It had been hard finding a place for everyone to fit in her tv van. And she had to hide all the papers she gathered when she had spent some time stalking their kids. The last thing they needed was to waste time asking about that. She hid them in secret compartments of her van and put the computer away. She then pulled out a portion of the van, a new addition she put in a while back, producing two small seats in the back.
After that, everyone could sit down. Terry, obviously in the driver's. Mr. Tabootie took a seat next to her. In the back, Mrs. Tabootie and Mrs. Sanchez sat down. There wasn't a lot of room and it looked uncomfortable, but neither women complained. Their children were more important than the seats anyway. Terry turned the van on and started down the street.
Along the way, she had explained to them a bit of what she knew about ChalkZone. She told them that every drawing or writing on a chalkboard ends up in another dimension when erased, and how those living drawings would retain properties of chalk, meaning that they couldn't get wet or they'd get erased, like a real world chalk drawing would.
She told them about the magic chalk, which is a special type of chalk that can be used to create portals to gain entry into the world. She wasn't able to tell them where to find a piece of magic chalk or even how to tell one apart from a regular one. She never learned much about them. She had only used magic chalk once and that was years ago. She said she speculated that Rudy has a stash of it somewhere and that was how he was able to gain entry into the world all the time.
She also mentioned that she believes Rudy and Penny visited this place on a regular basis. She wasn't sure just how often they went there, but judging from how their parents told her, she guessed it was really often. Once a week or perhaps even everyday. She told the parents that, for whatever reason, Rudy and Penny do not want ChalkZone found out and how Rudy had managed to stop her that one time years ago. She isn't sure why they want it to be so secret. She knew they needed a good reason for it, but she never really found out.
She told them whatever else she was able to without hinting stalking. The parents were grateful that she told them what she knew, but she could tell that they were also frightened and confused. She couldn't blame them. To anyone else, she was just spewing lunatic garbage. But to the parents, who think that this world just might exist, who were looking for their kids, the idea of a world populated by living, breathing drawings, where possibilities were endless, was downright frightening. Especially if some of these drawings were created to be hostile and vicious.
After she told them what she knew, the parents seemed to have an epiphany. They mentioned times where their kids disappeared, and how, now, they realized it must have been related to ChalkZone. Mr. Tabootie mentioned how Rudy and Penny suddenly appeared in his shop and then disappeared without a sound. He also mentioned the time when Rudy was in his room during Christmas and how Penny would not let him go inside and Rudy was gone for a very long time. And Mrs. Sanchez mentioned the time Penny started speaking gibberish with no apparent rhyme or reason, and she wondered if that was related to ChalkZone.
There were other incidents they remembered, but the biggest one that stuck to their minds was the incident with that one rock band Rudy loved so much. Mr. and Mrs. Tabootie both remembered how their son seemed to have appeared out of a blackboard on stage. They thought it was just post editing or something, but Mrs. Sanchez confirmed it happened for real and even the other band members were shocked by it. The parents felt something heavy weigh them down as they realized that it wasn't some trick of the camera they witnessed; they had seen Rudy come out of and back in an actual interdimensional portal.
And when Terry told them about Snap, whom she stated was drawn by Rudy and was a living drawing, something clicked in Mrs. Tabootie's head. She hadn't really seen anything unusual at first with the Madcap Snap comics Rudy drew over the years. But knowing that Snap was his friend, and that the comics may have had at least some true stories in it, it took on a whole other meaning for her. What looked like an obsession with one character turned out to be a deeply forged friendship. Nothing else could describe it.
Then the parents started to ask the really hard question. And that was why hadn't their kids trusted them enough with this alternate dimension? Why did they keep it from them for so long? Why had they lied to them about any injuries they've gotten or why they've been gone so long?
