The Main Attraction

Chapter 3: The Prison

Obeying the crown was a sinister price!
-Hand Of Sorrow, Within Temptation





So it had come down to this.

Just like it always had.

Penny took in a deep breath and sighed as she stared at the scene before her. She was not at all surprised by how many zoners had shown up for this announcement. She had promised to deliver in twenty-four hours, and she did. Or at least, she thought so... Oh well, what did it matter? She was here now and that was all there is to it.

She and her friends stood in front of Haney’s Diner. An easy place for the other zoners to find. Even with the podium that she drew for herself to use, it was still difficult to see everyone that had arrived here. Not that it was going to be a problem; the megaphone that she drew for herself would work just fine in ensuring that even the zoners in the back were aware of what she was saying.

She gripped the megaphone in her hand tightly, struggling to think of just what she was going to say. She had to make sure that she worded everything carefully. There could not be a single room for doubt, otherwise the zoners might pick it apart, forcing her and her friends to defend their point.

She looked down at where her friends were. They had positioned themselves to her left, their eyes firmly on the crowd as they tried to see if anyone was trying to cause problems. Rudy sat tightly in his wheelchair with his magic chalk raised. Mint had one leg moved forward, his magic chalk tightly clutched in his left hand, and Snap had his fists tightened and slightly raised, looking as if he was ready to tear into the zoners any second if they dared to get any closer.

And on her right stood Haney. She could tell, even from this angle, that he looked quite nervous, and she could not blame him in the slightest. Not with how all these zoners were just...glaring at him like this. Not with the way they looked as if they were going to rip him into shreds. She bit her lip as she watched how terrified he looked. She wanted to comfort him, but right now, she needed to focus on delivering the news.

She looked down at her hand, where she clutched the piece of paper with the results. She licked her lips slowly. This should be an easy thing to say, but often, she was almost...afraid. There was always that chance that there would be a rejection to her ‘diagnosis’ and she would be confronted by several angry zoners.

But she had to say something and quick. Otherwise, this crowd was going to get restless anyway. She took in a deep breath and sighed softly.

Well, here it goes.

“I thank you all for coming here. As promised, I was able to test Haney’s secret sauce and I have the results right here.” Penny unfolded the piece of paper, its flapping sound quite audible to even the further back zoners thanks to the microphone. “I had tested and retested the sauce and I have come to one conclusion.”

She gave a pause for a bit of drama, though mostly to allow this to sink into everyone’s minds. She took a moment and looked around, seeing all of their faces. The zoners were watching her intently. A few of them were looking at Haney, as though eager to tear into him. And poor Haney was trembling like a leaf. He was constantly looking from the zoner crowd and up to Penny, his eyes looking as if they were giving a silent plea.

And Penny answered that plea.

“I am not allowed to divulge just what was in the secret sauce. After all, it is a secret. But...” Penny raised her hand up in gesture. “I can guarantee you that, after so many tests and retests, there is absolutely no trace of any zoner DNA in his concoction. Haney is innocent.”

Silence fell upon the area. The excited murmurs that the zoners had been giving quickly died down. With wide eyes, they stared at one another, scratching their heads. It looked as though they were having a hard time fully comprehending this. It was as if they had been presented with something that surely must be a myth.

But as Penny and her friends remained silent, staring with narrowed eyes intently into the crowd, it become increasingly clear to the zoners that they weren’t joking about this. And as soon as it become quite obvious this was, indeed, the prognosis, they began to murmur amongst each other in what could best be described as...disappointment.

“He...didn’t do anything...?” One zoner asked.

“But..But we were so sure!” A dog-like zoner exclaimed as she clutched her head. “It just doesn’t make any sense!”

Another zoner stared at her, his solid black eyes reflecting something. “I know how you feel, but...the Great Creators did do the tests and...” He shrugged. “I think we will just have to accept it.”

“But everything made so much sense! I mean... Haney could easily play the part of...” A stick figure zoner mentioned.

Another stick figure cut him off. “But like he said, we can’t argue. If the test results really show that Haney is innocent... Well, there’s not much that we can do about that, right?”

One zoner grumbled, “I still say she tested it wrong.”

Rudy, Mint, and Snap growled at that last comment. Penny was glad to see that they didn’t attempt to shout at the zoners. The last thing they needed was some kind of fight breaking out. If the zoners had a hard time accepting this truth, then that was on them. They could deal with it. The only time that she would think they should interfere again is if the zoners start getting violent again.

Which they weren’t. They were just...confused and uncertain. Some looked shocked and others were in disbelief, and some were pissed off. There were even a few that were horrified, as it meant that, as they realized, they had nearly harmed another innocent.

Just like they had with Snap all those years ago...

Although there were never as many in the crowd as others, Penny did sometimes feel something close to fear regarding the zoners that were angry about the results that she would give. It would seem that some of the zoners were a little too eager to dish out justice....and it was quite terrifying.

Especially considering the fact that said zoners could become even more dangerous than most of the villains that they faced. These zoners were likely fueled by the desire for revenge regarding what Sandra did. They might not have gotten a chance to attack her, so now they were focusing their rage elsewhere. If she and her friends weren’t careful, these zoners would tear apart anyone just so that they could get their thirst for revenge out of the way.

Haney was the one who eventually broke the silence. Gone was the terrified, frightened zoner, and in his place stood someone who was a little too confident for his own good. “See?! I told you I was innocent! Hah! Take that, you doubters!” He pointed a claw towards the group of zoners in an excited manner. The other zoners growled at him, but this did not cause his demeanor to faulter in the slightest.

Thankfully, Snap was able to say something before things got any worse. “Hey now! Try to keep yourself calm, okay buddy?” Snap said as he walked over towards the overly excited dragon. When he got his attention, Snap continued, “You wouldn’t want to jinx it, would you?”

The dragon zoner paused for a moment, considering what Snap was saying. He lowered his gaze towards the ground for a couple of seconds before he said softly, “Yeah...you’re right. I’m...I’m sorry...”

“Hey don’t sweat it!” Snap gave him a small pat on his arm. For a split second, it looked as if the blue zoner had gotten nervous. But whatever had caused him to freeze him didn’t appear to bother him anymore, and he quickly returned to his more cheerful self. “Now why don’t you run along back in the restaurant and return to work?”

“That sounds like a good idea.” Rudy said as he moved himself towards Haney. He stared at him in the eyes for a couple of seconds before he continued, “Just try to stay out of trouble, all right? And if something else happens, let us know, okay?”

Haney nodded his head. “I understand.”

Rudy smiled at this. Before he could speak, Mint had walked up to his side, positioning himself right beside him. “Don’t worry! We will be glad to help you if something else comes up!” Mint smiled down at Rudy before looping an arm around him, pulling him into a half hug. “Isn’t that right?”

Rudy grunted at this sudden hug. He did nothing to fight back against it other than a small cringe. He managed to give a smile back at his friend. “Yes, of course.”

Penny watched this for a couple of seconds before shaking her head slowly. She turned her head away and looked back at the zoners. Despite what had been told to them, they still hadn’t left yet. They were just..standing around, looking at them as though waiting for something else to be said. Penny gave a small groan at this. Were they really that unaccepting of her saying that Haney was innocent?

She had come to expect this, anyway. Sometimes their word for it just didn’t cut it. It was still an issue that plagued ChalkZone City. While understandable, this was getting quite tiresome. If these zoners didn’t stop acting so paranoid.... But then, what could she and her friends say to sway them otherwise?

Penny tapped against the microphone to make sure that she had the zoners’ attention once more. “And of course, if anyone spots something suspicious, or even see a terrifying act take place, you can still report to us. We are here to help all of you.” She had hoped that this would quell them, but it would seem that, for a few, this was not going to be the case.

“Oh yeah? Then why did you let him free?” A zebra-like zoner pointed her hooved hand towards Haney. “You know that he’s guilty and yet you still let him off scott free!”

“But...” Another zoner stared at her in shock, her own eyes wide. “Penny did say that she tested it and...”

“She’s lying! She’s obviously in cahoots with him!” The zebra-like zoner snapped, gritting her teeth. She turned and stared into Penny’s eyes. “Aren’t you, you little bitch? You’re part of this whole conspiracy! You’re just waiting for the right moment to strike!”

Penny stared at the zebra zoner in shock, her mouth having dropped open. She wasn’t sure what to say or do in response to this. All she could do was just stare at the zoner as her accusations filled her head. Never before had she and her friends been accused of a conspiracy. This was just....unprecedented.

“Furthermore, you...”

“Oh shut up!”

The zebra zoner hissed when one of the cat-like zoners struck her across the face. She took a step back, rubbing her hand back and forth along her cheek. She glared at her attacker. “What the hell was that for?!”

The cat zoner merely snarled at her, pulling his lips back and showing off his sharp teeth. “Enough with the accusations!”

The zebra zoner merely scoffed. “You’re just blind! You’ll see! You will all see!” She glared back at Penny. “She is a traitor!”

Although the zebra zoner was silenced by several other zoners in the crowd, either defending Penny and her friends or just getting sick of the zebra’s attitude, that didn’t really change Penny’s current state of mind.

The realization that the zoners had gotten so tense that some of them were starting to turn against them weighed heavily on her mind. With a cold chill rushing through her body, she couldn’t help but feel reminded of what happened years ago. Oh there were plenty of things, but there was one particular moment that she couldn’t help but think of in this situation.

And that was when she, Rudy, and Mint had been chased by that mob. She had struggled to forget about it, but..how could she? Even when she closed her eyes, there were times when she could see it in her mind. Wild zoners afflicted heavily by the Signal, driving them to attack her and her friends... No, she would never forget it.

Especially not now.

The situation was growing ever dire now. She knew that she and her friends were going to have to address this increased aggression soon enough. She wasn’t sure how yet, but if they were able to come up with some kind of maxium security solution that would give back 100 percent positve results, then perhaps the zoners would be satisfied, including the more aggressive ones. There was still that chance that a rogue zoner could try something, but to quell as many as possible would at least minimize the threat.

Penny decided it was best not to stick around for any longer. She had said her piece. The zoners got the message. Haney can go back to work. Some of the zoners were already leaving. Now was a good time to just pack up and leave. No need to stay around for longer than she needed to.

She didn’t bother doing anything with the podium or the microphone placed against it. She didn’t bother saying another word other than a simple ‘goodbye’ and she began to walk away towards the left, where Rudy and Mint were still positioned.

“Penny...?” Rudy asked as he reached out with his hand. She stared down at him and noted his sympathetic expression. “Are you..okay...?”

Mint looked at her with concern. “Yeah... That was quite harsh. I hope you didn’t let it go to your head. Don’t listen to what she says, okay?”

Penny didn’t bother answering them. She wasn’t really angry that they said nothing to defend her; the zoners were doing that already, not giving either them, nor Snap, a chance to speak up for her. But, at the moment, she was still too shaken up to really say anything to them. She simply turned her head away and continued to walk down the street.

At this point, Snap had returned to Mint and Rudy’s side. She could hear his pitter patter of his feet. Then she could hear a shout come from him. “Hey, Buckette! Wait!”

She didn’t attempt to look back at him. She didn’t try to speak. She just focused on walking. If she were going to discuss this, she would much rather do it somewhere else. Away from here. Somewhere more private, like Snap’s home, or that treehouse they often used. Or even deep within one of the nearby forests where the citizens of the city didn’t often tread.

She was thankful that the others didn’t attempt to stop her or slow her down. Rather than continue fighting, they started to follow her. She knew this because not only did she hear the tapping of feet, but she could hear Rudy grunting as he pushed his wheelchair forward, the wheels skidding a little against the concrete surface. A part of her did feel bad for not speaking to her friends right now. She would just...much rather do it when they were alone. That’s all. They’d understand that.

So with the sound of arguing zoners and a smug Haney announcing his victory fading slowly into the background as they gained distance between them, the group of friends walked away, heading back towards the treehouse.

sss

Skrawl grumbled as he leaned himself against his creaking bed. The strong smells all around him intermingled, invading his nostrils relentlessly. He struggled not to allow it to make him feel sick. But it was quite too late for that wasn’t it?

Years too late, that is.

He wasn’t even sure how long he had been trapped here. Far too long, if one were to ask him. He shouldn’t be in this wretched place. He should be out there, terrorizing everyone. He should be trying to take over ChalkZone. He should be planning his revenge against Rudy and his pitiful pals. And instead he was stuck...here. Of all the rotten luck.

He had no idea things would have gone this way for him. He didn’t realize that his last attempt would have backfired in such a way. After his near success, which had been botched by Snap’s interference, he had tried again, roughly three years ago, if he were to have a guess on time scale. But not only did this fail utterly, but he had ended up captured...again. He had been able to escape from prison the first time. But this time around, he hadn’t been so lucky.

He had been sent to one of the highest security prisons in the nearby land. From his barred window, he could see bits of ChalkZone City. He grimaced at the sight of it. This window, being able to see to the outside world, did nothing more than remind him of his failures. It caused him to fill up with rage and he could feel his body tremble. Oh how he longed to be free...and yet there was nothing that he could do.

He had already tried to escape from this place once. It not only ended in failure, but he was damn near lucky that he didn’t end up with a worse sentence. This place was just crawling with security. Cameras, heat sensors, hidden lasers, dogs, traps. You name it, this place had it. It was little wonder that here, even the toughest-looking prisoner was a mess.

Skrawl was one of the few who still had something of an attitude. Even if he couldn’t attack his captors with this shock collar on him, he could still insult them. He was rarely punished for that, though he wondered if it was only because they were amused by the whole thing. After all, it wasn’t like he could even follow through with any of his attacks.

Skrawl let out a low growl at this, his large teeth gritting against one another. This just wasn’t fair. He was supposed to be the ruler of ChalkZone. He should be the one commanding everyone here. He shouldn’t be the prisoner. He deserved to be far more than this. Oh so much more...

His Beanie Boys were still free at least. Though those blockheads hadn’t even tried to save him yet. He wasn’t sure if it was because they didn’t come up with a plan, or they were scared. Or even because they had attempted but kept failing over and over again. He hoped that it was the latter. He hated to think that his Beanie Boys would be so incompetent that they wouldn’t try to save him. After all, he was the one who rescued them and gave them a new purpose in life.

He let out a small sigh and collapsed himself against his bed. He ignored the loud squeaking that this made. He turned his head up towards the dirty ceiling, covered in dark marks and a few spots where it dripped. He had been placed in one of the older cells. Though this cell looked as if it were starting to fall apart, that didn’t really matter. This place was a lot sturdier than it looked. Even a weakened room like this was more than enough to keep him trapped inside.

How lovely...

He allowed his mind to wander a little as he tried to think of just where he had gone wrong in the past. There was one particular point in time where he had nearly won. He had gotten so close, and victory was practically in his claws. And yet, in the end, he still utterly lost.

When he had gotten those ancient artifacts, he had been a practical being of power. It had been so easy collecting them with Mint’s help. The naive little boy hadn’t been that difficult to manipulate. With him keeping Rudy, Penny, and Snap busy, he was free to steal the artifacts until he had gotten all of them. He remembered the power that he felt, the things that he could do, the way that he had been able to put even Rudy Tabootie, the Great Creator, at bay.

But that all went downhill because he had forgotten one important factor: Mint Zandophen.

Well sort of. It wasn’t that he had forgotten about him. It was just... He hadn’t been able to keep him as under control as he thought. He had believed so foolishly that his ‘ChalkZone is a virtual reality game’ would have been enough to keep Mint under his command. But at some point, Mint’s loyalt with him faultered, and he had turned against him. The one that he had been led to believe was his NPC guide.

At first, Skrawl had no idea why this had happened. Mint had been so loyal before. He had been furious when the brat changed sides. But the more he thought about it the more he realized that it might have been his fault that Mint turned against him. If he hadn’t struck him...

Oh sure, Mint deserved to get hit when he showed mercy when he should not have. But...yet...at the same time... That could have been the moment where he had really screwed up. If he had just kept it to yelling at Mint, then perhaps things could have been different. When he attacked Mint, he had pretty much proven to the boy that you could get hurt in this world, which must have been a key factor in shattering Mint’s delusion that he had tried so hard to build up for him. Skrawl had himself to blame for this as well. Not that he would admit it, of course.

And now he was stuck here with no way out. Stuck in a place where he was mistreated on a daily basis. Oh he had tried his best to cope and ignore them. But that was getting harder and harder by the day. With this shock collar, he could hurt no one and his threats were falling on deaf ears, increasing in number was the days passed by. And it wasn’t like he was the only one.

From what he had witnessed, this place seemed to have something of a pecking order. Almost everyone had someone else that picked on them. The further down the ‘food chain’ someone was, the more people that picked on them. The ones at the bottom.. Skrawl was not fully aware of what happened to them, although he thought he heard rumors that they kill themselves to escape the torment of having everyone gang up on them and...well, there were certain things that even Skrawl would never consider doing.

Skrawl himself was...sort of one of the luckier ones. He wasn’t on the bottom of the pecking order, having established himself quite well. But there were still many stronger zoners here who licked to pick on him and beat him up at least once a week. He was getting quite used to the bruises that covered his body. He wondered if they would even become permanent marks.

He bared his teeth and let out a soft growl. One of these days, he would get out of this wretched prison. He did not belong here. Everyone in this place knew this, even if they did not admit it themselves. Not only did he not belong here, but he should be the one commanding everyone. He should be the big shot. He should be the one controlling what everyone was doing all across ChalkZone. After what Rudy did to him, it was the least that he himself deserved.

But of course, the first step came in getting out of here. And that wasn’t something that he had quite figured out yet. He was certain that he would think of something in time. He just...needed to be patient. That was all. Good and patient. And eventually he would get rewarded.

He looked forward to facing off against Rudy and his pitiful friends again. He would love to be able to get another round in with them. He wanted to have another shot at them. And this time, he would not be so merciful. It would not be like last time, with the artifacts and with Mint. He shuddered at the memory. Oh gawd yes, things would be so much different.

He should have just killed Mint when he had the chance. As soon as he had that last artifact, he should have just killed Mint. Hunt him down and kill him. He should have done something with that temple that he had sent Mint to, ensuring that he would have been killed in the process. Or even at the hospital when he had Mint alone. He had him in his grasp, yet he didn’t bother trying to crush his throat then. He had the chance...

But this time, he would not miss that opportunity. As soon as he got out of here, Mint was going to be the first one to go. He had the gall to turn against his leader, the one who had given him purpose in this world. He deserved to be the first one to leave.

Of course, he had no idea when this was going to happen. He still needed to formulate some kind of affective plan to get out of here. He had to study more things about this place. The way the guards move, the dogs, the way the security is set up and where the power came from. Only after fully analyzing everything, which would take a long time given his lack of access to it, would he be able to figure out a way to get out of here.

But he would at some point. He was Skrawl, after all. The future ruler of ChalkZone.

He always found a way out.

Without realizing that he was doing it, Skrawl let out a few small chuckles as he started to get a little too carried away in imagining what he was going to do to Mint once he got his claws on him. With a dark laugh, he clutched his fists tightly and grunted loudly. In his mind, he was imagining snapping Mint’s neck in two, and the thought filled him with such maniacal glee. He couldn’t wait for the real thing. He...

“Hey! Will you stop it?!”

Skrawl let out a loud grunt of pain when something struck him from above. Or rather from the side, when a large scaly fist struck him against the side of his head. Skrawl shook his head and rubbed it gingerly, wincing at the bruise that had already started to form.

“Hey, watch it, will you?!” Skrawl snapped. “There was no need to....”

Skrawl fell silent at the heavy squeaking above him. He could see dark green legs dangling in front of him, and he felt the bunk bed shift. In a matter of seconds, there was a loud grunt and a loud smack against the ground as his cell mate jumped down. Then slowly, he turned his head and glared down at him.

Skrawl found himself gulping a little and cringing slightly. If there was one thing that could fill him with fear, it was his cell mate. He might not admit it, but even his cell mate could tell that he was afraid of him.

But it wasn’t simply his cell mate’s appearance. Sure, the large, dark green crocodile was certainly imposing to look at. Thick muscles, razor sharp claws, a long mouth of bone crushing teeth, bright yellow eyes glaring down at him. His long, thick tail swooshed behind him, perfectly capable of snapping legs in two if he so desired. Yes, truly this guy was someone that had seen a lot of fighting and could hold his own even if the odds appeared to be against him.

No, the actual reason Skrawl feared him was because he was helpless. He was stuck wearing a shock collar. Well so was his cell mate. In fact, he was from the percentage of this place that wore them, deemed one of the most dangerous. But this guy could handle a lot more pain than Skrawl could. Thicker skin, a tougher attitude, his body covered in battle scars indicating a history much rougher than even Skrawl had ever endured. With this collar on, Skrawl could not easily fight him, but his cell mate had absolutely no issues in fighting him.

“What...did you say to me...?” The crocodile zoner asked. His voice was deep and gruff, and almost serene-sounding. This contradiction in voice was enough to make Skrawl’s legs tremble. At Skrawl’s lack of a response, the croc gave a dark smirk. “Oh come now, I know you can still talk. I know you have your reasons for what you did. So come on...” He tilted his head to one side. “Tell me...”

“I-I...” Skrawl stammered for a couple of seconds. He then cleared his throat and swallowed. He narrowed his eyes. He struggled his best not to show this guy fear or give him more control than he already had. He did have to think about his dignity, after all. No one would take him seriously as leader if he allowed himself to be so easily intimidated. “That is none of your business, reptile breath. I would sooner lose one of my antennas than tell the likes of you anything.. urgk!”

Skrawl grunted as he felt the large, green zoner grab him by his throat. He was forced up into the air, dangling by his feet. Skrawl gritted his teeth and grabbed at the croc’s hands, trying to make him let go. He stared at the beast with wide eyes, filled with desperation and fear. He knew that all it would take was a bit of a tighter squeeze and this guy could easily rip his throat out. He tried to claw back at him, but his puny claws were no match for the thick skin. He couldn’t even get a small scratch in. And that was the only reason his shock collar didn’t pump him full of electricity yet.

The crocodile zoner laughed at Skrawl’s pitiful attempts to get free. “Here you are, the so-called ‘future ruler of ChalkZone’, terrified and hanging at my mercy. You know, perhaps I should take your place. I would make a much more suitable ruler than you...” The crocodile zoner brought Skrawl close to his face, his slit pupils starting straight into him. “...don’t you think...?”

Skrawl didn’t dare try to answer. Even if he did have something he could say, he wouldn’t dare do. He had learned the hard way that he should be careful around this zoner while he was in this predicament. One day, he would get his revenge against Greenhide here. But today wasn’t that day.

“It is so pitiful, really.” Greenhide said as he hissed through his sharp, clenched teeth. “I would have expected you to have something of a backbone.. But I see that I was sorely mistaken. You really are just a pathetic little jellybean, aren’t you?”

At this, Skrawl managed to glare at the crocodile. “Th-That’s not...” He grunted. His third limb, which dangled, kicked out in desperation. “Now you see here! I accomplished more than you could ever...”

Greenhide let out a booming laugh. It was enough to stop Skrawl and silence him. He could feel his heart nearly stop beating when Greenhide gave him a glinting look, a malicious smile spreading across his face. “Oh really now? Maybe I should put that to the test...”

Skrawl’s eyes widened in horror at this. He did feel sick doing that. He never wanted to show weakness towards anyone. But with this crocodile, in his current situation, there was little he could do to stop himself from feeling fear. Because for all his arrogance, he was not stupid. Even he knew when it was best to be afraid, and when it was foolish not to be.

Unable to say anything, the only thing that Skrawl could do was lower his head. It hurt him to do this. This was far from who he used to be. Lowering his head and cowering like this, hoping to get out of this situation... While before, he coud have just smacked someone or shouted back. He couldn’t help but feel disgusted by this. Though this would at least help him survive for longer, it only increased his desire to tear this croc’s face off.

Greenhide smirked at his reluctant show of submission. “I see you are smarter than you look. I hope it stays that way.” He pressed the tip of his nose against Skrawl’s face, allowing the jellybean to feel his hot breath against his skin. “I would hate for something to happen to someone as pretty as you...”

Skrawl flinched at that comment. “I still look forward to the day that all your hide is ripped off your...”

Greenhide didn’t allow Skrawl to finish. He merely laughed at him, making a few small comments about how ‘pitiful’ it was that Skrawl thought that he could scare him. Skrawl growled at this, but before he could even try to say something, Greenhide lifted him up even higher and threw him across the cell. Skrawl let out a scream as his body slammed against the cold, iron bars and slumped into the ground.

“Consider that a warning, Skrawl.” Greenhide said as he took a few heavy steps towards Skrawl’s fallen form. His smile was gone and his yellow eyes narrowed sternly at him. His tail moved from side to side behind him, the tip shaping like an S, like a snake ready to strike. “I trust that you weren’t going to do anything else to...tempt me, am I right?”

Although his gut twisted in disgust, Skrawl grumbled as he lowered his head. “No...” It took a lot of will power for him to even say that.

The crocodile grinned broadly at this. “Good, good... Now why don’t you get back to sleep? And tomorrow, I promise I will be a lot more...kind with you.”

Skrawl wanted to throw up at this. He didn’t dare speak a word, however. He picked himself off the ground, grunting at the pain that wracked through him. He glared at Greenhide for a couple of seconds before he headed back to his bunk bed. He went towards the bottom one and practically collapsed into it.

Though he would never admit it, a part of him wondered that him trying to collect the artifacts was what brought him down to this level. Of course, he did nearly win with them. But it just seemed like, ever since he had used that darn crown, things had ultimately gone downhill for him. After all, it was after the artifact incident that he had been arrested for the first time and now this...

