Chapter 12 Deadly State of Being

Walking….a healthy and stimulating activity, but one that Lemmy severely wished he could abstain from as he made his way back to the his homeland. He had started walking three hours ago when he woke up, yet he still had miles to go. His legs ached, his feet felt like they were going to fall off. Not only that, he was thirsty. BOY, was he thirsty! His mouth was so dry that it could easily be compared to an overcooked turkey. He licked his lips, but there was no liquid to be found there. There was no liquid to be found anywhere!

"This….is….the worst!" he groaned. He was tempted to stop, take a breather and regain any lost energy.

Lemmy, maybe you need to take a break. That statement by Ludwig only made the desire stronger. Yes, rest. He needed rest, he needed to revitalize and take the time to relax in the sun. Sleep, maybe. Sleep and wait until the day had passed, when the cool nighttime air dominated the Mushroom Kingdom…

Wait, what was Lemmy thinking? He couldn't stop! He needed to get back to Bowser's Castle pronto! The very essence of Ludwig's being depended on it! Sure, was it possible that Ludwig possessing bodies extended the time until he got completely overtaken by the curse? Possibly, but Lemmy wasn't going to risk it. Doopliss said yesterday that Ludwig had a week at most. At most. For all Lemmy knew, his brother was going to turn into a duplighost by sunset this evening.

That thought (that terrifying, haunting thought), made shudders run up and down Lemmy's spine. He picked up the pace, going so fast that he was almost running.

Lemmy, slow down! You're gonna pass out!

"I don't care," Lemmy responded. "I need to keep going!"

No, what you need to do is stop! If you keep up with this pace, you're going to…well, you could potentially die from exhaustion!

Lemmy stopped. Die from exhaustion? Yeah, he definitely didn't want that. However, he wasn't completely comfortable with staying put either.

"I…need to keep going, Ludwig," he said. "Otherwise, something terrible will happen to you."

Ludwig's interest piqued, as well as some caution. What are you talking about?

Lemmy swallowed a lump. "I talked with the duplighost before I left the castle. He…Doopliss told me that if you stay separated from your body for too long, a curse is gonna set in and you're going to turn into a duplighost yourself!"

Silence. Lemmy could feel Ludwig's terror, which only made the silence that much more unbearable. Lemmy had a feeling that if he could see Ludwig's face, his jaw would be dropped. Lemmy's heart beat picked up as he waited for his brother's response.

Really? It was the only word that Ludwig said, but the inflection and the emotions that accompanied it made Lemmy's heart rate and sympathy spike up all the more.

"Yes," Lemmy said, his voice quiet like a mouse's whisper. "And I don't want that to happen to anyone, let alone my one and only big brother." He put on a determined face. "We're gonna keep going." Not even bothering to wait for Ludwig's response this time, Lemmy resumed with walking.

The next hour or so did allow the two Koopalings to make more progress, but that was the only good thing that Lemmy could see in the current situation. The soreness of his feet became more pronounced, causing him to wince each time he took a step. The dehydration was so strong that a headache claimed Lemmy, one that throbbed with the pain. When paired with his aching feet, this created an experience for Lemmy that was gruesome, in every sense of the word. Each step felt like stepping on the tip of a sword. Each second that passed without getting any water made Lemmy feel like a dry bones. It was only sheer willpower that helped the littlest Koopaling continue.

But even willpower is doomed to run out. Now so thirsty that he was starting to hallucinate, Lemmy dropped to the ground like a sack of potatoes. He focused on the grass surrounding him, green as ever. He wondered; was it possible that the grass had some water in it? Cacti retained water; could the same be true for the common grass blade? Not even realizing he was doing it (at least, not entirely), Lemmy reached toward the grass with his tongue.

Lemmy, what are you doing?

That question brought Lemmy back to his senses. He was going to eat grass? What was he, a cow? Saddened by how his desperation had shaped him, Lemmy laid his head down on the ground.

"I…I can't," he said. He put his hand up to his head, using all the energy he had left to pat it. "I'm sorry, Ludwig. I really am."

