Snap winced as Mrs. Sanchez placed the cool cloth against his cheek. It stung pretty badly as the woman had layered it with some disinfectant. He stiffened as the woman gently rubbed the cloth against his cheek. He soon relaxed as the soothing effects of the disinfectant kicked in. Soon, after she was done, she removed the cloth and reached down to grab some new bandages for him.

"You two say Ghadir attacked you?" Mrs. Sanchez said, her voice filled with concern.

"Yeah." Rudy said. "She just burst through Snap's treehouse and attacked us. We managed to drive her away, though."

Mrs. Sanchez began to wrap the bandages around Snap's head. Snap held as still as he could. This still kinda stung him. The new burn Ghadir gave him was worse than he thought it was going to be. It did make sense the more he thought about it. Ghadir had licked him slowly, so the real world liquid, saliva in this case, had longer to burn his skin. It didn't help that she had licked over one of his older burns. So that added to the pain. He did do a pretty good job with holding still.

Soon Mrs. Sanchez was finished. She cut the bandage and then secured it tightly. She moved her head back and looked at him up and down. She reached down and began to lightly touch the bandage to make sure it wasn't going to fall off. Once she had determined the bandage was fine, she gently grabbed his shoulders and turned him around, her eyes scanning to see if he had any other injuries to take care of.

"I'm fine." Snap said as he moved a step back away from Mrs. Sanchez. "The burn was the only thing that needed to be taken care of. Thank you for that."

Mrs. Sanchez, however, was clearly not convinced. "You could have gotten hurt during all that commotion and not notice. It's best if I check you for other injuries."

Looking over at Rudy, Snap said, "Rudy...?"

The eighteen year old nodded his head. "I agree with her. It won't take long, Snap."

The blue and white zoner turned back to Mrs. Sanchez. He kept still as she continued to examine him. She checked his arms, his legs, his chest, and stomach. She turned him around and looked along his back. She then examined his hands. She noticed the bruise and mumbled about getting him an ice pad for it. His feet were next. She gave him one more look around before she released him.

Snap took a step back and gave her a smile. "See? I'm fine!"

Mrs. Sanchez narrowed her eyes and shook her head. "No, you're not."

Snap's smile faded. "What..?"

Rudy moved forward, his right eye wide with concern. "What's wrong with him?"

The woman reached over and grabbed Snap's left arm. She gently pulled him forward and turned his arm over. The two boys quickly noticed what she was trying to show them. Along Snap's arm was a cut. Not very deep, but there was still a considerable amount of blood. This shocked Rudy and Snap. They had no idea how they missed this injury. And now that he was fully aware of it, Snap started to feel stinging pain from the injury. He winced when Mrs. Sanchez lightly touched him there.

Mrs. Sanchez immediately pulled her hand back. She gave Snap an apologetic look. "I'm sorry. That didn't hurt too much, did it?"

Snap said, "It stung, like someone took a shard of glass and cut me..." Snap noticed Rudy wincing and immediately felt bad. Rudy's left hand and left eye had been sliced by a broken piece of glass. He must have reminded him of the pain he felt as Jenny cut him up like that. "Sorry, Bucko."

"Don't worry about it Snap." Rudy gave him a smile. He then turned his attention to Mrs. Sanchez. "How bad is the cut?"

"Not that bad." Mrs. Sanchez shook her head. "I'm still going to have to clean it, though. But first..." She looked down at Snap. "What did you cut it on? Do you have any idea?"

Snap tried to think. He thought back to the attack, how they where tossed around. He couldn't pinpoint what it could have been. He had hit up against different things, mostly wood. But there were no broken pieces of wood big enough and sharp enough to cut him like that. Ghadir couldn't have done it. She had no sharp weapons with her and she didn't try to bite him, thank goodness. The only other thing he could think of was the mechanical cobra. It did have some sharp edges to it as he recalled.

His eyes widened as he remembered what happened. It must have occurred when he jumped on the snake to wrestle it to the ground, which was not easy considering, even though the snake was thin, it was still a robot and a lot stronger than he had expected. The snake's hood had some sharp points to it. In the struggle, he must have sliced his arm against it. Yeah, that's exactly what had happened. He was trying to hold the snake, but then it had thrown him, and his arm cut along the mechacobra's razor hood.

