A few hours passed.

Florence wrapped her inflamed forearms high up a lollipop, hanging onto her dear life. Beneath her, the NPCs wandered with their feet crunching on the crushed biscuits. The cotton candy drifted above, far beyond her reach.

Yuze snored, sleeping on Aisling’s lap at the top of another lollipop. Aisling’s face drained from any color as Sam sank his teeth into her hand.

Stella trembled, sending tremors across the sweet-scented air.

“This is really your idea, Florence,” Aisling said. She squinted, glaring at Florence.

“The rat did not say we could not climb up one of those lollipops,” Florence said.

Stella closed her eyes shut, curling up into a ball. “I… I mean, I… I guess.”

“You see that,” Aisling said. “Even Stella doesn’t wanna be here.”

“Pardon me, I am indeed very sorry.” Florence groaned as her muscles ached. “Anyways, where is the exit out of this literal candy wonderland.”

She scanned around the surroundings. Each direction covered miles upon miles of lollipops sprouting from the crushed biscuit ground. Not a single door or a sign pointing at the exit. She sighed, licking the candy mounted on a stick. The sweetness tingled, lasting for a while on her tongue.

“At least we’re gonna survive more than a few days in this place,” Aisling said. “Just ensure we don’t overeat it… or else we’ll cancel our life subscription.”

“What life subscription? I do not understand what you meant,” Florence said.

“Death. That’s about it.”

“This… certainly makes sense.”

Sam muffled a meow with Aisling’s hand stuffed in his mouth. He slapped, clawing at her hooded shirt.

“What now?” Florence asked.

Stella covered her with the four packaging boxes. “I wish… I mean, I don’t know.”

“Look, this isn’t my idea,” Aisling said. “So, don’t look at me. Ask Florence about it.”

“Pardon me? No one is looking at you,” Florence said.

Yuze yawned, reaching into the pocket of her shorts and pulling out her revolver. “Point this?” she asked, twirling it around her finger.

“Aren’t you a handful?” Aisling slumped, losing the twinkle in her eyes. But, still, she smiled. “It’s just that every single time I’ve to save…”

“Pardon me, Aisling, how about you get some rest?” Florence asked.

Yuze aimed the revolver downwards. “Threaten them?”

“Save my file… that was what I wanted to say,” Aisling said. She shook her head, a twinkle returning in her eyes. “By the way, you are a literal walking definition of an idiot.”

Below them, a bloke NPC with a car engine sticking out of his legs kicked the stick. Tremors vibrated up, shaking Florence on top. She slipped, losing her hold on top of the lollipop. Her teeth clattered as she dropped down.

She wrapped her finger around her wrist, stopping her from falling. She tilted her head upward.

Aisling with her hand stretched out, gripping onto Florence.

“Thank you,” Florence said.

“Don’t say that.” Aisling coughed. “Where are we supposed to go now?”

The NPC with car engines on his leg slammed the stick again. “Where did those Players and Sam go anyway?”

Sam meowed. But, again, Aisling muffled him.

A speaker stabbed into the larynx of a female NPC peeped from the back of another lollipop stick. She waved at the bloke NPC with a car engine sticking out of his leg.

The bloke NPC with a car engine sticking from his leg crossed his arms. “Have you seen them, Radio Box?”

“Totally not,” Radio Box said without moving her mouth. But, instead, those words of hers uttered in static from the speaker that stabbed into her larynx. “What about you, Engine Legs?”

“I guess it’s whatever. They just disappeared.”

“Those Players definitely have those abilities?”

“Wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve it.”

“I don’t think so. They would have already used it if they had it.”

“Whatever, they probably couldn’t run far away from us.”

Florence watched Radio Box and Engine Legs talking to each other. Aisling leaned closer, blowing a puff of air into Florence’s ears.

A chill shivered down Florence’s spine. She turned her head, looking straight at Aisling.

Aisling stretched her finger, thrusting her arms towards the left. But, again, it was only a dense mass of lollipops spread across miles upon miles. Not a different detail could be detected at where she pointed.

