Time: 2:51pm, Tuesday, October 16, 2001 - the shadow realm
"What do you mean there's no pipe to Serenity Isle?!" Daisy yelled at the toad. The toad is the same toad that Peach and others talked to previously.
Seeing the enraged princess, the toad starts shivering in fear.
"Well... Um..." the toad gulps, "Th-the pipe is gone! They blocked it!"
The four characters stare at the toad in shock, "Wh-What?" Iggy gasped in shock as he turns to Lemmy, Luigi and Daisy, "How did Peach and King Dad get over there then?"
The toad, overhearing the conversation, butts in, "Um, sir, sorry for interrupting, but Her Majesty and the Koopa King came here earlier! They were here to ask for information about Serenity Isle. Unfortunately, I have no idea how they got there. IF they got there."
"Oh," Lemmy replied, "So... Um... Is there any way we can get a pipe or something to pop up?"
The toad nodded, "I told Peach and her group that the government is somehow blocking the warp pipes from popping up. I think there's a device somewhere in that land that prevents warp pipes from popping up, so I'm sure they'll destroy it. Come back tomorrow or so and see if the warp pipe is back."
"All right!" Luigi thanked the toad, "Thanks for the help"
"You're welcome. Come by at... Say, 4PM. That's the time when pipes are updated. They are updated twice a day; of course, the pipes also update at 7AM, before the daily rushes, but I'm sure it'll take Peach and them longer to get a pipe here."
Daisy simply nods at the toad as she and the others step out. For the first time since late Friday night, the characters have nothing planned to do.
"What do we do now?" the desert princess asked as she turns towards Luigi and the Koopas, hoping the latter three will suggest an interesting list of events.
"Well," Luigi began, "I want to explore this town a bit. Maybe we can go through some of the other warp pipes just for fun? Just maybe?"
"I agree!" Lemmy jumped in excitement, "But we should get a place to stay before. We don't know anyone here in Jasper."
"So we have to get a hotel," Iggy finished, "Where's the nearest hotel to the Pipe Maze?"
"I remember Peach talking about staying in the Mushroom Inn somewhere before one of the chain's hotels got levitated up to a floating cloud by Kamek. Then Lemmy here turned it into his own hotel," Daisy pointed out as she glares at Lemmy.
"Hey! I gave her a place to stay at least! And my hotel was awesome!" Lemmy fended as he raises his claws up as if he's offended.
"Yeah yeah. But I remember seeing one of the branches by E. Gadd's laboratory. Follow me," Daisy commanded as she walks down the street, away from the Pipe Maze. The other characters follow her in haste.
~7~7~7~7~7
"How long are we gonna be down here?" Wendy cried out to the others, "I want to see my friends! I want to get this shadow thing over with so I can live my life!"
"We all want it over with," Larry sighed, "I want to take care of my plants! They're probably dead by now!"
"Guys! Stop your complaining! Ve vill be found soon! Ve von't die!"
"Yeah Vendy!" Morton mocked, "Ve von't die!"
"Please talk regular. I like it better," Ludwig requested. Morton just shrugs as he looks down at his handcuffs. He then blows fire onto the handcuffs, but they remain intact. In fact, the heated handcuffs burn Morton's wrists a bit.
"Oww! What the heck is this stuff made of?! What metal is it?!" Morton questioned.
"Since vhen can you blow fire Morton?" Ludwig inquired, "Not just fireballs, but actual FIRE! Back in Ice Land, you couldn't blow any fire for your life!"
"We told you already," Morton replied, "Me, Wendy, Larry and Violent gained some weird powers that we don't really have a control of."
"Vhy don't I have a pover?" Ludwig questioned in confusion.
"Cause you're not cool apparently!" Larry teased. Larry is greeted by a fireball unleashed by Ludwig, barely missing him.
"Nonsense! I'm ze King of Cool!"
"Luddi," Violent started, "Don't get too offended. But I don't think music has KILLING power, but rather inspiring power."
"Vhat about zose pianos in Super Mario 64? Ze vuns in ze haunted mansion?" Ludwig asked, "Zose vuns killed."
