-Chapter 12-

Welcome to Subcon

Author's Note:

To anyone who hasn't read up to this point before April 30, we recently overhauled several chapters in the wake of the Super Mario Bros. Movie. General expansion, exploring Mario and Luigi's family, etc. If you read the previous chapters before said overhauling, please do so to make sense of future plot points. Thank you.

"Plumber's Log #88. Against all odds, we beat Bowser and saved the Princess. All that was left was to move into our new digs in Toad Town. Little did we know that we were about to get sucked into another adventure beyond our wildest dreams... literally."

Mario woke up with a grunt, rubbing his head before finding himself in a dark void.

"What the…?" he looked around. "Where am I?"

"Help us…"

Mario perked, looking around as he heard more voices.

"Help us..."

"Mario..."

"Help us..."

"Please..."

"Save us…"

Mario followed the voices up a staircase, finding himself standing before a red door. He opened it up, looking over an incredible expanse of green as far as the eye could see. The transparent image of a fairy-like being appeared before him. The four-winged girl had pale skin, short blonde hair cut in a bob, and blue eyes, one bang covering her right eye. She wore a green strapless dress with a miniskirt and elbow-length gloves, both decorated with clovers, and green flats with similar clover designs.

"What… is this?" Mario managed.

"Welcome to Subcon, the land of dreams, the fairy greeted. "We have been waiting for your arrival."

"Subcon? The Land of… Dreams?"

"Yes. Please, you must help us! Our world and yours are in terrible danger! Our once-beautiful world now suffers at the hands of the evil king Wart!"

"Wart?"

"He has escaped from his prison, spawning monsters and nightmares with his dream machine. If this continues, Subcon will fall... and he will be able to cross over into the waking world. Please, you must help us, Mario!"

Mario blinked, hearing Luigi's voice come out of the fairy's mouth. "Huh?"

"Mario? Wake up, Mario."

Everything started to go white...

Toad Town

"MARIO!"

Mario snapped awake, looking around to find himself in the moving van. "Who?! What?!"

"Finally! I've been trying to snap you out of it for five minutes."

Mario yawned, turning to see Luigi by his side.

"Luigi... what...?" The van suddenly stopped. "Whoa!"

"Oh goody, we're here!" Luigi cheered.

"Luigi, what's going on?" Mario asked. "Where are we?"

"You're still half-asleep, huh? We're at our new place, remember?"

Mario looked out, seeing they were before a house on the outskirts of Toad Town. The house was pale yellow and had a red roof, a Starman antenna, and a chimney resembling a pipe, along with a white picket fence and a clothesline. Peach's Castle could be seen in the distance.

"Ohhhh…" he managed. "Oh yeah! Now I remember!" He hopped out of the van. "Wow… would you look at that view?"

"Admire it later," Luigi told him. "We gotta start unloading."

"Oh right!" Mario went to join Luigi and the movers, who were humanoids with large noses and various skin tones, palm trees growing out of their heads and wearing grass skirts alongside basic moving company hats and shirts; according to what Peach had told them, they were Piantas, the natives of the tropical paradise of Isle Delfino.

"Okay Tony, bring her down nice and easy..." one said, only for Tony to accidentally slam down the opening of the truck. "I said nice and easy!"

"Sorry, Vinnie," Tony said apologetically.

"Oi vey…" Vinnie shook his head. "Alright, how do you fellas wanna do this? Just haul it out and into the house or do you want the full Pianta Bruthas Home Makeover?"

"Just bring it in, Vinnie," Mario told him. "We'll take it from there."

"Ya sure?" Tony asked. "It's freeee…"

"Oi!" Vinnie snapped. "If they say don' want it, they don' want it."

"C'mon, it's not gonna-" Tony was cut off when Vinnie smacked him upside the head. "Hey! What was that for?!"

"Fer bein' an idiot."

Tony shrugged. "Okay."

