A Thousand Broken Promises

Chapter 9

Sitting in this tree, Wilbur could see the walls of L'Manburg glistening in the distance. He knew that Schlatt had altered the name but he couldn't bear to say or think it. L'Manberg may be out of his reach but it remained in his heart.

As soon as the Inauguration had taken place, the walls had been ordered to be taken down but the task had never been completed. Although at the time it felt like a piece of his heart was being ripped out, the removal of them did allow Wilbur to get a look within. Of course, he was too far away to see anything clearly but he still found it strangely comforting. Every time he saw it, he was relieved that it was still there and hadn't been destroyed by Schlatt as he sometimes feared. He was unsure what had caused Schlatt to hate him so much, however, he was concerned how far that feeling would take him. Wilbur believed that Schlatt had exiled him because he was seen as a threat but if he was in Schlatt's position, he wouldn't feel safe until the threat was destroyed.

If the roles were reversed, would Wilbur try to kill Schlatt to vanquish the threat? He felt that the answer was yes and was unsure what that meant about him as a person.

Wilbur took the Red Delicious out of his coat pocket taking a bite. Although food was scarce, Wilbur felt that nobody was going to miss a singular apple. The bitter taste sat uncomfortably in his mouth that was only starting to become accustomed to the strange taste. When he became President again, he promised to never let this disgusting fruit grow on his soil.

Then, through the hole in the wall, Wilbur saw a figure appear. As he couldn't tell if they were friend or foe, he inched further along the branch, hoping to get a clearer view. Whomever they were, they were facing the wrong way which made it near impossible.

Wilbur wasn't sure why he felt the need to grab the attention of the person in his vision. Perhaps he wanted someone from his rightful land to notice him or that a part of him recognised the glimpse of blonde hair. Regardless of the true meaning, he threw the apple as far as he could towards L'Manberg.

He missed.

Wilbur ran a hand through his hair, cursing that he hadn't thrown the apple far enough. Although the disgusting fruit had landed within the walls, he had failed to alert the figure to his presence. There was only one chance and he had fucked it up, like everything in his life.

With a final glance at L'Manberg promising to reclaim it one day, Wilbur descended from the tree. He put a hand in his pocket taking out a fresh box of matches. This was the second singular item Wilbur had recently taken without telling anyone. With the amount of items he had been taking justifying that no one would notice one missing would surely soon be noticeable. Fiddling with the box in his hand, Wilbur walked away from L'Manburg and towards the uncertainty of Pogtopia. Well, after a quick stop somewhere else he would be heading back.

There was a bite mark in the Red Delicious that Niki had picked up. It wasn't rotten and she knew that this was a place that nobody ventured to in fear of what Schlatt would do.

Niki quickly looked out of the broken wall towards the mass of trees. The apple had to have come from somewhere outside of Manberg. Whomever they were, they had already disappeared from view. Niki didn't care that she didn't know who, she was just glad that this was a sign that Pogtopia was okay.

"Niki!" she heard Fundy shout nearby. Hastily, she pocketed the apple and made her way back into the dangerous lands. No matter how long it took, she would wait for someone to rescue her from Schlatt. Of course, she was more than capable herself to escape but for now it was better to resist Schlatt's rule from the inside. She would use her situation to her advantage, finding intel on Schlatt that she could give to Wilbur herself.