Author's note. First, of all to clear up any confusion, yes this story has undergone a title change. The reason for the change is becuase there was another story on the site with the same name. I apologize for any confusion I unintentionally cuased.
Hey guys, I hope all of you had a great week and are doing well. I've been busy with helping my family preparing to move from our home into a temporary one, due to our house getting renovated, resulting in a move which lasted three days. I'm sorry for the delay with the chapter and I hope people enjoy the chapter.
I want to say thanks to animegamefanatic, TGN and Tsukinine 12 for leaving a review. Thank you for the feedback, support, and the motivation to keep going with this story.
The last special shoutout along with a thank you goes to animegamefantatic, and Fanfic BOOM- a- Latta for favoriting and following this story. Also, special thanks go to Wurmple and Pikmin fan for favoriting this story. A thank you also goes to CloudySkies1756 for leaving a follow on this story. Thank you all so much for the support, it does mean a lot to me.
Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters/ settings used in this story. They are copyrighted to Nintendo.
Under the glow of the midnight moon, the creatures roaming the Lost Kingdom's depths were usually fast asleep in a peaceful slumber, conserving their energy for the next day. Within the small clinic situated in the middle of the jungle, most of the occupants inside the clinic were sound asleep except for a few dedicated members of the night staff. The receptionist was fast asleep at her desk. The pair of Toads seated in the plastic chairs were fast asleep with blankets draped over their laps.
Luigi leaned back in the chair with a blanket draped across his lap looking up at the clock stationed on the wall displaying 12:00 AM on its screen. His silent concentration was broken as he felt a light tap on his shoulder. Turning his head slightly, Luigi made eye contact with the nurse standing next to him.
"Mr. Luigi, I can assure you Mario's not going anywhere," The receptionist said. "I'm sure you must be exhausted. Please do try to get some rest."
"I will. I can't even believe it's that late already," Luigi replied with a nervous chuckle.
The nurse beamed at the plumber before heading off to her duties. Luigi yawned beginning to doze off, leaning further back in the chair. The gentle rise and fall of the plumber's chest indicated Luigi was in a peaceful slumber.
The flames flickered to life on top of the small torches perched along the edge of the bridge suspended high above a vast pool of lava. Luigi glancing up at the tall, dark walls noticed the bridge was in a big open area in the middle of Bowser's Castle. Banners hung from the castle's windows each depicting an image of Bowser.
"How did I even get to Bowser's Castle?" Luigi asked himself looking at his surroundings in confusion. "That's not possible. Wasn't I just in the Lost Kingdom?"
Luigi didn't have the time to wonder how he'd ended up at Bowser's Castle, after hearing the unmistakable sound of an angry roar in the distance.
"That sounds like Bowser's roar!" Luigi exclaimed. "I hope nothing bad's happened to you, Bro."
Without hesitation, Luigi sprinted along the stone bridge. After what felt like an eternity, Luigi arrived at the other end of the bridge, feeling the exhaustion finally catching up with him. The plumber bent over, gasping for breath, his hands on his knees. After several minutes of catching his breath, Luigi looked up to be greeted with the sight of Bowser and Mario staring each other down, with the latter sporting a burn on his right leg.
Neither of them seemed to have noticed Luigi's presence. Mario avoided a punch from Bowser by ducking underneath his arm, pivoting around to face Luigi his eyes widening in shock upon seeing Luigi standing there staring defiantly at Bowser.
"Luigi, thank goodness you're here!" Mario said. "Did you happen to find where Bowser's keeping Peach?"
"I'm not going to abandon you when you're in danger, Mario," Luigi replied firmly. "As to answer your second question, no, I haven't. I could've sworn we were in the Lost Kingdom a few seconds ago, after I brought you to the clinic. Do you have an idea of what's going on?"
"You must be having a dream bro," Mario said softly. "I think even after you rescued me, you're still worried for me, and I think your fears about something bad happening to me is what brought on this dream."
For several moments Bowser observed the exchange between brothers before a low chuckle escaped from his mouth, amused by the situation in front of him. "Well, it looks like Greenie's come to the rescue," Bowser said smirking. "Too bad for him, you're going to be charbroiled by the time I'm done with you Mario. It doesn't matter if this is a dream or not; I'm going to defeat both of you pesky plumbers once and for all."
Mario attempted to dart around Bowser to reach Luigi, only for the Koopa King to block him. Bowser tried to punch Mario but only for the plumber to duck under his arm at the last moment causing Bowser to stumble crashing down onto the stone surface of the bridge which caused the whole bridge to shake from the movement.
