Blackstone Tower: Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, DK, Dixie, Toadette, Goombella, Koops, Kooper, Parakarry, Spike/Paper-Yoshi, Vivian, Bowser, Larry, Bowser Jr., Wario, Pauline, Mona, Starlow, Grodus
Hospital group: Bleck/Blumiere, Tippi/Timpani, Toadsworth, Fly Guy, Toado, Morton, Lemmy, Ludwig, Kody, E. Gadd, Clawdia, Katia, Kenneth, Toodles, Petey Piranha
Mushroom Corps.: Toadari (Arfur's boss), Tadano
Island group: Tatanga, Beldam, Roy, Doopliss, Dimentio, Mimi, Diddy, Fire Bro/Konnor
Moon: TEC
Fort Koopington: Rosalina, Monty Mole
BLACKSTONE TOWER
"Yoshi? YOSHI! Hey! Are you okay!?" Mario yelled in a panic, noticing his friend laying on the floor not too far away from where the plumber came out from his door, looking defeated.
"Ma…rio…we need to…escape…please…" Yoshi muttered exhaustedly as he rolled over on his side, seeing his friend coming to his aid.
"Oh my god…Yoshi, what happened to you in there? Were you hurt at all?" Mario asked in concern.
"I…I…can't explain…not right now…I just saw…Birdo…" Yoshi weakly responded while choking up. Mario gasped a little at the mention of Birdo.
"Mario? Yoshi? That you guys!?" a familiar voice called out from also not too far away. Mario looked down the seemingly never-ending hallway and saw Goombella running towards the pair.
"Goombella! Hey…umm…those rooms we were in…they…I…I don't know how to describe it…" Mario spoke with an attempt to make some sense at what he experienced. He KNEW exactly what he did experience, but it was hard to simply form it into words.
"Me neither. It was our past…but, like, a more twisted version of our past mixed with our fears? I assume?" Goombella guessed it for him, then looked down to Yoshi. She gasped at his clearly defeated-looking state.
"Oh! Yoshi…hey, we're gonna get the hell out of here, okay!? Are you able to stand!?" Goombella asked.
"I…yeah…I think so…" Yoshi softly responded as Mario and Goombella helped him stand up. Yoshi exhaled exhaustively and leaned against the wall.
"Guys!? Hello!?" yelled another familiar voice from behind the three, the same direction Goombella came down. They saw Starlow dashing to the trio, looking horrified.
"Starlow! Hey. Are you okay? Have you seen the others!?" Mario asked.
"Physically, I'm okay. But, um…no…I…haven't seen the others. I mean, sorry, I think I saw some figures the other direction that way…but, uhh, I heard your voice, Mario, and I just felt safer coming over here first," Starlow nervously replied.
"We can't be the only survivors, can we!? I mean…if what I went through was anything like what everyone else went through…then possibly not everyone survived…" Goombella spoke with the realization that struck the other three.
"Y-Yeah. I saw some scary stuff. I almost died! Umm…maybe…some of the others didn't make it then in that case…" Starlow shuddered.
"Mario…Yoshi…Goombella…and Starlow…can we pleeeeeaaaase find the others as fast as possible and get the fuck out of this madhouse?" said another familiar voice from the direction Mario came from originally. The four turned back around to find it was Larry walking towards.
"Larry! Glad you're alive. We haven't seen anyone else and, well, we're not sure where to even start to get out of here," Mario said.
"We have to find that gem first! I know we wanna leave, but we didn't go through all that, um, mess just to simply escape!" Starlow exclaimed, also not knowing how to put the experience into words.
"I know, I know! I just…god, what the fuck WAS that back there!? I had to…no. Nevermind. I don't wanna talk about it right now. Let's just find the others and find a way to get this last damn gem," Larry said while wincing and shivering from his ordeal.
"Where do we even begin? This hallway goes on forever, it looks like! And I'm afraid to go through any more doors!" Goombella shuddered.
The sound of a door opening then closing was heard from the direction westward where Larry came from. The group turned around again and saw that it was Pauline, who looked to be in a state of shock and saw her slide to the floor.
"Pauline, is that you? Are you hurt at all? Pauline? PAULINE!?" Mario yelled and the group rushed over to her. She seemed petrified, but was still aware of her surroundings.
"Oh…am I…are we back in the real world? Was I just having a nightmare or…" Pauline stammered, also at a loss for words with her experience.
"It felt like a nightmare. And we're back in the actual tower…at least I think. Are you able to stand up?" Larry responded and reached out his hand to help her up. Pauline jumped in fright when his hand got closer to her, which made Larry jump a little.
"DON'T! I mean…yes…I can stand…" Pauline shrieked and slid her shaking body back up the wall in order to stand.
"Sorry. Didn't mean to startle you! Man…this place sure is a complete mindfuck. Like, it was all definitely real, but just couldn't be real at the same time. I know that makes no sense, but I guess this whole place makes no damn sense!" Larry exclaimed.
"It does make sense, in a way. This place wanted to see if we could survive the worst parts of our lives. And we did. But…it was so difficult that I almost just gave up…" Yoshi responded, staring into space, his mind stuck in replay on seeing Birdo die in the stairwell.
"I wanted to too. Going through what I went through once was hard enough. Re-living that was even worse! This place is just horrible!" Starlow cried.
"Hello? Guys? Is anyone…oh! HEY! Over here!" yelled yet another familiar voice that also came from the westward direction. Everyone turned their heads and saw Toadette rush over.
