Oh, yeah! One down, four more to go!
And it looks like I'm next in line to be rescued.
Yeah? Where are you, Brad?
Ninth floor. At least Wolfgeist entertained Thad with his piano. The boss ghost I was gifted to is giving me the silent treatment. I can't wait for Luigi to get me out of here.
He'll come sooner than you think. But right now, let's see where my lil' bro is headed to next…
…
Luigi slid down to a seated position inside the elevator, leaning his back against the wall. Gooigi sat beside him, and while he couldn't physically express worry, it showed in the way he rubbed the small of his companion's back. Thad plopped himself down on Luigi's other side, and Polterpup paced back and forth, occasionally woofing with concern.
After some unbearably long minutes, Luigi stirred, having fully composed himself after the battle with Wolfgeist. Thad climbed onto his lap, and Polterpup dashed into the space the Toad had vacated. Gently, Thad rested his head against Luigi's chest, feeling it rise and fall and listening to the still-brisk heartbeat. It didn't matter anymore that he was stuck in a hotel of horrors. It didn't matter what Hellen had done to him, Brad and Chad before they were sealed away. With Luigi, he knew he'd always be safe.
"You're okay, Thad," Luigi said softly, reassuring himself as well as his charge. "You're okay."
By the time the elevator reached the basement, Thad had dozed off. Luigi held him close, like a child, as he disembarked and strode toward Gadd's lab.
Gadd turned as Luigi entered. "Welcome back, youngster!" he greeted.
Luigi put a finger to his lips. "Shh—he's sleeping," he cautioned.
Gadd's eyes widened when he saw the slumbering Toad. "Relief, huh?"
"Maybe," said Luigi, remembering how Mario had conked out after that final battle in 2001.
"Stay here for a sec," said Gadd, racing outside.
He returned seconds later with five sleeping bags, which he leaned against a wall. He took the white sleeping bag and rolled it out. "Here," he said to Luigi.
Carefully, Luigi lowered Thad onto the sleeping bag, and Gadd fetched five pillows, placing one under Thad's head.
"There we go," said the Professor. "I'll have some snacks waiting for him when he wakes up."
"Thanks, Professor," said Luigi.
He tiptoed over to the storage unit and emptied the Poltergust, his eyes sweeping over the three boss ghosts.
"No hard feelings?" he asked.
Soulffle grumbled something.
"Nah, we're cool," Kruller assured him. "It takes two opposing forces to cause friction, and all that."
"This isn't actually that bad," smiled Wolfgeist. "I'll have all the peace and quiet in the world to write my newest symphony."
"Glad to hear it," said Luigi.
Then, he turned to the Professor. "I'd better get going."
"Wait—wait—are you sure you don't need anything?" asked Gadd.
"I brought along my own first-aid kit, and I'm not hungry," Luigi told him. "Thanks, though."
Determinedly, he strode out of the Lab.
Gooigi and Polterpup lingered behind.
"I'll take a Gem Locator, a Boo Cartridge and some mini Oreos for the road," said Gooigi.
"Are you his conscience?" asked Gadd.
"Well—Polterpup and I—we've got an understanding," winked Gooigi as he paid for his purchases, pocketed the merchandise and left with the ghost puppy.
…
"There you are," said Luigi when Gooigi and Polterpup met up with him in the lobby.
"Sorry," said Gooigi. "I decided to buy us some stuff."
"That's very thoughtful of you," said Luigi. "Thank you."
They were about to head to the elevator when the phone on the front desk rang.
"No—don't…" cautioned Gooigi, but Luigi was at the phone in one leap.
"Yello?"
"By rescuing your friend, you've disrupted our schedule," Hellen said in as calm a voice she could muster. "Now, what have you got to say to that?"
"I say, 'Too bad for you'," Luigi said crisply.
"You were just lucky," snapped Hellen, "but I promise you—the next round of ghosts will show you no mercy. They'll see you reduced to a green-and-blue smear on the floor."
"Oh, we'll see," Luigi snapped back.
"Do you really think you're a match for us, Mr. Ghostbuster?"
Luigi drew a long breath. "Yippee-ki-yay, Hellen Gravely," he said before hanging up.
"Let's go, Gooigi," he said as he marched to the elevator.
En route to the 6th floor, Gooigi turned to Luigi. "Why do they keep doing that?" he asked.
"To get at me," replied Luigi.
"Then why take the bait?" asked Gooigi.
"Because once you start running—they'll never let you stop," sighed Luigi.
