Quantum: The Complete Series

Chapter 1: The Quantum Transporter

Mario: M-M-Meggy?

???: You... don't have to apologize, Red...

Everyone: MEGGY!?

Mario: (with tears running down his face) M-Meggy? Is it...really you?

Meggy kneels down in front of Mario, coming fully into view to the others. To everyone's horror, Meggy was tattered to the point where she was barely even alive. Her clothes seemed to hold on by a thread. She had many burns and scrapes all over her body. Her left arm was clearly broken. A fragment of bone poking out at the mid-section between her elbow and wrist. A hunk of flesh was missing out of her leg, a tourniquet above it, blood pooling by her feet.  Meggy puts her good hand on the side of Mario's face.

Meggy: You don't have to apologize for anything...

Mario: B-B-But you.... Y-You're... I-I saw you die...

Meggy: But I'm here...Red... and I'm not going out that easily.

Mario's eyes go down to Meggy's arm.  He starts to cry again at the sight of her broken body.

Mario: Meggy... it's all.. my fault that this happened to us...

Meggy: Mario, what happened is not your fault.  You can't control what happens.

Mario: No. not tha-

Meggy: Mario-

Mario: (angered) NOT THAT! I mean what I told you before!  I was a complete dick to you, and you didn't deserve that kind of treatment from me. What happened to you should've been me!

Meggy pauses for a quick moment, thinking about what he had said.

Meggy: Red, everyone makes mistakes here and there. And sometimes, you just have to learn to cope with them.

Mario: (remembering Desti's death) Like Desti-?

Meggy: Yes, Mario. Like Desti. And I still miss her. But I learned to cope with that years ago now.  Red, if I can do this from losing someone completely, then I know that you can handle this.  You just have to believe that yourself first.

Axol: ...She's right, Mario. You've gotta learn to cope with your mistakes.  No ones perfect.  I'm not. Meggy's not. You're not. Even Saiko's not.

Saiko: (actually listening to conversation) You know what, Axol? You're kinda right on that.  I've lived my whole life thinking I could be perfect in this broken world.  But I learned recently that that's not possible.  I just live my life and deal with whatever it has to throw at me.

Mario: (thinks for a moment) ...thanks... guys. I think I needed something like this.

Tari: We all believe in you, Mario.  You and all of us can get through this. Especially your situation.

Luigi: (noticing the silence outside) Hey everyone, I haven't heard any explosions from outside in a few minutes, should we check?

Mario helps Meggy back back off the ground.  She grimaces from the extreme pain in her leg. She holds her broken arm close to her as it begins to throb with pain.

Meggy: (pained) Ouch.

Mario: S-Sorry, Meggy.

Meggy: It's alright. Let's just see what is going on out there that's making outside seem so... quiet. Not even birds can be heard.

The group slowly makes their way to the entrance of the cave.  What they saw would forever change their lives: A wasteland of smoke and craters were visible on every horizon. The forest in the distance was nothing more than a few ashen tree logs and ash covered grounds.  A thick blanket of smoke had settled over the castle in the distance.  Mario didn't even want to know what the castle looked like, but if they wanted to find their friends, they had to venture there.