Chapter 18: Trapped Like Rats
(Will's POV)
I tried to open my eyes, but a shooting pain in my head kept them shut. That Deadly Nightshade really did a number on me. Oww! My head was seriously killing me. Now I know how the Doc felt after a bowl of Sally's soup. If I could, I would have smacked myself for not noticing one of those brats had dropped a Belladonna stink bomb. While my brain tried to process what had happened, I used my other senses to try to figure out where the heck I was. The room was quiet and I could smell stone, dirt, and rust. I couldn't taste anything so I hadn't been gagged. I tested my limbs and the pressure I felt on my wrists and ankles told me I had been bound, and my arms were dangling over my head.
Well, if I was tied up, that meant only one thing: I was back in Oogie's lair. I forced myself to crack open my eyes and have a look around. Well, I was definitely back in Oogie's cheesy casino themed lair, all right. Though looks like he did a little redecorating, but why was everything was on the ceiling?
"You've got to me kidding me! I'm upside down, again?!" I struggled around to see where I had been tied this time. Well, at least wherever I had been tied, it wasn't on the buzz saw again. I looked at my ankles to see they were chained together, and I was dangling from some sort of device on the ceiling. I followed the chain to an old fashioned lowering device. I looked down to see just what I was dangling over. I wish I hadn't.
About fifteen feet below me was a pit filled with large spiders and snakes of the poisonous variety. One flip of the switch, and I would be either killed by venom or eaten alive, if I didn't crack my skull from the fall first.
I needed to figure a way out of this mess before Oogie and his goons came back. Looking at my hands I noticed I still hadn't changed back. Perfect! All I had to do was pull myself up and I might be able to pick the lock with one of my talons. It was a long shot, but I didn't see any other portion. Bat fangs can't bite through chains. I tried pulling myself up so I could grab the chain attached to my ankles. I was just about there when…
Dibidi ba didi
Dou dou
Dibidi ba didi dou dou
Didi didldildidldidl
Houdihoudi dey dou
I freaked out from the sudden ringtone and I fell back, causing myself to swing back and forth over the pit. When I slowed down, I looked up to see Al's phone sticking out of my pocket. I had almost forgotten it was there. I swung my hands up and grabbed the phone before it fell out of my pocket. I looked at the screen and saw two missed texts from a Sweet Potato. Guess Zack got worried after Al didn't reply back.
Dibidi ba didi
Dou dou
Dibidi ba didi dou dou
Didi didldildidldidl
Houdihoudi dey dou
The ringer went off again and I hit the answer button.
"Hello?"
Hey guys… It was Kat again, only this time she was using FaceTime. From what I could see in the background she was laying poolside on the beach, although it was hard to tell because there were so many people. It looked like they were having some kind of party that had gotten out of control.
"Hey, what's up?" I asked. I took a closer look and noticed she was leaning up against something. "Is… Is that a xylophone in the background?"
Ha ha ha! She laughed and took a sip of her drink. What's a xylophone? Heh heh, xylophone…
Something was off. Kat didn't sound like her usual self. I quickly looked at her: her eyes seemed glassy and unfocused, and her speech was slurred. Then it hit me. "Kat, have you been drinking mimosa?" I asked, though I already guessed the answer.
Kat squinted at the screen and brought the camera so close to her face that all I could see was her dilated pupils. I mush be drunk, cuz you look… She paused as she hiccuped. You look like a upside down rat… And what's a mono-sin-pafa…? Oooooo! Sandwich… She dropped her phone to follow a waiter with a tray over to the bar.
"Kat, your phone!" I yelled. Then I took a quick look around because I might have alerted someone I was awake. Seeing I was in the clear, I went to picking the lock while I watched the screen for Kat. She ran back and picked up her phone, and then raced back to the bar. She sat down and was laughing hysterically, waving her phone in one hand and her drink in another. She started into the sandwich tray.
