Chapter 28:

-

The battle was still going strong in the room with the caskets. Boos were battling against the harpies while the humans, and toads were fighting against the zombies on the ground. One of the Boos was struck with pure water and instantly reverted back into a human before landing on the ground that was littered with piles of rotting limbs and dead harpies.

Howls fired a rifle at the head of another zombie before he turned to them. “Where were you three?”

“Taking care of a hell beast,” Larry explained. He was about to raise his gun to fire at the zombies, but there were only a small handful left. “It was in the room with a throne.”

“What else is in there?” Howls asked.

“Nothing much,” Avery said. “There where chains and it looked like someone was trying to create a model of the solar system.”

“That thing that looked like a roulette wheel?” Larry asked. Avery nodded. “Yeah that was in the corner.”

“Where there any stones?” Howls asked.

Larry shrugged. “I didn’t get a good look. I only saw it out of the corner of my eye right before I saw that big ugly monster.” He heard a shriek overhead and stared up to see a harpy coming straight for them. He shot at the beast.

The harpy crashed to the ground, but was still moving. Howls and Avery aimed their guns at it, but another fighter beat them to it.

“Seems we have succeeded,” Avery pointed at last two harpies as they were being slaughtered by Boos. There were no more zombies shuffling about and the only enemy left was the one vampire woman being held against the wall by two stakes that were pierced through her clothes.

“Good,” Silhouette pulled out another vial of pure water. “Anyone else ready to become flesh again?” She removed the seal. Squishy and a few others floated towards her. She splashed over her and her group.

“Larry,” Kamron tapped him on the shoulder. “Where is Madam S?”

“She came in with us,” Larry hadn’t noticed Madam S had floated off somewhere.”

“She is over there,” Avery pointed to the grand coffin. Madam S had lifted the lid and looked inside it.

“Madam S,” Howls hobbled up to her. “I wish you had told us where you were going.”

“I needed to see how many Hell Beasts there were,” Madam S said in a soft voice. “If there were none then we have found the right place.”

“We killed one,” Larry smiled. “That means the leader is here.” She shook her head. “But you have just said.”

“If there are two or less then it means he is no longer here,” she pointed to the coffin. It was empty; there wasn’t even a speck of dirt to be found inside.

“Of course he isn’t here,” the lone vampire woman laughed. “He knew you were coming. He left nights ago. You Mortals can never outsmart Lord Nosferus.”

“Blah blah blah,” Squishy rolled his eyes. “Can’t you guys ever be creative or something? You always sound like you are using recycled dialogue. It’s always the same with you guys.” The vampire hissed. “What is with the hissing?”

“Where is he?” Avery floated towards her. “Where did your master go?”

The minion laughed. “Do you think I will tell you?”

“You better tell us lady,” Squishy clenched his metal fist.

“Or what? You will run a stake through my heart? You will kill me either way.”

“We can see if we find any clues,” Avery floated away from the vampire. “After we all return back to normal.” He pulled out another vial of pure water.

“Kid, can you show me where you killed that hell beast?” Howls turned to Larry. “I need to see that machine.”

“Sure,” Larry said. It wasn’t as if they were going to any more information from their prisoner. “Then we look around those other places, or try to see if this Nosferus took up reservation in a mansion, or a hotel, or a bakery or something.”

The vampire laughed again. “He isn’t here. He’s miles ahead.”

“So he isn’t even in this city?” Howls smiled. “Looks like we got something from our guest.”

-

“Its in here,” Larry removed the flashlight from his belt. Now that the fight was over they could turn on their lights. He stopped several feet from the entrance. The stench struck him the face and caused moisture to leak out of the corners of his eyes. “You might want to cover up your nose.”

“Ugh,” Howls shuddered. “It certainly smells evil.”

Larry kept one hand over his nostrils while holding the flashlight with the other. He could easily find the hairy corpse and the wheel; toads and humans needed the help of the light beams to navigate around.

“I had an easier time finding it when I was a Boo,” Avery held a scrap of cloth over his nose and mouth.

“There it is,” Larry shone the light on the wheel. On a second look it didn’t resemble a roulette wheel. It was more of an actual wheel with six spokes pointed out from the center. Each spoke had a pole and the top had a clamp. Two of the clamps were holding onto hardened pieces of amber. There was even a taller pole in the center with a larger empty clamp “Don’t know what it is.”

