Chapter 4: Gingerbread Orchard
Feeling happy to have helped one part of Candy Land, the Portal Masters and two Skylanders were in good spirits. "I wonder where we'll go next," Amelia said.
"Well, Gingerbread Orchard and the Peppermint Forest are up this way," Kairi said, recalling the game. "And the Ice Cream Sea, Grandma Nutt's house, and Gumdrop Mountains are opposite of here."
"Ice Cream Sea sounds really good," Thumpback admitted.
"And Peppermint Forest," Rachel said.
"Hmm, it'll be hard to decide," Spellslamzer said.
"AHH!"
Thumpback's startled shout made them all jump and they turned to him as he looked around before looking startled. "I...I heard a voice," he said.
Kairi recalled what Master Eon had said. "You must be hearing Plumpy," she said. "You received his magic."
The whale began to calm down and nod. "I think you're right," he said before seeming to listen for a moment. "He asks that we go to Gingerbread Orchard."
"Well then, that's where we'll go," Rachel said.
"Gingerbread?" Crystal asked in excitement, recalling how she and her sister often ate gingerbread as part of their Christmas treats.
"It does sound yummy, doesn't it?" Amelia said in agreement.
"Okay, so which direction?" Spellslamzer asked.
"This way," Kairi said. "Gingerbread Orchard has the best sweet and juicy plums."
They walked along the path, stopping short when they heard voices. "What will we do with Plumpy gone?" Someone asked.
"Don't worry, he'll return," said another voice.
The group from Skylands looked at each other before cautiously approaching, seeing trees made out of gingerbread up ahead.
Kairi hadn't been kidding. The plums did look succulent and sweet. "Let's go!" Crystal said eagerly, grabbing Spellslamzer's hand and tugging. He chuckled and picked her up, walking toward the trees.
Thumpback froze when he heard a warning from Plumpy. "Watch your step!" He cried out.
The tall Spell Punk froze in place, just before some small voices were heard. "Hey, careful!" Said one.
"Don't step on us!" Said another.
They all looked down and Rachel gasped in shock. "Ants!" She cried out, seeing they were almost under Spellslamzer's feet. "Spells! There's an ant mound right at your feet!"
He looked down to see she was right and levitated, moving to the side to see a small group of ants looking up at them. "You could have destroyed our home!" One of them said.
Kairi kneeled down. "Sorry, guys," she said. "We didn't see you there."
The ants looked up at her and gasped. "It's her!" One of them said. "It's the lady's granddaughter!"
"He's right," said another. "Welcome, Kairi."
Amelia smiled. "Looks like you've got quite a fan club, Kairi," she said with a chuckle.
Thumpback smiled. "That's my mermaid," he said proudly.
Kairi smiled and the ants smiled too. "Well, I suppose you're all here because Plumpy's missing, right?" One ant said.
"Yeah!" Crystal said. "And we're going to find him and the others and stop big meanie Kaos and big meanie Lord Licorice!"
Her statement made the trees chuckle. "Such a determined young one," one of them said.
"You have no idea," Rachel said with a chuckle.
The ants seemed to perk up at Crystal's statement. "Well, then. If you're determined to stop those two and save Candy Land, then you're just the ones to help us," one ant said.
"What can we do to help?" Spellslamzer asked.
"Well, at around this time, Plumpy gathers all the plums and makes pies for the whole kingdom," the ant said. "We usually help him out, but with him gone, we've been trying to get the pies made, but so far, we haven't had much luck."
Amelia perked up. "We could help you with that," she said. "What do we need to do?"
"Well, first we need a lot of plums," the ant said. "Can you guys gather the plums from the Gingerbread Trees?"
"Yeah!" Kairi said.
"That sounds like fun," Rachel said as they headed over. Thumpback lifted Kairi up onto his shoulder so that she could get the fruit that was up high, making her smile at him as she began picking the plums, handing them to him to put in the basket by his feet. Amelia climbed one of the trees, who laughed when she did so, and sat on a sturdy branch to pick some plums and Rachel helped out by catching the plums her friend tossed down to her, placing them in a basket beside her. Spellslamzer lifted Crystal up and she began picking the plums nearest her, putting them in the bucket that was floating near her courtesy of the Spell Punk's magic.
"There's some high ones up there, Spells," the little girl said.
"Alright. Hold still now," he said, lifting her up with his magic so that she could get those plums.
"Wheeee!" The seven-year-old giggled, her giggles making the others smile. With all of them picking the plums, it wasn't long before they were finished. The ants were smiling as they saw all the plums.
"This is perfect," the lead ant said. "Enough for all the orders of plum pies we got in."
"Plum pie orders?" Thumpback asked.
"Yeah. Plumpy's plum pies are known all over Candy Land. No other plum pie compares."
The whale was still for a moment before chuckling. "He says he doesn't like to brag, but he is the official pie maker for Candy Land," he said.
Everyone else chuckled. "Well then," Rachel said, rolling up her sleeves. "Let's help our friends make those pies."
"Do we have all the ingredients?" Kairi asked.
"You bet we do," the lead ant said as the other ants began bringing out the flour, sugar, and other ingredients. "Just follow the recipe," he continued, pulling out a paper that was bigger than him.
Nodding, all six of them and the ants got going, making pies like crazy. The plums were mashed up and mixed with the other ingredients while the pie crusts were made and it wasn't long before they had made two hundred pies. "Whew!" Amelia said. "That was a blast!"
"I love making pies!" Kairi said happily.
"I do too, especially with my mermaid," Thumpback said with a smile, making his fiancée blush.
Spellslamzer chuckled. "You can tell we got into it," he said, dusting a bit of flour off his cloak.
Rachel chuckled at seeing Crystal covered in flour. "You look like you fell into the flour bag, hon," she said, gently brushing the loose flour from her sister's shirt.
"Or we had a flour fight," Amelia said with a laugh as she dusted herself off too. Rachel did the same before they all smiled and the ants looked happy.
"We filled all our orders," the lead ant said before smiling and giving a whistle. Six ants came out, each carrying an identical plum charm and three others came out carrying a sweet plum pie. "You guys earned these charms and a free pie as thanks for helping us."
"We were glad to help," Thumpback said.
The trees cheered as the six accepted the plum charms, putting them on their bracelets, before digging into the pie, enjoying the sweet treat.
Back in the dungeon, Plumpy smiled. "They saved my Gingerbread Orchard," he said happily.
"They just might save Candy Land after all," Jolly said joyfully.
"Of course they will," Queen Frostine said. "They are true protectors, just as the ones before them have protected our home."
"Let's hope they are able to save our home in time," Mr. Mint said.
"I'm sure they will," King Kandy said reassuringly.
At least, they all hoped so.
Alright! They've almost got half of Candy Land saved. :) Next up: the Peppermint Forest. :)
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GoldGuardian2418
