(Onward to Pyramid Mountain)

*January 15th, 1906*

*Valley of Voe*

Dorothy and the gang were preparing to leave the house so they could head to Pyramid Mountain, hoping to find a way to get to the surface.

"So, we gotta head over to Pyramid Mountain, right? I hope it's an easy journey, unlike our encounter with the Mangaboos, 'cause I don't know if I could handle more of this awful place." Zeb had spoken out to the others while pacing back and forth as. Zeb saw Oscar nodding in agreement as he began to speak.

"Correct; however, even if we should come to places that might deter our journey, We must move on so we can get back home as quickly as possible," Oscar responded to Zeb while Dorothy and Betsy nodded in agreement.

"He's right, and we just gotta push through whatever comes our way, and if we end up trapped, then we must wait until Ozma looks at her magic mirror," Dorothy responded as the motherly voice began to speak.

"Just be careful of the gargoyles that roam the mountain's surface. I heard they're pretty troublesome and hate noise as well," The motherly voice had spoken out, making Betsy curious as she began to speak out.

"Gargoyles?! Like the statues, right? How strong are they?' Betsy had asked the motherly voice in a curious tone as the motherly voice began to speak.

"I didn't know your people had statues of gargoyles, they must be good beings, but to answer your question, they're not vital but can be very troublesome with their speed. Our greatest champion, Overman-Anu, once climbed the spiral stairway and fought with them for nine days before escaping; however, once he came back, he could not describe his encounter, and afterward, he was eaten by a bear.." The motherly voice explained to Betsy as this shocked her and the others.

"H-How terrible?! I'm sorry for the loss, and I bet he was a great man as well," Betsy spoke back in a shocked tone as Dorothy nodded in agreement.

"I agree, it shows how terrible those bears are, and by that, we must avoid them at all costs," Dorothy had spoken out in agreement as she got up from her seat along with Zeb and Betsy so they could head out.

"Indeed, but we'll send you off now, and we wish you the best travels in the journey and farewell," The motherly voice had spoken out in a gentle tone that made Dorothy and the others smile.

"Thank you, and we will! You can count on us to make it back in one piece," Dorothy said as she waved goodbye to the invisible mother and child as she and the others approached the door.

"Bye, everyone! I hope we can see you guys again!" The daughter's voice had spoken out in joy as Dorothy and the others had left the house as their journey resumed.

Our heroes managed to get back to Jim as the horse started to walk towards the mountain, and after a while, Jim stopped so he could rest for a bit.

"Those people were quite nice, and I wish them nothing but peace from those terrible bears," Dorothy had spoken out while washing her hair by the river while Oscar nodded in agreement.

"Indeed, perhaps someday that will happen, but as of now, they must be invisible to avoid the bears at all costs," Oscar had spoken back while he pulled out a flask from his pocket and began to drink it while looking over to see Zeb and Betsy chatting with each other.

"So, Dorothy. Since we have time to rest, I was thinking about how you said I was just as bad as the Wicked Witch of the West, and I was thinking about how right you were.." Oscar had spoken to Dorothy in a somber tone as he sat right next to her and looked over to see the young girl staring back at him.

"I've also been thinking about what I've said as well, and I just feel like I went too far when I said it, and while your actions were wrong, I just don't think you are as bad as those Wicked Witches, but you're still not much of a good person considering what you did to Ozma and even the Nome King, but I'm also sorry for comparing you to them.." Dorothy apologized while giving Oscar a serious look as the humbug nodded in agreement before smiling back.

"Thank you, and I should be sorry as well, and I'll be sure to tell Ozma this once we see her tomorrow," Oscar had spoken back as he and Dorothy had gotten up since it was time to resume their journey as the pair had walked over towards Jim; however, Dorothy could hear something approaching her.

"You must take to the river! The bears won't harm you since they don't like water!" The invisible voice called out, which made the young girl curiously turn around as she began to speak.

"Really? But we could drown since none of us can walk on water nor swim unless the water won't kill us.." Dorothy had spoken back to the voice as she heard footsteps approaching the branch.

"I can take it that you people are strangers to the Valley of Voe, but I'll help you guys out, okay?' The Invisible voice had spoken out to Dorothy once more as they had taken the branch off from the ground and handed it over to Oscar.

"Rub these leaves upon the soles of your feet; then you'll be able to walk upon the water without sinking." The Invisible voice had explained to Dorothy and the others calmly as the person saw the gang doing exactly what they instructed them to do.

