Galaxies Colide

Light and Shadow of the Mind

The glittering, mesmerising stardust that drifted down with such elegance reflected its otherworldly glow in her warm, gentle eyes as she stood tall atop her balcony. Smiling warmly down upon her people, Princess Peach Toadstool had resided here in the Mushroom Castle for nearly twenty-six years now, and had experienced extremes of all human emotions throughout her lifetime. Yet tonight, as she stood here, her trusted servants smiling by her side as Toad Town was illuminated with the magical stardust and smiles of its citizens, the young woman had recently given herself a minor headache upon trying to recall a time where her heart was lifted to such an extent as it was tonight. The warm, clear summer air entering and exiting her lungs aided to keep her cool under her heavy dress as her ears picked up on the most distant of noises. Jovial laughter and cheers from the happy citizens down below mixed amazingly with the gentle breeze that carried the stardust down from the heavens above while her own gentle humming rhythm fit right in with...

Wait...what was that rumble?

Suddenly, as though her ears had been tuned to hear only the distant roar, Peach's signature smile was lowered from her face to allow genuine concern to spread across her entire body. Head rotating with increasing speed in each interval, suddenly the Princess of the Mushroom Kingdom found herself surrounded by an unknown force in the one place she always imagined she was safe. The air she once inhaled without any distaste now burned her throat with the fiery hint of burning fuel and rusty iron. The once silent townsfolk below now cried out once more with deep fear now replacing the delicate joy they carried only moments ago. The gentle breeze now grew in strength at an alarming rate as the ears of the princess were overwhelmed by the deafening sound of giant propellers.

Soaring over the top of the castle to moments later surround the skies above the town, the gigantic wooden airships shone gunmetal grey in the shimmering light of the stardust and the gigantic comet above. Their propellers nearly tearing shingles from the rooftops as they circled not even two hundred feet up. Seeming as though they may circle for hours, after not even a minute, one of the many airships broke free of formation to approach the balcony where she stood; now shaking in her heels with the chill of the wind. The sharpness of the gusts created by the approaching ship's propellers forced Peach to rotate her head and stand with a bracing position to avoid being blown right off her feet. As the wind at last faded to a bearable level, the princess's innocent eyes at last rotated back toward the skies of action, only to be met by a stare completely opposite her own. Huge red irises leaking the boiling evil and ferocious ambition that ran through their owner's veins, the face of Peach now resembled a sun-faded turnip as she helplessly stared deep into the face of he who she knew all too well.

"Princess Peach!" His enormous voice roared over the sound of the ship's engines, "You are formally invited...to the creation of my new Galaxy!" Considering the fact that she was dressed in nearly forty pounds of dress, jewellery and stilettos, the speed that Peach traveled with from the balcony slightly surprised even her as vases and knickknacks were swiftly cleared by the skirt of her dress as she bolted like pink lightning down the halls of the castle. Not even knowing where she planned on going, it became very clear to Peach that she would in fact be going nowhere anytime soon. Crashing down to her knees as the castle released a mighty rumble, the grounding feeling that she was so used to was instantly stolen from her to be replaced by the feeling of flight, which in this situation, she found rather threatening. "Gwahahaha!" His vile, scratchy laugh rumbled out from every corner of the castle, "The festival's over!" Rushing to return to her feet, the princess tumbled to the floor once again with the cracking sound from above. Hands slick with sweat as though her throbbing heart pumped it out, the struggling princess attempted again to raise herself back to her feet, yet was again interrupted by another noise nearby. Unlike any others she'd heard tonight, this one presented its threatening nature right away. The true level of danger she found herself in was only clarified to Peach now as the source of the noise was labeled by her mind. It was none other than footsteps; dramatically gigantic and impossibly heavy in nature as they grew in magnitude as their source closed the distance between itself and the young princess. Finding herself now frozen in this position of low defence, every alarm in the princess's mind was blaring when at last a gigantic silhouette filled the hallway before her. Standing over six feet herself, Princess Peach still would have strained her neck to meet his eyes if she stood next to him. Yet lying here on the floor, staring up at his mountainous form as he came to stand tall just a foot away from her fallen form forced her to realize just how alone and vulnerable she really was in this moment. "Pleasure seeing you again," His voice rumbled like a subwoofer; not a single hint of light reflecting off his shadow-concealed body. Lazar-like glow emitting from his deep, scarlet eyes, the monster that stood over the princess now lowered his head down to a level where his vile, putrid breath was easily able to dry her skin like a furnace. "I believe that you left with unfinished business last time we met."