Tragedy of the Stars: A Super Mario Short Story
Chapter 2: Tragedy
The ship took off, and I was loving the flight. I gripped the ship's seat as it took off at blistering speed from Lunar Colony. It soared off of the Moon and in a matter of seconds, I could see the craters of The Moon as well as Lunar Colony itself. I smiled at the excellent view
"Spaceship Blooper is clear, over" Commander Withe spoke into the communicator. I snapped back into focus,
"We are currently moving at about 25,000 miles per hour, over" I added. Ess, who was back on The Moon, nodded to herself,
"Roger that. I am having some trouble getting readings on your ship. Is everything okay? Over." I checked the ship's readings, still not noticing the blinking red light, and spoke back into the communicator,
"We seem to be in tip-top shape, over."
"Roger that, alert mission control or I if anything goes even a little awry, over," Ess said, almost dozing off at her station in mission control. The room she was in was massive. There were computers everywhere, or so I heard. I've never actually been in there. Commander Withe kept telling me there was no reason to. I kept steering the stip and kept it on course when Lucy and Stu started talking,
"So Lucy, you excited about yet another trip to space, where I get to do the most important job again?" Stu asked.
"Of course I am excited! Wait, not the second part, but the first part." Lucy responded, giggling. I just rolled my eyes as the conversation became more stupid as it went along. Commander Withe started talking to me,
"You find the conversation these two are having stupid?" I looked at him with a surprised stare.
"Looks like I just read your mind," the commander laughed.
"Listen, Blanc. I know I forget about you sometimes, and that's my fault, but you are truly special. You look at things very differently, from an analytical point of view instead of a subjective point of view, and that's great! However, because of that, people are prone to judging you and making fun of you. I'll be honest, I was the same way at some point. I never really had that many friends. Heck, some of the commanders of the other brigades are downright aggravating to listen to." I laughed at that comment.
"What i'm trying to say is...don't put yourself down. You're a great person, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise." My parents had told me this before, but I always ignored them and thought that it was stupid that they were saying that. However, listening to Commander Withe tell me this changed something. It made me feel better about myself. I always was awkward around others, but I felt better about the situation with the brigade after hearing this. As I was thinking, Ess suddenly spoke into the communicator.
"You arrived at the Rainbow Road sight, or whatever," she said with a more bored accent than before.
"Yay! We're at the new Rainbow Road!" Lucy squealed really loudly. At that point, I got really annoyed,
"Geez Lucy! Can you keep your voice down for once? The noise calculator on the ship calculated 80 decibels! That is literally as much noise as a car makes!" Lucy glared at me,
"It's not my fault I'm so loud and proud," she said with an air of snobbishness.
"Yeah," Stu said, "pick on someone your own size!" At that point, I lost it,
"If you don't shut up Stu, I swear I am going to defenestrate you." Everyone looked at me confused,
"Is that another one of your nerd words?" Stu taunted.
"Actually, yes, it is. It means to throw someone out of a window." Everyone laughed, even Ess who normally never laughs, except for Commander Withe.
"You all are a bunch of immature idiots," he said loudly for everyone to hear, "Stu, just get outside the ship before...you know, he throws you out the window." he pointed at me. Everyone shut up and Stu begrudgingly got ready to exit the ship. Unfortunately, at that point, I noticed the blinking red light. I gasped and panicked as I realized what this meant,
"Wait, everyone, wait!" I screamed, but no one listened, "I know why Ess hasn't been getting readings! The sensors are broken!" I quickly checked the ship's statistics manually only to realize the protective shield of the stabilizer was coming off. Once Stu opened the door, the solar wind would be enough to rip the shield clean off exploding the stabilizer and leaving the ship to rot away.
"Stu! Don't open the door!" I shouted.
"Why shouldn't I?" he asked menacingly, "Are you jealous of me going out into space? This is why no one likes you, Blank. All you do is make every situation bad by nosing into other's conversations and friendships. Ever since you joined this brigade, the commander has always viewed you as the favorite. I WAS THE FAVORITE! I AM SUPPOSED TO BE THE FAVORITE!" he started to shout, and I suddenly realized why everyone was so against me. I sighed as I thought about this,
"I'm sorry Stu. I didn't mean for this to happen," I said with apology in my voice. Stu laughed curtly, but then changed his tone dramatically. It was one I had never seen before, it was one of sadness,
"Apology accepted. Now, Blank, no, Blanc, let's get this job over and done with,"
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" I shouted. Stu opened the door, and that's where it all went downhill. The stabilizer exploded, rocking the ship. The explosion killed Stu instantly, as the stabilizer blew up into miniscule pieces. Everyone gasped as they started to realize what was going on,
"Guys, what was that?" Ess said, starting to get concerned.
"We're gonna die! We're gonna die! Help! I'm too young to die!" Lucy started shouting over and over. Ess scrambled to figure out what was going on,
"Guys, what happened, why can't I get readings on the ship, and where is Stu?"
Everyone tensed.
"Ess," Commander Withe started sadly, "The stabilizer blew up, the sensors are destroyed, and Stu is dead." Ess gasped, unsure of how to take everything in. "I...I didn't know...This is all my fault...The only reason I acted bored is because I don't know how to react to things…" I heard Ess start to cry. She got up and ran away. Lucy and Commander Withe looked really scared,
"Blanc, you are the pilot and the most knowledgeable about space shuttles. What do we do here?" I thought for a moment, unsure of what exactly to do. The ship was blaring alarms and lights all over the place, and it was stressing me out.
"I…"
"Well?" Lucy asked impatiently
"Give him some time," Commander Withe snapped. I started pacing, knowing my time was running short.