The force of Bowser's landing caused both Mario and Luigi to lose their balance for several seconds until the tremor faded away. A cackle filled the air prompting both brothers to look up spotting the Clown Car hovering above him. Morton and Ludwig peered over the edge of the vehicle with wicked grins plastered on their faces. In between them, Mario saw Peach sitting between Morton and Ludwig with her head bowed, unwilling to make eye contact with either one of her captors.
"Let the Princess go right now!" Mario demanded glaring at the Koopalings.
"Now, why would we do that?" Ludwig asked with a grin. "Besides, both you and your brother won't have much time left to live. As for your precious princess, she's not going anywhere. She's our guest of honor."
Ludwig turned to nudge Peach in the side with his elbow which prompted Peach to rise from where she was sitting on Morton's right side. Her hands were tied behind her back preventing her from escaping. Peach made eye contact with both Mario and Luigi smiling upon seeing both brothers.
"Mario, Luigi, thank goodness, you're both alright!" Peach said relief creeping into her voice.
"Don't worry Princess, Luigi and I will defeat Bowser together and we're all going to go back to the Mushroom Kingdom," Mario replied hoping to lift Peach's spirits. "Luigi, can you keep Morton and Ludwig busy? In the meantime, I'll deal with Bowser."
"If you're so eager to die, Mario, I'd be more then happy to fulfill that request!" Bowser taunted Mario with a malicious grin. The Koopa King charged, towards them his footsteps causing the bridge to shake again. Mario ran to meet Bowser head on determined to keep him away from Luigi.
Luigi heard the familiar sound of a magic wand being charged up. Ludwig swung his wand downwards, unleashing a stream of colored magic racing towards Luigi, who jumped over the blast of magic landing on the bridge turning to face the Koopalings.
Scowling at having failed to strike his target, Ludwig turned to face Morton. "Morton, I trust you know what you have to do."
"It will be done," Morton replied leaping from the Clown Car and landing on the ground several meters away from Luigi. The force of his landing knocked Luigi off his feet allowing Morton to grab Luigi's left arm and twisting the limb behind his back. Luigi cried out in pain, sinking to his knees. Morton grinned sinisterly at his prisoner, before glancing over at Bowser seeking his father's approval. "I've got him pinned Dad."
Bowser paused in his assault on Mario, noticing Luigi trapped in Morton's embrace. "Good job, Morton! Keep a tight hold on him, until I've dealt with Mario!"
Luigi sank to his knees, unable to cope with the pain traveling through his arm. Ludwig jumped out of the Clown Car walking over to the stricken plumber.
"Look at this, Mario's pathetic brother lies sprawled at our feet," Ludwig sneered. "Even though he'll never admit it out loud, I'm willing to bet Mario is ashamed to have such a coward for a brother. You're doomed to spend the rest of your life in Mario's shadow, like the coward you are."
Luigi swallowed hard. He wasn't going to deny Mario was far braver than he ever could be. Taking a shaky breath, Luigi continued to struggle to free himself, ignoring the stabbing pain traveling down his arm. He wouldn't freeze in place, not when Mario was in danger.
"Don't listen to them, Luigi!" Mario cried out. The plumber stomped hard on Bowser's foot, resulting in an angry roar from Bowser. "You're not a coward, Luigi. You saved me twice from King Boo. You're a hero just as much as I am. Don't let Bowser's words demoralize you."
"I can understand you're scared for me," Luigi said. "It's true, I was a coward in the past, but I'm not going to let anything happen to my Fratello. Not while I'm still breathing. If I have to die, then so be it, only just to make sure my brother remains safe."
"Luigi plea-"
Whatever Mario had been about to say was cut off by Bowser running towards Mario which in turn resumed the fight between Mario and Bowser.
Twisting around as much as his body would allow him, Luigi yanked his right arm free, landing a swift punch to Morton's nose resulting in a gasp of pain from the Koopaling. Luigi sprinted down the bridge aware of both Koopalings pursuing him.
Heart hammering away in his chest, Luigi ran towards Bowser and Mario. The sight before him caused him to freeze. Bowser punched Mario sending the plumber sprawling onto the ground, landing dangerously close to the edge of the bridge.
Luigi's hesitation allowed both Ludwig and Morton to grab both of his arms holding him in place grinning. Luigi angry with himself being caught twice struggled to break free of their grip. Bowser's chuckle sent chills down his spine.
"Greenie is too scared to save anyone," Bowser sneered. The King of the Koopas ignoring Luigi's plight turned to face the red-clad plumber sprawled out at his feet. "Mario, on the other hand, he's been a thorn in my side for far too long."