"Yeah true..." Violent admitted, "But I don't know! Maybe you'll get some powers later on!"
"Gee, I hope..."
"I hope we do too!" Reeka cheered, "That'd be so exciting! Imagine what we could do with them Alex!"
"We will use them to defeat Jabrael," Alex continued, "We have priorities."
"Right," Reeka pretends to be happy as she gives a smile, "Ugh, this shadow place is probably bad for my scales and skin."
"Zere's vorse stuff going on zen your scales," Ludwig muttered, "As Alex said: Let's keep our priorities straight."
"Right," Reeka once again pretends to agree with Ludwig, while rolling her eyes at him in the process.
~7~7~7~7~7
"He said it's in the basement right?" Peach questioned as the three Mario Gang members put on their X-Naut suits. This time, the five have another plan: the three X-Nauts will find—and destroy—the device preventing warp pipes from popping up. 'Somewhere in the basement,' Crump said. During that time, Bowser and Roy will attach a hearing piece attached to a wire—an important and nifty asset to them that the two stole from one of the storage rooms—on Grodus's meeting door to record the conference. Then the two will go back to the West Prison, this time willingly, and the duo will listen to the conversation going on in the privacy of the dirty, dingy dungeon.
"Right," Mario confirmed, "But I don't know where the staircase to the basement is. The staircase on the east side leads to the East Prison, but the East Prison doesn't connect to the basement. Maybe the West Prison might."
"Let's go. After I fit in my foot! Ugh this is tight!" Peach cried out.
"Really? Mine's huge!" Toad replied, "... I think I have yours, Peach!"
Toad takes off his suit as quick as he can manage. After he takes off his enlarged suit, the fungus gives the suit to his princess. In return, Peach hands Toad the other suit she attempted to try on.
"This should be a lot better. Thanks Toad!"
"Yep," Toad acknowledged, "This works for me too! Ready Mario?"
"I been ready since you two switched suits! Let's go!"
"Okay!"
~7~7~7~7~7
Down in the shadow realm, two Koopalings, along with Violent, are fooling around with their powers. Larry is pointing all over at the ground, resulting in little plants growing. However, because of the lack of sunlight and fertile soil, the plants almost immediately die. Wendy tries to point to make it rain in the dark prison, but because of the lack of condensation nuclei, Wendy's 'rain' is more of a stream of water creating an arch shape from her finger. Violent attempts to gaze into someone's soul, but she keeps failing. Her trying to summon up spirits also fail due to the location they are in. Morton, however, doesn't even try to use his newly-discovered fire powers due to fire's natural behaviors of decreasing levels of oxygen and increasing levels of carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide and smoke; three things the trapped heroes do not need an excess of in this condition. Then again, the smoke will act as condensation nuclei for Wendy's raincloud...
"Hmm... I must be immortal to do stuff with peoples souls; it's not working no matter what I do! Dag namit!" Violent cried to herself.
Ludwig, along with Alex and Reeka, are staring at the three practicing their powers in lust. Even if their current tactics are failing, they still have powers. Powers that the three of them don't even have an ounce of.
As the three continue to stare at the other three practicing their mystical powers, a bright light is seen in the distance. Almost immediately, Mamar and Misstar appear in front of the group. Misstar is also carrying the Star Rod, except the color of this Star Rod is white instead of the usually yellow-and-pink-colored one.
"Hey!" Mamar greeted the group, "We're here to help you! Star Haven has heard your complaints!"
"So we're going to give you our powers to help you! And the Star Rod!" Misstar continued as she points the Star Rod at each of the prisoners' shackles, handcuffs and ropes. Each one easily melts off, yet the prisoners are not harmed.
"Wow!" Morton commented, "How'd you do that?! I tried blowing fire onto the handcuffs but they burned me! I should sue whoever made those handcuffs for that!"
"The Star Rod, combined with my power, makes it powerful," Misstar replied, "If you guys want to get anywhere, your powers need to be combined. Or else you all will fail."
"Alright! Zank you very much for ze assistance, Star Spirits!" Ludwig thanked as Misstar hands Ludwig the Star Rod. Mamar also transfers some of her power to Alex, while Misstar transfers a portion of her power to Reeka.