Why have you summoned the Sand Witch? I was making a sandwich, Kat said in an old woman's voice. She was spouting out lines from a play Al wrote in high school, and stuffing sandwiches in her mouth.
I rolled my eyes. "Kat, don't go Brunhilda on me. Focus! Why did you call?"
She looked at me confused, like I was speaking another language. Sheriously Will, what is a broom-hildo? Kat brought the phone close to her mouth and very loudly whispered, "Have you been drinking?"
"No," I said, frustrated. "Actually, I'm just, you know, dangling over a pit of snakes and spiders, and Al's going out of her mind trying to figure out where the heck I am. Meanwhile you're out getting wasted on the beach. So yeah, I'm doing just peachy." I cut the sarcasm when I saw her face become sad all of a sudden.
Kat whimpered. Well, excuse me for trying to be a good, no! GREAT friend, and call my homies while I on vacation! No Dairy for you!
I looked at her, puzzled. "Do you mean like ice cream and cheese, or that Darin dude you've been trying to set me up on a blind date with?" I asked.
Whose ice cream? You cut off! Kat asked, gesturing to her neck. This was getting me nowhere, and my neck was straining from trying to pick the lock and look at the phone screen. And it didn't help when Kat started laughing, thinking I was playing a game.
A Mexican waiter came over and gave her another drink. As he walked away, Kat grabbed onto the back of his shirt, and pulled him close to her. HEY WILL! She yelled loud enough to cause the waiter to wince. Guess you this is! THIS IS JORJE! Kat turned back to the waiter and asked, You name is Jorje, right?
Sí, he replied.
Kat laughed, then turned back to me, shouting, AND WE ARE GETTING MARRIED! Wait, no… He's getting married. I'm not getting married. Wait... Will? Am I getting married?
If I could have slapped my forehead, I would have. "Katerina Anacleta Zamora De Los Apostoles Covadonga Contreras Rosa Maria! Get yourself some coffee and sober up. Normally I'd love chatting with you, but not while I'm dangling in a Death Trap!" I hissed. Honestly, I had no time to deal with Drunk Kat, no matter how fun she was.
We don't has coffee here, Kat said, smiling smugly. We have TEQUILA! Woooohooo! The crowd around her screamed as she downed a shot, and the music began to get louder.
"Shhh! Keep your voice down," I hissed. I looked down and saw the snakes were trying to jump at me. I could almost see the venom dripping off their fangs. I looked around and sighed when no one came.
When I looked back at Kat, she had a frown on her face. For being in bed, you sure are grumpy, she said in a sour tone.
"I'm NOT in bed! I'm… You know what, just-just take a look!" I maneuvered to phone to give her a clear view of the seven foot-long snakes and three-foot tall spiders. "Does this look like my bed to you?!"
I was glad the phone was away from my ears when I heard Kat's high-pitched scream. Even drunk, spiders were not her favorite creatures, so seeing giant spiders while she was intoxicated was the last thing she expected to see. I had to admit, it was kind of funny when I watched the screen fall to the floor. Kat must have thrown her phone again. When she calmed down, she picked up her phone and gave me the direst look she could muster up.
Why the #&$! are you over spidershh and shakes? Get down from there, you psychopath! she practically screamed at me.
"I would if I could, but I can't," I informed her. "And keep your voice down, will ya? You want me to get caught?"
"Hey!"
"Aaaah!" I flinched and dropped the phone. It fell right into the pit and was instantly swarmed by the snakes and spiders. Great, Al was gonna kill me.
SSSSSSPPIDDEEERRRRRR! Kat screamed from her end of the line. Guess she didn't end the call and now she getting an up close view inside the pit. WILL this isn't funny! Kat yelled. Remove the spider from my phone screen NOW! SHAKKE! There's a snake in my phone. What the #&$! are you trying to do to me Will? Are you trying to give me a heart attack!? In need a drink–
Her voice was cut off as a large snake swallowed Al's phone. Well, Zack wasn't gonna be getting a reply from Al anytime soon. I looked down to see who had entered the room, and, no surprise, it was Lock, Shock, and Barrel.
