The Quiet Ever After

Croissant City - 6

"Jeez, Isaac, I messed up so bad," Axel said, spitting the croissant out. Thankfully, he'd portioned the ingredients enough to only make one pastry.

He dropped it on the floor for Isaac to take. The raccoon would eat anything, so it was a good thing he came along.

"All of the proportions were way off," Axel said. He racked his mind. Where had he messed up? He'd memorized his favorite recipes from Earth pretty well and followed them quite well.

It had to be the ingredients. Their potencies were different. A dash of one thing on Earth probably needed to be heavier in the Starlit Plane and vice-versa.

He'd considered, at one point, bringing some of the ingredients from Earth to the Starlit Plane. However, he didn't trust their temerity to make the jump between worlds and last. The stuff from the Starlit Plane would travel to Earth with no worries, though. Things were stronger on this side.

Or, he was being a complete goof and should've asked Nina to help him by bringing some of his things.

Axel rested his hands on his hips, then glanced down at Isaac. "Want to go for a walk? Clear our heads?"

Isaac glanced at Axel as if he were a madman and continued chowing down on the croissant. Axel replaced everything, chilled the oven, and stepped to the door. Isaac's skittering feet halted him and Axel gladly accepted the company, however reluctantly nervous it was.

They took the lift down. The flashing lights fascinated Isaac. Axel led them back through the city, where most people were less amazed to see him and more perplexed at what Isaac was. Most thought he was cute, and Axel heartily agreed with them. Isaac clung tightly to Axel as he took them up a tall hill, winding their way up a mound to an abandoned building he and his friends used to hang out in. It remained abandoned, ruined by a curse that'd befallen near the awakening of time in the Starlit Plane.

He reached the top of the building, one whose size was decimated in comparison to the others of the city yet would still be quite large on Earth. Isaac snuggled into the fold of Axel's jacket but poked his head out, bitterly curious as to what was going on around them.

The Starlit Plane opened up before them. Great walls stood stout around Itucz, guarded well by the autonomous soldiers on patrol.

Only four other buildings were taller than the one Axel took up his temporary residency in, while about a dozen others were about the same height, give or take a few feet. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, moving to the edge of the flat roof.

The stars overhead felt so close Axel thought to could grab a few out of the air. It was a sea of them, and given how much closer he was, he noticed them wavering, drifting, and moving in the skies above. He bowed his head, letting out a long sigh of warm air while cold air rushed in when he sucked in another breath.

How strange, Axel thought as the Phoenix streaked across the sky in a fluorescent blue line toward the Zanderia building. On Earth, everyone had accepted that the days of great evil were over—or, at least, that was Axel's perception. Maybe in the larger cities, attacks tended to happen, they were on a higher alert despite the peace. Itucz had to be under a similar mindset.

The Zanderia made Itucz their home because it simply felt right. They needed a new home and the recently discovered city was the best spot for it. But they acted and patrolled as if something were still lingering to come after them.

Axel glanced out toward the west in the direction of Briznok's dead realm. A faint shadow hung there, though nobody that posed a threat lived there anymore.

The winds gusted from above. Axel smiled.

"Do you brood like this on Earth?" a powerful voice asked. Isaac stiffened.