Mark laced his fingers, bending his hands backwards he extended his arms. Cracking his fingers. Reaching across the table he grabbed his favorite pen. Cupcake had gotten it for him on their fourteenth anniversary. She always knew just what he wanted. He tried to use it only one special occasions, but he figured his first day working from home in twenty years would suffice. True to her word, Cupcake had brought home a large stack of paperwork for him to complete. Even though he had fully integrated himself with the Toons, he was still a cog and had the desire to work. The repetitive forms, the carpal tunnel after too much writing, the feel of pen on paper still excited him. He could routinely do the work of 3-4 Toons with little issue. But today he found himself struggling to focus. For the last twenty-three years, he worked at the Mayor's office. First with his father-in-law Flippy, and recently his wife Cupcake. It was the ideal situation. He got to be productive and helpful, but also spend time with his favorite people. His usual desk in Cupcake's office had to be left behind for her new assistant, although he did bring some of his personal items, like his pen. He also kept a framed picture of Cupcake on his desk. Although she would only be gone for several hours, he still felt himself longing to see her. Still unable to start his work he began looking across the room. His eyes finally landed on a framed picture of Flippy. It was from a vacation that they had taken a few years ago, shortly after Flippy's diagnosis. In typical Flippy fashion, instead of sulking he chose to embrace life. Mark looked back to the task at hand. It was a Toontask completion document. Local Toon HQ's would send these off to main HQ for processing. Mark had completed hundreds of thousands of these, yet looking at it his mind turned blank. It reminded him of his first day, those many years ago.
Flippy led Mark through the large lobby in the Mayor's office. It was still early in the morning, and nobody else was in the office yet. While Flippy knew that Mark was protected, he still wasn't sure how Toons would react to seeing a cog in the symbolic building. Mark had put on a brand new suit that Cupcake had gotten him. It was a sharp black, matching Mark's freshly slicked hair. Wearing a bright pink tie that Cupcake had specifically tailored for him, a "C" insignia embroidered on the front. Since Flippy had retrieved him earlier that morning, neither of the two had said very much. Other than some awkward small talk, the two were unsure how to break the silence and address the elephant in the room. While Flippy loved his daughter, he still had reservations about this whole thing. Mark seemed trustworthy, but the cogs were still expert con-artists. There was always the possibility of the long-con and maybe Mark was here as an undercover agent. But he would try, because above all else he would do anything for Cupcake. He did like Mark's professionalism. Even though Toontown was known for silliness and fun, Flippy could appreciate the honesty and hard-work that Mark had promised. The two finally reached a large pair of matching doors, one blue and one orange. Sticking a key into the door, Flippy turned it and opened the door leading into the office. Mark looked around in wonder. The gargantuan office was filled to the brim with art, various unique plants and flowers, and two large portraits taller than Mark. On one side of the room, was a large picture of Cupcake and Flippy holding up a large Piano Tuna, with a blue ribbon. Presumably from some sort of competitive victory. On the other side was a more humorous one. Cupcake was standing under a large beach umbrella, wearing a two piece pink swimsuit and matching sunglasses, she was smiling and giving a thumbs up. Below here, Flippy's head was sticking out of the sand. Sticking his tongue out, he was almost completely submerged by sand. He shuttered at the thought. There was no way he'd ever subject himself to something like that.
"Okay, Mark. Here's your desk." Flippy pointed to a short, crowded wooden table filled to the brim with papers, pens, and other various office supplies. "Sorry about the mess. I haven't had much of a chance to clean up around here. It's usually been a place to leave extra stuff lying around. I'll help you clean it off, I just need to take care of a few small things."
Mark rolled up his sleeves neatly. "There is no need Mr. Mayor. You have been gracious enough to present me an opportunity, and I imagine you have much more important tasks to be handling. Please, allow me to handle this." Mark smiled.
Flippy's brain processed what he had just heard, but gladly accepted the offer. "Well, okay Mark. If you insist, I appreciate that. Anyways, once that has been cleared, please let me know and I will show you what you will be doing. I need to go over to the Silly Meter and turn it on, I'll be back soon. Take your time with that, I'd say at least an hour or two. Feel free to take a break whenever you need it. There's snacks in the fridge. Wait, do cogs snack? Well anyways, I had some Rangers keep some leftover oil cans from a recent CEO battle, so help yourself." Walking out of the room, he looked back at the Telemarketer already diligently working.
Mark's mind shut off and his processing unit took over. Sorting the files and documents into large piles, he had finished the clean-up in no time at all. Sitting down at the desk, he grabbed one of the forms. "Toontask Completion Approval." He looked over the strange piece of paper. He had handled paperwork before, but back when he was in Sellbot HQ. Even in the world of Toons there was no way of avoiding bureaucracy, apparently. Across the room, the sound of the door opening let him know Flippy had returned. "Welcome back, sir. I have finished the assigned task and am ready for my next orders." Mark stated bluntly.