"You three realize you owe my friend a new phone," I said. "Unless one of you wants to jump into that snake's mouth and get it back."
"Quiet you!" Lock yelled. "We don't take orders from flying rats."
"Why don't you come up here and say that to my face." I chomped my teeth at him.
"You don't scare us!" Barrel yelled, though he was hiding behind Shock.
"So what's it gonna be, brats?" I asked. Not that I was really interested, but not like I had much else to do at the moment. "You gonna actually torture me, or you just gonna talk me to death like your boss did last time?"
"I know," Shock said. "Let's lower her down and whack her with sticks."
"Yeah! If we hit her hard enough, maybe candy will come out," Barrel suggested.
"Only one way to find out!" Lock grinned and ran to the lever.
He slowly pulled the switch and I was lowered down about six inches. "I am not a piñata!"
Before any of the little smart alecks could remark, there was an obnoxious laughing coming from somewhere behind me. Lock let go of the switch, halting my decent, and ran back to his cohorts. I peered behind my shoulder and, just like that, Oogie Boogie appeared, tossing his red dice in his hands.
"Oh joy," I groaned. "Look what the cat hacked up. A maggot infested snot rag."
"You three," Oogie yelled at the trio. "Get back to work." They nodded before scurrying about the room. Lock and Barrel were putting together some nasty looking traps for pranks, while Shock was looking over at a large monitor. She pressed the button and the screen shifted to different scenes all over Halloween Town. It reminded be of when the Joker had Gotham under video surveillance in "Harlequinade." Oh great, now Al had me referencing Batman.
Once his little goons were busy, Oogie focused on me. "You must've enjoyed your punishment last time to come back for more."
"Funny, cause I remember Jack kicking your sorry sack into a vat of acid, and Santa crushing you under his boot like the wormy little insect you really are."
Oogie growled at me and clenched his dice tight in his fist. "Looks like you still got a mouth on you. Perhaps I need to show you how to talk to the King of Seven Holidays."
I laughed. "Pft! Yeah right! You, king? Please. You're a joke."
"Hey, watch it!" Lock yelled.
"You don't want to make it worse for yourself," Shock warned.
Barrel laughed and added, "Once you're on his list, you better be ready to face you're worst nightmares."
"No one can hide from the Boogieman!" they cried in unison.
I swear there was a touch a vanity in Oogie's eyes. I need to fix that. "Didn't anyone tell you, Oogie? No one fears the Boogieman anymore. I mean, what's there to be scared of a moldy burlap sack infested with bugs? People prefer a human-like character with glossy black hair and silver-gold eyes who's got a thing for horses."
"Ha! That's what you think, little girl," Oogie sneered. I could definitely tell he didn't like his title being compared to a Brony, but I think I'll let him take that up with DreamWorks Studios. "Once I take out Sandy, I'll have the whole world screaming in fear."
I yawned, making Oogie snarl at me. "Hmm? What? Oh, I'm sorry, I was falling asleep. Why do the villains always monologue? Is it an ego thing, or you just like hearing yourself talk?"
"Why you little–"
"Mr. Oogie!" Shock shouted, interrupting him.
"WHAT!" he growled at her.
Shock shrunk back and pointed at Lock. "Uh… Lock left the trap door open and Jack's on his way here!"
"What?! You're the dummy who left it open!" he yelled. Lock punched her in the face, and the two went sprawling to the ground. Barrel laughed until he was pulled into the fray.
"SILENCE!" Oogie yelled. All three instantly stopped and looked up in fear. I watched him lumber over to the large monitor. I had to crane my neck, but I watched the screen as Jack jumped down into a large cavern. He looked around, then turned up and waved his hand. Next thing I knew there was a scream as Al came down and landed in Jack's arms. He set her down and she started fanning her hand in front of her face.
Did everyone see that? Because I will not be doing it again she panted. … Remind me why we didn't take the other tunnel?
