Penny couldn't believe she hadn't thought of it before. Why hadn't she thought to find out if this intruder was one of Cosmo's drawings? It would explain why he would go through all that trouble to free Draow. Same creator and all. And this drawing clearly had the same viciousness Cosmo displayed. And he had clearly thought things through with that escape, much like Mr. Cosmo and his well thought out plans.
The idea sent shivers down her spine, and she didn't doubt that Rudy and Snap felt the same way. It was bad enough with Draow. The vicious bat wolf caused them enough problems. The last thing they needed was another vicious Cosmo drawing to worry about. It didn't help that, even if they were correct about him being Cosmo's, that still didn't answer their question on what he was after. Revenge was a possibility, but they didn't know for certain if that is what this intruder was planning.
They had to figure out, for certain, if this intruder was one of Cosmo's. The best place she could think of to look was going to the Chalk Mine and talking to Biclops. He would probably recognize this intruder if they tell him the very little information that they know. It wasn't much, but Biclops might be able to work with it. He had wrangled with Cosmo's creations before. So surely, he'd be able to tell them more about this intruder...provided he turned out to be one of Cosmo's that is. There was still that chance that he wasn't connected to Cosmo in anyway.
And if that were the case, they'd be back to square one. As much as it frightens her that the intruder is Cosmo's, she kinda hoped that it turned out to be the case. Because that means they would be a step closer to being able to deal with this intruder. They would have a better idea on what the intruder might want. It wouldn't tell them exactly, but knowing the intruder's identity was crucial in stopping whatever he and Draow were up to.
She was worried that Rudy might have been right. Maybe this intruder, regardless if he's connected to Mr. Cosmo, did want something with them. Draow must be furious with his master's defeat. He had been locked up because of them, and it's been over a year. Draow might still hold a grudge, and might only be willing to work with the intruder if he had a chance at vengeance.
That did mean they would have to be careful. They had no idea where Draow or this intruder was. And so far, there hasn't been any word from anyone on where they could have gone. Since they could be anywhere, Penny believed it would be safe to stay on their guard. Rudy and Snap surely wouldn't disagree with her on that. If they were a part of this plan, they would have to be prepared. They wouldn't know when or where they would strike. If there was one thing Penny was going to make sure to do, it is to avoid walking right into their plans, like how she and Rudy did with Mr. Cosmo.
Although she had told Rudy that they shouldn't jump to conclusions about this intruder wanting something with them, she would be lying if she said she wasn't concerned about that herself. True, there was the chance that the intruder wasn't going to specifically target them. But why take the chance? Draow was involved with this guy, and if there was one thing she was certain of, Draow would want to come after them. Maybe not now. Maybe not tomorrow. But she was certain that he would come after them at some point. And even if he didn't, they would still eventually cross paths with him, somehow, someway.
And this time, they wouldn't have Tsere to help them. Draow's attack over a year ago had done a lot more damage than previously thought. His wing was so badly damaged he wasn't able to fly anymore. Tsere hadn't been able to use his wing since the attack, his wing membrane torn to shreds. Rudy wanted to help Tsere, but by the time he had gotten word, Tsere was relocated to some rehab place in ChalkZone where he could being a long recovery. It was already paid for, so Tsere chose to stay rather than let Rudy help him.
It wasn't out of any disrespect towards Rudy. Tsere just thought it wouldn't be fair for his stay at the rehab to be paid for and him not using it. Though his membrane mostly healed up, he still couldn't fly. The wing was a little weak from underuse and his new membrane was too thin for rigorous flying. The doctors there say he may not regain full use of his wing until another year at least.
They would be at a disadvantage without Tsere. He was the one zoner they knew who could not only take on Draow, but was also on the same level as him. Draow could fly and so could Tsere. The two were evenly matched. Without him, Draow had the advantage of sky. Though Rudy could easily draw them something they could fly with, that didn't mean they'd get an edge over Draow. And there was that chance that Draow could catch them offguard, when there was little to no magic chalk for them to use.
The thought of having no magic chalk also frightened Penny. That was the advantage of being human in ChalkZone. Using the magic chalk to create anything they could ever want or need. There were still times when, even with the magic chalk, they'd still be struggling. But even so, facing danger in ChalkZone was made a little easier with the fact that she and Rudy could use magic chalk to draw things into existence.
