A/N: I'm currently participating in a college-wide trivia contest and am slightly jacked up on caffeine, so I thought I might as well post the next part of the story. :D Yep, my paper due tomorrow is clearly my third and last priority.

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Mt. Tourmaline

9:50 pm

Near the very top of the mountain, the air was cold and biting and the ground was covered in snow. There was no noise except for the whistling of the wind, and there was no movement at all.

Momentarily, though, the stillness was broken by three clouds of smoke billowing up from out of nowhere. Three dark creatures appeared and skittered over to each other.

"What's the news, you two?" Jaff hissed. "Has Mario been taken care of yet?"

"Uh, I'm afraid not," Pell said reluctantly. "My source says Mario's already reached Pebblegem Village, and so have all his friends."

Jaff clenched his fists in frustration. "What?! He's still alive? How many rockslides do we have to cause to stop him? This is preposterous!"

"What should we do?" Nobb asked dumbly.

"Keep trying, of course. He's not the only one who can warp between Day and Night at will. We'll have an edge on him… though at this point, it may be wise to have a backup plan."

"Backup plan? Like what?" Pell demanded.

In response, Jaff grew a sinister grin and pointed a clawed finger up toward the very summit of Mt. Tourmaline.

"If we can't stop Mario," he said, "maybe our friend up there will do it for us."

––

Pebblegem Village

9:00 pm

"Stubba! Get back over here!!" Hanner cried in alarm, and the little Clubba instantly obeyed, scrambling behind her and hiding.

"What the heck?! You three freaks again?" Goomblaine snarled at the Putrid Piranhas. "What are you doing up here?"

"HYUCK YUCK YUCK!" cackled the center one. "WE TOLD MARIO WE WOULD BE BACK! MARIO CAN'T BEAT US SO EASY!"

Not for the first time on this adventure, Mario was completely confused. Why on earth did these three Piranhas want him so badly that they came all the way up here?

"Why did you follow us all the way here?" he demanded.

"MAMA TOLD US TO!" replied the one on the right. "MAMA WANTS TO MEET MARIO THIS TIME!"

Mario furrowed his brow. "'Mama'? …Who's Mama?"

"That would be me," came a voice from high above their heads.

Mario and his partners all looked up. Suddenly, a shadowy figure that had been standing unseen on a high rocky ledge came leaping down. It bounced off the head of the center Piranha and landed gracefully in front of them. Mario stared.

He and the others now found themselves looking at a middle-aged Crazee Dayzee. Her petals were a dark purple color, and she had a large amount of makeup and long eyelashes over her perpetually droopy eyes. She seemed to have a beauty mark on the side of her face.

"So, Mario," she said smugly, unaffected by the baffled looks she was getting from the foursome. "I've been watching you for some time now. Consider it your honor to make my acquaintance."

"Wait a sec – you're the one controlling those Putrid Piranhas?" Mario demanded. "So you sent them after us in Fleet Forest? Just who are you, anyway?!"

"Who am I?" she repeated. "Well, I suppose you deserve to know the name of the person who's going to defeat you."

She gestured at the Piranhas groveling behind her. "My pets call me Mama. My friends call me Maizee. You may call me Miss Maizee."

Goomblaine snorted. "Like you've got any friends."

"Mario, I've heard that you are on a mission to recover the Sun Souls," Maizee went on. "I'm afraid I can't let you do that any longer."

"Ex-cuse me?!" Hanner cried, sounding as shocked as Mario felt. "How do you know about the Sun Souls? Are you working for King Shroude too?!"

Maizee narrowed her eyes at Hanner. "Who? I don't even know who that is, you silly girl. I work for no one but myself." She folded her arms. "I need the Sun Souls for my own personal use. How I found out about them is really none of your business."

Mario glowered at her, unconsciously tightening the grip on his hammer. "If you really knew about the Sun Souls," he accused her, "you'd know they belong with the Guardians. You can't just hoard them to yourself. Who do you think you are?"

