Fun fact: I write most of these chapters within the browser. And when I make a new document, I use the copy paste feature, and just put in 'H', and then save! So if any of you saw last chapter with just the letter 'H', that's why. Please ignore it if you did, and read it again. There's fire involved. Lots of fire.

Canon Fodder

Chapter 35: Sparky Says

This was a terrible idea, Kylie. Shame on you. Shame.

Kylie's eyes darted from building to building, flame to flame, trying to figure out why the heck she got herself into this. And more importantly, how to get out of it. Covering her mouth with her sleeve, she began running down the first street that occurred to her. She noted with dismay that because of toppled structures and the brightness of fire, she was unable to pinpoint where she was in Toad Town. She was stranded.

"Mario! Luigi! Anybody here-" she was interrupted by a coughing fit. She realized that for the second time in only a few days, her throat was burning, and her eyes were watering yet again. But this time, her life was really in danger.

What was it that weird anthropomorphic dalmatian said? Stop drop and roll? No...that's what you do when you're on fire...Agh! Why couldn't I have gone to school?!

She kept running, raising her arm sleeve to her mouth, like she had seen in movies. She wasn't sure what this did, but she didn't really have a lot to go off of.

Maybe...If I stopped running...I could...breathe...

Smoke filling her lungs, Kylie was unable to keep in motion for very long. Resting her hands on her knees, she bent down to take deep breaths. This turned out to be a bad idea. The breaths that she took didn't do much in the way of oxygen, leaving her no better than she was when she had started to rest. Her head beginning to swim, she collapsed onto the ground, gasping for air. The air seemed cleaner down here.

Maybe that was what those kids learned...

Kylie decided sticking to the ground was the best option at this point, and the option that was least likely to get her killed by asphyxiation.

Being killed by blunt trauma, she thought, looking warily at the glowing buildings on either side of her, is another story altogether.

Crawling along the ground, she tried to keep her eyes open for anything out of the ordinary. She could see some sort of light ahead of her, but with all the smoke in her eyes, she was unable to make out whether it was just another building or a way out.

"Mario...Luigi..." she tried to scream. Her voice came out hoarse, as if she had been smoking nonstop.

Wait...

She inched closer to the light, keeping wary of whether it was escape or incendiary. One arm in front of the other, she dragged herself across the warm concrete, not paying heed to anything behind her. Until she felt something very hot touch her shirt. She gave it one look back.

Her shirt was on fire.

"AAH! NO!" she screamed, quickly getting to her feet. She began to frantically try to stamp the fire out with her hands, but this only succeeded in burning them.

What am I supposed to do?! What do I do?! she thought, her mind in a panic. She tried to remember what that weird anthropomorphic dalmatian had said to all the other kids, but she couldn't. Her mind refused to think of anything. All that was really registering was that her shirt was on fire, and her shirt was on fire, in addition to the fact that her shirt was on fire.

And it began to hurt.

"AAGH!" she cried as instinct began to take over. She dropped to the comparatively cold ground, and writhed on it, dragging her torn shirt across the pavement in a wild attempt to put out the fire.

I can't die like this!

And as suddenly as it had started, the unbearable heat stopped. She chanced a look down at her clothes. They were torn and singed, and her skin was tinted a bright red. She couldn't feel any pain, though.

"Well," she whispered to herself, "at least there aren't any serious burns..."

Getting into a crawling position again, she winced as her raw knees protested contact with the stone walkway. And she continued to crawl towards the light. And then she saw it move. It was moving towards her.

Kylie ceased movement, and let the light come to her. It was Mario. She looked up at him with tired eyes, and he returned the gaze. He was obviously very tired, and the F.L.U.D.D. on his back was empty, from the looks of it. Bending down, he offered her his hand. She raised her arm and took it. Supported by Mario, Kylie let him lead her through the fire, and finally into fresh air.

Upon reaching grass, Kylie collapsed onto the ground, gasping for fresh air. She followed with a coughing fit, her body trying to exhale all the smoke that it had taken in. She kneeled on the cool grass, panting.

After a few minutes, she caught her breath. Turning to Mario, something hit her.

"Luigi. Where's Luigi?" she asked, looking around, expecting to see him somewhere among the survivors.

Mario stiffened, and looked back at the fire. He gave Kylie a look over his shoulder, and ran back inside.

"Mario, wait! You're gonna kill yourself in there!"

The F.L.U.D.D. on his back, Mario ran through what used to be a friendly, familiar place in search of his brother. Having fresh air in his body, he was better able to call for him, and did so.

Mario tried to listen past the crackling of the fire, for some sort of a distress call.

"M-M-Mario..." someone called. It was weak and wavering, but it was there. It was Luigi.

Swiveling his head to find the source of the cry, he saw green among the red and orange. Sprinting towards it, he saw Luigi trapped under a sort of wooden pillar. Luigi's eyes connected with Mario's, and the emotion he saw in them...Mario shook his head. He had to get this pillar off of his brother. But looking at it, it was thick. Really thick. He should've borrowed Link's gauntlets when he had the chance...

"C-can't...breathe," Luigi wheezed, his eyes squinted from the smoke. Mario gritted his teeth, grabbed hold of the pillar and lifted with all that he had. It barely budged, but Luigi took what Mario gave him and clawed at the ground, trying to wrest himself out of the grasp of the pillar. Mario's arms screamed in pain, but he kept holding it up as Luigi madly grasped at whatever was near him to help himself out. Mario's hands began to shake, his entire body tense and trembling with effort. He kept a very watchful eye on his brother, waiting for the exact moment he could unload this burden.

Luigi wrested his way out from under the pillar, and scrambled to his feet. Mario, crying out, finally let the pillar drop to the ground. Luigi, clutching his chest, turned to Mario. "Let's get out of here!"

And with Mario leading, they ran back out into the clear sun. Mario and Luigi slowed down to a walk as they cleared the figurative line of fire. Luigi looked up and noticed Kylie, clawing at her eyes, wiping away tears.

"K-Kylie, I'm okay...It's alright, it's over..." he breathed.

Kylie shook her head. "N-no, it's not that."

"What is it then?"

She simply raised her arm at a nearby ambulance. Toad paramedics were bringing a stretcher carrying a Toad into the back of the ambulance. Luigi's jaw dropped, as they solemnly closed the doors, and drove away with the sirens off.

"Was that..." Luigi breathed, apparently unable to take it in.

Kylie nodded, and burst into tears again.

Mario watched the ambulance fade into the distance in silence. He, too, had seen the Toad that was loaded into the ambulance.

It was Krus T.

One of the tips that I have never forgotten about writing is that everything has to mean something.