Luigi's eyes widened upon realizing what Bowser intended to do. "Mario, get up, bro! Please run for it!"
In an instant, Bowser opened his mouth sending a stream of reddish-orange flames in Mario's direction. Mario quickly got to his feet, jumping to avoid the stream of fire landing on Bowser's left, barely avoiding getting burned by the flames.
However, it was a move Bowser anticipated. Bowser swung his tail striking Mario the force of the impact sent Mario flying off the bridge. All Luigi could hear was Mario's pain filled scream splitting the air followed by silence.
Luigi froze in horror upon coming to the realization Mario was dead. His whole body began to tremble with pent up grief and anger dimly aware of Morton and Ludwig, releasing their grip on him chuckling in sadistic glee upon seeing Luigi's suffering.
"Noooo, Mario!" Peach's grief-filled scream filled the air. The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom sank to her knees in the Clown Car, her sobs carrying through the air.
"Look at that!" Bowser exclaimed, enjoying his long sought-after revenge. "Now that is how you deal with a pesky plumber!"
Bowser began to chuckle along with Morton and Ludwig taking glee in Mario's death.
Luigi stood up feeling the angry tears flowing down his face. Taking several shaky breaths Luigi urged his legs to move, breaking into a fast sprint, running right at Bowser, landing a punch against the Koopa King's right leg.
"That was for my brother, you monster," Luigi snarled his grief forgotten for the moment.
Silence fell over the area. Morton and Ludwig stopped laughing and fell silent. Luigi couldn't shake the feeling he'd just signed his death warrant. Ever so slowly, Bowser turned around, his movements slow and deliberate glaring at Luigi.
"Ouch, you know I barely even felt that punch, Greenie," Bowser said mockingly. "It felt more like a tap to me."
Before Luigi could even move, Bowser's fingers grabbed his arm, sinking his claws deep into Luigi's skin and hoisting him into the air before dropping Luigi to the ground. "The best part of this whole thing is that Green Stache was too much of a coward to save Mario. I think I'll keep you on as my Court Jester. Your job will be to entertain my kids, but you do need to be punished for punching me."
Wincing, Luigi shakily got to his feet. Turning his head briefly, Luigi caught a glimpse of Peach sitting in the Clown Car with tears running down her face. A hard shove sent Luigi sprawling to the ground landing hard on his back. He heard Bowser inhaling before a stream of fire erupted out of Bowser's mouth engulfing Luigi's right arm and causing him to scream in pain.
In a blind panic, Luigi's blue eyes snapped open as Luigi shot out of his chair, with a panicked scream waking the two Toads who nearly fell out of their chairs. The receptionist jolted awake, racing from behind her desk to check on Luigi concern in her eyes. Luigi stood up panting his eyes wide with fear rolling back his right sleeve, examining his arm checking for any traces of burns only to sigh in relief looking down at the unblemished skin having found no traces of the burn inflicted on his pale skin.
"Mr. Luigi! Are you alright?" The receptionist exclaimed.
The plumber's breathing became calmer, his heart rate beginning to slow down. Luigi scanned the reception area with its white walls labeled with various posters. The plumber couldn't help but feel relieved it had been just a nightmare.
"I'm sorry, for waking everyone," Luigi admitted. "You wouldn't mind if I saw Mario? The thing is I had a nightmare, Bowser h-he- k-killed Mario and I couldn't do a thing to save him. Please, I want to make sure he's okay."
Luigi saw the Toads' faces go pale, gazing back at him with horror from hearing Mario died in his nightmare. The receptionist spoke into the comm unit on her desk her face set into a tight frown until another voice coming from the speaker reassured her.
"If you're quiet, you can see him," The receptionist informed Luigi. "Only for five minutes, Mario does need his rest."
Luigi nodded, feeling grateful at being allowed to see his brother. The nurse escorted him down the hallway, as the door opened allowing Luigi to enter the small room. Much to his surprise, Mario wasn't asleep. The plumber was wide awake sitting upright in the bed trembling, the small beads of sweat appearing on Mario's' forehead with tears pricking at the corners of his eyes.
"Weegie, oh, thank goodness!" Mario whispered, pulling Luigi into a gentle hug.
"Mario, did you have a nightmare?"
"Yes, I did Weegie," Mario admitted. "Bowser had you trapped in a cage along with Cappy and Tiara, and he was hanging it attached to a small crane over a pit of lava. I tried to save you, but Kamek and Bowser Jr. slowed me down with a barrage of magical spells. Bowser kept taunting me, by calling me all sorts of names, and before I could stop him, he ordered Kamek to drop the cage into the lava..."
