Two-thousand years ago...

Legend tells of a historic battle between the Elemental Overlord and the Dark King, that they fought as representatives of Heaven and Hell. Their lives ended in this battle, but their powers were left behind to be passed on to a new generation...

E. Gadd, genius scientist of the Mushroom Kingdom, happened upon a tablet detailing the prophecy of the Elemental Overlord's return, tasking Mario with finding the seven elemental stones connected to his powers.

But first, using E. Gadd's newest invention, the Stargadd, Mario is sent off to very specific coordinates on the planet Earth to find the Overlord's successor.

On Earth, a young boy named Alex Whiter is busy mountain climbing near his home when a chance encounter with a wily billy goat leads to him getting knocked off the mountain...And right on top of Mario.

After apologizing for knocking him out, Alex seems to recognize Mario, much to the plumber's confusion. The two go into Alex's house and discuss things over a piping hot plate of spaghetti.

Mario learns that he's a fictional character in this world, while Alex learns of the prophecy. But Alex has his doubts, especially over how specific the coordinates were. Nevertheless, he's convinced by Mario to come back to the Mushroom Kingdom and fulfill the prophecy.

Upon their return they find E. Gadd knocked unconscious. The culprits? Cackletta and Fawful, back from the dead...

Mario and Alex confront the two outside E. Gadd's lab as they are causing havoc in Toad Town. After some forced tutorializing for Alex's benefit, Mario takes Cackletta and leaves Fawful to Alex.

After a bit of fighting, whereas Alex somehow survives having a log tossed at him, Cackletta nearly throws Alex into a pit. However, Alex reveals he can fly, and punts Cackletta into a house while she's surprised.

Chuckling ominously, Cackletta retreats with Fawful in tow. Then, Mario and Alex return to check up on E. Gadd, with Mario curious as to how Alex can fly.

E. Gadd is fine. Turns out he cleans up fast. So after Alex introduces himself, E. Gadd worries about what Cackletta wanted with the tablet, and discusses the location of the first temple with the two.

He needs some time to translate the ancient Beanbean language used to hide the first temple's location, so Mario decides to give Alex a brief tour of Toad Town.

Though first, not without pressing him on his ability to fly. Alex passes it off as something he learned from "a scroll surrounded by seven magic balls".

First the two go to the Item Shop and pick up a few necessities for their journey. Then they decide to go visit Princess Peach and let her know about their journey.

Peach is worried about Cackletta's return, but Mario assures her they'll be fine. On the way out, THE Toad hands them a communicator from E. Gadd. Then THE Toad leaves, carried off by the gently winds, never to be seen again come the Great Generic Toad Migration of 2012...

Returning to the lab, E. Gadd directs the two towards the woods north of Toad Town, known only as the "Osagi Woods". He claims it to be a maze that no one has ever escaped from BUT, the tablet leaves a hint behind suggesting that if one follows the "blue petals", they can make it through.

So Mario and Alex leave to the woods. Alex is stunned by the beauty in the woods, so much so that he almost fails to see an enemy attacking.

The two are attacked briefly by a strange looking Crayzee Dayzee with a body of vines and blue petals. Once Mario helps clear up any misunderstandings the Crayzee Dayzee introduces himself as Driadius Carnation Aloevera Liondande the First..."Driad" for short.

It turns out he's very familiar with the woods and knows how to guide Mario and Alex to the Nature Castle. So without hesitation, Driad is allowed to join the party.

They follow him through the woods and learn more about his relationship with it. He has a friendly connection to the wolves in the area for some odd reason and tends to bury the people that die here getting lost.

Eventually they come upon the Nature Castle. But before they can enter they are ambushed by the "Synth Spirit", a green-ish Boo with control over the Piranha Plants infesting the entrance.

This is an Outer Guardian, as Driad describes. With the powerful knowledge of chloroplasts at their disposal, the trio manages to oust the odd Boo from hiding and put it down for good, allowing them inside.

Upon entering the castle Driad notices some claw marks on the walls and is disturbed to see them here, as none of the wolves should have been able to get inside...

The trio then explore the castle some, evading the Elemental Overlord's traps, and learning that Driad excretes delicious honey when he's nervous!

At the top of the castle Mario's weary of how easy everything has been, while Alex goes right for the stone on the throne. Driad tries to warn him, too little, too late, that the stone is boobie trapped.

Alex's touch unleashes the stone's guardian, the Gaiden Plant, a bear-like titan coated in leaves and moss. The trio then fight the beast, with Mario's fireballs unable to do anything as long as it stands in sunlight.

But by using some clever tactics including the POW Block Mario snagged back in Toad Town, they are able to best the beast by using its weight against it.

In its dying moments, however, the titan seems familiar with Driad...

Nevertheless, grabbing the first stone of seven, the trio begin their trek back to Toad Town.

Back in town the trio heads for E. Gadd's lab and prepares to introduce him to Driad and report on their progress. However, Driad had slipped out of their sight when they weren't looking.

Mario and Alex started looking around town when suddenly, Alex has an encounter with a lanky boy his age brandishing a knife and demanding his blood.

This bloodthirsty child, Joe Dark, swears revenge and attacks Alex, only for Mario to run interference. Mario is concerned about Joe Dark brandishing a knife with the intent to harm and fights in Alex's defense.

But Joe Dark reveals that he too can fly, and nearly uses this surprise to take Alex's head. Its only because of Driad coming in and throwing Joe Dark away in rage that they manage to survive.

Driad shyly admits that he just wanted to have a Maple Syrup, but had no money. Mario feeds him, and then, after checking to see if Alex is ok, they return to E. Gadd's lab.

E. Gadd is fascinated by Driad's body and has to be restrained a bit from examining him closely.

E. Gadd then apologizes for not letting them know sooner about Joe Dark, and immediately goes on to divulge the information about the second temple's location...The Aqua Palace, hidden under the waters near Toad Town.

Meanwhile, Cackletta and Fawful approach the unconscious Joe Dark with nefarious intent in mind...

The trio head to the Toad Town docks and try to figure out how to access the Aqua Palace. In the meantime, Alex and Driad begin to form a brotherly bond.

Eventually Alex pieces together that they can use the Nature Stone they picked up to filter in the sunlight and split the seas beneath them temporarily, granting them access to the Aqua Palace.

