#i think the next one is gonna be in the graveyard... green and ash bein bros...

[peppermintchaos]

Chapter 3

word count: 2624

chapters 1 and 2

There was a uniquely palpable air of tenseness in the air as Mochi sat with their oldest friend and the General of Obtuncliff.

They held back a laugh at Takeover’s miffed expression, clearly upset at having been made to let in the General. It reminded them of years ago, how her least favorite portion of godly duties had been dealing with whatever unruly new gods wandered into the surrounding territory, always preferring to hide away and let Green and Mochi handle the issue.

[Mochi struggled in their handcuffs. Thick vines covered in flowers curled around their wrists and waist, restraining almost all upper body movement.

Green huffed a sigh at them. “This is for your own good, we’ll let you go in a bit.”

The purple one hummed in agreement from the couch.

“How do I know you’re not lying? For all I know, you freaks could be planning to- to flay me alive or something!” Mochi snarled.

“They always say that.”

“I know, right?” Green mused. “Flayed, skinned, dismembered,- why would we do any of that when there’s poison?” Fey conjured a bright red flower, seemingly accentuating their point. “It’s just so much faster!”

“I can never turn down a good stabbing, personally,” said the girl on the couch, casually turning a page in her book.

“I will never understand what it is with you and stabbing people.’

Mochi looked on with bewilderment.]

“Ok, maybe this is just some cultural thing I don’t understand,” started the General, “but do you always greet your guests with some small talk and an attempted murder?”

Takeover glowered at them.

“She made small talk with you first?” Mochi exclaimed. “That’s a big improvement, Takeover. I’m so proud of you.”

She then turned and glowered at Mochi.

“They claim that they know Green,” Takeover informed her.

Mochi blinked in surprise. “Really?”

Beta had informed them about its diplomat-generals arrival- but it hadn’t said anything about them being any sort of long-life species, much less anything about a connection with Green.

Peppermint turned to look at Mochi, serious. “I’m not ‘claiming,’ I knew Green. I wouldn't lie about that.”

“But… when? Before they were a god? Or were you-” Mochi squinted, thinking. “But I thought Beta had said that you were originally from Ciemne Rówiny. Were you a resident of the Tri-Colored city at some point or something?”

“It was definitely after they were a god. Also, I’m 27, so that second one is out of the question.”

“They claimed to have had a ‘mishap’ with a ‘rift’, whatever that means,” scoffed Takeover.

Mochi tensed, the idea dawning on them. It could only be…

“The rift in Ciemne Równiny?”

The General nodded calmly. “I fell in as a child.”

Mochi stared at them, vaguely horrified. “How do you survive that drop? How old were you?”

“I had just turned ten.”

“What the fuck are you two talking about,” said Takeover.

Mochi turned to look at her. “Did I not tell you about the hole?”

“No,” she said, raising an eyebrow. Mochi winced as they felt static fill the air immediately near the goddess, a tell-tale sign of annoyance.

“There's a hole. In Ciemne Równiny. It goes to the Graveyard.” The General informed her, subtly staring at their arm as the hair on it raised.

Takeover stared at Mochi intensely. “This is just like when you forgot to tell me that the River god died for a full 2 centuries. And then I sent his demigod child a happy birthday card. And almost started a war.”

Mochi rolled their eyes. “Ok, this is not like that at all. For one thing, it's only been 70 years.”

“I worked for the River god’s kid for like a year. He was a dick,” added the General. “Um. Respectfully.”

Takeover wrinkled her nose, obviously anti-river descendant. “Why were you working for him? I thought you were an Obtunclif general?” She scoffed. “Are you some sort of double agent?”

Mochi whacked her side softly. “That's rude,” they whispered.

“You're really bad at whispering,” noted the General.

The three of them stared at each other silently for a second.

“Anyways,” resumed the General, “Working for other gods is essentially a part of my job description as a diplomat when the Obtunclif army isn't engaged in any major events or conflict. He wanted me to teach his child to fight for a year in exchange for… his side of the Deal.” They smiled slyly. “I could work for you, as well. That's the original purpose of my visit.”

“Actually, now the purpose is to fully explain how you met Green,” Takeover huffed.

Mochi hummed. “While I still want to discuss the Deal, I’m curious too. It doesn't make sense for you to survive at that young of an age. Wait- what makes less sense is how the hell you got out. I've never heard of anyone returning from the Graveyard.”

The General smirked. “Maybe I’m just special. Say, have you ever heard the story of the raven and the dove?”

“No,” said Takeover, the static electricity in the air dissipating at the idea of any sort of story, ever the goddess of literature.

“I do, but I haven’t the slightest what that has to do with any of this,” Mochi said.

“You should tell Takeover the story.”

Mochi stared at them. “Is this really leading anywhere?”

