As Mario and Peach stepped out of the carriage, Peach realized that Twilight Town looked nothing like she had in mind. "The sky...gross!" The sky was a brownish-grayish-red color...as if the sky were burning and leaving soot instead of clouds. The huge moon hovered eerily high overhead. The ground was parched and dusty. "This isn't what I had in mind at all..." Peach looked very disappointed and wished that the carriage wasn't already pulling away.
"Oh, it's all right. At least I'm here!" said Mario as he showed her his biggest smile.
A few dark, leafless trees stood in the middle of the small village. Crows sat on the bare branches. The houses were shrouded in shadow. Except for a few prickly bushes, there was nothing but dirt on the ground. Poorly-constructed fences enclosed gardens made up of dead plants.
A dark, sad-looking figure dressed in rags and a large hood that shaded his face approached Mario and Peach. "Go away!"
Peach was shocked. "I beg your pardon!"
"No!" the shadowy local said. "Leave! You'll be cursed, just like the rest of us!"
"Cursed?" Mario asked, startled.
"What do you mean, cursed?" Peach asked inquisitively. Suddenly, DONG!, a bell tolled, and POP! the villager turned into a pig.
"Oh my goodness!" Mario blurted. He looked around, and noticed there were several other little pigs roaming around the town.
A ruffled, sad old man walked up to greet Peach and Mario. "Hello," he said, "my name is Dour. I'm the mayor of Twilight Town."
"Hello, Mayor Dour," Peach acknowledged him. "Tell me what the heck is going on!"
"Not here," he said. "Let us go to my house."
They walked into his small little house. It had only one room.
"What's going on?" Mario asked the mayor.
"Ahhh..." he droned, "this town has had a curse put on it."
"Mamma-mia!" Mario cried.
"A curse?" Peach gasped. "Oh my goodness!"
"A monster inside of Creepy Steeple has laid a curse on this town," Dour explained. "Whenever the bell is rung, one of us turns into a pig!"
"That's awful!" Peach said. "Mario, we've got to get out of here!"
"Our carriage left already!" Mario exclaimed.
"Awww, that's right!" Peach shouted indignantly at herself. I told the carriage driver to come back tomorrow afternoon."
"Ahhh..." Mayor Dour droned, "You'll surely be turned into pigs by then."
Peach turned to the mayor. "What can we do? I'll do anything to avoid being turned into a piggy!"
"Well," the mayor said, "the only thing that there is to do..." Dour paused for effect.
"Yes?" Peach asked expectantly.
"...is to go to Creepy Steeple and destroy the monster!"
"Okay," Peach said, "So where's the monster?"
"Creepy Steeple is east of town, on the other side of Twilight Trail."
"Let's go there and do that!" Mario approved.
"All right," Peach agreed. "Let's just not get my dress dirty."
