Chapter Two

Luca rode the Jade Speedster with reckless abandon, angry and wounded all at once. It was a feeling she was unused to—she usually had everything in her life under control. Her eyes stung with the burning heat of impending tears that she was fighting viciously against. They blurred her normally crystal clear vision, and she had to dodge obstacles at the absolute last second. Between blinks and sniffles, she would glance down at her left hand where a beautiful white gold ring resided on one of her petite fingers. She uttered a strangled sob and hit the accelerator harder, pushing the green motorbike beyond its limits.

No turning back, Lucafira, she told herself. You made this bed, now you have to lie in it. This is for the best, you'll see…

She had been with Phil for so long, though, that she couldn't remember life without him. He had taught her so much about love—she had known nothing about being concerned and caring for another human being—and she had just thrown that all away. But she was so… tired. Every day was another battle between the two of them, and she found herself beginning to resent his cowardly behaviors when they were out in the field. When she had first met him, he seemed so confident and brave… fearless almost. But as time drew on, he began to use her more as a shield to hide himself from his enemies… and even the world. And she couldn't be a shield any longer. But could she be alone again?

An explosion suddenly rocked her back into reality. She quickly wiped away the tears in her eyes and looked over her right shoulder. Behind her were Bowser and two of his sons, Ludwig and Roy, each one driving his own airborne vehicle. Ludwig cackled his maniacal cackle and tossed his magic wand forward, launching another blast of dark magic at the Jade Speedster's back tire. Luca swerved the motorbike hard to the right and jammed the accelerator, but it was already at its max.

"Youse can't run from us forever, Luca!" Roy taunted from behind her, his voice echoing in the darkness around her. "Give up and give King Dad the Chaos Essence… don't make us get rough with youse!"

She narrowed her eyes and popped a wheelie, giving her some added speed. Another explosion rocked the earth beneath her back tire, and she lost control. The motorbike threw her into the air and she crashed into—and through—a tree. She tumbled along the ground and slid to a stop some ten yards from the crash site. She weakly lifted her head as Bowser and his two sons jumped down to the ground in front of her.

"Didn't I tell you I was going to keep coming back for your Essence?" Bowser chuckled in a deep, rumbling voice. "But this time I brought some… let's call them 'insurance,' shall we?"

"Pathetic," she spat while staggering to her feet. Her hair was extremely mussed, her blood-red ponytail nearly coming completely undone. She wiped away some blood that was on her cheek and stood as tall as she could. "You had to resort to your kids to come after me… and I'm alone." She, too, managed a cocky laugh. "But don't think I'm going to give into you that easily. When have I ever?"

"Three on one is hardly an even match," Ludwig interjected into the conversation, his dark eyes glistening wildly. He licked his fangs maliciously. "Especially when that one is a weak little girl…"

"Yeah," Roy agreed. "Now be a good girl and hand over the Essence, and maybe we won't hafta rough ya up so bad."

"Without Jim or Daniel to back you up," Bowser said with an arrogant smirk, "you're sure to fall. And we wouldn't want you to worry your precious boyfriend by having you captured, now would we?"

"I won't be captured," she responded, becoming airborne as her powers took charge. "Count on it!"

Three sets of dark magic flew at her at once, and she managed to evade. She thought about using her Twin Bond to contact Phil telepathically and request help… but she immediately tossed that thought aside. What good would he do for her if he hid behind her again? Then again, he could call Jim and Daniel…

Another blast knocked her back into reality again. This one made contact, and she spiraled down to the ground below. The second struck her just before she hit the dirt, launching her towards another tree. Right before she made contact with the tree, the third beam of dark energy engulfed her in a blast of crimson lightning. She cried out in distress and pain, falling to the ground. She tried immediately to get up but found she had become paralyzed by the electric shock. What she thought was violent writhing was nothing more than pathetic twitching.

It was then that a voice hit her mind: Luca? Where are you? I get the feeling you're in trouble…

She was about to respond to her former lover's voice when Bowser grabbed her by the nape of her neck and picked her up. He brought her to eye level with himself and smirked viciously into her eyes.

"Gotcha now… girl." He turned to his sons and held her out. "Boys, today belongs to the Koopa Klan! After long, long last… we have captured the Chaos Essence!"

