Paper Marioby DarkevonyChaptersPrologue: A Plea From The StarsStill The PrologueStill In The Prologue... Health Hazards Is The Evil King's DownfallPrologue: A Plea From The Stars((Before you read!!)) The pictures are not there to insult your intellect and/or your imagination. Half of this chapter contains unedited dialogue straight from "Paper Mario". A rated E game for the Nintendo 64. I added details and pictures along with the game's dialogue to make sense and give color to a bit of all of it. Did not feel like making you all suffer through some cheesy dialogue from the game. Take it into consideration. Dialogue from the game stops when there are no more pictures, which is half way across the chapter. Pictures will not trend into later chapters. They are only in the Prologue to accommodate for the dialogue seen in the game. Thank you. Prologue A Plea From The Stars Today... I'm going tell the story of "Star spirits and good wises". Far, far away, beyond the sky, way above the clouds, it's been said that there's a haven where the Stars live. In the sanctuary Of Star Haven, there rests a fabled treasure called the Star Rod, which has the power to grant all wishes. Using this wondrous Star Rod, the seven revered Star Spirits watched over our peaceful world carefully... very carefully. And then... Oh dear... What the...? Who stuck that weird thing into this story? "Ha ha ha! Yeah! I did!" Bowser proclaimed. "Gwahahahhahahah!! So I can, at long last, beat my archenemy, Mario, I'll take this Star Rod! Do it Kammy!" "No! You mustn't do that! Yelled one of the Star Spirits. "Yeah, now lets try using it!" A wave of light emitted from the Star Rod, turning the Star Spirits into cards. "Bwahahaha. We did it!" Kammy Koopa rejoiced. "That was a piece of cake." ~~~ The sun shone bright across the sky and into yet another beautiful day. Surrounded by broad trees and several grassy green shrubs, a small yellow house with a red roof stood. In front, a big sign that said "Mario" loomed over it. Across it, a pipe and a mailbox stood. The mailman Parakoopa, with a green shell and flyer helmet had just swooped in and delivered a message. "Mail call!" He shouted out before departing. Right as he was out of sight, a tall moustachioid man wearing a green hat with an "L" letter on it with green and blue overalls appeared out of the door, scurrying towards the mail. He hurried back to the small house to share the message. "Hey, Mario! We got a letter from Princess Peach!" He yelled out from across the small hybrid dining room and kitchen towards the bedroom. Another shorter man appeared out of the bedroom, him with an even bigger mustache, red and blue overalls and a red hat with the letter "M" across it. Luigi still held the card in his hand. "I'll read it to you, OK?" Without further notice, he opened the letter. "All right's see... Dear Mario and Luigi I am throwing a party at my castle today! I would be honored if you both could attend. Many guests from distant towns are hoping to meet you. There will be tasty sweets and all kinds of entertainment! I hope to see you here soon! Sincerely, Peach With that, the two set off walking to town, crossing a beautiful pond resting the middle of the town's park. Crossing the nearby shop, and a Dojo with two trainees standing guard of the entrance. They entered the upper district, where Merlon the Soothsayer lay camp and the town's garden. Two citizens where barely moving in and setting up shop. To the right, the post office stood and to the center of it all, two very large doors with a bright golden star in their center. They headed in through the doors and before them stood a grand castle with a large painting of a mushroom at its front. Many of the toads and other party members greeted them as they entered the castle's doors. Luigi pulled Mario aside before they went any further from the entrance. "What a magnificent castle! I never get used to this place. It looks like lots of guests are already here." Luigi's gaze immediately turn in an about, talking to other guests at the party. Mario got quickly greeted by the reception Toadlette. "Mario! You're looking well. Please enjoy the party." She turned her attention back to Luigi and they began to converse again. Mario left, going up the flight of carpeted stairs and again being greeted by the guards. Their spears to their shoulders in a graceful pose. A familiar guard greeted him. "Hello Mario. If you are looking for Peach, she just headed to her private chambers. She must be tired from greeting so many guests. Take it easy, OK?" With that, Mario went straight through the doors that lead up to a second floor. Many more guests were already there too. The Prime Minister of the castle greeted him as he entered and lead him towards the entrance to the banquet hall. Past that, the room that lead to the private chambers. It was a long hallway with enormous mirrors overlooking the Mushroom Kingdom. Princess Peach stood in the middle gazing outwards until she noticed his entrance. She placed her hands together. "Oh, Mario! You came to the party to see me! You're so sweet. Thank you. I was just resting a bit, it gets really tiring having to greet so many guests. Nobody will bother us up here. Shall we relax and chat, just the two of us?" Mario nodded his head in approval. "It's a lovely day today, I'm sure it's comfortable on the balcony. Will you accompany me, Mario?" As the two headed off, just then, the ground began to shake. Tremors began to fill the inside of the castle. Everyone on the first floor managed to escape the castle in panic and few did from the second floor. Just then, the earth began to crack and rise. A giant stone castle with hanging maces began was positioned on the bottom of the castle. It began to rise far into the sky along with the castle, every guest still on board was in pure panic. The windows who overlooked the Mushroom Kingdom were now blackened, beautiful like the night sky, stars glittered in it. Princess Peach went over to edge of the window to look down. They were above the cloud line. Far far into the sky. Then, the shaking finally stopped. "Oh, are you alright Mario? What in the world was that?" Peach began to wonder. "It's still day time... but I can see the stars!" Just then, Bowser crashed through the window, aloft on his flying machine, sending chunks of glass flying everywhere and accompanied by Kammy Koopa. "Gwahahahahaha! Long time no see, Princess Peach!" Bowser roared as he said it, filled with unnatural power. "Bowser... It can't be! It was you who made the ground shake just now, wasn't it! Whatever did you do!" "GWAHAHAHA! Yeah, that was me. I lifted your castle into the sky! Its sitting on top of mine now. Weren't expecting that, huh? Ha, this castle is under my control now, my dear! Now you'll obey ME!" He began to get closer to the Princess, then Mario rushed in a readied stance in front of Peach to fight Bowser once again. "Huh?! What? It's... Mario!! What a shock! Ha! Not really! I expected you to turn up right on cue. You're just as annoying as ever. Unfortunately for you, there is nothing you can do this time." Peach seemed unimpressed as ever, her arms folded in disappointment. "Having you learned your lesson by now, Bowser? You can never defeat Mario! Why don't you just give up already?" "True true, I've had my weaknesses in the past. But now things are different! OK tough guy, let's go!" Mario and Bowser got ready to fight until the last standing. "You can do it Mario!" Peach encouraged him. Mario kept silent, concentrating on Bowser. They engaged into fierce battle, a battle of the timeless enemies. Mario's jump was renowned for its strength, like two small jackhammers they said. Bowser's fierce claw attack left small wounds on him. The battle went on for a while, until Bowser finally pulled the cheap trick. "Good old Mario... always fighting. You're a thorn on my side. But today, your pathetic little attacks won't beat me!" Bowser pulled out the Star Rod and held it out high into the air in an victory pose. "Take a look at this! I stole it from the Star Haven! The Star Rod! This fine piece of work has the power to grant any wish in the whole wide world! And when I use the Star Rod to increase my strength, even you can't beat me, Mario!" The Star Rod began to shine wildly and suddenly, Bowser was engulfed in florescent lights that emitted pure power. Star shape lights began to disappear as they came out of the rainbow lights covering Bowser and they touched the ground. Bowser did a solitary claw attack, sending Mario back by a few feet trying to regain his ground desperately. It was too much. Mario began to breath heavily, weary of such a strong attack. But Mario would not stop. He jumped once more on the mighty Bowser only to figure out that the coating of lights was harder than diamond itself! Bowser was completely unaffected by his jump. "Gwahahahaha! Is that all you got? How sad! You'd best take some vitamins, 'cause that didn't hurt at all!" Bowser hit him once more with the claw attack, sending Mario into a peril. There was little life force now left in Mario. One more hit and he would be a goner... "Yeah, just what I expected! Mario is no match for the new me! It's not even worth my time to toy with you anymore. Mario, it's time to end this! Here we go Mario, say good night!" With that, Mario lay on the ground, defeated at last. "Oh no! Mario! Get up please!" The Princess stood unharmed and in pure shock. How could this have happened? Bowser laughed and roared. "Gwahahah! Yeah, I finally did it! I beat Mario at last!" He pranced around in joy of finally defeating his life long