In this chapter, Mario and Lincoln are going to consult Merlon to see where to go next. However, they're going to encounter a roadblock...for some strange reason, some Toads are standing right in front of the entrance to Pleasant Path. Maybe Merlon can do something about that...
Also, Larry is spying on them...he wants to get as much information as he can.
Chapter 7: Hocus Pocus
After receiving information about their quest at Shooting Star Summit, Mario and Lincoln arrived back at Toad Town.
"How did it go?" asked a nearby Toad. Hopefully Mario didn't get hit by a shooting star or an asteroid.
Mario gave the thumbs up. He had gotten all the information that he and his friends needed...well, other than where all the Star Spirits were. He'd figure out by gathering information...and process of elimination, possibility.
"The Star Spirits want us to look for them...they're apparently scattered throughout the Mushroom Kingdom." said Lincoln. Bowser and his minions were doing their best to make sure that nobody would be able to send them back to Star Haven.
"Wait, if they're scattered throughout the Mushroom Kingdom, how are we supposed to find them?" asked Goombario.
"That presents a problem..." nodded the white-haired boy.
"Well, I suppose you could ask Merlon. He's rather informative..." suggested the nearby Toad. He was where he would go if he wanted information...like whether he should get a new Mushroom hat.
"Seems like a good idea." agreed the Goomba. Alternatively, Mario could simply ask HIM for information. Of course, he didn't have magical powers so he couldn't simply use sorcery. He was starting to feel jealous of Merlon.
"But before you go visit the mighty wizard Merlon, you might want to look around. There are several shops that you can use to get badges and items...among other things." informed another Toad.
Mario decided that would be a good idea. It wouldn't be smart to go look for the Star Spirits until they were ready to rescue them.
Curious, he noticed that there seemed to be a race track. Competing in the race was Wario, Waluigi, Baby Mario, Donkey Kong, and Baby Luigi. Currently, the Toads were placing bets on who would win the race. Many of the bets were on Baby Mario.
"Why are there babies racing on the race tracks?" asked Lincoln. It was quite unusual. How did they know how to drive?
"We designed the karts so that even babies could use them." answered the Toad in charge. His name was Speed E. Also, he was wearing shades.
As soon as she noticed the karts, Lily took an interest. If Baby Mario and Baby Luigi were racing, surely she could enter the race track too, right?
"Hee hee!" giggled Lily. This looked like fun. She decided to give it a shot.
Immediately, she climbed into one of the karts and put on a racing helmet. It currently wasn't in use, so it was all hers.
She proceeded to start the engine.
"Vroom vroom!" exclaimed Lily.
Lincoln spotted Lily inside one of the carts. Appropriately, it was fuschia.
"Lily, you sure about this?" asked Lincoln. He didn't want his baby sister to get hurt...Luna had almost given her a stage dive once. Did Lily look like she had superbaby strength to her?
"Uh-huh!" exclaimed the baby.
"On your marks, get set, go!" bellowed Speed E.
Immediately, the racers began to race across the race track. They darted by so fast that Lincoln couldn't look at them without getting dizzy.
"Ooh ooh ooh ooh!" bellowed Donkey Kong.
"Wait, is that a gorilla on the race track?" questioned Lincoln. Well, gorillas were similar to humans compared to other animals, although this gorilla seemed to be about as intelligent as Leni.
Eventually, the race was over...
...and standing in 1st place on the podium was Lily.
"Way to go, Lily!" exclaimed Lincoln.
"Yay!" cheered Lily. She won! And to think that she had never been in a race before...except for the Diaper Derby. She had been disqualified for walking.
Second place was Baby Mario, and third place was Baby Luigi.
"I'm-a number two!" exclaimed Baby Mario.
"I'm-a third!" shouted Baby Luigi. Once again, he had fallen behind his brother Baby Mario. Maybe one day...
Lincoln noted that Lily was probably going to do well on her driver's exam once she turned sixteen. Maybe she could even teach Leni.
"Anything else we should do?" suggested the boy. There certainly were a lot of things to do in this town. No wonder there were so many residents.
Of course, it also helped that Princess Peach's Castle was nearby...or at least it used to be. When would it come back down?
Mario pointed out that there was a pig farm nearby, even though Toad Town seemed more urban than rural.
"I suppose we could try that." nodded Lincoln.
Obviously, there were many pigs inside the farm. Nearby there was a toad who of course was dressed like a farmer. His name was Billy.
"You want a Lil' Oink? Just pay ten coins!" exclaimed Billy. Next to him was a sign saying "10 coins for a Lil' Oink!"
Mario handed the farmer ten coins. It seemed like a good deal. He just hoped that the pigs didn't eat his lasagna because he loved his Italian food so much.
Shortly afterward, a Lil' Oink entered the farm.
"Oink oink oink!" exclaimed the pig. Wait, where were the other pigs?
"Thank you, Mario!" bellowed the farmer. He sure hoped that Mario would spend more coins so that he could keep building up a farm. Or maybe he could just play Animal Crossing. That game was full of animals.
