A Girl of the Future

by Vanessa Krowd

  "YOU CAN'T DRINK AND DRIVE!" Luigi scolded, his teeth sharp.

  Navi sneaks into Peach's room, only to discover that she has after all made her decision!

  Navi was silent but defensive as Peach walked by, heading towards her bedroom door.

  "Well, let's go. Better tell everyone the news." Peach thought aloud, placing a hand on the doorknob -her eyes concealed in shadow.

  "I'm surrendering the Kingdom to Grodus."

  With Bowsers forces at large, the citizens outraged, and Peach defeated, things are looking grim! Our heroes need to make their move!

  Chapter 8: Mario Makes His Move!

  -Somewhere Along The Trans-Mushroom HighwaySmoke

  was still flying from Mario's feet as he ran 64 kilometres an hour down the long and winding road -cliff to a sparkling ocean on his right, steep cliff on his left. He went

  up a hill and then dipped down and to the left, then made a wide right curve around a big chunk of cliff. In the distance was the epic Corona Mountain, the massive X-Missile

  on the summit visible from even this distance.

  "OOOOHH AHHHH!" Mario roared, the fire man furious as he ran 64 kilometres an hour along the highway towards the distant Corona Mountain -big trail of smoke following him.

  "BOOWSERRR!"

  -Peach Castle, 2FThere

  Navi was, fluttering in place within Peach and Mario's bedroom with widened eyes -the tiny fairy girl totally in shock from what Peach had just said.

  "P-Peach, did I just hear with I think I heard?" Navi challenged, still in shock.

  Peach said nothing, opening the door and proceeding to step outside, her eyes concealed in shadow. Navi's eyes widened in alarm.

  "W-Wait!" Navi cried, zooming for the closing door.

  SMASH!

  Peach had closed the door before Navi had a chance to get out, causing the tiny fairy to smash into the door. She was now sitting on the floor, rubbing her aching head.

  "Ow…" Navi whined, rubbing her aching head.

  "P-Princess!" Toadsworth barked, surprised to see her finally come outside -his eyes widening slightly from her blank shadow eyed expression. "A-Are you alright?"

  "My, that's quite a noisy crowd out there." Peach calmly noted, walking towards the first floor. "I suppose I should go out and quiet them down."

  "P-Princess!" Toadsworth cried, the old steward following her with a nervous hop and hand. "Princess!"

  -Outside Peach CastleThe

  chaos continued. The angry mob of citizens whom Daisy had tried to reason with had only become even more angry. The feud between whether or not Peach should step

  down or not raged between the crowd, some of the people even breaking out into a fist fight -which only caused even more citizens to rage. Down near the end of the road

  that connected to Toad Town was a parked car, surrounded by citizens who were more focused on the castle was up ahead. Officer Vinny had a hand by his face as he yelled

  at the crowd, pointing at the illegally parked vehicle with his other hand.

  "WHO DA HELL PARKED HERE? AH?" Vinny challenged, revealing his pocketbook after and proceeding to write a ticket. "Maximum fine ya little shit!"

  The world was watching the broadcast, a Mushroom Kingdom News helicopter now flying around the castle -filming the chaos. For citizens all around the world, on their

  screens they could see the angry Toads yell and fight back and forth -the stressed out Daisy standing on the stone bridge with some Toad guards protecting her, her teeth

  clenched in angst as she waited for Peach to arrive. Standing before the Toad guards with a microphone and camera was Veronica Shroom, the broadcast showing her at first

  as she spoke but eventually switching to the helicopter view -the world watching the chaos at Peach Castle from up above.

  Veronica Shroom: "Good afternoon everybody, I'm Veronica Shroom -reporting live from Peach Castle. Earlier this morning Bowser somehow managed to tap into our

  system and broadcasted to the world something very threatening. He is currently atop Corona Mountain with a large "X-Missile" that is set to launch at sundown tonight. He

  plans to fire this missile into the centre of Corona Mountain and cause an eruption so massive that it will smother a large portion of the Mushroom Kingdom in magma,

  including Peach Castle and all of Toad Town. Additionally, the only way he will back down is if Peach surrenders her entire kingdom to Grodus, the same man behind the crisis

  in Sarasaland. Sunset at Corona Mountain is at 20:02, and with the current time being 14:17 that gives less then six hours before the missile launches, and Princess

  Toadstool has yet to make a public appearance."

