Chapter 20 Zap Zap Zap

While they waited for E Gadd to finish with his invention, Mario and Luigi went to a coffee shop in Toad Town. As Luigi sipped his iced tea (he couldn't stand the taste of coffee; he would readily admit that aversion was his Achilles Heel), he tried to speculate what exactly the professor had in store. Like he thought when he was walking up to his house, he was certain that Elvin was constructing mind switching helmets. Absolutely, beyond a shadow of a doubt certain. It just made the most sense! It was an effective method to use when trying to swap the brother's back, and E Gadd was all about constructing devices that made the most logical sense. Even when his inventions appeared weird and out there to outsiders, they were always built with a practical purpose and managed to do their job exceedingly well, miraculously well. For that reason alone, Luigi wasn't worried. He was, however impatient. Horribly impatient.

"Blugh," Mario said. He lowered his drink (coffee with cream and sugar) away from his face, cringing as he did. "This…this coffee is awful!" He looked up at the store sign, hanging over them as they sat at a table just outside the cafe's doors. "Weird; I've been here before and their coffee hasn't been this gross!"

Luigi considered this. "Maybe the quality of the beverage hasn't changed. Maybe you just don't like it because you're using my tastebuds at the moment."

Mario blinked, looking down at his drink in bewilderment. "Huh. I never thought of that." He smiled. "That is pretty cool though. Makes the swap slightly more interesting."

Luigi nodded. "I guess." He sipped his iced tea again. He was getting close to the bottom, so the airy slurping sound could be heard. "That doesn't mean I want to stay like this."

"Oh no; absolutely not." Mario set his drink to the side. "I just find it an interesting thing to take note of. And honestly?" He sent another disgusted look toward the cup. "I like liking coffee. I don't want to be in possession of a tongue that makes me hate one of my favorite drinks."

Oh yes, that was definitely relatable to Luigi in his current situation, especially when looking at things from a wider scope. Being in possession of a body that wasn't yours made things that you usually viewed as acceptable…different. For example, while not so pronounced that it was a nuisance, Luigi had noticed yesterday that Mario's legs started hurting the more he walked. There were a couple of reasons why: Mario being out of shape, constantly exhausting himself trying to play the part of the hero, and even simple genetics that affected the brothers' general quality of life (their mother had osteoporosis). While a small detail, it made Luigi's desire to return to his own body stronger. Heck, even looking past the physical, life as Mario wasn't something Luigi wanted to deal with in the long term.

Mario sighed and leaned back, giving Luigi a curious look. "You know….yesterday was….eye opening."

"Really? How so?" Luigi leaned forward, curiosity reaching a very high peak.

"Well…just seeing what you go through everyday. It was…different than the type of thing that I'm used to." He furrowed his brow. "I got pretty much no recognition. Nobody turned their head when I passed, no one bothered to greet me…even when I was with Daisy, people were more interested in her than me."

Luigi laughed. "Oh yeah. Next to no people assign me with the celebrity status." He was tempted to point out how that confirmed the argument he made to Mario the night before they swapped, but he refrained from doing so. Somehow, he knew that doing so would create more drama than it was worth. So instead, he decided to further the conversation. "Something you would have to get used to, huh?"

"Yeah!" Mario proclaimed. "Sure. I don't mind not having paparazzi trying to suffocate me, but not getting any recognition or compassion at all?" His shoulder's slump. "It's…weird. Yeah, that's the word I'll go with; weird."

Luigi nodded. "I know what you mean. Adjusting to your life has been weird too."

Mario laughed. "Not used to all the praise, huh?"

"No, as a matter of fact. But…in a way, I'm kind of glad I'm experiencing it though. Not necessarily because I like being treated like royalty (although, I'll admit, that was a lot of fun). But…more so because…I feel like it helps me get to know you. I…I know you better."

Mario blinked. It took a minute, but a small smile grew on his face. "I feel like I know you better too. It's kind of nice."

Luigi felt a warmth spread through him. He supposed, once this was all said and done and everything was back to normal, he and Mario were going to look back on this experience as a positive light as opposed to a negative one. Sure, being in the body of your brother was weird, gross, and uncomfortable. But even with that in mind, Luigi felt that he and Mario were forming a new type of bond. This bond was stronger than the basic brotherly bond that they already were well acquainted with. This bond was one that would surely stand the test of time. This bond wouldn't be broken by hardships, struggles, or even the looming, dreadful inevitably of death. This bond…was special.

Right as Luigi was about to express that to his brother, Mario's phone buzzed. Luigi pulled it out of his pocket and saw that the text was from E Gadd. He read it out loud to Mario.

I'm finished! You boys should get here lickety split; your problem is about to be fixed!

Mario's jaw dropped. "Wow. He really wasn't kidding when he said he only needed an hour." He checked the clock on Luigi's phone, causing his eyes to grow wide. "Mama Mia! It hasn't even been an hour; only forty five minutes have passed!"

Luigi chuckled. "That's E Gadd for you! Fast and furious are understatements when it comes to him." He stood up. "Let's go see what he made."

…

Standing in the garage of E Gadd's house, Luigi couldn't help but feel extra giddy. Why? Because his theories have been proven correct; E Gadd had decided to make mind swapping helmets. And boy oh boy, were they impressive. The machine they were hooked up to defied convention. Instead of being a goliath of a console, one so heavy it would take ten men to haul it around, the thing was about the size of a laptop computer. Even then, with the electricity encircling it and the antenna at the top, Luigi just knew that this device was more effective than any other one. It was certainly going to fix the Mario brothers' problem.

