Rudy couldn't understand how so many wrong things happened recently. Just a few days ago, there hadn't been anything wrong. They were going about their days as usual. Nothing was out of the ordinary. He would visit ChalkZone whenever he could, and so would Penny. They would have fun there, especially with Snap. Only once in a while did he have to do with one that meant ill will, such as Skrawl or any number of not-so-friendly zoners. And sometimes other humans, though those occurred even less.

Now, not so long later, everything had fallen apart. He had made a new enemy in Mr. Cosmo, who was intent on corrupting him and everything he stood for. Snap went missing and when he finally saw him again, he was all banged up and being used as a 'bargaining coin'. Many zoners had disappeared and were being used as slaves here. He was connected to Skrawl, which could easily be used against him. ChalkZone was in danger of being exposed and exploited to an even worse degree than Vinnie and Terry had ever intended. A part of him was certain that even they would be disgusted by how far Mr. Cosmo was willing to take things.

Things kept getting worse even after Mr. Wilter rescued him and Snap. Although Snap could no longer be controlled, his physical condition was deteriorating fast. He almost completely loss the use of his legs, which was a frightening thing for him to think about. Losing the ability to walk was a heavy emotional blow to anyone. It would take a long time for Snap to cope with the change, if it became permanent. He was certain that Penny was right and it had been the seizure that ultimately caused Snap to lose almost all control of his legs. It might not have happened right away, but some point after, they were both certain the seizure caused enough damage to numb the legs and weaken any movement.

And it wasn't just Snap's legs that he had to worry about. His unresponsiveness was a huge concern for him. He could still just be too tired to reply, but that didn't seem likely. In the amount of pain he was in, especially from his back which was the most infected, being an older wound, it would be very hard to sleep. He wondered if Snap was just pretending not to feel as much pain as he let on. Rudy bit his lip. If this were the case, and if he hadn't been sleeping, then...why had he gone into periods of just...doing nothing?

What chilled him to his blood was the fact that his unresponsive states were quite similar to when he had gone catatonic from a seizure. His eyes would still be open most of the time. He'd just lay still. He'd even drool a little once in a while. The only thing different from the catatonic state was, during his unresponsive states, he'd sometimes whimper and tremble. Regardless, the similarity otherwise had him very worried.

And now Snap was suffering from a fever, brought on by the infection he had. His back injury was never treated properly, and neither was the cuts on his hand. With how dirty his cell had been, he wouldn't doubt that germs had invaded the cut. It didn't matter that Snap was made of chalk. Germs were highly adaptable and would likely have found a way to 'make use' of Snap's chalky cells.

Him getting sick was proof of that. He and Penny had been so shocked when he just passed out like that. For a second time, too. He was only glad that it wasn't another seizure. That would have been more frightening. But passing out at all was not normal and a sign that something just wasn't right. He felt so helpless as Snap laid on the ground, breathing raggedly from the high temperature his body was experiencing.

He had been surprised to see Ms. Saffron. He didn't think she would be there at that time. He didn't know what she was doing. Perhaps looking for them? Or locating another room to sabotage?

Either way, it had been a good thing she had showed up. He couldn't understand why Penny left the medkit with Saffron, but he was glad that Saffron still had it. The cold chalky water would help bring down Snap's fever, or at least help keep his brain from being burned. His head must have been burning hot to the touch. Penny actually pulled her hand away like she had touched a heated stove pot. If Snap's temperature was really that high... Rudy knew fully well just how lethal high temperatures could be.

Rudy tried his best not to cry. He told himself that Snap was going to be okay. Penny and Saffron would keep him safe. They would treat his fever, and hopefully break it before he got back. And when he would come back, Snap would be awake again.

At least, that is what he wished. Reality was not always so kind. For all he knew, Snap could be far worse when he came back...

He shook his head. He had to remain positive. He couldn't give up. He couldn't give in to his worst thoughts. They were taking Snap to a hospital soon. They would make it in time. He would be okay. He just had to be okay. He couldn't allow himself to give into despair. He had to keep believing that they would get him help in time.

Snap was a fighter. He wouldn't let this get to him that easily. He wasn't going to go down without a fight. Even in a battered, shaken state, he knew Snap wouldn't want to completely succumb to this. He would do what he could to fight to stay alive. And if Snap was not giving up, neither should he.

Rudy's thoughts shifted to Ms. Saffron. He remembered what she said before he reluctantly left Snap and Penny behind to get Skrawl. He had to admit, he was not expecting Saffron to apologize for what she said. The words still stung him. But it was nice to know that she did feel regret for it. It wasn't going to undo the pain it caused him, but he did feel better regarding that.

