The Candy Shop War Vol. 1: Chapter 7

 

Liberty restlessly tossed and turned in her bed. Jay had said that he would wake her when it was time, but she couldn’t sleep. She had agreed quite quickly to get the effigy for Mr. Krell, but now she was having second thoughts. She didn’t think that it was really stealing, IF it belonged to Mr. Krell. But what if he was lying and it didn’t belong to him? Or what if he was an evil genius who was exploiting them to fulfil some malicious plan? How did she know that he hadn’t made up the whole story about the words on hair? On the other hand, she really enjoyed using the magical candy, and nothing bad had actually happened. Liberty really wanted to believe that Mr. Krell was a good guy, but somehow she couldn’t fully convince herself. Josiah had asked some good questions, and Mr. Krell hadn’t even answered them very well. What if he never stopped producing the Minty Ice Cream? Since he was a magician, maybe he was hypnotising them to do what he said! These and many other doubts ran through her mind as she waited for 11:00 pm.

 

“BOO!”

“Ahh!!!!!!” Liberty cried, grabbing a handful of Shock-Bits before she realised it was just Jay. He had snuck in while she had been thinking, the sneaky fella. Jay laughed quietly, putting a finger to his lips to warn her not to make so much noise.

“Penny for your thoughts?” Jay asked when he stopped guffawing.

“Two pennies.” Liberty countered, still annoyed that he had scared her.

“Ha! Mine are worth at least twenty!” Jay boasted.

“Well, I’m not paying. Is it time to go?”

“Yes. I left the ProxyDoll on the porch, because it was so heavy, and Dad didn’t even notice!”

“In other words, you need my help to lift it.” Liberty rephrased.

“I didn’t say that!”

“You should workout more.”

“Let’s just get going. We don’t want to be the last!”

 

Indeed, it took their joint effort to lift the wooden figure onto a wagon. Despite its thinness, the ProxyDoll was tall, heavy and awkward to manage. Additionally, one of the arms squeaked whenever it moved, making them afraid of being heard. However, they eventually accomplished their task, and Jay began cycling down the lane, pulling the wagon behind him.

 

“Three seconds late.” Jalena scolded playfully at the intersection between Maine and Presidential Estate.

“Have you guys been waiting long?” Liberty asked.

“Nah, we just got here.”

“Let’s go!” Jay cried.

“I’m still not comfortable with this.” Josiah mumbled, fingering his Laser Liquorice.

“Me neither.” Cyboo agreed.

“But you agreed, so we have to do it.” Jay said with conviction.

“I guess so.” Josiah shrugged.

 

Soon, Liberty and the rest arrived at the Koulson Museum.

“Park your bikes in this alley.” Cyboo instructed, wheeling his to rest against a wall.

“Ugh, help me lift this guy!” Jay grunted. With Josiah and Jalena’s help, they managed to stand the ProxyDoll upright.

“Now, how do we get it up on the roof?” Liberty wondered.

“We all take Spider-Bites and climb up the wall, carrying the doll between us.” Jalena suggested.

“Tie a rope around the wooden dummy. Then, I become the ProxyDoll, you guys climb to the top and pull me up.” Jay proposed.

“We use the Energy Beans to hurl the Doll up onto the roof.” Cyboo conjectured.

“Don’t be ridiculous. What if it breaks?” Josiah frowned.

“I don’t like to say this, but I think Jay’s idea is the best.” Liberty finally decided.

 

So, the CHTers began their preparations. First, they each consumed a Melting-Pot Mixer. Next, a strong nylon rope was tied around the wooden figure’s waist. Then, Jay lay down on the asphalt and swallowed the Proxy-Dust, becoming the corresponding ProxyDoll: under Jay’s control, the bulky uncooperative statue became much more manageable. They agreed that Cyboo would stay in the alley to watch their bikes and protect Jay’s immobilised body, and the rest would jump (using Moon Rocks) or climb (using Spider-Bites) to the roof, and haul Jay up.

 

Once atop the museum, Liberty quickly located the largest air vent. She experimentally tried to lower herself through the gap, but found that she got stuck at her knees. Jalena had to help pull her out.

“Let’s get Jay up now.” Josiah whispered. “On the count of three. One, two, three!”

