Time moved slowly for the ten year old boy. His wide, fear-filled eyes were filled completely with the vision of the massive beast bounding towards him and his friends. He could barely breathe. His lungs felt frozen, unable to move.

Despite his inability to move, his mind was going a million miles per hour. Through these thoughts, he tried to think of a way for them to get out of here. Even without magic chalk, he knew they couldn't just sit here like target ducks. In a few seconds, which were taking longer and longer, they were going to get flattened unless they got out of the way.

Rudy gritted his teeth and he attempted to lift up his leg. At first, it was stiff and rigid. Soon, he was able to lift it up a little. He winced as the muscle felt so stiff and immobile. He took one step to the side. He stopped and took in a quick, deep breath. He turned his head and looked back at the creature. The hippo...whatever the king called it.

He was surprised to see that it was still a good distance away. And he quickly saw why.

The beast had actually stopped for a moment. Its horse-like head swiveled between him and his friends. It regarded them momentarily, as if it was trying to think of they were the ones who attacked it. A sudden spark behind it, likely from one of the guards, was enough to make it neigh viciously and try to attack them.

Rudy, Penny, and Snap reacted as quickly as they could as the beast bounded towards them. Before it could get too close, they jumped to the side. Their bodies hit against the dirt covered ground and they coughed as the dust was kicked up into the air. Behind them, they could hear the clamor of hooves slamming and digging against the ground as the horse rooster hybrid attempted to stomp them to death.

The creature, the...hippalectryon, that's it, was still staring at the ground where they stood, as if it was having a hard time realizing that they weren't there. It lifted up its head and stared back at them. Its ears lowered and it curled back its lips into a snarl, showing off its flat yet sharp-looking teeth. With another neigh, mixed in with a growly sound, it charged towards them.

The hippalectryon came after them again. It opened up its wings, and to Rudy's horror, he realized this made it go even faster. He took a few steps back as the beast closed in on him. He jumped to the side as it snapped at him. Then it whipped itself around and went after Snap. The small blue and white zoner barely made it out of the way as it attempted to slam its hooves against his head.

"Get them!"

"Crush them!"

"I want to see some body parts!"

Rudy felt a cold chill run up his spine as he listened to the zoners around them cheer for their demise. Almost every zoner had chanted something, and many were still crying out, their fists raised up, their voices becoming intermingled together in some sort of terrifying choir.

He tried his best to ignore the crowd. He tried to focus his attention on the hippalectryon. He couldn't afford to divert any attention away from it. The horse bird beast was now pacing around them, eyeing them up and down. It looked almost like a predator. Despite being possibly a herbivore, he knew he and his friends were still in trouble.

They needed a plan on how to beat this thing. Otherwise, they were just going to keep running until they ran out of strength. It was obvious that this beast had tons of energy pent up inside. They would be tired and out of breath long before the hippalectryon even started to pant out of exhaustion. There had to be a way to slow this creature down somehow...

Rudy looked to his left and found what looked to be some kind of stick. An idea flashed int he back of his head. He looked from the beast to the stick and, licking his lips, he bolted for it.

"Rudy! What are you doing?!" Penny cried in horror.

"Bucko!" Snap's panicked voice came. "Look out!"

Rudy didn't bother looking behind him. He didn't need to look to know that the hippalectryon was coming towards him. He could hear the heavy footsteps behind him. He could hear the crowd's cheers increasing in volume as it got closer. He tried to focus on the stick ahead of him. He was almost there. Just a bit more time...

Bending himself down, he grabbed the stick and continued to run forward. He was running out of space to run at this point. He had to do this quickly.

Skidding his feet on the ground, he turned himself so that he was facing the horse bird creature. It let out another dark neigh, sending chills through his body. He narrowed his eyes in determination and held the stick in front of him.

"Oh look! He's going to defend himself with a stick! How pathetic!"

"I thought creators were supposed to be smart! Is he, like, some kind of reject or something?"

Rudy ignored the harsh words spoken by the deranged zoners as he focused his attention on the hippalectryon. The creature was gaining on him, the space between them rapidly shrinking. Rudy waited until it got close enough, keeping his feet firmly planted on the ground. He could see the creature opening its mouth to prepare to bite him. Tightening his muscles, he pulled his arm back and waited. When the beast was a foot in front of him and started to lunge its head towards him with its jaws split wide open, Rudy made his move.