"Well," E Gadd said as he adjusted a knob on the device, making the electricity tune down just a tad. "Are you two satisfied with what you see here?"

"Oh, I certainly am!" Luigi said. He beamed, no doubt in his mind that the body swapping fiasco would end right here, right now.

Mario seemed to feel the same way, as he gave the device an impressed look and a nod. "It's a little unconventional from what I've seen in science fiction, but with how brilliant you are Elvin, I have no doubt in my mind that it'll work."

E Gadd giggled and blushed. "Aw shucks; you give the sweetest compliments Mario." He backed away from the device, gesturing toward the two chairs that the brothers would sit in while they would use the helmets. "Well gentleman, don't wast anytime! Strap yourselves in, cause things are about to get interesting!"

Mario nodded, looking eager as he could get. He took a step toward his chair, but before he could sit down, Luigi stopped him.

"Wait." Mario and E Gadd gave him surprised, confused looks. "Before we use this puppy, I want to say a few words."

Mario donned an interesting look when that was said, making him look more annoyed than anything else. Regardless, he still turned toward his brother. Even with the annoyance and impatience, there was still a very sincere quality in his face. He must have recognized that what Luigi wanted to say was profound.

Luigi certainly wanted to live up to those expectations too. It took him a minute to spruce up the speech in his head, make the few words he wanted to say all the more profound and impactful. After about three minutes passed, he realized he was just wasting time, so he just opted to go with what he had originally wanted to say.

"Mario, while being you has been the most…fascinating trial of my life, I feel like more good has come out of it than harm. I feel fuller, and I'm not saying that because your body has more girth than mine." He blinked. "No offense."

"None taken," Mario said. He narrowed his gaze on Luigi, the impatience still there despite the very clear sign that Luigi's words had already touched him.

With that in mind, Luigi decided to speed things along. "I feel like this experience has shaped me. I…I feel like I have more compassion and understanding. I have a feeling that in the future, when people tell me to spend some time walking in their shoes, I'll have an easier time doing that because of this whole debacle." He gave Mario a warm expression. "What's more; I feel like we'll have a stronger bond." His heart went soaring; he had severely wished he could say this at the coffee shop. "Only time will tell if that's true, but right now, in this moment, I feel closer to you than ever before. And, for that, I'm grateful."

A few seconds passed. Once Mario got the message that Luigi was finished, he smiled. "Same bro. Same." He turned back toward the machine, rubbing his hands together in anticipation. "Well, let's let this baby give us our lives back!"

Luigi nodded and took a seat. He put the helmet on his head, and once he was aware of Mario doing the same thing, he gave the thumbs up to the professor. "Well E Gadd, do your magic!"

"With pleasure." E Gadd pressed a button on the main unit of the device. Luigi closed his eyes as a buzzing sound occurred in his ears. His entire being shook, feeling the static shock overtake him. It felt like his entire body was receiving a little pick-me-up, a charge that no amount of coffee could ever replicate. Once it passed, he opened his eyes and blinked. He smiled, looking down at his hands to confirm that he was back to normal.

Surprisingly, he wasn't. Luigi blinked, taking in the sight of his brother's hands. He turned toward Mario, looking just as confused and disappointed as Luigi felt.

"E Gadd?" Mario said. "It…it didn't work."

E Gadd blinked. "It didn't?" He shook his head. "That's odd; that voltage of electricity was supposed to form a circuit of travel between the two helmets, creating a stream that was meant to swap the two of you back."

"Well…it didn't," Mario said, frowning as he did. "Believe me; it didn't."

"Huh." E Gadd looked back at his machine. "Well, maybe we should try it with a higher voltage." He adjusted the knob. "Strap yourselves in boys; this might hurt a little bit."

Luigi braced himself for the electric current. Like E Gadd said, the sensation did in fact hurt. It felt like little sections of his brother's body, ranging from the top of his head down to his torso, were being pinched. Or stung; stung was probably the better word. The sensation, while not as painful as the sting of a bee or a wasp, still made Luigi grunt in pain. He was very much grateful when the sensations cleared away.

Unfortunately, his gratitude cleared away too when he got another look at his brother. It still didn't work! Mario was still Luigi, and Luigi was still Mario. Now, Luigi didn't know about his brother, but at this point, he was staring to freak out a little bit.

"E Gadd, it still didn't work?"

"No?" E Gadd shook his head. "This is most unorthodox! All of my research has shown that this should be the answer!" He looked back at the machine. "I suppose we have no choice. We're going to have to turn this whole thing up to maximum power!"

Luigi's eyes grew wide. "Maximum power!?" He exclaimed in unison with his brother.

"Precisely!" E Gadd adjusted the knob once more. "Be prepared, Mario brothers! If you thought the last round hurt…well, all I can say is be thankful if you come out of this one alive…"

Luigi's heart skipped a beat. He was about to object, tell the Professor he didn't want to go through this. Before he could, E Gadd turned on the machine.

BZZZZTTT!

Luigi felt like every cell in his body was screaming. He convulsed, his entire body shaking at the pain. Not only did it feel like he was being stung by a hornet, but now the sensation was comparable to the sting of a murder hornet! It was painful, desensitizing, awful…Luigi wanted to scream. He was just about to before the pain magnified. It felt like he was being branded, or perhaps being dunked in lava.

These were the last sensations he felt before blacking out.