Mario gave the thumbs up.
They also noticed that there was a dojo nearby.
"You think Lynn would be interested?" questioned Lincoln.
Lily nodded.
"Alright then, we'll come back once we've managed to find Lynn." said the boy.
"Hee hee!" exclaimed Lily.
Mario decided to go grocery shopping along with Goombario.
He decided to buy some powerups. Fortunately, there were Toads that selled them, and were more than willing to do so for Mario.
"Good thinking, Mario...just try to remember not to spend too much, OK?" questioned Goombario.
Mario nodded. He wouldn't want to be out of pocket when his adventure was just beginning. His money could be useful later.
Meanwhile, Lincoln discovered a strange individual wearing a top hat. He didn't look like anyone else in Toad Town, so he probably wasn't a resident.
"Who are you?" asked Lincoln.
"I'm Chuck Quizmo...if you answer my questions correctly, you'll get prizes!" exclaimed Chuck Quizmo.
"Sounds good! Count us in!" agreed the young boy.
Suddenly, Lincoln and Lily found themselves transferred to what appeared to be a game show.
"Whoa!" exclaimed Lily.
"How did we get here so fast?" asked Lincoln. It was as if they had been whisked away across time and space. Well, maybe just space.
"That's game magic, my boy." stated Chuck Quizmo.
Lincoln wondered why Chuck Quizmo decided to break the fourth wall.
"So, what's the first question?" inquired the boy.
"Who is your youngest sister?" asked the worm.
"Shouldn't I know that? It's Lily!" exclaimed Lincoln.
"Heeheehee!" giggled Lily.
"Correct!" shouted the worm.
Immediately, he handed Lincoln 10 coins.
"Alright then. When Mario fell from Bowser's Castle, where did he end up?" asked Chuck Quizmo. He felt sorry for the poor plumber. Why did he lose to Bowser when he won so many times before? Was it a one-time fluke?
"Goomba Village!" answered Lincoln. Mario was lucky that the Goombas managed to find him...and they weren't affiliated with the Koopa Troop.
"Correct! Here is a Star Piece!" exclaimed the worm.
"Oooohhh!" said Lily. She found Star Pieces to be rather fascinating. Maybe they reminded her of Shooting Star Valley. Speaking of which, they were just there. What a coincidence.
"Now for the third question! Who is Lincoln's best friend in the world?" inquired the worm.
"It's Clyde! How could I forget that?" asked Lincoln. It'd be like forgetting about his sisters.
"Correct! Here's a HP Plus badge so we all know how much you care!" exclaimed Chuck Quizmo.
"Nice!" cheered the boy.
"Now for the fourth question...who is Mario's brother?" asked the worm.
Lily buzzed in this time.
"Huh?" asked Lincoln.
"Loo-igi!" exclaimed Lily.
"Correct! Here is your prize!" bellowed Chuck Quizmo.
Lincoln reached forward to grab it, but Chuck Quizmo handed it to Lily instead.
It was a pacifier.
Lily happily began to suck on it.
"So...whoever answers the question correctly gets the prize?" asked Lincoln.
"It makes sense..." nodded Chuck Quizmo.
"OK..." nodded the boy. It looked like he might be facing competition from his sisters, especially if he managed to find Lisa.
"Now for the final question...how many chapters does Paper Mario have?" asked Chuck Quizmo.
"Hmm..." questioned Lincoln. He hadn't been playing the game for long so he didn't know the answer.
Lily buzzed in.
"Eight! Eight!" exclaimed Lily.
"Correct! Here is a teddy bear! To be honest, I have so many prizes I don't know what to do with them all..." questioned Chuck Quizmo.
Lily happily hugged her new teddy bear.
"I guess that's why you're being so generous with them..." remarked Lincoln. Strangely enough, Chuck Quizmo seemed to have a good idea which each contestant wanted...for example, while Lincoln wanted things such as badges or coins, Lily wanted things that were related to babies. Maybe Lily should be more practical...though Lincoln supposed he should keep Lily happy during the trip as well.
"Well, I think you've answered enough questions for today. I hope to see you again!" exclaimed Chuck Quizmo.
A few seconds later, Lily and Lincoln found themselves back in Toad Town, and Chuck Quizmo disappeared.
"Well, that was rather strange...but at least we got some prizes...they might be useful in our adventure." remarked Lincoln.
"Uh-huh!" exclaimed Lily.
"Let's go visit Merlon, shall we?" questioned the boy.
Lily nodded.
"By the way, how did you know how many chapters there were in Paper Mario?" questioned Lincoln.
Lily held up seven of her fingers.
"Oh that's right, there are seven Star Spirits...and after that Mario takes on Bowser and saves Princess Peach..." noted Lincoln. Now that he thought of it...weren't there eight worlds in Super Mario Bros 3?
As it turned out, Mario and Goombario were planning to do the same thing.
"Can I help you?" asked Merlon.
