How frustrating... Well not like he could blame Biclops for not knowing. He honestly didn't know what he had expected when he had gone up to the giant for help. Perhaps he should have considered this before he and his friends walked all the way over here. It almost felt like a waste of a trip and...
No, it wasn't a waste. He shouldn't think like that. Yeah, they didn't get the information that they wanted. But they at least had some new ideas on what was going on. They had a better understanding than before, and they were a bit more prepared. Not that their challenge was diminished, but still, all the help they could get was fully welcomed.
But now what were they going to do? They needed to gather information on these zoners. Some form of intel so they can figure out what to do next. It wasn't going to be easy to acquire said information. He wouldn't be surprised if they didn't figure out anything before something huge happened. He hated the thought of it, and he hoped that he did not jinx anything for anyone. But it was true, right? Misfortune always seemed to follow before major discoveries...
Rudy shook his head. He had to try to stay positive, right? Yeah, he had to try to keep himself focused on the task at hand. If he let himself be to engulfed in his emotions, he was only going to screw himself up even more. He could not allow that. Not when so many lives were at risk. As the protector of this world, he had to do whatever he could in his power to save these zoners. And that's exactly what he was going to do. He formed a tight fist with his hand and squeezed it. Oh yes, those zoners would not get way with what they had done.
"How are we going to do this?" Snap's voice rang out. The zoner had his hands to his face, his eyes shut tightly and his teeth grinding. "How are we supposed to figure out the names of those guys?!"
"I know it seems like a tall order. It is definitely not going to be easy." Penny looked at him and Rudy sadly. "But you heard Biclops. We can't really do much without more information. And we already knew that, remember?" Penny motioned with one hand while the other gently gripped Snap's shoulder right shoulder. "I'm sure we can figure out a way to..."
"Yeah, right." Snap growled as he ripped his arm away from her. "Keep dreaming... We will never learn any of their names because none of them fucking stand out!" Snap pushed his hand against Penny's arm. "Face it, Buckette. The only way that we will find out any of their names is if we ran into them again and then forced a name out of them!"
Penny stared at Snap with wide eyes for a second, and then something seemed to click with her. It was almost hard to see and Rudy just barely caught it. That familiar look... It seemed as though Penny had something in mind. "Or...we could just watch them..."
Snap tilted his head, lowering his hand down. "Say what...?"
Penny nodded her had. "Yeah, we could follow them." She looked to Snap and Rudy in a repeated pattern as she spoke. "I know, it's still hard. But if we could run into them again, like if they go after another zoner, we could follow them. We could listen to what they say. We could see where they are going." Penny's eyes slowly filled with realization. "...And we can use that information to stop them..."
This sounded like a good idea initially. It did make sense to try to follow these zoners to learn about them. It was not very likely that they would just hand over the information they asked for that easily. It was doubtful that they were gullible enough to do something like that. So following them was the next best thing.
But then a concern popped up. What about the zoner attacked? They couldn't just stand aside and watch it happen, could they? Indeed, they'd have to do something about that. But wouldn't that interrupt their chance of following them? Stealth was the best option to take and if they didn't use stealth properly, then...
Rudy gritted his teeth. He could feel a headache pounding throughout his head. He shook it slowly as he tried to stave off the pain. He found it increasingly difficult to do and it felt like the drums in his skull were banging harder and harder. He seethed as his head swirled around in circles. He didn't want to let himself keep falling deep into this, but how could he figure a way around this? He needed to choose something. He needed to decide whether or not this was a good idea. And until he did, they could not do anything.
"I just wish there was an easier way to go about this, you know? Some way that doesn't involve endangering ourselves or others." Rudy spoke his thoughts aloud. He could feel his friends' sympathetic glances upon him as he kept speaking. "I mean... We can't just put a zoner in danger like that. We need a way to get this information without having to risk hurting anyone."
"I get ya, Bucko." Snap nodded in agreement. "I don't like the idea much myself. Hmm..." He rubbed his chin lightly. "Say... do you think you can..use your chalk?"
Rudy looked at him in confusion. "For what? Without information..."
"But what about one of those... you know..." Snap made a few quick motions with his hands. "Spy things? Wouldn't one of them work?"
Penny's eyes widened in realization. "Oh yes! That could work!" She whirled her head so fast that it was impossible to see. She stared intently at Rudy and said, "You could draw one of your spy devices. Some kind of thing like that, and have it patrol around ChalkZone!" She moved her finger in a circular motion as she said this. "That way, you could find out about these zoners and you don't need to risk another zoner to do it."