“I might,” Howls lowered the beam on the floor around the wheel. There were strange white symbols drawn out. It resembled the runes and glyphs Kammy and Kamek have used. “Do you know what those rocks are?”

“Fossilized amber,” Larry said. “They don’t have any bugs inside.”

“Nope, but it is a fossil. You know what that means.”

“That it was once alive?” Larry had no idea what they were getting at.

“Rocks that contain skeletal remains or dead leaves are used to create Lazarus stones,” Avery explained. “Amber is prized above others since sap is technically the blood of a tree.”

“So they were trying to create more Lazarus stones,” Larry shuddered. One was enough to bring on an army of the dead that plagued two towns. How many zombies could several stones bring?

“The magic is too complex,” Howls continued to study the runes. “A powerful sorcerer is needed to create a Lazarus stone and the process can take days. Only the most powerful mages can create a Philosophers Stone.”

“What is that?”

“A very powerful rock,” Avery explained. “Like the Lazarus stone it can bring back the dead, heal a whole city of injury and disease, but it also can turn lead into gold.”

“Turn lead into gold, iron into copper, tin into silver and aluminum into platinum,” Howls finished.

“Can it turn anything into bronze?” Larry asked.

Howls shook his head. “Bronze is an alloy.”

“Could it turn one alloy into another?” Avery asked?

For once Howls appeared to be not certain. “I have no idea.”

“Hey,” Squishy bounced the beam of his light of the reflective surface of a mirror. “Do you think this is a prop they forgot to move?”

“A mirror?” Avery pursed his lips. “Why would they want a mirror?” He waved the beam around its frame and found even more of the markings. “Howls, did you say they used a mirror for something?”

“To communicate,” Howls resumed his frown. “Nosferus is working with someone else.”

“Could this someone else be in the place he had fled to?” Larry asked, and was aware how awkward it had sounded.

“That would be it,” Howls nodded.

“We need to regroup and return,” Avery said. “The military is probably on its way by now.”

-

Luigi rode in silence, along with Daisy and Iggy in the helicopter while Mario rode on Yoshi and Peach rode with Kammy. He and Mario both had concern for Peach until they had watched her hold onto Kammy and cry out a cheer that she was enjoying the ride.

“Luigi,” Daisy poked him in the arm. “You have been quiet for a while.”

“Oh,” Luigi shrugged. “Just have a lot on my mind.”

“Like?” She was holding onto her cell phone. He had no idea she was on it, nor did he know whom she was talking too.

He shrugged. It was hard for him to tell her what was on his mind, without embarrassing himself. How could he just come out and tell her that Mario and Peach had crawled off in the early morning hour to have intercourse.

“You’re blushing,” Daisy tapped him on the nose. “You don’t have to tell me that. I already know what happened to Mario and Peach this morning.”

“What happened?” Iggy asked. “You two said something happened to Mario and Peach. What had happened?”

Luigi felt his face heat up again. “They turned into Koopas again.”

“Must have been a brief transformation,” Iggy said. “They were human when I woke up.”

“I still don’t know how they can do it,” Luigi had willed himself to become a Koopa again. He mentally told his cells to change, skin to form scales, teeth to become long and sharp. All it did was cause him to nearly get another headache.

“I haven’t changed either,” Daisy said. “Then again I haven’t been trying.”

“From what I have been told, it doesn’t sound like Mario tried the first time either,” Iggy said. “I have come across some of those Hulk comic books and it does sound like it is triggered by anger.”

“Why is it happening?” Daisy asked. “You said it caused us to exchange DNA, wouldn’t it have turned us into human Koopa hybrids instead?”

“That would have been the most likely result,” Iggy nodded. “However Luigi is, or wasn’t a natural Koopa. He was turned into one by magic.”

“You said my DNA was a hundred percent Koopa,” Luigi brought up.

“I did, but I also said that it wasn’t natural. You were completely transformed from a human into a Koopa and that there was I guess you can call magical residue about you.” He noticed the way Luigi and Daisy were staring at him. “I don’t know what is exactly. You would have to ask Kammy. She knows about magic. I’m purely science.”

“Didn’t you used to wield a wand?” Luigi remembered when he and Mario fought against the kid in Giant Land.