"You can now put enemies to sleep! And there's also a chance that the enemies will become confused!" Mamar announced.
"And you can heal one person every five minutes or so. Use it as an advantage!" Misstar told Reeka.
"Gee, thanks!" Alex and Reeka gave their compliments to the two Star Spirits.
"No problem. Please keep the Star Rod safe, Ludwig von Koopa," Mamar requested, "It will be needed eventually. Beware of that!"
After that muttering, the two Star Spirits disappear into the air, leaving the newly-freed heroes to find their way out. Among them is Wendy, desperate to see the light of day again, who is looking around in pure confusion.
"Which way's out?"
~7~7~7~7~7
Time: 4:12PM, Tuesday, October 16, 2001 - Serenity Isle Castle
Mario, Peach and Toad have made their way to the West Prison. The West Prison, unlike the East Prison the three of them, along with the two Koopas, have been imprisoned, is sparkling clean and looks as if it has been renovated recently. Besides a little crack on the northern side of the prison near the floor, the walls are perfect; no mold is currently growing on the wall, and the air is quite dry compared to the Eastern Prison.
"Geez! Being imprisoned in here is much better!" Peach pointed out, "Instead of that disgusting area Crump took us to!"
"Yeah!" Mario agreed as he looks around the area. He sees two doors in the room also; one on the north wall near the crack, and the other one on the east side. Mario tries to open the door to the north, but it won't budge open; it's locked! Leaving just one more option, Mario tries the door to the east; this time it opens!
Mario, Peach and Toad instantly go through the doorway. In this room contains even more jail cells and a door on each wall of the room. Peach uses deduction to decide which door to use; thinking the north door will once again be locked, the east door leading to even more cells and them coming out of the room's west door, there's only one door, according to her, that they should try.
"Let's try the south door," Peach told the others. Mario walks towards the door and opens it, revealing a storage room with a strange device buzzing.
"That must be it!" Toad shouted, "That's the thing preventing warp pipes from popping up!"
"There must be an off button somewhere-" Mario tried to talk, but Peach picks up the lightweight device and throws it at a hypersonic speed at the wall. Peach threw the device so hard that it crumbles into thousands of pieces, also leaving a huge hole in the wall, "Umm wow... Remind me to never get you mad!"
"It must be the power that I got. Remember? After this journey I'll be my ol' weak self. Miss Pretty Pink Princess."
"Oh the powers," Mario nodded as he hears a noise, along with the rumbling of the ground. It sounds—and feels—exactly like an earthquake, "Of course. And what was that rumbling?!"
All the sudden, Eldstar and Kalmar appear in the air, the two stars standing right in front of Mario and Toad.
"Peach has power already, but I saw that you two needed help back in the prison. Be careful here; Serenity Isle has always been a fishy place for the past million years," Eldstar warned.
"That's why we're making sure all three of you have a type of power so you three can stay safe," Kalmar continued, "You'll need our help."
Eldstar and Kalmar give up their powers. Eldstar gives Mario the ability to heal himself and anyone else from any ailments placed on them, while Kalmar gives Toad the ability to turn enemies into stars, which can be used to hurt another enemy that the spell doesn't work on.
"With our power united with the Sages and the Star Rod, you will have a much higher chance of winning," Eldstar informed, "But keep in mind that there's still the possibility of losing. Please, do NOT give up and cause Jabrael to take over this wonderful planet!"
"We'll give our best out there," Peach promised, "I'm not letting her take over my Mushroom Kingdom!"
"I'm not letting her take over ANYTHING on this planet!" Mario corrected.
The Star Spirits remain floating in the air, thinking of any other wisdom they can offer. Finally, Eldstar asks them an important question.
"Who here do you trust?"
"Well... Out of Crump and Grodus, I pretty much trust Grodus more. He isn't acting as fishy as Crump is," Peach replied. Eldstar stays silent to ponder over the princess's answer.
"Here's my word of wisdom, just as a precaution," Eldstar offered, "Do not trust anyone here. You got that?"
