9
As Mario and Luigi climbed down the mountain towards the base, the winds started picking up around them and chilling their bodies down to their bones. The snow started falling from the sky in greater concentrations and made it difficult for the brothers to see ahead of them. The sky overhead was now covered with dark clouds, so the spectacular aurora and numerous stars were obliterated from sight. As the brothers walked through patches of pine trees and got closer to Bowser's base, the more nervous they became. Bowser was waiting for them, and they knew he more than likely had a special surprise waiting for them when they get down to the base. From what they could see on the outside, the buildings that made up the base seemed to be surrounding some area of importance. The brothers could only imagine what that could be, but they were sure that was where they were supposed to go. The only way for them to get there was through the building complex. Both brothers gulped out of fear just thinking about it, but they bravely pressed onward through the pine trees.
"I don't know about this." Luigi said. "I don't think there's any way we can get inside without getting caught in the spotlight. The security is just too tight."
"I'm beginning to think that you're right, Luigi." Mario said. "This place is a complete trap. If we try to get in, we'll get caught. If we just do nothing about it, then the world will end. Either way, we're screwed...Unless..."
"What is it, Mario?" Luigi asked.
"Hold on, I'm thinking." Mario replied. "I've got it! What if there was some way we could knock out the base's power grid? If there is, then I think we may stand a chance at getting inside the dig. If we can knock out the power, Bowser won't stand a chance at catching us!"
"We should probably see if we can find the base's power source." Luigi said. "I'm hoping that we can be able to find it somewhere outside the perimeter of this facility. If not, there's always the fire alarm."
"Right, let's see what we can find." Mario replied. "Hopefully we don't have to resort to plan B!"
The brothers exited the small pine forest and emerged into a snowed in clearing just outside the fenced in base. At the top of one of the small buildings they could see one of the Koopa Troops operating a huge spotlight, scanning the scenery for any possible movement. There were other spotlights being operated as well, in buildings that were farther away from where the brothers were standing. As the snow kept blowing in their faces, Mario and Luigi looked both left and right from where they stood and observed to see which path looked more promising. As far as they could both tell, both paths were equally unforgiving.
"Should we split up and search each side of the perimeter?" Luigi asked.
"Luigi, I don't if that's a good idea." Mario asked. "I don't want a repeat of what happened back in the Mushroom Kingdom in those underground caves! You almost got killed by that poison gas!"
"But Mario, The clock is ticking!" Luigi said. "Besides, I think the likelihood of running into any poison gas in the snow is very slim."
Mario gave a slight glare at Luigi for his smart remark, after which he sighed realizing that it was the smart thing for them to do. "Alright." Mario said. "You take the right this time and I'll take the left. Just don't get caught in the beam of a giant spotlight!"
"Don't worry, brother. I'll be fine!" Luigi said. "I'll stay in the trees. Meet me on the other side of the base somewhere, okay?"
"Will do." Mario replied. "Be careful, Luigi."
Meanwhile, inside the base, Bowser and Kamek were busy discussing the options they had of reviving their already crumbling evil plan in one of the base's many lounges. The more they talked about it, the more frustrating it seemed to become. The Mario Brothers had already taken two of their stars and they were now working on a third and they were running out of time to find the others. Bowser was also thinking about the state of his eight children. He wished he could be there for them and not be running all over the world after two psychotic human beings that are determined to bring down his kingdom, not to mention a third who partnered with a yoshi and escaped from their captivity back in the Darklands. Just thinking about everything that has happened in the past five days gave Bowser a splitting headache.
"Is everything alright with you, master?" Kamek asked.
"Yeah, I'm alright. I just have a little headache that's all." Bowser replied. "Maybe I'm just thinking too much about what we should do about Mario and Luigi."
"We should focus on getting the rest of the stars for now." Kamek said. "At least that's what I think. I should also focus on trying to get my wand back!"
"We'll get your wand back soon enough." Bowser said. "That's when we find that dark-haired woman and the yoshi. Who knows where they could be right now. Hopefully, one of our units will find them soon. I wonder how the Koopas on the roof are doing right now."
Just then, one of the Goombas that worked on the base walked by and saw Bowser and Kamek sitting at their table.
"Good evening, master." the Goomba said.
