Chapter XII: All Appropriate - Lich

Lich looked at his two companions.
"Do you suppose that Havering person...?" he asked, leaving it hanging in the air.
"Markior and now Aurora," Drakonis sighed. "Who's going to be next? Luna? Zippo? Doubleohseven?"
"Yourself?" YoshiDude asked him.
Drakonis looked downwards for a moment.
"Any of us here?" he asked.
"Well, I'm set, he wants me to go to Dinokan," Lich replied. "But I want to make sure she did just disappear first. Come on, let's go back to where we slept last night."
"How are you going to do that?" Drakonis asked as they walked.
"The spot from which a teleportation took place normally leaves a mark for about 24 hours," Lich explained, regurgitating material learnt in school. "It diminishes as time goes by. Luckily, my training, and just living on the Manaworld has made me sensitive to fluctuations in Mana."
"Could you tell in the battle room that Markior disappeared?"
"No, mind you, that's due to all of those spells being set off left, right and centre in there. Masks any individual spell."
They remained quiet for the rest of the walk back to where they slept. Lich seemed to be locked in concentration for a little while, and then broke the silence with, "About 5 hours ago."
"Now we know the truth," YoshiDude said. "She's disappeared into thin air like Markior."
"Let's get going now, I want to get to Dinokan as soon as possible." Lich replied quickly, as if to get the whole matter away from him.
"We'll fly, then," Drakonis said, unfurling his wings.
"And what does that leave me?" YoshiDude asked as Lich discharged Nessie.
"Catch a lift," Lich said, thumbing towards his Dragonite.

"I don't know if we can fly straight to Dinokan, Lich," YoshiDude said, who had his arms wrapped around his chest.
"Well, we'll have to get a boat from Yoshibane," Lich replied, turning his head to the side. "Besides, I need to stop there to grab diving gear from my house."
They now flew over Yoshiville, and were descending to catch the near non-existant thermals that existed on the Dinokan Strait.
Lich remembered the story about Dinokan as Doubleohseven had told him. Golden-Robo had a spaceship, with two missiles: one aimed at Dinokan, the other at the Bahamas. The two resorts were evacuated, but during Dinokan's evacuation, the missile screamed into it. Only one third of the population survived. The other part had perished, and their skeletons littered the seabed in the ruins of the majestic city. And due to this, diving was not carried out usually in the area of Dinokan, especially since the entire incident took place fairly recently, and was still fresh in many Yoshies' minds. Lich did not like the idea of searching in this aquatic graveyard, but, he admitted to himself, it did make an appropriate place if Havering wanted to kill him.
"There she is to the right!" Drakonis yelled, pointing.
All three of them looked and saw the lone spire that remained above the water. Lich was certain he felt YoshiDude shiver as he thought of what lay under the waves. Lich kept looking at it as they flew past and thought, "That is where my fate lies."

Soon enough the beaches of South Yoshi Island came into view, and they rose to pass over the city buildings of Yoshibane, the main city on the southern Island. On the other side of them, by Lich's instruction, they started to descend rapidly, then they started to spiral down towards a large empty block, but more in particular, a street that ran to it. Soon enough, they landed in the front lawn of Lich's house.
"So this is where you live, Lich," YoshiDude said, looking around with some wonder.
"I've never seen flowers like these before," Drakonis said, cupping some pink blooms in his hands. "What are they?"
"Rentulus Kippus, or the Kippo Rentar," Lich replied. "Manaworld flower, grows almost everywhere around Kippo. You have to watch out though, Lullabuds hide in them. They're flowers which walk around and bite, and can put people to sleep."
"I think my 'Ana would like some Rentars, I might give her some," the vampire Yoshi said, plucking a few out of the garden bed, and putting in a pocket.
YoshiDude sidled up to Lich and whispered, "You know how he is," to which Lich grinned and nodded.
Suddenly, there was a growl mixed in with a half-screech. Todd, Lich's pet Hydralisk and effective guard creature, came around the side of the house and growled at the strangers, almost ready to project its slime covered spikes into Drakonis and YoshiDude.
"Todd, friends, no hurt," Lich ordered, and the Hydralisk calmed down.
