Welcome back, my friends. Have you missed me? Probably not, but I've missed this! Writing feels really good to be honest. Now, to answer a question I know not many have asked, 'why is the Mario story coming first?' Well, it's because I think it's the most important. While the Dragon Quest story (which is coming next) takes place immediately after Shattering the Stars, I wanted to take a break from the action and explore something more personal. Anyways, this does have MAJOR spoilers for said previous story, but regardless, enjoy!
The Shadow of Solace
Chapter 1: Owner of a Lonely Heart
Light stretched out and grasped the hills firmly, creeping over the houses and blanketing them in warmth to fight the growing cold. A thin layer of frost covered each blade of grass and every mushroom cap, sparkling like glitter in the morning sun. Fall was coming to a close, paving the way for a dull, grey winter. Leaves had fallen and crumbled away, every tree bare except for the pines. They weren't ready to shed their needles yet, that'd be next year.
As the sunlight crept over one house in particular, it shined along a wooden sign hanging above the front door. The letters were bold, slightly stylized, and read 'Mario Bros.' It showed hints of wear, the 'Bros.' part of the sign weathered, not having received a new coat of paint in months.
Inside, an alarm clock began blaring. It only took a moment for its owner to wake up and silence it, slapping his left hand on the flat, plastic top and hitting a button.
The sheets rustled as Mario sat up, smacking his lips. The aftertaste of his meager dinner from the night before was tangy and foul, all because he neglected to brush his teeth before going to bed. Annoyed, he threw his covers off of himself and scooted over, placing his feet on the floor and leaving the comfort of his mattress. Nothing more than a sigh came from his mouth.
There were many, many things to note as Mario walked over to his desk. His hair and moustache were unkempt, frizzy and dry, and his sideburns ended in sharp points by his ears instead of being rounded like normal. He was also noticeably slimmer than he had been in the years before. Lastly, and most prominently, he lacked a right hand. The entire reason his daily routine always began with him heading to his desk was because his right arm ended in a stump where the wrist once was. The side drawer of his desk was where Mario kept his new, mechanical hand.
This hand, gifted to the plumber by one Doctor Elvin Gadd, was a marvel in prosthetic engineering. It clamped onto Mario's stump comfortably, though there proved to be a learning curve when first donning it. Inside there were many intricate mechanisms dedicated to reading the nerve impulses coming from the end of the wrist, translating them into movements that mimicked a regular hand almost perfectly. However, it was a bit fragile. Fragile enough that Mario took it off when going to sleep, keeping it safe in the drawer so that he didn't damage it during the night.
Rolling up his sleeve, Mario put his manmade hand on his arm, letting it grip his stump and calibrate itself. In seconds, the device began emitting a faint whirring sound, which persisted as long as it was activated. The constant hum was distracting at first, but Mario had gotten so used to it that it became background noise, integrated into his life much like the prosthetic itself.
Next up on his internal list of things to do in the morning was to reach up with a pen in hand and mark off the day on the calendar. No matter when he woke up on a given day, he always did these two things first.
Seventy days, ten weeks exactly. Ten weeks since Mario returned to the Mushroom Kingdom. He counted each day, though he claimed to not know why. Some guessed it was in relief, finally free from the madness of the shattered man that Mario spoke about, or maybe it was in remembrance, remembrance of the fact that Mario returned alone.
Leaving the bedroom, Mario walked past a boarded up door next to his and entered the bathroom, hurriedly brushing his teeth and going to the kitchen still with toothpaste foam on his lips. There, he opened the door to the fridge and scanned its contents, unsure about what to eat.
"Need groceries…" Mario mumbled to himself, grabbing a half empty carton of milk and finding a box of plain wheat and marshmallow cereal in the back of the cupboard.
Pouring himself a bowl of milk and cereal (in no particular order), Mario pulled up a chair and sat down. His crunching sounds soon filled the air, rhythmic and slow, all while a green 'L' faced him, plastered on a sealed vase. It was placed across from him, in front of the currently empty chair opposite the plumber. The marshmallows were the only sweet thing about the morning, though they all had the same flavor.
The mechanical hand clicked, the fingers being outfitted with magnets so that metal would cling onto it easily. There were even settings to increase or decrease the strength of the magnetization to best suit whatever needed to be held. It truly was fantastic, however its owner rarely spoke of its greatness, too busy thinking about other things.
