Chapter 3: A Loss, A Gain

Spawning back into the Mainland with your newfound goal, you began to follow Foliage's instructions. Following the mental step-by-step list you made, Candyland was your first stop.

    Heading north from where you spawned, you passed by the Shop, and through the Snow Biome. Once reaching the sugar-filled landscape of Candyland, you began to search every spot you thought a safe could hide. (You even pressed the 'die button,' which was ultimately a waste of time as nothing seemed to change.)

    Honestly, behind a chocolate waterfall was the last place you would check in.

    You had stood beside the waterfall, reaching your hand in and expecting it to come out covered in chocolate. (Or for you to die, as the chocolate here does that for some reason.) However, to your surprise, it had come out clean. Confusedly, you stuck your hand in again — still untouched.

    You took this as a sign. With one of your professionally-self-taught jumps, you phased through the cascading flow of melted chocolate... to find a secret room.

    It was a small space, but it had what you needed. The safe was there in front of you, sitting in the middle of the room.

    You knelt down in front of the safe, your finger reaching towards the number pad. You entered the digits 3-8-8-2, and clicked the green button once finished. After that, the safe opened; Foliage was right, a crowbar was in the safe.

    You grabbed the safe's crowbar. It felt cold and heavy against your hands. You couldn't possibly make the jump back with that, so you decided to take a shortcut.

    Which was basically jumping into the chocolate river. Yes, it killed you, but it was better than walking. Besides, you got to Spawn faster that way.

    Heading to the rusted door you saw before, you took a deep breath. The entrance in general looked old, and it was boarded up near the actual doors to stop anyone from infiltrating. The crowbar definitely showed use here.

    You raised the crowbar over your head. Although its weight made your arms quiver, you desperately wanted to figure out what the door's contents were.

    You shut your eyes tightly, exhaled a deep breath, and swung.

    However, the crowbar suddenly just flew out of your hands, bouncing against the wooden planks. You narrowly dodged out of the way, avoiding getting hit. Then, in an oddly comedic manner, the planks just... exploded. Small pieces of rubble flew everywhere; you covered your face and closed your eyes to protect yourself.

    After that, the door ominously creaked open. Although it was bright outside, there seemed to be no light illuminating the mysterious gateway's contents.

    You let out an audible shudder. This was a bit creepy, but you knew there was no point in backing out now. You knew too much to not think about this. You made the decision to walk in.

    Once inside, you looked at your surroundings. There was the vivid, colorful environment of Spawn behind you... and the dreary setting of your newly discovered area. You shook your head, convincing yourself to proceed forward.

    You didn't have to walk long to find something interesting.

    As soon as you took about three steps forward, you fell. Apparently, there was a hole that you didn't notice. After letting the power of gravity take you for a while, you landed on your back in a relatively harsh manner.

    "Ow... Jeez..." You stood up, shaking off the pain and dusting yourself off. You were surprised at how you didn't break anything, as a fall from that height could've killed you in real life. Oh yeah. This wasn't real life.

    After regaining your composure, you exhaled, looking around yourself. You were in a cave-like area, walls and floor colored an unsettling sienna. It was dark to the point where you found it hard to see, which added to the discomfort.

    In the middle of the area, there was a large gap between where you were, and the end of it. The land around that said aperture seemed to have been cracked off. As soon as you started to wonder how to progress, you witnessed something magical.

    Vines started to grow from the edge of the crack. They started to spread quickly, making their own path. Some even stuck to the walls, quickly covering the area. They unfurled at a fast pace — like ink breaking out of a pen. Small leaves sprouted from some of the existing vines, which were now reaching the other side.

    Once the greenery paused its growth, flowers started to bloom. There were small buds, quickly opening up to reveal petals colored wonderful blues, rosy pinks and reds, and bright magentas. You were surprised by how fast the flora grew — normally it takes a longer time.

    Eventually, the plants stopped spreading for good, and now you had a way to get to the end of the room. It would be a bit tricky, as the vines overlapped a lot. It reminded you of the vine-infested room you went through, trying to find Foliage.

    You decided the safest way to go was sticking to the walls. You walked over to the western wall, beginning to walk over the vines. Although you walked somewhat confidently, you felt a bit of nervousness coursing through your body.

    Despite that, you managed to make it all the way to the end without any casualties, pleasing you immensely. In front of you was a cave, it's entrance outlined with a thin, light wood. Now that you were at the end of the room, what had just happened — which was the magical plant growing sequence — finally started to load properly in your brain.

    "Hold up— How the heck did that even happen?" you asked yourself. You started to think of possible ways to explain what you had seen. After all, anything could affect anything in this place. You could of set off something when you walked in? Like a bridge to appear anytime someone was in the correct area?

    Before you could go too deep into thought, you heard some shuffling behind you. You instinctively whipped around to see what it was. To the left of the cave, were small vines, growing and twisting with one another. Curiously, you walked closer to the compact greenery. From what you could see, the vines seemed to be contorting into... letters?

    You watched patiently, holding your breath as the plants continued to bend into words you could read. By the time the vines stopped spreading, you made out a four-word message:

    Nature finds a way.