  Various People Watching The Broadcast From Various Locations:

  "Oh god!"

  "First the crisis in Sarasaland and now this?"

  "What the hell is happening to the world!"

  "Will we ever see peace again?"

  Veronica Shroom: "Standing on the stone bridge before me is the Princess of Sarasaland, Daisy, who has recently been exiled from her country by the X-Naut General

  Grodus. She has attempted to get the crowd to sympathize with Princess Toadstool, but it seems that it has only caused more chaos. What the people want, is answers."

  Princess Daisy featured harsh eyebrows and clenched teeth, her forehead sweaty as the world watched her and the chaos before her. (Dammit Peach! Where the hell are

  you?)

  -Somewhere Along The Trans-Mushroom HighwayCruising

  at a impressive 110km an hour on the long and winding road was the green Wild Wing, Luigi at the wheel and Link in the passenger seat. The afternoon sun caused the

  vast ocean on their right to sparkle in beauty -the steep cliffs on their left a nice red. The wind was blowing through their hair and hats, causing them to rock a bit in the

  roofless vehicle.

  "My, this sure can go fast!" Link commented. "Much faster than a horse."

  "Of course it can." Luigi gawked. "It's a freaking' car man!"

  Then, the car started to putt in an unhealthy fashion, slowing down tremendously and rocking a bit.

  "Aww, dammit!" Luigi cursed while gearing down, his feet switching between the clutch and the brakes as he harshly steered to the side of the road -the green Wild Wing

  coming to a complete stop.

  "What's this? We've stopped?" Link commented, looking around.

  "Of all the freaking times, why now!" Link cursed, slamming the door and muttering profanity as he made his way to the hood of the vehicle.

  "What wrong? Is it hungry?" Link questioned.

  "No, it's not hungry." Luigi sighed, not in the mood to joke around. He lifted up the hood, attaching the support rods. "I think the alternator is acting up again. This is going to

  take a bit of time."

  "I see." Link acknowledged, sitting in the passenger seat. "You don't have this problem with a horse."

  "SHUT UP!" Luigi scolded, his teeth sharp.

  -Outside Peach CastleThe

  chaos continues outside Peach Castle! As sunset approaches, the citizens of Toad Town grow angry, and the world watching grows more and more anxious!

  "HEY! WE WANT TO SEE THE PRINCESS!"

  "BRING OUT THE PRINCESS ALREADY!"

  "YEAH!"

  "JUST SHUT UP FOR A MINUTE, ALRIGHT?" Daisy cursed, a fist clenched.

  Veronica Shroom: "The people of Toad Town are growing livid as Princess Peach has still yet to make an appearance! What exactly is the Princess doing in our darkest

  hours?"

  Various People Watching The Broadcast From Various Locations:

  "What the hell is she thinking?"

  "That bitch! Get out there already!"

  "She's probably tucked her tail and left already, the cold hearted wench!"

  (Dammit Peach, hurry the hell up!) Daisy cursed, examining the angry mob before her castle.

  Then, the brown double doors to Peach Castle o
pened. The angry mob continued to yell for but a brief second before they were all silenced. It was like magic. Her red heeled

  shoe stepped onto the stone bridge, the bottom of her pink dress swaying with her motion like a dying wedding bell. The entire world was silenced as Peach walked towards

  the end of the bridge, the Toad guards protecting her from the civilians. Veronica Shroom herself was amazed, the news reporter taking a moment to finally speak to the world

  -who were all watching Peach stand on the stone bridge before her castle, Daisy and Toadsworth standing behind her -Toad guards before her.

  Veronica Shroom: "A-And it would appear that the Princess has finally stepped forward!"

  "Finally." Daisy calmly sighed, with a breath of relief.

  -LIVE (MKN)-

  Peach: "Hello everyone. My sincere apologies for keeping you all waiting so long."

  The world was silent, listening to the voice of power finally speak in this time of crisis.

  Peach: "As I'm sure you're all well aware, the Mushroom Kingdom is currently facing what is possibly the biggest crisis it has ever known. This is truly a challenging time for

  everyone here, so please, try not to fight. We are all individuals grieving, individuals who are worried about our families and our homes. So please, try to look into each

  others hearts and show compassion, not hate."

