LiamTheYoshi
Yeah. Good thing everyone made it out of there unharmed.
mariobroultimate
Bowser was meant to be an idiot in most of the Mario games. But he does get serious at times, which I talked about in the beginning.
Mario bros fan4ever
If you're referring to a reference from Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars, thank you.
Chapter 6
6A - Booster Pass
It's 4:22 PM. Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, and Alex saw themselves floating down to the center of Moleville having traveled briefly through a white void. Upon landing, Mario took out the final clue to read it.
"Mario, can I read it this time?" Alex asked.
"Sure," Mario answered as he handed the clue to Alex. He saw a line of numbers in the center of the clue.
"Luigi, let's read the clue together," Alex said.
"Okey-dokey." Luigi and Alex began to read the numbers in unison.
"''2 15 15 19 20 5 18 16 1 19 19.' 1-26.'"
"What are we supposed to do with a bunch of numbers?" Luigi asked.
"Maybe the numbers mean something," Mario answered. Everyone stopped to think of what the numbers meant before Alex figured out the answer.
"Hey! I know what the numbers mean!" Alex exclaimed with joy.
"What is it?" Mario asked.
"The numbers relate to the 26 letters in the alphabet!"
"That's right, Alex! You're very smart!" Mario high-fived Alex, who proceeded to look at the dirt ground.
"I need a stick to draw with."
"I'll be right back," Yoshi said before running off to find a stick. He managed to find one in less than a minute. "Here you go."
Without hesitation, Alex took the stick and kneeled to start deciphering the clue. First, he wrote the numbers 1 through 26 and wrote the letters in the alphabet beneath each of the numbers. He then studied both lines and the clue carefully.
"The number 2 at the start of the clue is equal to the letter B, and the number 15 is equal to the letter O," Alex explained. "The rest goes on."
It took Alex a couple minutes to write the whole deciphered clue.
"'Booster Pass'."
"I know what that place is!" Mario said. "Booster Pass is a cliffside path leading to a fortress called Booster Tower. Maybe the fortress contains the sixth Magic Mushroom."
"One more to go, guys," Yoshi remarked. Luigi got a bit anxious again.
"You mean one more Magic Mushroom to the Boos…?"
"Yes, Luigi," Mario answered. He put his hand on Luigi's shoulder. "Like I said, we'll keep each other safe while going through Bowser's hideout."
"How far is Booster Pass from here?" Alex asked.
"It's a ways away," Mario replied. "But we'll start hiking before you know it."
Without further ado, the group left Moleville to the south past the train station. There was no sign that showed how far Booster Pass was, but Mario knew where the path starts.
For the next 40 minutes, the group walked through a small desert and grassland before they reached a rocky cliff. A narrow path connected to the center led Mario and friends straight and to the southeast. The ground was so far down that it was risky to accidentally fall off the path if a mistake was made.
Alex looked down the ravine and flinched upon seeing how deep it was.
"Oh geez! It's so high!" Alex yelled. He almost fell backward, but Yoshi caught him in time.
"Be careful, Alex," Yoshi warned Alex. "Don't look down. You wouldn't want to fall off the edge."
"I'm sorry," Alex panted. "I couldn't help but look down."
"It's okay. Just look forward and you'll be all right."
"Thank you."
The group continued down the path, looking carefully for the various twists and turns they had to traverse along the way. Eventually, they made it to a vast rocky slope. Alex sat down and took out his second peanut butter and banana sandwich from his lunchbox. He also unpacked another water bottle, his tortilla chips, and one of his oranges.
"Is there another orange in there?" Luigi asked. Alex nodded his head and gave his second orange to Luigi.
"Here's some applesauce, Mario." Alex gave Mario his second applesauce cup before eating his snacks. After a 12-minute snack break, the group resumed their hike across Booster Pass. At this point, the sun was going to set in a half hour.
"I know the sun's setting soon, but let's not rush ourselves," Mario said. Along the way, Mario and friends approached a Brick Block and a Yellow Question Mark Block. Alex ran underneath both blocks and hit them to release their contents.
The Brick Block contained ten Coins; Mario gave half the Coins to Luigi. The Yellow Question Mark Block contained a Fire Flower.
"You can keep the Fire Flower, buddy," Mario told Alex.
"Thank you." After Alex put the Fire Flower in his shorts pocket, the group started hiking again. Minutes later, Yoshi saw some distant red objects coming in fast.
"What are those red things over there?" Yoshi asked. He squinted to make it easier for him to see the flying red objects. Yoshi recognized what they were just as they stopped abruptly in front.
"Red Paratroopas?!"
Five Red Paratroopas hovered ten feet above the ground, ready to attack. They rose up slowly.
"Alex, stay back," Mario instructed Alex.
