The next day, Robert had just finished emptying the dishwasher, replacing the clean dishes with the dirty ones from breakfast, when Irene stepped into the kitchen. It was apparent from the expression on her face that she was looking for something.
"Robert," she began. "Have you seen Toby this morning? I was going to take him out to Chapel Hill Mall. He needs a new pair of shoes."
"He went out with Sarah about half an hour ago," Robert replied. "Sarah said she was taking him to Fred Fuller Park for a picnic lunch today."
"You didn't let them go, did you?" Irene exclaimed, suddenly sounding cross.
"What's the problem?" Robert asked, visibly confused by his wife's unexpected annoyance. "Toby's always enjoyed spending time with Sarah, and Sarah hasn't shown any problems with looking after him since Toby was a baby. It's rather nice that they get along so well, especially with their age difference."
"The problem isn't them spending time together," Irene stated impatiently. "I'm more concerned with who they might be meeting up with. Yesterday, I saw Sarah out in Toby's playhouse and that Stacey girl was with her."
"Stacey?" Robert repeated. "You mean that young girl who spent the night here that one time two years ago?"
"Exactly! The last time that girl came around, Sarah was missing for days. Even now, she won't say where she went. And now, Stacey's back. Sarah might be an adult now, and allowed to get involved with whatever that Stacey's doing, but I'm not going to let her drag Toby into whatever she's up to."
"Irene," Robert sighed, "you know very well that Sarah would never put Toby into danger."
"And what, may I ask, does she classify as dangerous?" Irene challenged. "I don't trust Stacey, and I don't want Toby anywhere near her." With that, Irene started heading to the front door.
"Where are you going now?" Robert asked.
"Where else? I'm going to the park to find them. And if I see they're with that girl…." Irene left her statement unfinished, but cast a questioning look over at her husband. "Well? Are you coming, or am I going there by myself?"
In Fred Fuller Park, along the banks of the swollen stream that flowed through the park, Wayne gazed in wonder at Ludo, Sir Didymus and Theseus as he was introduced to the three creatures. He had announced that morning over breakfast that he wanted to come along with Stacey, Daedalus and Hoggle when they met up with Sarah and the others that day, stating that he wanted to help them come up with a plan of attack against the Agnostic.
"If I wasn't seeing them with my own eyes, I wouldn't have believed it," Wayne spoke softly, reaching out to stroke Ludo's arm in appreciation before bending down to give Theseus a light scratch behind his ears. "I never thought I'd be so pleased with seeing creatures from the Underground ever again. But now…I don't think I could be happier."
"And it is a pleasure to finally meet ye, Sir Wayne, Sir Didymus greeted with a respectful nod. "Queen Stacey has always spoken highly of ye."
"Hmmm," Wayne turned to the fox with a raised eyebrow. "You must be Sir Didymus. Stacey and Hoggle have told me all about you, too."
As Wayne continued to talk with Sir Didymus and Ludo, Stacey and Hoggle filled Sarah and Toby in on Wayne's past, and how he had really lost his younger brother.
"So, all this time," Sarah said, turning to the carpenter once Stacey and Hoggle had finished. "You've known about the Underground, too?"
"Yes, that is right," Wayne confirmed. "And even though a part of me will forever associate the Underground with my lost brother, I cannot sit back and do nothing when I know it is in danger. Especially when I see how living there has had such a positive effect on Stacy. That's why I came today. I want to do what I can to help defeat this Agnostic. After all, if you're going to come up with a plan of attack, you'll need as many brains as possible.
"So, then," Wayne continued, taking a seat at the base of a nearby tree, "please tell me everything you know, so…."
Wayne's words were cut short by the sound of a short, muffled cry nearby. In unison, everyone turned in the direction of the sound. The moment they saw who had cried out, Sarah leapt to her feet, her eyes wide in surprise. It was Irene, who was frozen in place with her hands over her mouth. Robert was standing close behind her. Both of them were staring at Ludo, Hoggle, and the rest of the Underground survivors in tangible shock.
"What are those things?" Irene cried out, hurrying over to scoop Toby up and tear him away from the others.
"Mother," Sarah spoke urgently, trying desperately to calm her down. "It's okay. They're…"
"I can't believe you, Sarah!" Irene interrupted. "How can you put your brother in danger like this?"
"They're not dangerous," Sarah insisted. "They would never hurt Toby."
"And you!" Irene rounded on Stacey, showing no indication that she'd heard Sarah speak. "How dare you come near my family again? Why didn't you just stay wherever it was that you went? I'm not going to allow you to lure my children away any more!"
"Excuse me," Wayne retorted, stepping in between Irene and Stacey, frowning up at her in disapproval. "I do not approve of what you're implying about Stacey. She is not some delinquent, and she would never do anything to cause harm to Sarah and Toby."
