I followed the wire back to the main room, then decided to go search for the other switch, following the wire on the right this time. Hopefully activating the switch wouldn't be quite as difficult this time. At the moment, I didn't even care about finding more audio recordings. I just wanted to get Brooks back. 

I followed the wire up a set of stairs and into another large room, only this wasn't a workout room like the last rooms were. It looked like a large office. It was similar to the inner sanctum, only it lacked the platforms. I had no idea what it was used for. 

However, I wasn't alone.

I went still when I spotted her. Nastasia paced around the room with her hands on the side of her projector head, desperately trying to get the piece of technology off while she whimpered.

"Give it back... give it back..." She cried. She sounded devastated.

Was she really that upset over a dog whistle? A dog whistle that I didn't even end up using!

Whatever. The lights were on and I could see the switch on one of the walls adjacent to the one I was closest to. All I had to do was tiptoe over and activate it. It wasn't like she could see me anyway.

I slowly walked over to it and flipped it.

Unfortunately, while sending power to where I needed it to go, the switch also turned all the lights in that room off. While I was sure Nastasia couldn't see, it was clear she could detect the change in brightness, because she let out a loud scream, then started chasing after me.

I gasped and turned around to run, however, the faster I ran, the louder my footsteps were.

"GIVE IT BACK! GIVE IT BACK! I NEED IT!" She cried out. "I NEED IT SO HE CAN HELP GET THIS OFF AS HE PROMISED! GIVE IT BACK!"

"Take it!!" I cried, taking the dog whistle I had stolen from her and throwing it at her. However, she either didn't notice or didn't care, because she continued screaming and crying while chasing me.

She was right behind me, her inky hands reaching out toward me. I could feel my heartbeat in my throat. I wasn't sure why I was suddenly so afraid of her. Yes, she looked scary, but the Nastasia I used to know wasn't a fighter.

That was probably why I was scared. This wasn't the Nastasia I used to know. On top of that, Nastasia had been the one to initially brainwash me. I knew she was capable of doing a lot of damage, even if she did hardly get her hands dirty. 

I continued running, but she continued chasing. It was clear I wasn't going to lose her like I lost O'Chunks. Even while blind, it was clear that she had a good sense of her surroundings. She WAS a bat at one point, so she was probably good at relying on her hearing. Running couldn't be an option forever. I had to find a place to hide.

Without thinking, I ran into the large workout room and pulled open an old gym locker, hiding inside. It was clear she saw me because she continued approaching the locker, holding her hand out. I could see her through the slots in the metal.

I held my breath while she reached for the locker when a loud roaring noise suddenly echoed throughout the room. I flinched while Nastasia jumped and turned to the side, facing whatever it was that made such a loud noise.

I bit my tongue and could only watch the same thing that killed Dimentio, jump out and grab ahold of her throat, lifting her up. 

She continued screaming and crying, kicking her legs desperately when it used one of its large, claw-like hands to grab ahold of her head. 

I had to close my eyes and look away, but I could hear everything.

I could hear the sound of material being crushed.

I could hear her fall silent.

I could hear her drop to the floor.

Then, I could hear the retreating footsteps.

I didn't know what to do, so I just waited, keeping my eyes closed as if that would protect me. I wasn't sure how long I waited in that locker, but it felt like ages. At the same time, it didn't feel long enough.

When I did find the bravery to open my eyes and step out of the locker, I pretty much saw what I expected. 

Nastasia, lying on the floor in a pool of ink. The projector had been crushed, so I could see her face now. Or, what should have been her face... In reality, it was just a blank, inky head. She looked like the lost ones I had found earlier. The people who were hiding away, doing nothing but hoping for someone to come and rescue them.

For a second, I saw Dimentio when I looked down at her. I saw him lying there after being betrayed by someone he seemed to worship. I saw him, broken and alone.

I never did cry over him, did I?

No one cried over him, and no one cried over Nastasia. How horrible was that?

Dimentio and Nastasia... some of the first people who acted like I was more than Mario's little brother. Nastasia may have brainwashed me and manipulated me, but she never made me feel unimportant. Not even once. 

