Apologies to everyone on my behalf. The end of term is approaching and homework has been a mounting source of pressure, such that I was forced to sacrifice my already meager writing time to finish all the practices. Normal updating speed may only recover until the middle of July.

Part 6, Fun, mind games and an unhealthy amount of
candy

“A-asleep?”

“Yes. Possession is always an option.” Periwinkle said. Then, with a sudden movement, she grabbed the letter by the ends, channeled magic into her hands and began to tear it apart.

Moon felt goosebumps forming on her neck as an echoing scream emanated from the paper, which began to twitch and struggle in Periwinkle’s grasp like a living being as a stream of red ink began to bleed out of the place the tear was forming.

Periwinkle’s dark eyes flashed with cold fury. “And you
dare to object!” She snapped. The magical energy covering her hands intensified, the words slowly fading as the letter’s bodiless scream continued, and finally vanishing into  nothingness. Another movement of Periwinkle’s slender fingers, and the paper was ripped in half and disintegrated into a cloud of ash.

Mona and his wife were left speechless at the sight. Not only were them, even Hawkstar and Moon, Sempeverde and Luna all taken aback.

“Wow.” Hawkstar whispered.

Periwinkle paid no attention to the gazes on her. She raised her hand and inspected the red ink that had splattered onto her fingers. Then, “You must all stay in the house tonight. Do not exit, no matter whatever happens.”

“Everything you say, Miss Periwinkle.”

She turned on her heel and began to stride out of the living room, wiping her hands. “And you, miss,” She added, looking back at Mona’s wife. “Do not fall asleep. That thing will take control if you do. No matter how drowsy you might be, stay
awake.”

“I will, I will! I’ll follow your orders to the word! Are…are we safe now?” Mona’s wife asked unbelievingly, tears in her eyes.

“You are both out of danger, for now.”

Mona’s wife froze. “For now? Only temporarily? How- how can we be permanently free from this curse?”

Periwinkle: “When we banish this anomaly.”

The poor woman was too gripped by fear to be polite. “And when will that be?” She demanded.

“Right now.” Periwinkle’s eyes fell on Mona. “You should know where the construction site is. Would you be so kind as to show us the way?”

Mona said nothing. He complied silently, but all could note his sweating forehead as they followed him towards the northern side of the district. Sempeverde and Luna lagged  behind, casting searching glances into dark avenues while Moon and Hawkstar kept close to the heels of their guide.

They soon arrived to a construction site walled up by the usual blue sheets of iron serving as walls. The only difference were the layers of yellow caution tape and the oppressive silence reigning over it. There were no sounds in this area except
for their own breathing and the caws of crows.

The place where the ground had caved in was covered with a large stone with runes crudely carved into its surface. Moon raised an eyebrow with amusement. “What is this supposed to be for? Looks like something an amateur would do.”

Mona mopped his brow. “My brother, before he passed away, said that laying something heavy on it would stop it from escaping.”

“That obviously didn’t work.” Sempeverde said with a faux smile.

“…I’ll move it out of the way then.” Mona shuddered.

“There shall be no need for that.” Periwinkle said. With a flip of her hand, Tsunami materialized in her hand, blue sparks dancing across its blade. A fluid slash, and the rock exploded into rubble and dust. Periwinkle stood at the dark hole were the earth had caved in and made a grasping motion with her free hand. “Don’t stay hiding down there like a coward! Show yourself!”

A sickening gurgle came from the depths of the earth. Then a tremor. Then with a shudder of the ground a ragdoll slowly floated out of the hole, bringing with it a fountain of red liquid and sand. Mona shot one look at it and stumbled back, face as pale as a sheet. “Goodness sake!”

“This thing reeks of dark magic!” Hawkstar said, offering her shoulder to the man who was having trouble commanding his legs to keep standing.

“Get back behind me.” Periwinkle blocked a curious Moon with her arm and lashed out at the doll, which tore at its seams the instant Tsunami came into contact with it. The powerful force ripped its body into pieces without difficulty, sending  cotton fluff flying through the air. All watched as a sliver of paper that was miraculously unharmed by Periwinkle’s attack freed itself from the mangled chest of the doll and twirled down to the ground.

Periwinkle stepped on it and noticed the words scrawled on it.

You found me!

Moon stepped out from behind Periwinkle and inspected the still floating doll carefully. “If I were to offer an opinion, I’d say that this looks suspicious.” She gave Periwinkle a side-eyed glance to see if she was looking at her. She was.

“I know.” Periwinkle said, grinding the note into the ground with her shoe.

A small cloud of irritation formed around Moon’s head. She had been noting all the details down ever since they had arrived just so that she could give Periwinkle an unexpected surprise and impress her. Shouldn’t mentors patiently teach their apprentices how to analyze situations or stuff like that? And all I get as a reply is ‘you know’? I’m pretty sure that you know the most out of everyone here, missus.

