2005 September 21st
Sarasaland Empire
The morning dawn, Sarasaland is at peace with Mario, Luigi, Daisy and Azalea returning back to the empire, alongside Suuko, Totomesu, Hiyoihoi, Minmei, the monk and the guards as well as the kunoichis that are dragging Tatanga to the empire.
"It seems everything's going well, eh, Luigi?" Mario asks with a positive smile on his face.
"Yeah. Now we should reveal the truth behind the emperor's murder." Luigi nods and looks at the princesses. "You know, I don't think this world's bad at all."
"I agree. It's kinda refreshing to be around some strange places. But hey, it's actually fun." Mario chuckles.
"Yeah. Huh?"
What stops the bros is a certain figure standing at the beach, waving towards Mario and Luigi.
That person looks familiar.
"Sorry, guys, but we'll catch up." Mario apologises while he and Luigi move out.
"Oh. Sure thing. We'll let you know the status of this country." Daisy nods while waving with a cheery smile.
With the duo approaching the beach, Mario and Luigi gasps, seeing a familiar woman in a red dress.
"It can't be…"
"Long time no see, Mario. Even Luigi is here as well." Appearing with a warm smile is none other than Pauline Mario.
"Pauline? I thought you're dead." Luigi couldn't tell if Pauline was real or not.
"Dead? Silly, Lu, I'm still alive and kicking." Pauline laughs until she clears her throat. "I'm glad that you boys are still okay. Even without me, you're still moving forward."
"I mean we can't stand around grieving after what happened to you earlier." Said Luigi.
"Since you're back with us, we can go on an adventure together again." Mario knows what he must do after helping Daisy's issues.
"You don't have to anymore." Pauline's words stop the Mario bros from smiling.
"What?"
"What do you mean?" Luigi asked.
"The pipes to the outside world have been repaired and you're standing in front of a woman who knows jack squat about plumbing. We can go back to Brooklyn and see mom again." Pauline reveals the truth which had Mario and Luigi lower their heads out of worry.
If that's true, then they'll be home without any worry.
Before Luigi takes a step forward, he realises what's going to happen to Peach and other people in this world.
"Pauline… I can't. Mario and I made a promise to Peach. She's in danger and we can't let Bowser win." Luigi points out as Pauline gasps.
"I'm with Luigi on this one. Sorry, Pauline, we can't leave. Not without our promise. Also, Peach wants to go to Brooklyn with us so she can stay with us." Mario concludes his decision.
To Pauline's surprise, Mario and Luigi declined the offer of going back home, causing her to frown.
"So I see… I guess you guys are choosing to stay away from our world." Pauline sighs and then looks at the sea with a dawn sunlight rising.
"You mentioned your parents earlier, even Bowser said you ran away because they never raised you. Is that true?" Mario asked which had Pauline turn towards her little brothers and let out a sigh.
"It's true. My parents raised me to get money. I work and study to the point I can't do anything. Like you guys, I'm just a product for adults to get paid. When I see other children, I can't help but wish for freedom… It's messing with my head thinking about it." Pauline rubs her head as she groans.
"Is that why you lived with us for a while? I… I'm sorry about that." Luigi apologised.
"No need. I had to burn my house down along with my parents. It was satisfying to watch them burn after what they did to their own daughter. And that was after I babysat the two of you at the age of 8." Pauline said.
In Mario's case, Pauline is glad that her family is Mario and Luigi after leaving her biological parents to rot.
The Mario bros are silent as Pauline hugs them.
"I'm so glad to see my baby brothers making it this far. I'm also glad that you won the fight against a superhuman of an opponent." Pauline giggles.
"Pauline…" Luigi whispered.
Mario remained silent as he hugged Pauline back.
"Mario?" Pauline looks at Mario with surprise.
"Honestly, it makes you look like a kid compared to us. I guess it's the time for us to get back up and fight for the Mushroom Kingdom together." Mario grins while patting Luigi and Pauline's shoulders.
This brings back how they first enter the world they don't belong in, but this time it's joy and determination rather than fear and loss.
Pauline then smiles back along with Luigi as the trio of siblings laugh together.
[I'm glad…] A voice called.
"Huh? Mama?" Mario halts with surprise.
"Hey! Who touched my phone!?" Luigi exclaims while pulling out his phone.
"Mom? You heard it all?" Pauline is also surprised to hear her adoptive mother call through Luigi's phone.
[You three have chosen to stay to help everyone in need. Not surprising for Mario, but Luigi and Pauline too?] Mario's mother didn't know Luigi and Pauline are doing what Mario does all his life.
"We can't stand around and do nothing forever. No matter what Bowser's trying to do, we'll make sure to survive together and go home together when this is over." Said Pauline.
