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Mario jumped up platform after platform before finally delivering the final blow to count Bleck. His eyes widened as his body began to twitch uncontrollably. He let out a loud and painful 'bleck' as the chaos heart flew out of him. Bleck, with his cape torn and ripped from the battle, lied on the floor in agony. The four heroes stepped forward with slight concern for the count.
"E-excellent..." He managed to croak out. The air beside him swirled slightly as Nastasia teleported to the count's side. Her usual expression quickly turned into worry as she looked down at her boss.
"U-uhm, count?" She spoke, trying to get count Bleck's attention but to no avail.
"You have won... Now finish count Bleck." He lifted his head up so he could look at Mario face to face; his usually red eye glowed a soft blue. "Dispatch me and the chaos heart will disappear. The prophecy will be undone." Tippi, the small butterfly pixl, flew up to the count.
"W-why does it have to end like this?" She asked. The pain in her voice gave it away that she was on the verge of crying.
"Timpani... when you vanished, I searched long for you... I never gave up looking... I searched and searched." Count Bleck shook his head sorrowfully as a tear leaked out from behind his monocle. "But I never found you. Without you, the world held no meaning or joy, so I used the forbidden prophecy of the tribe of ancients to end all worlds. I wanted to destroy everything that had taken you away from me..."
"But I'm here now! No-one can keep us apart anymore! Don't you see?!" She cried out.
"It is too late for Count Bleck. I have done so much evil...This must end. Just knowing that you are still alive and knowing that the world you still live in will continue...It gives me peace... I do not have long to live. You must end my game before the void destroys all..."
"But...We're finally together again..." The four heroes looked at each other with heart-wrenching guilt. Everyone knew that there was no way around this; they had to kill count Bleck but in light of this new information, they felt sorry for the count and wished they could do anything to let the two lovers be together once more. Nastasia, who was silently watching the interaction, noticed a small glow out of the corner of her eye before shouting out,
"COUNT! LOOK OUT!" Nastasia moved to her left to block the magical attack with her body but this ultimately knocked her out cold.
"N-Nastasia!" Count Bleck exclaimed as a voice from behind them let out a fake laugh. The heroes looked over in the laughs general direction and they were shocked to see Dimentio float over to them with a menacing grin across his porcelain mask.
"Silly assistant! Absorbing my attack to protect him? What an adorably hopeless gesture. I was just about to give him the everlasting peace he so desperately wants!" Tippi sniffled as she composed herself.
"You're alive. I would of never of guessed." Tippi said as she sent a quick glare in Mario and Luigi's direction. Peach tilted her head slightly at Mario out of curiosity from Tippi's angry stare.
"Mario what did you do?" The plumber in red wiped his forehead as he let out a nervous chuckle.
"N-nothing happened! It was a-" Mario shifted his gaze at the jester. "Oh! Dimentio! You're so evil so you must have an evil plan and you better tell us or we'll all be terribly confused!"
"Did you just... avoid her question?" Bowser asked but his query was silenced as Dimentio attempted to shift the focus back to him.
"I do indeed have a masterful plan! Thank you for asking Mario." Dimentio kindly said. "You see, I knew that-"
"DON'T CHANGE THE SUBJECT FRILLY PANTS!" Bowser grabbed Mario by the shoulders and started to shake him violently. "SPILL IT MARIO!"
"Oh, I can gladly tell you the tale koopa king." The shaking ceased as everyone once again looked to Dimentio. "The short story is that dear little Timpani is mad because dear Mario chose my trust over hers."
"What?! Why?!" Peach exclaimed.
"Yeah bro... Tell everyone why ya did it.." Luigi grumbled. He had been quiet this entire time, standing next to his brother with his arms crossed. Focus once again had returned to the red plumber as everyone waited on the edge of their seats for what he would say in response to their questions. Mario then, with slight hesitation, quickly shouted at the top of his lungs,
"I-I WANTED TO TRY THE PERFUME HE PROMISED O-OK?!"
Silence swept over the room. The stares from friends and enemies alike portrayed their shared feelings; confusion and slight amusement.
"Perfume?" Peach started to giggle. "Why would you want perfume and why did you agree to help him for just some fragrance?" Mario's cheeks turned a bit red.
"I thought it would smell nice-"
"More like he thought it would make Peach like him..." Luigi whispered to Bowser. The koopa king broke into laughter at the remark. Even the count, battered and on the verge of death, showed a small smile as a similar scenario resurfaced from deep within his clouded mind.
"H-Hey!" Mario pointed to his brother. "You're no better Luigi! You wanted the 'very rare' card! You know those are just pointless pieces of cardboard! The perfume at least has a purpose!"
"CARD COLLECTING IS A SERIOUS THING MARIO! YOU WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND!"