As Irene and Wayne continued to stare at each other, their glares filled with the intention to defend their children, Sarah turned to her father, attempting to plead her case to him.
"Dad, please, hear me out," she began. "These are my friends. And they're here because they need our help. I know it's hard to believe, but…they're from another world."
"What do you mean, another world?" Robert asked, clearly trying to understand.
"There are parallel worlds," Wayne explained, not taking his annoyed stare off Irene. "Different realities, if you will. And traveling between these different realities, while not an everyday occurrence, is quite possible. One of these realities is called the Underground. Think of it as a living fantasy world, where every creature you've ever read about in fairy tales and mythical stories exist. As I understand it, Sarah has already gone to the Underground before on two occasions. I also went there myself, when I was a boy. But right now, the Underground is in danger."
"It's being destroyed by something called the Agnostic," Sarah continued. "If we don't help stop it, the Underground will be destroyed."
"What does that have to do with you?" Irene challenged. "This has nothing to do with us."
"You're wrong!" Sarah shouted, gesturing to Stacey, Ludo, Hoggle, Sir Didymus and Theseus in turn. "These are my friends! If the Underground is destroyed, they'll all die! And if that doesn't matter to you, than maybe you should know that our world will be affected, too."
"Sarah, what do you mean?" Robert asked.
"It was on the news, Daddy," Toby replied. "The earthquakes and fires are happening because of the Agnostic."
"Our world is somehow connected to the Underground," Sarah clarified. "Didn't you watch the news last night? All those disasters that are happening all over the world; it's because the Underground's being destroyed. We need to stop the Agnostic to save the Underground and our world."
"There's that word again," Irene huffed. "The Agnostic. What is this Agnostic?"
"We don't know," Stacey admitted. "All we can tell is that it's a thing, a presence. If it even has a physical form, no one has ever seen it and been able to tell us about it. There's only a handful of us left, now. We came back to this world with Sarah and Toby to try and come up with a plan to stop it."
"And you still haven't given me a good reason why we should stand aside and let our children risk their lives because of this thing," Irene cried. "Even if our world is being affected by something that's happening in this fantasy world of yours, Toby is just a child, and all Sarah does is put on plays."
"Who else is going to do something?" Sarah pointed out. "Just think about it for a second. If anyone else found out about the Underground, what do you think they'll do to it?"
"I think Sarah has a point," Wayne agreed. "As far as I know, she, Toby and I are the only ones from this world who have ever gone to the Underground. While I know it will be practically impossible to test this theory, maybe only those who are open to the possibility of other worlds can go there. Because of that, Toby and Sarah are the only ones who are in the position to help."
"And what guarantee do we have that they'll return safely?" Irene demanded.
"I promise you, Mrs. Williams," Stacey replied, "that I will do whatever I can to keep them safe if they come back into the Underground with us. We've lost too many people to the Agnostic already, and I'm not going to sit back and allow it to hurt my friends any more."
"You seriously expect me to trust…?"
"Irene," Robert spoke up. "That's enough."
"What?" Irene gasped. "Robert, these are our children! You can't really be thinking about agreeing to this, can you?"
"From what I've heard," Robert said, "Sarah has gone to this Underground twice before, and we've never had any indication that she'd been hurt there. And…I trust her enough to know that she'd never allow Toby to get into any real danger." Looking away from Irene's stunned expression, Robert fixed Stacey with a serious look. "Do you promise to bring them back home?"
"I have already given you my promise that I'll do everything in my power to keep them safe," Stacey pointed out. "And you can hold me to that."
Before another word could be said, a cruel laugh could be heard. Turning, everyone saw Phoebe, Quinn and Rosabel standing nearby, smirking at Stacey.
"Now that's funny," Phoebe snickered. "Little Miss Stacey actually thinks she can keep anyone safe."
"What are you doing here?" Stacey snarled, her face contorting in rage. "Was my punch the other day too subtle for you to catch on to how I don't want to see you again?"
"Aw, that's not very nice," Stacey," Rosabel retorted. "Then again, it wasn't very nice of you to come back here and leave the rest of your friends behind to fend for themselves, was it?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about!" In spite of her words, Stacey couldn't help but frown. How did Phoebe and the others know about Lady Berdine, baby Reynard, Prometheus and Primrose?
"You hear that?" Quinn laughed. "She still hasn't figured it out yet! Now, really Princess. That's just disappointing."
"What do you mean? Figured what out?" Sarah demanded. Instead of replying, the three girls stepped over to a nearby tree. With a cruel smirk on her face Phoebe placed a single finger on the tree, which slowly began to split into two from the base upward, forming a crude archway.