"I'm done waiting!" Lucy screamed, "It's obvious you have no plan, so you know what? I'm out! See ya! Wouldn't want to be ya!" Lucy dashed out of the room.
"Lucy! Wait!" Commander Withe shouted. Lucy dashed to the escape pod room, entered the escape pod, and ejected from it. I paused for a moment, halting my train of thought in its place.
"Did Lucy just use the escape pod?" I asked timidly.
"Yeah. Why?" Commander Withe asked. I sighed and shook my head as the escape pod blew up, killing Lucy.
"That part of the ship is unstable if the stabilizer blows up. Gosh, did anyone read the instruction manual?!" I screamed.
"Blanc!" Commander Withe snapped. "Lucy is dead! Two out of the five Brigade 8 members are dead!" It didn't hit me until the commander said that.
"Right, two lives were lost…" and then I did something I never thought I would do. I started to cry. Commander Withe came over,
"I'm...I'm sorry, I really have to stop yelling. Now, Blanc, do you have any idea how we are going to get out of this mess?" I tried to stem my crying, but I kept crying harder.
"Blanc, I believe in you. I'll be frank, you are probably the smartest person in Brigade 8, even smarter than me. Stop putting so much pressure on yourself. Now, how do we get out of here?" I wiped my tears off, and thought clearly for a second of a plan. Suddenly, the idea popped into my head. I knew what I had to do.
"Commander. Follow me." I said. By this point, we were both out of our seats and I moved through Spaceship Blooper (which looked like a Blooper) towards its tentacles. Right next to the escape pods was a Return Pipe, an item that allows the user to return to their last safe location.
"Commander, you are going to use that jetpack to escape and try to find another ship. Call for help," I explained. Commander Withe shook his head,
"Then what will happen to you?" he asked. I cringed, as I knew what my fate would be. I took a moment to sift through my memories of everything I had done. I thought back specifically to one moment, where I was talking to my mother and father.
"Blanc, you've been reading that manual on how to fly a spaceship for four straight days, you need some sun." my father said to me, with me sitting in the living room.
"But father, I need to study for my pilot exam tomorrow," I replied, not looking up from my book.
"He's right, you know," my mother said. She used her long tongue to grab an apple that was sitting on the kitchen counter.
"Here's something to eat honey," she said affectionately, giving me the apple. I laughed, took the apple and ate it, savoring its sweet taste.
"You haven't talked to anyone in quite a few days, son. Are you feeling okay?" My father asked with concern.
"I'm all right father," I said sadness creeping into my voice.
"Talk to me son, what's wrong?" my father asked. My mother nodded. I sighed, and unloaded all of my problems, trying my best not to shed a tear.
"It's just, I feel lonely all the time. I feel as if no one wants me to succeed nor cares of my existence. I have almost zero friends, and even if I pass the exam, I probably will know no one in my brigade. I just...wish I had a friend. I mean, my goal in life is to help others." My mother put her hand on my shoulder, and I turned around to look at her.
"You always have us, honey. Also, you do help others, and that is what you will do until the day you die. Never forget that."
Those last 25 words echoed in my head as I knew what I needed to do. I turned to face Commander Withe,
"Withe." He wheeled around, shocked to hear me address him not as a commander.
"Right now, you are not my commander. You are my friend," I started, and Withe had a confused look on his face. "My original purpose for joining REXA is to help others. I also came here with the intention of making friends. At first, I wasn't doing either, but now, I achieved my goal of making a friend. You. And, I'm going to achieve the other. Use the Return Pipe Withe, you deserve to survive this mess more than I do." Withe looked dumbstruck.
"Blanc, I...I'm your commander. It is my duty to put others ahead of me. I know you are pilot, but you will listen to my order. You will use that Return Pipe, and you will leave me behind. Do you understand?" I hesitated for a moment, with the blaring sounds and explosions starting around me as the Spaceship Blooper started to fall apart. Finally, I made my decision,
"Sorry Withe, you aren't my commander anymore. I've done my duty to help others, I am satisfied with my outcome," Withe looked even more dumbstruck, "The only thing I ask you to do is to tell my parents I love them. That's all. Good bye, Withe." And with that, I shoved the Return Pipe in his face and tried to hold up his hands, which would result in him activating it, but he resisted.
"No! I am not leaving you behind! Blanc! You do not need to do this!" he shouted at me, his white clothes bellowing in the explosions. I screamed as I started to overpower Withe, lifting his hands,
"YES. I. DO! THIS. IS. MY. DUTY!" I screamed, as I finally lifted the Pipe above his head, activating it. Withe screamed as he started to spin around.
"Blanc! Noooooooooooooooo!" After about 5 seconds, a chime played as he warped out of the ship. I sighed, feeling exhausted as Withe was quite strong. I took one last look at the explosions piling up around me. I closed my eyes, thinking about my life. My struggles, my achievements, my loneliness, and Withe, how he was the only friend I ever had, even if he occasionally forgot my name. I sighed,
"I achieved my purpose," I said, as my world collapsed in on myself, and my consciousness shot out of my body, which now lay dormant on the ship, towards the gleaming, glowing, stars.
A/N: And that is Tragedy of the Stars: A Super Mario Short Story. I hope you all enjoyed this really short two chapter story about Blanc. Please leave reviews and tell me if you like this style of writing. It was interesting making this, as a tragic story is something I don't have a lot of experience with. Anyways, be sure to check out my other story, The Greatest Enemy: A Super Mario Fanfiction! Thanks so much for reading and have a great day! :D