mariobroultimate
I like your guess, but we're gonna see what Moleville is actually like.
StarlitDuck
I agree. Why would Mario be the only one reading out the clues? If he has partners with him, they all might as well have their turns.
5C - Moleville Mines
"No! You're lying to me!" Bowser yelled. He was being told by the Koopa Bros that despite them defeating Mario and friends, the third Magic Mushroom was gone.
"No, we're not, King Bowser!" Red Ninjakoopa said. "We knew what we were doing! We did our super spinning attack and knocked them away!"
"I don't know how the Magic Mushroom flew with Mario, Luigi, and their so-called 'little brother'!" Blue Ninjakoopa chimed in.
"Yeah! What kind of whiny kid would be-" Yellow Ninjakoopa started to ask.
"ENOUGH!" Bowser roared, stopping the Koopa Bros from talking. "I don't want to hear your excuses anymore! You still lost the Magic Mushroom! I don't care if you won the battle or not!"
"But we DID win!" Green Ninjakoopa argued. "It was just one little mistake!"
"You can't make a mistake and win at the same time!" Bowser chided. "That's not how villains fight heroes!" Bowser let out an angry sigh. "You know what? I want you to get your colored shells out of my hideout. You better start running or I'll scream again. Understood?"
The Koopa Bros didn't respond and sprinted toward Bowser's hideout's exit. Bowser turned his back and folded his arms.
"I can't believe they took down Lakithunder too," Bowser mumbled. "He was my best choice to take over Dinosaur Land." Bowser took a deep breath. "But regardless, I have more ways to stop Mario and his buddies from getting the last two Magic Mushrooms. I know they'll work."
It's now 3:35 PM, five minutes before the Toad Express arrives at Moleville's train station. Throughout the train ride, Mario, Luigi, Alex, and Yoshi sung some songs such as "I've Been Working on the Railroad", "She'll Be Coming 'Round the Mountain", and "Down by the Bay". They also talked about various Mario video games and what their favorite parts were.
Suddenly, the conductor announced over the comm system, "Attention, everyone. We will be arriving at Moleville in a few moments. Passengers heading for Moleville Mines should proceed directly through Moleville from the station. It will take time to turn this train around for the return trip to Toad Town, so keep your ears open for the next departure."
Before Mario and friends knew it, the Toad Express slowed to a stop after reaching the end of the railway. They exited the train and met with the conductor one more time.
"Have a fun time at Moleville Mines," the conductor said. "I'll be waiting here for you once you find the Magic Mushroom."
"Thank you, sir. But we're going somewhere else after the mines," Luigi responded.
"All right, then. Good afternoon to you guys."
Without further ado, the group walked west along the rocky path to a wood archway outside of Moleville. The town's name was engraved in the wood.
"Moleville's kind of like Rose Town except all the buildings here are roof-shaped and smaller," Mario said. "So, it's no surprise the Mole residents live in tight spaces."
Mario led Luigi, Alex, and Yoshi into Moleville. There were five roof-shaped buildings scattered throughout the town; one of them was a small Inn. There were several Moles roaming around too.
"I remember this place," Mario continued. "Me, Mallow, and Geno didn't just go into the mines to find the third Star Piece. A Mole mother's two children were stuck deep within and they were rescued thanks to us."
"Is that it right there?" Alex asked, pointing to a jagged mountain just ahead.
"It certainly is. The mines are inside that mountain."
The group took a while to explore Moleville before approaching the nearest mountainside. A Mole miner stood next to the staircase leading to the mountainside.
"Mario! So good to see you!" the Mole miner greeted Mario; he immediately recognized his face.
"You too, mister!" Mario replied while shaking the Mole miner's hand. "Me and my friends are looking for a Magic Mushroom in the mines."
"Hmm. I've never heard of Magic Mushrooms before."
"Well, you see, Princess Peach has been kidnapped, and we need six Magic Mushrooms to save her. We got four so far, and we think the fifth one is in there."
"Are you sure you can handle being in the mines?" the Mole miner asked. "It's very dangerous."
"I've been there before to rescue two kids," Mario answered. "We'll be good."
"All right, then. Up the staircase and to the right." The Mole miner pointed to the staircase and toward the right mountainside. "Good luck."