After the Piantas carried everything inside, Mario and Luigi got to work setting it up. Eventually, they stood back, admiring their hard work; the house's interior consisted of a dining area, a bedroom, and a bathroom. The dining area consisted of a stove, a table, a shelf displaying red and green mugs, and a chalkboard. The bedroom consisted of a bunk bed with red and green blankets and a dresser with red-and-green drawers. The bathroom was more simplistic, having monogrammed towels for the Bros. and, of course, red and green toothbrushes and shaving utensils.

"Wow…" Tony mused. "You boys really love ya red an' green."

"Hey, it's a good color combo." Luigi defended.

"Ever tried a different color?"

"We did, it wasn't us," Mario replied. "So... how much do we owe you?"

"This one's on the house," Vinnie replied.

Mario blinked. "Really?"

"You two iced Bowser."

"Yeah, now that he's gone, the family business is gonna be boomin'!" Vinnie declared, only to get smacked again. "Ow!"

"Tony!" Vinnie admonished. "Show a lil' decorum."

"Family business?" Luigi asked.

Vinnie thought quickly. "Yeah, we were the ones moving a lotta his shiitake around to his castles all over the place. Damn toitle liked to stiff us on the pay."

"Least he didn't brick us," Tony mused.

"Yeeeeah…" Vinnie nodded. "Well, thanks fer ya business, Marios. We'll just be goin' now."

"Have a nice day!" Tony declared as they drove off.

Luigi blinked. "That was weird."

"Yeeeeah…" Mario agreed.

At that moment, they heard the doorbell.

"Ah! That must be the princess!" Luigi opened the door, and sure enough, it was Peach and Toad, the former holding a potted red tulip with a face.

"Welcome to your new home!" Peach greeted. "I brought you a little housewarming gift."

"And I brought snacks!" Toad held up a basket full of little blocks.

"Come on in," Mario said, waving them in. They entered, the two setting their gifts on the table. Luigi picked up one of the blocks.

"So... what are these?"

"Storage blocks," Toad replied. "Tap 'em, go on."

Mario picked one up, then tapped it. Out popped a plate of fresh spaghetti, still piping hot.

"Score!"

"Ma would love these things," Luigi mused.

"So would Mr. Giuseppe," said Mario. "Good way to transport all those casseroles."

"And the best part, whatever's inside is frozen in time," Toad added. "So, you never have to worry about it getting cold or going bad!"

Mario smiled at that. "We definitely need to get some of these for Ma."

As they ate, they talked.

"I've been thinking," said Luigi. "It was a Warp Zone that brought us to this world, right? So, then a Warp Zone could eventually take us back to Brooklyn?"

"Well, yes," Peach confirmed. "But there's a huge universe out there with a lot of galaxies, Luigi. When a Warp Zone opens up, you can never really be sure where it'll take you."

"So... it'd be nearly impossible to figure out which one leads back home," Mario mused.

"What about Professor E. Gadd?" Toad suggested. "With all that tech we saw in his workshop, you think he could make some kinda portable Warp Zone?"

"I'd have to talk to him about it," Peach yawned.

"You alright, Princess?" Mario asked.

"I'm sorry…" Peach rubbed her eyes. "I didn't sleep very well last night. I had a... bizarre dream."

"Bizarre dream?" Mario asked.

"You too?" Luigi questioned.

"About some fairy talking about a place called Subcon?" Toad offered. "And some bad guy named Wart?"

Mario blinked. "Wait... we all had the exact same dream?"

"That is… concerning," Peach said.

"So even in this world, more than one person having the same dream isn't normal," Luigi mused. "Good to know. So, what does it mean?"

"I'm not sure," Peach replied. "But if this really is some sort of message, then we owe it to whoever sent it to figure it out."

Mario crossed his arms in thought. "I remember the dream involved me going up a staircase in a cave and finding a red door. Where's the nearest cave?"

"There's one just outside of Toad Town in the Grasslands," Peach answered. "Just south of Fort Deathcap. (1)"

"Let me guess," Luigi began. "Said fort was one of Bowser's bases?"

Peach nodded. "It should be abandoned now that he's gone, though."

Mario stood up. "Guess our housewarming party's gonna have to wait."

