Chapter 51:

"I think that's all of them… "Allison decided after a few moments of silence, dropping her defensives stance and the others following her example. "But you never know where they're going to crawl out of next. Probably be best if we move on as soon as possible. Stick together."

As Allison used her sword to remove a chain keeping a nearby gate closed, Angelbug and Noir brought Alya and Nino down from the safety of the roof. The group went through the gate, Henry using his ax to chop the boards blocking their path. They came to a hallway that had long lost most of its flooring. Only a makeshift path of planks was the way to cross over the dark abyss.

"Be careful everyone," Henry said as he cautiously stepped onto the first plank. He managed to cross the first one with no issue. But as soon as he put his full weight on the second one, it snapped under him, sending him plummeting down into the abyss.

"Henry!" the others shouted in fear and worry. Angelbug and Noir immediately leaped down after him, falling down through the darkness. They soon splashed down in an ink-filled hallway. They were surprisingly unharmed despite the long fall into a fairly shallow pool.

"Are you two alright?" Henry asked, helping the teens out of the ink.

"Shouldn't we be the ones asking you that?" Noir only sort of joked. Both he and Angelbug had been infected by the ink, giving them forms nearly as strong end resistant as their superhero forms, but Henry didn't have that kind of protection. How was he doing so well after all they've been through. Maybe the ink was having an effect on him as well…

"Not when I'm the one in charge," Henry joked back, missing Noir's concerned expression. "Doesn't look like we'll be getting out the same way we came. Let's see if we can find another way out."

Henry pulled out his seeing tool and looked around. On the wall beside him was the message "The Liar is through the Vault." Henry paused to consider that. If they were close to Joey… wouldn't the best thing to do would be to go and confront him? Storing that idea for later, Henry leads the teens through a nearby door. They came into a foyer area to what seemed to be the main offices. Unfortunately, the offices were currently locked, but Henry did spot a door that said "Film Vault" off to the side. Henry lead them through the door but when they went to try and enter the film vault, the found that the path was flooded with ink.

"Alice and Boris say that Joey is through the vault," Henry informed the teens. "We need to drain the ink so we can finally put an end to this madness."

"Shouldn't we get back to the other's first?" Angelbug suggested. "I don't want to leave them alone for too long."

"You two should go back and keep them safe," Henry agreed, glancing at her. "But I'm tired of all this wandering around, waiting for the next attack. It needs to stop."

"Then I'm coming with you," Noir declared, clenching his claws. "Joey needs to be stopped and I won't let you face him alone."

"If this is what you think is best then I'm staying too," Angelbug agreed. "Allison and Tom can keep Alya and Nino safe for now. It's probably bested that they aren't there for the final fight anyway."

"We won't be fighting anything until we drain the ink," Henry said. Though he was appreciative of their support, he didn't like it that they were once again going into danger because of him. "Let's keep looking around."

They found a mess of pipes in front of the door to the film vault and it was easy to see that there a few pipes were missing. They also found a recorder on a chair in a side office.

"Progress Report to Gent Home Office. Client: Joey Drew Studios." came Thomas Conner's voice. It was strange to listen to his recording now that they've met Tom and knew what happened to him. "We've made a lot of progress and the machine successfully created three creatures based on the models of the main cast of the show. But lately, the client's expectations keep changing demanding more and more of the machine. I'm not sure what Mr. Drew hopes to accomplish, but whatever his plans are… they aren't natural…"

"I guess this is when Joey started his experiments…" Henry concluded as the tape clicked off. "But not helpful for what we need to do right now. Let's keep looking."

They went back into the main foyer and to the other side. There they found a mini machine that could be used to make the pipes they needed if they could find ink for it. They also found a switch in the office next to it, which opened the door to the administration offices. As they headed down the hallway to the offices, they noticed a twisted member of the Butcher Gang, Charley or more commonly called Piper down here, walking past. They froze where they stood, but it didn't seem to notice them and continued walking. Carefully, the three approached the of the corner and looked around.

"Not these guys again…" Henry sighed, watching as Piper went around the next corner. "We better stay out of sight."

"We could take him easily," Noir said, flexing his claws.

"Though there could be more around here," Marinette thoughtfully added. "We should at least see how many there are before we engage them."

"I'd rather we avoided fighting at all if we can," Henry pressed, thinking about all the voices calling out to him for help. "Besides we should save our energy for whatever Joey has in store for us."

Sensing there was something bothering Henry, Angelbug and Noir agreed to Henry's plan and dropped the subject. They began moving as quietly as possible down the hallway, hoping they could find the ink they needed somewhere inside.