but did agree to a new cape, as Mario and Mallow got new clothes as well. Once Mario paid for everything and everybody changed into their new gear they set off for the entrance to the coal mines.

"So the Star Piece crashed into Moleville Mountain," Geno said. "If the moles can't get in, then Smithy's followers can't either: it's still in there."

"But if nobody can get in, how will we?" Mallow asked. Before either of them could answer a couple of mole women came down from farther up the mountain.

"If I'd kept diggin' another minute my claws woulda fallen off," one of the mole women said.

"Me too, I just can't keep up with any of 'em. But they're still goin' strong up there."

The trio walked past the mole women and into the mines. Just inside the entrance the path ended, blocked by a partial cave-in. A mole woman paced around while two mole men were digging through the fallen rocks.

"Oh dear, I sure hope my kids are okay…," she said worriedly.

"I know you're mighty worried, but mopin' 'round here ain't gonna help a thing. Why doncha wait at home for some news?" one of the mole men suggested.

"I suppose I should…. Please, come get me the moment you find 'em," Ma Mole said as she left the mines.

"I know it's what I told her, but I don't think I'd be feelin' any different if I was in her shoes," the mole man said after Ma Mole had left.

"And we ain't makin' much progress either," the other mole said. "If only we could reach the old entrance up there. Then we could get to the kids and get 'em out."

"I wish that Mario fellow were here. He could jump up there in a heartbeat."

"Wish granted!" Mario said as he hopped forward. "My friends and I heard the news and came to save Dyna and Mite."

"Well, I'll be a goomba's uncle! Mario, you're a lifesaver!" one of the mole men said.

"But, how can we get up there?" Mallow asked. "Geno and I can't jump like you can."

"We'll lift ya up," the other mole said. "Mario can pull you up the rest of the way."

"Sounds like a plan," Mario said as he jumped on the ledge. The two mole men lifted Mallow and Geno as high as they could, allowing Mario to pull them up to the ledge as well. "Keep on digging through the rock fall," Mario called down to the moles once everyone was safely up there. "We'll need a way back through here once we find Dyna and Mite."

"Send Pa Mole back this way once you find him," one of the moles called back. "If he starts diggin' on the other end we'll break through faster."

Mario nodded and the trio dropped down the other side of the rock fall. Fortunately there were lanterns hanging from the walls that illuminated the mine tunnels. Nobody else seemed to be around as they started down the tunnel.

As Mallow walked into a new room a pile of rocks fell onto his head, knocking him out. As he came to a familiar pair of clawed feet were standing in front of him.

"H-huh…? What-"

"C'mon, we got all their crap and their Coins, let's get outta here!" Croco said to his three underlings. Together the four of them sped off deeper into the mines.

"No! Get back here you no-good thief!" Mario yelled after them.

"We have to get back our things!" Mallow said as he got up, rubbing his head a little. "If we beat Croco once we can do it again."

"You guys know that reptile?" Geno asked.

"Croco's the jerk who stole my Frog Coin yesterday," Mallow explained as they took off down the tunnel after Croco.

"He'd stolen a lot of things from the toads in Mushroom Kingdom town too," Mario added. "Mallow and I chased him down and got everything back. With you here now as well taking him on again should be a snap."

Up ahead one of Croco's three underlings was getting up after tripping. Seeing the trio approach he flung a punch at Mario who countered with one of his own. The junior crook dropped his bag and ran off crying. The group checked the bag, but it only contained rocks.

"Come on," Mario said. "Croco isn't nearly as fast as he thinks he is. We can still stop him."

Setting off down the tunnel again they soon found Croco setting a bomb in front of another rockfall, ignoring the tunnel branching off to the right.

"Heh heh, I always carry a bomb," he told the two remaining underlings as he lit and stood back. "Never leave home without 'em!"

The bomb went off, clearing away the rockfall without further damage to the tunnel. Croco took off through the smoke and dust just before the trio could reach them, but the two underlings were slower. Mallow smashed one on the head with his cymbals while Geno used his finger shot on the other. Like the third crook, they too dropped their bags and fled in tears.

