Chapter Three
Green eyes opened slowly, assaulted by a blinding white light. They squinted and then closed tightly beneath the sun-like brightness. She turned her head to the side, a few strands of loose red hair falling into her face, tickling her nose. She went to scratch her face with her left hand—but her arm was fastened down tight by something cold and metallic. She attempted to move her right arm and received the same results. Her legs, too, were immovable. She opened her eyes again and looked down her body—she was locked down to her makeshift bed by metal plates and chains.
"I've taken away your power container," a menacing voice growled from behind her. "So don't even bother trying to escape."
"Who are you? Where am I?" She demanded quickly, struggling uselessly against her restraints.
"My middle child, my son Iggy," Bowser announced as he walked into the room.
Iggy turned the light away from her, allowing her to finally be able to see. He was a rather frail but maniacal-looking Koopa with wild rainbow hair and extremely thick glasses. "I do a lot of the research for my father, you see," he explained in a soft, nearly timid voice. "And I'm currently researching you. Well… more, the Chaos Essence within you."
"Besides Ludwig, Iggy is my smartest child," Bowser beamed with pride, if only for a second. "Now then, son, what have you discovered about the Essence so far?"
"It seems as though the Essence is locked away within the deepest parts of her heart," Iggy elaborated. "It's rather odd, being that she's the Unpure Essence. It'll take quite a bit of work to get it out of her… there's a chance that she doesn't survive the extraction."
Bowser's dark eyes lit up like a child receiving what he wanted for his birthday. "Is that so? Excellent! What do we have to do to begin the extraction process? I want to get started on it right away."
"Well, King Dad," Iggy walked over to a large computer and pushed up his glasses, typing onto a nearly gigantic keyboard. The machine beeped and whirred for a minute, and what appeared to be a highly sophisticated image of Luca's body showed up on the screen. "We'll need to convert her first, so that she is a Pure Essence once more… only we shall make her purity of evil rather than good. It's going to be challenging, but it can be done. We just have to bombard her heart with dark magic until she is swayed. But once she is to our side, then she should willingly hand over the Essence."
"But what if she refuses even after becoming evil?" Bowser questioned. "Look at her magical potential—she could realize that she is the most powerful evil being around and decide to make her own way."
"You doubt my looking at all the channels, King Dad?" Iggy smirked maniacally, holding out a syringe with a thick, red substance in it. "I had Ludwig whip this up for me a little while ago. It's a brainwashing serum which will give the first person she sees temporary—but complete—control over her until the effects wear off or she faints. However, this is where the risk of her demise comes in… this serum is rather unstable in humans, you see… but we can use her to perfect the serum on humans so maybe we can capture the 'heroes' and convert them as well."
"Excellent idea, my son," Bowser said with a laugh. "She's turned out to be quite useful to us in her capture, hasn't she?" He walked over to her and ran a claw along the side of Luca's face. "Yes, you have," he murmured as if speaking to a beloved pet.
"Don't think you're going to succeed with this," Luca spat angrily. "I'll never be swayed."
"We'll see just how strong your will is momentarily, girl." Bowser replied easily. "Iggy! Begin the bombardment process. Call me if there are any problems."
"Yes sir, King Dad." Iggy nodded and bowed at his father, who turned and left the room. Iggy stood upright once more and turned to his experimental guinea pig. "Now then…"
"So that's it, then," Luca growled, ever rebellious. "You're just going to use me as a test dummy and then throw my body away when you've managed to kill me…" Iggy seemed to flinch and hesitate, and she noticed. "…You don't want to destroy me, do you?"
Iggy sighed heavily and looked quite dejected. "King Dad expects us kids to do his bidding at his every whim… and if we refuse, we are grounded by imprisonment in the dungeon. He actually threatened me with death if I did not do his wish. I'm not really the type who enjoys the suffering of others—even if they are meant to be my enemies. So I'm sorry for what I must do to you."
"You have a heart, then," she gently responded. "And a mind of your own."
"That could be my downfall, Luca." Iggy turned towards the machine again. "Now then, before I let you talk me into doing something stupid, I'm beginning the bombardment."
"Wait!" Luca cried. "Iggy, listen… what if… what if instead of the bombardment, I offer up the Chaos Essence? And in return, you find a way to spare my life."
Iggy winced. "I mustn't listen to you. What if you double-cross me?"
"My life is at stake here," she replied. "How could I double-cross you if I haven't got my powers and I'm chained down to a platform? Iggy, look at me." When he turned around, she looked him directly in his blue eyes. "Please, Iggy."
Iggy stepped back and closed his eyes. "I will see what I can do…"
Luca nodded her head.
Iggy reopened his eyes, looking wild and maniacal. "But first I must ensure that you are not to double-cross me…" He threw a lever. "Let the bombardment begin!"
