CAPTURED

Damn it! Damn it! Damn it! Why did this have to happen?! Why did I have to take that cursed amulet! If would've known that the fate of the world was at stake, I would've left it in that tomb! But shit…I did it because I wanted to impress Peach to keep her away from my brother! Mario was right…I am selfish. What the hell am I supposed to do now that I'm captured! I'm going to die! The whole world is going to die because of me! I'll never want to live this down now! And Daisy…Sweet, sweet Daisy… I'll never be able to express my true feelings to her… I've never felt so alone and isolated in my life!

The only thing Luigi could do was to sit in deep mournful thought as he rode in the back of a Sarasalandian police car with his wrists and ankles restrained by heavy chains and cuffs. Daisy was in a different car, since the authorities were well aware of their escape back in the Mushroom Kingdom and they were fearful of them teaming up against them. The police had since taken the amulet from him, as well as everything else he had in his pockets (just a few pieces of loose change). He was still unable to get over the fact that he had set off an ancient prophecy that was related to the Amulet of Jealousy and Resentment. What was he going to tell King Richard upon his arrival at the castle? The thought of Daisy's father based on what she told him earlier petrified him. He almost wished he would just drop the hatchet on him, just to let all of the chaos in his life vanish instantly. But in the back of his mind, Luigi somehow knew that he needed to stay strong for what was about to happen next. He had to warn everyone about the upcoming apocalypse, but Luigi it would be very difficult, especially in a world that was predominantly skeptical when it came to the world of the supernatural. Nevertheless, the experiences that he and his brother shared throughout their past adventures told him otherwise. The threat of Armageddon was real. The more he thought about it, the more stressed Luigi became.

I'm the only one that can stop this. Luigi thought. I need to find a way out of this. I need to find Peach and my brother and put a stop to Mr. L. and his twisted ways. John did mention something about eight crystal gemstones that were scattered around the pyramids in Birabuto. They're probably long gone now, if not scattered elsewhere…And I also have to find that hidden basement below the largest pyramid. Mr. L. called it the 'ageless pyramid'. But I need to get the amulet back! I'll die sooner if I don't! Where the hell am I supposed to begin?!

That, I can help you with…

Luigi looked around the car and was puzzled. Did he just hear a voice talk back to him? Maybe he was just tired and hearing things? The voice sounded like that of a wise and young woman. But, there was no woman inside the vehicle. Just him and the two male police officers sitting in the front.

I must be going crazy if I'm hearing things like that. Luigi thought.

But you're not crazy. What you're hearing is real.

There she was again! Was Luigi losing his mind, or was he hallucinating? Whatever he was or was not hearing, it did not seem to matter anymore.

Okay, this isn't funny! Luigi thought. I think I'm going crazy!

Luigi, listen…You're right, this is no joke. I'm here to help you with your pending quest. I came as quick as I could. I'm communicating to you through pure thought energy. Whatever is going in your brain, I can interpret as spoken language.

Who are you? Luigi thought.

Unfortunately, I cannot reveal my identity to you. The woman thought back. It is against my duty to reveal anything about myself.

Says who?

Says the writers of the prophecy pertaining to the Amulet of Jealousy and Resentment.

But why? How can I believe that you, whoever you are, will help me save the world and those who are closest to me if you can't tell me who you are?

Luigi, you have to trust me. I am the only chance you have of saving anything and anyone, including yourself.

Well, I guess you sort of have a point there. Luigi thought. If you say you can help me, can you tell me where I can find the eight gemstones so I can find the secret basement underneath the ageless pyramid?

That I cannot explicitly tell you. However, I can give you hints on where to look, but only in the form of riddles.

Are you kidding me? If you care so much about me succeeding, you would just tell me where to look!

That would defeat the purpose of the test set in place by the gods of the universe themselves. You must successfully complete the test by your own means to rid the world of the coming darkness to destroy the Amulet once and for all.

Easy for you to say.

That may be, but I am sure you have a much better chance of putting things right than you realize. You have unique strengths, Luigi. Learn to trust them.

What strengths? Is there something I'm missing here? What kind of strengths do I have?

You must rediscover them as you proceed. You must learn to trust these strengths. You must learn to trust yourself again.

