(Author's Note: This is a sequel to 'Cryptic Investigation.' While the story can probably be read and understood without reading Cryptic Investigation, some plot points and places referencing the old story might be confusing. Again, these stories are not romance-related (and never will be).
All that said, I hope you enjoy the story!)
Cryptic Infiltration
Chapter One – An Invitation
DayZone sunlight shone down pleasantly on the beach of the Wait N' Sea as Rudy and Penny made their way across the sand toward Snap's house. Although it was Friday and they would have plenty of time in the afternoon, they wanted to use their last recess to visit their friend.
Looking around the beach and spotting Zoners swimming, running, slamming volleyballs over nets and sun baking, Rudy was glad that everything had greatly improved since the incident a month ago with Newland and the red chalk.
It had been three weeks since the celebration they had had for the rebuilding of ChalkZone City, and although there was much more of it that was repaired, there were still sections of it that remained damaged both above and below ground. Despite that, however, life for the Zoners who lived there had more or less returned to normal, with homes as well as shops and important buildings either redrawn by Rudy and Penny or completely reconstructed. An entire month had passed since the incident with Bob Newland and the red chalk, and to everyone's great relief, neither he nor Vinnie Raton or Terry Bouffant had made any move to threaten ChalkZone again.
Rudy and Penny dedicated much of their spare time to helping the citizens repair and by now, there wasn't much they needed to do until the remainder of the tunnels in the last damaged sections of the city would be mended. The city was gradually returning to normal, and there were only a few sections where restoration had not yet begun. The city's citizens were adapting well and had managed to focus on fixing the more important vital facilities and establishments in the city with Rudy and Penny's help.
The two of them could see Snap's house in the distance where he'd moved it back using its motorized wheels along the beach the previous day. It overlooked the mass expanse of waves sloshing back and forth, and was presumably positioned in a manner that did not obscure the sunlight shining down upon the Zoners wanting to enjoy the warmth. Rudy couldn't help but admire his towering creation, happy with the additional features he had recently attached as per Snap's request.
The two broke into a run across the grainy sand as they neared the building and ran to the front door. Rudy jabbed a finger at the doorbell button and heard it, although muffled, chime inside. He didn't have to wait long before his other best friend answered the door.
"Rudy! You're here!" Snap cried happily, obviously excited for the activities they had planned for that day. He was always revved up and rearing to go wherever they decided, despite the fact that he was unfit to travel far if it was by foot. Although his wounds had been showing positive healing progress, his limp was quite prevalent and hindered much of what he could have been able to otherwise do. His right arm was still hanging in a sling, and he completely avoided using it. The gashes along his back had healed almost completely.
Rudy was a little surprised at such an intense show of enthusiasm, and chuckled. "I'm glad you're excited. I bet you're as excited as I am to watch the duck waterskiing tournament!"
"No, it's not that," Snap began, shaking his head. "There's somethin' I gotta show ya, Bucko! Look!" Before Rudy could respond, Snap had held out a piece of paper in front of his face. Confused, he took the paper from Snap's hand, and Penny leaned over his shoulder to get a good look herself. "We've been invited to some sorta big celebration…honoring us!"
They could see at once that the letter looked very official, the paper itself covered with gold trimming that formed intricate gold patterns around the edges, taking up, Rudy noticed with a bit of amusement, such a large amount of the letter's space that the room left for the message was quite small.
Rudy read through the passage quickly, reading it aloud as he did so while holding the paper at an angle so that Penny could see. "Dear Rudy Tabootie, Penny Sanchez, and Snap: to cordially thank you for preventing the exposure of ChalkZone by utilizing your exceptional talent and prowess to put a formal stop to Bob Newland and his barbaric associates, the great ruler of my land, would personally like to invite you to a feast and celebration at the palace of Kadir. It will be in honor of your heroic deeds which so selflessly reflected upon the entirety of ChalkZone and strengthened its defenses against the outside world, and shall commence on this Saturday…" He paused for a second, mentioning that the designated day was tomorrow. "I, as your gracious host, hope you will attend this festivity so that you may be recognized for the true heroes that you are. Yours sincerely, King Archie." Rudy stared at the bottom of the letter, on which there was a symbol that looked like a royal crest. "Palace? A celebration?" he mused, a little perplexed. "But…all that happened a month ago. I would have thought that-"
"Ah, who cares, Rudy?" Snap cried, not seeming at all bothered by the strange timing. "You wouldn't miss a celebration, now, would you? Besides, I've always thought it'd be nice to visit that place." The excitement coating his voice and his wide grin suggested only positive things about the city, which helped to convince his friend. "They always have great celebrations throughout the entire city! From what I've seen of them on television-"
"Well," Penny began, "if all this is celebrating ChalkZone's safety, shouldn't Zoners like Biclops be invited too?"
"They probably already got their invitations," Snap deduced with a shrug.
"Well, I guess we have time tomorrow," Rudy stated looking to his friends as if raising the idea with them. When they both agreed he gave a nod. "It's settled, then! Tomorrow, we'll pay the Kingdom of Kadir a visit."
ooo
On Saturday morning, Rudy leaned on his palm as he looked through the window of a small airplane headed toward the kingdom, watching smears of scenery slowly roll by down below. He and his friends were seated among a small group of Zoners shaped and colored differently and of various sizes, Rudy at the window and Penny and Snap facing opposite him. Rudy had first wanted to draw his own transportation, but had quickly discarded the idea as he realized that even with a map, it would likely be difficult to find his way there in enough time to have at least a couple of hours to spend at the celebration. They'd opted to take a plane run by some of the Zoners who ran a business in ChalkZone City instead. The flight was not scheduled to be long, and therefore he was expecting to arrive soon. The trip had not been overly interesting so far, and he had spent most of it exchanging idle conversation with his friends, or admiring the passing view of the land beneath the plane.
