It's the final lap. It has been an intense race with many twists and surprises, save for one thing. Luigi, who has been intensely training for this year's Lightning Cup. From the very beginning of the race Luigi secured the first place spot with his Turbo Start. He has been covering himself well the entire race using the infamous banana peels and the often underestimated green shells that are overlooked due to their red and blue counterparts. He has blocked every projectile up to this point, his drifting abilities are better than ever managing to land constant ultra mini-turbos. He has mastered all the legal shortcuts available on this treacherous track and has taken them every chance he's gotten. He has a demanding lead over all the other racers. It looks like it's going to finally be Luigi's moment to shine. He approaches the finish line. It's still a fair distance away but Luigi can see it. He maintains his concentration, his gaze fixated on the goal. Drops of sweat roll down his face and nose. His hands gripping the steering wheel tightly. A trail of banana peels follows him. He realizes there's nothing the other racers can do to catch him. He begins to relax. He's been so concentrated on the victory, he hasn't had time to think of what it meant. He was finally going to win. This was the moment he finally would be recognized and he stepped out of his brothers enormous shadow. He even let's out a giddy chuckle thinking of his new glory this victory will bring him. Spoke too soon. Luigi suddenly hears an alarm. He looks down at his console. He sees the blue shell, accelerating at incredible speeds towards him. He begins to panic. He checks the map. He calms himself knowing that the racers are to far behind for it to matter. He braces for the impact as the blue shell flies in and lands a direct hit, bringing his kart to a complete stop. He's lost all the banana peels and there are no more item boxes from here on. He hits the acceleration pedal and begins to pick up speed. Suddenly he hears a second alarm, a red shell this time. He sees the person who threw it on the map. His brother, closing the gap between them and determined on overtaking him. The red shell hits making Luigi spin out. Mario was closing in on him. Luigi was now very agitated. His heart was pounding faster than the blue shell that had hit him. His legs begin to feel numb as he pushes the pedal. Despite his condition he races toward the finish line only moments away. He hears the sound of another engine close behind him. He sees his brother in his rear view mirror, cheery as always unfazed by the effect his proximity was having on Luigi. Luigi decides to concentrate on the finish line and not let Mario distract him from his ultimate goal. His tunnel vision for the finish line was suddenly but minutely broken by something. A small shadow that passed over him. Before Luigi could process what was going on he sees it. A small yellow banana peel landing in front of him. The world felt like it was moving in slow motion. The banana peels stared at him with small beady unfeeling eyes. It had a small smirk almost as if it got some enjoyment from ruining Luigi. He tried to swerve around it but it managed to hit his rear right tire. He begins to spin out, the world a blur. The only thing he sees clearly is his brother, winking and giving him a thumbs up before he too becomes a red blur speeding towards the finish line. By this time the chaos of the other racers had caught up to them, Luigi slammed by a barrage of items and karts. Boomerang. Fireball. Piranha plant. Steel driver. Biddy-buggy. B Dasher. Finally a massive bullet bill blasts through, tossing Luigi to the edge of the track. When he finally comes to, he sees the glowing billboard over the bleachers. His brother had first place. He looks for himself and finds his name at the bottom of the board, 12th place, dead last. He gazes at the finish line, only a few meters away from him. With his head down he reluctantly starts his kart and slowly drives to it, crossing the finish line and officially ending the race.
Comments
@markint_t damn you tell an awesome story. Was totally transfixed after the first few sentences
