A/N: Finally, we're getting an important cutscene in this chapter! Read to find out!
But before we start, I would like to thank everyone for 500+ views for Hidden Bravery!
My other note is that I would like to get more feedback from more than one person. (Thanks again, Steel Magic!) I want to know if anyone else likes where the story is going. So I encourage you to leave a review, as well as to follow/favorite the story. Sorry if I sound desperate, but I would appreciate it!
Disclaimer: I don't own rights or the characters to Mario and Sonic as they belong to Nintendo and Sega, respectively.
Chapter 7: Ghastly Ambush
Location: Bowser's Castle
As the Koopa King sat in his throne, his army was fully prepared. Cannons were filled with ammunition, the troops took their positions, and the Koopalings prepared for takeoff. It was that time… again… for Bowser to attack the Mushroom Kingdom and capture Princess Peach.
"GWAHAHAHA! Excellent work, my minions! Now that we're set up, we can finally ambush those stupid bros. and take my beautiful soon-to-be bride for good!" Bowser sat up from his throne and headed towards his own aircraft.
"Finally! Now we can get some action going!" Jr. rushed out of his seat and followed his father.
In the battle station room of the castle were eight airships, each with a large face attached the bow. (1) Seven of them were rightfully owned by the Koopalings: Larry, Ludwig, Wendy, Roy, Morton, Iggy, and Lemmy. The last one featured Bowser's intimidating icon. Bowser headed towards his own with Jr. right behind.
The young Koopa kid has his own airship, but with Bowser's insignia, but he's more used to his dad's Koopa Clown Car, a helicopter-like vehicle. Jr. couldn't care less as he admired the flying contraption. Why have an airship that's best for shooting cannonballs, Bob-ombs, and Bullet Bills when you can have a transportation device equipped with the same weapons, but also has missiles and lasers? (2)
"Dad!" Larry yelled from his airship. (3) "The airships are ready for launch!"
"All systems are good to go!" Iggy added.
"I'm so ready. Now let's get dis show on da road!" Roy roared back.
Morton, Lemmy, Wendy, and Ludwig were also prepared in their flying vehicles as Bowser stood tall on the deck of his. Bowser Jr. jumped inside the Clown Car and spun the propeller below to float in midair.
"Alright, kids! Time to set sail!" Bowser punched a large red button on the nearby wall which opened the humongous Bowser gate of the room. As his Koopa Troopa underlings hoisted up the anchor, the large turtle turned to his control panel and began powering up the propellers. After a matter of seconds, they spun rapidly and lifted up the large vehicle. Bowser set forth for the door with his Koopalings following behind.
Behind the airships were a fleet of Paratroopas. Below them was the army of Hammer Bros., Dry Bones, and the rest of Bowser's minions who were following behind Kamek, a trusted Magikoopa associate to Bowser, flying on his broomstick with a magic wand held in his right claw. (4) They slowly marched out of the boundaries of Dark Land as they have a long trek towards the Mushroom Kingdom grounds.
Bowser grinned evilly, thinking about how he's ready to destroy his arch enemies once and for all. Everything seemed to fall in place in his favor… Well, seemed to…
Location: Evershade Valley
Just as Bowser's army departed to Peach's Castle, another ambush was starting. Across the country, far from the Mushroom Kingdom, was the ghostly region of where Luigi's Dark Moon quest took place: Evershade Valley.
The inhabitants were the cheeky, yet amiable ghosts who lived in peace and harmony together, that is when the Dark Moon is shining bright above as a whole in the dark sky. Dating back to Luigi's adventure, King Boo managed to destroy the purple celestial body from the sky which caused all of the ghosts to turn into hostile, dangerous creatures under the ruler's control, which is far different than their normal hospitable manner. But thanks to the green plumber, he recovered the broken Dark Moon pieces, defeated his arch-rival, saved his brother a second time from a painting, and restored the ghosts back to normal.
The main inhabitants were the Greenies who, as the name implies, are green ghosts that helped Professor E. Gadd with his inventions and research on paranormal activities. Other ghastly species include Slammers, Sneakers, Gobbers, Possessors, and more. Most of the ghosts were busy, cleaning out the professor's secondary bunker, and the five mansions located in the vicinity. The other mischievous ghouls were either playing with frisbees, having a feast, maintaining the gardens, or just watching the view with the Dark Moon shining down with its aura. Everything was peaceful for the residents, until a disturbing presence entered the valley.
A Greenie, relaxing outside on the porch of the Gloomy Manor, was relaxing in his wooden chair as he began to sense something strange. Curious, he floated out to the front gate to investigate. Soon, he felt a disruption as a chill went down his spine (theoretically speaking). He looked up to where the Dark Moon was. From below, the Greenie spotted an entity hovering towards the purple crescent. The figure then pulled out his dark staff and began charging its energy. With its eyes widened, the Greenie knew what the figure was doing. Instinctively, he rushed away from the scene as quickly as he could, leaving Evershade Valley in panic mode.
