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nomsfaultau · 7 months ago

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FINAL SECTION

Hybrid AU in exile week where avian instincts can take over to a degree that is almost horrific, erasing someone’s personality and rationality when they’re panicking. First part here.

“I can’t make promises that this will cure anything,” Philza reminds him. Tommy scoots towards the cliff ledge of the frozen bay, a kicked pebble plummeting, plummeting, crunching into the ground below, blood and pain spilling out of him. He tries to focus on fluffy white clouds and pretty scenery but all he can see is the tower from exile. The choppy, turbulent waters of the sea he always woke up drowning in. His chopped off feathers fanning around his abuser’s mask.

He’s pulled away from the hypnotizing reverie when strong arms wrap around his chest. Philza’s steady heartbeat hums against the back of his head. It’s so wonderfully comfortable in a way that makes him nervous. He’s tried to avoid close contact with Phil, but there isn’t much of an option now. “.....ommy? Tommy? Mate?”

“Huh?” His head feels like it’s swimming.

“I asked if you feel secure enough.” No. Tommy can’t remember the last time he felt safe. Well. Aside from what his avian instincts were tricked into believing. He doesn’t trust the feeling all that much.

What he says instead is, “If you drop me I’ll stab you.” Philza chuckles.

“Fair enough. If it helps I never dropped Techno the few times he let me fly him.”

“Bruh. Never accidentally, more like,” Techno mutters darkly, earning a smirk. But Phil assures Tommy it’s going to be as gentle a flight as possible. Which probably isn’t a very accurate replication of a first flight. Vaguely Tommy remembers his own from when he was a kid, a scrambling terrifying elating freeing chaotic tangle rushing at him faster than the wind. It had felt so right, once. Natural, like he was growing up. Finally independent, not needing to rely on a guardian anymore. Tommy wants that feeling more than anything in the world right now. Tommy needs Philza to be right, for this flight to fix him. Even just a little, just enough to know it’s possible.

But the memory of his recent failed flight is far sharper, of the moment he realized his abuser was right about him. An overhanging shadow of doom, despair, dependence.

Phil tries to nudge Tommy forward, towards the edge, and suddenly Tommy’s panic spikes. He scrambles back, almost expecting resistance, expecting Phil to dump him off the tower. But Philza easily gives away, letting him retreat even as scarlet shame fills him.

“Uh…are you scared of heights?” Techno asks.

“No, don’t be stupid,” Tommy snarls. “Stop laughing at me, oh how ironic the avian hates heights, I’m not stupid, I’m not scared of the tower. How about you try jumping off a cliff and see how you like heights, pig boi. I’m not scared. I’m not stupid.”

“Never said you were. I wasn’t making fun of you,” Techno replies mildly, hooves held out in pacification. “And, uh, what’s the tower?”

Shame throttles Tommy. Philza frowns at a memory. “...is it the structure I found you at?”

“I was trying to fly,” Tommy mumbles. He had been trying a lot of things. Some of them had very nearly succeeded.

Techno and Philza wince as they remember the bloody, almost dead state they’d found Tommy in all those weeks ago. “Could do it with your eyes closed,” Techno suggests. “Just like when I clean up your wings.” Techno’s tusks twist in thought, then he roots around in his bag. He presses a glass bottle into Tommy’s hands.

“It’s not going to work if I’m asleep, idiot.”

“Nah, it’s Slow Falling. Just smash it if you need it, alright? It’s the extended version so no matter how high up you are you’ll get to the ground safely. Whenever I get anxious about somethin’ I like to over prepare. That way I have a plan to think about instead when my brain tries to run through disasters.” Oh. Tommy stares at the foggy, half frozen potion. The knots in his gut ease a little. Not the terrifying plummet of the tower, but something slow and gentle. It can’t quite ease the instinctive fear rolling inside his subconscious, but it soothes his more logical balking. What helps even more is knowing Techno cares enough to look at his fear and somehow untangle it in a way Tommy could never manage on his own.

Techno and Phil are both trying so hard to help Tommy with the messy, ugly parts of himself. Not pushing him away because of it or ignoring the bad, but accepting and working with it. And if they’re trying so hard, they must think it’s possible for it to get better. Maybe they’re right, or will be if Tommy gives it his all, too.

“... and if that’s not enough I can get you Feather Fall boots. I’d give mine but, well, hooves. It’ll take a bit to make, but you wouldn’t get hurt as badly if there’s ever another fall like that.”

Tommy splits into a tentative smile. “Really? You’d do that for me?”

The tension lining his broad shoulders eases, taking on a lopsided grin. “Well. Well you’d have to pay me. I’m not a charity out here, kid. But. Maybe I can get you a friendship discount.”

“We can wait till the boots are done to fly,” Phil offers. “There will be another windless day.” But Tommy clutches his potion. Now. He needs to do it now, when hope still hums in his chest. He can do whatever he has to for it to be easier for himself, not get overwhelmed with shame and loathing and refuse to ever make it better.

And if what it takes for him to fly is a potion clutched for dear life, is large black wings that aren’t his own spreading out, is his face buried in the crook of Phil’s neck so he doesn’t have to see, then all that means is Tommy is flying. Maybe not the way he’s meant to, but the only way he can. Maybe it’s enough.

He screams with the first swoop, clawing into Philza for safety. Strong arms press him closer to Philza’s chest, reassuring in their tight hold. The nascent reverberations of a coo Philza bites down rumbles in the throat Tommy’s tucked into, instinctively weakening his coiled tension. The flight smooths into a gentle glide, the plummet of Tommy’s gut vanishing. Only the wind tearing past assures him of their movement.

He knows they can’t be falling, but he can’t shake the thought. Scared, he pries open a eye. Unlike the tower, the ground isn’t rushing up to shatter him. Icy waves scroll past slowly beneath them, almost still. Sunlight glitters across glaciers, burning in radiant streaks. The tranquil arctic sea is starkly incongruous with the terror ebbing in his chest. His urgent nightmares give way to new peaceful memories, the spark of fear unable to catch. Tommy’s death grip on the potion eases from its white-knuckled terror.

