Chapter Seven:

Attempting to Catch Lightning

Outside the castle, while Mario was going nutso in the gaming room and the girls were dealing with the trap door, SMG3 and Bob were standing in the rain with bottles in hand. Usually, when one talked about lightning in a bottle, it was a metaphor. However, according to Bob, you could actually get lightning in a bottle.

And that was what he and SMG4's former nemesis were trying to do. It had been no less than a few minutes since they stepped outside, and SMG3 was baffled by what was going on as he held his bottle to the sky.

With all of the rain pouring down, the former villain was soaked to the skin already. The skull symbol on his hat was just as wet as the rest of the cap, and his overalls were getting drenched. SMG3 could feel water running through his hair, and his boots seemed to be sinking into the muddy ground forming under his feet.

Oh, and water was filling the bottles, all the way to the top until it was pouring in both SMG3 and Bob's faces. The former Garo was beyond soaking wet just as SMG3 was. His cloak looked more brown than it already had, and not because Bob had soiled himself (and thankfully he didn't), which didn't really show much.

"Hey, Bob." SMG3 quipped, "When you said this scheme was 'lightning in a bottle'. I didn't think you meant it literally! I'm telling you, this is actually stupid, probably just as stupid as, say, SMG4 selling merch or making a remastered version of 'The Cake Is A Lie'."

The ex-villain was just putting down the bottle when Bob suddenly put a bladed hand on his shoulder. "NeVeR gIvE uP aNd NeVeR dEsPaIr, SMG3." He said, "YoU mUsT lEaRn To BeLiEvE iN yOuRsElF, yOuNg PaDAwAn LeArNeR!"

"What?!" SMG3 did not expect his associate to suddenly start talking like a Jedi Master, "What the hell are you saying?!"

"GoOd ThInGs WiLl CoMe To ThOsE wHo WaIt PaTieNtLy." Bob explained, "YoU jUsT GoT To BeLiEvE iN yOuRsElF aNd TrUsT iN tHe UnIVeRsE, hAvE fAiTh In ThE aLmIgHtY GoD aNd ThE WiLl OfF tHe FoRcE."

"Fine." SMG3 said, "We'll give it another try."

He held up the bottle, which was still soaked with water, and the villain continued to let himself get soaked alongside his homeless friend. Bob held up his bottle too, and they stared up at the cloudy, rainy sky as thunder rumbled in the distance.

"Oh, ThUnDeR, rAiN aNd LiGhTnInG..." Bob sang.

"Danger, water rising." SMG3 joined in sarcastically, "You know I'm getting wet, right?"

"WhO gIvEs A sHiT, SMG3? It'Ll Be ToTaLlY wOrTh It In ThE End." The former rapper said confidently.

Lightning exploded over the mountains near the Showgrounds, and more thunder rumbled. SMG3 watched the sky, even as rain poured into his eyes. He looked at Bob, deep in thought, then he decided not to say anything else. Bob didn't even look at him, he kept his eye on the cloudy sky and held the bottle a little higher.

"CoMe On, CoMe On!" Bob chanted, "BrInG tHe LiGhTnInG, O'LoRd."

"Hey, you think maybe we could use something metal?" SMG3 asked, "Electricity is attracted to metal."

"ThE bOtTlEs We'Re HoLdInG aRe MaDe FrOm GlAsS mEtAl, ThAt ShOuLd TeChNicAlLy CoUnT, LOL!"

"Kinda looks like plastic."

Bob shrugged. "Eh, ApPeArAnCeS cAn Be DeCiEvInG, gOoD pArTnEr."

SMG3 tipped the bottle to pour out the water, then he turned it right-side up before holding it to the sky again. "May the Force be with you." The ex-villain said to the cloaked hobo in a dry, half-hopeless tone, and Bob ignored the slight hint of bitterness in SMG3's voice. Another bolt of lightning exploded in the distance, and the rain kept coming...