He shook the thought out of his mind. It didn’t really matter now if the artifacts did curse him or not. Besides, it was silly to think so. He needed to focus on figuring a way out of this place. He would think of something eventually. He always did.

Then everyone, especially Greenhide and Mint, would have hell to pay..

He would see to that.

Chapter 5: A Trail Of Blood

So you can try to tear me down, beat me to the ground. I will see you screaming!
-Thoughtless, Evanescence





“Come on, get going!”

“Oh but do we have to? We already...”

“We’re her current assigned caretakers! You’ll just have to suck it up until they shift us around with someone else!”

“But still... you know what she’s capable of..she...”

“She’s wearing a fucking helmet! Now get a move on!”

Rondol grumbled to himself as he reluctantly continued down the hallway again. The same one that he had to travel through to get to Sandra’s dimensional cell. Just like how he had before...

Not like he can do anything to get out of this, either. His king certainly would never permit it. He could feel his teeth gritting tightly at the memory. He wished that his king had been much more reasonable. Surely trying to steal his crown through force did not warrent this kind of harsh punishment.

Unwillingly, having no choice, he just continued down the hallway with his partner behind him. Any time he slowed down or showed reluctance, his partner would grab his shoulders and push him roughly. Rondol wanted to protest against Rum, but he dare not raise his voice. Rum was so much bigger than him. What would happen if he went a little too far and got on his bad side...?

The only reason Rum didn’t attempt to hurt him half the time was because they were brothers. Just his luck. His big, tough brother being the one that he was partnered with. This was a fact that he tried to forget. He did not like to think that he was related to this guy.

Rum was capable of showing him some sympathy, so he supposed that made it a little better. After all, Rum did show him concern before after feeding Sandra. It was just a side that Rum rarely showed; he prefered being ‘professional’ about this whole thing.

And it truly did speak volumes about him if he was willing to help him after what he himself had tried to do...

He soon found himself in front of that blasted vortex again. He watched as it swirled around and around like before. It seemed to look almost...more foreboding than it had before. He gritted his teeth and was tempted to take a step back. He only stopped when he heard Rum’s growling behind him, his body only about two feet behind him.

He could feel those eyes staring at him...waiting... He couldn’t chicken out now. Not even if he really tried. Rum would never let him leave. And besides, his brother, his partner, he did have a good point.

Sandra did wear a helmet now. It was something that had been so common, so well accepted, that many would just...forget to bring it up. He wondered if even Sandra at times forgot that she wore it. This did not stop her from using her teeth or claws or spikes against them. She could still do harm and she was still rather insane. But at least it kept them safe from the one ability of hers that was most dangerous.

The ability to heal.

Okay, sure, many who had first heard of this being her power scoffed at it. Laughed and thought it was ridiculous. But Rondol was one of the few who took it seriously right from the get-go. He had seen that power used once. He knew how Sandra had twisted such a beneficial power to do something so...horrifying...

He struggled to clear his thoughts about that as he made his way towards the vortex. There was no point in keeping Sandra waiting. There was no point in trying to abandon this job, no matter how much he wanted to leave, no matter how terrified he was. He needed to get used to this; he was going to be stuck doing this for several weeks, take a break, and go right back to it. He might as well try to gain a spine, or whatever the term is, and get this over with.

Without further hesitation, taking in a deep breath, Rondol moved through the portal, ignoring the tingling sensation that it gave him as he passed through. He thought he heard his partner grunt a little as he tripped trying to get into the portal. But he wasn’t sure, and he kept his focus on keep heading forward, fearful that if he stopped now, he would never be able to do this.

There was the rock tunnel again. He paused before he entered it, taking a moment to look around it, clenching his teeth tightly. His eyes zigzagged as he went over the details. It wasn’t like anything changed, but in spite of trying to be brave before, being back in here caused some uncomfortable memories to rise up.

Sandra was silent now. But how long would that last? Would she try something now? Would she make another move to try to escape? Would she dive down at him and slice him with her claws if he attempted to get out of the rock tunnel?

“Don’t tell me you’re scared already.” Rum muttered as he walked up from behind him. Rondol didn’t bother looking up at him. He already knew the disappointed expression that his brother was giving him. “You hadn’t even been here a minute and you already... Ugh..”

At this, Rondol did lift up the plate a little, gripping the edges tightly. “Don’t worry, brother.” He said with a slightly darkened voice. A meek attempt to sound brave. “I’m going to give her the food this time.”

Rum ‘hmphed’ at this as he folded his arms. “We will see about that.” He gave a quick, bitter chuckle. “I’ll give you five minutes before you rush back to me like the baby that you are.”

Rondol gave an immediate shudder at this. He could feel his body temperature rising. Baby, huh? Of course Rum would use that terminology. He often did that when he was daring him to do something he didn’t think that he would do. It was the ultimate sign that he did not have any faith in him.

Well he was going to show him..

With his eyes narrowing in determination, his hands gripping the plate of food even tighter at this point, Rondol brushed forward away from his sneering brother and headed towards the bars. He was going to do it this time. He was going to do it...

sss

Sandra’s ears twitched as he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. She struggled to keep herself from growling too loudly. She had to make sure she planned this carefully. Otherwise, she was going to screw everything up. She remembered what happened the last time she had tried to escape.

She was not going to make that mistake again.

She felt a sense of pride swell up inside of her, unable to stop the smile from spreading across her face. True, there was a little bit of embarrassment when she realized that she could have done this before. But oh well. At least she thought to do it this time around, and, hopefully, it was going to turn the tides in how successful this was going to be.

She still could not believe that she didn’t think of this before, however. It seemed like something that would have been...rather obvious really. Why didn’t she think to hide herself for when her caretakers came?

Well she sort of did. But not for this reason. Before, she’d hide so she could attack them, but that was only during a short period of time. She had killed a few caretakers, which caused the security to her dimensional cell to increase. It had gotten harder to attack, especially after this rock tunnel was built, and the beams of light that kept her away from it. She had stopped trying to seriously attack altogether, though she could still amuse herself once in a while with her scraping and roaring.

This time, she had a much bigger plan. And if she did everything correctly, it should work out for her. She just had to make sure she did not move at all here. No sound. No nothing. She could not allow her caretakers to realize that she was laying on top of the rock tunnel.

It hadn’t dawned on her until a short while ago. Perhaps hours? Days? It was hard to tell anymore, with how her ‘time instinct’ thing being skewered like that. But when she had taken a good look at this formation, she couldn’t help but notice how there were some rocks growing a little high from it and how, from where her caretakers would be, it was pretty hard, if not impossible, to see back here.

It made for the perfect ambush point...

She grinned maniacally at this realization. She looked forward to this. It had been a long time since she got her talons and teeth in something...fresher. She licked her lips slowly, anticipating the blood of her would be victim. She could feel the excitement of the hunt racing through her body, her tail jittering around, anticipating a chance to strike at something.

But she had to be careful. She would only get one shot at this. She had to stay here and wait until her caretakers got out. They often only set the food out and left after they spotted her. A defense mechanism for when she had ambused that one caretaker years ago. Once they saw that she wasn’t anywhere in sight, they would move in deeper and try to figure out if they could locate her. Get a visual, whatever.

And that was when she was going to make her move.

She pressed her stomach and chest against the rocky surface. It was rather uncomfortable up here. The rocks were not smooth here, and some edges were pretty sharp. She had to stifle a few hisses and grunts to avoid letting herselff become known. She could not allow her caretakers to hear her through the rock walls. And keeping her feet still was even harder. Her feet twitched and she nearly scraped the wall a few times. No, not now.

She could hear footsteps from underneath her. She could hear what sounded like low whimpering. She couldn’t help but smile as she recognized the voice of this particular caretaker.

Why if it isn’t little Rondol.... She had made a mental note to remember the names of her caretakers. She often saw them more than once, even with the cycling of caretakers. And Rondol was one of her personal favorites, despite not seeing him too often as he was quite new. He was always such a paranoid little zoner. Overly cautious even knowing she had a helmet blocking her powers on. She looked forward to giving him a real reason to be scared of her.

But this also meant that this mission could be a little harder. Due to his timid nature, Rondol might not even try to leave the rock tunnel. She frowned at this. This could put a damper in her plans. If Rondol escapes through that door, he could warn the others, and then she would really be in trouble. She needed a way to ensure that he did not flee. But what?

“Are you going to go through there or not?!”

“Y-Yes...”

“Open the damn bars!”

Sandra had a twinkle in her eyes. Did she hear right? Her ears twitched a little, trying to figure out if she had been mistaken. But that did not seem to be the case. Looks like little Rondol had finally grown a little bit of balls and was actually going to come out of the rock tunnel. Perfect. So long as he stayed out of the rock tunnel, her plan could unfold. And his nervous nature may prompt the other one, whom she was certain was Rum, to come out, she could make her next move. She just had to be very quick about it.

She waited and listened for the laser bars to be vanquished. She raised her ears up, struggling to hear what was going on down there. She could hear some more grumbles from Rum, some ‘pretending to be brave’ statements from Rondol. She could hear him getting ever closer to where the lever was. Shuffling, groaning, whatever else. And all the while, she could hear something twitching inside of her, growing impatient as she waited for Rondol to make his move.

Then there it was. A clicking sound. The sound of bars disappearing, accompanied by a loud ‘pleep’ sound. The sound of the pathway opening up, ready for her to take it. Ultimately, it was the sound of her freedom in the making.

She nearly lunged forward too quickly. Thankfully she caught herself. Only Rondol was coming through; if she made her move when only one of them was out here, she would screw everything up. No, she had to plan this perfectly. She needed both of them out here before she could make any sort of move against them. If she waited until they were both out and then she blocked the path, she could theoretically attack them before they had a chance to defend themselves.

At least, she hoped she would. She would still need to account for their weapons. But no matter. Her sudden appearance would startle them enough that they wouldn’t think to use their guns right away. That was the opening that she needed to get to them. Regardless of her prey wearing those darn protective suits, she would succeed in her plan. She would take care of them. She would get out.

She just...had to.

Those suits could only do so much. All she had to do was find the weak spots, make her move, and that was it. But first, she needed to wait until she could even start doing anything. So for now, she had to be patient. Which isn’t too hard. After all, if she could wait years to escape, she could wait a short time for this, right?

sss

The lack of sound was quite unnerving to Rondol. He wasn’t even sure why. Shouldn’t he feel some level of relief about this? He recalled how terrifying last time was, with Sandra scraping along the walls, driving him insane. Yes, this shold be so much better.

So...why wasn’t it? Why was he still feeling fear? Heck, why was he feeling even more afraid than before? Why did it feel as though the atmosphere all around him had just gotten darker? There hadn’t been any cause for alarm so far. No sign of Sandra above him, wanting to terrorize him. And she was nowhere near the front of the rock tunnel. She was not out there, it didn’t seem. At least not close enough to get him.

So why was he scared? Was he really as much of a chicken as his brother thinks he is? He narrowed his eyes at this and shook his head. No, he was not a chicken. He would get through this. He would not allow Sandra to keep scaring him like this. Sure she’s powerful and scary, but so long as he made this quick and got away, she could not hurt him. So long as the bars activated, so long as this tunnel stood, she was utterly helpless to do anything to him.

“Well? What are you waiting for?” Rem spoke up from behind him. Rondol turned his head and looked over his shoulder. Rem was motioning his hand towards him, trying to usher him to go forward. “Go on! Drop off the food and come back!”

Rondol licked his lips nervously. He knew that his brother was right. He could not hold this off any longer. He had the bars down. He had to get over there and drop this off before Sandra took notice and tried to escape. So, gripping the plate tightly and licking his lips nervously, Rondol proceeded out into the open. Outside the safety of the tunnel.

It was a heart pounding experience. Each step felt like he was moving through something thick and heavy. He had to struggle to move, using more strength in his legs than he ever did before. He couldn’t believe just how stiff they had gotten, and all because he was coming into this cell, of all cells. He paused for a moment before working up the courage. He could do this, he told himself. He could do this...

After taking a couple steps in, Rondol stopped, his feet planting themselves against the ground. He struggled to keep his head level, not wanting to appear weak or frightened in front of Sandra. He wasn’t sure if the rumors were true and she could smell fear. But he did not want to give her the chance to.

As he stood there, he took the few moments of tranquil silence to look around. This place was..deceptively pretty. Not lively by any means, but still pretty. There was some kind of beauty in this barren land, rocks getting out everywhere. Was it the lighting? Was it the black and purple sky contrasting the ground, with its many stars? Whatever it was, he couldn’t deny that this place did look beautiful.

Yet looks were decieving. He had to remind himself that this place was a prison. It didn’t look this way just to be pretty; this was a deliberate choice to add to the feel of isolation. As that’s what this place was meant to be. An isolation cell reserved for only the worst among them.

He was glad that he was not deemed as low as Sandra. She was truly deserving of this punishment.

He forced himself to take a few more steps out. This time, he managed not to stop, even though he almost did a few times. He fought against the stiffness of his legs and kept walking out, heading towards the rock circle that was positioned a few feet away from the rock entrance. It was not that far, although his slow walking made it seem like it was taking longer than it should. All he had to do was put the tray of meat down there and then he could leave.

Soon he stood in front of the rock circle. Realizing that he made it, he paused and took in several deep breaths. He looked over his shoulder and saw his partner waiting for him, arms folded, eyes narrowed. He noticed a flash of concern in those eyes. This caused Rondol to gulp as he turned back to his duties. He lowered himself down and placed the tray against the ground, ignoring the loud clang.

He took a step back. He did it. He finally went through with it. He felt a sensation swelling up inside his chest. Accomplishment? Pride? Happiness? He couldn’t pinpoint the exact feeling. But he really did enjoy it and it caused him to smile. He had faced his fears and carried out this job. And this time, without Rum having to interfere. Truly this was a...

Wait a minute. Something wasn’t right here. Something was quite off. The humanoid zoner pulled his hands and arms to himself as if recoiling from something disgusting and looked around, his eyes shifting around.

It was too quiet... Way too quiet... He heard no growling. No footsteps. No snapping jaws. No nothing. It was as if Sandra was not here. He recalled that they were to ensure that she stayed within their sights in some way so they know she can’t get out. But here, he saw nothing. No matter which way he turned his head, he couldn’t see her. It was almost as if she wasn’t there. But if she wasn’t moving about around here then..just where was she...?

Licking his lips nervously, he turned his head and looked at where his brother stood. He could see that Rum had moved closer to the front, as though he sensed something was troubling him. Though he knew that Rum worried for him, he would not allow those feelings to come to surface. Instead of a worried look, he was met with a glare. Typical Rum.

Rondol paused for a moment, feeling a sene of guilt wash through him. He hated having to turn to his brother like this. He hated not being able to do something that he should on his own. He hated running back to his brother with his metaphorical tail between his legs. But here he was. Before he could stop himself, he called out, “Hey..can you...?”

Rum immmediately rolled his eyes at this. There was something of a small scoff, most likely of disappiontment. But Rum didn’t attempt to rub salt in the wound, so to speak. He merely nodded his head once and said, “Okay, I’ll be right out.”

Rondol gave a very small, tiny smile at this. He didn’t allow his brother to see it. He did not want him thinking that he was breaking down already. He didn’t want him thinking that he was going to conform to this. He just wanted his brother to come over so they could figure out something about Sandra before it was too late.

He bit his lip as he looked around once more. Just where was that fucking dragon..? She could not have just disappeared....right?

sss

Rum couldn’t believe it. He knew his brother could be a scaredy cat sometimes. He had hoped that he would grow out of it and become more assertive. In fact, it was his cowardice that got him in trouble with the king. His desire for the crown amounted to him just being afraid. That was it. Of course, he’d never admit it. But he wasn’t fooling him one bit.

Well it wasn’t like he could do anything to make him see just how weak he was being. Besides, he was still his brother. He shouldn’t be too condenscending of him. He had been doing his best to try to help him as no one else would. And if his brother needed help right now, who was he to turn his back on him?

He felt somewhat guilty with what he said before. He hadn’t really meant the words that he said. He was just...easily flustered by his brother’s ‘tail between the legs’ ways. He wanted him to grow a spine once in a while.

He had to admit though. His brother going all the way out there on his own, with the tray of food, to feed the notorious Sandra... That was something he didn’t expect. And he had to applaud him for it. Inwardly of course. He didn’t want Rondol to see him show too much approval of him; he wanted to keep inspiring him to strive to be stronger.

His thoughts turned back to the situation before him. He started to wonder just why Rondol would call him out there. It wasn’t like there was anything really going on. This wasn’t such a complicated task. All he really had to do was set the tray down and leave. That was it. Why wasn’t he just walking away now? Why was he looking so nervous? He did not want ot think that Rondol was this much of a coward, this much on edge. He wanted to think there was something else going on. But...he just could not think of what that was yet.

He knew that leaving the tunnel entrance was a bad idea. There was good reason for why they went in pairs, and why one always stayed back. It was the only way to ensure that Sandra stood little chance of escaping. After all, she could disappear behind them when they were not looking.

But..he wouldn’t be gone that long, anyway. It shouldn’t be a problem. They were only a few feet in front of the entrance anyway. And he was sure that what his partner had to say wasn’t going to take too long. He could simply just grab his arm and force him back as Rondol ranted on about...whatever the heck it was that bothered him.

Rum didn’t bother wasting too much time. They were on a schedule anyway and there were plenty of other less dangerous criminals to feed. He didn’t want their bosses to be angry at them. Especially not with Rondol. He knew his brother couldn’t really handle being yelled at. Especially not after how the king went off on him. He would make sure that his brother stayed out of trouble. Though it is funny... He was the youngest, and yet it is his older brother who needed help. Ironic, wasn’t it?

Soon, before he realized it, he was already about half way towards his brother. Now that he was closer, he could see that there was a worried expression in his eyes. This caused Rum to give pause and look around. Just what was his brother looking at? What had him at such unease? There was nothing around here that seemed to be a cause for alarm.

“What is wrong?” Rum said, using his signature tough voice with Rondol. “Why do you look so worried?”

“I...I...” Rondol swallowed hard. He was looking around, was if trying to find something. “Wh-Where’s Sandra...?”

Rum blinked a few times, then narrowed his eyes. “Seriously? That is what your question is right now?” He slapped himself in the face, closing his eyes and shaking his head. “First you complain when she is there. Now you’re complaining because she’s not here? Dear brother, why don’t you make up your mind?!”

Rondol took a step back at this, looking at him with wide eyes. Rum felt some level of guilt for this. He would have apologized, but he refrained from doing so. He merely glared at him, showing just how disappointed he was in him.

With another sigh, Rum continued, “Anyway, you don’t have to be out here anymore. Come on. Let’s get going.” He reached his hand out towards him, motioning him to get closer. “We can go report to the boss and we can go on our meal break. Would that sound good to you?”

Rondol didn’t seem to hear his question. That was strange. Normally he’d jump at that chance. Instead, he was simply looking around. His eyes almost never fell upon him; instead they would just be looking out elsewhere, his tongue moving along his lips in a nervous fashion. “D-Do you see Sandra...?”

Rum gave a small groan. “Will you stop worrying about her?!” He held his hands up in gesture. “She can’t hurt you!” Well technically she could; just not in the same level as she could before. “Now come on, let’s get going before....”

His brother suddenly pulled back away from him, his eyes bulging wide. His eyes were turned towards something behind them. Rum wasn’t entirely sure why his brother was staring over there like this. It wasn’t like there was anything over there that was particularly worrying. Yet there is brother stood, staring over as if some kind of demon had just raised its ugly head. Rum almost rolled his eyes until he realized something.

There was a bit of blue in his brother’s eyes.

But...that could only mean that... Oh no... His eyes grew wide and his teeth clenched tightly as he whirled his head around to where his brother was looking. Instantly, he turned his body around and put his arms out in front of his brother protectively as he saw a set of talons coming straight towards him. He had no time to react before there was a flash of red and then horrible pain.

“Rum!” Rondol shouted in horror.

Rum couldn’t reply to his brother. The only thing he could do was scream in pain as he was knocked into the ground with a heavy thud. He laid on his side for a few seconds, slowly turning onto his back. He held onto his face where Sandra had slashed him. Blood dripped rapidly through his fingers and down his face. He tried so hard not to scream. He tried so hard to be stronger for Rondol. But he just couldn’t stop himself.

He managed to open up his good eye, albeit blurred with tears, and he looked up at Rondol. He could see the terror that shone in his eyes, his mouth open as though he were ready to scream. Rum attempted to smile at him, but the gash had slit part of his lips apart. His smile ended up freaking his brother out far more than it helped, and it caused him to flinch in pain. He looked back over and tried to find where Sandra was.

He could hear a screech and he lifted his head up to see the dastardly blue dragon circling overhead. She was a bit of a ways up. Realizing that it would take her a while to get back down, he grabbed onto his brother and attempted to rush back to the safety of the tunnel entrance. Oh why did he bother leaving it in the first place? He grumbled harshly to himself.

He didn’t get too far when suddenly pain erupted on his back. He screamed loudly as he was knocked back into the ground. He could barely hear his brother’s screams for him as he laid there. He could feel the pain echoing in his back, the hot blood seeping out of the deep gashes that now resided there. He pushed himself up on one hand, his body shaky, and looked up at at the black and purple sky, struggling to find where the fiend had gone this time.

Only to realize that she was gone from his sights. His heart began to pound as he scrambled up to his feet. Oh no..where did that monster go now? He looked this way and that, but so far he couldn’t see her anywhere. It was almost as if she had vanished from the area. Could she have gone through the rock tunnel...?

His answer came fast when he heard his brother screaming in agony. With his heart freezing solid, he turned his head to see Sandra on top of his brother. Rondol was on the ground, squirming frantically as Sandra dug her claws into his side. Rum’s wide eyes looked at the pool of blood that was forming and then back at Sandra. With his teeth clenched, he rushed over, shouting loudly at her and, in spite of his pain, swinging his wildly at her.

Sandra looked at him with gleaming red eyes, but nonetheless jumped off of Rondol. Rum gave her a glare before looking back at his brother. He hovered his hands shakingly over him for a few seconds before he placed them down upon him.

“I-It hurts... Please...do something.. It hurts...” Rondol whimpered as he clutched his one side. Tears of pain flowed down his face. “It hurts too much... I-I...”

Rum felt his heart twist. In the past, he would have still acted tough and hostile in hopes of inspiring his older brother. But this time, in this situation, he just couldn’t bring himself to do that. Licking his lips slowly, he simply stroked his brother’s hair and tried to soothe him. He didn’t care how much it hurt to talk; he still felt compelled to do it. “Shh.... It’s going to be okay... I promise. Everything is going to be all right...”

“Oh how sickenly sweet.”

Rum stiffened up at that voice. With his teeth bared, he turned his head and looked over his shoulder. His good eye stared over at Sandra, hatred and anger practically radiating from it. If only looks could kill...

Sandra was still up in the air, staying aloft with a few steady, slow flaps of her arms...wings...whatever they were. She glared down at them, a broad smile on her face, forming a rather evil grin. Her sharp teeth were exposed and glinting. In her eyes, he could detect something like a mixture of glee and contempt. It was hard to say which one was dominant...and which one he would prefer seeing.

“But I’m afraid that this little song and dance will have to be concluded. You see, I have somewhere else I have to be. And you two gents will only give me grief. So if you don’t mind...”

“Go jump off a cliff!” Snarled Rum. At this point, he no longer cared about being careful around her. She had crossed the line when she hurt his brother. And now she was going to pay for that. “I’ll rip out your tongue for this!”

“Rip out my tongue, you say?” Sandra tapped a finger against her chin thoughtfully. “Why, that does sound pretty original, doesn’t it? But instead of my tongue..” She looked down at Rondol intently. “How about his? With all his high-pitched squealing, I bet he has quite the tongue, am I right?”

Rum growled underneath his breath. “If you do so much as lay a single claw on him, I’m going to...”

Sandra raised her hand up to silence him. “If you really do care for him like you seem ot, why don’t you prove it?” Sandra lowered herself to the ground. Soon her feet and talons hit against the rocky surface. “Go on... I’ll give you a sporting chance.” She continued to give that creepy, wide grin. “Try to shoot me. Let’s see if you can hit your mark.”

Rum could feel his blood boil. It was clear that Sandra was just trying to provoke him. She was attempting...something. He couldn’t really put his finger on it. But the fact that she was standing right in front of the tunnel entrance and was not even trying to go through it caused red flags to raise up inside of him. Something was not right here.

And yet he could feel his logical portion ebbing away inside of him. The sound of his brother’s constant whimpering and crying caused his heart to turn to ice. It filled him with some kind of adrenaline, strong emotion that tore through his body, making him ready to leap at the chance to fight Sandra. Even when his logical side screamed at him that he needed to think things through, the reminder of what happened to his brother was enough to make him slowly rise above the ground and face Sandra.

So this bitch wanted him to show her what he was capable of? She wanted to give him a sporting chance? She was giving him a chance to get her? Well then, if that is the way that she wanted to play, then so be it. He would be glad to blow her up after what she had done. Screw the orders. Screw the punishment details. The only thing that mattered was making Sandra pay for what she did to Rondol.

He reached into his pocket as he remembered he had a weapon with him. He pulled it out slowly, the long muzzle rising up from the pocket and soon being exposed to the air completely. He moved the tip of it towards the evil dragon, aiming it directly at her neck. He put his finger on the trigger and, without hesitation, he pulled.

There was a loud crackling sound as the tip of his gun glowed briefly. The light ball swelled up, and soon sparkled and snapped in all directions. A jagged bolt shot out, aiming directly at Sandra. Soon it would strike her neck and slice it clean off. It was only a matter of...