"Yeah. With Mario and Pauline around, I'm not going to be a coward." Luigi agreed.
[I guess this is it… Be careful.] Mario's mother warned.
"We will, mama." Luigi nods along with Mario and Pauline.
[Also, Mario, it's the koopa army… They entered our world.]
"What?" Mario gasped.
"Huh!?" Luigi and Pauline exclaimed as Pauline quickly snatched the phone off of Luigi's hand.
"Wait a minute, how!? I just fixed all the pipes!" Pauline panicked about the koopa army going through the pipe of the other world.
[Kamek. He lets out a warning to Mario. You need to break up with Peach now.] Mario's mother pleads.
"But Peach came onto me. Sorry, mama, we made a promise." Mario points out.
"Oh what's this? Mario finally scored a girlfriend that is a royal princess?" Pauline teases Mario while rubbing his big nose.
"You could say the same to Luigi and she's a tomboy." Mario sighs as he blushes.
"Man, aren't you boys lucky!?" Pauline laughs while hugging both her brothers with a tease.
"Stop it." Luigi whined.
[So this is what Peach has chosen, huh? Lucky boy you are, Mario. Be careful of King Bowser Koopa, he's a dangerous person.] Mario's mother warned.
"Don't worry, mama. We'll make it out together. Believe us." Mario said while grinning with Luigi and Pauline as confidence finally came to them.
Mario's mother remained silent, watching her children grow up to be responsible adults that shoulders the burden to help everyone in need in and out of their world.
[If that's the case… Please live for me. I won't forgive any of you if you die.] Mario's mother's soft tone sighs while praying for the trio's safety.
"Yes, mama." The Mario siblings replied together while preparing themselves.
[Good luck, I will pray for you three to come back.] Mario's mother hangs up, leading Pauline to hand the phone back to Luigi.
Mario, Luigi and Pauline are seeing many inhabitants taking a single alien back to the city as Pauline remains calm.
"Looks like we're back together again. Did you miss me?" Pauline asks as she giggles.
"Obviously!" Mario snapped.
"We almost left without you!" Luigi shouted.
"Okay, okay… I'm sorry. I thought I died too, but I was found at a different beach. Lucky Bowser didn't kill me there." Pauline is relieved that she's spared.
"Yeah. Lucky…" Mario sighed.
"Bro, what about Peach and the Flower Nation?" Luigi asked which had Mario realising what he should do.
"You're right, Lu, Pauline, it's about Peach." Mario said as Pauline raised her hand.
"I know. Some prince kept her in a room like a prison. Since Kinosen and I had the details of the palace, I'll give you guys some details. There's actually ventilation there, but entering there as normal is more preferable. To do that I want you two to go to the entrance and visit the prince." Pauline said as Mario and Luigi nodded.
"So what about you?" Luigi asked.
"I'm taking the former. Peach is waiting for us to come back and even Toad is put in the cell for the things he didn't even do." Pauline explained.
"Then we'll get them back no matter what. Right, Lu?" Mario nods and asks.
"Yeah." Luigi agreed.
"Great. I'll meet you guys at the palace." Pauline waves as she leaves the bros standing at the beach.
Silence as Mario and Luigi are happy to see their sister again after disappearing for a while.
Mario nods to Luigi as Luigi nods back, leading them to return to the group that's taking Tatanga to the Sarasaland Empire.
"Mario?"
"Yeah?"
"Is it true that we'll save the kingdoms?"
"Oh course. Let's hope Bowser doesn't do anything this time."
In the end, the Mario bros wrap each other's arms around their back while walking.
In a city, there's a riot going on as a crowd of humans, shy guys and koopas are banging the door while being blocked by the guards of the Chai Kingdom.
"MURDERER!"
"You killed our emperor!"
"He was your father!"
"Death to the princess!"
"What in the world is going on!?" Mario exclaimed out of shock.
"I don't know!? What's happening!?" Luigi is also shocked about what's been going on when they're busy talking to Pauline.
"Mario! Luigi! Over there!" Azalea calls as she, Goro and Minmei are waving to the bros out of the window.
This had Mario and Luigi sneak through and climb through the window with Goro, Minmei, Totomesu and Hiyoihoi's assistance.
Inside the building are Mario, Luigi, Daisy, Azalea, Goro, Gomez, Totomesu, Hiyoihoi, Minmei and Tatanga.
"Daisy!" Luigi rushes after seeing what Daisy's condition ended up becoming.
Battered and bruised, Daisy has taken a beating after exposing herself towards her citizens.
"No way…" Mario rubs his sleeve on Daisy's face, leading her to grunt.
"Thou hast witnessed it. Daisy's truth had led the folks to attack out of anger and revenge." Said King Totomesu.
