The Luigi Story

Chapter 4: Day 2 of the attack

The morning brought new hope...

When I woke up, my body was cold from the stone floor that I slept on and my shirt was wet from the terrible night I had. I had been turning and twisting all night long from the nightmares I had. While asleep, I had the dream - or nightmare rather - of this hellish red mist seeping through the walls and doors and taking us out at our weakest. It woke me up several times during the night and every time I slept, the nightmares started up again. Together with the sweaty shirt, dust and all things sewers, I was a mess. If someone was here to see me now, they would throw a bucket of water and soap at my face. Of course, Captain Toad was here, but he didn't seem to mind or at least cared enough not to ask me to take a bath. Not that I cared how I looked at this point nor did I have the opportunity to clean myself.

Captain Toad was still asleep. He was lucky enough to have his gear on him when the attack happened. He was warm and cosy in his sleeping bag on his tiny mattress. Captain Toad didn't look that affected by what happened yesterday, but that might be because he didn't see what I saw. The constant doubt if Mario and Peach are alright, the Toad I tried to save and the trust those poor unfortunate souls put on my shoulders. I let them all down and now they might be gone forever.

After Captain Toad woke up, we didn't say a word to each other for what felt like an hour. I felt that we both had the fear that we were stuck in this room. That opening one of the doors would flood the room with the red mist and end our story here. We had breakfast - or what accounts for breakfast - with just a couple of food items. Thankfully, Captain Toad had a small portable furnace in his backpack. So we were able to boil some water and cook a small meal. It was not much, but it was something we needed.

After we finished eating breakfast, Captain Toad searched the storage room for something useful while I sat and waited by the door that led to the store. I was thinking about what I would find behind this door. Is this door stopping the mist and protecting us? Is it death that awaits us? Or is there nothing but an empty store behind it? Maybe nothing will happen and death will come later as we starve in the store or die outside in the mist. Will our efforts even matter?. When Captain Toad joined me at the stairs, I could see that he was thinking the same as me.

'Did you find anything?', I asked him.

'No', he replied with a voice that sounded as if he had given up on life itself.

With the look of defeat on my face, I nodded my head to him and he nodded back. I then looked back to the door and waited for a couple of seconds while my mind went through all the options of opening and not opening the door. Death, sorrow, the unknown. Would you risk your life even if there is nothing to risk it for? I held my breath and reached out for the doorknob. I could hear Captain Toad do the same. As my hand was on the doorknob, I turned it and slowly opened the door. It creaked as if on purpose, but the horrifying sound gave way to relief, as we were not engulfed by the mist.

The storeroom was empty and silent. We quietly walked further into the store, towards the front. Both of us had the feeling that, at any moment, we could see Sergeant Koops and Johnny laying stone still on the pavement outside, grasping at the door while the mist took them. When we reached the front door, we were both amazed. There was a storm blowing through town. Rain and heavy winds were coming from the north and a rumbling of thunder could be heard in the distance. The wind was strong enough to blow away the mist, which turned our amazement into a horror show.

With the mist gone, we could finally see the results of the attack. The town we knew and loved had been turned into what I can only describe as a warzone. The square was filled with the bodies of Toads, Koopas, Goombas and all other sorts of creatures from all over the kingdom and beyond. Normal everyday villagers and vacationers enjoying their day at bars, restaurants and the numerous stores - all of them were struck down by the mist as they tried to run away from it. Shopping products and bags were littered everywhere, tables were overturned and windows were broken. Some, in their own disbelief, remained at their table, where they now sat as stone, with their food being washed away by the rain.I couldn't take my eyes off of the square. Everywhere I looked, I was in horror of it all. Then Captain Toad grabbed my arm.