But without it...she and Rudy would be just as vulnerable as any zoner. They would still have some advantages, such as the venom from the intruder not effecting them, since it would just chalk, but they would still be in a lot of danger. Going up against Draow without chalk would be suicide. He was so much larger than them and his jaws could crush bone. They wouldn't stand much of a chance against him. Snap would be in the biggest trouble as he was the smallest of the three.
The very idea of having to face Draow and this intruder without magic chalk was a frightening thing. She recalled how helpless Rudy feels when he isn't able to use his magic chalk to help him and others against a foe or some sort of danger. One moment in particular she remembers is when she had acted like she betrayed Rudy and joined Skrawl, back when he was still evil. She had defeated Rudy not by shere force. No, she did so...by making him use up the last bit of his chalk.
And when he had lost all of the chalk, he didn't look like he had any fight left in him. Part of it, she knew it was because they were friends and he didn't have the heart to fight against her. But she also knew there was another reason. It was because he was chalkless and defenseless. She remembered vividly how he looked at her in fear and sadness, and backed away when she got close. Even going as far as putting his hands in front of him in self defense... She hardly ever sees him do that, and he did it because he knew he was at such a disadvantage.
Penny knew all too well what it was like to feel defenseless in ChalkZone. She rarely ever used the magic chalk. And Rudy is almost always the one to have it. So if she got separated from him, she'd be left to her own defenses. If a large and aggressive zoner were to show up, she would be incapable of fighting back efficiently.
It wasn't impossible, sure, but still, having no magic chalk would create a lot of problems for them. It would leave them weak against Draow and this mysterious intruder. They could be captured and locked up some place where no one will find them. And who knows what would happen after that.
Penny then had a horrible thought, her mind flashing back to the intruder. Skrawl's comment on the venom...he had only been partially right...
It was true that the venom's effects wouldn't hurt them. What happened to the guy's arm wouldn't happen to them. But..that didn't mean the venom couldn't hurt them still in someway... She hadn't thought about it until now, but there were other factors to consider with this venom.
The first thing she recalled learning was its heat. This venom was very hot, which explained part of the damage done to that zoner's arm. The venom was practically at a boiling level, and stored in a special pouch in this intruder's mouth so he wouldn't get hurt himself. The effects of the venom wouldn't do anything to them, but the heat sure would. Having that stuff injected into them might not kill them, but it would leave a lot of internal burns.
And it wasn't just the burns they had to worry about...
Having chalk inserted into their bodies would not have pleasant results either. Yes, the chalk would dissolve, but it wouldn't disappear. The chalk would mix in with their blood, and it could potentially interfere with getting nutrients taken to where they need to go. It could also potentially lower oxygen levels in their bloodstream. This would result in them getting tired and their brain slowly starved of oxygen.
So Skrawl was partially wrong. They may not have to worry about their limbs bursting off, but she and Rudy still had to fear the venom. They weren't completely safe from it. Both of them could be weakened by it. And if they were weakened by it, what chance did they stand against him and Draow then?
And then there was Snap. He was a zoner, so he would get the full effects of the venom. And since there was no known antidote for it, if Snap got bitten... She felt her heart clench as she imagined the results. Snap was so much smaller than that guard... He would get a far worse reaction. There would be a lot more damage done before he was violently killed... She and Rudy would both have to make sure Snap is safe from this intruder's venom.
Perhaps if she did some more research, she could find some kind of antivenom. There was so little known about this venom, but a little reading wouldn't hurt. Maybe someone, somewhere, had written something about it. Or if she could get a sample of the venom, maybe she could analyze it and come up with an antivenom. It would be difficult to do, especially since it wasn't in her field, but for Snap's safety and the safety of the other zoners, she felt it was worth the hard work.
Penny was taken out of her thoughts when she heard the sound of Biclops singing. She, Rudy, and Snap stopped in their tracks. They stood not far from the river that curved around the Magic Chalk Mine. Up ahead, they could see a shadow forming on the ground. It was so large they knew it could only be one zoner. And that was Biclops.
Seconds later, they could see Biclops coming out of the Chalk Mine, carrying some pieces of rotting chalk in a wheelbarrow. He pushed it along the side of the river, whistling to himself. He hadn't noticed them as he started walking in their direction.
Seeing the Chalk Mine reminded Penny of all the damage that was done to it with the real world water. Rudy had been able to repair the damage, though it took a while. A lot of the normal white chalk was destroyed, but Biclops informed them the numbers would increase with time. After the damage on the grounds and walls were repaired, Biclops went to clean up the remaining mess and to gather all broke pieces of chalk that remained in tact and gave them to Rudy.