"That's quite enough out of you," Maizee snapped, clearly through with this conversation. "Mario, you may have found my pets easy to defeat last time, but this time I think you'll be in for quite a challenge."

"Oh, sure, sick your little pets on us!" Goomblaine snarled at her. "What are you, scared of getting your hands dirty? Why don't you fight us yourself?!"

"Why on earth would I waste my time fighting you myself, when these fellows will deal with you in record speed?" Maizee stepped backward to face her pets. "Now, you three. Take care of Mario and his friends. And make sure you win this time."

Without any further warning, the Piranhas dived underground and resurfaced directly in front of Mario and the others, and the fight was on.

"Not this again," Mario groaned as he immediately used a Power Smash on the Piranha in front of him. It didn't look too fazed, though, and Mario was caught off guard when it took a ferocious chomp out of him.

"Yeowch!" he cried, stumbling backwards. "I don't remember them being so tough…"

Hanner was having a similar problem. She was hurling hammers with all her might, but the Piranha taking the blows was shaking them off like they were nothing. It spat an enormous glob of toxic sludge at her, and she screamed and just barely ducked out of the way in time.

"Is it just me, or are these things stronger than before?" she fretted.

"Oh yes, and their poison is much more potent too," Maizee said matter-of-factly from the sidelines.

"Wonderful! Just wonderful!" Mario growled.

"Don't worry, Mario! I'll help!" Stubba shouted, sounding frightened but determined as he raced forward.

Mario turned to him in shock. "Stubba? Wait, don't!!"

He was too late to stop him, though, and could only watch as Stubba unleashed his Club attack on the third Piranha. He pounded it over the head with his club multiple times, adding up to a decent amount of damage. The Piranha recoiled in obvious pain.

Mario stared. "Wow. He really is a strong little guy."

When the Piranha tried to lunge at him, Stubba screamed and ran a safe distance away.

"…Though he is still just a kid."

"Mario, we gotta end this fast!" Hanner alerted him as the two of them continued to face off against their respective foes. Mario couldn't have agreed more. They might actually lose this time, even with an extra team member.

He turned to his first partner. "Goomblaine, you're the strongest one right now! You have to get in there!"

"I can't Headbonk those things, stupid! Notice the teeth?"

"I'll lure it down here so you can hit it safely. Just please do this!"

Goomblaine rolled his eyes as Mario ran directly underneath the Piranha, swinging his hammer at it and taunting it.

"Come and get me, you big ugly set of teeth!"

Thankfully the Piranha wasn't too bright, as the plan worked like a charm. As Mario leapt backwards it crouched down and shot its head forward, snapping its jaws at him.

"Now, Goomblaine!"

To his relief, the Goomba did like he was told and threw himself at the Piranha's exposed head, jumping on it again and again. Mario realized he was using Multibonk for the first time.

"That's terrific, Goomblaine!"

"Yeah, whatever."

Goomblaine's superpowered hit was obviously too much for the Piranha to handle, as it let out a loud whimper before crashing to the ground. On either side of them, Hanner and Stubba had finally come out on top as well. The little Clubba was letting out a thunderous cry and whacking his Piranha with all his might, and finally the poisonous plant wilted and flopped over.

"This is for last time!" Hanner growled at the last one, whacking it directly across the face with her hammer. It, too, fell over in defeat, and Hanner cheered and twirled her hammer around in a victory pose.

"Hah! How d'ya like that?" Goomblaine sneered at Maizee.

"Yeah! We beat your stupid pets again!" Hanner chimed in mockingly. Stubba just stuck out his tongue.

"So you did," Maizee remarked as she casually observed her badly beaten Piranhas lying on the ground. "Well, Mario, you're as strong as they say and more. But I promise you, the next time we meet, you will be beaten."

"Oh, come on!" Mario shouted at her. "Can't you just accept that we're stronger and leave us alone? You'll never get those Sun Souls anyway!"

