He heard the damp breathing of his friend in the cold prison. Mario had been unable to move for three days maybe. Locked in the dark. His eyes would tear up the next time he'd see light. He took a deep breath of the rotten air, wondering how much the princess had felt like this. Locked, waiting, tight-up, insides seeking for help. Yet he didn't think she had ever felt like...crying everytime.

The fragmented memories flooded back; he felt dull ache in his head, his stomach growled on, his lips, mouth, throat were so dry they stuck together anytime he gulped, the connection between the nasal canal and the throat hurting vividly. Like swallowing sand. His body twitched sometimes, wanting to stretch, or at least a confortable pose, other than seating with every limb half contracted. And most of all, his broken arm. The right one. He knew it was twice the normal size, swollen yet extremely fragile. Right now, there was no pain, and it wouldn't wake up until he ceased his daydreaming. Well he was not going to. That was all Mario could do; they locked him there for that. How long? Maybe he'd go insane?

No. That's not how it works. And despair was temporary, right? The depressing thoughts he'd had earlier were gone. Everything would be okay, even by the looks of that unexpected situation he was in. There's a first for everything. And maybe he should have seen that coming, since it's so easy to reverse things for the worse in this blessed world. But how could anyone find deep things in here...?

Mario had to admit. He hadn't felt that many emotions nor questioned everything since...never. Not like that.

Also, he'd never felt so gross. He hadn't moved for three days. And that had been so embarrassing to...empty himself...right there. The other had to, too, but Mario just bowed his head, not wanting to break their dignity furthermore. Hopefully, he hadn't eaten much, since there was no cake and because of Luigi's wrong behaviour. So he had only wet his clothes. The smell had to be horrible, but they were used to it. Even the sour taste of their tongues. Their teeth had a thin granule layer of dental calculus they stopped rubbing. There was the smell of fish somewhere, and Mario didn't want to think it through.

Poor, poor princess. He couldn't believe they were doing this to her. Even Bowser...Bowser was far more hearted than them. He'd at least provide the necessary for his never-to-be-? bride.

Yeah, to be or not to be, if it was still possible. The princess too had been acting strangely back there...

He had watched the town getting smaller through a window. Soon, the foggy horizon curved, and then only cold stream surrounded the ship. His eyes dazed over tiny drops forming on the windows, and then being swept out by the wind, forming clear water trails.

The ground had shaken a bit, and they followed their enemy into the mother ship. The light had fallen. The walls of the room blackened. Something was in the air, tension, electricity, or it could have been his skin nerves stinging. Even his moustache looked poofy by static. Anyway, they were facing Tatanga right now, his back actually. They waited.

And waited.

Until...

"Excuse me?"

Princess Peach.

"Why...why are you doing that?"

"Because he's a stupid evil alien, pinkie!" Daisy snapped.

"Please let me finish." Peach had answered firmly.

"Do you want to take over the world? Do you want to marry Princess Daisy? Why?"

Tatanga just trembled. Peach talked on. Mario was surprised at the willowy voice that filled the metal space.

"Everybody has his own reasons. But...maybe we can help you. I...I learned recently that we could solve all problems pacifically. I actually helped a villain."

Wait, what, who? All but Tatanga's looks observed her.

"I realized we were maybe too mean to...the ones who actually needed help. Heroes can create evils. Heroes exist because there are villains. I've been mean too, and fortunately, I could repay that error. I've never felt so happy then. That's what a true hero is! And I'm sure you'd feel better after...you start talking to me."

Tatanga shook even more, like spasms and hiccups.

"Please."

Peach stretched out a hand, in front of her, convinced.

The horrible laughter stabbed her right in the heart, which missed a beat. The chair rolled and turned to show the villain. She met a cracking eye-teary bat face, who didn't believe how naive she was actually being. But also incredibly stupid.

"That's what I'm talking about! Don't you feel your tears? You're crying!" And with that, Peach had more conviction to save the villain, and to forget that doomed doubt. She swung her arm and leaned the other hand at her chest. "Just let us a chance! We are heroes; you can stick on us until we get something or somebody to help you. You don't have to transform those sad feelings into hatred and anger and emotions or acts you could regret. They'll just drag you more pain. But even if you've fallen down, we can-"

The mockery amplified; Peach had to scream past this challenge.

