Rainbow Road [Super Mario Bros.]

8

The next morning went about as well as expected. Mario got up and dressed around 5:45 AM, and tried to get Luigi to do the same, but his younger brother kicked his feet and buried his face in the pillows. He only reluctantly got out of bed and into his clothes and sneakers when Mario started heating up two mugs of Hootin' Tootin' Apple Cider in the microwave.

They were packed and out the door by 6 AM — Wario was still asleep on the couch, snoring obnoxiously, and they didn't bother waking him. He'd made a mess of the apartment with his fast-food party yesterday, he could clean it up.

Down in Horizon Hotel's lobby, the Rainbow Walkers were milling about, chatting and stretching, and slowly streaming into the giant conference room Daisy had rented out for the morning yoga class. The space was a floor, a ceiling, and one great wraparound window, so they could do the Mermaid and Downward Dog as the sun broke across the curvature of the Earth.

Not every Rainbow Walker joined in the stretch session: many just headed out, either to get an early start on the walk or to purchase some merchandise in the shops as soon as they opened. But all the same, the room was pretty packed: Mario and Luigi were lucky to get a couple of spaces near the front, where Daisy was presiding over the session with her Birdo friend. A Yoshi gave them a couple of towels, and right at 6:30, they began.

They were done by 7 AM, and both brothers felt warm and more flexible than they had when they'd rolled out of the bed. They joined a crowd of Rainbow Walkers in the cafeteria, and enjoyed a small breakfast of muffins and coffee before the geared themselves up for the day's walk.

"Got enough water?" Mario asked.

Luigi checked his bag. "I think so, based on how much I drank yesterday."

Mario peered into his own pack and rubbed his chin. "Let's stop by the gear shop before we go," he said.

Luigi frowned. "What kind of gear do we need?"

"The telescopic kind," Mario said.

They purchased a collapsible one with a red tube. According to the sales associate, it was high powered, and at the Mall it could see craters on the moon in remarkable detail.

It also included a camera function. That got Luigi excited.

"There're some overlooks a couple of miles up," Mario said. "The first one's one and a half miles from here."

"What're we waiting for?" Luigi demanded, and he ran for the lifts.

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The telescope picture goes for about $700, but the Mario Bros have that Mario Bros money. XD