Mushroom Wars

by Kaiimi

When the world is at threat of being taken over by an old villain, it is up to a group of people to work together and travel through familiar places to collect various items to help them win the war for justice. However, with brutal injuries and much drama happening at almost every moment, will anyone make it through this mission alive?

128. Battle

Blackstone Tower: Mario, Luigi, Peach, Daisy, Yoshi, DK, Dixie, Toadette, Goombella, Koops, Kooper, Parakarry, Spike/Paper-Yoshi, Vivian, Bowser, Larry, Bowser Jr., Wario, Pauline, Mona, Starlow, Grodus, Lord Crump, Boshi

Hospital group: Bleck/Blumiere, Tippi/Timpani, Toadsworth, Fly Guy, Toado, Morton, Lemmy, Ludwig, Kody, E. Gadd, Clawdia, Katia, Kenneth, Toodles, Petey Piranha, Rosalina, Monty Mole

Mushroom Corps.: Toadari (Arfur's boss), Tadano

Island group: Tatanga, Beldam, Roy, Doopliss, Dimentio, Mimi, Diddy, Fire Bro/Konnor

Moon: TEC

TATANGA'S ISLAND

"Hello, Beldam," Tatanga spoke with an accomplished smirk as he entered his bedroom. Beldam was still in her immobilized state, laying on his bed.

"Tatanga…agh…just…fucking kill me…get it over with…I-I know…that's what you wanna do…" Beldam weakly spoke as a tear rolled down her face.

"Ahhhh…see, that's what I wanna do, but something's holding me back. I think it's because killing you is just too easy. Especially since that's what you clearly want. So, here it is: you got two choices. First choice is that you'll live, but you'll lose all your powers via the ever lovely Ztar. You'll work for me for the rest of your living days. Second choice is that you'll live and also still lose your powers, but you'll also be in this weak, immobilized, practically comatose state forever. Choose one. I ain't gonna kill you, Beldam…but you also fucked me over big time, so you have to pay the price. Be thankful I'm even giving you an option in the matter! And the only reason why I'm even doing this anyways is because I know you're still grieving over Marilyn. I know how grief can fuck with peoples' heads," Tatanga stated with a slight sympathetic tone at the end there.

"Ohhh…how considerate and s-selfless of you…I…should've never fucking…joined in the first place…" Beldam spat as more tears rolled down her cheeks. Tatanga snickered at her misery.

"Oh please. You joined because you didn't wanna escape from who you are. It didn't even take you that fucking long to decide to join in on destroying the world after I met you. Before I came along, you were just a mopey shadow crone pretending to get along with your youngest sister, waiting for any opportunity possible to get back into action. And when I gave you that chance, you took it just like that! So don't you dare tell me how you should've never joined me or how much you wanna die.

You're only acting like this because you never got much say in these plans. It was all my ideas and masterminding from the very beginning, Beldam. I wanted to make it all about me. You knew that. I offered you and the others to join me for the ride because having you guys along, seasoned people who were greatly experienced in villainy, would've made the whole thing easier. But no. Sorry that it wasn't as equitable as you would've wanted it to be," the alien spoke down to her as he sat on his bed. Beldam slightly shook her head and looked at him irritatedly.

"That's not why I feel the way I feel…you…you lowlife piece of shit…" Beldam responded. Tatanga snickered again.

"Yeeeaaahh, keep telling yourself that. Anyways, Roy, Doopliss, Dimentio, Diddy, and Konnor are gonna die shortly after the weapon is launched. You'll be the sole, stuck survivor. If Vivian is still alive, I can only imagine what she'd say if she came here and saw you like this. Would she say that you deserved this? Or…or would she forgive you once again and try to get you out of here? I don't know, Beldam…she seems like such a sweet and giving girl…but who knows how much that adventure has changed her?

Or…maybe she died brutally. Just like how Marilyn died. You'd be the last sister alive. How much does it sting knowing that your youngest sister, someone who has a personality so opposite of you and Marilyn, potentially died before you? How much would that hurt knowing you'd be left all alone with no friends and family once things get going? That's why I wanna keep you alive, Beldam. To make you suffer in isolation. For all the betrayal you've done. Death would be too giving of a punishment to hand over to you. No…you deserve a more miserable end than that," Tatanga spoke connivingly, staring wickedly into your eyes, wanting her to feel as much emotional pain as possible. Beldam cried a little more and tried to turn her head away from him.

"Fuck you. Seriously…the only person that deserves a miserable end is you. You're gonna fucking get it, Tatanga. And when you do…you'll be laughed at since all your efforts would be for nothing. I can imagine it now…everything going down in flames…you screaming your head off, pleading for mercy, whining about how unfair your end will be…people are gonna be soooo satisfied seeing you like that," Beldam angrily said while looking away, seething deep with all the hurt he was giving her.

"Wow! Quite the vivid imagination you got there. I think that's what they call wishful thinking. But that's funny because I have the Star Rod right now, an item that literally grants my wishes. So, yeah, imagine that shit all you want to try to make yourself feel better…but I'm the one that has the power to grant the wishes," Tatanga said proudly, not at all phased by her anger. He stood up and walked towards his door while continuing, "I'm leaving now to check on the weapon's status, Beldam. When I come back later, make your choice, or I'll make the choice for you. You're not gonna die, so get that idea out of your head right now."

He left the room, leaving Beldam on the bed to cry further, deep down wishing for her sisters to comfort her. This felt like it was truly the end for her.

---

Tatanga walked to the main room of the island. He looked up in awe at the rocket-looking gargantuan. One of the lead koopatrols walked over to him.

"Hey, Tatanga! Love what you see?" he asked excitedly.

"Abso-fucking-lutely. What a beauty…and this beauty will forever corrupt the world very soon. Estimated time for completion now?" Tatanga asked in excitement as well.

"We're looking at shortly before midnight tonight. So, today will be the final day that this world will be 'normal.' After midnight, it belongs to you, my king!" the koopatrol revealed. Tatanga slowly nodded with a wide smirk.

"Indeed it will. Alright…so…we've got some hours to spare. You wanna know something? On my way down here, an exciting idea popped into my head. The hospital everyone's staying at in Mushroom City. St. Toadofsky's. I found out that's where Mario, Peach, and the rest of those damn hero wannabes are hiding out along with the other survivors from my city attack. What do you say…we start this apocalypse with a bang? That is…some of us head over to the hospital and blow up the absolute hell out of it? What do you think? A nice introduction to the show we're gonna pull off for the world to see?" Tatanga explained as he stared at the weapon the entire time, his smirk growing more devious by the second. The koopatrol laughed a little and also formed the same devious smirk as him.

"Ooh! I'm liking that plan, Tatanga. Yes! Let's start this off by killing those annoying assholes. I wanna see them suffer first-hand!" he cheered, but then his smirk faded when he thought of something else. "But, wait, Tatanga…how will we get there? The teleporter back to Mushroom City is destroyed!"

"Hehe! That's where the fancy Star Rod comes in! Now…go gather up some of your toughest guys here, and meet me on the beach. We'll discuss our attack there…then head out after that. They're not gonna see us coming. And we won't be stopped."

---

ST. TOADOFSKY'S HOSPITAL

"And off they go!" Toadsworth announced, as he, Toodles, E. Gadd, Petey, Tippi, and Bleck saw Rosalina and Monty drive off with the ambulance towards the tower, all of them waving goodbye.

"With what Rosalina spoke about that tower, though…yikes. Imagine having to face traumas of your past. The kind of stuff that you've compartmentalized and repressed over the years…that's honestly scarier than almost everything that's happened," E. Gadd said worriedly, feeling a chill go down his spine.

"Especially if you've had a rough upbringing. Yeah, that'd be the ultimate challenge of willpower and strength to relive all that. I'm trying to hope for the best for them, but I also know not all of them are gonna make it back. That's just how it is, unfortunately," Bleck added, shuddering as he was reminded of his own tragic past briefly and also imagined the torture he'd go through if he went to that tower too.

"Let's not focus too much on the doom and gloom stuff right now, guys. All we can do now is just sit back and wait for their return. Let's head back inside and attempt to chill until they get back," Petey advised. The others nodded a little in agreement and began to walk back inside.

"Toodles, the cafeteria is still serving herbal tea, I think. Would you want some and care to go for a walk in the courtyard too?" Toadsworth kindly asked. Toodles turned to him and smiled a little, feeling his generosity.

"Sure. Do you drink tea often, by the way? You strike me as the kind of guy that does," Toodles snickered. Toadsworth raised a brow in return.

"Hrmm? What do you mean? What kind of guy do you think I am!?" he asked in confusion. Toodles snickered some more.

"You know the stereotype of the upper-class, posh gentleman? With one of the 'traits' being a habitual tea drinker? Yeah, you strike me as that. It's cute!" Toodles replied while blushing a little. Toadsworth wasn't sure how to respond.

"Err…I suppose, even though I'm not actually upper-class, remember. Good that you think it's cute, I guess? I just happen to love tea, especially herbal tea. My mom introduced me to it when I was a kid and have never stopped drinking it for a long period of time since!" he said.

"That's sweet. My go-to has always been wine. But I'll gladly take on a tea drinking habit, considering it IS healthier, anyways…" Toodles said with a smile. Toadsworth smiled at her back and also blushed a little.

"Hey, wait a second here. Where's Fly Guy? Wasn't he with us? Did he head back into the hospital already?" Tippi asked, looking all over for the propeller head.

Petey snickered at her. "He didn't want to miss any kind of action, so he snuck onto the ambulance! He's a sly Shy Guy!"

"Oh…oh boy. That could easily be very distracting for them…" Tippi replied nervously, knowing how unpredictable Fly Guy can be.

---

"Hey, Kenneth, you've got company on your way home. Your wife and daughter will join you on the way back to your fancy lakehouse," Morton annoyedly announced from the basement hallway as he, Ludwig, Lemmy, and Kody arrived at the locked door. Kenneth whipped his head to the door.

"Of course they would join me. Why wouldn't they!? What the hell are you trying to imply!?" Kenneth yelled.