Suddenly, they passed a group of mountains and Rudy gave a curious frown. He invited his friends over, as the window was closest to him, and they crowded around to see that the kingdom was laid out before them. It was composed of an immense number of buildings of various sizes, most of them smaller than the ones in ChalkZone City. The entire city rested in a large valley. Smooth gray mountains with sparse trees flanked three sides of the city. From above, the hundreds of buildings clustered together looked almost like a gigantic maze.
It was not long before the overhead speakers tuned on, and the captain's voice rang throughout the passenger hold. It specified that the aircraft was timetabled to land in no longer than five minutes. Snap and Penny returned to their seats and strapped themselves in, the former appearing riddled with excitement. Rudy was confident that he and Penny would enjoy the celebration as well, especially if other Zoners that they knew would be attending.
Finally the plane began to descend, and once again Rudy projected his gaze through the window to observe where they were landing. Beneath a bright blue sky, the runway lay in the middle of a very large dusty field, spanning nearly its entire length. In the distance there were groups of trees as well as some vehicles and buildings, but they were too far away to get a clear look at. Other than that, the field was fairly empty apart from the long and narrow strip of runway and a few roads and buildings.
After they departed the plane, they could see Zoners walking to and fro toward the various buildings around the place. Rudy realized that many of them could be headed toward the celebration themselves, and he and his friends walked toward a group of buildings as well, easily able to see the vast shape of the regal palace towering over the other buildings.
"Wow…" Snap breathed, clearly impressed by their surroundings as he used his crutch to keep up with his friends. A little unsure what to do at this point, the trio actively glance around the runway until a Zoner who they did not recognize approached them.
"Are you Rudy Tabootie?" he questioned, his voice round and deep.
Rudy gave a nod. "And these are my friends, Penny and—"
"Yes, yes," he continued dismissively, gesturing with both of his hands through the building. The three cast frowns to one another, but pursued the issue no further. Instead the plump guide led them through the building and to the front, where a triangular carriage was waiting for them. At the front of the carriage was a well-groomed pegasus that reared its head and shook its silky mane. Looking with interest, Rudy wondered if the vehicle was built to fly.
The three of them sat in awe as they passed by various shops, streets, and houses inhabited by all different Zoners. To Rudy's confusion, however, he couldn't see many of the ones walking or driving headed off in the direction he had seen the palace, which he knew was where the celebration was meant to take place.
After the silent ride through the many streets, a park and a lake or two along the way, they ended up on a long road leading straight to the gates of the palace. After a moment of assessing their whereabouts, he realized that this palace building was the centerpiece of the city.
As they neared the palace, they could see groups of Zoners stopping to look at them, some of them with awe as they passed. Even if they had not actually met him, it was obvious to Rudy that they knew all about his role as the Protector of ChalkZone, and obviously about the details of the Newland incident as well. Some of them tossed flowers at the passing carriage or shouted messages of encouragement, some of them earning a sheepish response from Rudy. He turned to Snap and Penny with a coy smile, almost wanting to shield himself from the bombardment of attention.
"The Zoners here sure seem happy to see us," Snap noted with a grin as he leaned back against the seat.
The carriage pulled up right in front of an enormous golden gate. It was part of an immense fence circling the palace grounds, and reached higher than Rudy's house. At the top of it was the royal crest that Rudy had noticed on the invitation, but the one carved in the gate looked much more detailed and intricate. He watched as the gates opened, swinging outwards toward them as the pegasus pulling the cart held its head up proudly. Beyond the open gateway, Rudy could now get a full view of the massive and impressively decorated garden spanning an enormous amount of space in front of the palace. There were fountains of water, arches, numerous plants, trees, and flowers the likes and numbers of which he'd never seen anywhere else in ChalkZone, and everything looked very organized and well cared for. At one end he could see part of a massive pool that looked to weave around the palace itself, and in another an enormous hedge carved into intricate patterns and adorned with brightly colored flowers. He could see that the hedge opened into what looked like the entrance to a maze, and from what he could see, a path wound through it with even more decorative plants lined along its side.
Rudy was still staring at it in awe when the driver of the carriage, a tall humanlike figure dressed in dark midnight blue clothing, stepped down and then opened his door, motioning for him to follow. Stunned at what he could see of the array of bizarre ChalkZone plant life spread out before him, Rudy slowly stepped down and followed the Zoner through the gates. Penny and Snap exchanged a quick look before climbing down and following as well.
Rudy pulled his eyes away from the scenery for a moment to face his guide. "Wait a minute," he stated, realizing suddenly that the place was empty apart from a few Zoners he realized were the gardeners tending to different plants. "If there's a celebration, where's everyone else?"