Florence shook her head, making a talking hand gesture like a person’s opening and closing mouth.

Aisling tilted her head. Then she slipped her hands between her armpits, flapping her arms. Immediately, she pushed her shoulders up, glaring at everything around her.

In utter shock, Florence slapped her own face. She set the tip of her finger on her own lips.

Aisling nodded, raising her palm high up. She hushed, smacking Florence on the face.

Florence cupped her cheeks as it burnt red from the hit. Her stomach twisted. The bile rose up her throat.

Yuze smirked, pushing herself up. A black box manifested on a… certain finger as she pointed it at Florence and Aisling.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Sam shoved Aisling’s hands away from his mouth, meowing as loud as possible.

Both NPCs below stopped talking, wheeling around to find the noise source.

“You see,” Engine Legs said. “I told you they should be close by.”

Radio Box threw her hands into the air. “Yeah, I can tell. It sounds like Sam.”

Florence froze, cupping Sam’s mouth.

“This ain’t right,” Radio Box said. “Maybe the Players are above us.”

Both NPC tilted their heads toward the cotton candy drifting in the sky.

“Hey, what are they doing up there on the lollipop?” Radio box waved her hands.

Sam waved his paws.

“Whatever, I don’t really care,” Engine Legs said. “I mean, he said that they can’t run, but not about climbing up a lollipop and hiding.”

“This is stupid… how’d we not think of that.”

“Did you expect any of them to know how to climb?”

“Not really… But, whatever, I guess we found them.”

Florence looked at Aisling.

“Florence, don’t look at me,” Aisling said.

“Anyways, do you have a plan,” Florence said.

“What do you expect me to do? Jump down and break my legs?”

“Fair enough.”

Radio Box knocked her feet on the stick. A shockwave went up the lollipop, shaking Florence, Aisling, Yuze, Stella, and Sam.

“Hey, let me try again,” Engine Legs said.

“Could you let us down from here before you continue kicking this lollipop?” Florence leaned over the edge. “I would like to talk with you for a minute.”

Aisling clenched her abdomen. “Gonna be honest, what was the point of that?”

“Yes… and no,” Radio Box. “Engine Legs, you do the honor.”

A smile twisted on Engine Leg’s face. His foot cut through a stick of the lollipop. Splitters flew in every direction. The lollipop tilted sideways, plummeting towards the crushed biscuit ground.

Aisling and Stella screamed, hugging each other.

Sam muffled a meow.

“Yes and no, as in literally getting all of you down from the lollipop by letting him kick it down.” Radio box waved her hand. “Also, by the way, I’m not sorry.”

“My god, why is this even happening?” Aisling asked.

“Language,” Florence said.

Yuze closed her eyes, snoring with a smirk.

Florence clung to the smooth surface of the lollipop, tensing up her muscles. The ground zoomed closer.

The lollipop exploded as it smashed onto the ground, propelling her forward. She crashed and rolled, kicking up the crushed biscuits. She grunted, pushing herself up. But, immediately, Aisling dropped out of nowhere, smashing into Florence’s back.

Sam flipped in the air, landing on Florence’s head with a thud.

In crunching steps, those two NPCs inched nearer to Florence.

Aisling unsheathed a dagger, aiming the tip of it to her throat. “Don’t take a step closer to us,” she said. She moved her thighs closer together, squeezing Florence.

“You think you could play this game?” Radio Box asked. She pulled a knife from her pocket and held it to her neck. “I could also play it.”

“Yeah, I could do that, too,” Engine Legs said. He snatched the knife from Radio Box’s hand and pointed it at his head.

“Aisling, stop? It… you know,” Florence said.

“I dare you,” Engine Legs said. “Do it.”

Aisling furrowing her brow. “Nope, you do it first, coward.”

Florence raised her hand. “I am a bit concerned about something, everyone. Do any of you know where Stella and Yuze went?”

“Shut your mouth, pleb.” Sam extended his claws, slapping Florence. He hissed. “Stop ruining this reverse Mexican standoff with knives.”

“Over there,” Aisling said. She pointed at Yuze and Stella lying on the crushed biscuits.

