The rain fell heavily. The distant echoes of thunder had stopped, but the rain continued, increasing. Agaricus, a Toad soldier, could see it clearly. Even if the rain poured down the centre of his helmet, splashing timidly into his armour with a constant metallic, sound, he could see in the horizon fire. Torches big and small were coming closer, and with them, war drums. Upon seeing the enemy army, he went rapidly to the horn located in the top of the tower, blowing it with all his might.

Not much time later, the enemy had advanced up to 100 meters before the wall of Pauline's fortress. Lieutenant Daisy, who lead the bowmen, made a silent gesture. The toads readied their bows. Princess Peach awaited any sign of conflict, Knight Mario and Luigi stood in their posts, silently waiting. Suddenly, a deep growl full of hatred roared and echoed through the battlefields, silencing any drums and, perhaps, lightning. Even if this was Agaricus' first battle, he immediately recognized the owner of such foul and putrid voice: The Tyrant of Fire, Lord of the Koopas. Bowser.

'Crush them, you maggots! Leave no prisoners!' the voice boomed as loud as thunder.

He took a closer look at the enemy army. Hundreds of goombas and koopas, armed to the teeth, made the first line. Behind them, tall as mountains, attack towers with venomous piranha plants mounted on them hissed at the toad army. A small force of a dozen lakitus were flying over them, aiming where to throw their bombs. And they were all running towards him. He turned around and looked at his army. Every man was ready. Knight Mario had invoked his flame powers, and Knight Luigi surely was hiding somewhere to tend them a trap… He heard the familiar voice of Lady Daisy behind them.

'Archers! Take aim!' Agaricus readied suddenly his bow. Surprised although not unready, he took aim at the goombas clumsily marching towards the entrance of the fortress, hoping to somehow bring it down bashing their heads against it. 'Hold… and fire!'

A flurry of arrows came down against the first lines of the enemy, bringing them all down. Another flurry came as the answer they never sought. The two bowmen started a dance of arrow that seemed as it may never end until the infantry came out to fight. With a sudden droppìng on bombs on the areas closest to the door, it broke down. Knight Mario lead a small number of Toads and Toad mounted Yoshis that started to reign havoc in the weaker parts of Bowser's army. Agaricus himself watched the scene with fascination. For a knight, Lord Mario wasn't chivalrous at all when fighting, for he threw kicks and punches mixed with the flames and fireballs he was able to domain through an old, lost magic. Slowly but surely, he started to repel the enemy from the wide-open doors on his own, while the chivalry ran from one side to the other, stomping and slashing as they went across. Soon enough, one of Bowser's sons, Roy, a grey and brown rock-hard koopa, came to fight Mario. Agaricus could barely see while he shot against the lakitus flying overhead, even bringing one down, that the weapons he had were not from the Firelands. An enormous one-sided axe of dark metal that made the ground shake with every hit. Knight Mario soon started to fight, attacking, dodging and counterattacking in almost a pattern, as one you'd see in the clocks of Peachville, moving in a never-ending cycle. Knight Mario baited an attack, and Roy Bowserson jumped several meters slashing at him. Upon falling, Knight Luigi came out of the shadows and stabbed him, forcing his retreat.

Meanwhile, the attack towers were being attacked by some stolen cannons from previous attacks, commanded by Princess Peach. Only one managed to break through and land troops on the wall, the piranha plant spreading its toxic breath and leaving that side vulnerable, but Mario, with Roy defeated, managed to make it catch fire and slayed the koopa intruders. Just when a stalemate was the only thing that seemed possible, Princess Peach approached his platoon of archers.

'Daisy! I need one of your men to go to the other side of the fortress and blow the horn! We must warn the hidden troops in the mountains to come now to our aid, and we'll break the stalemate!'

'Yes, your highness' lady Daisy turned and pointed at Agaricus. 'You, brave soldier! You heard your instructions?' Agaricus nodded rather difficultly. Even if he could barely hear anything through the cries and moans and occasional explosions of fire, he had managed to understand the words of her lady, as any knight or soldier should. 'Then march! This nation now depends on you!'

Agaricus immediately started to run. He ran across the walls and down the stairs on to the muddy and bloodstained courtyards, filled to the brim with wounded soldiers. Some enemies had managed to break in through a surprise attack at the other side of the door and had been warded off, though with many casualties. He got to the other end, out of breath and tried entering the tower which held the horn but was stopped in his tracks buy a hammer-armed koopa. He was out of breath, but he ran quickly to take cover from the rain of steel that hovered over him. Unsure of what to do, the koopa spoke to him, in a mocking way.