"Oh, nevermind. Nothing. Geez. They're grabbing supplies right now and they're meeting us down here. Then we'll set you free and you can be on your merry way, never to deal with us brats ever again," Morton responded, even more annoyed now.

"Sounds terrific. Then you can deal with the alien and his drugged up koopa army, and we'll relax safe and sound in our fancy lakehouse while the shit hits the fan!" Kenneth obnoxiously replied.

"OH MY GOD. You're so fucking idiotic, you know that? How the hell does someone like you go through life acting like a sourpuss all the time?" Ludwig spat in disgust at his behavior.

"I mean…you should already know the answer to that, considering that's exactly what your father is!" Kenneth retorted, trying not to snicker. The koopalings immediately became peeved and scoffed at him.

"Wow. I can see why you had such trouble keeping relationships in the past and why your father treated you like crap. That little mouth of yours doesn't know when to quit running and how to have a filter!" Morton yelled, hoping that hurt him deep.

Kenneth gasped a little and paused. He quickly knew that the info he unwillingly gave to Bleck was spread to the koopalings. His blood began to boil.

"Oh? Silent now, are we? That's right, for once, you know how to keep your mouth shut!" Lemmy said.

"Well…well, at least MY father never laid a hand on me!" Kenneth came back with an insult that he knew would enrage them.

And it did. The koopalings widened their eyes, and Morton's blood boiled too.

"YOU KNOW WHAT!? YOU'RE FUCKING ASKING FOR IT, YOU PSYCHOTIC BASTARD!" Morton screamed then scrambled to unlock the door, shoved it open, then charged in and shoved Kenneth to the floor. Kody came and tried to intervene.

"MORTON! MORTON! Stop, please! Don't do this when he's almost out of our hair! You're giving him what he wants!" Kody pleaded.

"I DON'T FUCKING CARE ANYMORE! HE DESERVES TO BE BEATEN TO A FUCKING PULP!" Morton screamed in Kody's face, scaring the kid.

"What's going on down here!? GUYS!?" Clawdia's voice was heard from afar. Morton let go of Kenneth, using all his might to not cause a bloody scene in front of her. Kenneth smirked again and dusted himself off.

Clawdia and Katia rushed over to the room to see what the commotion was all about.

"WOAH! What the hell just happened here!? Were you guys fighting!?" Katia shrieked, feeling the heavy tension in the room.

"No no. Everything's fine. Morton just wants me gone ASAP and he got a little impatient. That's all!" Kenneth connivingly responded as he stood himself up.

"Oh shut up! You were running your little bitch mouth again! Clawdia, you married a fucking sociopath. Good luck with this mess!" Ludwig yelled.

"Seriously, dad. You two look like you're about to murder each other. Quit lying!" Katia angrily added. Kenneth leered at her.

"Oh, for crying out loud, can we go one simple hour without a damn fight!? Honey, come on. We got some supplies for our way out. Let's get going," Clawdia ordered tiredly, giving dirty looks to everyone in there while holding a small box full of various medical supplies and a few foods and drinks.

"Fine by me. Hospital? More like a fucking insane asylum…" Kenneth scoffed and quickly walked out of the room with Clawdia following him.

"God! He has the least self-awareness I've ever seen in anyone! I'm sorry, Katia, you gotta deal with that crap. I really am!" Lemmy said in sympathy. Katia looked at him a little teary-eyed.

"Thanks…I guess…um…you know…you guys are lucky. You have a father that will do anything to protect you. Bowser clearly loves you all. My own father doesn't. And I think my mom would choose him over me if it came down to it too…" she said while choking up a little. The koopalings and Kody looked at each other out of total concern and sympathy for the koopa girl. They felt for her, especially since she had no escape from the situation.

"Hey. Uhh…you know, if it gets really bad, don't be afraid to get Child Protection Services involved. Or tell an adult at your school. No kid deserves that to live with that dysfunction," Ludwig politely suggested. Katia glanced at him and gave the tiniest smile, feeling his generosity.

"Right. Yeah…that, um, might be a good idea…" Katia replied softly while looking down and nervously playing with her hair.

No one else was sure of what to say to help make her feel better. They felt helpless as well since they wanted her to not be stuck in such a shitty situation, but no one had any idea of what they could contribute.

"Come on, everyone. Let's go upstairs and see them out," Morton spoke softly as well, then led the way back up.

Morton, Lemmy, Ludwig, Katia, and Kody walked back up the stairs to the first floor in dead silence. They saw Clawdia looking at them, waiting for them to show whilst Kenneth was drinking the water bottle from the supply box and looked towards the lobby entrance/exit, pretending not to notice them.

"Alright honey, you ready to head out?" Clawdia sweetly asked Katia. The teenaged koopa gal gave her mom a glare with her watery eyes.

"I guess so. Gonna suck walking so far to the lakehouse…and hearing dad complain the whole time…" Katia grumpily replied.

"Come on! Don't be like that. This is for the best for all of us at the end of the day. You might not see it now, but eventually you will," Clawdia said, touching her shoulder. Katia shrugged her hand off and looked away from her.

"No. I don't think I ever will…but whatever. Let's go already," she replied crudely and then walked off to the lobby exit. Clawdia sighed sadly at her daughter's frustration.

"Well, hold on just another minute, I wanna have one last talk before I leave. Wait for me outside, both of you!" Clawdia said to Kenneth and Katia. Neither of them acknowledged her, but they walked to the outside anyways.

"One last talk? Great, what else could you possibly get off your chest?" Ludwig groaned.

"Morton. Can we talk privately please? It'll be real quick!" Clawdia urged. Morton looked at her confusedly.

"What the!? Why!? I mean…sure. Fine. Whatever. But it actually better be quick!" Morton shouted, then the two walked away from the other koopa boys to the stairwell entrance.

"So…I'll just come out and say it. If things get bad for you in the family over something you can't control, Morton…call me. I know of some places that could help shelter you," Clawdia said and handed him a sticky note with her phone number on it. Morton looked at her even more confusedly now.

"WHAT!? What in the hell are you talking about!? Over something I can't control…what are you saying exactly!?" he yelled.

"Morton, seeing you again after all these years…it reminded me of a few memories I had right before I left. I remember seeing you being so intrigued with Wendy's toddler toys. You'd be the only one of the boys who would play with them with her. I remember you having a blast with her fake little cosmetics bag, putting that clear makeup on her and on yourself too…I found it to be so cute! You'd gravitate more towards her toys than your brothers' toys. In all honesty, your father seemed kind of disgusted by you playing with her toys, but he never outright said anything.

I had this 'feeling' inside me that you were different from the other boys…and looking at you, that 'feeling' is still there. But that's not a bad thing! Don't suppress it, Morton. Embrace who you are. If your family doesn't accept who you truly are…like I said, call me and I'll help you however I can," Clawdia said lovingly with a small smile. Morton froze in surprise at everything she was saying.

"Mo…Clawdia…I…I'm not…you really think…what…" Morton was speechless, as he immediately flashed back to when he remembered playing with Wendy's toys at age 5. It was a memory he had forgotten until now when Clawdia triggered it. Then it brought up other feelings and thoughts that he buried deep down throughout the years.

"Morton…honey…it's okay. I know I'm the last person you'd want to talk to about this. But just know that you'll be protected if things go wrong. I'm not saying they will go wrong for sure, but it's better to be safe than sorry. Alright…now I'm going for real this time. Goodbye, Morton. Take care of yourself and take care of your brothers," Clawdia finished with a light touch on Morton's shoulder, then she waved goodbye to Lemmy and Ludwig who gave her an awkward wave goodbye back. She then walked off to the exit.

Lemmy, Ludwig, and Kody rushed over to Morton in full on curiosity.

"Hey, Morton! What the hell did she say to you!? You look so shaken up!" Ludwig pointed out in concern.

"And what was so private about it that she needed to talk to YOU rather than all of us?" Lemmy added.

"She, uhh…she said…n-nothing. It was nothing! Just some stupid bullshit!" Morton yelled and quickly moved past the koopas towards the men's bathroom. Kody ran after him.

Morton ran into one of the stalls and felt his anxiety rise high as he heaved a little over the toilet.

"Morton? Hey, bro, come on, what's wrong? What did she say to you? Was it some vicious shit like what Kenneth says?" Kody asked, slowly walking to his stall.

"I-I SAID IT WAS NOTHING! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" Morton screamed angrily.

"Bro, seriously!? That was not nothing back there! You can't just keep that from us! At the very least tell your brothers!" Kody yelled.

"JUST…YOU WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND! PLEASE LEAVE ME ALONE! I DON'T WANNA TALK ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW!" Morton screamed further, now crying a little.

Kody sighed annoyedly and rubbed his face. "You know…give me a chance and I probably would understand…but fine. Tell us whenever you're ready, I guess…" He then left the bathroom as Morton pounded his fist on the toilet, feeling such anger and despair from the memories Clawdia brought back up into the present.

---

E. Gadd sat on the steps to the courtyard, eating a sandwich from the cafeteria. He was thinking long and hard about Mushroom Corporations and how his time there was intense looking back at it now. He thought himself as incredibly lucky that the company didn't track him down and had him killed in order to make sure all their secrets would never be exposed to the world.

But he also thought that maybe that's the point. Maybe they're keeping him alive for a whole other reason…

"Professor E. Gadd!" yelled a male voice, making the professor jump and interrupting his train of thought.

"Oh! Yes, hello hello! How can I help!?" E. Gadd yelped, turning his head to see a bob-omb doctor.

"Can you come with me please? We need to discuss something important with you," the bob-omb asked with urgency.

E. Gadd quickly became nervous, wondering what the hell it could be about. "Oh…o-okay. May I ask what for?"

"Just…just follow me. It'll all be explained when we get to where we're going," the bob-omb cryptically responded. E. Gadd sighed a little, preparing himself for whatever they're gonna throw his way.

