Prologue

YEAR STAR STAR, MONTH MOON:

Mario, usually a happy and joyful young man, is awfully bored around his house in the Mushroom Kingdom. He has absolutely nothing to do. He's read all the books in his house and wore himself out exercising his jumping and hammering skills. His brother, Luigi, keeps on nagging Mario to do something that Luigi will like to see. Mario simply shrugs off Luigi's requests, believing they do not matter to him in the slightest.

The reason why Mario is so down lately is because he misses all of the thrills he had with all of his friends in Rogueport, a savage badland of the Mushroom Kingdom. For Mario, it was a place with an exciting thrill at every corner. Many foes crossed his path; ensuring battles were everywhere he roamed. Mario was a kind, peaceful man, and his friends all learned from him, and became some of the most idolized people in the Mushroom Kingdom's history. They made this adventure one of his most memorable.

Goombella, a smart and sassy Goomba girl, helped him defeat powerful enemies in battle by tattling strengths and weaknesses. She was quite the smart one, indeed. She knew much about the areas Mario and company explored, and even gave hints when Mario was stumped.

Koops, a shy Koopa from Petalburg, was a great help too; he helped Mario acquire important items and equipment that was out of his own reach. In battle, he could attack with style and power; even protect Mario when he needed it most!

Flurrie, a Wind Sprit who lived in the Boggly Woods, came in handy when dire times were at hand. Flurrie's magical wind could reveal secrets not visible to the naked eye, allowing Mario to progress further during his adventure. Her days in the spotlight also gave her the training she needed in battle. By learning to use her massive body to slam opponents down, she became great in the spotlight, using her abilities to the fullest.

Torashi, a dark blue, baby Yoshi that hatched during Mario's adventures in the Glitz Pit, is certainly one with that 'tough guy' attitude. When in need, Torashi helped Mario glide across chasms and pits to advance to the next area. When Mario needed to be faster, he hopped on Torashi and zoomed his way through, when it could have taken much longer otherwise. In battle, he could ground pound enemies quickly and successfully. When he was in danger, he could summon a massive horde of Yoshis to trample the enemy quickly.

Vivian, a shadow of unknown origins, enjoys Mario's company the most; Mario and his friends being some of the only people who were ever nice to her (it is said that she even has a crush on him currently). Her fiery magic could burn enemies to a crisp, quickly clearing the way to the Crystal Stars, powerful items that Mario used to save the Mushroom Kingdom from a virtually unstoppable end. Her ability to hide in the shadows helped Mario very much; avoiding detection from dangerous enemies like the X-Nauts, A group of evil beings bent on world domination, which was eventually defeated by our young hero, Mario.

Let's not forget about our powerhouse Admiral Bobbery, an incredible Bob-Omb sailor who could blast through the strongest materials in the world to clear the way for Mario and friends. His skills in battle led the group to victory, dealing incredibly powerful explosions to enemies! This is a truly great feat for someone with a magnificent mustache of his.

Last but not least is the flirty Ms. Mowz, a Squeek thief from the Rogueport Badge Shop who could steal virtually anything. If there was something that Mario needed, Ms. Mowz could sniff it out in an instant, and help Mario find it in record time. Although not as strong as most of Mario's friends, she could daze opponents and steal the items they use in battle. She is truly a thief to be reckoned with seriously.

Mario believed that these people from Rogueport are some of his greatest allies, and kindest friends that a hero could have. He wished that he could see them again… If only there was a way for Mario to escape his house just for a moment!

"Hmm… I wonder…" Mario's words lingered throughout his mind, glaring at the harbor. He was desperate to leave, but he just could not leave Luigi by himself! He wasn't ready to fight off any invaders that might hurt him. Mario pondered for a moment; do you think Luigi will come with me to Rogueport? I'm not sure though, because he said himself that he never wanted to return to the place again. Mama Mia, this is really starting to annoy me. The young plumber, with his light brown mustached self, continues to the refrigerator to pull out some Fresh Juice to drink. He slowly drinks it down, but it would not help him relieve his stress.

Luigi had been reading a book in the living room, and he glanced up for a moment, noticing Mario's sorrowful expression. Oh boy, Mario looks more upset than the last time he was on an adventure! I wonder what I should do to cheer him up. I'll go ask him what the matter is. Luigi thought, truly believing he could actually do something for his brother. Nervous to check on Mario, Luigi tiptoes to the kitchen, pulls out a seat, and sits down next to his brother.

"Hey Bro, What's the matter? Your mustache has been drooping a lot lately. Is something wrong?" Luigi carefully asks, making sure not to anger Mario any more than he might be. Mario takes a deep breath and replies.

"Yeah, Luigi. Something IS wrong. I've been feeling incredibly down lately because of the many thrills I've had in Rogueport. Do you remember me telling you the stories of my adventures of my friends and I?" Luigi nods his head, remembering how Mario had saved the world from an impending doom. He was so proud of his older brother, and Mario's stories inspire him to be strong like him.

"Yeah, bro, I remember all of your stories, especially your adventures of the Thousand-Year door. You really loved the thrills that place gave you…" Luigi looked out to the harbor near their house, which turned his glowing smile into a depressive frown. "But unfortunately, the harbor will not take anyone out to Rogueport anymore. It's as if they locked the place from receiving any tourists, ever since that incident with that evil Grodus!"

"Grodus…" Mario growled under his breath. Grodus was the one man who caused the world's end to appear. Grodus was the commander of the X-Nauts, and he abused his power by trying to resurrect the Shadow Queen, a demon that was to destroy the entire world. Fortunately, Mario and his partners defeated Grodus and the Shadow Queen, stopping the world from losing its brilliant shine that makes it such a remarkable planet. Mario did not want any memories of him brought back, but he forgives Luigi for bringing the topic into light.