Location Unknown

Meanwhile, a Shy Guy made his way through a dark corridor. He eventually reached a doorway, knocking.

"Ummmm… Master Waaaaart?"

"Go away!" a deep voice snapped. "I'm in the middle of something!"

"But Masssterrrr, it's impoooortaaaaant… Please let me iiiiin..."

"Oh alright, alright! Just stop speaking to me that insufferable, droning whine!"

The Shy Guy opened the door, revealing none other than Wart seated on his throne. Wart was a massive frog, clad in a sky blue robe with golden lining. Around his neck was a golden necklace with a four-pointed red star, and he had a crown with a green gem embedded in the center. Along with the robe, he wore matching blue-and-gold striped pants, a regal dark green shirt with puffy sleeves, and gold-plated shoes with red gems on the toes (2).

"Well, what is it that's so very important?" he demanded.

"We have a problem, Master. One of the Subconians managed to escape from the jar, and sent a message to the waking world."

"Say what?!" Wart snarled. "You let one of those miserable insects get away!?"

"I-it was an accident! They're really small and really fast! By the time we found out, they'd already sent out the message!"

Wart grabbed the Shy Guy. "I don't want to hear your excuses!"

He threw him into an elaborate-looking red machine with numerous golden tubes sticking out of it. The machine powered to life, with a loud ding, shooting the Shy Guy's mask out of one of the tubes.

"Miserable, moping, masked morons! How am I supposed to conquer the world with these whiners as my minions!?" He breathed. "And now I'm hungry." He pressed the emblem on his medallion. "Birdo?"

"Hellooooo, Wartyyyyy!" a diva's voice replied.

"Get me a Monte Cristo and ginger ale. Light-powered sugar. Strawberry jelly."

"Comin' right up, sir!"

Before long, a dinosaur-like creature came in with a trolley containing Wart's meal, walking with a noticeable swagger that drew attention to her wide, round hips and…posterior. She was mostly covered in smooth, supple, pink scales, with a rounded, white belly, red tail spikes and purple spots on her cheeks, white padded feet, and a funnel-shaped mouth. She had purple eyes, each of which is framed by three long, thin eyelashes. She had no hair and instead wore a big, red bow atop her head, and possessed small but pointed claws, with four fingers on each hand and three toes on each foot, a large diamond ring set in gold on her left hand. For attire, she wore short, blue, denim shorts and a garish pink tie-dyed, sleeveless shirt that bared her stomach.

"Here you are, sir."

"Ugh, finally. Hello, delicious," Wart picked up the sandwich, taking a bite. "Smooth, yet crispy. Meaty, yet sweet. And sooo…" He cringed, gagging before coughing.

"OMG!" Birdo exclaimed. "Warty, are you alright?!"

Wart grabbed Birdo's shirt, getting in her face. "What is the meaning of this, Birdo!?"

"Uhhh… what?"

"THIS!" Wart held up his sandwich, giving Birdo a look at the inside. "You put lettuce in my Monte Cristo!"

"Ohh... uh… I-I can explain." Wart squeezed Birdo's snout. "Warty, please!"

"You know how much I despise vegetables, Birdo! They're number one in my royal declaration of the top ten things I hate most! Are you trying to poison me?!"

"N-No, sir! I-I was just concerned about your health! Those sandwiches are full of fat and cholesterol, and you eat them constantly! Not to mention your weight…" Wart squeezed harder. "Ow!"

"You are not to put vegetables in my food for any reason again," Wart growled. "If this happens a second time, consider our deal off."

Birdo's eyes widened in horror. "Y-Yes, sir! I'm sorry, sir! It won't happen again, sir!"

"Good," Wart dropped Birdo. "Now, go and prepare me another sandwich, properly this time. And when you're done, I need you to head down to the surface. One of the pixies managed to send out a cry for help to the waking world. I suspect we may be having guests soon."

"Yessir. I'll get right on it." Birdo departed at that.

Wart shook his head as he popped open the bottle of ginger ale.

"And sir!" Birdo piped up, suddenly returning and startling him. "It's Bird-ie. Not -do, -die."