"That's where you're wrong. The Sun Souls will be mine, and neither you nor anyone else will get in my way."

She walked over to the center Piranha and climbed on its head. "You three! We're going! Now!"

And all three of them burrowed into the ground, pulling Maizee down with them.

"…What a freak," Goomblaine muttered after a moment of silence.

"Goomblaine, you say that about everybody," Hanner sighed. "But, yes, I agree. She was a freak."

Stubba seemed to be pondering something, and then he suddenly turned to look up at Mario.

"Mario? How come she said she wanted the Sun Souls? What are those?"

Mario looked back down at him and frowned reluctantly. He wished he didn't have to tell Stubba such a terrible story.

But he'd need to find out about the Sun Souls sooner or later. The one on top of the mountain belonged to him.

"I'll tell you as we go, Stubba," he decided. "Right now, I feel like we need get to the top of the mountain as fast as we can."

"Tell me about it!" Hanner cried. "Seems like everybody's after that Sun Soul! This is suddenly more like a race than a tour."

"Just one thing, geniuses," Goomblaine cut in. "We still don't know how to get up there! Wasn't that the whole point of coming to this dump in the first place?"

Mario deflated. "Oh, right…"

Hanner suddenly grew a smug look on her face. "Oh, yeah, about that…"

She suddenly pulled out a rolled-up piece of paper from inside her shell. As she unfurled it, Mario and the others found themselves looking at a large, detailed map of Mt. Tourmaline.

"I may have, uh, 'borrowed' this from Clefford after he passed out," she joked.

––

Mt. Tourmaline

9:03 pm

With the help of their ill-gotten map, Mario and company quickly found the trail that led away from Pebblegem Village. Stubba sadly looked back at it as they began the second half of the long climb. He wondered why he couldn't just stay at home with his nana where it was safe. Mario had carefully told him that they needed to rescue the Sun Soul at the top of the mountain, and they absolutely needed Stubba's help to do it. So he'd come with them, of course. He'd do anything Mario told him to, as long as it made the plumber happy.

Mario was cautiously treading up the trail, wary of any hazards he might not notice in the dark, when suddenly he heard voices behind him.

"Stubba, what's the matter?"

He stopped and turned around. Goomblaine had already gone far ahead, but hanging back were Hanner and Stubba. He was probably too far away for them to notice him.

"Nothing, Hanner. But I'm kinda scared."

Hanner smiled encouragingly. "That's okay, Stubba. We're all here for you. You know, you were really brave against those Putrid Piranhas."

"Yeah," the Clubba agreed. "I was really scared, but I wanted to fight them anyway. 'Cause I thought then, maybe Mario would like me."

Hanner blinked at him. "You think Mario doesn't like you?"

Oh, no, Mario groaned guiltily to himself.

Stubba shook his head. "I dunno why. Maybe it's just 'cause I'm so little. But I think he likes you a lot better, Hanner."

Mario sighed deeply. He didn't realize he'd been acting so harshly that even Stubba had noticed. He couldn't afford to have the little Clubba be angry at him. How bad would it look if he were only on good terms with one of his three partners?

"Stubba, don't be silly. Of course Mario likes you," Hanner assured him, crouching down next to him. "You don't have to run off into a fight like that to prove yourself to him. He's just glad to have you with us."

"Really?" Stubba didn't sound at all convinced.

"Yeah. But even if he didn't like you, you should never let little things like that get to you. People who dislike you for no reason aren't worth your time."

That just made Stubba more anxious. "But what if he does have a reason? Did I do something bad?"

"What? Of course not! Stubba, you have to stop worrying. You could never do anything to make Mario not like you. There's not one thing about you not to like. Anyway, I think you're adorable."

Stubba beamed up at her. "D'you really?"

"Hey, guys, you might wanna get over here," Goomblaine's voice suddenly came from further up the trail. "I think I found another one of those star things."