The elevator arrived at their destination, the ghost-wranglers stepping into a castle-themed floor.
"Castle MacFrights," said Luigi. "I kinda see where this is going."
He nearly stopped breathing as an ax clattered to the floor just inches from him.
"We'd better be careful," he said to Gooigi.
They walked to the castle "entrance", where music began playing from the loudspeakers. There was a rope attached to the entrance gate, but it was on the entrance's other side.
"I got this," said Gooigi, slipping through the gate and pulling it open, allowing Luigi to enter.
Once inside the castle, Luigi and Gooigi used their Suction Shots to heave suits of armor overhead, smashing them to the floor and spilling treasure and gems. After that, they walked through another door into some sort of courtyard, which overlooked an arena.
Two Goobs played a brief fanfare on their trumpets, and then a ghostly king with red hair materialized, wearing a kilt.
"You must be King MacFrights," Luigi called to him.
"I am," said MacFrights. "Usually, it's customary for you to kneel before your King."
"Sorry—I'm in no position to kneel right now," Luigi said smartly.
"Eh—I'll give you a free pass tonight," said MacFrights. "Now—is this what you came here for?" He tauntingly held up the next elevator button.
"Indeed, it is."
"Well, then—if you want it, then you'll have to battle me for it," grinned MacFrights.
"That's fine with me," said Luigi.
"Perfect. If you make it through my lovely castle, then I'll be waiting for you in the arena," said MacFrights. "See you soon."
A door revealed itself to Luigi and Gooigi, and they walked through it to find two Goobs sparring with swords. The Goobs then noticed them and used those swords to attack.
During the short skirmish, the duo dodged the ghosts' attacks, stunned them when they had an opening, and defeated them with a few slams. When two more Goobs appeared, they dealt with them the same way. When the tussle ended, Luigi sported some cuts, but they weren't serious. He and Gooigi proceeded into a room consisting of stairs, rope pulleys and spikes.
"You can't get past those spikes, but I can," said Gooigi. "Leave it to me."
Luigi watched as Gooigi walked effortlessly through the spiked areas, collecting anything of interest. One last set of spikes blocked the way to the next door, but Gooigi pulled on the rope controlling those spikes, allowing Luigi to pass.
"You'd be lost without me," said Gooigi as the duo walked into the next room.
This next room was filled with several small barrels and three large barrels, and the door across from them was locked.
"Maybe the key is inside one of these giant barrels," murmured Luigi.
Before they could start searching, a Goob armed with a shield burst out of one of the barrels!
Thinking quickly, Luigi fired off a Suction Shot, enabling him to yank the shield away and capture the Goob. They were followed by two Oozers, who tossed projectiles at him from a safe distance, and another shield-bearing Goob. With Gooigi's help, Luigi defeated them all, and then the two used their Suction Shots to open the large barrels and search for the key, which they eventually found in the second barrel.
They unlocked the door, which opened to another room with a spiked floor. Gooigi crossed the spikes to yank on another rope, which caused four balls attached to chains to drop down.
"What do these do?" asked Luigi.
"I think you're supposed to pull on them," said Gooigi.
Luigi did so, and while the first three dropped treasure, the fourth opened a trapdoor and allowed him to access an area below the floorboards. Activating a device allowed him to light a torch, burn away a spiderweb and work his way to the other side of the area, where he pulled on another rope to cause a ladder to drop down.
"Sometimes, you need to look below the surface," Luigi opined before the duo continued on their way.
The next room consisted of a lift and several cages, the former of which was controlled by spinning a wheel.
"You can get in first," said Gooigi. "I'll get you to the lower level, and then you can return the favor."
"Okay."
So, Luigi got in the lift, and Gooigi blew on the wheel which lowered it. After the former disembarked, he used another wheel to bring the lift back up so that the latter could board, and then he brought Gooigi down to join him.
"The door's locked," said Luigi when he tried to open it.
"Good thing I found another one," said Gooigi, uncovering a secret passageway with the DLD.
This passageway consisted of another room with a spiked floor and a row of mannequins with mounted crossbows. Gooigi pulled down an awning to neutralize the crossbows, but he was stopped by a narrow stream of water.
"Oh, boy," said Gooigi.
"I got you," said Luigi, wading across the water and retrieving a key from a chest.
When they returned to the previous room, one of the wheels began spinning wildly, sending the lift crashing to the floor. And out of that lift spilled a small group of Mini Hammers, who attacked the duo with flailing punches. Luckily, Gooigi and Luigi could easily vacuum up their attackers.