She was turning out to be not so bad a person. At first, she had just been one of the enemies, even though she did much less than Cosmo did. He didn't doubt she had a hand in kidnapping Snap in the first place. When Cosmo mentioned she was being nice to Snap, he was grateful. It was nice to know there was at least one person in this place that was kind to Snap, even if it was just a little.

With a shudder, he remembered something Mr. Cosmo said. Something that he wished he had told Ms. Saffron before he had left. Mr. Cosmo mentioned something about...getting rid of her... His eyes widened at the realization. Why hadn't he told her? He had the chance...

He tried to calm himself down. There was still time. He would just grab Skrawl and come back. Then he would tell Saffron then.

Speaking of Skrawl, he was getting very close to where he was being kept. It was just a little further down. Despite Saffron keeping the controlled zoners elsewhere, he was still very cautious. Mr. Cosmo could have some tricks left to play, and there might be a nasty surprise waiting for him. He was surprised he hadn't encountered any traps, but he guessed that Saffron had messed with the whole system. This didn't surprise him too much. Mr. Cosmo was a bit tangled up with Mr. Wilter right now.

He wondered how his teacher was holding up against him. He did see a flicker in Cosmo's eyes when he saw Wilter. That did give him some hope that Wilter stood a chance against him. Never once had he ever seen Cosmo display fear. For Mr. Wilter to cause such a reaction, that had to mean something, right?

Tsere was going to be a big help too. He was a little larger than Draow in size, and he looked like he could hold his own against him. Draow was such a vicious beast, so not having to deal with him helped as well. He hoped that Tsere could keep this up against Draow and keep him busy. If he were to get knocked away, Draow could go after Wilter, and turn the odds in favor of Cosmo...

Rudy located the room that contained Skrawl's cell. He looked around cautiously, making sure there was absolutely no one here. He tested the door knob. It was unlocked. Slowly, he turned the door and swung it open. He walked inside.

He found Skrawl leaning against the pillar, his arms folded and eyes closed. Remembering their connection, he looked at his arm. There were some clear nicks in his chalk outline of an arm and he saw a bit of red. He wondered at first why he hadn't tried to treat his arm, then he realized that he couldn't when he was locked up.

Rudy walked up to the electrified water bars. He put his hand on one of the pillars, careful to avoid the sparking watery death lines. "Hey Skrawl? Wake up!"

Skrawl grumbled and opened up his red eye. "Master Tabootie?" He said, confused. His blue eye now opened up. "I didn't think you would come back for me."

"Why wouldn't I?" Rudy asked.

"Because you and I are enemies." Skrawl said. "And it was...because of me all this had happened."

Rudy blinked at this. Had Skrawl confessed that, if he hadn't gone after the wolf bat beast, none of this would have happened? He wondered if he had heard him wrong. Skrawl was never the type to say something like that if it wasn't part of his goal. He would have tried to shift the blame on someone else. For him to just admit it like that...it didn't sound like Skrawl at all.

He didn't have time to dwell on that. He knew they had to get out of there, and fast. Time was running out for Snap, and, if he didn't hurry, not only did he risk letting Snap suffer permanent damage, but other citizens of ChalkZone would suffer horrible fates themselves.

"Of course I would come back for you, Skrawl. You might cause me a lot of grief, but I can't let you or anyone else be used any more by Cosmo. If I left you here...I'd be just as bad as him..." Rudy said. He looked around the room. "Where is the switch?"

Skrawl got up from the ground and walked over. He pointed towards a corner. "I think I saw something over there."

Rudy was surprised at how fast Skrawl had mentioned this. It was like he wanted him to help. Again, this didn't sound like Skrawl. He normally would have resisted, and would only accept help with a bitter tone. He wasn't sure how to take it, other than Skrawl was so eager to leave, he was willing to work with him right away.

"Thanks." Rudy said.

Rudy made his way to the corner where Skrawl had pointed him to. He saw a little machine in the corner, blending in so well he would have easily missed it had it not been for Skrawl's directions. There were a couple buttons on it and a lever. No words were placed on it, and that had him worried. What if he pressed the wrong button?

He tried to pull the lever. He heard a scream behind him. He looked over and his eyes widened as additional water bars began to form, connecting from one side to the other. Skrawl was pressing himself against a pillar, trying to get away from the approaching electric water bar.

"Turn it back!" Skrawl cried. "Turn it back now!"

Rudy quickly turned the lever back. In an instant, the encroaching electrical water bars vanished, returning the cage to how it was before. He heard Skrawl sigh with relief. If the bars had touched Skrawl...he himself would have felt every bit of damage.

"Sorry about that." Rudy apologize.