But first they have to contend with the Outer Guardian, the Gecko Hydra, a mutated Chain Chomp/Eel hybrid. Struggling to land any hits on the slippery beast due to its slimy outer skin, all hope seems lost when they are saved by unexpected help...

Luigi.

In a shocking act of bravery, Luigi attacks the Outer Guardian head on with a Super Conductor Punch, besting it instantly.

Then he says hello to his brother and the two new guys before explaining that E. Gadd made an emergency call to him for assistance, so he flew out from Sarassaland as fast as he could to help.

Thus they head inside, but not without Driad noticing a strange lack of a guardian like him outside...

Their first obstacle in this temple is a massive pool of water filled with enemies. Donning a Frog Suit, Mario dives down and fends the enemies off until he finds the switch to drain the water enough for them to progress.

They keep going on their way, solving a couple more water related puzzles until they arrive at the stone...Only to be surprised to find that Joe Dark has already found it, mentioning an allegiance with Cackletta.

Joe Dark's rashness causes him to awaken the Liquidizer Alpha, the Inner Guardian, a robot with hoses for arms, which proceeds to blast him right out of the temple with high pressurized water. He lives, of course.

The rest of the group begin a drawn out fight with the Inner Guardian as it begins to flood the insides of the palace to drown them.

Alex and Driad eventually get captured inside the machine, where they find the stone trapped inside. Driad charges up his energy to full power and unleashes his Photon Blazer to destroy the cage holding the stone and defeat the Inner Guardian.

But in doing so, he begins to wilt and collapses...

Meanwhile, Cackletta and Fawful round up Joe Dark in a desert on the outskirts of Toad Town. Angered, he begins to show signs of dark energy that he aims at Cackletta, who casually brushes it aside, but seems proud of his progress, inciting him to keep pressing onward. And a voice from beyond seems to be urging him forward too.

Back in town, Mario and the others are concerned for Driad's weakened state. But E. Gadd assures him he'll be fine. He's just lost a healthy helping of Vitamin D, and needs time to recharge.

So while night's fallen, the heroes decide to go get some rest to recharge themselves for the next day. Along the way though, Alex is curious as to how Luigi is so courageous now, but the man in green dodges the question with expert Action Command usage.

Their movements are being watched by a couple of people, one who calls himself a "Lieutenant" and another known as a "Commander". They seem to know about the Elemental Overlord too...

Also, Bowser starts making his move alongside his nervous, crabby cohort, Kamek. He too, seems to recognize what's going on.

The next day after some shenanigans involving pancakes, the Mario Bros. and Alex prepare to pick up Driad. Turns out he's gotten a heaping helping of Vitamin D and has gone bonkers, forcing E. Gadd to knock him out with a couple tranqs.

Afterwards he hands the heroes a pot designed to fill Driad with solar energy during the night, along with information on where the next temple, aptly named the Sky Temple, is located.

It'll be a trip of nostalgia for Mario, as they'll be heading for Nimbus Land, home of his former ally Mallow. Taking the Cloud Taxi to the skies, they reach the city in no time. But on the way, Driad mentions having some strange dreams lately, even though he's never had them before.

Upon arriving in Nimbus Land the group are escorted into the palace to meet Mallow, who has matured a little bit in the years since his adventure with Mario. They enlist his aid in searching for the Sky Temple. It turns out that around noon and only noon, a stone temple briefly materializes in front of Nimbus Land.

Believing this to be their destination, the group has Mallow use his weather powers to extend a cloud bridge to the temple, where he then decides to stick around as a permanent ally for a bit, just like old times.

The Outer Guardian of this temple is a Lakitu by the name of Skyus. The Lakitu poignantly reveals to Driad that there is no such thing as a "Good Guardian", and that he is, in reality, a former Outer Guardian of the Nature Castle.

The revelation devastates Driad, who begins to question his memories and feelings of doubt up until this point. Skyus reveals also that the Elemental Overlord had put this system in place to ensure there'd always be Guardians protecting the temples. Even if someone unworthy came up and defeated the Outer Guardian, the system would just replace that Guardian with the person who defeated them. But the guardian would live, just without their memories or full power.

Alex has to talk Driad out of his doubts and through finding new resolve thanks to these new friends he has, Driad defeats Skyus handily.

Skyus then reveals in his dying moments that he empathized with Driad's struggle because he suffered the same ordeal once before, having learned the burden of reclaiming his memories, and the lives he's taken in his time as a Guardian. He leaves this world, imparting Driad with a curiosity as to why they have to exist like this in the first place.

Through the use of Cloud Flowers, the group traverses the rainbow-y insides of the Sky Temple until they reach the next stone. This time, the Inner Guardian surprises the group by revealing that he's a sentient lifeform. In fact, he appears to be human, just wearing a mask.

He answers some questions regarding the nature of the stones until his mask starts causing him to seek battle. He is the Storm Emperor, and his winds howl with a ferocious wrath throughout the room as the battle begins.

The Storm Emperor proves to be the toughest foe so far, throwing everyone for a loop with his mighty wind attacks and mastery of the blade. He finds a worthy opponent in Luigi, who seems to be attacking without fear.

Eventually it boils down to Mario and Driad using their powers in combination with one of the Storm Emperor's attacks to defeat him.

In defeat, the Storm Emperor, revealing his name to be Fujin, is proud of his opponents for defeating him and says that they are on their way to fulfilling the Elemental Overlord's wishes.

The others forces in this story begin to make their move. Joe Dark lies in wait in a desert at Cackletta's suggestion. Bowser finds some lost archives in his castle regarding the Elemental Overlord and prepares to head for an island in the middle of the Mushroom Sea. Meanwhile, a figure called "Lieutenant Gemini" is commanded to help Mario and the others against Cackletta.

That night, while Mario and Luigi rest, Alex sits outside on a cloud and whistles a Mozart tune while Driad checks up on him. Alex reveals the music is something his mother used to sing to help him sleep.

Driad tries to learn some more about Alex but oddly enough, Alex sounds very reluctant talking about his past.

The next day the group returns to Toad Town and, after giving E. Gadd an update, learn the next temple's location. But Mario first wants to say hello to Peach and let her know everything is alright.

Peach appears to be speaking to a familiar face before Mario, Luigi and Mallow appear. There's some words of reunion passed between old friends, after which they join back up with Alex and Driad to get a move on.

They have to hitch a ride out to sea to reach the next temple, so Mario calls upon the help of the whale from Paper Mario 64 to ferry them out to the Lightning Palace.