"That metal snake we were fighting..." Snap looked over at Rudy with wide eyes, then back at Mrs. Sanchez. "I must have cut my arm on it during the struggle..."

Mrs. Sanchez's eyes widened at this. "Then we have to get this cut cleaned as soon as possible. Do you mind stepping out of your leotard? It'll make it easier for me to clean your cut."

Snap nodded his head. He took off his gloves and shoes so they wouldn't be in the way. Then he removed his scarf and mask. He always found it difficult to remove his leotard without dragging his pants along with it. But he was able to succeed without experiencing too much trouble this time. With everything but his pants removed, he turned back to Mrs. Sanchez and raised his left arm up so she could start to mend it.

Mrs. Sanchez gripped his arm and reached for another wet cloth, this one doused in chalk water. She pressed it against his arm. He seethed a little from the pain that erupted, but soon he calmed down as the cooling effect took hold. Mrs. Sanchez moved the cloth up and down along the cut. Soon the cloth was covered in blood stains. After she was finished cleaning it, she dried it gently with another cloth. She reached for the bottle of disinfectant and sprayed his wound. Snap winced at this and yelped. Mrs. Sanchez whispered an apology to him and she reached for more bandages. After she was finished patching up the cut, Snap picked up his clothes and began to redress.

As he did this, Mrs. Sanchez turned her attention to Rudy. She walked over to him. As Snap put his clothes back on, he watched as Mrs. Sanchez checked Rudy over in a similar manner as she did with him. After he was finished redressing himself, Snap walked over towards them. He watched intently, hoping that Rudy didn't get badly injured in that fight. He hadn't noticed any injuries on his friend, but then again, they hadn't noticed the cut until Mrs. Sanchez pointed it out. Were there any wounds Rudy had they didn't notice? And if so, were they just as bad or worse than the cut on his arm?

After looking him over, Mrs. Sanchez gave a smile. "I don't see any cuts on you. There could be some internal damage, but assessing from how you two looked when you walked in here, they probably aren't too severe. If you experience any sudden pains, come back to me, okay?"

Rudy nodded his head. "Sure."

"Oh!" Mrs. Sanchez raised a finger, drawing attention from the two boys. "Before I forget..." The woman walked over to a cabinet. She pulled out a dresser and took out a needle with a large vial attached to it. She went back over to Rudy. "Penny had a theory of what might be going on with you."

Rudy said, "Oh? What does she think it is?"

"...something really horrific...that would explain why you suddenly felt pain when you drank the real world water..." Mrs. Sanchez said in a quiet voice, trailing off. She gave him a sympathetic, nervous look.

Rudy seemed to understand what she was referring to. His right eye widened. "Oh..."

So it seemed Penny thought the same thing he did. Snap wasn't surprised. Penny was smart and caught on quickly to things. He was glad that she was able to make the connections and inform her mother about it. Snap felt stupid for not bringing it up before. He had his chance and he missed it. At least Penny seemed to realize what it might be and brought it up. Now they could test for it to see if this is what was going on. He hoped that it wouldn't take long for the blood results to come in.

The idea was frightening. To think that something like...this...could happen to his best friend... It was unthinkable. He had no idea how those black chalk users were able to create such a thing. Well, if it is what he thinks it is, the next time he saw those black chalk users, he was going to make them reveal what the cure is. There was no way he was going to allow Rudy to suffer a fate like that. It was cruel...vile... He didn't do anything to deserve that. He didn't know how he was going to, but he would do whatever it took to get them to reveal how to treat the illness before the effects were too damaging.

He stood in silence, unable to think of what to say. What could he say in a situation like this? Anxiety rose in his heart as he realized what kind of danger his best friend could be in. He felt his blood chilling as he watched Mrs. Sanchez start to take blood from Rudy. He stared at the vial as it filled with the dark red fluid. A part of him was terrified of what the results would show, and the other was determined to find out. He kind of hoped that it wasn't what he and Penny thought it was because of how horrible it would be, how much pain Rudy was going to be in for a while. But at the same time, he hoped that was it, because at least then, they'd have an answer to what was going on.

