What seemed to be an hour later, long after the darkness lifted from the house, Barrel finally shifted and sniffed. When nothing charged down the stairs, he pulled out a pumpkin lollipop and triggered the release for the vent with the stick. Lock and Shock didn't move, but they did suck in a breath and began to shiver. Barrel grimaced as he crawled out into the puddle of bloody water that lay beneath the rat cage. The rats had long ago scrambled away, so none were left when Barrel stood up, cringing at his sore joints.
He took several tentative steps out into the room and looked down at Oogie's form. It was waterlogged and flat, dead bugs floating in the water that pooled on the floor. Though he knew it would do no good, he nudged Oogie with his foot then knelt in the water and grasped where the boss's shoulders were to shake him gently. Still, Oogie didn't move, and Barrel bowed his head, knowing that he really was gone. Their guardian, the one they depended on for protection and care, was gone yet again.
As he wiped the tears from his cheeks, he noticed the book that Oogie had been flipping through. It was open, the pages face down in the water. No doubt it was ruined, but it had been important to both Oogie and Bodach. He crawled over, tears still pouring down his face, and he picked it up. He heard Lock and Shock crawling out, splashing into the water as they went to stare at Oogie's form. Shock sobbed and turned away as Lock stared blankly. Barrel turned his attention back to the book.
He heaved up the tome, and immediately received a shock. The book was dry as could be, not a single drop of water remaining after he'd removed it from the flooded floor. His fingers skimmed over the page to find that the ink wasn't ruined either. The pages were made of heavy parchment, and he leafed through them, trying to make heads or tails of what was written, but it was in a language he just didn't know.
On some pages there were lists, on others there were diagrams and symbols. What had Oogie been looking for? It must have been something that could either hurt or get rid of Bodach, but Barrel didn't know which one it was. Even if he did, he wouldn't be able to understand what he needed to do.
As Barrel looked at the book, Lock and Shock began to talk together.
"What are we going to do now?" Shock asked, her voice subdued.
"We could stitch him back together," Lock suggested, taking a step toward a large cabinet where Oogie kept his spare burlap and thread.
"That won't work right now," Shock said sadly. She leaned down and picked up a dead praying mantis, cradling it in her hands. "There aren't enough bugs left in the house. We'd have to go somewhere else, and with that…" She swallowed convulsivly. "With Jack's brother here, I don't think it's a good idea."
Barrel listened to this as he stood up and slipped over to the vent they'd hidden in. Kneeling down, he slid the book into the hiding place then pressed the switch. The grate came down and hid the book completely. He nodded as he stood up. Bodach wouldn't be able to find it like he wanted. And Barrel knew that whatever Bodach wanted was bad. He turned back to his friends, who were staring blankly at Oogie.
"The boss told us what to do," he said calmly.
Lock and Shock looked at him, surprised. Barrel keeping his head in such a situation was not new—he'd helped them out of many deadly situations when they had been alive—and they walked over, ready to listen.
"The boss told us to go and tell Jack what happened," Barrel said. "So we will."
"Where do you think he is?" Lock asked.
Barrel thought about this. "Probably at Town Hall. He and the other leaders are probably planning Halloween. That's what they do most days this season. So we'll sneak over to the Town Hall and see if he's there."
Lock and Shock nodded at once, and they followed Barrel up the stairs into the main part of the house. As Barrel approached the front door, Shock cried out, startling her friends.
"Stop!" Shock gasped, grabbing the boys' arms and yanking them back.
They obeyed and looked at her, confused. "What's wrong, Shock?" Lock asked.
Shock shook her head and crept forward, her eyes scanning the entire doorway. Though it looked normal to the boys, she could see something was off. The air shivered around the edges, and it felt wrong.
"We need to go out another way," she said softly.
Barrel and Lock peered at her then looked at the doorway again. "Is it like the stone when we were alive? The one with the hole in it?"
Shock nodded. "Yeah. But it's dark and not light. We don't want to cross the doorway. It will be bad."
Barrel nodded then turned and they went to the pantry and pulled open a secret door. As Barrel and Shock slipped down into the tunnel below, Lock carefully shut the pantry door then followed and pulled the other door shut, making sure to leave no trace of their escape. They followed the tunnel beneath the roots into the gorge then climbed up a natural root ladder and came up into the dark afternoon.
The air was stuffy and thick, making it hard for them to breathe. The entire world seemed dark and unreal to them, and they crept along without a word, passing in the shadows until they got to the gate, which was open. Usually, this was inviting, but today it seemed ominous, and they slipped into town, hiding as best they could. When they got to Town Hall, they opened the door, which creaked on old hinges, and they froze then dashed inside.