With a single, swift thrust, he placed the entire stick in the creature's mouth. He jumped back as the horse rooster creature ran a little ways forward before it stopped and realized what happened.

Its eyes were wide and pupils shrunk. It shook its head from side to side, letting out growls of frustration. It tried opening its mouth wider, but it they could not stretch any further. It tried to bite down, but the stick would not bend. It lowered its head and tried to kick it out with a foot. But for the moment, it was stuck.

Rudy watched it for a few seconds. He knew it wasn't going to hold the creature for long. He turned his head towards his friends and rushed to them.

"Are you okay, Rudy?" Snap asked when Rudy got close enough. His worry-filled white eyes regarded him intently. "That nasty old creature didn't hurt you, did it?"

Rudy looked at himself, patting his hands around in search of unnoticed injuries. "No, I'm fine."

"Rudy, that was really risky!" Penny said. She looked at Rudy with concern, her hands clasped together. "We need to..." She began.

"Think of a plan yeah. Why do you think I did that? To buy us some time." Rudy looked behind him. He could see the hippalectryon was still furiously trying to get the stick out of its mouth. It wouldn't be long before it succeeded or it would just come after them anyway. He turned back to his friends. "Do any of you have any ideas?"

Penny and Snap looked at each other. They frowned a little, trying to think of a solution. They looked away. Penny rubbed her chin while Snap looked at the ground, kicking the dirt a little with his foot. This lasted for a while, and at first, it looked as if neither of them had any ideas.

Rudy's attention was mostly on Penny. She was the one who usually came up with the best plans. Surely she would be able to think of a way they could get out of this mess. He looked back at the hippalectryon to make sure it was still preoccupied, then he turned back to Penny and waited, hoping that she would be able to think of something in time.

She didn't.

A loud snap. A crack. A neigh. And all three of them knew one thing in that very moment.

They had run out of time.

"Go get them! Tear them apart!"

Rudy, Penny, and Snap turned their frightened, widened eyes towards the horse rooster hybrid as it barrelled towards them swiftly, its mouth wide open. This time, it took to the air, launching itself upwards and somehow staying aloft despite its wings being a bit too small. The three children huddled close together and watched as the beast circled around them, beating its wings occasionally to keep itself from lowering back down.

Then it stayed in place, hovering above them, its body becoming partially vertical. It stared down at them hungrily, baring its teeth, tilting its head to one side as if just curious. The trio could barely take their eyes away from the creature. Their eyes were glued to its, and it felt like the world's most dangerous staring contest in that moment.

It didn't last for long. With a loud neigh, rearings its front legs in front of it, the hippalectryon dove down towards them, flatting its wings behind it to help it be more aerodynamic.

The three children let out screams of terror. They dove down to the ground as the hippalectryon grazed above them, barely missing them as it rushed passed them. Rudy could feel a rush of air move by them, wipping up his hair in the process. He dared to look up, and he stiffened in fear when the hippalectryon was diving down to try again. And it was heading straight or him. Rudy tried to get up quickly, but his arms and legs were too shaky. Knowing he wasn't going to get out of the way in time, Rudy watched the beast in fear and waited for it to collide with him in the two seconds it would take to arrive.

He felt something thick and heavy hit against him. He let out a cry as he was pushed into the ground. He laid there, waiting for the second attack, only to realize that it hadn't been the hippalectryon who had pushed him down.

It had been Penny.

"Buckette!"

Rudy's heart froze as that cry, which was intermingled with a feminine scream. Balancing himself up on his hands, he swiveled his head and his eyes were greeted with a horrific sight.

Penny had taken the brunt of the attack. She was covered in a bit of dirt and there were a couple tears in her clothes. She was laying on her back, her head lolled to one side. Rudy and Snap thought she was unconscious at first, but when she lifted up her head, they let out a sigh of relief.

This relief was short-lived when the hippalectryon grabbed her by her leg and lifted her up off the ground. Penny soon dangled there, struggling and writhing to get away. The hippalectryon reared up onto its hind legs and spread its wings.

"Drop her from a great height!"

"Let the fall destroy her!"

"No mercy!"

"Stop the creator!"

"Doom! Doom! Doom! Doom! Doom!"

The 'doom' chant continued. More and more of the Chalklantian zoners joined in. They formed fists either their hands and shook them up and down in a steady rhythm as the chanting continued. It rose in volume and practically become a deafening roar.