"Wow. Mark, I was gone for like five minutes? I had been putting off that for weeks and you already took care of it. I should have hired you a long time ago!" The two shared a laugh as Flippy walked over and glanced over his shoulder at the piece of paper in front of his new assistant. "Ah, yes. A Completion. These are pretty simple. Just sign them and file them to their necessary batches. Honestly I'm not sure why we still do these, we moved to an electronic system years ago but I guess the tradition is hard to break with some of the older Toons. Anyways, you will be doing a lot of these, so you'll get pretty used to them and will be able to do them without thinking."
Mark snapped back to reality and looked back down on the document. Taking a deep breath, he glanced back over at the picture of Flippy again. He could feel his gears churning again. The feeling was overtaking him again. This time though, Cupcake wasn't around to console him. this only made him feel worse. This was Cupcake's father, and she was still out working and protecting Toontown. If she could be strong, he would need to be strong as well. Looking at his pen, he felt a specialized energy overtake his arm, and like lightning he was signing and sorting the forms. Cupcake would be home sometime soon and he wanted to complete his work and do something nice for her. As he worked, he began to think. ideas forming. Grinning pleasantly, he watched as one stack slowly shrunk and the other grew.
Cupcake and Nightmare strolled through the bustling streets of Silly World. The previous sight of Lawbot HQ, the Toon council had ordered it to be constructed into a large theme park as a reward for all of the hard work that Toons had done, and all the sacrifices they had made fighting the cogs. The Playground was made up into several smaller areas, usually based on other playgrounds. Full of rides, games, activities, and great food it was a highly sought after destination for Toon vacations. While Cupcake had been here numerous times over the years, both for business and pleasure, it was a first for Nightmare. Even though she was in her early twenties, her parents hated the idea of silliness and fun, and she had spent most of her time as a child in Cog HQ's and eventually in a small holed up estate in Donald's Dreamland. It was not easy being the child of a notorious Anti-Toon leader. Even after his eventual change of heart, the family was still despised, and usually harassed by other Toons. Nightmare had been home-schooled so she didn't have many opportunities to socialize, and certainly not to go on vacations. The sights and sounds were overwhelming. A constant screaming of Toons having fun, the smells of cotton candy and popcorn, the colors were intoxicating. She had been to Lawbot HQ as a child, the polished, drab, gray interior had been turned into an open, inviting experience. She had to keep her eyes on while she was here though. Following Cupcake, the two made their way into a large, animated HQ building.
Inside of the building wasn't very different from the outside. While HQ's were generally quite generic and simple compared to their respective neighborhoods, this one was bright and alive. Toons in silly costumes roamed holding canes doing dances for small crowds, a large interactive floor piano, and other props lined the floors and walls. Cupcake patted Nightmare's back and winked. "Pretty neat, huh?" she laughed as the two made their way across a piano, listening as the crescendo echoed out as they stepped off and into an office. Inside, a small table with three Toons wearing various colorful costumes were having discussions. Taking a seat at an empty spot, Cupcake motioned for Nightmare to join her. Taking a seat, the rest of the Toons looked over and began to introduce themselves.
"Good morning Mayor Cupcake. I'm sure you know Goofball and Wacky Banana" an orange crocodile pointed to his two colleagues, a purple horse and a white duck. "My name is Joker, for the newcomer. Anyways, I feel that it's best we just get straight to business if that's okay with everyone."
Pulling out a notebook and pen, Nightmare watched as Cupcake stood up and addressed the room. "Good morning everyone. While we're doing introductions, I'd like to have everybody meet my new assistant, Nightmare Decavity!" the three toons waved at her, grimacing a bit as her name was mentioned. "Now that we are all caught up, let's get to it. So, we have received information from our top Toons that there is a planned attack on Silly World this weekend. As we all know, Silly World is Toontown's premier silliness creator. This, as well as it's history of a former HQ, make it a prime target for an attack, both strategically and symbolically."
Goofball stood up. Taking off his entertainer's hat, he placed it on the table and walked over to a white board. Drawing a crude map of Silly World, he littered it with several X's and other figures indicating a host of nonsense as he explained the plans. Nightmare tried to keep up with everything, but the fighting lingo was a bit lost on her. "We anticipate attacks from three different places. Fortunately when Silly World was re-constructed, there was the foresight of a future invasion. Protections have been put into place that make it difficult for cogs to enter without having to enter from three distinct positions. This leads to a potential bottle-neck and a pretty quick defeat for the cogs, as long as we keep ourselves well stocked. Fortunately our supply lines from the Brrrgh prevent these kind of issues barring an emergency."
"Yes, that is great news!" Nightmare exclaimed. "So what's the big deal? Shouldn't we just have guards stationed at each of these entrances and we should be fine, right?" Nightmare chewed on the end of her pen as she looked at the board.
"Nightmare is right there." Joker agreed. "I was a little surprised myself when you requested this meeting, Mayor. You know that our training here is top-notch. We'll be fine. If you just needed a day at the park, you didn't need an excuse. You're always welcome!" The group chuckled at the crocodile's joke.