"Should I get a camera, or may I finally start my monologue? I didn't rehearse this speech for it to fall on deaf ears." Dimentio asked.
"Hey, wait a minute..." Luigi paused, slowly looking at the jester. "You said you would help us defeat count Bleck, yet you were nowhere during the fight..."
"BECAUSE IT WAS OBVIOUSLY A TRICK LUIGI!" Tippi shouted. "I TOLD YOU BOTH THIS WHEN YOU-" Everyone quickly went quiet as a yellow tinted box formed around Tippi. A gentle sigh escaped the sentient mask as his gloved hand rubbed between his eyes.
"All this shouting is making my head throb... Let's get back on topic shall we?" Dimentio calmly said as he snapped his fingers. Explosions triggered withing the box from the simple snap.
"T-TIMPANI!" Count Bleck shouted. The box faded away and small, glass shards of a variety of colors fell to the floor which caused them to shatter into even smaller pieces. Peach covered her mouth in shock as tears started to slide down her face. Mario grabbed Cudge and the pixl quickly turned into a hammer. With a jump and a tight grip around his weapon, Mario swung at the killer but missed due to Dimentio easily teleporting out of the way.
"I recall you agreeing to help me." Dimentio sneered.
"YOU JUST KILLED MY FRIEND!" Tears started to form as the man in red attempted to keep his emotions in check. "THE DEAL IS OFF! KEEP YOUR PERFUME AND CARDS!"
"Oh, you thought I was speaking to you?" Dimentio snapped his fingers once more. Mario ceased his movements, the grip on his hammer gave way as it landed on the floor with a flunk before turning back into Cudge.
"Mario??" The pixl backed up back to Bowser and Peach, sensing something was wrong.
"What the shell?" Bowser exclaimed. "Green guy are ya seeing this-" The koopa king turned his head towards Luigi. The younger brother seemed affected by whatever magic this was.
"I-I can't move-" Luigi stuttered. "M-Mario I'm blamming you for this!"
"Y-yeah- That's fair- I-I'm sorry-" The brother managed to croak out before Dimentio snapped his fingers again. Two florosprouts revealed themselves, draining the color from their blue eyes. With cold, grey eyes and monotone voices, the brothers spoke in unison,
"Mr. M and Mr. L reporting for duty! What is your bidding master Dimentio?" Bowser burst out laughing.
"B-Bowser! T-This isn't funny!" Peach stammered.
"Yeah, but that's HALARIOUS! I can't believe I never thought of doing something like that!" Dimentio did a small bow.
"Thank you all so kindly... but that is just the beginning of this marvelous show!" Dimentio took hold of the chaos heart and lifted it up into the air. "You two run along now and get ready for your grand entrance!" The two nodded as they walked off to the side. Bowser cracked his knuckles as Peach ready her parasol, extending it forward as if it was a sword. Their pixl friends appeared at their sides to help out in the true, final battle.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Prepare for the greatest magic show you'll ever see! Now with twice the magic!" Dimentio tossed the chaos heart into the air where it floated for a moment. The heart shined brightly as it created a small black hole that absorbed two brothers: creating a monstrous, two headed beast. The two heads, both connected by snake-like neck, were shaped similar to the brothers' heads yet their expressions mimicked the masks of tragedy and comedy.
"RED AND GREEN!" The two heads shouted.
"Well crud-" Bowser muttered under his breath. Peach took a step back as she fearfully stared at the beast made from her friends.
"The dark prognosticus says Luigi is the ideal host for the chaos heart... but off in a foot note it also states that if Mario is added to the chaotic mix, the power shall double! And with my own power added to this evil concoction, I shall be unstoppable!" Count Bleck grabbed his cane, pulling himself up with a desire to intervene.
"S-Stop! You don't know what you're doing!" Bleck retorted. Dimentio rolled his non-existent eyes as he waved his hand. The air wavered around the count and Nastasia before they disappeared from sight.
"Poor count Bleck...You looked so tattered and pathetic, I nearly forgot about you. I'll squeeze the life out of you later so just wait over in that dimension for the time being, okay? Great." Dimentio floated up to Luigi's head on the terrifying beast. The upper jaw lifted up as it was unhinged from the bottom one and once open, the jester floated inside. The mouth quickly slammed shut and soon after the beast flashed a soft yellow hue.
"Now the chaos heart is mine!" The beast said; its voice sounded as if Mario, Luigi and Dimentio all spoke at the same time. "I will use it to destroy all worlds... and create perfect new ones! So, shall we get started? Now I have all that I need...to become the king of all worlds! Ah ha ha ha!"
"U-Ultra Dimentio..." Peach murmured as she stared wide eyed at the monster. Bowser stepped forward with sudden courage filling up his entire being.