Radio Box cracked her knuckles. “Focus, Players.”

“Which one?” Florence and Aisling asked at the same time.

“Yeah, which one are you talking about,” Engine Legs said. “There’s more than one here.”

Radio Box stomped on the crushed biscuit ground. “Are all of you stupid or something? Because, at this point, I’m sure stupidity runs deep in your family.”

Aisling shook her head. “Quite sure it runs in your family, too.”

Florence sighed, crawling out from the gap between Aisling’s thighs. “I’m going to find the exit or something.”

“Come on, I know you want to do it,” Engine Legs said. He stared into Aisling’s eyes. “Holding yourself hostage like that.”

Florence trudged away from Aisling, and Engine Legs argued.

The lollipops towering over them bent from right to left. The ground rumbled, kicking the crushed biscuits up. Scratching echoed throughout the forest of candy on a stick. Then, a claw stuck out of the forest of lollipops.

Florence froze, unable to move a muscle.

From the forest of lollipops, a gray blur bounced towards her.

A shadow loomed over her.

She tilted her head up. In front of her, the rat standing on his back paws while he grinned at her.

“I almost didn’t notice all of you for a moment,” the rat said.

“Hey, we’ve captured those Players… again,” Radio Box said.

“Wait, did I say I want you guys to catch them alive?”

“Yeah… wait… you did want us to kill them at one point. So… Do you want me to do the dirty work?”

“About that… I no longer need them. So, feel free to keep those Players.”

Radio box threw her hands up. Then she crossed her arms, shaking her head.

The rat scratched the back of his ears. “What now?”

“You’re asking me that?” Radio Box smacked her lips together. “Also, before I forget, are we getting our reward for capturing those Players anyway?”

“Haven’t I told you already? It was canceled.”

“What? When?”

“I got bored. Also, I’m sure you already know why…”

“So, now you’re telling me I’m not getting my rewards because you got bored.”

The rat nodded.

The knife slipped away from Engine Leg, thudding onto the ground, pushing aside the crushed biscuits.

“Yes, everything you just did was completely pointless,” the rat said.

Radio Box clenched her fist, turning it white. “I don’t… why.”

The scratching rang throughout the forest of lollipops. Florence wheeled around, but only those sticks stabbed into the ground greeted her as if nothing had changed.

Aisling diverted the tip of her dagger away from her throat. “So, I guess you don’t want us… entertain you… kinda.”

“It would be nice if you could show us the exit,” Florence said.

The rat squeaked. “What else do you think? Well, let’s say someone else convinced me,” he said. He wagged his tail. The pink ribbon slid off him, revealing a red eye tattoo on his skin. “As I, Buttercup, could… wait, what was it again?”

“Come on, seriously?” Radio Box stomped away from everyone.

“Hey, wait a minute,” Engine Legs said. “You forgot your knife.”

“How about my paycheck, rat?” Sam asked.

“No,” Buttercup said. “Also, by the way, you’re fired.”

An eerie silence rang through the air as Sam dilated his pupils.

“Your expenditure is way too costly,” Buttercup said. “I can’t pay for all of it.”

Sam hissed. “What? Impossible, pleb.”

“Okay, let me see, your salary is over ten million dollars. And that’s not including all your catnip expenditures and that one hundred thousand dollar prize pool.”

“It’s not that much. It’s only a few dollars.”

“Yeah, coagulation. It’s in the millions, you blockhead cat.”

Sam hissed, extending his claws. He pushed his butt up, ready to bounce.

Buttercup squeaked as thunder rumbled through the cotton candy. “The exit is behind all of you.”

Florence looked over her shoulder, and a staircase going up into a void magically manifested itself. “How did you do it?”

Aisling sheathed her dagger. “It always has been. It’s just that the ghost decided now to reveal it and not continue hiding it.”

“Look, I literally haunt this place if you can’t tell. Still, I must pay rent to our ghostly landlords. But… just don’t ask,” Buttercup said.

Florence and Aisling lifted Yuze, Stella, and Sam and carried them to the staircase leading into a void.