After Mrs. Sanchez was finished taking the blood, she pulled the needle out and pressed a small gauze on Rudy's arm. After the bleeding stopped, she placed a bandaide over it, covering the small puncture wound. She labeled the vial and put it on the desk nearby. She turned back to Rudy.

"I'll take it over to the doctors and we'll have a look at it as soon as possible." Mrs. Sanchez said. "We will have the results tomorrow. Come by after school as soon as you can. I will inform you of what the results told us, if what Penny thought turned out to be right or if there is something else going on."

Rudy looked at his arm and then back at Mrs. Sanchez. "Okay. Thank you."

Mrs. Sanchez smiled. "You two can head back now, if you'd like. Or did you want to stay another night at the hospital."

Rudy took a step back and waved his hands. "No, I'm good. I promised Snap I was going to repair his treehouse since Ghadir damaged it."

"Well I don't mind waiting..." Snap started to say. Rudy gave him a look that told Snap that Rudy really didn't want to stay at the hospital another night. He wasn't sure why. He was about to ask, but he assumed that Rudy just wanted to be in a more comfortable room. He nodded his head. "Okay then, Rudy. Did you want to head back now?"

Rudy yawned a little. "Yeah, I am getting tired. I wanted to go to sleep earlier, but..."

Knowing what Rudy was going to say, Snap said, "Yeah, I know what you mean, Bucko." Snap turned his attention to Mrs. Sanchez. "Well thanks for the help. We'll see you tomorrow!" He waved at her.

"Okay, goodnight!" Mrs. Sanchez waved back at them.

sss

Terry let out a groan of pain. She couldn't believe that her own brother did this to her. Well perhaps she shouldn't be too surprised, actually. She and her brother never fully got along over the years. They had an estranged relationship and hardly saw each other before they tried to expose ChalkZone. Both of them had changed a lot, though sometimes still remained the same, such as how manipulative he could actually be. The only reason he had even listened to her before was because she had more knowledge about ChalkZone than he did.

She should have known that Vinnie might try to pull something like this. He was usually good about hiding his intelligence. Though she never thought he'd get this smart. If she weren't in this terrible condition, she would have actually been impressed by it. He had thought through more than he usually would, and the entire time she was with him, he never once went into crazy mode like he had over the years. A part of her was glad, since his 'dog barking' thing he did drove her nuts. But another part of her missed it, because now it was replaced with a cold, calculating individual who, in a short time span, showed more cleverness than she had when she was digging up dirt on ChalkZone.

The first moment she realized Vinnie had snapped was when he started to torture her. She had resisted most of the time, despite the shere agony it put her through. She never thought he'd go as far as do something like that. He sliced her up real good, and she lost a considerable amount of blood. He kept going for what she thought was a couple hours. She wasn't sure if it really was that long, but it sure felt like it. He had never resorted to causing physical harm before, so it took her by total surprise when he brought up th scalpel to her. She hoped that the scalpel would be all show, but he proved this theory wrong when he first started to slice into her skin.

Resisting was not easy. She had to bite her tongue and clench her teeth to keep herself from saying anything. She couldn't stifle the screams that much, and she had let out cries of pain during most of the torture. Vinnie's cuts became more pronounced, deeper and more vicious, the longer she didn't say anything. She guessed that Vinnie was getting frustrated with her, and was getting desperate to make her say anything. She held her tongue and was able to keep quiet during most of the torture session.

She felt that, if she kept it up, Vinnie would stop. After all, she was his sister. He wouldn't go as far as kill her, would he? She couldn't see him doing that. Well, she didn't foresee him going as far as hurt her, and she was proven wrong on that. Still, killing was really far out there. Vinnie couldn't...he wouldn't go that far, would he? They were family. He wouldn't go that far...

But while Vinnie hadn't gone that route, what he did do was just a cruel, if not crueler. She never thought he would do such a thing. He had actually threatened to ruin her life. He would do something so bad that it would cost her the job she currently has, and barred her from getting any new ones. She would be thrown on the street, like he said, and no one was going to trust her. After all, who would want to do business with a woman who had stalked a couple of children? Her obsession with ChalkZone was bad enough for some people, but when it came to stalking children, not many people she knew would be so forgiving.