"Carrie! You and me gonna beat these fools!" The light blue pixl shaped like a T, fluttered out and became a platform for the huge koopa. The two zipped up the moving, smiling and frowning platforms as they made it up to one of the two heads. Bowser took a deep breath as he prepared himself to exhale a wave of fire but ultra Dimentio smacked the two out of the way with it's gigantic hand.
"No, no, no." Ultra Dimentio giggled, both heads spoke. "I shall not have anything go wrong."
The creature snapped its massive fingers causing Carrie to disappear from sight.
"HEY! THAT'S CHEATING!" The heads giggled loudly. "FINE! WHATEVER! THUD... WHATEVER YOUR NAME IS! YOU AND ME! LET'S GO!" Thudley floated next to Bowser with a determined smile on his face. "YEAH! LET'S DO THIS THING-" Bowser's shouting was ceased when one of ultra Dimentio's hand crushed him and Thudley which caused several loud cracks.
"B-Bowser!" Peach tightened her fists as she finally gained the will power to attack. She hopped up the platforms. Once at the highest platform, the princess jumped off and opened her parasol. She slowly started to descend towards the head that looked like Luigi, but the Mario head quickly whipped around and stared at her with its sorrowful eyes.
"P-princess...don't.." The head spoke. Peach eyes widened at the sound of Mario's voice by itself. Peach opened her mouth to call out his name but ultra Dimentio's spare hand knocked her out of the sky and against the wall before she could even make a sound. A loud thud echoed throughout the room but was swiftly drowned out by the beast's multivoiced laughter. Peach grabbed onto a nearby platform, pulling her body up and leaning against it for support. There was no doubt that attack had broken a few of her bones yet, despite the pain, Peach was determined to pull through.
"Such a simple trick and you still fell for it!" Ultra Dimentio giggled. "Can't you see I am now invincible?! There's nothing you can do to stop me- hm?"
The Luigi head turned to Ultra Dimentio's right hand as it began to lift up. Blue pieces of glass and parts of the koopa's shell lied on the platform yet, two yellow claws lifted the hand up. Bowser, despite being crushed and his shell laying at his feet, held the beast's hand over his head with a scowl on his face. With a powerful toss, the massive hand flew back at ultra Dimentio. He shouted for Slim and the two immediately turned paper thin, hiding them from sight. Ultra Dimentio's eyes started to glow red as the hall filled with its maniacal laughter. All the platforms started to spit out cube shaped attacks in all different directions. Peach reached for parasol and ducked down, allowing the umbrella to cover her from her attacks. She lifted the umbrella up slightly to look ahead of her before she started scooting over the pixls who waited by the sidelines for their turn for battle. Several attacks were exchanged between ultra Dimentio and Bowser yet, all the attacks to the final boss were ineffective. More pixls shattered as Bowser called for their aid and the koopa king was inching closer to death with each blow. Peach made it across the room to the remaining pixls, unnoticed by ultra Dimentio. The princess lifted up her parasol slightly, allowing the remaining ones to hide under her impenetrable umbrella. Fleep and Piccolo were the last of the pixls. These two had very little roles to play on their overall journey and their powers didn't help much in battle, but everything was on the line! They had to think of something soon or everything in existence would be destroyed.
"Dear Peach amore! Time is unravelling and space is distorting so soon! I fear the end arrive quickly so! Oh no! Oh my! Fleep feels regret! Never a kiss had I! Dear princess, I beg you amore! Grant this pixl's last wis-" Piccolo rammed her tiny body into Fleep to shut him up.
"Cease your mindless cries and wails! No time for that pitiful song! Princess Peach, what is the plan? That thing is invincible!"
"I-I have a small idea... Neither of you were around when we got the fourth pure heart but something weird happened then. Tippi, when we saved her from Francis, she said she felt really happy and then the pure heart appeared from her happiness. Before she remembered count Bleck and their shared past, I had a small hunch that Tippi was gaining a crush on Mario..."
"Peach dear amore! Is it not bad to speak ill of the de-" Piccolo repeated the pixl equivalent of a punch in the shoulder. The square pixl went quiet, allowing Peach to continue.
"I think, the act of true love may restore the pure hearts! I-it's just a hunch but if I can get through to Mario then-" Peach was interrupted by Ultra Dimentio's chaotic laugh. The princess lifted up her parasol only to witness a horrific sight. Lying on a platform with several piles of colored glass was the koopa king. Despite having several broken bones and unable to stand, Bowser still attempted to fight as he breathed fire at the fiend. All the flames bounced off as the abomination laughed, raising his hand over the lizard.
"Ciao!"
CRUNCH.