archenemy. Just as he was celebrating, a small glitter on the floor shone and Bowser suddenly slipped on the red carpet as if it was pulled, sending him flying to the ground face first. Bowser had never been the most clever of evil rulers, so he took no notice of this. As he fell, the Star Rod slid out of his hands and into the air. It landed on the ground in front of Bowser with a heavy clash and an explosion of light. A crack slid through the middle of the star on the Star Rod and everything around them began to distort. Suddenly, several explosions around them began to occur and flashing white lights filled the once beautiful private chambers. "Kammy Koopa! What is going on!" Bowser roared in desperation as he picked up the broken Star Rod and pointed to the old witch. She too was in a panic as things began to crumble around them. "I'm not certain, You Vileness. I think that with the Star Rod broken, it might be unleashing all its energy and causing a chain of events to happen! There is no telling what it can do now!" Kammy Koopa began to think heavily. "Well do something! I'm not about to let my victory be spoiled!" Kammy finally had an idea. "Take the Princess, I can protect us from whatever happens!" Bowser snatched the Princess up and got as close as possible to Kammy. The Princess was only worried about Mario who would most likely not see the light of day... Kammy Koopa began to cast a large bubble around them. She concentrated hard until finally, it was complete. "That should handle it." "Do you have the seven star spirits still?" "Yes your Viciousness." Kammy responded with showing him a stack of seven cards. The whole castle filled with a bright white light as it blinded Bowser, Kammy, and the Princess and everything fell silent once more. ~~~ Another sunny day for the citizens of Equestria. More specifically, for Canterlot. Today was busier than most, and happier too. After the wedding of Princess Cadence and The Royal Captain of the Guards, Shining Armor, everyone was in a livelier buss than usual. Happy that another great threat was evaded once more. No one could have predicted today's outcome. The Princesses were busy as usual attending to the concern of their citizens. The day outside was already twilight, and the sun was nearly setting. Both Princesses were awake at this time, a time to greet and relax together with their citizens in a Utopia of peace. Were once at last, everything had returned to normal and no true evil loomed over the land. Yet... Something was amiss. The stars were now visible again and in the sky, there was a bright star. It shined much... much brighter as it began to get much bigger. It was a meteor... and it was headed straight for the Canterlot castle. Celestia teleported herself and the guards to safety and out of the castle and Luna did her best to stop the oncoming meteor with her magic, but it seemed unaffected by it. The meteor landed straight through the Castle's stained glass windows with the picture of the two royal sisters guarding over the land. The ground shook all across Canterlot. For a second, everything stood still. Luna rejoined Celestia outside the castle. The two seemed to have agreed to go investigate as the two departed into the Castle again to observe the damage. ~~~ "Ugh. What happened?" Bowser lay on the singed marble floor, the Star Rod still in one hand and Princess Peach in the other arm, safely unharmed. Bowser let her rest on the ground as he stood up and began observing damages. "W-w-what?! Where's the castle?! Where's my castle?! KAMMY!"He stomped his foot, sending everything in a small radius jumping up as if on a trampoline. Kammy quickly replied to Bowser as she too was up and about and unharmed. "It seems the explosion sent us somewhere. I am not sure of where we are though, Lord Bowser." She went over the shattered stained glass, once a symbol to the peaceful rule of the world. "Oh... my... Your Dastardliness, take a look at this!" She jumped up in surprise as she looked down from the window. Bowser impatiently walked over to Kammy. "This better be important. I was just checking out the throne over there and it seems like..." Bowser mouth went agape with the magnificence of the world beyond. The trees were otherworldly as well as the mountains. They were too spiky compared to back at home. Everything seemed so... peaceful... and it disgusted him. "W-where are we?!" Just that moment, the large doors to the other far end of the room busted open and out came two large beings, with wings and a large horn, one blue as night, the other as bright as day. "You are in the land of Equestria. State your name and purpose as to why you have defiled the sanctity of this castle." The larger white one said. Bowser was just in all sorts of confusion at this point. He didn't even know what to say. "Ponies? Ha! This will be too easy. Right, Your Vileness?" Kammy Koopa looked over at Bowser who had his claws to his chin, trying to think of what to do or what to say. "Anyways... You are standing before the lord of terror, the lord of evil, King Bowser himself and his trusted adviser, Kammy Koopa. You'd do well to respect us if you know what's good for you. We now proclaim this land to be ours!" "You will do no such thing!" The smaller blue one said. "This land shall remain at peace, and we shall keep it that way." "As you wish." Kammy released an energy beam from her golden wand and it went straight for the two beings at the door. Suddenly, both of them release their own magic beams, counteracting hers and she was quickly overpowered, grounded as she was knocked out of her broom and onto the floor defeated. "Lord... Bowser... they're too strong..." Bowser finally figured out what was going on. "So... let me get this straight. We are in some other world yatta yatta yatta. You are the peaceful rulers and you want to stop us. Is that it or am I getting something wrong here?" Kammy slapped her hand to her face. "LORD BOWSER!" "Oh, right. Gwahahahaha! You might have defeated Kammy Koopa, but even Mario couldn't defeat me!" Bowser gloated his unfair victory. Bowser released a mighty fire breath from the farthest reaches of his stomach. The two beings quickly counteracted the fire breath with the magic of their own, and Bowser too was overcome as easily as Kammy. Bowser arrogantly got back up, unprepared to lose and unwilling. "No matter! Because I still have this!" He held out the broken Star Rod before them. "But Lord Bowser, it broke remember! It has no energy left in it!" Kammy warned him. "Oh...." The two beings shot another mixed beam of energy towards Bowser. In desperation, he held out the Star Rod before him. As it hit, the Star Rod suddenly became lit with blinding light. Something was happening. "Kammy, what's happening now?!" "How should I know?!" She yelled back at him. The Star Rod released a huge wave of energy, sending the two beings onto their knees. The gash in the middle of the star on the Star Rod was gone! Kammy quickly joined Bowser's side once again. "Your Vileness! It seems that the Star Rod is supposed to take in the hopes and wishes of the citizens. It seems to be affected by the citizens in this world as well! The Star Rod is beginning to empower itself!" Kammy Koopa tried to explain. "So things will go as planned then? If I couldn't rule the Mushroom Kingdom, then I will rule over this world then! Bwahahaha!" He held out the Star Rod as a large amount of mystic energy began to empower both it, and Bowser. Suddenly, it shot a blue light out of it that went straight through the open doors of the castle, disappearing out of sight. Bowser was befuddled by the whole ordeal but dismissed it all the same. "We won't let you! Our magic together is strong and we will stop you!" The large white being said. The two ponies got up onto all fours again and united their horns. A large white beam filled the throne room as it engulfed Bowser and Kammy. Then, the beam dispersed and Bowser roared as he was now engulfed in florescent rainbow colors. "Your petty magic is not enough to defeat me. As long as I hold this Star Rod, I am invincible. This world... is mine!" ~~~ Another picnic ensued with Twilight and friends as they laughed and told stories of what they had done that day. It was another peaceful day. All was well. The cows grazed in peace, small plush clouds aloft the sky, the town buzzing with activity. Never a better time to rejoice after a hard fought day and partied night like the day after the grand wedding of Twilight's brother and foalsitter. "Sorry again Twilight, we should have known better than to doubt you, especially with something as important as you're brother's wedding." Rarity began and every pony else seemed to agreed. "I already said that it's alright girls. Besides, its all in the past now and we were able to drive Chrysalis away from taking over Equestria. Everything is back to normal." Twilight said meekly. The conversation would have continued, but just then, the ground began to tremble. It was a horrific feeling. It made Twilight uneasy as if she could almost sense something was terribly amiss. Now she knew what it felt to be Pinkie sometimes. Just as she had thought, the trembling fell to silence again. One of her friends gasped in horror. She looked over to where all of her friends where now staring at. All that was left of Canterlot was a crater on the side of a mountain. Canterlot had disappeared... ~~~ "Okay so uh... what do we do now?" Bowser said confused, standing over the two defeated ponies in a victory pose. Kammy Koopa slapped her face again. "We take over this world. First, by getting rid of this Castle. You