Rudy was the first one to speak.
"Hey! Biclops!"
To get his attention, Rudy waved his arms back and forth. Biclops took notice of them and stopped the wheelbarrow. He set it down and took a few steps towards the teenagers.
"Rudy Tabootie? What are you doing here?" Biclops asked. "Do you need some more magic chalk? I'm doing some spring cleaning right now, but you..."
Rudy shook his head. "No. We came to talk to you about something."
Biclops said, "Oh? Well can't it wait? I'm a little busy right now."
"It's...urgent." Rudy said, putting emphasis on the word 'urgent'.
Biclops's eyes went a little wide. Penny had a feeling he was thinking of the last time they spoke to him about something serious. Biclops had been utterly horrified when he heard the name Mr. Cosmo. She wouldn't be surprised if he was worried that they were going to say he somehow came back from the dead or something.
"How urgent?" Biclops asked hesitantly.
"Have you heard of what happened?" Rudy asked. When the giant didn't answer, he continued. "Someone broke Draow out of prison."
At this, Biclops gasped and took a step back. His eyes grew large. He shook his head in disbelief. "What? No, I haven't heard... How...long ago was this?"
Penny said, "Very recent. There was an attack on the jail he was contained in, and the intruder specifically broke him out. He didn't bother with the other criminals. He only wanted Draow."
It was clear Biclops understood how serious this was. He knew Draow longer than they have. He was there when he was created. He was there, witnessing all the damage the bat wolf caused years ago, before they were even born. And he, himself, had fought against Draow before. He knows how vicious and vile he can be.
"Do you know who did it?" Biclops asked.
Rudy shook his head regretfully. "I'm sorry, Biclops. We don't have any idea who might have done it. Or even for what reason."
"I mean, we have ideas...but without knowing who this intruder is, we're left in the dark." Penny said. "Nobody even knows where they went. They hadn't been spotted since the breakout."
Snap nodded his head. "Yeah, we were hoping you might be able to shed some light on this."
Biclops tilted his head in confusion. "Me? What can I do to help?"
"Can you tell us if you know of any Cosmo's creations that would be very smart and fast who might be capable of bypassing security? And happens to possess a very potent venom?" Rudy asked, taking a step towards the giant.
Biclops remained quiet for a few seconds. He stared at Rudy, Penny, and Snap. Penny wasn't sure why he was taking so long to respond. Was it because of the shock that Draow was out? Was he trying to remember if he knew of any zoners like that? Was he upset by something they had said?
Soon, the giant did speak, but it wasn't the answer they had been hoping for.
"No, I don't. Not off the top of my head." Biclops said, pointing at his head to emphasize. "And I don't think this intruder is one of Mr. Cosmo's creations."
Rudy, Penny, and Snap were in shock. Well a mixture of shock and relief. It was a relief knowing that they might not be dealing with another of Cosmo's monstrosities. But it was still a shock because that meant that they were no closer to learning who this intruder was. It meant they really were back to square one, where they started.
Penny said, "Are you...absolutely sure?"
Biclops nodded his head once. "I am very certain. After Mr. Cosmo's defeat, I went all across ChalkZone to locate his drawings. It took me a while, but I rounded them all up. I didn't miss any, far as I know." He paused for a moment, then said, "And even if I did miss any, Mr. Cosmo had never created a speedy, venomous creature before. I don't think it was his style. Most of the stuff he created was weaponry, particularly cannons. I don't know if a venomous zoner would be something he would want to make."
"I'm not so sure about that." Penny protested. "He was an awful person. A venomous beast would be something he'd create, I would think, just to prolong suffering. I figured some things about this venom, and it does sound like something he would use."
Biclops shook his head. "While you could be correct, Penny Sanchez, and Mr. Cosmo might have taken interest in a venomous zoner. But I searched all over ChalkZone and never found any of his creations that fit that description. And he has been dead for over a year now. Unless he crawled out of his grave, there's no chance that any new Cosmo drawings could show up."
There was a moment of silence as the trio let this sink in.
"Well that is a relief." Snap said. "I don't know if I want to meet any other...creation...Cosmo would have come up with." He visibly shuddered, his mind obviously on Draow.
"But we're still no step closer into figuring out who this guy is." Rudy said. He sounded disappointed. "I...thought I had something..."