Both of the princess's hands clasped around her mouth, stopping her scream. The two heads spun around, focused on their final target. Peach took a step back as the creature started to advance when she heard a small crack. She lifted her dress up and saw the remains of Tippi. Holding back her tears, the princess looked up to the rift. This was their last chance. The chortles of ultra Dimentio filled the room as the platforms shot the square projectiles once again.
Piccolo started to produce a tune and the beast stop in its tracks. The two heads bobbed back in forth with the tune yet, one third of the creature attempted to retaliate.
"What are you two doing?! Obey me! Obey!" Dimentio yelled. Peach pulled herself up platform after platform, avoiding speeding projectiles and any sight of shattered glass and broken shell. She didn't wish to see her allies in such a state. Finally, she stopped at the highest platform with Fleep by her side.
"M-Mario!" Piccolo stopped her melody as the two heads met her eye to eye. At any moment, Peach could face the same fate as Bowser, but she stood firm while steading her voice. "You're still in there... I know you are so please, fig-"
Laughter erupted from the creature. Something was off though. There were only two voices compared to the original three.
"This is your final hurrah? A plea for help? Ah ha ha ha! What a foolish gesture!" It raised its hand, hovering their fist above the princess. Fleep readied himself, prepared to flip the oncoming attack so Peach could hopefully avoid it. She closed her eyes yet, nothing occurred. The princess slowly looked up. Meer inches from her head was the white gloved hand. The two synchronized voices let out a stifled chuckle, annoyance clear in its voice. It lifted their hand again only for their attack to once again, come to a screeching halt. The head of tragedy stared at Peach as the head of comedy watched its other head in disgust. The former hero was attempting to right his wrongs but the control from the pure embodiment of chaos and the cunning jester was difficult to fight. With a hesitant step, Peach placed her hand on his gigantic nose.
"Mario..." The castle shook beneath them, causing Peach to stumble away from the creature.
"Ah ha ha! Your plan, this fight, everything! It is all pointless now! My time has come! Kinghood- no, GODHOOD has finally arrived at my doorstep like a long-awaited package! Nothing can stop-" The creature let paused as the castle started to rumble more violently. Parts of the wall started to disappear rapidly. "NO! NO! IT'S NOT SUPPOSED TO DESTORY HERE!"
Castle Bleck continued to be sucked up by the black hole. Peach, holding onto the platform, watched her small friends get taken who were unable to fight against the vacuum while ultra Dimentio slid closer to the void, trying to fight their inevitable demise.
"I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE KING! TO BE GOD! HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN TO ME?!" Peach let out a scream as she lost her grip, slamming into one of the necks of the beast.
"What did you think would happen?!" The princess screamed over the whirling void. "You can't make something from nothing!"
"Ah... ha... I suppose that's true. How foolish I was..." The monster stopped fighting. Everything was swiftly consumed. There was nothing...
<------------------------------------------->
It was a beautiful day in the mushroom kingdom. Two brothers sit across from each other, eating a thoughtfully prepared breakfast. As the brother in red took a bite from his blueberry pancake, the brother in green spoke.
"...Wow, sure is a peaceful day, eh bro?" Luigi asked. Mario smiled, responding in a nod. "Makes a guy feel lucky, having a peaceful day... Yup, reeeeeal peaceful. It's so peaceful, it's almost a little bit boring. It makes you just want a..."
Luigi moved his hands, mimicking an explosion.
"KERBLOOEY! Y'know? Some kind of shocking event..."
Mario leaned back in his chair, putting his hand to his chin.
"Well, now you jinxed us bro... Something will definitely go wrong today." Mario let out a small chuckle.
"...Ooh, at Peach's place, maybe? That'd be cool, huh, bro? Maybe we should go visit Mushroom Castle!" The pair stood up from the table, leaving the demolished breakfast where it lied. "It has been a while. I'm sure the princess would be happy to see us!"
As the two stepped out on their porch, a high-pitched screeching toad ran to them.
"M-M-M-M-M-M-MARIO! HELP!"
"T-Toad?! What? What happened? Why are you so crazy?"
"It's s-s-s-shocking... Mushroom Castle... RAIDED! Princess Peach... STOLEN!"
"WHAAAAAAAAAT?" Mario nudged Luigi with his elbow.
"I told you so. You jinxed us."
"B-but that's ridiculous! Who in the world would do such a thing!?" The gears in the lanky plumber's mind began to turn. "Wait a minute... Yeah... I think I got it! Bro, this must be the work of that guy! That bad guy!"
"You mean Bowser? Yeah, it probably is him. Kidnapping princess Peach is like a pastime to him..."
"I won't stand for this... We'll have to sneak into his castle and rescue princess Peach! Let's go, bro!"
The two rushed off, heading to the fire-ridden land where the koopa castle was. Toad waved them goodbye,
"We're counting on you, Mario... Bros.!"