Myst: So sorry for the delay, but we've been busy. And Freak got an concussion. From her dog.

Freak: He didn't mean to. He was just really excited for that walk.

Myst: He got you right between the eyes. He knocked you silly. Literally folks. She burst into laughter afterwards.

Freak: But I'm back to normal.

Myst: Well, as normal as you can get.

*Freak gives Myst a look*

Myst: Well, we like to thank PirateWizardThief and yeahIwentthere69 for their help. Congrats to yeahIwentthere69 for her new story!

Freak: And, yes PWT, Adrian is awesome. And so will the new characters coming up. Myst, disclaimer!

Myst: We don't own anything that is already Disney's which include Wonderland, the Black Cauldron, and Home on the Range. Enjoy!

Chapter Four

~Kyra~

Kyra struggled as her captors hauled her down a hallway. After getting snatched up like a bag of oats, the gwythaint flew her to an ancient-looking castle that reminded her of Dracula's. Then she was dropped into the hands of big, burly men that she assumed were the guards.

And here she was, tied up and being dragged to possibly a dungeon. Kyra wrenched her arm, but the man kept his grip on it. "Let me go! Get your filthy hands off me!"

But they just ignored her. Finally they came to a wooden door with a barred window. One opened the door and the other threw the girl in, headfirst. She rolled onto her back as the door slammed shut, locking it.

"You could've at least untied my hands!" Kyra called out.

She huffed, blowing at her bangs. Looking around, she could see that hay littered the floor and the only light came from the cracks in the high-ceiling. The air was musty and reeked of decay and moss. Kyra inched her way back until she was sitting against the wall. She mulled over her situation, realizing that all that transpired was definitely real. Her mind kept wandering to her brothers, Luke and Garnet. Would she ever see them again? She groaned, closing her eyes. "Oh, where are you guys?"

"Hello? Is someone there?"

Kyra glanced to the shadowy part of the cell, startled. A silhouette sat in the shadows, barely visible in the limited light. As her eyes readjust to the dimness, she could see it was a young man in his early twenties with shaggy hair. Judging by how his hands were above his head and fists clenched, he was shackled to the stone wall by his wrists. His head moved as if he was trying to find who was in the darkness with him. "Is someone there?"

"Y-yes," she answered, attempting to sound nonchalant, but her voice shook. "Who are you?"

"Gwydion, and you?"

"Kyra. Do you mind telling me where we are?"

The green eyes glowed in the darkness where the guy sat. "Have you not already known yet?"

Kyra shifted uncomfortably in her spot. "Um, I haven't really hung out here much to guess."

"This is the Horned King's castle."

The Horned King…Kyra racked her brain trying to remember who that guy was. Even though she recognized Gurgi, the Black Cauldron wasn't a movie she knew by heart like she did with Sleeping Beauty. The Horned King was the bad guy of this movie and looked like a walking corpse. She recalled how the guy tried to raise an army of undead to kill all of humanity. And being a prisoner of his is probably not good. Like certain death not good.

Then her face scrunched up in confusion. "Wait a minute…Didn't that guy die when that cauldron blew him up?"

Chains jingled as he moved his arms slightly. "He was supposed to be dead, and this castle no more, but it was rumored that either Hades gave him the gift of life back or that the Horned King brought himself back on his own."

Kyra bit her lip. "Hm, ok. Either way sounds dark and creepy. So, what are you in for?"

"I was in the forest when his men ambushed me. The Horned King, I'm not sure what he wants. He wasn't here when they brought me to this place, but I suspect once he is back he'll request my presence."

"Why would they ambush you? You a prince or something?" Her tone implied she was kidding, but she realized the answer.

"Yes. I am a prince, a member of the Royal House of Don in fact."

Kyra made an O with her mouth in realization. "That explains it. So, when do you think he'll be back?"

"I've been here for a day and night. At the very least, tomorrow."

Kyra leaned her head back, staring at the ceiling. "What do you think they'll do to me?"

"That depends, are you a princess or some kind of witch?"

"No." Then Kyra thought back to her encounter with Gurgi and how he reacted when he saw her glow. It was gone now otherwise she would've had better light. Her fingers curled, nails digging into her palms. "But, um, I ran into someone before I was caught. The gwythaint was after him actually. I tried to help him and ended up getting myself snatched up. Before that happened, we were talking and, I guess a cloud pass over or something, but he freaked out and ran away when he saw me glowing."

"Glowing?" Gwydion sounded surprised, but mostly in disbelief.

Kyra nodded. "Yeah. I don't know what it is, but ever since I woke up, this weird glow is emitting off my body and so far it's been scaring the bejeebies out of people."

"You said you are not from here, is that correct?" He sounded urgent; like he'd been told an old acquaintance who he thought was long dead was coming over tomorrow.