Vinnie sounded very serious when he talked about it, too. It really did seem like he would go through with his threat if she didn't cooperate. Terry wasn't sure what to do at the time. She recalled the headache she got as she tried to think of a way out of the situation. She tried to think of something, anything, that would get her out of the mess without forking over the information Vinnie wanted. If this had happened a couple years ago, she would have given him the information no problem. But that all changed. And she was not willing to head back down that path.

She did eventually give in, but not before formulating a plan in her head. She didn't like doing this to her brother, but after what he did, what else could she do? As she gave him the information he wanted, explaining to him what caused her to change her mind about ChalkZone, she was going to head down to the police station and tell them about her assault. With her bad injuries and Vinnie's history with the police, they would believe her and lock him up. He wouldn't be a threat to anyone after that.

But she had underestimated what her brother was capable of. He had not only realized that she may go to the police to report the assault, but he already formulated a plan to prevent her from doing so. After he was done interrogating her, not very happy with what she had to say to him, he unhooked her but kept her grip on her arm. He told her that she was going to stay at his place for a while. He warned her not to struggle or give any indication he was doing anything to hurt her. He wanted her to act like someone else hurt her and he was just bringing her home.

When she asked about her job, he said that he would just call her boss and say she was very sick and wouldn't be able to come in for a while. He would also tell any of her friends if they were to try to call her. He said that if she tried to tell anyone otherwise, or struggled against him while they went back to his place, he would send that evidence in to the police. Not seeing much choice, Terry followed him willingly and he took her to his apartment on the other side of Plainsville.

Once there, he guided her up the steps and took her into the kitchen. In a surprising show of mercy that she didn't thing think he was capable of in his current mood, he cleaned her cuts a little. He didn't do a particularly good job, but it was a nice change from how he was treating her before. He gave her a thin layer of bandages and then took her to an extra bedroom he had. He threw her in there and locked her inside. He said he would let her out only for necessities, such as going to the bathroom and eating, but she was to stay in that bedroom until he saw fit to let her go. He also took liberty of taking her cellphone away so she couldn't call anyone.

She was basically under a form of unofficial house arrest. She wasn't able to leave the bedroom without his permission, and only to do important things. He would not allow her to leave the apartment. He would only let her go completely after he was able to set up his 'chalk world theme park' and by then it would be too late to stop him. She wished she could figure a way out of here, but this room had only one window and it was completely sealed shut. Vinnie had even spraypainted it black so no one can see in and notice her in distress. She couldn't even pick the lock because Vinnie had made sure this room was bare of any small items that could be used in such a manner. She was completely trapped.

And apparently he was not done interrogating her. He said he was going to resume the interrogation sometime soon. There was something else he wanted to know. She guessed it was the tapes. He wanted them. He was going to want to expose ChalkZone, so he was going to try to get her to fork over those tapes. The idea of another interrogation frightened her. Would Vinnie hurt her more while doing so? How much further could he go with hurting her physically? Would he attack her mentally too?

She knew she was going to have to try harder to resist, for a couple of reasons. The most obvious one was what would happen if Plainsville did see that footage. Sure, years ago, she would have been psyched about it, but now that she had a better understanding of ChalkZone, the thought filled her with dread. She wondered if Vinnie had any idea of what would happen, what the consequences would be if he exposed ChalkZone. She wondered if he even cared about that. He was so 'money money money', she wondered if it was possible he would go as far as dismiss the needs of the zoners. She wouldn't put it past him.

And then there was the other thing that had her worried. She had given all the tapes to the Tabooties'. She didn't know if they had destroyed the evidence, kept it locked up or what. But no matter what they did with them, if she spilled the beans to Vinnie that Rudy and his family had the tapes, he would go after them. If he was willing to go this far in hurting his own sister for the chance of profit, then what would he do with Rudy and his parents? The thought chilled her blood. He would most likely do worse...

Unfortunately, there was nothing she could do right now. She had no way out of here. There was no way she could communicate with anyone. The only time she'd be let out of here was to eat and use the bathroom, and those Vinnie would limit so that she had less of a chance to escape. Her only hope is to try to sneak in an object during a trip out. He wouldn't follow her in the bathroom, so maybe she could grab something there. It was unlikely, but it was the only chance she had. She hoped that, whenever she was able to get out, it wasn't too late to warn Rudy.

