Race to the Finish!
"This last Bonus Stage is the most straightforward of them all," said the glove. "You have one minute to clear an obstacle course as fast as you can."
"Obstacle course?" repeated Luigi.
"Look, no sweat. You jump higher than him, so you'll have no problem clearing obstacles that way."
"Well, knowing you, I'll expect plenty of twists in this obstacle course," said Luigi.
The glove chuckled, picked up Luigi and floated him over to the obstacle course.
It was more like a maze leading downward, each level marked by a number. Peering down, Luigi saw those Bumpers floating in strategic areas and disjointed 3D figures wandering around. These figures were known as Polygons, and if they weren't training with the fighters, they were helping around the Smash Mansion.
"I have one minute to reach the finish," murmured Luigi.
"It's a Bonus Stage," shrugged the glove. "It's not like you'll lose everything if you don't beat it."
"I know, I know," sighed Luigi.
"Your nerves are coming back?"
"Yeah. Guess so." Luigi took some meditative breaths and looked over the obstacle course with freshened eyes.
Gently, the glove lowered Luigi onto the starting line. "On my mark, run as fast as you can," he said.
"That shouldn't be hard," mused Luigi.
He took one last deep breath as he waited, and then…
GO!
Luigi took off as if he was being chased by a ghost. Despite his slower running speed, he was overall more athletic than Mario. His longer legs pumped as he evaded bumpers, leaped over Polygons and carefully dropped down from level to level. It was like playing the Donkey Kong arcade in reverse—instead of going from bottom to top, the objective was to go from top to bottom. He kept his mind nice and narrowed—don't be distracted by all those lights and how dark it is. If a Polygon attacks you, keep the fight short. Try not to engage them at all. Slide under the Bumpers if you can. Keep running. Keep moving. You can get your breath back at the end.
On the last level, with ten seconds left, he found himself confronted by some aggressive Polygons.
10…9…
Luigi hurled fireballs without dropping pace.
8…7…
Some of the Polygons leapt aside, startled by the unexpected charge.
6…5…
But then they closed back in, knocking him back slightly with painful blows. He could hear the glove counting down from five, regrouped himself and injected the last bit of speed he had into the race.
4…3…
There was the finish up ahead. Just one last Polygon and…
2…1.
Luigi flopped onto his stomach and slid his way to the finish line with a fraction of a second to spare.
COMPLETE!
"I say, that was one way to finish a race," chuckled the glove as he gave Luigi some water. "But are you ready to take on an entire horde?"
"Horde here meaning…?"
"Thirty fighters."
Luigi released a whistling breath. "Let's do it."
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