A/N: Lookie, lookie, another booky! Right-o, book 3 starts, now! Actually, in all seriousness, I'd like to say that this story is coming along quite far, to be honest, I didn't expect it to be this long, but it looks like I'm going to end it far beyond three parts like I originally thought. So, as far as I'm concerned, I'll write until everything that needs to be done is done. This one will be a bit short, though. It's transition stuff.

Chapter 37: Day's Eye

Luigi shook his head in agitation as he tied a length of rope to a thin acacia-like tree. Two weeks had passed since He, Kalliel, Pyewacket, Gadd, Maverick and Marius had left home and once again, they found themselves stopping their trek in the middle of the day to recover from a sudden rainstorm. Kalliel had warned that since it was winter in the rest of the kingdom, the grasslands would be in their wet season. He had taken great care to explain that the ocean currents were what made the climate here warmer than in the mushroom kingdom despite the fact that the expansive savannas were farther north.

Marius shook out the bags while Maverick helped unfold the wet clothes. Luigi walked over and picked through some things. "Is there anything like a pole or something we can tie this to?"

"Nah," Marius sighed. He raised an eyebrow as Luigi wandered back over and untied his scabbard from the saddle ring. "Um…Luigi? Isn't that your sword?"

"Yep. It's a really nice sword, y'know, and it's gonna be a really nice clothesline pole," he gave a wide grin as Kalliel clapped a hand to his forehead. "Something my bro and I found out is, rule number one of being a hero: make it up as you go."

Gadd chuckled. "Whatever floats yer boat, kiddo."

Luigi smiled to himself as he tied the loose end of his clothesline to the hilt of the sword and stuck the pointed blade into the earth. He wiped a few beads of sweat from his brow. The winds blowing from the southeast were dry and hot, bringing the heat of the distant deserts. Luigi had long abandoned the heavy coats, surcoats, and other layers in favor of a regular green tank top and shorts. Everyone else had followed suit in a similar manner. It was too hot on the plains for winter coats and even Kalliel's armor and surcoat had vanished.

"Phew…" Gadd sighed as he wiped his brow. He looked up into the clear blue sky directly overhead, watching as the last vestiges of the rain shower were disappearing into the hazy distance.

Pyewacket ruffled his feathers and mane and stretched, enjoying the warmth. Lately, his stomach hadn't been bothering him as badly. Over the past few days there had been a few spikes accompanied by noxious belches, but other than that, it was fine. He snorted and yawned.

Luigi glanced at the wide-opened mouth facing in his direction before doing a small double-take. "Hang on a sec, Pyewacket…" He wandered over curiously as Pyewacket kept his face frozen in a yawn. "Can you open a little wider for me?"

The dino nodded and opened his jowls a bit wider, showing off his set of pearly, and razor-sharp, teeth. Luigi peered into the back of his throat. The inside was shiny, almost glossy. "Hey, professor, come and take a look at this, tell me what you think."

Gadd trotted over and motioned for the yoshi to lower his head to grant him a better look. He adjusted his glasses. "Well…that ain't somethin' I've ever seen before…" Pyewacket's warm breath rapidly fogged up his lenses. He removed them and adjusted the brim of his sun hat. "His throat looks like it's coated in glaze."

"Glaze?" Marius asked curiously.

"Yeah, y'know, like potter's glaze?" He cleaned his glasses on his t-shit and replaced them on his face. "It's kind of weird though. Now, I ain't no yoshi expert, but I don't think reptiles exactly get acid reflux, if you get my meaning." Maverick joined them as Kalliel reclined in thin air as if on an invisible hammock near the tree. "Son, you can close your mouth now," Gadd said to Pyewacket. All five of them stared at the yoshi prince as he smiled crookedly and closed his mouth.

Marius finished dumping out his bag, setting his things out to dry as he pulled out his journal and thumbed through a few pages. Luckily, none held even the slightest hint of moisture. He hummed quietly to himself as he popped the cap off of his pen and wrote a few lines.