Bracing their feet against the rooftop, they yanked on the rope together. Jay rose up several feet, than dropped back to the road with a noisy clatter. Terrified that they had been heard, everyone froze.

“Let’s try again.” Josiah said, once it was clear that no one had noticed.

This time, with Jay helping by clawing up the wall, they managed.

 

“Here.” Liberty whispered, motioning towards the large vent.

“We need to lower him down so he doesn’t make noise.” Jalena moaned, rubbing her forearms.

“No way! Let him drop. There’s no one around.” Josiah responded.

Obeying Josiah, Jay fell down through the hole and landed heavily in a large room filled with displays, cabinets, and cupboards.

 

As before, Jay couldn’t speak, but his mind was whirling. Mr. Krell had not given him many specifics, unlike the Yoona Bourga Bay Mission. Which cabinet held the effigy? What did it look like? The room was big and must have contained hundreds of antique items. Was he really expected to rifle through the entire room?

 

It seemed the only thing to do, so Jay walked over to the nearest exhibit and read ‘Alblacan Stone. Dated 2333 BC’. The next sign proclaimed: ‘Alcatrala Ballista. Dated 26 BC’. Maybe everything was categorised alphabetically! Acting on his hunch, Jay paced around the tables and found the ‘B’ section.

 

‘Belligerent Grotto, Dated 354 AD’

‘Bhongle Drath, Dated 1800 AD’

‘Bidrathangle Trangle, Dated 228 BC’

‘Birmingham Effigy, Dated 76 AD’

 

“Aha!” Jay thought to himself. “How nice. You really are clever, Jay.”

Relieved to know that wooden hands can leave no fingerprints, he picked up the wooden effigy. It looked like some sort of distorted building with many towers, misshaped walls, and oblong windows. About two feet tall, it was crudely coloured in faded shades of green and black. “Not a very complimenting combination.” Jay decided.

 

Mission accomplished, Jay strode back to stand directly below the air vent, and tugged hard on the rope. Then, he waited to be lifted back up.

 

“He’s done! Yes!” Jalena cried excitedly.

“Shhhhhhh!” Liberty hissed.

“Is everything ok up there?” Cyboo called quietly.

“Yeah. Seen anyone?” Josiah whispered back.

“Nope.”

“Ok, we should be with you soon!”

 

As it turned out, Cyboo would have to wait longer than expected. Jalena, Liberty and Josiah heaved with all their might, but Jay couldn’t fit through when he held the effigy! Jay tried his hardest to squash the effigy between the bars, but no matter how much he turned, twisted or squashed it, the Birmingham Effigy stubbornly refused to fit through.

 

Exhausted from holding Jay up, the three on the roof unceremoniously dropped him to invent a new plan.

“Either it needs to become smaller, or this hole has to become bigger!” Jalena panted.

“It can’t become smaller...maybe use Energy Beans and smash the bars?” Liberty suggested.

“I know what to do.” Josiah smiled, taking out a strip of Laser Liquorice.

 

Josiah broke off one segment of the Liquorice and put it into his mouth: it tasted sugary with a hint of apricot and lemongrass.

“Josiah! Your right pointer finger is glowing reddish!” Liberty said in quiet awe.

“Let’s see how this goes...” Josiah murmured.

He put his gleaming finger on the end of one of the bars and willed the laser to fire. There was a small “zeum” sound, and the bar dangled downwards, disconnected from its left side. Consuming another piece of Laser Liquorice, Josiah shot the right side and the bar was sent falling down to the ground below.

“It worked.” He whispered in wonder. “It really fired a laser!”

“Let’s try and pull Jay up again.” Jalena said.

This time, the the effigy could fit through the enlarged hole, and Jay emerged with it.

“We did it! Let’s go!” Josiah exclaimed, pocketing the rest of his candy.

 

“Hey, who’s that?” Liberty questioned, pointing at a figure far in the distance.

“What?” Jalena asked, whirling around.

“Some guy is spying on us!” Liberty said, crouching on the roof so she would be less conspicuous. Jalena, Jay and Josiah did likewise.

“Is that binoculars?” Josiah whispered.

“If you ask me, it looks like the tall guy from the candy shop. What was his name again? Oh right, Tobias.” Jalena said after prolonged staring.