Zero smelled something dangerous in the other tunnel. He began looking around. What is this place? he asked.
It looks like the inside of a volcano.
Jack looked around and a frown appeared on his face. There's nowhere to go but straight ahead… This place is filled with Oogie's booby traps. Jack leaned over the edge to inspect the lava river below them. He kicked a stone into the river and watched as it burst into flame. I don't think I care to fall into that lava!
I second the motion my good sir, Al agreed. I always hated heat… She reached into her pocket and pulled out a hair tie, tying up her hair in a high ponytail.
"You think your little Magma Maze will stop them?" I asked Oogie. "Ha! Jack beat you twice before, and Al will chopped you in half before you have a chance to crack one of your lame puns."
"Let's just see how well your friends do, shall we?" Oogie laughed in an obvious way before turning back to the monitor. He pressed a button to reveal the alarm from the Mayor's hearse. So that's where it went. Oogie cranked the alarm and laughed into the mic. "Ah ha ha ha ha! You're going to be torn to pieces, Jack! Do you really think you'll make it out of here alive!? It's so entertaining watching you run from my little traps down there. Oh, and I've got even scarier traps in store for you later! Ba ha ha ha ha!"
XXX
(Narrator's POV)
"I will so Bug Bomb you!" Al screamed.
"Al, I don't think he can hear you," Jack said, placing a boney hand on her shoulder.
"Well, he soon will be able to," Al snarled. "I'll carve him another ear just so he can hear me."
"You leave Oogie to me, but right now, we must focus on getting out of here, and finding Will." Jack removed his hand and took one step forward. "Hmm… It looks like we will have to maneuver through each of Oogie's traps before we can get to the other side. The problem is not getting lost on the way and ending up in bigger trouble."
"I hate mazes," Al said, rubbing her forehead. "What if every few feet, we leave a mark in the wall or the floor so if we see it, we know if we've gotten lost?"
"That would work if we had something to write with," Jack stated. Al smacked her forehead.
"Arf, arf!" Zero barked.
"That's it!" Jack exclaimed. "Zero can guide us through the maze, and warn us of any danger."
"That works to," Al agreed before smiling and gesturing forward. "Lead on Spectral Pup."
Zero barked and flew far enough for Jack and Al to still follow him. They raced after him, first stopping at a hand-shaped platform. Jack used the Soul Robber to grapple up to the next level, while Al used Will's backpack to fly up. After that, they raced along the short path, before grappling and flying to the next spot where Zero waited for them that led to a moving platform.
"So glad Will got these wings attached," Al said, smiling.
The platform was sort of small so Jack told Al to fly close. She nodded and Jack stepped onto the platform while Al and Zero followed after him. The platform came to a stop. Jack stepped off and was about to follow Zero, but Al flew to a different platform.
"Al, what are you doing?" Jack asked.
"Woohoo!" Al said, holding up her prize. "Crystal Skull baby!" She packed it into the pack next to Frank, and flew back to Jack's side. Together they ran down the path where Jack had to grapple over to another moving platform. He landed on it, this time Al joining him, but he pushed her to the side before one of three giant saws could cut her. When they cleared the saws, they stepped back to the center of the platform.
"Thanks for the save," Al said.
"No problem," Jack said.
They made it to the other side and took off down a rock pathway. Before they went any farther, Zero barked at them from where the saw blades were. Al groaned when she realized they were going the wrong way. She followed as Jack grappled up to where Zero waited for them. He then flew through the saws and over to the opposite side of the wall, barking for them to follow.
"This does not look like fun…" Al groaned.
"It will be fine, just stay behind me and move when I move," Jack instructed. Al nodded and stayed close behind Jack. He counted to three before moving. They dodged the one saw and waited for until they could move through the next. Jack then grappled them both over to where Zero waited for them.
"Still not fun. Just how much farther do we–" Al was cut off as a spiked ball hit her in the arm. "Shit!"