“Yes, and so did the others, but we only knew how to attack zap,” Iggy made another face. “I don’t even think that is the correct term.”

“I wonder if it is triggered by other emotions,” Daisy suggested. “Like fear, or if you are in pain.”

Luigi knew she was trying to avoid the mention of Mario and Peach’s activity. That may have triggered their transformations. He thought about Wendy wearing nothing and giving him a massage. He felt a tickle in the back of the mind and tried to will himself to that feeling. He wanted to allow himself to become a Koopa again, but nothing happened.

“I may have to control my emotions,” Daisy said. “There is no telling if we might get stuck as Koopas. No offense Iggy. It was kind of fun, but I like being human.”

“No offense,” Iggy said, but there was a bit of disappointment in his eyes. “I think you were beautiful.”

“And you think I’m ugly now?” Daisy asked in a teasing tone.

“No,” Iggy blushed. “I think you are pretty now. I mean you are still beautiful. You are prettier human than Peach and I think you are gorgeous in both forms.”

“But you thought I was prettier as a Koopa?” She tickled his chin.

“Uh Daisy, not while I’m flying.”

“Okay,” she sat back.

Luigi tried not to stare at the display. Was she just flirting with Iggy? Or was she just being her usual self? She has been spending a lot of time at the mansion along with Iggy. Were they seeing each other in a whole new light?

“What was with the phone?” Luigi asked before Daisy could point out he was being too quiet again.

“I was talking with my father,” Daisy stared at her phone before she put it away. “I wanted to see if he knew any more information.”

“What have you found?” Luigi asked.

“Like its name suggests it is one of the biggest exports of sugar,” Daisy explained. “All of their fields are used for sugarcane. They have orchards of fruit trees, cinnamon trees and maple trees.”

“Sounds like Yoshi’s kind of place,” Luigi could see Yoshi salivating from being in such a place.

“They have raised the tax on sugar, as well as syrups, honey’s, candies, cinnamon and mint herbs. My father said he had met the previous rulers before, King Glucose and Queen Caramel.”

“Mallow said the king is a fifteen year old boy,” Luigi recalled the conversation he had at the ball.

“King Nougat was their son. I remember visiting the castle once. They have royal beehives and the whole air smelled so sweet. King Glucose had hair like cotton candy and Caramel was pretty and plump lady.”

“What about Nougat?” Iggy asked.

“He was only three when I saw him,” Daisy chewed on her lip. “He was a quiet boy. I don’t think he had ever said anything and he just stared at us the whole time.”

“Sounds like he was just shy,” Iggy said.

“It does,” Daisy agreed. “I haven’t seen him since then, and I don’t remember hearing how he took the throne. Father doesn’t remember being informed of this bit of information either.”

“We have no idea why this has motivated him to build an army,” Luigi wished they had more information about the young king. He doesn’t know if he was building an army because he wants to conquer the neighboring lands or if he was just paranoid.

“I have told father to call me if he comes across anything new.” Daisy said.

“Do we have any idea how long till we get there?” Luigi asked.

“About twenty two more hours,” Iggy said. “We are going to have to stop somewhere again for another night.”

“Sounds good,” Luigi leaned back. They can find out more from Toadsworth and he can talk with Wendy again.

-

Larry was annoyed with his stomach. Ever since they left the theater and returned to the sewers it had growled, constantly. It had gotten so loud that several others had looked at him.

“I know how you feel kid,” Howls gave his own stomach a light pat. “Don’t worry we are almost there.”

“I didn’t feel hungry until after I turned back from being a Boo,” Silhouette said. “What about you Madam S?”

“I hunger,” Madam S said.

“You hear that?” Silhouette pointed at her with her thumb. “She’s so hungry she can’t even speak right.”

“Uh oh,” Squishy said. “Howls we gotta get her back.”

“It isn’t much farther,” Howls said. “You have to hold on Madam S.”

“I’m not just hungry,” Madam S shook. “I need my medicine.”

“Easy,” Silhouette held onto her. “I know how it can be. My mother is not in the best state when she is off her meds.”

“You don’t want to hold onto me,” Madam S looked even paler than before. Her eyes were purple, orchid in color actually and the tips of her ears were pointed. “I might hurt you.”

-