"Where would they be?" Shock whispered. It sounded so loud when there should be noise and talk from the citizens or the leaders. The quiet was unnatural for this time of day.
"No idea. Let's search. And be quiet," Barrel said softly.
They searched the building from top to bottom in thirty minutes before they came to the conclusion that Jack wasn't there. Nobody was there. So where were they supposed to look next?
"Maybe we can find somebody to ask?" Lock asked, though he sounded uneasy.
"We have no choice," Barrel agreed.
"We need to be careful," Shock hissed. "Bad, bad things are happening."
They nodded, and headed into the streets. At once, they hurried into the shadows and began to look around. They were cautious as they peeked into windows and knocked on doors, but it was no use. There was nobody. They were growing desperate when a soft hiss surprised them. They stiffened, looking around for Bodach, but then Shock saw a bat, who was looking at them with wide, intelligent eyes.
"It's one of the vampire brothers," she whispered, pointing up.
The bat fluttered down to settle on the railing of a stairwell that led up into a house.
"You need to leave," the bat said quietly. "Something bad is happening."
Barrel recognized Alexandru, the oldest brother. "We know. We need to find Jack," he said softly.
The bat licked it's lips and glanced around, looking frightened. He nodded. "Okay. Jack is in the Christmas Realm with Sally. He and the leaders headed there for a Christmas dinner and rest. He left just over two hours ago."
Had Halloween Town been under this spell for less than two hours? It seemed to be an eternity for the children, who had watched their guardian drown in front of them.
"Thanks, Alex," Barrel whispered.
Then Shock squeaked, grabbing both boys and jerking them to hide behind some trash bins. Alexandru stared at her then jerked around when a soft, reedy voice began to sing.
"Where are you, little bat? You cannot hide forever. Come out and join your brothers."
Alexandru looked over the children then his little bat face twisted with determination.
"You must go quickly," he said softly. "Go and get Jack. Please. He can stop this…"
But Alexandru didn't sound so sure. Before they could ask more, the bat fluttered up and made a loud noise then dove down a street, heading away from them. The children saw Bodach's shadowy form pause then a gleaming grin appeared and he laughed as he dashed down the street where Alexandru had gone.
Shock didn't give the boys a chance to pause. Grasping them hard enough to cause pain, she dragged them to the gate. After a few steps, the two boys got their feet under them and they three of them sprinted for the gate. Still they saw nobody, and that scared them more than anything. At least it did until a scream of terror and pain reached them. They knew it was Alexandru, and they ran faster, practically flying through the cemetery on their way to the Hinterlands.
As they passed the tree line, a wave of cool air rushed over them, and they doubled over to gasp in fresh air. The air was thinner and cleaner in the forest, as if untouched by whatever Bodach had done to their Realm. When they had caught their breath, they looked at each other. Barrel swallowed then faced the swirling, hypnotic forest and nodded at his friends.
"To the Christmas portal then," he said.
Lock and Shock didn't answer, following him as he wound his way toward the portals. They arrived much sooner than they expected, having had to hike for hours when they'd been forced to go get Sandy Claws all those Christmases ago. Shock squinted around, more aware of the magic than either of the others.
"It's more familiar to Jack, so it's not as far," she surmised quietly.
"How can you tell?" Lock asked.
"It's just one of those things," Shock replied.
Lock and Barrel nodded. There were things that Shock understood that neither of them were even aware of. It had been a part of their friendship since they were alive. They had learned to simply accept that part of Shock, and they never questioned it anymore.
Barrel looked around at the portals, a terrible, terrible thought crossing his mind as he considered what had just happened. His bottom lip trembled as he turned to his friends, a look of despair on his face.
"What's wrong?" Lock asked.
"Is this our fault?" Barrel asked hoarsely.
Neither Lock nor Shock answered as their faces took on the pallor of chalk. Their eyes went wide, and they turned to stare toward where Halloween Town was. They looked back at Barrel, and all three of them knew without a word that it was their fault. What would Oogie say when he found out? What would Jack say? Most importantly, how could their one little mischief have spiraled so far out of hand?
Barrel bit his lip then turned to walk over to the Christmas door. He reached over and turned the shining, alluring knob, opening the tree. A flurry of snow came out on a cold breeze, wrapping around the morose children. They didn't have the heart to be excited about another trip. Not when they knew that the terrible things happening were their own fault. They thought back to a couple hours before, when they had been carelessly eating candy and celebrating their victory over the Pumpkin King. They knew now that there was no reason to celebrate.
With one final glance around at each other, first Barrel, then Shock, then Lock stepped into the portal. As the echo of the door closing behind them filled their ears and they tumbled into a swirling vortex of snow, they hoped that it wasn't a death toll for all they knew and loved about their lives. But if it was, they knew that they were the only ones to blame.