Chapter 32 Into the Smog

And the trio were off. Peach looked down at the Mushroom Kingdom below her, so quaint and peaceful. It was interesting how a place like the Mushroom Kingdom could be so tranquil when a place like the Beanbean Kingdom was neck-deep in turmoil. But it was fine. A peaceful sight was exactly what the queen needed right now.

"Okay…" Mario said. He had a map in his hand and pointed eastward, turning toward the Toad who was manning the balloon. "Head in the direction." The Toad nodded and directed the balloon toward the Koopa Kingdom. Mario smiled at Peach and Luigi, the expression brimming with confidence and ease. "With the rate we're going, I imagine we'll be at the Koopa Kingdom within an hour."

"An hour…" Peach looked down at the Mushroom Kingdom again. Her stomach churned, mostly because she recalled some of the things she had heard about the Great King Bowser. She had never interacted with him herself, but her mother had. She had described him as tough, stubborn, crude, brash, and above all else scary. Which… might not be the worst thing in the world. Wouldn't a guy who's known for being tough and scary be a good person to have on their side? Wouldn't someone like that do a good job at going up against Cackletta? That's what Peach hoped. At the very least, focusing on the positive was much better for her than focusing on the negative. She had already spent so much time dwelling on the negative, and after the conversation she had with Mario… yeah, she definitely wanted to stop doing that.

Sighing, Peach sat down in the basket, taking deep breaths. The Mushroom Kingdom air was so… well, it was different from Beanbean air. She couldn't quite put her finger on why though. It just felt different, had a distinct feeling when it entered her lungs. She took multiple breaths, hoping to breathe in as much air as possible not only to calm herself but also to help her remember this feeling. This unique, amazing feeling that was brought upon by a unique, amazing sensation.

"So…" Luigi took a seat right alongside Peach. His eyes glittered, and his mustachioed face was so bright and happy that it had its own luminosity. "Have you ever been to the Koopa Kingdom before, Your Majesty?"

Peach let out a breath. "I can't say I have." She put her hands in her lap. "Since I was second in line for the throne after my brother for most of my life, I didn't have nearly as many royal duties as him. He was the one who often met with representatives from other Kingdoms, and he was the one who went on most of the trips." She chuckled. "Which might've influenced his future personality, come to think about it." She cupped her hands together. "But since he was the one who had to do all the important stuff, I mostly stayed in the castle. I did visit one kingdom after Peasley abdicated the throne, but it was the Flower Kingdom, not the Koopa. So… I have absolutely no idea what I'm up against."

Mario folded his map in half and stepped towards Peach. "Well then, I supposed we should prepare you for what you are going to see." He looked at Peach with a playful look in his eye as Luigi rose to his feet. "The Koopa Kingdom might seem scary to those who have never been. It might appear daunting and hostile on first glance. So, I wouldn't blame you for being nervous on your first trip there."

Peach snorted. "Way to inspire confidence, Mario."

Now it was Luigi's turn to chuckle. "He's just saying that for context. The point I'm sure he was building towards was that you don't have to be afraid of entering the Koopa Kingdom. Sure, it isn't Heaven on Earth, but it isn't nearly as bad as some people would say."

"Exactly," Mario said before. "As I said to you before, there is a lot less smog there than the textbooks would have you believe on a good day. On top of that, the people there can be nice too." He shrugged. "Granted, there are a few monsters, like Magmaarghs and pododboos, but the koopas themselves? Amazing people. They have treated me civilly and kindly on all the occasions I've been to the Koopa Kingdom as President, despite King Bowser's past actions."

Peach blinked. "Oh yeah, you did mention that King Bowser and you have a history together. What was that about."

Both brother's faces fell. They exchanged a look before Mario cleared his throat. "Well… King Bowser is… his reputation proceeds him." He took a step toward the queen. "He would constantly cause trouble for King George and Queen Rosemary, mostly in the form of… attacking the Kingdom."

"Oh." That was all Peach could really say. She lowered her head, stewing over those words.

"And… he's very strong," Luigi said. "Mario fought him in order to make him leave the Mushroom Kingdom alone."

Peach snorted. "And you lost most of those fights, I presume?"

The brothers laughed out loud, doing so heartily enough that they tilted their heads up to the sky. Peach, confused, watched them as they did this, wondering if there was an inside joke between them that she was unaware of. After all, she was missing something here; she just wasn't sure what.

"Actually," Mario said with a cheeky, proud grin. "I was the one who won all those fights."

"You?" Peach did a double take. "But… but King Bowser is huge and monstrous! From what I heard, he towers over all the people from all the other kingdoms! How in the world could you possibly win in a one-on-one fight with someone like him?"

"Oh, you'd be surprised," Mario said with a wink. "But that's another reason why you shouldn't have to worry about going to the Koopa Kingdom, Your Highness. I know what to expect when it comes to King Bowser. I've dealt with him a million times before, as well as his military. They are strong, sure, but they topple in front of me, so there's no reason at all to worry about the outcome of this trip."