After finishing his breakfast, Mario placed his bowl and spoon in the sink to wash later, and went to the living room. As expected, Polterpup was right where he was last night, curled up on the couch in front of the TV. Tapping on one of the armrests, Mario checked on the spectral pooch. The pup opened one eye, looked at the plumber, and closed it, too bothered to get up this early.
Polterpup's coldness was simply because he was tired, as he and Mario got along quite well, though the first weeks of Luigi's absence were rough on the poor dog. Mario's home served the dual purpose of being the brothers' offices, their plumbing business quite successful in the Mushroom Kingdom. The problem though was that it was too different from the mansion that Luigi and Polterpup used to call home. With him gone, Mario had no choice but to take the dog in. Neither minded, and the comfort of familiar company was mutual.
Since he had nothing better to do, Mario, having finished with his breakfast and Polterpup fast asleep, decided to rip the Band-Aid off now. He put on his coat and grabbed both a thin, red and blue tessellated scarf and his keys to go out. Locking the door behind him, Mario started on the long walk to Toad Town.
Luigi would always have any trip to the castle, and by extension, Toad Town, be a race. The brothers being fast on their feet was usually necessary if they were to stay on top of their game, and the last time they did race, one could say they definitely needed that kind of preparation. No one could have ever expected that the trio of strangers that Peach wanted them to meet would bring about so much change. The blonde man in green named Link, his fairy, Tael, and a short, pink fellow by the name of Kirby. Those travelers and their presence changed everything, the brothers joining them to save realities. But Mario was the only one to return.
Strolling through the forest, Mario watched his breath form clouds in the early air as he thought about his newfound solitude. He never could've expected that he would have to get used to being so alone for a long, long time. There was one single good thing that came from it though. The red flags of the Mushroom Kingdom were now decorated with a black stripe in the middle, surrounded by maroon lines to signify unity between the two colors.
It'd been over a month since Bowser and Peach came to an agreement of peace. The loss of one of his most worthy opponents granted the King of the Koopas a harsh, new perspective on his former endeavors with Princess Toadstool. He simply couldn't find it in him to hate Mario now. Bowser was the lone ruler of his kingdom, and it was why he adopted seven children and cherished them and his only flesh and blood, Junior, so dearly. He was lonely, without family, and now Mario was no different.
Leaves crunched beneath Mario's boots as he left the forest, keeping to the path towards Toad Town. He could see the flagpole marking a junction point, but he didn't break out into a sprint like before. Once he passed it, he made eye contact with the officer inside the miniature castle, tipping his hat.
"Morning, Mister Mario," greeted the officer, smiling gently.
"Good morning," Mario replied flatly, walking by without much else. Many of the admittedly rare interactions he had with others nowadays went just like that. There wasn't much left of the journey after the junction, Toad Town a little frosty but still welcoming. As always, the entrance granted a pleasant view of the castle, sitting atop a hill, watching over everything.
The few Toads that were awake at this hour stared blankly at Mario as he walked into the heart of the town in order to get to the market. Many held pity for him, some didn't know what to think, and one or two felt like he was a failure. It was such a drab, melancholy atmosphere that only appeared when Mario did, a result of the odd combination of feelings each and every Toad had.
Reaching the farmers market, Mario grabbed a basket and started to browse, thinking about which of the out-of-season vegetables he needed. They were all out in display cartons, the crisp air keeping them cool. Picking out what he knew he needed first, like red and green peppers, tomatoes, parsley, and so on. Vegetables weren't the only thing Mario picked up, because his basket quickly filled up with some assorted mushrooms, spices, and jars of honey, jelly, and sauces. It was a good haul.
As the sunshine gradually covered the whole market, more and more customers arrived with the same objective as Mario had. However, with all the hustle and bustle came some distress.
"HOW?!" A voice cried out, "HOW? HOW?" A great number of heads, including Mario's, turned in the direction that the voice came from.
By the front stand was a squad of people Mario only vaguely recognized, three looking alike and the latter being an outlier. If he was correct, they were from Twilight Town, the little settlement close to Rogueport, an island off the coast of the Mushroom Kingdom. That place, at least according to what most had heard, was a dump, its past far more interesting than its present. What were folks from there doing here? The outlier, the one who had raised his voice, appeared to be a little stranger draped in a sheet, as if dressed as a 'ghost' for Halloween.
"HOW do you NOT have any Honey Shrooms? HUH?!" screamed the stranger, reaching over one of the vendors' booths and grabbing his collar, manhandling him.
"Silence, freak-sheet," one of the stranger's companions spoke up, slapping the 'ghost' upside the head. Mario straightened his posture to get a better look at the scene, seeing what he thought was a witch at first.