"Yeah. Even my guards are struggling to calm things down." Minmei grunts while keeping the door still.
"Now what?" Gomez asked out of worry.
Mario is calm as he picks up a megaphone and approaches the door while standing.
"Mario?"
"Open the door." Mario opens his mouth.
"Bro?" Luigi is unsure if Mario's going to be okay with a riot like this.
"Dude, are you crazy!? You'll…" King Hiyoihoi yells until he's interrupted.
"I know, your majesty. Please let me deal with them. Luigi, come with me." Said Mario.
"Okie dokie." Luigi agrees while standing by Mario's side.
"Be careful, you two." Said Minmei.
As the door opens as both Minmei and Hiyoihoi are in fear of what the crowd will do to them.
As Mario and Luigi stand outside, Mario takes a deep breath while holding up the megaphone in his hand.
"HEY!"
The crowd and the guards stop after Mario's explosive shout.
"Thank you. Everyone, I know you're mad about Daisy, but at least think before you go around and attack others just because of their honest truth." Mario calls out as the crowd remains silent.
"But she said it herself! She killed her father who was our ruler!" The woman shouted.
"Yeah, but at least let her explain her situation. She may have killed her father, but she's not responsible for your empire's fall." Mario continues.
As Luigi reveals Tatanga, the crowd gasps as they're surprised to see why Tatanga is the culprit.
"That's right. He's been taking advantage of the emperor after what happened to his wife." Luigi added.
With the door opened, Daisy shows herself up as the crowd are showing anger as well as Daisy herself.
"The outsiders are correct. What you're seeing is the one who turned my father abusive and tries to take my father's throne. In the end, he failed." Daisy approaches her people as one human man charges towards Daisy.
This leads to a princess and a citizen to buttheads as the man's skull hurts as he collapses, causing Daisy to growl.
"IF ANY OF YOU PEOPLE GIVE ME TEN SECONDS, IT'LL ALL BE OVER AND DONE WITH!" Daisy roars as it intimidated the crowd after angering their princess. "As I was saying, you all ignored my cries for help after my father's passing and yet you're trying to execute your ruler!? You all should be ashamed of yourselves! Geez, now I'm starting to sound like Minmei." Daisy sighs while placing her fingers on her own head.
Daisy halts as Mario, Luigi, Azalea, Goro and Gomez are nodding for Daisy to reveal the past to everyone in front of her.
As much as the crowd hates their princess, Daisy has a lot of explanation to tell.
"Emperor Lotus Flora is a loving father to both his daughters, especially after his wife passed after the second daughter was born. He was loved by many and I was foolish enough to ruin his reputation because of my foolishness. We were both in the wrong and the second daughter, Azalea, was caught in an astray because of the grief, used by none other than this guy over there, the same guy that tried to marry my mother and her two daughters. I killed him to protect my sister, my father wanted us to move on and follow the outsiders that are doing their all to protect us." Said Daisy.
As silence starts, Tatanga lowers his head after knowing what Mario will do if he tries to run.
"It's true. I did lead them to their downfall. It's because the emperor has my beloved Dandelion and I cannot let that go!" Tatanga cries, meeting his ironic downfall.
"Creep…" Mario, Luigi and those in the palace groan as they finally see who Tatanga really was.
"Before you attack him, how about an event for tonight. Humiliation." Goro announced while clapping.
"Whuh?" Tatanga stops as he can tell what Goro has on his sleeves.
"That's right. We're starting our own festival tonight, one of them is waterboarding the alien. The prize will be waiting if anyone's lucky enough to hit the target." Said Goro as Gomez reveals the device from the cloth with his teeth.
As the crowd stops they can finally get even with the one that caused Sarasaland to struggle for 7 years, meaning they finally have the chance to humiliate him for a long time.
The crowd finally cheers as many are celebrating their princess' redemption, leading Daisy and Azalea to feel overjoyed that their empire is saved.
"Mario… Luigi… I don't know what to say…"
"Welcome home, your majesties." Mario bows as Luigi holds his cap and bows with Mario.
"Ladies."
"Thank you. You saved our country." Daisy cries with happiness that she longed for after the incident.
"Not just ours, theirs as well." Azalea points out as she's glad that her sister and other royal families are making up for all the stuff they did in the past.
"Haha. Yeah. Even their countries." Daisy agreed and then turned back to the Mario bros. "You know, I think I found myself a boyfriend." Daisy lets out a teasing grin as Luigi's face goes red, making Mario and Azalea laugh.
"Woah woah woah, hold on! I- I'm not sure if I'm prepared for that!" Luigi exclaimed as he blushed.
"Aw, don't be like that, Luigi." Azalea teases while leaning onto Luigi's arm.
"Yeah. It's obvious she's your type for tomboys. Go get 'em, tiger." Mario nudges Luigi's other arm with a teasing smile.