The carriage driver looked confused for a moment before the meaning of Rudy's question dawned on him. "Oh, it's not a celebration for the civilians," he explained with a chuckle. "It's just for the Great Creator and his, uh…" He turned around to see Penny and Snap a few yards behind him. "…His friends," he continued. "Now, if you want to get a look around the garden," he added, seeing the trio's fascination with the surrounding scenery, "I'm sure we could-"
"Actually," Penny interrupted, "we really only have time to stay for a few more hours. If this celebration is soon, then we-"
"Why are you in such a hurry?"
"We need to be home by that time," Penny replied. "We can't just spend an entire day in ChalkZone without-"
"Penny's right," Rudy interjected, seeing that their guide looked unconvinced. "Part of keeping the secret of ChalkZone, well, secret, is making sure we aren't gone long enough for anyone in the Real World to worry about us."
"Oh, I see," said the Zoner cheerfully, suddenly seeming completely content with the answer. Penny gave Rudy a puzzled look, and he shrugged.
As the group passed close by one of the large white arches adorning the palace grounds, something suddenly stood out to Rudy. The patterns etched into the pale stone looked familiar, and as he focused them, he realized where he'd seen similar markings before, and when he made the connection, he was a bit shocked. The engravings looked a lot like the designs on the ancient ChalkZone record books he and his friends had been looking for when Newland's termite monsters attacked ChalkZone City. They had come across a few of the rare, one-of-a-kind books upon discovering the remains of what the library had once contained, and the one book they'd managed to bring back currently resided in the Chalk Mine with Biclops. The design on the arch Rudy was standing before had the same odd swirls and patterned markings. His eyes widened as he noticed the carved shape of an open book at the topmost point of the arch. This puzzled him, for he was sure the books were far older than this palace could be, and he turned to his guide in confusion.
"Wait a minute," he stammered, pointing to the arch, "what is that-"
"I thought you were in a hurry," the Zoner replied, though in a somewhat jesting way.
"Yes, but…" Rudy paused, taking a last look at the arch as they were led past it. "How did that arch end up here? Where did it come from?"
"I'm sure the king had it made for his royal garden, of course," he replied, and Rudy decided it was useless to try to pursue more answers; it was obvious that the palace worker did not know anything about the markings.
He cast a glance to his friends, who had obviously noticed the same thing he had when he'd pointed it out, to see both of them staring around at the other arches and pillars adorning the garden, but they were too far away for them to see any details of the engravings. He was continually led at a fast pace, much faster than he would have liked, his friends lagging somewhat behind due to Snap's injury, until they reached the palace doors. Craning his neck upward, Rudy could see that the doors were both tall and wide enough that Biclops could have easily walked through them. The palace itself was made of white stone and towered, in its tallest places, at least five stories high. Even as high as it looked from his point of view, he also knew that it was far longer than it was tall, and he wondered just how many rooms were in the building. The palace had various tall spires along its length and was covered in gold decorations of all shapes and sizes.
He hadn't seen many of the kingdoms in ChalkZone, and one of the ones he had seen, he recalled, hadn't been at all pleasant, as he and Snap had been dragged in against their will and then threatened to have their spines removed if they didn't manage to impress the king with a story. Rudy also remembered that, compared to this, that king's palace hadn't been nearly so grand or elaborate as this one, and he strangely felt a bit nervous about the entire thing.
He didn't have long to dwell on that, either, as the doors soon opened and he was all but pushed inside, eagerly urged to hurriedly walk through the large decorated room beyond until instructed to come to a stop. "Wait here," the strange Zoner told him, and quickly moved toward one of the many side doors.
Reaching the door after Rudy had walked through, Snap slumped against it, looking somewhat tired. "I don't see what all the hurry is," he stated with a hint of annoyance. "I'm sure the-"
"Get off the door," came a surprisingly angry sounding voice, one that shocked all three of them. They quickly realized that it had come from the Zoner who had been guiding them, as he stood in the doorway with his finger pointed at Snap. "Look, you're getting it dirty. Please step away."
"Hey, look," Rudy spoke up, taking a few steps toward him. "You don't need to talk to my friend like that! He was just-"
"I'm sorry, Mr. Tabootie," he responded hastily before Rudy was able to finish. "Do forgive me." He waited to see Rudy's reaction, and then stated, "I must go, but please wait as instructed." He then vanished, leaving the trio puzzled.
"What was that all about?" Penny stated, looking to the others in confusion.
"I have no idea," Snap muttered, stepping away from the door.
Trying to put the strange incident out of his mind, Rudy took a moment to examine the room. It was a large white room with gold patterns dotting the walls and arching over the doorways. A few windows let in light, but the parts of the room not near an outer wall were lit with bright chandeliers. Looking upward, he could see detailed designs on the ceiling. He paused as he heard the sound of someone approaching.
The three friends watched as the figure arrived, surrounded by around five or six guards. This Zoner was, quite obviously, the king they had been sent to see. He was a short, yet regal-looking, white tiger Zoner with three black stripes on either side of his face, as well on the top of his head. He was dressed in a very expensive looking robe and wore a crown inlaid with jewels, some of which had a strange sheen, almost a glow, to them that Rudy was sure didn't exist in any Real World stones.
As soon as he entered the room, the king appeared visibly excited and quickly ran up to greet them, a reaction Rudy hadn't been expecting after seeing how formal the letter had seemed. The tiger enthusiastically reached his paw out and shook Rudy's hand, and the boy looked a little stunned as he looked back at him.