  The crowd seemed to be a little touched, looking at each other with soft smiles, rubbing the back of their heads shyly -and some even hugging.

  "Ha, that's just like our Princess." A blue spotted Toad laughed, wiping a tear.

  "Daw, fine…" Vinny cracked, removing the parking ticket from the vehicle and crumpling it up in his yellow hands.

  "Very touching, I say…" Toadsworth laughed, wiping a tear. "How very touching indeed."

  Daisy simply watched the back of Peach with folded arms and a proud smile, listening to her friend continue.

  -LIVE (MKN)-

  Peach: "So even though these are dark days, there is still light, because we still have each other! We still have the ones we love!"

  "YEAAAAAH!"

  The crowd was cheering, their spirits clearly being lifted from the princesses words. She raised a hand, trying to calm them down.

  Peach: "However, that being said."

  That caused the world to go silent once again, all listening intently for the princess to continue from various places all over the world.

  -LIVE (MKN)-

  Peach: "The people of my Kingdom are what I value most. And I will do whatever it takes to make sure that they are not harmed in anyway. Even if it means surrendering my position."

  The crowd gasped in shock from her words, rambling back and forth between each other. Daisy and Toadsworth gasped in horror, Daisy stepping forward with a hand:

  "Peach are you out of your mind? You can't surrender your country too-"

  "Shut up." Peach silenced, her back facing Daisy.

  That caused Daisy to gasp with widened eyes, Peach very rarely every being that cold and rude to anyone.

  "I've made my decision. Stay out of this." Peach hushed, her eyes concealed in shadow -the shocked Daisy and Toadsworth standing behind her -the shocked world all around

  her.

  Veronica Shroom: "U-Unbelievable! Is the princess really about to forfeit her country to General Grodus?"

  -Corona Mountain, Level OneThere

  stood Mario, his fists clenched by his sides as he caught his breath -staring at the tall mountain right before him. His eyes were filled with determination as he stood

  there, breathing.

  "Okay! It's time to do this!" Mario thought aloud, in a fighting stance.

  Mario ran a little bit farther, a strange gate blocking his way up the mountain. White in colour and clearly electric powered, it had two tall white posts on either side that were

  each against a portion of Corona Mountain, making it impossible to bypass. The centre was white with a zig zag where the doors met -the X-Naut logo plastered on the front. Mario was stopped in his tracks about twenty feet from the gate as a voice spoke from above.

  "Well, well, well…" Waluigi sang.

  "Huh?" Mario barked, looking around then finally directing his attention to Waluigi -who was standing with folded arms on the cliffs ledge above him. "Who the hell are you?"

  "Heh heh heh…" Waluigi laughed, jumping down and landing in between Mario and the white gate.

  A lakitu with a camera attached to his fishing rod proceeded to film the encounter between Waluigi and Mario before the white gate.

  -Outside Peach Castle-

  -LIVE (MKN)-

  Peach: "People of the Mushroom Kingdom. I, Princess Peach, hereby resign my brrrzt yaaa poszeee hrrgh…"

  Various televisions from all over the world proceeded to feature that all to familiar white noise sound, losing signal from the incredibly important broadcast. People were

  smacking the top of the televisions, cursing over the bad timing in desperation.

  "Huh?" Peach barked, stopping her sentence and looking up at the massive television that had been set up by Toad Town News outside of her castle -everyone else doing the

  same.

  Eventually the red Bowser logo appeared on the television, fading in and out -accompanied with his calm evil laugh.

  Various People Watching The Broadcast From Various Locations:

  "What the hell?"

  "Are you serious?"

  "Bowser, that idiot! Why is he interrupting now!"

  "Bowser?" Peach silently thought aloud, reflection of his logo in her blue eyes as she watched the massive T.V.

  "What now?" Daisy barked, her heart racing.

  "The suspense, I say! It's too much for my heart!" Toadsworth whined. "I'm too old for this indeed!"

  The broadcast returned, the world watching the encounter between Mario and Waluigi before the white X-Naut gate at the foot of Corona Mountain.

  Various People Watching The Broadcast From Various Locations:

  "Is that Mario?"