Skrawl growled softly. "Next time, don't try to turn me into swiss cheese, artist boy."

Now there's the Skrawl he knew.

Rudy turned back to the controls. The lever wasn't what he wanted. He looked at the buttons. They looked like they were all the same color. A dull brown. Without labels, how was Cosmo able to tell which one was which?

Then he remembered the halls, how he was able to find this place at all. Color coded... Mr. Cosmo did use color coding, but it was subtle so that intruders would have a hard time picking it out. To an non-artist, all these colors were the same. But to an artist himself, he could tell them apart more easily. It was still a tad difficult, but, through concentration, he could tell the colors apart.

He found two buttons right next to each other. With such dull variances, he guessed that Mr. Cosmo would keep the on and off buttons next to each other. He wondered if Cosmo followed the red is off, green is on analogy, to help himself remember which button was which in case he got them mixed up. It was a possibility.

And if that was the case, and one of these was a representation of red, and another green, which one would it be...?

He thought hard about this. He couldn't dwell much on deciding which one was the right button, he knew. He didn't have the time for this. He continued to stare at the buttons. He knew that deciding which one was right was a huge risk. What if he accidentally washes away Skrawl? If he did that, not only would he consider himself a monster like Cosmo, he would die as a result too...

Then he remembered something regarding art. He had used some art programs before. He didn't use them much. He was more of a traditional artist. But he did recall using the grayscale option before. If he remembered right, grayscale green was darker than grayscale red. And if that principal applied here...

Rudy looked at the two buttons. Through concentration, he found which one was the lighter one. He put his finger against it. His heart started to race, knowing the consequence of pushing the wrong one. He turned away, closed his eyes, and pressed the button, expecting the worst.

Instead, he heard a familiar sound. The same sound he heard when Mr. Cosmo went into Snap's cell to fetch him. Only this time, the sound was comforting and welcoming. He looked over and smiled when he saw that Skrawl's cell had been shut down, the water completely vanishing save for some drops forming a line where the bars used to be.

Skrawl walked over to Rudy, careful not to step into the water. He stopped a few feet away from the boy. He stared at him, his eyes narrowed. But oddly, he didn't look angry. Instead, he looked...confused. Like he wasn't sure how to act around him anymore, or he was deep in thought, or something.

Finally, Skrawl spoke, "So...what's the plan..?"

It sounded a little forced. Skrawl looked a bit awkard saying that. It was clear he wasn't used to being this docile towards him. After years of threatening to destroy him, it came to no surprise to Rudy. It must hurt Skrawl to have to be a little nicer towards him, given the situation. He was glad that Skrawl acted like he was willing to cooperate, even if he had to force himself to.

"We have to go back and get Snap, Penny, and Ms. Saffron." Rudy said as he and Skrawl headed towards the exit. Skrawl looked at him, confused. "And after that, we're heading back into ChalkZone. You can leave then if you want, go back to your lair."

"But...isn't Ms. Saffron that woman who works with Mr. Cosmo? Why would you want her to come with?" Skrawl asked.

"She changed sides." Rudy said. "Mr. Cosmo betrayed her. So she returned the favor."

"I see..." Skrawl said slowly. His eyes narrowed in contemplation. "I know a thing or two about betrayal."

"Yeah...I know." Rudy said, somewhat bitterly. He remembered how Skrawl turned his back on his word when he had only tried to help him.

Skrawl flinched a little. "I wouldn't doubt it."

Rudy was confused by that expression. Skrawl was acting strangely. He didn't understand why. Just before he was taken to Mr. Cosmo, Skrawl had been acting like his usual, typical self. But, not even a day later, when he finds him, he's...not himself. What could have happened that caused this change in attitude? The wound on his arm? No, that wouldn't seem like Skrawl to change over that.

As they walked down the hallway together, he thought about what he had said to Skrawl earlier. The last thing he tried to talk to him about was...what if they could have been friends if circumstances had been different... But that couldn't have been it, right? Skrawl had been so adamant about still hating him even if his drawing turned out the way he wanted it to.

But then, what else could it have been? That was the last thing he said to Skrawl before he was dragged off. And Skrawl had been alone all this time, except maybe for a controlled zoner or two. He couldn't pull off any schemes. He had nowhere to go. He would have had a lot of time to think about what he had said.

It didn't seem possible, but Rudy had to consider the possibility that maybe..just maybe..he finally got through to Skrawl.

sss

Mr. Wilter managed to dodge another punch thrown at him from Mr. Cosmo. He tried to kick back, but he missed, and nearly lost his balance. He quickly straightened himself up and held up his fists as Mr. Cosmo came at him.