The tiger seemed rather awed at Rudy's presence. "The Great Creator himself. It is an honor to have you a guest at the Kadir Palace. My name is King Archie."
"Uh…well, thanks," Rudy stammered, still somewhat confused as to the purpose of them being brought there. If he and his friends were the only ones being allowed into the palace, it certainly didn't seem like any sort of 'celebration.' Penny and Snap paused to glance at each other in surprise and walked to Rudy's side.
If the king noticed his uncertainty, he didn't mention it, or even seem to give it any thought. Instead, he reached toward one of the guards attending them, taking something from his hands. Smiling, he held it out to Rudy.
Looking down at it, Rudy saw that it was a platter carrying what looked to be dozens of strange and exotic ChalkZone foods, many of them things he couldn't identify. He was a bit surprised at first before realizing that there was no way these Zoners could have known what chalk food was like to those from the Real World. Looking up at the king, he shook his head. "Sorry," he stated, "humans can't eat ChalkZone food. So we-"
"Really? Oh, that's all right," the king replied cheerfully, pulling the platter away as Snap reached out to grab something, only to have his hand meet open air. "After all, there's a feast being held later, which I'm sure you read all about in my letter, and I think you're quite right to wait for that instead, Rudy."
"But I-"
"You know, I think it would be a nice idea if we took a quick tour of the castle," the tiger stated, sweeping one arm around Rudy's shoulders as he handed the platter back to its original owner. "Guards, you may leave," he said simply. He waved to the Zoners standing at attention near him, who bowed before moving back through one of the palace's many doors. The tiger then focused his attention on Rudy once again. "Now, if you'll come this way, I'll show you some of the grander rooms of the palace."
He didn't feel like there was much of any other option, and figured that it was best to be polite on account of how they had been invited there, and Rudy agreed, and was quickly led along toward one set of doors. Glancing back at his friends, who both looked a bit hesitant, he just shrugged, and they gave him a confused look before following.
They were soon brought into what looked like a ballroom. It had the same white and gold patterns as the rest of the palace, though the gold color here looked more faded. The room had vast dimensions, and Rudy wasn't sure he had ever seen one quite so big. The floor was patterned with gray and white tiles, and from the ceiling hung multiple crystal chandeliers. The ceiling was very high, depicting a number of odd patterns hewn from the same stone material as the walls. On the far end of the room, there looked to be a partial upper story with a small balcony overlooking everything else. Rudy also noticed, at certain intervals along the room, small stands upon which rested various items.
Seeing his curiosity, the king looked proud as he strode over to the one closest to them, picking up an object which looked like some sort of vase, and was obviously very old. "You see, I like to collect artifacts from ancient ChalkZone times," he explained, holding the object out to Rudy. The boy noticed a pattern of strange elephant-like creatures that appeared to be depicted playing music on its glossy surface before the king turned around, wrenching the object from his view. "I believe this was taken from…it must have been…uh…I'm not sure I remember…but no matter, there are plenty of other things I have to show you. Here, hold this for a minute." Without looking, he handed off the vase to Snap, who was forced to try and catch it with his one good arm. His attempt failed and he quickly dropped it, but luckily Penny quickly dove, catching the artifact in her hands before it could shatter on the floor.
"Shouldn't we be getting to this…celebration…pretty soon?" Penny asked, her voice tinged with irritation as she carefully set the vase back on its stand.
"Why, we've barely started the tour, Miss…uh…Rudy's friend," the king stated absentmindedly, still looking deep in thought and not seeming to care that he wasn't giving her his full attention.
"Penny," Rudy corrected for him with a hint of annoyance, wondering how on earth the king had managed to send a letter to Snap addressing them if he couldn't even remember their names.
"Oh yes, of course," the white tiger replied. "Well, if you're not interested in these artifacts, then-"
"Actually," Rudy interjected, "I was wondering about some of the ones outside, in the gardens. Do you know what-"
Archie simply chuckled as if Rudy had said something amusing. "Don't be silly, I'm not the palace gardener," he stated. "You'll have to ask him." Rudy sighed as they were led on, convinced the king wouldn't know much about the strange arches either anyway. Realizing he wasn't likely to get any details on the history behind them from anyone, he tried to put it out of his mind.
After being led through a few more hallways, each seeming grander than the last, they were stopped at another elaborate door leading to a room about half the size of the ballroom. This room, however, was nearly twice as high, with gold carpeted stairs leading up to a partial upper story composed of a wide walkway circling the entirety of the room. It was adorned with large pillars connecting the edges of the walkway to the ceiling, from which hung a multitude of colorful banners. Many of them looked like they could have come from faraway ChalkZone lands. Rudy could also see more doors on the higher floor, and could only begin to imagine where they all led to.
The king looked to be admiring the room himself before he turned to Rudy again. "You see, Rudy, this palace in all its fabulous glory would not still be standing today if it weren't for your heroic deed. In fact, all of ChalkZone would be in grave danger were it not for what you did. I heard all about the way that you, our Great Creator, stopped those humans' horrid creatures and prevented them from revealing the secret of our world."
Beside Penny, Snap rolled his eyes. "We helped too," he muttered, quietly enough so that only she could hear. Penny, her eyes still on the marvelous room around her, just gave a small nod.