Terry laid down on the bed, trying to ignore the aches and pains spreading through her body. Vinnie didn't do anything to help ease the pain. She looked up at the ceiling, watching the fan spin round and around. She let out a soft sigh and spoke one quiet line.

"I'm sorry, Rudy..."

sss

Penny sat down with the others in the waiting room. They were waiting for her mother patiently, who was coming down the hallway soon to tell them of the results. She had seen Rudy late last night and was able to get a vial of his blood. Her mom and the doctors had been working on it for several hours, testing for what she believed was causing Rudy's problems. She was nervous to know the answer, but in the end, she knew it would help her feel better, because not knowing was far scarier.

She had been startled when her mom told her about Rudy and Snap being attacked by Ghadir at night. When she saw Rudy and Snap the next day, she was able to talk to them so they could give a more detailed story. What she heard apalled her. Ghadir was truly disgusting, the way she tormented Snap like that. And licking his burn, despite knowing that saliva would hurt zoners... She was glad that they were able to make her run off.

It did concern her the way she left so easily. She would have thought that she would have stayed behind and fought longer. Then again, she was chalkless, so there wasn't much she could do. In the real world, maybe. But this was ChalkZone, and Rudy was armed. Snap would have been, too, if he had blue chalk with him. But he was competent enough on his own, which, no surprise, Ghadir didn't acknowledge. None of these villains do. Cosmo didn't, and Bardot missed the mark as well. Well one good thing about that is that it allowed Snap to get some surprise attacks on them, which had turned the tides in their favor more than once.

But was there another reason Ghadir left? Was there something she did? Was her mission done? Was she not even serious and was just playing with them? Or was she just really crazy and wanted to try to eat Snap, but gave up when he started to fight back? If that were the case, then she'd have to agree with Snap and say she was a coward. If she runs off as soon as her 'prey' started to fight back... She decided not to think about Ghadir anymore and focus instead on what was happening right now.

Sitting next to her was Snap. He was leaning up against her for comfort. She had her arms wrapped around him and hugged him gently, carefully avoiding the cut he recieved from that mechacobra thing they described. He was strangely quiet. A few times, his eyes would move towards the door, looking to see if her mother was coming back. Then he'd shut his eyes and press his head further against her shoulder.

Sophie was in her mother's arms. She sat in the woman's lap. Tilly had her arms around Sophie and pulled her close. Tilly had been crying a lot, her face reddened from her tears. Other than a few sniffles, she had gone quiet as well. Sophie did try speaking to her mother earlier, and to the others. But they were all lost in their own thoughts, and they didn't reply. They couldn't bring themselves, too. Sophie understood the seriousness of the situation and she, too, fell silent. She glanced over at Penny and Snap once in a while and gave them a sympathetic, worried look. Her eyes silently asked them if Rudy was going to be okay, and all Penny and Snap could do was look away uncertainly.

Rudy's parents sat not far from Sophie and Tilly. Like before, Mrs. Tabootie had her arms wrapped around her husband. She had been crying the entire time, her husband doing whatever it took to try to calm her down. He, too, was crying and it was hard for him to hold back his tears. It was a heartbreaking scene to watch. Penny wished she could say something, anything, to cheer them up. But what could she say? There was nothing positive about the situation she knew that would be enough to help them feel better. And if she was right about Rudy's condition... they were only feel worse.

They all had been more or less silent, save for some crying and sniffling, for about an hour now as they waited. No words were spoken. No conversation was made. They just sat there and waited for Mrs. Sanchez to come back. They had no idea how long it was going to take. It felt like hours had gone by. They barely looked at the clock. They barely moved from where they sat. They remained in their seats even if they had to use the restroom. They didn't get up or talk or anything.

Penny felt like she was in a void, absent of sound. Except for crying and the occasional sound from the hospital, the room was silent. It was almost deafening, making her feel uncomfortable. She couldn't bring herself to speak, though. Anxiety and depression had filled the atmosphere of the room. It was like a thick cloud, she could almost feel it. Everyone was waiting anxiously for the results, knowing that though the answer would enlighten them, it would also terrify them. And the worst part is... there might be no cure...

