The Main Attraction
Chapter 7: Newsflash
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Right now! Lights out! Let your panic out!
-Release The Panic, Red
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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.
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"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..."
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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.