Chapter Twelve:
Spies In The Castle
Neither Hal or Jeff carried watches, so it wasn't easy to keep track of the time with how long it took to fly from the Dark Land all the way to the heart of the Mushroom Kingdom. But, by the time the Koopa and the dim-witted Goomba got to where they were told to go, the sky was dark and full of stars. Hal made sure to hide the Koopa Car, making certain that nobody saw it while they were gone.
The duo wouldn't be in that castle for too long, all they had to do was learn what the Mario Brothers and Peach were up to, and then, they would get out before anyone noticed the Koopa and Goomba were even in the area.
Getting past the Toad guards near the castle grounds was an easy feat, Hal and Jeff employed their secret ninja skills, and maneuvered themselves through the bushes before a single Toad could notice their presence. Hal crept past the gate, hid behind a block, and made a dash to the front door, and let Jeff catch up before they went inside the castle.
"Y'know, I never thought he'd give us a mission to investigate and spy on the Mario Brothers. Can you believe that Bowser asked us to be spies?" Hal remarked to his Goomba associate in a whisper.
"He didn't say we were his spies, you stupid turtleneck." Jeff whispered back, "But still, Bowser needs to know what Mario, Luigi and the Princess are up to. Now let's get to it, we don't have all night."
They hid behind a pair of pillars, avoiding detection from a blue Toad patrol, and proceeded to pin their backs to the wall. Hal and Jeff snuck along the edge, moving behind a few pillars and avoiding detection, as they headed towards the somewhat empty throne room on the other end of the hall.
However, Hal made things challenging for himself and Jeff when he placed the Goomba on his back, tucked himself inside his shell, and spun the rest of the way into the throne room. Hal crashed into part of the staircase, and Jeff nearly crashed into the throne when his Koopa associate made impact.
Footsteps alerted the duo, and they quickly hid behind the throne, and a guard strolled by. Hal and Jeff kept quiet, and waited until the Toad had left. Once he was gone, the two minions stepped out of their hiding place.
"Ah, princess. What a lovely night." Hal heard the unmistakable voice of Mario.
"Yes, so lovely." Peach's voice agreed.
"Hey, that's-a pretty good." Luigi chimed in.
Hal and Jeff followed the voices through the nearby door leading out of the throne room, and they walked quietly until they'd entered the dining hall. The minions spotted Mario, Luigi, Peach, the princess' steward Toadsworth, and Toadbert seated at a table and helping themselves to some coffee served by Toadsworth as he poured some into Luigi's cup.
Jeff and Hal made sure to find a secure place to hide and threw themselves behind a pillar, knowing that it wouldn't do them any good if they were spotted, but the Goomba and the Koopa managed to listen in on the discussion between the group.
"This is more like it." Luigi said as he sipped his coffee, "It makes me feel awake and I'm in a much better mood to meet with Professor E. Gadd."
"Are you going to visit him?" Toadbert asked, "I thought he was in Evershade Valley, studying ghosts..."
"He was." Mario replied, "But now he's going to Fuji City, the city outside the Mushroom Kingdom that looks like Tokyo, Japan. It was founded by Japanese imigrants as a tribute to their hometown, the capital of Japanese culture, years ago, and E. Gadd's hoping to set up a lab there to continue his work."
"Fuji City?" Luigi chimed in, "The citizens named it after Mt. Fuji in Japan, right?"
"Exactly." Mario gave a thumbs up to his brother, "You're good, Luigi."
"So, let me guess, Mario..." Peach held up her hand, "We're going to visit E. Gadd in Fuji City so we can see the secret weapon that will help us defeat Bowser, is that correct?"
"That's correct, I heard he made a weapon that will help us fight Bowser when he attacks next time and end his reign of terror if we get lucky." Mario nodded.
"But how can the weapon be secret if you heard about it?" Luigi inquired, "It doesn't sound like a 'secret weapon'."
"Long story, Luigi." Mario wiped some sweat from his forehead.
Hal and Jeff were unamused. Until they knew more, Bowser wasn't going to be thrilled with much of the information, he was likely going to flip his lid when he heard there was some sort of secret weapon being developed that had the potential to destroy him. At this point, it was time to get out of here.
The two minions were about to leave the room when they heard cups click, indicating the group was finished with their tea, and Mario said, "We better get going to Fuji City, it's important that E. Gadd can't be kept waiting for too long."
Peach smiled happily. "Yes, indeed." She said, "This should be interesting."
"You guys go on ahead." Mario began to leave, "I'll go get Yoshi, see if he's awake."
"Wonder what the secret weapon looks like, Luigi." Toadsworth said, "It has to be something more powerful than all of those Power-Ups you boys have used over the years."
"I really don't know..." Luigi cupped his chin, "But whatever it is, Bowser doesn't stand a chance, especially against the princess if she uses that thing. She's been kidnapped a lot, but she is capable of fighting when the occasion calls for it."
"Excuse me, I didn't get that part, what?" Toadsworth held up his cane.
"Never mind..." Luigi blushed, "Let's-a go."
Hal and Jeff didn't hear everything else. They were quick, and they made it out of the castle halls right as the gang had left the dining room. Both Koopa and Goomba made fast, scrambling to the Koopa Car they'd parked, which wasn't far from the castle, and started up the engines. They took flight, leaving the Mushroom Kingdom, and headed back to the Dark Land.
Bowser had to be notified, Hal and Jeff had gotten the intel they needed, and doing so wasn't that hard...