The Waters of Sorrow [ Sequel Fic // Cookie Run: Kingdom AU ]

Recital III: May the gods make you regret your actions

"...Dozer." Custard repeated. "You're...youre here?! And- and the others can see you?!"
Pancake laughed nervously, his eyes flicking between his friend and the other cookie.
"Uh, yeah? Why wouldn't we be able to see him?" Pancake tilted his head.
"Cause- cause he's dead." Custard shook his head, blinking as if trying to clear his vision.
"Nope. He's right here, Blondie." Pancake frowned. "Why are you acting so weird?"
"Because, uh.." Dozer interjected, before Custard could respond. "I'm supposed to be dead; I was a ghost for his entire childhood."
Pancake snorted. "Uh-huh."
"I'm telling the truth." Dozer grumbled.
"He is." Custard shrugged. "But I don't understand how you're here."
"The witch brought me back." Dozer said, as if the answer was plain as day. Custard blinked, attempting to process the words.
"The witch...eats cookies, dude." Pancake laughed. "Seriously."
"They're not lying, Pancake." Snow Sugar said softly. Pancake huffed, throwing his arms up in exasperation.
"Not you too!!"
"So, what was it you wanted to talk to Cotton and I about?" Snow Sugar turned to the other three. Mango and Sorbet Shark exchanged a look, before turning their attention to Peppermint.
"We- I- want to go find Pirate. Or try to. Or least, go out on some sort of interesting, I don't know, adventure, because it's boring as a rats ass here, and I need something to do." Their tone was sarcastic, annoyed.
"Oh!" Cotton clapped her hands together. "Yeah!! We should go do something!! Are they coming, too?" She pointed her lantern towards those who weren't part of the crew; Pancake, Custard, and Dozer.
"I mean, if they want." Peppermint shrugged. "What do you think, Snow?"
"I think it's a wonderful idea. You'll come, yes, Dozer?"
He nodded. "Yeah, 'course. Sounds fun."
"Can't." Custard said apologetically. No one was really surprised. "Got a whole kingdom to run, y'know? Cant be leaving them behind."
"Understandable." Mango nodded. "What about you, Pancake?"
He thought for a moment, looking between Custard and the crew.
"Y'know what? Yeah, sure!!" He grinned.
"Great. So that's..." Peppermint ticked the fingers up, muttering. "Seven of us? Did I get that right?"
"Yup." Mango nodded a second time.
"Well, this'll be fun!!" Cotton grinned. Her smiled dropped slightly, as her gaze grew cloudy. "Oh...we should be careful though. We don't want to get hurt."
"Well, yeah. But we'll be fine! No one ever really gets hurt in these waters." Peppermint grinned, and an awkward silence settled. Snow Sugar cleared their throat, whispering something in Dozers ear, who'd looked around with a puzzled expression. A look of understanding formed on the cookies face.
"..oh." He whispered.
"Well, we should gather up supplies and such, shouldn't we? We don't know how long we'll be gone." Pancake looked around. The others nodded.
"Yeah, you're right." Mango looked over at Peppermint, who was staring off at the sky. They seemed in their own little world lately; no wonder they wanted to go do something.
"It's getting late." Peppermint said finally, turning to face the others. "We can get ready tomorrow."
There was no emotion in their voice; one more event that had been occurring.
"...it's too quiet."
Everyone turned. Their attention focused on the reanimated being in front of them, waiting for him to utter another sentence.
"It's..too quiet." He repeated. Dozer looked up at the gazes locked on him. "You hear? There's nothing. Nada. The crickets, the birds. They've shut up."
The uncomfortable silence lasted longer than anyone would have liked, as no one spoke a single word. Finally;
"Let it last. What's the harm? It's not as though someone silenced them."
"It's weird."
"It's peaceful."
"It's unnerving." Mango frowned. "But we have other things to worry about. Why don't we get sleep, Custard can go home tomorrow, and we'll get ready then."
"Al..alr.." Squid Ink shook their head furiously. "Alright.."

