Mario dies

The air in the hospital room was sterile, thick with the scent of antiseptic and the rhythmic, haunting beep of a heart monitor that was slowing down. Mario, the man who had survived cosmic explosions, demonic possession, and countless ridiculous mishaps, looked smaller than he ever had. His signature red overalls were draped over a chair, replaced by a thin, pale blue gown.

His breathing was shallow. For the first time in his life, the Italian plumber felt a weight in his chest that no amount of spaghetti could fix. He knew his time was running out. With a trembling hand, he reached into the pocket of his hat, which sat on the bedside table, and pulled out his phone. His fingers, usually clumsy and quick to press the wrong buttons, moved with a desperate precision. He hit the group call icon for SMG4.

Across the Mushroom Kingdom, at the Showgrounds, the atmosphere was lively and chaotic. SMG4 was hunched over his computer, arguing with Bob about a new video script, while Meggy and Tari practiced their aim with a stray beach ball. The sudden, loud ringtone of a video call echoed through the room, silencing the bickering.

"Who’s calling at this hour?" SMG4 grumbled, wiping sweat from his brow. He looked at the screen. "It’s Mario? Why is he video calling? He usually just kicks the door down."

"Maybe he found a giant ravioli," Bob joked, though his voice lacked its usual bite.

SMG4 swiped the screen, and the image flickered to life. The crew huddled around the monitor, expecting to see Mario’s face covered in sauce or stuck in a toaster. Instead, the color drained from their faces.

Mario was lying in a bed, framed by white pillows and wires. His mustache, usually perky and proud, looked limp. His eyes were glazed, rimmed with a deep, weary red.

"Hey... guys," Mario rasped. The voice wasn't the high-pitched, energetic yell they were used to. It was a ghost of a sound.

"Mario?" SMG4’s voice cracked. He stepped closer to the screen, his hands shaking. "What is this? Is this a prank? Mario, if this is a joke for a video, it’s not funny."

"Not a joke, Glitchy," Mario whispered, a small, sad smile touching his lips. "The doctor says... Mario’s heart is-a tired. I think... I think I’m-a going away now."

The silence that followed was deafening. It was a physical weight that crushed the breath out of everyone in the room. Meggy dropped her ink blaster; the clatter on the floor sounded like a gunshot. Tari covered her mouth with both hands, tears already welling in her eyes.

Luigi, who had been coming in from the kitchen with a tray of drinks, let the glasses shatter at his feet. His face turned a ghostly shade of white. "Mario? No... no, no, no! Bro, you can't! You're Mario! You're invincible!"

Beside him, Melony froze. Her deity-like powers, usually so vibrant and glowing, flickered and dimmed. Her eyes widened, her pupils shrinking as the reality of the image on the screen sank in. To the world, Mario was a chaotic idiot. To her, he was the one who had nurtured her when she was just a fruit on a vine. He was the one who had given her a home, a family, and a father figure after Axol was gone.

"Dad?" Melony’s voice was a small, broken whimper. "Mario, please... tell me you’re playing."

"I'm sorry, Melony," Mario said, his image flickering as his hand shook. "I just... I wanted to see you all one last time."

"We’re coming! Right now!" SMG4 shouted, snapping out of his trance. "Don't you dare close your eyes, Mario! Do you hear me? That’s an order!"

The trip to the hospital was a blur of frantic running and choked sobs. They moved as a single, desperate unit, bursting through the hospital doors and sprinting down the hallway toward Room 104.

Luigi was the first one through the door, followed closely by Melony. The sight of Mario in person was a hundred times worse than the screen. He looked fragile, like a glass sculpture moments away from shattering.

"Mario!" Luigi collapsed by the side of the bed, grabbing his brother’s hand. "I’m here! We’re all here! Please, you gotta keep breathing. I’ll make you spaghetti every day! I’ll let you win at Kart! Just don’t go!"

Mario turned his head slowly, his eyes finding Luigi. "Hey, Weegie... take care of the house, okay? Don't let the ghosts... get in the plumbing."

