Mario was unnerved and on edge after hearing Luigi's screams, but there was nothing he could do, trapped inside the cell. He walked over to the bars, and tried to bend them, but to no avail. Suddenly, an idea crossed his mind. Using a once-forgotten technique, he turned paper-thin, and snuck between the wars - out of the cell!
Once outside, he realized that his cell was one of many in a block - with only one Hammer Brother guard to the whole block. Mario snuck up behind the guard and jumped on him, and then dashed out.
Romana adjusted the controls as they went on course for Keelhaul Key.
"This is amazing..." Timpani said.
"This is insane," Daisy said.
"If you're talking about The Nomad, then arguably, both are true," Romana said.
"How do you know him, anyway?" Timpani asked. "You're very protective of him."
"I'm the Lady President of Gallifrey, our home planet. He is, or was, my citizen. We knew in advance he would try to leave Gallifrey, so I snuck inside his TARDIS to teach him a lesson. Rasillon knows if I had the slightest idea this would happen, I would have impounded his ship before it even left Gallifrey!"
"Did you know The Nomad personally?"
"No. I believe I saw him at one or two formal functions, but knowing him he skipped most of them."
"It's something else. He reminds you of someone you lost," Timpani said. After years of scanning people, she had grown quite insightful.
"You could say that," Romana said. "We're coming into land," she said absentmindedly.
Daisy then piped up, and pointed to a light on the console. "Is it supposed to be flashing red like that?"
"No, it's not," Romana said, reaching for the gyro-stabilizer controls. Suddenly, the light blew out, and the console room swerved around, going dark.
"We're out of control!" Blumiere said. "I feel another presence."
The image of a skull with a pirate hat could be seen on the wall as the console room began to shake uncontrollably. "OoOoOoO!"
"We're off course!" Romana said, thinking that if The Nomad were here, he could have corrected the fault.
Suddenly, the cabin shook with a massive bang, and everything stopped. Romana was the first to get up, reaching for the scanner control, but it was non-functional. Blumiere then got up, reaching for his bride.
"Timpani, are you alright?"
"Yes, Blumiere," she said, getting up. Peach and Daisy then rose. Timpani brushed off her white dress, and made sure her fairy-shaped tiara was still in place.
"Where are we?" Peach asked.
"I don't know, but we've lost all power," Romana responded.
"So we're stuck in here?" Daisy asked.
"No. The doors are primarily power-operated, but there is a manual crank. With any luck, we can get out," Romana said.
"No need," Blumiere said, as he raised his staff. A blue light surrounded the doors, and they opened.
The doors to the cabinet were pushed open as Romana looked up, her head poking out. Her head turned to the shore. Somewhat away, but just in view, was a dock with Toads, Bob-ombs, Goombas, and plenty of others milling around. Romana then backed down completely into the TARDIS, and Peach's head bobbed up.
"It's Rogueport!" Peach exclaimed.
"Rogueport?" Romana asked.
"A somewhat seedy town I've had the misfortune of visiting before," Peach said.
"Do you have any idea what caused us to crash?"
"Some sort of presence attacked us," Blumiere said.
"We could swim out to Rogueport," Daisy suggested.
"No, we could lose the TARDIS by doing that," Romana said. "I already have reservations about The Nomad flying without me, imagine if a non-Time Lord got their hands on one!"
In the distance, a Shy Guy moved to toss a rope at one of the handles. Luckily, it landed.
"It appears we are being rescued," Peach said. "Someone seems to be about to drag us to shore," she continued, as she came back down and shut the doors.
The green-robed Shy Guy walked over to a strange snail-like creature, whose otherwise unassuming appearance would strike fear into citizens of Rogueport as the leader of the Robbo's. "I need a favor," the Shy Guy said.
"A favor?" the snail asked.
"I need a couple of your body-builders, to drag some kind of cabinet back to shore."
"Cabinet?"
"Yes, Ishnail. It's made of wood... but it's not wet. And there were people inside - multiple people, even though it's far too small for that."
"Now I know you're scamming me, or you're insane," Ishnail said.
"Trust me."
"Trust you, Poor Guy? I trusted you not to default, but here we are!"
"You'll see if you bring it in. Whatever it is, it could be worth a lot... to someone. I would be willing to split it with you."
"Fine. We'll work out the details later. Play off your charm on them like you do with me."