It hasn’t been long enough when they’ve crossed the bay, Phil coming to a careful stop on an outcropping. There’s an awkward moment as Phil tries to set him down and Tommy still clings on. As cold as it is Tommy doesn’t mind being tucked underwing.

“Alright, check in time. How was the glide? Do you want to try more compli- oh- oh mate,” Philza says in a soft, fragile way as he finally catches a look at Tommy. He bends slightly till they’re face to face, carefully brushing away blossoming tears. Tommy wants to shove him away, pretend it was the wind. But it feels so nice to sink into the warm, calloused palm cupping his cheek. “This cliff connects to the mainland if you’d prefer to walk back. We can try again later. Or never. Whatever you need…”

Tommy shakes his head, dismissing his worries. “I didn’t know how much I missed it.”

Philza’s smile is a mixed thing, half relief half heartbreak. “Flying should’ve never been taken from you. But before long your new primaries will come in and you’ll be able to soar on your own.” Before the thought had filled him with dread, but the memory of wind gushing through his feathers dulls the edge of his insecurities. One day he’ll have feathers his abuser never touched.

On the return flight Tommy doesn’t need to hide, instead facing outward like Phil initially planned. Probably more aerodynamic that way, and it gives him a better view. Tommy’s wings scrunch up, trying not to get in the way of Philza. The flight is rougher than the glide, Philza flapping quickly to gain upward momentum. Tommy’s gut swoops, but the ascension is so unlike his plummet, a controlled and triumphant race towards the heavens. The arms wrapped around his midriff are secure and not for a second does he imagine falling. The shift of Philza’s muscles against his back with each beat of his wings almost feels like his own strain against the wind, almost feels like his own wings. He finds himself tensing in the pattern of it, echoing Philza’s minute adjustments to the wind current.

Tommy’s wings instinctively begin to spread. They’re so ragged and ugly compared to Philza’s sleek ebony plumage. Mud colored, his abuser teased once. But in the streaks of close sunlight they glow with auburns and golds, the white undersides softer than the surrounding clouds. They wobble slightly as wind buffets the pair, and quickly Tommy straightens out fully, hesitance forgotten. As air slips through his feathers something wakens in him. It feels right in a way so little has recently.

Philza caws at him, subtly rocking, and Tommy leans into it, copying the tilt of his wings as they arc into a loose gyre. Tommy grins as he earns an approving coo, dutifully mimicking Philza’s exaggerated, coached movements. He flaps, Tommy’s wings awkwardly crashing into his the first few times till he gets in rhythm, the pair climbing higher into the azure. Perhaps for Philza it feels like teaching, but for Tommy it feels like remembering. All the little instinctive details he’d forgotten, all rushing back like they’d never left, like an old nostalgic song he’d thought he forgot the lyrics to until he heard the tune again. His own short wings stretch out beneath Philza’s massive black ones, flapping and angling to match. It’s as if they become one.

An elated chirp bursts out of Tommy, and for once he doesn’t slam his hands over his mouth. It doesn’t overwhelm him, this joy, doesn’t rob him of his senses. It feels like laughter, something drawn out, not forced upon him. A wild, booming caw explodes from Philza in response, vibrating deep in the chest Tommy is flush against. Tommy is delighted to discover his vibrant, bubbly chirps are prettier than Philza’s raspy caws, though they surely hold no less enthusiasm. Suddenly it makes sense why they’re always so loud and ear-piercing. Words are only whipped away in the rush of the wind. The pair twitter back and forth, less a language and more intuition and tone. It feels like pure joy.

Their descent is slow and winding, Philza careful to avoid anything resembling a dive or swoop. He’s disappointed when they finally land at the first cliff. It’s dizzying to go from feeling like the wind itself to be standing on firm ground once again. Unconsciously Tommy’s wings flare out, echoing the memory of freedom still ringing in his head. The careful angling for aerodynamics, adjusting to currents of wind. He steps back towards the cliff, tensing as if to launch once more.

A hand lands on his shoulder, and Tommy blinks. “Hold on, I need a break first.” Phil smiles at the impatience in his eyes.

“Tired old man! I bet I’ll be an even faster flier than you. I’ll leave you in the dust.” Tommy puffs up his chest, but mischief suddenly dances in Philza’s eyes, and Tommy huffs. “What’s so fun-”

“BOO!” Techno shouts, jabbing Tommy in his soft sides. The boy shrieks, feathers fluffing up as he’s seized and lifted into the air. He thrashes and flaps wildly, but the piglin’s long arms prevent retaliation.

“OOOOOH I’M GOING TO STAB YOU. YOU DON’T EVEN KNOW HOW MUCH I’M GOING TO STAB YOU.” Tommy smirks in satisfaction as his wing bashes Techno in the snout. It falters as Techno swings him around and around until the world blurs. Tommy stumbles as he’s set down, then leans against Techno as he tries to overcome the vertigo. “There, now I got my turn flying you. I’m sure it was the exact same deeply bonding experience you just had with Phil. I’m guessing it worked?”

“It was fantastic!” Tommy enthuses, stretching his wings out.

“I meant the hatchling thing. Like, you didn’t freeze up when I spooked you.”

“Oh.” Tommy had…kinda forgotten about that part. “...maybe?” He catches himself and jerks his head up. “Actually, since I have no possible way of knowing we’ll just have to go on a bunch more flights. You know. Just in case. You never can be sure with these things.”

Philza chuckles and tucks him neatly underwing, pulling him close. “Oh yes, really cement the milestone to your instincts.”

Tommy laughs as Philza scuffs up his hair, batting him away. “Oi! Don’t mess with the Tommy Charm™!” When meticulously fixing his locks, he freezes as his fingers encounter a foreign object. He slowly pulls out one of Philza’s feathers from where it had accidentally gotten lodged in his hair. He runs his finger along the vane, watching dark barbs ripple, iridescence catching the light in flashes of indigos and wines.