"Yeah. And?"

"You are not from here." He said it as if he was finally seeing the picture before him. "You are from the Other Place."

"I'm not really following. Care to elaborate?"

But he didn't answer. Silence covered the room like a thick sheet of blanket, the day growing darker as night came. Kyra's hands ached and she felt stiff in her arms. As the hours went on, she started to make conclusions as to why everyone's so freaked out by the glow. Maybe it was a way to distinguish people from the real world in their world. But why are they so afraid of her? Did something happen here before she came? How did she come to be here in the first place? And where were her brothers? Were they captured too? Or maybe even…no, Kyra couldn't bear the thought. Maybe they weren't here at all, still in the real world wondering where she was. But something told her it was unlikely. That little memory blurred in her mind of them together and a light sucking them in. It didn't make much sense to her right now, she couldn't remember well before blacking out.

Finally, after hours of no talking, Gwydion spoke with a seldom voice. "If the Horned King finds out what you are and where you came from, he won't give you another day to live."

~Luke~

Luke winced. "Easy on the wound, man."

He recoiled as Jack finished bandaging up his arm. When Slim fired his gun, Luke survived thanks to the rabbit. However, the bullet nicked him in the arm. They came to a rest at the back of a train station, where Jack patched up Luke's arm. The deserted wasteland stretched on for miles around them, the air filled with the smoky aroma of sizzling carrot.

"There, that should do it," Jack wiped his hands, satisfied with his work.

Luke tenderly ran his fingers over his covered wound. "Well, there goes baseball. I won't be surprise if this ends my whole sports career."

Lucky Jack waved his hand dismissively. "It's just a flesh wound. It'll heal and you'll be good as new in no time." Jack hopped down from the crate he was standing on and went over to the small fire they had built. He grabed the stick he propped up by leaning it against a rock and continued to roast a carrot over the fire.

A few minutes of silence later, Luke spoke up. "Thanks for saving my life by the way."

Jack glanced at him, smiling softly. "You're mighty welcome, kid."

Luke leaned back against the wall of the station, hands behind his head. "So, what were you doing there anyway?"

"Well, you see, kid," Jack started to explain. "That mine used to be my ole' home before those rustlers settled there. Not too long ago, I helped these three cows catch that no-good-son-of-a-gun and landed him in jail."

"I heard one of them mentioned something like that." Luke said.

"Well, long-story short, I moved onto their farm and once in a while I visit the mine for memories keeps. Didn't expect to see that no-good-son-of-a-gun back in the cave." He brought his food out of the fire and blew to cool down the streaming vegetable. "Well, he won't last long until he's caught again. There's no doubt about it." He chomped the carrot whole up and started to chew. But his eyes watered, stopping him in mid-chew with lips puckered up. Jack spat the too-hot food out and started screaming how his mouth was burning. Luke quickly got out his water flask, unscrewed the cap, grabbed the rabbit, and jammed the drink into Jack's mouth. Jack took a few gulps before Luke popped it out of his mouth.

Jack wiped his mouth, sighing in relief. "That happens all the time."

Luke closed the cap back on the lid. "I'm sure it does."

"By the way, what where you doing in the mine?" Jack asked as Luke put the flask away. Luke looked at Jack, a bit unsure.

"Well," he drawled, then shrugged. "I got lost. I woke up in the middle of the desert with no memory of how I got there and with vultures trying to pick my bones off. I was at the wrong place at the wrong time."

"So, what are you going to do now?"

Luke pondered on that for a bit, staring into the fire. The cackling of the kindle sounded so loud in the silence, like a forest-fire. What was he going to do? He knew he had to find his siblings but where to begin? One thing was for sure, he does not want to run into those cattle rustlers again.

"I think I'm gonna go outta state," he answered, "Leave town. You know where I can hop on a train?"

Jack smiled knowingly then. "As a matter of fact, I know a fella with a train."

Luke sat up. "Really, that's great. When will it arrive?"

"It's pulled into a station now." Jack grabbed an old bucket nearby and drenched the flames out. "We better get going now if we want to catch it before they pack up and leave."

Luke slung his bag over his good shoulder and ran after the hopping rabbit, leaving a snaky trail of smoke from the ashes of their campfire. They followed the train tracks, the only light of source was from the burning constellations in the sky.

~Garnet~

Adrian marked off another place on his map. He and Garnet where currently resting under a grove of trees, using an electronic lantern for light. They have spent all day looking for any signs of Kyra or Luke, but ended up with nothing. Adrian took his chin with his index finger and thumb. "What about here? We haven't checked there yet."

Garnet looked at the teacup on the map and grimaced. "Uh, I don't think they are there. At all."