know, like back at the Mushroom Kingdom." Kammy had run out of patience. "Oh, that's right. Gwahahahaha!" Still The PrologueStill The Prologue All was cold, lifeless. In a sea of stars, he floated down gently. Mario felt himself falling, gently as the wind swayed him around. Through plush dense clouds, farther down he went. There was an impediment of doom, almost as if somehow, even through the thick of things, there was someone wishing his safe return, and that would keep him safe from harm. As he finally felt himself land, he had no strength to carry on. It was a soft landing, truly a greater force was at play. Everything stood still for a second. Even with his eyes shut, he could see his surrounding. Strangely yet, he could see himself passed out on the floor. Everything was in a deep shade of black, with only the outline of anything that existed before in the background, himself in full color. Strange and yet hardly visible, seven ethereal figures formed just up top from him. They felt... ancient... powerful... kind. He could not picture them well, he could only observe their figures. Each of different coloration and some with different accessories, almost as if it were part of them, and it made them who they were. A voice began to speak. He could only hear small tittering sounds, but he could somehow understand it all. They spoke urgently and hurriedly. "Mario. Please, for the fate and hope of all that is left, save this world. You must get up!" An elderly voice spoke out. "We will grant you the rest of our power, in hopes that we may yet have a chance to free this world from the clutches of Bowser. He grows more powerful by waking minute. You must stop him Mario. Please..." His voice began to fade as well as the seven other figures. They began to focus their will on him, disappearing one by one as they infused their power into him. Mario's vision too began to fade, but... he felt better somehow. All went dark again and he fell to a deep slumber. ~~~ "Darn it, why did I have to get stuck out here? How did I even get here?! Ahh! How am I supposed to get back?!" A small goomba wearing a blue hat threaded through a thick forest, otherworldly to him. "Seriously, what is this place? Everything looks so... weird." From the corner of his eyes, he saw strange figure. It was a very bright shade of red. The brave little goomba went over to investigate the phenomenon of red that stood in between the sea of green. There in the middle of a wide circular gap in the treeline, a rather chunky man with red and blue overalls, a red hat with the letter "M" across it, lay sprawled across the floor. "Who is this guy?" The small little Goomba began to inspect the strange creature before him. Suddenly, a realization hit him straight in the face. This "Guy" was none other than his all time favorite hero! Mario! Or at least he thought it was Mario. What would Mario be doing in a place like this? Why would Mario even be unconscious in the middle of the forest anyways? "Hey, are you okay guy?" Still unsure if it was the real Mario. He didn't respond. Something had happened to him... The goomba began to panic. What if it really was Mario? What if something really bad had happened to him? "C'mon Goombario think. You can't carry him by yourself... you need... you need... to find help! Yes! Gotta find someone!" Goombario left hurriedly out of the treeline, hoping to find someone... or something... ~~~ "How could... huh?! What, no! But its... The castle... it was always there. The Princess. She wouldn't let it happen. All those ponies..." "Twilight. Calm down, I'm sure there is a logical explanation for all of this." Applejack tried reassuring her. "What logical explanation is there for that?!" Twilight took hold of Applejack's face with one hoof and pointed towards the large crater at the side of a mountain where the once regal Canterlot sat with the other. "I-I'm sure the Princess and all the citizens are alright." She looked back at the half broken Twilight. Twilight placed her hooves on top of her head and laid down in despair. "I just hope my parents are okay..." "There there, it'll be alright." She wrapped a hoof around her, trying to comfort the near to weeping Twilight. Her ears flicked up at the small pitter patter of something stepping on grass caught her attention when she was just about to cry. Something... something small was headed their way. She turned her head in the direction of the sound, and just below the hill line, a small blue and brown figure began to make form. ~~~ "Oh what am I to do! I don't even know where I'm going. This is bad. This is really bad!" Goombario hurried past the trees, seeking any forms of life. No sooner had he come to a clearing with rather mountainous grassy green hills. Searching desperately across the treeless hills, something bright and colorful took hold of his attention. It was far into the sky, like a parakoopa wearing a rainbow colored shell. Well, not really. It was more of a smudge in the clear blue sky with a bunch of consecutive colors. It moved incredibly fast. It was going up, farther and farther until it changed course and headed straight downward. The shape skittered to a stop near the ground which was a much higher hill way past his own. Something else was at the top of that hill though. Different colors too! But they weren't rainbow colors though. There was... hmm... He focused his eye sight to get a clearer view. Purple and white... yellow and pink... and orange! The colors were easily notable from such a far distance since they paled in contrast to the vividly bright green all around him. The grass was overflowing with green that it was crazy. Things had always been brightly colorful, except wood and bricks and... anyways, things had always been brightly colorful but not with this much pizzazz. Whatever had done that early must be alive, and if its alive then it might help. Yeah, that sounds about right. He hurried to go reason with whoever or whatever those things might be. As he caught sight of them and they not of him, he came to a stop. Where they... ponies? What? Colored ponies? The Mushroom Kingdom didn't have any of those. Rougeport did however, but they were brown and black and not cyan, blue, and purple... this made his head hurt. Wait... they were ponies! They could haul Mario out! But they could be dangerous... Hmm. This was Mario he was talking about! His idol! He wouldn't just leave Mario for dead. Oh by the name of the Princess, let Mario not be dead. Better safe than sorry! Goombario hurried over to them. If it wasn't for timely issues, he would have concentrated on the fact that ponies could talk. Rougeport ponies never talked. Maybe they were hiding something? Now the ponies close and visible, the first to spot him was a purple... wait... Unicorn?! Whoa. Then every other pony began to stare at him. If they could talk they could understand. "Help!! Some... uh... pony help!!" Still In The Prologue... Health Hazards Is The Evil King's DownfallStill In The Prologue I Guess... Health Hazards Is The Evil King's Downfall "Meanwhile back at Canterlot Castle now high up into the air, the handsomely genius Koopa King, Bowser, sits upon his new throne of this new world that is soon to be his." Bowser paused to admire his voice over. Thinking of what to say next, he suddenly became flustered. "That is if the darn nincompoops of an army he commands would come sooner with a full report of what I have to deal with!! It's been over a day and not even Kammy Koopa has reported back to me!" Bowser had pondered endlessly, bored out of his wits waiting for some sort of analysis of this new world. How long did it take a few hundred Parakoopa henchmen to scout the land? How big was this place anyways? Bowser had only mass summoned all of them a bit ago. Kammy told him it was outstanding that the Star Rod was capable of granting such a large wish so early after barely regaining its power. Apparently, this land overflowed with the wishes and hopes of the ponies and creatures who inhabited the land, and in turn, it was making the Star Rod much more powerful than even what the Mushroom Kingdom could have offered. This... was certainly good news for him. "Truly, I have become invincible! Gwahahaha!" Bowser rejoiced at the thought. Only a bit ago had he had a chat with the two defeated ponies. Quite large to be considered ponies. Nothing out of the ordinary though, in his time of ruling over the Mushroom Kingdom, he had seen one too many freaks that swore their loyalty to him to be bothered by abnormalities. They were more than willing to share any information at the simple wave of his wand. That is... with the wand pointing towards the captured guards and citizens and empty promises of blackmail being tossed around. Full, had they not willingly obliged. What he managed to learn was that there were a total of three sentient races who used magic differently. The ponies with wings used magic to fly. The horned ponies who used magic in a more refined way as if to manipulate things or even use magic as a form of weapon. Then there was the regular ponies, who only stood out by their use of magic to empower their strength. It seems all of them used magic to be of any use. The information was quite handy no doubt. It made things a whole lot... easier. With Mario gone, there was no one that could possibly even try to stop him! "M-Mario is here, and he is alive!" Kammy said as the large doors leading to his new throne room burst open. This... was certainly not how Bowser wanted Kammy to appear after a day of disappearance. He was not a happy camper. "WHAT DID YOU SAY?! For peat's