Finn Stayed the Night. I gave him his own quarters for the evening since the way back to the tree house was too long, and time was of the essence. Betty seemed pleased with his presence around the castle. Perhaps she even felt safer.
They left together, as Finn wanted to see some of Betty's skills in action and perhaps even fight each other one-on-one. I excused myself and disappeared into my lab. I decided it would be a good time to check in on my people, so I did.
Down near the war room is one of the biggest doors in the castle. It was my laboratory. The laboratory was a sleek, modern space with pristine white walls that seemed to gleam under the fluorescent lights. Stainless steel countertops lined the perimeter, housing an array of scientific instruments and glassware meticulously arranged in an orderly fashion. The air hummed with the soft whirring of machinery, punctuated by occasional beeps and clicks from computer monitors scattered throughout the room.
In one corner, a massive electron microscope towered over a clutter of specimen slides and petri dishes, its intricate lenses poised for examination. Across from it, a row of fume hoods stood sentinel, their ventilation systems ready to whisk away any noxious vapors that might arise from chemical experiments.
Yet, amidst the controlled chaos of scientific inquiry, there was an air of secrecy that hung palpably in the atmosphere. Behind a discreet panel obscured by a cabinet, an inconspicuous door was nestled within the wall. Its presence was subtle, almost imperceptible to the casual observer, but to those initiated into the laboratory's mysteries, it held a tantalizing promise.
I made sure no one followed, and as I entered the observatory, a couple feet from the entrance, thousands of screens filled the walls, all with a different Candy citizen, and some extending outside of the limits of the city, a perfect view of the flame king on one of them. I zoomed in; he seemed to be resting peacefully.
I took a deep breath; finally, my cameras remained hidden; no single camera had been compromised yet; the citizens needed me to watch over them to protect how little we had left. Some could have thought this was excessive, but not me. I needed to maintain observation at all times; thanks to these cameras, I got to Betty before it was too late. She is the key to returning the kingdom to its original glory. She just needed someone to guide her hand and protect her power.
I changed cameras, looking for Betty and Finn; after some empty rooms, I found them. Betty had transformed a rock and made it into a small dragon, and Finn was using his metallic arm to keep the creature from moving as he attacked it with his sword; they both seemed to be having fun and enjoying the beautiful night out there in the courtyard. I couldn't help but smile.
I turned off the screens and went to bed. I ordered Peppermint Buttler to prepare our bags for the trip, as we had a long way ahead if we were to find the Enchiridion.
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In my slumber, I had an unwanted visitor. His dark, sleek hair and his long figure were indistinguishable, Hunson. I was in a different version of my Candy Kingdom, one less put together, with destruction all around us and thousands of deceased candy people in the middle of town. He sat at the edge of the tower's balcony, looking at the devastation all around us; no building was safe, and no person or animal or being could have survived the fire attack.
The flame people seemed to be enjoying themselves as they terrorized the remaining citizens; Peppermint Buttler was dancing for them on hot rocks as they continuously increased the heat.
Hunson turned back to look at me, his crimson-red eyes watching me curiously as I approached him at the edge.
"Just here to remind you… This could have been your present." he crossed his arms and rested them on the balcony railing. "Don't forget our little deal keeps your people alive and well,"
I pointed at him angrily. "HOW DARE YOU?"
He smirked. He was much taller than me, making me look less menacing.
"You SAID small creatures in the forest; YOU are taking my people one by one."
"I said small creatures, like the ones in the forest, small sacrifices for a greater good." he savored those last words; he was attempting to rail me up. I wanted to respond, but Abadeer was gone before I could get another word out.
He left me in this post-apocalyptic scene of my Kingdom, and he did it on purpose; he must suspect my true intentions; who knows how much he knows about what I'm planning to do, how much I'm willing to sacrifice to ensure the well-being of my people. He thinks these visions would discourage me from fighting back, but what he didn't know is that they had the opposite effect. I would find a way out of this. No matter what.