The group hurried up the staircase and started to go counter clockwise around the mountain. Just as they turned left, they heard some barking noises and stopped walking.
"Mamma mia..." Mario murmured. "There's a Chain Chomp nearby..." Mario tiptoed slowly and peeked around the corner to see a Chain Chomp hooked to a post. The post was right in front of the mine entrance.
"What do we do?" Alex whispered as he peered at the Chain Chomp too.
"You see the chain attached to the wood post?" Mario pointed to the Chain Chomp's post.
"Yes."
"If I Ground Pound it three times, the Chain Chomp will be released and hop away." Mario started to tiptoe toward the Chain Chomp. "Don't move. Tell Luigi and Yoshi to stay put too."
"Okay." Alex turned to Luigi and Yoshi. "Stay here with me, please. Mario's fighting a Chain Chomp."
Luigi and Yoshi nodded in agreement.
As Mario got closer to the Chain Chomp, he started to sweat a bit. He was worried about the Chain Chomp biting him. It continued barking and lunging in different directions.
Mario reached his right hand toward the Chain Chomp and said, "Easy, boy. I've come to help you."
The Chain Chomp heard Mario's voice and growled at him. It leaned back while snapping its teeth.
"I'm not gonna hurt you. I just-" Suddenly, the Chain Chomp lunged at Mario, barking as loud as it could. Mario was quick enough to jump over the Chain Chomp and land on the post. He ground pounded the post three times, breaking the chain.
A moment later, the Chain Chomp hopped around four times and jumped off the cliff never to be seen again. Mario let out a sigh of relief.
"All right-y, guys! We can go inside the mines now!" Mario called out. Luigi, Alex, and Yoshi ran up to Mario.
"I saw you freeing the Chain Chomp, Mario," Alex said. "You did a great job."
"Thank you, buddy." Mario looked at the mine entrance briefly. "Let's find that fifth Magic Mushroom. Come on." Mario beckoned Luigi, Alex, and Yoshi to follow him into the mines. The first area had two lanterns on the left and right walls and a wood door in front.
The group went through the door and found a big mine cart on a metal track. There was a podium stationed to the left of the track; it had a red button on top. Finally, there were two big wood doors in front of the cart.
"Wow! A mine cart ride!" Alex exclaimed upon seeing the cart. "I've always wanted to ride on one of those!"
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Luigi asked. "Let's climb aboard!"
Mario and Yoshi climbed into the cart first and examined the interior. There were eight-foot straps in two rows of four. Luigi and Alex boarded the cart too.
"Why is there a button here?" Alex asked while looking at the red button.
"Maybe it's to start up the mine cart," Mario said.
"Look at the sign, guys," Yoshi pointed to a sign above the two doors. It had four steps listed from top to bottom. "'1: Board the mine cart.' '2: Place your feet in the foot straps.'"
Mario and Alex stood in the front of the cart while Luigi and Yoshi stood in the back. They then secured their feet in their respective foot straps.
"'3: Press the red button.'," Yoshi continued reading the sign. "And '4: Hold on tight and have fun.'."
"Are you ready?" Mario asked Alex, Luigi, and Yoshi.
"Yes!" "I'm ready!" "Me too!"
"Okay! Here we go!" Mario pressed the red button, prompting a traffic light to lower from the ceiling. The red light flashed first before the yellow one came on. Then, the green light flashed, activating the mine cart railway. The cart slowly rolled forward, opening the doors in front.
The next area had a bunch of mining equipment and machinery working to extract some gold within the mines. To the top right was a lift hill that would pull the mine cart upward similar to a roller coaster.
"This is like a roller coaster," Alex said as soon as the cart started going up the lift hill. "But we don't have seat belts on."
"That's why there's the foot straps," Mario pointed out. "Unless we fly forward, they'll keep us safe."
Seconds later, the mine cart reached the top of the lift hill, ready to go down the track at full speed.
"Hold on, guys!" Yoshi instructed everyone. "This is gonna get bumpy!"
Right on cue, the lift hill's chain released the mine cart, which began to zoom forward. Mario and friends screamed with thrill.
The start of the track was lit up with lanterns placed at various points on the floor and walls. There were also wood structures with buckets of gold hanging from underneath. The cart swerved left and right along with the track, which traveled on the wall at certain points.