"Huh?" Snapping his attention away from Hanner and Stubba, Mario spun around and raced up the trail to where Goomblaine was waiting. The Goomba gestured into a little cave where, suddenly, Mario noticed another set of glittering sparkles floating in the air.

"Thanks, Goomblaine. This is great." He turned sideways, and sure enough, there was another Luma hovering there and looking frightened.

"We haven't gone too far from the village yet," Mario told Goomblaine as he took the star in his hands. "We should bring this guy back right now."

––

Pebblegem Village

9:00 pm

"Oh, oh, oh!" cried the Luma as the group approached the Star Pedestal. "Is that what I think it is, good sir?"

"Yep. You can go home now," Mario assured the little star, placing it on top of the pedestal where it began spinning around and laughing in delight.

"Oh, this is most wonderful! You truly have no idea!" it cheered. "And I must repay you somehow! If you would like, I will add power to one of your friends before I go."

"Okay, Hanner, looks like it's your turn," said Mario. The Hammer Sis positively beamed and looked ready to take a step forward… but after a moment, she hesitated and suddenly drew back.

"Uh, Mario," she said reluctantly, "thanks for that, but… I think Stubba should get this one."

Mario looked at her in surprise, and so did Stubba.

"Are you sure about that, Hanner?" asked the plumber. "I thought you really wanted this."

"Oh, I do! It's just… I think Stubba needs it more than I do. I mean, this is his home, and we're looking for his parents and everything."

Mario got the feeling that wasn't her only reason, though.

"Oh, really, Hanner?" asked Stubba, his eyes shining with hope.

"Yeah. You get this one, little guy."

Stubba cheered and raced over to the Star Pedestal. The Luma began twirling around rapidly, and a shower of sparkles fell over the little Clubba. He started giggling as he was enveloped by a brief flash.

Stubba was upgraded to Super Rank! He can now use Hyper Bounce to slam into all enemies multiple times!

"Now what do you say to Hanner, Stubba?" Mario prompted him as the Luma flew out of sight.

"Thank you, Hanner," the Clubba recited.

Mario nodded. "You'll get the next one, Hanner," he promised her.

"Yeah, I s'pose," she agreed with a shrug, trying not to look jealous.

––

After that, the journey up the rest of the mountain truly got under way. Mario and his partners plowed their way up the steep trail, continuing to fight off the indigenous enemies that populated the mountain, but it would have been a lie to say it was easy going. As they climbed higher and higher, the path became rockier and more precipitous. Stubba often had to use his club to destroy rocks that were blocking off the trail.

Not only that, but they higher they went, the colder it became.

Mt. Tourmaline

9:42 pm

"I d-d-don't r-r-really like it up here," Hanner said with a shiver, hugging herself. It had been another long, weary day of hiking. Pebblegem Village already seemed like a distant memory, and by now they were high enough that the ground was covered in a thin layer of snow and flakes were falling down from the sky.

"We have to keep going, you guys," Mario pressed. "Remember, Clefford's going after the Sun Soul right now. Well, I mean… not now now, but in the morning now. You get it."

"How come we don't want him to get it?" asked Stubba, clearly fighting back exhaustion as he trudged along.

"Because it doesn't belong to him."

"Who does it belong to?"

"It belongs to – " Mario quickly cut himself off. He looked down at Stubba, who was gazing expectantly back up at him.

He couldn't tell him the truth… not yet. He just wasn't old enough to handle this.

"It belongs to one of the Twelve Guardians. You've heard of them, right?"

"Oh, yeah! Of course I have!" Stubba's eyes lit up in excitement. "D'you mean we're gonna give it back to them? Are we actually gonna get to meet one of them?"

"Yeah… I think we are," said Mario, smiling ever so slightly.

The smile quickly fell from his face, though, when he heard a rustling sound coming from farther up the trail.

He frowned. "Get back, you guys," he muttered, pushing his three partners underneath a rocky ledge to their left. It was dark out enough that the ledge cast a shadow over them that completely obscured them from sight.