"I never knew you had one of those, Lich!" YoshiDude said, surprised. "What if Markior finds out, if he finds out?"
"He gave Todd to me, and let's stop asking questions and starting seeking answers. Come inside."
Lich went up to the door, and instead of using a normal key, he held the Boomerang of Light in one hand, and pressed it up against the door. There was a clicking sound, and the door swung open.
"Why do you need a Hydralisk if you've got that?" Drakonis asked.
"Peace of mind," Lich replied as he entered.
Lich's home was a simple one floor affair, and there wasn't anything really different about it, as houses go, except for the amount of paper and objects brought back from across Yamauchi and the Manaworld. Lich invited them to take a seat in his lounge room, while he went and searched for his diving gear.
YoshiDude noticed a few pictures set up on a side table in the room. He picked up one which had four Yoshies in it. There were two adults and two Yoshlings. The adults were green and red, and the two Yoshlings, both boys, were orange and reddy-pink.
"This your family, Lich?" he called.
"Yeah," came a reply from another room.
"Who's the pink Yoshi?"
"Where did I put my diving gear, I'm sure I've seen it recently..." Lich mused aloud, purposefully avoiding the answer.
YoshiDude put the picture back on the side table, mystified by Lich's response, then looked towards Lich's Elemental shrine. He got up and walked towards it. Drakonis followed suit soon afterwards, spotting YoshiDude's interest in it.
On it were figurines of the Manaworld Elementals, handpainted. YoshiDude was unable to recognise them, and picked up the figurine of a burning snake wielding a spear. Instantly, he felt his hand start to grow warm, so he put it back where he found it, gazing at a candle burning. On either side of the candle sat a mix between a Vaporeon and a mermaid holding a trident, and a little bearded man with no legs, just feet, wearing a big green floppy nightcap.
Just then Lich came out, holding an oxygen tank in one hand, and flippers, snorkel and mask in the other.
"I thought I'd find it under the Hammers," he told them, putting them down beside the sofa and coming over to them. "I see you've found my little shrine."
"Is that what it is?" Drakonis said. "What are these figurines?"
"The Manaworld Elementals," he said, then started to point them out.
"That white blob there is Lumina, the Elemental of Light. She is the one whom I am the most dedicated to. And this palm-tree with a face here is Dryad, the Elemental of Life and Mana Itself. The yellow winged one is Luna, of the Moons and Space."
"Luna?" YoshiDude asked. "So there's a goddess here and there of the moon?"
"Yes. Moons, on the Manaworld. We have six of them. The snake is Salamando, of Fire. The black eye with wings and a tail is Shade, the Darkness Elemental. The purply-black guy with pointy ears, dressed in yellow is Sylphid, the Elemental of Air and Lightning. The little man in the nightcap is Gnome, of the Earth, and on the other side of the candle is Undine."
"Why do both of them sit there next to the candle?" YoshiDude asked.
"Do any of you feel like something to eat or drink before we go?" Lich asked, avoiding having to answer. "If I suddenly disappear, I do want supplies. Luckily, I went back to the Manaworld recently, and I've got lots of Round Drops and Puipui grass and other things, I just have to store them with me."
"How do you mean, store?" Drakonis asked.
"The first spell anyone learns on the Manaworld is how to access their personal storage in Mana. It's like having a bottomless bag that you don't have to carry, and can access anywhere there's Mana."
Drakonis nodded, though not quite sure of what Lich meant entirely.
"Anyway, you want anything to eat or drink?" he asked again.
Drakonis shook his head, as blood was his main drink, while YoshiDude said, "I'll have some Yoshi-ade, if you've got some,"
Drakonis and YoshiDude sat down again, while Lich went and got a can of Yoshi-ade from his refrigerator. He then threw it to YoshiDude while he came into the lounge room, then sat down and opened a cardboard box, with Pandoran written all over it.
Inside were smaller boxes, with writing in Pandoran over each as well. He opened the first one, and inside were lollies, wrapped in pink and white paper. He got them all out from the box and stared into space. They disappeared from his hands. Next, he opened a box with chocolate bars. They, too, disappeared. Next were jars of yellow liquid, and they, like the others, disappeared. YoshiDude stopped sipping the can and watched intently.
"You a bit of a sweet tooth, Lich?" he asked.