"Oh, thank god we found another person alive! We're trying to gather ourselves and find the others and then find the way to the gem!" Mario reported and noticed that Toadette looked like she had just finished crying.
"Oh, okay. Yeah. That was just scary back there! I'm really afraid to know what else is in this place. But, um, I-I saw Toad, so…wasn't ALL horrible. I think," Toadette revealed shakily. This grabbed the other's attention.
"You saw Toad? Did you see him, uhh, like, die? Again?" Goombella asked.
"No. Well, yes, but I also talked to Toad. It was Toad's spirit I saw back there. At least, that's what the Toad from back in there claimed. It felt like Toad…but…um, yeah. Sorry. We probably should focus on finding the others then talking about what happened! I mean, if we want to…" Toadette explained, noting the mix of frightened, confused, and distant looks upon the others' faces..except for Mario, who was looking back at something in the direction where Toadette came from.
"No way…that's…" Mario muttered, his face clearly fixated on something in the distance.
"Mario? What's wrong? What do you see?" Toadette asked, then turned around to try to see what he was seeing. There was a figure in the distance, along with what looked like the end of the incredibly long hallway.
"Hey! You! Over there!" Mario shouted then darted over to the figure.
"Woah! Mario, not so fast!" Starlow shrieked as the others ran after him, adrenaline kicking in yet again.
The figure in the distance took notice of the group coming towards them, and darted to the left where the hallway continued. Mario sped up, turned the corner, did a long jump, and knocked into the figure.
"WOAH! Ahhh…please, don't hurt me! PLEASE!" the figure cried, backing up against the wall.
"I don't fucking believe it! Grodus! What in the hell are you doing here!?" Mario yelled, baffled by this encounter. The rest of the group caught up and looked at Grodus in surprise, especially Goombella.
"WHAT THE!? Are you serious!? Did you, like, follow us here to try to nab the last gem or something!? Out of all the people we find here…" Goombella interrogated.
"Uhh, who is this guy? Do you guys know him?" Starlow asked, feeling out of the loop.
"His name is…Grodus, right? Yeah, he's part of Tatanga's group that caused all this shit in the first place. He definitely followed us here, or tried to beat us to get the gem first. Dimentio did the same thing when we were in Hyrule!" Larry informed, providing further surprise to Starlow.
"Mario and I also dealt with him a while back when we had to go find the Crystal Stars to stop his insane plan from resurrecting the Shadow Queen and stuff…like, you just never ever learn, do you!?" Goombella angrily spoke.
"NO NO! Please…I didn't follow you guys here, and I definitely don't care about any stupid gem! I came here on my own volition…to find Lord Crump. Goombella and Mario, you remember him, don't you?" Grodus said pleadingly, which confused the others a little.
"How the hell can we NOT remember him!? What, you looked for him here so he could join your stupid team!? What is Lord Crump even doing here anyways!?" Mario yelled in his face and grabbed Grodus by the throat.
"Ah…Mario…please…I-I'm not with Tatanga anymore. I left him! I HATE HIM! And everyone who's aligned with him! He took my scepter and my former friends…he took everything from me. I had it all wrong! I left the island to go back to the X-Naut Fortress on the moon, to talk to TEC and make amends. That was when I found out Lord Crump had been there too recently. Crump had recorded a video message to me, saying he also wanted to make amends and that he was gonna go out searching for a golden snake relic treasure here in this tower. So, I went all the way over here to find him and when I got in here…I…uhh…wasn't expecting to experience…stuff from my past all over again…" Grodus explained, stricken with fright from what he endured.
"Wow. Nice creative story you made up there, too bad you screwed yourself over by running into us!" Pauline spat and was ready to beat him down.
"Plus…a golden snake relic? WHAT? Why the hell would something like that be here!? The story we were told about this place, some old dragon from centuries ago inhabited the tower. A snake relic is so…random. You're an awful liar!" Yoshi questioned.
"PLEASE! I'm telling the truth! I'm not here on Tatanga's behalf, I swear! I'm just here to find Crump, go back to the X-Naut Fortress and live the rest of my days in peace. Okay!? Guys…I'm done. I don't wanna play the villain role anymore. That isn't who I am now. I know I've done so much horrible stuff in the past, but please, just let me find Crump and I'll be out of your way! I just need a little longer to search…I feel I've searched everywhere…except for the top of the tower…" Grodus pleaded tiredly.
"Even if by some miniscule chance you are telling the truth, Grodus, you've done so much harm by just participating in Tatanga's plan at the beginning. Do you have ANY idea of the crap we had to go through because of you guys!? WE'VE SEEN SO MANY PEOPLE DIE RIGHT IN FRONT OF US! YOU DON'T DESERVE TO LIVE OVER ALL THE INNOCENT PEOPLE WHO'VE DIED!" Goombella screamed while shaking uncontrollably. Toadette held Goombella back in case the goomba gal was about to go completely off on Grodus.
"She's right. You're extremely lucky you got out alive during the Shadow Queen mess…and you're lucky you're alive right now. How long have you been searching for Crump in here, anyways? Where else is there to go in this tower? It looks like this is just one long hallway we're in!" Mario interrogated, still holding Grodus, deciding in his head whether to kill him or not.
"I've been here for…um…gotta be at least 24 hours at this point. And there's…there's other floors. There are doors in this hallway that lead up and downstairs. They're very spread out though…and this tower is just one giant maze because I've ended up back here in this hallway a few times…I think. But I'm pretty sure I've never made it to the top. That's the only place I think where Crump could be. And the treasure. But…you mentioned a dragon? I've…seen something like that in here. It's skin is as black as darkness itself…and…its growls are so bone-chilling…that has to be the dragon you mentioned," Grodus informed. The others looked at each other with slight worry of the mention of the dragon.