sakes... what does it take to get rid of that guy!" Bowser began to stomp on the ground furiously, even madder than before. Kammy, who didn't have her broom at the moment and was walking on the ground began to wail her arms at the miniquake Bowser was causing. "L-L-Lord B-B-owser. P-Please c-calm down! You're f-forgetting y-your high blood p-pressure!" Kammy couldn't keep up right. Bowser held one claw to his head, his eyes closed as he came to a halt on his ranting. He spun in circles were he stood, a headache mixed with dizziness. "Grraah. If Mario isn't my downfall, then health hazards will be." Kammy Koopa took out her bag and began searching. She took out a celery stick from it and walked over to Bowser. He instinctively turned his mouth away from the horrid thing. "Lord Bowser, this will lower your blood pressure, and its healthy for you. Open up!" She took out her wand. "You can't make me!" Bowser raised his Star Rod. Before he could use it however, Kammy had already levitated it high above the air and out of Bowser's grasp. "Now don't be so stubborn. You'll get it back when you eat your celery." Bowser did as he was told, angrily chewing on the celery. She gave him back the Star Rod. "Besides, with it, you are completely invincible Your Vileness." "I hope you're right. Where was he anyways, and how did you figure it out?" He asked the elderly Koopa. "I had my suspicions, so I decided to do my own search. As I was traveling, I came up to a nice little town called Ponyville. I bought some fresh celery stalks and apples from the ponies there. Nice folks by the way, oh and did you know they accept the gold coins from back home? I was thinking of having a picnic with everyone, but I wasn't going to start handing out invitations without consulting with yo-" "Kammy... What about Mario!" Bowser raised his voice a bit. "Oh yeah... As I was roaming around the outskirts of the town looking for a nice place to picnic, some multi-colored ponies were walking back to Ponyville. They were carrying Mario! I hid before they could see me and I overheard them as they walked by, saying that he was still alive and needed some rest." "Did you send some of the troops over? Did you go and stopped them?" Bowser waited for a reply from the old Koopa. "Um... I came directly here to tell you, Lord Bowser." She reasoned. "YARGGHH!! Go out there and stop him! I want every koopa troopa out there on the look out for him." "Right away Your Evilness!" With that, Kammy got on her broom again and flew out the doors. "If she happens to fail... I have someone awaiting him..." ~~~ "Sister, are you alright?" Luna asked the Celestia as she finally awoke. "Seems like it. Ow. That fiend must have tempered with my magic..." She got up slowly, looking around the familiar room. It was her room. They must have been sent here. "Mine too, I haven't been able to use it to get out of here." Luna seemed troubled. "Even if you managed, Bowser's guards would only capture you and send you back here. Despite his motives and goal, he's a big softy. He wouldn't really hurt you, not on my say so anyways." Princess Peach said as she walked over to the large bed, sitting down beside the two ponies. "Ah, Princess Peach. Out of curiosity, how is it that Bowser was unaffected by our magic? We have some of the strongest magic in Equestria. Together we should have been able to beat him..." Luna's tone was casual. They had already taken the time to introduce one another since Bowser had placed all three of them in Celestia's room and he had stripped them of their powers. He wanted to keep a close eye on all three of them, and having them all in the same room was the easiest way for him to do such. "It's because of the Star Rod... the star shaped rod on his hands is able to grant him any wish he desires. His wish was to be completely invincible..." "Then how is anyone supposed to beat him?" Celestia asked her. "I fear that they may not..." They stood in silence for a while. "I just hope Mario is alright..." "Mario?" "Oh. I haven't told you of Mario yet, or of what happened." She paused, thinking of where to start. "Mario was a hero back in the Mushroom Kingdom. He defeated Bowser multiple times. Mario was the only one to stand in his way, and Bowser could never prevail against him. It seems Bowser finally cheated his way to defeat Mario. He lifted my castle into the sky, way above the clouds, like he has with yours." "So that explains why it seems like it is night all the time..." Luna looked out the window. "So, how was it that Bowser defeated Mario?" "With what else? He stole the Star Rod from star haven. Seven benevolent star spirits previously used the Star Rod to make the wishes of all the good citizens of the world come true. It is through the wishes and hopes of the good citizens that the Star Rod is able to work. Bowser was able to steal the rod and imprison the spirits. I had just thrown a party and had invited Mario to join, but Bowser was awaiting him, and they fought. Bowser defeated Mario... and when the Star Rod broke and had sent us here... Mario was gone..." Bowser suddenly appeared through the door, making the two ponies stand up immediately on edge, ready to fend him off, Princess Peach however was looking at the ground, without the will to anything. "And gone he is... not! That plumber never knows when to back down!" These words took the Princess aback. He was alive?! "Mario..." Princess Peach stood up and faced Bowser. "If its true, Mario will come to stop you!" "I wouldn't get my hopes up Princess. After all, I am invincible. I've already dispatched my army to stop him." These words did not bother her as much. She was just happy to hear that Mario was still alive, and he was here too. "I've only come by to see how you were doing. I like to see a bright smile in your face." Princess Peach turned his back and crossed her arms, a frown now poised in her expression. "Well too bad. You won't find here." "I could sing you a song, but I'm mighty busy. I'm sure that would cheer you up." "Think again." "Well, I gotta go see to it that I get rid of Mario once and for all." Bowser stopped at the door before he continued. "To you two ponies, loosen up your guard. After all, all magic but the one of my army and mine is no more! Gwahahaha! Think of it as a precaution." Bowser finally stepped out of the room. "All magic gone...?" Luna looked even much more worried. "Who will turn the night to day and day to night?" Peach stepped out into Celestia's balcony and looked out into the stars. It was still day in the world below, but it was dark as night for them. "If what Bowser says is true... I hope Mario is alright..." Luna walked over to the Princess gazing out into the stars with her. "You really seem to care deeply about this Mario character, don't you?" The Princess nodded. She looked down gloomily, hoping and wishing for something to happen, for a way to tell Mario he was okay. Only seconds after, a small sparkle suddenly burst into the room, landing into a pillow on the ground. The three Princess turned towards the pillow who had been pummeled. A small little star appeared and floated into the air, looking around the room to and finally looking at Princess Peach. "You must be a star kid from the Mushroom Kingdom! What are you doing here little guy?" She held out hands so that he may rest on them, and so he did. "A... star kid?" Suddenly, the small star spoke. "Star kid! We star kids come from Shiver Valley, a cold place up on the mountains of the Mushroom Kingdom. When we grow up, we go up into Star Haven to begin to grant wishes to the good citizens of the world. My name is Twink by the way." He turned to Princess Peach. "I've come to grant your wish." "Can you stop Bowser and take the Star Rod back?" "Um... that's too big of a wish to me. You see, I barely ascended to Star Haven a bit ago, so I'm not as powerful as the Star Spirits." "Oh... okay... Well, can you get all of us out of here and to safety?" "Well... actually... its only been a day since I joined the stars." "Oh... well. Its okay Twink. You tried your best." "Isn't there anything a small star can do for you Princess Peach?" "Well, brave little one, can you perhaps send a letter to my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle? She lives by a small town called Ponyville. I have to tell her of the current situation." Celestia asked. "Now that I can do!" The Princess wrote a letter with her hoof. Princess Peach would question this, but it was like trying to question how goombas could write. She gave it to the star kid as she finished. "Are you sure there isn't anything I can do for you Princess Peach, Princess Luna?" He asked before departing. "My message is delivered with Celestia's. I truly believe Twilight Sparkle can do something about all of this." Luna replied. Twink turned to Princess Peach. "The letter asks for Twilight to find Mario, and aid him if possible." Celestia smiled as Princess Peach looked at her in surprise. "Twink... tell Mario that I'm safe. He doesn't need to worry about me. Please Twink." She took out a star pendant that was wrapped around her neck and gave it to Twink. "And give him this." "I'll say it in your exact words Princess! You count on me, Princesses!" With that, the small star was gone. "Never did I imagine that a star could speak. I bring the night forth but I do not make stars. There is still so much to wonder about. Come Princess, tell us of this Mushroom Kingdom." Luna walked back into the room. Princess Peach stayed a little longer outside in the night sky, looking over towards the stars. "Mario..." She placed all her hopes and wishes that Twink would deliver her message to Mario, and hoping for both their safety.