Now that Luigi had most of camp already set up, the party found themselves with plenty of siesta time. Pyewacket set about grazing on huge mouthfuls of the long, dry grass to help clear a space in and around the impromptu campsite. Gadd leaned against the tree beneath Kalliel and pulled his sunhat down over his eyes while Luigi sat staring off into the distance.

The mountains seemed to get bigger and bigger every day, yet at the same time, Luigi felt like they were never going to get there at the pace they were going. "Are we there yet?"

"Will be soon, son," Gadd said as he pulled out the map and unrolled it. He drew a circle with his finger. "We're somewhere here…"

Sigurd snuffled as a bit of dust flew up his nostrils, spurred on by the lifting breeze. He sat on the steep face of the mountains, looking out towards the grasslands. At the border, upon his majesty's return to Iceland, Windbag had instructed him to stay and watch for Luigi and the others. The huge, snow-furred wolf sneezed again, shaking the main of thick, long fur around his neck.

The wind stirred again, bringing with it a new smell. A smell that caused Sigurd's fur to stand on end and a growl to tear from his enormous chest. In his field of vision, he spied three clouds of rapidly-moving dust. Within a second, he crouched and sprang from his perch, baring his teeth as he ran on all fours in the direction of the clouds.

"Well, I must say this all worked out rather nicely," Kalliel said as he helped Marius, Maverick, and Luigi spread out their sleeping rolls in the clearing that Pyewacket had made in the tall grass. Gadd was busy trying to light some things to get a fire going. Maverick warbled, zooming in a circle around Kalliel.

"Yeah, beats having to sleep in a sea of grass," Marius chuckled as he set up his tent. The tents had been set up, but they all knew that there was little chance that they would be using them tonight. Luigi stood and stretched, relishing the feeling of the late afternoon sun bearing down on his back. He sighed, placing his hands on his hips and staring out at the landscape that seemed to stretch on forever. "Get out and travel…See the world…y'know, this might not be so bad after all, if we get to see things like this, I mean."

"There ya' go," Gadd grinned, "'S a good attitude to have, son." He whistled as he looked in the direction that Luigi was staring. "Honey hush…" He chuckled. The view seemed to stretch out for miles. They had made camp on the summit of one of the many rolling hills which allowed them an excellent vantage point of the endless stretch of gently rolling hills and golden-green waves of grass. An acacia tree sprouted up out of the waving carpet of grass every now and then, but other than that, the horizon remained unbroken. Several old blocks floated in the air, some already claimed, the others glittering in the savanna sun. The grasshoppers and cicadas hummed in the air as Marius spied the floating '!' block nearby.

"Hey, cool!" He ran over to it. "I always wanted to try this," he looked back at Luigi. "Um…can I?"

"Of course," Luigi said, "Why wouldn't I let you?"

Marius smiled, "Just making sure." He looked up, crouched and jumped up and smacked it with his head. It made a resounding BONK and ejected a bright red and white mushroom.

"Well, technically, we used our fists, but I guess that works too," Luigi smiled, catching the mushroom as it sailed through the air.

"Well, my species has harder heads than yours," Marius said with a grin, knocking on his helmet with his fist.

"Hey, you said it, not me." A loud belch came from behind them as Pyewacket slowly lowered himself to the ground.

"Uh-oh, it starts again…" Gadd muttered, pulling out the almost-empty bottle of antacids. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you're gonna start belching flame in a few minutes. Pyewacket stared at him dolefully as Gadd poured a small handful of the tablets into his hand.

"That'd be pretty cool," Marius mused. "Sucks that it's hurting you so much, though." Pyewacket swallowed the tablets as Maverick rubbed his mane. There was a sudden heavy sound behind them followed by a crescendoing growl. Kalliel whipped around, gritting his teeth, stiffening. "Judg-!" He faltered as he saw the white fur and piercing red eyes of Sigurd as he perched on top of the now-empty '!' block.

"Hey! Sigurd! Boy am I glad…to see…you…" Luigi trailed off as he saw the fierce glare and furious snarl upon the wolfish face. He seemed to be staring right at them. Maverick lowered his eyebrows and frowned, sniffing the air.

