It was ironic, really. All that bravery, all he sacrificed to achieve freedom, and he still ended up right back where he started. Prince Luigi supposed that's what he got for being so trusting. It took every ounce of strength and bravery to take that step and run from Bowser's castle. He risked his life, he risked it all, and for what?! Now, he was back in the dark, behind bars.

The jester hadn't said much to him. How Luigi found himself in a dark and lonely cell was fairly boring, actually. The jester held his hand out to Prince Luigi, Luigi took it, then he was brought to this cage, which was miraculously smaller than the one in Bowser's castle.

The jester was gone. He hadn't visited since he brought Luigi to that dark, lonely place. It wasn't warm like the one in Bowser's castle. In fact, Luigi was freezing. It was practically pitch black down there, which was frightening. The prince could only hear the squeaking of mice occasionally, which sent chills down his spine. 

Mice and rats, now those were terrifying creatures. Especially the creepy ones with red eyes. Spiders could be handled with a shoe, but not rats, and one could argue that rats have the potential to cause much more damage.

Maybe Luigi was only this scared of them because of a short story he read years ago. He could never remember what it was called, but the story stuck with him throughout the years. A story of a man working in a remote lighthouse with one, maybe two other people. All was well until a ship of rats came in, infested with disease. These rats weren't cute or nice like the ones in the movies, they were vicious. One of the people working in the lighthouse died because of them, or maybe two people died. No... just one. One died, because of the infections from rat bites and scratches. The other didn't die, he just went mad enough to get sent to an asylum. Maybe he died in there, Luigi couldn't remember. The main character didn't perish, though. Even after being attacked, hospitalized, and practically driven mad, he ended the story right where he started, working in the lighthouse again. The brutal imagery of the rats flooding the stairs and attacking people isn't what terrified Luigi to his core, though. Well, it was, but what somehow felt even darker was the fact that no one was on the ship the rats had arrived on. How did they get there? Was there once a crew? Did the rats kill them first? How many more people would the rats kill?

Was Luigi next?

He might have been if the story was more than just that, a story. 

But weren't all stories more than stories?

Three Skeleton Key... that's what it was called, right? Creepy name for a creepy story that he hardly remembered anymore. He'd make a point to remember the name well this time. Three Skeleton Key, written by some French guy or something.

The prince's train of thought was broken by two soft voices talking. He couldn't tell where the words were coming from, as the walls were dark and damp, allowing sounds to bounce. It seemed the noise was coming from somewhere above, though. Maybe there was a dark staircase nearby.

"He's the one. I'm certain. I've been watching for long enough," one voice breathed. Prince Luigi recognized it, it must have belonged to the jester.

My most terrifying experience? Luigi thought to himself. The time I was trapped in the darkness with no true idea of who it was I was dealing with. 

This was different from being kidnapped by Bowser because he knew Bowser well enough to know that he wouldn't be killed. Bowser wasn't as common of an enemy as King Boo, but he was common enough for Luigi to know that while he was in danger, it wasn't real danger. 

This guy? This guy seemed like bad news. He had no idea what the jester was capable of, what his intentions were.

"Alright... is it cold down there? I can never tell. Why don't you give him some blankets and... explain the situation? We'll have him moved somewhere far more comfortable soon, be sure to promise him that," a second voice breathed, far gentler and kinder.

There was what must have been a silent response, then the sound of footsteps approaching. Luigi felt his body stiffen as he felt around for the edge of his cage. Eventually, he was able to grasp a few dark metal bars and pull himself up so he was standing. It was so dark that he couldn't see even two inches in front of himself, as if every ounce of light had been sucked away.

Three Skeleton Key–a story that was read to Luigi and Mario when they were both just kids. Back then, the two princes were inseparable. They were exposed to that story as part of their education. It was like an English class, only it was just the two of them. He must have been only eleven back then. 

The footsteps continued and a glowing yellow circle appeared, though it wasn't bright enough to illuminate much. Sound bounced off the walls, but not light, apparently.

Three Skeleton Key... Mario had fallen asleep during that lesson. Creepy stories like that always made him bored. While ghost stories left Prince Luigi terrified, they left Mario feeling more annoyed than anything.

"Is your eye always like that?" Luigi asked.

"Yes," the jester replied. Luigi couldn't see his face, he could see just half of the jester's mask. The lighter half–the half that allowed light to illuminate it. His eye yellow seemed to flicker slightly, like a match dancing in the darkness. Luigi had never seen anything like it before.

"Why am I here?" Luigi demanded, though his voice was small and timid. He was always bad at using his commanding prince-like voice. "Who are you?"

George G. Toudouze, that's who wrote it. Luigi remembered now because the last name sounded funny. It's always strange when people with such basic first names end up having the most unique last names. The same could be said in reverse, sometimes people would have the most ordinary last names yet the most extraordinary first ones. Sometimes, he wished he could have chosen his first name. It was his, after all. Why should he spend so much of his life living by someone else's decision?