    "Nature find a way," you muttered to yourself. Maybe Foliage has something to do with this? I guess this sort of answered my question...

    The message stuck to your mind, forming new questions you wanted answers to, but had no way of receiving them. Oh well, at least you could distract yourself by entering the cave ahead of you.

    Even though the cave's entrance was pitch black, you still walked inside with a hefty amount of confidence and bravery.

    It was quickly replaced with a sense of awe as soon as you crossed the threshold.

    An area resembling the Abandoned City stood in front of you. Except this version was more aged and broken down, multiple parts of the buildings covered in the same vines and flowers you saw before. Windows were boarded up, buildings overrun by vines and flowers. Even the Clocktower, the main part of the Abandoned City, had been breaking down, its marble-like base had lost a couple of its pieces. The actual clock part had been rusted over, wires sparking with unwanted electricity.

    You looked around the area, running your palm along the broken wooden structures. Was this what the Abandoned City looked like before or something? It looked too much like the one you normally see aboveground for there to not be a connection.

    In the top right corner, something caught your eye. Four different-colored flowers sat in on top of vines in a circle-like formation. On the northern wall, there were vines, spelling out letters like you saw before. This time, the plants weren't growing in front of you — these seemed like they were from the past. The greenery spelled out secret hangout area (dont tell anyone) in light, pale vines.

    "Secret hideout..." you muttered. "Makes sense — well, enough sense." If this was Markery's old base of operations, then it was logical to have that there. But it seemed too... childish to make full sense. And those vines... maybe Foliage had something to do with this?

    You sighed. Another set of unanswered questions for your already-overfilled brain to think about. Why must this journey lead your mind on a search for lore and answers?

    Some shuffling behind you snapped you back into focus. Like your moment outside this area, you knew that sound meant vines were sprouting. Curiously, you turned around, and saw a singular vine growing from the ground. You walked closer to it, and saw two things: A neatly-folded piece of paper, and the small piece of greenery circling around a message.

    On the back of the aged Abandoned Clocktower was something like a blueprint or plans. They were drawn in red chalk, and were faded because of the passing of time. From what you could see, they looked like... a diagram for a sort of machine? You couldn't really read much of it, but the part the vine circled was legible enough.

    "The password is..." you mumbled to yourself. "'EVILPURPLECHAINSAW.'" Sheesh, edgy much? You chuckled at that thought. After looking at the password you were sure you needed, you then decided to check out the piece of paper.

    It was neatly folded in half, and it was absolutely perfect — no edges overlapped or anything. You opened the note, to see a message written in purple ink. 'gone 2 void. —DM' were the registered words.

    "To the Void, huh?" you asked aloud. "Guess that's where I'm going next."

•————————————————————•

Foliage was looking down at the rest of the Washable Kingdom — the mystical world below their dungeon. It's a shame they can't go down there and socialize with others, and even if they could, they wouldn't want to.

    They hoped Y/N made it, and figured out what to do next. They hoped their clues were good enough for them.

    As they stared at the dimension they so desperately wanted to explore, Foliage heard a series of distorted zaps behind them. They sighed, already knowing who it was but not bothering to turn around.

    "Oh, come on," a voice said. "You're not going to greet your old friend? What a shame..."

    "What do you want this time, Li— Markery?" Foliage muttered, their soft tone almost unhearable. "Here to rub your evil plans in my face again?"

    "You stumbled upon those yourself and you know it," Markery snapped. He sighed. "But that's not what I'm here for."

    Foliage was silent, not daring to speak.

    "Turn around and face me!" Markery screamed aggressively, making Foliage jump. They still didn't do anything, which increased his anger. Looks like he had to resort to other measures. "You don't want to do this, Foliage."

    "And what if I do?" Foliage retorted. "You don't have the strength to do it, and I know you know that."

    Markery forced Foliage to look at him, holding his chainsaw in one hand and gripping the plant-obsessed Marker in the other. "Do you still think I was the same as before? I can do whatever I please."

    Now that Foliage was staring directly at Dark Markery, the fear and anxiety started to kick in. They didn't break eye contact, but they were sure Markery could sense their fright.

    "Good that I got your attention." Markery dropped Foliage with no regard of how he did it.

    Upon impact with the ground, Foliage winced. That was the closest they'd get to showing their pain — anything further would only please Markery more.

    "Now that you're focused, let me ask you a question." Dark Markery looked down on Foliage like they looked down at the universe below. His stare was blank, yet conveying so much emotion. "Did you or did you not help the player find my old base?"

    Foliage held their breath, looking up at Markery and now in a sitting position. "No," they managed to answer. Their voice almost cracked, and that would make matters worse if it did.

    Dark Markery was silent for a while. "You're lying."

    "No, I'm not."

    "Yes, you are."

    "I told you, I'm not—"

    Markery raised the chainsaw over his head, faking Foliage out by pretending to almost hit them. He laughed hysterically as they tensed, bracing for the impact. He hadn't even done the process to get his weapon working! Once he regained his composure, he sighed, smiling. "Now, tell me the truth."