Rudy felt a sensation inside of him, difficult to describe, as he realized just how right these two were. He could not believe that he had not thought about that. He felt almost embarrassed by this. He should have known that he could have just done that. Yet somehow it slipped his mind constantly and he kept worrying himself more and more and...
Well, that's why he had his friends to help him out, right? He was grateful that they were here, to remind him of ideas that he would have otherwise forgotten about.
Giving a small smile, he said, "Yeah, that should work. If I can just..." He looked down at his magic chalk. "Designing such a thing shouldn't be too difficult. I just need to program it to find suspicious zoners or..." He stopped himself. "Or perhaps..." He rubbed his head. "Gawd, I'm thinking way too hard on this."
"It's all right, Rudy." Penny looked at him sympathetically. "We're all frustrated about this. Don't blame yourself." She moved in closer. It took a few seconds before Rudy could feel her comforting hand squeezing his shoulder. "We will think more about this later."
"Later? Why later?" Snap inquired. "We don't exactly have a lot of time for..."
"We need to get back home for supper."
Rudy nearly gasped at this. Was it really that late? Had they really been in ChalkZone for that long? Rudy scrambled to look down for his watch, which he realized he didn't have. He then looked over at Penny, who held up a small chalk-drawn watch. He leaned in closer, and he could see that it was getting close to six o'clock. His heart immediately skipped a beat as he realized that his folks were probably worried about him.
"Oh shit that's right!" Rudy slapped himself in the forehead. "I can't believe I forgot!" He looked over at Snap, regret forming over his face. "I'm sorry, Snap! We have to get going!"
"That's all right. We can talk later." Snap waved at the two. "See you two around!"
With that, Rudy and Penny turned and immediately ran back to where the portal was. As they ran, Rudy's thoughts came alive and he struggled to think of what they could do about this. He tried to think of how he should handle creating his spy device. Perhaps he could... Oh he can try to figure it out later. Perhaps some food and a good night's rest would help him figure out something.
He just hoped that, in the end, he would figure out something that could work before it was too late. He didn't want to think of what would happen if he and Penny weren't able to help ChalkZone City before someone got really hurt. They were lucky to have saved Rapsheeba when they did. But what would happen when those zoners struck again and they were too late to do anything about it...?
Rudy shook the thought out of his head. He shouldn't let himself get too worked up over this. They would find a way to stop those zoners in time. They just...had to...
sss
Snap watched his friends walk off for a few moments. He waited until they disappeared into the distance before he turned back around to walk towards his own place. He was feeling a bit tired anyway and he did need some rest. At least Night Zone was not too far away from here. So it wouldn't take that long to reach it.
But the journey back there felt like it took much longer than expected. And he wasn't really entirely sure why at first. It wasn't like he was taking some ridiculous path or anything like that. He was just taking his usual path. So what was taking him so long? Why did it suddenly feel like everything was dragging along? Why did it feel like his limbs were taking much longer to complete each step?
Then it hit him.
He was afraid.
Snap tried his best to push back such thoughts. He tried his best to clear his mind and try not to allow himself to feel so scared. He reminded himself that everything usually worked out in the end. He tried to tell himself that he would be safe within his own home.
But what if he was not? What if those zoners came from him in here? What if he would wake up and found that they had surrounded him? He wouldn't have much place to go and he wouldn't have many options to escape. His home did not have any exits. He could only think of two. The main and the back. And those could easily be blocked off. And he wasn't about to jump off of anything. He was not that stupid. But that ultimately gave him little options if he were home invaded. And that fear just grew larger and larger...
He probably wouldn't have anything happen to him. It probably would be all right and he was just overreacting. He knew that he shouldn't let himself get too antsy about this sort of thing. He was only going to make things worse for himself if he acted this way. He had to try to force himself to calm down so he could think more rationally.
Yet could he be blamed for acting this way? Could anyone seriously look at him and think that he should just bucker up? He had a very good reason to feel this way. He had a very good reason to want to curl up in a corner somewhere. He might act all tough and he would still fight to protect himself or someone that he cared about. But he knew full well the odds of him being able to win a fight against a group of zoners. He might be able to handle a few, but when it came to how many zoners were in that group, there was no way that he would succeed. He would end up flat on the ground easily and he would be defeated before he knew what happened.
He gritted his teeth and seethed. He wished there was something more that he could do. He wished that there was some kind of option that he could take to ensure his safety. But he realized that in the end, there wasn't much that he could do. He would have to just lock the doors and shut the windows and hope for the best. That was not exactly comforting, but it was something that he could do.