Philza goes a little rigid. “Ah- sorry mate, didn’t mean to shed on you.” He reaches for the feather, but Tommy is mesmerized by it, flicking the edges so the barbs part then preening them back into smooth completion.

“Can I keep it?” he asks before he quite plans to. He doesn’t mean to, knows he’s only getting Phil’s hope up. He wants to shove it back in his mouth. He doesn’t.

“Y-yeah. Sure mate. If you want to.” Phil barely clamps down on bursting euphoria, trying to be as calm and nonchalant as possible. In avian culture, wearing another’s feathers is a promise to carry the person as safely as their own two wings. Hadn’t Philza already done that? Hadn’t he already promised to always? He’s so, so ready to be family, but even if Tommy is painfully aware of it, Philza never intentionally pressures him. He’s just…allowed to take things at his own speed. Tommy doesn’t slip the feather behind his ear, but he doesn’t let go of it, either. That night he tucks it next to a picture of the three of them. It doesn’t feel overwhelming, more like a gentle promise for when he’s ready for it.

And one day he will be. Not now, though. Not when some small panicked creature in him wants to bolt at the thought of wearing Philza’s feathers, let alone how he feels about his own.

But one day he’ll wear both their feathers with pride.

Fin.

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peanut-tyrug · 2 months ago

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Brothership Fanfic: Beyond the Mask

Only the one who bore Zokket’s mask knows the truth of what created such a being… all of what created him, and what brought upon the beginning of the end to Concordia.

~~~

WARNING: This contains MAJOR spoilers for Mario and Luigi: Brothership. If you haven’t beaten the game yet, I would suggest doing that first.

The characters and settings in this fic belong to Nintendo and Acquire Corp. I simply made this for fun.

It is my duty as a Wattanist to protect what makes this world whole. If not for me, our home, our Uni-Tree… it would all be put in jeopardy.

…But by my hands, the world has been split. So many Bonds have been broken… I simply cannot forgive myself…

…If only I didn’t stumble upon that egg…

I expected to be looking after the Great Lighthouses that afternoon. I was close to complete, over half way through my work that day, before I would head back to the Uni-Tree… but then I had stumbled upon it…

I hadn’t seen anything like it. An egg of some kind. A dark and foreboding aura emanated from it, making me feel as if I should turn back… but I didn’t.

I suddenly felt as if it was pulling me toward it, no matter how much I wished to move away. I tried to force my body back, but I kept moving forward, almost reaching my hand out toward the egg.

“Hehehehee!!” I heard the egg laugh cheekily. “Come on! Come here! You know you want to!”

Despite my meager attempts to resist this pull, I was just inches away from the egg… and I had suddenly blacked out.

I lost awareness for only but a moment… before suddenly regaining my consciousness. Everything around me was shaded in a deep red. I looked down at my trembling hands, dazed and confused.

…I tried to process what had happened to me… but I almost couldn’t remember, as if those memories were being forcefully plucked out from my mind and placed somewhere else… some place I could never recover them.

As these memories left me… I heard a voice call to me. Speak to me…

“Solitude is Sublime…” The voice said.

Solitude is Sublime…

Over and over, this phrase repeated like a broken record. As I heard it echo and bounce off the walls of my consciousness, I lost all focus.

I was hypnotized. Lost in a trance I could never escape from. The more I heard that damned phrase… the more prominent he became in my mind.

…The more I lost myself…

“FWA-HA-HA-HA!!!” He cackled. “…So easy to control… my favorite kind of toy! …What could I possibly name you? Cozette is too… friendly…”

This beast of a God spat out names that I could barely process in my hypnotized state. I could hear all of what he said about me as his new doll… but I simply couldn’t process it all.

“Ahh… I know!” Said the Beast with a small yet menacing chuckle. “…Zokket… Zokket!”

At that name, my head swung upward, as if hearing something call to me from the heavens… and before my eyes, he appeared…

…Reclusa…

The true embodiment of solitude, just about as old as the revered Great Conductor… and the Conductor’s complete opposite.

Reclusa wants nothing more than to have Concordia forever remain in complete solitude… and he will do anything to achieve such a world.

No matter what it may do to others.

Reclusa then spoke to me, his large smile and big eyes glaring down upon me… his tone stern and certain of what he wanted to do with me.

“Solitude is Sublime, my friend!” He said. “…Spread that message ALL through Concordia! Tear them all apart, and free me from my prison!”

He then disappeared just as quickly as a mask appeared before my dazed eyes. In my hypnotized state, I couldn’t help but listen to this God… and placed the mask upon my face.

A new set of clothes covered my Wattanist uniform… a cloak covered my body and a large top hat perched itself onto my head… by this point, Cozette was entirely gone.

No longer was I a protector of Concordia and the Bonds that lay under the Uni-Tree… I hated Bonds. I despised togetherness… all of what Reclusa would want in a puppet of his.

…I was Zokket…

—

The egg… it continues to speak to me.

It preaches more of its virtues unto my mind, as if it were a pastor. An entity I can’t help but be utterly enthralled by… his plans are immaculate.

Bring Concordia into a never ending state of solitude. There are no Bonds, no connections. Everyone is alone, and in their own little world… none of it is real.

A simulation made to separate them from what they don’t need. No one needs Bonds to live a good life. We don’t need friends or family.

“Why have connections, when you can live in peace all by yourself?” The egg would ask me. “In your own world, in the exact way you want it… isn’t that fun?”

I couldn’t understand why I had never pondered it before… but I cared not. All I cared about was listening to his virtues. And wishing to bring upon the world he wanted.

I will break this world, piece by piece, Bond by Bond… until the world is finally ready for his unveiling.

It is all Reclusa’s will.

The rebirth of Reclusa is imminent. Nothing stands in my way.

