The Sum of All Fears

Content warning for blood and violence

A loud roar thundered throughout the hall. Luigi just stood there, staring at the—creature he now had to fight. A giant, muscular monstrosity with blue-green skin, bat wings, a serpent-like tail and a horned head. Long, sharp claws on his hands and just as long and sharp talons on his feet. From his mouth protruded a set of gleaming fangs. And it got right in Luigi's face and roared.

Back in their private viewing room, the three spectators recoiled at the sight of Dracula's monster form. Mario was whiter than a Boo, Peach doing her best to comfort him, while Daisy fiddled with the neckline of her dress, trying to stay strong.

"Oh, my God," gasped Mario. "Does Master Hand know what he's doing?"

"Mario, please. You have to think positive," said Peach.

"Yeah. Otherwise, how else will he face his fears?" Daisy joined in.

"He's counting on us, M," added Peach, "just as he's counting on himself."

Mario nodded, struggling to calm himself down as Luigi's apprehensive face once again filled the screen. They saw him close his eyes, his chest pulsing as he took several deep breaths. And then his eyes flashed open, and he raised his fists.

"Do it, Luigi!" the trio shouted in unison.

The good news about Dracula's monster form was that all of him was tangible. The bad news was that his attacks were more devastating. Luigi stayed quick on his feet, jumping and flitting about the monster and attacking when he could. Rearing back, the monster fired three purple, homing projectiles at Luigi, but he dodged one, shielded the second and parried the last. The monster then jumped into the air and tried to squash his challenger, only for said challenger to vault to safety. Then, he lunged back in, firing several heavy Smash attacks before he was stopped by a powerful slash from those claws, sending him halfway across the room. Luigi shook off the pain and leaped back up in time to avoid another projectile, a big, blue one, this time. The monster tried to stomp on him again, but Luigi was just too quick for him. In the air, the man in pink did his Cyclone attack and them bombarded the monster with b-airs and f-airs, twisting his body clear of another slash. Two small bursts of orange fire erupted from the beast's mouth, one of them hitting Luigi and stunning him enough to fall victim to one of those pillars of flame, blowing him backwards. The plumber got up, brushed himself off and ran at his opponent again, shooting himself like a rocket into the monster's belly. He threw a breakdance kick at the monster's legs and rolled away before the monster could retaliate. Now behind the monster, Luigi propelled a barrage of relentless blows to his back. But then the monster turned around and slashed him again—once, twice, three times, knocking him to the floor. He was able to roll to the side as his foe jumped at him, but he wasn't fast enough to evade the projectile sent his way.

The monster growled when he saw Luigi pick himself up. He was a stubborn one, but he'd bring him down. But Luigi faced this lug down, breathing through the pain and memory. He wrenched his body erect and raised his fists once more.

"I can do this all day," he gasped.

Furious at this show of defiance, the monster charged at Luigi. Calmly, the plumber slipped behind him and continued battering him with everything he had. He was now engaged in an all-out fight for his life. And that was in more ways than one. Obviously, Dracula in this form was exceptionally dangerous and pulled no punches. But Luigi was also fighting to take back his life. He was sick of being ruled by fears, flashbacks and nightmares. He hadn't been the same since his run-in with Death. But presently, he was battling Death's master, the being he'd dreaded for so long. By defeating Dracula, he'd put that fateful day behind him once and for all and reclaim his peace of mind.

Stay with it, Luigi told himself as he mashed his foe with his Cyclone again and dodged a blast of fire. He answered with his own fireballs before firing a forward smash at the monster's side. The monster pulled back and swiped him fiercely, sending him off his feet, but Luigi kicked hard from the ground before pulling himself back up. He cartwheeled backward as the monster tried to pounce on him again and threw more fireballs. Seeing more projectiles coming his way, he jumped and tried to cartwheel over the monster's head, but this time, the monster was ready for him, sending him smashing back down with a downward slash. The force was powerful enough to bounce the plumber back up, and the monster grinned before slashing Luigi repeatedly with his claws, the last slash having a dark magical effect. His nostrils flared incredulously as Luigi willed himself back up and into the fight.

The trio in their viewing room was going wild. "Look at him go!" shouted Daisy. Since his encounter with Death, anything associated with Dracula frightened the heck out of Luigi, but here he was, fighting him! And not only that, he was holding his own quite well! She saw him take massive blows from the monster and still get up. She saw him move with ethereal grace, dodging projectiles and leaping all over his opponent, dealing out lightning fast blows as he did. She saw the look in his eyes, the intense look which always got her pulse racing. She loved him so much, and here, she was reminded why.

"He's going to do it!" said Mario, holding hands with both Princesses. "I know he's going to do it! Just wait and see!"

"Now, that's the spirit!" laughed Peach. "I told you to hang in there!"

The camera continued to track Luigi as he fought harder and harder against the monster. Sweat glistened on his face, his mouth in an "O" shape. Brows were slightly furrowed, and his chest heaved. He flung fireball after fireball at the monstrosity before him, and then closed back in and pounded him with so many blows that his hands almost went numb. And then he'd evade, or try to evade, those projectile attacks and those claw swipes. He was soldiering on despite his fears and giving this monster one heck of a fight!

But Luigi was also in bad shape. Burns covered his body. His clothing was sustaining some damage. There was blood, so much blood. He was mottled with bruises. The three noticed him wince frequently, how he struggled to get back up after the monster managed to knock him down. And the pain was visible in his eyes—pupils slightly dilated and the blue color dimmed. Hurt and facing down someone from his worst nightmares, but not about to give up—or give in. The monster was almost done for, the journey almost over. He could do this. He had to. He was going to!