"Mini Goobs and Mini Hammers," said Luigi as he unlocked the next door. "What's next—Mini Oozers?"
He opened the door, and he and Gooigi accessed a dungeon, the former shielding the latter from some cold water spilling from a bucket.
"Maybe we should take a look around," said Gooigi. "We could find something useful."
Nervously, Luigi agreed, and Gooigi used a ball on a chain to pull open the cell door. Instantly, Luigi noticed a key and hurried inside to grab it.
He whirled just in time to see a Goob armed with a second bucket full of water stalking toward Gooigi.
"Gooigi, look out!" he exclaimed.
But it was too late. The Goob laughed as the splashed the water onto Gooigi, causing him to melt. In the next instant, two spiked walls appeared on either side of the dungeon cell, slowly but surely closing in on Luigi.
Once Gooigi reformed in the Plexiglass tank, Luigi summoned him. "Go, go!" he shouted.
Gooigi knew he had to free Luigi from his predicament. Unfortunately, two Goobs stood in his way. As Luigi watched, trying to keep his breath under control, Gooigi battled the Goobs, his gooey face set as he slammed one Goob into the other. After defeating the Goobs with little difficulty, he once again pulled on the iron ball, opening the cell door and allowing Luigi to exit.
Gooigi laughed when he saw that rescue had been on time. Then, he hugged Luigi.
"I'm so sorry!" he cried.
"You had no way of knowing," said Luigi.
"But I suggested that you go in there," said Gooigi, "and that key was hanging over a body of water, which meant that I couldn't reach it."
"You're not the one putting me in danger—it's the ghosts," said Luigi.
"Oh, Luigi…" Gooigi sounded close to tears. "I'm glad I'm exploring this hotel with you."
"Ditto," Luigi breathed.
Eventually, Gooigi calmed down and withdrew from the embrace.
"How about some music?" asked Luigi.
"That would be nice," said Gooigi.
Luigi selected a new playlist on his Spotify, put in one earbud and offered the other to Gooigi. For a while, they sat against the wall, listening together, Gooigi's body gently thrumming in response to the audial stimuli.
"I've never listened to music with anyone like this before," murmured Gooigi. "The Professor would just pop in a CD or select a random playlist on his phone and then go about his business. Most of the time, he sees me as only Goo—not Gooigi. I feel more like a person when I'm with you."
"Like I said the day we met—you're my gooey brother," said Luigi.
"If you think of me as a brother," said Gooigi, "then that makes the Professor—your surrogate father of sorts."
"He's been a father figure to me long before he created you," said Luigi, "but you're right."
"And brothers look out for each other, right?"
"Right."
"Then that's what I'm gonna do," said Gooigi, getting to his feet. "Shall we continue?"
Luigi smiled and got up as well. "Okeydokey," he said.
He unlocked the door, and he and Gooigi proceeded into a bridge room, where the two halves of the bridge faced different directions. Pocketing his phone, Luigi located a rope near the door and pulled on it, lifting a wall to reveal a wheel. Gooigi headed over and spun on the wheel until the two bridge halves joined, and then they carefully walked across the bridge as axes began swinging overhead.
The next room had more of those mounted crossbows and a wooden cart filled with tomatoes, and Luigi had some clue as to how to solve this puzzle. He used the suction and exhaust to push and pull the cart in front of the crossbows, but the cart only blocked half of them. There had to be another cart somewhere!
He then saw some wheels on the other side of the room. Nodding to him, Gooigi unveiled the hidden cart with the DLD and then used it to block the other half of the crossbows. But just as the duo were about to exit, they were swarmed by Mini Goobs who relentlessly tickled them all over their bodies.
After pulling himself together, Luigi used Burst to shake the Mini Goobs off of him, and Gooigi did the same. As the Mini Goobs moved back in, the duo stunned and vacuumed them up in handfuls.
"We're close," said Luigi as they pushed through the door. "The arena is just down this hall."
After dodging some more axes and uncovering the royal coffers, the duo approached the final door.
"I know you wanna help," said Luigi, "but I want you to sit this boss fight out, okay? It's—it's a medieval thing."
"I get it. I'll be rooting for you," said Gooigi before retreating to the Plexiglass tank.
Luigi squared his shoulders, opened the door and strode into the arena. It was time to get the next elevator button.
MacFrights was disbelieved when he saw Luigi enter. "My word—that was quicker than I expected. I was certain that you'd be doomed by the surprise in the dungeon."