What's wrong?! Luigi frantically thought. He felt a sudden shiver begin as the Valdyr's lips curled even further back over his teeth. Why is he growling at us?!

Kalliel paused, looking on as Maverick slowly bared his teeth, pivoting around as he did so. He looked at Sigurd, then back at Maverick. He's not glaring at us…he said slowly with realization. In a flash, he ripped the great sword from the ground, disrupting the laundry as Luigi whipped out the Key and spun to face Loky, Judges, and Grym. With the boo and the Valdyr snarling, and both blades pointing, Luigi stiffened; they should have realized that they were outnumbered, especially since Gadd had now joined them with his cross-bolt. What surprised them even more was that they made no movement to attack, or do anything for that matter. The only movement came from the smoke at their feet and the slight undulation of the tentacles sprouting from their shoulders.

There was an awkward silence, broken only slightly by Sigurd's angry growling.

Grym sighed. "…Hi…"

Kalliel's eyebrows leveled and he bared his teeth, hissing impatiently through them. "What do you want now?"

"Chill…jeez…" Loky grumbled. Judges twitched slightly. So close to the ones he wanted to kill the most…yet he could not. "We're passin' through…"

Luigi shook his head in confusion. "I don't get it…"

"Yer not s'posed to…" Loky retorted.

"Shut up…" Gadd rolled his eyes. "We ain't got time fer none of yer crap…now whaddaya want?"

"Why didn't you get us when you had the chance?" Luigi asked cautiously.

"We're not here to kill you…merely to deliver a message," Grym said slowly. "Kamek wants you to live, for the time being."

"Really, I coulda guessed that…" Gadd scoffed.

"We were coming to rough ya' up…but Windbag's little blood-hound gave us away," Loky snickered. Grym stared flatly down at him. "Eh…what?"

"Could you be any more conspicuous?" Grym sighed, shaking his head. "We're not going anywhere yet…we'll be patient until you return," Grym said softly, as Judges furiously snarled, itching for the chance to pounce. A loud growl from Sigurd reminded him of his composure. "Kamek wants you alive…for the time being," Grym continued. "…And we have been ordered not to lay so much as a single paw on you…" He grinned wickedly. "Like it or not, the master's plan involves you. Choose your actions wisely, Luigi. You may actually be helping us if you aren't careful. One slip and you could end up the same way as Bowser had…Now if you'll excuse us, we have business in Rougeport." He gave a smirk as he and his brothers turned and bolted away, continuing their trek west towards Rougeport.

"Why are they heading to Rougeport?" Luigi asked as Sigurd nimbly leapt from his perch and trotted over to them, a look of concern masking his features.

"I dunno…I'm hoping it's only because they are after Shards and Fragments," Kalliel sighed. "Their thoughts are unknown to me. They are Kamek's errand-boys."

"Shouldn't we go after them?" Marius asked, gripping the handles of his marble hammers.

Sigurd growled lowly as he shook his head. "Sigurd's right, we need to get to Iceland before anything else happens. With our luck, they were probably just trying to get us to follow them. They might not be doing anything," Luigi said with a heavy sigh as he slid the silver dagger back into its sheath.

"Alright…" Marius said, uneasily lowering his stance. Maverick patted him on the head.

"Besides, I think they know that they would be terribly outnumbered if they did try and attack," Kalliel said with confidence. Gadd shouldered the cross-bolt. "Alright, alright, look," he said as he wiped his face. "There's no point in getting stressed out about it now, let's just enjoy the rest of the day."

"I dunno if I'll be able to now…" Luigi said worriedly. "What did he mean by 'I would help him if I wasn't careful?'" His mind was racing and he began to sweat bullets.

"Luigi!" Gadd said sternly. "Pull yerself together, lad. He said if you weren't careful." He smirked. "We're being careful," he winked. "You've got all of us plus all of Iceland watching your back. Nothing's gonna happen."