There was some hurt in their voices, and Terry couldn't blame them. It had to be hard finding out, after all these years, their kids had been exploring and adventuring in a completely new world cut off from everyone else. It had to be difficult to take in the fact that their children may have been in mortal danger or getting hurt because they were in this place, alone, with no adults to supervise them. It had to be painful for them to realize that their children didn't seem to trust them enough to tell them what happened to them in this world. That was one of the worst pains a parent could feel...when a child no longer trusts them enough with something huge and problematic like this.
While Terry could give them ideas on what they could do about this, it wasn't like she was out of ideas, but she realized it wasn't her place to say. She would have told them to let her handle it. If it were up to her, she would still want to expose ChalkZone so people were more aware of it. At this point, she wouldn't expose it just for her own benefit, but for the benefit and safety of others. If other people were more aware of this place, then precautions could be taken.
But as for what to do with Rudy and Penny... Terry decided not to even touch that subject. If one of the parents asks, she would tell them it was up to them what to do. Terry herself didn't have much of an idea on what could be done. They could be banned from the place, or limited in some way. She knew that would be hard for them. A part of her liked that idea as it meant she and Vinnie could explore unhindered. But another part couldn't help but feel a little bad for them. They seemed really close to these...what were they called...zoners. Yeah, they were close to the zoners.
As she continued to drive towards the old building, she couldn't help but overhear their conversation. She didn't want to look like she was eavesdropping. They didn't need something like that now. But she still couldn't help hearing what they had to say.
"This is...this is all too much." Mrs. Tabootie said, her voice cracking. "I can't believe it.. All this time, our children were..."
"I know, Mrs. Tabootie. It's hard for me to believe, too." Mrs. Sanchez said, putting her hand on Mrs. Tabootie's. "Our children have been keeping a lot from us."
Mr. Tabootie, who had turned around and slung his arm over the seat, looked at the women with slightly narrowed eyes. "Well after we find them, that is going to have to stop. Our children have been romping around this...this... child's fantasy come to life, and they may have landed themselves in trouble and...we didn't know about it. Well that is going to change."
The two women nodded. From her rearview mirror, Terry could see that the two women also narrowed her eyes. She realized what this meant. Anger had started to settle in. She knew it was going to happen sooner or later. Knowing that their children were hiding something from them shocked them at first, but as that shock wore out, anger replaced it. Anger from being lied to. Anger from their children getting hurt and them not knowing about it.
Mrs. Sanchez turned her head to Mrs. Tabootie. "When we find them and bring them back, what do you think we should do about them visiting this ChalkZone place?"
Terry's eyes widened a little. So perhaps she would find out after all what they planned on doing. Or did they even have an idea yet? It was too early to tell. They hadn't even seen the place yet to make a judgment call.
"I don't know. I mean..they've been there all this time and they've been still with us. And if they keep going, then it can't be as dangerous as we think but..." Mrs. Tabootie paused for a moment, biting her lip. "But if this is where they've been taken, then there has to be danger involved. If this is where the other victims were taken to, and judging from all that blood, then..." She hesitated. "...then I'm not sure if I want my son associating himself with that...that place..."
Those words sounded so final to Terry. She wasn't sure if she should be happy or not. It sounded like Mrs. Tabootie was in favor of banning the kids from ChalkZone. She wondered how Rudy and Penny would react to that. Not a pretty thing to hear after whatever they were going through right now.
Mrs. Sanchez nodded her head. "I have to agree. This place sounds really dangerous. I mean, I'm sure it's fun and all but..." She looked at the ground, her fingers interlocking. "..with endless possibilities...with some of these...zoners...being dangerous...maybe it would be for the best to stop them from going. I'm...sure they would understand."
There was silence in the van for a few minutes. Terry let it all sink in. Perhaps she wouldn't have to worry about Rudy and Penny again after all. The parents seemed to have decided not to let them back in. And she could understand why. Their children were kidnapped and injured, and ChalkZone may have been the place they were taken to. She could see why they would want to stop them from going so they wouldn't have another incident like this happen again.