"Dimentio, personal assistant to Countess Tippi," the jester stated, bowing slightly, though Luigi could hardly tell from how dark it was. "Although, you may call me the master of dimensions and the pleaser of crowds."

"I'll call you a criminal," Luigi breathed. "Answer my question! W-why have you put me down here?"

Three Skeleton Key... why was the story called that? It was the name of the rock, right? The rock with the lighthouse on it. It was called that because apparently three criminals–no... three convicts had escaped and gone there, only to die of starvation and dehydration. Criminals and convicts are different. Their skin was picked clean by birds and other ruthless creatures, though was the act ruthless? They were already dead, so it didn't matter. Still, it seemed ruthless. Why was that?

"Cold?" Dimentio asked, tossing a black blanket through the bars and into Luigi's cage. "Here, from my boss. And give me a moment. Tsk, tsk, so impatient, you princes."

"Princes? So Mario's here?" Luigi asked, grasping the blanket to himself. It was somehow colder than the air.

"Was," Dimentio shrugged. "But we're not talking about him. We're talking about you, and your role in this."

"My role in what?" Luigi asked.

The main character in Three Skeleton Key signed up to work the lighthouse when he was young and naive. He didn't know what he was getting himself into. He had ignored all the stories and warnings, not because he was stupid. He ignored them because he knew that's all they were. Stories.

"My countess is working on something big," Dimentio explained. "And, as the few educated people here know, the Light Prognosticus requires the girl in orange to host the Purity Heart."

Luigi felt his eyes squint slightly as he slowly nodded. What did that have to do with him? He wasn't a girl, and he never wore orange.

"And?" Luigi asked.

The narrator's time on Three Skeleton Key was well spent. He and his two fellow keepers had grown quite fond of their work, of their isolation. They had each other, after all. Luigi couldn't remember much, but they must have been close. Did it hurt the main character in the end to lose both of them in such horrible ways? Did he ever wish it was himself instead?

"And," Dimentio grinned. "On the other end of the spectrum, the Dark Prognosticus requires the man in green to host the Chaos Heart. So, to make sure things run smoothly, we've decided to keep you here."

Luigi shook his head. Man in green? Him? That could be thousands of people! He wasn't the only person in the world who wore green!

"No, no, no, no, I think you have the wrong person," Luigi quickly exclaimed. "I'm not part of the adventure. Ever. Whatever person is being talked about in this, Dark Proggy or something, it isn't me! I promise! I won't cause any trouble, just please let me go!"

The ship that brought the rats wasn't an ugly, rotting one. No, it was beautiful.

The jester clicked his tongue, then turned away, making the faint amount of light vanish from sight.

Hiding, he remembered the part in which the three men were hiding beneath a metal trapdoor. This worked for them because no matter how hard the rats tried, they couldn't chew through the metal. It wasn't like the wooden doorways they managed to break down using their fierce, sharp teeth. The metal was strong enough to protect them. The metal in front of Luigi couldn't save him, though. Maybe he was like the rats, trapped on the other end of it. Except, he wasn't a vicious monster. He wanted out, not in. That, he thought to himself, made him different. He had a different fuel for his desire to get through. No, he wasn't like the rats, he was like the three men. The ones who put themselves down there and trapped themselves. He wasn't trying to break out, he just wanted to hide, to be safe. Only he wasn't completely like them either. He was alone. There weren't three skeletons waiting with open arms for him to join them. There weren't two other skeletons who would join him on that journey. Three skeletons wouldn't turn into six, zero skeletons would turn into one, and that felt far more terrifying. He didn't want to be the only one. It was Three Skeleton Key, not One Skeleton Key. Why was he all alone? Heck, he would have settled for Two Skeleton Key, but not one. He couldn't do just one, he wasn't brave enough.

"No, don't go!" Luigi begged, reaching out between the bars, though the jester was too far from him for him to grasp. "I-I don't even know what's going on! Please–people need me! Where's Mario?! Do you have him–I-I want to speak to him! Please, Dimentio! Don't go—"

The rats cared for each other. Luigi remembered that. He remembered being sad when they died, but also relieved. Though, he couldn't remember how they died. It took sacrifice, he did know that. The narrator lost both of his friends that night. Probably lost part of himself, too. But the rats, they had more to lose because there were more of them. It was their fault, though. They were the ones who attacked. Their ferocity blinded them and led them to their demise. 

No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't picture how they died. Did they die? Or were they able to walk free at the end of it and continue to spread the horror? They were rats, after all. Did rats ever have to face the consequences of their actions?

"Ciao, L," Dimentio chuckled, briefly turning back to face him. "Don't fret, I won't harm you. I'm just after knowledge. Knowledge is power, after all."

He bowed his head slightly. Luigi couldn't see his smile, but the way the jester's glowing eye crinkled made him feel like he was being teased. It was like Dimentio knew what was going on in his head, knew how terrified he was. 

"We'll speak again soon," the jester said, though Luigi didn't feel reassured.