He tried to push those thoughts out of his head the best way that he could as he continued on down the street. He passed by a few zoners, nearly bumping into a couple, due to his racing mind. He ignored their comments and shouts. He did not answer any zoner trying to understand what he was doing. He just kept on going, determined to back to his place before it got too late. Kind of hard to tell the time here in ChalkZone, but being a zoner, he had the strong innate sense of time. Probably the one thing that he had over his two human friends.
In that moment, he stiffened up and he realized that he kind of longed for them right now. Even as he approached his home, even though he knew he would be hidden out of sight within the safety of the walls, he felt this sense of...wanting to be with someone. Rudy, Penny, or both, he didn't care; he just wanted one of them to be with him. He did not want to be alone.
The only reason he didn't say anything earlier was because he knew he couldn't keep them. Even if he had this thought before, he still had to let them leave. Their families would have been worried otherwise. What kind of friend would he have been if he forced them to stay and their parents wondered what happened to them? That would have caused more trouble than it was worth and...
Snap released a sigh. He would be fine, right? It was just going to be for one night. What could possibly happen in one night?
Snap's train of thought was interrupted as he approached his home. A large apartment complex. He had to veer away from his original thought as he was thinking of his house in Day Zone, which was not meant for sleeping. If anything, recalling this made him feel better because of the security mechanisms in place. There was a stronger sense of safety in the night sections of ChalkZone City: zoners all sleeping in the same areas and making it harder for intrusions.
The blue superhero zoner walked up to the door leading into the building. He held out his key he used to get in. With a simple swipe and a beep, the door unlocked. Snap could hear the tumblers inside turning and soon he could grab the door and push it open. He shut it behind him and he headed up the stares.
He stiffened for a second when he heard a loud creaking sound. He whirled himself around, preparing for a potential fight, looking left and right. But he did not see anybody there. He looked down and he shuffled his feet a little. He realized that it was just the floor boards of the steps. He grumbled to himself, uttering a few less than pretty words under his breath. He hoped that the land lord would fix that. He's surprised that no one didn't have a heart attack because of this.
Releasing a few more low grumbles, Snap proceeded the rest of the way up until he reached his room. He struggled to put in the key. Stupid thing, he always forgot how to put it in. One would think that he had gotten the hang of this by now. But sometimes he ended up forgetting what he was doing and, well, it definitely became noticeable when he was stressed and...
No, he was not stressed. He was not going to let himself remain stressed. This was all going to work out just fine. He took in a few deep breaths as he entered his home. As he became surrounded by the familiar walls all around him, he felt a sense of relief. He had made it. It was all going to be just fine. He proceeded over to the welcoming couch before him, stretched himself on it, and just...relaxed.
But it didn't last long. Despite his best efforts, he still felt a cold chill running up and down his spine. His eyes widened and he struggled to breathe. A horrific thought came to him out of nowhere. It rammed into him with such a heavy force and any effort to stop it was met with resistance.
Sure, he might be safe in here for now. But that did not change the one fact that still loomed over his head: He was a top target.
Snap had tried to look brave in front of his friends. He tried his best to make it seem like he was not that highly bothered by this. But the reality was, he was terrified. He couldn't fully relax. He kept looking over his shoulder, his gut twisting about. He could not make his muscles from stop tightening up. He could feel his head spinning around, pounding repeatedly over and over in his head. He shook it a few times, but he just could not stop it. He was glad that he was sitting down; he would have easily fallen at this rate. He reached up, rubbed his head firmly, and tried to think of this present situation.
There was a chance that these zoners could come after him. He was the one who interacted the most with a creator. He was the one who always hung out with two of them actually, Rudy and Penny. He was a prime target. If that group got a hold of him, they could force him to tell them anything they wanted to. They could even use him as potential bait. The thought sent a chill up and down his spine and he struggled not to throw up.
He tried his best to shrug it off. There was little that could be done about it right now. He was better off just trying to relax and go to sleep. Those other zoners, those stick figures, surely they had gone to bed by now. That was of some comfort to him, knowing that they were most likely tired from their failures and just gone to bed. And he should do the same.
...right after he watched a bit of television. Wouldn't hurt to calm himself down. He lifted up the controller, flipped the TV on, and a glow fell over his face in the darkness. As he watched the show that came on, he wondered with half interest just what Skrawl was doing right now. He almost...missed him as an antagonist. At least he knew who Skrawl was and what he could do.