"OUT!" Wart roared, Birdo dashing off.

Meanwhile…

Back in the waking world, Mario, Luigi, Toad, and Peach had descended into an underground dirt cave in the Grasslands, flashlights in hand.

"So…" Toad began, "What exactly are we looking for in here?"

"A red door," Mario replied. "Like we saw in the dream. It should be down in the deepest part of the cavern."

"What makes you say that? Didn't we climb a staircase leading up to it?"

"Maybe things in the dream world are backward in real life?" Luigi suggested.

"Let's just keep going," Peach cut in.

They went deeper into the cave, eventually finding a staircase heading down.

"Okay, so we're still climbing a staircase," Toad said. "Guess Luigi was on the money."

"C'mon, let's go," Mario started heading down, the others following. They kept going for a while.

"Whew!" Mario exclaimed. "This staircase goes on forever!"

"It feels like we've been walking for hours!" Luigi remarked.

"Are we there yet?" Toad asked.

"Toad, we already told you to stop asking that," Peach replied. "We'll get there when we get there."

"And when will that be?"

"I don't know!"

"Seriously, Toad, if you're that sick of it, just go ho-" Mario bumped into something. "Ooof!" He shook his head. "What the heck?"

Mario's eyes widened, finding himself standing right in front of the door he saw in his dreams.

"Finally!" Toad exclaimed. "C'mon Mario, let's see what's inside!"

"Wait!" Luigi cut in. "Shouldn't we call the Professor and Plum first, just in case this does lead to another world? I mean, we just got used to this one."

"No time," Mario insisted. "It took us a while to get here. If we have to make a second trip, who knows what could happen."

He opened the door, revealing a glowing white doorway.

"Sure," Luigi deadpanned. "Why start being sensible now?"

One by one, they strolled in.

Subcon

As soon as they entered the door, they found themselves overlooking an expanse of greenery just as they did in the dream before they realized something was amiss.

"Uh... guys?" Toad piped up. "We're not on solid ground, are we?"

They looked down, finding they were indeed standing on thin air, with the door seemingly suspended in mid-air and a grassy hill below.

"Nope," Mario said casually before they all plummeted with a scream. As they fell, Peach's dress suddenly opened up like a parachute, letting her gently float down. The boys weren't so lucky though, and wound up faceplanting onto the ground.

Luigi landed on a hill and was bounced in the air. Toad fell into the ground, leaving behind a him-shaped crater while Mario fell into a lake. Peach floated down, gently landing on her feet. "My word...what just happened?"

With a scream, Mario fell from the sky and into the lake again. A moment passed before he surfaced, paddling back to shore.

"Gravity, you are a cruel mistress," he said flatly.

Luigi came falling, frantically moving/kicking his legs as if trying to run on air. Bizarrely enough, doing so seemed to slow his descent, allowing him to land much more gracefully.

"Huh?" he blinked. "What just happened?"

A groan reached their ears as everyone rushed to Toad's hole.

"Toad!" Peach called. "Are you okay?!"

"FINLAAAAAAND!" Toad's voice came.

"C'mon," Mario and Luigi reached down, helping Toad out. "Up we go."

"Oh, man…" Toad groaned. "Good thing my cap acts as a built-in helmet."

They looked around, finding themselves in an expansive grassland. Bizarre tufts of red grass stuck out all over, and in the distance were waterfalls with log bridges.

"Okay, we found the dream door and Subcon," Luigi noted. "Now what?"

"Now, we try and find whoever called us here," Mario answered. "Hopefully, they can tell us more about what's going on."

With that, the group made their way through the Grasslands, taking in the sights as they did.

"Wow…" Peach mused. "This place is so beautiful."

"Kinda creepy, though," Luigi remarked. "Where is everyone?"

"Hey!" Toad called out. "Anybody home?! The heroes have arrived! We're here to save you!"

Toad's voice echoed across the plane. "Yeah… that's not ominous at all."

At that moment, they heard a familiar "Hee-ho! Hee-ho!" chant. They spun around, finding several approaching Shy Guys.

