Just seconds before being the arrows came down on her, Princess Peach finally let out a scream and threw herself across Toadsworth in protection, waiting for those penetrating points to stab into her flesh.
The pain never came.
Peach felt a dozen arrows beat a tattoo against her exposed back, and all was quiet. Stunned, she reached behind her and felt her back. Not a single arrow was lodged in it. Her hand, moving to the grass beside her, detected an object lying there. She picked it up and, bringing it before her face, was shocked to see that it was one of the arrows intended for her—and its tip was literally bent in half! She stared at the mutilated arrow in amazement.
Suddenly she remembered Toadsworth. In a flash she had him on his feet and was helping him toward the gate. No further volleys were fired at them, and soon the Princess and her steward were safely inside the gates. Apparently the guards were confident that two waves of arrows were sufficiently fatal.
"Are you all right, Toadsworth?" Peach asked anxiously.
"Just a few nicks and scrapes," grunted the old Toad painfully. "I'll be right as rain in no time."
"Are you all right, Peach?" Mario inquired, turning the question back on the questioner.
"I'm fine," she assured him. "Perfectly fine."
"Peach, I saw those arrows hit you." Mario's face betrayed amazement. "Do you mean to tell me that—"
Peach held up the bent-tipped arrow. Mario ran his finger over the ruined point in stunned silence.
"It must have been the Twilight Disc," Peach guessed. "Mom said the Twilight Disc would protect me if I protected it. That's...that's the only thing I can think of..."
"Incredible," breathed Daisy, eyes wide. Leika too showed signs of astonishment.
"We can't keep standing out in the open like this," Spy Guy broke in impatiently. "We've got to get inside."
"Follow me," Peach instructed. "I know me castle's layout better than anyone else." Quickly she led the way from the yard inside the gate to the main castle building. She found the doors locked, but once again Spy Guy came to the rescue and picked the lock easily. The group entered the main castle lobby and shut the doors behind them. Immediately they all noticed something peculiar about the castle interior. They stood in pitch blackness except for the faint aura of rainbow light shed by Leika's body. There was no light anywhere else.
"Not this again," muttered Luigi. "Does this setup look familiar to anyone?"
"None of the lights are on," Mario replied grimly. "That's exactly what the Shadows Royal did last time they occupied the castle—they shut all the lights off."
Peach's eyes blazed in indignation. "If they're here again, we'll give them a good reason to pack up and leave!" Boldly she led the way out of the foyer into the red-carpeted hallway and from there into her own throne room. No one was there.
"Last time the Royals were in here," Peach remarked a bit hesitantly as the group scanned the darkened room. Peach's golden throne loomed large and mysterious at the far end of the long chamber.
"Don't let your guard down," Mario whispered as he began advancing slowly into the room, intending to go the room's full length just to make sure that there was no one there.
Suddenly he stopped. He strained his eyes into the blackness ahead. Faintly he could discern the silhouette of a young girl a few yards in front of him. He quickly returned to his friends.
"There's someone up there!" he whispered hoarsely.
"Then I'll just go see who it is," Daisy replied staunchly, and before anyone could stop her she had begun walking toward the mysterious person ahead.
Nearing the figure, Daisy slowed and scrutinized her target. In the faint light she could barely make out the form of a small girl. The shape looked familiar. Daisy's eyes widened.
"Aster?!"
The girl said nothing; her back was toward Daisy. She ignored Daisy completely.
"Aster!!" Daisy rushed to the girl and tried to hug her, but the girl whirled around just as Daisy ran up and—
SLAP!
Daisy cried out and stumbled backward, and her hand flew to her stinging face. She stared at the face of her little assailant. It had to be Aster—of that Daisy was certain. She knew her sister's face. But her actions...
"Aster!"
Aster's eyes gleamed red, and a strange voice came up from her throat. "I am not Princess Aster."
Another figure suddenly appeared beside Aster or whoever-it-was. He stood near her as if protecting her.
"Who are you?" Mario challenged, moving closer.
The young man glared at Mario. "I am called the Shadow Prince."
Aster's strange voice interjected. "And I am the Shadow Princess."
"Shadow Princess?!" cried Daisy. "Aster, no! Wake up!"
"There IS no Princess Aster!" spat the Shadow Princess spitefully.
Leika darted over to Daisy's side and responded in defiance, "I command you to leave Aster alone, filthy demon!"
The evil Princess's eyes blazed red. "Leika, you accursed fairy! It was you that destroyed my nine other brother and sister spirits! With them, all thirteen Aeshma Souls would stand before you today!"