"I almost was," said Luigi, "but I had some help."
MacFrights whistled. "You must really want this elevator button."
"I do."
MacFrights let out a hearty laugh. "Then come and take it!" he dared. "At last—a worthy opponent! Our battle will be legendary!"
The ghostly king leaped into a suit of armor mounted on a metallic "horse". Affixed to the armor was a sterling silver spear, but luckily for Luigi, it was blunt-tipped. While MacFrights wanted to keep his opponent from getting the elevator button, he didn't really want to kill him. Sounding a battle cry, MacFrights charged forward, Luigi leaping clear in the nick of time.
As a crowd of ghosts suddenly materialized, MacFrights circled the arena once, raising his spear in the air. The spear's tip gleamed ominously despite it being blunted, and at the same time, small doors on the arena's walls slid open, revealing arrows which fired at Luigi. As the man in green dodged the onslaught, he took note of the bullseye painted on the armor's chest. Maybe he could use his Suction Shot to grab hold of that armor and start chiseling away at it. But that could only be possible when MacFrights was facing him.
And sure enough, MacFrights stopped, turned around and glared at his foe before spurring his "horse" into a full gallop, headed for Luigi. This time, Luigi stood his ground, his thumb pressing the Strobulb button, aiming right for MacFrights's face. Just as the ghostly king thrust his spear forward, his opponent released the charge, freezing him on the spot.
Luigi wasted no time stalling, firing a plunger at the bullseye on the armor, grabbing it in the suction and slamming it all over the arena floor, the ghosts booing and hissing around him. With each slam, pieces of the armor sheared off and scattered everywhere, and after MacFrights broke free, Luigi made it a point to vacuum up the debris.
MacFrights picked himself up, and it all began again. More arrows came Luigi's way, one or two cutting and scratching him. But he was more concerned about that spear. If he messed up his timing during his foe's charge, then MacFrights would hook the spear's tip under the back of his overall straps and slam him around, knocking the wind from him. But practice made perfect, and after only four slip-ups, Luigi finally got the timing right. Sweat seeped down his face and under his shirt as he slammed the armor-clad MacFrights against the hard-wood floor again and again and again. Booing, jeering, clattering metal, crashing, grunting and heavy breathing were the only sounds that could be heard in that arena.
King MacFrights valiantly charged his green-clad opponent three more times. And on that last charge, Luigi heaved MacFrights overhead with all of his might and gave him one last slam, decimating the last of the latter's armor.
Dazed for a few seconds, MacFrights reeled in the air before drawing a sword, also blunted, and bringing a golden shield to bear. However, this part of the fight was straightforward. Evade or try to evade the sword strikes, wait for MacFrights to drop his shield, and then pounce. Said shield's heavy weight did little to help MacFrights's case, especially since he was facing quite the resourceful and stubborn fighter. What was that button to him, anyway?
Yelling out, Luigi slammed MacFrights against the floor one last time, watching him swipe at the air with his sword before he was finally sucked into the Poltergust. He braced himself against the recoil as the elevator button launched itself from the nozzle, and then he blinked the sweat from his eyes as he studied the now-silent spectators.
The ghosts grumbled, but they otherwise departed the arena without attacking Luigi. Laughing in victory, he ran over to the button, scooped it up, wiped it off and slipped it into his pocket.
A drawbridge to his right opened, which took him out of the arena, into the stands and eventually back into the castle courtyard.
And then Gooigi began to vibrate at his back.
A Boo was nearby.
Scouring the suits of armor lined around the courtyard, Luigi used his Suction Shot to knock over the one near which Gooigi vibrated the most.
The Boo popped out, cackling. "Thou mayest call me Boo-At-Arms! Come, let us duel with honor!"
The two played cat-and-mouse all over the courtyard until Luigi managed to surprise Boo-At-Arms and defeat them in the usual way.
After catching his breath, Luigi summoned Gooigi from his tank.
"I could hear everything!" shouted Gooigi. "There was crashing and huffing and grunting and—you're okay!"
"For the most part," replied Luigi. "I have the next elevator button."
He held it up, and Gooigi smiled.
Hand-in-hand, they walked back to the elevator, watching as the newest button screwed itself into place.
"Okay—so the next place we're headed is—Garden Suites," said Luigi as he studied the layout.
"A garden-themed floor," said Gooigi.
"Indeed," mused Luigi. "Thank God I brought bug repellant."
The duo laughed as the doors closed and the elevator ascended.
Please R&R!