    Foliage shut their eyes for a short moment, let out a deep breath, then reopened them. "Why should I tell you anything if you already know the answer?" they asked.

    "Hah. Fair enough," Dark Makery exclaimed. He crouched, reaching Foliage's current level. "But if you do something like that one more time" — he chucked sadistically — "I won't hesitate to kill you."

    Foliage scoffed. "Just like you plan to do with Purple?" they countered.

    "That's different," Markery answered. "And none of your business." He shook his head. "Anyways, I'm done talking to you. Remember: Behave yourself, or you'll never see the light of day again."

    With an electric purple flash and more distorted noises, Dark Markery disappeared. Foliage was alone once again. They sighed, their old friend's reminder echoing in their head. Now that they couldn't help Y/N anymore, all they could do was wait and hope... like they always did.

•————————————————————•

Dark Markery traveled back to the future, the overlapping scents.of the Mainland hitting him hard. The smoky odor of the Factory; Candyland's distant sugary aroma; the Forest's nature-like scent that reminded him of Foliage...

    Snap out of it, Markery! he scolded himself, feeling his heart slightly sink. He didn't want to go back to whatever friendship existed in the past. It all fell apart, anyways. Even though Foliage knew exactly who he was, he bet that Purple didn't even remember him. Well, I'll make him remember. I'll be the last thing he sees before he's gone for good.

    Look at him, standing on his pedestal, all adored and enjoyed by his fans. Markery would be proud of him if they were still friends.

    Except they weren't. Not anymore.

    So Markery loathed the amount of popularity Purple received. He wanted that to change.

    And what better way to do that than to kidnap everyone's favorite mascot?

    He would've done the usual bop-and-snatch, but the malicious voice in his head told him not to. Instead, it's suggesting... just the snatch? To make things... "more interesting?" Sounded good enough. Besides, he could never say no, as he somehow always found himself doing whatever the voice wanted.

    Now was a perfect time. Judging by Foliage's (un)helpful antics, and his wonderful ability to travel through time, he knew that the player would be exiting the old base in three... two...

•————————————————————•

    As soon as you made your way back to the secret base's door, Spawn's bright array of color didn't quite match the sight you were witnessing.

    A Marker you've literally never seen before was in the process of kidnapping Purple.

    "Wha— Hey, what're you—?!" As you spoke, you started to run towards the Pedestal of Awesomeness.

    But Purple's kidnapper didn't do anything. They just stood there with this... evil smirk on their face. Purple, however, stayed silent; though his eyes showed pure, genuine fear. Why wasn't he trying to escape? Was he instructed not to move, and obeyed like the little golden retriever he is?

    You were so close to Purple now, but his captor disappeared — with Purple, mind you — in a blinding flash of electric lilac and white.

    "Agh, what that Dark Markery?!" you whisper-yelled angrily. "That's them. That has to be them." Closing your eyes, you exhaled sharply. "Oh, they've got it coming now."

    You bolted towards the Factory, filled with a slight rage and a thirst for justice.

•————————————————————•

    "Ow— Jeez!" Purple exclaimed, Dark Markery aggressively throwing him into a sort of prison. "Be gentle!"

    While closing the bars, the lilac-capped Marker laughed. The noise bounced off of the enclosed walls of his dimension, making it seem louder than it actually was. It terrified Purple as much as Markery enjoyed his fear. "Oh, gentle is the last thing I'll be, when it comes to dealing with you."

    "That sounds really weird," Purple commented.

    "Shut up."

    "Okay... Who even are you, anyway?" The original Marker got down on both knees, hand gripping the bars.

    Dark Markery rolled his eyes. He was correct — there was nothing of him left in Purple's mind. "I'm sure there's some remains of my identity in your head. I just need to click the right buttons, and everything will come back together."

    "Uhh... I don't think so," Purple said, blatantly excusing the extremely vague answer Markery had given him. "I've never seen you before, and this is not giving me good first impressions."

    "Ha! First impressions!" Dark Markery mocked. "You always cared about first impressions, Purple."

    "Hey, how do you— Wait, nevermind, everyone knows my name." Upon hearing Purple's words, Markery grimaced. "Wait, did you say 'cared?' As in, like, past tense?" Purple asked quizzically. "Do we have history together, or—?"

    Finally, he caught on. Took him long enough. "Ah, I guess you did hit your head hard enough," Dark Markery said, picking up his chainsaw and admiring his reflection in the metal. "We do have history together, in fact. A lot of history." Very... intense history, he added to himself.

    "I don't remember anything of the sort, but okay then." Purple shrugged.

    "Good you don't," Markery said, but didn't fully feel. Was Purple completely clueless about their relationship — about their relationship with Foliage as a group — really a good thing?

    When he felt his heart begin to sink, a voice rang in his head, clear as a bell, Don't feel bad for him, Markery! You have him right where you need him.

    Dark Markery shook himself. You're right. I shouldn't feel like this. This is good, great — amazing, even! He sighed happily. It's all coming together.

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