"And I'll do to you what I did to them!" retorted Leika hotly. "Your creator Aeshma, the lord of the Shadow Legion, is dead! He deserved what he got, the wicked spirit! You, the Prince, and even the King and Queen will perish just as he did!"
"We will see about that, Rainbow Fairy!" shouted the Prince. "My princess, let us destroy these fools who dare resist the great Empress Cyanara!"
"It will be my pleasure to begin with Princess Daisy!" replied the evil Princess. She put out her hand and shot a jet of scorching flames directly into Daisy's midsection, knocking her backward into Peach and setting her dress ablaze. Peach caught Daisy and quickly squelched the fire.
The Prince withdrew a long silver-handled whip from his belt and brandished it threateningly. "I, as an Aeshma Soul, will play the role of slave-driver in this brief conflict. Bow before your masters, feeble slaves!" The whip sang out and cracked across Leika's skull, sending the fairy crashing to the floor, nearly unconscious. She reached feebly toward Princess Peach.
"Eighth Guardian... Help!"
Almost involuntarily Peach rushed to her fallen friend, cradled her in her hands, and sent a pulse of white magic into her, rejuvenating the fairy. In moments Leika was airborne again.
The Shadow Prince and Princess stepped back a little.
"It appears we are facing the Eighth Guardian of the Rainbow," remarked the Shadow Princess hesitantly.
"No matter," responded the Prince. "Never yet have the eight Guardians been able to destroy the Shadows Royal. Nor will this single Guardian stand a chance against us!"
Again the whip snaked out and struck like a serpent, this time biting Peach. But to the amazement of both Shadow Prince and Princess Peach, the stinging blow only bounced off Peach's body without so much as scratching her. Not even her rainbow robe was damaged in the least.
"She is impervious to standard weaponry!" exclaimed the Prince. "No solid object can damage her!"
"Then allow me," put in the Shadow Princess, firing a stream of flames directly at Peach. As expected, the fire did hurt her, and Mario came to her rescue by smothering the flames on her robes. Frightened, Peach retreated somewhat, taking Daisy and Toadsworth with her to keep them safe. Mario, Luigi, Leika, and Spy Guy would have to do the fighting.
Now the Prince's whip was in a dozen places at once, striking with stunning rapidity and pinpoint accuracy. In just seconds he cracked the stinging strap into all four of his foes, striking them backward. Spy Guy recovered from the lash, pulled a miniature bomb from his pocket, armed it, and lobbed it at the Prince. The Prince caught it, smiled evilly, and crushed the device in one hand.
"No mere playthings are capable of damaging me!" he crowed while knocking Spy Guy off his feet with a well-placed crack of the whip.
Mario and Luigi began pelting the Shadow Prince with fireballs, and Leika busied the Shadow Princess with beams of rainbow light. Spy Guy readied two more bombs. At the right instant he tossed one at the Prince. Of course the fiend simply caught and crushed it as he had the first, but he failed to notice the other bomb, which Spy Guy had rolled behind him. In second a violent explosion sent the Prince flying over the heads of his opponents, crashing to the floor at the feet of Princess Peach herself. She immediately reached down and took him by the throat, choking him.
"I'm going to end this right here, Shadow Prince!" said the Princess through her teeth as she choked the life out of the now-desperate Prince. "I will not allow you harm those I love!"
Peach, however, failed to notice the Shadow Princess's fiery glare.
Suddenly Princess Peach burst into flames, instantly becoming a living torch. She screamed and released the Prince from her grip, beating at the inferno with her blazing hands while screaming hysterically.
"PEACH!!" Mario rushed to her, knocked her to the floor, and tried to smother the fire that covered her entirely. As suddenly as they had come, the flames vanished, leaving Peach lying on the marble floor of her throne room, covered in severe burns and still screaming in pain. Daisy, Toadsworth, Spy Guy, Luigi and Leika clustered around her as Mario tried to soothe her agony.
"Aaah—AAAAAAH!! AAAH!! A-AAAAAAAAAAHHH!!!"
"Peach, it's OK," Mario said anxiously. "It's OK. We're all here. You're gonna be OK."
After a few agonizing minutes, the pain subsided to near-tolerable levels, and Peach ceased her screaming and lay there on the floor, completely exhausted.
"Hey!" cried Luigi. "They're gone!!"
Sure enough, both Prince and Princess had left the room—vanished without a trace. Mario stood and clenched a fist. "They won't get away with this!"
"Mario..."
He looked down at Peach inquiringly.
"Mario... Just leave me here...with Daisy and Toadsworth..." She sucked in her breath as pain spiked through her nerves. "Take...the others...and chase the Prince and Princess..."