The General nodded. “It’s the best way to explain everything, and I’m not good at telling stories.”

“What is the story about?”

“It’s an old kids story,” explained the General. “It has its roots in truth, though. There’s an addition to the tale that’s gotten popular in Obtunclif recently, too.”

Takeover leaned in across the table. “I’d love to hear it."

“If that’s what you want,” Mochi said.

“Once upon a time,” they started, “There lived a Raven and a Dove. The birds were siblings, and the closest of friends, and they both lived in the highest branch of the highest tree on the highest mountain. The Dove heard everything, and the Raven was very wise, and so together they were recognized as the rulers of animals all over the world.

One day, the pair traveled into the forest-”

“Skip the forest,” the General interrupted.

“Why?” Asked Takeover.

“We can’t just skip the bear,” protested Mochi. “It’s- it's a third of the story!”

The General rolled their eyes. “Yeah, but it isn't the part that matters. The bear is boring and 66% of all salamanders ever are assholes. The fish is the only good one.”

“You’re acting like you know them personally.”

“I do.”

Takeover tapped her fingers on the table. “Even if they aren't important, we can’t skip the buildup, it’ll mess up the story structure.”

The General huffed. “You sound like a salamander.”

“What does that mean?”

Mochi sighed. “We can skip to the fish if it matters that much.”

“It does.”

Mochi started again.

“One day, the pair traveled down, all the way across the land to an estuary, and met a young fish.

‘Oh, Raven, oh Dove,’ cried Fish. ‘Everyone says you two can solve any problem, and that you know everything, and I need help.’

‘Of course we can!’ Tittered Dove. ‘What’s wrong?’ asked Raven.

Fish gurgled in distress. ‘I’ve gotten lost from my school, and yesterday I heard some egrets bragging about the biggest meal they'd had in ages- did the egrets eat my school?’

The birds looked at each other. Dove fluttered her wings uncomfortably.

‘Please,’ cried Fish. “Tell me the truth!”

‘Yes, they did,’ chirped Dove sadly, for she had heard from an egret earlier about the occurrence. She plucked a pure-white feather from her wing, and gave it to Fish. ‘Here, she said. “Take this, and it will give you the ability to carry on their legacy.’

‘I’m so sorry,’ said Raven.

Fish sniffled. ‘That’s what I thought.’

Dove flew away, but Raven stayed a bit longer. ‘Fish, have you ever been down to the ocean?’

Fish shook its head.

‘You’re a strong fish, and your kind can live in the saltwater. Why don’t you go down to the bay? They’ve had some struggles recently, and they could use someone like you, especially now that you're a feather-holder. It would make your school very proud.’

Fish looked up at Raven.

‘Do you really think so?’

‘I’m sure of it.’

Fish swished its fins. ‘I know where the bay is. If you think it’s a good idea, I’ll go see what I can do.'

Raven cawed. ‘That would be lovely.’

Fish swam away, sunlight glinting off it’s scales.

The next day, Dove flew by the bay and again heard all the creatures praising Raven’s brilliance.

(“Did that also happen the first two times?” asked Takeover.

“Yes,” replied Peppermint. “Context clues.”)

Dove seethed in anger as every fish, crab and dolphin in the sea chattered about how Raven had helped Fish, Salamander, and Bear. What about her? She had been there too! She was just as good, if not better than her sibling! She was the one that made feather-holders! Why would anyone pay so much attention to that dark, dull bird over her splendid light? Why didn’t they show appreciation for her feathers? As Dove flew back to the nest she shared with Raven, she stewed in her jealousy for her sibling until she was full of rage, and ultimately, decided to get rid of them.

When Dove got back to the nest, she approached Raven. “Dear sibling,” she cooed. “May I borrow one of your feathers?”

Raven, trusting their sister, plucked a gossamer black feather from their wing and handed it to her. “What do you need it for?”

Dove didn't respond, instead fluttering over to the edge of the branch.

“Dove?” asked Raven again, scared of losing a feather, for one of Raven’s feathers to be lost without a master could cause great chaos to be unleashed on the world below.

But Dove still didn't respond, instead dropping the feather down, down into the deepest valley in the land.

“Dove!” shouted Raven, and Raven chased and chased, but couldn't find the feather, for the feather made the valley darker and darker until the valley was coated in night. By the time they had found it, the valley was too deep and too dark to get back out, and so the Raven lived there, and does to this day. The end.”

Takeover leaned back in her chair. “What an interesting way to end the story.”

“That's why I never liked it. It feels unfinished, with the poor raven stuck forever,” Mochi said.

Peppermint laughed. “That's because the story isn't finished!”

“Really?” asked Mochi. “That's all of the story I’ve heard.”

