The Candy Shop War Vol. 1: Chapter 4

Jay swam inside the room, eyes peeled for anything that he could bring back to Josiah and Jalena. Being so diminutive had its advantages, (one of them being that he could enter this room at all), but it had plenty of disadvantages as well. For example, he couldn’t really tell whether that stone thing he was looking at was a wall, part of a wall, or perhaps a container. From his viewpoint, everything looked gargantuan!!

However, after some swimming, searching and double-checking, Jay realised that there were three iron chests in the room. Aside from the strongboxes, the room appeared to be bare. One was much bigger than he was, one only slightly bigger, and one was small enough for him to carry. He couldn’t see into any of them. Clearly, they each protected something. Jay got behind the largest chest and began pushing it towards the hole in the door. Maybe it contained the most important item. As a doll, he felt no strain from pushing the chest, but manoeuvring it was awkward.

However, by the time he has gotten the bulky receptacle to the middle of the room, Jay realised that it wouldn’t fit through the gap. He’d have to leave the first and take the other two chests. As he swam back to retrieve the other two, he suddenly heard the piercing sound of a whistle being blown twice. Outside, Josiah have the rope a few quick tugs, indicating that they had to leave as soon as possible. Panicking, Jay looked from the two smaller chests. Which one should he pick?

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Liberty walked over to where Cyboo and Jay’s body were.

“Hey, are you as bored as I am?” She complained.

“Yes! Next time, we should do the exciting stuff.” Cyboo agreed.

Liberty poked her head out the alley and examined the empty street.

Sooooo mind-numbing.

“They’ve been gone FOREEEEEEEEEVER.” Liberty moaned.

“Do you think they are OK? Maybe they are in trouble!”

“Well, they’re definitely better off that we are!”

“You never know...”

“Whatever!!”

After this, there was silence for about one minute.

“Watch out! Police car!” Cyboo warned, withdrawing further into the alley. Liberty hastily fell back as well until she could only see a small sliver of the road. After a jittery few seconds, she looked out again, just in time to see the rear lights of the police car vanish in the distance.

“Now, why are you kids hiding from the cops?” said a deep, distinctly British voice behind them.

Liberty and Cyboo both whirled around. Liberty gasped in surprise. A few paces away, deeper in the alley, stood a tall, broad-shouldered man in a brown overcoat and large black shoes.

“What are you two doing here in the middle of the night?” the stranger continued.

“Uhh... nothing?” Cyboo tried nervously.

“Pretty late to be out in a deserted alley doing nothing.” he observed.

“We could say the same about you!” Liberty accused.

“Ahh. But you see, I’m not doing nothing.” the man thrust his burly hands into the pockets of his jeans before continuing:

“I noticed you and your friends acting suspiciously, and it made me curious. After all, it’s not everyday you get to see a bunch of kids from all sorts of different racial backgrounds hiding in alleys doing... nothing.”

Liberty was consciously aware of the Energy Beans, Moon Rocks and Shock-Bits in her pockets, plus the whistle around her neck. This man had clearly been watching them, and that meant he was bad news. Beside her, Cyboo tried to run off to the side but the man sprang forward in two huge strides and grabbed Cyboo by the arm.

“Let’s keep this quiet and peaceful,” he suggested. “Just answer some questions, and I won’t hurt you.”

The man hadn’t seemed to notice the immobile body of Jay yet, and since he was holding Cyboo, Liberty took a chance and sprinted out of the alley towards the water. She quickly blew on the whistle twice, then reached into her pocket and grabbed a handful of Shock-Bits.

The man released Cyboo and dashed to Liberty. Before Liberty could eat the Shock-Bits, he had already seized her arm. With his other hand, he wrenched the whistle out over her head and crushed it between his thumb and middle finger. Flinging the whistle aside, the man pulled Liberty back to the alley.

Under the light of a nearby street lamp, Liberty got a better look at the man. He had huge meaty hands, a muscular physique, and a large chiselled jaw. His eyes were hard, and his overcoat made him look even bigger than he already was.

Hidden behind the corner, Cyboo leapt out when the man approached with Liberty, menacing sparks flashing from his fingertips. Obviously, Cyboo had eaten some Shock-Bits. However, the man stopped just out of reach.

“Shock me, shock her.” he warned.

Cyboo wavered, unsure of what to do. While Cyboo contemplated, the man swung Liberty in front of him like a shield.

“Shock me, shock him!” Liberty cried. “Come on!”

Cyboo hesitated, then tentatively reached out a hand to touch Liberty. Just before Cyboo shocked her, the man tossed her aside and backed away.

Emboldened, Cyboo recklessly charged the stranger, palm outstretched. The man reached into his overcoat and produced a miniature crossbow.

“That’s close enough.” he ordered.

Cyboo froze. “A crossbow??”

The man shrugged. “I left the tear gas in my car.”