~~~

…Every person carries Glohm with them. Only a little. But if the Glohm is emphasized and made part of your entire psyche… it becomes extremely difficult to control, and makes one destructive… like I had become, due to Reclusa’s meddling.

Reclusa may have controlled me through converting my Glohm into energy… but all of my actions were still my doing. Despite Cozette being completely absent from my conscious at that time… even after Reclusa lost his control over me, I still recalled everything that I did.

I broke the continent. I destroyed the Uni-Tree. I brought upon the spread of Glohm. I broke so many Bonds… I caused people who aren’t even from Concordia to enter a world never seen by them… I put everyone in danger… I put her in danger…

…When I had first arrived on Shipshape, I had seen her… my student…

Connie…

Even if I was glad to see her, on the verge of crying tears of happiness and relief… I couldn’t help but want to sob out of horrible guilt.

Connie is but a child… so young, and I put her through all this trouble, this mental turmoil. My heart felt broken beyond repair. As she ran up to me, crying hard… I felt so glad, and yet so awful…

I soon collapsed to the ground from exhaustion, both mental and physical. I don’t know what happened after that… maybe not what happened on Shipshape, but in my mind.

…I know all too well…

I had fallen into an intensely deep sleep… I wasn’t certain if I’d wake up. At one point, however, I thought I had.

I truly thought I did.

I was met with a crowd of my people standing around me, all of their berating and bashing they directed towards me slamming into my ears and crashing onto my heart and mind like a pile of bricks.

“You’re a terrible excuse of a Wattanist!”

“How will we ever rebuild!? …It’s all because of you!”

Their words hurt me, and cut into me deep, deep into my very soul… but the one that hurt the most…

The berating suddenly stopped and was replaced with a soft whimper. I looked outward, and the crowd was gone… only she stood there.

“…Ms. Cozette…” Said Connie. “Why did you do it…?”

Connie’s face was covered in tears. She looked immensely tired and worn out. Her eyes appeared puffy, as if she had been crying for a prolonged period of time.

I could only blankly stare back at her, completely shaken… but felt as if I shouldn’t have been surprised.

I did this. I did this to her…

I deserved it.

“…Why did you do it…?” Connie asked again, a soft whimper escaping her.

I simply had no response. I didn’t know how to… and then she suddenly faded away, just like the crowd. I was completely alone.

I felt like I wanted to cry. Wallow in my own grief… before I had woken up…

~~~

“…Ngh…” I suddenly grunted awake.

“Ms. Cozette!” Connie exclaimed as I awoke.

I had awoken upon a small bed, confused and groggy. I had forgotten what had happened before collapsing for a moment… it all felt like a blur.

I turned my head slightly, and saw Connie looking up at me… along with the Mario Bros… a pair I once despised. Each of them appeared genuinely concerned for me.

“…Connie?” I asked, groggy. “Where… where am I?”

As I woke, I slowly remembered… I was on Shipshape. And I had reunited with my student.

…Whom I couldn’t help but feel hated me, in some way.

I then looked up… and my worries from my nightmare had temporarily withered away. What laid above me… I couldn’t be more proud of Connie.

“Oh! Look at this tree…” I said in awe. “It’s a Uni-Tree… Connie, you’ve done a wonderful job with it.”

I then began to speak of the Uni-Tree’s light and guidance as they traversed Concordia’s seas… I couldn’t be more grateful for the Mario Bros., or more proud of Connie.

…But this didn’t last long.

I was quickly reminded of what I caused while under Reclusa’s influence. I couldn’t help but lament over them and admit to what I did… Connie seemed to feel deeply sorry for me.

My mind simply couldn’t accept it.

As I relented and begin to spill Reclusa’s plan, the Mario Bros. were suddenly pulled away by another member of Shipshape’s crew… a young sailor boy… another young one I forced trouble on to.

The boy begged the brothers to come with him and he urgently began to explain the trouble… before an odd flower erupted from the ground behind him and latched itself onto the boy’s head like a leech.

The plant then lifted the boy off the ground, keeping him suspended in the air. The young navigator became unresponsive for a moment… before a gleeful set of digitized eyes appeared on the flower, and the boy began to speak.

He began to speak of his father, and wanting to learn about Ocean Maps… my stomach twisted as I heard the boy speak of something that wasn’t actually there.

I did this… I caused this…

Other flowers then began to sprout around Shipshape, clamping upon the heads of innocents all around the island ship. Making them all see things that weren’t real.

'An immersive experience where there’s nothing but fun!' Reclusa had called it.

I watched all that transpired, the Mario Bros. and their little piggy companion trying to understand what is happening. Connie and the other innocents on the ship panicking…

I couldn’t help but imagine where else these flowers were appearing, who else had they affected… so many Bonds were in jeopardy, and it was all because of me…

As I continued to relent in the horror around me, I heard a horribly familiar cackle above Shipshape…

“Oh, this is just delightful! Isn’t being bound to others such a pain?” Reclusa bellows, his voice endlessly echoing into the sky. “It’s better living in your own world and doing what you like all alone!”

He then began to ramble on about solitude, and how much better it is to be isolated from everyone else… one can only wonder why he’d want such a thing…

It’s all to watch the world burn.

He loves to watch worlds fall apart. He loves seeing people cluelessly die at his hands… all he is, and ever will be, is a sick and twisted individual. A truly malevolent being.

…As if I was much different… as Zokket…

“Ohhh, I just had an idea!” Reclusa blurts out. “The Mushroom Kingdom sounds like a fun world! Perhaps I’ll pay it a visit!”

I heard the Mario Bros. immediately become defensive, especially the older brother, Mario. I could easily tell they both deeply detested the idea of their home being taken over… and its people left to wither away.

He then went on to speaking of the tree that had replaced Fortress Zokket and now stood as the Center of Concordia… there was a barrier around it, no way of getting in.

Reclusa then disappeared in a flash, the sound of voice echoing out once again, followed by the eerie sound of static.

