1991: Yoshi's Island: Remnants of the Koopa Socialist Republic...

Bowser Koopa, lord of the remnants of the Turtle Tribe, has seen all of his grand visions of a glorious Koopa future fall apart. His socialist nation, where Troopas, Goombas, and even Cactuars live in harmony, has collapsed. The Yoshis, a seemingly docile group of indigenous dinosaurs has exploded into racial violence. Bowser's attempts to keep the peace only made the situation worse, turning the Yoshis against the Koopas. And to make matters even worse, agents of the Mushroom Kingdom, Bowser's mortal enemies, have taken advantage of the chaos and invaded his island.

However, the Koopa King had one trump card. Princess Peach, ruler of the Mushroom Kingdom and instigator of the Yoshi rebellion, had been captured and imprisoned. Bowser knew he had to act quickly in order to take advantage of the situation. The seemingly invincible Mario and the leader of the Green Yoshi militants were quickly making their way to the capital. Bowser knew that his forces could not stop the Plumber in a fair or even unfair fight. The King Koopa decided that he must make a deal with Peach in order to end the bloodshed.

Bowser told Peach that if she allowed him and his people to leave the island unmolested, that she could can keep the land, the castles and the Yoshi population. King Koopa hoped that a long and costly occupation of a land full of feuding Yoshis would weaken the Mushroom Kingdom, allowing him to rebuild his nation in peace. However, Peach would not agree to the deal. She told Bowser that he must surrender unconditionally or else she would let Mario kill him when he reached the castle.

Angry that his bluff had been called, Bowser threw the defiant princess into the deepest dungeon he could find. He then assembled the leadership of the Koopa nation and gave them orders to retreat. Every Koopa citizen was to find any available transport and escape the island. Bowser, his children, and a few brave volunteers would stay behind to distract Mario, buying time for the Koopa refugees to make their escape. The noble Koopa king was going to sacrifice himself to save the lives of his innocent countrymen.

The huddled, wretched Koopa masses began to depart the land that was so very briefly their Utopia. Bowser sent his children ahead to slow down Mario and the Green Yoshi as he prepared a final defense. As expected, nothing could stop the plumber's merciless onslaught. Troopas, Spinys, and even the powerful Magikoopas were no match for the Red Menace.

Mario, egged on by the scheming Green Yoshi, took out Bowser's children and freed the leaders of the other Yoshi militias. The Yoshis, formerly enemies but now bound together in opposition to Bowser, took gleeful revenge on the fleeing Koopa civilians. Violence and chaos rocked the entire island as Mario made his way to Bowser's castle for a final showdown.

Mario scaled the parapets of the deserted Koopa capital. At the top, he found his prey, the lord of the Turtle Tribe, Bowser. The Koopa King, armed with his favorite new toy, a personal attack helicopter, relentlessly attacked the plumber. However, as always, Mario prevailed. Now was the chance that Mario, and all of the Mushroom Kingdom, had been waiting for. Mario moved to finish off Bowser and end the Koopa threat once and for all.

Just as he was about to land the killing blow, Princess Peach suddenly arrived on the scene to stop him. She told Mario that there was no need for further bloodshed. Bowser was beaten and his army scattered, and that was good enough for her. She told the Koopa lord to take his people, leave the island, disappear to some dark corner of the world and never return. Confused, Bowser had no choice but to accept her sudden change of heart. Praising her magnanimous kindness, the Koopa king made a quick escape with the rest of the remaining citizens.

With the Koopas gone, Yoshi's Island now fell under the control of the Mushroom Kingdom. Rich in natural resources, and modernized thanks to the late Koopa Socialist Republic's public works projects, the island was a very valuable asset for Peach's nation. However, the multiple warring Yoshi tribes would make occupying the land very difficult. Instead of wasting her own resources overseeing the island, Peach decided to give the Yoshi militias the task of pacifying and governing the population. She knew that they would be brutally efficient on supressing the greater Yoshi population.

The new Yoshi's Island government quickly became vile and oppressive. The Yoshi military junta, composed of the leaders of each of the different colored Yoshi militias, imposed a strict police state on the island. All civilians were forced to swear loyalty oaths to the new government and all dissent was outlawed. A few rebellions popped up, but were brutally and savagely crushed. Poverty became widespread and the Yoshi people became virtual slaves to their government. The Yoshi's Island leadership set up massive mines and factories, stripping the land of it's mineral and agricultural wealth. These products were then sold to the Mushroom Kingdom (at a big discount, of course). The military junta benefited greatly from this relationship, becoming extremely wealthy and powerful.

The Yoshi's Island expedition was a perfect success. Bowser had been broken and the Mushroom Kingdom had a new client state. Peach's influence was starting to spread far beyond the borders of her hereditary lands. But the problem of Mario still existed. What was the all-powerful princess to do with the plumber? Her attempts to get close to him had failed. Mario, who had seen all the women in his life suddenly taken away from him, was not interested in trying again, even with the perfectly willing Peach. For now, he was an able bodyguard for his sovereign. But without an emotional connection to her, she knew that he could suddenly leave her without warning. Without Mario's muscle to back up her brains, her grip on power would become tenuous. She decided that she would need to do something about Mario and quickly.

However, the attention of Peach, and the entire Mushroom Kingdom, was soon caught up in a new crisis. An underground democracy movement, unknown to the government, had been slowly growing throughout the kingdom. The working classes of the nation were becoming angry about their lack of representation in the affairs of government. Secret clubs were agitating for democratic reform, and their ranks were swelling with unhappy citizens. With Peach and the entire government's attention distracted by the events on Yoshi's Island, the democracy movement exploded out into the open. Soon, the entire kingdom was awash with thoughts of revolution, and there were whispers of a charismatic leader who would lead the people in this struggle.

As Mario and Peach returned home from the island, one name was on everyone's mind. The shadowy figure known only as Smithy...

Previous Mario and Peach stuff:

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 3.5
Part 4