Chapter 10: Square

On the one hand, Starlow was grateful that Chakron had lent a hand in keeping Bowser in one piece: she didn't like admitting it, but without him, Bowser's energy could have blown apart before too long despite her best efforts to keep it in check. But on the other hand, he hadn't actually done a complete job of it. Sure, he resolved the spirits of the random Toads Bowser had sucked up, but it would have been better if he had separated Peach's energy. The only reason Starlow had been working on a Toad instead of Peach was because she couldn't actually get a hold of the princess's energy – it was deeply mired in Bowser's energy, much to Starlow's disgust. Everyone knew Bowser had eyes for Peach, so she supposed she shouldn't be surprised that his twisted soul would latch onto her: he was always taking her captive in life, so why wouldn't he do so in limbo too?

All the more reason why Chakron should have gotten Peach out. He was clearly strong and skilled enough to do whatever he wanted to Bowser's energy – surely he could have saved the damsel if he wanted to. But he seemed oddly sympathetic to Bowser, so maybe he left her in the Koopa's subconscious grasp on purpose? Starlow shuddered at the thought – to think a Star Sage could be so low. The Star Sprite wanted nothing more than to get Peach out, before her stainless soul could be corrupted by Bowser's energy. But even with the extra energy and stability inside Bowser, there was no way Starlow could tackle that hurdle – not with six Toad minds in need of illusions.

There was no way she could do for them what she was doing for the Mario Bros., so she tried a different tactic. Virtual reality – the next level of fakery. Whereas Mario and Luigi's souls were actually interacting with the illusion and the embodiments of Bowser's energy (both good and bad), what she had the Toads experience was far more basic. Their energies lay dormant, with only their psyches reacting to the stories beamed into their minds' eyes by the Star Sprite. She linked them up – let them talk to each other, but no direct interaction, no power; just thoughts. It was harder at first, but once she got the hang of it, minding the Toads this way was a lot easier than the Marios' illusionary existence. But the humans were worth the extra effort so she didn't even consider switching them to the same system as the Toads.

In fact, she was going to have to upgrade the Toads for a bit. Mario and Luigi hadn't been privy to her or Bowser's exchanges with Chakron, but they had felt a change in the energy around them and called her forth to explain.

"Bowser found a warp point. There were some lucky side-effects," said Starlow, sticking to half-truths for now. She explained that Bowser was out of the woods, and Mario and Luigi asked if that meant it was safe to explore again.

"What do you mean?" she said, taken aback. "I never said it wasn't safe."

"We could-a tell you were worried," said Luigi.

"Oh…" Starlow smiled. Such considerate boys. "Well, yeah, it was a little scary for a bit, but you're also right in that it's safe now."

"Maybe we can-a find the others," said Mario, headed for the corridor, Luigi hot on his heels, both eager to see if any other areas had opened up.

You definitely can, thought Starlow. The Toads had been busy in their little reality, and while it took a lot of concentration, Starlow turned their virtual square into a proper illusion and opened the door for the Mario Bros. Then she sat back and watched.

"Mr. Mario! And Mr. Luigi!" cried one of the Toads.

"Yeah!" responded Mario, excited about finding the others so easily.

"Oh ho!" called Luigi, just as happy about the new development as his brother.

"You guys also got inhaled!" exclaimed the Toad, having been informed of the situation by Starlow – disguised as an Emoglobin, lest Bowser's consciousness actually did manage to penetrate the Toads' shared delusion. "Phew! That's kind of a relief! With you guys in here, we might actually have a shot."

Mario and Luigi looked around the room. It was a fairly cavernous place, with three areas cornered off and watched over by three more Toads. But no sign of Toadbert, Toadsworth or, more troublingly, Princess Peach.

"Where are-a Peach and the-a rest of you?" asked Mario.

"What? All the others?"

"Mm-hmm."

"I think all the Toads Bowser inhaled are gathered here…" said the Toad.