By the time the ghost retreated, the monster let off a huge beam of light towards the Dark Moon, causing the object to shake vigorously in the sky. The rest of the ghosts who were outside of the mansions noticed the dark energy and turned full attention to the moon. Before they could even react, the Dark Moon shattered into six fragments, yet again, and dispersed throughout the dark realm. Just like before, the ghosts then lost their pupils and acted aggressive. The ghouls inside were also affected by the collapse of the Dark Moon and started tearing up the interior of the buildings.
Knowing that the next phase of his plan was complete, the dark figure descended to the front of Gloomy Manor. He saw a horde of Greenies, a couple of Slammers, and a few Sneakers messing around with one another. He wielded his staff and banged it on the ground causing a small shockwave that got the ghouls' attention.
The monster approached the group immediately. "So, how are you all doing this fine evening?" None of the ghosts responded back.
"Well no matter. This is what's going on," he continued. "You all work for me now. And for your first task, I want you to rally up all of the ghosts that live in this region and report back to me. Then, I want you to find the pieces of the Dark Moon and take them to the Possessors. Make sure you keep them separate from each other, or there will be trouble. You understand?"
Without hesitation, the ghouls nodded back.
"Perfect. Now begone and obey what I just commanded you!" The ghosts then departed to scour through Evershade and inside the mansions to find the remaining residents who were possessed under mind control. The evil figure then chuckled evilly with a smirk on his face. "Hehehe, it's all coming together now. With all of the ghosts under my control, I'll be another step closer to the end of all worlds."
Location: Peach's Castle
While the green plumber and his friends continued to chat at the table, the guys heard the kitchen doors flew open. The DJ managed to stop the background music in time.
"Surprise!" Princess Peach and the others cheered as they brought out Luigi's birthday treat and the others were ecstatic at the sight.
It was a 4-tiered half vanilla, half chocolate cake with buttercream icing. Along the sides of each layer were green & blue stripes and decorative piping. Around the bottom cake was a pattern of candy pieces in the shape of the traditional Power Stars, Fire Flowers, and Super Acorns. At the top were a circle of candles surrounding a smiling, standing figurine of the birthday man with a message written in green icing which read "Happy Birthday, Luigi!"
"Mamma Mia! That's one big cake!" Mario exclaimed. He has had multiple occasions where Peach baked him cakes after rescuing her from Bowser. But the princess and her chefs went all out on the monstrosity which was nowhere close to the ones he had. He was slightly jealous, but that didn't stop him from craving the sweet dessert.
Sonic and Tails were also eyeballing at the cake with amazement. "Wow. You guys did a great job on the design!" the two-tailed fox complimented.
"Definitely! I've never had a birthday cake like that!" Sonic added with enthusiasm.
"Thanks, guys," Daisy replied. "Well, Luigi, what do you think?" Luigi was speechless as his mouth remained wide opened. Daisy chuckled and walked towards her lover, planting a kiss on his nose. Luigi's eyes widened before she pulled away, then shook his head to bring his mind back to thought. "I can see that you're surprised."
Luigi looked up at Daisy and the others. "Yeah, no kidding. Thank you so much!"
Amy took a lighter and lit all the candles. Turning to him, she said, "Alright, Luigi! Make a wish!"
The man in green stared at the cake before he closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. But before he had the chance to blow out the candles, the party heard a loud bang, startling everyone.
END OF CHAPTER
The dark figure has destroyed the Dark Moon and has the ghosts under his command, but to what purpose? And what happened to the runaway Greenie? Did he get possessed too? Also, what was that noise at the castle? Find out in the next chapter!
And with that, thanks for reading! Be sure to follow/favorite the story if you're interested and leave a review!
Post-Chapter Notes:
(1): This is a general description of the airships found in the games New Super Mario Bros. U and New Super Luigi U.
(2): The Koopa Clown Car that Bowser Jr. is controlling is equipped with Bob-ombs inside, like how he used Bob-ombs in the fight in NSMBU, just before reaching Peach's transformed castle. The lasers are a small reference to the Superstar Showdown minigame in Mario Party 8 since they shoot out of the mouth. Bullet Bill cannons were also used in that boss fight. And I decided to add missiles, because why not?
(3): I decided to make the Koopalings part of Bowser's family to make the dialogue easier to write (but just assume that they're adopted).
(4): I know that some people say that Kamek is a girl, which I can see that. But after researching on Super Mario Wiki and looking up dialogue text in games, Kamek is a male. Please don't flame me for this.