“That guy who chased us at Yoona Bourga was tall as well. What do we do?” Liberty yelped.

 

“What’s going on up there?” Cyboo called, somewhat impatiently.

“There’s someone watching us.” Josiah hissed. “Can you see him?”

“No, where is he? Who is he?”

“No time to explain! He’s moving towards us; we’re coming down now!”

“Hey look! There’s another guy behind the first one.” Jalena observed.

“Two people??” Josiah panicked. “We need to go ASAP!!!!!!”

“We can’t just drop Jay! He will make too much noise!”

“I’ll awaken Jay from here! Then you guys can come down with the effigy.” Cyboo said urgently.

“What about the ProxyDoll?” Jalena asked.

“Hide it behind an air-conditioning unit or something, it’s not important!”

A few moments later, they heard Jay’s voice from below. “I’m down! Hurry!”

 

Liberty popped a Moon Rock into her mouth and leapt off, holding the Birmingham Effigy. Josiah and Jalena carefully laid the doll down on the rooftop, counting on it’s flatness to keep it hidden. Then, Jalena jumped off as well, but Josiah paused to look at the two advancing figures. They were both too far away to distinguish in the darkness, but they were certainly coming closer. There was something strange, though. The first man was definitely watching them, but the second man seemed to be watching the first man. Also, the first man didn’t seem to be aware of the second man, and the second man didn’t seem to be aware of them on the roof. Whatever their real relationship was, Josiah had no wish to be caught by either man, so he leapt off the rooftop and joined the rest.

 

“Which direction are they coming from?” Cyboo questioned.

“They’re coming from the east, so we have to go west.” Liberty replied.

“Good thing we took the Melting-Pot Mixers.” Jalena commented, looking at her yellowish skin. “No way could we have been recognised.”

Jay carefully placed their prize into the wagon behind his bike, and they all set off together, pedalling as hard as they could.

 

“Well, that was a success!” Liberty cheered upon reaching Maine Street.

“I’d say it was.” Cyboo agreed.

“Maybe so, but this whole business with Mr. Krell is making me feel uneasy. What if he claims to have found some instruction in this Effigy telling us to rob a church? I say that we all meet at The Nest tomorrow, and discuss everything. Maybe we should even examine the weird structure for clues.” Josiah proposed.

“I second that!” Jalena said.

“I’ll keep the Birmingham Effigy for now. Till tomorrow! By the way, what do we do about the ProxyDoll?” Jay asked.

“I don’t know. Perhaps we should go back and get it.” Josiah mused.

“Aiyo, there’s no harm leaving it up there. Besides, what if those two men are at the museum now?” Cyboo reasoned.

“Ok, fine. I’m going to hit the hay now: sleep well everyone!”

 

At the intersection, the five separated, relieved that the night’s work had been relatively easy.

“And that’s why I think we should stop working for Mr. Krell.” Liberty finished, having just explained all her thoughts from the previous night.

“Precisely. Sure, Mr. Krell does give us fun candy, but the missions are the problem. It just isn’t right!” Josiah added. “Also, why does he use kids to do his dirty work?”

“Part of it may simply be that he likes to see kids using his candy. Besides, he needs to man the shop, etc.” Jay

“He acted like that as first. But have you noticed how he spends more time stressing how we must trust and obey him, instead of on sharing the candy with us? Now he threatens to take away the candy and end the relationship, rather that offering to give us new powers.” Liberty pointed out.

“Let’s see if we can find anything on the Birmingham Effigy.” Jalena suggested.

 

The five examined every square inch of the building, but didn’t find anything.

“Maybe inside one of the rooms?” Cyboo wondered.

“We’d have to destroy it to see inside.” Liberty groaned.

“Well, we might as well give this to Mr. Krell and see what he makes of this. But I’m making no promises about joining the next mission!” Josiah warned.

“Me neither.” Liberty agreed.

“Think of it this way. If Mr. Krell really is evil, then we are the best people to stop him! Who else can? The police? He’ll just give them Minty Ice Cream and send them away. We are the only ones who can, in some sense, spy on him.” Jay reasoned.

“I guess that makes sense as well. . . “ Jalena murmured.

“You are free to keep on doing illegal stuff under the pretence of spying, Jay. But I won’t. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying Mr. Krell is the bad guy. But I will definitely leave if the next assignment is more nefarious than the last.”

