Daisy collapsed against a rock, panting after running for what seemed like a mile. She quickly realized it was not a mile, because the giant Troopa was still coming her way. After silently vowing to get into better shape once they found the Mario brothers, she pushed herself off the rock and towards a pipe, screaming her head off.
Peach watched Daisy run like her hair was on fire, then leap into an enormous pipe not far from where she herself was hiding. Wishing the Troopa would leave so she could get to that exit as well, she silently creeped from bush to bush, always on the look out. When she felt a brush on her shoulder she nearly shrieked.
"Kinda jumpy, aren't you?"
Peach could have punched Pauline, but pursed her lips and turned her attention back to the Troopa. It was pumping one foot onto the rim of the pipe, and that rim was slowly being mashed inward. Every ring of bent steel made Peach wince, not only because the sound was painful, but she knew they're temporary escape would be lost.
"Come on," she whispered hurriedly and crept ever closer to the pipe. Grabbing a hefty stone, she pitched it as far as she could, hoping to clear the Troopa's head and distract him. The rock certainly distracted the turtle when it made contact with his eye. Growling, it turned its scaly head in their direction and began to charge.
"Oh, crap!" Pauline yelled and scampered out of the way just as it stomped through their bush. She got up quickly and looked around.
"Peach?"
The bush was smooshed flat. The Princess was gone. Pauline's heart did a summersault.
"Oh no…Peach, where are you?"
A distant scream drew her attention to the Troopa, making a sharp turn and coming right back at her…with Peach clinging to its neck.
"Peach?"
"Go! Get in the pipe!"
Flinging herself forward, Pauline raced for the green tube and carefully slid into it, scraping her body against the narrow entry. She felt a whoosh of air, then landed on something soft.
"Ouch!"
"Sorry, Daisy."
"No problem," the sore Princess groaned, sitting up and rubbing her back.
"Where are we?"
"Just a room. I tried the boxes, they don't have any mushrooms."
Pauline stared at Daisy as if she'd lost her marbles, then looked up at the pipe. A small shaft of light was shining into her eyes until the hulk of the turtle blocked the sun.
"How are we going to get out of here?"
"I wish I knew…I've never been here before."
Peach's scream cut into their conversation. They watched as the Troopa's foot came down on the pipe again, smashing it down completely. The room went dark. The pounding and screaming continued.
Pauline grumbled to herself, thinking what a crummy predicament she was in already, when Daisy grabbed her arm in an iron grip. "What's the matter with you?"
"I…I'm scared of the dark!"
Pauline sighed. "No way you're telling me this. How do you expect to save the Marios in Dark Land when you're afraid of the dark?" "Um…good luck charms?"
"You're going to have to deal with the dark, okay? Now get off me!"
Daisy said nothing, but sniffled a little. Pauline looked down.
"I'm sorry. Look, we're going to be fine. We'll find a way out of here."
"How?"
"You're the bodyguard in training, why don't you tell me?"
"Um…let's see. Oh! We could dig through!"
Pauline rolled her eyes in pitch black and spoke with forced patience. "I'm not so sure that would work. What would we dig with? We left our weapons in the pipe room."
"You're right. It's hopeless," Daisy sighed, sounding forlorn.
"Now, now. I didn't say that."
"But you implied it."
She had made a point. This situation was already getting worse. No food, no water, no light, no escape. This was all Peach's fault.
The more Daisy waited for Pauline to answer her, the more worried she became. Even more so when she heard Pauline breathing heavily. "Are you all right?"
"…Yes…probably just…claustrophobic."
Hearing that made Daisy miss Luigi. She found out about his weakness when, in a fit of girlish rage, locked him in the broom closet, which was rather spacious in her castle but closed in nonetheless. Pauline started to cough and gasp.
"Pauline!" Daisy cried, grasping her new friend in desperation. She was still fretting over the older woman that she failed to hear a ticking sound above her.
"Get down!" shouted a muffled voice.
"What?" asked Daisy conversationally. Before she could move a huge blast exploded overhead and bits of dirt, grass and metal flew everywhere. Daisy waited until it all stopped falling on her then looked up carefully. Peach waved back, looking tired but triumphant.
"How did you do that?" asked Daisy in awe.
"Bob-ombs. Know how to use them and they'll be your best friend."
Pauline took a full, deep breath and let go of Daisy, whom she had been hugging involuntarily. "Thanks, Peach," she mumbled, half grateful, half ashamed.
They climbed from the ruined pipe and surveyed the area once more. The shortest colored blocks stood five feet off the ground, and rushing waterfalls, normally just a trickle stood fifteen feet high. The Koopa Troopa's shell lay upside down, uninhabited.
"It's Giant Land all right."
"Peach, we need to find the pipe that takes us home."
"Are you sure you want to entrust that task to me?" she asked. Peach didn't mean to sound sarcastic but the words came out like that. Pauline just stood looking at her thoughtfully. After a moment's silence she nodded. "Yeah. I trust you."
Peach forced herself not to double take as she nodded, looking at the landscape. "We can't jump back up the pipe we came through…it's too high."
"Well then, we just need a boost."
The ground shook below them as a herd of humungous Goombas came raging towards them.
"And we're running out of time!" squealed Daisy. Gesturing quickly, Daisy climbed into the stirrup Pauline made with her foot. She shoved the Princess upward until she felt the pull of the pipe's suction. Peach obediently did the same. The Goombas grew closer.
Both members of royalty were safely up the pipe…but Pauline was still left. Cursing to herself, she tried jumping on her own but it was not enough. Like a gang in the great city of Brooklyn, the Goombas grinned stupidly and cornered her.
Why me? Pauline sighed, still jumping nervously.
"We have to help her!" Daisy screamed.