Rudy tried his best to pay it no mind as he stared up at Penny. He took in a few quick breaths, his eyes unable to turn away from what was going on. He and Snap rushed over as quickly as they could. But before they could reach, the beast had already taken flight.

"No!" Rudy shouted. He jumped over, trying to grab a hold of the beast. He wasn't quick enough. His face met the ground in a rather dusty union. He coughed, spitting out the dirt. He took in a shaky breath and looked up. His eyes widened. "Penny!"

He was helpless to do anything as he watched the hippalectryon rise higher into the air. Soon it was too high for him to reach. The beast didn't attempt to leave the colosseum, instead remaining content to fly around in circles, holding Penny in its jaws.

Penny had been trying to fight back, but upon seeing how high up she was, she remained frozen in terror. Any attempt to get down from this height would result in her getting badly injured, and that was a best case scenario.

Rudy felt his heart beating quickly as he watched the creature fly around and around, picking up speed as it went. It rose a little higher up with each lap that it made. Rudy wasn't sure what it was trying to do except make Penny dizzy. But he knew that the beast's intentions weren't anything that mundane. No, it had some sort of plan. But what was it...

Oh no... Rudy's eyes widened and his heart stopped when he realized what the creature was intending.

It was going to slam Penny into the ground from a great height.

His fears were confirmed as the beast contorted its body, going straight up, Penny still held tightly in its jaws. It arched its back, looking straight down. Without hesitation, it made a dive.

"No! Stop!" Rudy rushed forward, waving his arms around. "Stop that! Please!"

But to no one's surprise, the hippalectryon ignored him. Whether or not it was from disinterest or lack of understanding didn't matter. All Rudy could do was watch as Penny was being driven towards the ground. The girl let out a scream and struggled frantically to escape what could possibly be a fatal dive.

The cheers all around him grew more intense. The zoners were getting more and more excited as the hippalectryon was fast approaching the ground. Rudy felt sick to his stomach. These sickening zoners... How could they get excited over such a barbaric act?

His thoughts were ripped away from that when he heard a familiar cry from high above.

"Leave her alone, you mismatched piece of feather garbage!"

Rudy stared up in shock. He couldn't believe it. "S-Snap...?!"

He didn't know when it happened. He didn't even see the zoner's actions earlier. He didn't know how he was able to pull this off without him seeing him. Bu there he was, in plain sight.

Somehow, Snap had managed to grab onto the beast. By his feet or by his tail feathers, Rudy was certain. He had climbed along the beast's back, somehow managing to hang on even while the beast circled swiftly around. Somehow, he managed to fight back dizziness as he continued to hold onto the creature.

At this point, Snap was now straddling the horse-like neck of the beast, his hands gripping its short mane hair. He climbed further up, pressing his legs tightly against the thick neck as the beast swung its head from one side to the other in an attempt to shake him off. Rudy felt his heart skip a beat when Snap let out a yelp and nearly slipped off.

Incredibly, not only did Snap still manage to hang on, but now he was right behind the horse-like head. He grabbed onto the beast's ears and he started to yank back.

"I said let her go!" Snap snarled. His eyes shut and his teeth clenched tightly. "Let go, you big fleabag!"

The hippalectryon didn't stop. It continued to dive down. The cheers of the zoners echoed all around as Rudy watched in horror. At first, it seemed as if the hippalectryon was going to complete its attack and crush Penny between itself and the ground.

But then Snap pulled the ears back further, and its dive started to falter a little. The hippalectryon tried again to wriggle its head out of the zoner's grasp. It had no such luck. Snap's grip was just too tight. Then, seconds later, Snap opened his mouth wide and he bit down on the hippalectryon's ear.

The hippalectryon's eyes bulged at this. It struggled not to scream. It struggled to keep its dive in place. But as Snap ground his teeth deeper into the ear, it soon couldn't take anymore. When it was just a few feet above the ground, it suddenly pulled itself up. It couldn't hold back its cry anymore and released Penny. It shrieked along with Penny as the girl plummeted towards the ground.

"Penny!" Rudy rushed forward as quickly as he could. He tightened up his leg muscles and jumped forward, his arms out stretched. Penny collided with him and the two rolled across the floor. After coughing from more dust getting into his throat, Rudy checked Penny to make sure she was okay. "Are you all right?"

Penny let a few coughs before she answered. "Y-Yeah...I think so..." She wiped her brow and gave a shiver from adrenaline rushing through her body. "Wh-Where's...?" Her eyes widened in horror as she looked upwards. "Snap!"