Mario's trembled unable to continue recounting his nightmare. Luigi instantly reached for his hand gently taking it in his own, squeezing it gently. The gesture seemed to calm Mario down, the tears leaking from his eyes.
"Weegie, if something ever happened to you, I don't know what I would do," Mario admitted his voice catching on a sob. "You've had a nightmare to, I can tell."
"I did Mario, it was awful," Luigi admitted. "I dreamed Bowser had Peach captured and you were rushing to save her. I tried to help you out, but Ludwig and Morton held me back. Bowser knocked you off the bridge. Shortly afterward, he forced me to be his court jester, then he burned my arm."
Mario remained silent for a few moments raising his hand to wipe away the small tears slipping down his face. "Luigi, I couldn't do a thing to save you. I'd never felt so helpless before in all my life."
"During my nightmare, I felt the same way," Luigi said softly. "I know I'm not as brave as you are, but you're still my bro and I'll help you rescue Cappy while teaching that stupid buzzard not to mess with my brother."
Mario smiled upon hearing his brother's words. "Thanks, Luigi, together, we can do anything."
The two brothers smiled feeling content they would always have each other's support.
"I've meant to ask you, how did you even travel from Kingdom to Kingdom?" Luigi queried.
"To answer your question, Luigi, Cappy and I have this ship called the Odyssey. It's our ship which we use to travel around the world," Mario answered Luigi's question. "It got damaged when we confronted Bowser in the Cloud Kingdom, causing us to crash land here. Thankfully, it's still in one piece."
A creak of the door announced the nurse silently entered the room. She turned to face the Mario brothers a small apologetic smile on her face.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Luigi, but your five minutes are up. Mario does need his rest; I'll escort you back to the reception," The nurse said. "I can assure you, Mr. Luigi, you'll have plenty of time to speak with Mario tomorrow morning."
Luigi nodded walking away from Mario, facing him once more his hand resting on the doorknob "I'll see you in the morning. Good night, Mario. I hope you dream about diving into a big bowl of spaghetti."
Mario chuckled in amusement offering a kind smile to Luigi. "Good night, Luigi, I hope you have a good night's sleep and no more bad dreams."
The nurse tapped Luigi on his elbow, prompting Luigi to exit the room, leaving Mario to lie back in his bed. The Plumber glanced out of the window looking at the night sky. The plumber wouldn't sleep until he knew Cappy was safe. Hopefully, Cappy was safe for the time being having found somewhere to hide from the Klepto.
"Hang in there, Cappy," Mario said softly hoping Cappy was indeed safe. "The second I'm out of this clinic, we're going to save you. Peach, please hang in there for a little while longer. Cappy and I will rescue both you and Tiara."
Mario stifled a yawn before beginning to doze off allowing his head to rest against the pillow. It didn't take long for the plumber to fall asleep into a gentle slumber holding onto the hope by having Luigi by his side he would be able to rescue Cappy, Peach and Tiara.
Meanwhile high in the skies, Bowser's ship flew above the clouds. All was quiet on the main deck of the ship except for Bowser pacing back and forth on the deck of the ship. Peach found herself being escorted by Hariet and Wendy who kept a tight grip on her arms, forcing her to walk towards Bowser standing alone on the deck, his arms folded across his chest.
"So, why am I being escorted this late at night to see Bowser?" Peach asked, keeping her tone calm.
"Daddy wants to speak with you," Wendy said smirking. "That fat ugly rabbit is busy fussing over the Soiree Bouquet we stole from the Wooded Kingdom."
"Our boss, ain't fat, nor is she ugly!" Hariet retorted. "She trusts us to handle the business however we see fit. Besides, I doubt you and your seven brothers can even handle planning a wedding since they probably share a brain between them."
"Oh, shut up!" Wendy snarled. "At least Ludwig and Larry are smarter than your dumb brothers. We're able to plan a far better wedding than you ever could in your sleep."
"You're jealous because you ain't the center of attention of this wedding," Hariet replied with a smug grin. "Now the princess here is far more beautiful; then you could ever hope to be."
Wendy angered by the remark turned to glare at Hariet. "That's not true, the Lochlady Dress, doesn't even look right on the ugly Princess, it looks-"
"SHUT UP BOTH OF YOU!" Bowser's enraged shout echoed over the deck. "Do both of you have any idea of how stressful planning a wedding is?"
