Chapter 5: Awakening

Citizens of Mushroom City watched with anticipation for the scorching blaze within its streets to subside. At long last, Bowser finally closed his mouth and stared ahead with deep red eyes. He waited anxiously to see if Mario had burned to a crisp. He was sure he had, as he saw the hero in red get submerged in his flames.

However, much to his surprise, Mario was perfectly fine. It seemed impossible, there was no way he wasn't hit with his fire blast. But there he stood, white gloved fists clenched at his sides, his eyes determined. Bowser's eyes were trembling with awe, his jaw dropped as he saw part of Mario's face slowly being rebuilt over flame. It was as if Mario himself was made of fire. Bowser had never seen anything like it. "W-W-What the-?"

"Surprised? Ha, I gotta admit, I was a bit shocked myself." Mario grinned, while also remaining serious. "But now I understand it all."

"B-But how?" Bowser awed, unable to comprehend what was happening. "How are you still standing?"

"It was that star that hit me during the festival." Mario explained, looking at his fists. He ignited them with flame on command. "It was a Goddess Star. The Fire Star, to be more specific."

"The Fire Star?" Bowser gawked, curious as much as he was confused.

"My new powers have only just awakened, but already I understand them." Mario explained. He looked up at Bowser with determined but calm blue eyes. "I feel as good as new! And with that fire blast you just hit me with, I'm full of energy!"

Mario then dropped down to a squat, bring his hands by his sides as if he was charging up a ball. Bowser backed off a step with a nervous sweat as Mario's entire form ignited in energetic flame.

"Fire..."

"Bah!" Bowser dismissed with the swipe of the arm, growing angry. "So you're resistant to fire! It doesn't matter, I already know how weak you are when I'm in this form! Your attacks are useless!"

"BLAAAAST!" Mario screamed, releasing a vortex of sharp spiralled flame directly at his opponent.

The powerful flaming attack struck Bowser right in his massive stomach, and he was immediately lifted off of his feet. Time appeared to be in slow motion as Bowser's eyes widened from the shock of the attacks strength. All the spectators safely watching from within the surrounding buildings gasped in awe as they saw Bowser fly into the distance.

"GWAAAAAAAAH!" Bowser cried, a twinkle in the night sky accenting how far he had traveled.

/

Back at Peach Castle, the midnight moon was glowing brightly above. It was ominous, especially on a night like tonight when so many strange, inexplicable things had occurred. Luigi, Peach, Toadsworth, and Daisy were standing before the stone bridge that led into Peach Castle via the main entrance. They were examining the woman who was now standing tall, a hand on her head as if she had just smacked it against something.

The woman had platinum blonde hair, her eyes a light blue. She had a long bang which obscured her right eye. She was quite tall, wearing a dress with a lovely blue colour. She had no accessories, and for someone who was supposed to be a princess, she had no crown either.

"Ugh, my head..." She complained, her teeth clenched and eyes closed as she rubbed her head. "I must of hit it pretty hard..."

"Wait, you don't remember what happened?" Daisy gawked, seeming surprised.

"Huh?" She slowly replied, facing the woman in an orange dress. Her speech was quite sluggish, her reactions slow. "Remember what? Who are you guys?"

"You don't know us?" Luigi questioned, scratching his head with a single gloved finger.

"Umm..." She had paused, taking some time to think. "I don't think so. Am I supposed too?"

"Psh, you're asking us?" Daisy countered, her arms folded.

"I say, just what is going on here?" Toadsworth gawked, seeming baffled that this woman was apparently so lost.

"She is... probably just a little confused, everyone." Peach assured with scarce conviction. She gathered herself and looked into the womans -upon a closer look- cyan eyes with her own. "Please, might you tell us who you are? Your name?"

"My name? It's... Rosalina." Rosalina answered, looking skyward in calm thought afterward. "I'm the Princess of the Galaxies."

"So then you really are the Princess of the Galaxies!" Peach awed, her eyes lighting up. "How splendid. I am Princess Peach, of the Mushroom Kingdom. You may call me Peach."