Prologue: A Plea From The Stars((Before you read!!)) The pictures are not there to insult your intellect and/or your imagination. Half of this chapter contains unedited dialogue straight from "Paper Mario". A rated E game for the Nintendo 64. I added details and pictures along with the game's dialogue to make sense and give color to a bit of all of it. Did not feel like making you all suffer through some cheesy dialogue from the game. Take it into consideration. Dialogue from the game stops when there are no more pictures, which is half way across the chapter. Pictures will not trend into later chapters. They are only in the Prologue to accommodate for the dialogue seen in the game. Thank you. Prologue A Plea From The Stars Today... I'm going tell the story of "Star spirits and good wises". Far, far away, beyond the sky, way above the clouds, it's been said that there's a haven where the Stars live. In the sanctuary Of Star Haven, there rests a fabled treasure called the Star Rod, which has the power to grant all wishes. Using this wondrous Star Rod, the seven revered Star Spirits watched over our peaceful world carefully... very carefully. And then... Oh dear... What the...? Who stuck that weird thing into this story? "Ha ha ha! Yeah! I did!" Bowser proclaimed. "Gwahahahhahahah!! So I can, at long last, beat my archenemy, Mario, I'll take this Star Rod! Do it Kammy!" "No! You mustn't do that! Yelled one of the Star Spirits. "Yeah, now lets try using it!" A wave of light emitted from the Star Rod, turning the Star Spirits into cards. "Bwahahaha. We did it!" Kammy Koopa rejoiced. "That was a piece of cake." ~~~ The sun shone bright across the sky and into yet another beautiful day. Surrounded by broad trees and several grassy green shrubs, a small yellow house with a red roof stood. In front, a big sign that said "Mario" loomed over it. Across it, a pipe and a mailbox stood. The mailman Parakoopa, with a green shell and flyer helmet had just swooped in and delivered a message. "Mail call!" He shouted out before departing. Right as he was out of sight, a tall moustachioid man wearing a green hat with an "L" letter on it with green and blue overalls appeared out of the door, scurrying towards the mail. He hurried back to the small house to share the message. "Hey, Mario! We got a letter from Princess Peach!" He yelled out from across the small hybrid dining room and kitchen towards the bedroom. Another shorter man appeared out of the bedroom, him with an even bigger mustache, red and blue overalls and a red hat with the letter "M" across it. Luigi still held the card in his hand. "I'll read it to you, OK?" Without further notice, he opened the letter. "All right's see... Dear Mario and Luigi I am throwing a party at my castle today! I would be honored if you both could attend. Many guests from distant towns are hoping to meet you. There will be tasty sweets and all kinds of entertainment! I hope to see you here soon! Sincerely, Peach With that, the two set off walking to town, crossing a beautiful pond resting the middle of the town's park. Crossing the nearby shop, and a Dojo with two trainees standing guard of the entrance. They entered the upper district, where Merlon the Soothsayer lay camp and the town's garden. Two citizens where barely moving in and setting up shop. To the right, the post office stood and to the center of it all, two very large doors with a bright golden star in their center. They headed in through the doors and before them stood a grand castle with a large painting of a mushroom at its front. Many of the toads and other party members greeted them as they entered the castle's doors. Luigi pulled Mario aside before they went any further from the entrance. "What a magnificent castle! I never get used to this place. It looks like lots of guests are already here." Luigi's gaze immediately turn in an about, talking to other guests at the party. Mario got quickly greeted by the reception Toadlette. "Mario! You're looking well. Please enjoy the party." She turned her attention back to Luigi and they began to converse again. Mario left, going up the flight of carpeted stairs and again being greeted by the guards. Their spears to their shoulders in a graceful pose. A familiar guard greeted him. "Hello Mario. If you are looking for Peach, she just headed to her private chambers. She must be tired from greeting so many guests. Take it easy, OK?" With that, Mario went straight through the doors that lead up to a second floor. Many more guests were already there too. The Prime Minister of the castle greeted him as he entered and lead him towards the entrance to the banquet hall. Past that, the room that lead to the private chambers. It was a long hallway with enormous mirrors overlooking the Mushroom Kingdom. Princess Peach stood in the middle gazing outwards until she noticed his entrance. She placed her hands together. "Oh, Mario! You came to the party to see me! You're so sweet. Thank you. I was just resting a bit, it gets really tiring having to greet so many guests. Nobody will bother us up here. Shall we relax and chat, just the two of us?" Mario nodded his head in approval. "It's a lovely day today, I'm sure it's comfortable on the balcony. Will you accompany me, Mario?" As the two headed off, just then, the ground began to shake. Tremors began to fill the inside of the castle. Everyone on the first floor managed to escape the castle in panic and few did from the second floor. Just then, the earth began to crack and rise. A giant stone castle with hanging maces began was positioned on the bottom of the castle. It began to rise far into the sky along with the castle, every guest still on board was in pure panic. The windows who overlooked the Mushroom Kingdom were now blackened, beautiful like the night sky, stars glittered in it. Princess Peach went over to edge of the window to look down. They were above the cloud line. Far far into the sky. Then, the shaking finally stopped. "Oh, are you alright Mario? What in the world was that?" Peach began to wonder. "It's still day time... but I can see the stars!" Just then, Bowser crashed through the window, aloft on his flying machine, sending chunks of glass flying everywhere and accompanied by Kammy Koopa. "Gwahahahahaha! Long time no see, Princess Peach!" Bowser roared as he said it, filled with unnatural power. "Bowser... It can't be! It was you who made the ground shake just now, wasn't it! Whatever did you do!" "GWAHAHAHA! Yeah, that was me. I lifted your castle into the sky! Its sitting on top of mine now. Weren't expecting that, huh? Ha, this castle is under my control now, my dear! Now you'll obey ME!" He began to get closer to the Princess, then Mario rushed in a readied stance in front of Peach to fight Bowser once again. "Huh?! What? It's... Mario!! What a shock! Ha! Not really! I expected you to turn up right on cue. You're just as annoying as ever. Unfortunately for you, there is nothing you can do this time." Peach seemed unimpressed as ever, her arms folded in disappointment. "Having you learned your lesson by now, Bowser? You can never defeat Mario! Why don't you just give up already?" "True true, I've had my weaknesses in the past. But now things are different! OK tough guy, let's go!" Mario and Bowser got ready to fight until the last standing. "You can do it Mario!" Peach encouraged him. Mario kept silent, concentrating on Bowser. They engaged into fierce battle, a battle of the timeless enemies. Mario's jump was renowned for its strength, like two small jackhammers they said. Bowser's fierce claw attack left small wounds on him. The battle went on for a while, until Bowser finally pulled the cheap trick. "Good old Mario... always fighting. You're a thorn on my side. But today, your pathetic little attacks won't beat me!" Bowser pulled out the Star Rod and held it out high into the air in an victory pose. "Take a look at this! I stole it from the Star Haven! The Star Rod! This fine piece of work has the power to grant any wish in the whole wide world! And when I use the Star Rod to increase my strength, even you can't beat me, Mario!" The Star Rod began to shine wildly and suddenly, Bowser was engulfed in florescent lights that emitted pure power. Star shape lights began to disappear as they came out of the rainbow lights covering Bowser and they touched the ground. Bowser did a solitary claw attack, sending Mario back by a few feet trying to regain his ground desperately. It was too much. Mario began to breath heavily, weary of such a strong attack. But Mario would not stop. He jumped once more on the mighty Bowser only to figure out that the coating of lights was harder than diamond itself! Bowser was completely unaffected by his jump. "Gwahahahaha! Is that all you got? How sad! You'd best take some vitamins, 'cause that didn't hurt at all!" Bowser hit him once more with the claw attack, sending Mario into a peril. There was little life force now left in Mario. One more hit and he would be a goner... "Yeah, just what I expected! Mario is no match for the new me! It's not even worth my time to toy with you anymore. Mario, it's time to end this! Here we go Mario, say good night!" With that, Mario lay on the ground, defeated at last. "Oh no! Mario! Get up please!" The Princess stood unharmed and in pure shock. How could this have happened? Bowser laughed and roared. "Gwahahah! Yeah, I finally did it! I beat Mario at last!" He pranced around in joy of finally defeating his life long archenemy. Just as he was celebrating, a small glitter on the floor shone