"Shy Guys?" Peach asked.

"Oh goody, these guys again," Mario said.

The Shy Guys stopped, allowing another Shy Guy to step forward. He just stared at the quartet for a moment.

"Ummm… hello?" Mario asked.

"Hiiiii…" the Shy Guy waved.

"Uh, hey," Mario greeted.

"My name's Bernie. I'm a member of the 8-Bits."

"Ahh, hey there, Bernie. We-"

"And I'm saaaaaad..."

"David all over again," Toad said.

Luigi blinked. "Are all of you Shy Guys sad all the time?"

"Not always…" Bernie replied. "Sometimes we're scaaaaared, sometimes we're angryyyyy, sometimes we're queasyyyy, sometimes we're–"

"Bernie!" Peach cut in.

Bernie perked. "Huh?"

"This place we're in, are we in the land of Subcon?"

"Uh-huuuuuuuh..."

"Okay, good," Peach nodded. "We were told that this world is in grave danger. That it was under attack from someone named-"

"Master Wart?" Bernie offered.

"Yes!" Peach nodded. "We were hoping you and your friends could tell us more about what's going on. So that we can help you stop him."

"Hmmmm…" Bernie thought. "Weeeeeell...I don't think I can really help you there."

"What do you mean?" Toad questioned.

Mario perked in realization. "Oh boy... you're working for him, aren't you?"

"Ohhhhh…" Bernie moaned in disappointment. "You figured it ouuuut. Now the reveal is ruined. Ohhhhhhh..."

"Ohhhhhhhhh..." the Shy Guys sighed.

Mario blinked. "Not really much of a reveal. You did call him Master."

"...yeeeah…" Bernie sighed. "...oh well, guess we'll just end your games now." He pulled out a spear from somewhere. "8-Bits...attaaaaaaaaack..."

Suddenly, the Shy Guys rushed them.

"Whoa!" Mario exclaimed as one Shy Guy charged him at a scarily fast speed, tackling him to the ground. "Mama Mia!"

He shoved the Shy Guy off. He rolled a bit before sticking the landing and charging again. Other Shy Guys began plucking the red tufts of grass, revealing them to be white turnips with faces, as well as other types of vegetables, which they threw at the group.

"Vegetables?!" Luigi exclaimed before taking a big green pumpkin to the face that got stuck on his head. He stumbled around, trying to get it off.

"Two can play in that game!" Peach grabbed a tuft of grass and yanked out... a limbless Bob-omb with a leafy green stem for a fuse. The Shy Guys stopped cold.

"Oh, noooo…" Bernie gasped in a monotone. "She's got a Bomb Plant."

"Stay back!" Peach reached for the stem, preparing to pluck it like the pin of a grenade. "Or I'll blow you to kingdom come!"

The Shy Guys all looked nervous.

"Alright. Now, we have to go now. So you all just stay right there and-"

Suddenly, the Bomb Plant got shot out of Peach's hand by an egg.

"Sorry, Peach-Pie," Birdo stepped forward. "But you ain't goin' nowhere."

"Um…" Mario blinked. "What the heck is that?"

"It's a Birdo!" Toad replied.

"And what's a Birdo?"

"It's a dinosaur... or bird. Mushroom World biologists aren't entirely sure."

"It looks like one of those tube-mouthed things from the Muppet Show!" Luigi exclaimed. "You know… Mahna-Mahna?"

Mario smiled at that. "Doo-doo-be-doo-doo."

"Mahna-Mahna."

Mario started snapping his fingers to an imaginary beat. "Do-do-do-do."

"Mahna Mahna."

"Do doo be-do-do be-do-do be-do-do be-do-do-doodle do do do-doo do!"

Peach and Toad just looked on blankly as Birdo and the Shy Guys exchanged looks.

"Bernie… WTU are these guys doing?" Birdo asked.

"I dunnoooo..."

Birdo cleared her throat, getting their attention. "Am I interrupting something here? When you two are finished with your weird 'mahna-mahna' shiitake, maybe we can get on with it, please?"