"Yep, there it is. The big bad boss of the dungeon. And Grodus, who's to say that Crump hasn't gotten eaten by the dragon anyways!?" Yoshi pointed out.
"I don't know. I won't stop until I find a way to the top. Even if I die trying. I don't have anything left to lose at this point, guys. Please…don't kill me. Just let me at least try to find Crump. I know I've done unforgivable things and I know you guys want me to meet my end. But please…all I ask is to find my friend and be left alone after that. That's all I want at this point in my life," Grodus pleaded while choking up a little.
"And you've been here for at least a day!? Have you even seen a way out of here while exploring this place!?" Toadette shrieked in fear.
"Not anything that I've seen. Then again, I wasn't specifically looking for an exit either," Grodus responded with a defeated shrug.
Mario slowly let go of his grip on Grodus' neck, taking all his words in and rethinking this whole situation.
"Let's…Grodus, stay right here. Guys, follow me," Mario gestured, leading the others away from him some feet away to have a private discussion about this matter.
"So…we killing him or letting him go to get himself lost in this maze tower?" Larry proposed.
"I don't know. That's why I pulled you guys to the side to discuss this. The fact that we run into Grodus here, out of all places, is just TOO convenient. Then you have Lord Crump apparently being here. It feels too much like a setup…" Mario said perplexedly.
"I'm sensing a 'but' over there. What else are you thinking?" Pauline asked.
"But…man…can't believe I'm saying this, but I think there might be truth to what Grodus told us. I just feel it in my gut that this isn't a trick. This place is too dangerous and unpredictable for it to be some elaborate trick!" Mario unveiled, but the others still looked unsure.
"True. But, do you really think Grodus just up and left Tatanga!? That seems so sudden. I don't know…the last time we ran into someone from Tatanga's team, it was Dimentio, and it was when he was trying to beat us to the gem in the Spirit Temple," Toadette recalled.
"AND! Also at that time, the plan went awry, and, like, the same thing is happening now. Grodus could easily be using us to find a way to the top so he could snag the gem when we least expect it. Come on, Mario! Don't let your guard down now! We know how this guy is. He facilitated the destruction of the world with the Shadow Queen back then. He can't be trusted no matter what!" Goombella exclaimed adamantly.
"Um…but that Shadow Queen stuff was years ago, right? And…just to play devil's advocate, I guess…Bowser's done a lot of horrible stuff in the past too…but we trust him now, right?" Starlow pointed out, putting the group in an awkward silence, with Larry feeling the most awkward.
"I mean, I would HOPE you guys trust my dad now at this point! Considering he's helped however he could and has resigned from doing anything villainous!" Larry proclaimed defensively.
"That's totally different, though. Bowser has shown to help us many times and he's become a little bit kinder in the process. This Grodus guy…I don't trust him one bit. We don't know what he's up to. It's too risky. I say we just kill him. We can't risk getting fucked over yet again!" Pauline stated.
"Wait, we're really just gonna kill him…just like that? I mean, I know what he's done, but…do we really wanna just do that without at least seeing if he's telling the truth? Because if he DOES screw us over, then yeah, fair game to kill him, but I feel like just doing it right now is so cold blooded!" Toadette protested.
"So, what, we just bring him with us and watch him the whole time? Then when we let our guard down for just a second, he'll either kill one of us or snag the gem!? NO! I'm not risking it! This is also taking up way too much of our time when we could also be finding our friends!" Goombella angrily shouted.
"So…what's the solution here, then? Should we take a vote?" Yoshi suggested cluelessly, looking to Mario for extra guidance.
"I…god…I don't know, I-" Mario was at a loss of what to do, but his words were cut off when he heard Grodus yell.
"WHAT! LORD CRUUUUMP!" Everyone turned around to see Grodus pointing down the hallway. Mario and Goombella dropped their jaws when they saw Lord Crump come into view, looking as if there were stairs that went downward at the end of the section of the long hallway the group was in.
"Oh my god…i-it's actually Crump!" Goombella confirmed the sight. The other 5 who had only heard of this man prior saw a figure similar to Grodus' stature and height, with large glasses, a purple-ish hat with small horns on each side, a black shirt with a white X across it, and black boots.
"Ah…h-help! I…wha…Grodus!? AND M…Mario…no…NO NO NO NO NO NOOOOOOOOOOOO! IT'S A FUCKING TRICK! GET OUT OF MY FUCKING HEEEEEAAAAAAD!" Crump screamed manically, grabbing at his head and falling to his knees. Everyone else was taken aback by his sudden meltdown…but they couldn't help but notice that he was also holding something that glistened in the dimness of the vicinity.
"Crump, calm down! It's not a trick! I'M REAL! Please, I came here to look for you! I got your message on the X-Naut Fortress!" Grodus said in an attempt to calm him down.
"Hey, do you guys see what he's holding!? It's sparkling and…it looks like the black gem! HE FUCKING HAS IT!" Larry yelled.
"What the hell!? Crump, how and where did you get that gem!?" Mario demanded while walking towards him.
"G-Grodus…that…no…c-can't be you…it's aaaaaallll in my head. Yeah. Just like what my dad used to tell me…before he…he…would beat the crap out of me and starve m-me…ohhhhh…OH GOD WHY WHY WHY DID I HAVE TO SEE THAT ALL OVER AGAAAAIN!?" Crump cried, scratching vigorously at his head.