Without warning, there was a loud clang. It echoed through the air, nearly causing his eardrums to pop. He clutched his ears tightly, dropping the gun. He lowered his head down, struggling to fight against the sound. His knees pressed further against the dirt below him, and he could feel the jagged pebbles pressing up against his skin. It took several seconds for him to be able to lift his head up to see what happened. His eyes bulged in horror at what he saw.

Oh no... Oh gawd no... Please...this couldn’t be happening.. This...This had to be some kind of mistake... H-He couldn’t have...

Yet there was no denying what laid before him. There was no way that he could deny that there was something laying on the ground no. Something that shouldn’t be there. Something that was never supposed to be destroyed.

Sandra’s helmet.

This realization caused several thoughts to swirl through his head. He could feel his heart racing faster. He could feel his breath quickening, becoming rather difficult to stop. He found it difficult to look away from the helmet, his eyes glued to it. He could see the large dent mark with a circle of darkness all around it indicating where the strike was. He could see the crack that moved along behind it. He could see where some parts had melted slightly from the heat of the bolt. This helmet had been rendered useless. And it was all because of him..

Rum only had time to look up at Sandra in horror before he suddenly felt something in his body become stuff. He arched his back and grunted as he struggled to deal with the pain. There was a sharpness in both of his arms and he could feel something start to burst inside of him. He struggled not to scream. He tried so hard...

Then suddenly, with a sickening grunch and a loud squish sound, he could feel his arms burst open. A powerful, horrofic pain swept through his body. Despite knowing it was a bad idea he still found himself looking down at his arms.

The arms were utterly ruined. Flesh dripped off of them. His muscles looked partically liquidified and were ripped apart. Blood oozed rapidly down from his arms and to the ground. He could see his arm bones very clearly. Large chunks of skin dangled off or were on the ground, falling into the pile of flesh that had been ripped off.

The sight of this caused his eyes to bulge open wide. He struggled to speak, to say anything. The only thing he could do was just stumble and stammer, breathing quickly. His mind raced as it processed the horrific image before him. He thought for sure that his heart was about to jump out of his chest. He looked back at Sandra, his eyes filled with no more contempt or defiance. Just nothing but fear.

Oh why didn’t he stay in the tunnel? Why didn’t he insist on bringing the food out himself? Why didn’t he...?

His thoughts were stopped abruptly when he felt something sharp in his neck, a sudden snap, and then all was quiet and dark.

sss

Sandra smirked darkly as she watched the youngest of her caretakers collapsed into the ground in a thud. His neck had been snapped internally. A very simple task. All she had to do was target one area and use her powers to cause a large enough growth there. It was mere child’s play.

Sandra looked down at her hand and slowly curved her fingers inward. She could feel a familiar sensation rushing through her body. Oh how far too long it’s been since she could feel this sensation... Oh too long it has been since she was last able to wield this wonderful gift that she had been blessed with...

But it was like riding a bicycle. She never forgot it. As soon as she had access to it again, it had all come so naturally for her. It had been a cinch to rip that guy’s arms apart and just as easily to snap his neck. And now he laid upon the ground before her twitching as he went through his death throes. She smirked darkly at this, letting out a chuckle. Her ears then twitched when she heard whimpering. She shifted her gaze over to the other caretaker.

Rondol was staring over at the now dead Rum. He had pushed himself up on his elbows, his body trembling horribly, tears staining his cheeks. He was trying to speak. Only gibberish and broken sentences could come out. Most of them were something along the lines of ‘no please, weak up’ and ‘brother, don’t go’. All so amusing...

Then Rondol looked up at her. His eyes did not hold any hostility. Only fear, like he had always felt towards her. He let out low, constant whimpers as he struggled to say something to her. He licked his lips once, smacking his lips as he went. He managed to squeak out, “Wh-Why...?”

Sandra couldn’t help but sneer at this. “You are so naive. Didn’t anyone ever tell you that life isn’t fair?”

At this, she began to recall what had happened with her. She narrowed her eyes deeply, shaking her fists at her side. It took a lot of will power to make herself stop. She managed to bring the smile back on her face, staring down at her confused and frightened victim.

“You know how long I’ve been here? Oh I’m sure you do.” Sandra looked at her hand, flexing her fingers. “It’s been years, that much I know...” She turned her head slightly so she could stare down at Rondol. “And all for what? For doing what was right?” She formed a sudden fist and growled before she managed to stop herself. She gave a few small chuckles. “Don’t you just hate that? When you strive to do something good...and people still punish you for it...?”

Rondol didn’t reply. He just trembled on the ground, sobbing in both fear and mourning the death of Rum. He was attempting to scoot away from her. It was quite an amusing sight. She would have given him a mock applause if she really wanted to. Instead, she just folded her arms against her chest and smirked down at him.

Oh there was so much she could do with him. So much she could pull off... So much that she could put him through...

But she realized, in the end, it was not really too necessary to get carried away. After all, watching his brother die before him was enough to send fear straight down into the very depths of his soul. She knew that he was such a little terrified zoner, and now she had proven it to him. She had given him one very good reason to be afraid of her.

And she knew that, for the rest of his life, he would never forget this moment.

Upon seeing his tears, she gave a dark chuckle. “Oh what’s the matter? Why are you ruining your pretty little face?” She moved in closer. Rondol whimpered louder and tried to scoot away from her. She merely lowered herself down and started to stroke her finger underneath his eye, wiping away the tear. “You should be more careful.”

At this, Rondol stammered, “P-P-Please don’t h-h-hurt me...”

Sandra raised an eyebrow at this. “Hurt you? Oh dear me, no!” She turned herself away with a quick motion. “Why in the world would I do such a thing?” She stopped for a few moments, her back turned to him. She swished her tail from side to side. Then she turned her head and looked down at him. “Oh I know... How about show you something..spectacular instead?”

Rondol shook his head. “No...”

“Oh come on.. I’m sure you will enjoy it!” Sandra moved back over towards him. She looked down at him and began circling him like a hawk. “Truly someone of your... ‘courage’...deserves to be rewarded. After all, not everyone can watch their sibling die and not die of a heart attack.”

“Please..n-no..don’t...”

Sandra ignored him as she went over to where the other one laid on the ground. At this point, Rum had gone completely still, the light fully gone from his remaining eye. She stood in front of him and stared down at his body. She only smiled for a couple of seconds before she suddenly drove her claws into his side. Ignoring Rondol’s terrified screams of protest, she sliced off a large hunk of meat from him.

She looked over at Rondol and gave him a knowing smile. Rondol immediately paled, his face looking as if it were taking on a green coloration, and he shook his head rapidly, holding his stomach. He tried to get up to his feet. He only managed to stammer away a couple of inches before he pain brought him back into the ground. All the while, Sandra merely approached him slowly, meat in hand.

“Oh, no need to be so...hasty...” Sandra cooed as she held a chunk of Rum’s flesh in her hand. “I’m sure you will quite like this... Now, just hold still...”

“No..please..I... hurggh!”

Sandra shoved the piece of meat into Rondols’ mouth. She used one hand to hold his jaw down and the other to cover his mouth with. She held onto him tightly as he thrashed on the ground. He let out loud whimpers of distress and gagged sounds. He stared up at her in horror, silently pleading with her. She only smiled back at him, refusing to let go. “Oh come now... Don’t you think it tastes good? He is your brother after all. Why don’t you let him become a part of you?”

Rondol only squirmed and mumbled in protest. He tried to pull his head away from her. But each time, Sandra just adjusted herself so he had no chance of spitting out the meat. Rondol’s cries and sobs grew louder and, eventually, he just couldn’t handle it anymore. With reddened drool dripping out the sides of his mouth, he swallowed. Sandra released him and allowed Rondol to collapse to the floor, shivering in shock and horror at what he was forced to do.

Sandra folded her arms as she watched this scene go on before her. She listened to him sob heavily. She felt a sense of disgust crawling in the back of her mind. She had come to expect this kind of disrespectful response. Even if the loved one wa a sibling, they still had the gaul to react like this. Of course...

“Oh I know you are upset.” Sandra faked concern as she moved around him slowly once more. “He was your brother, after all. It is never easy, is it?” She placed her tail around him, one arm slinging over his body. She pulled him into a partial hug. “At least he will be a part of you for as long as you live...”

She moved her hand along his cheek, gently stroking it. She then moved it down his neck and onto his chest. Even through this weak protective suit, she could feel his heart pounding inside of his chest. It felt like it was going to jump out at any moment.

“Poor little thing... You really are quite jumpy right now, aren’t you?” Sandra said in a soft, gentle voice. “Oh dear, why don’t I help you with that? I know how I can calm down your racing heart..”

Rondol shook his head, more tears flowing down his face. “No...please...” He choked out. His brother’s blood dripped down from his mouth. “Don’t...”

Rondol gave a sudden jerk as Sandra’s powers immediately took hold of his heart. Sandra could see it in her mind’s eye. Her powers swirled around his heart, getting a good grip on it. She tightened her hand a little, causing Rondol to grab onto his chest, as though that was going to stop her. Then she slowly gave a turn to one side.

As she did so, Rondol breathed in and out quickly, struggling to fight against the horrific pain. She smirked as she saw his legs kick out, his arms tightening and pressing against his chest. His body tossed and turned from side to side. His eyes shut tightly, his teeth clenching to the point of nearly breaking his teeth. Sandra could practically feel the heart getting larger with her powers, more and more blood flowing inside of it, becoming thicker and thicker, until...

She could hear something burst inside of Rondol’s chest. She could feel it even through the ground. In an instant, Rondol’s body stiffened, and then collapsed to the ground. The color rapidly faded from his face as his eyes remained open, staring ahead into nothingness. He, too, went through the throes of death.

Sandra felt some level of disappointment at this. She wished that she had taken more time with him. She wished that she had gone a little slower. She had a lot of pent up frustrations and she felt it would have been better if she spent just a little longer on him.

But oh well. There was more prey ahead of her from this point forward. These two were nothing more than practice swings. Now she was going up into the major leagues. And soon, she would be able to reunite with her...star attractions.

She lowered herself down to Rondol’s still spasming form. She moved her hands long his body as she searched for the key that she knew she would need to get out of this place. As soon as she found it and yanked it out, she made her way towards the rock tunnel. She took in a deep breath and sighed loudly.

Freedom was at hand at last.

Chapter 7: Newsflash

Right now! Lights out! Let your panic out!
-Release The Panic, Red





It was difficult to say if today was going to be any better. They all hoped that they would be able to do...something to help lighten up the situation. Now that they had more time to think, surely one of them could think of something, right? Even if it took a while, maybe they...

Oh who was she kidding? She had been up longer than usual trying to figure something out. And so far, nothing came to mind. No matter how hard she tried to think, she just...could not think of a solution. She tried so many different solutions through her head. She had only ended up with a severe headache to the point of needing to take some medication. Even now, she was still rubbing her temples as she tried to get her mind to relax. She could only hope that her friends had better luck.

But no. From what she had been told, they weren’t any luckier than her. She could not be sure if they had stayed up as long as she had, trying to think of a solution. But she was aware that they did work really hard. She could see it in their eyes, the way the skin aroun them had darkened up. The sight of it made her suck on her lip as she was reminded of the hardships that were ahead all of them.

But Penny wasn’t in any position to give up. Even if the situation seemed hopeless, she still strived to keep trying to do..something to help out the zoners. Maybe a scanner was not the solution. Maybe she just needed to focus her attention in another area. But what..?

“Let’s get going, you guys.” It wasn’t Rudy who spoke, but instead Mint. The slightly older teenager stood before the large chalkboard. “We can’t keep Snap waiting.”

Penny eyed the chalkboard for a few moments. She remembered how she and Mint had pitched in to get it so that Rudy had an easier time getting into ChalkZone. They had been lucky lately that they could get him in without his parents interfering. She turned her gaze to Mint and gave him a small nod. “Yeah. You know how he can be if we are late.”

“I’m sure he understands.” Mint stated as he moved towards Rudy. The expression on his face made it clear what he was indicating. There was a bit of silent understanding before Mint grabbed onto the back of Rudy’s wheelchair. “Now come on. Maybe Snap has had better luck than us.”

Rudy gave a small chuckle. “I just hope it’s better than his dream house plans.”

Mint paused and stared down at Rudy. Cocking an eyebrow in confusion, he asked, “..dream house...?”

Trying her best not to smile too much, Penny waved her hand dismissively. “We will tell you all about it later.”

Though Mint clearly looked as if he wanted to ask more questions, he didn’t attempt to speak further. He just nodded his head slowly and headed to the large portal that had been drawn, waiting for them to enter.

Penny went through the portal first and then turned to face Mint. She began to aid him with Rudy. She gripped the front part of the wheelchair, and together, they lifted it up with a grunt and carried it over through the portal. There was a little bit of trouble. A bang or two. But soon they were able to get it completely through. As soon as they were all in, they set Rudy down.

Penny made sure the portal was erased. It was too big a risk now to leave it open. A small one could be covered, but lately, the few portals they could create for Rudy had to be much larger to accompany his wheelchair. As soon as she got finished with that, she waisted no time and caught up with her two friends. She took position by Mint and Rudy and the two of them walked along the grassy field, Mint pushing Rudy in tow.

Penny stared down at Rudy. She couldn’t help but feel a small pang of guilt twisting through her body. She didn’t even know why she felt guilty; it wasn’t her who put Rudy in this situation. But maybe if she had just acted quicker...

But what was done was done and there was nothing she could do about it. No matter what she did, no matter how awful she felt and wanting to ‘make it up to Rudy’, nothing would alter the fact that Sandra had permanently crippled her best friend. Rudy could never run these fields again. He couldn’t jump through a smaller portal. He couldn’t jump on Snap and play wrestle with him anymore. He could only...sit and be pushed. She couldn’t even begin to imagine what Rudy must feel right now, being trapped in his body like that.

She struggled to push those thoughts in the back of her mind for now. They weren’t going to do her any good and right now they had something more presently urgent to take care of. Rudy could at least function, even if it was more limited. But the zoners were another story.

Still so paranoid. Still so afraid. Still terrified of their own shadows... She understood why her friends were getting frustrated by this. She was as well, to some degree.

Yet like her friends, she also could not blame them. Sandra’s influence was just so great. But still...they had to so something to stop them from acting so crazy. She knew this was going to be a harder task than before, because these zoners were not simply being controlled by the Signal or anything. They were being controlled by their fear of Sandra. And everyone knows just how difficult it is to control fear.

They walked in silence for about a minute before Rudy decided to break it.

“...why does it so quiet...?”

Mint turned his head down. “What do you mean? It’s always tranquil here.”

“Not to this degree.” Rudy shook his head. “I mean, where’s Snap? Where’s the zoners that like to play around here? It is just...way too quiet.”

At this, they all froze. They glanced at each other, blinking their eyes a few times. They quickly realized that Rudy did have a point there. It did feel just...way too quiet right now. Normally they would hear the chatter of someone. Even a shout from Snap as he rushes to join them.

But today...nothing. It was almost as if someone had turned the mute button on. This was not normal. This total silence was not something they had some to expect when they came into ChalkZone. They were used to at least one zoner coming here to either see them or play at one of the new areas here. For no one to be around...

Penny felt her heart twist. She quickly realized that there wasn’t much that this could mean except...

...something was going on...

She swiveled her head to Mint and Rudy. She gave them a wide-eyed, urgent stare. She silently spoke to them, communicating only through her facial expressions. Then, when she was certain that they understood what she wanted, she turned her head and she began to move at a quicker pace through the field. They had to get to ChalkZone City as soon as possible.

Penny wasn’t sure how long it took them. She wasn’t sure how long she heard Mint panting or how many times she heard Rudy grunt when they ran into a few bumps and dips along the way. Her eyes were too focused on the landscape before her, too focused on looking for the buildings she knew were out there. It would only be a matter of time before they would spot them.

Then at last, she could see them. Not straight away of course. Just a small glimmer. But as they kept on moving, they seemed to slowly grow out of the ground. The various colored buildings that made up the city. It took only a short time before the buildings had grown to be taller than they were, and she could see where the first patch of concrete was positioned. With one more huff, Penny found her feet touching it, feeling the instinct change from a soft ground to a harder, studier one.

It was a little more difficult getting Rudy onto the concrete. They had to lift him up even higher to get over the ridge. This was never an easy task. Penny and Mint were still willing to do it for Rudy, of course. But they both were afraid of slipping up and letting him fall. And they could see the look of fear and worry in Rudy’s eyes whenever they had to do this. But once they did have Rudy on the sidewalk, they returned to their original positions when they first got into ChalkZone and began to walk along the sidewalk.

Unlike the open, grassy fields from before, the city was not abandoned. Almost as soon as they entered it, they could already hear a chorus of voices erupting from one location. And when the three human creators turned around the corner of the building and entered onto the main street of ChalkZone City, they could see the source of the noise.

Not far from them, there the police station was located, they could see what appeared to be a large group of zoners. They were all clamoring around this one spot, looking as if they were forming a large circle around someone. They were all talking at once, which made it difficult to discern just what was being said. The only thing any of them could be sure of is that the zoners sounded really...worried about something. Most of them wore horrified glances, which further confirmed this suspicion.

Penny turned and stared over at her two friends. Mint and Rudy looked back at her, looking as worried as she did. Penny then looked back at the zoners, licking her lips nervously. Without further hesitation, she rushed over to the nearest zoner.

“Hey, what’s going on?” She asked as she placed her hand on a medium height stick figure zoner.

The stick figure zoner hardly paid attention to her. He did jerk a little at her touch, but nonetheless did not react. His full attention was on whoever the zoners were trying to talk to. It also didn’t appear as though he heard her, which was of no surprise considering how loud and booming the zoners were being right now.

Penny attempted to gain the attention of a few more zoners. Each time she was meant with the same silent treatment. None of the zoners were realizing that she was there. They were just...too focused on trying to ask...someone questions, trying to have their voices heard. None of the zoners seemed to really notice that the three human creators had arrived. And something told Penny that, even if they did notice, that wouldn’t stop them from continuing to bombard this someone with loads of undiscernable questions.

Penny took a few steps back and stared at the crowd, her eyes furrowing in concern. Just what had all these zoners so spooked? They were worried enough as it was yesterday. But today...

Something had clearly changed.

The zoners before her were pushing against each other and shoving. They were raising their voices, trying to be heard above all the others. Most of them looked terrified. Some were furious and shaking their fists. It was just...a sea of madness, and she and her friends had no idea just what caused it.

“Rudy! Penny! Mint!” A voice called out suddenly, startling the humans. They relaxed immediately when they saw that it was only their friend, Snap. The blue and white zoner had dissipated from the crowd, coming out of an area that they could not see from this angle, and was rushing towards them. “Thank goodness you are here!”

“What’s wrong, Snap?” Rudy asked quickly, shifting in his wheelchair so he could stare down at his friend. “What is happening?”

“Yeah! Why are the zoners...” Mint looked over at the crowd. He only stared for a few moments before lifting his hand motioning towards the. “..acting like this..?”

Penny bent her knees as Snap got closer to her. When the zoner was near enough, he used one hand to grab onto her knee for support. Penny used one of her hands to grab onto Snap’s arm and helped to support him. The poor little guy must be just as spooked as the other zoners. Even with how short the distance was, Snap’s earlier panic caused him to be out of breath already.

“It’s...” Snap gasped between heavy breaths. “I-It’s terrible...”

“What happened, Snap?” Penny asked, her voice stern and urgent. She held on tighter to Snap, bringing herself down to his level and staring directly at him. Snap looked at her with wide eyes and an open, panting mouth. “Tell us..what’s wrong...?”

It took only seconds for Snap to shout a phrase that caused their blood to freeze.

“Skrawl’s out of jail!”

At this, the three humans went silent. They stared at Snap long and hard, their eyes unable to move away. They couldn’t speak. They didn’t dare to breathe. They just kept watching Snap, hoping, praying, that he was mistaken, that there had to be something else.

But the more that Snap didn’t say anything, the more they started to realize...no, this wasn’t some kind of cruel joke. This wasn’t a mistake. One by one, the three human friends looked at each other, exchanging silent messages. Out of them, and for good reason, Mint was the most shaken up, staring out into the distance and hardly responding to anything Rudy was saying.

Penny looked at Snap, her voice caught on her throat. She breathed in and out slowly, her mind swirling with thoughts. She watched the terrified look that was plastered over Snap’s large, white eyes. She licked her lips and swallowed nervously. She could vaguely hear the police officer, the ones the zoners must be crowding around, trying to soothe their fears and get them to settle down. She just focused on Snap long and hard before she managed to squeak out her next question.

“What happened, Snap...?”

Snap did not waste anytime and he began, in a shaky, trembling voice, to relay the information to the three startled and horrified humans.

sss

“Well that didn’t bring us any closer...” Rudy grumbled softly.

“It was worth a try at least.” Penny pointed out.

“Still...” Snap folded his arms against his chest. “...with how urgent all of this is, you’d think that they would be more or less on top of things. I’ve never seen such disorganization...”

Mint could only nod in agreement. Out of all of them, he had remained the most silent. He did ask the occasional question as they spoke to some of the zoners around here. Other than that, he was just silent. Almost like he was a living ghost or something.

It was just...he couldn’t bring himself to speak. His mind had gone so numb. He could feel thoughts racing through, refusing to let up, refusing to give him any sense of peace. He didn’t realize it until Penny pointed it out, but he had actually started to walk a little hunched, his arms moving around his body as though to hug himself.

He didn’t mean to look this scared. He didn’t mean to allow his thoughts to control him like this. But...just how was he supposed to remain calm? Especially in the light of such...terrifying news...? He wasn’t even sure how the others were so calm about this...

..okay so they weren’t calm. Like the zoners, they were quite upset. He could tell just by looking in their eyes. He could see the horror that splattered through. He could see the fear that was plastering over their faces. Skrawl’s freedom was not something to sneeze at. It was not something that they’d dare dismiss to lightly. And what made it so urgent wasn’t just the fact that he escaped, but where he had escaped from.

What was the name of that jail? Mint was certain it had gone through a few name changes. The last name he recalled being associated with it was The Speculum. A rather odd name for such a place. Maybe it was referring to the dimensional prisons they had there, reserved for the worst of the worst, such as Sandra herself.

Mint felt a pang in his chest. He wondered why Skrawl had not been placed in one of these cells. Hadn’t he proven to be one of the worst villains around? Hadn’t he caused enough damage to warrant him being locked up in here? After all, he did play a major part in what happened all those years ago. He might have been the one to do those horrible acts of destroying parts of ChalkZone, but it was Skrawl who had pulled the strings.

Perhaps the guards thought that a regular cell would have been fine. And maybe for a while, it was. But now that evil jellybean was loose again. Mint had to wonder if those guards now feel stupid for not using something a lot more...secure.

“I still want to know how he got out of there.” Rudy spoke up. “I mean... that place was well guarded and..”

“Well it was apparently not well guarded enough.” Mint spat, using a slightly more aggressive tone than he had intended.

Rudy looked over at him in shock before his expression softened up. “...yeah...”

Mint was glad that his friends did not stare at him too long. He sometimes felt it a little embarrassing, plus it made him feel nervous. However, despite them not staring at him too much, he could still feel their eyes boring into him in that short amount of time. It was brief, but still more than enough to stir up some rather uncomfortable feelings.

He could not complain too much. They were still his friends. They did care about him. They were only worried for him. They all could never forget what happened that day when they stood up to Skrawl together, for the first time. Back when Snap’s back was still recovering, back when Skrawl had the artifacts...

...back when Mint lost his leg...

Mint felt a sharp tingle in his leg, just above where it entered into the prosthetic. He still had nightmares even years later. He could still feel the sharp blade entering his body. He could still remember the horrific pain that clashed through, and how he had nearly died if it hadn’t been for Rudy and especially Penny’s intervention. He licked his lips and felt his heart skip several beats. The fact that he had nearly died there weighed heavily on his mind.

Wanting to push the conversation forward and not wanting his friends to be too nervous about him for long, Mint said quickly, “But maybe there is someone who might know?” He raised his hand up. “Surely someone around here must know something.”

Penny shrugged her shoulders. “I’m sure there is, but we haven’t found them yet.”

“Yeah, in case you forgot, we asked probably everyone in town.” Snap raised his arms up into the air. “Even that flipping penguin officer didn’t know a damn thing!”

Mint flinched at the memory. He recalled how they had attempted to speak to the officer the other zoners had gathered around. It hadn’t been easy getting through. It was even more difficult getting the penguin officer to notice them. It was at least a little easier once the penguin officer, whom they recognized as the same one from before, saw them and huddled out to speak with them.

But they were sorely disappointed. Officer Samuel, as he liked to call himslef, had almost no information. This bit was what caused Mint to flinch. He found it hard to believe that Officer Samuel had no information to give them. Nothing to calm down the citizens other than a ‘we are working on it’ statement, which was only good for a short while before someone would say something.

Which they did. Many of the zoners refused to allow Officer Samuel to leave their sights. Even as the group of four friends left to question other zoners, the penguin officer was still bombarded with questions.

What really got to Mint, however, was not the apparent lack of questions. Instead it was just...the overall silence. Well yeah that could be the same as lack of questions, but he was thinking more along the lines of an...intentional silence. Officer Samuel could indeed have no answers to give them. But that didn’t mean that it was due to him not having information. Maybe he did but was deliberately holding it back.

The idea made him uncomfortable. And it wasn’t because of him being angry at Officer Samuel for holding back information. Sometimes that was just necessary. No, what worried him was the reason for holding back information. One of the reasons this would be done was to avoid a riot. And if that was the case...