Luigi paused, feeling the uneasy knot in his stomach unravel and dissipate. Kalliel smiled at him and Marius gave him lighthearted thumbs up. "Y-yeah…" he said, relaxing. "You're right." Right now, he just wanted to see Windbag's grizzled, friendly face.

Time passed leisurely for the rest of the afternoon. The clear blue of the day faded into the rosy haze of late afternoon and finally to the deep hues of blue, pink and purple as evening descended and the sun dipped below the horizon. The golden-orange rays set the gold grasses aflame with color, made all the more so as the breeze gently blew them, causing the light to ripple and dance. Luigi sat on the top of their hill just outside of the campsite with his legs drawn gently against his torso, his chin on his knees. He held a tiny white flower between his thumb and forefinger of his right hand, gently twirling it. He looked over his shoulder and smiled at the others around the campfire.

Sigurd and Maverick busied themselves with helping to prepare the evening meal as Gadd sat fiddling with one of his contraptions while Kalliel and Marius shared a conversation. Pyewacket seemed content as he grazed in the long grass near the edge of camp. Despite the disturbance from earlier, it almost seemed like things were relatively normal. No fear. No worries. The stars were beginning to poke through the darkening sky.

He turned his attention back to the small prairie flower in his hand, admiring the tiny white petals and how they framed the simple yellow center. A single, tiny daisy.

"Oh! Dees-a field reminding Pyewacket of home!" Pyewacket chirped happily, startling Luigi, who placed a hand over his heart.

"Hmm, still thinking about home?" Luigi asked as Pyewacket folded his long, muscular legs beneath him and fluttered his wings.

"A little…But Pyewacket great warriah! Nottafraid!"

Luigi raised an eyebrow, "Not to be a prude, but haven't we been on you about grammar?"

Pyewacket winced. "Ehh…I has to be a great warriah."

"Close…S'mon, one more shot."

"…I have to be a great warriah…"

"Perfect," Luigi said, ruffling his mane. "Y'know," he said thoughtfully, "you sound exactly like your father." Pyewacket's face lit up ecstatically. When his English was cleanly spoken, the strong island accent came out in his voice. Pyewacket was much more pleased with the fact that he was becoming more like his father. He grinned for a moment, but his smile drooped. "What's wrong?" Luigi asked with concern.

Pyewacket shook his head sadly. "Me-eh…I can't go back-a to island…exiled…." He said heavily. Luigi looked at him with sympathy. "So you miss it, huh? Your home?"

"Yah…"

"If it makes you feel better, I really miss my old home too…sometimes, though," Luigi said, looking back out over the prairie. Pyewacket cocked his head. "Where Weegie from?"

"Well…my brother and I are from this world, but when we were really little, we were sent far, far away to another land so we could be safe…"

"Which-a land? Where?" Pyewacket asked eagerly, impatient for answers.

"Well," Luigi scratched his head, removing his hat, "It's kinda weird…to explain. It was a place called 'Brooklyn.'"

Pyewacket stared curiously, "Brook…leen?" He shook his head. "Me nevah heard about brookleen…then again…Pyewacket norra heard about many places before now…"

"Yeah." Luigi was quiet as he thought back to his past. "It was like a giant forest of concrete and steel. Kind of like Toad Town, only without as many mushrooms," he chuckled, trying to put it in a scenario the prince would relate to. Pyewacket thought wondrously. A giant forest of stone and steel? He had only seen the outside of Toad Town, but to be amongst the skyscrapers must be something extraordinary. Pyewacket cocked his head at his friend as Luigi sat in silence, smiling as he thought back to his old life.

"Weegee miss it?"

Luigi looked at him thoughtfully and shrugged. "Every now and then." They sat in silence for a second or so. "But y'know?" Luigi continued, staring back out at the savannas and the inky-blue sky dotted with millions of sparkling diamonds. "This more than makes up for it…"

Pyewacket nodded slowly in understanding as he turned his reptilian face to the heavens. So many questions. Answers to questions and questions to answers were appearing in vast numbers. Despite this, he was filled with an innocent sense of wonder and awe at the prospect of the coming changes.

For the first time in a while, he felt relatively at peace.