Shout-out to ViolaHarmony for proofreading for me!
The instant that Mario opened his eyes, he felt a wave of shock. He gasped and quickly examined his surroundings. He was in a plain white room with no furniture, no windows, and no doors. In fact, Mario wasn't even sure he could call it a room: it was just pure white as far as the eye could see.
"W-Where am I?" He whispered. The last thing he remembered was a flash of light. How did he get there? Where was the park? Apprehensively, Mario walked around the room. He kept looking around, searching for anyone who could help him. "Hello?"
Mario looked down at his hands and realized he was still holding Luigi's phone. He stared at the picture of him and his brother, smiling like they had no care in the world. He felt another strong yearning for Luigi and held the phone tighter.
Do you want to save your brother?
Mario flinched and looked ahead. A boy his age stood a few feet in front of him. He looked exactly like Mario, only more rogue. He had brown messy hair and blue eyes with a circular pattern inside of them. He also had thick hairs above his lip that were starting to form a mustache. The boy wore torn clothing and a red cape around his shoulders.
The boy spoke again. I can tell you care about each other very much.
It took was a few seconds for Mario to recover from his shock and register the boy's words. "You know where Luigi is?" The boy nodded. Mario let out a sigh of relief. Waluigi was wrong; Luigi was still alive! "Oh, please. Where is he?"
The boy hesitated. With The Green Thunder, no doubt.
Mario furrowed his brows. "...The Green Thunder?"
He nodded. Yes. The Green Thunder is my brother. We were once partners, but things changed. Lowering his voice, the boy added, He changed. For a moment, the boy broke his stoic demeanor and wore a pained look on his face. A few seconds later, he shook his head and returned to a neutral stare. But that's not important. I just need you to come with me. We'll fuse and I'll get your brother back for you. I promise.
Mario gulped. This was a lot to take in. Who was this boy? He knew this stranger was responsible for his arrival. He didn't have to say so; Mario just knew it. However, there was one thing that troubled him the most. "W-Why do we have to fuse? Why can't you just take me to Luigi?"
The rogue boy shook his head. I don't have the will to attack Green, but you don't have the strength to fight the opposition. That's why we have to go together. So, I'll ask again...Do you want to save your brother?
Mario hesitated. He didn't know this boy at all, even though he felt so familiar. The path to his brother might also be dangerous. Mario didn't understand fully, but from what the boy said, he would have to fight. He wasn't sure he could hurt other people, especially after what happened with Luigi.
Luigi...At the thought of that name, memories flashed before Mario's eyes. The first day of high school when they took that photo together. That night when he was in the play. Seeing the movie with Daisy. Suddenly, Mario made up his mind. There was no other option. "I'm not sure what you mean by 'save him'...But if you'll take me to Luigi, I'll go with you. I'm tired of waiting for him; I want him back. I don't care what it takes."
Thought so. With that, the boy walked up to Mario and grabbed Luigi's cell phone. Mario's eyes widened and he reached for it, but his look-alike smiled softly. Mario relaxed and the boy put Luigi's phone in his pocket.
"I just have one question," Mario whispered. "Who are you?"
The boy took Mario's hands and held them firmly. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. I...
Just then, a bright red light started to glow from inside the both of them. Slowly, their energies began to combine into one. Mario felt his physical form disappear, but his essence joined with the other boy. Their voices turned into one as they both whispered in unison, "I am..."
When their fusion was complete, the red warrior opened his eyes. They blazed with fire. "The Crimson Flame."
The castle was cold, dark, and fragile, each piece of it ready to break. Every fiber in his being told him to leave and never return. Still, The Crimson Flame knew that the building itself wasn't to blame for this unwelcoming atmosphere: it was the warrior who sat on his throne, high above him. The Green Thunder frowned. He stared down at his enemy with icy, unfeeling eyes. He asked quietly, "What do you want?"
The Crimson Flame started to open his mouth.
"Wait. Don't tell me."
He closed it.
