Warning: Theft and Imprisonment
Summary: It's up to Max, Pascal and the animals to guide Arianna to rescue Rapunzel and the gang from being trapped forever in a magical prison.
Pascal is riding Hammul upside down. They crash into a wooden cart holding Rapunzel, Varian, Catalina and Kiera and brown sacks of gold and being pulled by Maximus and Fidella. A copper-plated alembic is in his lab. Varian imagines.
"I can't wait to get my hands on a copper-plated alembic from the Neserdnian market! Do you have any idea how many poly-alchemical subtraction test I'll be able to run?". Okay, he's weird. Kiera thinks.
"Anyone wanna switch seats with me?".
Maximus sees a red apple in a tree. I want that! He thinks. He stretches his neck. A gray and black raccoon, Ruggiar grabs it. No fair! Maximus pffts. They need to stop. Pascal thinks. He gets on a nearby stump and pushes them apart. Seriously?! Fidella thinks. She rolls her eyes.
Arianna walks by. Mom! Rapunzel thinks.
"Hi, Mom!". She waves. Arianna runs away. I was too loud. "Oop, too loud. I don't remember her being that scared of noise.". It's the curse. "Maybe it's the curse? Who knows?". A pink seashell spills out of a sack. An image of the seashell appears in his head. Varian visualizes.
"What's this?'. He grabs it. Light comes out and surrounds them.
They are transported to a room with pink walling, dark carpet, and pink, purple, magenta and cyan pillows. This is weird. Kiera thinks.
"That was weird.". It could be worse. Rapunzel thinks.
"We have been in much worse situations! Definitely not weirder, but worse.". Why me? Kiera thinks.
"What have I ever done to deserve this?". Kiera runs in the marketplace with a loaf of French bread. Varian visualizes.
"Didn't you steal from, you know, dozens of people?". We're doomed. Kiera thinks.
"Oh right, we're doomed."
Arianna walks through the forest. She sees the pendant. She puts it on.
Maximus, Fidella, Pascal, Ruggiar, and Hammul are in the forest. Maximus sniffs the grass. Pascal and Ruggiar are on a stump. Maximus sits on them. They kick him. He gets off. Seriously?! Fidella thinks. She rolls her eyes.
Maximus sniffs the grass. Pascal walks left and Ruggiar walks right. Hammul kawaks. Maximus sees a red apple in a tree. I want that! He thinks. He stretches his neck. A gray and black raccoon, Ruggiar grabs it. No fair! Maximus pffts. They need to stop. Pascal thinks. He gets on a nearby stump and pushes them apart. Fidella grabs Ruggiar and pulls him back.
In the pendant, Catalina stands on Rapunzel's shoulders and looks through the hole.
"Do you see anything?" Rapunzel asks.
"We're being carried." She replies.
Meanwhile, Hammul files in a brown boot. What in Corona? Pascal thinks. He just looks at him.
Maximus sees a red apple in a tree. I want that! He thinks. He stretches his neck. A gray and black raccoon, Rugdiar grabs it. No fair! Maximus pffts. They need to stop. Pascal thinks. He gets on a nearby stump and pushes them apart. Fidella grabs Ruggiar and pulls him back.
In the pendant, Catalina stands on Rapunzel's shoulders and looks through the hole. Can she reach through? Rapunzel thinks.
"Can you reach through?".
"Almost…" Catalina replies.
Arianna looks down to see Catalina's fingers. She jumps, bouncing the pendant. Catalina falls. A blonde girl with green eyes wearing a pink dress jumps. She visualizes.
"Evidently, somebody is carrying us.". Maybe they can help. Rapunzel thinks.
"Maybe they can help.".
Varian sees a gold plaque. He goes over to it. An Asian script is on a gold plaque. He visualizes.
"Guys, look. Wow! This... It appears to be some sort of ancient chirography. Yeah! Mionotion perhaps! No, no? Maybe early Saporian?". He's looking at it upside down. Rapunzel thinks.
"Uh, you're looking at it upside down.".
"Oh, right. Of course.".
You are now prisoner of the shell. To escape its curse, you must return it to the briny deep of the sea or remain inside it evermore. Rapunzel reads aloud. We're doomed. Kiera thinks.
