UnMained: CyBooNatural

Good Night

November 1, 2019

4:15 a.m.

The echo of police sirens greeted Nathan as he continued his journey homeward, and he dutifully pulled aside as a tight formation of cruisers sped past. He guessed that they were en route to the Sarasaland Royal Palace, as they'd no doubt received news of Princess Daisy's tragic fate. Whether or not they'd be of any real help at this point was debatable.

BooGene cackled in his ear.

Nathan cursed and brought his bike to a halt. "Don't startle me like that!" he hissed.

"Apologies," said BooGene. "Just wondering if you want to know how your main is doing."

"Right now, I gotta keep my eyes on the road," said Nathan, resuming his trek, "and frankly, part of me doesn't want to know anymore. Last I checked, it didn't look good."

"Not for you," said Booverly, "but absolutely stellar for our King—who's also going to be your King very soon."

"That's right," laughed BooGene. "After he's done with Luigi, our King's coming for the entire Mushroom Kingdom, and then for Sarasaland, and then—the whole world! Whereupon he'll be known as—Emperor Boo."

"Overlord Boo is more fitting," Nathan said bitterly.

"Fear not," said BooGene. "You'll get used to him eventually."

Nathan flinched in disgust as BooGene licked up the side of his face.

"Whether Luigi wins or loses," said Nathan. "Your King will never be my King."

Nathan arrived at his house, parked his bike and cautiously entered.

There were signs of a brief struggle in the living room, and Nathan deduced that the Boos had dragged Toad into the bathroom before ending his game. Hesitating for a moment, he ventured toward the bathroom and saw the Mushroom Retainer, limp on the floor, Vicky's hair straightener still in his mouth. Sadly, Nathan moved to pull out the hair straightener but then paused, knowing that doing so would get his fingerprints on it and make him look like he was the culprit. He bowed his head, crossed himself and said a short prayer over Toad's body before returning to his living room.

There, Nathan booted up his laptop and signed back into his Spotify account. More messages from various Boos popped up, and Nathan ignored them. He opened Messenger, selected his conversation with Luigi and typed, When you get out of this, I'll make it up to you. I promise.

Then, he put on some music, went into the kitchen and fixed a snack. He ate while seated before the laptop, staring at the screen, waiting for something. Anything.

Nathan finished the snack and downed a glass of water. He logged onto YouTube and found some funny videos to watch, hoping to give his racing mind something to feed on.

But it was no good. It was impossible for those videos to entertain Nathan, with both Luigi's and Peach's fates still up in the air. The hoping and waiting was driving him mad. Perhaps it had driven him mad already.

The minutes dragged by. An unnerving chill crept into the room. There was complete silence save for Boos cackling—and not just BooGene and Booverly. More Boos had entered Nathan's house, watching him wait. Watching him slowly lose it. He could feel their breath against the back of his neck; he could feel their tongues brushing against his skin. A plethora of Boos were now gathered around him, savoring every moment of despair and desperation.