Morning came quicker than anyone had expected; within an hour or so, Custard had headed home, and they'd set sail.
No one really spoke a word. It was always like this at the start; quiet, then something is spotted, and everyones spirits are lifted.
Peppermint hope it wasn't silent the whole way to wherever they find next; and yet, they sort of did at the same time.
A shape caught their eye- massive, sharp boulders that sat in the water.
They could swerve the ship into these rocks right now if they wanted.
If they truly desired, they could.
Going out the same way their mother had sounded peaceful; maybe it would make these feelings go away.
Well, it would make all their feelings go away, whether emotional or physical.
Peppermint frowned. They needed to stop. They had their friends here, anyways, and their sibling. They couldn't kill everyone here.
They really preferred it if it was only them.
"Oi, Peppermint, was it?"
They turned around to see Dozer standing in front of them- they weren't able to figure out what emotion was present on his face.
"Where we goin'?" He walked up the stairs to stand next to the captain, who leaned against the wheel.
"Anywhere, really." Peppermint sensed something was off about this cookie; and not only because he'd allegedly, according to Custard, Snow Sugar and himself, had been dead and brought back by the witch.
"You don't trust me, do you?"
Shit.
"You have no reason to, I understand. I show up at your ship with your friends one day, claiming to have been revived." He continued. "You're in the right here. But I promise, I'm telling the truth."
Peppermint didn't respond.
"I mean you no harm, Peppermint."
"Quiet."
"Wh-"
"Silence." Peppermint snapped. The two went quiet. Peppermint glanced around, straining to hear.
"Don't go beat the water, you hear me?" They stated after a moment. Dozer rolled his eyes.
"Uh, duh. That's obvious. We'd get soggy."
"Not because of that." Peppermint hissed. "There's things in the water."
"How do you-.."
"I just do." The quiet manner had disappeared; they were assertive, their eyes flashed every time he tried to speak.
"They'll kill you, got it?"
"What are-.." Dozer attempted, but faster than he could blink, Peppermint had let go of the wheel, and managed to grab his shirt. They pulled him towards them and only glared.
"Do you understand?" They seethed. Dozer nodded, and was let go as quickly as he'd been grabbed. He stumbled back a step, as Peppermint pretended the former event had never happened.
"Gods..." Dozer muttered, and once again Peppermint looked at with such hatred he hadn't thought was entirely possible.
"The gods can't help you while any of us are here." They spat, hoping, praying he wouldn't ask why- and yet, he did. Peppermint swore under their breath, sighing.
"The so called gods are cruel and unhelping; not at all like the stories we'd been told as children, or how Herb and Fig remember them." Peppermint grumbled. "They destroy, and recreate- they get rid of things deemed useless and create new things, until they grow bored of those as well. They're no better than the witches."
What in the three hells happened for them to be so angry about this?
"Go to back to bed, Dozer." Peppermint said dryly. He didn't argue, only walked back into the quarters. Mango was awake, staring at the bed above him, where Cotton lay.
Dozer sat on his bed, opposite of the other cookies.
"Hey, what's Peppermints deal with the gods?"
Mango paled, staring at Dozer with such a look of horror it gave him the creeps.
"They're selfish." He stated. That was that- or at least Mango had hoped.
"How? Can you elaborate, please?" Dozer groaned. Mango punched the bridge of his nose, sighing, which faded into a loud, exasperated moan.
"They helped with the creation of the cookies." Mango growled. Nothing was clicking; the witches had created the cookies, hadn't they? Dozer asked the exact question.
"Yes. But the gods helped."
"I thought they were your family. I thought you were older than them."
"I am." Mango folded his arms. He didn't sit up, continuing to stare at the bottom of the top bunk. "They helped create the actual cookies, in exchange for immortality."
"...what about you?"
"Us dragons? We've always existed. No one knows how."
"And...the sea god? And the ice god?"
"Created by wizards magic, indirectly." Mango said plainly. "Frost Queen was originally mortal. After the frost curse, she is what she is now. Sea Fairy, on the other hand, was always a god."
"Does Peppermint hate them, too?"
"Everyone hates Frost Queen." Mangos tone was dry. "Sea Fairy? No one likes her either, not anymore. She's selfish."
"How?"
"She refuses to help. Her longing for Moon- the moon god traps her from doing anything else." The fruit cookies tone had turned bittersweet, an odd reminiscent sort of way that left Dozer wondering if he truly hated the goddess.
"Mother sucks." Said a tired voice from above. Cotton had awoken, and was hanging her head off the edge of the bed.
"Mhm." Mango nodded. "That, we can all agree on."
"Can we shut up about those greedy assholes?" Sorbet spat from another bed. Cotton laughed, still groggy and exhausted.
"No no, tell me more." Dozer chuckled. Cotton and Sorbet Shark mock-groaned as Mango continued. Sorbet sounded as though they screamed into their pillow; they probably did.
"Do you think they can hear us, talkin' shit?" Mango snorted.
"That'd be freaky." Cotton groaned. "...they can't, can they?"
"Nope." He grinned. "It's actually something that's been brought up once or twice because of stories; they can't actually hear us talking about them."
"Good. I'd be grounded for life."
"That's a pretty long time."
"Don't remind me."
The conversation faded, and no one spoke for a while. Dozer couldn't help but wonder if he'd made the right choice, coming along with the crew and Pancake on this trip.
Hopefully, he had, y'know? He only had to hope nothing horrible happened.
They'd had enough of that these last several months.