Rudy looked up to see what Penny saw. He let out a gasp, shooting instantly up to his feet. "Snap, no!"

The hippalectryon now held Snap in its jaws. The zoner was writhing and squirming to get free. He was pushing against the mouth as he tried to crawl out. The hippalectryon bit down harder, prompting Snap to let out a cry of pain. The beast then lifted up its head, pointing its snout upwards. Rudy and Penny were confused for a second. Then they realized in horror what it was trying to do.

It was trying to swallow Snap whole. Alive.

Rudy shook his head, his mind racing. Oh if only he had a piece of magic chalk right now... The beast was too high up for them to grab. He couldn't rush over and force it to let go. Even if he could get into physical contact with it, how was he going to make the beast let go of Snap without resulting in something terrible happening to his friend in the process?

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed a flash of movement. He looked over and saw that Penny was rushing in one direction. His eyes widened. "Penny? What are you doing?"

Penny didn't answer him. She continued to run further away from where Snap was being held. Rudy couldn't tell what was going on. He reached his hand out towards Penny and was about to call to her again when he noticed she had finally stopped. Now she was lowering herself closer to the ground, searching around for something.

"Penny?"

Once again, he was ignored. He felt a pang of frustration in his stomach. Why couldn't Penny answer him? Instead of trying again, he started to rush towards her. He needed her help to save Snap, and here she was, playing with...

Wait, no she wasn't. How could he begin to think that? He felt terrible that he did, especially after he saw what she was really doing.

In a few seconds, Penny was back on her feet, holding a broken piece of the stick from before. The end had broken off into a sharp tip. Rudy felt his heart skip a beat as Penny held up the piece of stick in her hand. Was...was she intended on using this thing as a weapon...? Was that sharp end going to...?

To Rudy's surprise, Penny grabbed a hold of the sharpened end and she broke it off. With some effort, she managed to rip it away and dropped the piece. This left a blunter-looking end. Instead of a single sharp point, there were multiple jagged edges. The splintered wood was bent to the side and didn't look like it could cut anything.

But...why had Penny done this? What use was this to them now? Not that he would have wanted to hurt the creature, but how were they going to defend themselves with a broken stick?

"Rudy!" Penny called out to him. "Catch!"

Rudy had only seconds to react when the stick was tossed his way. He fumbled with it as he struggled to grab it. Soon he held it in the wraps of his fingers. He stared at it in confusion before turning back to Penny.

"Penny...what is..." Rudy started to say.

"Just do what I say!" Penny called out. "There isn't much time!"

Rudy wasn't sure what Penny had in mind. Nonetheless, he still listened to her. He turned his attention to the hippalectryon, raising the stick up slightly. His eyes widened slowly as he watched Snap continue to squirm in the beast's mouth, struggling not to fall down further into the beast's mouth. His mind flashed back to when Snap and Penny were swallowed by the goolah monster. He was not going to have a repeat of that happen.

"Don't worry, Snap! I'm coming!" Rudy called out to his friend. He wasn't sure if Snap could hear him over his screams or over the cheers of the crowd. But he meant every word.

"Rudy! Run now! And strike exactly where I say!"

Rudy didn't hesitate to run towards the beast.

sss

Pain. Horrible intense pain.

That's what Snap was feeling right now. He was hardly aware of his own screaming. Only the shere agony that he was in right now. He could feel the teeth pressing against his body. He could feel the beast tightening its grip around him. He continued to struggle, kicking his legs wildly in the air, trying to hit the beast. But none of his attempts were met with success.

His mind swirled with thoughts as he felt the warm wetness of the animals mouth, feeling himself start to slide further down. The horrible stench of its breath hardly did anything to him as he concentrated on survival. At the moment, he still had a hold of the animal's mouth corners, but he was rapidly losing his grip. Part of his body was already down the creature's throat. The beast apparently could hold its breath for a long time because it was doing nothing to speed up the process. Just letting gravity do its work.

Snap wasn't sure how long he could stay like this. He struggled to pull himself out. But his grip was too slippery, and the beast was using its slimy tongue to try to make him let go. The teeth pressed further down, threatening to slide into his arms and hands. However, the threat of losing his arms was preferable to being slowly digested alive, so he hung on despite the risk.

He couldn't believe how stupid he had been. Why did he think jumping on the creature's back and biting its ears was a good idea? He should have known that something like this was going to happen. He felt like an idiot.