"Just rocks," Mallow said as he checked one of the bags.

"Same here," Geno said as he looked into the other one. "Croco must not have trusted them with our goods or Coins."

They set off down the tunnel again, but didn't get very far before suddenly finding themselves back in the same room Croco and his underlings knocked them out in.

"Huh? How-"

"WHOA!" Croco suddenly said from behind and crashed into the group. Without hesitating Mario punched Croco while Geno used finger shot to shoot him. Mallow meanwhile began to quickly charge up a thunderbolt. "How did they manage to catch me like that?" flowed into Mallow's head in Croco's voice just as he unleashed thunderbolt.

H-huh? What was that? I didn't think that, Mallow thought to himself as he smashed his cymbals on Croco's head while he was stunned from the electrical attack.

Mario used the opportunity to start shooting fireballs at Croco, but that wasn't enough to stop him from clawing Geno. Croco then started slashing at Mario, who got in another punch. Croco retaliated by smacking him with his tail.

"I might've underestimated ya last time, but you won't beat me twice-yeoch!" Geno shot Croco again while Mallow smashed his cymbals on Croco's head. Croco snarled and bit Mallow, but let go with a yelp when Mario started jumping repeatedly on his head.

"Okayokayokay FINE! You can keep your stupid crap, just let me go!" Croco yelled and dumped the contents of his bag out. Mario jumped off of his head and Croco immediately took off for the entrance of the mines. As he ran by Mallow swore he was crying.

"Alright, we got everything back!" Mallow cheered while jumping up and down.

"Plus extra, look," Mario said and held up a bomb. "Croco must've forgotten he still had it when he emptied his bag. If we encounter any other cave-ins we can use this to blast our way through."

"Let's head back to the fork in the tunnels and see where that leads. Maybe Dyna and the Star Piece are down that way," Geno suggested.

"Wait," Mallow said. "Let me heal us first, in case there are monsters back there." Mallow concentrated and used healing rain on the group. This time Mallow didn't hear anything. That's weird. Maybe I just imagined I heard Croco's voice before.

Once the last rain drop had fallen the group backtracked to the fork and took the tunnel on the right, entering a new room. A cave in blocked the exit, with a mole man trying to dig his way through.

"Huh?" he said as he realized the group had entered the room. "Oh! Aren't you Mario? How did you get here?"

"We came in to rescue the kids using the old entrance. Are you Pa Mole?"

"Sure am. My kids are somewhere behind this rock fall, but I can't seem to dig through. Maybe if the three of you helped we'll get through yet."

"Why don't we do something better than that?" Mario suggested as he handed Pa Mole the bomb Croco dropped.

"Why, that's perfect! Stand back and I'll get this thing lit."

Mallow took several steps back with the others while Pa Mole carefully lit the bomb. Pa Mole quickly stepped back with the others and the bomb went off. When the dust cleared Mallow could see they'd blasted their way through the rocks.

"If we follow the tunnel we'll find Dyna and Mite eventually. Let's mosey along now."

"Why don't you leave this to us? The moles at the entrance specifically asked me to tell you to go back and help them dig through on this side," Mario told Pa Mole.

"Well, if that's the case I'd better get goin' then. I'll tell Ma you're lookin' for the kids when I get through."

Pa turned and headed back toward the entrance while the trio went deeper into the mines. Up ahead a couple of bob-ombs marched towards them.

"Yikes! Get them before they explode," Geno said as he quickly shot one. Mario punched the other; fortunately both of them were defeated before they could explode.

"There's another one!" Mallow said when a third one appeared. As fast as he could he smashed his cymbals on it, defeating it as well. "I hope there aren't any more, this could get really dangerous."

"If that's the case, we have a problem," Geno said as he peered into the next room. "Look!"

Inside the room dozens of bob-ombs wandered around under the direction of a large, purple bomb with arms and legs. Mallow gulped.