She was of a small, somewhat childlike stature with a huge, drooping nose and a blue and white striped hat. They all wore hats, save for the 'ghost', each colored differently. The one next to her was a large, heavy lady with impressive arms, a soft smile and an orange bang covering her eyes. The last was a tall, slender lady with vibrant, pink hair that swung past her shoulders and curled into a roll on her forehead, also obscuring her eyes.
"No, I won't! The whole reason we came to this DUMP was to get more Honey Shrooms," the 'ghost' spouted, side-eyeing the shortest of his companions before turning back to the vendor, "Did they seriously sell out ALREADY?"
"Y-Yes, sir! I'm sorry!" the vendor replied meekly, worry manifesting in a little bit of sweat on his brow.
"Alright, Rumpel, stop it," the tallest one put her hand on the ghost's shoulder, tugging gently to get him to let go. "It's not worth all this trouble, okay? Let's just go back to the inn."
"Viv… Do not tell me what to do, alright. Lemme have some 'me' time," the ghost, who Mario guessed was Rumpel, became very shifty-eyed, letting go of the vendor and whipping himself around in a very hushed manner. "We didn't waste a weekend sailing here for nothing. We need those mushrooms."
Suddenly, Rumpel turned around, holding something.
"And YOU'RE gonna give them to us!" In Rumpel's hand was a small bell, and after his eyes flashed a deep red, he rang it. Purple smoke burst out of nowhere in front of the vendor, and when it faded, a pig was in his place, shaking in fear.
"No, Doopli-!" the tall one was about to shout when the short snapped her fingers. Like she had been commanded, the biggest one covered the tall ones' mouth.
"Vivian, let him get it out of his system," the short one said, a sly smirk beneath her nose. A part of her was enjoying the look of fear in the pig's eyes.
"Hey!" Mario couldn't simply stand there and gawk. Setting his basket down, he jumped up and bounded towards the group, taking care not to knock anything over or step on any of the other customers. "Stop! What're you doing?!"
Making his way over to the group with his fists clenched tight, Mario thought about how exactly he'd handle this. He had no idea who this 'Rumple' character was or how his magic worked. There was even a chance that he'd be outmatched, but one never knew who the hands of fate favored. Whatever was going to happen, Mario still stood proud, despite how long it'd been.
"Pfft, who's this guy?" Rumple cocked an eyebrow, not recognizing the red hat or really anything about the plumber. He wore a smile of baffled amusement, and boasted, "Alright, Slick, I'll humor you with a little challenge. Come on," he readied himself, "Gimme your best shot!"
Mario stayed quiet, responding to Rumpel's taunting by igniting his left hand, displaying his mastery over fire. He purposefully didn't try to do the same with his mechanical hand. In fact, Mario had no idea if he could even use Firebrand with the prosthetic. He had never tried, but knowing E. Gadd, the scientist probably accounted for it in some way. Thought there was a chance he didn't, and that chance was too big for Mario to take just yet.
"Pyrokinesis…" muttered the older one.
"Woah…" Rumpel's childish glee was slapped away, replaced by a slight tinge of horror. "Didn't know you were serious," he said, carefully picking his words. Glaring at his companions, he nodded his head, the big one letting go of Vivian. "Okay, just get it over with. Say my name, undo the spell, yada-yada…"
Vivian gasped, "Doopliss!"
As quickly as the vendor was transformed into a pig, he was reverted back. Confused, Mario lowered his fist and tilted his head, unable to wrap his head around the magic this little fool in a sheet wielded. It reminded him of the countless spells the swordsmen used, the men he fought alongside. Frizz, Whoosh, Bounce, all those mystical arts.
"I-I'm so sorry, Mister," Vivian then addressed Mario, stepping up. "My friend here has a short temper and likes to play tricks. We-We're just in real need of Honey Shrooms. They're all our pets would eat," she rambled, speaking so fast it was hard to understand her.
"Alright, alright, it's fine," Mario had to look up slightly just to meet Vivian's gaze, "As long as this vendor here is okay," he gestured to the cross-eyed Toad across from him, "It's whatever."
"Oh, thank you, Mister," Vivian breathed a sigh of relief, smiling weakly.
"Please, call me Mario. Everyone else does," Mario always felt it weird to be called things like 'sir' or anything formal like that, thinking himself as no more important than the people around him. He walked back to his basket, expecting to have little more to talk about, but when he saw that he had picked up a few of those mushrooms earlier, he called back out to the group. "Hey!"