The only good thing that came out of this was that at least Penny was safe. His efforts had saved her from being nearly crushed to death by this creature.

He wasn't sure where Penny was right now, or what she and Rudy were doing. He thought he could hear their cries to them, but he was too busy focused on trying to pull himself out, his head echoing with his screams, to really notice for sure. Whatever they were doing, he hoped that it involved finding a way to stop this creature before it made him its lunch.

As he continued to slide down further, he could feel a few tears start to form in his eyes. This could be it. This might be his last few moments alive. Recalling something he did earlier that he wasn't proud of, he knew that now was the best time to say it. Even though he wasn't sure if Penny could hear it, she deserved to know.

"Penny! I have something to tell you! I'm sorry that I..."

Without warning, the beast's head suddenly jerked to one side. Its mouth opened up a little wider, allowing Snap to pull himself forward. He winced at the teeth scraping against him. There was another thunk and the head was tossed further to the same side, this one with more force.

Snap found himself being launched from the mouth. He let out a cry as he dove head first into the ground. He hit against something soft along the way. He skidded along the ground before finally coming to a stop. He rubbed his head and let out a soft groan.

"Whoa...what happened..?" Snap asked. He slowly climbed up to his feet. Something felt off about the ground. He quickly found out why.

"Well for starters, you are standing on my head." Penny's muffled voice said.

Snap looked down. "Penny...? Well no wonder the ground felt so...eggy." He said with a smile.

Penny growled at him. "Just get off me!"

Snap obligued, jumping off of her. He reached down and grabbed her hand, pulling her up from the ground. Penny brushed herself off, getting as much dust off of her as possible. Soon she stopped and looked down at him expectantly.

"Now...what was it you were saying before?" Penny asked him. "Something you wanted to apologize for?"

Snap let out a nervous chuckle, folding his arms behind his back and kicking his feet against the dirt. "What? I-I didn't say anything."

"Snap.." Penny narrowed her eyes at him. Snap just grinned at her. Penny continued to glare at him.

Neither of them had a chance to take this any further. There was a loud thud behind them, reminding them both of the danger that they were still in. They turned their heads and looked over their shoulders. Their eyes bulged at what they saw.

"Rudy!"

The stick that Rudy had used to hit the creature in a certain spot on its head had been shattered. The huge talons of the creature's back feet had smashed it into several splittered pieces of wood. From the way it was angled, it looked as if Rudy were trying to attack it again to keep it at bay. But as Penny and Snap could both see, this did not end too well for Rudy.

Rudy was now on his back, a massive hoof pressed against his chest. He was trying to push it off, his feet kicking, scraping the dusty ground. None of his efforts prevailed. His head turned to the side was the hippalectryon's head was lowered. Its hot, steamy breath hit against the boy's face, causing his hair to fly to the side a little. The white, shiny teeth were bared and it looked as if the creature was about to bite Rudy's head off.

"Bucko!" Snap called out in horror. He tried to rush forward, but he felt someone grab him by his arm. He glared over at Penny. "Let me go! What's the big deal?! He needs our help!"

"I know, but we need to plan this out." Penny warned him. "Or do you want to end up in the creature's mouth again?"

Snap's eyes widened at this. He only took in a few breaths before he shook his head slowly.

"Good. Now...let's think about this." Penny rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "What can we use to stop this thing?"

"Well we don't have a lot of time..." Snap said, gritting his teeth nervously. "I sure hope you have a plan, Buckette..."

Snap could feel his heart speeding up as he watched the hippalectryon continue to menace his creator and friend. Rudy was struggling to breathe at this point. The creature was pressing down further onto his chest, interfering with intakes of breath. Snap could feel his body shaking. If Penny didn't think of something soon...

"He is about to fall!"

"Take it with dignity, creator!"

"It's the least you can do!"

Snap ground his teeth together. These zoners... Have they no shame? Did they not realize what they were doing?

As the few seconds passed, and he heard more and more of these horrible statements from these zoners, it was becoming harder and harder for him to remain quiet. He tried to fight it back, knowing that saying anything to them wasn't going to do them much good. But...those words...they were heating up his blood too fast. He..he couldn't hold back any longer.

Snap whirled himself around, facing one portion of the crowd. Inhaling a deep breath, he let out a loud shout. "Shut up!"