"Keep your shirt on!" shouted Peach as she scanned around the pipe room for something useful. A length of chain lay in the corner; in the decision to find the right pipe they had forgotten their weapons. She grabbed it and dropped one end into the green tube.
"I hope this works. Pauline! Head's up!"
Pauline didn't hear the Princess, but practically screamed when a huge chain dropped in front of her face. Grabbing it, she started to climb as fast as she could. She tried not to scream the noses...or faces rather, of the Goombas brushed her feet as they tried to bite her.
"Pull, Daisy!"
"I am pulling!"
"Ladies! There's no need to shout!"
"Pauline!" Daisy helped her from pipe and she sat on the floor exhausted.
"Thanks, girls. I guess I'm not a Superman after all. Even chicks like me need help, right?" She grinned; Peach tried to find a hint of sheepishness.
"We're just glad you're all right," she said softly.
Resting a bit, Pauline stood up. "Seems like we need a new way to test these pipes…I got it. I'm gonna need a penny."
The Princesses looked clueless.
"You know. A coin?"
"Oh, sure." Peach handed her a bright gold coin, which got the attention of Pauline but didn't keep it long.
"Awesome." Pauline took the currency and went to one of the unidentified pipes, dropping it in. Surprise covered the room when it bounced right back, hitting the ceiling and Peach in the head.
"Ow…"
"All right, that was here. Next one."
She dropped the coin, and she heard it rattling around the pipe, down, down, down…and around some more.
"That must be Pipe Land," stated Daisy proudly.
"Very good. So this last one must be Bowser's joint."
The Princesses nodded. Taking a deep breath, they each jumped inside, not forgetting their weapons this time.
Bowser was beyond bored, and by now his servants understood this well. They knew not to cross his path of impending doom.
But who could blame him? With the Marios disposed, he had nothing to do but wait for Peach to give up and surrender her Kingdom. He was starting to wonder if attacking her would be conducive to his boredom and his plans. Of course, he would have loved to see her on her knees before him, begging and pleading "please please take my kingdom before I die trying to keep it in order!" After all, he assumed, the Marios were the ones running the joint. Giving a sigh he got up from his throne, thinking that is he sat there for another hour he might get bed sores.
Without warning, a crash resounded and someone, or something, landed on his shoulders. Immediately reaching up, he threw it across the room and glared in rage.
She stood dizzily and Bowser's eyes widened at the sight of Peach, leaning on a quarterstaff…and wearing tight black pants and a hot pink t-shirt?
"What the-ack!" a chain wrapped around his neck and tightened quickly. Struggling for only a moment, Bowser pulled on the chain and backed up at the same time.
"Yikes!" someone cried just before his spiked shell crashed into the wall. He looked up and saw the other figure of royalty looking shaken…also looking like one hot mama in her change of apparel.
"Geez, Koopa! What are you trying to do, kill me?!"
"You…Goldenrod!"
"It's Daisy, you stupid sack of--oof!" She swerved too late as the chain came back at her, wrapping around her waist and sending her breathless to the floor. She winced and glared at him.
Bowser could only grin, amused. "You think a change of clothes and a lousy chain is gonna make you girls "bad?" Ooh! I'm shaking in my shell!"
He laughed too soon. Before he could react, two shining shafts of silver whipped in front of his face and crossed, one over the other, and pinned his neck against the wall.
"Maybe you should," Peach answered. "We have her."
Actually afraid now, he dared to swallow and looked down. "Who the heck are you?"
"No one you need be concerned about."
He started to grin. "Come on, let's have a name." The swords crossed closer to his neck.
"First let's have the Marios."
His smile was gone. "Don't you ever give up?"
"No," said Peach determinedly as she helped Daisy up from the floor.
The Koopa king sighed. "I told you; they're not here."
Pauline locked the sword closer. "We don't believe you."
Bowser started to look nervous. "Look, I'm serious. If I had them you would have been invited to their execution three days ago."
Closer still. Bowser lost his cool. "I swear, I don't have them! You can check every cell yourselves! They're not here!"
Peach saw the fear in his eyes and the shaking of his shell, and after a self congratulatory smile, placed a hand on Pauline's shoulder. "Hey…"
"Hey yourself," she answered, still glaring at Bowser.
"I think he's telling the truth."
"What, after all this trouble and we're wrong?"
Bowser barely swallowed. "I'm just as confused as you are. I guess you didn't understand that the last time."
Pauline was relentless. "So where are they?"
Bowser hesitated to answer. "I don't know."
"Yes. You do."
Daisy spoke up. "Pauline, relax, would you?"
"You want this job done right or wrong?"
"Pauline?" queried Bowser. She turned back to him fiercely.
"Look, we can do this the easy way," the swords budged in a bit, "or the hard way."
Bowser choked a bit, buckets of sweat pouring from his face. "All I know is, I saw Wario freaked out over what happened a few days ago. Maybe he's a better lead."
A lingering cold stare, and Pauline stepped back, still aiming her swords but staying a good distance away.
"That's all we need to know. Come on girls."
"You're name is Pauline?" She turned around crossly. "Yeah, I've heard of you. You used to be Mario's woman."
In the blink of an eye one of the small swords flew across the room and stuck itself into a crack in the rocks, an inch from Bowser's head. He turtle king looked at it from the corner of his eye…then simply passed out.
Daisy whispered to Peach, "I'd hate to be sharing a bunk bed with her," as Pauline went to fetch her sword.
Hee hee...Bowser loses to a bunch of girls...what a weiner!
Bowser: EXCUSE ME?!
Umm...oh hey, watch out! I'm a girl!
Bowser: -_-
All right, FINE....Mr. Grumpy Gills...I'll just run away. (..)'