Dawn of the Bread
Tomoya
A/N: If you haven't already, checked the author's note at the bottom of the previous chapter. It explains the status of the story.
A/N 2: As you could probably tell by the title, this is a humorous aside that has nothing to do with the main plot.
I want to warn everyone that trusting people is pointless.
Even the most kind and friendly of shopkeepers could be megalomaniacs out to destroy the world. Until today, I hadn't learned this crucial lesson.
It was 3:45 in the afternoon. With little to do and change in my pocket, I walked through the front entrance of the Furukawa Bakery.
I'd visited several times already this summer. Since prices were small, I often stopped by to purchase a donut, or if I was feeling daring, one of the more fancy breads baked by the old man.
I never touched his wife's pastries, however. The one time I did ended in disaster.
Still, I had been disturbed by a recent trend in Sanae's recipes. Since the start of summer, Sanae began a product line she dubbed "Summer Fun Recipes". Its corny name had actually duped a few unlucky kids, prompting Sanae, tears in her eyes, to explain the reason for their catatonic state.
But as time passed, her breads grew more outlandish. From brussel sprouts to the infamous "chicken bread", Sanae had become firmly convinced that her bread-baking skills were par excellence. I'd asked the old man why no one had thought to tell her this, but he simply explained that no one I town questioned the reasons.
"Hey, kid," Akio greeted me with a smile. "What would you like today?"
"I'd like—" My whole body froze. Jerking with the grace of a wind-up toy, my head peeked at Sanae's latest inventions.
Bread with wings.
And they were ready to take flight.
"Wh-what's happening?" Akio's pupils dilated. His irises flickered in horror.
The wings on Sanae's bread flapped madly with no direction or purpose other than escape. Noticing the door I'd apparently left open, they formed a straight line and approached the open air.
"NOOOO!" Akio yelled at the top of his lungs, grabbing as many as he could. "Don't let them escape!"
I aided in the effort as best I could, but their wings were just too powerful. They batted against my face and made it out the door.
"NA-GI-SA!"
His young daughter dashed to where we stood.
"Nagisa, help us repel these monstrosities!"
"M-mom's bread is . . . Flying,"
Nagisa fainted.
"Nagisa!" Akio scolded. "This is no time for your fragile moe antics! We need help!"
Unfortunately, Nagisa refused to get up. She found the floor very comfortable.
For all his strength, Akio was only a man in a funny frog apron. The bread beat against his arms and reached for the open air.
Sanae entered the restaurant area from inside the house. She smiled proudly. "It has begun,"
"What are you talking about?" I asked in shock. "You planned this?"
"Yes," She clasped her hands together. "Now, everyone in town can enjoy my irresistible delicacies."
Akio closed the door a second too late. All of the pastries escaped through the exit.
"S-Sanae," Akio panted, hands on his knees. "What the hell were you thinking?"
"I wanted to give everyone a free gift," she raised her index finger. "This is the grand climax of my 'Summer Fun Recipes'. Everyone will remember this day!"
"Yeah, they'll remember it as the dawn of the end of the world!"
We sprinted after the breads, leaving Sanae aghast. Outside, chaos ensued.
Bread butted heads against the side of building. Some knocked their wings against people's heads, others robbed banks and jewelry stores. In a matter of seconds, Hikarizaki had been overrun.
And it had all been Sanae's fault.
"We'll . . . We'll never catch them all!" Akio shook his head in disbelief. "What'll we do?"
"Allow me to help,"
A black car swerved into the center of the street and out came two men. One was Kotomi's guardian, armed with a giant weapon hoisted on his shoulder.
Beside him, a man I thought was one of his co-workers stepped out of the car, a smirk on his face.
"We've got this covered," the man pushed up his glasses.
"What'll that thing do?" Akio asked panicked.
"Don't worry," the scientist chuckled. "This weapon creates a black hole. It's certain to deal with your bread problem."
"I guess that makes sense," Akio crossed his arms. "Wait, a black hole?!"
"Fire, Nishimura-san!"
A black hole erupted in the sky that day. First the bread, then the people, then the buildings were all sucked in to the defect in time and space.
For seconds, nothing happened.
I finally awoke to a desolate world of snow and eternal quiet. Although the buildings the people, and yes, the bread that were forced inside were all here, the weather and climate was nothing like I remembered.
"Where are we?" I asked Kotomi's guardian who stood up from his limp position on the ground.
"I don't know," he shrugged carelessly. "But I think I'll name this place 'The Illusionary World'."