Al grabbed her arm as Jack had her take a step back. They moved onto the next platform, avoiding the gargoyle that was launching skulls at them. While they rode to the next section of the maze, he slipped one of the Crystal Bottles from the backpack. He opened the top and poured a drop on Al's arm.
"That feel better?' he asked, slipping the bottle back into the pack.
"Yeah it does. It stings a little but it feels much better," Al said. The platform stopped and they walked into a dead end blocked by a large mechanical card with spinning swords.
"Damn!" Al cursed. "Not these bastards again!"
"Arf, arf!" Zero barked.
Jack turned to the right and pointed at Zero. "Look, Zero found a way out."
Zero flipped when his master spotted him, and he began wagging his tail vigorously to encourage Jack and Al to hurry over to him.
Jack waited for the swords to be sheathed, and then he grabbed Al and grappled over to their other side. Al started to run towards Zero when Jack grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her back. She stumbled and looked up at the tall skeleton with a shocked look. Just as she was about to yell at him, Jack pointed toward the path in time for Al to see she had almost run into a flamethrower. She quietly gave Jack an apologetic look and waited for Jack to signal her it was safe to move. Once the flames died down, Jack and Al ran past the three flamethrowers to where Zero was waiting for them. He was hovering just outside an open passageway. The three of them ducked inside the chamber. The inside was dark expected for a few lit torches of blue and orange flames. The room was circular and there were several cells lining the walls.
"Not what I would call a very neat torture chamber.…" Al commented as she looked around.
"I don't think this is a torture chamber," Jack said. "Look at the symbols above the cages."
Al looked up and careful looked at the symbols. There was a broken heart, a wilted clover, a dead bird, a torn blue banner with white stars, and a squashed pumpkin. Al took a step over to one that looked like some deformed yellow monster with purple spots. "Are these… the holiday masters?"
Jack stopped in front the same cage and peered inside. He noticed a large black sack was moving around. He tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge. "It's locked. It looks like Lock, Shock, and Barrel have locked the Easter leader inside."
"That bastard…" Al looked up at the picture above the cell again. "This is sick."
"I agree, Oogie has gone too far." Jack said. He walked around the room until he stopped in front of the cell with a dying Christmas tree, and peered inside. He stepped back in shock. "No one's inside. Why didn't Boogie throw Sandy in here?"
"Maybe he hasn't gotten to St. Nick yet," Al suggested. She took a step forward, but stopped when she felt the ground start to tremble. "Uh, Jack…"
Both of them turned toward the center of the room in time to see a giant black and blue spider pop out of the ground. It roared and pounded the ground with its front legs. Zero whimpered and disappeared into the Christmas cell. Jack readied his Soul Robber, while Al readied her chainsaw with a shiver. "So much hate for spiders."
Al feigned right while Jack went to the left, aiming for the back end that would do the most damage to the spider. Bertha revved loudly, drawing the spider's attention and giving Jack a shot at the back end. The spider screamed and burrowed into the ground after seeping smaller spiders. Al's chainsaw made short work of the spiders before the larger one returned. Exchanging her chainsaw for her halberd, she charged toward the spider, slicing one of its forelegs. They repeated this round of attacks, attacking the larger spider and then hacking and slicing the smaller ones while the larger one recovered. After about the fifth hit, Al had had enough.
"Screw this!" She set Bertha back on her belt, and reached for her halberd. As she grabbed her weapon, Frank hopped free from the backpack. He looked around before hopping right up to the spider.
"Frank! No, it's not worth it!" Al screamed.
Frank didn't listen and jumped right onto the spiders face. It roared and tunneled into the ground. Al tried to dive after them, but the wave of spiders blocked her path. Jack tried to help her, but the girl's main focus was getting her slimy friend back. When the large spider came back up, it shook its head violently and tossed Frank against the wall. Al ran to his side and gasped when he didn't move.