"But why? I want to help fight the Paratroopas!" Alex complained.
"Not this time. I'm sorry."
"Okay…" Alex hung his head down and stepped back a couple steps.
"Get ready, you two," Mario told Luigi and Yoshi. All but Alex took a battle stance. The Red Paratroopas divebombed downward and started zooming all over the place after hitting the ground.
Luigi spin jumped on one of the Red Paratroopas, catapulting him to the second one. Yoshi ate the third Paratroopa and spat it out as three fireballs at the fourth one, reducing it to ashes. Finally, Mario hopped on the fifth Paratroopa twice to clip its wings and hide it in its shell. Mario threw the shell off the cliff.
"All right-y. We're good to go," Luigi said.
"That battle was amazing, but I wish I would've helped," Alex murmured with disappointment. Mario approached Alex and kneeled next to him.
"I'm sorry, buddy…" Mario said with sympathy. "I understand you wanted to bounce on the Paratroopas with us, but it was too-"
Suddenly, another Red Paratroopa knocked over Mario on his back.
"Oh, mamma mia…" Mario groaned. Right as Alex helped Mario up, he noticed the pouch was missing.
"THE POUCH!" Alex cried. "WHERE'D IT GO?!"
Everyone frantically ran around the rocky platform, looking for the pouch that seemingly fell off the cliff.
"I can't find it!" "Me neither!" Mario and Luigi shouted respectively.
"What do we do now?!" Yoshi demanded. "We'll never save Princess Peach!"
"Wait! I found it!" Alex called out. Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi ran to the edge where was Alex and looked down. The pouch hadn't plunged all the way to the bottom of the ravine. Instead, it had gotten caught on a long branch extending outward about 20 feet below.
"Oh, thank goodness!" Mario sighed with relief. "But how are we gonna climb down to reach it? Unless we had some sort of ladder, it's impossible."
"Did somebody say 'ladder'?" Luigi asked. "That's a brilliant idea!"
"What do you mean, bro?" Mario asked.
"How about we make like a human ladder and have one of us reach down and grab the pouch?"
"Okey-dokey! We'll do just that!"
"But which of us is brave enough to get the pouch?" Yoshi asked.
"Good question," Mario responded. Everyone paused to think of who should volunteer for the daring task.
"I'll do it!" Alex offered with determination.
"Are you sure, Alex?" Mario asked. "You almost sunk into the quicksand and I don't want to lose you."
"But I'm Super Alex! I can do it! Please?"
"Come on, Mario," Luigi said. "Alex seems determined for the job. Give him a chance."
"All right-y. If you insist," Mario sighed. "I'm just worried about him. Alex is six years old."
"That's true."
"What's the human ladder gonna be like?" Alex asked.
"You'll go first, I'll hold on to your ankles, Luigi will hold my ankles, and Yoshi will stay on the rock floor," Mario explained. "I really don't want to let you get the pouch, but the best we can do is try."
"Okay."
Without further ado, the group kneeled and formed their human ladder. Like Mario suggested, Alex went in front, Mario held Alex's ankles, and Luigi and Yoshi formed the bottom part of the ladder.
Alex gently laid on his stomach and slowly crawled over the cliff to see the pouch hanging off the ravine. Mario made sure to grab Alex's ankles tight, but not enough to hurt him. During the slow descent, Alex's stomach churned as he wasn't holding on to anything at the moment.
"I don't feel good, Mario," Alex said.
"What's wrong?" Mario asked.
"My stomach is going nuts."
"Do you want to be pulled-"
"NO! KEEP LOWERING ME!" Alex shouted, interrupting Mario's offer.
"Alex, calm down. You're gonna fall if you get angry like that. I don't want you to throw up either."
"I know."
Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi continued to slowly lower Alex toward the pouch. When he was about three and a half feet above the branch, Alex reached his arms out. Suddenly, everyone jerked downward a small bit, scaring Alex.
"WHOA! WHAT HAPPENED UP THERE?!" Alex yelled.
"My arm is itching!" Yoshi replied. "I need to scratch it badly!"
"Now's not the time, Yoshi!" Mario ordered Yoshi. "Would you worry about losing a six-year-old boy or scratching a pointless itch?!"
"I'm sorry!"
Alex stretched his arms out further, but his fingers barely touched the branch.
"Just a little more!" Alex called out.
"Alex, I'm too close to the edge!" Yoshi shouted. He was trying to keep himself on the rocky platform by hooking his feet in the cracks, but most of his body was over the edge.
"Please, Yoshi!"
Yoshi inched himself a small bit over the edge again, trying to keep himself stable. It was enough for Alex to grasp the branch with his right hand.
"I'm grabbing the pouch!" Alex declared. He managed to free the pouch from the branch with his left hand and tightened his grip on the straps. "All right! Pull me up!"