and Bowser suddenly slipped on the red carpet as if it was pulled, sending him flying to the ground face first. Bowser had never been the most clever of evil rulers, so he took no notice of this. As he fell, the Star Rod slid out of his hands and into the air. It landed on the ground in front of Bowser with a heavy clash and an explosion of light. A crack slid through the middle of the star on the Star Rod and everything around them began to distort. Suddenly, several explosions around them began to occur and flashing white lights filled the once beautiful private chambers. "Kammy Koopa! What is going on!" Bowser roared in desperation as he picked up the broken Star Rod and pointed to the old witch. She too was in a panic as things began to crumble around them. "I'm not certain, You Vileness. I think that with the Star Rod broken, it might be unleashing all its energy and causing a chain of events to happen! There is no telling what it can do now!" Kammy Koopa began to think heavily. "Well do something! I'm not about to let my victory be spoiled!" Kammy finally had an idea. "Take the Princess, I can protect us from whatever happens!" Bowser snatched the Princess up and got as close as possible to Kammy. The Princess was only worried about Mario who would most likely not see the light of day... Kammy Koopa began to cast a large bubble around them. She concentrated hard until finally, it was complete. "That should handle it." "Do you have the seven star spirits still?" "Yes your Viciousness." Kammy responded with showing him a stack of seven cards. The whole castle filled with a bright white light as it blinded Bowser, Kammy, and the Princess and everything fell silent once more. ~~~ Another sunny day for the citizens of Equestria. More specifically, for Canterlot. Today was busier than most, and happier too. After the wedding of Princess Cadence and The Royal Captain of the Guards, Shining Armor, everyone was in a livelier buss than usual. Happy that another great threat was evaded once more. No one could have predicted today's outcome. The Princesses were busy as usual attending to the concern of their citizens. The day outside was already twilight, and the sun was nearly setting. Both Princesses were awake at this time, a time to greet and relax together with their citizens in a Utopia of peace. Were once at last, everything had returned to normal and no true evil loomed over the land. Yet... Something was amiss. The stars were now visible again and in the sky, there was a bright star. It shined much... much brighter as it began to get much bigger. It was a meteor... and it was headed straight for the Canterlot castle. Celestia teleported herself and the guards to safety and out of the castle and Luna did her best to stop the oncoming meteor with her magic, but it seemed unaffected by it. The meteor landed straight through the Castle's stained glass windows with the picture of the two royal sisters guarding over the land. The ground shook all across Canterlot. For a second, everything stood still. Luna rejoined Celestia outside the castle. The two seemed to have agreed to go investigate as the two departed into the Castle again to observe the damage. ~~~ "Ugh. What happened?" Bowser lay on the singed marble floor, the Star Rod still in one hand and Princess Peach in the other arm, safely unharmed. Bowser let her rest on the ground as he stood up and began observing damages. "W-w-what?! Where's the castle?! Where's my castle?! KAMMY!"He stomped his foot, sending everything in a small radius jumping up as if on a trampoline. Kammy quickly replied to Bowser as she too was up and about and unharmed. "It seems the explosion sent us somewhere. I am not sure of where we are though, Lord Bowser." She went over the shattered stained glass, once a symbol to the peaceful rule of the world. "Oh... my... Your Dastardliness, take a look at this!" She jumped up in surprise as she looked down from the window. Bowser impatiently walked over to Kammy. "This better be important. I was just checking out the throne over there and it seems like..." Bowser mouth went agape with the magnificence of the world beyond. The trees were otherworldly as well as the mountains. They were too spiky compared to back at home. Everything seemed so... peaceful... and it disgusted him. "W-where are we?!" Just that moment, the large doors to the other far end of the room busted open and out came two large beings, with wings and a large horn, one blue as night, the other as bright as day. "You are in the land of Equestria. State your name and purpose as to why you have defiled the sanctity of this castle." The larger white one said. Bowser was just in all sorts of confusion at this point. He didn't even know what to say. "Ponies? Ha! This will be too easy. Right, Your Vileness?" Kammy Koopa looked over at Bowser who had his claws to his chin, trying to think of what to do or what to say. "Anyways... You are standing before the lord of terror, the lord of evil, King Bowser himself and his trusted adviser, Kammy Koopa. You'd do well to respect us if you know what's good for you. We now proclaim this land to be ours!" "You will do no such thing!" The smaller blue one said. "This land shall remain at peace, and we shall keep it that way." "As you wish." Kammy released an energy beam from her golden wand and it went straight for the two beings at the door. Suddenly, both of them release their own magic beams, counteracting hers and she was quickly overpowered, grounded as she was knocked out of her broom and onto the floor defeated. "Lord... Bowser... they're too strong..." Bowser finally figured out what was going on. "So... let me get this straight. We are in some other world yatta yatta yatta. You are the peaceful rulers and you want to stop us. Is that it or am I getting something wrong here?" Kammy slapped her hand to her face. "LORD BOWSER!" "Oh, right. Gwahahahaha! You might have defeated Kammy Koopa, but even Mario couldn't defeat me!" Bowser gloated his unfair victory. Bowser released a mighty fire breath from the farthest reaches of his stomach. The two beings quickly counteracted the fire breath with the magic of their own, and Bowser too was overcome as easily as Kammy. Bowser arrogantly got back up, unprepared to lose and unwilling. "No matter! Because I still have this!" He held out the broken Star Rod before them. "But Lord Bowser, it broke remember! It has no energy left in it!" Kammy warned him. "Oh...." The two beings shot another mixed beam of energy towards Bowser. In desperation, he held out the Star Rod before him. As it hit, the Star Rod suddenly became lit with blinding light. Something was happening. "Kammy, what's happening now?!" "How should I know?!" She yelled back at him. The Star Rod released a huge wave of energy, sending the two beings onto their knees. The gash in the middle of the star on the Star Rod was gone! Kammy quickly joined Bowser's side once again. "Your Vileness! It seems that the Star Rod is supposed to take in the hopes and wishes of the citizens. It seems to be affected by the citizens in this world as well! The Star Rod is beginning to empower itself!" Kammy Koopa tried to explain. "So things will go as planned then? If I couldn't rule the Mushroom Kingdom, then I will rule over this world then! Bwahahaha!" He held out the Star Rod as a large amount of mystic energy began to empower both it, and Bowser. Suddenly, it shot a blue light out of it that went straight through the open doors of the castle, disappearing out of sight. Bowser was befuddled by the whole ordeal but dismissed it all the same. "We won't let you! Our magic together is strong and we will stop you!" The large white being said. The two ponies got up onto all fours again and united their horns. A large white beam filled the throne room as it engulfed Bowser and Kammy. Then, the beam dispersed and Bowser roared as he was now engulfed in florescent rainbow colors. "Your petty magic is not enough to defeat me. As long as I hold this Star Rod, I am invincible. This world... is mine!" ~~~ Another picnic ensued with Twilight and friends as they laughed and told stories of what they had done that day. It was another peaceful day. All was well. The cows grazed in peace, small plush clouds aloft the sky, the town buzzing with activity. Never a better time to rejoice after a hard fought day and partied night like the day after the grand wedding of Twilight's brother and foalsitter. "Sorry again Twilight, we should have known better than to doubt you, especially with something as important as you're brother's wedding." Rarity began and every pony else seemed to agreed. "I already said that it's alright girls. Besides, its all in the past now and we were able to drive Chrysalis away from taking over Equestria. Everything is back to normal." Twilight said meekly. The conversation would have continued, but just then, the ground began to tremble. It was a horrific feeling. It made Twilight uneasy as if she could almost sense something was terribly amiss. Now she knew what it felt to be Pinkie sometimes. Just as she had thought, the trembling fell to silence again. One of her friends gasped in horror. She looked over to where all of her friends where now staring at. All that was left of Canterlot was a crater on the side of a mountain. Canterlot had disappeared... ~~~ "Okay so uh... what do we do now?" Bowser said confused, standing over the two defeated ponies in a victory pose. Kammy Koopa slapped her face again. "We take over this world. First, by getting rid of this Castle. You know, like back at the Mushroom Kingdom." Kammy had run out of patience. "Oh, that's right. Gwahahahaha!"