"Have there been any sightings of the two brothers yet?" Bowser asked.
"As far as I know there haven't been any at all." the Goomba replied. "I'll be checking out the scenery periodically myself, so I'll let you know if any of our men up there get a chance to spot them."
"Alright..." Bowser said. Damn those brothers! I still can't wait to get my claws on them! They will pay with their own lives for the damages they've caused to me!
Back outside, Mario was making his way around the left side of the base's perimeter, being sure to stay hidden among the trees when a light started coming near him. The snowfall eased only slightly since him and Luigi entered the brightly illuminated base, which was slightly responsible for the snow glow in the clouds above. Suddenly, a bright spotlight pointed in Mario's direction and Mario was quick to duck under a large boulder that was conveniently placed nearby. When the light moved away, Mario quickly got back up and continued walking cautiously among the trees through the cold snow around the perimeter of the base.
"That was scary close!" Mario said to himself out loud. "I wonder where Luigi is right now. He shouldn't be too far."
Mario continued around the base and through the trees until he reached an area that was caged in with wire fencing. There was also a large yellow sign on the gate leading into the small enclosure. Mario walked up to the enclosure and read the sign.
WARNING!
HIGH VOLTAGE
AUTHORIZED PERSONNEL
ONLY.
"BOO!" shouted a voice from right behind Mario that caused him to jump. Mario turned around and saw Luigi wearing a large grin on his face and he tried to contain his laughter. Mario gave him the death glare.
"You fucking startled me!" Mario said. "Don't you dare ever do that again!"
"Sorry, Mario, but I couldn't help it." Luigi replied.
"Of course you couldn't." Mario replied with a slight hint of dread in his voice. Both the brothers turned their attention on the giant power structure inside the fence and heard the buzzing of electricity going through the power lines that were attached to it. They both grinned when they realized they were connected to the buildings on the base.
"This is the power generator?" Mario asked.
"I'm pretty sure it is." Luigi said. "Why else would there be a warning of high voltage?"
"I don't know." Mario said. "Let's open the large box and see if there's a switch that we can pull to turn the power off."
"WAIT!" Luigi said. "The fence could be electric!"
"Luigi, why would there be an electric fence here? It's snowing for God's sake! The water would've taken it out by now!"
"True." Luigi said, feeling dumb. "I haven't been sleeping lately, so my mind isn't working the way I want it to."
"You and me both brother." Mario replied. "For now, let's just stay focused on what we're about to accomplish here."
Both brothers approached the fence cautiously at first, but were relieved to find that the fence was not electrified. They both jumped over with ease and walked over to the large box that was sitting at the base of the power structure. When they opened the lid, they discovered a myriad of switches, buttons, and dials that each corresponded with a different power function. Luckily, the main switch was obvious enough for the brothers to locate.
"Are you ready for this?" Mario asked as he put his hand on the switch.
"I'm ready!" Luigi said. "Let's see how well they can handle the dark for a while."
Bowser and Kamek were still sitting in the lobby when all of a sudden they were plunged into darkness. A few of the Koopas and Goombas that were in the room screamed when it happened, but Bowser and Kamek were only slightly surprised and remained calm.
"All of our surveillance systems are out!" one of the Koopas called out. "There's no way we can monitor any outside interference."
The air inside the base was started to cool down as well, since the heating systems were shut down as well. Bowser could feel goose bumps developing on his skin as the cold started getting to him. He looked over at Kamek, who was already standing up to go see what the issue was. But Bowser somehow already knew what happened.
"They're here Kamek." Bowser said. "The Mario Brothers have arrived."
I'm sorry I haven't updated in a while. My Internet has been giving me some issues, so I haven't been able to post any new chapters, and for that I do apologize. Anyway, now that its back I can start adding more chapters!
The brothers have arrived at the base, only to find that the whole area is fenced in and heavily watched, more so than they initially thought. However, they were able to find the base's power source and shut down all of the power after they both split up to explore each side of the base's perimeter. Now that the power is out, they can enter the base and gain access to the archaeological dig hidden in the center amongst the small buildings. Hopefully Bowser isn't quick to catch the two Mario Brothers when they get inside! We'll see what happens in the following chapters :)
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