The professor followed the bob-omb into the hospital and walked some ways down the left wing and eventually reached a conference room. E. Gadd stepped inside and saw several other hospital staff in there, clearly waiting for his arrival, including a toad nurse whom he recognized as the one who found Dr. Nokano dead and him telling her that she needed to keep it a secret. The professor nearly froze in surprise, increasingly becoming ever more nervous.

"Oh…uh…hi there. What's going on? What's this all about?" E. Gadd spoke, trying not to come off as scared while feeling the heavy tension in the room.

"Professor Elvin…please sit down. We have something we urgently need to discuss with you," said a male goomba doctor, motioning to the only available chair there.

"O-Okay…so…" E. Gadd uttered, glancing at the toad nurse, knowing right then and there that this had to be about her spilling the secret that Dr. Nokano was killed. He knew how big this was gonna be and that he'd get into deep trouble. He slowly sat down and continued, trying to overcome his nerves, "What's so urgent that you need to speak to me for?"

The goomba doctor grabbed a folded piece of paper from his uniform pocket and unfolded it. "We received this paper in one of our offices earlier today. Someone slipped it under the door. Do you mind explaining to us what on earth this is supposed to mean?"

E. Gadd was confused and took the paper from him then read it outloud:

"ASK PROFESSOR ELVIN GADD ABOUT DR. NOKANO'S DISAPPEARANCE."

E. Gadd's heart sank and he nearly dropped the paper when he said those words. Sweat began to form on his head. His hands shook a little. He gulped and slowly looked back at everyone else, who all gave him a stern, questioning look.

"Well, professor? Mind telling us why someone would think you know about Dr. Nokano's whereabouts?" the goomba doctor interrogated.

E. Gadd did his absolute best to put up a confident front and to push down his nerves and fear. He spoke, "I…well, I don't know why someone would write this and give it to you. Sounds like someone's trying to stir up drama to me!" Then he slid the paper away from him and crossed his arms.

"Professor!" yelled the bob-omb doctor, startling him. "We see it on your face that you know what this paper is talking about! Is Nokano dead!? If so, then why the hell would you keep that from us!?"

E. Gadd's heart raced faster and faster and he sweated a bit more. They all knew something was incredibly off with Dr. Nokano's whereabouts. But the professor knew he had to keep playing dumb in order for things to not explode again. E. Gadd spoke, "I've told you guys already, I don't know why someone would think I know where he is! I surely hope he isn't dead! But if I knew something horrible DID happen to him, I'd definitely tell you guys, because I know how important he is to the entire hospital!"

"OH, BULLSHIT! Professor…we know that you know about Nokano. Spit it out. And explain to us why in the hell you didn't tell any of us staff right away!" the bob-omb raised his voice aggressively.

"THIS MEETING IS DONE! I TOLD YOU I KNOW NOTHING! You are coming at me over some immature prank anonymous letter crap! Someone here is bored out of their mind and wants to get everyone all riled up over nothing! AND YOU'RE LETTING IT GET TO YOU! Next time you wanna speak to me about stuff like this, come forward with something better than a random note that anyone could've written!" E. Gadd yelled, turning red in the face and sweating profusely. He stormed out of the room and ran down the hall into a men's bathroom.

He ran to one of the stalls and hyperventilated, feeling the need to puke because of how overwhelming that interrogation was. E. Gadd hated that he lied to them. He also hated that the spotlight is now on him because of someone who knew about Nokano and was trying to get this situation to explode and get all the people heated up and rioting again.

After a few minutes of trying to calm himself down, he exited the stall, went to the sink and splashed water on his face. He had to think of the next move to get this situation to simmer at least temporarily. He dried his face with a paper towel and exited the bathroom, only to be startled by a familiar face.

"OH! GOODNESS ME, I…oh…uhh…hello. I-I said everything I needed to say in there!" E. Gadd exclaimed to the toad nurse, the one who discovered Nokano's body.

"Professor, I just wanted to let you know that it wasn't me who made that note, I swear! I trust you guys know what you're doing, really. But the other doctors…they know for a fact something is up, and they said they might make an announcement to everyone soon about Dr. Nokano disappearing and asking if anyone knows anything. Obviously, it'll get everyone panicking once again, which is the last thing we all need!" whispered the toad nurse.

"I-I believe you. Thanks for having our backs. But…holy hell, that is a baaaad idea! I get why they're concerned, but…eragh! I just need time to think of a proper plan!" E. Gadd yelped in immense stress, tugging at his gray hair.

"Do you have any clue who would send that note, though? Is it possible that one of your friends feels so guilty about keeping it a secret that they're doing this as a sneaky way to get it out in the open?" proposed the toad nurse. It was a very thought-provoking question for E. Gadd, but he refused to entertain that idea. Instead, he had his sights focused on another suspect.

"No no. Very much doubtful about that. I have a theory for who did it, though. Someone who's been under our noses this whole time," E. Gadd cryptically responded. His gut was telling him one person: Toadari.

---

Monty drove the ambulance to the countryside and saw another ambulance parked up ahead next to a trailhead leading into the forest. Monty parked the ambulance behind the other one.

"Here we are! And there they were. I'll walk with you to the tower, Rosalina. Too beautiful over here not to take it all in! Are you ready for this?" Monty asked.

"For this? No. But I'm gonna have to be. Because this is a whole other ballgame compared to everything else we've been through," Rosalina earnestly replied, while looking at the trail.

"I see. Yeah, a place where you face everything dark and traumatic within you…that's pure psychological horror right there! How does one even overcome that? Gosh, I hope your friends are hanging in there the best they can," Monty said with worry.

"Unfortunately, I know that at least a few of them are going to die. I hate saying that outloud, but it's a fact of this situation. But no matter what happens, we just need the last gem, then we can finally start on destroying these bastards who are trying to destroy our world," Rosalina said while unbuckling herself.

"Great! Well, let's get going before the bodycount gets too high!" Fly Guy screeched from the back, making Monty and Rosalina shriek in surprise.

"WOAH WOAH WHAT IN THE GOOD GRAVY KIND OF…HUH!? Fly Guy? How the hell did you get in here!?" Monty yelled.

"I came in through the back doors, duh! What, you thought I teleported myself in? HA! I wish!" Fly Guy laughed.

"You were in here this whole time? I knew I felt a weird presence, but I figured it was just because my mind was stuck on the tower the whole drive here…" Rosalina said in confusion and then giggled at the absurdity of this situation.

"Yeppers! I came to help! You say this is a place full of darkness, horror, trauma, monsters, demons, green goop, rancid smells, mice traps, psychological warfare, and holes of every size, right? Well, you gotta have help on your side if you wanna traverse through that batshit insanity!" Fly Guy eagerly replied.

"Uhh…I mean, I didn't say it had, like, half of those things…but, Fly Guy, are you positive you wanna come with? Believe me when I say that this is going to be extremely dangerous. Your mind is going to be totally messed with!" Rosalina warned. Fly Guy nodded then gave her a stern look.

"Yes I do. Look…I know I'm totally bonkers, alright? But I'm stronger than I look and more fearless than I look. You're not going in there by yourself. I know I can contribute to saving those guys. I wouldn't have come if I knew I couldn't do it. So…I'm going. It's a done deal," he stated confidently. Monty and Rosalina felt impressed by his boldness, especially since he behaved more seriously than he usually does.

"Well, Rosalina? You heard the propeller guy! You got a buddy tagging along into the dark tower! Ain't no stopping him!" Monty cheered.

Rosalina giggled again. "Alright. As long as you're aware of the risks then…ain't no stopping you. Let's go!"

The trio exited the ambulance and onto the trail they went. As they walked in anticipation of encountering the tower, they admired the beauty of the forest they entered.

"Soooo, Fly Guy! What's your story? Are you connected at all to any of Rosalina's friends or just happened to be acquainted with them via Tatanga kidnapping everyone?" Monty asked.

"Yeah! Acquainted via kidnapping. I still remember the day we got captured and sent to our cells in that whack-ass medieval castle. Everyone was so mopey and moody and bitter, and I was just trying to brighten the mood by model walking around the room, acting like I was all that. Didn't go over very well with the others, unsurprisingly!" Fly Guy recalled with a faint laugh.

"Oh! Wow, that's…a choice…hehe," Monty awkwardly replied, unsure of how to properly respond to that.

"When you said you were stronger and more fearless than you look…it gave me the feeling that you've faced brutal predicaments before, like with what we're dealing with right now, and obviously overcame them. Am I right in saying that?" Rosalina asked. Fly Guy smirked and looked away from them.

"Why, yes. You'd be so right. Looooooooooooooong story short…I used to live in a bad part of Mushroom City. I don't know if you guys ever saw or remember the news about that Bandit gang causing havoc and looting people's houses in the southeast district of downtown, but one night, a group of them broke into my apartment while I was asleep and tried to steal everything I owned.

But I'm a light sleeper. I woke up the second I heard the noise. I knew exactly what was happening from the get go. I kept a baseball bat with me in case of events like these happening. So…I grabbed the bat and…I just went off on them. It all happened so fucking fast that my own head probably spun! I bashed everyone I could that was in my line of sight. Threw my own stuff at them. Flew around the room and hit and kicked them however I could. I was raging and hollering like a wild animal! Yeah, I also got hurt in the process…but you know what? I beat the shit out of all of them. They were SCARED of me because I acted like I wasn't scared. I acted like I knew exactly what I was doing. They weren't expecting that. They were expecting to see a scared, defenseless guy who'd beg for his life. But not me. I went in hard on the offense.

So, none of my stuff was stolen. The Bandits ran away like scared little children, bruises and broken noses and all. I felt sooooooo empowered by what I did! Yeah, some of my stuff did get destroyed, but I beat them at their own game. It was nice! Never dealt with those fuckers ever again. Obviously, lady luck played a role in me surviving that night too since what I did was a huuuuuge risk. But ever since then, I've just been brave enough to face whatever hell is thrown at me. I don't care too much if I die, to be honest. Because at least I'll die fighting for my life rather than letting some low-life prick get the best of me. Ya know!?" Fly Guy merrily explained his story, blowing away Rosalina and Monty from his determination to fight for his life.