"CRUMP, LISTEN! It IS me, really! You must tell us where you got that gem! And have you seen that dragon around here!? Is it following you!?" Grodus pleaded.
"Who cares how or where he got it! Hey, listen, hand over that gem to us and we'll all find a way out of here, okay!? Come on, we don't have much time! We gotta find our own friends too!" Pauline demanded impatiently.
"A dragon!? I…yeah…I found a room at the top and took it because I thought it would get me out, but…no…no! NO! OH MY GOD, THE FUCKING DRAGON IS RIGHT BEHIND YOU! RUUUUUUUUUUUUN!" Crump screamed in horror at the top of his lungs. Everyone else turned around and saw nothing there.
"What the!? YOU BASTARD! TRYING TO TRICK US!" Yoshi roared and then darted after him.
"CRUMP, WAIT! YOU SHOULDN'T BE ALONE RIGHT NOW! COME BAAAAACK!" Grodus screamed and also chased after him.
"Goddamnit! Come on, we can't let him get away with the gem!" Mario ordered and the rest of the group joined the chase as well.
The group reached the stairwell that went down which Crump walked up from. It was a long, narrow stairwell that seemed to go on for what seemed like minutes on end. The group began to get tired out from their quick yet careful running down the stairs, but just as they began to slow and run out of breath, they reached the bottom floor.
On the floor, there was a small space and a single, black door that looked as if it was rotting away. Mario approached the door, readied himself in case something hostile was behind it, and swung it open.
A bright light shone, blinding them all very briefly, but their eyes adjusted and saw that the door led outside to a field of snow. The group went out into the snow field, weirded out and confused by the sudden weather change along with the alarming fact that Crump was nowhere to be seen.
"What the hell…? This…can't be the exit…right? I mean, we were just outside a little while ago and…it was sunny and dry…" Starlow nervously questioned.
"Well, uhh, it's definitely AN exit considering we're outside. But, yeah, why is it snowing? Are we in a giant room that'll just screw with our heads like the other rooms we were in?" Larry asked.
"AAAAAAAHHHH!" Toadette screamed, drawing everyone's attention to her immediately. But they all instantly saw what she was screaming about.
It was Mario, who was approaching the group from the side. A different Mario. A Mario that looked somehow familiar to the group of heroes. The true Mario saw his other 'self' and he froze in terror, being the only one knowing exactly who this was.
"WHAT IN THE WORLD!? Mario, why is there another one of you!? What is happening right now!?" Grodus shrieked.
"Oh my god…you're…you're the Underworld version of me, aren't you!?" Mario said in immense shock, recognizing those dead, sinister eyes. The other Mario slowly formed a creepy smirk.
"I sure am. Welcome back to the Underworld, boys and girls. That's right…if you want to find that guy with the black gem…you're gonna have to trek through this hellhole once again," Underworld-Mario stated with an undertone of excitement and pleasure from seeing everyone's distraught expressions.
"Peach? Peach, is that you?" Mona called out to a confused-looking Peach from just some feet away upon exiting her door. Peach whipped her to her right and gasped in relief at seeing her friend. The two ran to each other and hugged.
"Oh! So glad you're okay! What did you see when you were in there!?" Peach cried. Mona didn't know what to respond.
"PEACH! And Mona? Hey! We can't be the only ones alive now, could we!?" Bowser Jr. yelled while running over to the pair. The women saw the koopaling and smiled in relief at his appearance too.
"Hey you! Glad you're okay too. Uhh, yeah, I reeeaaaaallly hope we're not the only ones that survived. I mean…what I saw back there was just…I…I can't even describe what the hell that was…" Mona stammered on her words at the end there, shaking a little from just the thought of the hell she pushed through.
Peach was gonna say something, but she locked eyes with Luigi from afar, who had just stumbled out of his door.
"WAIT! Luigi! You're alive too! Are you hurt!?" Peach shrieked and ran over to the clearly tormented man who was walking a little slow and hunched over.
"Y-Yeah…I was stabbed…agh…I think I'll be okay, but…man…where are the others!?" Luigi replied in pain and leaned against the wall while pressing against his stomach wound.
"Oh my god! Luigi…I'm so sorry…but, we haven't seen anyone else besides just us…" Mona yelped in fright from his stab wound.
"We gotta cover that! Junior, you've got claws. Rip the bottom part of my dress and we'll use it to press against his wound!" Peach commanded. Junior nodded instantly and dug his claws through the bottom of her dress and ripped off a part of it. Peach grabbed the ripped clothing and got Luigi to press against it.
"Thank you…god! Look at this long hallway. We gotta search for the others right now! We're not leaving here without them! And then we're getting the gem and getting the hell OUT!" Luigi demanded, getting teary-eyed again as he couldn't stop thinking about the madness he trekked through.
"Yeah, but where do we even go? This place is humongous…and who knows what's lurking inside here…" Junior pointed out.
"Woah, over there! Is that Koops and Kooper!?" Mona pointed down leftward, even further down where they saw Luigi at first. The four saw the two koopas collapse to the floor in the distance somewhat near each other, with Kooper also vomiting and Koops also crying.
"Hey! HEY! KOOPS AND KOOPER! WE'RE HERE!" Peach yelled, leading the four to the poor koopas.
"Uggggghh…fuck…what is…this fucking place…I want out of here! GET ME OUT!" Kooper screeched and pounded his fists on the floor, then wiped his mouth, looking in disgust at the vomit.
