I'm still thinking I'm going to take the red herring route with all known Licorice Sea lore in the Darkest Days AU. Since so many claim the oozelings came from somewhere else and tainted the Licorice Sea. Hear me out on why I think this is the perfect set up to be a red herring.
We do not have a timeline for the Licorice Sea changing (yet). Just a few references to it happening. Dark Cacao, at some point, even mentions the Oozelings tainting the Licorice Sea. Most likely they probably assume they came from Beast Yeast. But everything about his kingdom makes it sound like they suffered from the Licorice Oozelings long before he got his Soul Jam.
The best way to work this out is to establish the following:
1) When did Licorice Oozelings first appear? So far the only thing that seems even slightly established is that they're probably about as old if not older than the Ancients. Does Shadow Milk know about them? Were they even around at the time of the Beasts? Were they there pre-corruption? Are they older than the beasts? As old as the dragons? (This last one seems unlikely to me unless a dragon IS involved somehow, but for now, we're uncertain)
2) Where are they from? Are they really from Beast Yeast? Or are they from somewhere else and assumed to be from BY? Why the Licorice Sea? Because they share an ingredient? Because it just happened to be closest? They can clearly leave the Licorice Sea, why don't they travel to other waters more often if at all? It's definitely odd that they're very concentrated on that one specific area.
3) What are they exactly? How did they come to be? They're clearly destructive, but it doesn't seem like they've caused that much damage outside the Dark Cacao Kingdom and Licorice Sea, besides when Licorice has summoned them. "Gelatinous licorice monsters" aren't exactly explaining much given their somewhat mysterious existence. Personally, I'm fond of them becoming somewhat aware on their own by trapping life powder/energy but that's entirely me.
Now as for why the limited info makes a good red herring? Because it could change the way they plan to deal with it. The way the entire thing is perceived. The sheer magnitude. It's also why I hope they don't tie the Living Abyss to any existing, major player besides Licorice (like the Beasts somehow).
Like, if everyone assumes they come from BY, they would likely overlook other options (like the sea itself). If anything, it could potentially be an entire arc on its own (which Darkest Days does have enough stuff to be an actual in game arc. Don't look at me pls, I know it's unhinged).
There's plenty of way to take the limited info in canon and use it to lead an audience the entire wrong way. I feel like the mysterious circumstances around the Living Abyss, Licorice Cookie, the Licorice Sea, the Licorice Tribe, and the Dark Cacao kingdom is already interesting enough to deserve its own plotline. And that's partly what Darkest Days is for since I doubt we will get to it any time soon.
Apologies if this don't all make sense. I am rambling again.
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