A/N: Hello, hello! Here comes the dynamic action :)

I'll keep it short. First time we get a non-Audrey POV. Not to worry, her perspective will return. Keep an eye out for our new character, *redacted* is in here somewhere.

As always - enjoy!

Chapter Four: DID THEY DESERVE THIS?

TOM

Audrey Stein.

Tom watched her as she moved around the safe room. She breathed. She blinked. She swallowed. She's real. Human.

Henry's daughter.

Tom scowled. If he squinted a little, he could see the resemblance. The girl had Henry's strong jawline, and his long fingers, and… and his eyes, Tom thought. Definitely Henry's daughter.

And she's young.

Tom sighed, the sound escaping as a small snuffling noise. He shook his head. She is completely unprepared. How do I protect her?

Should I?

Something landed on the table in front of him with a thump, and Tom jumped, his hand closing instinctively around the axe. He leaned forward. It was a sandwich. Tom sniffed twice and closed his eyes, reveling in the long-faded smells. The word floated to mind - turkey. And cheese.

He opened his eyes and looked over at Audrey. She smiled, a little warily, Tom thought, and closed her backpack. "I thought you might want one-" she pointed to the small mountain of soup cans in the corner of the room. "I, uh, it doesn't seem like there's much good stuff down here."

Tom lifted the sandwich, sniffed it again, and took a careful bite. Instantly, flavors erupted in his mouth, and he groaned. The whole thing was gone in another three bites. In the corner of the room, Audrey giggled a little.

Tom looked over at her and tried to smile his thanks.

Audrey nodded. "I have a few more…?"

Tom shook his head no. He thought, Allison might want one. Or three. Whenever we can get to her… The thought of her imprisoned made his heart sink. Or worse, the ink. Again.

"What's wrong?" Audrey's voice, close by, made him jump. She slid into the seat across from his.

Tom narrowed his eyes at her, and she blinked twice, stared back. Finally, he sighed and lifted his hands, making the sign of a halo above his head.

Audrey leaned forward. "I don't… a circle? Wait." Her forehead creased. "Halo. An angel."

She stared past Tom, focused on some point far behind him. He lifted his metal arm with a creak and thumped it down on the table. Bang.

Audrey came back with a yelp, startling Tom. He banged the table with his knee. "Allison! Where's Allison?" She made a face. "Is your knee okay?"

With an exasperated huff, Tom rubbed at his leg with one hand, making the universal I don't know shrug with the other. He pointed to Audrey and made the halo sign again. Then he tipped his head and looked at her, hoping his point got across.

Audrey frowned, one eyebrow up. "Am I an angel?"

Tom shook his head no.

"Where do angels come from?"

Tom gave her an exasperated growl. C'mon.

"How… do I know who Allison is?"

Tom nodded frantically. Hallelujah. Someone who understands.

Audrey swallowed and looked away. "I… this is gonna sound really weird, but I have these weird dreams that I never remember every night, and…." She stopped and swallowed again. Then, in a rush of words, she blurted, "I think I dream about here. Every night. And seeing you maybe brought back just enough memory that I- that I remember who she is. Or it's the studio? Or the ink?" Audrey stopped and rubbed at her face, leaving a small stripe of black smudged across her forehead. "Kinda crazy, I know."

Tom studied her for a moment, then nodded. Sure, why not?

"So where's Allison?" Audrey asked. "Oh, right. You don't know."

Tom pushed up from the table, making Audrey jump a little, and began to pace the room. He growled low in his throat.

"Were you looking for her when you found me?" Audrey asked, softly.

Tom turned to look at her. Her eyes were wide, glossy again, focused on something other than him. For a moment, he thought he saw something bright flicker in them, but when he blinked it was gone. She refocused on him, slowly, and he nodded.

"Because…" Audrey swallowed and refocused. "Um. I think I know where she is. Or… I have directions, anyway."

Tom pulled open the small vent and ducked inside. He heard Audrey bang something on the metal- her head?- and stifle a cough.