She hated to admit it, but there was a lot about ChalkZone she didn't understand herself. The two missing teenagers knew more about it than she did. There might be other dangers of that place that she hadn't even considered. What dangerous secrets was that world hiding?
Mr. Tabootie broke the silence. The frown was gone, replaced with a sympathetic one.
"I understand where you girls are coming from. That world they go to...it might be too dangerous for them. It might be the wisest choice block all access to it, or supervise them at the very least. But..." Mr. Tabootie paused, looking at the two women, who stared at him intently to continue. Terry found herself looking at the man in the corner of her eyes, waiting for him to continue. Biting his lip a little, the man said, "Let's not get ahead of ourselves here. We might be overreacting. I'm sure there is...a reason why our children kept this place secret from us."
"If it's dangerous, that would be a good reason." Mrs. Tabootie said. "And that's why we should stop them from going."
Mr. Tabootie shook his head. "Millie, we haven't even seen the place yet. We don't know how dangerous it is. And if it was really that bad, why would our children keep going to it?" Neither women had an answer for that. "I'd have to say it's because the positives outweigh the negatives. That place might not be as bad as we're thinking it is. If our children like to go to it so often, then it has to be a welcoming place. The very least we can do is give it the benefit of the doubt first."
"I suppose you're right, Mr. Tabootie." Mrs. Sanchez said. She let out a soft sigh. "Even though our children did not trust us with this chalk world's existence, we should show them we still trust them. If we yank them from this world too soon, we might damage the relationship we have with them."
Mrs. Tabootie was quiet for a while. Her expression slowly softened up. "You're right, Joe. Let's talk to our children first, and then decide from there what course of action to take."
"I couldn't agree more with you, Millie." Mr. Tabootie said, giving her a smile. "Before we take action, let's get answers first."
The two nodded in agreement. Then all was quiet. No one else said a word during the rest of the trip towards the old building. Terry thought about saying something, but it was really none of her business. Any comment she thought about making, she kept it to herself. They were their children after all. What right did she have in telling them what to do?
When they arrived at the building, she parked the van out in front. She turned the car off and gestured for the adults to follow her. They got out their umbrellas. It was a really rainy day still. It rained heavily for the past few days, almost like it was reflecting the mood of the missing people. They headed towards the building and got in just as a bolt of lightning clashed, sending vibrations through the ground.
Provided no one had come in here since she left, the chalkboard with the portal on it should still be up the steps in that artist's room. She never did find out who used to live here. A shame. Knowing who lived here might have held an important clue or something. Oh well. She shrugged it off. Not all mysteries could be solved. Not much to be done about that, as unfortunate as it is.
She led the adults up the stairs with her, careful not to move too fast so they wouldn't lose her. She located the artist's room and took them inside...
...only to be greeted by a shocking sight. Not something she had been expecting.
There was a lot of water in this room. It flooded the back portion, near where the window was. There had to be six inches of water on the ground. Every step they took, there was a splash. Terry couldn't believe how much water accumulated in this place. At first, it seemed like a minor annoyance. But then she saw something else, and her eyes widened.
The chalkboard had fallen into the water. The portal itself was facing upwards. But little by little, water was flowing over it. None of it went through the portal, but it was getting dangerously close to it. Terry felt her heart clench as she realized how big of a mistake it was to leave the chalkboard here. She should have taken it with her. If she had come just a minute later, then...
Wasting no time, Terry shot over to the chalkboard. She grabbed it and lifted it up, using whatever strength she could muster, and got it sitting back up again. She took in a few breaths and then turned to Mr. Tabootie.
"Help me move this out of here!" Terry ordered him.
"But what about taking us to ChalkZone?" Mr. Tabootie asked. "We're here, aren't we?"
"Yes, but if you don't help me get this to a drier place, there won't be a ChalkZone to explore!" Terry told him, her voice filled with urgency.