Upon arriving they the group is shocked to find Bowser and Kamek in battle with the Outer Guardian, Blitzkreig, a giant roided up Koopa.

Bowser is equally stunned by Mario's appearance and retreats with Kamek to let his nemesis handle this fight. But it all turns out to be a feint, as Bowser has plans to kidnap Peach while he knows Mario's distracted...

Mario and company engage Blitzkreig, who quickly makes work of them with his terrifying lightning powers, and ensnares them in a cage so they'll be put on display for the next idiots who dare come here.

But not long after, a yellow-shelled Koopa arrives on the scene, taunting the Outer Guardian by calling him a punk.

The little Koopa fights the bigger one and topples him over with ease, forcing him to break his limiters and absorb lightning from the skies above to grow bigger and stronger.

But the smaller Koopa reveals that he too, controls electricity, and overloads the Outer Guardian until his heart can no longer take it and he falls.

Freeing Mario and friends from the electric cage, he reveals himself as Lieutenant Gemini of the M.S.I., an ally to the group.

M.S.I. stands for Mushroom Secret/Spy Industry. They are a group hidden away, always assisting in affairs that Mario and Luigi cannot handle, such as wildfires and espionage.

After detailing his role and why he's here, Gemini forces himself into the group despite Mario's initial distrust. Gemini then gives some choice words to Alex about how he needs to protect his life like its his greatest treasure, and they enter the Lightning Palace.

This temple is armed with voice sensitive traps that force the group to move on while whispering ideas to each other. Driad and Gemini prove to be of great aid in bypassing some of the deadlier traps, while Mallow and Luigi chip in with their powers too.

At the end of the road they once again find the next Inner Guardian, a small djinn by the name of, uhhhh...Lightning Djinn.

In a drastic change from the norm, the Djinn challenges the group to an electrifying game of chess, using the party members as pieces on their side.

Gemini and Alex are the only two who know how to play chess, so Gemini takes the lead due to Alex's lack of confidence.

But at one point, Gemini is forced to sacrifice himself to set up Alex to lead the group to victory. He doesn't seem scared, and by putting his faith in Alex's capabilities and determination they are able to barely win the chess game and secure the Lightning Stone from the cheery Djinn.

However, the moment Gemini has returned, he receives a message from his Commander, Alpha. Bowser is attacking Peach's Castle, laying waste to the interior with his bittersweet flames as he approaches Peach herself.

With the help of Gemini's invisible jet, the group rockets back to Toad Town, totaling the jet in the process.

In the burning castle, Mario questions Toadsworth on what happened. Turns out, no one, not Toadsworth, Gemini, or his benefactor Alpha, know where Bowser has gone.

The terror of this revelation causes Mario to have a heart attack and go unconscious.

Meanwhile, the Star Spirits begin to gather to discuss the recent events, perturbed by the movements of Cackletta, Bowser, and Alpha in particular. Out of concern for their world, they decide to send a certain herald of the stars to the planet to aid Mario and crew "once again".

The next day Mario awakens to the news of the next temple's location, the Terra Cave, just south of Moleville. With a renewed sense of spirit Mario decides they'll keep pressing on and soon enough, they'll run into Bowser and find Peach again.

But little did they know, Joe Dark was waiting for them on the outskirts of Moleville, with a dark energy emanating from his fingertips...

The heroes arrive in Moleville but the visit isn't to last. They have to head into the desert nearby to reach the Terra Cave.

The winds are hot and howling but Gemini is able to use a sunscreen formula developed by Alpha to shield them from the harsh sunlight.

They then trek through the sands. Along the way, Gemini acts on edge, believing they are being watched. His suspicions prove accurate when Joe Dark suddenly attacks.

Joe Dark now appears stronger than he was before, prompting Gemini to keep Alex out of the fight for his safety. Alex wants to fight, but Mario keeps him at bay and tries to join Gemini in the fight.

Gemini denies him, saying he can handle Joe Dark on his own with one move. His secret technique, Voltage Arts: Nine Sparks Pinwheel, however, does not manage to do the job against the stronger Joe Dark.

Joe Dark then prepares to attack the group wholesale from the safety of the sky when suddenly, his attack is broken by a starry light.

Their newest savior is a familiar face to Mario and Mallow. Its their old friend, Geno, returned to his doll body.

Geno seemingly finishes Joe Dark off and lets him fall into the sand dead. After which he reunites with his former allies and new faces, showing a bit of hesitation towards Driad in particular.

With introductions out of the way Geno becomes a permanent part of the group from here on out and follows them onward to the Terra Cave, where they encounter the next Outer Guardian, another robot with strange wiggly limbs and drills.

Before they can even get to fighting the Guardian, Fawful makes his return at long last, spouting his quirky language as he hijacks the robot to fight the heroes. The newly created Terrawful actually proves to be a legitimate threat to the group, as they haven't had time to really work together as a team yet.

So using this as an opportunity to develop their teamwork, the group eventually realizes the Guardian's weakness and set up an opportunity for Geno to strike it with all his might.

But Fawful refuses to relent, prompting Gemini to take out of the robot's legs so it would topple under its own weight from Geno's attack.

The robot drills into the surface, while Fawful retreats, swearing revenge. Then, the group finally get to head into the temple.

Soon after they are forced to split up down different paths to open the way forward.

Alex and Gemini has to deal with falling rocks in the dark.

Mallow, Geno and Driad get to spend some together. But during their trek, Geno pulls Driad over and says he wants to talk with him in private atop Shooting Star Summit later on.

With Mario and Luigi, however, Mario confronts Luigi on his strange bouts of courage recently. Luigi says he's actually still been afraid this entire time, he's just gotten better at hiding it.

He wants to be braver for Daisy's sake, citing his feelings of inferiority towards his brother.

But Mario says that Luigi has always been brave in his own way, and is proud to call him his brother. He also regrets stealing some of the spotlight from him, and they share a hug to reaffirm their bonds as brothers.

After getting everything they need to create the Light Stone necessary to move on, they proceed to the next part of the temple...Only for the ground to break beneath their feet, and the group sans Alex to go tumbling down a perilous chasm.

Alex can only save a couple people and doesn't know what to do. The situation looks grim, and Gemini feels pressured to reveal his deadly secret in order for them to survive.