"All those bob-ombs could bring down half the mountain if they explode," Mallow whispered.

"We don't have a choice, we have to rescue Dyna and Mite and find the Star Piece," Geno whispered back. "If he wants a confrontation, then we'll just have to fight carefully. Come on."

Mario and Geno walked into the room with Mallow nervously following behind them. The purple bomb turned to them as they approached and smirked.

"Good day, the name's Nello…Punchinello!"

"Punchinello? Can't say I've ever heard of you," Mallow said.

"They say I'm a hothead, but I'll show them!"

"Who says you're a hothead?" Mario asked.

"You! You three will make me famous! So long!" Punchinello exclaimed and snapped his fingers. At his cue micro bob-ombs started marching toward the trio.

"We'll see about that!" Geno said as he used his finger shot on the micro bob-ombs, safely taking them out in one go.

"Not bad, not bad. But let's up the ante!" Punchinello snapped his fingers. This time regular bob-ombs started marching into battle.

Mario jumped over and carefully started punching the bob-ombs while Mallow used his cymbals on them. "Yikes!" Mallow exclaimed when the fuse of one of them lit up. Mallow kicked it away from the others and fortunately it didn't set off the others when it exploded. Geno finished up the last of them using finger shot.

"Grrr…all right! Now it's clobbering time!" Punchinello snapped his fingers and the last three bob-ombs, large mezzo bob-ombs, marched over.

"One for each of us. We can do it!" Geno said as he started shooting at one. Mallow ran up to one of the others and smashed it with his cymbals, but the mezzo bob-omb didn't seem affected. No good…I'll have to use thunderbolt, but carefully, Mallow thought and began to charge up energy. "I'll beat 'em for the boss!" flowed into his mind as he did so.

I didn't imagine it! Mallow realized as he used thunderbolt on the mezzo bob-omb. I'm reading minds! As long as I'm directing my power at someone when I'm charging up, I can read their mind! Mallow smashed the mezzo bob-omb with his cymbals a second time, defeating it. Mallow looked around; Mario and Geno had defeated their mezzo bob-ombs as well.

"Argh!" Punchinello yelled. "I can't believe I have to use it on these worthless nobodies!"

"You're bluffing," Mallow said. "There aren't any more bob-ombs left."

"Quiet, fluffy! You guys aren't worth wasting it on!"

"Then why don't you take your best shot?" Geno said.

"We can handle anything you throw at us," Mario added.

"Then you leave me no choice!" Punchinello said, and then jumped. Nothing happened. "Huh? What the heck?" Punchinello started jumping up and down. "Why isn't this work-ACK!" A massive bob-omb, bigger than all the others combined, fell through the ceiling and onto Punchinello.

"Oh no!" Mallow exclaimed. "If this thing blows up we're history!"

"This is a fine mess we wound up in!" Geno said. "Maybe if no one touches it-" Before Geno could finish a small rock fell onto the massive bob-omb, lighting it's wick.

"Oh crap!" Mario yelled. "Take cover, QUICK!" The three of them dove behind a nearby boulder just before it exploded. No, we're dead, we're all dead! Huh…? All three of them survived, though covered in soot.

"Thank the stars! I thought we were dead for sure," Mallow sighed with relief.

"Speaking of stars, where are Dyna and the Star Piece?" Geno asked. Something in the ceiling cracked, and seconds later an orange Star Piece fell through the ceiling and landed right before them. "…Well. I guess that answers one question," Geno smiled.

Like the previous two, this one circled around them as well, though not only did Mallow feel his injuries heal but the soot disappeared as well. With one final spin it fell into Mario's hands, and the third Star Piece was theirs.

"Come on," Mario said. "Dyna and Mite have to be around here somewhere." They walked into the room Punchinello was guarding and saw a mole girl with a mole baby strapped to her back trying to push a mine cart.

"Ugh, stupid cart, move already!" she said as she gave it a shove, but it didn't budge an inch.