Phil opened his eyes and gasped hard—was what he just saw in his mind a horrible nightmare? He tried to stop shivering and sat upright, holding the temples of his head in his hands. Even if it was a nightmare, he was "gifted" with Dream Sight—if he dreamt it, then it had or would come true. He looked around. The air was cool with a slight chilly nip, and strangely still. The sky was crystal clear… but something looked wrong with the stars. Their normally twinkling light had faded to a strangely dim flicker. And he felt it in his chest, heart, and stomach… something was dangerously wrong.

"Luca, where are you…" he said aloud to himself. He wished that with the next blink of his eyes, she would appear at his side. Or that her voice would come from behind him, and he'd turn around to see her walking up the hill to reconcile with him. "You're in danger; I can feel it in my heart…"

Help me, a woman's voice suddenly penetrated into the depths of his mind. He closed his eyes and could see her—a short of stature redheaded young woman. Her face was covered by matted locks of hair, but he knew it was her. She was unconscious and badly hurt. How could she be reaching out to him with such little strength?

What's happened to you, he asked of her. Where are you? I'll be right there to get you…

"That's what you think," an ominous, masculine voice came from behind him.

"Who's there?" Phil demanded, reaching instinctively for the sword at his side.

A Magikoopa on a broom flew overhead, giggling insidiously… mockingly. "My name is Kamek! Hear me, Crossover Philip! I come as a messenger of the great King Bowser—future dictator of the entire planet!"

"Entire planet…? What are you on about?" Phil demanded.

"Hee hee hee!" Kamek laughed wildly, as if someone were tickling him to death. "It pleases me to announce that the Chaos Essence is finally in King Bowser's possession!"

"Luca…" Phil gasped. I knew it, he thought dismally to himself. I shouldn't have let her go alone… Because of me, she's been caught…

"We are harnessing the Essence's true power even now! It won't be long before the world is overwhelmed with Chaos!" Kamek began flying away. "And we dare you to do something—anything—about it! You're too late this time, boy! The girl… and her Essence… are ours!" His voice echoed into the night.

Phil stared into the nighttime sky. No wonder the stars seemed so dim and the air felt so still… there was a crisis brewing, and the world was trying to let him know. He felt his body began to quake violently, and he nearly lost his footing due to his own intense emotions. He began running for all he was worth towards Star Town… towards his newfound family…

Towards anyone who could help…

He arrived at the largest house in Star Town just ten minutes from his private retreat—a personal record for him that he was currently uninterested in. He burst through the front door, startling Aiden and the boy's older brother, who were watching television in the living room.

"Phil," Aiden said with concern, "why are you so pale? You look like you've seen a flock of Boos…"

Phil ignored the little boy and stormed into the kitchen, where Danielle was preparing dinner. "Danielle!" He cried out.

"What is it, honey? You look sick," Danielle turned to him, looking worried.

"It's Luca… Bowser… he…"

Even though his sentences were fragmented, Danielle understood perfectly. "The Chaos Essence is in Bowser's possession?"

Unable to answer in words, Phil nodded, looking panicked. His blue eyes were wild with fright.

"I'll go alert my mother at the castle. You find Jim and Daniel and inform them of what's going on. They should be nearby." Danielle quickly ran out of the house to alert her mother—the revered Princess Peach Toadstool—of the impending crisis.

Phil simply stood there, his head swirling with a multitude of thoughts that each demanded his immediate and complete attention. Luca's safety… what she had said to him the last time he saw her… why didn't he chase her down? Why did he let her go alone?

"Dude, what's going on?" A teenager's voice shattered Phil's concentration. He turned around to see Daniel standing there, hands on his hips. "Jim and I just saw Mama run out of here like the place is about to go up in flames… said to talk to you."

"Luca was kidnapped by Bowser," Phil explained as best he could, but his throat felt like it was closing up on him. "I let her go off alone, and he managed to capture her… He's got the Chaos Essence…"

Jim and Daniel both declared in brotherly unison, "You're kidding me?"

Phil gravely shook his head. "I wish I could say I was, but this is no joke…"

"We need to get to Shooting Star Summit," Daniel finally said after a moment, ever the leader. "We can summon the Star Spirits to tell us more… surely they know more…"

Phil quivered. "What are we going to do if we can't save her in time?"

Jim ran a shaking hand through his light red hair and stared the older male in the eye. "Pray to the Stars that we can survive Chaos' reign."