Penny shook her head. Of course there was a cure. There had to be. There was always a cure to a disease, even if it was obscure, or even not known yet. They just had to know where to look, what information to find. Somehow, someway, they would find the cure and save Rudy. He..he just couldn't die like this... He couldn't...

Then the moment they were waiting for happened. The doors opened up. They all turned their heads and jumped from their seats as Rudy, Dr. Raiden, and Mrs. Sanchez walked into the waiting room. Rudy's head was lowered and it looked like he had been crying. This caused Penny's heart to race. Had she been correct this whole time? The looks on her mom and the cheetah's faces seemed to confirm this.

Rudy looked up and stared at his parents. They looked back at him with wide, worried eyes. They took a few steps towards him. They stared at each other for several moments, before someone finally spoke up.

"Rudy...?" His mom said in a low whisper.

Rudy bit his lip, tears forming in his eyes. "M-Mom...dad.."

In seconds, he had rushed over to his parents and gave them a hug. They put their arms around him and pulled him into a group hug. Rudy cried in his parents' arms as they tried to calm him down. Penny and the others watched this with great sadness. Whatever the doctors had told him, it must have been horrible. It broke Penny's heart seeing him like this. She, Snap, Tilly, and Sophie walked over to the grieving trio to offer their condolences.

When Rudy calmed down enough, his parents released him and they all turned their eyes towards the two doctors. Dr. Raiden and Mrs. Sanchez both looked very regretful. The cheetah's ears were lowered and his face turned to the side. Her mother had a few tears moving down her face and she was fumbling with her hand nervously. They all knew what this meant. And they braced themselves for the worst possble news.

"The...results came back in." Dr. Raiden said. His voice trailed off. He turned to Mrs. Sanchez.

"We had to run more tests, though, to confirm. That is why we called Rudy down. We needed to get an MRI on him." Mrs. Sanchez said, her voice forelorn. She gave a sympathetic look to Rudy. "And what we found...confirmed our suspicions..." She fell silent.

"Well..? What's wrong with him?" Mrs. Tabootie asked. "What's wrong with our son?"

"Is it...bad..?" Tilly asked hesitantly.

"Can it be cured?" Snap spoke up, glancing uneasily in Rudy's direction. "Please..tell us there's a cure..."

Dr. Raiden shook his head. "As of now...there is no known cure. And what he has.." He looked over at Rudy. He gritted his teeth, sucking in a breath. He sighed, closed his eyes, and lowered his head. "Well, he can't afford not having it..."

Everyone glanced at each other, their eyes wide in fear. Penny's heart clenched, and she felt tears form in her eyes. She looked back at Rudy, who stayed between his parents, not wanting to leave their side. No wonder he was so scared. No known cure... That meant they'd have to find a cure themselves, but from what Dr. Raiden said...he didn't have much time for that.

Mrs. Sanchez picked up. "There is no easy way for me to say this. And we do not understand entirely how this is happening, but...Rudy..his..." She paused, biting her lip. She looked at the others. They all looked at her intently, eyes wide with fearful dread. Penny could practically hear the hearts pounding. "His internal organs, and his blood vessels, they're starting to change composition. They're...becoming chalk."

Horror swept through the group. There was a collection of gasps. Terrified looks plastered on everyone's faces. They looked at Mrs. Sanchez, silently hoping, praying, that it wasn't true. But all she could do was looked at them sympathetically. Dr. Raiden could provide them no comfort either.

Penny's heart pounded against her chest. So she had been right. She was right all along. Rudy was turning into chalk from the inside out. That was why he was in so much agony from drinking the real world water. It was burning him... It was burned holes into his stomach, creating ulcers. That was why he had coughed up the blood. That was why he was in so much pain. Her heart clenched as she recalled the way he had whimpered in her arms, like he was a frightened little child. Now that she knew what was wrong, that memory was even more painful to think of.

"Oh Rudy..." Tilly said as she moved over towards him. She reached down and touched his cheek.

Mr. Tabootie put his arm around his son's shoulders. He looked over at Mrs. Sanchez and said, "T-Turning to chalk...? Are..are you sure...?"

"C-Could it be a mistake?" Mrs. Tabootie asked hopefully.

