"Coming back to reclaim what is hers?" Madrake growled as he paced back and forth in front of his throne "She must have an army."
"But where would she get an army, Sire?" the captain asked.
"How am I supposed to know?" Mandrake shouted "Everyone always said that it was incredible what those four girls could pull off. And now there's eight of them! I..."
"Captain!" A voice outside suddenly shouted "Your Majesty! Come... what is that!?"
The captain and king ran over to the window and looked out.
"What on earth!?" the both exclaimed as they spotted the large object slowly descending towards the ground from above.
The soldiers were scattering in every direction, non sure what to do about the UFO.
"Almst there." Trista said, watching the ground come closer "As fun as this is, I will not be doing it again anytime soon."
"Trust me." Renee said from where she was trying to steer "Corinne was the only one of us who actually loved it."
"She insisted we might need to know how to fly it someday." Viveca added "Unfortunately she was right. Like usual."
"Prepare to duck and roll!" Renee warned "We're about to... whoa!" the balloon hit the ground and skid for several feet, then the basket tipped, throwing it's occupants to the ground.
"Yeah, I will be avoiding this from now on." Trista groaned.
"What is that?" One soldier shouted, watching as several of his comrades attempted to get from beneath the fabric of the balloon.
"A floating bomb." Renee said casually "It's set to self destruct."
With that, several of the men took off running.
~*~*~*We'll Always Have Paris*~*~*~
Corinne pushed open the passageway that led out onto the terrace "Sounds like the girls have succeeded in a landing." she walked out onto the bridge and looked down to where the others were fighting with the soldiers "Good. That should distract them for awhile. Come on. Mandrake is probably still in the throne room."
"Sh!" Maya suddenly said, coming to a halt at a corner "Listen."
"Apparently she thinks she can win." One guard said "They're putting up quite the fight."
"There;'s no way they'll make it." another responded "With all the musketeers locked in the dungeon and no extra help, they won't last long." then he walked away.
Corinne peeked around the corner "We need to get him out of the way."
"I'll do it." Nate volunteered, then he stepped out into the hall "Yoohoo!"
"Wha..." the guard stuttered "How did you... Get over here!"
Nate spun around and took off down another hallway, the guard following close behind.
"The musketeers are still in the dungeon." Corinne said thoughtfully "If we free them..." she looked back at her daughter "Maya, we need to release the musketeers. It's honestly our only hope. Go to the dungeon and use this" she placed the small metal tool in Maya's hands "The top of the bottom bolt pops off then you can force the bolt out. The door just swings up."
"You're trying to get rid of me again, aren't you?" Maya asked with a raised eyebrow "Or do you just want to face Mandrake alone?"
Corinne smiled slightly "Just go release all the prisoners. Just remember, it has been eighteen years, those bolts are probably going to be rusted."
"Alright." Maya nodded slowly "Are you sure you'll be okay on your own?"
Corinne chuckled "Don't worry about me. I'm actually in my own element here. Now go." and with that she disappeared around the corner.
Maya huffed "And where is the dungeon? I guess I just keep going down."
~*~*~*We'll Always Have Paris*~*~*~
"Try to get to the castle." Renee told the others "There's more places to run to and get the advantage. Trista, stick with your mother."
"There really is not a problem there." Trista responded as she yanks a sword from one man's hand "Do you think they're in?"
"Oh yeah." Viveca responded, pulling one man's feet out from under him "In fact, Corinne's probably found a way to get rid of Maya and Nate and is about to bust into the throne room where Mandrake is."
~*~*~*We'll Always Have Paris*~*~*~
Corinne pushed open the doors to the throne and instantly spotted Mandrake looking out the window "I'm surprised. I thought you'd have guards."
Mandrake spun around, his eyebrows lowering "You."
"Mm-hm." she took a step into the room "Surprised to see me?"
"You were supposed to be dead." He growled.
"I was supposed to be a lot of things, but I don't take suggestions too easily." she retorted as she continued to walk towards him.
"What are you doing here?" Mandrake demanded as he started backing away "This is no longer your home."
"Did you honestly think I wouldn't come back?" Her eyes flashed angrily "You took my home, you stole my kingdom, killed my husband, made me give up my daughter and alienate myself from my mother and you honestly thought I wouldn't be back!?"
"After eighteen years, the suspicions were starting to dwindle." the man said as he continued to back away "I guess I made a mistake."
"You made a mistake the day you attacked Paris." she pointed her sword at him "I don't intend to kill you, but I do intend to get my kingdom back."
Mandrake's eyes widened then without another word he turned and took off running.
"Coward." Corinne mumbled under her breath right before she ran after him.
~*~*~*We'll Always Have Paris*~*~*~
Maya carefully walked down a long flight of stone steps, noting how it seemed to get colder and darker with every step. She was about to round a corner when loud footsteps started coming towards her.
"Everyone's needed on in the courtyard! We're under attack!"
She pressed herself up against a wall as several men ran past "Whoa. Three musketeers and one daughter can cause a sure 'nough ruckus." she stole a peek around the corner and saw that the dungeon was completely empty "Convenient." she quickly ran into the area, heading for the very back of the dungeon.
Several of the men in the cells jumped to their feet.
"It's Corinne." she heard some whisper while others were "Your Majesty." and "I don't believe it!" When she reached the last cell she quickly pried the top off the bottom bolt, then knocked it to the floor and lifted the door "Go help the others. I think you know where they are."
The musketeers in the cell nodded "We're pretty weak, but we'll do out best... For France!"
She worked for several minutes releasing the prisoners, the twenty years of rust on the bolts making it difficult.
She was working on one door when someone in an adjoining cell stepped up to the bars.
"Corinne?"
She froze "I know that voice." she thought.
"No." The man suddenly said "You're not Corinne... Emilie?"
Maya slowly looked up at man. There was something vaguely familiar about him but she couldn't put her finger on it "You... know me?" she asked as she straightened up.
He nodded slightly "I... can't believe this." He shook his head in disbelief "I... I thought I's never see you again."
Her eyebrows furrowed as she took a step closer to him "Who... are you?"
A slight smile crossed the man's face "I'm your father."