Mr. L slashed away at the dense Underwhere leaves as he led Notch to the fortress. He agreed with the Minecraftian about the safety of said fortress, but it was shelter, and after all, it was better than nothing.

Besides, what Mr. L really wanted to do was see his friends again. Notch was okay, but really? The guy could use a bit more Mushroom Region knowledge. The engineer was about to sigh to himself when he was interrupted by a snarling sound to his left.

And right.

Mr. L raised Golden Courage high above his head. He saw Notch ready into a battle pose and stow away his bow, the diamond blade glinting. L looked around frantically, and felt his insides twist as he saw aldawolf after aldawolf lurk out of the trees.

They were just like wolves, but with elongated, arrow-tipped tails. Their eyes were an unnatural glowing silver, and each one had a slimy purple tongue, razor-sharp teeth and leathery bat wings. Definitely not normal.

"What the Ender ARE those things?" hissed Notch, as the two men went back-to-back.

"Shadow aldawolves," answered back Mr. L in an undertone. "We can't hurt them without fire, it's the only thing they're scared of."

"Fire?"

At the sound of 'fire', the pack lunged. L swiftly turned and dodged the oncoming array of teeth and claws, while Notch deflected the steel tails with his sword.

Mr. L leapt up into the air and spread his wings. He soared over the chaos and grabbed Notch by the arms. He yanked, and Notch was carried up into the sky with him.

Big mistake.

As Notch's sword slipped from his grip and clattered on to the ground, the aldawolves around them took flight silently. They were black blurs, hurtling towards Mr. L with all the speed of a runaway train.

But Mr. L was as fast as Rainbow Dash in flight. And Dash was way faster than a runaway train.

L zipped off in a green-black blur, Notch clinging on for dear life. The Minecraftian screamed in terror as Mr. L swerved and dodged tree branches. He steadily gained altitude, and soon they were far ahead of the wolves. Only then did Mr. L slow down to a steady beating of the air.

"Never," panted Notch, "ever, ever, EVER, do that again."

"Chicken," smirked L.

Notch sighed after checking his pockets. "I don't have another sword on me. I've got my bow, but I was never a bowman. D'you think you could land someplace safe and private?"

"Sure," said Mr. L, and descended ever so slowly to the ground. Notch dug into his pockets and drew out a miniature spinning Crafting Table. He set it down on the floor, and it grew to its regular size.

"Slick," said Mr. L appreciatively. "How'd ya do that?"

Notch shrugged before digging out two diamonds and a stick. He set it down in the standard sword-crafting fashion, and the ghost of a diamond sword appeared over the Table. He took it, and the materials vanished as the sword materialised.

"Interesting," said L. "Ve-e-e-ery interesting. Now let's go."

"Hang on," interrupted Notch. He reached into his pockets once more and brought out a few pieces of dirt. He set them down in a three-block-tall tower, one piece facing towards the opposite direction they were going.

"Now we know our way back," he announced.

Mr. L shook his head. "Notchy, you may be smart and all, but Grambi murder me if I'd ever bother to do THAT. You've got patience."

"Thanks," said Notch. "But, really, I could've used a torch. I just wanted to get rid of that dirt clogging up my pockets."

"Each to his own," remarked L. "Right, then, let's move."

Notch nodded and followed the engineer towards the ever-present fortress.

Mario and D-Dude stood on the roof of the fortress. Mario watched the last of the fireworks sizzle into nothingness, then began applauding appreciatively.

"Jolly good show, old chap!" he remarked in a British accent.

"Hey, thanks," said D-Dude. "We do try our hardest. Now let's go and consult Her Deadliness and check out what the shit's going on with this stuff."

"Don't swear," warned Mario.

"Why?" shot back D-Dude. "I do what I please, whether or not I fear Jaydes to the very marrow."

"Well, I don't like swearing," said Mario. "Reminds me of when Mum and Dad used to - "

Mario broke off immediately. D-Dude shot him a curious look, then shrugged. "Personal matters, red-head?"

The plumber cast his eyes down. He refused to reply, and D-Dude got his vibes. He sped up, giving Mario a bit of space to himself, and just to think.

Daisy groaned and ran a frustrated hand through her hair. Her wanderings had gotten her NOWHERE in this Grambi-for-saken place, and Jaydes help her if she had been going around in circles.

The flower princess dusted herself down. This adventure was turning out to be total balls, and it didn't help that she was stranded in a place she only knew about one-percent of.

Daisy decided to continue walking, the leafy fronds brushing against her. She assumed she was in some sort of forest, but this forest really gave her the creeps. There seemed to be something stalking her. Something like... animals. Predators. Dragons? No... wolves?

Daisy gulped. She began twisting her fingers together, and adjusted the crown on her head that pronounced her as royalty. She was starting to panic as much as the reason she had come on this adventure. Luigi.

Not exactly, but Daisy continued walking purposefully. She held her head high, and did her best to ignore the constant feeling of stalker-ness that... stalked her... through the stalky... er... forest...

Yeah, I'm losing my touch.