Peach took a moment to introduce the others to Rosalina. Upon meeting Toadsworth, she seemed to have already known what a Toad was, curiously enough.

"So this means that the legend is one hundred percent true!" Luigi cheered, jumping in place with a clenched fist. "Yahoo!"

"..." Rosalina stared blankly, her expression dopey. She held her head in pain after with a single hand. "I have the worst headache. What a pain."

"Well yeah, you did smash into a steel stage at terminal velocity." Daisy reminded, her arms folded. "It's amazing you're even alive!"

"I did?" Rosalina acknowledged, looking downward with a sort of secretive smile. "Aww. I wish I had landed in water instead, hehe."

"Wait, so, you did not intend to land where all of us were gathered?" Peach questioned, her head tilted.

"..." Rosalina stared at Peach blankly, apparently taking her time to think. "Sorry... I don't know what you mean. But I don't think I had any control over where I landed."

"I say, so it was a coincidence after all!" Toadsworth gawked, hopping once in place. "What are the chances of that indeed!"

"So... you're not actually looking for us?" Luigi thought aloud, scratching his head.

"Sorry..." Rosalina answered, not making eye contact as she looked off to the right.

"And lemme guess... You didn't consciously protect us from the frog magic, either?" Daisy added, her teeth clenched as if she was slightly angry.

"Frog magic?" Rosalina questioned, seeming totally lost. A blue question mark had appeared above her head, which wobbled left and right before slowly fading out of existence. "Now I'm really lost."

"Great galloping goombas, Pauline was right after all! It all really was just a coincidence!" Toadsworth gasped, hopping once in place.

"I don't friggin' believe it!" Daisy growled, her teeth clenched with a dumbfounded hand, other hand on her hip.

"But hold on just a moment! I saw you!" Peach objected, her fists clenched as she grew a little huffy. "Perhaps less than an hour before you crashed into the earth during the Star Festival, I saw you in my dreams!"

"Wow, really? So you had like, a prophetic dream?" Rosalina gawked, her expression remaining calm as she looked skyward with a finger on her chin in imaginative thought. "Interesting. I should try and remember this."

"What else do you remember?" Luigi challenged.

"Umm... Let me think..." Rosalina accepted, taking quite some time to continue speaking. "The last thing I remember was... blonde hair."

"IT'S DRAPED RIGHT OVER YOUR EYE!" Daisy scolded, her teeth sharp.

"..." Rosalina stared blankly at Daisy for a moment. Shortly afterward she looked downward with a hint of sadness on her face. "Oh, that's true. Sorry."

"It is alright." Peach assured, a single sweat drop behind her slightly tilted head for comedic effect.

"Hey, if you're a princess, shouldn't you have a crown or something?" Luigi questioned.

"Hm? That's weird, I thought I had one." Rosalina softly barked, exploring the top of her blonde head with a hand. She was quick to dismiss the thought, but slow to respond. "I must of lost it somewhere. What a pain..."

"Well, perhaps you could tell us why you are here?" Peach persisted, trying to get more information from the galactic visitor.

"Umm... Well, I've been travelling through the galaxies for these last one thousand years..." Rosalina explained, finger on her chin as she looked up at the stars in thought. "And... now I'm here."

"And do you have some sort of purpose, now that you are here?" Peach persisted, fishing for more.

"Uhhh... oh yeah! Right!" Rosalina suddenly remembered. The tone of her voice was much more enthusiastic. "Since I'm here, the Goddess Stars must have crashed all around this world with me."

"The Goddess Stars, you say?" Toadsworth acknowledged, a single eyebrow raised.

"The stars that we all saw raining down from the skies during the Star Festival, no doubt." Daisy suggested.

"Yeah, big bro was struck with one of them!" Luigi remembered, pounding a fist onto his palm. "Then he was glowing red and stuff."

"If that's true, he probably got a Goddess power from it." Rosalina informed, looking at Luigi while pointing an informative finger. "The Goddess Stars are made out of the same energy from the Goddess herself, after all."

"Is that the same energy that was surrounding you as you fell from the sky?" Daisy questioned.

