Adrenaline still pumped through Luigi's veins from his encounter with the shrewd Possessor, the thrill of being mounted on that bomb-launching bobsled, laughing and screaming and hollering, still fresh. Only a Possessor that shrewd would turn a harmless sheet of ice into an ice monster that tried to eat him. All of the tea and cocoa in the world couldn't calm him down. He needed something to do. Scratch that—he wanted something to do.
Impatiently, he rejoined Gadd at the console. "Any news on our next locale?" he asked.
"I'm afraid that'll have to wait," said Gadd. "We've got a severe ghostly infestation taking hold in the Secret Mine!"
"According to the Parascope, these ghosts are even tougher than the previous infestation," Ned joined in.
"We've given this a lot of thought—and we don't think these repeated infestations are a coincidence," said Fred.
"Whoever's behind this mess is sending ghosts to recapture the locales you've cleared away," added Zed.
Luigi bit his lip. "I'm not gonna let that happen," he said firmly.
"That's what I like to hear!" crowed Gadd. "Look lively, youngster!"
Luigi put his coat and scarf back on, and then Gadd sent him back to the Secret Mine.
…
He landed softly on his feet in the chalet, Poltergust at the ready the minute he touched the ground. Gadd's voice crackled over the Dual Scream, "We've detected the first bunch of ghosts. Give them what for!"
Luigi checked his map and spotted the terminal as an area of interest. When he arrived there, he saw a Greenie, a Slammer and a Sneaker with those white markings. His stomach flopped—if there were enhanced ghosts running rampant in the Secret Mine, then he couldn't afford to dawdle!
Luckily, he was able to put that leftover epinephrine from his chilly ride to good use, capturing the Slammer first, followed by the Greenie and the Sneaker. He hardly felt the punches they managed to land on him, the urgency of the situation creating a stronger sense of giddiness.
"They're not done yet!" warned Gadd. "Look lively!"
And indeed, the Dual Scream pinpointed ghosts running amok in the fishing hut and the chalet. Luigi stopped at the chalet first, finding a smattering of armed Greenies waiting for him. They tangled for about two minutes before he finally managed to get them into the vacuum with a powerful Surge. His upper body throbbed as he limped over to the fishing hut, where there were more armed Greenies to fight. By now, however, he was able to recognize their attack patterns and discover more openings where he could counterattack. Three minutes later, every last ghost in the fishing hut was captured.
"Look at all of them!" shouted Gadd. "Be careful…"
The ghosts had reclaimed the terminal, and there were some in the drift hall and under the ice. Strong Sneakers and regular Slammers were in the terminal, a group of Greenies and Strong Slammers were under the ice, and regular Greenies, regular Sneakers and Strong Sneakers were in the drift hall. The last group was the hardest, as the Sneakers would come out of nowhere and either scare him, attack him or scare him before attacking him. Not to mention all of the ice which made him slip and slide. But he was determined not to let these ghosts recapture the Secret Mine and undo his hard work.
After what seemed like hours, the last ghost was finally in the Poltergust. Luigi uncovered a golden bone from a nearby chest and sat down on the ice, catching his breath.
The Dual Scream rang.
"Yello?"
"All right, Luigi," said Gadd. "You caught them all."
"That's a relief," said Luigi.
"I could've done it a bit quicker myself, but at least you got the job done," Gadd went on. "Besides, I'm too old for this ghost-catching tomfoolery."
You said that on the night we met, thought Luigi.
"Anyway, let's bring you back. You need to be completely thawed out before starting your search for the final Dark Moon piece."
"Ciao," said Luigi before hanging up.
…
"Nice work," said Gadd when Luigi landed back in the Bunker. "I know I say that a lot, but it's true. I'm proud of you, my boy!"
"Thank you," said Luigi as he shrugged off his coat, threw off his scarf and emptied the Poltergust.
"These infestations seem to happen to all of the locations that we explore," Gadd observed when Luigi was done. "That can't be a coincidence."
"Someone has to be planning them," said Zed. "Someone powerful."
Luigi's heart skipped two beats as he remembered his phone call with Brad.
"Probably the same fiend who shattered the Dark Moon!" Gadd put in. "But with you on the case, Luigi, those ghosts don't stand a chance."
"You said it!" Fred chimed in.
Luigi retreated to the lounge, hoping to finally come down from his adrenaline high. From the looks of things, he needed to have his wits about him during his search for the last Dark Moon piece!
…
He couldn't believe it. He just couldn't believe it. The harsh cold wasn't enough to keep Luigi away from the Secret Mine. Even when he discovered the Boos' little surprise—the enhanced ghosts—he took thrashing after thrashing, and yet he kept on fighting! The King supposed that it was partly his fault, as well; he should've seen that bobsled in the workshop and removed it so that Luigi would've been powerless against that Possessor. However, even with his defenses falling, the King wouldn't fall into despair. He had an even bigger surprise waiting for Luigi inside the Treacherous Mansion!
"Ah, Luigi," sighed King Boo. "You think you're so smart. But we'll see who gets the last laugh!"
Please R&R.