He gave out a small chuckle to himself. He could only just imagine what he would say if he were to run into these nutcases. The humor was enough to stave off a bit of his fear and he was able to proceed watching TV without feeling too tense.
sss
"So you say you can give me some interesting information?" Asked Pascal.
Skrawl nodded his head. "I'm sure what I have to say would be quite useful."
After being a bit more informed, Skrawl did feel a bit more willing to cooperate. He no longer had to force himself to work with this zoner until it was time to strike. He did feel more comfortable helping out this zoner in the meantime. Plus he was a bit curious to see what they were capable of doing. And the best way to find out, in his opinion, was to hand over to them a bit of information to see how well they'd do.
And who knows? Perhaps he would be able to get something out of this. Maybe he could even get his hands on one of those fucking three that made his life miserable. He did fully understand that things might not work out that way for him and he had to be prepared for things to fall apart. But still, it was worth trying, right?
Okay, he needed to stop thinking about this; he was only confusing himself more. He should just get things going before he gave himself quite the headache. Licking his lips slowly, he proceeded to explain, "After all, you wanted to know more about any zoner that hung out with a creator, right?"
Pascal nodded their head slowly. "At least, the stick figure zoners did. I'm sure they will be more than happy to hear this." They paused for a moment. Then they said, "And same thing with the future zoners. They would all benefit from this."
"I thought so." Skrawl nodded his head slowly. "And I know exactly which zoners do this."
"Oh? Care to tell me?" Pascal asked.
Skrawl remained silent for a moment. He tried to think of just how he should answer. He could just give out the answer right away like he planned. Or should he try to squeeze out even more information from them? There were still more things that he would like to know. More things that he wished to understand.
Pascal had not told him much about that chalk piece that they were after. They did not even tell him what was so special about it. The only thing that Skrawl knew is that it was apparently dangerous enough to be locked away. Skrawl couldn't fathom why if only a human could use it, unless there was something different about this particular piece. He bit his lip slightly as the thought rushed through his head. If this piece of chalk could be weaponized... Then perhaps it could be used for his own ends. Perhaps that Jax zoner knew something, or his partner Jonathan, was it? Yeah they might know.
But wait, what if..
"Before I answer your question, there is something I am curious about." Skrawl spoke as he raised an eyebrow up, looking down at the zoner with uncertainty. "What about that attempt you told me about of getting it?"
Pascal put their arms outward. "What about it? What does that have to do with this?"
"Well, if you tried to take it and you caused a ruckus..." Skrawl narrowed his eyes. "Doesn't this mean that chalk boy would know?"
"Chalk boy? Oh you mean that creator fellow?"
"Yes."
Pascal waved their hand dismissively, turning their head to the side. "Feh, I wouldn't worry about it." They glanced back at Skrawl with a backwards glance. "They wouldn't let word of that leak very far. They are very strict about it." Pascal leaned to one side, putting their hand against the wall. "I highly doubt 'chalk boy' ever heard of it. So if you are thinking he'd be there to try to stop us, you're mistaken." A smile crept along their face. A small chuckle released through their partially open mouth. "You have nothing to worry about."
Skrawl tried to feel some sense of relief at this, but he was still a little nervous. Nonetheless, he nodded his head slowly and said, "I know of one particular zoner that loves to hang out with them. I'm sure the stick figures and the future zoners already know whom I'm talking about. But I bet you that they don't know where to find him." Skrawl pointed to himself, a smile spreading across his face. "I do."
Pascal smiled at this. "And you are going to help us get him?"
Skrawl raised a hand up in gesture. "Well of course I am! After all, this will benefit me too..." Skrawl moved his hands together, tapping the claw tips against each other repeatedly. He did this a few times as he let his smile grow more and more twisted. "I may not get my hands on one of the two children, but I would get the next best thing: their little friend."
Pascal pushed themself away from the wall and proceeded over to Skrawl. "Wait, are you talking about Snap?" Skrawl turned and looked over at them. He remained silent. His expression was enough to give the answer. "Are you sure he is the best one to get? He would be...tough to nab, if you know what I'm saying." Pascal raised their arms up slightly. "Do you think it would even be safe to go after him? Unless you have a suicide wish, I'm sure you don't want to invoke the wrath of those human children."
"Those human children as you call them, they have to sleep at night." Skrawl said with a sneering smile. "They don't stay in ChalkZone all the time; they leave often. And if we were to find a way to take advantage of this..."