"WOW! Talk about total badass! And a risk taker…damn man. I can see why you're so eager to help. You've got guts of glory!" Monty praised.

"Indeed. What you did was the epitome of fearlessness. The big risk paid off! But I'm curious about something…you used the word 'acted' a couple times there. So, are you saying you were also scared but pushed through that fear anyways?" Rosalina questioned. Fly Guy snickered at her.

"Hehehe. Exactly! Hell yes, I was scared. But when I use the word 'acted', I put on a brave face and push through that fear anyways. I put on the act of being a warrior and I eventually became that over time. Again, my method definitely isn't universal since it involves big risks…but I'd say playing the part in general, or putting on an 'act,' to get what you want or to conquer a situation may work greatly in one's favor!" he explained and advised.

"Interesting. I've never heard of such advice before. Hmm! I'll keep that in my thoughts! Thanks! They should call you Wisdom Guy!" Monty joked. Fly Guy shook his head at him.

"Hell no. Doesn't have the same ring to it as Fly Guy! Ya know!?" Fly Guy objected.

"Err…right…oh! How about Wise Guy?" Monty suggested with a frail smile.

"Wise Guy…it's better…I'll keep that in my bank of thoughts too!" Fly Guy joked back at him with another snicker.

The trio walked further and further until they saw the black tower looming over them.

"We've arrived. Ooh…yeah…this place definitely has that same nasty energy I felt when I did that meditation," Rosalina said in slight disgust.

"This place looks nasty too! Can only imagine how dusty it is inside!" Fly Guy commented.

"Alright. Good luck to you two! I know you'll push through whatever this place throws at ya! Remember, be fearless! Put on the act of being a fearless warrior!" Monty recalled cheerily.

"Will do, Monty. Ready, Fly Guy? This won't be an easy task!" Rosalina warned.

"I'm aware. But I'm up for the challenge. See how much stronger I can get!" Fly Guy responded matter-of-factly.

"Okay. Here we go…"

---

BLACKSTONE TOWER

"You want more toys to play with!? Not gonna happen. We're leaving NOW. We've got what we need!" Pauline stated to Underworld-Kalmar as his pet snakes came into the room too.

"Oh no no no, I don't think so, my pretty lady! See, you guys had your one chance to leave when you made your sacrificial choice clear the last time you were here. But now you're back…and I won't allow you to leave again. You shouldn't be too surprised, considering this is an underworld. Or did you forget all about that?" Underworld-Kalmar spat.

"C'mon man, just let them go!" Boshi shouted, drawing some eyes to him, with Yoshi refusing to look even in his general direction. "You already have me, you've fucked with me so many times now and killed me in all kinds of twisted methods you came up with. You don't need more. This isn't necessary!"

"You're right, Boshi. I don't need more toys…but I want more toys. Ooh! I can just imagine it now…playing a game of hide and seek with you all scrambling about! Losers get cut veeeeery sloooooowly open and have their organs removed. Winners get a quick death of being eaten by my pet snakes. Gosh! Imagine doing that for all eternity. Being killed over and over and over. That's what Hell is like, I'd imagine. The actual Hell you folks from up above hear about constantly!" Underworld-Kalmar giddily responded with a creepy grin.

"Oh my god! Th-that's so SICK and cruel! What kind of monster does that to people!? How do you live with yourself!?" Toadette cried in disgust.

"My dear…you don't look familiar. You give off an air of innocence and naivety. You're in the Underworld, a place where the wicked and cruel run amok and chaos is ever so prevalent. I live with myself perfectly content in the way I run my life. You may think it's sick and cruel. But guess what? I don't care," Underworld-Kalmar explained bluntly.

"Huh. What you described doesn't sound too much different from our own world…" Toadette remarked.

Boshi stepped in front of the group towards the heinous star spirit and spoke, "Guys…leave. It's me that he wants to play with. I'm the one that was chosen as the sacrifice. It should remain that way. Now go! ALL OF YOU!"

"He's right, we don't belong here. All of us, let's get running, NOW! COME ON!" Mario demanded and he ran off with the others following right behind him.

"You want them? Gotta come through me first, bitch!" Boshi yelled, crossing his arms with a smirk.

"Hoohoohoo…look at you, oh so cocky in protecting the ones that gave you up. I see through you. You're not gonna rejoin their little brigade. They don't want your narcissistic self in their clan. ATTACK!" Underworld-Kalmar commanded and the snakes and Clubbas darted towards Boshi.

The Clubbas swung their spiked clubs at the blue dino who managed to dodge all but one, which hit him in the shoulder. Boshi roared out in pain, but recoiled quickly by punching the Clubba who struck him in the face and kicked another Clubba in the stomach. The third Clubba swung his spiked club into his stomach, knocking him to the floor. Boshi roared out again, holding his now bloody and wounded stomach. One of the snakes slithered over to the dino and devoured him with ease.

"DON'T LOOK BACK! KEEP RUNNING! NO STOPPING TILL WE HIT THE ENTRANCE OF THIS FUCKING PLACE!" Underworld-Mario screamed, inches behind Mario, as the group bolted with all their might through the various rooms of the underworld palace.

"Hate to admit it, but that was noble of Boshi to do that…but you also wanna know something else? I don't even feel bad for leaving him down here! I mean, SOMEONE had to do it, may as well be his miserable ass!" Yoshi angrily spat.

"Uhh, yeah, t-talk about that later, focus on the running!" Pauline yelled, not wanting a distraction from the escape.

Then they came to the room with the narrow bridge and the bone pit at the bottom.

"Be careful crossing the bridge! Move carefully but quickly!" Mario advised as he was the first to cross, trying not to look down.

"He's not coming back with us, right!? He better not run with us back to the tower!" Yoshi yelled, looking back to see if Boshi was still alive and heading their way.

"Yoshi, just GO! COME ON!" Pauline frustratedly urged, nudging him forward.

"Wha-what the hell is all that down here!? Thousands of fucking BONES!? God, this is nuts!" Crump yelled in horror at seeing the pit of bones.

"IGNORE IT, CRUMP, AND GOOOOO! WE CAN'T RISK STOPPING FOR EVEN A SPLIT SECOND!" Grodus urged, making him go behind Underworld-Mario and then he followed right behind with Pauline following, then Goombella, then Yoshi, then Starlow, and then Toadette bringing up the rear who couldn't help but also look down into the bone pit.

"Oh my god…we're above so many dead bodies…" Toadette commented also in horror, struggling to take her eyes off of the atrocity.

"Toadette, just look forward! Looking down at it is just gonna slow you down! PLEASE!" Starlow shrieked.

"R-Right. Sorry…I…OH!" Toadette screamed, who turned her head to look forward, but she made a small misstep and lost her balance and fell down below into the bone pit. Starlow heard her scream and she whipped her head back to see a falling Toadette, which caused her to scream in terror which then also made her lose her balance and fall into the bone pit too.

Everyone else looked behind them from hearing the girls screaming and saw the girls landing onto the bones. They gasped and panicked even further, this potentially sealing their fates.

"SHIT! Guys, go! I'll get them!" Yoshi commanded and jumped down to the pit.

"Damnit! Uhh…okay, the rest of you, just escape the palace and head back to the cave, okay!? Wait for us there! I'm gonna help them!" Mario ordered as everyone else made it off the bridge and onto the wider landing.

"NO! If you wanna survive, Mario, then you are gonna escape right now! Those fucking serpents and clubbas are gonna be in here any second, and those three will get MAULED! COME ON!" Underworld-Mario yelled, grabbing his counterpart by the shirt to pull him into the next room, but Mario smacked his hand away.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!? I'm not leaving my friends behind! The rest of you GO! NOW! That's an order!" Mario shouted angrily. The rest of them hesitantly nodded and continued forward except for his counterpart.

"Wow. I'm just trying to help you survive, you idiot! You go in that pit, you're DEAD. Do you not get that!? Your world needs YOU. You know, Super fucking Mario!? Or are you really just gonna attempt to be some selfless saint and risk your life right now!?" Underworld-Mario yelled into his face, trying hard to get him to understand, but true Mario wasn't having it.

"Fucking stop! You're just wasting both of our time! Those are my FRIENDS back there, I'd do anything to help save them, even if it looks bleak! You wouldn't understand that because you have no friends in this world! NOW GO!" Mario angrily responded then he long jumped into the bone pit.

"Oww…oh my god…OWWWWW!" Starlow cried as a sharp tooth bone had stabbed into her back a little upon landing.

"Starlow…oh my gosh! Uhh, hold still! I'm gonna take it out of you!" Toadette yelped at the sight of the poor star sprite with the bone in her back.

"Just-just do it quick! PLEASE! Don't hold back!" Starlow pleaded. Toadette winced as she pulled the bone out as quickly as she could. Starlow let out an ear-piercing shrill, her whole back being shot with pain from the pull out.

"S-Starlow! I'm so sorry! You're okay now! I-It's okay…" Toadette cried, trying to comfort her.

Yoshi landed on the bones right next to them and hurriedly spoke, "GUYS, COME ON! Hop on my back, I'll flutter jump our way out of here!"

But right after he said that, in came bursting the two giant serpents plus the three clubbas. The serpents immediately headed for the bone pit while the clubbas started crossing the bridge.

"AH! Hurry, Yoshi! We gotta move!" Toadette screamed as she and Starlow hopped on his back. The serpents got close to the three, but were briefly stopped by a bunch of bones being thrown at them.

Yoshi looked to his left and saw that it was Mario. He yelled, "Yoshi, get out! I'll take care of them!"

"Mario, no! Get on my back right now! They're gonna overpower you!" Yoshi demanded.

"It's not up for discussion! GOOOOO!" Mario roared, grabbing a sharp-pointed bone, then charged for the serpents. Yoshi flutter jumped his way back onto the bridge, behind the clubbas. Yoshi did his tongue attack, caught the clubba closest to him, and spat him out at one of the serpents, knocking both of them over into the bones.