"We can help! You can trust us! We will heal you, no matter what happened, because you just know you weren't meant to be like this!"

"ENOUGH!" Daisy had yelled, grasping strongly her mouth for her to SHUT UP. This humiliation was unbearable. Who did she think she was? What the hell did she just say? "Never again you talk shit like that in front of our enemy! Just SHUT UP!"

She had released her grip when Peach had seemed to resign.

Mario...he...he didn't know if he was feeling surprised, scared, touched, humiliated or proud, admiring or irritated. What did that meant all of a sudden? Peach never had said something like that, all kind-hearted she was, because she was also proud and reasonable and...immature.

The crazy laughter calmed down. Blood coursing through his eyes, Tatanga spat out: "Say, this villain you helped, was he by any chance Bowser?"

...

Gasps.

"Stockholm Syndrome I see."

"No, you don't understand. It's not... and I can still help you!"

"Too sad you helped HIM. He was too dumb. He's dead now."

Wh-wh-WHAT?!

Peach trembled. "Uh...? E-Excuse me, c-can you repeat, please?"

"Bowser is dead. He killed him for good."

Mario believed that should be atrocious to hear. To fully get what it meant. Even if he didn't understand when the Syndrome took place, he'd feel devastated himself, out of empathy for both Bowser and Peach. That's why, he assumed, the princess desperately cried out her anger and flung her limbs everywhere while her cousin held her from behind. Mario feared Mr.L might teach her a lesson, for she was screaming and screeching hysterically.

"I CURSE YOU! CURSE YOOOUUU—"

That's when, Mario remembered, the room went bright then dark then bright then the light eased. Folding his fingers into his ears, he still felt the shocking bumps in his body as the too loud crack filled the air. The thunder covered the woman's voice. All this in three seconds. Had Mr.L struck?...

No...

It couldn't be...

Since the light shut off, he suggested some blessed lightning had struck the airships. They were still getting through the storm! Well, Mario decided it was the moment. It might even be too late. But he glanced at Yoshi, who got the tip, and ran. Grabbing someone in a dress, he yelled something about getting out of here at his friends.

The rest had been chaos. Fear of being caught, excitation of fleeing. Holding, just holding tightly at his chest the body trashing in his arms. Jumping out eventually. His heart had pounded so, so fast; the wind wetting them became hot; gravity pulled them down at vertiginous speed; fear and doom and anticipation coursed and ran and flew along every bit of their bodies, panic even; until his feet met a watery surface, and after a loud crash, he found themselves deep under the sea.

Yeah... better stay right there. Oh but, it was salt water! He couldn't breathe there. So he had had no choice but to pull Peach then him outside of the waves. Still breathing, yes. However they were cut off by a massive wall of water, that engulfed them. They swirled and rotated and it took them a panic time to relocate the surface. Only to be dragged down again.

They never let their hands go. Until one of them fell unconscious, weak, swept by the no-ending water. The other shouted, searched; slapped and tormented by the waves, panic about falling down the bottomless water keeping him alive. They chocked and felt unconscious themselves.

Oh, how horrible it had been. But it was okay, because he'd survived this. He had woken up from a cold wind piercing through his damp clothes to his very bones. Mario had coughed a bit, he had felt tired but...it was okay, as soon as he found Peach.

Eh... Mario remembered vaguely the searching, the rescuing, the questions and the words. He only remembered what they meant. The feelings? He still had them.

Mario had been treated like a mass genocider. Mario had been insulted, degraded to a psychopath. While her kidnapper was praised to be the angel that played the villain just because he had to. She had forgotten all his sacrifices, all Bowser's nasty plans, reversed the roles, and without a warning, Mario had been left, alone, weird, still processing the chaotic meltdown. He'd never felt this cold and lost and weak and...agonizing. His belly constricting on his own. His love...

His head was shaken. What happened after that? Mario and Peach stayed away from each other. They moved from the poison land to the snowed one, to a cannon that sent them flying...right at the ex-Bowser Kingdom. And there they were captured.

Oh, there had been Cappy who joined him.

Apparently, he was the only survivor of Cap Kingdom...