Pooh walked through the Hundred Acer Wood. However, the mist surrounded him. He couldn't find anyone and it was deathly silent. He peered around. "Piglet…Owl…Tigger…Rabbit…Eeeyore….Honey Maple!" The names bounced around the trees, but his friends didn't call back or even come. He sighed. "I wonder what happened."

A loud snap of a twig made Pooh jump. The bear turned around. "T-Tigger? Is that you?" He slowly moved to the place where he heard the sound. Another snap was heard on his right. "Would you please come on out? You know that this isn't a really good time for your tricks?" Low growling vibrated throughout the woods. Pooh shrank back as his very little brain soon realized that it wasn't Tigger or any of his other friends. "King Moonsoul?"

The monster emerged from the brush. A smell of death hung in the air. Red eyes glowed with fury. Long, thin neck arched like a snake. The upper portion of the head had a skull while the lower held scaly flesh. Horns of elk crowned its head in a similar fashion to a wicked crown. Mouth opened wide, it opened to reveal rows upon rows of sharp teeth. A barbed tail curled around it. The monster was only a foot or two bigger than King Moonsoul, but the air of dread hung around as it raised bat wings like sails.

"W-who are you?!" Pooh backed away. His steps started to increase. On the verge of running. The red eyes seemed familiar but he couldn't name it.

"You don't remember me…Pooh?" The figure chuckled. "Surely you can remember a face like mine." He lowered to Pooh's level. "Then again, you're too stupid to even think that you'll fall into my plans soon enough."

"What are you talking about?" Pooh tried to find his voice. He tried to take a step forward. "King Moonsoul would stop you. Queen Flamesong and the Monarchs as well!" Suddenly, a dark pool soon surrounded him. It began to swallow him whole. Pooh frantically tried to get out, but couldn't.

"The Starlight Kingdom will be mine soon enough," the creature stated. He leaned on his wing. Amusement written on his face. "Honey Maple can't do magic and the kingdom is run by idiots. Everything will come in platters of food and goods." He straightened himself. "Then, my generals will stop pestering me about their problems." He groaned. "Especially that cursed Skullasaurus."

Pooh tried to say more words, but his mouth was covered in black tar. He could feel himself sinking. He could feel the heat of the monster's breath on him as it got closer. Suddenly, something grabbed his shirt and yanked him. The sand hit his back. A burning pain forced him to wake up. He coughed. His body was sore. Vision blurry and unfocused.

"Pooh!" Whirlwind's voice cut through the madness. "Pooh bear? Can you hear me?!"

"Pooh! Are you ok?" Piglet's frightened breathing also followed.

Pooh slowly got up. However, his tummy began to burn. "Ow! It hurts! It hurts!" He felt Honey Maple on top of him. The scales gave him some form of comfort. Whirlwind curled up around him. He twisted and turned. The pain kept going and going. "What's going on?!" Pooh repeated these words along with Christopher Robin. It felt like an eternity until the pain finally stopped.

Morning light leaked into his eyes. He groaned. Honey Maple laid her head on his chest, her eyes filled with so much sorrow. Pooh tried to get up but his body screamed for him to stay in place. His tummy held no desire to eat honey. The mere thought of it only made him so sick that it threatened him to throw up. He took a deep breath. "Hu-ney M-ma-" He covered his paw with his mouth.

"P-Pooh…" A graveled voice warned. The scales of King Moonsoul came into view. "Don't move and don't speak." A cough rattled the cloth of the tent.

"Neither should you, your majesty." Hurricane's voice cut through the silence. His head soon appeared into Pooh's view. The Chimera looked tired, but not as sickly as before. Rabbit, Kuml and Wisp were at his side. All of them looking down at Pooh.

"It seems to be working," Rabbit said. He turned to Kuml. "Your assumptions were right. It's a good thing Lacy and Gypsy had a few bottles of Forget-me-nots in their bags."

Pooh tried to ask a question, but his words only bubbled out in non-translating gibberish. His mouth merely wanted water. To his surprise, Kuml handed him some water to drink. The cool liquid wasn't sweet but it made the horrible feelings go away for a little bit. His eyes met with Wisp, hoping for an answer.

"You and King Moonsoul were poisoned," Wisp answered. "Honey Maple started crying out and a lot of the guards went to investigate. She went to us just as the Black Jade was about to take you."

"B-black…J-jade?" Pooh was able to speak those words before he fell into a coughing fit. He took in more water.

"It's a plant that grows in the Hollow Realm," Hurricane answered. "Very hard to find. Someone must've grown a bushel. Nearly took both of you out. You must have eaten it in your honey when no one was looking. I'd say the same for King Moonsoul." His red eyes looked the bear up and down. "There was no doubt a special spell placed on it. A portal was almost open if I didn't perform the counterspell for it." Jinx the Raven and Lacy both materialized right beside him. Both creatures gave him a firm glare. "With their help of course."

Pooh suddenly heard Piglet's voice in the tent. "Is Pooh awake?"

"Yes," Rabbit answered. "But you all need to come in one at a tiiimmee!" Rabbit screamed as he was knocked over. Footsteps were heard as Piglet and the others were at his side.