"I suppose," he chuckled. "They're healing items."
He then opened another box, and held some beetroot-like herbs. After they disappeared, he opened about five boxes. Inside each was a cup which looked like a blue-silver trophy. They were all individually packaged, and each one had a seal covering whatever they contained. He held them one at a time, and seemed to mutter something in prayer before they disappeared. The last one he held, then placed in his pocket. Lich then searched the boxes for any more items, then, satisfied they were empty, he closed the lid of the box, and put it under the coffee table.
"I'm ready. Let's go to Dinokan."

The lone spire of Dinokan reared up out of the sea like a silent sentinel in the distance as the three of them sped over the water, YoshiDude operating the tiller. The afternoon sun performed chiaroscuro with it: It was bright and golden on one side, and on the other, it stretched like a dark finger print over the water. Lich looked at it, and wondered about what could happen next. He had never been to Dinokan, and when it was above the waves, he was living on the Manaworld. It was going to be nearly impossible to find his next set of instructions, due to the size of the place, and hoped Havering had put them someplace prominent.
"Lich, may I ask you a question?" YoshiDude said, disturbing his train of thought.
"Sure," he said dreamily, still looking at the spire.
"Why didn't you answer those questions I asked you?"
Lich snapped out of his blank gaze and stared into YoshiDude's eyes for a moment, as if he was offended, then calmed down.
"I suppose I had better tell you two, since I may disappear without a trace.
"That other Yoshi in that picture is my brother, Ark Beluga Yoshi von Kippo. When we were young, a flash flood swept through Kippo Village, and we were caught and swept downstream. I managed to save myself, but Ark didn't. The river ends up going underground. That's why Undine and Gnome are beside the candle. I don't want to talk about it anymore."
Lich gazed into the water beside him, as YoshiDude and Drakonis looked at each other.
They were silent for the rest of the trip, which ended when the shadow of the spire rested over their boat. Lich equipped himself with his flippers and oxygen tank. Before he put the mask and mouthpiece on, he sat down and said:
"I don't know how long I shall be. I may only be here for a few hours, or I may have disappeared. Give me until sunrise, then leave. I will try to return in three months if I have. On this day, in three months, wait for me at the Aurorium. If I do not show up, expect me to be unable to return. Alert the other Yoshies, then travel to the Mushroom Kingdom. The warppipe to the Manaworld is there. When you arrive on the Manaworld, it will be in Matango, the Manaworld Mushroom Kingdom. Seek a Cannon Travel Agent, and tell him that you want to go to Kippo. He will send you there by a cannon, and after you have landed, go to the inn. My parents own it. Tell them what has happened, they speak Yoshian. Do you understand all of that?"
The two of them nodded.
"Good. Until sunrise, or in three months, I bid you farewell."
Lich put on the mask and mouthpiece, and flipped backwards over the side of the boat.

The water was a pleasant temperature as Lich descended. He could only see, at the moment, the lone spire, but as he went deeper, other towers started to appear, seperate from one another by a gap where one once stood, now lying postrate and broken on the sea bed.
Then, the horror appeared. Bones of the ill-fated Yoshies littered the once proud streets, now a memorial to the carnage wrought by Golden-Robo Yoshi. Lich's mind started to play tricks, and he was almost able to hear the screams of the people as the missile hit and sank the island. He shook the thought out of his mind, and started to look for signs or Rhenzin. He came down to slightly above street level, and started to scrutinise the walls, trying to keep his mind calm of what lay beneath him. After some time, Lich gave up, and started to swim upwards. He then looked down, and then saw, in the middle of a crossroads, rocks and bones placed to spell out, in Rhenzin, "Go to the dome."
Lich looked around him and spotted it, set neatly in the centre of the city. He swam down to it, and started to look on it. He tapped the gold surface of the dome, expecting an opening somewhere. He looked around the actual dome, and decided that he should enter the building from the door. He swum down to street level infront of it, and found a space between some skeletons. He then walked across the bones, cringing as he did so, and into the door.
The building appeared to have been used as a library, and the covers of rotting books scattered the floor. He tried to pick up one, and it crumbled to dust in his hands.
"Such a waste of literature," he thought.