"You want to me to go with you. You want things to be the way they once were."
The Crimson Flame didn't respond. He was searching for a speck of blue in those silver eyes.
The Green Thunder looked away and muttered something under his breath. The Crimson Flame heard his words as if they were spoken into his ear. "I'm not him, you know." The dark clad warrior jerked his head back towards him, glaring. "And I'm not going with you! Why do you think I sent Goldrush and Ultraviolet?" He sighed and rubbed his temples. "Those fools...And here I thought I could trust them to get the job done."
The Crimson Flame offered his hand.
The Green Thunder grinned. He laughed for a long while. What happened next came with no warning. Without the slightest bit of hesitation, he shot green lighting. ZAP! The Crimson Flame leaped into the air, barely missing his own electrocution. The lightning destroyed the floor and left large black marks. The green warrior stared in shock before letting out a feral growl, clenching his teeth. The red warrior closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them, his left eye was on fire. He didn't want to do this, but he had no other choice.
The Green Thunder clutched his scythe. Without hesitating, he leaped from his throne. As soon as he jumped off, shadows wrapped him and slowed his fall. He landed on the ground gently before rushing towards his foe.
The Green Thunder tried to slash him, but The Crimson Flame moved out of the way. The former tried to hit him again multiple times, but the latter deflected each attack. At the last instance, The Green Thunder made one last forceful strike, shoving him aside roughly. The Crimson Flame moaned and reached for his side. The second his fingertips touched his bleeding scar, he felt a sharp sting and moved his hand away.
He knew he couldn't keep dodging. He inhaled deeply and summoned fire in his right hand, then launched fireballs towards his Green Thunder turned and ran from the small flames. One of the fireballs crashed into the ground right in front of him. As he ran the other way, The Crimson Flame made more fire and kept shooting them. The room quickly caught on fire, smoke making its way across the room.
The Crimson Flame coughed. He squinted, trying to see through the smoke. It took him a few seconds to see the figure in the distance. He narrowed his eyes. The Green Thunder strolled out of the smoke. The Crimson Flame summoned more fire. He bent his knees and made sure The Green Thunder could see his blazing hands. The intimidation had no effect. The Green Thunder slowly raised his scythe and pounded it into the ground.
In an instant, shadows spread across the room. Everything went dark. The Crimson Flame looked around frantically. He heard his heart pounding in his ears. He tried to summon fire, but his hands were shaking too much. CRACK! The floor gave out underneath him. The red warrior felt a rush of fear as he fell into the darkness below. The Green Thunder stepped forward, watching him fall. After a moment, he leaped into the hole after him.
The Crimson Flame fell deeper and deeper into the ground. He looked up and saw The Green Thunder floating above him. The two fought, dodging and deflecting one another's attacks. The Green Thunder smiled deviously. He swiped and the red warrior leaned back, barely missing the scythe. Instead, The Crimson Flame slashed his enemy's chest, tearing through his tunic. Next, he punched him in the face. The Green Thunder cried out. He snapped his fingers, disappearing into the dark.
Just then, The Crimson Flame landed, crushing the archaic recovering from the ache, he looked around. He noticed his shadow on the wall and took a moment to breathe. However, his shadow began to stretch across the wall. His eyes widened and he took a step back. Just then, two shadow figures emerged from the wall. One of them had a heavy weight and unruly hair. It slowly pulled out its sword and pike. Goldrush. And who was the other one? This silhouette was tall, lean, and had sharp-edged armor. It cackled in a deep voice and summoned a staff made of shadows. Ah. Ultraviolet.
First, Ultraviolet's shadow came forward. He turned his staff into a sword and nearly stabbed him. The Crimson Flame tried to move, but it was too late. Ultraviolet's shadow slashed his chest, leaving a long scar. The shadow quickly turned his sword back into a staff and shot a magic beam, slamming The Crimson Flame into a wall.
