I put my staff on the silver floor as tears land on my white robe, giving it a visible stain.
"You are not alone, Your Majesty. We all carry burdens, but sharing its heavy load makes it lighter."
Elder Faerie gets up from his silky bed. He opens a drawer next to his bed and pulls out tissues. He dabs his eyes with a dry tissue.
"Don't try to comfort me, Pure Vanilla... I have hated myself for as long as I can remember. When I gave up my life for White Lily... it was to end mine."
Tears well up in my eyes, and I try to hold them back.
Elder Faerie trusted and cared for me... but I couldn't help him when he needed it.
First, I was never there for White Lily. Now, I was never there for Elder Faerie.
He puts down the soaked tissue and gets a dry one. "Even though I deserve my self-hatred, it hurts and stings like a wound..."
I wipe my tears with my robe again. When I look up, it's stained with tears.
Tears of guilt.
I give him a bittersweet smile. "Remember, Elder Faerie, even the mightiest trees bend in the wind. Your struggles don't cut you down; they make you capable of enduring any wind."
He frowns. "Pure Vanilla..."
"Your people don't see you as a burden, Your Majesty. They see you as a Faerie, just like them," I sigh and stand up. "Hardships are meant to be shared."
Elder Faerie turns away from the window and stares at me. He looks hurt—his cheeks catch my attention because of his dried-up tears.
"Do you truly think so, Pure Vanilla?"
"Of course, Your Majesty. Allow us to stand by your side, as you've stood by ours. We will face whatever challenges come our way together."
"Together...? Is this a promise?"
I can't hold back anything anymore.
I run to Elder Faerie and give him a reassuring hug as I cry. The second I hug him, I feel him stiffen like a statue...
Then he slowly hugs me back, dropping his tissues in the process.
We remained silent, hugging each other for minutes. Elder Faerie softly whispers, "Thank you, Pure Vanilla... for being the first person to comfort me. Thank you... for everything."
I smile, not pulling away yet. My cheek can feel his tear-soaked robe. "It's nothing, Elder Faerie. I'm happy to help you."
Everything was wholesome and quiet until my heart came to a screeching halt.
Because Elder Faerie has stopped breathing.
I immediately pull away from him and look at him from head to toe. His eyes are shut, his face is relaxed, and his chest has stopped expanding and contracting.
What on Earthbread happened to him!?
My heart is pounding against my chest and adrenaline is inside my entire body.
I scramble to get a hold of his left arm. Elder Faerie is wearing a robe, so when I'm holding his left arm, I roll up his long sleeve and press my palm on his wrist, checking for a pulse.
I don't feel anything.
Did Elder Faerie crumble in my arms?
A memory cuts through the panic rushing in my head. Back in my kingdom, the Vanilla Kingdom, I always used my staff to check if a patient was unconscious or crumbled.
I'm horrible at checking pulses. I only require—
My staff!
I drag Elder Faerie to his silky bed before running to my staff. When I reassured myself that everything would be okay, it didn't.
Usually, my staff illuminates a bright aura. My staff's eye is tightly shut and it's not shining an aura anymore.
This never happened to my staff before, therefore I don't know what that means, or if it affects my ability to heal.
I shove the thought away. I must make haste.
I snatch my gloomy staff from the floor and hover it over Elder Faerie's immobile body.
I close my eyes for my staff to open its one eye, and then I mumble a spell so Elder Faerie can breathe again. After reciting the spell, I slowly open my eyes, unprepared for what I'm about to see.
Elder Faerie is still unresponsive—that's normal. I saw it in my patients and White Lily's revival. White Lily was unresponsive, then she woke up.
I'm certain Elder Faerie will wake up in a couple of seconds.
I toss my staff aside in a panic and press my palm on his wrist, waiting to feel a pulse. A small snap startles me, but I ignore it. I'm assuming I stepped on Elder Faerie's tissues.
My palm remains pressed on his wrist, then my tongue clicks as I remember something. I'm so... annoyed with myself. I nearly forgot I cannot check pulses without my staff—wait.
My staff.
My gaze falls on my staff, which I tossed.
I grab it from the floor, and I touch my staff everywhere. The stem is fragile like it's about to snap into two. I remember when I tossed it, I heard a subtle snap.
It hit Elder Faerie's drawer.
How can I check on Elder Faerie now!?
I have no option but to leave Elder Faerie alone in his palace. I have to go outside to fix my staff, look for Silverbell... and... and...