"Right, sorry," Mario nodded. "Just something from a goofy puppet show we watched when we were kids."

"I don't think there's a single person back home who doesn't know that song," Luigi mused.

"Riiiiiiight..." Birdo shrugged. "Anyway, nothin' personal... but we gotta kill you. Toodles!"

Birdo's snout engorged.

"What the heck…?" Mario let out.

"MOVE!" Toad shouted, everyone ducking as Birdo shot an egg from her mouth at them.

"Did she seriously just spit an egg?!" Luigi demanded.

"Not what I'm worried about right now!" Mario replied.

The egg landed next to them and exploded in fireworks. As he rolled away, Mario yanked a turnip out of the ground before throwing it at Birdo, the vegetable bouncing off her head.

"Ow!" Birdo yelped. "Watch it, Yeti-Lip! That hurts!"

"What, did you think I'd go easy on you 'cause you're a girl?" Mario shot back. "You're trying to kill me!"

"Shut up!" Birdo snapped before shooting more eggs.

"Any bright ideas?!" Toad demanded.

Mario perked, getting an idea. "I got it!"

As Birdo shot another egg, Mario leaped up, catching it in his hands before throwing it at her.

"Uh-oh…" Birdo let out before the egg exploded in her face.

"Quick, run!" Mario yelled as they took off, Birdo groaning in pain as she got up, all disoriented.

"I don't feel so good." she groaned before shaking it off. "Lousy, fur-lipped creep! When I get my claws on him, I'll-!"

"Uhhh...Miss Birdo?" Bernie asked.

"Not now, Bernie! I'm ranting!"

"Your clothes..."

Birdo looked down, seeing her clothes were in tatters before screaming.

"My favorite outfit!" she scowled, her tears turning to rage. "Alright… If that's how he wants to play...I'll play." Birdo snapped her fingers. "Bernie! Send word to the minions in the rest of the areas! I want a Priority One alert on these jerkwads!"

"Yes, Miss Birdo."

"And get me something to wear from the castle. Make sure it's pink."

"Uh-huh..." As he turned to go, Bernie turned around. "By the way… what is a Mahna-Mahna?"

Birdo rolled her eyes. "Who cares?"

-X-

Meanwhile, Mario and his friends managed to escape.

"Okay, that should be far enough." Mario mused.

"So... this Wart guy knows we're here and is out for blood," Luigi sighed. "Great. Just great."

"Least we got away from that pink wackadoo," Toad remarked.

"Oh my!"

Everyone looked up, seeing a tiny, fairy-like creature flitting down toward them. Mario's eyes widened, recognizing the figure from his dream.

"I haven't seen you around here before." the fairy said, hovering before them. "Are you from the waking world?"

"Yeah," Mario nodded. "We all had dreams about a fairy just like you, telling us about Wart."

"Oh thank goodness!" the fairy sighed. "My message got through! This is wonderful!

Luigi blinked. "Your message? You mean our dreams?"

"Right. Let me introduce myself," the fairy curtseyed to them. "My name is Tiana. I'm one of Subcon's native fairies."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, Tiana," Peach curtseyed back. "I am Princess Peach Toadstool of the Mushroom Kingdom. These are my friends, Mario, Luigi, and Toad.

"Could you tell us what's going on here?" Luigi requested.

"Yes, of course," Tiana nodded. "Allow me to start from the beginning. We Subconians once lived peaceful lives, thanks to our Dream Machine. It produced good, peaceful dreams... but all that changed when Wart and the 8-Bits attacked. He hijacked the machine, using it to produce nightmarish creatures to overthrow our king, Reginald (3). We tried to fight back, but Wart's power was too great. He captured all the other fairies and locked them away in his castle in the sky."

"What about you?" Mario questioned.

"I managed to escape before they could grab me," Tiana shuddered. "I barely got out of the castle with my life. It was awful! All I could do from there was send a distress signal to dreamers in the waking world, hoping someone would heed the call and find the door to Subcon. I must admit, for a moment I thought I had failed." She smiled. "But my message went through! We have a chance! The four of you can finally defeat Wart once and for all and free Subcon from his tyranny!"