Snap was not at all surprised when his shout hardly did anything. Sure the crowd did go silent, but it was for, what, maybe two seconds at best. Three at tops. Then the crowd started to jeer at him, throwing insults and mockery. Snap felt his blood boil, forming shaking fists with his hands. He was about to say something else when his rational part of his brain took over. No..they weren't worth it.

Turning his attention to Penny, he noticed that she was still trying to think of something. This made him bite his lip as he turned over to where Rudy was. The boy didn't have that much time. They had to do something fast or...

That was when Snap took notice of a bucket of water nearby. He didn't know what it was for. Perhaps for any zoner in the stadium who happened to want a drink.

Well whatever the purpose, it was positioned in the perfect spot: right over the hippalectryon.

Would it work? There was no way to know, and there was no time to sit and think about it. He rushed over to Penny and grabbed her by the arm. He pulled on it and had her look in the direction of the water bucket.

"Will it work?" Snap asked.

"It's a long shot. But we can try." Penny looked around. Soon her eyes focused on something. "There seems to be something there holding it up. If you stand on my shoulders and try to reach it..."

Snap didn't need to hear any further. "Come on then!" He rushed towards where Penny indicated. "Let's go!"

sss

Rudy's eyes were bulged wide open. His mouth was opened as far as it could go. He struggled to take in a breath. He hardly got any air in. His mind raced and he felt himself panicking.

In addition to this, he felt a massive weight on his chest, combined with the feeling of it being set on fire. As seconds past, it got harder and harder as the beast applied more pressure. Each breath became harder to take, and he realized he was going to pass out soon if he didn't get some oxygen inside of him.

He realized that his friends might not be able to save him in time. They couldn't move this heavy creature, and if they got too close, the creature might try to quicken his demise. The realization that his life could be over now struck him, stinging his chest and making him feel sick.

He was vaguely aware of the zoners cheering the beast on, telling it to finish the job. He couldn't hear the exact sentences being used, but words like 'destroy' and 'doom' pretty much told him everything he needed to know about the zoners' mindset. A part of him wanted to be offended and pissed off at what they were doing, but he was too focused on just trying to survive the next few minutes.

He started to have flashes of his life before his eyes. He could see so many events move in front of his mind. Past adventures and experiences, both positive and negative, danced before him. Realizing that his life story could conclude here, Rudy shut his eyes and let out a single tear.

Suddenly, he heard a crash of something metal, and the hippalectryon reared onto its rooster-like hind feet. Rudy took quick notice of a bucket on the creature's head and the feeling of water splashing down onto him. But he didn't care to watch any further when breath suddenly entered his lungs again. A sweep of relief rushed through him as he laid there, his arms stretched at his sides, breathing in and out quickly.

Soon, he felt someone grab onto his hands and pull him up. He leaned his head forward. He coughed and wheezed a few times, his hand against his chest and feeling his heart pounding. It took several seconds before his mind began to register who was next to him.

"G-G-Guys...?" He spluttered. "What...What happened...?"

"Rudy, take it easy." Penny whispered softly to him.

"Yeah, that creature really knocked the wind out of you." Snap said sympathetically.

Rudy continued to breathe heavily. It only took him a second to realize that, no matter what condition he was in, he couldn't lay down here for long. The hippalectryon might come after them.

He started to climb up to his feet. His friends, though worried, didn't attempt to stop him. They rose up with him, holding onto him so he had support. Rudy managed to get up to his feet. He felt a rush of dizziness and he staggered. He soon managed to stop himself and he balanced on his two wobbly feet.

The zoners in the crowd weren't happy about this. They immediately jeered and booed at them and tried to entice the creature to strike again. As tempting as it was for Rudy to shoot a glare at them, his mind was more focused on the present danger they were in. He looked around, trying to find the horse rooster hybrid, wondering what it was going to do next.

The hippalectryon still had the bucket on its head. It was running around in circles, kicking up dirt and dust. It tried to open up its wings, but the fact that it couldn't see anything panicked it into staying on the ground. Instead it just ran, galloping and neighing in terror.

Seeing it like this made Rudy's heart twist. Despite the fact that this thing nearly killed him, a part of him couldn't bear seeing it so confused and frightened. He began to walk over towards it slowly and cautiously.

"Rudy? No! What are you doing?" Snap called out to him. "It's going to...!"

Rudy ignored the calls of his friends as he moved towards the beast. He took his time with each step, careful not to make too loud of a sound or be too noisy. He licked his lips nervously, feeling his heart pound. He knew what he was doing was incredibly risky and dangerous. Still, he was compelled to try to help this creature, who might very well be starting to suffocate with that bucket stuck to its head.