Her knuckles turned white as she increased the grip on her halberd. "You hurt my Frank… YOU HURT MY FRANK! Just for that, Spider…" Al charged the spider, piercing the electric end of her halberd into the arachnid's leg. After shooting it with a bolt of energy, Al used the leverage from her halberd in the leg to pole-vault up to the back of the spider, drawing her chainsaw in the motion.
"Off with your head!" With a quick and violent down stroke, Al cut the head off. The body slumped to the ground and the head rolled out the door, falling into the lava river below.
Jack stared with his mouth wide open as Al sheathed her halberd, and jumped down from the spider's corpse. "Al…" Jack asked cautiously. "Are you going to be okay?"
She picked up the still Frank. "I… I don't know…"
There was a rusty, clinking sound coming from above. Jack and Al looked up to see a cage dropping down from the ceiling. Jack walked closer and peered closer at the cage. "This cell looks very familiar." He opened the door and peered back at Al over his shoulder. "You stay here with Frank," he said. "I'm going to see where this thing goes."
Al nodded and sat cross-legged. "Be careful Jack," she said softly. "Bring yourself and Will back… I can't lose anyone else."
He nodded and stepped inside, closing the door behind him. As soon as the door closed, Jack was hoisted up until Al could no longer see him. She didn't even wait thirty seconds before he returned. Jack stepped out of the cage, but to Al's disappointment, he stepped out alone. Al hung her head in disappointment.
"You won't believe this. I was just taken up to the Town Square, right in front of the Fountain," Jack told her.
She nodded, rather emotionlessly. "Now we have a way out, but what abut Will?"
"She must be in another part of the lair." Jack turned to Zero, who had come out of hiding. He started barking and dove back into the cell. Jack followed and tugged on the door, opening it with ease. "What's this? It looks like we can enter this cell."
"Ribbit…" A pitiful croak came from the slowly stirring Frank. Al looked up.
"Frank!" Al cried as the frog shook his head. "You're alright!"
"I'm glad to see your little amphibian is alright," Jack said. He started to enter the cell. "Come on, Zero wants us to follow him."
Cradling Frank in her arms, Al entered the cell, and together she and Jack followed Zero through the cell until they came out to another section of the Magma Maze. Jack looked around for Zero. He finally spotted his faithful pup barking up to them from below.
"Hmm, looks like we'll need to get down there," Jack said. He looked over at all the traps they would have to maneuver through and sighed. "Well, ready to go?"
"Yeah, that ain't happening." Al said, shaking her head. "I've got a better idea. You, take this." She put Frank into Jack's hands and then tugged on the backpack straps. She got about four feet off the ground, and then swung around until she was behind Jack. She picked him up and flew the three of them down to where Zero was waiting for them. Zero licked Jack's face and then turned to do the same to Al.
"Thanks Zero!" Al laughed.
"Arf!" Zero barked his appreciation. He looked down at Frank and gave an affectionate whine, nudging the poor frog gently with his nose. Frank gave him a weak croak in response. Zero barked, then began sniffing the air. He barked fervently and then took off down the dark corridor.
Jack began heading towards the corridor after Zero. "Come on! Zero's picked up Will's scent. If we hurry, we can get to her in no time."
"I am sick of running!" Al all but screamed. "I'm done!" An idea entered her mind and she glanced down at Frank. "Hey Frank, wanna be my little experiment?"
"Al, what are you doing?" Jack asked, puzzled to why she was now rooting through the backpack.
Instead of answering, Al pulled out her equestrian potion and poured it into her frog's mouth. Nothing happened for a moment, but suddenly there was a flash of green and dark grey smoke. Al dropped Frank and stumbled back. Jack caught her before she fell into the lava below. The smoke grew thicker, momentarily blocking Al and Jack's view. A loud hiss like whistle made Al blink rapidly and looked up.
"Oh that is so cool!" she said as the smoke cleared. Jack gasped and his jaw dropped.
