Diarchy By Ninetails2000/RVroovie99
Chapter 3: Crimson Blitz
"Red alert! Red alert! Mario is within range! Red alert! Red alert! Mario is within range!"
Koopas scrambled, Hammer Bros armed themselves. Chargin' Chucks fastened their jockstraps. The entire castle was on high alert!
The Koopalings rushed to the roof of the castle with Peach in tow.
"Get a move on Roy! He could be here any second!" Ludwig ordered his siblings around with the air of a leader.
"Oof, You try carrying a princess!" Roy grumbled as he hauled Peach to an awaiting airship against her will. "If it weren't for my shell, I'd-HEY!-I'd be getting kicked in the dic-STOP IT!"
Ludwig growled with frustration. "I don't care WHERE she's kicking you, we have to make our leave before Mario-" Ludwig abruptly stopped in the middle of his statement with a choked gasp. The rest of the Koopalings froze in their tracks. Ludwig's eyes rolled into the back of his head and he toppled to the floor, out cold. The rest of the koopalings watched with horror as their eldest brother was mercilessly kicked off to the side, hitting a wall and crumpling into a mangled heap.
"M-Mario..." That was all the koopalings could stand to say as they watched with fear as the plumber silently stepped forward.
"Mario?" Peach looked over Roy's shoulder, waves of relief washing over her. "MARIO! Thank goodness!"
"Hand. Over. The princess." The cold look in Mario's eyes was enough to stop the heart of even the hardiest of elite koopas.
"W-we can take him..." Morton cracked his knuckles, ready to fight. "Let's knock him on his ass so we can get out!" He lunged forward, retreating into his shell to try and catch Mario in a Whirling Fortress attack. Instead, he found himself caught by Mario. "Hey, what the hell!?" He growled and cursed as Mario held him up by his shell.
"Let my brother down this instant, you ruffian!" Wendy could only begin to reach for her wand when Mario heaved Morton back at her, sending them both toppling onto the floor.
Two more down.
Iggy and Larry tried to sneak up from behind and catch him by surprise with magic, but Mario, used to their tricks, was able to dodge the magical onslaught and payed them back with his own fire. As the two of them were reeling from dodging fireballs, he grabbed the them by the hair and smashed their heads together, knocking them both out instantly.
That's five.
In all this time, Lemmy had been able to get a ball rolling and tried to run circles around Mario and launch spells, but Mario, cruel as ever, simply swept the ball out from under his feet, delivering a powerful roundhouse kick before Lemmy could even touch the ground that left him embedded in the battlements.
One left.
Roy could only look around at his brothers and sister, all out cold as he tried to find a way out. Even if he gave up Peach, he knew he was in for a beating. He had to be daring. He had to try something! "Hold it right there, Plumber!" He ran to the side of the castle roof, hoisted Peach off of his shoulders and held her over the side. "You wouldn't hurt me when she could fall into the lava, would you?"
Mario smugly stared at the koopaling. "No...But she would..."
"Huh?" Roy was absolutely confused. "What do you mean by tha-" Like a flash of lighting, the side of his face was struck, shining metal spikes of a golden crown digging into his muzzle and leaving bloody gashes. "OOF!" Stumbling away clutching his cheek, he had only a brief moment to turn and face his attacker before being smashed in the face with a cast iron frying pan. The last thing he could see before blacking out was his mangled glasses clattering to the floor in front of him followed by one of his fangs.
"Hmph..." Peach hummed happily at her own handiwork, sending the frying pan back to hammerspace and re-straightening her crown.
"Peach!" Mario dashed to his princess.
"Mario!" Peach ran to meet her prince. They reunited with a loving, twirling hug. "Oh Mario, I was so scared!"
"Don't worry Peach, I'm here. I'll always come for you." Mario softly consoled the princess.
"I know Mario, I know..." Peach smiled, her eyes sparkling. "Thank you so much..."
"Peach..." Mario smiled up at Peach, his breath being taken away by her beauty.
Slowly the two of them moved in closer, Mario grabbing hold of her waist and Peach leaning down to eye level with her hero. "I think...It's time..." Her cheeks gained a rosy hue.
"Time?" Mario knew in the back of his head what she meant, but he still couldn't believe it until he heard it first hand.
"Time...That I ascend the throne...And become queen..." Peach took Mario's hand. "With you by my side..."
Mario's eye lit up. "Peach...You mean after all this time..." Mario was in disbelief. This was a dream come true!
"Yes, Mario..." Peach leaned in. "My love...My hero..." They were centimeters apart. "I will marry you..."
With that, they shared their first real kiss. Not as chaste friends, but as lovers. As he felt the princess's soft, sweet lips touch his own after so many years of longing, Mario was overcome with emotion and let tears of joy roll freely off his cheeks. Finally after so long, after so many trials and tribulations, after the pain and suffering...His true love would finally accept him as her husband.
They broke their kiss to the cheers of toads as they landed in a hot air balloon, ready to deliver Mario and Peach back to the castle. Hand in hand, they stepped into the basket and stared out at the rising sun of a new day as the balloon drifted lazily over the horizon.
. . .
"Well that was unexpected..." Ludwig got up from the floor and dusted himself off. "They choose NOW of all times to tie the knot?"
"Hmph, that hussy was probably just taken in by how easily we went down." Wendy fixed up her bow and buffed the shine back into her bangles. "Both of them must be slow to not realize we threw that fight..."
"Speak for yourself..." Roy grumbled as he tried to shove his fang back into place. "She wasn't playing around with that frying pan..."
"Enough dawdling, we have to report back to Father and set up the next phase of his master plan!" Ludwig shuttled everyone onto the airship.
"But my tooth..." Roy whined. "And my FACE!" He rubbed the cuts on his muzzle.
"I'm sure Kamek can heal those wounds in no time." Ludwig smirked at his brother smugly. "And if you're still in pain after, I can simply numb it away with butterfly kisses."
"Haha. Funny." Roy rolled his eyes as he boarded the airship and the Koopalings set a course for the capital of the Koopa Kingdom.