I took a deep breath, then stepped past her, following the power cord back to the train. I had to focus on saving Brooks. That was my main goal.

Still, I couldn't help but think about her. Nastasia had seemed so broken and scared. I know she was always incredibly loyal to the Count, but she was her own person too. She always acted like she didn't care, but she did. She was alive and she had feelings, even if she hid them rather well. 

If this really was all the count's fault, then I... I just can't believe he'd put someone like Nastasia through this. Someone who was nothing but faithful to him. Someone who willingly stood by his side all this time. 

A part of me truly believed he wouldn't do this. Not to her. Not even Count Bleck was that heartless, right? 

Whatever. I had a train to catch.

I made my way back to the small train. The metal doors were open now, so I sat down in the small cart and started the engine. I supposed I could have walked along the tracks, but I was tired. What? It's a legitimate excuse. 

Placed right on the seat next to me was yet another tape recording. I pressed play before starting the train, just in case it was something useful.

"I... don't like this. I don't like any of this. All I wanted was her. All I wanted was for the suffering and sadness to end. But now? I don't even know what's going on. This- this isn't my fault. I swear. I-I wouldn't do this. I'm a good person. I try so hard to be a good person. I just- *sob* I want her back. She'd know what to do. She'd know how to fix this. W-What have I done?! Dear Grambi, what have I done... It wasn't me, I swear. I-... I didn't want any of this."

-Blumiere

I frowned.

Blumiere? Who the heck was Blumiere?!

He sounded devastated and afraid. His voice was breathy as if he had been running. No, wait, let me rephrase. He sounded like he was in the middle of a panic attack. 

Most of the audios I had heard came from people I knew, so why was there something from this random guy down here? 

The cart started slowly moving through a few rooms that would not have been accessible otherwise. Most were empty storage rooms filled with tons of boxes and such. I had no idea why there was so much stuff packed away down there, but it didn't really matter to me. I already accepted the fact that nothing really made sense anymore. 

"And now, the ride truly begins, Elly~" Angel's voice echoed throughout the rooms while the train slowly continued through the rooms. "You know... it's a funny thing, how so much can fall apart so fast..."

Great, her voice was switching back and forth from being sweet to being cold once again. I was starting to feel really fed up with her. All I wanted was my Brooks back. Why was she being so difficult about it?! What could she gain from this?! Didn't she want to escape too? Or had she already given up on escaping?

"I just want what was promised to me... I just want to be beautiful," She breathed.

"Yeah, we all get it, you want to be pretty. You've said that like, at least seven times now," I huffed.

Of course, she couldn't hear me. 

"Mr. L... why are you here?" She cooed. "We're all dying to find out. Do you just enjoy the feeling of terror? Because if that's the case... hang on tight. I got a surprise."

She began to giggle, and when she did, she sounded exactly like the Mimi I knew. Not that hearing her old laugh was comforting. Mimi always had a really creepy laugh. Yes, she played the part of an adorable little girl, but there were some things about her that always gave me bad vibes. And don't even get me started on her true form. 

The train pulled into a large room with large, expensive-looking antiques on display. There was a beautiful chandelier hanging from the ceiling and an old record player that played a fancy tune. The entire room reminded me of those creepy, expensive hotels in Hollywood from the 1930s.

The train was about to pass through the room, into a much darker one, when a large hand came out of the darkness and grabbed ahold of the front of the train, making the cart stop.

I flinched and my heart dropped.

Brooks slowly leaned forward. But... he wasn't the same.

There were two X's over his eyes. His hands were much larger. A circular metal cage was attached to his neck, holding his head up. There were stitches all over him. He reminded me of Frankenstein's monster. 

"Brooks?!" I asked, paling slightly at the face. "Oh no... what has she done to you...?"

He stared at me for a second, then picked up the entire train cart off the tracks and threw it against the wall.

I flew from the cart and hit the floor. I could feel my head start to throb while Angel began to laugh from who even knew where.