But how will I know? And how will I remember? Luigi thought.

You will learn in time, Luigi. Great things happen to those who are patient. But there is a great darkness you must face. You must confront your inner demon. The first step to your success lies in the humid warmth not too far from here. You are ready. I must leave now.

Where are you? Luigi thought.

Where I've always been… the woman thought back. Get the amulet before it's too late.

The woman's voice faded away, and Luigi was once again by himself in the back of the police car as it neared the castle residence of King Richard himself. He could feel his heart beating much faster as the monumental stone structure came into better focus. It was structured in a similar fashion to Peach's Castle, but the stone was much darker, giving it a cold and unforgiving impression. The style of architecture used to build the castle was overall much more gothic than Peach's castle and the size of the castle was much more fitting for a king than a princess. The four large towers at each corner of the castle were about one and a half times the size of the towers and Luigi judged that the perimeter was about twice as large as its Mushroom Kingdom rival. And, like Peach's Castle, King Richard's Castle was surrounded by a moat. There were rows of cherry blossoms guarded the large grand entrance, whose door was made of the most expensive kind of wood imaginable.

The sun had moved a good distance above the horizon since he and Daisy left John's house, but it was not enough to brighten Luigi's spirits. Nothing was. Not even the mysterious voice he heard in his head could allow him to break free from his dark thoughts. When the car stopped in front of the castle, Luigi could feel his heart stop.

"Get out of the car, criminal!" said one of the officers in the front in a rude tone.

"King Richard is going to be so happy to see you…not!"

No shit. Luigi thought as he was forcefully pulled out of the car. Luigi could the police car holding Daisy out of the corner of his eye as it pulled up next the one he rode in. It would not be long before they would reunited…hopefully. As he was guided towards the castle, Luigi wondered what the mysterious voice in his head was trying to telling him before she disappeared. Had she given him a clue? He began to think…

Mario woke up slowly from his slumber, though he had a terrible headache. His memory of the previous night was very rusty since he had spent the entire evening binging on his favorite alcoholic beverage. The only thing he could even remotely remember was a fight that had taken place between him and his brother over what seemed to be his infatuation with Princess Peach. Peach! Mario went to go search for her, only to wake up to the fact that he was tied to a large pole with heavy ropes and chains inside what appeared to be an old, stone-constructed building that was centuries old. What the hell is going on here?! He tried breaking free with all the strength he could possibly use, but was unable to escape the wretched grasp of the heavy restraints. He was too weak from the previous night to even try again. Not only was his head throbbing with pain, but his whole body was aching from the inside out. There were cuts and bruises all over his arms and legs and even his face. Where am I?

"Hello?" Mario said weakly. "Is there anyone in here that can explain to me what's going on here?!"

That was when he heard a rustling of chains on the other side of the wide column and felt the ropes and chains on him move.

"Peach is that you?" he asked.

"Who else would be tied to a pole with you other than me?" Peach replied. "After all, I am the one who always got captured."

"What's going on here?" Mario asked. "Where are we?"

"I don't know!" Peach replied, obviously irritated with Mario after what happened the previous night in her room. "All I know is that I'm still mad at you for what happened last night! How could you beat up on your brother like a punching bag?!"

"Look, I'm not entirely sure as to what happened between me and my brother last night, but I am terribly sorry for acting the way I did. You deserved better than."

"You're right. I did." Peach replied. "Which is why I decided to not marry you. And to think that I got so close to you on that boat…UGH!"

"Do we have to go through this again?" Mario asked. "I was obviously drunk and not my normal self! At least cut me some slack there! And why are you bringing up our time on the boat?"

"No." Peach said, as if to silence him. "I don't want to be associated with a drunken snob like yourself. And, for the record, I never really enjoyed our times in the bedroom…"

"Oh come on! Stop it with the insults!" Mario said. "I feel bad enough already! My head hurts like a bitch and my whole is cut and bruised! Haven't you and Luigi hurt me enough already?!"

"Big whoop…My head hurts too!" Peach said. "And it's not for the reason you think!"

"Why are we here?" Mario asked. "Who kidnapped us?"