"How are we supposed to do that?" Luigi questioned.

Tiana led them to a bizarre bird-like door built into the side of a mountain. "This Mask Gate leads to the desert. There, you'll find the Dream Keepers. Subcon's primary liaisons to the waking world. Speak to them. They can help you."

She waved her hand, a line of fairy dust settling over the bird's head, which slowly opened its mouth.

"So…" Luigi tried to understand, "We gotta go through...the bird's mouth?"

"Well, when in Rome." Mario stepped through the gate.

"What are you going to do, Tiana?" Peach questioned.

"Don't worry about me. Find the Dream Keepers! Save our world!"

Peach nodded before following Mario, Toad and Luigi behind her as the gate closed behind them.

"Good luck, dreamers." Tiana clasped her hands. "You will need it."

Meanwhile…

In a vast, sandy desert filled with cactuses and pyramids, a man lay in a hammock, fast asleep. He had a rotund, but powerful build and was dressed like a character straight from the Arabian Nights, with an off-white turban with a ruby, puffy, green pants with a purple cloth belt, an orange vest, and pointed shoes. He suddenly woke up with a snort.

"This feeling..." he mused. "Someone has entered the Sands of Slumber. But...their aura… it is not those of denizens but of dreamers." He thought it over. "Hmmm...this requires investigation."

He rose to his feet. "Imajin!"

On a magic carpet, a boy in his mid-teens flew in. He was dressed identically to the older man, but with a yellow gem on his turban, orange pants, and a red vest and shoes, as well as armbands. By his side was a small monkey wearing a green vest and matching hijab.

"Yes, Father?" he asked.

"A group of dreamers has entered Subcon."

Imajin blinked. "More people who wanna join Wart's kingdom?"

"I do not know. Regardless, I need you to find them."

"Consider it done, Father. And if they're followers of Wart..." Imajin grinned, "They'll be fortunate to wake up again."

Author's Note:

(1): World 1-5 of Super Mario Bros. 3.

(2): Based on the king outfit from Super Mario Odyssey.

(3): The name we gave to the king of Subcon from BS Super Mario USA on the Satellaview; he was just called Ōsama, which literally means "king", in the game.

And thus, the Subcon arc begins! And yes, it includes elements of Super Mario Bros. 2's original version, Yume Kōjō: Doki Doki Panic. We worked out names for the parents, who were simply called Mama and Papa in the original: Hassan (means "beautifier, improver") and Amani (means "wishes").

Tiana is my OC, based on the Subcon fairies that appear in-game.

Voice cast for this chapter:

* Hassan - Christopher Judge (Teal'c in Stargate SG-1, Kratos in God of War 2018 onward, Magneto in X-Men: Evolution, T'Challa in the Marvel's Avengers game)

* Imajin - Scott Weinger (Aladdin in the Disney franchise, Steve Hale in Full House/Fuller House)

* Wart - Ian McKellen (The Toad in Flushed Away, Gandalf in Lord of the Rings, Magneto in the X-Men films, Cogworth in Beauty and the Beast 2017)

* Birdo - Pendleton Ward (Lumpy Space Princess in Adventure Time)

* Tony - Danny DeVito (Penguin in Batman Returns, The Lorax, Frank Reynolds in It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Phil in the original Hercules Disney movie)

* Vinnie - Robert Costanzo (Harvey Bullock in the DCAU, Phil in Kingdom Hearts)

* Tiana - Jessica DiCicco (Malina in The Emperor's New School, Flame Princess in Adventure Time, Shigeru Kamado in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Lynn & Lucy Loud in The Loud House, Maggie Pesky in The Buzz on Maggie, Lumina in Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII, Iris McKenzie in Eureka Seven Hi-Evolution, Yotte in Sword Art Online: Alicization, Hissy in Puppy Dog Pals, Yukika Saegusa in Fate/stay night: Unlimited Blade Works)

Please R&R. Until next time!