....then just what did Officer Samuel know...? What more had happened with Skrawl’s escape...? Was there something more to this break out than he could imagine...?

What were they hiding?

Snap folded his arms against his chest. “I still can’t believe no one around here has any information that we can use...”

Penny looked over at him sadly, nodding her head. “It is rather unfortunate.” She inhaled slowly and exhaled. It was rare that Penny looked at a loss for words. And when that happened, Mint knew just how serious things were. “One of ChalkZone’s most notorious criminals is out there and none of the zoners in the city seem to know just how he got out...”

Rudy furrowed his eyes. “That means we can only try one thing.” The others stared at him in curiosity, waiting for him to speak. Rudy stared at them intently before speaking in a slightly low yet determined voice. “We go directly to the jail itself and ask them.”

Mint widened his eyes a little. “Are you sure about that, Rudy?” He raised his hand up in gesture. “Do you really think they would even bother listening to us?”

“Yeah.” Snap rolled his eyes. “They might take one look at us and make us walk right out.”

It was unsurprising to them all that Snap held the most bitterness for jails. Even though Skrawl was held at a different jail than he had been, that didn’t change the fact that Snap had been quite soured on them. Not that he had ever loved them before. It was just..his whole attitude regarding them had darkened ever since he had been locked up for a crime that he hadn’t committed, and was subjected to torment the whole time that he was there.

The worst of it came from Taima. The zoner may have apologized for his actions, but Snap still could not bring himself to fully forgive him. His friends could not blame him for it. Taima was the worst of them all. Beating up Snap, controlling him, making him so terrified... Snap’s time in jail wasn’t just a nightmare. It was a practical night terror and it was all because of what Taima had done to him.

Mint licked his lips slowly. As much as he hated the idea of going near another jail after how poorly Snap had been treated, he ultimately realized that....Rudy might be right. That might be their only chance of getting some answers. Maybe upon arriving, they could at least try to convince one of the officers to tell them a little something at least.

Besides, what did they have to lose? The only thing that would happen is either they got new information or they just...remained right were they were. They couldn’t back pedal with this. And with Skrawl out there, if there was any additional information they could figure out, even the smallest detail of how he could have escaped, they needed to know.

“We could at least try.” Penny spoke up, cutting Mint from his thoughts. He and the others watched her carefully as she continued to speak. “They might have something that we could use to help find Skrawl.”

“And what if they refuse to talk?” Mint asked abruptly before Penny could continue. He hated being the bearer of bad news, but there was one thing he needed to make sure they all understood. “What if they have to be silent about something? What if there is something that they just...cannot tell us?”

At this, Penny, Snap, and Rudy looked at each other nervously. Penny looked back at Mint, her eyes widened. Then she slowly narrowed them into small slits.

“Then we will just have to be more...persuasive...”

Mint took a small step back. “And how do you propose we do that? We can’t just walk up to them and demand the information.” Mint didn’t like sounding like a downer. But jails were just harder to mess with, especially as of late when they got stricter. “We don’t want to give them any reason to go..” He stopped himself before he said ‘after Snap’. He backtracked and said, “...use other methods...”

Penny looked at him sympathetically, as though she understood what he was referring to. “I know, Mint. But we just... We can’t just....” Penny stammered for a couple of seconds, tripping over her own tongue. It took a while before she started to clear her throat and attempted to speak again. “We have to try something, you know?”

“I agree.” Rudy was slightly reluctant in saying that. Mint wondered if he was thinking something similar to him. Was he thinking about what happened with Snap before? “We do need to at least...try.” He narrowed his eyes as he turned his attention in the direction of the jail. “If they knew what was good for ChalkZone, they’d tell us....”

The four friends nodded in agreement at this. No one really had any protest to that. And why would they? It was quite true, really. If it came to the safety of ChalkZone, the guards and officers may be more willing to speak. After all, they live in ChalkZone themselves. If something were to happen, they would surely want to do whatever it took to get it fixed.

Yet none of them could not push aside the possibility of withholding information, either. There was still a very real chance that something like that could happen, whether to keep zoners from panicking or for some other reason. And if that were to happen...

Mint was certain that they could figure something out. It would not be easy of course, and he did not want to do anything to give the police force reason to come after them as well. They would need to either be convincing or at least silent as they tried to uncover as much information as possible. And maybe, after they spoke with the officers, they would be one stop closer to finding Skrawl.

Though that could end up just being wishful thinking. If it was going to be anything like last time, he may end up with more questions than answers. And if that happened...

“Hey maybe you could bring along Ripclaw.” Snap said with a sly smile, motioning his hand towards a confused Mint. “Maybe she would be able to make them more willing to talk.”

“Snap!” Penny put her hands on her hips. She said nothing more. Her glare was enough to make the zoner cringe slightly and smile nervously at her.

“Hey I was just saying. You know that those guards might be unwilling to speak. So I thought that maybe a little ‘inspiration’ would be enough to...” Snap started to say.

Rudy interrupted him. “All that will do is draw unwanted attention to us. Do you really think that if we tried to force information via the use of a large raptor, that it is going to go over well with everyone?”

Snap flinched at this and lowered his head. “Yeah...you’ve got a point there. I’m sorry.”

Although Mint was shocked by what Snap suggested, he couldn’t say that he was too upset with him. He took a few steps towards his friend and placed his hand on his shoulder. When Snap looked up at him, Mint gave the best smile that he could muster up. “We will think of something. I’m sure of it.”

Snap stared at him for a few moments. It did seem at first that Snap was comforted. However this only lasted a short time before his eyes furrowed. Not out of anger but out of confusion and uncertainty. “How...can you be so sure...?” Snap slowly tilted his head to one side. “Do you have any ideas?”

“Yeah, Mint. Do you?” Rudy turned to face him. It took only a few seconds for Rudy to read Mint’s face and he gave a sigh. “Though I’m sure you’re just as confused as the rest of us.”

Mint opened his mouth to speak. But sadly, he was right. He really was just as perplexed and uncertain. He couldn’t really think of anything to say. All he could do was fall silent and lower his head. He felt a pang of guilt as he realized he could not say anything to make the situation better for his friends...or for ChalkZone for that matter.

But..they could not give up. Not now. Skrawl was running loose out there. He could be terrorizing a part of ChalkZone right now. They could not allow him to run free for long. They had to...

“It would seem our best bet is to just...go and talk to the officers in the jail.” Penny said as she tapped a finger against her chin thoughtfully. “I know we might not get any results. But...we have to try. Or we will be standing here, twiddling our fingers, doing nothing, and wasting time.”

Mint flinched at this. He realized that Penny was right. They all did. They were wasting time trying to think of other plans. They should have acted upon this one first and then talk to each other about other ways to gather information should they not find anything useful about whatever the guards at the prison tell them.

“Yeah, she’s right. Come on, everyone.” Mint narrowed his eyes as he stared at his friends. He gave them a stern nod and he could tell they knew where he was going with this. “Let’s pay The Speculum a little visit...”

sss

Snap pulled his head back and stared up at the tall structure before them. “So...this is The Speculum...?”

“It looks quite large. I’ve never seen a jail here this size.” Commented Mint.

Penny nodded her head. “Indeed. I think this is still pretty new. I know this was not here when Rudy and I were ten.” She looked over at Rudy, whom she was walking beside. “Do you remember this?”

Rudy grunted as he pumped his arms, pushing his wheelchair to keep up with his friends. “No, I have not.” He said quickly to answer her question.

Indeed, Rudy did not really remember this jail being here before when he was a kid. Or maybe it had been here and he just did not remember it. Regardless, this would still be the first time he actually visited it. Well, if you could call this visiting. It was more akin to a meeting than anything else, even if they had no appointment here. And he hoped it stayed that way, for good reason.

He did take some time to look around, although he spent most of it paying attention to what was in front of him. With the bumpiness of the grass they were walking across and the fact that his friends were walking close, Rudy did not want to take the chance of hitting them or getting himself hurt.

But he was still able to see enough to have an idea of what this place looked like. The Speculum looked on the surfac very much like a fancy Real World prison. It was white in color and almost seemed to sparkle, making it look deceptively inviting. He had seen several searchlights moving about, and plenty of areas for snipers to hide in cause they were trying to shoot something. Multiple windows lined along the walls, small barred openings to allow the prisoners to see the outside, a harsh reminder of what they had lost.

The building itself stood several stories tall, about as tall as some of the tallest skyscrapers in ChalkZone City. Unlike a couple jails he saw, The Speculum liked a spikey appearance, or anything that made it appear like a deathtrap. Even the search lights looked kinda pretty, like it was some kind of big show. Rudy wondered if this was to add to the psychological torment of the criminals, or if it was to help the law abiding citizens feel more at ease.

Rudy was glad that this building was placed on concrete, otherwise he had no idea how he was going to get inside without too much trouble. It was bad enough moving about along the grass; he hated to think what would happen if he were to attempt to head into a building that is placed on grass, or worse yet, having all the floors be made of grass and dirt...Okay that was silly thinking, but considering this was ChalkZone he was talking about, anything was possible.

At least it didn’t take them too long to get off the grass and onto the concrete. Rudy did require help from his friends. He did feel a little bad about it, but he normally kept silent. There was nothing wrong with getting help from them, he told himself. Still...he would have liked to alleviate them the trouble...

He stopped himself before he could go down one of his ‘self pitying’ trips. He didn’t really mean to be like this. Most of the time, actually, he wasn’t. There were just very few times where he’d feel upset about it. Sometimes he would...just be reminded of all the times he helpd his friends, and he was no longer able to do that as much. His friend were helping him with something as the result of an incident that never would have happened if he had just...been quicker.

Pushing those thoughts out of his head and focusing on the task at hand, he and his friends headed over to the large double doors that led to the inside of the prison. It looked as if the floor was completely flat, much to Rudy’s relief. He’d be able to get through just fine without having to rely on his friends. A bit of independence.

And sure enough, he did. His friends were the first ones who went through and they did leave the door open for him, which he didn’t mind. He felt a bit of relief as he passed through the doors. It seemed silly, but people really do take such things for granted. It was...

“Hello, how may I be of service to you?” A large, muscular zoner spoke.

Rudy and his friends looked over and notced a somewhat tall, brown wooden desk positioned near the wall. It was littered with all kinds of paperwork and two cups of coffee. There was a monitor situated there, the glow of the screen shining against the wall and the zoner’s skin.

And the zoner himself appeared to be a kind of bull. His horns twisted around and aimed at the front, the sharp tips glinting. His broad, flaring nostrils were pierced with a silver ring. His body was covered in grey brown fur. His long, tufted tail swished from side to side, lifted high above the ground.

“Hello, sir.” Penny was the first one to speak. Being the voice of reason among them, she was the best suited to speak to the guard about what they wanted. “We just have a few questions.”

“Really now?” The bull raised an eyebrow. “Well, maybe I can help you with that. My name is Bell and...” Snap started to chuckle at this. The bull glared over at the sniggering zoner. “Something funny...?”

Immediately Snap froze at this. He gave a nervous grin over to the bull guard. He shook his head. “Nuh uh!”

Bell growled softly at this. He said nothing more to Snap before he turned his attention back to Penny. “So what did you want to know?”

Penny kept walking forward until she was positioned right in front of the desk. She placed her hands against the edges and leaned in, staring straight into the bull’s eyes. “We need to know more about Skrawl’s break out.”

Bell blinked his eyes a few times. He then narrowed them and snorted. “I am sorry, but that is confidential information.” He reached his hands up to adjust the tie that he was wearing. “If you have another question, maybe I can...”

“Perhaps you didn’t hear her.” Snap took a few steps forward, forgetting about what happened just a few moments ago. “But she said we need information about Skrawl. Not about one of your other criminals or your laundry duty or whatever else.” Snap made a few gestures with his hand as he spoke. “We need to know about Skrawl.”

Mint nodded his head. “That is correct.” He paused when Bell stared at him intently. Rudy had to wonder if Bell was one of the zoners Mint hurt back when he was the Enemy Creator. Mint managed to continue, “We need to know how he escaped so we can...”

Bell let out a low growl. “And maybe you didn’t hear me...” He leaned in closer, staring intently at Penny, Mint, and Snap, his eyes looking as if they were piercing right through their very souls. “That information is not for you. I don’t care how many times you lot saved ChalkZone. The rules are the rules, and for now, that information is top secret.”

“So you are hiding something...” Mint growled, a tone of disbelief in his voice.

Bell stared at him with one eye. “Call it what you want.” He turned his head to one side. “I am not telling you anything about Skrawl. Not yet. If you really want to know, you can wait and I will...”

“But we can’t wait that long!”

Everyone fell silent as they turned their gaze towards Rudy. He had been silent up to this point, but hearing just how reluctant this zoner was being filled Rudy with horror. He may have expected something like this, but it was still quite a shock that it was even happening. Just..how could he...?

Without thinking, Rudy grabbed onto his wheels and started to push against them, propelling himself forward. He moved at a pretty quick rate, and he swear it took only two seconds for him to reach where his friends where. He stared intently at the bull zoner, panting quickly as he tried to catch his breath. Then he spoke in a slightly airy voice.

“Please, sir, at least consider. We need to know so we can stop Skrawl. We can’t let him run around in ChalkZone for long. We need to know how he escaped so that we have a better idea of where he could be. His escape could yield important clues. And in the end, we need those to prevent him from escaping yet again. Please, Bell, you have to help us.”

But Bell did not seem all that interested in cooperating. He merely growled and lowered his head swiftly. His eyes drilled through his mind and Rudy tensed up. “And I will repeat. That information is confidential.”

Rudy couldn’t believe just how stubborn this bull was being. Did he not realize that by holding back information, he was just going to make it worse for everyone else? Was he really that dense? He didn’t want to think that about someone he didn’t really know that well. But jeezus, it was really starting to look that way.

Did ChalkZone’s safety mean nothing to him? Did he really not care? Didn’t he want Skrawl captured quickly? If he was worried that they would spread the information, he’d be more than happy to clam up. The information was safe with them. But...if only he would be more cooperative...

“I am sorry, Rudy. But I still cannot allow it.” The bull said in a forcibly calm voice. It was clear that his patience was beginning to wear thin. “Now pack and leave. We are through here, and I have more important things to attend to right now.”

Rudy and his friends glared at the bull when he said that. How...how could Bell even think to say that? How could he think that this wasn’t so important? Okay so he didn’t say it like that. Still, it was the way he worded that made it sound so... Rudy clenched his fists tightly as he struggled to keep himself from snapping.

Well if he wasn’t going to tell them anything, then there was really only one option left. It was something that he had considered in the back of his mind, and now it seemed that it was their only option left.

“Can we at least take a look at anything in the jail? Gather up any clues?” Rudy suggested as he held up his hand in gesture. “My friends and I could look around and try to find what we can on our own, and we can use the information to...”

“I’m sorry, but no.” Bell cut him off. “That would be forbidden as well.”

“What? But...”

“Silence!” Bell lifted his head up and glared down at Rudy. “I will hear not another word from you four. Since it is clear that you only came here for information about Skrawl, I will have to ask you to leave. I am sorry that I cannot help you any further for the time being. And I promise that I will give you the information you desire, but only when my superior deems it necessary. So for now, bye!”

Rudy wasn’t about to give up yet. “Please..if you’d just let me...”

“Heh..and just what makes you think you could do anything...cripple?” Bell said in a cold tone of voice.

At this, Rudy gave a sharp gasp of breath, his heart nearly stop beating, his blood turning to ice. He took in several shaky breaths as his swirling mind comprehended what the bull had just told him. He couldn’t even try to speak.

He could feel his friends’ eyes upon him. He could tell they were horrified, even though he was not looking straight at them. He could hear one of them approaching. He could feel a thick hand on his shoulder. Mint... Rudy wanted to look up at him and see a reassuring face, yet he could not bring himself to do anything. He was just...frozen.

Rudy could feel himself being moved. Mint had grabbed onto his wheelchair and was starting to guide him out. He could sense Penny standing next to him, keeping close. Her hand was on his arm, gently caressing it. Rudy forced himself to look up at her, and he could see the shock and hurt and worry in her eyes. She looked down at him and gave him a shaky smile, trying to silently reassure him that it was all right.

Rudy couldn’t even try to smile back at her. He was just way too...stunned. That was the only word he could use to describe how he felt right now. Stunned, and even that didn’t really fully explain everything that he was thinking right now.

“Creepazoid...” He heard Snap hiss at Bell before he trotted over to catch up to them. “Rudy, are you okay?”

Although Rudy was trying his best to fight back the tears that were forming, he managed to nod his head and gave his friend a very shaky, slight smile. “Y-Yeah...I’m fine...”

“Don’t listen to what he says.” Snap said as he placed his hand on his arm. “He doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”

“Yeah, I know...”

None of them said anything else during the trip back into ChalkZone City.

Chapter 9: A Little Surprise

Speak your mind. Like I care. I can see your lips moving. I've just learned not to hear. Don't waste your time!
-Made Of Stone, Evanescence





Ah yes, this place. How could anyone forget about this place? Standing up so tall on this large cactus. The structure being made of some incredibly hard stone. It easily towered over everything in the desert, and could make one hell of a maximum security prison. Sure it would need some sprucing up and some additional cells, but all in all, it would work just fine.

Many would easily recognize this place. It was quite hard to miss, especially what happened in here years ago. It was so well known, in fact, that some had even tried to turn it into a tour. Kind of strange, but then some people were really into quite strange things.

...so why did Sandra want to come here?

Skrawl furrowed his eyes as they walked along the platform at the top of the cactus. The entrance wasn’t too far away. They were getting quite close. Sandra was walking in front of him, looking rather eager to get inside.

But why, he wasn’t really sure. This wasn’t exactly the best spot for a hideout. At least, not anymore. Most zoners know about this place now, as did this rotten humans. It was true that Mint was not aorund at the time, so there were no associations of him with this place. But he was still beaten by Rudy and Penny.

Especially Penny...

That little girl had tricked him here. She had made him into a laughing stock with how easily swayed he was by her. He was supposed to be a genius. He should have been able to see right through what she was doing. And yet his desire to get back at Rudy prevented him from seeing the trap that was ever so obvious right before him. And because of that, he had lost that chance at gaining control over ChalkZone. He had hoped that Mint would have been different, but...

“You are certain Fido is still here?” Sandra paused her walking. She turned her head and peered over her shoulder and stared back at Skrawl. “You aren’t tryign to trick me?”

Skrawl blinked at this. “Why would I be trying to trick you?” He didn’t really get why Sandra even thought that. Was she really that paranoid? Or was she just testing him? “You haven’t done anything yet to make me want to do that?”

Sandra smiled at this and gave a chuckle. “No, I suppose not. It’s just that...” She sighed as she turned her head over towards the building. “I guess I was expecting to see that large dog outside here. Somewhere.” Her tail swished quickly once before slowing down. “You do let him out once in a while, don’t you?”

Skrawl shrugged his shoulders. “I haven’t come here in a long time. I just let Fido take over the place.”

Sandra narrowed her eyes. “You didn’t tell me that he was dead...”

“I didn’t say that he was.” Skrawl said quickly, waving a hand out in front of him. “I was just saying that he is inside. Fido is smart. He can take care of himself.”

“I see...” Sandra looked back out at the building. She tilted her head back and looked at it up and down, examining it. “I take it there’s some places to get outside here? And I also take it you have a neverending food supply? Something to keep that thing from keeling over?” She looked over at Skrawl, giving him a sideways glance. “I should hope so. I’d hate to have to have traveled all the way here for nothing...”

Skrawl flinched at this. He still had no idea why Sandra really wanted Fido. But it was highly doubtful that he would get an answer from her if he tried asking her again. So he just made a few gestures with his hand and said, “I’m sure we will find him.”

“Okay then. Let’s head on inside.”

Skrawl paused and watched as Sandra headed towards the large doors that made up the entrance of the building. He didn’t follow her right away. He instead just stared at her as his mind became alive with several, rapidly moving thoughts. He struggled to try to make sense of this situation, but he couldn’t really think of anything. The lack of knowledge from Sandra certainly didn’t help things.

Just why did she want his dog so badly? He had tried to ask her about that several times. Yet she still remained quiet on the subject. It was though she wanted to keep it a secret from everyone to ensure maximum security or whatever.

Which was fine and all...but if they were going to work as a team, didn’t he deserve to know just what was going on...? It didn’t really seem all that fair, or make a whole lot of sense, to just recruit him, but then deliberately keep him in the dark on so many things. He knew that the best kind of teamwork is the kind where all parties participate and show their ideas. Sandra mentioned her idea, but she had not yet explained it.

He was quite horrified when she suggested going to Fido, but that was largely based on an idea that...he didn’t really know if she would do or not. Surely, she wouldn’t be dumb enough to do...that thing that he had in his mind. No, that was just way to risky.

But if that isn’t what she had in mind, then....what was...?

Skrawl didn’t waste anymore time. Upon seeing Sandra disappear into the castle, he immediately dashed towards her as quickly as he could without tripping over himself. It took him just a couple of seconds to reach the door. Inside, he could see that Sandra was still walking forward, her head turning left and right as she looked around. Skrawl hesitated for just a second, and then he followed her inside.

It did feel rather strange...being in this place for the first time in years. Skrawl looked around as well, noting just how little had changed in here. It was almost just as he had left it. He could even see that fake trap that Penny had utilized for that act she put on for Rudy and Snap. He could still see that large carton of milk and not far away, he could see something dark and colorful and...

Penny’s Chalk Queen clothing. Upon seeing this, Skrawl’s blood immediately heated up. He clenched his fists tightly and let out a low growl through his clenched teeth. Penny....that brat.. He still needed to get back at her somehow. He made a promise, and he was going to keep it.

“Hmm...I take it this is those creators’ handiwork?” Sandra commented. She had stopped by Penny’s old outfit and she peered down at it. She lowered herself down to get a better look. She took a sniff. “Yes...this does smell like that girl...”

“Penny drew that, yes.” Skrawl said as he took a few steps towards the hunched Sandra. “She had drawn it to trick Rudy...and me.”

At this, the blue dragon zoner lifted her head and stared at him, raising an eyebrow. “Oh really now?”

Skrawl nodded his head. He struggled not to allow his anger get the better of him. But even the act of speaking in a somewhat calm way took a lot of energy from him. He was surprised that he didn’t end up tripping over his own words or sound too shaky or anything. “It had happened a few years ago. I had overheart Penny talking about how Rudy promised to help her but left anyway and I decided to use that to bring her to my side and...”

“Wait wait...hold on...” Sandra raised her hand up. Her ears raised up quickly in interest. “You telling me that...you witnessed Rudy breaking a promise?”

Skrawl blinked a few times. He had no idea why Sandra was so interested in this minor detail. Nonetheless, he nodded his head slowly. “Yes, Sandra. I did. I saw him run off when Penny was attempting to get him to help.” Skrawl raised his hand up in gesture. “The boy was more interested in stopping me than helping his best friend. Though in some way, I can’t blame him.” He gave a dark smile. “I can be quite terrifying...”

“I see...” Sandra said calmly. There was something rather...off about her tone. She didn’t say anything more for a few seconds. Then she turned her head away and looked towards the ground. Her red eyes narrowed slowly. “That little promise breaker...”

Skrawl was surprised by how much venom had been in that utterence. He had thought about asking her what was up, but he decided it was best no to say anything. With how angry she sounded, the last thing he wanted was to make her made at him. He was not interested in trying to make another enemy.

The silence that followed was rather awkward. Skrawl sucked on his lip a little, licking it slowly. He had tried to think of something to say to break the silence, but so far, nothing came to mind. He wasn’t really entirely sure why, either. He was Skrawl after all. He should be able to think of something to get the ball rolling. After all, if they were going to have their revenge against these children, they were going to need to take action.

But there was just something about Sandra’s present mood that...made him remain silent. He couldn’t bring himself to talk to her right now. A part of him kept warning him it was a bad idea. And based on what he did know of her, that did seem like sound advice.

So the jellybean remained where he stood, his mismatched eyes watching Sandra in confusion and caution. The blue dragon walked around the place. It was almost as though she had forgotten about Fido and now had her full attention on the clothing at her feet. Her eyes slowly narrowing was uncomfortable even for Skrawl himself to see. He could practically hear her mind’s gears turning rapidly, and he couldn’t help but wonder just what she was thinking.

sss

Ah...so this is where it happened, eh? This was where that wretched Rudy Tabootie betrayed his best friend. This was where he had become a promise breaker and had gotten away with it. This is where it all began. She had wondered why it felt so strange in here.

She could not really blame Skrawl for ‘allowing’ Rudy to live. It wasn’t that he had that planned, she was certain. He would have gotten him if it weren’t for Penny foolishly defending her friend after how he betrayed her. In some ways, she felt a little sorry for Penny. She had allowed her own naivity get in the way of more proper judgment, and she couldn’t help but overlook Rudy’s promise breaking in favor of recalling how good of a friend he was to her before and sticking by his side.

Some may call this a noble trait. Some may even admire it. But Sandra could see right through it. The only thing admirable about it was just how stupid it was. Those who break promises do not deserve second chances. They had their one chance at being a good citizen, and they blow it on something that they should have been able to keep.

To those who say that ‘sometimes you just have to break a promise’, she would go ‘bah’ to them. It didn’t really matter what came up; there was always a way to keep a promise. Those who say such blasphamous things are obviously too lazy and selfish to work around another way and ensuring the promise could still be kept.

That is what she did with Snap, after all. She could have stopped once she realized it was Snap and just ask him what had gone on. But that would have been the morally wrong thing to do. No, since she made the promise, she had to go through with it. She hated doing it at first, and even when she was able to calm herself, she still sometimes had some bouts of guilt. But she was still doing the right thing and she would have allowed Snap to resume his normal life after he apologized to her.