Piglet was the first to hug his friend. "Oh Pooh! I'm so glad you're ok!" He hugged him even tighter. Suddenly, his pink sweater was gently pulled back by a worried Wisp. He let go and allowed himself to be set on her back.

Queen Flamesong soon appeared in the tent. She nuzzled her baby and her king. Worry clouded her eyes. They soon landed on the sickly bear. "How are you feeling?" She laid down onto a nearby rug. Exhaustion riddled her entire body.

Pooh took a moment. A whirlwind of emotion ruled his mind. He couldn't pick the right words to say what he was feeling. Angry. Helpless. Sad that he couldn't do anything. Scared of the monster he'd just seen. Tears streamed down his eyes. He sobbed. Before long, he told everyone in the tent of who he just saw. Each time his voice was raspy, Kuml and Whirlwind were kind enough to hand him some water before he continued. The monster that came out of the Hundred Acre Wood. The pulling sensation of the vines and tentacles around his body. By the time he was done, he cried until there were no more tears left.

At the end of his story, all his friends stared at him. Eyes wide. A heavy air of unspoken terror hung amongst them. Whirlwind was the first to hug Pooh. Tears fell out of the Chimera's eyes. Piglet and Wisp soon followed. "I'm sorry, Pooh bear!" Whirlwind wailed. "I'm so sorry you had to get dragged into this situation!" Rabbit, Honey Maple, Kessy, Kanga, Roo, Eeyore, Gopher and Owl all went to hug their scared friend.

Hurricane stared at the floor. "King Despereaux is getting desperate. He must be. Otherwise, he's-"

"Pulling off an invasion with the other Generals," Jasper whispered. "Mama told some of the guards about it. I just happened to overhear it when I was napping." He curled himself tighter. He munched on a fig, enjoying the sweet taste of the strange fruit.

King Moonsoul lifted his head, but Queen Flamesong pressed her head against his. The dragon king lowered his head back down. "This…is…getting out of hand. We need to…"

"Find the traitor!" Lacy finished the sentence before anyone could stop her. "For now, we need to know all we can about the king." She turned to Hurricane. "And you're going to help us!"

"Lacy!' Queen Flamesong let out a puff of smoke. "That is no way to talk to anyone like that. Plus, you can't make these sorts of decisions."

Lacy turned to the queen. She bowed. "Forgive my brashness, your majesty. I had been thinking about what Pooh had said. I was only there for a little while, but seeing the Hollow Realm definitely screamed the desperation to survive." She turned to Pooh. "Maybe we should share. It won't be easy, but honestly, we can't keep fighting forever." She turned to Jasper. "He's no younger than me. However, I noticed he's very sickly."

Jasper tried to raise his head indignantly. "Hey! I've been working on my flying. I don't get that sick!"

Lacy huffed. "You can be in the air for at least an hour before you pass out. You can't fight. I don't wanna fight someone who can't get in bad shape so quickly."

Jasper raised his head high. He uncurled himself and marched over to her on his wings. "I'll get stronger! I'll get stronger for mama and the other bats!" He flared out his teeth in order to look menacing.

Lacy just simply stared at him. "Do you honestly want to? Even if it wasn't for your mama?" Her eyes held a sort of sorrow. It was as if she knew what it was like to be left out. The pain of what was being seen. "I know I was at your home for a little while but…I never imagined that it was this bad. No one deserves to live like that." She took a brief look at his teeth. "I have to admit, those are cool fangs."

Jasper was stunned. He closed his mouth. He laid on his stomach. After what seemed like hours he finally cried. Eeyore waddled over to him and allowed the young bat to hug him. Lacy went as far as giving a sympathetic pat to his wing.

Jinx hopped one leg to the next. Mayble crossed her arms, unsure what to do. Even Mau and his giant friend couldn't find the words of what to say. They never encountered such a kind and supporting group. Let alone a king and queen that would allow them to be in their tents. Onyx was the first to speak. "So, what do we do now?"

Silence ruled over them once again. Everyone is trying to find out how to handle the situation. Suddenly, Tigger jumped up. "I know! Let's set up a trap for the guy!" He swung his arms wildly as he explained it. "Someone is messing with us, right? They know what makes us act all goofy and what not. How about we take some of that Black whatchamacallit and place it in a huge net. Then-Bam!" He slammed his fist into his hand. "We caught 'em."

Rabbit sighed. He rubbed his temple. "It's not that simple, Tigger." He raised his fingers into the air. "One: This guy is able to get access to poison in very dangerous places with ease. Two: We don't know what they look like or what their plan is. Three: Simply placing a net over someone who could just teleport out and zap us would be a lack of productivity." He took a deep breath. "We need a better plan."

"Perhaps we can help with that."

Pooh lifted his head weakly and saw Queen Sandwisher in the entrance. Her camel head raised high in a regal manner. By her side was Gypsy and Tobias. The two friends looked tired and…betrayed? I wonder what happened, Pooh thought.

"But we best hurry," Queen Sandwisher said. "An army is heading this way and the Bad Dream King is among them."

—-

That's a wrap. To be continued…