She pretended not to hear and continued. “Firstly, the doll’s been floating in that pool of paint (And I do hope that that is paint and not anything else) for at least an entire week, according to our knowledge. But there is absolutely no paint that seeped into the surface, not to mention the cotton, how is that possible?”

Periwinkle stared at Moon with a half-amused look that said you may continue your performance.

“Secondly, if this empty hollow in the ground had existed for a long time, the architects would have noticed before planning the building complex, wouldn’t they? According to our research on the geographical features and city layouts of Mokishindu, there are barely any large rises or falls in the landscape or large construction projects in the vicinity. Which means that this hollow could not have been formed by nature or human activity. It appeared here due to supernatural influence.”

Periwinkle slowly raised an eyebrow.

Thirdly, didn’t any of you notice that there was a heavy smell of paint in the air when the doll floated out, but now it’s gone? I can only smell a sweet scent in the air now. Smells like…  peppermint.”

It was only after Moon pointed it out did everyone notice. There was a fresh sweetness in the air. So faint, that one would have easily missed it.

“Peppermint candy…” Mona murmured tremblingly, paling even further.

“What’s wrong?” Hawkstar asked.

His chattering teeth barely allowed him to form sentences. “The factory… It was supposed to be a candy factory… My wife suggested the idea to manufacture… peppermint candy…”

Sempeverde: “Could it actually be her behind all of this?”

Moon and Periwinkle spoke with one voice. “I don’t think so.” Then they glanced at each other.

Something bright and lively glimmered in Periwinkle’s eyes. “Well then, how about you go first.” She said, crossing her arms.

“Well, it’s ordinary peppermint. There isn’t any indication that it’s specifically linked to Mona’s wife, is it? It could just as easily be the vats of peppermint oil that had been sitting to the side. But the strange thing is-” Moon sniffed the air again. “Peppermint shouldn’t be strong enough to cover up the smell of paint. So, what do you think Miss Periwinkle? Did I get everything right?” Moon asked smugly, sidling up to her side. “Come on, tell me if I did or not.”

“You did. Good work.”

Moon laughed. “Seems as though someone isn’t feeling very talkative~”

The sweet scent in the air suddenly thickened. A heavy pink mist began flowing out of the doll, spilling onto the ground and spreading in an instant.

“Watch out!” Periwinkle grabbed Moon by the arm and pulled her close as the mist engulfed them.

“What’s this?”

“I don’t know! Stay close-” Luna’s voice was heard for just a moment before it was cut short, along with everyone else’s startled cries. It was thanks to the fact that Periwinkle and Moon were close together that they were not separated.

Blue fire ignited at the tips of Periwinkle’s fingers. “Take care of yourself. I’ll go check on the others.” And a tracking spell was flicked into Moon’s forehead, where it glowed before fading. Eyes widening, Moon tried to grab her wrist, but without a word she tore herself away and vanished into the dense fog.

Darn it! Moon thought, trying to clear the fog with her hands, but with little success. Now what? Is leaving apprentices
alone what mentors should be doing in the first place?

Then, as soon as it had come, the fog dissipated, revealing Moon to her surroundings. The construction site was gone, replaced by a great forest of trees made out of licorice sticks that obscured the sky with their great branches, also of
intertwined licorice. Small brown mushrooms made of  chocolate were clustered in the gnarled roots. The grass  beneath her shoes was pink and white with frosting and  crunched with every step she took. Sugar cubes dangled from multicolored gummy vines that curled on the trunks and low hanging branches. The air was imbibed with the smells of all types of candies.

An illusion, Moon realized. An unreal world that assaulted the senses and, when created with malicious intent and a fair bit of powerful magic, often managed to drive whoever was trapped in it out of their minds.

“Hello? Anyone here?” She asked out loud as calmly as she could, tentatively touching one of the daffodils on the ground near her. Like all the vegetation around her, it was assembled from a variety of sugary sweets reminiscent of Willy Wonka’s
Chocolate Factory. “Miss Periwinkle? Hawkstar? Sempeverde?”

She waited for a moment. Silence was the only response she heard. Just when she was about to try to call for them again, a sound interrupted her movements.

“All friends.” A young, childish voice giggled from behind her.

“Oh gosh! What!? Who’s there?” Moon exclaimed, nearly jumping out of her skin. She turned to the place where it had come from slowly, right hand gripping the pommel of  the dagger hidden at her waist. A little shadow darted away into the trees as she did so.

“Hey- w-wait!” Moon called after it. “Who are you?”

“A Friend! Follow me!” Was the answer, followed by another giggle. “Let’s play a game! I know where everyone is!”

Moon hesitated, suspicion gripping her mind. It was not a wise choice to follow strange entities when one is still unsure of their intentions.

But she was stuck here alone. And this voice was the only lead she had… 

Tests, homework, more tests. That's real life for me these days. I've been trying to make time to write, but progress has been slow. This part is only partly completed, but I figure that I shoud post it first to keep things alive.

