Prologue
An unpleasant, yet familiar sight met Willow Petalmarble's eyes as she slowly pulled open the heavy door to Daisy Gardens' main Toon Headquarters. The building was empty, as she had expected. She bit her lip and dropped her arm, letting the door swing shut behind her. Why, she had been asking herself repeatedly, did Flippy had to give in? We weren't finished, and now we never will be.
Letting out a shaky sigh, she forced herself to move. In short, trembling steps, the cat made her way down the stairs and stopped in front of the large, four-toon help desk in the middle of the room. Reluctantly, Willow turned and sat down on top of the desk, gripping the wood and swinging her legs over it. She pushed herself off of the desk with her hands and stood up. Now facing away from the door, she reached back and pulled her arms free of the straps on her backpack and let it fall onto the desk. This was the backpack Willow was given years ago after defeating 320 level nine Cogs. What a dreadful task that was, and what a miserable time she had had completing it...
She turned around once more, unzipped the pack, and pulled out her very last gag: a birthday cake, which she had earned back when she had been working in the Brrrgh. The memory made Willow shudder; not out of disgust, but out of sad reminiscence, longing, and regret. She suddenly noticed the heat of the candles on her skin and realized she still had a mission to complete. She leaned forward and carefully set the cake down on the desk before she turned around and dropped into a crouching position. Slowly raising a hand, she squinted at the buttons on the control panel on the side of the pole. Many of them were tempting—namely "Cream Pie", "Back Massage" and "Instant Flattery"—but there was no time for those. She spotted the one that read "Lockdown" and gingerly pressed it. At once, the merry melody that had been playing in the building was silenced. The lights ceased, leaving the dim candles of the birthday cake to guide Willow's travels.
She got to her feet, quick but unenthusiastic, and turned around. She zipped her backpack closed and pushed her arms through the straps, pulling the pack back on. Placing her hands on either side of the cake, she lifted it and quickly raised a knee. Leaving the cake to balance beneath her knee and her left hand, she let go with her right hand and placed it underneath the cake. She did the same with her left hand and decided that with her trusty backpack handy and the cake secure in her hands, it was safe to continue. She propped her leg up on the desk and used it to step up and over the desk. Proud of this maneuver, she trudged up the stairs and tugged the bottom of the door with her blue sneaker, opening it. She wasted no time passing through.
Daisy Gardens' playground was as silent and motionless as its main building, and with thick, light gray clouds sitting above, even the natural sky was dull. Not a butterfly was in sight, and the only sounds to be heard were Willow's footsteps, heartbeat, and breathing. She carefully and slowly began to walk towards the tunnel to Oak Street. As she passed through the tunnel, she realized how lucky she was to have discovered the cake hiding in her backpack. It was strong enough to fight off any lower level Cogs she came across on her journey—though it wouldn't be of any help during the job itself—and it was a nice source of light. Lost in her thoughts, she made her way down the deserted street and soon found herself standing directly in front of the entrance to Sellbot Headquarters. She let out a nervous breath—not too deep, as she didn't want to extinguish the candles—and entered.