~~~

“So, then…” I began as the four spoke what we all witnessed. “Reclusa’s wasting no time…”

“We worked so hard to link all the islands!” Said Connie, a deep sorrow coating her voice.

My heart twisted at Connie’s sadness… this feeling worsened as she eventually questioned how Mario and Luigi were going to get past the barrier. None of them knew how…

Until I spoke.

“…The Power of Bonds…” I said, prompting the four before my bed to turn their heads toward me.

“What?” Connie questioned.

“If we envelope ourselves with the Power of Bonds… we can punch through the barrier.” I said weakly. I then turned to face the watering can that sat beside my bed. “That… watering can…”

Connie turned to the can, appearing uncertain. “What… your Bonding Can?”

“Connie… give me your hand.” I said, holding out my hand towards Connie.

Connie looked confused, but still grabbed onto my hand. I looked at her as genuinely as I could, sure of my words and what they meant.

“The Power of Bonds is the strength to resist isolation.” I say with a firm tone, despite my tiredness. “We will fill this can with it.”

“My Bond with my Ms. Cozette…” Connie said softly.

After a few moments, a bright light circles around my dear student and I, representing the pure and true Bond we shared.

Connie wasn’t just a student to me. She was the daughter I never knew I had… or needed. She has always found ways to impress me, and I could never be more proud of her.

…But… in the recesses of my mind, I couldn’t help but feel that she must’ve still been disappointed in me…

I tried not to let this feeling consume me as the Bond energy entered my Bonding Can and filled the small section at the center of the can’s pattern with its energy.

I then explained to the heroes and Connie that once the pattern is full, they should have enough Bond Power to reach Reclusa. They all understood and began to speak of who else they could go to for Bond Power… before another islander upon Shipshape stepped in.

He spoke of a Prince and Princess… Princess Burnadette of Skorcheen, and Prince Chilliam of Slippenglide. They were trying to save innocents from the flowers.

After the news had been relayed to them, the Mario Bros. and their little companion set off to their homelands to find them.

…As they all left, I had begun to fall back asleep. I could tell Connie was still at my side, looking up at me from where she stood.

“…Please get better, Ms. Cozette…” Connie said softly, her voice barely above a whisper.

—

…Why did you do it…?

Each time I heard her say it… I just wanted it to stop.

I couldn’t take hearing her ask that question any longer… and yet, I told myself I deserved it. That I should just take it as it was.

I deserved it.

I then suddenly awoke, quickly rising slightly in my bed. I slowly laid my head back down and sighed… this guilt, this grief… I couldn’t take it anymore.

I turned my head slightly to look at the group of people at the center of Shipshape… the Mario Bros. and their friend had done a lot while I rested.

They had spoke of being almost done gathering Bonds… I was relieved. This nightmare could be put behind us.

…But that relief quickly disappeared… for I felt as if I was watching someone else do my work for me. These heroes, whom I had never truly had the opportunity to meet, were fixing the problems I had started.

It shouldn’t be them to fix this… it should be me.

I need to atone for what I did. I can’t stand idly by, laying in bed, as this world falls apart because of the continent I broke and the Bonds I severed.

The Bonds that all of them worked so hard to bring back together…

I just couldn’t do that to them… I can’t let them be severed again…

But before that… I wanted to see it again. What I used to tend to so carefully…

I was somewhat doubtful that I’d ever see it again.

I proceeded to turn to my side, grunting a little. I realized I was still injured… but I couldn’t rest. Not anymore. I turned further, allowing my feet to settle on the ground.

I leaped from the bed, prompting my feet to smack against the grass. I winced, but still tried to prop myself up and balance. I took a deep breath, and headed for the big cannon at Shipshape��s edge.

It was the only way to get to the Great Lighthouses. On the way up the hill to the cannon; I looked out beyond Shipshape, and spotted the deep violet sea of Gulchrock. One of the Bonds they needed was near here, I would imagine.

I could get where I needed to be without much hassle… thank goodness. No one would know… except, possibly Connie.

I didn’t care as long as I could get where I needed to be.

I headed to the cannon, and locked eyes with the Gulchrock Sea Great Lighthouse through the its spyglass. The cannon then suddenly propelled me backward and shoved me inside it… is this what the brothers felt like every time they used this cannon?

I was compacted tightly inside the cannon, there was absolutely no room to move. I was then shot out of the cannon just as quickly as I was shoved inside. I propelled through the air, barely able to process what had happened.

The Gulchrock Lighthouse was approaching my sight at tremendous speeds. I wanted to try and land safely, but I didn’t.

I landed on the ground with a hard and mighty thud. I bounced and rolled as I came to a stop just before the stairs that led up to the Lighthouse’s entrance. I was surprised that I was still conscious.

After I attempted a few calming breaths, I slowly rose to my feet. My landing didn’t help the discomfort I was already in before. I almost fell back down to floor, grabbing my arm. Despite my pain, I trudged forward.

I slowly stumbled up the stairs, being careful not to lose my balance. I approached the Lighthouse’s entrance, and went inside.

…Nothing but a cold wind met with me. Before now, this Lighthouse was so noisy, bustling with workers gathering Glohm, and Zok Troops patrolling around… and before that, the Lighthouse was a serene, calming place to be.

Only now, with Reclusa’s World on the horizon, everything here felt… dead. As if every ounce of Connectar that flowed through it had been drained.

…I wonder who did that…

I stepped on the elevator, and began to lift upstairs. Up to the Top Floor of the Lighthouse. The higher I went, the more cold and dead the Lighthouse felt.

As I reached the top, I recalled how it used to be checking on the Lighthouses… a warm breeze gently blew with the scent of sea salt. But here…

There was nothing.

Just as much nothing as there was downstairs.

I felt a chill go down my spine as I walked off the elevator. I felt as if I was standing in Slippenglide, it was so cold… the rain didn’t assist in the temperature either. I stepped to the Lighthouse’s bloom, and it too felt extremely cold, even without touching it.