Then, something truly peculiar happened that day. In the distance, Mario and Luigi hear and see Parrakarry inserting a letter into their mailbox.

"Why is here at this time? Isn't it Sunday?" Luigi asked Mario. "Yes, it is Sunday, bro! Strange…" Mario wonders what this strange letter could be, seeing that he is receiving it on a day where Parrakarry is on break. As always, Parrakarry shouts "Mail call," to the house of the Mario Brothers and leaves with amazing speed.

"Want to go check it out?" Mario asked his brother. Luigi nodded his head and the siblings both walked to their mailbox. Luigi picks up the letter and looks at the back of it, seeing who sent it.

Luigi immediately hands it to Mario. "Mario! It's from Goombella, and it's for you!" Mario suddenly feels a sense of shock and happiness at the same time. It's been eight days since he received the last letter Goombella and friends sent him. Mario wanted to open it immediately, so he dashed into his house and sat on his comfy armchair in the living room.

Mario slowly opens up the letter to see a document in Koops' handwriting. Mario was assuming that Koops wrote it for Goombella, seeing as she had no hands to write with. Mario started to read the letter from front to back.

"Dear Mario:

It's me, Goombella! I'm having Koops write you this letter for me, so expect it to be in his handwriting. How are you doing, Mario? We hope you're doing great, saving some innocent people and all. I wanted to say that we all miss you so much, and that it really frustrates us that all the ships refuse to take people in and out of Rogueport! It makes it difficult to try and find a way to meet you in person. However, we found a way to do it! There is a ship currently heading to the harbor in Toad Town! The ship should arrive at the dawn of Month Moon! It will take you to Rogueport again!"

Mario catches his breath as he reads those last few sentences. Goombella has found a way for Mario to meet all of his friends again. Mario feels like jumping for joy, but he just casts out a glowing smile and says to Luigi, "Goombella found a way into Rogueport! We can get there today!"

Luigi jumped when he heard that. He was shocked at the fact that Mario can return to his friends once again! "That's fantastic, Mario! What else does it say?" Luigi asks with curiosity. "I'm going to find out some more, and then I'll tell you," Mario replies back.

"The thing about this ship is that it will only take special tickets, not Coins. So to help you get to Rogueport, I sent you two tickets for the ferry. You can bring another person over if you want to! We really miss you, Mario, and we know how much you wanted to come back and see us. I hope that you do get this letter in time before the ferry leaves, and I hope to see you in Rogueport!

From,

Goombella and Koops, your Super-Buddies."

Mario's face was pulsing red, about to cry from the happiness that this letter has brought him. He tries to keep his feelings inward, only to start bawling a few seconds after from joy. Oh, for crying out loud, he's crying over something that a real man would just take in! Luigi thought jokingly, knowing how much those letters mean to him. He handed Mario a box of tissues and Mario took a tissue. He blew his nose with all his might to clear his big, clogged nose.

Just as Goombella had said in the document, there were two tickets to Rogueport Ferry; one reserved for Mario and one extra. Mario asked his brother, "Luigi! Do you want to come with me? There's an extra ticket here for another person." Luigi simply replied, "Sorry, bro. As much as I want to, I have some of my own errands to run. The princess has me going back to Flipside to look for someone. See you around!"

"If that's what you want, bro, you got it! Thanks for considering my invitation anyway. See you later, Luigi!" Mario replied back happily. With this, Mario packed his backpack full of useful items like Fire Flowers and Ultra Mushrooms. After a few minutes, Mario was ready to go back to Rogueport! He went straight to the harbor next to his house without stopping, until he saw a Goomba who desperately needed to go to Rogueport to see his son, but had no ticket to ride on the Rogueport Ferry.

Mario felt a little bit selfish that he was bringing along two tickets with him and not even using one. Mario asked, "Would you like a ticket to Rogueport? I have an extra that I don't need." The Goomba gladly took Mario's generous offer and thanked him very much. With this, Mario can happily go to Toad Town harbor without feeling guilty at all.

The ferry was taking an absurd amount of time to arrive. It had been forty minutes already and the ferry did not arrive at the designated time. It should've been here!

Argh, why is it taking so long for this darned ferry to appear!? Mario thought in frustration and impatience. The only non-heroic attribute to Mario was his inability to cope with patience. He was not at all a patient person, much unlike his friend Link, who could spend months waiting for the ferry without even getting antsy. Fortunately, the ferry appeared a few moments before Mario's pent-up frustration burst out.

"Yes! It's the Rogueport Ferry! Finally," Mario shouts to himself, while other people look at the young hero with confusion. "That man must be insane," A Goomba jokingly exclaimed to his wife. "Oh, don't push the youngling too much. He must have it hard lately. With all of Bowser's minions constantly kidnapping Princess Peach, it must be nice of him to get a vacation for once!" The Goomba's wife replied.

Mario, reserving his room on the ship, gets ready to set sail for Rogueport! He is very much tingling with excitement at this point, waiting to see all of his wonderful friends again! At this rate, I may be able to get to Rogueport within three days. I hope they can wait that long enough for me. Mario thought to himself. As he unpacks himself, he decides to get comfortable in his room and read some new comics he borrowed from Toadette. After a little while, Mario becomes drowsy, and falls asleep completely. Fortunately, he was in his bed at the time. Mario dreams about all the wonderful things he'll do at Rogueport, such as going back to the Glitz Pit as the Great Gonzales and finding treasure in Keehaul Key. With this, Mario finally sleeps it away…

PROLOUGE END.