While he was dealing with Mr. Cosmo, Tsere was struggling against Draow. The battle had started to shift a little and Draow was fighting back. He pushed against Tsere and pinned him against the wall. He started to cut into the pterosaur's body with his claws. Tsere let out a horrible screech of pain. He managed to kick Draow off of him, slamming the winged wolf into the ground.

In a second, Tsere was on the beast, squawking like an angry bird as he started to scratch into Draow's body with his short but sharp talons. Although Draow let out a few whines, he was not backing down. He struggled to his feet and leapt for Tsere, his jaws gnashing at his throat. Tsere managed to move back and swung a mighty wing against the winged wolf. Draow tumbled across the ground. He shook his head, got up, and ran back towards Tsere.

Mr. Wilter knew that Tsere could only keep this up for so long. Draow was tenacious and wouldn't back down easily. He was created with a somewhat similar personaly as Mr. Cosmo. He shared some of that evil man's traits, and one of them was determination. Draow was not going to give up so easily, and could quickly turn the battle to his favor and drive back Tsere.

He continued to fight against Mr. Cosmo, holding his ground quite well. Despite being older and a tad bit out of practice, he was doing better than even he thought possible. Mr. Cosmo had the advantage of being a little younger than him, so he still had a bit of youth on his side. But Mr. Wilter had something going for him and that was he had a little more experience in fighting than Cosmo, which was how he managed to hold his own against him.

Mr. Cosmo grabbed Wilter by the arm and threw him against the wall. Before Wilter could recover, he punched Wilter in the chest, knocking the wind out of him. He then raised a leg and swung it at him. But Mr. Wilter recovered in time and grabbed his leg. He yanked it hard, knocking Mr. Cosmo into the ground.

Mr. Wilter raised a foot and stomped hard on Mr. Cosmo's chest. His left him breathless, his eyes widened in pain. A bit of blood was coughed out of his mouth. Cosmo let out a groan of pain as he struggled to get back up to his feet. He glared hatefully at Mr. Wilter and kicked him in the side.

Mr. Wilter winced, holding his side. He wasn't about to allow Mr. Cosmo to get the upperhand. He managed to move out of the way as Cosmo lunged for him. Mr. Cosmo turned around to try again, but before he could react, Mr. Wilter kicked him in the shin with as much force as he could muster.

With a scream of pain, Mr. Cosmo was on the ground. He held his injured leg to himself. He clenched his teeth and seethed in pain. He slowly looked up as he heard the crackle of knuckles. He saw Mr. Wilter heading straight for him, eyes narrowed. An uncharacteristic look of fear plastered over Mr. Cosmo's face as he realized he was going to lose this fight.

Just then, a voice sounded out, one that sent chills down Mr. Wilter's spine.

"All systems back online." A computerized voice announced.

Slowly, Mr. Cosmo's fearful look turned into a triumphant one. "So my backup generators finally kicked in, I see..."

Mr. Wilter looked down at Mr. Cosmo. "Backup generators? What are you talking about? This place doesn't have any..."

"Yes, true my newstation is...out of the times without a backup generator..." Mr. Cosmo said with an eerie smile. "But that doesn't mean I don't know the use of them. A lot of the machines in here are just to keep this place running. And they were well guarded too. No one but me is allowed near them. Even Ms. Saffron can't access them."

Mr. Wilter's eyes widened as he realized what he was talking about. The stalling with the security system...they had less than he thought...

"Even if the main systems were destroyed, these machines, which suppy back up power to various parts of my base, would eventually kick in when they detect that no signals were being sent." Mr. Cosmo explained. "My controlled zoners will be returning to their posts, and when they find that Rudy and company got out of their cells...they will ensure they never leave..." He grinned evilly.

Mr. Wilter was shocked. He realized he couldn't stay there. He had to leave. He had to go back to Rudy and the others and get them out before the controlled zoners could find them. Glaring down at Cosmo, he gave him one last punch, watching as the man cried out in pain and fell onto his side.

Mr. Wilter ran over to Tsere and climbed onto his back. "Come on, Tsere! We have to get going! Forget about Draow!"

Tsere started to fly away, barely fitting in the tunnel's passageways. Behind him, Draow was running behind him, flapping his wings and trying to bite at him. He only stopped when Mr. Cosmo called out to him.

"No! Let them go!" Mr. Cosmo said. He held his cheek where he had been punched. He slowly climbed up to his feet. "We'll take care of them later."

As he took a step forward, he had a noticeable limp. There was a pained look on his face, but he was clearly ignoring the pain as he kept walking. Draow kept close behind him, his head lowered as if prepared to catch his master if he were to fall down.

"We have something we must take care of first..."