When the Cowardly Lion Roars

Into the Unknown

One foot in front of the other. And then again. And again. And again. Back inside the mansion, I committed myself to moving forward, savoring the comforting feeling of the Poltergust 3000 against my back. The leather straps pressed into my shoulders, securely but not too tightly, and the nozzle in my hands kept me anchored to the here and now. I only thought about Mario—and getting to him before the worst happened.

In the foyer, I encountered a Toad retainer named Thad, sobbing hysterically.

"Hey," I greeted, drawing him into comforting arms. "What's the matter?"

"I can't find Mario anywhere," sobbed Thad. "He was with Peach when you called about winning a mansion. The two of us saw him off, but when she tried to call him a few minutes later, she was kicked to voicemail. I saw the look on her face, and this weird feeling came over me. So, I volunteered to look for him. But when I got here, this place was chock-full of ghosts, and Mario was nowhere to be found. God help me, I just freaked out! I didn't know what to do! It was awful!"

I held him close, rubbing his back comfortingly. "I'm gonna find him," I softly promised.

Thad gazed up at me. "You will?"

"Leave it to me."

Thad smiled, his tears gone. "You just made my dark and stormy night, Luigi!" he trilled. "I knew I could count on you!"

"Listen," I said to him. "I want you to stay here, okay? Whenever possible, I'll keep you updated. But I won't let those ghosts hurt you, and I won't let them hurt my bro. That's a promise."

Once Thad's shaking calmed, he withdrew from my embrace and patted me on the hand, and I took my leave with an encouraging smile.

One step at a time, I continued exploring the mansion, finding myself back in the parlor where I'd encountered that orange ghost. The room was dark, save for some candles burning with a strange violet flame. Making a face, I used my vacuum to blow out the candles.

Ominous giggling made my heart leap into my throat as a thorny barrier suddenly materialized on the door.

My body was primed for a fight as I held my new vacuum at the ready. Voices echoed around me, taunting me, threatening me. My eyes scanned the room and found no one.

"Who put out my candles? Was it you, Mr. Lime-Green?"

"Dark rooms are dangerous around here. They love the dark, and now they'll get you—just like they got little Red-Cap."

"You'll never see him again. May you wander lost in the darkness—forever!"

As the voices faded away, a group of orange ghosts appeared! Gathering my wits, I stunned the first one I saw with my flashlight and let my vacuum rip! Utilizing what I'd learned in the Lab's training area, I dug in my heels and pulled back as the ghost attempted to escape. Their buddies flew in to attack me, and while I managed to dodge some of their punches, quite a few of them connected. However, those ghostly fists wouldn't stop me for long. I was unnerved and in pain—but Mario's face lingered in my mind, and I wasn't gonna run out on him.

It took a while, but I wrestled all of the ghosts into the Poltergust, earning a key for my efforts. Humming to myself, I unlocked a door to another room, where clay pots of various sizes lined the walls—and more ghosts attacked. More orange ghosts, followed by a few salmon-colored ghosts who put up more of a fight. I battled my way to a wardrobe room, where more ghosts ambushed me in the closets. The most annoying of the bunch were the green ghosts who tossed banana peels in my path. I also encountered fast-moving gold ghosts, which dropped a significant amount of treasure upon capture. While I slipped on banana peels, dodged attacks, took attacks and counterattacked with the Poltergust, I admonished myself against losing my nerve. He's here somewhere. You have to keep moving. You HAVE to—