Before he had a chance to recover, Goldrush's silhouette launched forward. He punched The Crimson Flame square in the face. He cried out, his head rocking back with the blow. His hand felt as real as his true rival. Next, he kicked him in the stomach. As the red warrior crashed to the floor, an item slipped out of his pocket. CLANG! He tried to reach for it, but Goldrush's shadow stepped on his hand. Instead, Ultraviolet's shadow snatched it and stepped back, cackling. He floated into the air and handed the phone to The Green Thunder. The latter took it and stared at it, concentrating hard. It was some sort of metal contraption.
The Crimson Flame stared desperately at the item. No, no, no. He panted heavily and screamed before shooting fire towards both shadows. They vanished, crying in pain. He stood and ran towards The Green Thunder, but stopped. He was so high above him. There wasn't much he could do to retrieve the object, so he watched in horror.
The Green Thunder pressed a button. It flashed a bright light, indicating numbers and letters. 10:00 PM. Slowly, he slid his finger across it. The first thing The Green Thunder saw was an image of two teenage boys. They both had brown hair and bright blue eyes. One of them was smiling confidently while the other was wearing a shy grin. He felt the love emanating from the two of them.
For a few seconds, everything was vague and fuzzy. Something deep inside of him loved that picture. The Green Thunder glanced down at The Crimson Flame. For a short moment, they were not enemies, but beloved friends...
Then that moment ended. The Green Thunder shook his head, returning to his senses. He jumped from his platform and landed on the ground. He put the device on the floor gently, then stomped on it with his foot. The screen cracked. He stomped on it more and more. The item kept breaking until its screen went black. Finally, The Green Thunder stabbed into it with his scythe, smashing it into several pieces. The Crimson Flame watched with wide eyes. He looked up at The Green Thunder and saw him taking off.
The Crimson Flame frowned and ran after him. He ran up a staircase, heart pounding. As he reached the top, he found the green warrior on the other side of the room. He leaned against the balcony, hyperventilating. He kept to the far left of the balcony since the rest of the railing was gone. Once he turned and noticed The Crimson Flame, he groaned. He picked up his scythe and ran towards him.
The Green Thunder tried to attack, but The Crimson Flame kept dodging and deflecting. At the last second, he did a back-flip, inching further away. When The Green Thunder chased after him, the red warrior shot fireballs in his direction. The green warrior dodged them, then came right up to The Crimson Flame, kicking him in the chest. Next, The Green Thunder stabbed him with his scythe. The red warrior's eyes widened. His sword slipped out of his grip and landed on the floor. CLANG! As the green warrior pulled his weapon out, The Crimson Flame clutched his chest. He fell to his knees, breathing hard. He felt light-headed as he continued to lose blood.
The Green Thunder tried to strike again, but The Crimson Flame grabbed his scythe at the last second. He tried to press it further into him, but the red warrior resisted with all his might. He felt his hands trembling. The Green Thunder groaned as he inched his weapon further. Next, The Crimson Flame closed his eyes. He felt his hands grow hotter and hotter. When he opened his eyes a few seconds later, the scythe was melting.
The red warrior looked at The Green Thunder. He expected him to be furious, but he wasn't. Instead, The Green Thunder smiled and threw the melted scythe aside. Then he kicked him, slamming him into the wall. Next, he used shadows to hold his enemy against the wall. The shadows instantly transformed into chains. As The Crimson Flame struggled helplessly, The Green Thunder's smile grew even wider. He chuckled, ignoring the ounces of regret he felt deep inside.
Meanwhile, The Crimson Flame stopped moving. He felt his motivation drain as the realization dawned on him. This was hopeless. No matter how hard The Crimson Flame fought, The Green Thunder fought harder. Was this a sign? Did the innocent soul he was trying to rescue not want to go back home?
Why? Why did things have to be like this? Why did they have to fight? This whole chain of events involved The Crimson Flame fighting so hard for his brother...And against him. As The Green Thunder laughed, the red warrior closed his eyes. He remembered how he was able to come in the first place.