Poor Guy nodded, as two large, burly-looking Koopas followed him to the dock. The two took hold of Poor Guy's rope and began pulling, with Romana's TARDIS slowly making its way back to the shore. Within about a minute, they were able to carry it onto shore, and put it right-side up. The door then opened, and Romana, Daisy, Peach, Blumiere, and Timpani all walked out, with Blumiere shutting the door using his staff.
"Thank you," Peach said.
"No problem," Poor Guy said. "Welcome to Rogueport! Not exactly a prime vacation spot, but we certainly do attract plenty of... tourism. If there's anything you need, I'm your Guy."
Romana smiled and nodded, and the party began to walk away, but Daisy suddenly turned around. "Say, could you get us a boat to Keelhaul Key?"
"Of course I can!" Poor Guy exclaimed. "I'll arrange it, you lot stay here."
Poor Guy then dashed up the steps.
Ishnail turned around to see Poor Guy in his house. "What is it now?"
"I need a boat. And a navigator."
"Where, and why?"
"Keelhaul Key. Our visitors want it. They're rich, Ishnail. At least three princesses, and the other two looked like royalty as well, even if one of 'em looked kinda' weird. We could take the cabinet and search it while they're gone. Then, when they search for it, we kill 'em!"
"Good plan. I can see why I've kept you alive, Poor Guy. What you lack in funds, you make up for in resourcefulness and charisma. Bomberto should be willing to navigate."
Poor Guy nodded, and strode away.
Blumiere looked at the sky, and hugged Timpani, while Daisy grew irritated at waiting. However, the suspense broke as Poor Guy dashed down. "Bomberto will be navigating for you today!"
Bomberto was a standard-looking Bob-omb sailor, with a traditional cap. He walked up to the crew. "Let's go. My boat is right this way," he said, gesturing to a small rowboat. He was the first to get on, sitting in the front, as the others filled in.
Poor Guy saluted to Bomberto as the Bob-omb detached his boat from the dock, and it began to drift towards Keelhaul Key.
Rosalina stared at the time rotor, as it moved up and down in the TARDIS, and then looked down at The Nomad, who was probing at some sort of metal tube with his Sonic Screwdriver.
"What are you working on?" Rosalina asked.
"I am modifying one of K9's backup nose lasers for independent use, should work as a good weapon, once I attach a power pack," The Nomad said.
Rosalina rolled her eyes with disdain for weapons as the control room shook and the time column settled. "I think we've landed," she said.
"You're right," The Nomad said, and stood up, placing the laser on the console and tapping the scanner control. The shutter screen rolled down to reveal a dark forest thick with trees. "Come on," The Nomad said. "Let's go," he continued, as he flung the door control to the open position and strode out, followed by Rosalina.
"Do you even know where we're going?" Rosalina asked as she shut the TARDIS door behind her.
"As a matter of fact, yes," The Nomad said, holding his Sonic Screwdriver, and then turning himself slightly. "If we go straight forward from the direction I'm standing in, we'll reach the Grand Star. I've worked on adapting the Statenheim Remote Control to home in on us once we have it, but it's not ready yet."
"I see," Rosalina said. The Nomad rummaged around in his pockets and pulled out a strange green device, with a quiet beeping sound and light.
"Take this, in case we get separated," he said.
"What is it?"
"The TARDIS homing beacon. It'll get you back there, and then you can signal for help."
Rosalina grabbed it and walked ahead of The Nomad. As they continued, they could hear whispers, that slowly got louder and louder. Rosalina took it in stride, but The Nomad wasn't doing so well, shaking in fear.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"I never liked the idea of the undead," The Nomad said, uncomfortable with the idea of meeting his future - or past, selves.
"You have... had, that in common with Luigi," Rosalina responded, correcting herself.
"Right," The Nomad said, and then went silent. Eventually, they could see a mansion in the distance. It was at this point at The Nomad yelped quietly and dashed back towards the TARDIS.
"Nomad!" Rosalina shouted.
The Nomad sprinted as fast as he could, until his foot suddenly snagged against a low-hanging branch and he fell to the ground in a crash. Feeling weak, he pulled himself up, and realized he had been pricked by something, drawing his orange-colored blood. In horror, he removed whatever had pricked him, and almost felt ready to faint. With the TARDIS in view, he limped over to it, and pushed open the doors. Almost falling over the console, he pushed the door control as the doors closed behind him, and as everything got darker, he collapsed to the floor in a growing pool of blood.
This was a good medium-length chapter, even if it was nothing to World 2-4. What will Poor Guy do now that he's up to no good? Will Rosalina and The Nomad get out of Boo Woods alive? Who knows? You'll have to check back in for World 2-7 to find out these answers and more!