The next thing I remembered was a whirring sound, a vortex of air dragging the orange ghost away from me. I slumped against the wall as relief washed over me, grabbing deep breaths, briefly disconnecting from everything around me to compose myself. Once my nerves were under control, I allowed my surroundings to fade back in, and that was when I saw my rescuer.
He was a diminutive, elderly man, almost completely bald except for a white tuft of hair atop his head which stood upright like a candle flame, clad in a suit and tie with a white lab coat over it. A red vacuum cleaner was on his back, and he currently clutched the nozzle with both hands, wrestling against the ghost that had accosted me. Eventually, however, the ghost escaped, sending the man tumbling.
Within seconds, I was at his side, checking to see if he was all right.
Thus was my introduction to Professor Elvin Gadd. He was quite the eccentric gentleman, and while he was old, he had the energy of a little boy. The Professor would prove to be a man who encouraged, annoyed and sometimes frustrated me, and while his priorities would tend to be out of whack, he had a kind and gentle heart. His dynamic entrance into my life would set in motion a chain of events leading to me charging headlong at my phobias and learning extraordinary and lifesaving skills. And I owe everything from that night and beyond to him.
The Professor and I introduced ourselves, and then I started asking questions. What in the Inferno was going on here? Where did that ghost come from? And what was the Professor doing here, anyway?
"Well, I'm exploring this house, same as you," the Professor replied. "I swear, it seems to have more ghosts every day!"
"Wait a minute," I said. "What do you mean 'every day'? Has this house always been here?"
"No—but it mysteriously appeared about two weeks ago," said the Professor. "What's a youngster like you doing about these parts, if you don't mind my asking?"
I pulled out the map and showed it to my new acquaintance. "I was told I won a free mansion in some contest, and the map led me right here," I explained. "I should've known it was too good to be true."
"That's odd," mused the Professor.
I gasped as some more ghosts appeared, and the Professor whisked me away to the relative safety of his lab.
Once inside the lab, the Professor brewed me some tea, and I fully explained my situation to him.
"That sounds fishy," he said when I was finished. Then, he brightened. "Perhaps our paths were destined to cross."
"Why?"
"You remind me of myself when I was your age—nervous, but curious. I'm from Hartford, Connecticut, you see, but I discovered a portal leading me to these woods in 1952. I've called this cozy research lab my home ever since."
"The Nutmeg State, huh? I'm from Brooklyn," I said. "Mario and I were just ordinary plumbers when we discovered a mysterious pipe leading to this fantasyland. We've split time between the two ever since—Dio!"
"What is it?"
"Mario! I asked him to meet me here!"
The Professor looked uncomfortable. "I should've told you this earlier, but a youngster with a red hat a little like yours waltzed right up to the mansion without even stopping to chat—and he never returned. Is he…?"
"He's my brother," I told him. "He—he's still in there, isn't he?"
"I fear he could be stuck in there," said the Professor, "and he won't stand a chance against these ghosts without my help!"
In seconds, I was on my feet. "I'm getting him out of this place, ghosts or not," I said.
And if the Professor hadn't stopped me, then that's exactly what I would've done.
"Easy there, youngster—right now, you're unarmed and unprepared," he said. "I need to teach you some ghost-hunting basics before you even think about heading in that mansion."
He made a good point.
Once I'd settled down, I made the acquaintance of the revolutionary Poltergust 3000, designed and patented by Professor Gadd himself. The Poltergust was bright red with adjustable leather straps. The straps were secure and comfortable enough, but they'd obviously seen better days. Next, I took in the weight of the apparatus on my back, which was thankfully not too heavy. I shifted the weight back and forth several times before taking hold of the nozzle, feeling the ridges beneath my fingers.
I followed the Professor to the lab's training area, where he wasted no time teaching me how to properly use the Poltergust. He told me that it was my only line of defense against ghosts, and as such, it was their biggest fear. The information proved to be a minor shot in the arm for me.
The training area was a dark room with six circular trapdoors. Ghosts would emerge from those trapdoors, and my task was to use the Poltergust to capture them. I learned about the Poltergust's "stun" and "vacuum" functions, how to pull the ghost in the opposite direction they were trying to go, how to time things so that I could stun multiple ghosts at once, and how ghosts tended to attack in groups. The simulation ghosts attacked with punches, and those punches really hurt, but I swallowed back the pain and captured them all.
After the tutorial, I asked the Professor to put on some music and let me use the training area for a while, and he obliged. I stayed in there for at least an hour, utilizing what I'd learned and getting the feel of the Poltergust. The prospect of exploring a haunted mansion was still daunting, but now, I could fight back. I was going to subdue every ghost standing in my way. I was going to find my big bro. And I was going to bring him home.
I made d—n sure that I could capture every last simulation ghost sent out at me before I allowed the Professor to steer me toward the living area, where a pitcher of ice-cold lemonade and some snacks sat on one of the tables. As I rested, the Professor told me some more about what I was up against. The haunted mansion appeared to be an illusion of sorts, conjured by the ghosts. When it came to the paranormal, he said, I had to prepare to believe the unbelievable. And while I had an advantage in the form of the Poltergust, I couldn't rely on the Poltergust alone.
How right he was.
"In the end, the Poltergust is only a vacuum," said the Professor. "What truly matters is the one who wields her. If you want to find and save Mario, then you have to believe that you'll find and save Mario."
I nodded to show that I understood.
The Professor then gave me a boxy device called the Game Boy Horror, or GBH for short, which would serve as our communication. I could also use it to scan certain ghosts and items within the mansion. After tucking away the GBH, I squared my shoulders and headed toward a world of danger, terror and uncertainty.
"Good luck, Luigi!" I heard the Professor call out. "For God's sake, be careful!"
"I will," I replied without breaking stride.
As I approached the mansion and walked back inside, a chill settled on my skin, but by that point, it didn't matter anymore.
Nothing mattered anymore.
Except saving Mario.
Please R&R.