"I don't know how much longer I can hold on!" Luigi shouted. "My arms are getting tired!"
"Luigi, hang in there!" Mario said. Yoshi started to pull Alex, Mario, and Luigi back to the rocky platform.
Everyone suddenly jerked downward more than the first time.
"I can't take the itch anymore!" Yoshi pleaded. "I'm trying to resist!"
"TRY HARDER!" Alex screamed. He was getting irritated from being hung by his ankles. Yoshi pulled as hard as he could and managed to get himself and Luigi back on the platform.
Just as Yoshi tended to his itch, he heard Alex scream louder than normal. He rushed to the edge and saw Luigi's grip on Mario's ankles slowly slip away. Mario and Alex were on the verge of falling into the ravine.
"Hold on, guys!" Luigi shouted. Yoshi immediately grabbed Mario's left ankle, prompting Luigi to let go of both ankles.
In the meantime, Alex was tearing up because he was scared about falling to the bottom below.
"HURRY UP!" Alex cried.
"Alex, I'm gonna swing you to the rock floor!" Mario said. "Luigi will catch you as you're flying toward him!"
"NO! I WON'T MAKE IT!"
"Yes, you will! It's the only-" Alex's shoes started to slip off his feet as Mario's arms were getting tired.
"HELP ME, MARIO!"
"You're going to be fine! I promise!"
Yoshi grabbed Mario's other ankle while holding the other, ready for Mario to execute his plan.
"Ready?" Yoshi asked. Mario turned his head to Yoshi and nodded. "Go!"
Mario swung Alex to the left a small bit and used the last of his strength to launch Alex upward. Yoshi immediately pulled Mario back onto the rocky platform.
Alex screamed as he flew up the cliffside and Luigi got ready to catch him. Alex started to fall back down after reaching the highest point of his ascent; he wasn't flying over the platform.
Luigi lunged forward and grabbed Alex's hands just before he disappeared below the cliff edge.
"L-Luigi…!" Alex cried. Luigi pulled Alex onto the platform and hugged him close.
"Whew! What a relief," Mario sighed while wiping his brow. "Glad everyone made it back up safely." He picked up the pouch and slung it over his shoulders again.
"Not just yet, Mario," Yoshi said. "Alex is a bit shaken right now."
"I know. But the good news is he proved me wrong. I'll talk with him about it later."
"Th-thanks…f-for saving m-me…!" Alex sobbed.
"You're welcome, buddy," Luigi said softly. "You don't understand how proud we all are of you."
"Thank y-you…" Alex hugged Luigi tighter, not wanting to let go for now. "I c-can't…b-believe I d-did it…"
After a five-minute breather, Luigi and Alex stood back up.
"Man, was that scary!" Alex remarked. "After all, we were walking on a narrow cliffside."
"Yeah. I'll never forget that part," Yoshi agreed. "Was that one of Bowser's plans? Did he ask for a Paratroopa army to throw the pouch overboard?"
"It seemed like it," Mario replied. "As for you, Alex, you really proved us how brave you were to save the pouch from falling to the bottom. Great job!"
"Thanks again, Mario," Alex thanked Mario. "Now I can show Bowser how I'm not a normal kid anymore!"
"Oh, he'll be surprised for sure. Ready to keep going?"
"Let's-a go!" Alex declared while imitating Mario's voice. Everyone chuckled at Alex's impression.
"You said it, buddy!"
Without further ado, the group continued south down Booster Pass, which seemed to go on forever. Even the sun fell below the horizon, making it a bit hard to watch for unexpected obstacles.
By 7:35 PM, Mario and friends arrived at a slightly steep dirt hill that signified the end of Booster Pass. Alex was getting tired from both the excessive walking and him saving the pouch.
"Can we stop here for the night?" Alex yawned. "I feel like I'm gonna fall asleep."
"Me too," Luigi added in.
Mario looked for a safe place to go to sleep at; he eventually found an isolated grassy area next to a small pond.
"Right there," Mario pointed out. He led Luigi, Alex, and Yoshi to the grassy area. Alex immediately ran up to the pond and took out his toothpaste and toothbrush to brush his teeth.
In the meantime, Mario and Yoshi laid on either side of a medium-sized pine tree. Luigi laid next to a boulder covered in moss.
"Good night, Mario. Good night, Luigi. Good night, Yoshi," Alex called out.
"Good night, Alex," Mario, Luigi, and Yoshi replied in unison.
Alex found another pine tree next to the mossy boulder and set his backpack against the trunk. Before going to sleep, Alex used his backpack as a pillow and looked at the starry sky for a while.
What will happen the next morning? Where will Mario and friends find the sixth and final Magic Mushroom?