Mrs. Tabootie and Mrs. Sanchez moved out of the way as Mr. Tabootie and Terry grabbed the chalkboard and began to move it. As they walked in the hallway, looking for a place that was much drier and more secure than that bedroom, Terry felt some sense of relief. Erasing ChalkZone was the last thing that she wanted to happen, especially if the victims happen to be there. They could have died...
Terry couldn't kick herself harder for not realizing that the rain could have filled up the room like that. Her mind swirled with terrible thoughts as she realized all that could have happened had that water gotten into ChalkZone. Snap reacted in pain when her old associate sat on him, and when she had folded him up and put him in the bag. What would water of felt like to them...?
Terry didn't know why she cared all that much about the drawings. They could just be redrawn, couldn't they? Then again, there was a lot she didn't know. And it did seem possible that these beings were very much sentient. Not just alive, but sentient. Snap was definite proof of that. Perhaps that was why she cared enough to stop the water from flowing in, not just because erasing ChalkZone would mean that she'd no longer have physical evidence of the place.
Once they got the chalkboard in a safe, dry place, away from any windows or any sources of water, Terry gestured for the parents to move back so she could turn the chalkboard. They hadn't yet seen the portal. Slowly, she moved the chalkboard, and she watched as each of the parents' eyes went wide. They were soon covered in the warm light of ChalkZone. Terry moved back, staring at the portal, and then back at the parents.
The portion of ChalkZone that was exposed looked to be some kind of jungle. Tall trees covered the land, as well as several vines. And just like she described, it looked artificial. Everything they looked at, even the sky, had a pastel kind of look to it. It really did look like someone just drew all this...and that is exactly what had happened. Once in a while, they would hear the call of something from the jungle, indicating it was alive and filled with life.
The parents gasped in shock when something flew by the portal that Terry recognized as a flying pencil. Literally, a pencil with bird wings. That definitely told the parents that this world was strange and different, nothing like what they were used to here.
At first, the parents weren't sure what to do. They looked at each other nervously, then back at the portal. Terry had a feeling they'd react like this. It was one thing to be told of this place, but another to see it for themselves. A part of her wondered how much the parents really believed her stories until they had seen ChalkZone for themselves. She didn't dwell on the matter.
Terry moved up to the portal and gestured her hand in front of it. "This is ChalkZone. You want to find your kids, they might be in here."
"ChalkZone..." Mr. Tabootie went up to the portal, staring at it in awe. "If I hadn't seen it for myself, I..." He paused, and looked at Terry. "Is it..is it safe to go in?"
Terry nodded her head. "Yeah, the interdimensional portals are completely safe." To demonstrate, she shot her hand through until her arm was all the way inside ChalkZone. She pulled it back and made sure the parents could see her whole arm so they could see she was fine. "See?"
With that, Mr. Tabootie tried it himself. He put his hand in it, then seconds later, yanked it out like he thought he was going to get burned. When he realized he was fine, he put his hand back through a few times to confirm. He looked back at the women.
"She's right. It's safe!" Mr. Tabootie called out.
"We can head inside and we might run into one of those zoners." Terry said. "They might be able to tell us if they've seen Rudy or Penny anywhere."
"But would they even help us?" Mrs. Sanchez wondered out loud.
"They might. I'm sure many of the zoners know your kids really well." Terry said, trying to reassure them. "Come on, let's go in. Don't worry, it'll be fine."
With that, one by one, the adults went through the portal. Terry went in first without hesitation. She took a few steps back and gestured for the adults to follow. She gave them a reassuring smile, letting them know it was safe. She could still they were still overwhelmed with the place. But soon, they came in after her. Mr. Tabootie first, then his wife, then Mrs. Sanchez.
Mrs. Tabootie looked around. Her eyes widened, taking in the details of the place. "I never imagined such a place..."
"I'm not even sure what to think of it..." Mrs. Sanchez looked at one of the trees up close. She put her hand on it and rubbed it up and down. "This has the appearance of a drawing, but it feels real..."