Mario silently and intently watched in the direction of the noise, and was completely shocked when he saw three dark blue figures come skittering over to each other.

"Them again?" he whispered incredulously.

"Oh man… those are those Darkstriders, aren't they Mario?" Hanner asked softly.

"Just when I thought this couldn't get any worse," Goomblaine griped.

"So, is everything ready now?" asked Jaff. "Does our friend up there know about Mario's intrusion?"

"Oh, yes. Mario's not gettin' out of there in once piece," Nobb said with a low laugh. "But hey, Jaff, what about that Cleft that's coming up the mountain too?"

"Oh, please. That buffoon doesn't even need our help to get himself killed. But if he does make it, nothing says our friend can't take care of him too."

Stubba started whimpering nervously.

"Who'd be friends with those weirdos?" Hanner wondered.

"Hey, Jaff! I just thought of somethin'," Pell chimed in. "Mario's pretty strong, y'know. Suppose he gets in a fight with that thing and wins?"

"He's not going to get in any fight. When he gets up there, he'll have no choice but to surrender to us and let our friend deal with him," growled the leader of the Darkstriders. "That is, assuming he doesn't want anything bad to happen to our hostages."

Hostages? Mario wondered. But it can't be Clefford and the others. He said they're still out there –

He froze. Oh no. It must be –

"What a bleeding heart he must be," Pell scoffed. "Who cares what happens to a couple of plain old Clubbas anyway?"

Hanner and Goomblaine gasped.

"MOMMY!! DADDY!!" Stubba cried.

Before Mario could even clamp his hand over Stubba's mouth, the Darkstriders had whipped around in their direction, and Jaff had leapt over to them and dragged the screaming Clubba out of the shadows.

"So! We got us a little junior spy, huh?"

"Let go of Stubba!!" Hanner shouted, charging out after them with Mario and Goomblaine at her heels.

"Don't hurt my mom an' dad, please!!" Stubba sobbed, though whether it was in fright or in pain from Jaff's grip on his arm, Mario wasn't sure.

By now, Pell and Nobb had scampered over to them as well. "Oh, great! Mario's here too!" Nobb growled in annoyance. "You want we should take care of him, Jaff?"

"Don't be stupid! Goomblaine and I beat you the first time, and there's four of us now!" Mario snapped, gripping his hammer just in case.

To his surprise, though, Jaff just narrowed his eyes at him. "He's right," he declared. "We didn't come here to fight him ourselves. Let's just see how they like another one of our little rockslides. If they survive that, maybe they're worthy enough to meet our friend."

Goomblaine looked ready to tear their heads off. "You caused all those rockslides?! You creeps nearly flattened us!"

"That is just down and dirty!" Hanner said angrily.

"Darkstriders don't play fair!" Jaff spat at her. "Pell! Nobb! You know what to do!"

He dumped Stubba on the ground, and all three of them suddenly vanished within a billow of black smoke that rose up from the ground.

"Where'd they go?" Goomblaine growled, looking around in irritation.

Mario didn't get time to ponder the answer to that. All of a sudden, the ground began to shake and tremble dangerously beneath their feet, and a loud rumbling noise slowly escalated from above their heads.

"Mario?" Stubba cried in fear, running over and clinging onto him.

"Not this again!" Hanner wailed. Panicking, Mario looked up in time to see a cascade of boulders rolling down the mountain. He had no time to wonder about how the Darkstriders had made it happen so quickly. They were going to be crushed in a matter of seconds.

"Get over here, guys! I have a plan!" he shouted over the crashing and rumbling. It was a desperate plan, but it was their best hope. Between Clefford and an imminent flattening, he knew which one he'd rather deal with.

Obediently, all three partners crowded in close to him, and Mario whipped out the Aeon Hourglass and flipped it over. They vanished in a flash, and an enormous jagged boulder crashed into the ground where they had been standing just an instant before.

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A/N: Next time, the climactic race between Mario and Clefford for the fate of the Sun Soul! Who will win?!? …Like you don't already know.