Pascal looked towards the ground. They murmured something softly. "At least they remember to leave..." Their voice was barely audible, barely noticeable. But Skrawl was able to pick up on it and his eyes flickered in confusion. What the heck were they talking about? Pascal shook their head, cleared their throat, and turned their attention back to him. "Well anyway, I get what you are saying, Skrawl. I do agree that moving in when he's alone would work. It would help if we knew if those two are gone, though."
"Oh don't worry about that. I can have my Beanie Boys do some patrolling." Skrawl did feel a bit of a pang at that statement. He had almost forgotten about his Beanie Boys. He felt strange at this realization. Was it guilt? He wasn't sure, but he tried to shrug it off. He had other things to worry about right now. "They would be perfect."
At this, Pascal folded their arms to their chest. "Don't they sing that stupid song every time they show up?"
"It's not stupid!" Skrawl shouted as he raised up a fist into the air. He then stopped himself, lowered his hand down, and cleared his throat once more. "I mean... They know how to be quiet, when to be quiet. It's all right. They will not lead zoners straight back here or anywhere honestly. They will be stealthy. I promise."
Pascal's eyes narrowed into slits. "I should hope so. Otherwise, this whole operation could be in jeopardy." Skrawl gave a firm nod of his head. Pascal sighed, closing his eyes. "So your Beanie Boys can help us figure out if Snap is alone or not." They opened their eyes. "What after that? What do you suggest that we do?"
Skrawl said, "I know where that stupid little zoner lives in ChalkZone City. And I know where he tends to go." He didn't bother telling Pascal this was because he did a little stalking before. He had an earlier plan that never came into fruition. But he was glad, now that he was partnered up with someone, that he went through all that trouble. Now it was going to come into good use. "We just need to figure out at what points he is the most vulnerable and then go from there. We'll be able to grab him and no one will..."
"What about we grab him tonight?"
Skrawl froze at this. He stared at Pascal, unsure of how to reply. He licked his lips nervously. He hadn't really thought of doing it tonight, as planning took time. He did not get a good look at Snap's routine and because of that, he did not actually know the zoner's most vulnerable points. It would be better if they waited until tomorrow night before taking action, using this night to study. But then again, what if Snap was not completely consistent? Perhaps they should take action sooner.
It was still a risk. Skrawl might be eager, but even he understood just how much things could mess up if they were to try to go in too quickly. Especially considering that this was Snap they were talking about. The stupid superhero zoner was quite slippery at times, and he knew how to draw attention. If that happened...
But he did know that if they did catch him now instead of later, that could help move things along faster. If he had his Beanie Boys figure out if Rudy and Penny were still here and if they weren't, if they were to move in and wait until the right moment... Skrawl gritted his teeth as he gave something of a grin. He could feel excitement surging through his body. Snap might not be the main one that he wanted, but getting him was still a step closer to getting Rudy.
Turning his attention back to Pascal, he nodded his head affirmatively. "That sounds like a good idea...provided that we prepare ourselves."
"Of course. I was not going to rush in." Answered Pascal. They raised an eyebrow. "What, did you think that was what I was going to do?"
Skrawl shook his head, waving his hand from side to side. "No, of course not! But it is agreed, right?" He raised his hand up in gesture, his fingers arching inward towards one another. "We will go after Snap first, and through him, we will be able to get the two creators." Skrawl felt his smile stretch a little further. "I know your...allies have been asking for names of zoners associated with creators. But...don't you think they would much rather have two actual creators? If they are so eager to unleash a bit of frustration, why not against the only two creators that still come to ChalkZone?"
Pascal thought about this for a moment, rubbing their finger along the underside of their chin. They didn't do this for long before words started to flow out of their mouth. "You are correct about that. Gives me even more of a reason to agree with capturing this Snap fellow." They put their hands on their hips. "All right then. It has been decided." Skrawl smiled more broadly as he smirked. "When do you think you can send out your Beanie Boys?"
"I'll take care of that now, actually." Skrawl turned around, beginning to head towards the door. "I'll go and contact them. I'll report back to you when I am done, and we just wait for their response, okay?"
Pascal nodded their head. "That sounds like a plan." They took a step forward. "I do still hope you know what you are doing. I hope this all pans out well."
Skrawl smiled at this. "Oh don't worry, it will. And when it does..." Skrawl couldn't help but chuckle in excitement. "You will have two creators on your plate..." He raised his head upwards a little, his mismatched eyes regarding Pascal silently. "And you will be one step closer to achieving that thing that you want." He stopped for a moment. He then motioned to himself and continued, "..that we want..." He took a couple steps closer. "And when we get what we want..." He raised his hand up, pressing two fingers together. "Everything will.." He clicked his fingers against one another. "...snap into place."