Two Honey Shrooms flew through the air, and Vivian, nimble on her feet, grabbed them when they were within reach. She was puzzled at first, staring at the items in her hands before looking back at Mario.
"Realized I was one of the last ones to get some. You need 'em more than I do," he explained, wearing a smart grin and tipping his cap. Mario turned away, going off to pay for his items and leave.
"Thanks, Mario…" Vivian said one last time, though Mario had already gone out of earshot. She returned to her group, Honey Shrooms in hand, presenting them to her sister. "Beldam, look! I guess this morning wasn't a total waste, huh?"
"Quite so," Beldam, the older of the sisters, took the mushrooms and examined them thoroughly, ensuring that no honey along the caps was tainted. After a moment, a wide smile formed under her nose. "Marilyn, Doopliss, come," she barked, "We're done here!"
Marilyn, the middle sister, simply grunted in response, looking at Vivian before joining up with Beldam.
Doopliss, on the other hand, gave Vivian the cold shoulder. "Just had to ruin the fun, didn't you," he asked with scorn, greatly peeved. He liked using his magic, especially to those far weaker than him. Meeting a match brought him immense displeasure, but that was simply a byproduct of his egotistical nature. "So unbelievably lame…"
"Well jeez, I'm sorry," Vivian crossed her arms, pouting before she became genuinely angry with the little snot scolding her. "You know, what was I supposed to do, just let you mess around because you didn't get your way?! What a grouch!"
"Vivian! For shame!" Beldam berated her younger sibling, barking fervently, "You know why we needed these. If Doopliss hadn't taken drastic action, that Mr. Moustache Man wouldn't have given them up!"
"He didn't have to, that was just him being kind!"
"And it's precisely what made him foolish," Beldam coveted the mushrooms, hiding them away in her pockets, "He chose to interfere, and now we have what we came for." She then marched up to Vivian and proceeded to flick her in the face, caring not if they were arguing in public. "You're far too soft," she said, before pointing at Doopliss, "So sheepishly apologizing for this freak's antics!"
"Hey!" he cried, hurt.
"We are wasting time! We must get the rest of what we need and go! Do not make me admonish you again, Vivian," Beldam warned. "Do you understand?" she asked, before turning away curtly, not even waiting for an answer. A quick, quiet murmur came from Bedlam's direction, something only Vivian heard.
"I-I…" Vivian was left stunned, unable to form any kind of comeback. Finally, she tilted her head down and mumbled, defeated, "Understood."
During the walk back to the inn, where the group, were staying for the week, Vivian was a few paces behind the rest, fidgeting with her gloves, not uttering a word. What Bedlam had said left the youngest of the shadow trio shaken and stirred, and she didn't dare speak again for a while, hoping her sister would maybe perhaps apologize. She wasn't counting on it though.
Weirdly, there was something else that remained stuck in Vivian's mind like a wad of gum on the sidewalk. That man, Mario, and how he seemingly came out of nowhere at the perfect time. What shocked her was that he even paid for the Honey Shrooms, as when Bedlam went to check out, the cashier said they were already taken care of.
Vivian wanted to give some proper thanks to him, as words simply didn't feel enough. Perhaps if she asked around, she'd try and pay him back for both the mushrooms and the trouble he went through just dealing with her and her companions. It was worth a shot.
Mario reached the house at noon, arms a little tired from carrying his bag of items. "Hey Polterpup, I'm home," he greeted, head set on the kitchen to put everything away. He wasn't very acute, as he walked right past Princess Peach, who was sitting on the couch cuddling with Polterpup.
"Mario," Peach made herself known when it became apparent that her old friend didn't quite pay attention to his surroundings. She giggled upon seeing the startled plumber practically dash out of the kitchen in confusion, surprised to see the princess.
"P-Peach?" Mario stammered, removing his cap. It was an extremely rare sight to have her here, in his house, so he didn't really know how to react besides the usual bewilderment. "What- Hah, what are you doing here?"
"Goodness, Mario, you've saved me over a dozen times, there's no need to be formal," Peach spoke with a strange casualness, relaxed and actually relieved to see Mario. "I just… I wanted to stop by, see how you were doing, all that. Polterpup here was happy to see me, as was I."
"Huh, that's good. W-Wait, how did you even get in?" Mario asked, putting his hat back on. It was odd, though, as he could've sworn he locked the door before leaving.