He swam through the room, and found some stairs leading up. He followed them as they spiralled around, up towards the dome. He looked up, and saw that the water did not fill the dome completely. He went to the stairs, and started to walk up them. They led up through the floor of a room inside the dome. When his head appeared above the water, in the room, he took the mask arrangement, and breathed stale air into his lungs.
"Mister Lich Yoshi, or should I say, Mister Dyluck Thanatos Yoshi von Kippo," a voice said behind him, startling him. "A strange name combination, I must say: A bold, dashing hero and the being who murdered him, very..."he paused a moment, "conflicting."
Lich turned and saw who spoke. He was sitting on a block of concrete, his legs dangling above the water.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"You've said and heard my name enough times now to know," he said, looking at him.
Lich recognised him as Sir Pseudo Havering, and drew a breath in half-shock, half-surprise, before almost yelling, "Where's Markior?"
Havering chuckled and said, "In good time, my dear lizard..."
"Yoshi," Lich corrected between clenched teeth.
Havering ignored him and continued, "...you'll get to see your beloved god of the mind, although, I must admit, he's not a very good one at that."
Lich started to grow angry and reached for the Boomerang.
"Now, now, we don't need that, you're here to play a little game, remember?" Havering said, completely calm and smiling.
Lich put his hand back in a relaxed position.
"Tell me what to do, Havering."
He chuckled and said, "Very appropriate, who you are, and what you are. I just did a colour analysis of you. One of the worlds I visited and had a terrific time on, playing the role of a commander -and it would have been better if it wasn't for that little twerp who came from that tribal island- uses colour to determine things. You have white, which is of light, purity and truth. Yes, I definitely see that in you. You have blue eyes, which is of water, healing and the cold, yes...and your footwear," he said, in glee. "Black, of darkness, mystery and sadness, and out of it green, of life, happiness and luck. Very appropriate, especially with your brother."
Lich started to grow angry, but was told to hush down by Havering, who then continued,
"But what I like most about you, is your orange skin. The earth, strength and steadfastness. Indeed you are like a rock," he said, picking up one beside him, "strong and sturdy, but, like a rock," he wrapped his fist around it, "you can be worn down."
Sand started to trickle from the bottom of his fist onto the floor, making a little pile. He looked at the spilling sand, then opened his hand as the last of it fell on the floor, revealing an empty hand.
Lich's anger started to mound, and he held the Boomerang in his hand.
"Enough of this talk, let us start this game," Havering said, still smiling. He brought his hands in front of him, and Lich felt himself propelled into a black hole which suddenly appeared.
Lich screamed as he fell through nothingness, for how long, he did not know, until he suddenly appeared with blue all around him, and a world set under his feet. He was dazed for a moment, then screamed louder as he realised he was falling towards it, the oxygen tank adding to his weight and acceleration. He was in utter panic, and did not know what to do.
Suddenly, a beam of reason shot through his panic, and Lich knew exactly what he should do. It would be risky, but it was his only way out. He discharged Icydoom the Articuno below him, and yelled for her to put her talons in his hand, while he held, in his other hand, the Boomerang of Light, it's bend pointing towards the sky.
"Ice activation, three minutes," he commanded in Pandoran.
Lich passed Icydoom, and he grabbed her talons. The Articuno had a little trouble as she slowed down Lich's acceleration, but managed to do so, while Lich grew colder and colder, his entire body starting to freeze up, until he was incased in a block of ice. Icydoom then landed him, two and a half minutes later, in what appeared to be classified as a throughway, lined with trees that were either the palm trees of South Yoshi Island, or upside-down leafy cones, the trees around Kippo Village.
Icydoom was unable to release herself from Lich's frozen grip. After half a minute, she saw the Boomerang of Light started to shake in Lich's hand. It suddenly sped up inches from her beak, shearing the ice it passed through, then came around in a blue-white arc, extremely fast, and smashed the ice to pieces. Lich fell forward as he released his grip, and heat started to return to his body. He then lay exhausted as Icydoom and the Boomerang landed beside him, on this strange, new world. He could hear, over his breathing, running footsteps, and was about to get up to investigate when he collapsed and passed out. Icydoom seeing the situation, started to fly towards the footsteps, and hoped that they would be able to help her master.