But before he can do that Mario tosses Alex the Nature Stone and tells him to return to Earth, having E. Gadd destroy the Stargadd so Cackletta cannot claim the Elemental Overlord's power.

He then thanks Alex for playing his games and seems ready to embrace death.

Alex REFUSES. Fueled by his determination, Alex forces the Wind Stone to obey his command and to his surprise, the Inner Guardian's power is called upon to save the others with a soft, fluffy cloud.

With their lives safe for now, the group takes a moment to figure out what happened. Fujin's voice comes out to explain some things in greater detail, confirming to Alex that they can use a Guardian's power after a certain period of time, which shortens the more stones they have gathered.

At the bottom of the chasm is the way forward to the Earth Stone. As the group attempts to claim it, the robot from earlier drops down and starts malfunctioning, grabbing hold of the stone and absorbing it into its systems to be reborn stronger than ever.

A deadly battle ensues with the heroes barely scraping by a victory. In its final moments the robot attempts to bury the group with a magnitude eight earthquake, but everyone makes it out with some help from Gemini's electricity.

The mysterious Commander Alpha watches Cackletta make a move on the sixth temple in the icy mountains about Shiver Village, and prepares to enter the fray himself, swearing vengeance on the witch...

Meanwhile, Joe Dark crawls through the deserts, tormented by a demonic voice that offers him promises of power...and revenge upon Alex Whiter. Joe Dark readily agrees, and continues to drag himself through the sands through pain, blood, and anger.

Back in Toad Town, or rather, Shooting Star Summit, Geno is enjoying a little star-gazing before Driad arrives.

Once the Crayzee Dayzee appears Geno reveals the truth...That he was watching over the moment Driad lost his powers and memories as an Outer Guardian, and did nothing to help.

He calls it his sole regret in life, and while Driad is at first upset, he comes to understand the reasoning as to why Geno was unable to help and forgives him.

Mario is busy talking to E. Gadd so they can be ready for tomorrow. E. Gadd reveals the last two temple names. The Frozen Palace and the Ignitor Cave. Also, thanks to some parts he had delivered a day ago, he's able to hand over an upgraded F.L.U.D.D. to assist Mario on the rest of his quest.

Everyone else rests up for the night and tends to their wounds, knowing that things were only going to get tougher from here on out.

Alex and Gemini spend the next morning recovering from the damage they sustained in the last battle. Alex has bad dreams, reminding him of some sort of "killing", but Gemini brushes it off as nightmares caused by his pain.

After using his powers to fight through his own pain, Gemini treats Alex to some breakfast while they wait for the others to awake and gather back in Toad Town.

Everyone meets back up later and prepares to head off to the next temple, the Frozen Palace, located even higher than the Crystal Palace Mario ventured to a while ago.

Once everyone is properly clothed and heated they begin scaling Shiver Mountain, fending off the pressure from such a high elevation.

Suddenly the weather gets incredibly harsh, and everyone sans Alex and Driad are trapped in blocks of ice by the Outer Guardian, a golem with a big bulging eye.

Alex takes charge and attacks the golem despite being severely outmatched. All the while, Driad starts becoming paralyzed by the feeling of a heart beat inside of him, which causes him to remember the origin of his birth. And with it, he starts to reclaim his lost powers, transforming him into a floral wolf.

The newly reborn Driad easily takes care of the Ice Golem, almost too well. His newfound ferocity scares Alex, who struggles to snap Driad out of his rage.

Driad regrets what he's done, and tries to hold back his power around the eyes of his friends after they had been thawed out. But Gemini suspects Driad after seeing a wood splinter in the Golem's eye.

Some traversing through the Frozen Palace later, the heroes arrive at the Stone's location...and are greeted by Cackletta, effortlessly holding onto the stone, and taunting the group with ominous words towards Gemini in particular.

She then uses her dark magic to revive the Crystal King and infuse him with the Ice Stone's power to create a far more difficult foe than Mario faced back then.

And the empowered Crystal King manages to slowly wear down all the heroes until only Gemini is left standing. Pinned against a wall, Gemini's odds of survival seem dwindling until suddenly, a beam of pure ion energy annihilates the Crystal King for good.

Then in comes the group's savior...A Goomba with mechanical arms, eyepatch, and gruff expression. He is the Commander Alpha that Gemini spoke so highly of, and him and Cackletta appear to share a history.

Alpha and Cackletta exchange words regarding their history and motivations before Alpha tries to incinerate her without hesitation. But it turns out the Cackletta here has been a projection for a while now, and she laughs at his vain efforts.

After Gemini has gotten everyone else back up with some quick volts to the heart, Alpha introduces himself to the understandably bewildered group, and tells them he'll be joining their team from here on out.

He leads them back outside to his ride while Gemini receives word from the base that the splinter he gave them did indeed belong to Driad...

Alpha, however, berates him for not using "that" power, which Gemini struggles with due to his views on how the others would perceive him if he were to unleash "that".

As the heroes prepare to return to Toad Town, Bowser finally makes his move on the last temple.

Everyone splits up back in Toad Town to assort through their own affairs. Alpha and Mario meet up with E. Gadd, whom Alpha turns out to have been in contact with in the past. E. Gadd reveals the existence of a possible eighth elemental temple, but the tablet is cracked, leaving the meaning of the message incomplete.

Driad curses his lack of control and wonders if it was worth it to regain his memories. Geno consults the Star Spirits over Cackletta, and learns that she's been around for two-thousand years. Her similarity to the Bean People is merely an odd coincidence. Geno ruminates over why Cackletta hasn't made a move on the elemental stones before now, but Eldstar has no answers.

Nevertheless, Eldstar says Geno's a "son" to him, and regrets putting him in danger like this again. Geno, much to his surprise, cries.

Before the night truly falls, Alpha confronts Gemini again over not using his powers. Gemini feels like he should not be so hesitant in the coming battles, as things are only going to get worse.

Then, Alpha tries to have a talk with Alex regarding Joe Dark. Alex reconfirms that no, he doesn't recognize Joe Dark at all. Alpha determines he isn't lying, but that only worries him more.

Joe Dark is still alive, and dark times are coming to the planet because of it...

The final temple is located in the Nova Cesspool, a grim and very dangerous locale where only Koopas can survive due to their unique biology.

But fortunately Alpha has devised a way for everyone else to survive. Alex uses the Wind Stone to give everyone a barrier that'll filter out all the excess carbon dioxide and acid in the air. But they'll still have to avoid the lava plumes going forward.