He reached out with his hand. He paused, curling his fingers. He hestitated for a moment. Then he reached out and grabbed onto the bucket with his hands. He swiftly yanked it off, releasing the creature's head.

Almost immediately, the hippalectryon froze. It stared down at him, its ears swiveling, its head tilting. Rudy watched it, locking his eyes on its own. He dropped the bucket, letting it roll to the side, and held up his hands as a way to show the creature that he wasn't trying to harm it.

"Rudy! Run!" Penny hissed.

But Rudy remained where he was. "I'm not going to hurt you..." He said to the hippalectryon gently. "It's all right..."

The hippalectryon raised its head up, rocking it even further, regarding him almost like a curious bird would. It took a slow step towards him, leaning forward. Its teeth were still bared, but only partially now. Somehow, it didn't look nearly as threatening. He held his breath as he reached out towards it to try to pet it.

Without warning, there was a loud sparkle of electricity that rammed into the hippalectryon. The beast let out a loud neigh, its wings stretching out from the shock. Rudy's eyes widened in horror at this.

"What are you doing?!" One of the guards snarled. "You are supposed to get rid of him! Not make friends with him!"

"You lousy piece of sh..." Another guard yelled before he was cut off short. With a swing of its head, the hippalectryon struck against the guard, knocking him back.

The hippalectryon swing its legs in the air, its tail feathers ruffling menacingly. Rudy realized what was going on. The hippalectryon finally got it in its head that he and his friends weren't the ones who hurt it. It had been these guards, and now it was going to teach them a lesson.

He quickly realized something. With the guards busy, he and his friends had a shot to get out of here. He turned his attention to Penny and Snap, rushing towards them quickly.

"Come on! We have to get out of here!"

They turned their eyes towards the doors that led to the outside. With the guards busy and all the zoners too high up to get to them, Rudy, Penny, and Snap began to make a bee line towards the door.

They ran as fast as they could. Rudy could hear their hearts pounding. He could hear their heavy breathing. His own intermingled with them, pounding in his head. He opened his mouth, his tongue hanging out. He and his friends were getting closer to the doors. They just needed to go a little further... Just a little longer... Almost there...

Then they got a reminder that not all the Chalklantian zoners here were bound to the ground.

Two shadows hovered over them for a few seconds before they suddenly came crashing down. Rudy and his friends jumped back to avoid getting hit. They glared at the humanoid pegasi zoners in front of them, their wings outstretched to block their path.

"Not so fast..." One of the pegasi said.

"You're not going anywhere..." The other said, his voice deeper and more threatening.

Rudy gritted his teeth. "Let me and my friends go. We haven't done anything wrong!"

One of the pegasi let out a cold laugh. "If you think we're letting you monsters get away with this, you..."

"Enough!"

All eyes turned to King Zander. He was still standing on the podium. His dark brown eyes glared down at them, his lip curled partially upward. He regarded the two pegasi zoners with a level of disappointment.

"You two, back to the stadium. Now." King Zander ordered. The two anthro pegasi didn't bother questioning his order. They quickly left, as if fearful of what the king might do to them if they dare try to go against his wishes. King Zander watched them icily as they returned to their seats. Then he turned his head back down towards Rudy and his friends. "As for you three..." He growled.

Rudy, Penny, and Snap suddenly found themselves surrounded by a few guards. They huddled close together, glaring at them angrily. A quick look to their side allowed them to see what happened to the hippalectryon. It was laying on the ground, its body twtiching with a few sparks of electricity coming off of it. Two guards were standing over it, glaring at it. They quickly pieced together what had happened. Their minds boiled in anger when they saw this.

"Take them back to their cage." The king ordered. "I will let them have a...break."

Rudy, Penny, and Snap shouted in protest as the guards lifted them up off the ground, pinning their arms at their sides. They were carried, with little gentle effort made, back towards the room where they had been held. Showing no amount of remorse, the guards thrust them back into the cage as hard as they could and locked them up inside.

The trio glared as they watched the guards walk away, leaving them alone. Their bodies were still shaking in anger, and they were so tempted to say something to the guards as they left. But they remained silent, and their burning anger soon turned to chilled fear. They slumped down to the ground and looked at one another. Their best attempt for escape had passed them by. Now what were they going to do?