"Actually," Rudy stated, catching the attention of both his friends and the royal tiger. "It wasn't just me. As a matter of fact, I think my friends probably deserve more thanks than I do. They-"
"So, Rudy," the king stated, not even seeming like he'd even heard Rudy speak, "do you think you could possibly use your fabled magic chalk to draw me a new addition to this room? It would be a wonderful part of my collection…an item drawn…by the Great Creator himself."
"I guess I could," Rudy said with a shrug, giving up on trying to explain. He looked around the room to see what could be added. The place was so full of decorations already, and he found it hard to think of anything, so he merely opted to draw a small table in one of the only empty spaces in the room's bottom floor. The tiger king watched eagerly as he did so, and when he finished, he stepped back, thinking that his creation didn't quite match the elegance of the rest of the palace's furniture.
Archie, however, seemed immensely impressed with it. "This is wonderful!" he cried. "Perfect! Now how many can say they own something drawn by Rudy Tabootie himself? You're a natural at this!" Not allowing Rudy to reply, he continued to ramble. "You know, it would be great of you if you could help me host the upcoming Cloud Cities' tournaments in a few weeks."
"The what?" Rudy replied, confused.
"You know, crowds of Zoners from all over ChalkZone, gigantic race track in the sky…" Rudy, still clueless, shook his head in response.
Snap, however, looked immediately interested. "I've heard of that!" he cried excitedly. "Saw it on TV once. That's-"
"Yes, that's nice," the king stated, not even looking in Snap's direction. "Well, Rudy, what do you think?" He folded his large paws on top of each other, his ears pricked upward excitedly as he waited for Rudy's answer.
"Uh…thanks for the offer," Rudy stated somewhat awkwardly, "but, I think we'll pass." He made sure to include 'we'll' and glanced toward his friends as he said it.
"Well, if you're sure…I still haven't told you about-"
"Um, sorry to interrupt," Penny began, and for the first time, it seemed, King Archie's attention was on her, "but, we only have a few more hours to stay in the Real World, and if you want to take part in the uh, celebrating, then we may have to cut this tour short."
The king looked surprised for a moment before he simply shrugged. "That's all right," he stated, "we'll simply skip the feast then."
Penny and Rudy exchanged confused, and exasperated, looks before they were led through a door and off to yet another hallway. After going through a series of increasingly elaborate rooms, Snap was finding it progressively more difficult to keep up a suitable pace. His crutch could only carry him so fast, and his arm was starting to ache. He was beginning to lag behind.
Through his breaths of agitation, he called, "Wait…slow down!"
The king turned around to look at him with puzzlement. "Why?" he asked, looking a bit annoyed as Snap limped toward them.
"He injured his leg," Penny explained as Snap reached them, "helping us save ChalkZone." She fixed the tiger with an expectant stare, but he only stared at her blankly. "We should slow down," she insisted, "or instead stop the tour so we can go to this celebration of yours."
Archie looked thoughtful for a moment before he shrugged. "We won't have to do any of that," he said cheerfully, then turned to Snap. "You can just wait here for us, and we'll come back later."
Rudy looked at the royal cat in shock, knowing from what he'd already seen of the tour that they could be gone a long time, and he didn't at all like the thought of Snap being left behind. "Look, I'm sorry," he began, annoyed on behalf of his friend, "but I really think it would be best if we stuck together. And besides, I don't think Penny and I will have time to see the entire palace before we have to get back to the Real World."
At this, the king seemed to change his tune. "Well, since you're in a hurry," he began, but to Rudy's surprise, he went on, "we could just look at a few more rooms while your friend waits? I'm sure you'll want to tell me all about how you stopped uh…what was his name? Mr. New-world? And all his vicious monsters!" He lifted his paws in a dramatic fashion, as if trying to imitate a monster, then snapped back to his normal composed state and gestured toward one of the doorways on the far end of the decorative hallway.
Suddenly Rudy's expression changed. "Of course I would," he replied, and though he could see that his friends looked a bit confused, he was determined to tell the king the full story, and hope he would listen enough to recognize the contributions of his friends, as well as that of the other citizens of ChalkZone, as he hadn't seemed to listen to what Penny had said at all.
Satisfied, Archie turned to lead him toward the door he'd indicated, but Penny remained where she was, alongside Snap. "I think I'll stay here too," she stated, crossing her arms and giving the tiger a faintly annoyed look.
"Sure! Sure thing," the king replied, giving her a halfhearted gesture without looking at her. Rudy turned his head and noticed Penny and Snap exchange looks of irritation before he was whisked through the large door and into another spacious hallway.
This hallway was narrower than the others Rudy had seen and was lined with red carpet, the walls themselves a dark gold color. Various paintings hung on the wall at intervals, each looking extremely unique and detailed, but the king was moving so fast that he hardly had time to glance at them as he was rushed along.
Increasing his pace, Rudy jogged alongside the tiger, who suddenly seemed to be in quite a hurry. "Well," he began, hoping the story would actually hold the Zoner's attention before he moved on to something else, "if you'd like to know what happened, I-"
"Rudy!" the king shouted, turning to him before he could get another word out. "I…I almost forgot…there's a little favor I'd like to ask you."
"Yes?" Rudy asked, confused, but hoping he'd soon get a chance to talk uninterrupted.
"Would you mind helping me out with a little project in the city today?" Archie asked. "I'm working on something that will greatly benefit the citizens here, and with your help, we could get it done much faster. It won't take much, just a few little things…think you could do it?"