"KOOPER! Look at me! You're safe now! We're here with you!" Peach tried to calm him down.
"Yeah. Safe for now…" Junior commented under his breath.
"OH! Guys…I-I'm so glad to see you..but we need to GO! NOW! Wait, where are the others!? There's no way we're the only ones left!" Kooper exclaimed while Peach helped him stand up.
"I'd like to think we're not the only ones left either, but with what I…what WE saw back there…who the hell knows now," Mona said with reluctance.
"Koops? Hey…you able to stand up?" Luigi softly asked the koopa who was also facing the floor on his knees, still choking up.
"Uhhhh…I…I need help…I f-fell and landed on my leg…and I…s-saw Koopie…and my dad…" Koops muttered while still staring at the floor, feeling the pain of losing Koopie and wanting to see his dad hit him all over again.
"Oh, Koops! I'm so sorry! Here…Junior, help me," Mona urged and helped Koops stand up. Koops seethed a little in pain and yelped, and then leaned against the wall.
"Owowowow…oooh…just…leave me behind, guys! I'll only slow you down!" Koops cried.
"Don't you dare say that! You're getting out of here with us! We just need to find a way out of this damn hallway, first and foremost," Mona declared.
"Koops…you can hang on to me while we walk. You're not staying behind," Kooper ordered. Koops nodded a little and wiped his eyes.
A feminine scream of rage was then heard very close to the group, startling them all. They whipped their heads to the right to see Vivian also on the floor, crying and breathing hard.
"VIVIAN! Hey, it's us! You're out of there! You're fine now!" Peach yelled and ran over to her to help her up.
"Ah! Sorry…you scared me…yeah…I'm out of there. Finally. Away from that hell. I couldn't be more glad to see you guys. Is this all of us, though? Or do these 'rooms' spit us out in random locations throughout the tower?" Vivian asked while being helped up by Peach. The shadow siren noticed Koops leaning against the wall in clear pain. It struck her heart even further seeing him like that.
"That's actually a good theory. Probably the case because…yeah. I refuse to believe it's just us that are left alive. Look, guys, I know we all just witnessed our own personal hells back there…but we gotta move now. We gotta find our friends, find the gem, and get the fuck out of this freaky place. I don't even want to imagine what other horrors could be in here!" Mona urged further with everyone nodding in agreement.
"Yeah. Especially Mario and Daisy…there's no way they're dead. I still feel they're alive. Yeah, I'd definitely know if they were dead," Luigi added confidently.
"Same here! But, uhh, where should we start? Left or right?" Peach asked, pointing both directions, both seeming to lead forever onward.
"Wait! Do you see that down there? Is that a door? On the wall there?" Junior pointed ahead, leading the group to the rightward direction of the hallway. Kooper and Vivian had Koops hang his arms over their shoulders so he'd get some support while walking.
"Where? The…oh! That's…a door? Ew…look at that design…" Mona commented in disgust, observing that there was a part of the wooden wall that was obviously different. The part of the wall was a tinted red color and it had an indentation of what seemed to be a smiley face upon it along with a black doorknob.
"Ugh. That looks like the same creepy smile we saw in that underworld. We're, uhh, not gonna go in there, are we?" Koops nervously asked.
"I'm definitely scared to go in there, but it's possible that our friends are in there, so we gotta do it. I'll take the lead!" Luigi declared, desperate to know if Mario and Daisy are alive. We did his best to keep it together, but the not knowing was eating him up.
"Luigi, be careful. Anything could just pop out and attack you. Or any of us!" Mona warned.
"I know. I'll be very careful and aware of my surroundings. We all should be!" Luigi responded as he grabbed the knob, and slowly pulled it open. Immediately, a godawful stench wafted out into the hallway. It smelled like a bunch of rotting things in there.
"OH! WHAT THE FUCK!? WHAT IS THAT SMELL!? WHAT COULD POSSIBLY BE IN THERE!?" Kooper shouted, gagging at the smell.
"Oh my god…are there…uhh, dead bodies in there!? That's the only reason I can think of for why it smells so horrid in there! And considering the place we're in right now…" Peach shrieked, covering her nose with her hands.
"Ack! Geez…well, only one way to find out, guys! Come on! We have to do this!" Luigi urged and went on in, with the others prudently (and a little reluctantly) following behind.
They entered a massively wide and tall room and immediately, they noticed that skeletons and decaying bodies lined up the walls, along with a bunch of gravestones scattered about with a statue of what looked to be a dragon pointing upwards in the dead center of the room. The top of the 'room' also looked like it went on forever, seeing pure blackness up there. The group looked at the room in terror and disgust.
"OH MY GOD! A-Are we in a damn graveyard!? And…god…look at all those…how many people have died in here!? Gotta be in the thousands at least!" Mona yelled, unable to take her eyes off of the treacherous sight.
"Wow…this is just…I…I can't even put into words…just when we think we've seen EVERYTHING…this happens…" Vivian commented, very much taken aback from the mass grave she was observing.
"Yeah, but it still doesn't compare to what we went through when we entered our doors…I'd rather see this shit than that…" Kooper added, looking at the gravestones and noting that a lot of them seemed to be scratched up.
"I'm guessing these are the people that tried to conquer their 'demons' like we did…and they failed. But, wow, so many of them! We're lucky we didn't end up like this," Luigi exclaimed, eyeing the statue since it was the only thing in the room that didn't have an abhorrent appearance.
"Peach, you're obviously the princess of the kingdom. Have you ever heard of this place before? Because…yeah, this is A LOT of people that came in here and died," Junior asked, unable to take his eyes off of the dead.