Part 7, Moon in wonderland (Incomplete)

“Hello? Where are you?” Moon called hopelessly into the silent forest of candy. She had been hiking through the undergrowth for an eternity and had nothing to show for it apart from a  brief glimpse of her mysterious guide, someone who had the appearance of a small girl. “You’d better not be running around in circles.”

Another giggle from ahead. Moon groaned. Alice had had a better time off following the mad hatter in comparison to her. The mixed feelings of wariness, fear and excitement in her mind had slowly worn off as the minutes spent  trekking through the candy forest dragged by, sapping at her strength. She was covered from head to toe in various  condiments and colored icing, and the smell of candy was starting to get on her nerves. The air was growing hot and very dry. Perhaps it would have been a good idea to have brought a bottle of water along, she reflected. She was  parched and sweating from the heat. She refused to admit it, but her vison was starting to blur at the edges.

Just as she was wishing for some iced milk tea, a melodious gurgle announced itself from the trees. Moon’s heart leapt. There was a stream nearby!

Indeed, with another few twists and turns, a clear river of water made itself visible to Moon, greeted with the welcome sight of a clear band of transparent liquid running through the trees. Too thirsty to care about the possible risks of coming into contact with liquids in illusions, Moon hurried over and,  without any precautionary measures, took a deep drink. Being lost forever in a forest of candy was better than dying of  dehydration, she thought, relishing the cold taste of the water.

Yet after the first few mouthfuls, the water changed its refreshing taste, turning thick and syrupy, instead magnifying the sensation of oppressive heat around her. Coughing on her mouthful, Moon decided that she had had enough. She tried to
pull her head up, but to her dismay her body was no longer  obeying the commands of her consciousness. Her mind was slipping away into a fog of heat and numbness. Unable to pull herself back up, she was slipping headfirst into the rushing river. In a few moments, she could feel her lungs begin to burn for air, vison fading into blackness.

Just as she was completely engulfed by the darkness, a firm grip locked itself onto the back of her neck and dragged her  out, tossing her flat on the ground. Water splashed everywhere. Moon gasped as air inflated her lungs,  choking and coughing. As she wiped her face to clear it of the water dripping down from her soaked hair, she heard a voice from above her.

“Are you insane, daring to drink water from this place? Come on Moon, I thought you would know better.” Something round and small was pushed against her lips. “Chew this. It’ll neutralize the pheromones you’ve been inhaling.”

Moon looked up through her double vision at the blurry figure staring down at her in worry. “H…Hawkstar?” She croaked, recognizing the outline.

“Hush. Save your voice and eat this first.” Moon felt her mouth being pried open and the pill being shoved inside. She obeyed without saying another word, keeping her eyes fixed on Hawkstar above her.

The pill was so spicy to the taste that it nearly brought Moon to tears. But it cleared her mind and banished the blurry fog that had been throbbing in the back of her brain. She coughed out some last drops of water and rubbed her eyes. “That was
terrible.”

“That’s what you get for wandering off.” Hawkstar’s voice said, not sounding too amused with Moon’s undignified look.

“Oh come on Hawkstar…” Moon whined, waving a hand in the air. “I nearly drowned. Have some pity.”

“Hawkstar? My goodness…” Something cold and sharp pressed itself to Moon’s cheek. “I’ll give you three seconds to find your own bearings, Moon Wolf.” Hawkstar ordered sharply. “Or Tsunami can help you. Your decision.”

It took Moon two seconds to realize that Hawkstar never talked to her in that tone. Another one to realize that since when did Hawkstar use Tsunami as a weapon?

Her eyes flew open in panic. “H-hold up-”

She was too late. The blunt back of the enchanted katana smashed into her head, shimmering with pure blue energy. Before she could speak it came striking down again. And then again, for the third time, with such a powerful force that Moon was sent rolling a dozen yards away into a tree. Periwinkle had taken a few steps to close in the distance when Moon, head spinning and seeing stars nearly yelled out “Stop stop
stop! I’m awake! I’m awake now, I swear…”

Periwinkle took one glance at Moon’s face, waved her weapon away and stood where she was. “Be frank and tell me if I look like Hawkstar or not.” 

“You don’t, you don’t! Not anymore.” Moon said hastily, scooting away until she felt she was a safe distance from her mentor. Periwinkle’s erect figure was now clearly distinguished from the illusion of Hawkstar. “It was just, you had a crown of flowers around your head and freckles and sounded just like her…” She trailed off, only now realizing the potential consequences of the intoxicated state she had been in just moments before.

Periwinkle: “…”

Moon, with a hand still held to her temple: “…”

Periwinkle, awkwardly: “I...understand what you mean. Perhaps, it would be better if neither of us talk about this once we get out.”

Moon nodded. “Understood. Those were necessary actions. I have never agreed more.” 

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