"It certainly has an exotic feel to it." Mr. Tabootie noted. He looked up and saw what looked like a stick figure bird flying overhead. "This place has some kind of childhood charm to it..." He looked back at the women. "No wonder Rudy and Penny liked to come here."
"We don't have time to waste." Terry said. She made a motion with her hand. "Come on, let's try to find someone to help us."
As the adults walked, they were unaware that they were being watched by multiple cameras. Tiny cameras that they couldn't even really see anyway. The cameras sent feed back, moving at the speed of light. And the signal went all the way back to a certain place in the Mumbo Jumbo Jungle, inside a certain rhino-shaped cave, where two certain zoners had been hiding.
A dark smile spread across Bardot's face as the cameras shot back images of the four adults walking around in ChalkZone.
"So it seems we have company..." The hybrid zoner turned to Draow. "Why don't you greet them?"
Draow chuckled evilly. "Gladly..."
With that, the bat wolf moved away swiftly. He spread his wings and took off into the air as soon as he left the cave. He headed off in the direction the adults were spotted.
sss
Snap coughed and wheezed, looking around frantically for an escape route. All around him, the ground had risen up, sealing him in a stony prison. Small openings in the ground were pumping in a deadly neurotoxin. Snap tried to hold his breath, but it was no use, and he could feel the gas start to affect him. Once in a while, he almost called out to one of his friends, only to be faced with the grim reminder that he was all alone now.
He hadn't expected this kind of death trap. It started off as a simple game of jacks. Not something he had expected. But the big surprise came later. Unlike the other deathtraps, this one...it came instantly. There was no 'few minute delay' like with the past death traps. This one was sprung as soon as he set foot on the playing field...
Snap managed to figure out the riddle pretty quickly. And he came to the spot. And what a place for Bardot to pick. It was the same spot where he and Rudy met for the first time years ago. Of course Bardot would want to choose a place like this for this kind of deathtrap. What a place for him to die, the same place where he and Rudy first became pals. How...predictable of Bardot to do such a thing.
And when he came, he found several jacks laying on the ground. The card didn't really tell him much. And at the moment, he had all but forgotten what it said. What he did remember was that he walked onto the 'playing field' to go back up the jacks to play with until the death trap triggered. But he was taken by complete surprise when the death trap activated immediately. As soon as he touched the first jack, there was a loud blare, forcing him to cover his ears.
Snap wasn't really sure why this deathtrap sprung right away. He wondered if Bardot, when designing these 'games' got bored with this one and decided to mess with him by having it start right off the bat. Whatever the reason, Snap knew he was in big trouble.
The ground beneath him shook. The jacks rolled all around him. They morphed and took on a new shape. They spread over him, completely sealing him inside, blocking out the light. Snap looked around, and wondered at first if this was all the deathtrap was going to do. If all that was going to happen is that he'd be trapped in here until he starved to death, he would have believed that Bardot was losing it. Thinking back to the other deathtraps, he knew Bardot could do better than this.
Oh how he wished that had been the case.
Gas started to get pumped into the sealed room. And right away, Snap reacted in horror. From the smell of it, he knew it was a deadly neurotoxin. It filled up the entirety of the artificial room he was trapped in. And no matter which way he looked, there appeared to be no way out. He had tried pounding at the sides of the walls, but they wouldn't give way.
Snap was on his knees now, coughing and wheezing. The neurotoxin was messing with his mind now. His vision was becoming distorted as his brain was being poisoned. He felt the nerves in his body start to tingle, and suddenly he was reminded of Mr. Cosmo. He remembered how his neurological system was damaged by the mind control device. He remembered how he got a seizure...how he almost lost control of his legs permanently.. He remembered the burning pain he felt whenever the device was in use.