After careful tip-toeing through the Nova Cesspool, they arrive outside the Ignitor Cave and notice that the Outer Guardian has already been dealt with by Bowser.

In its place, the Koopa King has left behind a fiery Gobbleguts with its weakspots protected by thick metal plates. After evading the massive serpentine creature for a while, Alpha commands Gemini to use "that", and he does so without hesitation.

Gemini unveils a metallic goop from his shell that gives him a spiked helmet and demonic wings, along with a trident. He then unleashes black lightning upon the Gobbleguts, instantly melting all his metal plates and allowing his comrades to pop his ulcer boils to finish it off.

Gemini explains he has a demon's heart from another dimension inside of his body, but doesn't clarify further, even though they're all his friends.

After preparing themselves one last time, the group enters the cave ready to confront Bowser, rescue Peach, and acquire the final stone.

The heroes traverse the Ignitor Cave, breaking through the illusion of lava in the rivers below, and descending down a staircase as hot as a microwave corridor.

The group starts to collapse one by one from exhaustion, until only Alpha is left standing, noticing that Kamek is slowly approaching them...

Mario, Luigi, Gemini and Alex go through nightmares related to Bowser with differing degrees of seriousness. However, Alpha, Mallow, Geno and Driad have nothing to fear from Bowser and attack Kamek, breaking his hold on the others.

Alpha then taunts Kamek for being a fool, claiming that HE killed Bowser's tyrant father thirty years ago. Kamek flees, and the one's trapped in the nightmare are woken up.

Bowser awaits up ahead, so the group make their final preparations.

Before reaching the end of the last tunnel in the cave the group go over Bowser's ambitions one more time. Alpha reminds the group that all Bowser needs to do to win is eliminate Mario and keep Peach in his grasp. Mario has none of that, and punches Alpha.

Then they reach Bowser at long last, who's confidently standing his ground with the Fire Stone in hand. Everyone tries to assume he beat the Inner Guardian, but the truth is far uglier than they could've possibly imagined.

One of Bowser's ancestors fought and defeated the Inner Guardian, and in doing so, imparted the knowledge of the other stones to future generations while creating the Nova Cesspool so only his family blood could reach it.

And not only that, a spell is applied to the stone itself that keeps the Inner Guardian from activating so long as someone of the royal Koopa bloodline touches it.

Bowser swallows the Fire Stone and gains incredible power, then locks Mario into solo combat underneath a fiery dome. Declaring he's had enough of Mario's interference, Bowser plans to end Mario for good.

With the help of a boosted F.L.U.D.D. Mario manages to stand toe-to-toe with Inferno Bowser and seemingly defeats him.

However, Bowser pulls off one last ploy and manages to perform a sneak attack that incapacitates Mario and allows the Koopa King to use him as a hostage against the other heroes.

He then forces them to decide. Either he kills Mario, or Kamek kills Peach.

Sensing that the Fire Stone has corrupted Bowser's mind and made his threats no mere talk, Alpha commands Alex to hand over the other stones.

Reluctantly doing so under the belief Alpha has a plan, all parties are then surprised when the stones gather around Bowser and zap him. Bowser suddenly turns into Giga Bowser and goes on a mindless rampage, threatening the entire planet if he isn't stopped here.

This Giga Bowser is different from the one Mario and Luigi is familiar with. The elemental stones in its body allow it to fend off one elemental attack at a time, and while he uses his incredible defense Giga Bowser picks off the heroes one by one with his overwhelming offense.

Alpha cultivates a plan to deal with the beast but is knocked out before it seems to go off. However, Gemini picks up on what his Commander was doing and with Mallow and Driad's help, manages to deliver a decisive blow to the weak point Mario caused earlier and returns Bowser back to normal.

Bowser makes one last attempt to kidnap Peach but Mario stands up just long enough to knock Bowser away. Bowser laughs, swearing he'll be back to continue their feud some other time.

Now with the last stone in hand, Alpha calls up his helicopter so they can return to Toad Town and rest for one last night.

During this final night, Driad and Gemini talk with one another about their cursed powers, and decide to get some last minute training in to prepare themselves for the final battles ahead.

Geno has lost contact with the Star Spirits, and worries over the disappearing stars in the sky. In the meanwhile, a certain space princess speaks with both Princess Peach and the Star Spirits, saying she is prepared to come and fight the evil that approaches the planet.

But the most important events of the night involve Alpha and Alex. Kidnapping him from his bed as he sleeps, Alpha straps Alex to one of his machines and tries to determine what's the truth and what's a lie.

Alex once again confirms that he knows nothing about Joe Dark, but when it comes to whether or not his parents are alive...Alex lies, and is electrocuted for it.

Alpha continues to press Alex, who suffers electrocution after electrocution out of a stubbornness to be honest until Mario manages to bail him out and gets ready to confront Alpha.

But Alex relents, and decides to tell everyone the truth about his parents in the morning.

His story is as such...His parents have been dead for five years, struck down by a comet from space, allegedly. He was then taken in by the FBI, who sheltered him while he learned how to fend for himself on his own.

Driad is the first to comfort Alex over the loss of his parents, but everyone else soon follows. Alex is happy to be with people who care.

Now, all that's left is to head to the Origin Temple via E. Gadd's Stargadd, and get Alex to claim the Elemental Overlord's power.

E. Gadd warns the group that this could potentially be a one-way trip, but at this point no one is hesitant to continue on to the final tremple.

Once arriving at the strange fog-covered lands, they cross a path through the woods to the temple itself. Along the way they appear to trigger the awakening of seven warriors, dormant in the temple.

At the entrance to the temple they run into a strange cloaked guy who speaks Spanish at first, then switches to English. He calls himself Darwin Serenta, a warrior who once tried to get the Overlord's power but, upon losing to the warriors inside, was cursed to wander the fog until the Overlord returns.

After passing off his warning he disappears into the fog, and the heroes enter inside.

The seven warriors aside hold a meeting, worried about the presence of Cackletta, but nevertheless, vowing to defend the temple from unworthy outsiders.

The first floor is Nature, just as the first stone was the same. The first warrior is a young girl named Acai Rose, who carries a whip and clothes herself in a variety of plants. She is one of the Genesis Samurais.

Acai introduces everyone to the rules of the temple. One person is left to fight her, while everyone else moves on to the next floor.

