"Dimentio!"
"Not again..."
"Ahhhhhhhhhh!"
"I can't see!"
"Oh my God!"
"Why the hell did you turn off the lights?"
Just as quick as the lights came off, they come back on in a flash. Everyone glares at Dimentio as there is a large grin on his face.
"That...honestly never gets old," he says, amusement in his voice. "You all sounded like a group of school children who were being terrorized by an imaginary monster..."
He gives a small laugh and everyone glares at him.
"Anyway, when the killer turned off the lights, Mimi must have seen the killer and tried to catch them."
His eyes darken with overwhelming grief.
"Unfortunately...she failed and was strangled to death by the lasso."
Dimentio is silent for a long moment, as he tries to get in control over his emotions. Eventually, a large smile appears on his face as he makes his way to the library.
"...After Mimi is...taken care of," he continues, though he can't help his voice from cracking. "That is when the killer murders Bombette. And then immediately, that other girl comes by."
"Who was that girl anyway?" Nastasia asks. "Was she part of this too, like Fawful and Bombette, or was she just here at the wrong time?"
"No, I had invited her to come," Dimentio answers. "Her name was Vivian, another accompanist for Bowser. One that Mario knows quite well..."
Everyone turns their gaze on Mario, who's eyes are on the ground.
"I...can't describe the amount of guilt I feel right now," Mario whispers softly. "I admit, I did have an affair with her, but I never wanted anything bad to happen to her! Or the fact that she..."
He starts to cry a bit. Ms. Mowz comforts him, patting his back gently.
"Pull yourself together, Mario," Dimentio says, sounding surprisingly cold. "There is no point in crying about it. For I am about to reveal who the killer is. Or Fawful is..."
Everyone blinks, a blank look on their faces. Dimentio gives a crooked smile and then goes into the lounge. He soon returns with a sticky note in his hand. Everyone gasps as Dimentio lifts the sticky note high enough for all of them to see.
"Being a child genius, I had no doubt that Fawful would figure out who the murderer is," he explains. "But let's see if he is right before his tragic demise..."
Dimentio reads the sticky note to himself. He smiles.
"...And he is right. Or at least partly right."
He returns his attention back to the others, who are giving him confused looks.
"But with just with Fawful's note can't put up enough evidence against the killer."
He pauses in his speech.
"However, they made one fatal mistake that will unmask them. The gun is missing, and after shooting Vivian, which was loud enough for all of us to hear, they did not enough time to hide it. Thus, the gun is still in their possession."
Everyone stiffens in fear, their eyes going wildly in all directions.
Slowly, Dimentio puts his hand underneath his poncho, which revealed the lost gun. Everyone gasps. Dimentio smirks.
"That's right, my friends," he says malevolently. "I was the dreaded murderer all this time...which I thought would have been obvious, but one cannot question the public's intelligence."
"B-but how could have it been you all this time?!" Bobbery demands, stuttering. "You were with us almost the whole time! Out of all of us, you were watched the most!"
"That's because I wasn't alone," Dimentio explains. "I had a partner, I had an ally."
Timpani eyes widen.
"You had Mimi."
Dimentio smiles.
"You are correct, my dear. It was Mimi and I, together, who committed the murders. While one was being focused on, the other worked behind the scenes to take you all down one by one. It was a perfect plan, to perform the perfect 'crime.'"
"And yet you killed her!" Mario exclaims.
Dimentio eyes flared.
He points the gun at Mario's head, his hand trembling with rage.
"I would rather die a thousand deaths then see Mimi lying as a cold corpse!" Dimentio snaps. "For how could I kill the only person who ever showed kindness to me, who would take in a monster before he died in the cold of winter? The only person...who actually showed me what love felt like."
His voice cracks as he tries to hold back sobs.
Luigi, who seems to be the only one who isn't petrified with fear, takes a small step towards Dimentio.
"What are you talking about, Dimentio?" he asks surprisingly calm. "What's this talk about letting in a monster?"
Dimentio blinks, as if surprised by Luigi's question. He takes in a deep breath of air.
"If you must know, there is more to Mimi and I than what we told you. Yes, we lived under the roof of a corrupted count, but only one of us worked for him. Mimi was one of his maids, in fact his favorite maid. He abused her to degrees unimaginable to any decent person. But she lived with the abuse, because she was in desperate need of money and had no where else to go."
He pauses for a second, making it seem like it is hard for him.
"Before I met Mimi, all my life society had treated me like trash because I was different. I was always one step ahead of everyone I knew, I could figure things out faster and more efficiently than anyone else. I had two eye colors, and had a deformed face from the moment I was born, hence the mask."
Dimentio points to the edge of his mask, his breathing quickening as he spoke.
"Because of that, everyone, including my own family, hated me and treated me like some kind of demon. Once I was old enough, I ran away from home, having at least some hope that there was some decency in humanity somewhere else."