Penny understood how he was feeling. She was disappointed, too. It meant that they had gotten no step closer to finding out who the intruder is. If he wasn't a creation of Mr. Cosmo, why had he gone out of his way to break Draow out? Why would he possibly be interested in going after them? If he wasn't one of Cosmo's works, then they had no idea why they could be targeted, or why the intruder would risk working with Draow to achieve this. They were no closer to figuring out what this guy goal was.
If they didn't know what his goal was, it would be harder to stop him. They were stuck with no leads. No clues as to what might happen. All they know is that some dangerous intruder freed a dangerous criminal for an unknown purpose. They wouldn't know where they'd strike next. They had no clue which way they went. Any zoner that was questioned so far by Skrawl's police force haven't seen anything useful. It was like the intruder, or Draow, knew which path to take to avoid detection.
"Well now what?" Snap asked.
"Well I guess we'll have to do some questioning of our own." Rudy said.
Penny had some doubts about that. "But, Rudy. Skrawl and his men have already tried asking some zoners. Nobody saw anything. And they asked so many... What makes you think that we can get different answers?"
Rudy turned to her. "Because we'll ask zoners in areas Skrawl hasn't searched yet. Further away from the crime scene. Maybe someone in these parts had seen Draow."
Rudy did have a good point. Skrawl had only been asking around in areas close to the jail. He hadn't thought to spread out more. She guessed he just wanted to be as thorough as possible. He wouldn't branch out until he asked every single zoner in the immediate vicinity.
Maybe they could have better luck than him if they asked zoners outside the areas Skrawl had already searched. If someone knew something, anything, even something very small, it could help them. She just had to remember that they still had to be careful with Skrawl. He wouldn't be happy if he found out they were meddling in his case. She wished he would be more cooperative. Oh well, typical Skrawl. Even as a good guy, he was hard to work with.
"Come on, let's go." Rudy said, ushering Penny and Snap to follow him. He waved to Biclops. "Thanks anyway, Biclops!"
The trio started to walk away. They didn't get too far when they heard the giant rushing towards them.
"Wait!"
Rudy, Penny, and Snap stopped and turned around. Biclops came to a stop a few feet away from them. They wondered what he was going to say. And judging from the look on his face, there was a bit of an alarm to it. Whatever he had to say, it must be important.
"I just remembered something!" Biclops said, raising his hands up in the air. "Before Mr. Wilter stepped up, Mr. Cosmo had talked about creating a hybrid zoner."
"A hybrid zoner?" Rudy asked, his eyes widening.
Biclops replied, "Yeah! He never got the chance...or so I thought. I never came across any such hybrid, and I don't know if Cosmo was the only corrupted artist who thought of the idea."
"What's a hybrid zoner?" Penny asked. She had never heard of the term before.
"You see, Mr. Cosmo knew of the instability of red chalk. Although he created it, he hadn't been able to figure out a way to ensure the red chalk doesn't turn against its user. It was too wild. He needed a way to keep it calm, more obedient. So he had thought of combining it with white chalk, giving it a higher level of intellect and sentience like any white chalk creation, but it would also keep the same ferocity that red chalk creations have. It would be a dangerous combination."
Rudy gasped and took a step back. Snap's eyes widened. Penny put a hand to her mouth in horror.
"So what you're saying is..." Rudy started to say. He wanted to continue, but he couldn't bring himself to continue more.
"That maybe you guys are right and it is one of Cosmo's creations. But it could be a creation I had not seen him complete. Or maybe someone else completed it for him, maybe another corrupted artist. This zoner could be a fusion of white and red chalk. And if that's the case.." Biclops paused, biting his lip for a second. "You'll be dealing with a red chalk drawing that will be more cunning than any other red chalk creation you faced in the past."
Penny's eyes grew large at this. She felt her heart start to pound. A red chalk drawing with the control and sentience of white chalk? That was worse than she and her friends could have imagined. They never knew hybrid drawings were possible, and if that is what is running loose in ChalkZone...
She cast a worried glance at her friends. They looked her, their expressions anxious. They all knew how dangerous red chalk was. Anything drawn in red chalk is more vile than any white chalk drawing, even if they were already nasty to begin with. This would explain, partially, why Draow would listen to this guy. Draow was outmatched in ferocity by the intruder, if the intruder really is part red chalk.
Now, more than ever, they had to figure out who this guy was. They had to warn Skrawl and every other citizen out there. If there was the potential of a red and white chalk drawing out there, then they had much less time than they thought to stop him.
They had to hurry.