"Thank you, and I'm sure these bears won't be able to catch us if we walk on water, and we'll get to Pyramid Mountain in no time!" Dorothy spoke joyfully as she hopped back on the carriage alongside Betsy and Zeb; however, everyone could hear a bear approaching them.

"Quick! I hear the bears coming! I'll fend them off!" The Invisible Voice had cried out as they could hear sounds coming from the other direction as they saw the gang quickly going towards the water; however, Oscar quickly ran towards him with such speed.

"No worries! I'll slay the beast since you've been so kind to us; now, step out of the way!" Oscar had advised the voice as he quickly used his sword to deliver a blow towards the invisible bear, and with that, the bear turned visible, indicating the bear was defeated for good.

"I see; if one is defeated, then it becomes visible, meaning that some of them ate the dama fruit; very interesting indeed.." Oscar had spoken out to himself as he bid farewell to the invisible helper before quickly returning to the carriage.

"Is everyone ready to go? We don't wanna meet up with those terrible bears again." Jim had asked his human companions as he was met with Zeb giving him the thumbs up.

"We're ready!" Zeb simply responded as Jim finally walked across the water while Dorothy managed to jump out of the carriage, and to her wonder, the young girl was walking on water just as she and the others were promised.

"Wow, that person was right! You can walk on water using those branches!" Dorothy had spoken out in shock as she found herself smiling at the fact she was walking on water.

"I-I don't know b-but I'll give it a try…" Zeb had uttered while looking down at the water before looking over at Betsy, who gave him a smile of reassurance.

"It's okay if it makes you feel comfortable; then we can both hold hands and jump together, but that's up to you," Betsy had advised Zeb as this warmly made the young boy smile.

"T-That would be great, of course, s-so I'll accept.." Zeb had spoken back as he and Betsy joined hands as they both jumped onto the water and of course, they could also walk on the water.

"See? I told you it would be okay, and I'm going to let go of your hand, see.." Betsy had spoken to Zeb as she gently let go of his hand while Zeb was surprised at what he was doing.

"W-Whoa?! I'm walking on water! T-This is wonderful." Zeb had spoken out in joy as he looked at Betsy, smiling warmly at him.

"See!? I told you it wasn't going to be bad. You just had to believe in yourself," Betsy spoke back to her friend as both shared a warm smile while Dorothy watched with a smile.

"Alright, let's get going now. We should get there any moment now, and we don't have time to waste," Oscar advised the three children gently as he and the others continued walking across the water, excited to reach Pyramid Mountain.

The gang walked across the river for a few more minutes until, finally; our heroes reached Pyramid Mountain Dorothy had seen a sign right in front of the entrance.

"We've reached Pyramid Mountain, but I wonder what this sign says.." Dorothy spoke out as she began to observe the sign.

"Warning. These steps lead to the Land of the Gargoyles. DANGER, KEEP OUT." The sign had displayed; however, Dorothy didn't show any fear as she was ready to face whatever was coming her and her friend's way.

"Alright, things could get more challenging at this point, but just know that we can't allow those things to discourage us, so let's enter the mountain," Dorothy spoke out to her friends as she was met with them nodding their heads as they finally entered the cave and went up the spiral stairs.

*Pyramid Mountain*

"It's crazy to think all of this is within the Earth, or maybe this is a part of the fairyland known as Oz, but I could be wrong.." Betsy had spoken out while observing the rather strange and surreal insides of the pyramid, while Zeb was confused but slowly accepting things.

"I don't know, but once we're out of here, I'm going to nap, that's for sure! This Oz place is quite strange," Zeb responded to Betsy's observations while Oscar explained everything.

"Well, this place is somewhat a part of the Land of Oz, but you could also consider this to be some sort of Hollow Earth society that was once a part of Oz but don't think of it too much," Oscar explained to the two children as the gang continued to walk across the pyramid until they came into a complete stop as they had saw someone slowly approaching them.

"W-Who is that…." Dorothy uttered as she watched the strange person approaching them with great interest, and he began to speak.

"Who am I? Well, I'm known as the Braided Man of Pyramid Mountain, and just like you, I was native to Earth…." The Braided Man answered while smiling as this surprised Dorothy and the others.

"W-Wait?! You came from the same place as my friends and me, but how did you end up in Oz or whatever this place is…." Dorothy asked the Braided Man in confusion yet curiosity as the young girl was now curious to know who or what exactly this mysterious man was and what his intentions were.