The dark red sky didn’t help either. It only emphasized my feelings in the moment.

Guilt.

I had tended to this Lighthouse, and all the others, before I had become Zokket… my heart sunk as I stared upon my failure…

Being here only reminded me of what I had become, and what it made me feel… and what it made me understand.

I had to fix this mess myself.

I almost didn’t care if I died trying…

As I stood in solitude, I heard someone speak from behind me. I jumped, and turned back… only to see a familiar red and green pair.

“Mario, Luigi— why are you here?” I asked, perplexed.

Mario then explains their presence to me…

…Oh…

“Ah, Connie. Of course.” I said, not too surprised. I took a deep breath before diving further into my purpose here, feeling they wanted to know. “…This is where it happened. Where I… became Zokket.”

I left out no detail. I spilled everything to the brothers. All of my guilt. All of my shame. No stone was left unturned.

I told them what I wanted to do… how I would atone…

“I’m going to face Reclusa.” I said, knowing what I must do.

Immediately after I finished my words, the brothers tried to suggest they come with me… but…

“…And you cannot come with me.” I said. “I don’t know if Reclusa still has some control over me. But if my presence can make a difference… if I can weaken Reclusa, it will be worth it.”

I then turned up to face the Lighthouse, the Bros. doing the same shortly after me… I simply couldn’t emphasize how much I had once enjoyed tending to it.

…But that doesn’t mean I didn’t fail to treat it, and be there to take care of it. I simply felt too ashamed to not bring it up. To further remind myself of my mistakes…

“…Take care of the Uni-Tree for me. And make sure the Great Lighthouses light every part of this world.” I said, my tone bitter. “You’ll have to be the Wattanist in my place.”

…After all, why not? The brothers and their friend did much more than I did.

They didn’t fail, like I did… why should I even call myself a Wattanist anymore?

I further lamented on my grief… I simply couldn’t help it anymore. I was simply rambling now… but in the mist of my self-grievances… a light shone through.

“…Concordia was separated, but even then, the islands WANTED to be together again. Through the work of Connie and the island residents…” I said, grateful for what they had done. “…And also that tree…”

Despite everything, the Bonds of not just the islands, but others both within and outside of Concordia brought everyone and everything together.

I couldn’t let that go to waste again.

“I’m going to put an end to all this…” I said, certain of what my fate was.

The brothers then tried to talk me out of it… saying it was a suicide mission to go alone…

“Please don’t say anything to Connie about this. I don’t want to make her worry unnecessarily.” I said… almost upset to not want Connie to know the truth, or where I was, or what I was going to do.

I had put enough stress on her already.

I immediately walked away, wanting to head back downstairs and get away from the brothers, who tried to follow me down. After a few steps, they stopped, leaving me alone.

…I was glad. I didn’t want them to go with me. This job is mine, and mine alone… although, I began to wonder…

There was no way to get into Reclusa’s fortress without Bond Power… if the brothers had stopped their search for Bonds to find me, which I presume they must’ve… then the barrier wouldn’t have been broken yet.

As I pondered this thought and headed back down to the bottom floor… I heard a cackle echo through the wind. A sound that seemed to be meant for my ears alone.

“FWA-HA-HA-HAAA!!!” I heard Reclusa cackle from seemingly nowhere. “You want to face me so bad? Why don’t I just bring you to my keep myself?”

I was then suddenly encased in a dark red orb… the same ball of Glohm I used to get around as Zokket. I feared that Reclusa may still have control over me… that this was my doing.

…That I was becoming him again…

But the orb quickly disappeared… and I was met with an awful, gut wrenching sight.

Reclusa had morphed Fortress Zokket into his own, more twisted iteration. Living plants exhaling Glohm gas lined the area I stood in. The gas made me nauseous, despite how far away from it I seemed to be.

“Welcome to the Soli-Tree!” Reclusa announces. “I hope you enjoy your stay! Since you’ll be here for a looooooong time!”

…He hadn’t changed at all. Still a sick, twisted creature. A creature bent on bringing civilizations to ruin through genocide… all for a good laugh.

“Awwww, don’t be so bitter!” Said Reclusa in a nonchalant and playful tone. “You get to take me down! I’ll go easy on you!”

He could read my mind, I was now certain. He knew how disgusted I was by him. How appalled I was at how he acted… it made me want to face him more.

I wanted to enter… but I stopped in my tracks for a moment.

“…Awwwwww, don’t tell me you’re scared, Cozzy!” Said Reclusa. “I didn’t bring you all the way here just so that you could stand there! Come on in!”

He was right …I was afraid.

A part of me hesitated to go inside… something in me made me stop… but I knew I couldn’t just leave. This was my duty. I had to fulfill it. No matter what Reclusa would do to toy with me.

The entrance to Soli-Tree swung open, allowing myself entrance into Reclusa’s fortress. I took a deep breath, and ran inside, swallowing my fears.

“…I’ll be waiting… FWA-HA-HA-HAAA!!!” Reclusa said coldly.

—

I feel like I’m going to lose my mind.

It isn’t the hardest task to get through the Soli-Tree. Its layout still remains the same as Fortress Zokket… I hate that I remember the layout of this place…

That’s not why I feel my sanity slipping, however… I don’t know where, but there are speakers lodged in the walls of the Soli-Tree. Distorted circus music plays from these speakers, droning in and out of tune.

The sound would drive one mad… it’s already doing so to me. I just want to find Reclusa, wherever he’s hiding, and face him.

Another odd thing I had noticed was that there weren’t of any his henchmen around… or what used to be mine. The halls were barren of troops, only flowers and vines that lined the walls and floor.

After walking slightly further, a peculiar room had come upon me. A circular room with several doors branching into other rooms. In the middle of it all were keys, all locked into their positions in the floor… and an elevator.