Audrey had told him that, the moment she asked the question, a golden arrow had flickered to life on the wall behind. Tom couldn't see the arrow himself, but he'd seen plenty like it through Allison's Seeing Glass- which had gone missing along with Allison. It had only taken him a moment to decide to trust Audrey, with those wide dark eyes.

Now they were on their way to… somewhere. Hopefully with Allison in it. Heaven knows. Or Hell. Tom grinned sharply to himself. Not sure which, at this point.

They paused at every break, every turn, and Audrey would scan the walls, her eyes open as far as they could go, before she'd point and they'd move on. Few Searchers challenged them.

Tom was a little baffled as to why they'd been left in peace, mostly, but he wouldn't argue. Unless there was an ambush. Then I'd argue. With the axe. The corners of his mouth turned up, surprising him. That was new- only Allison had been able to make him smile since... sometime. A long time ago. Before the ink. Maybe even before that.

His thoughts turned to Allison. Please be all right, he silently begged her. I need you. They'd found a long time ago that they worked together seamlessly, that there was something between the two of them. Allison had guessed that they knew each other before… whatever had happened. I wish I could remember. But this works. As long as you're all right. Tom regripped the axe, his gloved hands tightening on the handle until it compressed just a little. I'll do whatever you ask. If we find you. No. When. When we find you.

If Audrey's leading us the right way.

If an ambush isn't waiting on the other side of this vent.

If we aren't dissolved into ink. Again.

Tom's hand slipped, and he tumbled forward out of the vent with a clang. He struggled out and sprang to his feet, silently cursing himself for making noise.

He heard Audrey's cry before he saw them- huge, monstrously bloated ink creatures.

Swollen Searchers. Allison's nickname for 'em, he thought, and charged the first, mouth turned up in a wordless snarl, axe crashing down.

The axe sliced through the ink, but arms and heads kept bubbling up, emerging from the floor. He ducked a blow from one, tore the axe through another's torso, kicked one through the head and paused, gasping.

He was just straightening his spine- I think that's the last of them- when a blow sent him spinning forward, stars in his eyes. He stumbled and turned his head, looking back just in time to see an enormous Searcher raise his fist for one last crushing blow.

Allison, thought Tom, and braced himself for the pain-

-a small blade burst through the Searcher's chest with a splash of ink. The Searcher moaned, long and low, and dissolved into a puddle of ink, revealing Audrey, pale and shaking.

Tom slowly turned, stretching a little to move his spine back in place and feeling the familiar, slow cold shiver as his ink healed. He snatched up the axe and pushed to his feet with a grunt. Audrey didn't move, just stared at the now-puddle with wide, empty eyes.

She's struggling, Tom thought. He hesitantly reached out and put his hand on her head, doing his best to give her a supportive smile.

Finally, emotion flickered in Audrey's eyes, and she blinked up at him. "Did I-"

Tom shrugged and patted her head.

Audrey looked down at her blackened right hand, bit her lip, and began to scrub it against her jacket furiously, swiping it back and forth over and over again.

Tom grabbed her wrist and dropped to one knee, staring at her face. Audrey lifted scared eyes to his. She swallowed hard, then tipped her palm to let him see. It was still completely black up to the wrist, glistening in the dim light.

Gently, he laid down his axe, took her knife from her and carefully scraped the blade over her hand. Black poured over the metal, and Tom shook it off.

He lifted Audrey's palm, and both of them watched as ink bubbled up from inside her hand.

Audrey gave a stifled sob and looked away, her hand lying limp in Tom's grasp. He stared at it. The ink is beginning to claim her? Why? Does it hate humans? He frowned in concentration, trying to remember. Nothing like this happened to Henry.

Somewhere in the distance, a low wail whispered through the corridors, interrupting his chain of thought- Allison, Tom thought, and stood. He squeezed Audrey's blackened hand, feeling resistance before he let go. At least it's still there.

Audrey sniffed and ground her eyes into her shoulder, blindly reaching for her knife with her left hand. Tom glanced down, and she offered him a tiny smile, gingerly cradling her right hand in the crook of her left elbow. "That way."