"No way am I leaving you here in your condition!" exclaimed Mario. "If those two Shadows Royal Juniors were to attack you while I'm gone, you wouldn't stand a chance!" He shook his head in a very definite no. "I'm not going anywhere!"
Peach looked him in the eye. "I'm not...asking you...to go, Mario... That's an order. As the Princess...of the Mushroom Kingdom...I order you to pursue them!"
Mario was taken aback. Never before had Peach exercised her royal authority over him. The order stunned him. "Peach...?"
Her eyes softened. "Mario...I love you. Now go! GO!!!"
Mario's indecision evaporated instantly. Reassured, he smiled down at Peach, then quickly rounded up Luigi, Leika, and Spy Guy and led the little group of four in search of the Shadow Prince and Princess.
Daisy knelt next to Peach and squeezed her hand. "Did you just tell Mario what I think you did?"
Peach smiled softly in spite of the pain of her burns and nodded. "He deserved it."
Toadsworth shook his head helplessly.
Mario and his group crept through the pitch-black halls of the castle, warily watching for their foes who might appear at any moment around any corner. Their hunt through the castle could be compared to that of a blind mouse in a dark maze. All they could do was keep going and hope they weren't going in circles.
At a T-junction in the halls, Mario halted. "Left or right? One's as good as the other, I guess," he shrugged, turning into the right-hand hall. The hall he had chosen terminated in twenty feet at a solid oaken door. Mario turned the knob and swung the door open to reveal the starry sky and shining moon overhead, visible above the castle courtyard. A wave of cool air washed over the group as they looked out into the immaculately landscaped courtyard garden. The tiniest hint of red tinged the sky over the eastern wall, a sign that daylight was not far off—perhaps an hour or two away.
Leika darted silently into the moonlight, her rainbow aura casting faint shades of color onto the flagstone pavement. "Come on," she called quietly. "Let's check this place thoroughly."
The others moved stealthily forward, creeping down the shadowy walkways so silently they appeared to be shadows themselves. Their eyes roved about in the dim light, searching for any sign of their escaped enemies.
There were four stone statues in the courtyard, surrounding the central fountain which bubbled quietly in the background. The north statue was a man, tall, striking, gazing intently into the sparkling water of the fountain pool as if musing over some mysterious puzzle. The stone figure opposite him, the south statue, was a woman, in her arm bearing a water pitcher from which she continually poured into the fountain—but she paid little attention to her endless task, for her eyes were fastened on the man opposite her, and a smile graced her lips.
On the east stood a stone boy, chiseled with almost photographic realism, captured in the essence of play, throwing a ball across the fountain with childish delight. Above the fountain's burbling spurt of water was a stone ball, cleverly supported by a steel rod concealed in the fountain's spray. The stone figure of a girl stretched out her hands from the west side of the fountain to catch the ball which never came down. The four statues surrounded the fountain like silent sentinels in the pre-dawn darkness.
Time and again Leika darted in and out amongst the statues. Time and again Mario passed close to them.
The eyes of the man statue, unnoticed, followed Leika's every move, always quickly returning to meditate upon the waters should the fairy chance to look his way.
Luigi, passing close to the woman statue, was almost certain he'd seen her glance at him.
Spy Guy, prowling about the outskirts of the courtyard, thought he saw the little stone boy turn his head and look at him.
Leika hovered to a stop near the little girl statue. "I guess there's no one here," she said aloud, half to herself.
The little girl's outflung stone hand slowly reached up toward the fairy.
"LEIKA!" yelled Mario. "THE STATUE!!"
In the nick of time Leika turned, saw the cold stone hand about to close on her, and shot forward out of the hands reach. She turned and stared at the statue, transfixed by terror.
Slowly, dramatically, four figures emerged from the statues. A man with black vesture, gray leggings, and a red crown stepped out of the man statue, and a young man with red tunic and black cape emerged from the sculpture of the boy. Simultaneously a woman clad in a black dress and a red crown left the confines of the statue of the woman, and a young girl similarly dressed slipped from the girl statue. All four figures smiled evilly at Mario and his group.
"It's the Shadows Royal!" cried Leika.
"All four of us this time," put in the Shadow Queen. "And were it not for you, Leika, we would today be thirteen strong! I will personally see to it that from this day forth you will breathe no more!" Her eyes glowed red with hatred.
"What happened to 'can't destroy the Rainbow Fairy'?" Leika questioned sarcastically. "Decided to try anyway?"
"You don't stand a chance, Shadows Royal!" Mario shouted in challenge.
The Shadow Prince flicked his silver-handled whip menacingly. "We will emerge victorious this time, Mario. This will be your last battle!"