Peach frowned. Would a military that easily toppled against one man really be… you know what? Peach wasn't going to worry. She had told herself that she would trust Mario. She had told herself that she would focus on the positive, that she would hold onto hope and not let her own worries get the better of her. The fact that she was in this hot air balloon with the two rulers of the Mushroom Kingdom should be proof enough that things could and would bode in her favor. She just needed to stop, breathe, and think. Think about all that was good, all that was going well for her right now.

So, she mostly spent the rest of the flight over the Mushroom Kingdom in hopefully silence. She allowed herself to take in the scenery, took more deep breaths of the fresh, crisp, invigorating air. This was going to go well. This was all going to be fine, and she would take back her kingdom within no time.

At least, she told herself that until she saw the Koopa Mushroom border. Now, one might think it'd be difficult to distinguish the border between one kingdom and the next, and most of the time such a belief would be correct. However, Peach had no trouble whatsoever knowing when they entered the Koopa Kingdom. Why? Well for one, the ground changed from lush fertile green to ashy barren gray rather quickly. Not only that, but in the sky there was…

"Smog?" Peach walked up to Mario, who had his eyes on the sky. "I thought you said we wouldn't have to worry about smog?"

Mario frowned. "Yeah, I did say that, didn't I?" He sighed. "I think there might've been an eruption recently, which…" he paused before puffing himself up. "It doesn't matter. A little bad weather never got in mine and Luigi's way before, so there's no reason why it should now."

Peach gulped. "If you say so…"

The balloon entered the Koopa Kingdom. The second it crossed the border, Peach started hacking away. The smell… the smoke… how could anyone breathe in this sort of air? How could Koopas do it? For that matter, how could Mario and Luigi do it? They stood tall and strong in the hot air balloon. Heck, even the Toad who manned the balloon didn't seem bothered by the less-than-fresh air. How was this possible; Peach felt like she was suffocating!

"Oh… oh God…" she hacked away and sat down on the floor of the basket, feeling woozy on top of everything else. Mario stepped towards her, and she barely had the strength to look up into his concerned face.

"It'll be okay, Peach. It takes a little getting used to, but…" he knelt before her, taking her hand in his and smiling at her. "It's going to be okay. It's going to be okay…"

Slowly but surely, Peach managed to smile. Even if Mario was one hundred percent incorrect, his tone of voice made her want to believe him with all her heart. She allowed him to help her rise to her feet and allowed him to instruct her on how to do a breathing exercise that would make breathing in the smog more tolerable. It took some time, but Peach eventually felt better. She felt like she could remain standing up, at least.

And with that newfound assurance, Peach was able to study the landscape that they were currently floating over. It looked so… dead. No crops had a chance of growing here, and it didn't look like any animal had a chance of surviving here either. Next to the sights of the Mushroom Kingdom that she literally just left… well, it was certainly a case of whiplash, that was for sure.

"Everything is so… different here," Peach said, so softly that she wasn't sure if either of the Mario brothers would pick up on it.

Thankfully, Mario seemed to. "Yeah, this place isn't winning any beauty contests anytime soon." He crossed his arms. "On some level, it makes me feel bad for the Koopas. Even on the sunny days, they have nothing to see except soot and ash as far as the eye can see."

"Yeah," Luigi said as he walked up to stand beside them. "I mean… imagine how boring that would get. Nothing to see for miles and miles. It's… it's kinda sad."

"Si," Mario said. "E triste."

Peach did a double take at the strange words that had just come out of the president's mouth. She was about to question him about it, but the Toad balloon pilot interrupted her before she had the chance.

"Mr. President, I don't think the balloon can handle these conditions."

Mario blinked and turned back to the Toad, who had a furrowed brow. "What? But we need to get to Koopa Castle!"

"I know, I know we do, and I'm very sorry, sir. If I could, I would fly you all the way there, but… if we go any deeper into the smog, the balloon is sure to suffer some damage."

Peach and Luigi exchanged a look as Mario hesitated. He tapped his foot in a fast rhythm before sighing.

"Very well. Land us on the ground and we'll get out."

Peach blinked. Her heart pumped as the balloon got closer and closer to the ground. By the time they landed, it felt as though she was going to have a panic attack. She barely had the willpower to get out of the balloon, only being able to do so because Mario and Luigi both assisted in getting her out.

"Okay," Mario said to the Toad. "You take the balloon back. The three of us will walk to the castle."

"Walk to the castle?" Peach and the Toad said in unison. Peach barely had the strength to stand as the Toad got a look at her. "Are you… are you sure, Mr. President?"

"Positive. You know me; I can handle anything." He gestured toward Peach. "I can escort the queen to the castle and keep our whole party safe along the way. I'm sure of that."

The Toad hesitated before nodding. "Okay. Okay, Mr. President." He raised the balloon into the air. "Good luck!"

"Grazi!" Mario and Luigi waved at the Toad. When he was high in the sky, Mario turned toward Peach. "Do you think you can do this, Queen Peach?"

Peach hesitated for only a second. "I've come this far. I can't stop now."