Chapter Nine:

Lightning Strikes

SMG4 and Luigi shrieked as they stared into the ever-demented and desperate eyes of the insane, electricity-desiring Mario. Before the meme-loving YouTube content creator could think of any other options, the fat Italian lunged at SMG4, ready to try and take his brain energy no matter what.

Fight-and-flight instincts were already in control. SMG4 ducked at the last possible second, and Mario crashed into one of the toilets. The meme man took advantage of the brief incapacitation, and fled from the bathroom with Luigi just as Mario recovered.

'Oh man.' SMG4 thought, 'I know Mario likes spaghetti, but who knows if that will calm him down at a time like this. Until a new development comes up, the best I can do is run, and let's hope Mario doesn't decide to go after the girls, or SMG3 and Bob. The last thing we want is Tari becoming a technology outlet for a rabid electricity-loving Italian.'

Outside the castle, Bob and SMG3's plan hadn't gone as smoothly as the former thought it would. They'd been out there for what felt like an hour, and no lightning hit their spot. Bob, who'd tried to keep SMG3 from walking out in frustration, was sitting on the ground with the bottle in his blade hands, and he was getting just as bored as SMG3 was.

"FiRsT, yOu GeT tHe LiGhTnInG. ThEn YoU gEt ThE mOnEy, aNd ThEn YoU gEt AlL oF tHe WoMen..." Bob said in a bored tone.

"THAT'S IT!" SMG3 finally snapped, and shot to his feet as water fell from his hat, "I'M NOT DOING THIS ANYMORE!" He slammed his bottle on the ground and angrily glared at Bob, "YOU AND YOUR 'LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE' PLAN BOTH SUCK EQUALLY! ENJOY GETTING 'RICH', BOB!"

He was just walking towards his Bomb Cafe and just started to call Bob a name when a huge bolt of lightning exploded over the ex-rapper's spot. Bob shot to his feet while holding his bottle high in the air, and SMG3 shielded his eyes as the lightning struck the can that Bob was holding. Before they knew it, the bottle was filled with electricity.

Bob quickly slapped a cork on, trapping the lightning inside, and his face lit up. "I dId It!" The former rapper exclaimed, "I gOt LiGhTnInG iN a BoTtLe!"

"No way..." SMG3 was amazed. He wanted to congratulate Bob, but there was a big opportunity, and the former villain was taking advantage of it. The meme guardian ran towards Bob, punched him in the face, and grabbed the bottle, only for the hobo to grab it back with a furious look in his eyes.

"GIVE ME THAT BOTTLE, I'LL TAKE THE LIGHTNING!" SMG3 declared.

"HeLl No, I cAuGhT iT fAiR aNd SqUaRe, YoU gReEdY pIg!" Bob retorted, "YoU fOrFiEtEd AnD tHe LiGhTnInG iS aLl MiNe NoW."

"I AM NOT A GREEDY PIG, YOU FILTHY PIG!" SMG3 shouted back, "GIVE ME THAT LIGHTNING SO I CAN SCAM PEOPLE, AND I NEED THAT MONEY SO I CAN SAVE MY BOMB CAFE THAT I'VE HARDLY BEEN ABLE TO RUN FOR AGES NOW!"

Just then, SMG4 and Luigi came running through the door with panic in their eyes. The former slipped and fell in the mud, but got back up, and kept running like nothing happened. "GUYS! MARIO'S GONE CUCOO CRAZY! HE WANTS ELECTRICITY SO BADLY!" The meme man screamed.

"WATCH OUT FOR MY BROOOOOOOOO!" Luigi hollered.

Bob and SMG3 stopped fighting and turned around just in time to see a certain fat Italian heading their way, eyes fixed on SMG4, all while screaming for electricity. An idea blazed in both hobo and ex-villain's mind, this was their chance to get money.

When Mario saw the two of them with the lightning bottle, he looked at them with surprise, and kinda ignored the lightning bottle in the process as well.

"SaLeSmAn TiMe!" Bob announced.

The hobo stepped forward and slapped on what he thought was his best businessman's hat ever. "Hi!" Bob said in a not-so professional manner, "I'm BoB wItH BoB's LiGhTnInG iN a BoTtLe! ArE yOu BoReD aNd DoEs YoUr LiFe SuCk? WeLl, NoT aNyMoRe..."

"Give me that!" SMG3 slapped Bob in the face, grabbed the bottle, and took over for the ex-Garo before he turned to the curious Mario, "Wiiiiith SMG3's lightning in a bottle, you can power anything your crazy little Italian heart desires! Your TV, your phone, your computer, your game console, you name it..."

"AlL fOr ThE sMaLl PrIcE oF wHiCh YoU aRe WiLlInG tO pAy WiTH." Bob cut in. However, just before he could go further, SMG3 slapped him again and tried to take the bottle back. The two 'partners' began smacking one another, then they turned to Mario with the bottle in hand and said, "WHAT DO YOU SAY, MARIO?!"

"I NEEEEEEEEEEEEEED IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!" Mario shrieked, and he made a lunge for the lightning bottle with so much ferocity, both SMG3 and Bob were screaming like nuts. They were running for it now, just as SMG4 was, all while Mario gave chase and screamed, "ELECTRIIIIIIIIICIIIIIITYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!"

"WoW, mAyBe ThAt LiGhTnInG iN a BoTtLe DeAl wAs A bAd IdEa AfTeR aLl?" Bob cried as he ran past a large oak tree.

"Oh, you think?!" SMG3 shouted, "IT WAS YOUR IDEA!"

"YoU hAvE aNy OtHer BrIgHtEr IdEaS?"

"There's one idea, and it's called 'RUN FOR IT WHILE MARIO'S CHASING US LIKE A RABBID MONSTER AND GET RID OF THE LIGHTNING!' And by the way, THIS IS THE LAST TIME I AM EVER TEAMING UP WITH THE LIKES OF YOU, YOU JAWA-FACED, BLADE-HANDED TRASH RAPPER HOBO!"

"Oh YeAh, ThIs Is ThE lAsT tIme I'm TaLkInG tO tHe HaIrFaCeD bItCh WhO bAnIsHeD uS tO tHe InTeRnEt GrAvEyArD a FeW SMG4 SeAsOnS AgO, yOu BoMb-SpAwNiNg, FaMe HuNgErInG mOtHeRfUcKEr!"

"YOU WATCH YOUR MOUTH!"

"YoU tAkE bACk CaLlInG mE a JaWa!"

"GUYS, STOP!" SMG4 begged as Bob and SMG3 found themselves running with him and Luigi.

"Please don't fiiiiiiiiight." The little Italian brother hero sobbed.

Both Luigi, the meme guardians and the cloaked hobo ran for their lives around the Showgrounds and right back towards the castle, screaming and flailing their arms in a panic frenzy, while Mario continued to chase and hunt them down for electricity that was inside Bob's bottle.