After some quick discussion Driad volunteers to fight, a battle of nature vs. nature. Gemini trusts him given their recent training, and with that the group continues on to the next floor.

Driad and Acai exchange introductions and begin a furious battle. Acai hosts a variety of techniques that puts Driad on the edge, but he pulls out some new skills he learned from his time training with Gemini.

For the final blow, Driad tanks through Acai's ultimate attack "Radiant Gaia", and winds her with a blow to the gut. He refuses to kill her despite her pleas, and carries her on his back to the next floor to join back up with the others.

Alex is worried about Driad, but Gemini and Geno assured him that he's fighting for his own honor and redemption at this point.

The second floor is water, home to Tina Aqua. Metaphorically referring to Acai as her "sister", she challenges the heroes to combat.

The group picks Mallow when Luigi and Gemini choose chivalry over combat this time. Mallow agrees to fight, believing his weather spells will be extra effective against a water opponent.

But Tina commands a rather peculiar type of water that can absorb electricity and render it ineffective. She tosses Mallow around for quite a while and abandons him on the sole marble platform where, much to his eternal dismay, he can't jump away from.

However, with some clever use of snow, electricity and rain, he manages to defeat Tina without moving from this spot. Tina becomes enamored with the little cloud, much to Mallow's embarrassment. The two press on to the next floor to catch up with the others.

The subject of trust comes up regarding Alpha, now that their numbers are dwindling. Alpha ensures the group that no matter his reasons, he'll always have the planet's safety in mind.

But that doesn't fly with Mario, who continues to distrust the Goomba, even when he offers to stay behind in the next room full of fog.

Alpha identifies the room's Genesis Samurai immediately, who greets him without hesitation, and introduces himself as Darnia Stratos.

Alpha and Darnia do not mince words for long and begin to fight. Darnia's strange scythe easily pulls the oxygen from Alpha's lungs, while the fog grows thicker from the clouded nature in the Goomba's heart.

But Alpha is able to press on, for he says he had lost his mortality long ago, and has become more machine than flesh. Unveiling his cybernetic eye, Alpha is able to briefly turn the tides against Darnia and uncover him among the fog.

Its nothing enough though. He has to bust out one of his secret techniques, the Senki Soni First Style: Peaceful Dragon, in order to grab hold of Darnia and blast him with ion energy.

In his old age Darnia goes down easily from this one attack, but laughs out of respect towards his opponent.

Alpha tries to get some answers out of Darnia regarding the agelessness of the Samurai, but its not use. Darnia directs him to the next floor, citing that there's still much to be done.

Things escalate greatly on the next floor. Worried about the presence of Cackletta and possibly another dangerous threat, the Electric Samurai, Pitori Sparks, tricks Gemini, Geno and Luigi into a 3v3 while Mario and Alex move on.

Gemini is matched against Pitori, Geno faces the Earth Samurai Ezekial Gaia, and Luigi tackles Cecilia Frost the Ice Samurai.

Through an incredibly long and arduous to read series of bouts, the heroes prevail by the skin of their teeth and earn the Samurai's respect.

The final duel is none other than Mario vs...Darwin Serenta? No. Actually, his real name is Zeno Blaze, the Genesis Samurai of Fire. Trapping Mario in an arena of fire, he shows his respect to the renowned hero of the Mushroom Kingdom but says he's not ready to see the Elemental Overlord.

A fatal duel ensues between these two passionate souls, their hearts ablaze as they give their all for their mission. In all boils down to one massive punch on Mario's behalf that puts Zeno down.

At the moment of his defeat, Zeno is reminded of that the last time he saw his father...the original Elemental Overlord. And being reminded of those final moments tells Zeno that he can safely trust Mario and the company, along with Alex Whiter, with carrying on the Overlord's legacy.

The temple suddenly starts shaking, coming from the top floor where the Overlord's power is being held.

The cause of this tremor is Alex's encounter with Cackletta. The witch traps him in her magic realm and begins monologue about how Alex's presence has foiled her plans long enough. She had already tried to acquire the Beanstar to undo the Elemental Overlord's seal so she could claim his powers, but when Mario and Luigi foiled her plans she was forced to try and kill Alex once he came to this world.

She calls him weak and pathetic and easily disposed of now, but Alex, empowered by the determination and hopes of his partners up until now, tackles Cackletta head-on and refuses to lose.

But Cackletta is still stronger than him, no amount of determination can overcome that. So thinking back to his past encounters and dangers, Alex pulls out the elemental stones and uses them in tandem to summon the Inner Guardians against Cackletta.

Cackletta is amused at Alex's trickery but doesn't care. Even in "death", she'll keep her plans going until she wins.

Cackletta's lifeless body is flicked out of the temple, leaving Alex ample time to catch his breath and give everyone else a chance to make it to the top.

Some brief words are exchanged and all seems well...

But then Joe Dark makes his entrance known, standing dangerously close to the Elemental Overlord's orb, his skin spewing with a dark miasma.

Joe Dark explains in excruciating detail how he managed to claim the Dark King's power, and now intends to absorb the Elemental Overlord's power too so Alex Whiter would certainly die at his hand.

But a quick shot from Alpha grabs Joe Dark's attention enough to keep him away from the orb. The heroes, including the Genesis Samurais, force Joe Dark towards the temple roof and allowing Alex the chance to touch the orb himself.

Alex does so, and has a meeting with the Elemental Overlord's soul. After explaining the role he's passing on to Alex, and confirming that his will is true, the Elemental Overlord infuses his soul into Alex's body...

Everyone is struggling to even dent Joe Dark now that he's become this strong, but then, flames rise from out of the temple...

Alex rises from them, reborn, as the new Elemental Overlord. Now, the final battle begins...

The Elemental Overlord and Dark King's spirits converse, both putting their faith into their successors to kill the other and put an end to this cycle.

Joe Dark could honestly care less about the Dark King's dumb feud. He just wants to slice Alex Whiter apart for the crimes he's committed.

Alex doesn't care what he wants. He's a threat and needs to be stopped.

Everyone else spectates the battle between the two warriors as it escalates quickly, displaying a level of strength Mario and friends have never seen before.

Alex shows a surprising grasp on the elements thanks to his journey so far, but it proves to be not enough. Joe Dark is beating him with only a quarter of the Dark King's pool of darkness.