"I don't know for sure." Peach replied. Her voice had suddenly shifted to a calmer tone. "I wasn't able to see the guy clearly before I was knocked out by him. Whatever he hit my head with, it hurt like hell! It wouldn't be the first time it's happened to me…"

"Well, I must say I've never heard a princess talk like that before…" Mario remarked.

"Oh, shut up!" Peach replied. "Your remarks used to flatter me, but that was then."

"Peach, I know you don't want to be near me right now, but if we want to get out of here we have to work together." Mario said. "That's what my brother and I used to do…my brother…"

Mario had not given Luigi a thought until now. He was still mad at him for unwittingly ruining his chances with Peach, but that did not matter to him anymore. All he wanted to do was escape and find him so that he could apologize for his horrific actions, wherever he might be. Did he get kidnapped too? If so, where would he be? Whatever the situation might be, Mario somehow figured that Luigi was relieved to be way from him after what he did. He could not blame him either. What have I done? Mario thought. Luigi's my brother! Why did I have to scare him off like that? If only I had some kind of time machine so I could rewind the clock and change things for the better…He should've been accredited for our adventures…He did all of the dirty work… Me, I just took the glory…

"You still alive back there?" Peach asked.

"Yeah, I'm just in deep thought." Mario replied. "So you don't remember who kidnapped us?"

"If I did, I would've told you already." Peach said. "Why do you ask?"

"I just wanted to be sure that you weren't keeping anything from me just be mean." Mario replied.

"Oh, please. Like I would do that…"

"Well, from the sounds of it, you probably would. After all, you hate me, right? I mean, that is what you said to me, princess."

"That's not what I meant!" Peach shouted.

"Well, what did you mean?" Mario asked.

"I meant…" Peach began to say, but broke off mid-sentence.

"Well…" Mario said.

"I just don't think we're marriage material." Peach replied. "I need more time to decide whether or not I want you in my life or not…Luigi and Daisy seemed to hit it off last night though…You wouldn't know because you were too drunk."

"Wait a minute…" Mario said. "Was she the one that punched me in the face?"

"Yep." Peach replied. "She's my cousin, as well as the Princess of Sarasaland. It was my idea to set her up with your brother after he confessed his love for me. I figured it would be the perfect solution to his longing for a special someone in his life, as well as sustaining my relationship with you. But in the end, I was the one that ended up losing a relationship."

"I can't be sorry enough for what happened last night…" Mario replied with a slight quiver in his voice. "What you did for my brother was very thoughtful, and I thank you for that. How I wish could have done more for him like he did for me…"

Mario started to sob and Peach remained quiet as she thought about the last thing Mario said. She had never seen Mario so weak and vulnerable before in all times she had been kidnapped. Was she being too hard on him? Was he truly sorry for what happened? To Peach, the sobbing that was coming from behind the pole seemed convincing enough to make her start shedding tears. She still had feelings for the athletic red-clad plumber, but she was still unsure if it was a good idea to spend the rest of his life with him. In the end, she decided it would be best to get along with him. After all, their lives were now dependent upon their teamwork.

Hey everyone! I am happy to say that the story is now 10 chapters long! Thank you to all of those who have reviewed and supported this story! You guys are terrific! There are still plenty of chapters to come!

Luigi and Daisy have found themselves in the hands of the authoritarian police that work for King Richard and the amulet has been stolen from them in the process of getting captured. On the way to the castle, Luigi is surprised by the mysterious voice of a woman in his mind that communicates with pure thought energy and tells him that she reached him as fast as she could to help find the eight gems to enter the hidden pyramid basement. While still not entirely convinced, Luigi is told that he has unique strengths and that he must learn to trust them. What could that mean? The voice also seemed to hint at a possible clue at the end their mental dialogue. What could the clue be? Will Luigi be able to figure it out, or will he not find anything before he is confronted by Daisy's strict father?

This chapter, while short compared to the other ones, also checks in on Mario and Peach, who have just awakened in a mysterious building and are tied to a large pole. They start out arguing over the events that happened the previous and end up in deep thought and sorrow as a result of each other's comments. They have no idea where they are or who was responsible for kidnapping them. When will they find out? Will they ever make up? When will Mario find out about his brother's whereabouts?

The next chapter will start out inside King Richard's Castle, so stay tuned as Luigi and Daisy get ready to face their trial!

saturn95