Mario long-jumped towards the other serpent and managed to stab its left eye with the sharp bone. It let out a screech as it squirmed about amongst the bones. The other serpent retaliated and lunged at Mario. The plumber barely dodged its attack and stabbed its back with the bone. The serpent screeched as well. As the serpent was distracted with its pain, Mario found another sharp bone and stabbed it through its chin which went into its mouth. The serpent cried some more as it lay onto the bones and squirmed as well.

Mario was about to get out of there once he realized the serpents were pretty much done for, but the Clubba from before snuck up to Mario and swung his club at his leg. Luckily, Mario heard the noise from behind and dodged the attack…but unluckily, the club hit his left foot. Mario screamed in sheer agony. He then used all his might and adrenaline to kick the Clubba in his leg with his good foot, knocking him down, then Mario grabbed the spiked club and swung it down onto the Clubba's head several times, blood splattering all over the surrounding bones and onto Mario's clothes. Mario slowed his breathing and fell backwards onto the bones, aching from his bleeding foot. He took off his shoe and sock to see how back it was. A few wounds made it into the top of his foot from the spikes, but didn't seem too deep.

Mario heard a shuffling of bones behind him, startling him and quickly turning around. He gasped a little to see it was Boshi.

"Ouch! That bastard got you good there. Are you able to stand?" he asked.

"I…I've had worse done to me. I can handle this. Wait, is this where you 'respawn' after you're killed?" Mario asked, realizing what was happening.

"Yep. Every. Single. Time. In this creepy as hell pit of a thousand bones. Unfortunately, the damn snakes and annoying clubbas also 'respawn' so we gotta get going! Come on, I'll get you out of here and to the others!" Boshi urged.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group made it to the main entry hall.

"Look! We're almost out, you guys! Not much longer now!" Goombella shouted in relief.

"AAAAAGGGGHHHH! FUCKING SON OF A BITCH!" Lord Crump suddenly screamed while falling to the floor. The others shrieked and quickly saw that one of the Clubbas threw their spiked clubs at Crump and it struck him in his left shoulder.

"I'll pull it out of him, you guys attack those fuckers!" Pauline yelled and ran to Crump.

Grodus lunged into the weaponless Clubba, his adrenaline ramping up from seeing Crump hurt. The Clubba punched Grodus in the side of his face, rolling him over to the ground. Goombella ran over and headbonked the Clubba, damaging and stopping him even further. Underworld-Mario then long-jumped to the scene and stomped repeatedly on the Clubba's face, creating a gory and bloody puddle around the body.

"This is gonna hurt! I'm gonna count to 3!" Pauline instructed, grabbing onto the spiked club that was stuck in poor Crump's shoulder.

"JUST FUCKING DO IT! NO COUNTING!" Crump cried, bracing for the additional pain.

Pauline used all her might to get the spiked club out of his shoulder. Crump screamed in sheer pain as Pauline managed to slowly rip the club out, his wounds now bleeding out. Pauline fell backwards to the ground from the hard pull.

"OH! BEHIND YOU!" Goombella shrieked, pointing to Underworld-Mario. He briefly looked back and saw the last Clubba charging for him. He swiftly dodged to the right and Goombella jumped out of the way just in time too.

The Clubba made it to Pauline who also reacted just in time to swing her club at him. The Clubba blocked the attack with his own club and then he kicked Pauline in the side, making her cry out and drop the club. The Clubba then brought his spiked club up high, ready to slam it down onto her head.

Until someone from behind snatched the club, then swung it at the Clubba's head, knocking him sideways down to the floor. It was Larry! The koopaling then swung it down on the Clubba's head several times, splattering blood everywhere and smashing the enemy's face open.

Larry grunted, slowing his breathing, his body having a few bruises and scratches and looked to everyone then said, "Okay…can we PLEASE get the fuck out of this hellscape now!?"

"Damn, Crump! You okay? Here, stand up slowly…" Grodus said, helping him get back on his feet.

"I was just pummeled in the fucking shoulder, Grodus, of course I'm not okay! But at least it looks like we're safe now," Crump grumbled, gripping his bleeding shoulder while leaning against Grodus.

"Goddamn. Thanks, Larry! Glad to see you alive! Thought you were dead after that long drop to the earth," Pauline said while Larry helped her stand up.

"Nah, the bush softened my fall. Still hurt like hell, but could've been way worse, obviously. Now, where are the others?" Larry asked, observing some key people missing.

"Back there," Underworld-Mario pointed to the room they just came in from. "Some of your friends fell in the bone pit, and Mario, being the hero with a thirst for danger that he is, demanded that the rest of us go and he stayed and helped them out. Oh, and the demonic Star Spirit is chasing us down with his pets in case you didn't figure that out already too."

Larry looked annoyed and raised a brow at him. "Oooookay…you make it seem like it's a bad thing for him to save our friends!? The hell's your deal?"

"My deal is that your guys' world needs Super Mario, you know, the guy that saves the planet from destruction a thousand times in a row!? For him to risk his life like that just proves that he loves to be that much close to death. He gets a high off of it. Why do you think he hasn't retired from the game yet? Why do you think he doesn't let someone else take over in saving the day?" Underworld-Mario questioned inquisitively. The others gathered around him in both annoyance and confusion.

"Excuse me!? I don't know exactly what you're trying to, like, get at here, but Mario does a damn good job at being selfless and taking down the bad guys when not many other people can. If it weren't for him, so many more people would be dead by now," Goombella came to his defense.

"No shit he's selfless and powerful! But it's gonna end up coming to a point where those traits are gonna be challenged like never before. Trust me, I should know. Why do you think I am the way I am in this world? And it's not just because this is an underworld," Underworld-Mario exclaimed cryptically.

"Uhh, what are you saying? That he's gonna end up being selfish and weak eventually? What a dumb thing to assume," Pauline spat.

"I'm saying…he gets a rush off of it. A high. You know, from saving people and beating the bad guys and all that crap. I played the hero role down here too, you know. Fought the monsters and fought for my friends. Risked my life too many times until I ended up killing…I got Koops killed by accident," Underworld-Mario revealed, bringing everyone's full focus to his speech now. The others looked frightened by that statement. "We were fighting a dragon. It was terrorizing the city. The dragon flew towards us and I swear, I thought it was gonna head for Koops, so I shoved him away…but the dragon fucking swerved and got him anyways. Bit him apart. Everyone saw it. Some laughed. Some threw shit at me. Some said I should've never fought the monsters in the first place…they run this world…that I should've let life take its course. That I was a fucking fool to even play a hero in this kind of world.

I was filled with so much guilt, anger, and shame…that I…that I went completely insane and skinned Koops' head and put it on me. I didn't want to be me anymore. I wanted Koops to live because he deserved it more than me. I'm too much of a coward to kill myself…but I'm also too much of a coward to let someone else kill me. I'm telling you guys right now…Mario will break eventually. He's not invincible. He's a flawed being just like you and I."

The others were silent, not knowing how to respond to that shocking and horrifying story. They didn't realize that the underworld counterpart to their own Mario had his own layers and tragic backstory.

Crump finally spoke, breaking the awkward silence, "What? What in the fuck am I listening to!? You SKINNED Koops!? I…for pete's sake, can we get back to OUR world now!?"

The others then heard footsteps running closer to them. They turned around and were relieved to see Yoshi running into the room with Starlow and Toadette in tow.

"Oh, good! We're glad you guys are okay!" Pauline cheered as Yoshi came to a stop.

"Yeah, we just barely escaped! Glad to see you're okay too, Larry!" Yoshi said.

"For the most part. Now, where's Mario? Doesn't sound like he's dead otherwise you'd be looking pretty upset right now!" Larry pointed out.

"He told us to go, that he was gonna fight off the serpents and clubbas. Should we wait for him here or go back?" Toadette asked.

"No need for either! He's coming! With…Boshi!?" Goombella shouted, pointing back to where Yoshi came from previously. Yoshi whipped his head back and saw Boshi carrying Mario to the room. He quickly looked away and tried to keep his cool.

"Well well! You came back to life fast!" Pauline observed with a smirk.

"Yep! And sometimes I die just as fast too! But alright, you guys need to get the hell out of here NOW. You guys still have that black gem, right!?" Boshi asked.

"Yeah, it's in my pocket…" Mario answered, getting it out and showing it to everyone, providing further relief to the group.

"Mario, what happened to your foot? It's bleeding!" Grodus shouted, pointing to his bloody left foot.

"It's fine! One of the clubbas got me with their club, but I can handle it. But Boshi's right, we gotta get going while it's clear!" Mario instructed, but Goombella was still concerned for his well-being.

"Are you sure you can run on that foot, Mario!? Might be better to have Toadette or Starlow step off of Yoshi, so that way he can have room to carry you back!" Goombella advised.

"No…um, I'm so sorry but one of the bones kinda stabbed into my back when I fell. I-I'm hurting too much to run properly. I'm sorry, guys!" Starlow cried, feeling like a burden in that situation.

"Hey, don't be sorry! We're just glad you're alive. So, Yoshi can just carry Starlow and Mario then and the rest of us will just book it back to the tower," Larry explained with sympathy towards Starlow, making her feel a little bit better.

"Orrrrrr…why doesn't Yoshi take Starlow…and Boshi take Mario? That way, that extra weight doesn't slow Yoshi down! Perfect dividing and conquering!" Underworld-Mario suggested while crossing his arms with a neutral expression and looking directly and somewhat smugly at his counterpart. Everyone else was unnerved by that suggestion, whereas Mario was just flat out annoyed and pissed.

"You son of a bitch, you KNOW why that won't work! Quit trying to fuck things up!" Mario yelled.

"I'm the son of a bitch? Really? This coming from the guy who says I have no friends all because he can't take a simple suggestion. Oversensitive much?" Underworld-Mario retorted.

"Oh, screw off! I only said that because you were getting on my case for choosing to save my friends! Because how dare I try to save others from being killed!?" Mario countered.

"HA! Looks like our Mario struck a nerve with you! You know what they say, the truth hurts!" Larry snickered at Mario's counterpart, which angered him even more.