Instead, he turned on her. They all did. They... They...

Sandra closed her eyes and gritted her teeth. For several seconds, she just let out several low hisses and growls, unable to stop herself. She could feel her body trembling, her thoughts burning into her brain. Memories of how Snap turned against her, daring to side with a promise breaker, how everyone chose the promise breaker over her... It was just too much for her to bear.

Skrawl’s voice cut through the air, tearing her from her thoughts. “Are you all right, Sandra?” His voice showed no real concern for her, only confusion. “Did something...?”

“No, no..I’m fine.” Sandra waved her hand dismissively. “I’m fine...”

A bit of a lie, but a necessary one. She didn’t really want Skrawl peering into too much of what she had planned. She wanted to keep him in the dark for now. Soon, everything will make sense to that jellybean. She did, after all, have a plan for him as well. And in the end, it will ensure that she was able to get even with those disgusting heathens.

Originally, she had only intended on going after Snap and Rudy. They were the ones who wronged her the most. They were the biggest monsters she had ever encountered. Especially that darn Rudy. But lately her mind had shifted. And, recalling what all of ChalkZone City had done, she had decided that they all deserved to be punished. She had a much bigger target now.

All of ChalkZone City was going to pay... and she was going to stand there and watch the show. She smirked. She could just see it now.

However, she couldn’t allow herself to be too drawn into these thoughts right now. She still had some things left to do before she could go forth with her plan. She would indeed take care of all of them eventually. But first...time to make some plans.

Swiveling her head over to Skrawl, she barked, “So where is that dog of yours?”

The jellybean was a little startled at first, as though not expecting her to yell so suddenly. She couldn’t help but smirk in satisfaction. It was amazing how much a tiny tumor could affect someone. Indeed, she had done this to Skrawl to try to alter his behavior a little. Make him slightly less violent, just to ensure that he would be less likely to betray her. She didn’t really do much damage of course, and it would take a trained eye to notice his altered behavior.

Though...she had a feeling that Rudy and his little friends would notice. After all, they did interact so much with the jellybean. It was a good thing that she had no intention on sending Skrawl out to do anything. Otherwise, her cover might have been blown. And she couldn’t have that.

At least...not yet. First, she needed that dog. She had special plans for that dog. Yes... She knew exactly what she was going to do. She had a feeling that Skrawl would protest to the idea, which was why she refused to tell him. However, despite what he may think, Sandra knew that this was the first plan to set everything into motion. After all, there was no greater weapon than fear, right? And the zoners would surely be struck by so much fear if they had a little ‘visit’ from Fido, wouldn’t they...?

She gritted her teeth. They weren’t going to get anywhere just standing around here. She raised her ears up for a moment to try to see if she can hear anything regarding that canine. When she did not, she turned her head to face Skrawl once more. She swung her head to the side and gave a simple command.

“Go find that stupid dog.”

Skrawl did not hesitate, much to her pleasure. She watched as Skrawl, who was so eager for revenge himself, immediately began to look around for the dog. For the time being, he didn’t seem to mind taking an order from her. Probably because he felt he was going to be in charge soon after everything was settled. Oh how wrong he was going to be...

Sandra didn’t bother saying another word and she walked over to what appeared to be a large throne. This would be a good place to rest while she waited for Skrawl to locate that dog. Provided he was still here and still alive that is. She sure hoped that Fido was still alive, otherwise she... Well, she suposed she could always find another way of doing what she wanted. It would just be easier going through it this way rather than having to locate another beast to do her bidding for her.

Upon reading the throne, she turned herself around and sat in it. She grunted, her tail being pushed harshly against, the chair itself so small. A lot smaller than it looked. Sandra attempted to get herself up, but she ended up a little stuck. She grabbed the arms of the throne and pushed herself upwards. She managed to dislodge herself, but not without nearly toppling the throne. At least it did not fall over. Without being able to sit down, she opted to just set herself on the ground, her tail curving inward against her body and her head lowering. She folded her arms a little, kind of like a bird, and just waited there.

She wasn’t really sure how long it would take Skrawl to find Fido. This place seemed rather large. Plenty of room. Especially if it were to be turned into a jail of sorts.

And that’s exactly what she hoped to use it for at some point. For now, this was not where they were going to be staying. No, that toothy mouth structure near the jail, the one that looked so ridiculously ‘evil’ in a rather cliche way, that’s where they would be staying for a part of their operations. But this place will not be neglected. No...she had big plans for this place. Big plans indeed.

She once more found her thoughts turning to Rudy. It was not something she really enjoyed. After all, Rudy did cross the line before, and the very thought of him was enough to make her bitter. But...she couldn’t help but be at least a little bit curious. Just...what was going on with him right now anyway?

She had broken his neck, which she had thought for sure was a death sentence. But aparently he was still alive, somehow. What kind of life was he leading? Did she leave any kind of permanent mark on him? If so, she was quite curious to see it. She would love to find out what kind of impact she had on the little brats life. She chortled to herself. Did he even remember her?

She will find out soon enough.

When a while passed by and still no sign of Skrawl or Fido, Sandra lifted her head up and let out a low, long growl. While she did have plenty of time to get everything started, she would rather not delay things longer than they needed to be. She hoped that Skrawl had found Fido already. She really didn’t want to have to be the one to look. She may not be as... ‘gentle’ with Fido was Skrawl would be.

Her ears raised up when she started to hear footsteps. Loud, echoing footsteps. Something large and heavy was coming down from somewhere. From her angle, she couldn’t tell where it was exactly. But the sound was indeed getting louder, making it rather obvious whover it was, they were heading straight to her. She already knew who it could be.

And when she saw the large shadows form, one of them appearing dog-like and the other having a lot of antennas, this all but confirmed her suspicions.

“Looks like you found him. Congratulations....” Sandra said with a broad smile. She clasped her hands together as she stared intently at the beast. She immediately froze upon seeing something that hadn’t been informed to he earlier. “He is....quite small.” She said in a disappionted voice.

Skrawl raised an eyebrow. “Well he is a dog. What did you expect?” Skrawl looked down at the brown canine with jagged sharp teeth. He patted him on the head a few times. “Besides, he’s tougher than he looks. And he is still big for a dog.”

“Well I do give him props for staying so healthy-looking for so long.” Sandra didn’t want to bother figuring out how the dog was still so healthy after...how long did Skrawl say it’s been? Years? It didn’t really matter at this point, anyway. “But as much as I hate to admit it...” Sandra furrowed her eyes deeply. “This will never do.”

At this, Fido lowered his ears a little and gave a small growly whine. Skrawl folded his arms together and glared at her. Sandra paid no attention to these expressions. It wasn’t like she was deliberately insulting them or anything; she merely spoke the truth.

“Sorry Fido isn’t some forty foot giant!” Skrawl snapped at her, raising a hand into the air. Sandra merely watched him with a calm demeanor while he began to rant off a little. “I searched everywhere for him and now you won’t even take him?! I just..what in the world were you expecting? I never said I had a giant dog!” Fido growled as though in agreement.

Sandra sighed softly. She placed her hand against her snout. “Yeah..you are right about that. I was never really clear.” She moved her hand along her snout until it dropped off to the side. She gave a small sigh as she looked at Fido once more. “Well...he does look fierce enough...”

Skrawl gave a small, slightly twisted smirk. “He could tear apart any zoner he comes across! And he is strong enough to break into many buildings if you needed something to be stolen. He’s loyal and...”

Sandra raised her hand, silencing him. “Okay, I get it. No need to advertise your puppy to me.” She began to wonder if putting the tumor in him was a good idea or not. Oh well, she will remove it later. “Anyway...” She took a few moments to stare at Fido intently, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “..it might not be a total loss...”

“So you still have a job for him?” Skrawl asked.

Sandra continued to move her feather finger along her chin as he stared intently at Fido. Slowly, she began to smile. “Yes...I believe I do...”

Skrawl smirked at this. “I’m glad you changed your mind.” He lowered himself down and grabbed onto the dog. He lifted him up. “I may not know what you want him for, but I guarantee that you will not be disappointed in using him.”

“No, I don’t suppose I will be.” Sandra commented. Looking at the dog, she realized that Skrawl was correct. There was still some use for Fido after all.

“Where do you want me to put him?” Asked Skrawl.

Sandra motioned towards the nearby empty cage. “Just keep him locked up for now.” She said as she closed her eyes, going into deep thought. “We aren’t leaving just yet. There’s still something else I need from you.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. Put Fido away and I will tell you.”

Sandra watched as Skrawl went over towards the cage with the dog. She was utterly silent, saying nothing, as she saw him place the dog in the cage. Her eyes skimmed over the controls and how he was swiftly using them. She watched as the bars closed, entrapping the canine inside. Fido did not seem to like it in there, but the dog did not seem to try to fight to get out. Such an obedient dog.

It was just a shame that obedience wasn’t the reason she wanted Fido. At least..not anymore.

Sandra got up from the ground as Skrawl made his way back over towards her. Her talons tapped against the cold, hard ground as she struggled to think with how to carry over the next part of the plan. This one was going to be a little trickier. But if she played her cards right, then everything will work out just fine.

“Okay..so what is it you wanted to ask of me?” Skrawl questioned her. He had kept walking until he was within a couple feet of her. His eyes started down at her as he waited for an answer.

Sandra knew she didn’t have much time to waste. No time to stand around and just think about what she was going to say. She just had to do it. Besides, in the end, it wasn’t like Skrawl was in much of a position to protest...now was he..?

“Do you know where your Beanie Boys are?”

Skrawl spluttered at this. “My what...?”

“Your Beanie Boys.” Sandra stared at him intently, one eye narrowing while the other lifted up. “Do you know where they are currently being held at?”

“I..” Skrawl looked left and right, as though wondering if he had misheard her somehow. Sandra simply stared at him intently, showing no change in her facial expression, indicating to him that she was being serious. Slowly, his eyes began to narrow. “What about my Beanie Boys...?”

Sandra gave him a small smirk. “Why, I plan on using them too, of course!” She folded her arms behind her back as she turned away from Skrawl. She took a few steps away, her ears twitching as she heard Skrawl give a small, disgusted growl. “I’m sure they will be useful.”

Skrawl hissed, “Now see here!”

Sandra looked over her shoulder. She smiled slyly at Skrawl as she noted how he was pointing at her like that, how his body had leaned forward a little, obtaining a more defensive posture. She could see the anger glowing in his eyes. It was apparent that Skrawl cared more for the Beanie Boys than for Fido.

“My Beanie Boys follow only my orders! You can tell Fido over ther what to do if you’d like!” Skrawl pointed a finger at the caged Fido. Then he moved his hand and pointed at himself. “But you will not be allowed to use my Beanie Boys!”

“Allowed, Skrawl...? You think I need to be...allowed to use the Beanie Boys?” Sandra asked coolly. Skrawl’s facial expression faultered only slightly. “Oh dear Skrawl... You are so naive...” She took a few steps towards him, her tail wriggling behind her. “I do not need permission...” She placed her hand against herself. “I am my own permission.”

Skrawl’s eyes widened at this as he seemed to finally realize what was going on. Then they narrowed into slits dangerously. “Then I’m afraid this partnership won’t work out if you aren’t willing to cooperate with me.” He pointed to himself. “I’m the one who calls the shots there. I will take advice from you, but if I want to put my foot down, I will! And if you dare try to take over leadership..”

Sandra tilted her head to one side. “Take over? Why...” She place a hand in front of her mouth, curling it inward. “..I am pretty sure that I am already in charge.”

“No you’re not! I let you free me! I let you come up with a plan! But I am the one who is the leader around here! You’re better off listening to me! You understand?!”

Sandra stared at him long and hard. Her eyes narrowed deeply. “Crystal.” She paused for a moment, watching as Skrawl seemed to relax a little big. Then she decided to yank the rug out from underneath him. “And let me show you exactly why you are wrong...”

Skrawl pulled his lips back into a snarl at this. His body arched as he flexed his claws. The tumor clearly did not suppress enough to make Skrawl unwilling to attack, and this showed clearly in his eyes. “You little....” With a loud growl, Skrawl charged at her.

And all the while, she just stood there, staring at him blankly, waiting for him to get close enough. And that was not going to take so long.

sss

Skrawl couldn’t believe it. How dare she... He did not care if Sandra had helped him escape. He did not care that Sandra had brought him closer to being able to get his revenge on those horrid humans and their little zoner friend. No one was going to use his Beanie Boys. Only he was allowed to use them, or even suggest using them. They were his.

And yet here was this dragon, acting as though she had the authority to tell him to bring out his Beanie Boys. He didn’t really care if she used Fido or not. He was not all that attached to that dog. However, the Beanie Boys were a completely different story. If she wanted to use them so badly, it would only be on his terms.

But even that did not seem to be too likely as Sandra just made the horrible mistake of acting like she was the leader. She somehow got it in he rmind that, just because she was the one who saved him, that meant that she was the one charge. Oh how wrong she was.... And he was going to show it to her as well. He would make sure that Sandra never forgot that he was the one who was in charge, and he was the one who ultimately had the final say in everything that they did.

His feet pounded the ground heavily as he rapidly approached the blue dragon zoner. He clenched his teeth tightly, seething through them. The foolish dragon wasn’t jumping away. That was going to be her downfall. He grinned maniacally as he raised his hand up, his glinting claws poised to strike.

That was when he noticed Sandra raising her hand as well. He nearly froze at this in confusion. However, he didn’t fully stop and he kept on pushing himself forward. He couldn’t allow this strange act to distract him. Come on he was almost there. He just needed to wait and...

Suddenly a sharp pain sizzled through his side. Skrawl’s eyes bulged and he nearly toppled into the ground. Now this ended up bringing him to a full stop. Despite his desire to keep running, he just could not ignore the pain that was wracking through his body. He soon dropped onto his knees and clutched his side, struggling to control the pain that was racing through his body.

He looked up and he could see Sandra standing there. Her arms folded, her tail swishing, an arrogant smile plastered over her muzzle. Skrawl hissed, furious with himself. How could he have trusted her so easily? What drove him to want to listen to her? Did she do something or...

Yes, she had to have done something. He would never have fallen for such a trick so easily. He would have known, right? Yeah, he would have. Sandra did something to him. But what?

Skrawl didn’t even have time to ask her in that moment. The dragon zoner twisted her arm to one side, her forehead symbol slightly glowing, and he immediately jerked his body to one side as another bout of pain spread there as well. The jellybean fought agaisnt the tears forming in his eyes. But no matter how much he curled into himself, no matter how much he fought, he could not ignore the pain that was sweeping through his shaking body. Just..what was happening to him...?

Skrawl heard Sandra give a dark laugh. He turned his head and stared up at her. What the hell was she doing to him? Was there a detail about Sandra that he had forgotten about? Just how the fuck was she causing him so much pain when she was just standing there, not even laying a hand on him? He tried to get up and walk towards her. He only ended up collapsing back into the ground.

“Such a simple, naive fool.” Sandra sneered, exposing her sharp teeth in a hideous grin. “It was so amusing, the way that you acted as though you were in charge. But really, dear Skrawl, did you think I’d be dumb enough to allow you to lead? After your own past failures...?” Sandra asked as she stared at her hand, flexing her claws.

Despite the agony in his side, Skrawl somehow managed to get back up to his feet. He wobbled a little from side to side before he managed to balance himself. He took in a few deep breaths before he pointed a claw in her direction. “Y-You should talk..” He gasped. “Y-You f-f-failed too!”

Sandra raised an eyebrow. Then she proceeded to ignore what he said, as though she did not hear him. “You have nothing to fear, though. I still need you for this plan. Just...not right now. I think I will ‘store’ you for the time being. Until I am ready to use you.”

“Use me?! I’m n-n-not o-one to be used!”

“Oh and don’t worry.” Sandra lowered her head, her ears raising up into the air. “I will take good care of your Beanie Boys for you. They will also be put to good use.”

At this, Skrawl saw red. He could feel his body burning with emotion. He could feel it shaking harder, anger intermixing with the pain. Although he knew it was a bad idea, the anger that swelled inside his skull was making it difficult for him to think. Right now, the only thing that really mattered right now was stopping Sandra and setting her straight before she went too far.

With his blood practially turning to fire, his narrowed, gleaming eyes unable to tear away from Sandra’s face, Skrawl kicked the ground with his feet. Then, like a bull, he charged towards her.

Sandra, predictably, turned up the knotch a little with her powers. Skrawl could feel the pain increasing. He could feel his body feel as though it was going to rip itself apart on the inside out. But he didn’t care in the moment. His rage fueled him, propelling him through even this difficult moment. He hardly paid any attempting to the pain as he drew himself closer and closer.

And when he got close enough, he wasted no time. With the muscles in his legs tightening, he launched himself forward. His body sailed through the air. As it did so, it felt as though time itself was slowing down to a stop. He raised his hand up, his claws flexing to strike. He opened his mouth and let out a loud yell. Then he brought his hand down, ready to tear into the scaly body that was Sandra.

But he never landed the blow.

In a matter of seconds, with a dark smile on her face, Sandra leaped up towards him. Her arms stretched out and with a few flaps, she reminded him that she was fully capable of flight. Though he realized the situation that he was in, it was too late for him to stop himself. And a few seconds later, Sandra landed her blow against him.

Skrawl’s eyes instantly widened and he let out a scream of pain. He felt the dragon’s claws raking across his body, forming large gashes along his side. Even when the claws left his body, he could still feel them inside, tearing up his flesh. His whole side erupted in burning agony. Clutching his side, he collapsed into the ground.

Skrawl struggled to breathe. Each breath caused him more pain. He could feel the sharp agony zigzagging through his ribs. He struggled to keep his eyes open, but this proved to be a futile attempt. He looked up at Sandra one more time, seeing her smile even through his blurred vision.

“Y-You...”

That was all that he managed to say before he collapsed into the ground, the darkness descending upon him.

sss

Sandra stood there for a few seconds, twitching her tail to one side. She then turned her head and looked over her shoulder. She gave a dark chuckle as she stared down at Skrawl’s unmoving form. What an idiot...

“Nice try...Skrawly boy...” She giggled before she turned around so she could face the jellybean.

Sandra ignored Fido’s frantic barking as she slowly approached the fallen jellybean’s side. Her piercing red eyes looked him up and down. It took her a few moments to realize that he was indeed down for the count. Once she figured this out, she brought herself onto one knee and reached out with one hand. She placed her fingers against his throat and waited to see if she would feel anything.

A weak thready pulse. He was still alive, just like she had intended. A part of her wondered if she had acted too quickly, that perhaps she should have let him have a little fun first before she pulled the rug out from underneath him. But she pusehd those thoughts aside for now. At least Skrawl would be under her control, just like she had intended.

Fido barked louder and louder, ramming himself against the iron bars that held him inside. This time, she could not fully ignore him. Turning her head, she glared off in his direction, curling her lips up into a snarl. Annoying little thing... Didn’t he know when to quit? There was no way he was getting through those bars. Not unless she set him free.

And she didn’t intend to do that. At least, not yet. She did have plans for the little guy, though. Since she could not use him for her initial plan, she worked out a completely different one that would still get the results that she wanted, even if they were a little...different. Fido sure as hell was not going to like it, but then, he was not the one in charge, now was he? Sandra, on the other hand, was going to get some amusement out of it.

It was funny, really. Before she was arrested, she wouldn’t have dreamed of doing something like this. It wouldn’t have benefited her, and it didn’t seem really fair to subject such a...loyal animal to this. But of course, things changed after she had to spend years in that wretched isolation chamber... Now all that mattered to her in the end was achieving her goal. And if she had to hurt someone or something else in the process...then so be it.

Besides, if she had to suffer needlessly, why shouldn’t others? She was arrested for something that wasn’t even wrong to start with. There was nothing wrong with eating a loved one as it ensures they were with you forever more. It was the ultimate honor. And yet those filthy zoners in ChalkZone City felt quite differently about that. She would never understand it, and she did not think that she wanted to.

She listened to Fido growl and bark at her for a few moments before she started to make her way towards the cage. The dog went crazy, jumping about, barking, snarling, whatever. It may be enough to intimidate a small child, but she found herself merely amused by the whole thing.

Fido seemed to realize that his barkings was having no affect on her. He continued to bark for a while, lowering his ears and baring his teeth more. But the closer she got, the more the dog lowered himself down to the ground. His tail lowered as well and he backed away. Yet the barking still came. If anything, it grew even louder and more desperate. It almost seemed to bounce off the walls around her, irritating her twitching ears. She just ignored it as she continued to approach the dog.

Then, slowly, she raised her hand up into the air. With a quick flex of her hand, the dog suddenly stiffened up, his eyes going wide. A nasty grin spread along Sandra’s face. Her fist tightened up. Fido’s body quivered and he started to howl in pain and agony. He flopped to the ground, convulsing and twitching his body left and right as he struggled to deal with the horrific pain sizzling through his body.

Keeping her hold on him like this, Sandra opened up the cage door and walked inside. She smirked down at the whimpering dog. She lowered herself enough so she could stroke him. Fido tried to snap at her, only to be haulted by an increased bout of pain. Sandra was careful not to do too much to the dog; she did not want him dying on her. Oh no...she had something much more important for him to do than that. Though dying might become part of the deal anyway.

“Oh I know it hurts, little one...” Sandra cooed as she stroked along the quivering dog’s flank. “It will continue to hurt for a while. And I’m afraid you are about to experience more pain.” Sandra watched as the dog’s eyes widened, as though he understood what she was talking about. “But don’t worry...I will make it as quick as I can, and I will heal you afterwards so you won’t be in as much pain.” She grinned. “I promise...”

With that said, Sandra rummaged through the bag she had nearly forgotten was strapped around her body. She grabbed onto the air spray can or whatever it was called that she grabbed during her escape. It had to do with cleaning computer keys or something. But now it was going to serve a much better purpose.

Returning to the dog and setting the can close to her, she proceeded to carefully slice the dog’s stomach open. She ignored the dogs yelping and yippering as she continued to proceed.

And once she was done with Fido, she would proceed to her next target.

The Beanie Boys.

Chapter 11: The Return Of Terror

So here I go again, chasing you down again...
-Over And Over, Three Days Grace





Time seemed to slow down to a crawl. It was difficult to tell just how fast things were really moving. In the frightened boy’s mind, the only thing that he could process was a set of jaws and blood red eyes looking directly at him, as though he were some kind of prey that it was trying to hunt.

Run.. He had to run... He had to get out of here and now. He tried to pump the energy in through his legs. He tried to make himself get up and run. He tried to flee this horrible situation.

That’s when he realized it.

He couldn’t run.

But...why? He has to be able to run. His brain constantly screamed at him to move. He tried so hard to obey it. He tried to get himself to get up and run. He could feel some kind of burning sensation in his legs. He could feel his toes slightly twitching at the faintest provocation. He just needed to listen to his mind and get up. That’s all he had to do. Just get up and run away. Get away. Somewhere safe.

Please...let him leave... That’s all he wanted to do. He just wanted to go somewhere where he didn’t have to worry about this anymore. He just wanted to be safe. Was that so wrong?

Then..why wasn’t his body responding? Why was he still just sitting here? Why wasn’t he moving? His legs were right there. He could sense them. All he had to was just...move them, gawd damn it. Please move... Come on body...please move. Why wasn’t it working? The threat was getting closer. The teeth. The red eyes. Getting closer. Why wasn’t he moving...?

Then the blue mouth opened up a little more. The angle had shifted slightly. It was now directly in front, straight on. He could not longer see the eyes. Just the sharp teeth. And when he saw them, something flashed in the back of his mind. The boy immediately stiffened at them.

There was an echo of white flashes in the back of his mind. They dominated his consciousness. They crawled into the back of his head, forcing him to keep remembering them. No matter how hard he tried to push them away, they just refused to stop. It was as though something else was controlling them, driving them through his mind like some kind of large drill. And as the flashes continued, he started to realize what they were.

Memories of what happened to him five years ago.

Sandra charging towards him. Opening her jaws. Her teeth in his neck. Hitting against the ground. A tighter grip. The horrible pain. And then...

A loud crack.

His neck had been broken.

He couldn’t even blink his eyes as he was struck with the cold, harsh realization. That’s right... He couldn’t get up. He had been paralyzed in the legs. He could not move his legs to get away. He could not move.

He was paralyzed.

And with this, came an onslaught of something else. Burning, seething, rising up in the back of his head. He could feel it clawing its way to the surface. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t stop it. He could feel his body shaking. He thought he could hear his friends calling out to him. But no matter what, he couldn’t even respond to them. It was as though his voice had been stolen away from him. All he could do was stare out ahead as the slow moving mouth with sharp teeth got closer.

His mind was locked in fear. He couldn’t turn away. This wretched emotion, it refused to allow him to look anywhere. The only direction that he could look in was....straight ahead. Directly at this menace. He licked his lips slowly, and he did the only thing he could think of.

He screamed.

“Help me! Somebody, help me!”

“Rudy!”

Rudy became aware of someone rushing towards him. He turned his head. His vision was too wonky right now to fully recognize who it was. But this person...looked so familiar. It was Penny, wasn’t it? Yes, he’d recognize her soothing voice anywhere. He could see her rushing over, trying to grab onto him.

But then there was a flash of blue. He heard Penny grunt. He heard her scream as red splattered everywhere. Her blood...it caked her arm as she staggered back. Rudy widened his eyes, barely able to process this. He tried to speak out, yell at her, try to get a response. He heard other shouts. His other friends slamming into the ground as well. And that’s when he felt something shift. He turned his head, and he almost screamed.

