Water splashed into his face as he climbed the ladder. As it wasn't already hard to climb. The alarms ringing all around him provided perfect background noise to accommodate this miserable little scenario he'd found himself in. Every rung on the ladder was adding to the frostbite on his hands, but at least his ass was toasty with from the raging inferno below. A bead of sweat ran down his forehead right into his eye. His foot slipped as he felt the sting kicked in instantly. I don't regret the fact that this building is burning. His hand reached the top rung and he climbed out. I regret that it's happening while I'm here.
The loud yet study hum of machinery broke him from his thoughts. He scanned the area around him. Three ladders were in front of him. One ladder was behind him. Anything on the floor? No fireballs, but...
"PAULINE?!" He walked over and picked up her purse. Again. "PAULINE?! YA HERE?!"
"YEAH! I'M LIKE 5 STORIES UP!"
"WHY IS YOUR PURSE DOWN HERE?! I JUST GAVE IT BACK TO YOU?!"
"THE APE SEES THAT YOU CARE ABOUT IT, SO IT SCATTERED MY STUFF AROUND AGAIN! THIS TIME ON PURPOSE! FORGET ABOUT THEM! I'M SERIOUS!"
"DON'T WORRY, I'LL GET 'EM!"
"IT-IT'S ACTIVELY BAITING YOU INTO TRAPS! DON'T GO FOR THEM!"
"NOPE! GETTING 'EM! DON'T CARE!"
"WHY? JUST WHY?!"
"PRINCIPLE! I'M NOT LETTING THAT FUCKER WIN WHATSOEVER! NOW IT'S JUST BEING A DICK! JUST TELL ME WHAT I'M DEALING WITH, AND I'LL BE ON MY WAY!"
No way I'm talking him out of this. She sighed. If we die, I'm gonna kill you.
"THE GORILLA TURNED ON CONVEYOR BELTS! ALSO, I SAW IT THROW PILES OF WET CEMENT ON THE BELT! PLEASE! BE CAREFUL!"
It must be trying to slow me down so I get ate up in the fire. Mario sniffed the air. Smoke. There's already fireballs up here. And I like my Pumas. Don't wanna trade them for cement shoes. Seems like there's plenty of bullshit up here.
"YOU SAID SOMETHING ABOUT CONVEYOR BELTS?!" He eyed the ladders in front of him and took a step forward. There was a far off ladder near the wall, but what was particularly interesting were these middle ladders. Damn, one of these is middle left, and the other is middle right. If something was moving above him, he needed to pick his starting position carefully I didn't wanna pick a side, but-
"THERE ARE SWITCHES AT THE ENDS OF THIS TOP BELT! WHEN THE GORILLA REACHES THE END, IT HITS A SWITCH AND EVERYTHING MOVES THE OTHER WAY!"
"TELL ME WHEN IT DOES THAT! AND WHICH WAY IT'S GOING!"
The steady hums of conveyor belts filled his ear. He took a step to the middle right ladder. As soon as he gripped a rung, his eyes cut back to the middle left ladder. Uh...uh...damnit, gotta make a decision. Educated guess? He sniffed the air. Where's the smoke the strongest?
It seemed to be coming from the...left. Mario grabbed the middle right ladder and started climbing. Hope this works.
Reaching the top rung, the conveyor belt bars made a convenient extra rung for him. Before going up to walk, Mario stuck his neck out to check for obstacles. He looked right.
Two piles of cement were coming his way.
Mario watched them go by, and as his head steered left he saw a fireball come down the left ladder. Gotta be careful about that...
As soon as his right hand touched the conveyor belt, it shifted to the left, throwing him off balance. FU- His feet gave way, and he was holding onto the ladder with one hand. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the Bit. This should give me a boost.
Channeling the Bit, Mario regained his footing and hoisted himself up on the conveyor belt. The instant motion on the belt made him stumble forward, past the right side ladder. Worst. Treadmill. Ever. He took a few steps against the belt's direction. Just gotta get to the second ladder and-
"HE'S SWITCHING THE DIRECTION OF THE BELTS!"
Mario whipped his head around. Oh fuck.
The belts stop instantly. Before Mario could take another step, the cement was moving back his way.
He looked up. There was a hammer hanging in the air, tied to the bottom of the girders. Perfect timing!
He jumped over the first cement container and landed without planting his feet. As he jumped over the second he ripped the hammer right off the chain.
"BU-" The hammer came right down on the fireball in a glow of gold, extinguishing it instantly.
Mario turned around and ran after the cement containers. Just gonna deal with this while I can. Smacking the cement off of the conveyor belt like a hockey puck, Mario cleared the conveyor belt with ease before tossing the hammer aside.
"Mario."
Climbing up the next level right ladder, Mario paused midway on the rung. The smell of smoke was now strong enough to spit the bad taste out of his mouth. Shit's getting stronger. What the hell? He peeked up through the girders. There was something blue a little ways up. It was standing on a bed of wiring. Is that an oil tank? Are you serious?
He looked to the far left platform. Another hammer. That's gonna be useful.
He looked to the far-right platform. Pauline's umbrella. Ugh...gotta get that though. I really don't wanna have to come through and get both.
FWOOSH!
Bright orange engulfed his vision as a billow of smoke emerged from the oil barrel above.
Oh no. He quickly scaled the ladder. Don't tell me that's what I think it was. Reaching the top of the girder, Mario saw a fireball coming down the left ladder coming to meet him. "BURN."
The hammer! As Mario ran forward, he realized that Pauline's hat was at the end of the girder. Good enough!
"Mario!"
Scooping up the hat, Mario jumped across to the other gir-
"BURN."
Another fireball came down the ladder, cutting him off from the hammer.
