"The two shades of green."
Chapter 10
"Sorry, Mario. There is no Luigi, here."
The red hero gasped.
He was there.
Standing right in front of him, just a few steps away.
His baby brother, his Luigi.
He was breathing.
The baby-blue eyes, he knew so well sparkled back at him filled, with love and forgiveness.
He was alive.
Mario wanted to run up to him.
Pull his taller body into a tight embrace and promise to never let go, never let anything like that happen ever again and be the big brother Luigi always believed him to be.
But that wasn't going to happen.
The red hero of the Mushroom Kingdom didn't suffer enough for his mistakes. The world was a cruel place, after all.
He watched, mortified, as the blue eyes of his beloved brother, closed.
Never to reopen again.
Leaving only the monster, Mario only saw once in his life, behind them.
The once red hero growled, though it sounded more like a pained whine, as he was met with the eyes of pure silver.
Only one person in this universe had eyes like that, and it made sense to why he mistook him for his brother.
It was because he was his brother, though only in body and not in soul.
That…thing, didn't even have a soul. Not in Mario's eyes, anyway.
Mr.L
Luigi's infamous alter ego. The Green Thunder, as he likes to be called.
He wasn't even a person.
To many, he is considered to be the embodiment of what Luigi could have been. The personification of his dreams, his desires and the vision of himself he so desperately wished to become. Brought to life by an accident, during a mission to save the universe.
A stronger, smarter and braver Luigi.
And, that was true. Mario could sign himself under that, with both his hands.
Mr.L was stronger, was smarter and was braver than Luigi ever been.
But he did not use those attributes in the ways the green plumber would have wanted him too.
Mr.L was on the wrong side of the battle field.
Instead of helping Mario…he fought against him.
He was evil.
And, even though that only happened once, Mario still couldn't forgive himself for it.
It seems that, neither did the universe.
After that one brother-against-brother battle, Luigi was brought back to his normal self.
But the Green Thunder, never left him alone.
The rumors about him, spread quickly around the kingdom and some toads even asked him why he didn't stay as Mr.L.
Because there was no need for two heroes, when only one can get the job done.
To many, Mr.L was the better Luigi and some even hoped he'd stay as him, for the sake of Mario's heroic duties.
To Mario he was just a corrupted, Luigi.
A manifestation of what would happen, if he ever plead allegiance with the bad side.
If he lost hope of ever being accepted, in his own country.
He could see it in those silver eyes, all those months ago when they first met.
The confusion, the betrayer and the desperation.
Because, back then, Mr.L was desperate to get the one thing Luigi longed for.
Attention.
That's why he was careless when he battled. That's why he was loud and obnoxious. That's why he kept coming back, for more.
Because that way he had Mario's attention, that way all eyes were focused on him.
After that mission was over the red hero began spending more time with his little brother, playing tennis with him, racing in go-karts and having parties.
Because he knew Mr.L wouldn't be created if Luigi wasn't left alone all the time, surrounded by people that demanded that he became somebody else.
Mario though that giving his sibling the love he lacked, would destroy Mr.L. Get rid of him for good.
But it looks like he was wrong.
And now, that abomination of hell, was running around in his baby brother's body.
"Let Luigi, go!" He screamed.
But those emotionless eyes didn't even flinch.
"Sorry, Mario." Luigi's voice said. "There is no Luigi, here."