I take a deep breath. I never realized I needed a deep breath since panic has kept my mind busy. I need to... regroup...
I can't!
I don't have time to get my thoughts together. Time feels like it sped up ten times more than before. Without thinking, I dash out of Elder Faerie's palace, looking for anyone or anything that can help.
~
I've stayed in the Silver Tree's Abyss for as long as I can remember.
Our memories of our days before this abyss have fallen apart, consumed by the darkness of this abyss.
Our moments of joy and laughter... have been robbed. The vibrant colors of our lives have been drained.
But we never cried! All we could do was sit together in silence, contemplating our existence and wondering what the outside world was like.
The people... the thieves who threw us into this abyss... want us to breathe our last breath here in this very abyss. They threw us into this abyss, sealed the Silver Tree shut, and never thought we could escape.
Little did they know... we have been working together to prove them wrong.
For millennia, we, the Five Beasts, have been working to seek our grand, ultimate revenge by tearing down this cage to the very ground.
They will pay for keeping us in these deepest, dark depths.
Soon!
The only thing that has kept me going in this oh-so-lonely abyss is watching over... Pure Vanilla Cookie. He's so clueless, naïve, and idiotic, I must say! I even came up with a nickname for him.
"Oh, he's so silly-vanilly!" I cackle.
The putrid smell of burnt spice spreads everywhere in the Silver Tree's Abyss. I cover my nose with my hand, wafting away the smell, and the other Beasts do the same.
"Burning Spice Cookie. Punch the tree somewhere else," I groan in disgust.
As I mentioned, we're trying to tear this tree apart. The only way we can achieve that is through a rift. Burning Spice has been trying to open a rift by... punching the tree.
They roll their eyes. "I'm trying to get us out of here! Be grateful and keep your mouth shut," they sigh before muttering, "At least I still have my power after her—"
"BE QUIET!" I yell.
Burning Spice raises their hands, mockingly pretends to be scared, and cracks up. "Ooh, I'm so scared!"
Mystic Flour Cookie scoffs. "She is selfish. She stole our powers for her freedom. Soon... all she holds dear will return to flour."
My anger softens. "Yes, yes... it's sad, indeed..." I giggle, holding back my laugh. "And DISAPPOINTING!"
Mystic Flour and I laugh (it's the first time I've seen her smile in a century, literally!) except for Burning Spice, who only rolls their eyes. That Cookie is so boring.
Ahhh... this reminds me of the old times!
I sigh, wiping my tears from laughing. "I cannot believe the Witches chose a pathetic batch of Cookies to be great heroes of Earthbread! It was fun when we—"
"Be quiet with your babbling," Burning Spice groans. "I can't destroy this tree with you chattering all the time."
"You. Be quiet," we all turn to Eternal Sugar Cookie, who cracks open her eyes for what seems like the first time in an eternity. What a sloth.
She yawns and stands up as if she's drunk. "I can't sleep with your noisy... shouting..." Eternal Sugar yawns again.
The subtle sensation of salt comes to me despite the burnt spice, and I noticeably perk up.
Eternal Sugar turns to me. "Shadow Milk?"
I freeze. Did they notice the salt, too? They're not supposed to.
"What is bothering you?" Mystic Flour asks, opening only one eye.
"What's bothering him is that you guys can't seem to be quiet," Burning Spice furiously punches the tree.
In no time, everyone is back to fighting like normal. I assume they don't notice the salt!
I cast my magic upon them and sneak into the deeper depths of this abyss. My magic has worked, because they're continuing their fight normally, as if I was never there.
"Oh, stop it!" Eternal Sugar yawns. Mystic Flour is floating with closed eyes, not caring about the fight, like the apathetic Cookie she is.
"Go back to sleep, pinky princess!" The raging voice of Burning Spice fades as I sneak further away from the group.
Even though the abyss is already significantly dark, it feels darker as I venture deeper inside the Silver Tree's Abyss. I stop in my tracks when the sensation of salt is at its strongest.
Even though it's lonely, deep into the abyss, and the Beasts are far, I know I'm not alone.
"Ah, there you are..." I smirk at the Cookie in front of me. "It's about time you call me. I have a plan."
~
Hi!! I'm so sorry this chapter took such a long time to write :( School got hectic and I never found the free time to finish this chapter.
And, oh my goodness—600 READS!! I'm so grateful for all of you <3 I'm really happy with how much this book has grown!