While the man was focused on Cyboo, Liberty pushed Jay’s body out of sight and slammed the Shock-Bits into her mouth. The Shock-Bits tasted sweet and sour at the same time, with a slightly nutty tang. She crept up on the man from behind. Silently, she approached....

The man sensed her coming at the last moment. He spun around, but was too late. Liberty tagged him on the thigh, creating a bright flash of electricity that sent him sprawling into the street. The Shock-Bits had entirely dissolved leaving an unpleasant charred aftertaste. Swiftly following up, Cyboo ran after the stranger and touched him on the head as he tried to rise. The shock sent him flying even further downstreet.

“We better go!” Liberty shouted, digging in her pockets for a Moon Rock. “We jump from rooftop to rooftop in case the man chases after us.”

“But what about...” Cyboo asked, quickly refraining from saying ‘the rest’.

“Never mind! Let’s go!”

Popping a Moon Rock into her mouth, Liberty leapt for the roof of a nearby warehouse, then soared right over the street. Twisting in the air, Liberty noticed that the man no longer lay stunned in the road. Cyboo trailed after her, not far behind as they jumped over fences, roads, gardens and garages. A few glances back revealed that the stranger had given up pursuing them. Bouncing in the general direction of the Nest, Liberty hoped that her friends were alright.

Which chest to choose... which one, which one....

Jay looked from chest to chest. He knew that the larger one probably contained the more important item, but he wasn’t sure if it would fit through the hole.

Better to at least bring back something, he finally decided as he snatched the smallest chest just before the rope went taut and Josiah reeled him out of the room. As he floated through the water, Jay shook the box experimentally: there didn’t seem to be anything inside.

Once Josiah had yanked Jay through the hole, Jay gave Jalena the chest and they all stroked for the surface as fast as they could. Liberty and Cyboo were supposed to blow the whistle in case of trouble, but they had blown it TWICE. Obviously, something bad was going on. As Josiah tugged him through the water, Jay hoped that his body was still OK.

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Jalena couldn’t believe that the only thing Jay had found was a tiny box. It was about one foot long on each side, and there was a small keyhole in the centre. Was that it?? On the other hand, maybe there was something valuable inside: perhaps a clue to the treasure Mr. Krell was seeking.

Surfacing, Jalena spat out her Oxymint and climbed onto the quay. Looking around, she saw neither Cyboo, nor Liberty. A quick look into the alley revealed that Jay was nowhere to be seen.

“Cyboo! Liberty! Where are you?” Jalena whisper-shouted.

There was no reply whatsoever. Josiah ran to the corner where Jay had been lying, and discovered him, unharmed, hidden behind a bush. Josiah opened Jay’s eyes and blew into his eyeballs. In response to the irritation, Jay began blinking: Jalena took this as a good sign. After a few seconds, Jay’s mind was no longer attached to the Proxy-Doll and the doll became as lifeless as a statue.

“Where are Cyboo and Liberty?” Jay asked, thankful to hear the melodious sound of his voice once more.

“I have no idea,” Josiah replied. “I searched the entire alley! No sign of them anywhere, and they even left their bicycles!”

“Maybe they fled.” Jalena said.

“Maybe they were kidnapped!!!!!” Jay speculated.

“Ahhh. The African kid, the Indian kid and the albino kid.” came a voice directly behind them.

Spinning, Jalena saw a huge tall man in a brown overcoat towering over them. In his right hand he held a crossbow. “Don’t move,” he threatened.

“What did you do to our friends?” Josiah demanded.

“If you’d like to see them again, I suggest that you keep still and answer my questions. How come your friends could defy gravity?” he countered.

Jalena, Jay and Josiah were trapped. They were so close together that the man could easily shoot anyone who tried to move.

“Answer me!!” the stranger ordered.

Out of the corner of her eye, Jalena saw Cyboo sprinting down the road toward the man. Realising that Cyboo was free and about to save them, Jalena spoke loudly to muffle his approach.

“If you really want to know,” Jalena began. “Our friends are part fairy, part human!”

The man heard Cyboo coming a moment too late. While he was turning, Cyboo stuffed something into his mouth and charged at supernatural speed. By the time the man had turned 120 degrees, Cyboo had body slammed him with the force of a speeding bulldozer.

The man smashed straight into Josiah, causing Josiah to fall flat on the asphalt. He also dropped his crossbow, which bounced into the water. Jay ate a handful of Shock-Bits and shocked the stranger, sending him flying off Josiah and into a street lamp. At that point, Liberty jumped into view, obviously under the influence of a moon rock.

“Let’s go!” she shouted.

“Are you OK Joze?” asked Jay.

Josiah groaned. “I don’t think so.” he said, wincing. He had several scratches, many of which were bleeding. He tried to move his left arm, but stopped in agony.

“I think I broke my arm.” he moaned.

“Quick, eat a Moon Rock, then we can carry the lighter you.” Cyboo instructed.

Josiah obediently began sucking the treat, his weight decreasing tenfold. Cyboo and Jay picked him up and began running off before the man could recover.

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