Eventually, the track straightened out at a downward slope. The group held on to the sides of the cart. They went fast enough to go up a steep hill that ended abruptly; the cart flew over a big gap before landing on the other side of the track.
"Wow! I thought we were gonna fall into the pit!" Luigi shouted.
The cart curved right at a moderate pace and approached an edgeless wood bridge. Before anyone could question about the bridge, the cart passed over a boost square within the track.
The square propelled the cart over the bridge, which collapsed behind it. Alex looked behind to see the bridge collapsing and was scared for a moment.
"We made it, Alex!" Mario said, prompting Alex to turn forward again. Still going fast, the cart rammed into three wood planks blocking the doorway ahead; the planks fell off to the right. A moment later, the cart passed over another boost square and it went up a steep upward slope before curving to the left.
"This is so fun!" Alex cried with joy. "Woohoo!"
"Yeah!" Mario exclaimed.
The track became straight again and the cart made a sharp left turn. The group was approaching another downward slope. Suddenly, a rumbling noise sounded from above, confusing everyone.
"What's that up there?" Mario asked while looking up.
"I don't know," Yoshi answered before the cart zoomed down the slope. "Let's not worry about-"
Before Yoshi could finish his sentence, a giant boulder crashed onto the track, scaring the group. They screamed with fright, thinking the boulder was gonna run them over; the boulder rolled ahead of the cart.
"Please roll away!" "Don't do it!" Luigi and Mario pleaded respectively. The track started to slope upward again, stopping the cart and boulder from going forward.
"I can't look!" Alex cried before covering his eyes. Mario also covered his eyes while Luigi and Yoshi braced themselves. The cart started to roll backward with the boulder chasing it.
Without Mario and friends knowing, the cart veered into a branch in the main track and continued speeding backward. Suddenly, another slope slowed the cart down and the boulder rolled to the right. Alex and Mario uncovered their eyes to see the boulder was gone.
"That was close." "I know, right?" Alex and Mario remarked. The cart moved forward down a path leading into a dark cave. Alex didn't have time to take out his flashlight because the cart was approaching the end of the tunnel quickly.
At the end of the tunnel was a gate with a sign at the top saying, "Watch Out!"
"What does 'Watch Out!' mean?" Yoshi asked as the cart broke through the gate. The next area had a bottomless pit with blue and orange lights illuminating the pit. At the same time the gate was broken, several blue Swoops started surrounding the cart.
"Blue bats?!" Alex yelled while swatting the Swoops away. "Why are they here?!"
"They're called Swoops, Alex," Mario explained. "They won't bother us if we let them be."
"Okay."
The cart continued to roll forward with the Swoops flying beside it. Eventually, the Swoops disappeared one by one before the cart entered a tunnel lit up by a couple lanterns. There was a branch in the main track with an "Exit" sign at the top. The cart slowed to a stop at a "Do Not Cross" sign blocking the end of the tunnel.
"Is that it?" Alex asked.
"I guess so," Mario answered. The group started to slide their feet out of the foot straps, but another rumbling noise sounded from the front end of the tunnel; the sound grew louder by the second.
"What's that sound?" Luigi asked. Before anyone can answer, another boulder raced toward the cart at full speed.
"Not again!" everyone shouted in unison. They braced themselves for the impact. One second later, the boulder slammed into the front end, sending bricks and wood flying at the cart. Just as one of the lanterns dropped on the ground, the ground started rumbling again.
"Uh oh..." Alex murmured. The ground broke underneath the cart, sending everyone down the deep hole. Again, everyone screamed as they fell down and floated out of the cart.
The pit was filled with glowing yellow orbs on the walls and seemed endless for several seconds. Before they knew it, Mario, Luigi, Alex, and Yoshi landed on a field of whitish yellow sand; the cart tumbled away after it impacted the sand. The rooms they were in was barely lit by the same orbs on the ceiling.
"Okay. How many holes have we fell down? A hundred?" Mario asked.
"Uh... Bro...?" Luigi asked Mario. Mario turned to see Luigi slowly sinking into the sand. "Why are we sinking...?"
Everyone else looked down to see themselves sinking too. They took a nervous glance at each other, realizing what they landed in.
"QUICKSAND!"
Mario and friends started struggling to try and get out of the quicksand, causing them to sink faster.