"Um, I've heard about it before, kind of. I used to think the stories of this place were just folklore and didn't pay a lot of attention to it. Like, at most, I remember hearing that the tower was just an abandoned old building and it was too dangerous to enter because it was haunted. That's about it. It never crossed my mind to know what it was about really. I don't even remember seeing stories about Blackstone on the news or websites!" Peach explained.
"Huh! So…it's like the kingdom's best kept secret then? Yeah, very weird, especially considering it's not THAT far outside of Mushroom City. Maybe there are some people that do know about this place, but want to keep it hush hush so it doesn't draw more people to it," Mona theorized.
"Well, people will find a way no matter what. Just look at the amount of dead people in here. Then you have the rest of this place. No place that we've been to compares to this, unless you count that Underworld," Kooper added, holding tightly onto Koops with the worry that something was just gonna pop out at them at any moment.
"Um, and why is it called 'BlackSTONE Tower' anyways? This whole place is made of wood. I know that's not really relevant to anything right now, but it's just something that came to my mind just now," Koops commented.
"Guys! This statue right here…it says something on the stone," Luigi said while getting closer to the dragon statue to read the inscription and the others gathered around him. Luigi read the inscription, "Here lies Mushroom Kingdom's dark, wicked, and violent history all gathered in one place. Memories of yore are never forgotten. The dead that lay here were not fit to survive the trials of their own darknesses. The beast that guards the gem watches over the dead, forever keeping their souls trapped. Only the worthy ones can retrieve the gem of shadow to let the light in..."
"Woah! So, the tower is basically cursed and houses all the anguish of the people who've died in here. Wonderful," Mona groaned.
"But it looks like we can 'un-curse' this place if we get the gem and free all the souls! Wow. Makes it even more worth it to get what we need!" Peach pointed out excitedly.
"Yeah, because remember what Merle said? This is the place where the heroes from all those centuries ago sealed the dragon named 'Darktail,' who was wreaking havoc on the world, with the gem. So, it looks like this place eventually became its own little hell to torture anyone who dares to enter," Kooper recalled.
"Darktail…hmm. So, this is the Darktail who is the ancestor of Hooktail, Gloomtail, and Bonetail. Those are the dragons me, Viv, Mario, and the others fought a long time ago when that Shadow Queen madness was happening," Koops said while examining the creepy statue, getting flashbacks to those grueling battles with the aforementioned dragons.
"Yeah, those dragons were pretty scary…though, I wasn't there for the Hooktail fight. But, the beast is obviously the dragon that's depicted on the statue. But why is the dragon pointing upward? Is the gem right above us?" Vivian questioned.
"Only one way to find out! Look…down there. There's another door at the end. Let's see where it leads!" Mona gestured and led the way.
"Hey, don't go too fast! We can't afford to lose anyone right now!" Luigi warned, rushing up to her along with the others trailing behind.
Mona approached the door and saw that it was a dark purple and it had an indentation of a spiral upon it. She carefully opened the door and peeked inside.
"Mona! What do you see!?" Koops called out as he was at the back of the group with Kooper and Vivian.
"Uhhh…purple fog? And…what the!? It looks like the inside of a church!"
Daisy leaned against her door, processing the killing of her child self. She then spotted a large figure in her peripheral vision that, thankfully, distracted her and turned her head to the right. It was Bowser, who was also leaning against his door.
"Oh, Bowser! BOWSER! So glad to see you! What I saw back there was just…" Daisy cried and ran over to him to give him a hug while she wept a little. Bowser was surprised by seeing her all of a sudden and by the hug, but he hugged her back a little.
"Daisy…hey. Glad you're alive. Yeah…back there was…yeah. No words to describe it," Bowser said in a softer voice, also processing the insanity he endured.
"I, um, god, we gotta find the others and get out! Come on! We're gonna go this way! We can't be here any longer!" Daisy frantically urged and was about to run down the left way, but Bowser pulled her arm to stop her.
"Wait! Daisy…the gem. That's what we came in here for. Don't forget that. But, yes, we gotta find the others first…especially my sons. I'm not leaving here without my sons. We find them first, then nab the gem…wherever the hell it could be in this place," Bowser corrected her, making her realize her vast urgency.
"That's right. Sorry…I just…Bowser, I-I just don't wanna think about what happened in there, s-so I gotta, you know, distract myself from that and find our friends! Before anything other crazy shit happens!" Daisy exclaimed while pulling her hair a little.
"I know, Daisy. Believe me, I wish I could unsee everything back there…I wish I didn't have to fucking see my fucking ex-wife and her fucking husband and-and…my kids…dying…and…FUUUUCK!" Bowser suddenly exploded and punched the wall, leaving a crack in it. Daisy felt for him badly, making her cry a little.
"Guys…" said a voice right behind Daisy, making her jump in fright. She spun around to see Dixie who had immediately gave her a hug.
"OH! Dixie…hey…are you okay? Err, nevermind. Probably a dumb question there…" Daisy said, hugging her back.
Dixie let go and sighed a little. "That was scary. I'm not really okay right now because, well, I saw Fire Bro…then my sister…then Diddy…and other crap I didn't want to see…"
"Yeah. About the same here. So much stuff from my past was twisted into the present and everything just became beyond twisted and illogical and UGH! My head is still pounding from all that," Daisy added angrily.
"HEY! Down here! That you, Parakarry!? Over here!" Bowser called out very loudly, startling the two girls who looked down past Bowser and saw a figure on the floor somewhat far away that indeed resembled Parakarry.