Still The PrologueStill The Prologue All was cold, lifeless. In a sea of stars, he floated down gently. Mario felt himself falling, gently as the wind swayed him around. Through plush dense clouds, farther down he went. There was an impediment of doom, almost as if somehow, even through the thick of things, there was someone wishing his safe return, and that would keep him safe from harm. As he finally felt himself land, he had no strength to carry on. It was a soft landing, truly a greater force was at play. Everything stood still for a second. Even with his eyes shut, he could see his surrounding. Strangely yet, he could see himself passed out on the floor. Everything was in a deep shade of black, with only the outline of anything that existed before in the background, himself in full color. Strange and yet hardly visible, seven ethereal figures formed just up top from him. They felt... ancient... powerful... kind. He could not picture them well, he could only observe their figures. Each of different coloration and some with different accessories, almost as if it were part of them, and it made them who they were. A voice began to speak. He could only hear small tittering sounds, but he could somehow understand it all. They spoke urgently and hurriedly. "Mario. Please, for the fate and hope of all that is left, save this world. You must get up!" An elderly voice spoke out. "We will grant you the rest of our power, in hopes that we may yet have a chance to free this world from the clutches of Bowser. He grows more powerful by waking minute. You must stop him Mario. Please..." His voice began to fade as well as the seven other figures. They began to focus their will on him, disappearing one by one as they infused their power into him. Mario's vision too began to fade, but... he felt better somehow. All went dark again and he fell to a deep slumber. ~~~ "Darn it, why did I have to get stuck out here? How did I even get here?! Ahh! How am I supposed to get back?!" A small goomba wearing a blue hat threaded through a thick forest, otherworldly to him. "Seriously, what is this place? Everything looks so... weird." From the corner of his eyes, he saw strange figure. It was a very bright shade of red. The brave little goomba went over to investigate the phenomenon of red that stood in between the sea of green. There in the middle of a wide circular gap in the treeline, a rather chunky man with red and blue overalls, a red hat with the letter "M" across it, lay sprawled across the floor. "Who is this guy?" The small little Goomba began to inspect the strange creature before him. Suddenly, a realization hit him straight in the face. This "Guy" was none other than his all time favorite hero! Mario! Or at least he thought it was Mario. What would Mario be doing in a place like this? Why would Mario even be unconscious in the middle of the forest anyways? "Hey, are you okay guy?" Still unsure if it was the real Mario. He didn't respond. Something had happened to him... The goomba began to panic. What if it really was Mario? What if something really bad had happened to him? "C'mon Goombario think. You can't carry him by yourself... you need... you need... to find help! Yes! Gotta find someone!" Goombario left hurriedly out of the treeline, hoping to find someone... or something... ~~~ "How could... huh?! What, no! But its... The castle... it was always there. The Princess. She wouldn't let it happen. All those ponies..." "Twilight. Calm down, I'm sure there is a logical explanation for all of this." Applejack tried reassuring her. "What logical explanation is there for that?!" Twilight took hold of Applejack's face with one hoof and pointed towards the large crater at the side of a mountain where the once regal Canterlot sat with the other. "I-I'm sure the Princess and all the citizens are alright." She looked back at the half broken Twilight. Twilight placed her hooves on top of her head and laid down in despair. "I just hope my parents are okay..." "There there, it'll be alright." She wrapped a hoof around her, trying to comfort the near to weeping Twilight. Her ears flicked up at the small pitter patter of something stepping on grass caught her attention when she was just about to cry. Something... something small was headed their way. She turned her head in the direction of the sound, and just below the hill line, a small blue and brown figure began to make form. ~~~ "Oh what am I to do! I don't even know where I'm going. This is bad. This is really bad!" Goombario hurried past the trees, seeking any forms of life. No sooner had he come to a clearing with rather mountainous grassy green hills. Searching desperately across the treeless hills, something bright and colorful took hold of his attention. It was far into the sky, like a parakoopa wearing a rainbow colored shell. Well, not really. It was more of a smudge in the clear blue sky with a bunch of consecutive colors. It moved incredibly fast. It was going up, farther and farther until it changed course and headed straight downward. The shape skittered to a stop near the ground which was a much higher hill way past his own. Something else was at the top of that hill though. Different colors too! But they weren't rainbow colors though. There was... hmm... He focused his eye sight to get a clearer view. Purple and white... yellow and pink... and orange! The colors were easily notable from such a far distance since they paled in contrast to the vividly bright green all around him. The grass was overflowing with green that it was crazy. Things had always been brightly colorful, except wood and bricks and... anyways, things had always been brightly colorful but not with this much pizzazz. Whatever had done that early must be alive, and if its alive then it might help. Yeah, that sounds about right. He hurried to go reason with whoever or whatever those things might be. As he caught sight of them and they not of him, he came to a stop. Where they... ponies? What? Colored ponies? The Mushroom Kingdom didn't have any of those. Rougeport did however, but they were brown and black and not cyan, blue, and purple... this made his head hurt. Wait... they were ponies! They could haul Mario out! But they could be dangerous... Hmm. This was Mario he was talking about! His idol! He wouldn't just leave Mario for dead. Oh by the name of the Princess, let Mario not be dead. Better safe than sorry! Goombario hurried over to them. If it wasn't for timely issues, he would have concentrated on the fact that ponies could talk. Rougeport ponies never talked. Maybe they were hiding something? Now the ponies close and visible, the first to spot him was a purple... wait... Unicorn?! Whoa. Then every other pony began to stare at him. If they could talk they could understand. "Help!! Some... uh... pony help!!"
Still In The Prologue... Health Hazards Is The Evil King's DownfallStill In The Prologue I Guess... Health Hazards Is The Evil King's Downfall "Meanwhile back at Canterlot Castle now high up into the air, the handsomely genius Koopa King, Bowser, sits upon his new throne of this new world that is soon to be his." Bowser paused to admire his voice over. Thinking of what to say next, he suddenly became flustered. "That is if the darn nincompoops of an army he commands would come sooner with a full report of what I have to deal with!! It's been over a day and not even Kammy Koopa has reported back to me!" Bowser had pondered endlessly, bored out of his wits waiting for some sort of analysis of this new world. How long did it take a few hundred Parakoopa henchmen to scout the land? How big was this place anyways? Bowser had only mass summoned all of them a bit ago. Kammy told him it was outstanding that the Star Rod was capable of granting such a large wish so early after barely regaining its power. Apparently, this land overflowed with the wishes and hopes of the ponies and creatures who inhabited the land, and in turn, it was making the Star Rod much more powerful than even what the Mushroom Kingdom could have offered. This... was certainly good news for him. "Truly, I have become invincible! Gwahahaha!" Bowser rejoiced at the thought. Only a bit ago had he had a chat with the two defeated ponies. Quite large to be considered ponies. Nothing out of the ordinary though, in his time of ruling over the Mushroom Kingdom, he had seen one too many freaks that swore their loyalty to him to be bothered by abnormalities. They were more than willing to share any information at the simple wave of his wand. That is... with the wand pointing towards the captured guards and citizens and empty promises of blackmail being tossed around. Full, had they not willingly obliged. What he managed to learn was that there were a total of three sentient races who used magic differently. The ponies with wings used magic to fly. The horned ponies who used magic in a more refined way as if to manipulate things or even use magic as a form of weapon. Then there was the regular ponies, who only stood out by their use of magic to empower their strength. It seems all of them used magic to be of any use. The information was quite handy no doubt. It made things a whole lot... easier. With Mario gone, there was no one that could possibly even try to stop him! "M-Mario is here, and he is alive!" Kammy said as the large doors leading to his new throne room burst open. This... was certainly not how Bowser wanted Kammy to appear after a day of disappearance. He was not a happy camper. "WHAT DID YOU SAY?! For peat's sakes... what does it take to get rid of that guy!" Bowser began to stomp