"Guys! Everybody, calm down!" Mario yelled as he stopped struggling. Luigi, Yoshi, and Alex tried to stop too, but they couldn't calm themselves down. "The more you panic, the more you'll sink deeper!"
"Where's the higher ground?!" Yoshi shouted; he was trying to find a solid surface nearby. "I can't see anything!"
"Right there!" Luigi pointed to a cobblestone floor to his left. "We have to swim to the rock floor!"
By now, the group had sunk up to their abdomens and the mine cart disappeared in the quicksand.
"Alex, give me your backpack!" Mario ordered Alex. Luigi quickly took Alex's backpack and tossed it to Mario. With the backpack in his left arm, Mario swam to the cobblestone floor. Luigi and Yoshi started to follow Mario, but Alex was too scared to swim.
"HELP ME! I CAN'T SWIM! HELP!" Alex cried, flailing his arms all over. He was tearing up and feared he would get sucked under completely.
"I'm coming, Alex!" Luigi called out. He grabbed Alex's right wrist and pulled him through the quicksand. By now, Mario had gotten out successfully and helped Yoshi out of the quicksand.
As Luigi and Alex neared the floor, they were at armpit-level. Mario pulled Luigi out and believed everyone was safe. But just as Luigi moved out of Mario's sight, Mario saw Alex at shoulder-level, still crying about getting sucked under.
"Grab my hands, buddy!" Mario shouted, reaching both hands toward Alex. Alex tried to reach for Mario, but he barely touched Mario's fingers. Mario reached further, successfully grabbing Alex's wrists.
Mario pulled as hard as he could until Alex was out completely; he fell on his bottom as Alex slid forward on the floor. Instead of being relieved, Alex cried harder and couldn't stand up.
Mario hugged Alex to calm him down; Luigi and Yoshi walked away to give both their space.
"I DON'T WANNA DIE, MARIO! PLEASE!" Alex sobbed.
"I know, buddy... You're okay now..." Mario coaxed Alex. "Breathe..."
Alex stayed in Mario's arms and couldn't let go of him. He was crying a bit more than when he got scared of the Warp Pipe water slide yesterday.
"I c-couldn't...g-get out...!" Alex cried. "It...w-was h-hard to m-move...!"
"Yes, it was... I'm sorry about the quicksand..."
Alex took some deep breaths to calm himself. Finally, after another three minutes, he had fully recovered from the quicksand fiasco and stood up with Mario.
"I'm sorry, guys," Alex apologized to Luigi and Yoshi as he put his backpack on. "The quicksand was scarier than the water slide."
"Indeed," Yoshi agreed. "I would've ridden the mine cart ride again if there wasn't quicksand at the very end."
At the top left of the room, there was a short hallway leading to a small treasure chest.
"That must be Magic Mushroom #5!" Mario said with glee.
"Hold on a second!" Luigi blurted out.
"What's wrong, bro?" Mario asked after turning to Luigi.
"I almost forgot about the Boos..." Luigi said in an anxious tone of voice. "Now that we're getting closer to having all six Magic Mushrooms, it means we're getting closer to facing the Boos..."
"Don't worry, Luigi," Mario reassured Luigi. "The Magic Mushrooms should be able to get rid of the Boos. We'll do that as soon as we first see them."
"Okay," Luigi responded after taking a deep breath. Mario walked up to the treasure chest and opened it. Inside was a glittering yellow Mushroom that was brighter than the yellow orbs in the main room.
"Yay!" Mario cheered as he grabbed the Magic Mushroom and held it in the air. The light from the Magic Mushroom completely lit up the hallway and the main room.
"All right-y!" "Yes!" Oh yeah!" Luigi, Alex, and Yoshi cheered too. Simultaneously, the sixth and final clue appeared inside a beam of light above the Magic Mushroom. Mario put the Magic Mushroom and clue in his pouch.
"Now to find our way out of the mines," Mario stated. The group reentered the main room and discovered another hallway at the bottom left of the room. This hallway led to a painting depicting an aerial view of Moleville.
"Hehe. Just like when I was searching for the Power Stars," Mario remarked; he was referring to his June 1996 adventure. Without further ado, the group hopped into the painting in hopes of being teleported back to Moleville.