It was Mario. If it wasn't for his courage, he never would've been able to do this. Unfortunately, things only got harder after they fused. Soon, Goldrush was chasing after them, begging for a fight. He thought he found an ally in White Flower, but Ultraviolet took her too. Not even burning his hands seemed like adequate revenge for taking her.
Sometimes, it was difficult being fused with Mario. He felt more hesitant and scared than before, but at the same time, he had more drive. This was such a strange idea, bringing another version of himself, but it just seemed like the right thing to do. Now, The Crimson Flame felt nothing but shame for breaking his promise. How could he have done this?
No. He was right there. They couldn't back down. Not when he was so close.
He slowly opened his eyes. He took a deep breath and struggled from his chains as much as he could. The Green Thunder raised an eyebrow. "Hmm?"
The Crimson Flame groaned, hearing quiet cracking in his chains. Then he heard a loud CRACK! and his chains fell apart. He stood and grabbed his sword, which was a few feet away. After that, he stared The Green Thunder in the face. The green warrior stared with pure shock. He instinctively stepped back. The red warrior stepped forward.
"N-No..." He whispered. The Green Thunder groaned. "STAY BACK!"
He shot lightning, but The Crimson Flame deflected with his sword. Every time The Green Thunder stepped back, The Crimson Flame got closer. Finally, The Green Thunder stepped off of the edge of the balcony. He gasped, feeling himself fall.
Suddenly, The Crimson Flame grabbed him and held him in a tight embrace. His enemy's eyes turned blue for a split second before turning back to silver. "I'm sorry," The red warrior whispered. "I never meant for this to happen. You felt so alone that the only thing you could think to do was run. But I'm here now. So, please come back with me, Luigi."
The Green Thunder stared for a moment, shocked. Then he started struggling. The Crimson Flame tried his best to hold on to him, but The Green Thunder was persistent. He slipped out of his grip and stumbled back. The Green Thunder fell from the balcony, screaming. As he fell, he turned into shadows.
The Crimson Flame was silent. His eyes wandered to the boy who was still with him on the cliff.
Luigi held him close with a smile on his face.
The Crimson Flame smiled and hugged him back. For a few seconds, everything was quiet and peaceful. However, when The Crimson Flame let go to look at Luigi, he saw his right hand fading away. No...It was turning into a shadow. Luigi looked up, wiping his tears, and saw his right hand. He cried out, stepping back.
The Crimson Flame grabbed Luigi before he could fall. He put a finger to his lips. "Shh," He whispered, then picked Luigi up and ran down the steps. The warrior ignored Luigi's objections to being carried.
The castle was still on fire on the lower floors. As Luigi coughed, The Crimson Flame ran to the entrance and picked up Ultraviolet's staff. He shook it and the top of the staff began to glow a shade of magenta. Shooting it in front of him, a portal opened. Luigi stared at the portal in awe. The Crimson Flame jumped into the portal with Luigi in his arms.
The missing Luigi has been found. I repeat: the missing Luigi has been found.
You may be wondering 'Why doesn't Crimson talk?' Well, as you can see here, he can talk, but chooses not to. He feels numb through most of the story. I wanted him speaking to be a big deal. His silence also serves as a reference to two things: 1) The BRS OVA, where the warriors (AKA Other Selves) don't talk at all. I decided to have them talk in this version because it'd be kinda weird if they didn't, Crimson being the exception. The other reference? The actual Mario games where Mario hardly talks. Well, except for the end credits. ("Thank you so much for playing my game!)
I actually have one last chapter planned. I tried to stick to 5 Chapters, but I decided to have one more to explain things and show Mario and Luigi's reconciliation. But I'm not pulling a SBG. This is it. No more after that. I mean it. So, yeah! Stay tuned!
And Norm, if you're reading this, I hope you enjoyed. I miss you a ton. Even though we can't talk directly anymore, I hope my stories can keep us connected in a way.
-Colorful and Free