Chapter 13 Darkness Spreading

Cackletta sighed the most content sigh ever. She looked around the throne room of the famous Beanbean Castle, not blinking to not mistake or skip over any of the details. The green checkerboard floor made her think of honeydew, which was great because she absolutely adored honeydew. The red carpet complemented the green beautifully, making the place look so visually appealing that Cackletta had the hardest time ever believing it was real. And the throne… oh, what a gorgeous throne! It was the perfect size, perfect shape, and the most perfect use of gold in the world. It was amazing to look at, and the sight only got better to the witch when she thought about one important fact.

It was now hers.

Giggling, Cackletta made her way over to the throne. She mentally prepared herself in order to sit down on it. After all, this was a throne of royalty, so it was expected to be the most comfortable and supportive chair anyone could ever rest their butt on. Cackletta tried to tell herself to not get too hyped up, for she knew that reality was almost guaranteed to not live up to her expectations.

Almost. When she finally did sit herself down, she was delighted to say that yes, it indeed did live up to the hype. It was so cozy! She could probably sleep in this throne! In fact, that's what she was going to do from now on! She was going to spend every second of every day in this ornate, velvet-cushioned seat, not getting up even when the classic feeling of fatigue overcame her at night. Yes, this was the perfect place to be, and she was going to appreciate it twenty-four seven.

Speaking of things she was going to appreciate twenty-four-seven, it was almost comical how easy it was to take over the Kingdom. Most of that was because of Princess Peach, who was probably the most stupid and naive girl in the Beanbean Kingdom. Like, seriously! She had played into Cackletta's plan so well that it was unbelievable. Planting that servant in the castle to direct the young princess toward Cackletta's fortune hut was the best thing she had ever done; it wasn't even a contest. And now, she was reaping the rewards of such an ingenious plan, and she was going to continue reaping the rewards for a long time. After all, she planned to have a long reign as the Kingdom's new queen.

Funny how she became queen when the previous queen had only reigned for less than a minute. Just thinking about that fact made Cackletta laugh.

"Miss Cackletta?"

Cackletta blinked and sat up, grinning when she saw Fawful. There was this shimmer in his eyes, a shimmer that conveyed a greed and wickedness that nobody in the Beanbean Kingdom had expressed before. This sight only made Cackletta's smile grow even brighter.

"What is it, my dear little henchman?"

"Well, Fawful has done the pondering, so much of the pesky pondering." He chuckled. "Can Fawful be given the position of importance? Can Fawful aid Mistress Cackletta in ruling with the fist that is the iron?"

Cackletta cast him a raised eyebrow. "What sort of 'position of importance' did you have in mind?"

Fawful chortled. "Fawful has been keeping the watchful eye on the advisor of royals. Fawful feels that will be satisfying, like watching the chicken leg burn in the pan of possibility!"

Cacklette kept her eyebrow raised for a little bit before shaking her head. "You say the strangest things." She looked back at him. "You also seem to have the craziest dreams. Why in the big, ever-expanding world would I make you my royal advisor?"

Now it was Fawful's turn to raise his eyebrow. "I do not know. Would the fact of Fawful threatening to end your game be up there as the best of reasons?"

"You can't end my game!" Cackletta said with a laugh and a smile. "You aren't nearly strong enough to do that!"

"Cackletta would experience the greatest of surprises," Fawful said, rolling his eyes as the great witch continued to laugh away.

Once Cackletta calmed herself down, she smiled at Fawful. "Well, I'll tell you this. I'll give you an even more powerful position than a royal advisor." Fawful stepped forward, his interest clearly piqued as he refused to take his eyes off of her. "You see, dear Fawful, I was hoping that you would help rule the Beanbean Kingdom, and eventually the world, by my side." Fawful gasped, putting his hand up to his mouth. This made Cackletta even more giggly. "Yes! I know that such a position would be a dream come true for you!" She leaned forward, her grin growing bigger and bigger. "You and I, commanding the armies of the world from right here in this very throne room. You and I, getting servants to do exactly what we say exactly when we say it. You and I, reshaping the world to be in our likeness, our own image." She sighed in contentment, her positive emotions becoming stronger with each word she said. "Can you think of a better reality? Can you think of a more magical way to live our lives!"

"I cannot," Fawful said.

"Of course, you can't." Cackletta looked at him with glittering eyes and a laughing soul. "Because you're stupid."

"Oh, hardee hardee har." Fawful shook his head. "Well, you can do the insults of meanness all you want." The grin returned to his face. "Fawful will gladly rule the Beanbean Kingdom!" He had a lot gusto in his voice for someone who just got insulted.

"Of course you will." Cackletta cleared her throat, rising from the throne (as much as she desperately wanted to stay put). "Well, now that we have determined who's ruling what, it's time I do something that I've been waiting to do for a while."