I gasped at the sight of the elevator. I rushed to it, and stood upon it. After taking my stop upon the mechanic mover, it started to descend.

The demented music was replaced with eerie silence… it’s better than the music, at least.

The elevator clattered to the floor with a loud and mechanical bang. After it stopped, I took in the area in front of me… it was a long hallway that lead to an exit at its far end. That’s all it was, with a few circular platforms wedged in.

I stepped forward into the hallway, and stopped at a platform. The more I looked at it, the more it resembled an arena of sorts. It made my stomach turn a bit.

“…Reclusa?” I called. “Reclusa!!”

“What!? What is it!? …Oh, forgive me for the cold entrance, Cozzy!” Said Reclusa as a hologram, still trying to be playful. “My troops have kept calling me for things all day… it gets annoying.”

“Stop with your games!” I exclaimed, finally through with his antics. “You brought me here to face you, as such is my motive!”

Reclusa goes quiet for a second, before a small giggle escapes him. “…Ah, if you want to play like that… let’s play! FWA-HA-HA-HAAA!!!” His hologram then disappeared, his laugh bouncing off the walls.

Then, out of the blue, a humongous fleet of Reclusa’s minions and Zok Troops fall from the sky above… it was huge, it seemed infinite…

…There was no way… but I can’t leave…

Before I could ever try to throw any kind of hit, I am immediately hit by an enemy up front, a small hovering television screen…?

I am given no chance to attack from there… I keep getting hit. Whether it was my metal piercing my skin, rings of electricity shocking and bruising me… I couldn’t do a thing. They wouldn’t stop.

After a long while, the minions eventually stopped and retreated to the sky… leaving me barely conscious. I felt like I could barely breathe. My skin burned and ears rang. I was motionless as I saw the real, true Reclusa finally descend above me.

“…R-Reclusa…” I stammered. “…Coward…” I tried to say before a rough cough left me.

A sickening chortle escaped Reclusa’s televised teeth as he looked down upon me. “Awwww, look at you. You look like a sick dog!” He snaps. “…And you haven’t even seen the worst of your pummeling!”

He then raised up an arm, and in his palm, a fire ball appeared. He thrusted it down to the ground, and I had no time to escape it. There was no part of my body that wasn’t temporarily engulfed in flames. I shrieked, but it wasn’t like Reclusa would listen…

He threw another ball, a sphere of ice. My body went from blazing hot to freezing cold, as if I had switched between the hot and cold borders of Heatfreeze.

He did this repeatedly for what felt like forever. Then, he took an unexpected turn… I should’ve expected this from such an unpredictable being.

He threw an orb of pure dark energy at me. As it hit me, I felt extremely cold… I hated it.

It reminded me of him… how cold, how sinister, how evil I used to feel. He was taunting me with this attack, I was certain… but I could barely muster a single word.

“…S…Stop…” I stammered, incredibly weak.

To my surprise, he seemed to be done with his attacks. I could just barely see the proud and smug look on his face… it sickened me.

“Ahh, it felt nice to get that out of my system!” Said Reclusa. “…Again, annoying minions are bad minions…”

I then saw him look down at me, that same large smile plastered on his screen. “You’ve been a fun toy to play with, you know that, Cozzy?” He said. “Not only did I brainwash you, I just beat you to a pulp! You couldn’t do a thing! It’s always fun to have complete control over what you play with!”

…I wanted him to stop talking. All he was doing was taunting me. He was flaunting his victory, rubbing it in… all to make me feel worse.

…I hate to admit it had worked.

I had lost. I was lying on the floor, my life hanging by a thread… all of what I wanted to fix, keep safe…

All of what I wanted to atone for, all of the Bonds I wanted to protect… all of what I did and thought to get myself here was for naught.

“…And maybe after all you did…” Reclusa begins, taking a long pause as he inches his face closer to mine. “You deserve it… FWA-HA-HA-HAAA!!!”

As Reclusa disappeared in a sudden, sharp hum of static… I couldn’t help but be absolutely heartbroken.

I was dying. I had beaten down to absolutely nothing. I was never able to mend what I had broken. Only these small-eyed screens staring back at me and my failures… his eyes…

Maybe… If I hadn’t gone alone…

…Why did I come here alone…?

…Why did I do this at all…?

I need someone… anyone…

To help me…

…Help…

~~~

…

…!?

“My mentor!”

The faint and hazy sound of Connie’s voice immediately woke me from my mental absence. I had been awake, but… my mind had drifted. I was in so much pain, so unfathomably numb…

If I had closed my eyes… If I had succumbed…

I needed help.

“Ugh…” I tried to say something, but I couldn’t…

“Please! Hang in there!” I barely heard Connie beg.

“…Con…nie…” I barely managed to say.

“Oh!” Connie exclaimed, relieved that I was okay… but I could tell she was still in a panic.

“…I… I… have… made… a mistake… uuugh…” I stammered, barely able to make sentences by this point. “I tried to stop Reclusa on my own, but… forgive… me…”

“…Oh, no…” Connie said, sounding horrified… I felt horrible making worry for me even more than she already had… “…Mario… my mentor… I need to…”

Mario then says she’s fine, and lets her stay with me… I was somewhat thankful, but also horrified… If I died, Connie…

She’d see my end…

“Mario! Luigi!” Connie calls out as the brothers turn to leave. “…Please, be careful.”

“Oh, yeah!” Both the Bros. say in unison before turning away and headed out from the next part of the hallway.

The area Connie and I lay in became extremely quiet after that…

~~~

I had begun to lose track of time.

It had felt like hours since Connie and I had last seen the Bros… the Soli-Tree still stood tall, Reclusa had yet to be defeated…

Were they alright…?

As I laid there, Connie had watched over me. She helped me stayed awake when I would begin to slip, and kept me company… I was grateful for her help.

The silence was peaceful… but this peace was suddenly interrupted by a loud bang from outside.

Connie turned back toward the hallway ahead, appearing full of dread. I awoke at the sound of her panic.