"Daddy, the mean rabbit started it!" Wendy protested jabbing a finger at Hariet. "She called my hoop rings fake, and she also called Peach ugly!"
"That's a lie!" Hariet snarled angered by Wendy's comment. "I reckon your daughter's upset because she ain't the star of the wedding!"
"I don't care who started it!" Bowser bellowed. "I need both of you to stay here, to escort my future wife back to her room. Once you're done with that, go down below deck, to help Larry, Lemmy, and Madame Broode plot a course for the Metro Kingdom. We need to spread the news of our happy union to every single Kingdom on the planet!"
Hariet and Wendy wisely didn't say anything, not wanting to anger Bowser any further. Both of them glared at each other silently. Peach turned to face Bowser, keeping her hands still at her sides.
"There's no way that pesky plumber is going to catch up to us," Bowser gloated placing a couple of claws underneath Peach's chin tilting her head up, forcing Peach to look at him. "Now then, even if Mario survived the crash landing, I sent Kamek back to the Lost Kingdom with orders that if he finds Mario, he's to report back to me at once. Mario is injured and weak; that's when I'll send Bowser Jr, Lemmy and Larry to finish him off."
"There's no way I'd ever marry you," Peach said icily. "You're the most repulsive reptile, I've ever met. You will never be King of the Mushroom Kingdom, and I won't force my subjects to accept you as their king. You're nothing, but a loathsome reptile Sooner or later, Mario will come to save us."
"Whatever Princess, we're going to have the perfect wedding imaginable," Bowser said with a nasty grin. "Once my children get through with him, Mario won't live to see another day."
Bowser stomped away chuckling to himself, the heavy tread of his footsteps fading away across the wooden boards. Tiara hovered next to Peach examining her face seeing the single tear slipping down her face.
"Peach, please don't give in to your despair," Tiara said, hoping to reassure Peach. "I'm sure Mario is still alive. From what you've told me, he's brave, strong and kind-hearted. Don't listen to that monster's lies. You know Mario will come to rescue the both of us."
The Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom slowly wiped away her tears before looking back at Tiara with a sad smile. For far too long, she'd played the role of damsel in distress. Time after time she'd allowed Bowser to kidnap her. In that instant Peach realized, by letting Bowser kidnap her over the years, it made her look like a weak ruler.
"No, I know Mario's still alive," Peach said softly keeping her voice low. "I've played the role of damsel in distress for far too long. Tiara, we're going to find a way to take over this ship, we're going to head back to the Lost Kingdom and we'll save both Mario and Cappy in the process."
"I'll do anything I can to help you Peach," Tiara said softly. "I want to make that monster pay for what he did to the Cap Kingdom and separating me from my brother."
Peach smiled and nodded, allowing Tiara to rest on her head. For the first time in what felt like days, Peach smiled walking serenely along the deck of the ship, allowing Hariet and Wendy taking her by the arms leading back to her room. She didn't know how, but for both her's and Tiara's sakes, she would find a way to escape Bowser's clutches.
Author's note. Firstly, I had every intention of making this chapter a calm before the storm chapter. I'm aware that not a lot happened in this chapter, but trust me things will be picking up soon.
For those who are curious, Luigi's nightmare sequence was inspired by a dream I had. It focused on the idea of Luigi and Mario making a stand against Bowser in an attempt to rescue Peach. For those people wondering yes, Mario did fall off the bridge. Originally I did plan to show Mario falling into the lava, but I decided to scrap the idea since I didn't want to upset people, especially younger readers.
Princess Peach will have a role to play within this story. While I do like Peach, if there's one thing I can't stand about her character is most of the time she plays the role of the damsel in distress. Even though she may be Bowser's prisoner, she is not going to sit around and do nothing. Peach will be fighting back in her way, which is a plot that will play out over the next few chapters.
When it came to writing up the draft to this story I did have plans for the Koopalings to show up since there will be more interactions between the Koopalings and the Broodals within the next chapter. In case people are wondering how the Koopalings are here, it's because they boarded Bowser's ship before it left Bowser's Kingdom.
Even though he didn't make an appearance in this chapter, we will see Cappy in the next one as it's going to focus on Mario and Luigi saving him from the Klepto. All I can say about the next one there will be a heartwarming reunion involved. There will be some well-earned payback against the Klepto.
As per usual thoughts/ constructive criticism/ any accidental errors, I need to fix/ reviews are welcomed and appreciated as always. Thanks for reading, I genuinely appreciate your support and I will be back to talk to you guys soon with the next chapter, being released on the eleventh of June.