Sandra was on his wheelchair. The sky blue dragon leered down at him intently, her tongue moving along her lips before she distorted her facial muscles into a snarling smile. Rudy was immediately frozen in terror, his blood turning into chilling ice.

And for what felt like a long time, they simply stared at each other. Rudy felt drawn in to her eyes. Those crimson eyes that bored through his very soul.. They kept staring at him, studying him, looking as if they were daring him to make a move. Her mouth remained curled in that vicious, evil smile. There was a glint in her eye. Upon seeing it, Rudy managed to force himself to take in a shuddering breath and lick his lips slowly. He tried to say something, but his voice had been muted.

“Hello there, Rudy.” Sandra said with a dark inflexion in her voice. “I’m..so happy to see you again. How have you been..?”

Rudy couldn’t think to speak. He could only whimper, cringing as far away from her as he could. He wanted to wheel away so badly, but he couldn’t; Sandra’s talons were wrapped around the wheels and she was balancing herself by leaning her weight towards him. He couldn’t even try to get away anymore. He had missed his chance.

Sandra’s eyes shifted down as she turned her head downwards to look at what he was in. She moved her snout along as she trailed her eyes along the contraption that she had forced him in years ago. “Hmm... Nice accomodations, Rudy. I see you have been....adapting well...” She tilted her head to one side. “You been enjoying yourself..?”

Rudy struggled to say something in response. He licked his lips nervously. He drug in a few more shaky breaths. But he still could not speak. He could only whimper and struggle not to vomit. He could feel something lurching in his stomach. His stomach wanted to... No..he couldn’t vomit, not here. What would Sandra do if he..?

He suddenly jerked when he felt Sandra’s had on his face. He felt flashes in his mind from when she touched him when he was still paralyzed. He suddenly felt utterly helpless. If he couldn’t move before, now he really couldn’t move. He could only stare at Sandra as she caressed his cheek a little.

“Oh aren’t you so cute? Acting all afraid...” Sandra chuckled softly. “I never really realized just..how adorable you can be.”

Rudy managed to chocke out, “P-Please don’t hurt me...”

Sandra widened her eyes and she made a mock gasp of shock. “Me? Hurt you?” She placed her hand against herself and then motioned towards him. She then gave him a false, reassuring smile. “Oh dear little Rudy...” She began to stroke his forehead and hair. Rudy shuddered and let out a low whine. “Wherever did you get that idea...?”

“Leave our friend alone!” Shouted Mint.

Sandra paused and pulled her head back. She looked over at where Mint was rushing towards them. His hand was curled up into a fist and he looked just about ready to strike. Rudy looked on in horror, his mouth stumbling, trying to find the strength to say ‘no please go away Mint’. Anything to keep his friend from getting himself hurt. And when he saw Sandra’s tail raise up, he shook his head in desperation, hoping that Mint would change course and go away before Sandra could hit him.

Then he noticed more shapes coming over. Positioned at different locations, Penny and Snap glared at Sandra. Their bodies were hunched, their teeth gritted in determination. Nothing about their body language indicated that they were going to leave any time soon. They just focused on glaring at Sandra, looking just as eager to jump on her as Mint was.

Upon seeing his two additional friends looking ready to fight, Sandra gave pause. She narrowed her eyes, looking as if she were really reconsidering her current position. She looked from Rudy and to his friends, repeating this pattern a few times. Then she settled on looking at him, her eyes resting upon his own. A smile slowly spread across her face and she gave a dark chuckle before she jumped back from him, flapping her arms and flying a short distance above him.

She turned her attention to Mint. She opened her mouth and let out a loud hiss. Mint ignored this warning and he took out a piece of magic chalk and raised it up. Sandra’s eyes flickered, showing an expression that was close to fear. She quicklly recovered and, clearly determined to stop him, she dove down twoards Mint, splitting her mouth further open in hopes of biting into him.

However, Mint was faster than she was. With several flicks of his wrist, he was able to quickly draw something before Sandra had time to react. In his hands, he was now holding a long bat with small spikes decorated on it. Rudy widened his eyes at the sight. True to Mint’s character; if he felt something needed to be done, he was not afraid to bring out the big guns. But even knowing that Sandra had this coming did nothing to stop Rudy from looking on in horror as Mint struck Sandra against her shoulder and side of her neck.

The impact’s thud almost seemed to echo. Sandra let out a screech as the spikes raked across her shoulder and neck. They did not cut deeply, but it was enough to make the dragon zoner fall into the ground. The bipedal dragon rolled across the ground before landing in a heap a few feet away. Mint took immediate position in front of Rudy, seething with his teeth clenched, holding up the bat threateningly.

“Don’t you fucking dare hurt him...” Mint warned her, growling lowly. “I swear... If you dare take another step closer and I will crack your skull open with this... I swear it...”

Though clearly a bit unnerved by that threat, Penny and Snap did nothing to protest. They merely took a closer position beside Rudy, providing further protection from the deranged blue dragon. They glared at Sandra, growling softly, eyes narrowed in determination. They said not a word, and their bodies trembled in emotion. Their narrowed eyes gave Sandra a clear message: they weren’t going to leave.

Rudy wanted to shout at his friends to leave. He wanted them to get out of here as soon as possible. He...He didn’t want to see them get hurt. It just wasn’t fair. They shouldn’t have to get hurt. It was him that Sandra was after, right? Maybe...if he could get her attention, then...

Sandra laughed as she climbed up to her feet. She hunched her body a little, holding her arms and hands in an awkward manner, almost as if she were some kind of dinosaur. Her tail raised up, arching, the tail turning so that all four spikes were pointed in their direction. Her lips were curled upwards to expose her teeth, and her mouth stretched back in an almost unnatural state. Her sharp teeth glintched in the light of the Day Zone sun.

“You are all such....wonderful friends to your little pet here...” Sandra cooed. She looked directly at Rudy for a moment, giving off a soft chuckle. Mint, Penny, and Snap just glared at her while Rudy cringed further away, struggling not to let out another whimper. “I see he is well trained now. Stuck in a wheelchair. Heh...such a perfect punishment for such a little promise breaker...”

“You...little fuck!” Mint raised his spiked bat up once more. “You’re the one who put him there! Have you no shame?!”

Sandra straightened herself up, tapping her chin thoughtfully with a finger. “Hmm...let me think about this...” She then closed her eyes and raised her hand up dismissively. She shook her head once and said, “Nah..not really. Why should I?” She reopened her eyes and smirked at them. “I mean...the little runt did deserve what he got. If he hadn’t...”

That was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Despite Penny’s shouts for him to stop, Mint rushed over towards Sandra, raising up his bat, determined to strike her down. Sandra looked up at him and smirked, not at all surprised by this turn of events. It was almost as though she had expected it....

“Wait! Mint! Come back!” Rudy shouted as a realization dawned on him. “Get out of here, before she...!”

Mint did not seem to hear him. He let out a shout as he raised the bat higher, his arm muscles tightening. Sandra chortled at this, which only seemed to make Mint madder. He broughtit down, attempting to strike her...

...only for Sandra to jump to one side, using her wings to move herself further in a single bound. Mint stumbled forward, unable to stop himself. His eyes widened as he turned to her, and in those few seconds before Sandra made her next move, Mint seemed to realize just what was coming. His expression was replaced with one of pain as he screamed, Sandra wacking her tail against his side and knocking him into the ground.

“Oh...so close! Better luck next time, I suppose!” Sandra placed one hand against her elbow and the other under her chin, shaking her head in disappointment. “You should also work on your form a little more.”

Snap snarled. Though fear was still on his face, there was now rage. Upon seeing how Sandra treated Mint, and hearing how she was talking of them, it seemed to cause something to click inside his mind. Snap let out a yell as he charged forward.

However, he was not as lucky as Mint had been. At least he had only been knocked into the ground. To Rudy’s horror, Sandra decided not to be so merciful on Snap. As soon as she raised her hand up, everyone knew exactly what was going to come.

“W-Wait... Ahhh!” Snap screamed as he clutched against his back. He immediately dropped into the ground, his legs twitching frantically, his body flipping about as he struggled to fight against the pain. “Please stop this! Please...I...” His voice was dissipated into more screams.

“Stop that!” Rudy shouted, tears strolling down his face. “Please, Sandra! Leave him alone!”

Penny was silent, too stunned and horrified to say anything. She held up the magic chalk, clearly wanting to do something to help their friend. But she remained frozen, trembling hard, her eyes unable to tear away from where Snap was convulsing on the ground. Her fear-filled eyes told the story well. And Sandra’s sneer in her direction confirmed it. If Penny tried to make a move, then Sandra was going to make one of her own.

And Snap might not make it out alive.

Sandra, on the other hand, showed no signs of letting up. She merely intensified her grip on Snap, causing the zoner to let out a loud scream of agony. She laughed at his pain, as though it was the most amusing thing in the world. She twisted her hand, making him writhe even more.

“This is quite interesting. Snappy boy...you never told me that you had a prosthetic vertebrate...”

At this, everyone froze immediately in horror. They could not believe what they just heard. They looked at each other before gluing their eyes back upon Sandra. None of them dared to speak. Even Mint, who had gotten from the ground and had tried to get to Sandra, had stopped, afraid that if he took one step closer, that was going to be it for their friend.

Snap looked the most horrified by this statement. And why shouldn’t he? He was the one writhing on the ground, tossing and turning as though Sandra had a saw in her hand, ready to be used upon him. Snap let out a series of frightened whimpers. Intermixed in those were small words like ‘please don’t’ and ‘let me go’. Sandra merely chuckled at this as she looked at him with an interested expression, as though he was some kind of fascinating thing that she found.

“So fascinating...I wonder how they even got this thing in there...” Sandra walked up to Snap, eyeing him carefully as she looked at his back. “And just how did this happen? Did someone...hit you?”

Mint gulped at this. For a moment, he wore a guilty expression. Then he shook his head and managed to take a step forward. He pointed a finger in Sandra’s direction and shouted, “Hey why don’t you back off and leave him alone?!”

Sandra lifted her head up and stared over at Mint. There was a twinkle in her eye, as though she realized something. “Mind explaining to me what happened, then?” When she noticed Mint faulter, she grinned maniacally. “I knew it... You were the one who hurt Snap, weren’t you? How delightful..” She looked back down at Snap. “You caused him enough damage to need a new vertebrate. Such a risky procedure.” She gave him a sideways glance. “I must commend you.”

Mint started to tremble in emotion. “F-Fuck you...”

“Heheheh...whatever...” Sandra sneered.

Penny narrowed her eyes and called out, “What Mint did was an accident! What you’re doing is deplorable!” She pointed at Sandra, who just stared back blankly, as though Penny weren’t saying anything. “You’re the one who is... How could you think of being so cruel?!”

“I’m not being cruel at all...” Sandra placed a hand to herself, arching her body backwards while her tail curved in one direction. “But..if you really think that I am being...unfair...” She returned to her previous posture. Her narrowed, red eyes gleamed in Penny’s direction. “Snap is the one who started the whole thing. He’s the one who betrayed my trust. And he is the one who turned those zoners against me. He is, in many ways, responsible for what happened to me.”

Rudy coud feel disgust clinging to his stomach. A part of him was not at all surprised that Sandra was saying this. But another part just wanted to snap at her, despite his fear. How could she even think of trying to blame Snap for what happened to her? She’s the one who... who had... He could feel himself steam as the back of his mind quaked with the memory of what Sandra had put Snap through. How dare she try to put the blame on him...

“Besides...I am just curious about his back here...” Sandra looked down at Snap. The zoner was still shaking and crying at this point. “I mean, to need a prosthetic...lots of damage had to have been dealt. Maybe if I did some searching around in there, I could...”

“Fuck off!”

Before Rudy realized what he was doing, before he could try to stop himself, he just...lost it. Grabbing onto Penny’s chalk, ignoring her shout of protest at him, he pulled his arm back and he tossed the chalk as hard as he could towards Sandra.

After spinning around in the air a few times, the object hit Sandra square on her forehead. Her eyes widened as she let out a small shout of pain. She took a step back and she clutched her head tightly, her hands pressed close to the middle of her forehead where the triangular mark was located. Her hold on Snap seemed to have loosened up as Snap managed to climb to his feet and staggered away.

“Rudy...” Penny whispered, her voice tinged in fear. “Wh-What did you...”

Upon hearing Penny’s voice, Rudy’s eyes bulged wide open. He stared off at where Sandra was holding her head, the piece of magic chalk now laying by her feet. It didn’t seem like she noticed, however. Her focus seemed to be on her forehead.

Mint stared over at Rudy in shock. “Rudy, you...”

Snap, who had managed to stagger towards Penny, also looked quite stunned. He might not have seen that Rudy threw that chalk, but his expression made it very clear that he was aware of what happened. “Thanks, Rudy.”

Although it was clear that Snap really did mean that, Rudy couldn’t help but hear it in a sarcasm mode. He just couldn’t help it. He had never done something this stupid before. And when Sandra looked back at him with those eyes practically glowing red, he gulped and cringed back further into his wheelchair.

“I-I...I...” Rudy managed to say, licking his lips slowly. “I didn’t mean...”

Sandra, on the other hand, was in no mood to listen to him. “You...little...promise breaker!”

Sandra jumped up into the air. She flapped her limbs hard, staring down at them with those red, murderous eyes. Her teeth were bared as she let out a low, loud growl that each of them could practically feel in their chests, rumbling through their hearts. She flexed her claws eagerly, her mouth corners tilting back into a very small smile. Then, without warning, she dove down towards the group, her feet brought forward and tilted up, her talons flexed and ready to tear into flesh.

Rudy stiffened at this. He couldn’t even bring himself to scream. He couldn’t hear what any of his friends were saying. The only thing he could do was just watch for several moments before, at least, managing to do something. Shutting his eyes tightly, he turned his head away and waited for the impact.

However, it never came. Rudy could a thud sound and an irritated yet pained shriek. Curious, but still frightened, Rudy managed to open his eyes and look over to see what had happened.

Mint had been able to take action. Moving just as quickly as before, the slightly older teenager was able to strike out against Sandra once more, using the same bat as before. Sandra now laid upon her back, groaing a little as blood dripped along her chest where Mint had struck her.

But Sandra was not down for long. With a growl, she jumped up into the air, flipping herself around so that she now stood on all fours. She raised her tail up and shook it from side to side as though she were some kind of snake. She growled in Mint’s direction, narrowing her eyes at him. She opened up her mouth, showing off her sharp teeth once more. Then she launched herself at them...

...only to be slammed against a small wall that Mint just finished drawing. The sky blue dragon was smooshed against the wall, looking almost comedic. She dropped into the ground and held onto her nose, patting it gingerly. She soon looked back at them and adopted an aggressive stance. Neither took eyes off the other.

Rudy gulped as he kept asking himself one question: what was going to happen now...?

sss

It was difficult for Snap to process just what was going on here. He couldn’t stop staring at Sandra as she stood before them, glaring intently at them. It was difficult to say when the next move would have been made. Sandra was just...staring at them, breathing heavily, her mouth open to show her sharp teeth. Snap wanted to say something, anything, to try to put an end to this nightmarish staredown.

But he remained quiet. His voice couldn’t find its way out of his throat. He could only focus on what laid ahead of him. He just couldn’t stop staring at Sandra. And it seemed as though she could not stop staring at them. Those red eyes...they were looking right down into his soul...

Snap’s mind raced as he tried to comprehend just what was going on here. He...He couldn’t believe that Sandra was here... He had hoped it was some kind of nightmare. But the longer he stayed here, the more he became convinced that...no this is no nightmare. Sandra really was here, freed of that isolation cell she belonged in, free to do whatever she wanted. And the worst part of it all was...

...she was no longer hindered by that helmet..

Snap felt his gut twisting as he stared at that triangle mark, the central of her so-called ‘super healing powers’. He could still feel the pain in his back from where Sandra had used her abilities. He could see clearly in his head memories of what took place years ago, how she had used her powers on him, how she had used her teeth to tear apart his stomach... He placed his hand over his stomach as he remembered that gruesome detail, feeling the phantom pain snake through his body.

He took a moment and looked around him. He flinched as he saw all the damage that Sandra had done in such a short time. There weren’t anymore zoners running through here, which was something of a relief since no one else would get hurt. At least for now. But that bit of good news did not shake off the sickening feeling forcing its way into the very back of his throat as he looked at the carnage that laid all around them.

Body parts everywhere... Blood and guts and gore... He could see some bodies ripped apart. He could see a few zoners on the ground, still convulsing. He could see others just starting to die at last. Others were already dead, eyes wide open and staring into nothingness. And all the while, the color red had filled up his vision. He could have sworn that, for a while, red was the only color that he was truly aware of.

He turned his head and he looked back at Sandra. He gulped as he watched how she paced around them slowly. With the shield not being long enough to cover them all, they had to shift themselves around, following in Sandra’s lead to keep the shield in front of her. This would not stop her powers from getting to them, but they did at least stop her from being able to jump at them with those sharp teeth and claws of hers.

Snap could feel his mind spinning, swirling, struggling to find a way out of this. There just...had to be something that he could do. He couldn’t just stand there and do nothing. He licked his lips slowly, trying to think of something..anything...

But...even if he could figure out something...would it even be enough? Sandra was going all out. It was unlikely that anything he did was going to deter her. He could see the look in her eyes, and he could hear the way that she was growling. She was fully ready to strike, and that wild look in her eyes indicated that she was not going to back down so easily.

Still, he had to try. If he didn’t, then...

“Anyone willing to make a move?” Sandra’s voice broke the silence, cutting through the air and ringing over their heads. They stiffened immediately, watching the dragon zoner carefully, confused, as she straightened herself up quickly, making a few small gestures with her hand. “Or are all of you out already? I’d be disappointed if that were the case. I mean...I planned all this...” She held her hands out indicating the area all around them. “To think that I wasted my time doing that....” She chuckled and shook her head, placing a hand over her face. “I do hope that you all prove me wrong...”

Mint gritted his teeth tightly. “Oh you want to be proven wrong, eh?” He raised up his bat again. He slammed a smooth portion into his palm repeatedly, narrowing his eyes. “I would be glad to provide that...”

Sandra chuckled at this. “I would not doubt you for a second, my dear creator.” Sandra moved herself around a little until she was positioned in front of Mint. She regarded him with a level of curiosity, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “Though I’ve got to ask....” Her eyes soon rested upon the club. “How well would you fight without that?”

Snap widened his eyes at this. He looked over at Mint nervously, as did Penny and Rudy. They all understood exactly where Sandra was going with this. They...They couldn’t allow her to trick Mint like this. If he were to leave from the relative safety of the shield to out there....

“How I fight is none of your business, Sandra!” Mint shouted. Snap and the others stifled a sigh of relief as Mint showed no signs of being fooled by Sandra into coming out. “The real question is....” He raised the club up higher. “Are you willing to take me on without resorting to using your powers?”

Silence at this. Sandra stared at him with wide shocked eyes. She was quite still and quiet, just like Snap, Penny, and Rudy. They could not take their eyes off of Mint, wondering if he had just gone off the deep end. He couldn’t possibly be serious...

Could he?

Snap stared wide-eyed at Mint, unable to believe what was going on. Was Mint really seriously going to... No, he couldn’t.... If he tried to... Sandra would... Snap wanted to say something... anything... to get Mint to change his mind. He just couldn’t be serious about this. Mint knows just how dangerous Sandra is. She had dislocated his jaw before and messed with his chopped leg. He had been lucky. Snap had his doubts that Sandra would be so merciful this time around.

But that didn’t seem to bother Mint. It was hard to tell if he was simply ignoring it, or if he really did forget what Sandra had put him through. He simply glared off in Sandra’s direction with that challenging smirk, showing no signs of backing down any time soon. The tension this created made the air around them quite thick, and they all watched with great nervousness as Mint faced off against Sandra.

“So...you really do want to go through with this, do you?” Sandra straightened herself, her arms becoming folded behind her back. “Well isn’t that an...interesting turn of events.” She paused for a few moments, as if to ponder this situation. It seemed clear, from the look in her eyes, that she had not considered this kind of situation. “Okay then... I suppose you and I could have a little fun together.” She motioned her hand towards him. “Why don’t you come over here and we can have our little spar.”

Mint narrowed his eyes deeply. “No powers?”

Sandra raised her hand up. “No powers.” Then she pointed at Mint, giving a glare of her own. “No magic chalk?”

Rudy, Penny, and Snap stared at Mint with wide, terrified eyes. They all hoped that he would come to his senses and not do anything crazy... but this was proven wrong when Mint suddenly dropped both his magic chalk and the weapon. He raised his hands at his in the air, and after giving a nod of his head, he told Sandra one thing.

“It’s a deal.”

Sandra grinned at this. “Excellent...”

Penny grabbed onto Mint tightly, yanking him a little towards her. The two locked eyes with each other. Penny’s expression was... it was enough to make Snap wince. It even seemed to give Mint pause for a moment. “Mint, you can’t do this! You know what will happen if you...”

“I know it’s crazy. But..I’ve got to do this.” Mint narrowed his eyes. He gently pushed Penny’s hand from his arm. “Please, just...trust me on this.”

“Mint...” Rudy spoke up. He stared long and hard at Mint. He couldn’t seem to bring himself to say anything else. He was just slowly shaking his head, looking as though he was whispering the word ‘no’ over and over again.

Mint looked at him sadly, and released a small sigh. He managed to force a smile and he placed a hand on Rudy’s shoulder and said, “I will be all right. I promise..”

There was a noticeable twinkle in Sandra’s eyes. The line she spoke next caused Snap’s blood to freeze. “I sure hope you can keep that promise...” She raised her hands up as if prepared to fly again. “I would hate to think what would happen if you end up just like the promise breaker there.”

Upon being pointed at, Rudy let out a small whimper. Despite his clear attempts to be brave, seeing Sandra again after so long was having a toll on his mind. And none of them could really blame Rudy for how he was reacting. Sandra did almost kill him before. There was no telling how much closer she’d get with that goal at this point. Especially now that she seemed to have less of a limit and her powers were back.

In response to Sandra’s comment regarding Rudy, Snap and Penny huddled closer to Rudy. They grabbed onto his hands to try to comfort him while shifting their glaring gaze in Sandra’s direction. Mint took a step forward, keeping his defensive stance in front of Rudy. He was quite close to the shield that separated him from Sandra, his narrowed eyes showing no sign of backing down or relenting. This show of bravery only seemed to further amuse Sandra.

“So you’re really going go through with this. I suppose I shouldn’t really be surpirsed about that.” Sandra lowered herself, rendering her back parallel to the ground like a dinosaur. She gave a snarling grin over in Mint’s direction. “Okay then, my ‘dear creator’... Let’s get this over with.”

Mint took another step forward. This time, he started to lift the shield up so he could continue to go through. But before he had moved over completely, he suddenly stopped. He stared at Sandra long and hard before uttering, “...you promise...?”

Snap immediately realized what Mint was doing. He recalled, with some chilling memories, how Sandra was utterly obsessed with promises. She wouldn’t dare break one of her own...would she?

He looked over at her, his eyes a mixture of wide and narrowed as he stared at Sandra cautiously. Then again...with how she is now, would she even be in the right mental state to keep it a secret? She might claim to agree, only to utterly betray her own beliefs in favor of getting to them. Who knows how much damage being isolated for so long has done to her...?

Snap couldn’t help but swallow, feeling his heart race against his chest. In the past, he had been glad to hear about Sandra being locked up. He had thought that she deserved it. But now that she was out, he was starting to wonder if Sandra should have been put to death instead.

Yes...they really should have done that.

Sandra kept staring at Mint in silence slowly moving her tail from side to side. Her stare bored straight through Mint like some kind of invisible drill. The silence become thick, spreading all around them. None of them dared to move or breathe. Sandra’s expression was entirely unreadable; she could go in either direction. Everyone held their breath as they waited for a response.

Then Sandra raised her head up a little, giving a small smile. “I promise.”

sss

“I promise.”

Mint allowed this to ring throug his head. He continued to stare at Sandra to make sure that she had actually meant it. There did not seem to be any change in her expression and she merely nodded her head to confirm.

It was difficult to say if she was being honest or not. She might be lying. Maybe her mind was more warped when she was isolated. Then again, she might still hold true to the promise thing. She did speak rather harshly to Rudy about being a ‘promise breaker’. It seemed unlikely she’d do that unless...unless she still adhered to that. And in that case, it was quite possible to still exploit that and make her avoid using her powers on him.

At least, he hoped that would be the case. He knew that this collaborative creation of his was full of surprises. She was hardly like anything that he had intended at this point. He could barely recognize her at all. If it weren’t for her design and the location she had appeared when when she first arrived, he would have denied her being his creation entirely.

Mint watched as Sandra curled her finger back and forth, beckoning him to come over. He paused for a moment and looked back over at his friends. He could see how they were looking at him, shaking their heads, clearly hoping that he would not be dumb enough to walk out, especially when he had no magic chalk to protect him. Mint could feel his gut twisting as he looked to see just how upset each of his friends looked, and he felt horrible about doing this.

Still, he knew he had to do something. He did have a plan of sorts, but it was so risky that he dare not tell it to them right now. For now, he will just keep playing up the bravado and continue on with this suicidal mission. If Sandra keeps her promise, at least he would not be harmed by her powers.

Her claws and teeth however...

He couldn’t help but flinch. He could already feel them rakig his body, slicing through his meat... Despite that, he still pressed him forward. Narrowing his eyes, he soon left the safety of the shield and walked towards Sandra.

Stopping a few feet away from her, he stared intently at her. He took in slow, steady breaths, keeping his racing heart and mind in check. This lasted for several moments, neither saying a word. Sandra soon took a small step towards him, but also gave pause, almost as though she was uncertain.