Immediately a powerful beam of dark energy shot itself through the trapped young woman, who began to scream with agony and writhe against her restraints in futility. Iggy's laughter echoed over her cries.
The three young men made it to the very top of Shooting Star Summit, a beautiful and mysterious mesa located just beyond Princess Peach's castle. Shooting stars rained down from the heavens in this place, giving the ground a very powerful and mystical energy that even those who were not magically-inclined could sense and respond to it. The three stood in the center of the large plateau, looking up towards the dark, starry sky above.
"We wish to speak with Eldstar," Daniel announced to the sky above. "Please grant our wish and give us permission."
The sky suddenly turned bright around the three of them and hoisted them up off the ground and high into the sky. The ground slowly became smaller and smaller until it was nearly out of sight—Phil felt like he could reach out and touch the stars. They landed on a cloud.
Eldstar and the other Star Spirits wish to speak with you, a voice echoed as if from nowhere and everywhere. Please make haste to the Star Sanctuary.
"Awesome," Daniel said with an enthusiastic pump of his fist. "We're in."
"Let's hurry," Jim added.
"Please," Phil nodded, beginning to walk on ahead. Before it's too late…
The city in which the Stars resided was a beautiful and bustling skyward town in which the only inhabitants were, in fact, the stars themselves. Star Kids played and chased one another until they saw the three humans. It was so rare to have human visitors that the Star Kids took to hiding immediately—a few braver children curiously hovered at arm's length from the three males and twinkled timidly at them.
"It's okay," Daniel tried to reassure them. "We're the heroes from the world below. We're not here to cause you any harm."
The Star Kids began to giggle and fly closer to the boys now, occasionally brushing an arm, leg, or hair. The three continued on until they reached a large, magnificent structure to the very east of the town. This was Star Sanctuary, home to the seven Star Spirits. As they entered the building, Phil felt a strange pain in his heart that caused him to grasp his chest and cough a few times. He shook it off as stress and followed the brothers.
"Greetings," Eldstar announced as he flew down off his altar. "Welcome to Star Sanctuary. I wish we were meeting on more enjoyable times, but there is a terrible crisis afoot."
The three humans nodded.
"As it appears, the Chaos Essence has fallen into Bowser's possession," Eldstar began. "This is very dangerous, as the Chaos Essence is in Unpure hands and could be manipulated towards the side of evil. Even as we speak, Bowser is doing all he can to persuade Lucafira towards darkness and towards surrendering the Chaos Essence."
"What if she doesn't surrender?" Phil blurted out, temporarily forgetting all signs of respect in the presence of such revered royalty. He blushed. "I… I'm sorry…"
"Quite alright," Eldstar said with a small smile. But his expression returned to its grave appearance. "If she doesn't surrender the Essence, it is likely that Bowser will find a way to suppress her life force until he gets what he wants. Lucafira must be alive until the Chaos Essence is removed from her body… after that, all bets are off."
"What happens if the Chaos Essence does get to Bowser's possession?" Daniel asked. "What happens to the world then?"
"The Chaos Essence is a tricky Essence to understand, boys," Eldstar warned. "It can be swayed to be good or evil, depending on the heart of the person that contains it. However, its purity was marred by Lucafira's Unpure heart, and therefore there was always this chance that evil could get its hands on it… Dark Land and all evil forces have sought the Chaos Essence for many eons… ever since time began, as a matter of fact.
"If a good-hearted person wields the Chaos Essence, then the world remains in balance and no matter how much evil may try, it will never succeed in its attempts at world domination… However, if a dark-heart person holds the Essence, the world and all its inhabitants become unsteady and volatile. There's no telling what could happen to the world if Bowser gains control of the Essence—Chaos will be his whim to control."
Phil suddenly began to feel his body growing weak and a strange, malevolent force was brewing in his heart… what was happening? He fell to his knees.
"Phil, are you alright?" Jim asked, immediately rushing to his friend's side.
"I don't… feel right…" Phil stuttered. "I feel… tired… weak… but evil…" He looked into his friend's eyes. "Is this… what is happening… to Luca?"
"I'm afraid so," Eldstar said dismally. "Your Twin Bond keeps you connected to her so long as she is alive… and allows you to feel everything she is feeling. It also informs you of where is located—"
"Wait a minute," Daniel interrupted. "My apologies, Eldstar, but Phil here can track Luca down to where she is being held?"
"Indeed, young Daniel. My suggestion to you is to make haste to where she is being held captive and rescue her before Bowser's plans to obtain the Essence are fulfilled. If you do not make it in time, the whole world may suffer…"
"How do I… make this pain… go away?" Phil coughed.
"You must learn to harness control of the Twin Bond and its power," Eldstar explained. "Only then will you be able to control how much of what she is feeling channels through to you." He flew back up to his podium. "Hurry now, boys. The fate of the world is in your hands…"