Ludwig sighed. It's okay Lemmy. I appreciate the effort you put in for me. There was a moment of silence. Did the duplighost really say I'm gonna turn into one myself?

Lemmy sniffled. "Yeah, he did." He turned over on his back, looking straight up into the sky, He saw some clouds, which in turn caused him to pray that they would open up and let rain pour down on the Kingdom. He considered becoming an atheist when that didn't happen, even with the added fact that the clouds he did see weren't rain clouds in the least.

Man, Ludwig said. That…that sound downright horrific.

Lemmy nodded. "I would imagine so." He turned back over on his belly. "I just hope that there is someway that I could have prevented…"

He stopped. Blinking, he lifted himself up with his arms. He broke out into a smile, halfway convinced he was still hallucinating but more so willing to believe the other half of him that knew what he was seeing was real. "Ludwig, look!"

A warm feeling surged through Lemmy's chest. Is that what I think it is?

Lemmy beamed. "It's Sparksville!" He rose to his feet, wobbling a little as he found his balance but feeling no less excited. "We were closer to the Koopa Kingdom than we originally thought."

I know! Ludwig chuckled. That means we can get some food and water in you!

Lemmy hesitated. "I don't know about that; we need to get to the castle as soon as possible…"

Oh, for crying out loud. Lems, do you hear yourself? Do you hear how stupid what you're saying is?

Lemmy's eyebrows scrunched up. "Stupid?!"

Yes, stupid! You need to take care of yourself if you want to have any hope of getting back home safely. Just because I'm in mortal danger doesn't mean basic needs like hunger, thirst, and sleep should go unmet! Lems, you'll be much more efficient help to me alive than dead.

Lemmy, with a pang, realized that Ludwig was right. If he died from hunger and thrist, then that wouldn't be of help to anybody. If anything, it would cause the Koopa family more grief because two Koopalings had perished instead of just one. Besides, not only did he see Ludwig's point logically, but also experientially, as less than half a minute ago he had been lying on the ground starving and dehydrated enough to want to eat grass.

"Okay," he finally said. "You're right, Ludwig." He smiled as a thought occurred to him. "And hey, there are a bunch of great restaurants in Sparksville! That means the food we're gonna get is going to be of top tier quality!"

Exactly. Ludwig said. With a grin, Lemmy made his way toward the pretty little town. It seemed like things were starting to look up, even just a little bit.

…

Iggy sighed as he entered his lab. He looked around at his second home, taking in the details to make sure that everything was exactly as it should be. The first thing he looked at was the isolation room. He saw Doopliss staring at him through the doorway. The duploghost grinned at him.

"Top of the morning to you." His grin turned into a sneer. "Dumb shit."

Iggy sniffed. Normally, he couldn't stand when people called him names, especially vulgar names that insulted his highly esteemed intellect. However, he wasn't going to let this one bother him. He didn't give a crap about Doopliss's opinion. Nobody worth their salt would give a crap about Doopliss's opinion.

"Yeah yeah, nice to see you too." He made his way down the stairs, looking at the lab tables as he did. Not one out of place fingerprint was on them; they looked as clean as a newly cut diamond. He smiled; the normality of his lab tables's appearances always filled him with satisfaction. If the day before had been hectic as hell, if the very fate of the universe was at stake, at least Iggy could return to his lab and be greeted by the same sight, again and again and again. Was there a more satisfying feeling in the Mushroom World?

He checked near his TV and his desktop. Even these areas were unaffected by the force of entropy and the sands of time. Iggy's smile grew wider; it seemed like everything in his lab was exactly as he had left it. There was only one last place he had to check in order to be absolutely sure. He walked over to where his snack bucket was hiding. He pulled it out, prepared to see the snacks waiting there, as every last law and order of the universe said they should be.

But they were gone.

Iggy blinked once. He blinked twice. His face fell, transitioning from a smile into a scowl. His snacks were gone! The chips and cakes that he had spent a good chunk of his allowance on…they had vanished! Not one snack had been spared mercy; they had all been plucked from their roost without any second thoughts.