Melony pushed forward, her knees hitting the linoleum floor with a thud. She took Mario’s other hand, pressing it against her cheek. Tears streamed down her face, hot and unstoppable. "You can't leave me too," she sobbed, her voice rising into a heartbroken wail. "First Axol, and now you? It's not fair, Mario! You're my dad! You're supposed to be there to wake me up when I sleep too long!"

The rest of the crew stood in the doorway, a wall of silent grief. SMG4 leaned against the doorframe, his hat pulled low over his eyes as his shoulders shook. Meggy held Tari, both of them weeping silently. Even Bob and Saiko were uncharacteristically still, the gravity of the moment stripping away their usual bravado.

Mario looked at Melony. He had seen her fight gods and monsters, seen her grow into a powerful warrior, but he had never seen her look so small. It broke what was left of his heart. He reached out with a trembling thumb and brushed a tear from her cheek.

"Don't cry, my little melon," Mario whispered. A single tear of his own escaped, rolling down into his mustache. "You’re so big now. So strong."

"I'm not strong enough for this," Melony pleaded, clutching his hand tighter as the heart monitor’s beep grew slower, the intervals between the sounds stretching painfully long. "Please, stay. Just a little longer."

Mario knew he didn't have a little longer. He felt the darkness tugging at the edges of his vision, a peaceful but final sleep calling his name. He wanted to give her something to take with her—a memory of the days before the wars, before the loss, when life was just sunshine and naps in the garden.

He took a shallow, rattling breath and began to hum.

It was a soft, simple melody. It wasn't a song from a video game or a pop hit; it was a lullaby he had made up years ago, back when he used to sit on the porch of the castle with a certain watermelon wearing a blue hat. He used to sing it to her while he polished his shoes, making sure she was safe in the sun.

"La-da-da, soft and green..." Mario’s voice was barely a breath, but in the silent room, it sounded like a symphony. "Sleepy head, in the sun so bright... Mario’s here... to hold you tight..."

Melony’s sobbing slowed as she heard the tune. Her eyes widened, memories of her time as a simple fruit rushing back—the feeling of the warm sun, the distant sound of Mario’s laughter, and this very song being hummed as he patted her rind.

"You... you remember," she whispered, her voice trembling.

"Always," Mario breathed. He continued the melody, his voice growing fainter with every note. "The sweetest melon... in the patch... no one else... can ever match..."

Luigi buried his face in the bedsheets, his sobs muffled as he felt Mario’s grip on his hand loosen. SMG4 stepped into the room, placing a hand on Mario’s shoulder, a silent goodbye passing between the two rivals who had become brothers through a decade of madness.

Mario’s eyes began to flutter shut. The humming became a rhythmic exhale, the melody lingering in the air like a fading echo.

"Mario?" Melony whispered, her heart racing. "Dad?"

Mario opened his eyes one last time, looking at the ceiling as if he could see something beautiful just beyond the tiles. A look of pure, idiot-like wonder crossed his face—the classic Mario expression that had defined their lives.

"Ooh... spaghetti," he whispered.

The heart monitor let out a long, continuous tone.

The silence that followed was different than before. It wasn't the silence of shock; it was the silence of a void. Melony let out a scream that echoed through the entire hospital, a raw, primal sound of loss as she fell forward, hugging Mario’s still chest. Luigi wailed, clutching his brother’s hand as if he could pull him back from the threshold.

SMG4 stood at the foot of the bed, tears streaming freely down his face. He looked at the man who had been the star of his life, the catalyst for every adventure, and the heart of their strange, broken family.

"Goodbye, Mario," SMG4 whispered, his voice thick with emotion. "Thanks for the memes."

In the quiet of the room, the scent of antiseptic seemed to fade, replaced for just a fleeting second by the faint, impossible smell of fresh pasta and a summer garden. The hero of the Mushroom Kingdom was gone, but the melody he had hummed remained, etched forever into the hearts of the family he had left behind.