"Never. They'll use you to fulfill their evil plans. Be on your toes at all times!" Kalmar added. After that message, the two Star Spirits disappear into the air, leaving the three to ponder.
"Now I don't know WHO'S on our side now..." Peach cried, "Grodus isn't acting weird, but Crump indirectly helped us."
"We'll see. But for now, we can't trust anybody like Kalmar said," Mario replied, "Well the device is broken... Should we see if the east door and the north door in the other room goes somewhere important?"
"Okay! Let's do it," Toad replied in a happy tone as the three of them walk out of the room.
~7~7~7~7~7
"I remember they went around this area when they took us," Larry traced back the steps of the shadow guards that took them.
"I hope you're right. I hate this place!" Wendy whispers, a little shriek following her sentence. Violent, Alex and Reeka all nod their heads in agreement, while Ludwig and Morton are looking around.
"Say, bro, what special ability can you do with that Star Rod?" Morton questioned Ludwig.
"It's supposed to grant vishes. Let's see if it vorks," Ludwig replied as he raises the Star Rod near his face, "I vish zat ze shadow beasts vill not take over Plit! I also vish zat ve can get out of zis dimension!"
The Star Rod, however, does not exert any power.
"Umm... Is zis ze right Star Rod?"
"What do you mean 'is this the right one'?" Larry questioned, "It's the only Star Rod!"
"False," Ludwig replied, "Zere are two Star Rods zat exist. Vun is ze Star Rod zat grants vishes. Zat is ze vun zat Fazzer stole a few years back. Ze other Star Rod collects ze povers of other zings into vun big reservoir, and zat's vhere ze ozzer Star Rod's pover comes from. Instead of granting vishes, however, zat Star Rod disperses evil."
"... So one Star Rod grants wishes while the other one fights evil using powers it, like, picks up?" Alex questioned, "Why don't they put the two together?"
"I don't think it's a good idea if they do that you know," Morton stated, "I mean like if someone steals the Star Rod that makes wishes, like King Dad did, then the other one can be used to concentrate the powers of the Star Spirits and strike evil!"
"Affirmative. Also vice versa; If somevun took ze other Star Rod and vent around dipping it into vater and lava, cooled it off zen vaved it in ze air, or vhatever zey do to require power from ze Star Rod, zen ze Star Spirits can use ze vishing Star Rod to expel zem."
"... Yeah I guess that's true," Alex admitted, "Anyway, Larry, show us the way again?"
~7~7~7~7~7
Time: 5:52pm, Tuesday, October 16, 2001 - Mushroom Inn
Daisy, Luigi, Lemmy and Iggy successfully checked into two rooms for the night; Daisy and Luigi are assigned to room 665 while Lemmy and Iggy get room 666. The four of them are currently hanging out in Daisy's room.
"I hate how we got that room," Lemmy complained, "Six is an unlucky number! Any time it's used three times then it's unlucky!"
Lemmy," Daisy reassured, "It's just a superstition! Nothing bad's gonna happen up there!"
"Geez! I hope so..." Lemmy hoped.
"Something's fishy here, and no it's not the all-you-can-eat-seafood buffet in the dining hall downstairs. Something about this whole six thing isn't adding up," Iggy explained, "If you take the date of the day Jabrael's suppose to be here, which is October 18, then turn it into 10/18... Add 10, 18 and 2001 together and you get..."
Iggy counts on his fingers for a few seconds before continuing.
"You get 2029. Add the four digits together, 2 plus 0 plus 2 plus 9... And that gives you thirteen, which begins with a one and ends in a three. And according to the book we read in Ludwig's room, we're in the Twelfth Age; whatever that means. First, the 1 potion of the number 13: Take 1 and multiply it by 12, and you get 12. Twelve splits into six and two. Now the 3 portion of 13: take 12 and multiply it by 3, and you get 36. The square root of 36 is 6! That means the product of the whole DATE of her takeover is 6 squared and another 6, which makes up 666!"
"That's interesting, but I think you're overreacting a bit. After all, what about the two from the one part or whatever? Plus we didn't deal with any other sixes in our travels that I remember..." Luigi reassured.