Joe Dark pummels Alex down into unconsciousness and then prepares to finish him off once and for all. However, Zeno Blaze, then the rest of the Genesis Samurais, intervene and stand between the new Dark King and their reborn master.

But they are nothing to him. How could they be anything but nothing?

Despair spreads across the battlefield as the Genesis Samurais fall one by one to the seemingly unstoppable Joe Dark, murdered in ways the heroes of the Mushroom Kingdom have never, nor never want to see again.

Joe Dark's rampage ends upon the fall of Zeno Blaze, who states that they'll keep fighting, even after death. A gesture that Joe Dark smiles at it, as he slices him down the middle.

Then he turns his attention towards Mario and company, swearing to make them pay for defending Whiter too.

The Star Spirits intervene at that moment, shouting that they cannot stand idly by as the world falls to darkness. So they infuse the seven heroes with their power, giving them new transformations to combat Joe Dark.

Mario and company put a far greater fight than both Alex and the Genesis Samurais did...but its still not enough. Joe Dark houses an abyss of despair within his heart, and it fuels his ability to keep on fighting beyond the limits of any mortal man.

Geno is the first to fall to Joe Dark's overwhelming might, but the rest soon fall after. But Joe Dark does not kill them, for he wants to show the entire planet what happens when anyone takes Whiter's side.

And the best way to do that, is through Mario's demise.

Yet as he reaches back to deliver the final blow, Joe Dark is stalled by one more savior. An unexpected face from the stars had arrived. The princess of the cosmos herself, Rosalina.

Rosalina's power as the mother of the Lumas is toxic to Joe Dark's darkness, and allows her to easily overhwelm him while simultaneously protecting the others from harm.

Joe Dark becomes infuriated that yet MORE people continue to stand in his way. So, in a decisive moment of numb pain, Joe Dark grins and begins to transform.

Infusing himself greatly with the Dark King's hatred, Joe Dark's mortal body begins to change shape, manifesting the body of a dark Griffon to tower over Rosalina.

Even with the power of the holy stars, Rosalina is struggling to stand against Joe Dark's hatred. Desperate to save her former home, Rosalina traps Joe Dark in a cage with herself and opens a rift to space.

Joe Dark laughs until the true nature of Rosalina's attack is made clear. She drops a giant holy meteorite on top of him, certain it'd finish him off for good.

And though it does incredible damage to him, Joe Dark managed to use Rosalina's body as a shield to hamper most of the pain.

He then flicks her aside and walks up to Alex Whiter, prepared to finish him off. But then Alex suddenly stands and evades the final blow, glowing with a renewed vigor, and determination to win.

Thanks to the time Mario's group and Rosalina bought, the Genesis Samurais' souls were able to transfer themselves into Alex's body. There, with the Elemental Overlord's help, they are able to grant Alex the ability to use the elemental Conduit Forms, individual forms that each bolster the power of a single element immensely.

Joe Dark goes back into Griffon form while Alex starts cycling through the Conduit Forms, allowing him to start overpowering the new Dark King, much to his frustration.

Alex fights to avenge the Genesis Samurais with all his might, while Joe Dark's rage continues to grow more and more. But even after shedding his mortal body, Joe Dark's power and rage has its limits, and eventually, Alex manages to make him fall.

Though standing triumphant over Joe Dark, Alex feels an ill omen in the air.

Frustrated with the weakness of his new body, the Dark King forces his will upon Joe Dark's mind and makes him unleash the full power of the Dark King. Joe Dark is returned to a human form with new armor, but its clear that he has shed himself of even beyond mortal limits.

But its the real Dark King in control now, and he vows to usher in the era of eternal darkness promised millenia ago.

The Dark King attempts to fulfill his missive with all his might, intending to send the screams of this dying world hurtling throughout the universe with the planet's destruction.

Alex quickly tries to salvage the situation by taunting Joe Dark for letting the Dark King have this victory. And this taunt manages to awaken Joe Dark's consciousness enough to actually wrench control of this body back from the Dark King, albeit, in turn weakening the power of the Dark King form.

Alex then snipes Joe Dark through the head while he's distracted. A valiant effort, all for naught.

Joe Dark grins and spits out the bullet of lightning between his teeth, then charges Alex head-on to finish him off.

A dire battle unfolds as the two warriors clash with all their might. But Joe Dark's is now far stronger. Even pulling out every clever trick he can with these elements, all Alex manages to do is stall his advance.

Eventually Alex falls unconscious yet again, and Joe Dark prepares to wipe out the temple along with everyone who defended Whiter. But failing to realize the strength of his new form, his attack threatens the entire world...

The Star Spirits panic, as all hope seems lost.

Geno's spirit returns to Star Haven with a desperate request. He believes they still have one last shot of victory, but its going to require the Star Rod once more.

The Star Spirits declare that the Star Rod is completely spent.

But Geno reminds them that all they have to do is rely on the prayers of the people to save the day. The Star Spirits are reluctant, as nobody would be willing to put their faith in Alex Whiter, whom they know nothing about.

But given the circumstances, they have to try.

A message is broadcast across the entire planet, bringing the populace up to date on the battle between Alex and Joe Dark.

Doubt is cast aside, but Geno manages to convince the people by showing them the condition of Mario and friends, really hammering it in how bad things have gotten.

Everyone that Mario has ever met, even some of his bad guys, rally their wishes and dreams together to fuel the Star Rod. Bowser and Peach offer their hopes the strongest, refusing to allow Mario to die to some punk in black clothes.

Thanks to their efforts, the Star Spirits are rewarded with the mightiest Star Rod of all, and transfer the hopes in that to Alex Whiter.

While this is going on, Alex converses with the Elemental Overlord over how to proceed next. The Elemental Overlord didn't expect things to escalate to this extent, and curses the Dark King for putting them in this bind.

But...he does have one last plan to achieve victory. He just didn't want to push it this far this early in Alex's time as the Elemental Ovelord.

Mario and friends' spirits hold the line against Joe Dark's wrath as the Star Spirits' power finishes renewing Alex's body.

Standing tall, Alex surrounds himself with the elemental stones and begins absorbing their power into himself to achieve an even greater form...Phoenix Form.

Now with phoenix wings on his back, and armed with a majestic amber sword, Alex takes the fight to the skies to defeat Joe Dark once and for all.