  "Yeah that's Mario!"

  "He's at Corona Mountain!"

  "He's gonna try and stop Bowser!"

  "YEAH!"

  "THAT IDIOT!" Daisy scolded, her teeth sharp. "I KNEW IT!"

  "M-Mario…" Peach softly cried, her white gloved hands over her mouth.

  -LIVEThere

  Mario stood, Waluigi standing between him and the gate -rubbing his twiggy black mustache between his gloved finger tips.

  "I'm Captain Waluigi, and there's three things I value in this world: my mustache, my nose, and General Grodus." Waluigi introduced.

  "Grodus?" Mario calmly inquired, with an angry glare.

  "My my my, did you just come here by yourself?" Waluigi questioned, tapping is orange foot. "Or maybe you just don't have any friends?"

  "I came here alone. I'm gonna kick Bowser's ass and stop that missile from firing." Mario answered.

  "WAH HAH HAH!" Waluigi abruptly laughed, leaning his head back with a hand on his gut. "You're gonna kick Bowser's ass, are you? Just run up there and save the day?"

  "Yup." Mario answered.

  "Boneheaded fool!" Waluigi cursed, swiping an arm. "People like you who don't take things seriously will just wind up dead! Do you even understand the magnitude of what's

  going on here?"

  Mario stood there silent, making full eye contact with Waluigi.

  "Bowser isn't just your average joe anymore. He's got the power of the Goddess on his side, and he's formed an alliance with Grodus, General of the powerful X-Naut army!" Waluigi explained. "Let me tell you about Grodus, kid."

  "With his immense power, General Grodus of the X-Nauts has recently managed to take over the ancient Kingdom of Sarasaland! On top of that, he has powerful allies who are

  all working on taking over various other regions." Waluigi explained. "He's in the process of ruling the entire world!"

  "I know who he is. There isn't anybody that I want t
o beat up more than Grodus." Mario informed. "He took Sarasaland from my friend, Daisy!"

  "What? WAH HAH HAH!" Waluigi abruptly laughed. "Daisy's your friend, is she? Well you can tell her that all her people are living in hell under his ruling! WAH HAH HAH!"

  Daisy gasped into her white gloved hands, her teary eyes trembling as she watched the broadcast on the massive television outside Peach Castle.

  -LIVE-

  "Her men are working their asses off in weapon factories, and her women are sold as slaves! Grodus is a powerful, wealthy man with many connections!" Waluigi explained, his

  expression angry as yelled at Mario. "You think you can just run in here all by yourself and try to screw with his plans? HA! Don't make me laugh!"

  Mario was standing there, his back facing the camera -his expression not visible. Daisy was crying with closed eyes, a single hand over her mouth as tears ran down her

  heartbroken face and over her gloved fingers.

  -LIVE-

  "By the time sunset goes down Grodus will have power over this pathetic country and all it's people as well! Grodus is on his way to world domination!" Waluigi continued,

  rubbing his precious twiggy mustache. "You're all screwed! Future slaves to Grodus! WAH HAH HAH! WAH HAH HAH!"

  Mario was standing there, his back facing the camera -his expression not visible. The wind blew his clothes slightly in an epic fashion -X-Missile way up high on the mountain.

  "WAH HAH HAH! Just get the hell out of my face already! What are you, anyway?" Waluigi insulted, his eyes teary with laughter. "Just some nobody who can't even protect

  their friends countries! WAH HAH HAH! WAH HAH HAH!"

  Mario's face was incredibly angered, his eyes entirely concealed in harsh shadow -vein on his forehead to accent his epic fury. "What am I?"

  Mario's fist ignited with flames, the man in red jumping with incredible speed and flying towards Waluigi.

  "WAH HAH -wha?"

  Mario smashed Waluigi in the face with his fiery fist, racing lines accompanying the epic attack. This caused Waluigi's head to fly back - revealing a blackened fist on his face,

  the attack burning his beloved mustache off and crushing his precious nose in. Time appeared to be in slow motion as Mario was in mid air with his fist in the ending position -a

  bit of soaked blood present on the knuckles of his fiery white glove. His eyes were completely covered in harsh shadow -his teeth clenched in fury. Time resumed speed and