Mint took this chance to give a little taunt, hoping to entice Sandra into a brawl with him. That would give enough time for.... “So are we going to do this or what? Or are you suddenly too chicken?”

Behind him, he could hear his friends suddenly gasp in horror. He didn’t have to look back at them to know what kinds of expressions that they were making. He felt a pang in his stomach as he realized just how worried and horrified for him that they were. Despite that, he kepet his focus only on Sandra.

The blue dragon zoner seemed a little taken aback by his taunt. He saw how her body had almost immediately straightened, her eyes going wide like red-stained saucers, her pupils shrinking a tad. This only lasted a few moments before Sandra narrowed her eyes, flashing her teeth in a snarl. Mint only smiled in response. This was exactly the kind of response that he wanted.

When Sandra gave the initial charge, Mint was momentarily frozen. The back of his mind flashed with images of Sandra yanking out his jaw, and how she had come so close to ripping it off completely. He could feel the sharp pain in his jaw and he found himself gingerly rubbing its hinges before he snapped himself back to reality. He planted his feet firmly on the ground and waited for the right moment.

As soon as Sandra was about three feet in front of him, he took action. He jumped to the side, turning himself in a wide circle as Sandra’s momentum kept her moving forward. The dragon turned her head and let out a loud snarl in his direction. Her feet clamored to turn herself around, but Mint managed to get in close to her before she could fully shift her body around. He did not hesitate to push against her, his hands ramming against solid muscle. This push was enough to nearly knock Sandra off her feet. But to Mint’s horror, she recovered a little quicker than he had expected.

Before he knew it, Sandra had rammed into him and bit down on his shoulder. Mint opened his mouth and let out a scream. He could her the shouts of his horrified friends. Even though his pain, however, Mint still told them to stay away, not wanting them to get tangled up in this mess. There was still a chance for his plan to work. He just needed to keep Sandra’s attention for a while.

Mint started punching Sandra against her eye and side of her face. These actions did cause the dragon to loosen her grip on him. She reluctantly began to pull away, but some of her teeth still remained in his shoulder. With an open palm, he slapped the tip of her nose as hard as he could, which caused her to open her mouth and yelp, recoiling.

Taking this opportunity, Mint struck out with one of his legs. His foot collided with Sandra’s leg, against her shin. The dragon’s eyes widened and she toppled into the ground. But though this seemed like a victory for him, Mint couldn’t help but feel that something was....wrong about this.

And he turned out to be right. Sandra didn’t drop down due to the pain. She dropped down so she could get a better angle and...

Mint let out a scream as Sandra lunged at him, looking very much like a pouncing lion or leopard. Her blood stained mouth, which she was not responding to at all, as though it was not there, was split wide open as she was prepared to bite into him again. Mint barely managed to dodge before it was too late. He winced as he heard a thud beside him, feeling a small rush of air which served as a reminder to him of just how close Sandra had gotten to getting him.

Mint soon regained his senses and launched himself at the blue dragon. He wrapped his arms around her neck and held on tightly. Immediately Sandra began to struggle, jerking her body from side to side, struggling to get the human off of her back. Mint just held on tighter, applying pressure against her throat. This caused Sandra to gag, and increased her efforts to get free.

“Mint! Stop this! Let us help you!” Penny shouted at him, her voice tinged with horror. “Please...you can’t do this on your own!”

Snap nodded his head in agreement. His legs were trembling, his mouth hanging open, his eyes wide in terror. “Please...we don’t want to see you getting hurt!”

“You’re our friend, Mint!” Rudy joined in. Even though there was almost nothing that he could do right now, he still stared at Mint intently, his desire to help him clearly shining in his eyes. “Let one of us help you! Please!”

Mint was tempted to accept their help. He didn’t know how long he could keep this up. He was bound to get injured again. It mattered not if Sandra did not use her powers on him; she was still quite strong and it didn’t help that she had actually gotten bigger since the last time that they saw her. She could still deal serious damage, and he was at a disadvantage without the magic chalk.

But he did not want to see them getting hurt. He didn’t want them to endure any pain if he could help it. At least in this way, only he would get the serious injuries. He didn’t know if he could live with himself if he allowed any of his friends to get hurt. Especially Rudy, who was trapped in a wheelchair.

“No! Stay back!” Mint called out to them. He gritted his teeth as he struggled to hang onto the struggling blue dragon beneath him. “I-I won’t allow...”

Suddenly a dark chuckle escaped from Sandra’s throat. It was enough to silence Mint as he felt his body temperature going down at a swift rate. He could see intent practically shining from her eyes. Just what was she up to...?

“S-So...you don’t want your friends getting hurt? Ain’t that sweet...?” Sandra looked up at Mint intently with one eye. Her smile grew ever more twisted. “It would just...kill you inside if something were to happen to them...right...?”

Mint shot his eyes open wide when he realized what she was talking about. “No...wait!” His heart rate started to speed up. “You can’t..!”

Sandra merely gave him an insane smile before she raised up her hand. Before Mint could do anything to stop her, the dragon zoner suddenly clinched her hand into a fist and there was a brief flash of light on her forehead. This was almost immediately followed by a blood curdling sceam that he immediately recognized came from his friends.

“No!” Mint cried out as he swiveled his head in time to see Penny drop down onto her knees, holding onto her stomach. Snap was no batter, curling inward on himself. With tears starting to emerge from his eyes, Mint turned to Sandra and called out, “Please stop it! You’re hurting them!”

Sandra gave a dark giggle. “That’s the idea...”

Mint looked on in horror as Penny and Snap screamed and writhed in pain. Rudy, who had been mysteriously left alone, joined Mint as he looked at his friends with wide, terrified eyes. His head turned left and right, watching as his friends continued to suffer under the power of Sandra.

“Penny! Snap!” Rudy’s voice was tinged in utter horror. His pupils had shrunk so much, they didn’t look like they were there anymore. He turned to Sandra licking his lips nervously. “Please...let them go!” He pleaded with her. “I-It’s me that you want... I’m the one who broke the promise! Please...let them go and I’ll go with you!”

“R-Rudy...you can’t...” Snap managed to say through clenched teeth.

Penny said in a pained voice, “Please...Rudy... Don’t...”

Sandra only smiled at this ‘amusing display’, as she would call it. “That is such a noble act, dear little Rudy. It’s just a darn shame that..I didn’t come here for that.”

Rudy stared at her with a shocked expression. “Y-You didn’t...? But I thought...”

“I don’t worry, Rudy. In due time, I’ll do...something about you. I make you that promise.” Sandra grinned maniacally as she said the word ‘promise’. Rudy’s eyes bulged and he cringed back in his chair, watching Sandra with terrified eyes. The dragon zoner turned her head and she stared intently at Snap. “I just have...something else to attend with...”

Mint pulled on Sandra’s head, attempting to jerk her head backwards and deter her from going through with this. But no matter how hard he tried, he just could not get her to stop. With his heart’s pounding echoing in his skull, he screeched at her, “I thought we had a deal! You promised that you wouldn’t use your powers!”

“Yeah..On you.” Sandra chortled as Mint froze. “I said I wouldn’t use my powers to attack you. But...I never said anything about your precious little friends over there...”

Mint felt his heart nearly stop beating at this. Sandra had... She had tricked him... The little fiend had tricked him... Mint could feel his blood heating up at this, his teeth clenching tightly to the point of nearly popping. He let out a low growl and he squeezed Sandra’s neck even tighter. “You...bitch...!”

Sandra let out a gagged gasp as Mint started to yank her backwards. The sudden pull was enough to cause her to lose her grip over Penny and Snap. Mint could hear Rudy calling frantically at thim to see if they were alright. But he could not see them; he was too focused on pulling Sandra back.

Sandra struggled to remain on her feet, her body wobbling from side to said. She nearly tripped over her own feet several times. She turned her head and snapped her jaws wildly at Mint, letting out loud snarls and hisses as she did so. Mint struggled to hang on, narrowly avoiding getting bit a few times. Despite Sandra’s tenacity, Mint refused to let go, tightening his grip, feeling Sandra’s racing pulse in her neck.

Then, without warning, Sandra suddenly dropped herself on all fours, raising her back and tail up in the process. The force of this was enough to dislodge Mint from her. The dark-haired teenager let out a scream as he was flung across several feet, colliding painfully with the concrete ground that made up the alleyway. He winced and yelped as he felt the concrete scrape painfully against his skin, creating several red, slightly bloody red marks.

“Mint! No!”

He lifted his head and he could see his friends looking at him in horror. And when he shifted his gaze a little, he could see Sandra standing there, once more down on all fours. Her tail swished from side to side in excitement before she launched herself at him. Mint froze, realizing that he could not react in time.

Mint let out a scream as he felt Sandra’s weight collide with him. He could feel her sharp talons piercing into his skin, drawing blood. Mint struggld and squirmed on the ground. Sandra shifted herself so that her weight kept him down. He could hear her laughing coldly at his attempts to get away from her.

“How does it feel being ridden on, you punk?!” Sandra slammed a foot against his back, making the boy cry out. “Oh what’s the matter?! Can’t handle it?!” Her claws hit against him again, digging further into his flesh. Mint couldn’t stifle the scream. “Isn’t that too bad?!”

“Leave him alone!”

“Huh?” Sandra paused and her eyes widened. “Snap..? You...”

The blue dragon didn’t get a chance to finish her sentence before the blue and white zoner collided with her. He pulled back his fist and struck her as hard as he could. Despite her larger size, Snap’s strike was enough to make Sandra stagger off of Mint, freeing him.

“S-Snap...” Mint started to say.

“No time! Get up!” Snap called out, motioning his hand to one side. “Get up and go!”

Mint watched Snap as he rushed towards Sandra again. The dragon zoner was hunched and still clearly reeling from the blow Snap had given to her sliced neck. She turrned her head and bared her teeth in a loud hiss as Snap lunged for her again. Mint was unable to look away as Snap clung to the front of Sandra, giving her a bite of his own. Sandra shrieked and glared down at him with wild, angered eyes as she attempted to bite him right back.

Mint took in several deep breaths, his mind racing. He couldn’t allow this to continue. He...He had to do something... He...

“Mint!”

Mint turned his head and he could see a horrified Penny rushing to his side. He could hear her feet pounding the ground heavily with each stride that she took. He couldn’t bring himself to respond to her and he looked back at where Snap was righting Sandra. Licking his lips nervously, he got up onto his feet and rushed over...

...only to be yanked back. He looked over and he could see Penny standing there, her hands locked around his one arm. She didn’t hesitate before she started to yank him backwards.

sss

“Penny! What are you doing?! Let me go!” Mint called out. He struggled and squirmed against Penny’s grasp, trying to get over to where Snap and Sandra were. “I have to save him!”

“Mint, you’re hurt!” Penny continued yanking him back, refusing to loosen her grip. Her racing mind prompted her to keep pulling. “I am not about to let you get even more hurt!”

“But...Snap...!”

“I’ll get him!” Penny yelled back. “You stay with Rudy!”

Penny didn’t know why Mint was being so stubborn. She was only doing what was best for him. She had seen what Sandra had done to him. She could see the bloody wounds and where the skin was torn. She could tell that he was hurt worse than he looked, and if she permitted him to keep fighting, he was just going to hurt himself more.

So despite his protests, she kept pulling him back. She knew at he would be safer near Rudy than in that battle. The magic chalk that he dropped was still there. He could use it to keep himself, and Rudy, safe. Plus the shield was still pup, floating around like some kind of cheap sci-fi thing. He could use this to keep himself somewhat safe from Sandra’s wrath.

Penny kept on flinching and wincing as he heard each thud and yelp from her friend. She wasn’t looking over in that direction right now, her eyes instead focused on what was behind her. But she could still tell what was going on. It didn’t take much for her to know that Sandra was delivering a few blows to her friend. Her heart clenched and she wanted to rush over and do something. The only thing stopping her was the fact that she had to get Mint to safety first.

Penny continued to drag the struggling Mint over to where Rudy was waiting. She almost lost him a few times when Mint nearly got free. She wrapped her arms around him, pinning his arms back, and continued to drag him, getting him closer and closer to where Rudy was. After plenty of struggling and yanking back, she managed to get Mint to Rudy’s side.

Mint did still try to take off, but thankfully Rudy stopped him. The boy grabbed onto his arm and pulled him back. Being in a wheelchair gave him an advantage and his grip was like a vice now. Mint squirmed, trying desperately to get free. Rudy held him back, looping his arms around Mint’s left one, preventing him from trying to leave.

Satisfied that Mint wasn’t going anywhere, Penny turned her head to see the situation with Snap. Her eyes widened in horror and she struggled not to let out a gasp.

Snap was pinned against the ground, Sandra standing over him with her head lowered towards him. Her mouth was split open, her lips curled up, snarling at him with her bared teeth. Snap had a hold of her neck and was attempting to push her back. Sandra continued to lower her head towards him, opening her mouth wider as she prepared to bite him.

“Snap! No!” Penny seized the magic chalk and, with Rudy still holding Mint back, she grabbed the magic chalk still on the ground and rushed over. She raised her hand up and prepared to draw.

Before she could even begin, however, Sandra had already launched her head forward. Penny’s eyes went wide and she struggled to move faster. She had to get over there quickly, before Sandra managed to bite him. If she could only move faster, she could...

Suddenly, she heard a loud hiss and grunt and she saw that Snap had managed to strike Sandra on her forehead. This caused the blue dragon to stagger off of him, holding her forehead tightly underneath her palms. Penny quickly realized that her forehead must be highly sensitive. Was this something she figured out before? Perhaps and she might have forgotten. But at least she knew this now. Maybe they could take advantage of this.

Penny stood several feet away as she watched Snap tango with Sandra. She was not able to take her eyes off. She found herself almost...entranced by what was going on before her. Snap had a hold of Sandra, and her of him, and the two moved around in circles, almost as though they really were dancing. But the goal was something far more vicious.

Sandra’s mouth was open, her sharp teeth ready and willing to tear Snap into shreds. Snap’s own teeth were bared, indicating that he was willing to bite if he truly had to. The two continued to push against each other. Slowly, Sandra was moving Snap back towards the wall and within seconds, she had him pinned.

Snap, however, didn’t seem to let this bother him. He pulled his foot back and he kicked her against her shin. Sandra let out a yelp, shutting her eyes and pulling her head back. She soon looked back at him, snarling even more viciously at him, her gums exposed, her teeth glinting. With her eyes nearly glowing, she launched her head forward and tried to bite him. Snap responded with another punch, the fist landing square against her forehead.

Sandra’s body hunched and she gave a violent shiver. She reopened her eyes and hissed in Snap’s direction, her mouth becoming part way open, nearly gritted. She raised a foot up and slammed it against Snap, forcing the zoner to let out a pained grunt. Snap squirmed and struggled, but he remained affectively pinned against the wall. And this time, with his arms pinned as well, pressed down by her claws, Snap could not stop Sandra from making a move against him.

Penny felt her blood freeze in horror when she saw Sandra raise her tail up. The ends of the tail spikes glinted in the light. The sight of them caused her to grasp her own throat, recalling how she had sliced her throat open all those years ago. She flinched, gritting her teeth, and gulped.

Hearing Snap’s scream of terror caused her to bring herself out of her temporary trance. With the magic chalk raised, she soon began to draw, moving her arm as quickly as she could before Sandra had time to strike.

But she realized, in horror, she would not be able to draw anything quick enough. Snap’s struggling increased in vigor as Sandra’s tail started to strike out towards him. Penny’s eyes widened in horror and she reached out forward, letting out a scream.

“Snap!”

Suddenly, there was a flash of green. No, several flashes. Something was moving about on the rooftops over them. A shadow moved along them, zigzagging one way to the other. This caused even Sandra to freeze, and the blue dragon looked up and around to see what was going on. Then, without warning, something large, green, and blurry struck against her, causing her to sprawl across the ground violently.

Penny looked over at the newcomer, and she sucked in a sharp breath. She rubbed her eyes a few times to make sure that she wasn’t seeing things. This almost seemed too good to be true....and yet there was no denying who stood before them now.

It was Ripclaw.

The large, green feathered raptor now stood in front of Snap protectively. Her body was arched low, her hands raised up and flexing her sharp claws. Her mouth split wide open to show Sandra her large, sharp teeth. Those piercing eyes glared off at Sandra, watching her every move.

Sandra shook her head as she climbed up to her feeth. She kept her body arched, tail raised, and she glared directly at Ripclaw. She opened her mouth and let out a loud shriek. She started to pace around, clearly trying to look for some kind of opening. Ripclaw was adamant, however, and she kept repositioning herself if needed, keeping Sandra out of reach of Snap.

“I-It worked..” She heard Mint breathe. “I can’t believe it worked...”

Penny had no idea what Mint was talking about. And at the moment, she didn’t care to ask. They still needed to get out of here. And with Ripclaw keeping Sandra busy, she could start drawing something to buy them a little bit of time. With Sandra focused on Ripclaw, Penny quickly began to draw.

By the end of it, she had drawn an electrified net. It might not be too much and it wouldn’t stop Sandra for long. But right now, they needed to get out of her and figure out a plan of how to deal with her. They were too ill prepared. She hated the idea of leaving but...there wasn’t much of a choice at the moment. It was either that...or they die here and no one can stop her.

With the net ready in hand, Penny began to rush over, moving as quickly as she could. She could see that Sandra had hunched her body further, getting ready to pounce. She hurried over, her feet pounding against the ground. She raised the net up, preparing to toss it over. As soon as Sandra launched herself into the air, that’s when Penny made the toss.

Sandra was an inch away from clawing at Ripclaw’s throat when the net caught onto her. She let out a startled shriek as electricity pumped through her body, sparkling loudly. She collapsed into the ground, struggling to get free. She ended up getting herself further entangled in it, leaving her letting out more screeches of frustration.

Using this opportunity, Penny yelled to the others, “Come on! Let’s go!”

They did not waste any time. Penny quickly drew a platform on Ripclaw’s back that Rudy could be hooked up to. After he was placed there, Ripclaw managing to easily balance his wheelchair due to her size and strength, she grabbed onto Snap and then Mint and dragged the two over. As soon as they were on all Ripclaw, they began to make a run for it.

Penny flinched as she heard a loud rip. She looked over and saw that Sandra had managed to free herself. The blue dragon glared at them and opened her jaws releasing a loud roar that chilled her to the bone.

Sandra, however, did not give chase. Penny didn’t know why. And judging from her friends’ expressions, neither did they. But she didn’t care right now. She was too exhausted, the terror of learning that she escaped having taken a toll on her. She collapsed against Ripclaw, feeling her soft feathers and muscles rippling under her skin. The friends continued to run, disappearing down the city.

sss

Sandra remained in her posture for several moments, her mouth remaining open as she let out a couple more loud screeches. Her fingers curled like a dinosaur’s would, her tail held straight out and swishing like an angered feline. Her talons tipped against the ground, ringing loudly everywhere. Only when the young humans got further enough away did she change her posture.

Relaxing in her usual slouch, folding her arms behind her back, she smirked at her handiwork. She couldn’t help but chucke. She couldn’t believe how easy this had been. She had expected more of a fight. She thought she’d have to try even harder. But they reacted...much better than she could have hoped for.

In fact, everyone did. It had been quite fun releasing her anger against the citizens around here. It had been tons of delight seeing them scream, watching them squirm. She rather enjoyed when she dropped Fido and caused him to explode, killing several zoners in the process. And of course she enjoyed making limbs explode and watch the zoners collapse and twitch in death throes. Oh yes...they all had this coming for a long time...

Sandra had all these pent up rages inside of her. She still had more; she could feel them swirling around inside of her. These zoners, all these zoners...they were nothing more than heathens. They had all helped make her life a miserable hell. Even if they weren’t at her trial, scolding her for no good reason, they were still responsible in that they did nothing to help her. As far as she was concerned, they all deserved what they got.

But though she would love to continue, perhaps find some more hapless victims and create more havoc, she decided that she did enough damage for now. After all, her goal wasn’t really to kill everyone. At least, not yet. No her goal was a lot more simple that she just got a tiny bit carried away with.

She had only been intending to send a message. A message that she was back and she meant business.

And it seemed that everyone in the city got her message.

She smirked twistedly to herself. The message had been read loud and clear, as evidenced by the loud siren going off and the distant screams. None of these pitiful zoners would be able to forget what happened. Even if she somehow lost, they would always remember the day that she had struck terror into their hearts. They regarded her as a monster, and she would give them a reason to keep thinking that.

And Rudy, Snap, Mint, and Penny... Now they were aware that she was back as well. Perfect... She noticed how they reacted to her, and she couldn’t help but smile. Rudy and Snap were especially terrified. That was good. She wanted them to be petrified of her. They were both going to be so much fun to play with later on.

But for now, she felt it was time to leave. The message that she left would be heard loud and clear for a long while after this. The sirens would continue to go off for a while, and the police would be trying to look for her. She had left her mark here, with all the bloodied and ripped apart bodies. And now that she had given them all this message, she could now depart.

Spreading out her forelimbs, Sandra leaped into the air and began to fly off towards the hideout. There were still some things she needed to do before she would really make her move. But there was one thing she knew for certain.

They would not forget this.

Chapter 13: A Different Jail

A weak, fallen man with the promise of an end...
-Fallen, 30 Seconds To Mars





“So there really hasn’t been any word yet?”

“Sorry, but no one has really seen that homing bacon thing yet.”

“I hope nothing happened...”

“You can always draw a new one.”

“That could draw attention.”

“Hmm...you are right... Well I wouldn’t worry about it. It’s only been a day.”

Rudy tried to take at least some comfort in Mint’s words as the older teen pushed him along the grassy plains. It really had not been that long since he had released that homing bacon. He couldn’t exactly expect any instant results in a situation like this. It was going to take time.

Still, he couldn’t help but feel at least a little worried. Something could easily happen. His greatest fear is that Sandra would find it and destroy it before it could deliver the information. If that happened....

He tried to shake the thought out of his head. He shouldn’t be that worried about it. He did make it scentless after all, along with invisible. There was no way Sandra would even realize that it was there. The homing bacon would find her eventually and it would bring back the information that they need to find her. It might take a while, but sooner or later, they will figure out just where Sandra has been hiding.

In the meantime, however, he and his friends would have to continue on with their own investigations. There was no sense in just sitting around, waiting for this thing to come back. Not while there were two dangerous criminals out there. He had to remind himself that it’s not just Sandra who got out, but Skrawl as well. While he did not cross the line to the same degree as Sandra, he was still quite dangerous.

At least Skrawl hadn’t seem to have struck yet. There had been no reports of Skrawl attacking anyone. This was both a relief...and at the same time, still quite concerning. Rudy didn’t really know what to expect out of Skrawl with him being so quiet. He tried not to allow himself to get too worried, though. At least no one was getting hurt yet. So that was a plus.

As Mint continued to push him across the grassy ground, Rudy was able to see some familiar shapes in the distance. He recognized them as Penny and Snap. He couldn’t help but smile at this. He had been worried that Penny wouldn’t be able to get in today due to personal things at home. It seemed that she was able to organize something as now she was here with Snap. That was good. They were going to need all the help that they could get.

Penny was the first one to take notice of them. She raised her hand up and she started to wave back at them, a smile spreading across her face. Snap noticed right after, and he gained a wide grin.

“Hello! So glad that you could make it!” Snap called out as he rushed over to Rudy and Mint. “We were getting worried that you’d never show up!”

Mint narrowed his eyes in a playful manner. “Did you think that we would seriously let you down?”

“Oh not really.” Snap turned his head away and shut his eyes, making a dismissive motion with his hand. “I had always known you’d be here soon or later.”

“Oh really now? You’re the one who kept complaining that they were late.” Penny pointed out. Snap gave a weak smile at this. Penny just shook her head before looking back at Mint and Rudy. “Well glad you are here, anyway.”

“It was tough convincing Mrs. Tabootie.” Mint commented as he rubbed the back of his head. “You know how she can be.”

Rudy thought back to before he and Mint left. It had been a little difficult, but it was something that he had come to expect. He was only lucky to have gotten in this place a few days in a row. His parents were going to continue making things difficult, and he feared that at some point, he would not have the option to come in here. If that happened, Penny, Snap, and Mint were on their own.

Not that he didn’t have any faith in them. After all, both Penny and Mint did a good job watching over ChalkZone while he was still paralyzed in bed and unable to do anything. And Snap was quite capable himself.

It was just...he’d feel awful if he wasn’t around to help them out. He wanted to help as much as he could. He wanted to be here for them and offer whatever aid was possible. They were his friends, after all, and he did care a lot for ChalkZone. It was still his duty to help keep this place safe. Even if some of the zoners didn’t seem to appreciate it as much as they used to.

“So...where do we go first?” Snap asked. The others stared at him. “What? We didn’t decide on a location to go to first, remember?” He raised his hands in a semi shrug. “I believe you guys had to leave before we could ultimately decide.”

“That is correct.” Penny scratched her chin, her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. “We never did decide on that...”

“We could always go into the city.” Mint suggested. “Now that things have settled down a little from before, maybe we might be able to find something that could help us.”

Rudy flinched a little as he remembered how yesterday was. He and his friends did ultimately go back to help out the zoners. Though several did show displeasure at them fleeing. Rudy had expected this, so it wasn’t at all much of a surprise. But at the same time, it did still hurt. He hated failing as the Guardian of ChalkZone, wheelchair or not.

At least several other zoners were willing to back him up. Many pointed out that they were simply ill prepared for Sandra’s sudden return and that they needed to flee in order to come up with a plan. Rudy did feel like he let them down as he was not able to demonstrate any fully thought out plan. But it still went over a little better than he thought it would, and he and his friends were able to help out the best that they could.