“Well, it only got added onto recently, but someday, Raven will escape. Want to hear the rest?”

Takeover nodded. "I get where this is going. You may continue."

Peppermint closed their eyes.

“Once upon a time, there was a raven who lived in the deepest, darkest crevice of the deepest, darkest valley. Even though the valley was dreary, the Raven didn't mind it. Their eyes had long since adjusted to the darkness. It had been a long time since they were sent down by their sister Dove, and they enjoyed the lush foliage of the valley. Even if they couldn't talk to anyone, the Raven gained new wisdom. So they lived, alone, until one day a goat showed up.”

Mochi and Takeover shared a glance.

“Goat carried a wreath of gently glowing flowers around their horns, and for the first time in years, Raven saw light.

Goat bleated in joy when they saw Raven. 'I knew it!’ they said, happy to have found the bird. ‘I heard about a bird as black as night, but when I asked about it, the Dove came and flapped her wings in my eyes until I fell down here!’

Raven flapped their wings in surprise. ‘Who are you?’ They asked.

Goat blinked. ‘I’m sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I’m Goat, a feather-holder from the northern mountains. Are you not Raven?’

‘I am Raven,’ cawed the bird. ‘Has it been so long that people have forgotten me?’

Goat nodded. ‘I’ve only read about you- very few feather-holders know of you."

Raven was wise, and knew their sister well. 'Dove has made sure that no one can find me, even among her feather-holders, hasn't she?’ Figured Raven.

Goat stomped their hoof. 'That was my theory, and that's why I’m here. How do you survive down here?’

Raven tilted their head. ‘I can show you how to live here, if you like.’

Goat bleated in excitement. ‘Please!’ they cried, ‘It would be an honor to learn from the Raven themself!’

'Please, Goat. Think of me as a friend.’

‘Of course!’

And so the two were friends, and with their shared knowledge were able to achieve many feats down in the valley, even planting a garden of glowing flowers together.”

“Is this where it ends?” Mochi interrupted.

“Not quite- for years upon years later, a caterpillar, who had lived the smallest fraction of a lifetime compared to Goat and Raven, fell into the garden of flowers.

Caterpillar cried and cried, until finally Raven and Goat found them.

‘What?’ said Goat. 'What is a small caterpillar like you doing all the way down here?’

‘I slipped and I fell,’ wailed Caterpillar. 'Before I knew it, I was all the way down here!’

Raven cawed in sympathy. 'Don't worry, little Caterpillar, for your kind can grow wings- perhaps, with the help of Goat and I, your wings will be strong enough to fly you out of here.’

Caterpillar sniffled. ‘If feather-holders can't get out of the valley, how will I?’

‘Goat can't fly, and I can't find my way out no matter what I do,’ Raven explained. ‘But once you're a butterfly, you could.’

'That's right!’ said Goat. ‘I will teach you how to farm and how to fight, and Raven will teach you how to be wise and navigate the darkness. A caterpillar like you doesn't deserve to live down in the valley.’

‘Alright,’ said Caterpillar, stopping their tears, for they had no other choice.

Little Caterpillar trained with Raven and Goat until they were ready to go into their cocoon. But in the cocoon, feathers grew instead of flowing butterfly wings, as they, strangely enough, had changed from their time around Raven and Goat, and were hardly a caterpillar by the end of it. Caterpillar emerged from their cocoon a bright red Cardinal.

When Cardinal’s wings were strong enough to fly out of the valley, they turned to Goat and Raven, determination filling their black eyes. ‘I promise to get you both out of here, one day.’

'Don't make promises you can't keep,’ warned Raven.

‘I will keep it,’ swore Cardinal. ‘I’ll find Dove and make her release you, both of you, as well as all the plants and creatures of the valley!’

‘If you say that you can, I will put my faith in you,”said Goat.

‘I’ll trust you to make good on that, Cardinal,’ said Raven.

Goat and Raven watched the crimson bird fly off into the distant light.

The end.”

“So ‘feather-holders are gods-” Takeover said.

“Goat is Green, Dove is the goddess of light,” Mochi continued, “You’re the Cardinal, and Raven was your other master, the one who helped you escape. A god of darkness?”

Takeover shook her head. “Mochi, it’s the other Grand God from Green’s theory, the so-called forbidden knowledge. That's why the Grand Goddess killed them.”

“Technically, Ash is the Primordial god of the Void,” said Peppermint, “but close enough. Grand, Primordial, True- different names, same guys.”

Takeover hummed thoughtfully. “Are you really trying to take down the Grand Goddess?”

Peppermint smiled nonchalantly. “Well, me and my commander have been… gathering our resources.”

Mochi grimaced. “That is the true nature of the Deal, isn’t it?”

“It is!” they said cheerfully. “But one day-

I will kill that god with my own two hands.”