"Dyna!" Mallow exclaimed and ran over. "Are you okay?"

"Hiya Mallow! Did you get trapped in here, too? I didn't know your Grandpa took you to Moleville yesterday," Dyna said. Mallow shook his head.

"No, I came to rescue you with Mario and Geno," Mallow said, gesturing to the other two.

"Really? Neat! If we can get this mine cart goin' we can get out in a jiffy!"

"You kids get in the cart," Mario told them. "Geno and I will get this thing moving and then hop in with you."

Mallow and Dyna climbed into the cart and stood in the front while Mario and Geno started pushing on the cart. Slowly it began moving, and once it picked up enough speed Mario and Geno jumped in, Mario standing in the front with the kids while Geno stood in the back, gripping the sides of the cart. A sharp slope down in the track appeared up ahead.

"Alright kids," Mario said. "When we go over the drop, be sure to throw your hands in the air and scream!"

"Yeah!" Mallow and Dyna exclaimed together. Oh my gosh this is going to be awesome!

"What? No, Mario, we need to hold on tight at times!" Geno nervously said just before the cart hit the slope and dropped.

Mallow, Dyna, and Mario ignored Geno and flung their arms in the air while screaming with delight. The mine cart increased its speed significantly as it went down the twisting track, left, right, right, left again, straight, down another drop, right again. This is so much fun, I love it! We have to do it again!

On the crazy mine track went, a small dot of light indicating the exit appearing up ahead. Gradually the light got bigger and brighter until quite suddenly they burst out of the mountain…and right off the track!

"Oh no! Everybody hold on!" Geno yelled from the back. This time Mallow did grab onto the cart and held on tight, bracing himself for impact. The mine cart smashed through a roof and landed in the middle of a mole living room.

"We're home!" Dyna announced as she hopped out of the cart.

"Gracious! They really did drop in on us!" Ma Mole exclaimed and rushed over. "Oh, my poor babies! Are you okay? Is little Mite hurt?"

"Naw, we're fine, we had fun! Right Mallow?"

"Right!" Mallow said as he climbed out of the cart with Mario and Geno. Mite laughed in agreement with the other two.

"He's been knocked senseless! My poor baby, you're safe now," Ma Mole said as she lifted him out of the carrier before turning her attention to Dyna. "Dyna! Haven't I told you a million times to never go in the mines?! Look how dangerous it is!"

"That's enough now, Ma," Pa Mole said, stepping in. "Just be happy to have 'em back." He turned to the trio and shook everyone's hands. "Thank you so much, you three. You did a fine job at rescuing them!"

"I'm so embarrassed. We can't thank you enough for everythin'!" Ma Mole said.

"Listen, about the roof-" Mario started to say but Ma Mole shook her head.

"Naw, that don't matter none, right?"

"It ain't nothin' at all! You just leave the repairs to me. If any of you need repairs, just give me a holler sometime. Thanks again for bringing home our babies." Mallow smiled at his kind words, but couldn't help from feeling a sad pang in his chest. I wonder…will I ever get to hear my parents thank Mario for bringing me home too?

"It was no trouble at all. Be sure to take care."

"Bye Mallow!" Dyna waved. "Come back and play sometime, okay? We'll go on another mine cart ride!"

"You bet!" Mallow waved back. "That sounds like a ton of fun!"

The trio exited the mole house and into a brilliant sunrise. Mario stretched and sighed.

"What a long day! Come on; let's go check in at the inn and rest."

"That sounds like a good idea," Geno agreed. "Maybe somebody there saw where one of the other three Star Pieces fell."

"Yeah, maybe," Mallow said. "Sooo, before we go to the inn, how about we go on another mine cart ride? It was so much fun!"

"Ah, no," Geno said. "Once was more than enough."

"That was a lot of fun, yeah," Mario said. "But I agree with Geno, once was enough."

"Aw, c'mon!" Mallow followed the others. "You guys are no fun!"