And Iggy knew exactly who had done it.

"Damn it!" He shoved the empty basket back in its place and sprinted out of the lab. He should have known this was going to happen. He had explicitly told his family that they are to go nowhere near his snacks when he got them; he was supposed to be the only one to munch on his munchies. Which of course meant that Roy would disobey him! Seriously, who else would it be besides Roy? When he was hungry, he was like a wild animal; not considering anything else until his hunger was satisfied.

Not wanting to waste any time, Iggy kicked Roy's door down. His first instinct was to cringe at the dumpster-like state of his older brother's room, but he pushed his disgust aside. He marched over to Roy's bed and shook him.

"ROY, WAKE UP!"

Roy stirred. He blinked when he saw Iggy standing over him, his scowl the most bad-tempered of expressions. "Oh. Hey Iggster," he said, not awake enough yet to recognize that he was in trouble. He sat up and yawned. "Nice to see you so early in the morning."

Iggy's scowling face grew darker. "Roy, I just paid a visit to my lab and discovered that my snack bin is empty."

Roy very noticeably froze. "Your…your snack bin?" He laughed, the sound very obviously trying to mask his guilt. "Well, don't worry Iggy. I'll help you find the snack thief if it's the last thing I…"

Before he could finish, Iggy swiped his blanket off the bed. This left everything out in the open: the wrinkled chip bags, the snack cake wrappers, the crumbs; everything. Iggy crossed his arms as he looked at Roy's, whose blushing face did a better job of giving away his guilt than anything else in the bed.

"Ohhh…" Roy said. He turned back to Iggy, starting to sweat as he did. "Uh…Larry put those there?"

Iggy was so pissed now that steam shot out of his nose. "Why? Just…why?"

Roy relented by letting out a sigh. "Sorry, Iggy. I just got really hungry last night."

Iggy shook his head. "Last night, eh?" He really wanted to scream right now, but he held back. "So, instead of doing the sensible thing and wait until morning…heck, instead of doing the less reprehensible thing by walking down to the common room where snacks of all sorts are readily available…you just barged into my lab and stole my secret supply!"

Now Roy looked really embarrassed. "I…I…" He paused for a minute. "Sorry…"

"You should be!" Iggy proclaimed. "Not only have you stolen the loot that I have spent almost one hundred and fifty coins on, but you have also done something that is detriment to your own physical health!" He put his head in his hands. "Roy. Roy, Roy, Roy…I have told you again and again and again; DON'T GO NEAR MY SNACKS!"

"I know." Roy's shoulders slumped. "I have no excuse."

"Damn right you don't!" Iggy crossed his arms. "Well, since you ate it right before going to sleep, at least now your body isn't going to digest the food properly and store all of the stuff you ate as excess fat." He smirked. "Not beneficial for your health, but at least I get a little bit of satisfaction out of that knowledge."

Surprisingly, Roy actually snickered at that. "Funny. First Doopliss is concerned for my health, then you are…man, it seems the whole world wants me to live as long as possible." He chuckled. "That's pretty sweet."

Iggy snorted. "Oh yeah, the whole world is waiting to serve you your greatest desires on a silver platter…" he stopped, something Roy said clicking in his mind. "Wait, did you say Doopliss?"

"Yeah, I know; it's weird! Last night, he told me that eating snacks so late won't do me any favors." He smirked. "Well, too bad for him, cause I'm not gonna let a dead guy tell me how to live my life!"

Roy went on, but Iggy didn't really pay attention to what he was saying anymore. "Doopliss was awake? So late." His eyes grew wide as a horrible realization overcame him. "Doopliss was awake…!"

Roy blinked. "Uh, hello?" He waved his hand in front of Iggy's face. "Earth to Iggster; hello!"

Without any other word, Iggy bolted out of Roy's room. If Doopliss was doing what he thought he was doing…

Then they were all in grave danger.