"We're trying to find out where one of the Star Spirits is...Bowser kidnapped them all and now they're spread throughout the Mushroom Kingdom!" exclaimed Goombario.
"That's quite unfortunate...I'll use my magical powers to help you." said the man.
Immediately, he used his crystal ball to determine the whereabouts of the first Star Spirit.
A large fortress appeared.
"It appears that the first Star Spirit is being held in Koopa Bros. Fortress...it looks like you're going to have to beat the Koopa Bros. in order to obtain the Star Spirit...I wish you good luck with that..." said Merlon.
"How do we get there?" questioned Lincoln.
"It should be rather simple...just go east from Toad Town and you'll be able to find it." answered the mage.
Suddenly, the image in the crystal ball changed.
Now, it was a village...a village full of Koopas.
"This reminds me of Goomba Village..." noted Lincoln. Only instead of Goombas, there are Koopa Troopas.
"I know." nodded Goombario. Of course, Koopa Village did seem larger than Goomba Village was.
"Wait, hold on...before you head to Koopa Bros. Fortress, you should head to Koopa Village..." advised Merlon.
"How come?" asked the Goomba with a blue cap.
"You'll find a Koopa with a blue shell there...as well as a girl who wears glasses..." explained the wizard.
"A girl who wears glasses? Wait a minute..." questioned Lincoln. He was starting to wonder if he knew that girl somewhere.
"They should be able to help you get inside the fortress...help them and they shall help you..." said Merlon.
"Sounds good." nodded Lincoln.
"Let me know if you need anything." spoke the wizard. Of course, he wasn't the type of person to go out on an adventure...but perhaps he could be useful to Mario and Lincoln some other way.
Lincoln and Mario nodded.
However, as they left Merlon's house, they didn't realize they were being spied upon. But it wasn't Kammy this time.
"So...they're going to try to get help from a blue shelled Koopa and a girl with glasses, are they? I better do something about that..." stated Larry Koopa.
Together the heroes headed towards Pleasant Path...
...but they were stopped by four Toads who were oddly dressed in black. They didn't look too friendly, unlike the other Toads in Toad Town. Why were they so sinister?
"Hey, Mario! You don't want to go to Pleasant Path! It's dangerous out there..." stated one of the four Toads.
"If it's so dangerous, why is it called Pleasant Path?" asked Lincoln. Shouldn't it be called Unpleasant Path?
"I don't know but you shouldn't go there!" bellowed another Toad. "There are horrors that should never be seen by children!"
Lily sucked on her pacifier. This was getting scary.
"Yeah! It's crazy out there!" warned the third Toad.
"Plus you'll mess up Bowser's plans..." said the fourth Toad.
The other Toads looked at him.
"Er, I mean, please journey elsewhere?" asked the fourth Toad.
"Hmm..." thought Lincoln. Something didn't seem right about those Toads.
Suddenly, Lily began to cry.
"Why is she crying?" asked Goombario.
Once again, Lincoln began to feel suspicious. Could Lily...detect evil?
He decided to go talk to Merlon. He had a feeling that something was wrong.
"Didn't I just see you a few minutes ago?" asked Merlon.
"Well, I just encountered four Toads...they were acting really strange." said Lincoln.
"How so?" inquired the wizard.
"Well, they made Lily cry...and they wouldn't let us go to Pleasant Path...and they mentioned something about us messing up Bowser's plans..." explained the boy.
"That IS peculiar...I think I'll go straighten things out." nodded Merlon.
Immediately, he went to where the four Toads were standing.
"Can we help you?" asked one of the Toads.
"You're not really Toads, are you?" inquired the wizard.
"Well, of course we're Toads! Don't be silly!" exclaimed another Toad.
Somehow, Mario wasn't so sure if that was true.
"Well then, I hope you don't mind if I cast an anti-cloaking spell..." answered Merlon.
"Wait, what?!" exclaimed the first Toad.
Immediately, Merlon used his magic to unravel the four "Toads"' disguises.
As it turned out, they were the Koopa Bros.
"We're busted! Get into the fortress immediately!" exclaimed Red Ninjakoopa.
"I'm on it!" bellowed Black Ninjakoopa.
"On the double!" shouted Yellow Ninjakoopa.
"You got it, boss!" nodded Green Ninjakoopa.
Immediately, the Koopa Brothers retreated.
"I guess there's nothing stopping us from going to Pleasant Path now..." stated Lincoln. Now they could REALLY begin their adventure.
"Is it really as unpleasant as they said?" asked Goombario. Since the Toads that they were talking to earlier were actually the Koopa Bros, they were probably simply trying to scare them away.
"It's not. There are Koopa Troopas though so take care!" exclaimed Merlon.
"Thanks for everything!" shouted the white-haired boy.
Quickly, the four of them headed to Pleasant Path.
Well, it looks like Mario and Lincoln are going to need to go to Koopa Village before heading to Koopa Bros. Fortress...at least they'll get some new party members out of it, right?