Frank had been transformed into a strong, powerful colored horse-like creature, standing about 5' 2". His skin was glassy and colored a dark shade of green that almost looked black. His eyes glowed a dark emerald and large, sharp looking teeth protruded from his face. A long, thick mane and tail made of reeds draped his gaunt neck in a cloak of ick. He hissed again, his long frog tongue still…well, long and frog like.
"Well… I wasn't expecting that," Jack said, not taking his eyes off Frank. "I'll ask you later where you come across a potion for a kelpie transformation, but right now, I'm more concerned with what you are going to do with it.
"Uh, duh! Now we got a ride!" Al said, rubbing Frank's face as the strange creature hummed in pleasure. She couldn't help but marvel how sooth the seal-like hide of the creature felt. Grabbing a hank of his reed mane, Al vaulted onto his slick, wet back. As she settled onto Frank's back, Al felt her hand stick to the adhesive skin of her kelpie. Al held out her free hand to Jack. "Come on Jack!"
XXX
(Will's POV)
I cheered as I watched Jack and Al disappear into the corridor. Oogie and his lackeys on the other hand, not so happy.
"Ha! Told you they'd beat your maze! Not to mention Al practically made mincemeat out of your little spider."
Oogie growled and threw his dice at the wall. I was close enough to the ground that I could see where the dice landed. I laughed when I saw they read Snake Eyes. I looked over to see Oogie taking his rage out on the trio. They cowered in the corner, while Oogie let out his steam.
"What are you still doing here?" he barked at them. "Get moving!"
Lock, Shock, and Barrel shrieked and ran out of the room, leaving my alone with Oogie Boogie. He turned and stared up at me with a sneering smile. If I could take a guess, I'd say he had more bugs in his teeth than Beetlejuice.
"Well well. Lets just see how much longer it will take before your friends' luck runs out," Oogie cackled.
I rolled my eyes. "Face it Oogie, you're gonna lose, just like you always do."
His face dropped but just as quickly turned sinister. "Let's see how well you can make jokes when my pets bite off that smart little mouth of yours." Oogie walked to the lever holding me over the pit and pulled the switch.
At the rate I was falling, I only had one shot at getting free. I started pumping back and forth until I was swinging over the pit. Each time my torso came up, I quickly tried the lock again. Once I heard it click, my smile grew. Just before I dropped into the pit, I swung as hard as I could and flipped over the pit. The lock snapped open and I went sprawling across the floor. I rolled until my spine hit the wall with a load thud. Oww! Gonna feel that in the morning. I pushed up with my hand and tried for the chain still around my ankles.
"Big mistake!"
I almost had the lock when suddenly Oogie grabbed the front of my shirt, and hoisted me in the air. Okay, not expecting this guy to be freakishly strong. My feet weren't even touching the ground, for crying out loud!
Oogie's eyes began to glow bright yellow and he stared me down. I gulped. "Now then," Oogie hissed, his snake tongue striking close enough to strike my eyes. He raised his other hand to reveal his red dice. "Let's play!"
XXX
CosmicHorse: Wow… How many Batman references are we up to now?
GodlyJewel: No idea. I lost count a couple chapters back.
CosmicHorse: Yeah, pretty much. It's so fun to reference. What was that scene we used? The one with Joker…
GodlyJewel: The one from "Harlequinade" episode, you know with that scene we love quoting. "But what about all our friends? Ivy and Two-Face, and Hat Guy, and Lizard Man, and Puppet-Head, and…"
CosmicHorse: "What about them?" and then Batsy says, "Don't forget your pets."
GodlyJewel: "The babies! We can't leave the babies!"
CosmicHorse: "I'll buy you a goldfish! Let's go!" Gosh, classic Joker and Harley.
GodlyJewel: One of my favorite villain pairings, and I usually don't have any of those. Well, you'll have to what for the next chapter to see what happens to Will. Hopefully Jack and Al will get to her in time… If a certain Ginger can get through yet another song.
CosmicHorse: *hiss* Singing!
GodlyJewel: I love how she's more concerned about there being another song then what happens next. lol