"Wow. You know…I may be all alone here…but at least I'm not a dumbass like you all who are just standing here chit-chatting away while Kalmar is coming to bury us, instead of, you know, trying to escape back to your world!" Underworld-Mario shouted frustratedly, pointing to the demonic Star Spirit that floated into the room, which startled everyone.

"GRAH! HOO…hoo…hooooo….I must say, job well done killing my pets and guards. But, just like the poor little dino boy there, my pets come back to life within seconds!" Underworld-Kalmar laughed as rumbling noises were heard from the room they just came in. They all saw the two serpents and three clubbas come charging towards their room. The serpents slithered to everyone so quickly that they had little time to react.

"They're so fast! How're we supposed to slow them down!? No way we can outrun them! Maybe Yoshi and Boshi can, but not the rest of us!" Starlow cried.

"I suppose another sacrifice is out of the question!?" Underworld-Mario suggested with a shrug.

"No…I think I have an idea…" Grodus spoke, all eyes immediately turning to him in curiosity.

---

Luigi, Peach, Mona, Bowser Jr., Koops, Kooper, and Vivian headed down the west hallway, hoping to find the child in question from the story Peach read outloud. Everyone was nervous for what could be lurking in the dark of this nightmare reality of their own world.

"Uhh, sh-should we check any of the rooms!? Or are we just going with our gut instincts for where that kid's scream could've come from?" Koops asked in fright, holding dearly onto Vivian and Kooper, looking down the rooms as they all quickly passed them in the hallway.

"The second one. We can't waste any time searching each room for this supposed 'kid' we're looking for. We need to solve this, then we gotta make it back to the others and help them if they need it," Luigi ordered, leading the group down the hallway. He was fearing for his life deep inside, but he tried his best to push it down for the sake of getting out of this hell.

"OVER THERE! You see that!?" Mona shouted, pointing down and slightly to the left. Everyone darted their heads to where she was pointing at and saw a small figure bolt into a room further down on the left.

"Woah! What the fuck was that!? Was that the little kid!? Are we gonna have to potentially fight it!?" Kooper shrieked.

"Knowing how this place is going so far, probably. But let's not think about that until if or when it actually happens!" Mona assured. The group quickened their pace and headed into the room where they saw the figure go in.

The group came to a stop when they all entered the room. It looked like an examination room…with a stretcher that had a body laying on top of it with a white sheet on top of the patient. The patient's left leg was sticking out, and it looked like a koopa's leg.

"Oh gosh. Do we dare take that blanket off?" Vivian asked nervously.

"I…I want to…but I also don't want to! But where is that kid? There's nowhere in here for him or her to hide!" Bowser Jr. pointed out, walking closer to the stretcher.

Luigi walked over to the window and peered out. He made a slightly frightened expression and exhaled nervously, saying, "God. It's just a black void out there. Somehow this place keeps getting scarier by the second. We're completely trapped…"

"Luigi, we'll be okay. We got each other! I really think if we figure out what's going on here, we'll be back in the tower and hopefully able to reunite with the others," Peach reassured in hopes of calming him down.

"I know that. I just…this place is starting to feel suffocating…" Luigi responded, gripping his chest.

"Hey! There's something on the koopa's leg! See that? On his ankle? Looks like someone wrote a number on there with a black marker," Koops yelped and pointed to the patient's ankle. Everyone gathered around and saw what Koops was referring to. On the koopa's ankle were indeed numbers, but they were written as if it was referencing military clock time. That is, it said "19:57".

"Nineteen…fifty seven? 19:57. Ooookay, why is there a military time written on this guy's ankle? Are we supposed to remember this?" Kooper asked in total confusion.

"I, uhh, I think so! It feels so 'out of place' to not keep it in our minds. So, 19:57. Okay, does that mean something will happen at 19:57? Err, wait a second, what is 19:57 in regular time again? 6:57?" Peach guessed.

"No, it'd be 7:57 PM. But yeah, it's definitely important. The thing is, there's no clock in here to tell the time, so maybe we gotta go back to the lobby to find the clock and, uhh, wait until the clock strikes 7:57?" Mona also guessed, not knowing what else to do in this tricky situation.

"Wait a second here. I just realized something…what if that little kid is underneath this sheet!? Maybe we SHOULD just, you know, yank it off!?" Vivian proposed.

"Something really tells me we'll be in for the scare of our lives if we do that!" Koops yelped, backing away towards the door in case they decide to do it and chaos ensues.

"Ugh, I'll just do it! Everyone, stand back!" Mona offered and grabbed the sheet as everyone else prepared for a potentially gruesome and/or terrifying sight.

BOOM!

"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT!?" Kooper screamed, jumping in fright as did everyone else.

"Was that an explosion!? Sure sounded like it!" Bowser Jr. shrieked.

"Th-that came from the hallway…sounded like towards the lobby!" Luigi commented, slowly peering back out into the hallway. He didn't see anything down the hallway back where the purple mass was.

"We should investigate that. Forget the koopa under the sheet! We'll come back to him or her later if necessary!" Luigi ordered. Everyone else nodded and they all headed out into the hallway back towards the lobby.

"Guys, wait, slow the hell down! We have to carry Koops with us, remember!?" Kooper yelled, him and Vivian dragging Koops down the hallway as quickly as they could, behind the others.

Koops turned his head back, hearing a scuffling noise from behind, and he screamed in horror, startling everyone else again.

"WHAT, WHAT!? KOOPS?" Vivian shrilled.

"OH MY GOD, WHAT IS THAT!? RUUUUUUN!" Koops screamed, pointing to a tall female koopa dressed in dirty nurse clothes quickly limping towards the others. Her eyes were totally bloodshot and there was blood running down from them, dripping onto the floor. Her mouth hung open abnormally, as if her jaw was dislocated. She was wielding a large syringe in one hand and a scalpel in the other.

"HOLY SHIT, GO GO FUCKING GOOOOO!" Mona screamed for her life and the group bolted for it, with Kooper, Koops, and Vivian struggling to run at full speed.

Luigi was at the front, dashing towards the purple mass, then turning the corner of the hall which now led to the lobby. Luigi came to a halt, falling over to the floor, when he saw another nurse of the exact same description limp towards them.

"AGH! Another one! Go back, go back! Down the other hall!" Luigi cried, struggling to stand himself back up.

"Wait, through here! I think this door leads to the stairwell!" Peach yelled, pushing on the door on the right-hand wall, but it wasn't opening for some reason.

"CRAP! Maybe the elevator then!?" Bowser Jr. shrieked and pounded the up elevator button a few times, but it didn't even seem to be functioning at all.

"WAIT! Over here! This is the door to the basement, right!? AHHHHH!" Mona shouted, turning the door handle and pushing it open as hard as she could, but it wasn't even budging.

"MONA, STOP! Look above the handle! It's a keypad! You gotta enter a code to get in there!" Luigi pointed out. Mona stopped her struggling and looked to where he was pointing. It was a 9-digit keypad right above the handle.

"What the hell!? This door never had a keypad before! WHY IS THERE A FUCKING KEYPAD!?" Mona screeched in pure stress and confusion.

"WHO FUCKING KNOWS BUT WE NEED TO FIGURE OUT SOMETHING FAST BECAUSE THESE FUCKING CREATURES ARE GETTING CLOSER!" Kooper screamed, holding tight on to Koops as he saw the two nurses closing in on the group.

"WHAT CODE ARE WE EVEN SUPPOSED TO PUT IN!? HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO KNOW A DAMN CODE!?" Junior cried hysterically.

"Wait a second! Try 1957! On the keypad! HURRY!" Peach suggested, having a light bulb moment. Mona input the code and there was a loud click. Mona turned the handle again and the door opened.

"YES! Good job, Peach! Let's go!" Junior cheered and the group ran in and slammed the door shut before any blood was spilled.

"Whew…that was intense. Way to go, Peach! So that 19:57 thing was actually a clue. Huh! This place is one giant puzzle!" Vivian said, patting Peach on the shoulders. Peach smiled a little.

"Oh, it was nothing! I just figured it'd be worth a shot to try that because that's, like, the only numbers that we saw in this scary place, so…" Peach humbly responded.

"Well, your 'nothing' saved us from being injected and dissected so you should be proud of yourself," Mona heartily replied with a chuckle.

"Sooooo it's safe to say that we are meant to come down here. I'm guessing that kid is down here too then. Looks like we gotta explore the basement. Great…basements are the best place to go exploring…" Koops groaned.

"Let's just stay close together and walk down this way. But be vigilant too…anything could be down here," Luigi ordered and took the lead of the group heading down the hallway leading to the right where the filing and records rooms were.

The group walked a little slowly, looking for anything out of the ordinary. The search didn't last for long, as Mona pointed out something on the floor.

"Right there! On the floor below the door. See that? Looks like blood…and it looks like it's flowing out from the room. Looks kinda fresh too!" Mona explained. They all saw a puddle of blood on the floor below a door on the right-hand wall, leading to what looked like a small records room.

"Oh boy. Alright everyone, be prepared for…whatever the hell could be in there. I'm gonna open the door quickly. You all ready?" Luigi asked, gripping the doorknob.

"As ready as ever. Let's do this!" Junior exclaimed.

Luigi turned the knob and swung the door open. The others jumped a little and braced for another creature to potentially be in there.

But no creature was in there, thankfully…but something else was.

Pinned up against the wall with a spear in its torso was a nursing mannequin resembling a small, male Toad. Blood was everywhere on the floor, as if it came from the mannequin itself…as if it was actually a real being.

"Uhhh…okay…what the fuck are we supposed to be looking at exactly?" Kooper asked, more confused than scared.

"I don't know, but it's sure freaky as hell! Is it supposed to be another clue!?" Koops asked, more scared than confused.

"I-I think so! Look! On its face, there's paper taped on it! It looks like it might be part of the other paper with the story," Peach said with a hint of excitement. She carefully stepped into the room, hoping to not slip on the blood and removed the paper from the mannequin's face.