"You're right I think," Iggy replied even though he knew Luigi was lying. The Sage Cure potion itself... It has six chocolate bars, six dullberry leaves, and the smoothie, which contains six dullberries. Three pairs of sixes! But the Sages appear to be just fine; in fact, the potion helped them. Scratch them being okay; they're passed out in their realm. But their POWERS are safely embedded inside Lemmy, Daisy and whoever else... Right? Still, something is fishy about those ingredients.
"And the 2 part of the thing Iggy pointed out? Well, according to this calculator here, 666 times 2 is 1332. Those 4 digits added up together give you a sum of 9... Flip 9 up-side-down and you'll get 6!" Lemmy pointed out.
"And Jabrael wants to flip the world up-side-down! From mainly good to mainly evil!" Iggy continued.
"Anyway," Daisy hurriedly got off the topic, "That's a great scheme of numbers you're having. I guess. But we're on vacation until 4PM tomorrow. What should we do?"
That is when Skolar and Klevar appear in front of the group.
"Greetings you four," Skolar greeted the group.
"We came here to make sure that all of you have power," Klevar continued, "What you all are doing are is dangerous."
Iggy and Luigi nod their heads at the statement, the two of them excited that they won't be powerless.
"Speaking of the other groups, how are they doing?"
"Not so hot. Ludwig's group was trapped in a dark, shadowy realm while Peach's group was trapped in a jail. We had to help Ludwig et al while Peach simply got released," Skolar informed.
Daisy gives Luigi a glare that seems to say 'Told you so!' while Luigi shrugs.
"Okay, so it happened. But it only happened to them, not all of us. And it won't happen to us either!"
"I hope you're right this time," Daisy hoped. Luigi gives a nod in confirmation. By this time, both Skolar and Klevar begin to give Luigi and Iggy their powers.
"Iggy, you can now do powerful gusts of wind! I know your most powerful element, besides making things giant, is wind. That's how smart I am!" Skolar informed.
"And Luigi, you can temporarily immobilize enemies with my knowledge!" Klevar added.
Luigi and Iggy receive the powers, and the two of them feel even more powerful than they have before.
"Thanks Klevar!"
"And thanks Skolar" Iggy finished. The two star spirits waved one of their points as they disappear into the air.
"... So what now?" Daisy questioned.
"Let's see if we can do anything useful with these powers we have," Iggy suggested, "But it needs to be in a field or something."
"Okay. We should do it in the street!" Lemmy squealed in excitement. The three other characters facepalmed.
~7~7~7~7~7
Time: 8:42pm, Tuesday, October 16, 2001 - Serenity Isle Castle.
"Okay. So when those two X-Nauts get away from that door then I want you to put this thing on the door," Bowser instructed; both he and Roy are hiding behind a wall close to the supposed conference room. They are going to spy on Grodus, who have been in his meeting for hours at this point.
"Why me? I'm not good at dis sneak crap. Dat's Larry!" Roy objected. The Koopa King, however, didn't accept Roy's reasoning.
"Larry isn't here you moron! And look Roy, I know this is a huge shock, but you're a lighter weight than me. You won't make as huge of a noise as I would," explained Bowser.
Roy, seeing as there's no way out of doing the tasks, breathes out a sigh of defeat as he snatches the device from his dad, "Fine King Daddy! Watch and learn!"
The two Koopas wait behind the wall as the two X-Nauts stroll around the room. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity...
"Hey I'm hungry," one of the X-Nauts complained to the other.
"Yeah! Why's Grodus making us guard this stupid door?! Why isn't Crump doing it?"
"I don't think he trusts Crump that much anymore," the first X-Naut replied, "Crump might take ideas from the meeting."
"Yeah whatever," the second X-Naut dismissed, "Wanna get something for supper?"
"Great idea! Nobody's here so no point in guarding that door!" the first X-Naut accepted. The two X-Nauts dash out of a hallway opposite of the location Bowser and Roy are at. Bowser nudges his son to see if he's paying attention.
"Did you hear that Roy? They're going to dinner!"