They crept through the Heavenly Toys room with no further incident, though Audrey nearly walked into a shelf, her gaze everywhere but right in front of her. She finally touched a door, tracing a star on its face before she realized her black fingers were leaving a trail. Audrey snatched her hand back to her chest.

Tom reached past her and gingerly pushed the door open. It creaked on its hinges, and he stepped through carefully, scanning the darkness for motion.

A low moan greeted him, and he swung his axe blindly with a snarl.

The moan choked. And out of the darkness came a tiny voice.

"Tom?"

Tom leapt forward, crashing through shards of glass and stumbling over a low wall, falling to his knees next to a crumpled figure in the corner, gathering her up in his arms as gently as he could.

A small hand reached up and touched his face, and he whined, low and soft. Allison. Warmth trickled through him, and he buried his face in her hair.

Then Audrey shrieked.

Her scream was echoed by two piercing wails, shaking with rage.

The glass burst outward with a crash, and the next moment, a door flung open violently on the other side of the room. Audrey leaned through it, screaming at him to come on. Tom lurched to his feet, clutching Allison with one arm and snatching up his axe with the other.

They flew down the halls together. Tom crashed his axe through whatever stood in their way, including a few Searchers, turning when Audrey, pelting along at his side, yelled directions.

Allison hung limp in his arms, her hair swaying over her face, giving Tom no clue if she was all right. We'll deal with it when we're safe, Tom thought, and grimly hugged her tighter.

They hurtled down a long hallway toward a door. Audrey reached out and yanked it open. Tom hurtled through and made it fifteen steps before he realized she wasn't next to him. He turned.

Audrey hung onto the doorknob with her intact hand, tracing a shape with the other. Tom's eyes widened: behind Audrey, in the darkness, a figure sprinted toward them with a shadowy arm outstretched. He leapt forward, straining every inky muscle in his body, covering the distance in leaps and bounds, dropping the axe and stretching to grab the girl's jacket.

Audrey pulled back from the door just as Tom snagged her collar… right as the figure burst from the shadows.

Inky black skin. Mouth wide in a soundless scream. Dark hair pouring from her scalp like streams of ink. Pointed horns holding a halo tipped askew. Long clawed fingers reaching out.

Black, empty sockets pooling with dark liquid, streaming down her face like tears.

Audrey's hand hooked on the knob and the door crashed shut after them. They tumbled, all three in a heap, backward into the room.

A golden glare burst from the door, and Tom squinted at the wood, barely able to make out a crescent moon tipped on its side- wait. Not a crescent moon. The demon's horns.

A double-edged scream shattered the silence and shook the walls. Tom cringed, already scrabbling to his feet, hefting Allison back into place and turning toward-

A black abyss. The elevator shaft.

Tom's mind whirled. I know what to do.

He dropped to one knee and jerked his head toward Audrey, turning his back to her. She pushed herself up and half-ran, half-stumbled to him, collapsing on his back and wrapping her arms around his neck. He winced, glancing back at his precious axe. Too late now. Maybe next time.

With a grimace, Tom stood, crushing Allison against his chest, feeling Audrey's legs wrap around his waist, and stumbled forward into a clumsy run. He pushed, pushed, pushed forward - this is crazy - and leapt into the abyss, straining with everything he had for the elevator cable.

His hand closed around it. Tom clamped on for everything he was worth, ignoring the pain, and Audrey's screams, and Allison's limp form in his arms.

They tumbled into the darkness.

TO BE CONTINUED

/\/\/\

A/N: Oh, Tom. Well done, saving your girls.

Allison... might be in rough shape. Alices seem to be particularly rough around this part of the studio.

Weirdly enough, Audrey may have stabilized (depending on your definition). The ink hand's a little worrying. The gold lettering is more... hopefull.

Missed the Thursday upload this time, but here we are a mere day later. Thanksgiving break should give me a chance to get back on my game - might try and upload early next week instead to give everyone something to read while home for the holiday. Giving up on avoiding sounding like a broken record: thanks for reading! Please review, if you feel so inclined - still looking for criticism, as I get back into authorship. Grateful for everyone who's seen this so far, and I hope it's interesting to you!

As always, Godspeed ;)

-Sam