Chapter 6 Plans Cypress woke up late in the afternoon. Fawkes had brought her and Mangrove some berries, and she was settling in well to life in Chaos. The heat was still uncomfortable, but she was getting used to it. Fern had taught her how to collect water from the stream in small bowls he had shown her how to make, and Orchid had introduced her to the rest of the members. There was another new member of Chaos: Trout. Trout had the most impressive feathers Cypress had ever seen on any creature. Cypress felt somewhat jealous, as her olive-green feathers seemed rather dull in comparison. When she first saw Trout, Orchid was showing her around. Cypress had never seen Trout before; the silvery-blue bird had slept by the stream and spent most of her time during the day in sheltered caves. Anarchy had allowed the residents of Chaos to rest for a few days after a large haul of food had been brought in, resulting in a relaxed defense, as there were usually only one or two creatures outside the camp at a time. Cypress raised her head. Mangrove was still nestled in the crook of her wing, sleeping lightly. He opened his eyes slightly when she moved but quickly fell back asleep. Mangrove had grown a lot since they first arrived; even though it had only been just over a week, he was now almost two inches taller, already a third of her height. The heat made the air look rippled and blurry. Cypress stood up and gently lowered Mangrove onto the cactus leaves below. He didn’t open his eyes again, and his chest rose and fell rhythmically. Only two others were in the den; everyone else must have left already. Cypress then exited the den. A small handful of creatures were already lounging in the warm sand, chatting peacefully. This mix included a large orange raptor, a pale pink amphithere, and Crescent Moon. Crescent looked more relaxed than Cypress had ever seen her. Her eyes were closed as she let the sun warm her fur. Cypress took a few steps to join them. Behind her from the sleeping den, a small noise followed by soft thumping footsteps drew her attention. Mangrove was waddling out of the den, blinking sleep from his eyes. He looked around the camp in awe, and Cypress realised with guilt that he had only seen outside the den a few times. Mangrove caught sight of his mother, and hopped quickly to her. Once or twice, he stumbled slightly from the sand shifting. Cypress caught Mangrove in her claws, and set him down next to her. “Hi, Momma!” Mangrove chirruped happily, preening his feathers with his beak. “Can I look around?” He asked, tilting his head slightly. Cypress gazed around the camp before responding. “Not right now, you can at night though. It’s too hot right now.” Mangrove looked up at her. “Okay.” Cypress sighed. “Hey, …Cypress, right?” someone from behind her asked. Cypress turned to see Crescent Moon. Her large wings made her seem bigger than she already was, and her blue and brown colouring stood out against the desert sand. From her ears hung a set of golden bead earrings that glinted in the sun. “Uh, yeah. That’s me.” Cypress nodded her head. “Anarchy wants to see you.” Crescent said curtly. Cypress searched Crescent’s tone, but it was steady and betrayed no signs of whether this was good or bad. “Alright,” Cypress said. “Mangrove, don't leave the camp. Mangrove hopped up and hopped over to Fern almost instantaneously. Fern grinned at Mangrove and said something that Cypress couldn't discern. Crescent Moon turned away from Cypress with a flick of her tail. “Come. I’ll take you to Anarchy.” Cypress trotted along the sand, following Crescent. They walked in silence for a few moments. “So. Um. Do you know why she needs to speak with me?” Cypress asked. “Plans,” Crescent responded unhelpfully. She started walking at a slightly faster pace, and Cypress had to almost jog to keep up with her.” “Do the plans have to, like, do with the war? Or just, a chat or something…?” She pressed. “War.” Cypress gave up on the matter and focused on seeming calm and collected for Anarchy. It wasn’t easy, as Crescent Moon kept her gaze fixed on the horizon, her wings catching the sun and casting shifting shadows on the sand. Without warning, Crescent veered left, movements swift. Cypress barely had time to react, and a spark of panic jolted through her as she stumbled over the loose sand, nearly losing her footing.