 

Twenty minutes later...

 

“Well, I will need to examine and maybe tear down the Birmingham Effigy in search of clues. But well done! I’m glad to hear that you all didn’t run into any trouble.” Mr. Krell congratulated.

“Do we get new candy?” Jay asked.

“You do, but you must not consume this one by any means.” Mr. Krell reached under the purple table and withdrew a small purple cylinder treat.

“I will need time to discover anything the effigy can offer. However, I already have a new assignment. This candy is a Bestial Biscuit: so called because anyone who consumes it will be transformed into an animal. The transformed person will have no recollection of their past identity, and so is one of my most effective ways to dispose of enemies.”

“You want us to erase someone’s memory AND change them into an animal?” Cyboo cried incredulously. “That’s like murder!”

“Tut tut!" said Mr. Krell. "Murder is such a horrible word. I prefer... exterminate.”

“Who do you want to feed a Bestial Biscuit to??” Josiah demanded.

“A most devious foe, and a threat to all of humankind. Whether or not I get the treasure, he must be eliminated. He has a most horrible record, and will do anything, including torture and murder, to achieve his ends.”

The five sat stunned in their seats.

 

“Well? Will you kids participate? Remember, if you refuse to join, then our relationship will permanent terminate at that point.”

“Can you prove that this man is really as evil as you make him out to be?” Josiah finally said.

Mr. Krell shifted in his seat before replying, “If this relationship has no trust, than you should turn in your candy.”

“You can’t expect us to blindly trust you! We earn your trust by fulfilling your assignments. Can’t you at least return the gesture?”

“I can tell you stories about this man. I can give you examples of his deeds. But I have no hard proof to show you. All I have is experience and knowledge.”

“Ok, I was already against the museum mission, but I’m absolutely drawing the line here.” Josiah exclaimed hotly. “No way will I do as you say, especially since you have no concrete evidence whatsoever!”

“All the other assignments have seemed shady in some way or another, but this is plain wrong! I’m with Josiah. I’m out of here.” Liberty added.

“Then the two of you may hand over your candy to those willing to participate in the mission.” Mr. Krell said with a glare.

 

“I don’t have all my candy with me, but I can bring mine over.” Liberty said.

“Why should we give our candy to you? We earned we candy I have now.” Josiah argued.

“Josiah does have a point. You may keep your candy as long as you use it in secret and stay out of this treasure hunt. But by choosing to resist me, you have effectively become my enemy. Do not come back here. Do not try to participate. Do not tell anyone of what you have learnt. I will not harm you in the least, or in any other way antagonise you, because you five did perform the previous missions admirably. Nonetheless, the moment you leave this room, you can never ever return. Are you sure you still want to leave? You haven’t even seen some of my most amazing candies yet!”

“We are sure.” Josiah and Liberty said firmly.

“What about you other three?” Mr. Krell remarked somewhat nonchalantly.

“I’ll stay with you.” Jay replied.

Jalena and Cyboo looked uneasy.

“Uhh...” Jalena mumbled under her breath.

“Can we decide later?” Cyboo asked.

“Sorry, but you need to make your decision now.” Mr. Krell responded.

“I know you might have good intentions, Mr. Krell, and I get that you really want your family treasure. But I’m not cut out for this kind of stuff. I’m leaving with Josiah and Libby.” Cyboo asserted after a few seconds.

“I’ll stay with Jay.” Jalena said.

 

“I guess we’d better go now.” Josiah murmured softly. He looked sadly at Jay and Jalena before turning away.

 

Mr. Krell stood up and showed Josiah, Liberty and Cyboo out of the back room.

“Well, this marks the end of our treasure hunt.” Liberty sighed.

“Better than wiping someone’s mind!” Cyboo exclaimed.

“We can still have some fun with the candy we have left. But I hope Jay and Jalena know what they are getting into.” Josiah griped.

“Somehow, I doubt it.” Liberty said, trying to brighten the mood with a bad joke.

 

The three pushed their way past the long lines of eager customers and out onto Maine Street, then went down Presidential Estate towards the Nest. Hopefully, Jay and Jalena would meet them there after they finished talking to their former employer.

 

 

 

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