"What is that?" Irene cried, pointing in shock at the archway. Everyone instantly saw the reason for her alarm. It was perfectly clear that the view through the archway was not Fred Fuller Park. Instead, they all stared in amazement at a barren forest that was covered in snow and ice.
"That…it's the Underground!" Sir Didymus realized, gaping at Phoebe, Quinn and Rosabel. "But how can they make a doorway into the Underground? It is not possible."
"It really is a shame, Stacey," Phoebe taunted, turning back to face her. "To think that the reason why you came back here was all for nothing. You see, the moment you returned to this world was the moment you failed."
"Of course. Now I understand," Daedalus exclaimed, clicking his beak in agitation. "So it's you!"
"Daedalus! You're speaking English again!" Hoggle stated, looking over at the owl in surprise.
"It must be because of the doorway into the Underground being opened," Sarah theorized. "But we don't understand, Daedalus. What do you know that…?"
Sarah never got the chance to finish her question. In the blink of an eye, Daedalus took wing and flew right at Phoebe, attacking her face with his talons and beak. In response to the sudden attack, Pheobe stumbled backward for a few seconds before loosing her balance. Acting on instinct, Phoebe reached out to grab Quinn and Rosabel, but she only ended up pulling them down with her. As a result, Daedalus and the three girls all fell through the doorway, with the girls crashing into an icy pond. Upon impact, the ice that had covered the pond broke, drenching them with the frigid cold water.
What happened next was almost instantaneous. Before everyone's eyes, Phoebe, Quinn and Rosabel vanished from sight. In their place, an eerie dark mist formed over the pond.
"Oh!" Stacey whispered, her jaw dropping. "I recognize that pond now! It's the Pool of Depiction! The pool whose waters can strip anyone of any disguise. But that means…"
"Phoebe and the others were the Agnostic in disguise!" Sarah cried. The moment this was said, a pair of the most evil-looking eyes appeared in the mist, and a blinding flash of light forced everyone to look away. When they were finally able to look back, the tree Phoebe had formed the archway in had returned to normal. The portal into the Underground had vanished.
"I don't believe this!" Stacey shouted, rushing forward and banging her fist against the tree in rage. "The whole time….THE WHOLE TIME! The Agnostic was always there, right in front of my face, for all these years! How could I have been so stupid?"
"Stacey," Hoggle spoke gently, stepping over to her side. "There's no way you could have known."
"He's right, Stacey," Sarah agreed. "No one could have connected those girls to the Agnostic."
"We're going back," Stacey announced, a hardened glint in her eyes. "Right now. It's personal now. I'm not going to rest until I see that thing destroyed!"
Wordlessly, Sarah took out her medallion in preparation to return to the Underground.
"Sarah," Irene whispered. "Please don't go." For a moment, Sarah was rooted to the spot, completely amazed by the expression on her stepmother's face. There was no trace of the impatience and exasperation Sarah was used to seeing in her face whenever they spoke. Instead, she looked completely lost and scared.
"Mother, I…." Sarah's words were quickly interrupted as Irene continued her plea.
"Please, Sarah. This thing you're running after isn't safe. And…how long are your father and I supposed to wait for you and Toby to come home?"
"I…Mother, Dad, I…I know you're scared." Sarah's voice shook with suppressed emotion. "I…I am too. But…if we don't do something, both the Underground and our world will be destroyed. Please understand that…we're not just doing this to help our friends. We're doing this to protect you."
For a brief moment, there was absolute silence. What happened next took everyone by surprise. With a few brisk steps, Irene went right up to Sarah and pulled her into a tight hug. Before Sarah could get over the shock of being hugged by her stepmother, Irene had already pulled away to repeat the same gesture with Toby, with Robert soon following her example.
"Please," Irene whispered one last time as she and Robert stepped back again. "Promise us both that you'll return home to us."
"We will," Sarah agreed with a nod, still visibly shaken by Irene's display of affection.
"Sarah," Ludo spoke up. "Time to go."
"Right, Ludo," Sarah nodded quickly, forcing herself to look away from her parents. "Everyone, gather around."
"Just make room for me," Wayne volunteered.
"Wayne?" Stacey said in surprise. "You're coming, too?"
"I said so before, Stacey," Wayne pointed out. "I cannot just sit back knowing the Underground is in danger. If there's any chance I can help, then I'm taking it."
No one else said a word as Sarah held out her medallion to bring them all back to the Underground. The second the group of them had faded from sight, Irene turned and buried her face in Robert's chest, breaking down in sobs instantly.
AN: And the countdown to the final battle has begun. Hope everyone liked the surprise twist in this chapter. There are plenty more of those coming, too.