Fawful's eyes grew wide. "Do you meaning… the spell?"

"Oh yes." Cackletta rubbed her hands together. "For months, I have tried to perfect this spell. Grueling, long hours of trying to work my magic, endless nights making sure that every part of this spell was precisely, one hundred percent perfect. All that work will be worth it." She giggled again, sounding much more high-strung than her previous laughs. "Would you like to watch me cast it, dear Fawful?"

"Does the bear do the defecating in the woods of the wild?"

Cackletta gawked at his words before shaking her head. "I'll take that as a yes." With that, she stepped down from the room, walking up to the center of the throne room. Specifically, the part of the room that had a humongous skylight, letting the warmest and softest sunlight come down into the castle like a spotlight. Cackletta stood in the spotlight, letting the sunrays lighten up her bean-green face. She took a deep breath. She held out her hands, preparing both her mind and her body for this spell.

"I can do this," she whispered. "I can do this." She held up her hands, looking directly up at the skylight. "Hack burn. Washburn. Walpurgisnacht! Hackle Moro… Baffle TENEBRIS!"

When she said the last word, she yelled at the top of her voice. Black, smoky blackness shot out of her hands. It circled around through the air, rising higher and higher. Cackletta kept shouting. Heat formed in her eyes as she continued yelling, as she refused to put her hands down and refused to let the darkness stop rising. It shot through the skylight, rising into the sky. It formed clouds over the happy, tranquil Beanbean Castle Town.

"Holy the moly!" Fawful exclaimed.

Cackletta smiled. The clouds continued to gather, blocking out the sunlight once and for all. By the time Cackletta was finished, the sky was completely black. No doubt that the entirety of Beanbean Castle Town was covered in this wicked, inky darkness. And the best part of it all was that the darkness would spread out more and more the more time passed. Soon, the entire kingdom would be covered. And soon after that… the world.

Fawful applauded once Cackletta lowered her hands. "That was most amazing! Like the fried chicken cooked to the absolute perfection!"

Cackletta looked over at her henchman. "What is with you and chicken today… you know what? It doesn't matter." She chuckled. "The plan is coming along excellently. Within no time at all, the world will know the name of the great Cackletta, and they will all bow before me like the wondrous beauty I am!"

"Oh yes!" Fawful cackled. "It will be the ever most delightful!"

With that, the two evil masterminds cackled away.

…

"Peasley, please stop!" Peach came to a complete stop right in the middle of the path, panting like a dog and sweating like a pig. "I… I need to take a break."

Peasley furrowed his brow. He went over to his sister, who panted so frequently and heavily that one would think she was about to pass out. "Not used to the adventurer's life, huh?"

"No. No, I most certainly am not." Peach almost wanted to sit down, only preventing herself from doing it thanks to a heavy dose of self-control. She put her hand on her backpack strap. "This backpack is really heavy." She winced and held onto her foot. "I wouldn't be surprised if I have blisters on my feet."

Peasley frowned. "Well, I think I might have something in my bag to help with that." He got down on his knees, gesturing for Peach to sit down beside him. "Take your shoe off."

Peach did as he commanded, taking off her sock as well for good measure. She didn't even want to look at her feet, and she didn't need to to know that there were blisters growing down on the bottom. She saw Peasley cringe, and he reached into his backpack while still wearing that cringe. Peach decided to keep her eyes directly on him as he pulled some gauze and ointment out of his bag and started rubbing the ointment on Peach's foot.

"What's that?" Peach asked out of curiosity.

"Healing potion, made from one-up mushrooms. It should help your foot feel better." He continued rubbing, cringing, and adorning a wrinkled nose as he did. "It seems to me like royalty is not cut out for this much physical activity."

Peach chuckled. "No, we most certainly aren't." She winced when Peasley touched a particularly painful spot. "But I can do this. Once I'm all patched up, you and I are going to continue our trek toward the Mushroom Kingdom

Peasley hesitated before nodding. "Yes. Yes we are." He finished with the potion and got out the gauze. "Now, this might make putting your shoe back a little awkward, but it is necessary."

"I know. I know." Suddenly, Peach felt a chill in the air. It made goosebumps form on her arms, and it made her shiver like she would in Sherbet Land. "Peasley, do you feel cold?"

"I do." Peasley lifted his head, confusion showing through on his face. "I don't understand; it's the middle of summer. How can it be…"

He stopped. His eyes grew wide, and he gawked at a sight behind Peach. She turned, hoping to see what had made Peasley so afraid. Her heart leaped into her throat when she saw some inky black clouds. They were still a little ways away, but they were moving towards Peach and Peasley at breakneck speed.

"Wh… what is that?" Peasley squeaked.

Peach's heart sank. "Cackletta must be behind this." She put on a serious face, telling herself that she needed to be strong, and turned back to face Peasley. "Peasley, hurry up with that gauze. We need to pick up the pace."