There is an ancient spell, cast once a millennium by the wisest druids of the greatest forests. To bring life back into the great woods by summoning all the energy of each spirit, fey and elemental that ever lived in the sacred woodlands and distributing it throughout the crust of the great ball of dirt and magma we call home.
The ritual is long and exhausting on the druids who cast it, taking an entire moon cycle before it is at last complete. In this tired state it is easy for a simple mistake to occur… unexpected consequences.
It was near the end of the last ritual, when tensions were high and energy was low. The grand druid, an old man far past his prime, sat in the centre of a large circle, feeling his energy channel throughout the magic ley lines that made up the root system of the entire world.
The old man was tired, he always was, however nearing the end of the ritual he was even more so. All that was on his mind was the month-long nap he would take after, already dreaming of the grove he had made for that exact purpose.
The idea of quiet, and calm sleep was so tempting, that the old druid barely even noticed as he began to slowly nod off, and the magical energy he had been channelling into the roots of the world, instead began to flicker and seep out, like a splash of ink in water.
That ink just so happened to reach out, sifting out through the dirt and tree roots and leaves until it reached the closest living things aside from a barely alive old man. A small litter of rat pups, tucked carefully under a large fern and surrounded by dirt.
Magic is an interesting thing when unintentionally cast, and can often lead to the most wondrous things.
Such as a group of five rats who can't decide which bread to order at the local bakery.
To the fair citizens of Verside, the knight was simply an odd mercenary for the guild. Odd, but welcomed in a city that welcomed just about any and every strange creature that walked through its gates.
And like any good neighbours, most had learned the habits and preferences of the silent knight. One such habit was that when the knight was trying to decide on a food flavour or type, the rest of the world was dead to them.
To anyone passing by, the knight would simply stare through their vision, arms crossed with a hand on their chin, lost in thought for as long as they needed to come to a decision.
In reality, all five rats who controlled the knight had instead convened in the core to discuss the important decision that awaited them.
“Sourdough is always the correct answer. I don't know why we have to keep having this discussion every time we get bread!” Octavian was saying as he fiddled with some of the pulley systems that made up the left leg, his section of the knight.
“Because sourdough sucks!” Otis groaned, sitting back and watching Octavian go about his work. “Besides, isn't it made of like, old bacteria?”
“Wait, is it?” Orion asked, sounding alarmed.
“What? No! No more than regular bread is!”
“Can we get Banana bread?” Olive chimed in, lifting her head from where she had stopped to nap, as she did whenever she wasn't needed to control the knight. There was a reason she was the left arm to a right handed knight.
“No, we should get the braided bread…” Otis lifted his head high, before realising he didn't remember the name of the bread he liked so much.
“Brioche?” Onan asked quietly from where she sat, counting the gold coins they had earned on their last job.
“Yes! That one!” Otis exclaimed triumphantly. “Ooo! And cornbread!” He added excitedly.
“Well what about rye? You can never go wrong with rye bread.” Orion added, leaning closer towards Otis and his train of thought.
“Rye? Well that certainly explains a lot.” Olive scoffed ever so slightly, curling further into a ball.
“What's wrong with rye bread?!” Orion shouted dramatically. Olive simply shrugged as she cast a judgmental glance towards Orion.
“Nothing. It just seems like the kind of bread you would choose.” She dismissed, before setting her paws atop her eyes in an attempt to get back to her nap.
“Pfft. like I have to take that from someone who wants banana bread.” Orion muttered under his breath.
“You both have terrible taste.” Octavian sighed, adjusting the wire thread that ran through one of the pulleys.
“Shut up Octavian!” Both Orion and Olive shouted in unison.
The silence stewed for a long moment, indecision ripe in the air for a very long moment.
“Get one of each, we have enough.” Onan spoke suddenly, pushing the coins she had been counting into a small chute that connected to the coin pouch on the knight's armour. The silence in the small core where the rats sat was palpable, as they all stood in an embarrassing realisation.
“Just no eating in here! Took me forever to get the crumbs out last time!” Octavian scolded as the rest of the rats scurried off into their positions to get the knight moving.
Olive and Orion cast a knowing glance at each other as they scamped towards their position as the arms.Otis already knew what they were planning as he leapt up towards his seat behind the visor where he could see the rest of the world, including a very awkward looking baker, still awaiting the knights order.
Leaving the bakery with a bag full of bread, five watering mouths happily awaited the moment they could duck into an alley and toss the fresh bread through the visor of the empty suit. Partly because it smelled heavenly, partly because a certain two rats did not appreciate the accusation of terrible taste.
Revenge was sweet afterall.
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