A bit taken a back at the random request, Rudy took a moment to think it over. He realized that if it would help the inhabitants of Kadir, he couldn't see any reason not to help out, especially if his magic chalk would make it easier. He put on a small smile as he turned to the king. "Uh, sure?"
ooo
Outside of the palace, the rest of the city seemed incredibly crowded in comparison, and spaces between buildings were quite smaller than they had appeared from a distance. The three friends were being led, this time not by the king himself, but by one of his subjects, through the streets toward the area the king's project was being undertaken in. Due to the crowds, they had to make their way past several Zoners, many of which who seemed to be either in a hurry or had no problem blocking the way of other pedestrians while they stopped to look at things. Luckily, the Zoner leading them insisted that the area they were looking for wasn't far, and the three had opted to ride on a large scooter rather than walk, each of them unsure how long the journey would actually take.
They passed through the streets, going at a slow pace so as to not to run into any of the busy Zoners. Their new guide, who was a quite less cheerful Zoner who looked like some sort of oversized walking teapot who towered over the trio, had hardly spoke a word to them as they made their way toward the site. Rudy had been told that there was something new being built that would benefit all the Zoners in the city, and from what he understood, he was meant to use his magic chalk to help speed up the process in whatever way he could. He only hoped he would be able to do it before he and Penny needed to get back to the Real World. Back at the palace, he had tried to explain how Penny, Snap, Biclops, and even other Zoners had helped him to accomplish what he had and save ChalkZone from Newland's plot, but the king had hardly paid attention. Feeling a tinge of frustration, he tried to put it out of his mind.
"Here we are," the teacup Zoner stated after they'd passed a few more streets.
Turning a corner, Rudy could see that they had ended up at the start of a short, wide path between two groups of buildings that led to an enormous, although incomplete, train yard. Rudy could see the beginnings of numerous stations being set up, as well as many incomplete trains themselves and several yards of track. He could also see that the place was swarming with Zoners, working on either the trains or the small buildings nearby. What fascinated him most, however, was the sheer size of it. The train station rested on the very edge of the city and he could see that the area set out for it stretched far beyond the city limits. A lot of it was empty space, but he could only imagine how it would look when it was finished. At the front of the area, where it met with the path they were standing on, was a large metal arch with the king's crest on it. Unlike the arches they'd seen in the palace garden, however, this one was quite plain and simple.
"What do you want me to do?" Rudy asked, looking at the teapot Zoner with curiosity. "Am I supposed to draw more trains?"
"Draw more trains?" their escort replied, crossing his arms. "Nonsense. We only accept the best models here, built by Zoners themselves and not merely erased." Seeing Rudy's somewhat confused look, he added firmly in a voice tinged with haughtiness, "I don't believe we could accept something merely drawn, even if by the…Great Creator…himself."
"Hey!" Snap protested suddenly, centering the group's attention on him. "I'm sure Rudy could draw a better train here than-"
"So…so what do you want me to draw, then?" Rudy asked quickly, glancing at Snap worriedly and hoping that no argument was going to escalate. To his relief, Snap only remained silent and glowered at the other Zoner.
"We ask that you merely duplicate the parts we already have," the teapot replied, leading Rudy and the others toward an area with a huge stack of massive wooden boxes.
Dismounting the scooter and approaching the pile, Rudy could easily tell that the boxes were meant to carry train parts and building materials, for some Zoner had laid out various pieces on the ground before them, which he realized that he was intended to copy. They all looked rather complex, and he realized that it wouldn't quite be the easy task he had been promised. He also briefly wondered if they'd been set out before he and his friends had even arrived.
"Do you have a spare stick of magic chalk?" the teapot Zoner asked, and when Rudy nodded, he glanced to Penny. "She can help you if she wishes. I promise that your contribution will have a great effect on Zoner's lives here and will allow us to complete the project far more quickly." Though his words were intended to be nice, the trio could tell that there was no kindness in their guide's voice, and he simply seemed irritated with them.
"Okay, sure," Rudy replied, still feeling that the whole situation was odd, and not really understanding what any of what they'd been through since arriving had to do with celebrating ChalkZone's safety. However, he knew that helping the inhabitants of ChalkZone was part of his role as its protector. Even if it was something as seemingly trivial at this, he was glad to be of aid to the members of the city.
After their escort left to look at another section of the train yard, Rudy stood in front of the large group of parts, examining each one as he noticed numbers written on paper beside them, apparently indicating how much of each part he needed to draw. "I don't think we're going to be able to finish this before we have to get back," he sighed.
"I don't think we need to," Penny responded, looking at the numbers with a bit of annoyance. "We're just here to help them out a bit, aren't we?"
"I suppose so," he replied. "I think we still can get a lot done if we work together." He glanced to Penny, who nodded.
"This is ridiculous!" Snap muttered, catching both of his friends' attention. "The only reason we were brought here was so you could do work for them!"
"W-well," Rudy stammered, a bit taken aback, "I'm sure they didn't mean to…"
"Oh right, I forgot," Snap continued, casting an angry glare at the now distant figure of the teapot Zoner who had given Rudy the instructions, "the king needed to show off his palace too."