"Oh mama mia!" Luigi pulls his cap down out of embarrassment, leading Mario, Daisy, Azalea and others to laugh as their smile is actually genuine.
Appearing by the plumbers and princesses, Goro chuckles while holding out the very medallion that Daisy and Azalea dropped.
"The Flowershade!" Azalea gasped.
"Goro… You…"
"Long time no see, young ladies. It seems my unfinished business is complete." Goro reveals himself after pulling down his hoodie and putting his glasses on.
His handsome appearance shows his hair slicked to the side to the back, tall and slender as well as hiding a dark suit under an Arabic robe as he appears to be a butler.
"I am Goro, an immortal that owns the Floweshade. I know it's sudden, but I did succeed in the promise the emperor gave me." Said Goro while putting down a toy dinosaur from his white glove.
"Goro, you're like that Kinosen guy, right?" Mario asks with surprise.
"Indeed. Kinosen may be a mysterious trickster, but he's indeed a genuine boy. Luigi, I know a fellow immortal you've been searching for. She's out there watching you and Mario on a journey together." Goro explained.
"Thanks, Goro. Did you hear that, bro?" Luigi is excited to see what's about to come as he grabs Mario's hands.
"Yeah. That means our answer is getting closer." Mario is glad to see his brother reaching his goal as Mario has his brother's support.
"Goro. After all this time, you're still with us?" Daisy asked, surprised that her servant, Goro, is her immortal this whole time.
"Of course I am. No matter where you go, I will serve you and your sister as your servant." Goro bows, making Daisy and Azalea place their hands on his shoulders.
"Heh. You've always been a part of the Sarasaland Empire. My father would be proud when he sees this." Daisy grins as she accepts Goro as her immortal servant.
"Exactly! Not just you, but Gomez, Suuko and Minmei are a part of Sarasaland as well as the kings." Azalea points out with a smile as she too accepts Goro.
"As expected, I am thankful for the service I did for you. Oh, and Luigi." Goro turns towards Luigi while still bowing.
"Yeah?" Luigi responds.
"If you're in a relationship with Princess Daisy Flora, you better take responsibility for our empire, got that?" Goro glares while advising Luigi on what he should do.
"Y- Yessir…" Luigi shivers as he accepts his role as Daisy's lover.
Daisy then stands in front of a cheering crowd as she raises her arms.
"Everyone! Sarasaland is back and we will bring rebirth to its country as well as its cultivated neighbours! Instead, I will be cutting off their cultivated status and making them a part of our country… Like one big happy family!" Daisy announced as loud and cheerful which made the whole country roaring with cheers.
King Totomesu and the Gaos roar together, King Hiyoihoi and the Tokotokos cheer while tossing confetti balls with excitement and Minmei and the guards and kunoichis raise their weapons as they yell with acceptance.
"Looks like you guys have another job to do." Daisy said while looking at Mario and Luigi.
Considering the Sarasaland incident is all over and Tatanga is crying for mercy, Daisy is now her usual cheerful behaviour, but it's natural this time.
"Yeah. Our sister's waiting for us at the Flower Nation." Mario said while he nodded.
"Heh. Then good luck. I'll meet you boys when it's time to beat Bowser once and for all." Daisy grins, showing off her shark-like teeth.
Despite having a scary face of a delinquent that has sanpaku eyes and a shark's teeth, Daisy actually makes cute expressions in Mario and Luigi's view.
Mario smiles and pat Luigi's arm as he and Luigi are walking towards their karts.
"Wait! I… I'll be staying at the Chai Kingdom as a maid. I'll be cheering for you Mario and Luigi!" Suuko waves as she's trying not to cry for their departure.
"It's alright, Suuko. We'll meet each other again someday. Thanks for all the things you did. Without you, we would've been done for." Said Mario as he and Luigi are revving their engines.
Finally, Mario and Luigi are driving away from the city as the people of Sarasaland saying their goodbyes and wishing good luck to the outsiders.
"I guess it's just the beginning, right, Azalea?" Gomez asked.
"Yeah. Heh. I can't believe how well they protect each other. Someday, I'll protect Daisy no matter the cost."
"Hm. Trying to be like Luigi, huh?" Gomez asks while getting close.
"Mario is the one who motivated me. I hope those guys make it in one piece." Azalea prays until Daisy puts her hand on Azalea's hands.
"There's an old saying, 'Hope is for fools.' But I guess we're all fools in our hearts." Daisy agrees as she hopes for the bros to survive as well.
In the end, the Mario bros have done their job and are now prepared to rescue the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom.
Mario and Luigi's worries increase as they're hoping Peach is okay.
It's as Daisy said earlier 'Hope is for fools.'