"It is time, Mario," spoke the Shadow King with finality, "time for you and those with you to feel the combined might of the last four Aeshma Souls!" He drew the enormous Aeshma Sword from beneath his vest and glared at Mario with burning red eyes. "We will avenge the glorious Shadow Legion and our omnipotent creator Aeshma by sacrificing you to the power of shadows!"
The Shadow Princess was the first to act, firing a ball of flames directly at Mario. He dodged the burning projectile easily and hurled a fireball of his own at the dark Princess. Before it reached her, however, the Prince's whip snapped forward and shattered the fireball into a harmless shower of sparks.
"None shall touch her!" crowed the Prince.
A beam of rainbow light zapped the Prince's skull and momentarily stunned him.
"Then we'll just have to take you down first!" retorted Leika from high above him, out of reach of the stinging whip.
Mario dashed forward to attack the stunned Prince but was felled by a bolt of lightning from the Shadow Queen. The King, seizing the opportunity, rushed up to the fallen Mario and raised the Aeshma Sword over him.
A gunshot rang out of the darkness of the terraced courtyard, and a bullet sparked off the Aeshma Sword's broadside, sending the blade spinning out of the King's hand. It clattered to a stop on the flagstones some distance away.
Before the King could retrieve his weapon, the black-suited Spy Guy sprang from his hiding place in one of the flower beds and hurled himself through the air at the King, gripping his black pistol in his hand. Four more shots shattered the stillness of the courtyard, the muzzle blasts lighting up the surrounding area for brief instants. Four more bullets went speeding toward their mark.
The King threw up his hand, and a dark energy shield surrounded him. The four bullets dissolved instantly on impact. Letting down the shield, the King fixed his red eyes on the hurtling Spy Guy and brought his foot around in a roundhouse kick, striking the spy squarely in the midriff and hammering him backward into the courtyard wall more than twenty feet away.
Now Luigi charged forward to deal payback to the Shadow King. The Shadow Princess easily scorched him with her powers of fire while the King retrieved his sword. Again the King raised the Aeshma Sword over Mario's still-stunned body.
Just before being hacked in half, Mario gathered his feet under him and sprang backward in a tremendous backflip, launching balls of ice from both hands as he flipped through the air. The ice pummeled the Shadow King with relentless force, making him stumble back a few feet. Like the Shadow Aides Zaron and Takanyar, the King and the other Royals had a weakness—ice. Mario landed flawlessly on his feet and went into his battle stance again.
Meanwhile the Prince was busy repelling Leika. Again and again his whip cracked in mid-air, each time missing the fairy by mere millimeters. Leika dodged too quickly to be hit but was kept so busy dodging the lashes that she had no chance to return fire. Eventually she found herself forced to retreat beyond the range of the Prince's whip.
For a few brief moments the fight ground to a halt. The opponents eyed each other, each side silently daring the other to make the next move. Neither side had gained an advantage over the other; all of the combatants were still in the fight. The tense, heart-pounding silence lasted for only a minute or two, but to the opposing sides it seemed an eternity.
"Trying to force us to show our hand?" inquired the Queen at length, showing a facetious smile. "Let's see, we have a king, a queen, a jack, and a ten. The last card, of course, is the 'ace' in the hole." She turned to the Shadow Princess. "Let them taste the power of the Ring!"
The dark Princess raised her left hand, revealing the violet gem on her left middle finger.
"The seventh Rainbow Ring!" Mario cried.
The Ring gleamed brightly from the Princess's gray-gloved hand, and Mario suddenly felt all strength leave him. He struggled to hold himself upright as he grew steadily weaker. "Wh-What the—"
"The Kunzite Ring will leech every last drop of energy from you," the Shadow Princess told him with an evil glint in her eye. "And when you are weak and helpless, the others of your party will meet the same fate."
The Shadow Queen smiled. "Royal flush, Mario. We are unstoppable."
Mario could stand no longer and collapsed to the flagstones beneath his feet. He strained every muscle in an attempt to rise but failed. He had not the strength. "...Grrrr... Come on, get up, Mario!" he grunted to himself as he still tried to get back on his feet.
Within minutes Mario, Luigi, Leika, and Spy Guy lay helpless on the courtyard's stone pavement, completely drained of all their energy. The Shadow Princess smiled evilly and walked up to the fallen Mario.
"It seems you were unable to protect those you care for," she remarked cruelly. "What a sad thing that you have failed to defend them." She placed her hand on Mario's face. He felt the heat from her hand but was too weak to resist.
"As your punishment for such failure, I will burn you to ashes. Your foolish friends cannot help you now, 'hero.' Prepare to die at the hands of those whose creator you murdered!"