Adrian gave him an amused look. "You've already been to see the Hare and Hatter?"

Garnet nodded.

Adrian chuckled. "It's the tea, isn't it? I prefer green tea and not tasting of armpit."

"I prefer no tea at all."

A laugh escaped from Adrian's mouth. He examined the map again. "Well, I'm afraid there's not much places to look left in Wonderland for them. We might have to revisit some places."

Garnet sprawled himself on the ground, bummed out. He stared out into the dark blue gloom above him, the moon reminding him of the Cheshire cat's smile. Thinking back to the cat's words and riddles, he tried to decipher them in his mind.

'What did he mean by not where I think they are and are where I don't know? We've searched practically this entire place, where else is there?'

He chewed on the side of his cheek, then his eyes lit up in thought. "Hey Adrian."

"Hm?"

Garnet sat up. "Are there other places besides Wonderland?"

Adrian idly stabbed his sword in the dirt. "Yes, there are a lot of places. For example, there's Never Land and Prydain."

"Never Land? You mean where people can fly?" Garnet asked excitedly.

Adrian smirked. "The same. Also pirates and Indians."

"Cool!"

"You think your siblings might be in one of those places?"

Garnet nodded. "Yeah, so do you think we can travel to those places?"

Adrian curtly nodded. "Yes, right away." He sheathed his sword swiftly and they gathered up their stuff. Garnet followed behind Adrian as he held the lamp aloft, walking through the forest. After walking for awhile in silence, Garnet spoke up. "So, how do we get out of Wonderland?"

Adrian stopped. He placed a hand on a tree trunk and turned to the little boy, a knowing smile on his face. "We surf."

Garnet arched an eyebrow. Adrian handed him the lantern and unsheathed one of his Khopesh swords. Carefully, he inserted the blade into a secret slot all the way up to the handle. Garnet jumped upon hearing a clink emitted from the tree and watched, amazed, as a panel flapped open. Adrian sheathed back his sword and took a cloth-covered item shaped like a surf board out. With a flourish, he pulled off the tarp to reveal a solar surfer much like Jim's, but the board was blue and when Adrian activate it, the sail was silver like a fish's scale. It hovered a few inches off the ground as Adrian stepped on.

"Where did you get that?" Garnet asked in awe as Adrian took the lantern and put it in his bag.

"Montressor," Adrian replied, lifting Garnet up and placing the boy in front of him. "An old friend helped me build it. Here, wrap this around your waist." Adrian dropped down the end of the rope to him and tied the other end around his own waist. After making sure both of theirs were secure, Adrian started up the surfer and they floated higher into the sky, going past the trees.

Garnet held on tightly, excitement pumping through him. "Where are we going first?"

They stopped, hovering between the trees and the sky. "The nearest exit follows up to China. I have to make a detour there anyway. Now hold on tight because this thing tends to go fast." Adrian stepped back and floored down hard on the accelerator pedal. With a sonic boom, they propelled forward with Garnet almost falling off. Garnet regained his footing and held on in a death gripped. The wind rushed past them, making their hair dance wildly. As they sped off, Garnet laughed and whooped, having more much fun than he ever had in his life.

~Luke~

Luke and Lucky Jack stopped as they saw the train Jack spoke of. Smoke trailed from the front and a sharp whistle sounded. Jack panted. "Looks like we just made it." He dashed forward just when Luke caught up and tried to catch his breath. "C'mon!"

Luke groaned, but followed running fast. They ran past the third cart just as the conductor called out "All aboard!" on the other side. Luke pushed forward as the train slowly started to move. Jack kept hopping forward until he came up on what he was sure was the box cart. He cupped his hands around his mouth, still moving. "Mark!"

A deep roar like a lion's answered him making his fur jumped. "Sorry, wrong cart."

"Jack?"

The rabbit turned back to see the neighbor cart's door open and a marten-like creature popped his head out. Jack slowed his pace till he was in besides of that cart. "Ah, there you are! That happens all the time."

The marten rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I know that! How did you find me? I told you we weren't leavin' till tomorrow!"

Jack put his paws on his hips, still jumping. "Then what's this?"

Mark shifted his eyes, trying to come up with an answer. "Um…They decided to leave early at the last second. Had no time to tell you or send that money that I owe you from poker, hehe."

Jack waved him off. "Forget about the cash. I've found another, much easier way fer ya to pay me back."

Mark raised an invisible eyebrow. "What is it?"

Jack pointed behind him at the teen who was half wobbling and half running. Mark examined the teen in disbelief. "You have got to be kidding."

"He needs a ride, that's all. Trying to find some family of his." Jack examined.

"Isn't that always the story, huh?" Mark said in a bored voice, giving a sidelong glance at no one in particular.