"Yup." Rosalina answered, with a nod at no one in particular. "That energy left me in the form of Goddess Stars as I fell, and they fell all over this world. This, I know for sure."

"They should cover cars with that stuff, I say!" Toadsworth suggested. "You crashed right into steel, and just look at you! Not a scratch to be found! Not a scratch indeed."

"Princess Rosalina, what exactly is a Goddess Star?" Peach questioned, her head tilted with her hands clasped together.

"And who exactly is this Goddess, indeed?" Toadsworth added, rubbing his chin in thought.

"The Goddess?" Rosalina acknowledged, apparently alarmed by the question but remaining ever so calm. "Umm, well, she's the Goddess."

Her answer wasn't very informative or convincing, but at the same time it was acceptable.

"The Goddess is ultimate, all-being, and all powerful..." Rosalina continued, her expression calm. "So, the Goddess Stars each contain a power of unlimited, boundless potential. Touching a Goddess Star will grant one such power."

"WOW, REALLY?" Luigi cried in awe, stars replacing his excited eyes. "I gotta get me one of them! I'll be unstoppable!"

"I bet one of those would sell for a pretty penny." Daisy added, money signs replacing her eyes.

"I suspect that people have already claimed the Goddess Stars and acquired their powers." Rosalina thought aloud, looking downward with folded arms, a hint of sadness on her face. "And since I'm now conscious, those powers have probably already awakened. I think."

"So, basically super powers were raining from the sky?" Luigi awed, his excitement growing. He clenched his fists and teeth, eyes closed and knees bent with excitement. "Oh man, that's so cool! If I had of known that before, I would have tried to catch one!"

"I hate to say it, but... this may be trouble." Peach warned, her expression somber. "In the wrong hands, these powers could be a danger to society."

Peach reflected on the warning she had received in her nightmare. Perhaps this was it?

"I say, I hadn't thought of that!" Toadsworth gasped, hopping in place. "Indeed, I know of a certain loon who would use such a power to try and take over the kingdom!"

"So, we just gotta gather all of these Goddess Stars and keep em' from falling into the wrong hands, right?" Daisy suggested, hand on her hip, the other raised in thought.

"No, that's not possible." Rosalina declined, her eyebrows narrowing in semi-seriousness.

"What? Why not?" Daisy barked, certain her plan was solid.

"One Goddess Star can only be claimed by one person. So once it's claimed, that's it." Rosalina explained, pointing an informative finger. "Its energy will remain within them until they die."

"Also, each person can only withstand the energy content of one Goddess Star." Rosalina added, with a single finger on her chin as she looked skyward. "I think."

"You don't seem very confident about that..." Daisy sniped, hands on her hips, leaning forward a bit.

"So a single person can't get multiple powers?" Luigi asked, seeming bummed out.

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure only one per person." Rosalina answered. The way she talked was quite slow and relaxed, as if she was constantly spaced out. "Also, the power of a Goddess Star is acquired through touch. So as soon as someone touches one, it gets used up for good."

"It seems like it would be most difficult for anyone to gather all of these Goddess Stars." Peach admitted, hand on chin in thought. "Even if we used a net or something, I suspect that most of them have already been claimed. As for tracking down any remaining ones..."

"It would be a pain." Rosalina assured, seeming defeated by the mere thought.

"You're right, they're probably getting used up by the second." Daisy added, her teeth clenched.

"They are quite pretty, indeed." Toadsworth added. "I believe most peoples first instinct would be to grab such a mysterious, beautiful object."

"So, Princess Rosalina. You still have not fully answered my question." Peach reminded, gathering everyones attention. "The Goddess Stars have fallen to our world along with you, but now that you are here, what are you to do?"

Rosalina met her blue eyes with her own. She shyly looked to the right, fist clenched near her chin. "Huh? I... I don't know."

"You don't know?" Daisy challenged, hand on her hip.

Rosalina shook her head, not making eye contact. Peach's eyes narrowed as she looked at the otherworldly visitor, lost in thought. (There has got to be more to this then she is leading us to believe. I am certain of it!)