"I've said it before and I'll say it again: we're doomed!". Doom upside down is whoop! Rapunzel thinks.
"Hey, don't forget: doom upside down is whoop! I seriously don't think we're doomed. Pascal is incredibly smart and Maximus is the best tracker in Corona.". Rugdiar floats down the river in a raft made from logs and vines. Varian visualizes.
"And Rugdiar is incredibly resourceful.". What about Eugene's dad's raven? Kiera wonders.
"Anybody wanna say anything nice about that bird?".
Arianna walks on a sandbank by the river. She suddenly loses her balance and falls on a log in the river. Fidella rushes to her and extends his neck to her. Arianna climbs on. Fidella puts her on the bank. Catalina finds a parrot skull wearing a red bandana with white dots. She puts it on her hand. A green parrot talks. She visualizes.
"Hi! I'm Skully!" She announces. Rapunzel giggles.
Arianna sits on a log in the wilderness. She sits in the wilderness. She visualizes.
"I'm lonely," She announces.
Mom! Rapunzel thinks. "Mom!". Arianna jumps.
"Where are you!?" Arianna questions.
"This is going to sound crazy, but we're in your pendant.". A picture of Gothel pops in her head. Arianna visualizes.
"Who did this to you?!".
"Woah! Woah! We just got stuck in here!".
"Oh, do you know how to get out?".
"Drop us into the sea.".
"Oh, I don't want to drop you off a cliff, so I'm going to walk down there.". She doesn't need to do that; but I don't want to get mad at her. Rapunzel thinks. She smiles awkwardly.
Pascal, Maximus, Fidella and Rugdiar walk Arianna down to the beach. She takes off the pendant and dangles it above the ocean. Hammul swoops down and grabs it.
He drops it on the edge of a cliff.
It is raining. Pascal is curled up under a sprout.
Maximus walks alone in the rain in a meadow.
Rugdiar walks alone in the rain in a meadow.
Fidella walks alone in the rain in a meadow.
Hammul perches in a tree with his mouth opened, looking up. His stomach is inflated with rainwater.
We're screwed. Kiera thinks. "We're officially screwed.".
"I seriously don't think we're doomed. Pascal is incredibly smart and Maximus is the best tracker in Corona.". Rugdiar floats down the river in a raft made from logs and vines. Varian visualizes.
"And Rugdiar is incredibly resourceful.".
Pascal runs up to Maximus. He picks him up and puts him on his back. Maximus runs up to Rugdiar. He picks him up and puts him on his back. They run up to Fidella. They run up to Arianna. Fidella kneels and Arianna gets on. She takes off.
How are we going to get their attention? Kiera wonders.
"How are we going to get their attention?". A purple lantern with yellow, green, blue and purple glowing vils floats in the sky. Varian visualizes.
"I have an idea.".
Varian holds a purple lantern with yellow, green, blue and purple glowing vils. He releases it. It floats out of the pendant. It explodes.
Yellow, green, blue and purple fireworks appear. The shots ring in Arianna's ears. She covers her ears and runs to the edge of a cliff. She grabs the pendant. She drops the pendant. It smashes. Arianna imagines.
"I don't want to drop you off a cliff, so I'm going to walk down there.". She doesn't need to do that. Rapunzel thinks.
They arrive at the ocean. Arianna dismounts. She sets the pendant in the water. A swirl of light appears. Rapunzel appears. Pascal jumps up on her shoulder. A swirl of light appears. Varian appears. Ruddiger jumps on his shoulder. A swirl of light appears. Catalina appears. A swirl of light appears. Kiera appears.
"Thank you so much, Mom!" Rapunzel exclaims. She runs to Arianna, picks her up, and spins her. She sets her down.
Arianna hugs Fidella. She remembers. She frowns. A picture of a gold rock horse pops in her head. She holds her right hand out and swirls her left hand above it. A gold rock horse appears in her hand. She hugs her arm. That's so cool! Rapunzel thinks.
"Mom, that's so cool! What are you going to name that?". A picture of a pink crystal pops in her head. Arianna imagines.
"Crystal". Arianna and Crystal walk away. Huh? The group thinks as they tilt their heads and give confused expressions.
Author's Notes: FYI: the first offical seizure is going to be in the next chapter.