Paper Mario

Still 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!!"