"Ya King Dad! Just slam dis thing on da door and run?"
"Yes Roy. Be quick! Someone might sneak up on us!"
Roy nods, then peers around the corner of the wall, double checking to see if anyone is around. Sighting that the coast is clear, the Koopaling stealthily walks up to the door and attaches both the wire and the hearing piece to the door. As Roy does this, a sound is heard from Bowser's shell. That's when the Koopa King pulls out a radio from his shell. He then hits the RECORD button.
"Now we can spy on their conversation!" Bowser stated as Roy rushes back to Bowser. However, the two of them start to feel a weird presence around them...
"Spying isn't good you know..." a mysterious voice told them.
Looking around, both Bowser and Roy are puzzled; they cannot find the source of the voice.
"I'm here!" the voice continues to taunt the two, "Don't you see?"
"What the-?" Bowser questioned in confusion, "Who are you? Show yourself or I will pound you!"
"Ouch, I would hate being beaten up by you," the voice stated in a pretend sad voice, "Since I'm much stronger than you."
"Show yourself! Now! You're outnumbered!" Bowser continues to threaten the mysterious voice.
"Koopa dude, I can summon the entities of Star Haven against you," the voice said as the source reveals itself. None other than Muskular appears, "Believe me now?"
Both Bowser and Roy gape as the Star Spirit reveals his presence.
"You can stop acting surprised now. I'm not here for a fight, but it seems like you're the other option," Muskular informed.
"But... Why are you here?" Bowser questioned curiously; his eyes are still huge in shock.
"I'm here to give you my powers, Sherlock. But if you're going to 'pound' innocent victims, then I should think otherwise," Muskular announced.
"I promise I won't use it bad," Bowser promised. Muskular tried, but failed, to hold back a few laughs.
"Hahahahaha! Hahaha! Ha. A promise from Mister Bowzy here," the blue star teased, "That's not going to end in a pleasant manner."
"I said I won't! And don't call me Bowzy!"
"I can keep him under control," Roy added.
"Unfortunately, I cannot believe you, my pink friend. You can barely control yourself. What makes you think you can control your own father?" Muskular inquired. Roy remains silent as he couldn't think of a valid answer.
"Why are we wasting time on this? Good thing that radio can record the conversation!" Bowser responded.
"All right, let's proceed. Bowser, I will give you my powers, as long as you say what I say!"
"All right, let's proceed. Bowser, I will give you my powers, as long as you say what I say!" Bowser parroted.
"NOT NOW!" Muskular scolded.
"NOT NO- Oh," Bowser caught himself, "So what do you want me to do then?"
"I want you to say this: Muskular is awesome and Bowser is a mere mortal who will never be as awesome as Muskular!"
"No way!" Bowser rejected.
"Then bye bye!" Muskular starts to fade into the air. Bowser, however, objected to the happening.
"Fine! Fine!" Bowser retorted, "Muskular is awesome and Bowser is a mere mortal who will never be as awesome as Muskular!"
"Hmm... That was good, but it wasn't stellar," Muskular criticized, "Do it louder."
"Muskular is awesome and Bowser is a mere mortal who will never be as awesome as Muskular!" Bowser repeated.
"Again, it's getting better, but it's not stellar," Muskular repeated his criticism, "Once more."
By this time, Bowser is basically yelling at the top of his lungs, "MUSKULAR IS AWESOME AND BOWSER IS A MERE MORTAL WHO WILL NEVER BE AS AWESOME AS MUSKULAR!"
"Great!" Muskular smiled, "Here's my power. You can now make your enemies weaker! Enjoy!"
Suddenly, the door bursts open, and Grodus steps out.
"When I find out whoever's yelling and disrupting my conference, I will bust their heads open!" Grodus threatened. From behind the wall, the three characters start freaking out.
"Oop! Looks like you caused some problems Bowser! Good luck!" Muskular taunted as he disappears.
"Whoever's here, come out!" Grodus continues to threaten. Now is when Bowser and Roy decides to run away. Roy looks back in the conference room as he ran; he could have sworn that he saw three weird shadow-like creatures in the room...