"He's not moving. Is he hurt at all!? PARAKARRY!" Daisy said then bolted over to him along with the other two tailing behind.
"Daisy…" the paratroopa whispered while staring out into space. Daisy got to him and knelt down, shaking him by the shoulder a little.
"Hey! Parakarry! It's us! You're safe now. You're out of that place. You're back in the real world. Look at me," Daisy said to try to snap him back into reality.
"Am I…really back? Really? Like this is any better…" Parakarry whispered, closing his eyes for a few seconds then opening them as a tear rolled down his cheek. He slowly stood up and held on to Daisy a bit.
"What do you mean by 'like this is any better'? I'm sure we'd rather be in this world than whatever kind of hellish world we were just in," Dixie confusedly responded.
"I mean that…nevermind. I'm just talking nonsense," Parakarry grunted.
"Hey! HEY! That's DK down there! He's clearly hurt!" Bowser yelled again and ran further down, seeing the ape come out from his door and slide down the walls, holding his sides. The group ran to him and gasped at the gashes on his sides.
"Ahh! Yeah. It's pretty bad, guys. I don't think he got me too deep, but still," DK said while wincing in pain.
"Are you able to stand up!? Here, let me help you…" Dixie said, using her shoulders as support for him to stand up.
"I-I think I got it, thanks. I just need something to clothe the bleeding before it gets worse," DK urged, doing his best to keep his cool.
"Here, DK. You can take my shirt!" Daisy offered immediately and took off her signature sports shirt, revealing a yellow tank top underneath. She threw it to him.
"Thanks, but are you sure? You're kind of, you know, 'exposed' without it…" DK said reluctantly.
"I'll be fine. I'll get another shirt when we get to the hospital. It's the least of my concerns right now!" Daisy declared. DK nodded and pressed her shirt against his wounds.
"By the way, DK, you said a 'he' did this to you. Who is this 'he'? If you feel comfortable talking about right now, that is," Dixie recalled. DK looked at her, his expressions noticeably turning a little furious.
"King K. Rool. This place made me face him again," DK stated. The others felt for him while Dixie gave a look of disgust and horror.
"Woah! Wario!?" Parakarry shrieked, pointing past DK. Everyone turned to where he pointed and saw a frantic Wario running to the group.
"GUYS! Um, S-Spike is down there a-and…he won't let me help him get up!" Wario yelled, his eyes a little red from clearly crying.
"Oh! Wario, how badly is he hurt!?" Dixie asked.
"He doesn't look hurt, he just…just follow me!" Wario demanded, better to show than tell. He lead the group down some feet to what seemed like the end of the very long hallway. The gang saw vomit next to a defeated-looking Spike who was slumped in the corner.
"Oh my god, Spike! Hey…it's us! Talk to us, man!" Bowser said, getting closest to the dino.
"I…d…don't…please…don't…touch me…" Spike muttered, staring into the ceiling.
"What? Spike…it's us. You're not in that place anymore. Okay? You have to come along with us to find our friends and the gem. I don't mean to rush you but time is urgent right now," Daisy said as she knelt down to him.
"I-I know j-just…give me a damn minute PLEASE. And don't touch me! I SAID NOT TO TOUCH ME!" Spike screamed in her face, making her fall back.
"Okay okay! I wasn't going to touch you, Spike! Sorry…just gather yourself as best as you can. But you're safe and you got us now," Daisy tried to assure him, but she wasn't sure she was getting to the poor, shaken dino who looked like he'd been through the worst of the worst.
"God, I can only imagine what could've happened to him in there. I've NEVER seen him like that before," Wario whispered to DK.
"He's younger than the rest of us, so, whatever happened to him in there is gonna affect him more severely…" DK replied, not wanting to imagine the hell the poor dino went through.
"I just, uhh, don't wanna, uhh, talk about wh-what happened when I went in that…uhh, place. Okay? Okay!? Let's just GO! Where do we even go!? Are we the only ones left alive!? WHAT DO WE DO!?" Spike yelled, going into a frantic state quickly.
"SPIKE! We don't know if we're the only ones left alive. That's why we're searching everywhere we can for the others. But we gotta be quick about it, because who knows what else is in this shithole," Bowser ordered.
"Wanna start by going up there?" Parakarry asked, pointing upwards. Everyone turned and saw that the hallway didn't end, but rather now went leftward and it led to a staircase going up.
"I don't see why not. Any place to check is good at this point!" Bowser said and led the group towards the stairs.
"Hey, Dixie…did you see Diddy when you were in the 'room'?" DK asked. Dixie shuddered a little from hearing his name, as the memory of him tearing her down back there was still replaying in her head.
"Yeah. This place made him act so horrible to me. I obviously know that wasn't the real him, but this place made it FEEL so real. It was happening in real time, right in front of me. I also saw Tiny…saw her die again. Felt like it was…you know…the first time all over again. Uuuggghhh, I'm never going to get that out of my head!" Dixie responded while sobbing a little, pressing her hand against her temple in clear mental pain.
"Damn. I hate to say it, but I think it's inevitable that at least a few of us didn't make it through our 'trials.' It fucked with our emotions and our state of minds. It's something that we've never fought before…so…yeah, I hate thinking it, but I'll be very shocked if ALL of us made it out alive," DK said also with a shudder, disliking himself at that moment for saying those words, even if it was true.
"Hey, Spike…" Parakarry whispered to the shaken up dino, "If you ever want to talk about what happened…know that I'm here for you. Whenever you're ready. Or IF you wanna do it. Your choice. But just know there's no pressure at all either way."