She quickly pivoted, her heart racing, and scrambled to catch up, the grains slipping beneath her paws as she hurried to align herself with Crescent once more. Crescent Moon ducked under overhanging stone and into a small passageway. Her movement became more hurried, a fine line between running and speed walking. Crescent had to duck her head to fit into the tunnels, but Cypress could navigate them with ease, her own head almost a foot from the ceiling of the cave. The tunnel yawned open to reveal a large cave that pulsed with orange light. Glowing vibrant crystals adorned the walls, seemingly having grown there instead of Anarchy having put them in. Anarchy didn’t strike Cypress as a huge decorator. Almost everything that was able to be knocked over was. By a small window slit was a large burn mark. Pale green smoke rose off of it in wisps; the damage was probably recent. Resting against the windowed wall was a dark brown wooden staff. It’s point curved slightly like a moon, and floating in the center without touching any of the wood was a small, sharp green gem. The green gem glowed very slightly, overshadowed by the bright orange light. It produced a quiet humming noise and vibrated quickly in it’s position. Something about it made Cypress want to reach out and grab it, thought she knew that was a terrible idea. Grenades were hanging from the ceiling held by rolls of bandage, possibly for further use or as a grim memorial to the war. In the center of the cave, there was a pool of water. A dead tree was laying in the pool, uprooted. The base of the tree stuck up as the tip of it rested at the bottom of the pool. Anarchy raised her head, snakelike eyes fixed on Crescent. “Thank you.” This was possibly the first respect that Cypress had seen from Anarchy in the few days she had been in Chaos. Crescent left, but not before snapping off a small chunk of crystal from one of the orange formations. Her ear flicked and she disappeared into the darkness of the tunnel. The crystal made an angry buzzing sound for a few moments, before returning to it’s normal pulsing. “So. Cypress,” Anarchy started. She rested her long tail coiled around the fallen tree, “Unless I have somehow forgotten, you know the ins and outs of the Earth Kingdom, yes?” “Yes, maam.” Cypress dipped her head, not locking eyes with the leader of the Chaos Monarchy. Anarchy’s eyes had a strange bright green that seemed to confuse anyone who looked into her eyes. “Crescent and I are planning an attack. And we need your aid to make it possible. We need you to show us the entrance to the camp. Also. I know that Earth does not commonly use powers, they use weapons more. That is correct, yes?” “Yes, maam.” Cypress said once again. “Why?” “Why? Well, um. I’ve never really thought about it? Well, Melon, he says that using our powers drains our energy. Like, life force. I mean. You can’t just regain it.” This was true, what Cypress was saying. She hadn’t used her power - turning her feathers to stone for a small time - since she was a young chick and had first found out about her powers. She had been around Mangrove’s age, probably a wee bit older however. Anarchy emitted a low, almost mocking hissing sound that resonated in the stillness of the evening—Cypress quickly recognized it as her way of laughing. “Melon! He hasn’t changed one bit! Superstitious fool,” she scoffed, her voice dripping with disdain. The playful glint in her eyes faded abruptly, replaced by a sharp seriousness that sent a chill down Cypress's spine. Her tail flicked with agitation, wrapping tightly around a slender branch of the nearby tree. With a sudden, decisive snap, she broke it off, the sharp crunch echoing like a warning in the quiet air. “Listen closely,” she commanded, the weight of her words heavy with demand. Her face was inches from Cypress’s, almost snarling, “Tonight, at the stroke of midnight, you will come to the ravine. Crescent and I will be waiting for you there. No excuses.” The ravine? What ravine? Cypress thought, before realising what ravine Anarchy was speaking about. Oh. When I came to Chaos, there was a big ravine I had to find the bridge for. She remembered the gut-wrenching shock she had felt when she had first looked over the edge. The closest ledges, already many meters deep, was splattered with blood suggesting many creatures had fallen into it prior. Cypress nodded to Anarchy. “Okay.” She still felt guilty about betraying her element, but Anarchy was her only hope… she fixed her gaze with Anarchy’s, no matter how uncomfortable it was to show she was sincere. Anarchy reached out a claw for Cypress to shake and she took it. She hissed, staring deep into Cypress’s eyes, “Very well. Do not disappoint me.” Next: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/1158646762/ Last: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/1097586654/ First: https://scratch.mit.edu/projects/1094154086/