Cupcake stood back up and walked over to the whiteboard. "May I?" Goofball handed her the marker, and took his seat at the table. "So the panned attack is actually a dual-effort. Drawing some figures inside of the playground interior, and made lines connecting them to the entrances.
"Dual-efforts?" Goofball questioned. Scratching his forehead with his pen, he watched as Cupcake continued to draw.
Sighing, Cupcake stopped her efforts and looked over to Nightmare and felt her heart sink. "Yes, we have information that a new group of Anti-Toons that had been quietly subdued has become more confident. They call themselves the Independent Sellbots, or In-Sells for short. If our leads are correct, they will be trying to cause chaos inside of the gates, attacking guards and kicking up a panic. While that is going on, waves of cogs will be sent in and attempt to overwhelm the first line of defense before they can request backup. Unfortunately due to the nature of their organization, and their guerilla style fighting makes it difficult to pinpoint any leader or members."
The trio of Silly World representatives all looked at Nightmare simultaneously, all with similar thoughts. Wacky stood up and spoke. "So, Mayor. Where did you manage to come across this information?" He looked back in Nightmare's directions, letting his distrust clearly show.
"Hey, what does that mean?" Nightmare inquired quietly. Knowing very well that everybody had already figured out who she was and immediately were suspicious. She was used to it, but it never stopped stinging when somebody was that blunt.
Interrupting, Cupcake placed her hand on Nightmare's shoulder, reassuringly. "Unfortunately our sources cannot be named specifically, but I assure everybody that these Toons have been vetted and their knowledge and trustworthiness is top notch. If you have any other concerns, I will be glad to address them for you."
"Hey everybody. Why don't we just take a break, okay?" Goofball addressed the room. "Let's take an hour, go get lunch, and we'll come back and re-group. I will get in touch with our Rangers and have a few sent over to de-brief and look at some plans of defense." Looking to Nightmare, he smiled. "Young lady, have you ever been to Silly World?"
Nightmare was taken aback at the polite attitude from the older Toon. "Um, no. I haven't. Although I have always wanted to. I've heard the churros are delicious."
Cupcake placed her arm around Nightmare's shoulder and laughed. "Delicious? That's an understatement. You haven't lived until you've tried a Silly World churro. Let's go for a walk, you have a lot to learn."
The two spent the next hour parading through the various parts of the park. Between rides, Nightmare would stop at a churro cart and grab two more of the cinnamon-sugary delights. Usually by the time they had made the next ride they had been long since eaten. The sugar rush had given Nightmare a newfound energy. She darted through the hordes of Toons like a child. Cupcake had to jog to keep up with her young assistant. Smiling and laughing, the two enjoyed their short respite from the serious nature of their work. Unfortunately, all good things must end and the two started to make their way back to the HQ. Nightmare's Laff Meter had increased nine points from the sheer excitement, as well as fourteen churros. Nightmare looked to her boss and smiled. "I can't believe I'm actually at Silly World. It's a dream come true. I never could have imagined I'd be here. Especially not for fun. I don't know how to thank you, Cupcake."
"Of course, Nightmare. I feel like everybody should experience Silly World when they can. It's quite magical." She watched the young toon skipping ahead. She could not help but glow at the sight. Even though Nightmare was twenty-four, her childlike innocence and genuine excitement reminded her of someone much younger. The glow turned to sadness as she thought about it. Here was someone who had never been given a chance to enjoy their childhood, and now was being pressed into a painstakingly difficult job. An idea popped into her head and her glowing smile returned. "Hey Nightmare, do you have any plans tomorrow?"
Nightmare turned around, still hopping in a circle on one foot she shouted back. "Nope. Probably just going to go back to the hotel and play video games or something. Did you need me to do something for you, boss?" Stopping her twirling, she pulled out her notepad.
"Well. I mean we should probably stick it out here for a few days, to help get the resistance ready for the attack this weekend. It's a pretty long trip from Toontown Central. I was thinking maybe we could just stay here for a few days? There are plenty of hotels, and we do get a Mayoral discount.." She put on a silly smile. "Besides, I think as Mayor and Mayor's assistant, we need to ensure that all of the rides are working properly and are silly enough, right? We don't want Toons to have a bad time?"
"Oh, of course." Nightmare giggled. "Might need to test out the rest of those churro carts. You know, to make sure the cogs haven't tampered with them." Her heart fluttered with excitement. "But what about Mark? Don't you think he will be lonely while you're gone?" Nightmare tapped her pen on her leg.
Cupcake scratched her head. 'Well I guess I'll just have to invite him, too!" she tried to temper her excitement "Mark loves Silly World. You should see him on the teacup ride. I can't even go on with him anymore because he spins so fast, makes me want to be sick. I'm sure he'll be glad to come, and I'm sure he'll love to meet you as well." The pair of cats made their way inside of the HQ, smiling exuberantly and ready for the long day ahead of them.