Thankfully, he and his friends did not have to worry about cleaning up the bodies. He still felt bad for the ones that were left in charge with that, though. That was not an easy job, especially considering that the bodies had been torn apart viciously and others.... He didn’t want to think about it.

They did, however, still help out with the injured and cleaning up what they could. They helped to console the zoners that were more shaken and frightened than actually hurt. And they did their best to comfort those who had lost a loved one in Sandra’s sudden attack.

One of the most difficult things, however, was listening to the zoners scream and express horror regarding the return of Sandra. Most of them were still haunted by her, and now the very thing that terrorized their dreams was back. Many of them took this news a lot harder than even they could have imaged, and that was quite something. There were even a few attempting suicide, clearly more willing to end their lives than let themselves be manipulated or tormented by Sandra again...

The four friends didn’t stick in this one spot for very long. They knew they’d be wasting time if they did. So, giving each other a nod, they started to make their way forward, heading straight towards ChalkZone City.

It was quite difficult setting foot in this place again. Despite having calmed a little, there was still a bit of chaos going on. Not that they were too surprised. It hadn’t even been twenty-four hours yet since the attack, after all. The zoners were not going to be calmed that quickly.

As they entered onto the streets, they could still see several zoners scurrying about. Likely looking for lost loved ones that were not yet found, or looking for someone to speak to, or even looking for Sandra. And most of the zoners weren’t even on the streets; most were remaining in their homes. After what happened, this was a rather smart move.

They continued further down until they reached the main road of the city. This was where most of the activity was. There were a ton of zoners moving around the buildings, accompanied by several large vehicles that were being used to help reconstruct the damage done to houses and stores caused by that bomb Sandra had delivered. The sight of it caused the friend to flinch, reminding them of just how dangerous Sandra had gotten.

It was just so hard to believe that...all of this had been just Sandra playing... And she had hardly lifted a finger, either. It had seemed so easy for her to do. What would happen if she had been serious..?

Their chilled thoughts were interrupted when they heard the clamor of zoners calling out in desperation. They looked around and they could eventually see the source: there was a crowd of zoners gathered around a single, somewhat nervous police man, who was struggling to keep things in order.

As they got closer, they could hear the zoners’ anguished and desperate questions.

“When will it be safe to go out again?”

“Have you found Sandra yet?”

“What will happen to the rest of us?”

“How many more of us will die before you can do something?”

Rudy bit his lip at these questions, feeling his heart skip several beats. This only served to further remind him of just how much he feel that he had failed as ChalkZone’s guardian. He should have been able to prevent this, right? He should have been able to do...something. Instead, he had allowed Sandra to escape. Why didn’t he try harder?

He felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked over and he could see Snap staring at him. It was apparent Snap could sense his guilt, and the expression in his eyes was trying to tell him that it wasn’t his fault. Rudy forced himself to smile back, but he couldn’t feel that comforted. He felt that he should have been able to do...something more.

“Now now... Everyone try to remain calm!” The police officer stated, raising his hands up and moving them up and down. “We are doing all we can about the matter! Unfortunately it will take a little time and...”

“How much time?” One of the zoners cut him off. “How long are you going to make us wait?”

“However long it takes.” The police officer responded. “I know it’s not the answer that you would have liked, but please, all this panic is only going to make things worse.”

Another zoner snarled. “Worse?! We were assaulted by that damn dragon! We watched our friends get torn apart! How are we supposed to remain calm?!”

“Well I...” The police officer stopped when he appeared to see something in the corner of his eye. He turned his head over and his eyes fell upon the three creators and blue superhero zoner. “Oh thank goodness you’ve returned!” There was immense relief on the police man’s face. It was hard to tell if this was because he was genuinely happy to see them back, or if it was because he was getting sick of having to deal with these zoners.

Possibly both.

Penny nodded her head and raised her hand, approaching first. “How goes the situation? Any improvement?”

The police man shook his head. “None I am afraid.” He turned his head so that he could look at the crowd around him. “Everyone’s getting rather anxious. I’m not really sure how to keep them calm. I’ve tried everything.”

Rudy rolled himself forward a little. “I’m not surprised. A lot has happened yesterday. It will take a long while before they settle down.”

“Yeah...you are right.” The cop admitted. He rubbed the back of his head nervously for a few seconds before giving them a hopeful stare. “Did you think of anything?”

“I sent out a homing bacon.” Rudy raised his hand up, palm face up, fingers curling inward. “It was sent out yesterday.It will try to find Sandra for us and return with her last coordinates. It’ll give us an idea of where we can find her.”

The cop’s eyes twinkled at this, interlocking his fingers together. “That is splendid! Do you know when it’ll get back?”

Rudy flinched. “Unfortunately...no I don’t.”

The cop’s smile instantly faultered. “No...?”

Mint took a step forward, appearing at Rudy’s side. “It is a difficult process. We don’t know where Sandra disappeared off to. There were so many directions that she could have gone. It will take some time before the homing bacon will find anything.”

“I see...” The police officer folded his arms against his chest. At this point, the clamoring of the zoners had becoming nothing more than background music for them. “And just what do you plan on doing in the mean time?”

“We were hoping we could be of some help around here. Like...” Snap seemed to be struggling to think of something.

Mint chimed in quickly, “Reconstruction. Locating any more missing zoners...”

“Yeah, stuff like that.” Penny said as she nodded her head a few times. “We can even try to help keep the citizens at least a little calmer, if that is an issue.” She held up her hand in gesture. “I mean...it is the least that we can do, since we won’t be able to take any further action against Sandra until after the homing bacon comes back.”

“But don’t worry.” Rudy said, his voice filled with determination. “We will whatever we can to help. And sooner or later, Sandra and Skrawl will be brought to justice!”

His speech, though intended to be short yet motivational, didn’t seem to have the intended effect on the cop. If anything, the only thing that it caused him to do was just let out a sigh of disappointment. Rudy struggled not to say anything at this point. It wasn’t like he could blame the cop for being a little disappointed at this news. Even Rudy himself was; he would have loved to give a quicker result.

But at the very least, he and his friends could still help out around here. Help the zoners out, treat the wounded, whatever they could.

“I..suppose it wouldn’t hurt. I...don’t really know what else you can do to help, though.” The cop stated. “Much of the issues are being taken care of as I speak.” The cop took a moment to stare at the group of four friends. “But...if you find anything that you think you can do... well by all means, go right ahead.”

Rudy tried his best not to allow the tone of the cop’s voice get to him too much. Right now, there were zoners that needed their help. He couldn’t allow anyone’s disappointment get in the way. They needed to focus on doing what they could to help them now. The homing bacon would return soon. He wasn’t sure just how long it would take, but..it will be soon. He knew it would be.

Turning his head, he looked back over at his friends. They were looking at him intently, awaiting his orders. None of them were paying much attention to the disappointment the cop expressed. They were more focused on getting things rolling, which Rudy was glad for. Pushing his final bits of uncomfortableness out of his stomach, Rudy opened his mouth to speak.

“Snap, you go around asking any cops you find about anything that they may have found. Penny, you go do some searching and see if you can’t find anything that could give us any clues. Help any zoners that you find. And Mint, you and I are going to try to see if we can help with fixing up the damaged buildings in this city.”

His friends nodded their heads a few times in agreement. Without wasting any time, they all went their seperate ways to provide aid to the city and its inhabitants the best that they can.

sss

The smell of bacon filled the air, causing a few zoners to look up and try to locate the smell. None of them saw the piece of flying bacon over them. Some did see a shadow, but strangely, no piece of bacon. A few expressed disappointment while others wondered if they were going a little insane. But most were too focused on what happened with Sandra’s return to really pay that much attention.

Overhead, only visible if the light bent against it correctly, the homing bacon continued on its journey. Its long, bacon-like wings flapped up and down at a steady rate, its small feet and legs pressed up against its body like some kind of four-legged bird. It constantly moved forward, going about its mission, looking intently for that one zoner: Sandra.

It didn’t detect anything yet. Its constant, silent beeps continued to be sounded out, looking for any readings that were anything like Sandra. It hardly changed direction, seemingly intent on going down this one path. It was almost as though it could ‘smell’ Sandra, could see some kind of trail that was leading it to her. No matter what, it would not steer off this path.

This meant that it had to do a lot of dodging. Several hungry animal zoners were trying to get at it. The flying bacon did not exactly have a higher train of thought, but it continued to dodge the attacks anyway, as though it were really alive. A self preservation was built into it, hard-wired to ensure that it would reach its destination at some point. Zipping and zagging from side to side, it managed to dodge every attempt for a zoner to eat it, including any aerial threats.

The homing bacon’s screen vision flickered as it noticed some movement off to the side. It didn’t hesitate to go off in that direction, driven by the directive of finding this elusive blue dragon. Nothing else mattered. As its gears turned in its head as it struggled to locate this dragon, it did not notice anything else about its surroundings. Just this one particular moving, zipping shadow.

It soon came to what appeared to be a large, open field. There were a few trees here or there. There was even a small cluster of trees a bit further down. There weren’t any zoners here save for a few flying pencils, and they did not look the least bit interested in the homing bacon, much to its ‘relief’.

But one thing did start to confuse it: where was Sandra?

It started to fly around in a broad circle in the area. It had its head turned and moved it up and down as it started to look at every detail, recording what it could and trying to figure out just where Sandra could be. It was unable to find anything in its visual recordings that could help it. This caused its gears to turn faster and it almost felt as though smoke started to pillow out of its head, like it was thinking way too hard.

The homing bacon did not give up, however. It had been created for a purpose, and it was going to complete that mission. This mission was all that it knew. And if it could no complete it...

Well it wasn’t really sure what could happen. For all it knew, it could die if it did not. All the more reason to continue on. It would never give up.

It soon noticed a rather large tree that towered over the others. The branches were spread out and wide, providing plenty of shed. The homing bacon immediately stopped in its flight and stared long and hard, its invisible body moving up and down slowly. Its processors hummed about inside of its head as it stared intently, a plan rapidly forming in its nano brain. It didn’t take long before it planned its next action.

This tree was....quite large, it noticed as it got closer. Large enough for something big to hide in. And Sandra was large, wasn’t she? Yes, quite big indeed. She could be up in those branches up there. If it could just get in close enough, it could...

Wait... It had been programmed to take approaching Sandra with extreme caution, right? It couldn’t just launch itself at Sandra. No, it had to take this nice and slow and steady. Rather than going head on, it would instead use the branches as a means of protection. Surely Sandra would not be able to get to it so easily if it just moved along through the branches, using the shade to cover itself from view. Yeah, that would work quite nicely. Nothing in its nano brain could calcuate any issues with this course of action.

So towards the tree it went. Its wings flapped harder in order to gain some speed. It only slowed down once it got close enough to the tree. When it did that, it shifted its body so that it could land on the tree like some kind of insect. Its small claws on its feet dug into the bark while its bacon wings folded against its sides. It fluttered them once like a beetle before it began to climb up the branch.

It shifted its camera gaze from side to side as it haded along the branch, struggling to locate anything that resembled Sandra, or would help it find Sandra. So far, the only thing that its little camera would even pick up was just bark and branches and twigs and leaves. But nothing resembling a dragon. Not even any blue.

Wait...there was something. A bit of blue above it. Dark and round and hard to see. But still blue nonetheless. Was this it? Could this possibly be it?

Without hesitation, the homing bacon began to scurry up the branch in that direction. Surely this would yield some interesting results. And as it got closer, it started to see two long darker blue tips. That was a feature of Sandra, right? Yes, this could very well be it. It just needed to pick up the pace and...

....No, this was not Sandra. This was just some kind of sky blue fruit with darker blue leaves that jetted out at the sides. From the angle that it had been at before, this looked way too much like Sandra. Its processors burned slightly at this realization.

Oh well, there was still plenty of this tree left to explore. If Sandra was in here, it was going to find her. And it wouldn’t take that long to locate her. So it continued scurrying up and down the branches, looking around intently for the elusive dragon.

So far, there was nothing else. More of the same fruit. More leaves and branches. But nothing resembling a dragon. It had gone up and down these branches at least twice with no results. It stopped for a moment and took another look around. Was there any spot left that it hadn’t checked yet? Any place else that it could look?

Of course.

Above the tree.

The homing bacon immediately spread out its wings and it fluttered upward with the grace of a butterfly. It easily pushed past the leaves and thick branches as it left the confines of the tree and hovered above. It began to move its head around slowly, scanning the landscape around it.

Just like before, there was nothing to be seen. Nothing of interest, anyway. The homing bacon didn’t quit right away, however. It focused on scanning the land around it, looking for any sort of moving shadow. Something to indicate that it had found Sandra. But...nothing.

Then it caught a flash of blue. Quickly, the homing bacon turned itself around to follow. A long tail with spikes at the end zipped by its vision. Yes, this was it. This had to be Sandra. Its processors whirring to life, it started to spin itself around, trying to get a full view of the dragon. It had no directive to flee, not while it was utterly invisible. Why had it been so worried before? Its nano brain could not process this.

It continued to look around, getting more and more frantic in its motions. Where did Sandra go? She was just here a moment ago. She couldn’t have disappeared, right?

Suddenly, a dark shadow was casted over it. The homing bacon froze immediately as it sensed that it was no longer being hit directly by the Day Zone sun above it. It couldn’t see anything as it was right now. Just the same landscape as before. But it could hear something behind it. Slowly, it turned itself around.

The last thing that it saw before everything went dark was a set of red eyes and a dark cavity lined with something sharp. Then, as a loud crack sounded out, its vision flickered and went dead.

sss

Sandra chuckled as she felt the pieces of the homing bacon fall out of her mouth, having been pulverized in her jaws. She relished in the delicious taste that it had to offer. Well it was a homing bacon, was it not? In a matter of seconds, any mechanical part fell to the ground while the delictable bacon wings were ripped off for a much...better purpose.

The sky blue dragon took a few moments to enjoy the flavor that swirled heavily on her tongue. Delicious... Rudy sure knew how to draw these things. Even after she swallowed, she could still taste the bacon in her mouth, the greasiness fluttering all over its insides. This thing had come at just the right time. She was getting hungry.

Though it was almost...disappointing. She would have thought that Rudy and his little friends would have tried something better than this. Did they really think that drawing a homing bacon was going to do them any good? Did they forget about her sense of smell?

It did seem like Rudy had tried to cover the smell. The scent was rather faint. But he had utterly failed in the end. The homing bacon had made the mistake of flying through a breakfast place. She had seen it happen. A shame that Rudy did not think about that ahead of time. Once the thing had a scent, it was pretty much too late for it.

It was really quite amusing how they really thought that they could outsmart her. Those stupid, idiotic humans... When were they going to learn? She was not going down so easily this time. Regardless of what they wanted, she was here to stay. And she had no intent on leaving. Not until after her wish had been fulfilled.

And there was not a damn thing that they could do about it.

Well there was no use floating around here anymore. She needed to head back and check on her dear new ‘friend’. She couldn’t just leave him hanging, now could she? Besides, she did miss his voice. He was...quite the joy to speak to, whether or not he intended it to be this way.

Within seconds, Sandra had taken off. She paid no attention to the bits of the robot that now laid on the ground. It did not really matter if someone found it or not. She had already crushed the pitiful thing’s hardware. It would not be able to do anything, not even show a single picture. It was utterly useless to her. And besides, leaving it behind did send a clear message to those brats. They were going to have to try much harder if they want to figure out just where she was.

She flew over the landscape below her. She kept herself quite high in the air. This kept her shadow below quite small, making it much harder for anyone to tell that she was there. The fact that she was blue also made things a little easier. She partially blended in, making it difficult for anyone to detect that she was even there. True, those with keen sight and a different angle would likely notice something. But the chances of that were slimmed down and besides, it wasn’t like she had far to travel before it was basically barren and she had little to worry about.

Still, she did her best to keep herself hidden as she flew in the air. She kept her flaps to a minimum, only doing so when she absolutely needed to. She hardly wasted her time thinking about Rudy or those brats. She just focused on getting home.

She didn’t really run into any trouble. This was mostly because this was open country where zoners did not really populate too densely. At least, not the sentient ones. She was not worried about the animal zoners. They were hardly of any concern. She merely smirked as she saw a few wild tigers below her, staring up at her in confusion. Yeah, they weren’t anything to worry about. It was especially amusing when they tried to follow her. A few twists and turns and dives, and she lost them rather quickly.

It didn’t take her too long before she noticed a chance in the environment below her. The desert started to form, taking over the ground below her. The vegetation lessened up and the sand and dry dirt spread about. The large cacti soon began to rise up out of the ground. And there in the distance, she could see a dark formation located high above the ground. That was where she needed to go. That was her current destination. Where Skrawl was being held.

The castle at first was cast in shadow due to the angle that she had been flying at. This soon changed as she started to change her altitude and position, causing the Day Zone sun to be ‘moved’, allowing the castle to be shown in its entire glory.

Well, if one could even call it that. She wouldn’t really say this place was the prettiest. She had almost expected the jellybean to have done better. Wasn’t he supposed to be soem kind of genius or something? Well, it still suited her needs anyway. She would not spend all her time here, but she did want to make sure that her little...guest was comfortable.

When she arrived, she brought her feet forward, talons stretched out, and she landed in a thud. She shook herself a little, her ears flopping about due to the motion. Then she soon settled herself down and she began to head into the castle.

She hadn’t really done anything with the place just yet. She still needed to find those Beanie Boys. Skrawl hadn’t exactly given their location to her willingly, and her attempts to find them ended in failure.

Not that she was too worried about that, of course. She would be able to find them sooner or later. It was not really that impossible. All she really had to do was be patient and clever. She would eventually figure out their location, even if she had to beat the answer out of Skrawl. And after she got a hold of them, she could move onto the next course of action.

She continued walking forward, her arms folded behind her back. She turned her head left and right as she imagined all kinds of things that she planned to use this thing for. Oh yes, it was soon going to have a much better purpose. Something that would actually benefit ChalkZone. And the relatively close ChalkZone City was going to be the first guinea pig to try this place out, whether they wanted to or not.

She could see the large cage ahead of her. The same one that once held Fido, but now had an entirely new prisoner. She didn’t see much at first. Just a lumpy kind of shadow. But she knew better. She knew exactly who this prisoner was. And as she got closer she could see the green skin that made up his body and those antennas that stuck out of his purple hair. And when he turned his head and stared at her with those mismatched eyes, she couldn’t help but give him a dark smirk.

“Well hello there, Skrawly boy...” Sandra cooed softly. “Did you miss me?”

Skrawl merely snarled at her. Having been healed from his previous ‘adventure’, Skrawl suddenly slammed himself against the bars, reaching his hand out towards her, slashing at her with his sharp claws. Sandra merely stared at him, her expression never changing.

“Get over here so I can tear off your face!”

Sandra just took a small step back, putting in even more distance between her and him. She smirked at his pitiful attempts of getting at her. “Oh really now, Skrawl.. is that anyway to treat your caretaker?” She grinned as she tilted her head to one side. “You would not want to starve to death, now would you?”

“I’d rather starve than be your fucking prisoner!” The jellybean shouted. He grabbed onto the bars tightly. It was almost incredible how they didn’t break as he squeezed them tightly. “If you don’t release me now, I swear, Sandra, I will make you pay for what you’ve done!” When he saw Sandra raise an eyebrow at this, Skrawl began to shake the bars more violently. “You hear me?! You will pay!”

Sandra shook her head slowly. It was really quite amusing the way Skrawl was behaving. Of course he would act in such a way. He was too big of an idiot to fully realize his current position. “You’re not going anywhere any time soon. So you might as well just sit and get comfortable, Skrawly boy.”

Skrawl seethed at this. “Quit calling me Skrawly!”

Sandra chortled softly. She did not directly reply to that. Instead, she focused on something far more important. “Anyway, let us speak of something more....personal.” She lowered her head a little as she stared at Skrawl intently. “Do you mind telling me where the Beanie Boys are?”

“Go jump off a cliff!” Snapped Skrawl.

Sandra immediately stiffened at this. She felt the back of her mind racing as she recalled that someone else, perhaps Snap, said something a little similar to her. The memory still stung her a little bit, but she managed to shake it off. “Well that was just plain rude. Though perhaps I just need to try asking in a...different way...”

Skrawl bared his teeth at her. He shook the bars as hard as he could, as though he hoped that he’d somehow break them. Though she was aware that they both knew that, if Skrawl could have done this, he would have done so at his first chance. He would not wait hours just to break himself free. That was just not the way that Skrawl worked.

“Try all you want to! I am not telling you a damn thing regarding the location of my Beanie Boys!” Skrawl twisted his head to one side. “And there isn’t anything you can do to make me change my mind!” He turned his head to once more face Sandra. His large teeth were bared viciously. “You can just forget it!”

“Oh Skrawl...Why must you make things so difficult?” Sandra placed a hand against her cheek, shaking it back and forth, pretending to look disappointed. “You really should consider your...position a little more.”

“Give me one good reason why I should tell you anything after what you did to Fido?!” Skrawl shouted at her. Sandra merely raised an eyebrow at this. Skrawl hissed lowly. “I know he was just a stupid mutt...but I would be damned if I allowed you to hurt my Beanie Boys in a similar way!”

Sandra’s eyes glinted at this. “Oh I don’t plan on using them for the same purpose as Fido.”

“Then what do you plan on using them for then?” Skrawl’s voice was even lower at this point. Sandra could practically see it sinking down. “What do the Beanie Boys have that you could not get elsewhere... What is it about them that is unobtainable in other zoners?” Skrawl frowned deeply at Sandra, his eyes glinted with some sense of curiosity. “If I am to be forced to be a part of this plan, don’t I have the right to know?”

Sandra’s eyes merely glinted again, almost shining as her mouth curled up in a dark smile. “Oh you will see...”

Skrawl’s eyes widened for a moment, as if taking this all in. But of course, he seemed to miss the point entirely as his eyes narrowed once more, still holding that level of confusion that he had in the first place. Of course Skrawl wouldn’t get it right away. So she was not at all surprised when he responded with, “Stop being so damn cryptic and just tell me!”

“And why should I? It would ruin the fun...” Sandra turned her back to him, raising her hand up in gesture. “I mean, really now... What makes you think that I’ll just tell you? After all, you could simply just be patient and wait for the time to come, and you will find out on your own that way.” She turned her head so that she was now looking over her shoulder towards Skrawl, staring at him intently with one of her red eyes. “Or are you going to just keep complaining like a little child?”

Skrawl growled at this, clenching his fists tightly. He looked ready to strike. Why he didn’t was confusing for her, but she paid it no mind. She just shrugged her shoulders and took a few steps away. She arched her tail over, forming a partial circle, and continued to stare out into nothingness.

“Rest assured that I have the perfect job for the Beanie Boys...and no, there is not another person who can fill their shoes. It must only be them. Otherwise...well... Let’s just say, I wouldn’t have as much...control over the situation. I feel that the Beanie Boys would be the best ones to turn to for this. I’m srue you can vouch for them.”

The dragon zoner turned her head and smirked over in Skrawl’s direction. She let out a few soft chuckles.

“I mean, you are the one who trained them, right? And I recall you boasting about them at one point I think... Maybe not to me, but to someone else.” Sandra’s eye twinkled. “Yes, I do think that they would be perfect, based on what you said.”

“Perfect for what?!” Skrawl pressed himself against the iron bars. “Stop avoiding my question! I want answers now!”

Sandra chortled at this, shaking her head. “Do you really think that I am going to just give you the information just like that? You must have chalk for brains if you really think that I am going to spill out my full intentions for them to you just like that.” She raised a finger up and hooked it, her tail swishing from side to side, her one eye still staring at Skrawl sideways. “Don’t you think it’s a lot more fun when things are kept a secret?”

She was not at all surprised when Skrawl did not take this too lightly. He stared to smash himself up against the cage as hard as he could, shouting at her, threatening her, trying to get himself out. Typical Skrawl.... He was quite a stubborn jellybean, wasn’t he? It was no wonder Rudy and his friends had a hard time dealing with him. He was one of those who just...couldn’t quit. Skrawl probably didn’t know the meaning of the word.

Of course, this might become problematic later on. If he continued to struggle against the cage like this and he continued making noise, what if he did somehow get out? Well sure she could easily stop him with her powers and get him back here. But she would not always be here, and once he got out, he could flee this place and find something to stop her with as an act of revenge. No, she had to play smart about this. And since she could not always be here to keep him in check, she’d need another way to deal with him.

Suddenly something flickered in the back of her mind, causing her eyes to widen up in realization. She did believe that she had something that could keep Skrawl under control while she rounded up his precious Beanie Boys. Heck, it might even force the jellybean to relinquish said information.

“I’m telling you right now! If you don’t let me go, I swear I’m going to rip out your throat once I get the chance!” Skrawl had his thin arm out, desperately trying to slash at Sandra. “I will drive my claws right through your chest!”

Sandra rolled her eyes, bemused by this empty threat. Did Skrawl really think that he was going to be able to intimidate her so easily? And besides, if he really understood his situation, it would be himself that he’d be most concerned with.

Shifting herself around, Sandra faced Skrawl once more. She watched him for a few moments, allowing him to continue to rant and ramble for a while. Then she bgan to walk towards him slowly, her arms folded up against her chest. Her ears were raised up as her pupils stared intently at the jellybean. The fact that he towered over her did nothing to frighten her away. To her, he was still more lowly than she.

“Actually, Skrawly boy...” She chuckled at Skrawl’s facial contortion at that name. “I have a much...better idea...”