Spike didn't look at the mailman, but his words were so gentle and comforting that it made him feel the tiniest bit better in that moment. The dino softly spoke, "Th…thanks…umm…yeah…n-not ready yet. No. Don't know when I'll be. Just, uhh, let's not talk about this for now. Please."
"Of course. Sorry. Yeah, let's just focus purely on the objective of finding our friends, getting the gem, and getting the hell out of this mindfuck of a building," Parakarry said with a nod, feeling deeply for Spike's inner turmoil.
"I saw my brother. That was a fucking trip," Wario blurted out, capturing Daisy's attention.
"Oh. Yeah, I can't imagine how hard that was seeing being forced to see him again. I saw my parents when I was in there…also pretty rough…" Daisy replied.
"Oh yeah? Hey, I actually don't think you've ever told us about your parents. I mean, you didn't have to, obviously, because that's your personal business, but, uhh, are your parents…you know, 'gone'? If it's alright to ask?" Wario asked out of curiosity.
Daisy sighed a little and kept herself from choking up. "No, they're alive. We're just kind of estranged at this point in our lives. They didn't want me to move to the Mushroom Kingdom because they fought that that was going against their family traditions and whatnot. But, I just wanted to be closer to Luigi and Peach, and the rest of my friends. They've also met Luigi a couple times, and they think I can do better because he doesn't come from wealth. I told them that I don't give a damn, because he's great for me. So yeah."
Wario smiled a little at her ambitiousness. "Damn. Way to stick it to them. Good on ya! That's true love right there."
Daisy smiled a little back at him. "Thanks. But…sorry, I didn't mean to change the topic to about me. You saw Waluigi. Was it…bad?"
Wario shrugged and also sighed. "I don't know how I'd describe it. I pretty much saw my childhood up until now. I saw how he was always there for me. Yeah, we may have bickered over stupid shit, but we were loyal as hell to each other, especially since our parents tried to sorta pit us against each other. Didn't really work. But it was difficult seeing him. I cried. Seeing him again made me realize that he's really forever gone. I'm never gonna have a brother again…it's so…fucking depressing…
Daisy couldn't help but choke up now because of the raw pain in Wario's voice. She put her hand on his shoulder and said to him, "Hey. You have us, Wario. I know we're obviously not blood, but, we can be your family too."
Wario smiled again and his eyes let out a couple of tears, his expression telling how appreciative he was of hearing that.
Bowser reached the top of the staircase and got to a black door with what looked like a set of standard fangs indented into the door.
"Alright. I'm going in first. Everyone stay close to me, but the second I sense danger, I'll tell you all to run. And you better fucking run. I'm not losing anyone in this haunted house!" Bowser ordered. Everyone else nodded, preparing for the worst.
Bowser slowly opened the door and peered in. It was a giant, tall room with numerous cells lining up both sides of the walls with a corridor going through the middle. Bowser carefully and quietly walked on in, being hyperaware of his surroundings.
The air in this room felt rank and heavy. Bowser wanted to cough, but didn't want to bring attention to whatever could be lurking in there.
"Bowser…see anything in the cells?" Daisy whispered.
"I see some bones. There's a ton of cells in here. My god. We'll have to walk down the entire hallway to see if our friends are in here…or if there's anything else of importance," Bowser quietly responded.
The others walked in carefully and quietly as well, also noting the rank and heavy air.
"God. Imagine how many people were kept in here. And…does anyone else feel like we're being watched?" Parakarry whispered frantically.
"Please don't say that. You're gonna make us even more on edge," Dixie responded with quickly increasing worry.
"No. I feel like that too. I really don't think it's just paranoia," Wario added, his hairs on his arms standing straight up now.
"OOH!" Spike shrieked, startling the rest of the group.
"Oh! Are you okay!?" DK shrieked.
"I felt like a big drop of water fell onto my head!" Spike said, rubbing his head and looking at his hand to see if it actually was water. "Eww. It's kinda sticky…"
"Wait a second here…" Bowser said as he slowly looked up above Spike. The second he saw a creature on the ceiling above where they came in made his heart nearly stop and freeze in petrification.
There was a creature with wrinkly, jet black skin stuck to the ceiling who looked like a typical dragon as well. The dragon made eye contact with Bowser, then made a high pitched scream as it detached itself from the ceiling.
"HOLY SHIT, IT'S THE FUCKING DRAGON! RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUN!" Bowser screamed in pure horror, and the others followed instantly. The group bolted down the corridor, deeper into the mysterious cell room.
EoC.
Next chapter, Rosalina visits the hospital group to learn about what's going on with her friends, Bleck learns about why Kenneth is the way he is, and the Koopalings search for Clawdia and Katia as time is nearly up for them to make their decision if they stay at the hospital or leave with Kenneth. At the fortress, Doopliss and Beldam put their escape plan into action, bringing chaos and bloodshed to Tatanga's plans. At Blackstone Tower, Mario's group sets out to search for Lord Crump and the gem…only to end up in a familiar place, Peach's group finds out more history of the tower and finds something that changes the entire tower, and Daisy's group attempts to hide from the dragon while finding out some horrifying things about the cells.
Next chapter will be uploaded on Sunday, January 1, 2023! Sorry that it's a longer than usual wait for an update, but I really need to pace myself a little more when it comes to writing…and I wanna say this right now: this WILL be my final fanfiction on this website. More details will be coming on my profile soon. Thanks for reading!