"AH! Oh…the face is blank…I thought it was gonna reveal something scary there…" Junior admitted awkwardly.

"Alright Peach, what does it say on there? Is it actually part of the story or something else?" Mona asked.

"I think it is part of the story! I'll read it: …the parents were faced with two doors in the entry room of the dank building. Both doors had images etched on them that scared the parents. One door was an etched image of the father, and the other of the mother. Intuition kicked in for the both of them and they knew they had to go in the rooms separately. And so they went.

The rooms contained a battle they had to fight through. The battle contained awful and dark past memories that they had to reface in the present. Both mother and father cried and got hurt in this battle of overcoming their pasts, but their love for their son and desire to find him and bring him back home overpowered the wickedness that the evil building threw at them.

The mother and father made it out of the horrible rooms with battle scars to show that they fought for their lives. They were now further into the building and closer to finding their son! Now they had to traverse through the maze that would lead to the top of the tower, where the boy was presumably located. Unfortunately, this maze contained traps and nasty creatures of the dark and puzzles. One big puzzle was a dark-purple blob blocking their way into the top of the tower! They searched and searched for any item in the maze that could be used to strike through the blob…and then they finally found an object that worked: a shard of golden glass. It stood out amongst the dark and gritty stuff that was in the awful building. So, the father grabbed the glass and…

…Ooh. The story ends there again! Just like with the other paper, it looks like this is also torn off from another paper," Peach said, then folded the paper and quickly stepped out of the blood-filled room.

"Oh boy. So the story's practically screaming at us to find this golden shard of glass to get through that purple blob…where those two demon nurses are…wonderful…" Koops said in discouragement.

"Hey, at least it's making it easy for us! So we just gotta find this golden glass shard, which I'm assuming is in this basement. I hope it's not elsewhere, otherwise…that's a whoooole lot of searching we gotta do," Luigi said with more optimism.

"Well, either way, we have a weapon to help us with that now!" Mona exclaimed and grabbed the spear from the mannequin, dropping the doll to the floor.

"Kooper? Hey, are you okay?" Junior asked, seeing that Kooper was sitting down against the opposite wall with his eyes looking watery.

"Uhh…s-so…this is the room where I saw the kid die, when the shooting happened. He died right in my arms. Then I…I fucking saw him again when I went in my room. Fuck, man! It's different seeing a little kid die compared to an adult, you know? Obviously, both are horrible things, but a kid is just starting out their life and they're so innocent and vulnerable a-and…DAMNIT!" Kooper cried and pounded the floor, tugging at his head in stress. Junior and Peach went over to give him a hug.

"Gosh, I am so sorry Kooper! Seeing that kid mannequin doll thing must not help either…" Vivian said in sympathy.

"I'm realizing now that this is like a more twisted version of the hospital in our world. A nightmare version if you can call it that!" Luigi stated in discomfort.

Everyone was startled once again when they heard a sound of a door creaking. It was subtle, but loud enough to make them frightened again. It sounded like it came from the stairs, where they came in from.

"Oh shit! More demon nurses down here!?" Koops yelped.

"Shhh…stay behind me, guys…" Mona whispered and took the lead on the way back to the stairs, holding the spear in a ready position to stab anything of threat.

Mona backed up against the wall as the hallway was turning a corner and she couldn't see what lay beyond the corner. Everyone else backed up against the wall as well, waiting in pure anticipation and fright for what could be down there with them.

Mona slowly peered out from the corner and didn't see anything down the hall…but she did see and hear the door on the left-hand wall creak open more. It was the door that led to one of the cells, at least back in their own world it was. Mona jumped a little again and quickly walked out in the open, eyes locked on the door to the cell, gripping the spear tightly. The others followed closely, also watching the door.

Scuffling within the room was heard now, making the others gasp and tense up further, solidifying that there was indeed someone or something in there.

Mona kept strafing until she got a good view of the room. It was incredibly dim in the room, but she could make out a figure that looked like it was sitting near the far corner.

Mona crept forward, becoming evermore nervous by the second. Her breathing became shakier and heavier as she got a better view of the ominous figure.

---

"THA-THA-THAT'S THE FUCKING GRIM REAPER!?" Spike screamed with terror, stunned at the sight of the cloaked, sword-wielding horseman. The reaper's dark horse let out a neigh sound that hurt everyone's ears. It was louder and deeper than a typical horse's neigh.

"And…and he has a sword…lovely…we are SO gonna die…" Dixie cried in defeat.

"Everyone, stay as far off to the side as you can! I'll fight this bastard. DK, you wanna join me?" Bowser asked, getting into his fighting stance. DK walked over to him and faced the Reaper.

"Of course! We're everyone's only shot at defeating him. But how would we do it? Use his sword against him?" DK quietly guessed as he cracked his knuckles.

"Yeah, it's the only thing I can think of. Or I can use my fire breath to set him and his hell horse ablaze. I'll need to get close to them though and time it right!" Bowser whispered back.

"Alright, let's try the fire breath option, then if that doesn't work, we'll do the sword. Ready!?" DK said as he eyed the reaper down, his adrenaline pumping rapidly.

"Not even remotely, but I'm gonna have to be! GO!" Bowser yelled and the duo charged for the reaper.

The horse neighed and the Reaper charged for the duo as well. Everyone else stood back towards the door and watched the battle commence in complete fear and anxiety.

The reaper swung his sword towards DK as the two nearly collided into each other. DK swiftly lunged forward and ducked his head, missing the sword by mere centimeters. DK punched the horse in its back right leg with all his might, making the horse yell out and nearly fall over. Immediately after that, Bowser clawed the left side of the horse as he ran past as well, now making the horse fall over, thus making the Reaper fall over too.

"NOW, BOWSER! USE YOUR FIRE BREATH!" DK shouted, spotting the perfect opportunity for the attack. Bowser ran to the horse and Reaper and let out his flame breath, lighting up the room for a few seconds.

"Woah! I think he got them!" Wario cheered in relief.

Bowser closed his mouth and the room went near dark again. Nothing was there in the spot where the horse and Reaper laid.

"What the!? They're gone! Vanished! FUCK! I knew it was gonna be too easy!" Bowser growled and stomped the ground angrily.

"Damn. Alright, the next method is the sword then! One of us will have to beat them down again, and the other will need to snatch the sword and stab him with it!" DK said in disappointment, but refused to let this get him down.

"BOWSER, BEHIND YOU! MOOOOVE!" Daisy screamed and ran towards him.

Bowser immediately lunged forward, not even looking behind him as he knew he'd waste precious seconds turning his head and risking his life. The Reaper had swung his sword at Bowser, but just barely missed him thanks to his quick dodge.

"GRAAAH!" DK roared and ran as quick as he could in an oval path to get the horse and Reaper from behind. As DK got close enough, he jumped up and was about to land a mega punch on the horse again, but the horse jumped up a little and back kicked DK in the chest, sending him flying a few feet back on the ground.

"DK! Damnit, I'm not gonna let them fight by themselves, I'm going in, I have an idea!" Daisy yelled and charged into the scene. Meanwhile, Bowser got himself up and did a shell spin attack towards the Reaper. The horse galloped a little towards him and swiftly jumped over Bowser's shell and the Reaper stuck his sword at Bowser's shell. Bowser yelped and crashed into the wall and rolled over onto his stomach.

"Agh, fuck…I think he cracked my shell!" Bowser shouted, feeling the crack in his shell and a bit of pain from the strike.

Daisy ran towards the Reaper and yelled, "TIMESLOW!"

But nothing happened.

Daisy gasped and stopped in her tracks upon quickly realizing that her move didn't work, putting more terror into her as she was now in a more vulnerable position.

The dark horse neighed and ran towards her with the Reaper ready to strike. But instead, the horse itself was struck by Parakarry's Shell Shot move, knocking the horse over to the ground along with the Reaper.

"NOW! GET IT!" Parakarry yelled from the air. Daisy booked it to where the Reaper was. She was inches away from him, but the Reaper suddenly sat up and threw the sword at Daisy. The princess screamed and ducked just in time, but the sword flew in the air and was aiming towards Parakarry now. The paratroopa zoomed out of the way and the sword disappeared into the blackness above.

"GRAAAAAAGH!" Bowser roared and ran like the wind towards the horse and began to claw it like crazy, splattering blood all over the place. The horse neighed and cried out so loudly that everyone covered their ears except for Bowser who tried to withstand the earache so he could kill the horse.

DK then ran over to the horse and shoved both his thumbs into the horse's eyes. The horse cried out further, deafening both the ape and koopa king momentarily. The horse then stopped flailing and crying about and everything was now silent.

Bowser panted, tired from the clawing but relieved that that part of the battle was done. He looked at his arms and body in slight disgust as he was covered with blood.

"Goddamn! Well, Grimmy, I murdered your little horse from hell, so- wait, where the fuck did he go!?" Bowser yelled, pointing out that the Reaper, who was near Daisy, vanished again.

"Oh crap! He could appear anywhere again!" Spike shrieked and looked everywhere for him.

"And our moves from Gekikara don't work either. I mean, I kind of figured they wouldn't since it didn't work in my room, but I thought I'd still give it a try out here just in case," Daisy added in disappointment.

"Stay vigilant, guys. The second he appears, we go for him," DK advised while also looking all around the room for the cloaked swordsreaper.

Dixie heard something from the dead silence. It was the sound of a deep and heavy breathing coming from behind her. Her body tensed up further, knowing right then and there that it wasn't any of her friends because she saw all of them either in front of her or to her sides. She whipped her head around and screamed when she saw the Reaper right in front of her. He quickly swung his sword at her. Dixie lunged herself backwards to dodge the attack, but the sword unfortunately still got to her, slicing her in her left shoulder. The chimp fell to the floor on her back and cried out in pain, gripping her now bleeding shoulder.

"SHIT! DIXIIIIIEEE!" Parakarry screamed and did another shell shot attack at the Reaper. The cloaked being reacted quickly to this and swung his sword at Parakarry, hitting him across the room like a baseball. Parakarry smashed into the wall on the opposite side of the room, breaking apart some wood that looked as if it was covering up a window as a little bit of light was now let in.