'Hahaha! You fool. Your armies are finished. With the help we've gotten, we'll soon destroy everything in our path and take our rightful lands!' Agaricus was confused by this sentence. Unknowing of the full meaning, he decided to take his enemy on, unsheathing his sword, ready to fight. He somewhat clumsily dodged a strike, but fell down, slipping in the dark puddles. He got up and went on guard, striking at the koopa, who answered with a bash of his hammer. Koopas were usually trained poorly, but the elite fighters learned rather unorthodox tactics. Hammers and tackles and weak fire magics. Agaricus rolled, remembering his training in the academy, and struck at the koopas feet, who jumped but fell for the Toad's trap. He quickly pulled his sword up in a vertical slash, a move that he thought would bring him victory, but the koopa retrieved onto his shell, blocking the strike with his back after having turned around and popping up moments later, ready to strike down his enemy.

Just when he had lost all hope, a sudden flash of light blinded him for an instant. Upon looking, he found a knocked out koopa, with the shadow of a man leaning over it.

'Are you all right?' asked gently a voice. Knight Mario stood over him, having arrived there from the entrance. Agaricus bowed.

'Sir, I…'

'It's ok, soldier. That was a good fight. I'll end this bastard. Where were you going?'

'I must blow the horn to advise our hidden troops.'

'Then you must hurry.' Replied casually the knight.

'Indeed sir, but…' Agaricus thought about what that trooper had said earlier, before their little skirmish. 'I wouldn't suggest killing this trooper. He said several… interesting things before we fought. It is my believe we should interrogate him, if you would.'

'Interesting, huh…? It might very well be, loyal soldier. But that will come later. Now, hurry!'

Agaricus started running once again and reached the horn, blowing it with all his forces. A low sordid sound blew over the battlefield, as if the earth itself was screaming, the mountains roaring and shaking. Soon, more yells could be heard behind the enemy lines, and, after a few minutes, silence. Cold, empty, deadly silence.

The sun shined brightly, covering the green fields and grey rocks in a bathe of light that everyone appreciated. One would hardly believe a battle had just taken place, but so was the case. Princess Peach, the leader of the army that had forced once again the Koopa Army to flee to their lands, their leader cowardly running away with his tail between his legs, was standing next to her valiant knights and her lady, looking over the fortress.

Several had died, and even more had been wounded, but you could call the battle a success. A bittersweet success, for the Princess' taste, for one single death was too many, but a success. They had repelled the tyrant Bowser once again, for now.

Princess Peach sighed. 'Peace… A silent peace…'

Knight Mario sat down in the grass. They were all standing in the grassy and green fields outside the fortress. 'After the storm there's always silence.'

Luigi chuckled 'Dear brother, I don't think that's what the saying i¡says.'

'It does in my book'

Lady Daisy came hurriedly, seeming nervous. She bowed at the princess and proceeded to talk.

'Your highness. I have… Unsettling news, at best.'

Peach nodded, then sighed. She suspected what this was about. 'It's about that prisoner.' Daisy nodded. During the battle, a knight had advised Mario to interrogate a soldier that had said "interesting" words. She hoped those words would help clarify Ylisse's position in the war, or lack thereof. 'Has he spoken?'

'Yes, and quite frankly. After some unkind things about you, and some weeping from the punches he received as a consequence, we managed to take out of him all the information he had.' Daisy shifted her position in a worried manner. 'I fear… Ylisse is heavily involved. Our prisoner' she put hatred and disgust into the last words 'has had direct contact with some Ylissian officials stationed at Bowser's army. He confessed their plan. Ylisse is to aid the Koopa Kingdome in taking the Mushroom Kingdom and advancing towards Hyrule and all free lands.'

Mario was shocked. 'What?!' he shouted. 'Is this for certain?'

Daisy nodded sadly. 'I'm afraid it is. We put him under a situation where no one would lie. Yes, there is a slight chance that this may be an elaborate lie, but it would bring no benefit to Bowser. To anyone, really.'

'What's more…' continued Luigi 'If we add this up to my discovering… It's awfully plausible. The Ylissian Empire has already taken control somehow over Osternia. Sure, they say they made it through alliances and peace, but that's not for certain.'

'This is horrible. We can always deal against Bowser, that scumbag… But if the combined forces of Osternia are aiding him in battle… I don't know, your highness. Our future is uncertain.'

Princess Peach knew this day would come, eventually. Something bigger than Bowser, bigger than herself. The jaws of a beast greater than the dragon she had warded off from her land for years were now looming over them.

'It is indeed uncertain, but not desperate. We will always have hope, for our people and land. If they are marching towards the free lands, we must warn Hyrule. I'm not sure about the position of the cities of Hellas but making an effort won't hurt. We must stand united in these times of uncertainty and treasons. Peace and Righteousness. That's what we represent and what we believe in. And what we'll fight for. We will not be silenced.'

The ghost of wars past loomed over the shadow of the world and her lands, Peach knew it. But she wasn't afraid of war, no. Now she only feared two things: death and silence.