"You know," said Mario, "if Dracula had me in that castle as his 'guest', then I know Luigi would come charging in there."

The Princesses nodded.

"Of course, his secret weapon would need a few modifications," Mario went on, "but he'd come. He'd fight and die for me, and I for him."

"Same here," Daisy chimed in.

"And here," added Peach.

"But—how would you wind up in there, anyway?" asked Daisy.

"I don't know—maybe eat a bowl of gullible soup and walk right into a trap," shrugged Mario.

Laughter.

"Hey, you'll never know," said Mario.

The levity vanished in an instant when they heard an audible, jarring thud. Mario, Peach and Daisy stopped breathing when they saw Luigi on the floor, bleeding heavily. Fresh bruises on his face, eyes glazing over, mouth open as he gasped.

"Dio!" cried Mario.

They watched as the monster grinned mirthlessly and ran forward, vaulting high into the air—and onto Luigi. Daisy and Peach gasped and looked away. Mario pressed his hand to his mouth.

Get up, he prayed.

Luigi tried, only to be met with a claw to the midsection. He couldn't stop the yell of pain from escaping his lips.

The three spectators saw red as the monster continued to claw Luigi while he was down and trying to rise. Then, he kicked the plumber savagely, sending him sprawling. And then Luigi lay on his back, blood pouring from his mouth and the gashes all over him, staring, unseeing, at the ceiling. Hardly paying attention as the monster stomped toward him.

Mario then realized what he had to do. He leaned forward and spoke into his headset.

"Luigi…"

The voice seemed to whisper directly into the plumber's ear. At first, he thought he was in Heaven, or at least dreaming. But then he felt the floor against his back and heard the stomping. This wasn't a dream.

"Luigi…"

It was a voice he knew all too well. The accent, the baritone. He was here. Mario was here! But where? Oh, God—did Dracula have him?!

"You can do it."

A thrumming feeling manifested itself in his earlobes and then shot down his body. Somewhere in his core, a new pool of energy was forming.

"You—can—do—it…"

Slowly, painfully, Luigi sat up. Vision slightly blurred. Pain hammering everywhere. But his adrenal glands were humming, stimulated by Mario's voice. He needed him, and Luigi wasn't going to fail him!

"Dove sei?"

"Qui."

"Oh, Dio, you're in…"

"No, I'm not in any danger. But I can see you. And so can Peach and Daisy."

"Daisy…"

"You got this, Luigi!" Daisy's spirited voice echoed, sending a spark along his muscles. "You're not alone in this fight! We've got your back!"

"We know you'll beat this monster yet!" added Peach. "Just don't give up! Don't give up!"

"Abbiamo fiducia in te! Go get him, Lil' Bro!" shouted Mario.

On those words, Luigi was up like a man possessed. The monster's eyes widened with honest-to-God shock. How could he still be up after taking that thrashing?!

He had no time to think about it, as Luigi lunged at him with a spirited shout and landed a blow to the jaw. The monster staggered, and Luigi punched him again and again. He leaped up and delivered a volley of harsh f-airs, and then a ferocious dropkick.

The three spectators cheered.

The finish line was definitely up ahead. Luigi charged himself up and propelled his body into the monster, sending him staggering a second time. Newfound strength zipped through his veins as he heard the voices of three of his closest supporters. While it was true he was defenseless in that castle, he had survived. Death had claimed his soul, but not for long. Those two vampire hunters, the muscular blonde in the short shorts and the muscular brunette, had saved him. Thanks to him, he'd live another day. He channeled more strength from the strength he'd seen from them, putting more power behind his attacks and giving the monster little time to retaliate. He speared his hand. He swept his legs about. He pulled off Cyclones in the air and on the ground. And he buzzed viciously around the monster with aerial blows.

"This is my life!" he cried out. "This is my life! It is not yours to take!"

"You tell him, L!" chortled Daisy.

The monster stumbled and swiped blindly, but Luigi easily parried the strikes.

"You've haunted my dreams for the last time!" Luigi slammed a blow into the monster's flank as he spoke.

"All right!" cried Peach.

"You've sabotaged my confidence for the last time!" A crack rang out as Luigi dealt another wicked chop to the face.

"You like stealing people's souls and making them do your bidding? Well, I won't have it!" A misfired Missile nearly tumbled the monster off his feet.

"You're gonna do it!" yelled Mario. "You're gonna do it!"

Luigi stood before the monster, eyes blazing, fists clenched. The monster was reeling and had a small amount of HP left. It was time to finish this.

"I'm banishing you from every aspect of my life—for good," he announced in a determined tone. "You don't belong in this world, monster!"

He wound up, bounded forward and sent a spectacular Super Jump Punch into the monster. Screeching in pain, the monster slowly fell onto his back and exploded in a swirl of red and purple.

"Yes!" exclaimed Mario, leaping to his feet. The ladies joined him, and the three of them cheered.

Luigi stood in the now-silent hall, catching his breath. I did it, he thought. I did it. I won. I beat him. Dracula and Death will never bother me again. A shudder passed through his body as he began to laugh uncontrollably. Tears poured down his face. His knees gave out. The adrenaline left his body, and in its place was relief.

"I'm free," he said once he composed himself. "I'm free."

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