In spite of the circumstances, Rudy wasn't sure he wanted to be so quick to judge the higher-up Zoners of Kadir City, despite how they'd been treated. He was sure they all, regardless of their actions, had some degree of thankfulness for them for keeping ChalkZone safe. "Well, I know it seems that way," he admitted reluctantly, "but he could have just-"
"I'm afraid I have to agree," Penny sighed, leaning against one of the boxes as she looked at Snap. "It does seem suspicious, and odd, that they'd wait a whole month for this 'celebration.' They can't have only just heard of the Newland incident now, and King Archie didn't seem very interested in hearing about it. Snap's theory certainly seems to be correct, and while I don't mind helping them out, I do wish they had been a bit more straightforward about it."
"Well, I guess so," Rudy shrugged, realizing that it was highly likely that his friends were correct in their assumptions, as much as he'd been hoping there was another reason behind the king's actions. "But I told them I'd help, so I will, and it'll be good for everyone in the city."
"That is true," Penny said, turning to look with Rudy at the first of the large metal pieces laid out on the ground, figuring that there was certainly no harm in helping complete the train station.
Snap gave a loud sigh, turning to the entrance to the train yard. "Well, I'm going to go look around, then," he stated, knowing that there wasn't anything of interest in their current location for him to do. He was still highly annoyed with the king's apparent dishonesty, and he knew he'd feel better if he wasn't so close to something that reminded him of it. He knew his leg injury wouldn't allow him to roam far, but it was still better than waiting around in the train yard.
"All right," Rudy replied, feeling a bit sad that Snap would be gone while he worked. He also knew that Snap had been the most excited about the trip, and felt sorry that he and Penny had only been ignored and left out. He gave Snap one last glance before he stepped back to allow Penny room to draw her copy of the first part of machinery as he moved on to the next. As he did so, he couldn't help but marvel at the sheer size of the pile of wooden boxes in front of them, wondering just how massive the train yard would be once it was completed. As he looked at them, he noticed that each of the boxes bore an insignia, the image of a cute looking teddy-like bear head with a small pink bow on one ear. He thought it was a bit of an amusing design for a ChalkZone company that made train parts, and he chuckled to himself as he began to outline his drawing, paying close attention to what it was meant to look like. He could hear Snap walking away, and hoped he would be able to find something fun and entertaining in the city.
ooo
Wandering the city streets not far from where the train yard was, Snap could not see very much of interest, and whenever he did see something in a shop or attraction, the place was too crowded for him to get a good look. Eventually, he was fed up with it and headed into a quieter, fairly secluded alley instead. Leaning back against the wall of a dusky reddish brown building, he wished he had opted to ignore the letter he'd received in the first place, and was instead spending time with his friends doing something far more interesting back by the Wait N' Sea. There was no way he could have known, however, and at least the trains being completed faster would be good for the citizens who lived in Kadir City, but he couldn't help but still feel greatly annoyed about the whole thing.
Quickly growing bored of simply standing there, he set off in a random direction, mostly following the back alleyways to see if there was a less crowded way to any of the attractions placed throughout the city. He couldn't see much of anything, however, and the number of buildings spaced so closely together turned the back passageways into a gigantic maze. He had walked, resting his leg often, for about an hour and was beginning to wonder if he was getting lost when he heard shouting coming from the other end of the alley he was currently standing in, one that led to what appeared to be a small plaza.
At first, he chose to disregard it, realizing that the noise level meant that it was likely to be just as crowded, if not more so, than the other places he had been to, when something stopped him from turning away. The shouts in the plaza did not sound cheerful or excited; instead they sounded concerned and, for a few of them, even fearful. Curiosity getting the better of him, he crept closer until he was standing in the entranceway to the alley, peering out at a crowd of Zoners looking up at a flat TV screen set in the wall of one of the larger buildings. He thought of similar places in ChalkZone City and remarked to himself that this one was quite small in comparison. However, that didn't hold his attention long, as he was soon able to make out what the Zoner on the television was talking about.
He froze, along with several other Zoners who had been walking by and stopped to listen, as the TV blared, "There has been an attempted attack on several Zoners in different areas, including King Mumbo Jumbo in the Mumbo Jumbo Jungle." Shocked, Snap glanced around at the gathering Zoners, but they all seemed as clueless about the situation as he was. "Another Zoner working at Canyon Park was also a victim of a strange attack, and the Chalk Mine was also broken into…"
"The Chalk Mine?" Snap repeated, his eyes widening, but the Zoner on the television did not give any detailed information.
"The strange thing about these attacks is that, according to information provided by witnesses, they occurred at almost exactly the same time, leading many to believe the attacks were connected…"
Snap stopped listening and turned away, realizing that if there was anything else of importance to learn from the newscast, it would have already been said. Trying to mentally trace his path back through the alleys and too the train yard, Snap walked as quickly as he could despite his limp. He had little knowledge of what was going on, but he knew one thing, and that was that he needed to inform Rudy and Penny of what he'd heard immediately.
ooo
In the center of a small, but extremely clean and well decorated office sat a large Zoner who was quietly reading over several papers on her desk. The room was silent save for the soft ticking of a floral decorated clock on her wall, and she sat with one paw resting against her head, in deep concentration. The grizzly bear's silky brown fur was well groomed, not a single hair out of place, and she sported a pink bow on her left ear, the only item of clothing she wore. Every so often she would sigh happily, pause what she was doing, and look up at the many beautiful displays of flowers set up in the small office absolutely anywhere there was room for some. Bouquets of some of ChalkZone's most beautiful flowers decorated the shelves, hung from the ceiling near her wide window, and covered every spare inch of her desk. Seeing them made her feel calm and brought her stress level low, and she smiled to herself as she turned back to the papers on her desk.