on the ground furiously, even madder than before. Kammy, who didn't have her broom at the moment and was walking on the ground began to wail her arms at the miniquake Bowser was causing. "L-L-Lord B-B-owser. P-Please c-calm down! You're f-forgetting y-your high blood p-pressure!" Kammy couldn't keep up right. Bowser held one claw to his head, his eyes closed as he came to a halt on his ranting. He spun in circles were he stood, a headache mixed with dizziness. "Grraah. If Mario isn't my downfall, then health hazards will be." Kammy Koopa took out her bag and began searching. She took out a celery stick from it and walked over to Bowser. He instinctively turned his mouth away from the horrid thing. "Lord Bowser, this will lower your blood pressure, and its healthy for you. Open up!" She took out her wand. "You can't make me!" Bowser raised his Star Rod. Before he could use it however, Kammy had already levitated it high above the air and out of Bowser's grasp. "Now don't be so stubborn. You'll get it back when you eat your celery." Bowser did as he was told, angrily chewing on the celery. She gave him back the Star Rod. "Besides, with it, you are completely invincible Your Vileness." "I hope you're right. Where was he anyways, and how did you figure it out?" He asked the elderly Koopa. "I had my suspicions, so I decided to do my own search. As I was traveling, I came up to a nice little town called Ponyville. I bought some fresh celery stalks and apples from the ponies there. Nice folks by the way, oh and did you know they accept the gold coins from back home? I was thinking of having a picnic with everyone, but I wasn't going to start handing out invitations without consulting with yo-" "Kammy... What about Mario!" Bowser raised his voice a bit. "Oh yeah... As I was roaming around the outskirts of the town looking for a nice place to picnic, some multi-colored ponies were walking back to Ponyville. They were carrying Mario! I hid before they could see me and I overheard them as they walked by, saying that he was still alive and needed some rest." "Did you send some of the troops over? Did you go and stopped them?" Bowser waited for a reply from the old Koopa. "Um... I came directly here to tell you, Lord Bowser." She reasoned. "YARGGHH!! Go out there and stop him! I want every koopa troopa out there on the look out for him." "Right away Your Evilness!" With that, Kammy got on her broom again and flew out the doors. "If she happens to fail... I have someone awaiting him..." ~~~ "Sister, are you alright?" Luna asked the Celestia as she finally awoke. "Seems like it. Ow. That fiend must have tempered with my magic..." She got up slowly, looking around the familiar room. It was her room. They must have been sent here. "Mine too, I haven't been able to use it to get out of here." Luna seemed troubled. "Even if you managed, Bowser's guards would only capture you and send you back here. Despite his motives and goal, he's a big softy. He wouldn't really hurt you, not on my say so anyways." Princess Peach said as she walked over to the large bed, sitting down beside the two ponies. "Ah, Princess Peach. Out of curiosity, how is it that Bowser was unaffected by our magic? We have some of the strongest magic in Equestria. Together we should have been able to beat him..." Luna's tone was casual. They had already taken the time to introduce one another since Bowser had placed all three of them in Celestia's room and he had stripped them of their powers. He wanted to keep a close eye on all three of them, and having them all in the same room was the easiest way for him to do such. "It's because of the Star Rod... the star shaped rod on his hands is able to grant him any wish he desires. His wish was to be completely invincible..." "Then how is anyone supposed to beat him?" Celestia asked her. "I fear that they may not..." They stood in silence for a while. "I just hope Mario is alright..." "Mario?" "Oh. I haven't told you of Mario yet, or of what happened." She paused, thinking of where to start. "Mario was a hero back in the Mushroom Kingdom. He defeated Bowser multiple times. Mario was the only one to stand in his way, and Bowser could never prevail against him. It seems Bowser finally cheated his way to defeat Mario. He lifted my castle into the sky, way above the clouds, like he has with yours." "So that explains why it seems like it is night all the time..." Luna looked out the window. "So, how was it that Bowser defeated Mario?" "With what else? He stole the Star Rod from star haven. Seven benevolent star spirits previously used the Star Rod to make the wishes of all the good citizens of the world come true. It is through the wishes and hopes of the good citizens that the Star Rod is able to work. Bowser was able to steal the rod and imprison the spirits. I had just thrown a party and had invited Mario to join, but Bowser was awaiting him, and they fought. Bowser defeated Mario... and when the Star Rod broke and had sent us here... Mario was gone..." Bowser suddenly appeared through the door, making the two ponies stand up immediately on edge, ready to fend him off, Princess Peach however was looking at the ground, without the will to anything. "And gone he is... not! That plumber never knows when to back down!" These words took the Princess aback. He was alive?! "Mario..." Princess Peach stood up and faced Bowser. "If its true, Mario will come to stop you!" "I wouldn't get my hopes up Princess. After all, I am invincible. I've already dispatched my army to stop him." These words did not bother her as much. She was just happy to hear that Mario was still alive, and he was here too. "I've only come by to see how you were doing. I like to see a bright smile in your face." Princess Peach turned his back and crossed her arms, a frown now poised in her expression. "Well too bad. You won't find here." "I could sing you a song, but I'm mighty busy. I'm sure that would cheer you up." "Think again." "Well, I gotta go see to it that I get rid of Mario once and for all." Bowser stopped at the door before he continued. "To you two ponies, loosen up your guard. After all, all magic but the one of my army and mine is no more! Gwahahaha! Think of it as a precaution." Bowser finally stepped out of the room. "All magic gone...?" Luna looked even much more worried. "Who will turn the night to day and day to night?" Peach stepped out into Celestia's balcony and looked out into the stars. It was still day in the world below, but it was dark as night for them. "If what Bowser says is true... I hope Mario is alright..." Luna walked over to the Princess gazing out into the stars with her. "You really seem to care deeply about this Mario character, don't you?" The Princess nodded. She looked down gloomily, hoping and wishing for something to happen, for a way to tell Mario he was okay. Only seconds after, a small sparkle suddenly burst into the room, landing into a pillow on the ground. The three Princess turned towards the pillow who had been pummeled. A small little star appeared and floated into the air, looking around the room to and finally looking at Princess Peach. "You must be a star kid from the Mushroom Kingdom! What are you doing here little guy?" She held out hands so that he may rest on them, and so he did. "A... star kid?" Suddenly, the small star spoke. "Star kid! We star kids come from Shiver Valley, a cold place up on the mountains of the Mushroom Kingdom. When we grow up, we go up into Star Haven to begin to grant wishes to the good citizens of the world. My name is Twink by the way." He turned to Princess Peach. "I've come to grant your wish." "Can you stop Bowser and take the Star Rod back?" "Um... that's too big of a wish to me. You see, I barely ascended to Star Haven a bit ago, so I'm not as powerful as the Star Spirits." "Oh... okay... Well, can you get all of us out of here and to safety?" "Well... actually... its only been a day since I joined the stars." "Oh... well. Its okay Twink. You tried your best." "Isn't there anything a small star can do for you Princess Peach?" "Well, brave little one, can you perhaps send a letter to my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle? She lives by a small town called Ponyville. I have to tell her of the current situation." Celestia asked. "Now that I can do!" The Princess wrote a letter with her hoof. Princess Peach would question this, but it was like trying to question how goombas could write. She gave it to the star kid as she finished. "Are you sure there isn't anything I can do for you Princess Peach, Princess Luna?" He asked before departing. "My message is delivered with Celestia's. I truly believe Twilight Sparkle can do something about all of this." Luna replied. Twink turned to Princess Peach. "The letter asks for Twilight to find Mario, and aid him if possible." Celestia smiled as Princess Peach looked at her in surprise. "Twink... tell Mario that I'm safe. He doesn't need to worry about me. Please Twink." She took out a star pendant that was wrapped around her neck and gave it to Twink. "And give him this." "I'll say it in your exact words Princess! You count on me, Princesses!" With that, the small star was gone. "Never did I imagine that a star could speak. I bring the night forth but I do not make stars. There is still so much to wonder about. Come Princess, tell us of this Mushroom Kingdom." Luna walked back into the room. Princess Peach stayed a little longer outside in the night sky, looking over towards the stars. "Mario..." She placed all her hopes and wishes that Twink would deliver her message to Mario, and hoping for both their safety.