“Mario! Luigi! I have to do something…” Said Connie. Despite her want to go to the brothers, she seemed hesitant… she wanted to stay with me.

“Go to them…” I said softly. “You’re a Wattanist… your hope… connects people…”

“Ms. Cozette…” Said Connie… she didn’t want to leave me here.

It was here when an epiphany struck me… my thoughts were clear.

…Oh, Connie… how I had been so wrong… these nightmares plagued my mind, made me think I was hated by everyone… by you, of all people… you could never hate anyone, I’ve known you long enough to know that.

These dreams made me think horrible, untruthful things. They made me lose my senses. My guilt made me spiral… what I had done to end this nightmare... I could’ve perished… if not for your help.

…I truly wished I could’ve said all of this to you… but my weakness had restricted me…

All I could do to show her I was certain she could leave… was give as warm of a smile I could possibly muster with what little strength I had left.

She looked back at me with confidence and nodded, certain of what her task was. She turned away and took my Bonding Can that sat nearby, and walked away.

I watched as she trudged further into the hallway… my smile couldn’t help but grow wider.

“You’re going to make… a splendid Wattanist.” I said quietly… I cannot emphasize how amazed I was by her. How far she had come…

…But my amazement dwindled as a poisonous Glohm smog filled the room… and I had fallen completely unconscious…

~~~

“…!!”

“…oz…!”

“Ms. …ette!”

“Ms. Cozette!!”

I gasped at the sudden sound of Connie’s panicked voice. My eyes shot open, and I turned to look at her.

“…C-Connie…?” I asked. “…Reclusa… I-is he…?”

I then spotted Mario and Luigi were standing behind Connie… my suspicions were confirmed here. Reclusa was no more… I would’ve felt relieved if not for the loud crashing noises from outside…

“Ms. Cozette! The Soli-Tree!!” Connie exclaims. “It’s collapsing!!”

I gasped again, fear crossing my features. “…W-we have to… g-get out of—!” I tried to get up… but I had forgotten about how much pain I was in. I winced, and fell back down to my knees.

The others stood at my side, trying to slowly help me up. I eventually found my footing, and Luigi helped propel me forward with the others as we made our escape.

No matter how far we’d run, the sounds of the Soli-Tree’s fall were clear as day. It took ages for us to finally find our way out… but there wasn’t any way for us to escape without jumping from the Soli-Tree and descending down toward the Stormstar Sea.

As we stood at the fortress’ edge, uncertain of how to proceed, the destruction from the Soli-Tree had tore up what used to be Fortress Zokket… and it was heading directly for us.

All we could was jump…

We all took a leap together, only for a destructive blast to occur from behind and separate the four of us. I had been flung the furthest, Connie was the closest to me. I heard Mario call out for Connie and grab her hand, then I grabbed Connie’s…

…Where was Luigi…?

“Mario!!” We all heard Luigi call out for his brother. He was trying his hardest to get to us, but was struggling immensely.

“Luigi!!” Mario called out back, reaching a hand out for his brother.

They both tried desperately to reach other, Luigi just barely slacking… before they finally caught one another. As their hands clasped, a bright glow emanated from them… the Power of Bonds…

Our fall immediately began to slow as we all connected hands, and a bright aura shone around us. As we descended upon Shipshape, I hadn’t even noticed that the red sky had cleared… a clear, bright blue sky had replaced Reclusa’s blood red heavens.

I had also noticed the crowd standing at Shipshape’s edge, all of them cheering for the brothers’ return, a few faces I recognized, but most I didn’t…

Despite this, I could feel just how strong their Bonds for each other all were… they were incredibly strong, and they had brought them all together. I couldn’t help but smile at this realization.

I was immediately met with greetings from the small crowd. All of them, especially a regal woman in pink, wanted to get to know me. It was a relief to see that none of them were upset with me.

…They all deeply cared for me… just like Connie and the brothers. To think I thought that they’d despise me… oh, how wrong I was. How blind I had been…

To them, I was not Zokket. Our motives are not the same. We may have shared a body… but I am not Zokket…

I am me.

I couldn’t help but smile… I felt like I could’ve cried right then.

~~~

Saying goodbye is hard… I haven’t had to do it in years, but it doesn’t matter how many times you do it. It’s always heart-wrenching.

Of course, saying goodbye to Mario and Luigi was no different.

I truly wish I got to know them better. I had barely spoken to them before I had ventured through the Soli-Tree… but what I did know was how powerful their Bond was.

So powerful that the Great Conductor saw them fit to save Concordia. So powerful, that their Bond brought other Bonds together… it filled me with joy.

After goodbyes were said, we all witnessed the rebirth of Concordia… a tear had been brought to my eye as we watched the islands drift closer to Shipshape and join together with it. Especially so as the Uni-Tree had been restored to its former glory.

Everyone celebrated the return of Concordia, conversing with each other after finally being able to meet up. My wish to see Concordia restored was finally fulfilled… to think I likely wouldn’t have seen it happen, if not for the brothers and Connie.

All of us then watched as the Great Conductor opened a gateway back to the brothers’ home. The Bros. and their friends all gave us a warm farewell as they lifted into the air and began to head home… some odd creatures and turtle king followed suit after them… I never learned who the giant turtle was…

The gateway then closed, and the Great Conductor parted from the Center of Concordia… a sudden silence had washed over all of us.

We all began to speak of the land’s time being separated, and how thankful we were for the brothers… and how much we’d miss them.

As I recalled my short time with them… I remembered my pledge. My promise I had shared with them.

'I pledge to guide the children who will shape our future.'

…I will never forget it. I will never forget them…

Thank you, Mario Bros… I couldn’t be more thankful. Especially to you, Connie. You helped me see the error of my ways… I’m so, very glad to you were willing to help keep me alive.

All of you have helped me regain my true sense of self… and I couldn’t be happier…

Thank you.

- END -

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