Gather 'round, folks,
And listen good,
To the sunshiney tale
Of Delfinohood.

It was always a generally accepted thing
That people need shine sprites to make their lives sing.
But suddenly a shadow came poking around,
A live one that walked and slunk oddly 'round town.

He looked pretty weird, a watery sight
That always left paint to chase away light.

Then one day came strangers, with big funny heads
And a couple of humans, and a feeling of dread.

She was sweet but slow to discern,
And he found dinner was his only concern.
Both had come looking for rest on the beach,
But without Mario around, there's trouble for Peach.

As sure as the clouds the shadow returned,
And police swept in,
And the vacation turned;
For Mario had been arrested and spurned.

For a shady while all looked bleak,
With her hero imprisoned,
And her resolve weak,
But the princess found it all hard to speak.

He waited till dawn in the shadowy room,
His heart still and anxious, his face like the gloom;
But when he was freed to a cloudier noon, Mario's friend had met shadowy doom.

A scream and a shout, and then she was gone
A princess in trouble, an island's fate drawn;
The light had grown dim and the shine sprites had fled,
But then Super Mario raised up his head.

He wasn't alone in his new line of work,
A pump with a plan, and a voice as a perk
Had come to stay with him and help win the day
To restore the sun and chase shadows away.

Through windmill and wall, the pair set out
With skies of gray looming like doubt
Yet still they fought, making their trail
Past hills and goop where a piranha did hail.

With water like blades that attacked in a flash,
They battled a squid and made unruly dash,
The harbor was stricken with troubles most vile,
But Mario just shook his head with a smile.

A beach in distress with creatures so odd,
A raging caterpillar that tears up the sod;
And a mystical bird and man-eating cod,
But still Mario could only smile and nod.

A theme park in trouble, and a coaster that dips
With bumps and balloons and wild cannon hits.
He tackled it all with a look just so;
'Nothing's too much for Super Mario.'

But then came the kicker, you'll hear it now:
The princess is a koopa's mother somehow.

Stunned but unshaken he resumed his task,
Fought ghosts in a condo, slots as a perk,
But now there was something that bothered his work.

Was the shadow a person?
The son of the king?
If Bowser had children
It can't be a good thing.

Nevertheless he still pressed on,
A man and his tool,
Through cavern and town,
Till finally a glimmer began to come 'round.

The end in sight, a mountainous cave
On a volcanic slope hidden well like a grave.

The helpless and scared
Were each helped in turn,
By the man who could jump
And trade work for sunburn.

Braving lava and smoke he followed it down,
The waters of Delfino that flooded the town.
And atop the volcano his princess sat,
Bathing in goo through a family spat.

Bowser was a monster, huge and disturbed,
But his son left the hero slightly more perturbed.
Yet he stepped forward, like any brave knight,
Still quite prepared for one final fight.

Together they made a splash like thunder,
Man and machine, without any blunder;
But even in success there was still room to cry:
Mario's new friend was destined to die.

The koopas both fell, the goop all outpoured;
Hero and princess were met on the shore,
But still there was one thing of sad report:
Mario's companion was forced to abort.

With countenance sad he stayed over his friend,
Watching with him till the very soon end.
Even as sunlight began to return,
Mario was silent and wept till it burned.

There on the horizon the daytime appeared,
Glorious and golden, a shine sprite revered;
And townsfolk rejoiced and gathered to say:
'Thanks to our Mario, who restored the day.'

Solemn and sad he remained by the shore,
Watching the sunset with colors most pure,
Peach by his side but as quiet as he,
Waiting for miracles, sure as can be.

And then all at once it came forth like a horn,
A familiar voice, coming reborn,
A friend and a hero in his own right,
Fludd was still safe, it had ended alright.

And so began laughter and joy by the beach,
Tired but happy and kissed by a Peach,
There was but one thing for Mario to do:
He slept on the sand, beneath sunshine anew.