Super Mario Sunshine

Chapter 41 - Slow Boat to Corona Mountain

   The pianta had been perched on the rooftop all day, in his favorite spot by the entrance to the hot springs, when the flood hit.

He was also there after the flood hit. It didn't really matter much to him.

Sure, he'd never seen the base of the mountain break like a dam before, but the townspeople all appeared to be well cared for. The island life was full of risks as such, after all; one couldn't simply drop everything for each inconvenient hazard that befell.

Such was the attitude that the pianta had taken, and such had served him well for breezing through this crisis—or so he thought. As long as the rooftops were dry, nothing much should matter to him.

   Although, the guy who was poking around the Shine Gate nearby was genuinely beginning to be bothersome.

   The pianta hadn't taken much note at first; he was merely another flood escapee, and a human at that, who was patrolling the roofs in light of the flood. But after a few minutes of sidewise observation on the pianta's part, it became obvious that he was doing something very intentional—and very specific.

   He couldn't fathom what it was. But after perhaps two straight minutes of watching the man stare up at the Shine Gate and circle around its base, he decided it was enough to get involved.

   Getting involved didn't mean much. "Hey, you!" the pianta yelled, gruff voice surprising almost himself. "Can I help ya there??"

   The little human—he really was a short thing, even as far as humans went—turned and spotted him in alarm, as if unaware that anyone could have been watching him; then, with a sudden quickness to his step, he came right over.

   "Excuse me," he said in a polite Italian accent, "do you happen to know any way I can get to the top of the monument? It's really important..."

   The pianta widened his eyes. "The top? Now I've seen almost everything," he remarked, still with the same easygoing tone. The human didn't turn any less serious, however, so he went on. "I mean, it's not like there's a staircase for people to climb, but if you really want I bet I could toss you. For a price."

   The boy eyed him. "How much?"

   "Ha! Just a coin. It's not like chucking people is a difficult business. Almost any pianta can do it."

   Seeing a small but definite shift on the human's face, the pianta pushed off the roof and stood up. Turning appraising eyes to the tower now, he asked, "So where exactly do you want to go?"

   The human, with a considerable amount of moxie in his eyes, pointed up to the giant shine sprite's face. "Right there."

   The pianta man eyed the boy, then the tower, then the boy a few more seconds. "Are you sure about that?"

   The human turned on him. "Assuming you're game?" He produced a coin from seemingly nowhere.

   The pianta stared at it a moment, then slowly nodded in approval. "Well, I'm just warning ya, boy," he shrugged as he directed his eye back to the apex of the tower. "A single coin may have the power to change your destiny..."

~

   For once in Mario's adventure, it felt like everything was at last falling quickly into place.

   The trip to the top of the Shine Gate was not as trouble-free as he had initially hoped, but it turned out as convenient in the end. As soon as he had arrived at the base of the pillar where Fludd had thought they'd find a good takeoff spot, they had both quickly realized that the rocket nozzle would never be able to reach the ledge Mario was aiming for. It wasn't that the tower was too high; rather it was that the giant shine sprite, which sat on a large axle in the tower's roof, was encased in a large niche that sat underneath the tower's arched top. In short, the rocket nozzle could not easily get him there without danger of injury.