"Well, if ya don't want to pay me by favor, then I'll still have the cash."

That froze the marten in his tracks. He slapped a paw over his eyes. "Fine. But he better not give me any trouble."

"Thanks, partner!" Jack yelled as the train started to pick up speed. Mark went back inside as Jack urged Luke to hurry up. Feeling very much like a hobo, Luke sprinted past the last carts and grabbed onto the side of the box cart's entry. Using his momentum, he swung his leg up and pulled the rest of his body up, despite the pain from his wounds.

Messaging his bandage arm, Luke leaned out to see the rabbit falling behind. He was going to miss Jack. Even though this movie wasn't really great, Jack himself was. He helped Luke without asking for anything in return. The boy wished he could repay the rabbit for his kindness, but could only wave him good-bye as the train sped off. "Good-bye, Jack! Thanks for everything!"

"Good-bye, kid! Take care and good luck finding your-" A tumble weed came by and Jack accidently got himself tangled up comically. Luke winced upon watching it, frowning.

Jack raised a paw up. "I'm ok! This happens all the time!"

Luke brought his head back in and slid the door shut, locking the latch down. Leaning his back against the wall, he let himself slide down and dropped his bag on the floor. Now that he had some peace and quiet, Luke realized just how exhausted he was. He almost drifted off there and then, but a voice interupted his peace.

"Hey, buddy."

Luke opened his eyes to see the weirdest creature he'd ever seen in his entire life standing on its hunches. It was just as tall as a cat, but smaller in shape with gray fur and wearing a red, tattered scarf with a matching set of goggles lined with black atop its head. The long bushy tail swishing around reminded Luke of a squirrel's, but thinner like a cat's. A frown was set up its elongated face, whiskers sticking out on either side of its pointed nose. It glared its amber eyes at Luke. "You gonna sit there like an idiot or follow me?"

Luke ignored the comment. "Um, yeah. Say, what are you?" He asked as Mark scurried up the cargo on all fours.

"I'm a None-of-ya." He stopped in mid-climbing and leaned over a trunk's edge at Luke. "As in, none of ya business! But if you must know who I am, well, just call me Mark. Everyone does. Now come on before we get spotted. Into the cargo jungle, kid!" He disappeared over the mound of stuff with Luke following him. Getting to the top, Luke's foot slipped on a ball and he went crashing down, landing in a pile of costumes. Pain seared his stomach, but he bit his lip to keep from screaming. He started to get up, but his backpack dropped on his back which pushed him back down.

"Hey, stop goofing around." Mark walked over and stood in front of Luke's face. "Despite this being circus property, we can't play around here or else you might get caught."

"And I was having a blast." Luke grunted, getting up.

Mark scowled. "Just try not to set the fireworks off, kid."

"My name is Luke."

The marten waved him off, dismissively. "Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever. C'mon, I'll show ya where you'll be sleeping."

They continued climbing over chests and other items, Mark with ease and agility while Luke was slower due to being human. Luke ducked under a ripped tarp as Mark entered it and stopped at the doorway. Inside was like the inside of a giant child's fort with a deflated ball, an old popcorn maker, a chest full of fabrics, and a miniature set of a tight rope display with a hammock between the poles. Mark proudly stood next to Luke's leg, head held high and paws on his hips. "Home, sweet home." He said and looked up at Luke. "Impressive, huh?"

"Nothing I've seen before that's for sure." Luke mumbled.

Smiling smugly, Mark briskly climbed up to his makeshift bed before stretching out his limbs. "Well, you can bunk in the trunk."

Luke glanced at the chest, not sure it was big enough for him. "How about a hammock?"

Mark snorted, using his scarf as a makeshift blanket and hanging up his goggles. "Pal, the only hammock there is here is the one I'm in, and you wouldn't exactly fit. Now good night. When we arrive at the nearest town that'll be your stop and you'll need to be alert when jumping off if the train doesn't stop."

Luke sighed and tried to make himself as comfortable as he could, using his bag as a pillow. He silently said a prayer and drifted off into a dreamless sleep, his worries and aches melting away.

Freak: ~Run away train never look back.~

Myst: I've always wanted to write about a guy jumping on a train like a hobo since I saw Shawn and Gus do it. Best duo of crime detective agency ever!

Freak: We apologize for any grammar mistakes or confusion from reading this chapter. If you feel nauseated, light-headed, or in the mood to watch Home on the Range, contact your doctor.

Myst: Gwydion is actually from the book if you are all wondering. Found him in the first book we did.

Freak: Yes, but Mark belongs to us. Copyrights speaking.

Myst: Well, we are tired, achy, and Freak needs to take her medication.

Freak: And it's not for the head injury.

Both: Bye!