After a few more minutes she paused to take a break, leaning back in her swiveling chair as she breathed in the marvelous scent all the flowers provided her. She focused on a set of twolips on the edge of her desk, the most recent addition, and then her gaze traveled to another bouquet filled with a variety of small, colorful blossoms, each forming a different angular shape. Seeing a dead leaf on the desk beside the flowerpot, her face fell and she gave a small frown, and then, taking a ruler, she carefully edged it off the desk and into the garbage bin beside it. Giving the room another look-over in case there were any others, she sighed contentedly and leaned back again.
Suddenly there was a knock on her door, startling her out of her brief relaxing daydream. "Come in!" she called, quickly composing herself before the Zoner opened the door.
Quietly, he crept inside the room, somewhat nervously, before he stood in front of the large desk. He was a shaggy looking gray canine, likely a young artist's attempt at some sort of dog or wolf, and he met the bear's soft yellow eyes with an amber gaze of his own. "Miss Serilda," he began, "I-"
"Wipe your feet," the bear stated softly.
The Zoner paused, looking a bit confused, but wanting to carry on with his message. "I've been told-"
"I said…wipe your feet!" Serilda snarled, smacking the ruler against the desk and making the canine jump. Afterward, he quickly stepped backward onto the mat outside the door and followed her request.
"There's been some trouble," he stated worriedly after he'd finished, "down at one of the factories, I mean. We've sorted it out, but one of the workers, was, well…very…out of line. He attacked one of the supervisors…"
All traces of her peaceful look gone, the bear leaned forward in her chair. "Who?" she asked, though she sounded far more annoyed than concerned.
"I…I don't know his name," the wolflike Zoner stammered. "The one who initiated the attack, I mean. I assure you the supervisor in question wasn't hurt, but this worker, he…well, er…should I bring him here for you to assign punishment?"
"Punish him yourself," the bear muttered casually, suddenly seeming rather bored with the exchange. "You know how I hate having to clean blood out of my claws."
"Yes, yes, I'll do that," the Zoner replied, quickly edging out the door and closing it behind him.
Shaking her head, the bear slumped back in her chair again, pausing to examine her claws, each of which was at least three inches long, to ensure that they were all still spotless and polished to her standards; just the thought of having to get yet another Zoner's blood on them made her want to scrub them clean. It was often a necessity, of course, but right now she was simply in too much of a good mood.
"I told those lousy supervisors they could punish whom they like," she muttered to herself, thumping her paw lightly against the desk. "Why do they have to bother me with…"
She paused, her thoughts interrupted, as the phone on her desk began to ring. Gently moving aside another potted plant, she reached for the phone and picked it up. This was out of the ordinary, she knew, if a call was going straight to her office, and realized that one of the supervisors in the factory must have something else to tell her. "What is it?" she said in a snappy voice, her patience beginning to run a bit thin.
However, the voice on the other end was not one she recognized. This was certainly not one of her supervisors or even anyone she had ever heard working in her factories; this was a strange voice she thought she would have remembered if she had ever heard it previously. It was a low, smooth sounding voice that had an odd sort of tone to it.
"Miss…Serilda, is it? Head of Grizzly Enterprises?"
"Who are you?" the bear growled, already angry at the waste of her precious time and finding herself wishing the Zoner on the other end was within striking distance. "How did you get this number?"
"Never mind that," the voice continued, "I would like to-"
"Where did you get the damn number?" she shouted, causing the voice on the other end to abruptly halt.
"I'm very sorry," the voice apologized. "One of your workers' supervisors gave it to me. Shall I give you their name?"
"Yes…" the bear hissed. After the name was said, she quickly wrote it down on a piece of paper, planning to deal with the offender later. "Now," she stated, trying to keep her voice calm in case the stranger was a potential customer who had somehow been misdirected to her line, "I can direct you to where you can make an order with us, if you wish. If not, it would greatly please me if you would get off the phone."
"I'm sorry," the voice apologized again, "I would like it much better if I spoke with you." Before Serilda could object, he added, "I could offer you an immense sum of money for what I ask."
Serilda paused. "I'm listening," she stated. As she waited for a reply on the other end, her gaze roamed to the large, wide window behind her desk. Through it, she could see the outlines of the factories she resided over, standing out against the tan dusty ground of the desert and spewing smoke into the DayZone sky. Beyond them were the hills and mountains of the park she so despised. The desert mountain wilderness was a huge tourist attraction for Zoners who wanted a little adventure, and it was far too close to her territory for her liking. There had been several instances where she'd had to prevent lost Zoners or even the occasional park ranger from getting too close to the factory grounds, but luckily they had generally managed to stay away after her repeated insistence that her land was private property and not to be trespassed in. She had even had an electric fence set up around the perimeters. Recalling her struggles to keep what went on in her facilities classified, she heaved an irritated sigh. "So," she muttered into the phone, her voice regaining its cheerful attitude, "what is it that you wanted from me?"
The voice on the other end came through clear. "I wanted to ask you about a machine on your property."
Instantly, Serilda's calm demeanor vanished completely, and her yellow eyes narrowed suspiciously as she muttered into the phone.
"Which machine?"