Dr. Raiden shook his head. "I'm afraid not. We checked and rechecked many times. There's no denying it. Rudy's insides are becoming chalk. Right now most of the transformation is in his stomach, but it is spreading to other organs. And we detected signs that some of his blood vessels are starting to change, though thankfully it's not any of the major ones yet."

"But..there is something else." Mrs. Sanchez said. She paused, furrowing her eyes with concern and fear. "His internal fluids, like his blood, they aren't changing. They remain real world."

A stunned silence among the group. The quiet was only interrupted when Sophie decided to speak.

"What does that mean?" Sophie asked.

Mrs. Sanchez looked at Sophie. She took a step towards her. "It means that... If this disease is allowed to progress..." She then looked over at Rudy sympathetically. "His insides will melt. He will die...very painfully..." She closed her eyes. "I-I'm sorry..."

Gasps of horror, heads shaking in disbelief, resumed crying and sobbing filled the room. Sophie looked up at Mrs. Sanchez in horror and she ran back to her mother and cried against her chest. Tilly tried to be strong for her, but she couldn't stop crying. Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie held onto their son and cried, whispering questions of 'why?' and 'how is this possible?'. Rudy didn't speak. He just sobbed, his head against his father's chest, his body trembling.

Snap hugged Penny and started to cry. She picked him off the ground and held him gently. She pressed her head against his, not able to hold back her tears for long. They flowed freely down her face. The two of them cried against each other as the horrible news began to sank in. She glanced at her mother and the zoner doctor, and all they did was look at them sadly and regretfully.

Penny couldn't believe it. How..how could this happen? What did Rudy do to deserve this? He was such a nice person, always willing to help others out. It..it wasn't fair that he was subjected to this. Jenny, that monster... She knowingly put Rudy through this. She was the one who infected him with this horrid disease. And for what? Some ill-gotten revenge quest. And now, because of that fiend, Rudy was going to be in a lot of pain. He was going to suffer, and it was all her fault.

He was definitely better in ChalkZone. He couldn't stay in the real world for long without nearly passing out in pain. But even in ChalkZone, he was in agony. And with this disease, it was just going to get worse. It didn't help that there was no pain medication they could give him that could help, given the nature of the disease. So poor Rudy had to suffer day in, day out with the pain. Though he managed, she could still tell he was suffering.

"And another thing..." Dr. Raiden said regretfully. "His blood...contained remnants of black chalk."

"Wh-What...?" Mr. Tabootie said, his eyes wide with horror. "It's...it's in his bloodstream?"

Dr. Raiden nodded his head to confirm. "Yes. It's not a lot, but it is there."

This horrified everyone. Penny and Snap looked at each other, their eyes wide with terror. Just what they needed. More reasons to worry. While they already had their suspicions before, especially with what they encountered at the Solar Pillars and with Biclops, it was still terrifying to find out just how right they were. Penny looked at Rudy sadly. It must have been horrible for him to recieve that kind of news.

The biggest concern on everyone's mind, though, was the disease. The black chalk appeared to be dormant, so it wasn't as big of an issue. What was really worrying was this disease. How fast will it spread? How much time did Rudy have? How were they going to fix it? Could they fix it in time? These thoughts crowded Penny's mind, making it ache. There had to be something they could do. Anything...

Stroking Rudy's hair gently, Mr. Tabootie lifted his gaze up to the doctors. "I-Is there anyway to find a cure? Any information at all?"

Dr. Raiden shook his head. "None that we know of. Though Mrs. Sanchez had an idea."

All eyes turned to Mrs. Sanchez. She said, "Yeah... There is..someone we all know..." She held out her hands in gesture. "..who might know a thing or two about interactions between real world flesh and chalk flesh..."

It felt like a cold wind sept through the group. Everyone froze. Hearts seemed to freeze, along with blood. It felt as though time itself had stopped. Horror filled everyone's minds. Penny felt Snap's body shaking and she held him tightly. She looked down at him, listening to him whimper in fear. She looked at the others. Everyone was shaking. Everyone had wide eyes filled with fear. Dread hung thickly in the air.

Penny wished it wasn't true. She wished that there was another way. She wished that it could have been someone...anyone else they could go speak to. But in the end, she knew her mother was right. There was really only one being out there they knew that might be able to provide useful information.

And she knew that the others were all thinking the same thing. They knew exactly who her mother was alluding to.