Mario raised his eyebrow – Toadsworth and Toadbert weren't there, but he didn't bring it up and let the Toad speak. "Folks are doing what they can. Y'know, scavenging stuff from inside Bowser, opening shops… …Problem is, this isn't exactly a high-traffic shopping zone."

Mario and Luigi shared an aside glance. Shops? The Toads were really setting up shops inside Bowser?

"Everyone got pretty antsy, sitting around doing nothing…" explained the Toad, noticing the looks on the brothers' faces. "Opening up these shops was a nice diversion, y'know? So c'mon, you guys, give us a lift and buy something, huh? Me, I'm gonna go scout around and see if I can't find some more useful stuff."

"Oh yeah."

With the plumber's assent, the Toad scurried away down the hallway Mario and Luigi had just entered from. The Bros. didn't really want more gear, but maybe the Toad would come across something more important on his adventure. Or should they say, someone.

Of course, as soon as the Toad left the area he vanished from the illusion and was back in his head reality. No Peach in there, and just fake items that only existed because the Toads themselves subconsciously willed them into existence. It was a clever little trick Starlow had set up there – she was quite proud of it.

The Mario Bros. took a quick look around. One Toad was hawking supplies, and another was trying to sell the stuff dripping out of that "kind-hearted Emoglobin" the Bros. had seen earlier. They were a little surprised to see it contentedly captive in Toad Square, as was Starlow, who thought she had kept Bowser's energy out, but of all the things that could have forced their way in, she supposed the harmless Emoglobin was almost a welcome intruder. However, despite the peaceful cohabitation of the weird block and the mushroom men, the Mario Bros. were still too wary to try the so-called 'juice' it produced – and the Toad's confession that it was an acquired taste didn't help his case.

The last Toad told them that Toadbert had been there, but like the first Toad they talked to, he had gone off on an 'errand' and hadn't come back. The Toad was worried, but listening in on the conversation, Starlow knew he needn't be. Toadbert was simply taking his time exploring. Rather than trying to keep up with him, like the treasure-hunting Toads, Starlow let Toadbert run his own show, and so far he was doing a great job at keeping himself entertained as his wandering mind invented all sorts of passages and structures to explore. The anatomy he was envisioning was imaginative to say the least – Starlow couldn't help but wonder what his actual dreams were like.

At least Toadsworth's wanderings were nice and subdued. His old mind hadn't taken well to the news that he and the other Toads had been inhaled by Bowser and he ran off before anyone really got their wits about themselves: they hadn't even realized that he had been present at all. Once separated from the group, the old Toad quickly got himself lost and wandered about aimlessly, finding neither treasures nor energy blobs, just empty tunnels stretching on and on. In his mind, he was in a maze of capillaries, and there he remained – safe and sound.

Of course, Bowser didn't know how to leave well enough alone, and just as his energy manifested itself in Mario and Luigi's illusions, so too did the Koopa King butt his way into the Toads' shared dream. As well as the benevolent Emoglobin that, for reasons beyond Starlow's understanding, sought out companionship with the Toads, regular Emoglobin apparitions appeared to the mushrooms. It made Starlow glad she introduced them to the idea herself first – she knew how skittish Toads were, and the last thing she needed was them panicking up a storm.

Fortunately, for the most part, Emoglobins were all that bothered them – unlike the Marios, their energy wasn't nearly as intrusive as they dreamed the hours away, and the more malicious aspects of Bowser's energy left them alone. The exception, of course, was Toadbert, whose adventurous mind did manage to cause ripples in Bowser's energy. Fortunately his time traveling escapades during the Shroob invasion had left Toadbert a cut above other Toads when it came to guts – literally, in this case, as hostile pieces of Bowser's soul wormed their way into his visions. The Toad wasn't foolish enough to try and take on the blobs of energy, but he was calm as he ran away, and posed no threat to the balance of powers within the Koopa King.