He sighs.
"Of course, I was wrong. My hatred for people grew and grew as I met more evil, corrupted people from many places here in the Mushroom Kingdom and even beyond. In some towns, I was considered a criminal just because of my deformed looks or over-the-top intelligence. I would have snapped earlier, because of this never ending prejudice, if not for Mimi."
His voice grows soft.
"Mimi found me just outside the servant corridors of the urban castle she worked at, freezing to death on a cold winter's night and on the verge of giving up on life. Pitying me, she sneaked me through this secret room in the servant corridors, and throughout the entire night, nursed me back to health. She had even saw my face, but yet she continued to help me. Her actions touched me, and my cold heart started to melt like a piece of ice meeting sunlight.
"For two weeks, Mimi kept me hidden in the castle, giving me food and water, and even medicine. She said I could stay until I was fit enough to leave, even stay for the rest of the winter if I had to. With her kind actions towards me, it did not take long before I fell madly in love with her, for I had never had this kind of treatment before. And when I confessed my love to her, she returned those feelings for me too. Never in my life have I ever been so happy, or glad to have another human being at my side."
His eyes grew dark.
"But not shortly after we confessed to each other, I overheard from one of the other servants talking about the count abusing Mimi. I was enraged, and vowed to save her. So I took from the count something of extreme value. I took his life."
All the guests gasp in horror.
"Of course when Mimi found out what I had done," Dimentio continues, "she was shocked, and became even a bit fearful of me. I told her that I did it for her and that I would never harm her! It took her some convincing, but I believe a part of her always knew I was telling the truth. We then ran away together before the police found out, and when we got far enough, I came up with a plan. A plan to get rid of the corrupt and evil people from the world once and for all! And that plan...was what you just went through tonight."
"To set up blackmail and then kill your victims when they run out of money?" Nastasia questions.
Dimentio shakes his head.
"No. To infiltrate into the trust of a criminal overlord and then kill him and his associates. It just so happened to be a blackmailer, which made my job easier. For not only do I get to kill him and his followers, but his corrupt victims as well! A perfect match up, if I do say so myself."
"And Mimi agreed to this?" Ms. Mowz asks.
"Again, it took some persuasion," Dimentio answers, "with fail attempt after fail attempt of trying find work again. And with the thought of preventing people to go through the same things she endured with the count, she was just as much into it as I was. And that's when our scheme was put into action."
Dimentio readies the gun.
"But now she is dead, and she was killed by one of you! And now I will make you, and the rest of you, pay for your corrupted, unforgivable ways!"
He gives off a mad laugh, looking at everyone each in the eye. The guests all take a step back, desperately afraid for their lives. However, Luigi remains where he is, his whole body shaking.
"Dimentio, put the gun down," he says gently. "You're only going to make things worse for yourself."
"Why should I listen to you?!" Dimentio demands furiously. "My girlfriend is dead and I want her murderer to pay!"
"Yet you were the one who lead her to her death," Luigi replies. "You were the one who planned all this. You are just as guilty for her death as I am."
"W-what?!"
Dimentio's eyes widen.
"I caught her turning off the power and tried to capture her, knowing she was the killer. But unfortunately, it got to a point either it was her life or mine," Luigi explains. "I am sorry for your loss, but killing me is not going to bring her back. You lost her because of your own rage and anger. And you have no one to blame but yourself."
Dimentio's whole body starts to shake, like Luigi's words are stabbing him.
"Shut up!" he cries in a high pitched voice. "You will pay for what you have done! All of you! I will have my revenge, I will have made all suffer in the darkest reaches of hell! I-"
Suddenly, a bullet goes right through Dimentio's head.
Luigi flinches back and everyone screams as Dimentio's eyes roll to the back of his head. He falls to the ground, dead. At the front door, the police swarm in. A few of them rush to Dimentio's body, while others search the castle or take care of the other bodies in the lounge. The guests all stand where they are, completely shocked at what just happened. Soon, the chief officer approaches them.
"Are you all alright?" he asks concerned. "We came as quickly as we could when the boy named Fawful told us about the situation."
None of the guests say anything in reply. The chief officer gives them a sympathetic look.
"You all have been through a lot tonight, it would seem. I will have one of my officers contact you at a later time about this, for I have little doubt this will be on the front page on tomorrow's paper. Do you all need a ride or do you have your own cars?"
There is a short silence.
"...We will be fine," Mario finally says. "We will be fine now that this is all over."
The chief officer smiles.
"That's good to hear. You all may go now."
With a sweet sense of relief, Luigi, Mario, Timpani, Nastasia, Bobbery, and Ms. Mowz all leave the crime scene. Each one of them take one last glance at Dimentio's body before they left, a million things going through their mind as they think of what could have happened if the police didn't arrive at that moment. But now, the madness is behind them, they have nothing to worry about anymore.
They are safe.