After having Rosalina work to get the others to safety, Alex begins engaging Joe Dark fully. The two's clash ripples through the planet's skies, with both parties seemingly evenly matched now.

Joe Dark is able to temper the blows inflicted upon him through regenerating off his hatred, while Alex now utilizes the power of "Soul Shields" to protect his body from harm.

The battle keeps going until Joe Dark starts to vent out his frustration towards Alex, specifically how everyone believes him to be innocent when truly he's not.

Tired of Joe Dark's vague hatred, Alex demands to know what his deal is. And Joe Dark finally relents, explaining what connects the two of them together.

Joe Dark lived a peaceful life with his family for years, but then during one of their yearly family reunions, while he was off catching his runaway kite...His entire family was murdered in cold blood. Every last one of them. He was the sole survivor.

The cursed thing about the world he lived in is that adoptions were abolished. He was all alone, never to know what love is again.

On the news people seemed to care more about some dumb child whose parents died to a comet a year ago than the death of his entire family.

Joe Dark stared at this child, this child named Alex Whiter, and sensed this dread welling up inside of him. There was something off about this child. He felt as though that child was there on the day of his parents' demise.

So for years Joe Dark wandered through America on his own to hunt down Alex Whiter, scrounge up scraps of food and clothes just to survive until finally...He happened upon Alex's home, and hunted him through the portal to the Mushroom Kingdom.

Alex pities Joe Dark's situation, but says it doesn't justify the bloodlust...Especially since Alex has no idea what he's even talking about.

Joe Dark yells that Alex could never understand how it feels to not know love anymore, and he never will...Because soon he will be dead, and his family will be avenged.

Joe Dark claims to have figured out the Soul Shields and charges up one ultimate attack to rip through them and end Alex once and for all. But as the final blow was struck, Mario gets in the way...

Mario takes the final attack meant for Alex and then falls back to the temple, smiling.

Though the plumber is still alive, just barely, Alex is pissed, and so is Joe Dark.

Joe Dark snaps completely, becoming a creature of pure insanity as he finds himself driven only to destroy. So long as Whiter dies in the process, he couldn't care less.

Joe Dark then prepares to end it all here with one final attack...As does Alex.

Unleashing the full power of the spirits within his body, Alex achieves the incredible power of spirit fire, a fire so hot that it can burn a person down to their soul.

He collapses these flames into his ultimate attack, the Blazing Overlord Fist, and smashes Joe Dark down into the temple before he can destroy the planet.

The temple explodes, but in the ruins of this final battle...Alex stands triumphant over Joe Dark's burnt skeleton. The Dark King has once again fallen.

Rosalina and E. Gadd go to congratulate him when all of a sudden, Alex's hand bursts into spirit flames once more, causing him intense pain.

In the aftermath of this terrible battle everyone licks their wounds while recovering in the hospital. Mario and Peach have a long talk, but Peach is happy that he's alive, like she knows he always will be.

Driad curses his inability to help, and screams in agony over how he'll never be able to close the gap between him and Alex to ever be of help to him. Even Geno's comforting words do little to temper his cursing.

It doesn't help that Geno's return is only temporary. Due to what the Star Spirits did by interfering in the affairs of the Elemental Overlord and Dark King, they've been rendered unable to assist in matters regarding the planet for a few years thanks to beings known only as the "higher-ups".

So, Geno is to replace them for the time being.

Geno then tells Driad that Alex is more than likely going to return home now that this is all over, as he has no obligation to the Mushroom Kingdom or its people.

Driad runs out of bed to go catch Alex while he still can, and wishes Geno goodbye for now.

Alex, meanwhile, awakens in E. Gadd's lab feeling tired but overall, not in too much pain.

His hand is no longer on fire, thanks to a glove E. Gadd hastily developed with the Elemental Overlord's help. The Elemental Overlord warns Alex of the dangers of using the spirit fire again, saying it should only be done as a last resort.

Alex discusses possible plans for the future with the Elemental Overlord, now that the Dark King is finished. When Alex considers going back home to act as a peacekeeper there, Driad suddenly barges in and begs Alex to stay.

Driad's heartfelt plea causes Alex to reconsider his plans, and wonder if there's some way he can keep protecting both worlds.

The Elemental Overlord, surprisingly, has a suggestion.

Alex temporarily returns to his home on Earth and, after flirting with some hard feelings, follows the Elemental Overlord's advice on how to create a clone.

By using the power of the elements, Alex creates a clone of himself and leaves it to the fates as to what their name will be. He hopes they'll make a good protector, and leaves his planet behind to return to his new home.

Alex is left pondering what his next adventure will be going forward, and the Elemental Overlord states that it'll be a new beginning for them both...

Little did they know that they were being watched this entire time from the shadows. Cackletta pulls herself free from the ruins of the Origin Temple seemingly unharmed, and returns to the shadow with a feather off of Alex's Phoenix Form.

There she meets with Fawful...and a revived Smithy and Dimentio, stating that they now almost have everything they need to carry out the will of their master. The will...of the Dark King.

End of Part 1.

Extra Chapter:

A short time after the defeat of Joe Dark and the Dark King, Alex is enjoying some peace and relaxation in Mario's house.

But his curiosity over the tablets in the Origin Temple starts to get the better of him, and he decides to head there with E. Gadd's blessing to see what he could uncover.

Upon returning there Alex is greeted by a strange ticking sound, much like a clock. He advances towards the temple, but his visions twists around when, all of a sudden, he finds himself in the past.

There he runs across a strange person wearing a silky brown cloth. They appear to have a woman's voice, and speaks with familiarity towards the Elemental Overlord.

She suddenly draws a sword and shield and attacks Alex, forcing him to defend himself.

Despite his newfound strength as the Elemental Overlord, this strange woman continues to outmatch him in strength, and evades him with surprisingly inhuman reaction time.

The woman activates a strange power that causes her to manifest a dragoon behind her and bolsters her power further, simultaneously unveiling her face behind the hood.

The woman continues her relentless assault and even manages to slice through Alex's Soul Shields with ease, eventually achieving victory over him.

But she holds no malice. She's just happy to see that he's as strong a spirit as she predicted he would be. When Alex shows confusion over this, the lady smiles and seems prepared to reveal more about herself, including her name, when all of a sudden Alex is flung back to the present.

He's left with many questions but has learned one very important thing...Inside the Origin Temple's ruins still lies a powerful artifact known simply as the "Gaia Temporis"...