This was a low blow, something he expected from Bardot anyway. It took him until now to fully realize it. This trap, it was designed specifically to remind him of his time at Mr. Cosmo's lair. Being trapped with nowhere to go...like how he had been caged up like a wild animal. Being alone...like he had been during most of his stay at Mr. Cosmo's... A neurotoxin messing with his nerves...just like how the mind control device did... This was done this way just to mess with him...
Snap fell to the ground, his breaths growing weaker as time passed. He looked around, his eyes halfway open. How was he going to get out of here? The walls were rock solid. He couldn't break them. And pounding on them was not only using up precious energy, it was making him breathe in the toxins faster, speeding up their effects on him.
As hopeless as it seemed, he couldn't just give up. He looked around again as his vision started to blur a little. There had to be something here to help him. Bardot always designed his 'games' with a way to win them. So there had to be a way out of this place. Somehow, someway, there had to be.
Then he saw something. In the middle of the floor, there looked to be a button of some kind. It couldn't be that easy, could it? Bardot had to be losing his edge if a simple button would get him out of here. There had to be some kind of catch. He was reluctant to press it. It might have been something to make the neurotoxins fill the room faster. Or maybe it would cause it to explode or something. But as he looked around, feeling himself get weaker and weaker, he really didn't have much of a choice. There was nothing else here to help him.
Snap walked, no, he crawled over to the button. He winced as his bad leg scraped across the ground. His replacement stick was outside these walls. He would have to grab it when he was able to get out of this particular deathtrap...if he did...
Hesitating for a moment, Snap pressed the button.
Seconds later, the ground underneath him shifted. He expected the walls to lower down, but instead, something else happened. Something completely unexpected. The floor...opened.. Right underneath him. Snap barely had time to register that before he fell in.
The tunnel was dark and windy. He cried out in pain as he tumbled and slide downwards. His injuries were aggravated, scraping along the bumpy tunnel walls. It got worse when a couple of sharp corners came into view, and his burn banged on one of them. Tears of pain forming in his eyes, Snap screamed in pain. And that was just the beginning of it. The tunnel continued on for another five minutes, all the while he kept getting cut and bruised up from the fall. And he had no idea where he was going.
Along the way, he found a card. He managed to grab it before he went down further. If there was one good thing about finding one of Bardot's cards, it was that it was a surefire way to know that he did 'beat' the game the way it was intended. Snap looked down at the card and read its contents.
"You are down to the final two games. But don't get cocky. There's so much to lose. Your friends are down to four hours, and you still need to win these two games. I will give you a hand. Instead of making you solve a riddle for this, I am going to take you straight to the next game. But beware, it's going to be...explosive.
-Bardot"
As soon as he finished reading it, Snap was suddenly flung out of the opening of the tunnel. He found himself in some strange volcanic place. There was no sign of lava, but he could see pointed mountains all over, some with smoke pillowing out. Yeah, these were volcanoes of course.
He walked forward. He stood in a raised, rounded platform surrounded by what appeared to be black tar. He tested the tar, throwing a rock into it. He winced as the rock was practically gobbled up by the tar. Snap continued to walk along the platform he was on, and soon came across what appeared to be a bridge made up of floating, circular platforms. Not seeing much of a choice, he went onto it, limping all the way as he headed towards what looked like a large rectangle platform lower to the tar.
As soon as he stood on it, there was a rumble. He looked around. Had the deathtrap activated already? Then he took notice of something else. The platform he was on now was located in front of a large volcano. He looked upon its rocky surface. He saw darkened streaks along its sides, indicating it was an active volcano, not a dormant one. He was about to look for the card when something happened that was completely unexpected.
The volcano...spoke...
"Welcome, Snap White. I have been expecting you." The voice was omnipresent and booming. "Let us begin the game."
A sentient volcano...a sentient talking volcano...one that was active and could erupt at any given moment. And Snap was standing so close to it, there was no way he could run away in time. Welll...he had been right about one thing. Getting out that easily from the last deathtrap...
..there really had been a catch.