"Well I knocked, and almost immediately, Polterpup poked his head through the door. It was unlocked, so I let myself in," Peach said, bending down to pet Polterpup, who was right next to her, wagging his tail. "Hehe, he was bouncing through the walls for a while."
"Yeah, he does that," Mario chuckled, then remembered that he got a few things for the dog. Going back to the kitchen, the sounds of rustling plastic made Polterpup get all excited, and that excitement only grew when he saw Mario come back with a clear tub. "Here bud, I got you these," Mario waved a treats in the air, opening the lid and grabbing one.
It was a little, sugary confection filled with protein, and Polterpup could smell it. Mario put one on his thumb and flicked like he were flipping a coin, sending the treat through the air for the pup to catch, which he did.
"He loves catching them in the air," Mario explained, "It was something Luigi did oft…"
The air suddenly became somewhat dense, the mention of Luigi bringing the mood down considerably.
"That's… also why I visited," Peach admitted. She turned to look down the hall, where she saw the bedroom opposite Mario's had been blocked off. "I know you miss him, I do too, but… you need to get out of this funk you've been in since you returned."
All she got back was a sigh.
"Mario, look at me, please," Peach asked. When she was met with silence, she walked up to the plumber and took his hand, his mechanical hand. "My offer still stands, you know."
"I know," Mario said as Peach lifted up his prosthetic. She slowly removed the glove concealing it, allowing her to inspect the machinery for the first time in a while. Last time she did, Mario had a much more difficult time controlling it. Now, it was like it was his real hand. "I just don't think me living at the castle would look very good. Everyone would think we got back together, and it'd just be a mess," Mario continued.
"I could easily make a statement explaining everything, silly," the princess suggested. It wasn't the first time she had made that statement.
"Yeah, but I think we'd both be better off with the Toads not knowing every detail of our private lives," Mario replied, some old, fold memories coming back to him. "It didn't work out for us for a multitude of reasons, not just because of Bowser. They all don't need to know that."
"True…" Peach could see Mario's reasoning. Every Toad thought about how 'fairytale-like' Mario and Peach's relationship was. The stalwart hero stopping the big bad guy and getting the girl. The children especially loved it, but it wasn't really that cut and dry. First, the constant kidnapping made things difficult, but when the two finally had the time, they quickly realized that they didn't have much in common. One was a plumber, the other was a princess, and they both came from vastly different backgrounds.
To distract herself from reminiscing too hard, Peach tapped Mario's metal fingers, testing something. "Hm, they don't flinch anymore," she commented, trying to be playful and get her friend to smile.
"No, not anymore," Mario said, pulling his arm away. "Look, it's my brother, and without him… I just need to rethink a lot more than I already have."
"Alright…" Peach knew she wouldn't get him to budge. Regardless of how successful she was in helping Mario, she was glad to at least see his face. In the few minutes they talked, Peach got a clear view of how he was doing, and even if it wasn't that great, that was enough for now. "It was nice to catch up a bit, truly."
"Agreed," Mario put his glove back on and flexed his hand. "Feel free to come by anytime, Polterpup definitely enjoys you being here."
"I can tell," another giggle escaped Peach's lips as she pet the dog. Once finished, she grabbed her bag and went to leave, just about to touch the knob when Mario stopped her.
"Wait," he said suddenly.
Peach glanced at him.
"How's Daisy?" Mario hadn't seen the princess of Sarasaland since he came back with the news of Luigi's death. Her reaction to it sent a pang of guilt into Mario's soul, as he still remembered how the color drained from her face and her eyes became unnaturally hollow. He wondered if she still blamed him, even now, after he fully disclosed all the events of his journey alongside the crusaders to the press.
"She's…" Peach didn't have a good way to articulate just how Daisy was doing, "Better. We see each other every week, go shopping, head to the cinema, all that. The first few weeks, she was so distant that it was like she wasn't even there. It… scared me."
"Tell her that- that I'm sorry," Mario asked.
"Hate to sound cliché, but you should tell her that yourself. It'd mean a lot more coming from you directly," Peach smiled one last time before leaving, Mario standing alone in the living room, Polterpup next to him.
"Aroo?" Polterpup seemed to be asking something.
"I dunno, boy."
"Aroo…" He sounded dejected.
"How about another treat?"
Polterpup sprang up and barked excitedly. Shaking his head, Mario went back to the kitchen to fetch another one of the little biscuits. Tossing it up into the air like before, Polterpup caught it and began chowing down, not a care in the world.
"I don't know how you do it," Mario watched the pooch eat happily, sighing. "But I envy you. C'mon, let's see what's on TV."