"AAAAHHHHH! OH MY GOD! PLEASE DON'T KILL ME! PLEEEEEAAAAAASE!" Dixie screamed and crawled backwards away from the Reaper who was stomping towards her. Wario charged into the Reaper from behind, hoping to knock him over, but his attempt was unsuccessful as it just made him stumble forward a little. The Reaper back kicked Wario in the groin, making him scream in pure pain and fell to the floor, unable to move from the hurt taking over his body.

As the Reaper raised his sword, he suddenly flinched and an ear-piercing scream filled the room. Everyone cringed and covered their ears, the noise being louder than the horse's.

"WHAT THE FUCK!? WHY IS HE SCREAMING!? WHAT'S GOING ON!?" Bowser yelled.

Parakarry saw what happened. The trickle of light coming in from the broken wood had shone on the Reaper, which looked as if it 'stung' him. The paratroopa quickly put two and two together and realized what needed to be done.

"Oh my god! IT'S THE SUNLIGHT! THAT'S WHAT WILL KILL HIM! GUYS, HELP ME RIP OFF THIS WOOD FROM THE WALL!" Parakarry yelled in urgency and began to rip off the wood with all his might.

Bowser and DK heard this and bolted to where Parakarry was. The Reaper gained his composure back and was about to strike at Dixie, but Spike had flutter jumped above him and did his Ground Pound move, knocking the Reaper to the floor and dropping his sword. Spike kicked the sword away from him so he wouldn't be able to easily snatch it.

"RAAAAAAGH! THAT'S IT! IT'S HAPPENING!" Bowser roared as he clawed and pulled like crazy to get the wood apart. As more and more wood came off, it was beginning to reveal a massive window that let more and more sunlight in. The sunlight hit the Reaper again, this time with more exposure. Another ear-piercing scream came from the Reaper as smoke began to form from his body.

"Woah! What's happening to him!? Is he melting?" Spike asked in awe, watching the spectacle.

"Got it!" DK shouted, getting the last piece of wood off from the window. The entire room filled with the sunlight, revealing the black ceiling thus erasing the illusion that the room was taller than it actually was. The Reaper screeched further and flailed about on the ground as more smoke came from him.

The group surrounded the Reaper, relieved that it looked like the battle was finally over. After a few more seconds, the Reaper exploded into a puff of gray smoke. It was done. Everyone felt like they could breathe again.

"FUCKING FINALLY! I was getting worried there that we'd all be dead meat and have our souls taken away by the Grim Reaper to his own gross underworld," Bowser cheered.

"I still can't believe I was kicked in the nuts by the damn GRIM REAPER! I'm surprised I still have them!" Wario angrily yelled. A few others snickered at him.

"Dixie, how are you doing? How's your wound? Ooh…looks kinda deep…" Daisy said, examining her battle wound. Dixie sobbed a little and put her hand over it.

"I-It looks worse than it does…but yeah, it really hurts. Kinda burns too! Man, guys, I really thought I was a goner there. If he had struck me just a few inches off, my throat would've been slit or decapitated. God…I just want out of here ALREADY!" Dixie cried in mass stress and hugged Daisy who cried a little with her.

"Crap, we don't have any more clothing we could use to cover that wound, do we?" Spike asked, worrying about her passing out due to blood loss.

"Errr…how about this?" Wario spoke while taking his cap off and handing it to Dixie. "I know this is an unusual thing to use to cover up a wound, but our options are very limited here!"

"Heh, that'll work for now. Thanks, Wario…" Dixie chuckled a little and pressed his cap against her wound.

"Woah! Look at the sword, guys! It's golden now!" Parakarry yelped, pointing to the dropped sword behind them. Everyone turned and saw it was indeed glowing golden instead of the black now.

"Interesting! Soooo, we're taking this now, right? Right!?" Spike eagerly asked. DK walked over and swiped it, admiring its beauty and potential usefulness.

"Ohhhh, absolutely. How much do you wanna bet that THIS is what will be able to kill the dragon?" DK pointed out with a smirk.

"My entire savings! But speaking of dragon…uhh…do we go back now? Because remember what that writing said in the cell: it said the stone throne room is beyond the skullman's room. So…based on that wording…the way to the stone throne room is probably not the way back then," Daisy recalled.

"Also remember that it said that a cricket is the dragon's weakness. So maybe a cricket could be used to weaken and distract the dragon, and then the sword will be the item to do him in!?" Spike theorized.

"Hmm. Well…what other way out is there then? I don't see another door in here, unless there's some hidden switch we gotta activate or something!" Bowser frustratedly responded.

"Wait a second…in front of the tombstone," DK said and rushed over to the tombstone. He peered down right in front of it and saw an indentation in the ground that stood out. He then struck the tip of the sword into that indentation and an earthquake was felt, scaring the others. Right behind DK, the ground shifted downward, forming a narrow set of stairs leading to a black door.

"Well, damn! There's our way out then!" Bowser scoffed as DK pulled the sword back out and smiled.

"Alright, let's head down there and hope the others are there too! Unless this is the only way to the stone throne room!?" Daisy said, realizing that they may be the only ones left alive if that was the case.

"Damnit. Yeah, this might be the only way there! But for everyone's sake, let's hope not. I definitely wanna believe that a tower this big has at least two ways of getting to the main room, but I know I'd be setting my hopes way too high," Parakarry added, feeling discouraged from that realization.

"Only one way to find out for sure. But either way, we can't waste anymore time. Come on, let's go down there and see what we find!" DK commanded and led the way down the stairs to the black door.

Spike turned to Parakarry as the two were at the back of the group descending the stairs and asked, "Hey, Parakarry...uhh...when you were in your room and saw the dark stuff from your past...did you...uhh...see something that didn't feel like a big deal at the time you first experienced it? Like, obviously, what happened was horrible, but re-experiencing it made you really feel how truly awful it was? I hope I'm wording that right..."

The paratroopa turned to him a little and flashed back to his re-experience of his guilt for not calling the cops on the abusive dad. He said, "Umm...honestly, it felt just as horrible re-experiencing it as it was experiencing it the first time. At least I think. Only difference now is that the re-experience made me deeply regret not doing something I should've done when it happened. Probably one of the few regrets I have in my life. But, Spike...like I said before, if you're not ready to talk about what happened, it's okay. Don't force yourself to if you're not there yet."

Spike's eyes welled up as he turned his head away and said, "Y-Yeah, I'm not ready yet, I just...damn. There was something that happened that made me realize how hurt I actually was. I pushed it away and ignored it the first time because I remember telling myself I'll get over it and downplayed the whole thing. But now, n-now I know how bad it really was. And it wasn't the tower screwing with my head, because I know for a fact it happened the way it did. I just keep thinking about how horrible some people are out there and the things they do. This is one fucked up world we live in, Parakarry. It feels like a never-ending battle."

Parakarry felt for him and saw how raw his pain was and put his hand on his shoulder. "Yeah...I agree, Spike. Whatever happened to you, I'm so sorry and you didn't deserve it. I know that doesn't help much right now, but I sincerely mean it. This world is definitely fucked up on maaaaany levels, but at least we got each other to make it more bearable." Spike smiled a little at him through his tears and nodded in agreement.

Everyone made it down the stairs and reached the door. They saw that it had a design on the door: a typical five-pointed star that was upside down and inside the star itself was a tiny etched figure of what looked like a sword. Everyone was confused as to what this design could mean, but no one wanted to analyze right then and there.

DK opened the door and they came into a small room with one big black door on the opposite side of them. In the center of the room lay a short torch with a blue ember lit on top which lit up the vicinity. Surrounding the torch was an upside down five-pointed star design with an indented circle on each 'point' of the star. There was also a small black door that was to their left and to their right on the same side of the room that they came from.

"Woah. This kind of looks like an altar! And that giant door…yeah, that's definitely the big boss' room," Bowser observed.

"And would you look at that, there are two other doors in this room! So the way we came from was NOT the only way to get into here!" Daisy cheered in relief, giving the others great relief as well.

"Thank goodness. So…what's the plan then? Do we wait here? Go in the other doors to search for the others? Or are we getting this done and over and fighting the dragon?" Wario questioned. No one knew the answer. They wanted to search for the others, but they were also afraid of what other horrors lay in the tower, but it also felt wrong to either wait for them to show up or to fight the dragon without them.

"It's possible that they're already in the big boss' room as we speak..." Dixie pointed out ominously, fearing the inevitable battle they'd have to overcome.

"My gut's telling me my kids are still in the tower, and that my kids are still alive. I don't know about you guys, but I need to find them before I face off with the beast. Come with me if you wish, or stay here, or fight the beast...but I'm searching for my kids first no matter what," Bowser stated. Everyone else understood where he was coming from.

"Okay...so, let's-woah! Wait a second! What's that bright light? In front of the big door!?" DK shrieked, pointing to a blue-ish light forming in front of the giant door.

EoC.

Next chapter, Mimi returns to the hospital which brings everyone relief, but brings the awful news of what happened to Roy and Diddy, and E. Gadd lets the gang know that the staff is onto them about Dr. Nokano and what the next best course of action would be. Grodus makes an unexpected move that may give Mario's group enough time to escape back to the tower, Peach's group becomes more desperate than ever to solve this 'puzzle' they're in as the dangers of the 'nightmare' hospital close in on them, and Daisy's group makes a choice that could help everyone greatly.

Next chapter will be uploaded on Thurday, March 30. Then Chapter 130 will be uploaded on Thursday, April 6! Yep, that's right, there'll be another chapter one week after the next one is uploaded! When was the last time I ever did that for this story? LOL. So, Chapter 130 will be the final chapter of the Blackstone Tower Arc AND it'll also be this story's 10th anniversary of its creation so April 6 will be a very special day for this fic! I also wanna say that this story is gonna end anywhere from Chapter 141 to 144. I'm still outlining the very end of the story, but I'll have more details and a more specified end when I upload Chapter 130. Thanks for reading!