"MEET THE NEW AND IMPROVED BROOKS!" Angel exclaimed. "I took what I wanted, and in return, gave him SO MUCH MORE! Brooks, dear, tear him apart! Leave NOTHING!"

Before I knew what was happening, Brooks picked up the train cart once again and threw it at me. I would have been crushed if I didn't roll to the side and avoid it at the last second.

"This can't be happening," I muttered under my breath, looking up at the monster that was once the only friendly face I knew. The only person, or wolf, or whatever he was, who wanted to help and not hurt.

Both the doors that led into and out of the room were now closed. I ran up to one, trying and failing to pry it open. It looked like running away wasn't an option. Neither was hiding.

I had fought Mario before, but I was usually the main attacker. I did not appreciate being on the other side of the battle. Plus, there was no time for me to build some sort of machine to aid me, nor were there any materials I could use.

Normally, I would give myself about a 50/50 chance of winning against Mario in hand-to-hand combat, but this wasn't exactly Mario. Whatever Angel had done to him had clearly made him stronger. It was like when Dimentio gave O'Chunks that floral sprout to turn him into O'Lettuce or whatever he called himself for those, like, five minutes.

"Okay, I-I just have to think," I breathed, when he suddenly jumped in front of me and grasped my throat, lifting me up to my toes.

I know stuff like this happens in movies a lot, but people fail to describe just how much it really hurts. I felt like I was being hanged or something. I couldn't breathe, I couldn't move, and I was completely at his mercy. All I could focus on was the crushing feeling of his hands gripping around my neck. 

"M-Mario," I barely coughed out.

He was unphased.

"It's me," I breathed. "It's L-... It's Luigi. Please just... please."

Ever since Nastasia brainwashed me, I had been thinking of myself as Mr. L and thinking of Luigi as someone else. However, at that moment, the line between them didn't seem so distinct anymore. I felt like Mario's brother, AND I felt like Mr. L. I had been trying to ignore the fact that I was still Luigi deep down, since I saw Luigi as a coward. But the truth was, Luigi always saw himself as a coward too. I was still Luigi. I had all his memories, I had all his emotions, I had everything he had. The only difference beforehand were our priorities, but at the moment, I believe we would have the same goal. 

Save ourselves, save Mario.

"Dang it, Mario. It's ME! Your brother! Just- just please recognize me! It's me!" I begged. "Why can't you recognize me?! It's me!"

He remained unphased.

I grit my teeth. My head began to throb more. It was becoming hard to think.

"R-remember when I saved you from that haunted house? That painting? I-I cried tears of joy once you were freed because I was so scared that I might have lost you. A-And remember when I saved you again, after the Dark Moon had been broken? You smiled and said you were proud of me. 'That's my bro,' you said. Please, don't take those moments away from me. Please, just remember. I can save you again, but you have to remember." 

Every word felt like a struggle. The corners of my vision were starting to turn black.

Then, his grip loosened.

I don't remember much of what happened next. I felt dizzy and sick. It felt like I was watching the world through a broken lens.

Mario kneeled down by me, placing the hand he was just using to choke me out on my shoulder.

Then, a knife stabbed right through the center of him.

"....Huh?" I muttered.

I could barely process what was going on until he started melting. The ink dripped onto me.

"No..." I whispered, my eyes widening slightly. I reached up for him as he continued to drip until he completely melted away and was nothing more than a puddle of ink.

"No, no, no!" I cried.

"NO, NO, NO!" Angel screamed as loudly as she could, glaring down at me. I hadn't even noticed she was there. 

She was the one who did this. 

How COULD she?!

I JUST got my brother back, and she already took him away.

She glared down at me, holding the knife she used to stab Mario and shaking violently.

"WHY CAN'T YOU EVER JUST DIE?!" She yelled at the top of her lungs, screaming then lunging for me when another knife suddenly stabbed all the way through her from behind.

She looked down at it, confused, then fell to the side, melting into a puddle just like Mario had.

I gasped, then shakily looked up to see who or what had saved me.

Then, I frowned, confused.

It was Angel and Brooks.