Hello all! You would not believe how many different ideas I drafted for this chapter, but then scrapped because they all read clunky and weren't close enough to what I wanted. The main focus of the fic is relationships (whether I intended it at first or not), and at some point I went "welp, the only way I can move this forward is if we get a look into the villains side", so I did!
On another note: It's easier to update my works when I'm not accidentally writing 5k words, so I'll see if shorter chapters like this one stir up my creative potential. If not, I'll still stay dedicated to this fic as I've always been :]
Thank you for reading :D
Among the kingdoms ruled by Ancient Cookies- those wielding the power of the Soul Jams- the Vanilla Kingdom had largely been regarded as the smallest. Not in land mass, something in which it surpasses the Cacao kingdom with its extensive highlands, but in population. The Vanilla Kingdom had a relatively small number of residents dispersed across its extensive land. To put it in simple terms, it was a farming kingdom.
Small villages dotted the landscape, all connected by their trading center, the castle in the sky. Their exports and trade dealt in various foods and clothes spun from cotton-candy wool, everyday sustainable perishables and items that carried less hostilities than the weapon exports of the Cacao Kingdom.
That's what made it the perfect target.
The red-robed cookie had a specific objective: to eliminate what defenses it had left, namely, cookies skilled enough to get in the way. She, among others, handcrafted a spell that could not only purge them but also gain something in exchange. It was tried and tested along the outer villages of the Vanilla Kingdom. It was perfect.
The paladin patrolling the streets, one.
The crow messenger, and self-appointed guard to Pure Vanilla, two.
The engineer in charge of the castle's wafflebots, three.
They were the main pillars defending the heart of the Vanilla Kingdom, all of them were supposed to be dead.
Now the priestess had to come to terms with the possibility that all of them were alive, and ultimately worse, reporting the information back.
Aftershocks of her last spell zapped through her, the handheld mirror almost impossible to hold in her trembling grip. Her vision was printed with black splotches; the paladin blinded her with one intense spell, that was for sure.
However, the spell wasn't important, nor was the exhaustion she felt. She needed to figure out how he lived.
She lifted herself onto shaky legs, leaning against the nearest shelf of electronic bits and pieces. It jittered against the weight, but her weak grasp held. A forming headache pounded in protest, sending an equally inconvenient wave of pain her way.
With half-lidded eyes, she assessed what she could of her surroundings. She was still in the wafflebot hangar, the beloved workspace of the little engineer. The first thing she needed was to leave, and the wide-open shutter door siding the workshop seemed to be working in her favor.
One foot in front of the other, she inched her way out into the open city. Bright rays of midday sun burned into her dilated eyes. The warmth scorched embers into her back.
Normally she could use her dark magic to make her presence unknown and swiftly navigate the kingdom without any worries about being confronted, but with her body drained of magic she didn't have the luxury.
Her gaze lingered on the ground in a desperate attempt to block out the light, and she caught sight of... a feather? It lay on the ground lightly, undisturbed by dirt or debris. It matched nothing of the crows or any other bird she'd seen in the Vanilla Kingdom: long, thin, and tipped with a reflective gold capturing the sun. How unusual.
She fought the urge to pick it up; she didn't have time for such childish actions.
Her next priority was finding a dark area to slowly recoup what she had lost.
That was better said than done, though. She was less-than-familiar with the kingdom, and expecting her to find a safe space without the darkness of the night shielding her was like asking an ice mage to cast fire magic. To put it short, after doing her best job to search the city for refuge, she was not only homeless but also lost.
The priestess' mind was clouded with a mangled sense of anxiety. She needed somewhere to retreat, lest she rot in the sunlight, but there was no hideaway she could find. Her whole body tingled with the uncomfortable absence of darkness like an insatiable itch. It was impossible to part her thoughts from the eroding pain afflicting her, and it was getting harder to keep her legs moving forward.
She needed to rest. No, she needed to report back. It was her duty.
The blackening haze of the kingdom swirled in her vision and an eerie ringing hung in the air. Her foot caught on a tile and sent her plunging to the ground.
The priestess grunted from the impact, hands spreading about the coarse walkway. She grabbed for purchase, trying to heave herself back up with the half a mind she could think with. Numbness burned pricks and needles into her dough.
Was this what her life culminated in? Falling and getting back up, draining her magic with an all-too-powerful spell just for the sake of her master? Giving up everything for the one cookie that gave her future promise? It was a shame how pathetic she was.
Warm hands wrapped around her arms, tugging her form to sit upright. Her vision was a swimming haze as she tried to process what was happening.
The hands continued their firm pressure, pulling her closer. Cool shade fell over her form as the shadow of a wide-brimmed hat loomed overhead. There was a concerned face looking down at her.
She was being helped.
"... you -kay?"
The priestess strained to make out the words through the sluggish haze she was in.
Are you okay?
Her heart pounded in her chest. This couldn't be happening. She was in the middle of an important quest, she couldn't be found out. Not now. Not when she found out how many things had gone wrong, and the pieces were falling apart in her hands. She needed to go, she needed to leave.
Her body wouldn't respond to her racing thoughts, working helplessly slow despite her racing mind.
She felt weightless as she was hoisted up, an arm bracketed by the cookie helping her. Her mind was in a spiral of trepidation. Uneasy thoughts entangled with her senses as she fought to escape, to cast a spell and return to hiding, to open her mouth and voice her disagreement.
But all that met her was the shade of a witch's hat and the faint aroma of coffee.
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Madeleine Grows a Pair
Fanfiction...of wings. He's scared, confused, and now his magic is spiraling out of control. He's driven by a need to feel complete again. Espresso is tired, overworked, and upon finding out Madeleine's newfound situation, curious. With a lifelong interest to...