"Welp." Luigi sighed, weakly kicking his boot at the dirt. His hands were tucked into his overall pockets. "This turned out to be pretty anti-climatic."

"Pfft, I'll say." Daisy growled, seeming more angered than disappointed. "I was expecting you to be so much more cool and mysterious. But you're just like, some lazy teenager."

"Sorry about that." Rosalina apologized, with a secretive smile.

"A teenager? But isn't she technically over a thousand years old?" Toadsworth challenged, rubbing his chin in thought.

"Oh yeah..." Luigi sang in realization while placing a white gloved hand on his chin in thought, tapping a boot. "You have been soaring around for so long, yet you look younger than I do! What gives?"

"Oh, umm... explaining that would be a pain." Rosalina dismissed, her hand rubbing her straight arm in uncertainty. "Something to do with the Goddesses energy and special relativity and junk."

"Well I'll be." Toadsworth calmly awed, hands on his hips.

"Do not worry, Princess Rosalina." Peach comforted, stepping closer. Rosalina gasped softly as Peach claimed her bare hand within her white gloved hands. She looked into Rosalina's eyes with her own, her expression peaceful. "You must be very confused."

"T-That's-" Rosalina stuttered, blushing slightly as Peach continued to hold her hand. Her voice was soothing, her words comforting. It made Rosalina feel at ease.

"You may stay here at the Castle for as long as you wish." Peach offered, still holding her hand.

Normally Toadsworth would immediately object to such a proposition, but he had already known that she had planned on doing this.

"R-Really?" Rosalina barked with widened eyes, surprised by her offer.

"Mm-hm." Peach confirmed, with a nod.

"I..." Rosalina shyly started, looking downward. She seemed conflicted.

"So, what do you say?" Daisy asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It's not like you have any other place to go, right?"

"Yahoo! I'm always up for a new friend!" Luigi smiled, jumping with a clenched fist.

"Are you all sure I won't be a pain?" Rosalina fret, looking downward in shy sadness.

"Nonsense. We would be delighted to have you." Peach assured.

"Umm... Okay." Rosalina agreed, looking Peach in the eyes with a tense lip in awkward shyness. She gave an unsure bow. "Thank you."

"Alright!" Luigi cheered, with a fist.

"Welcome aboard." Daisy added, with a soft toothless smile.

"Stay out of trouble, you hear?" Toadsworth warned, his tone friendly. "Rule number one is safety!"

"Please pardon Toadsworth." Peach assured, with a soft smile. "We are delighted to have you, Princess Rosalina."

"You are all so friendly and kind." Rosalina blushed, hand on her arm. She was feeling bashful. "Thank you."

"Just wait until you meet Mario!" Luigi grinned, hands behind his head. "He's just about the nicest guy you'll ever meet!"

"Mar-io?" Rosalina thought aloud, sounding out the name. Her eyes narrowed in thought.

"Oh? Is something amiss?" Peach sniped, keenly watching Rosalina.

"No." Rosalina assured, her expression calm, as usual. "It's nothing. Just thought I might have remembered something."

"Ugh, can we go to bed already? It's the middle of the night!" Daisy complained, a hand on her hip. "At this rate we'll be out here until morning."

"Ahh, yes. You are right." Peach agreed, her hands neatly together, arms in a V formation. She looked at Rosalina. "Let us show you your new bedroom."

"I-I get a bedroom, too?" Rosalina gawked, her tone full of surprise but expression calm.

"Of course." Peach smiled.

"Heh heh, just you wait until you see the inside!" Luigi grinned, barely containing his excitement. "Talk about luxury!"

"Wow... I can't wait to sleep in a big comfy bed!" Rosalina awed, yawning afterwards.

"HOW CAN YOU BE TIRED!" Daisy scolded, her teeth clenched.

The gang exchanged laughs, happy to welcome their new friend. Although they did not discover much about the Princess of the Galaxies herself, they did learn about the Goddess Stars. As the evening of the thousandth year concludes, what could Princess Rosalina's awakening mean for the world around them?