SHIT!
Mario turned around. The other fireball was waiting for him on the previous ledge. "BURN."
Can't go up. Can't go back. Mario realized the space between the girders. Can go down though!
Falling down to the floor, Mario easily ran past the fireball coming down the ladder to give chase. Climbing up the second level right ladder, Mario took a couple steps before leaping into the air and landing on the far right platform, grabbing the umbrella as he landed.
Wasn't hard at all. He smirked, stuffing everything back in her purse.
"BURN."
He looked up. A fireball was staring back at him, moving along the conveyor belt towards the ladder.
Shit! I just got done dealing with those! He glanced back to the oil tank. The gorilla wasn't just trying to lead me into traps, he was stalling me so more fireballs would pop out! It's trying to crowd me out from getting higher! Shit, I'm an idiot! I still could get the hammer, but I gotta move qui-
"BU-" The conveyor belt moved to the left, carrying the fireball back into the oil tank.
That's convenient. He climbed up.
"MARIO!"
"WHY ARE YOU SHOUTING! THAT'S ANNOYING, YOU KNOW?"
"I'VE BEEN TRYING TO TELL YOU THAT THE DIRECTION IS CHANGING! ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?!"
"Uh..." Mario chose to pay attention to the cement containers going past him.
"THAT CEMENT IS FUEL FOR THE FIRE! IT MAKES MORE FIREBALLS COME OUT!
"IT MAKES WHAT?"
Mario's eyes were glued to the containers as they fell into the oil drum.
FWOOSH!
"FUCK ME!" Mario scrambled onto the conveyor belt.
"IT'S SWITCHING AGAIN!"
The belt led Mario right to the ladder. He saw the gorilla's huge frame between the metal. Gotcha again! You thought you could outsmart me?!
He started climbing. Well, I got news for you, You can only pull so many tricks on Mario Martin-
The top half of the ladder retracted, falling into his hands.
Et?
"BURN."
Mario looked to the left.
A fireball was rushing right for him.
SHIT! Mario got off the ladder and jumped right over it.
"BURN."
Another one popped out of the drum coming right for him.
He leaped over it and stepped off the belt, grabbing the ladder with one hand and practically rappelling his way down.
"BURN."
"BURN."
The fireballs were in hot pursuit. Gunning down the ladder after him.
Oh fuck, the middle zone's clear! Mario ran to the edge and jumped off the platform.
As he touched the middle girder, his legs gave out from under him and he fell to his knees. Sweat dripped down his face forming a puddle around his body in seconds. Ugh...ugh...ugh...I feel...awful. His feet became jelly, each step making his body sway to the side. He leaned against the ladder, looking up for a fireball. There didn't seem to be any directly above him. My head...He broke out into a coughing fit before rubbing his eyes. Fucking Christ, when did it get so smokey in here...
"MARIO! ARE YOU...ARG AH ACHK... ARE You.. okay?"
"Yeah..."
"Please...don't give up."
"I fucked it up. If It had gotten there sooner, if I could move faster," he coughed into his fist. The sweat was stinging his eyes more than ever, and that was without the smoke around him. "Luigi, if he could still walk, could probably clear this thing in under a minute." He looked at the Bit. "Especially if he was packing you."
Wait...
The car crash. The gorilla's punch. The exploding oil tank. If it hadn't been for this Bit, I woulda been dead thirteen times over and counting. It's healed all my injuries. What if...
He clenched down on the Bit.
"No...I'm not tired. I'm not done yet."
I have to get back to Luigi.
"I'M COMING PAULINE!"
"BURN."
"BURN."
He looked up.
Two fireballs were coming down on him.
"BURN."
"BURN."
He looked in front of him.
A fireball was coming up the bottom ladder.
A fireball was coming down the top ladder.
I can't keep going in circles with these fireballs. I'm running out of oxygen. I need to get to the hammer. Bit, don't fail me now.
He sprinted forward.
I can't fail them.
"BU-"
"BU-"
Mario dashed right past them, jumping to the far left platform. A fireball near the top of the ladder seem to take notice."BURN."
Not this time. He jumped up and grabbed the hammer, snuffing out the flame in one strike.
The gorilla sniffed the air. Getting close. Right side. Instead of switching the controls, it seemed wiser to steer him right into the flames.
Two more cement containers were coming from the left. Mario whacked them off the belt as he climbed up. Getting on the next conveyor belt, Mario found himself being led right to the oil tank, a fireball between the two.
"BU-" Mario smashed the fireball out with the mallet snapping off on impact. Shit.
"BURN."
"BURN."
He turned around to see two fireballs bouncing towards him. He looked behind him. He was getting closer to the oil barrel. He glanced at the ladder behind the fireballs. Gotta time this just right.
"MARIIIIIOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
Just as he was about to fall in, Mario ran forward, jumping over the first, staying in stride, and jumped over the second. As the fireballs turned around, Mario grabbed the ladder, and it extended between his hands.
"I'M STILL HERE FUCKER!" He put his hand on the top conveyor belt. The gorilla, in complete shock, slowly stumbled backward as Mario hoisted himself up.
Her.
Turning to the ladder with a growl, he picked up Pauline and climbed up the main ladders.
"RIGHT BEHIND YA!" As Mario ran to the ladders, he saw a sign on the wall as he put his hand on a bottom rung.
WARNING! TOP LEVEL AHEAD!
Mario turned around at the sound of another explosion. Must be the fire getting to the conveyor belts. I gotta move. He looked up the ladder and clenched his fist. This was it. They were about to go as far as they could.
Nowhere left to run you son of a bitch.
75 m
50 m
25 m
HOW HIGH CAN YOU GET ?
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