Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

(Chapter starts with a slow pan across a decimated landscape, formerly Comic World . Buildings destroyed, red fog surrounding the soiled grounds, dying plants littered everywhere, and a dark red sky hanging above all. The only thing that shows any sign of life is a gigantic glittering castle that stands in the middle of this wasteland. Suddenly, a light darts across the scene, slamming right into the ground with a violent boom. The dust settles, revealing Power Paige laying with the small crater, battered and bruised. Woofster rushes over to her side.)

Woofster: Paige! Are you alright!?

(Power Paige groans as she sits up.)

Power Paige: I'm fine…(pets Woofster reassuringly) I'm fine….

???: But you won't be fine for long!

(A maniacal cackle erupts through the sky as a bright red figure floats down to Power Paige. A being with seemingly no mouth, half a skull on his face with a red jewel on the forehead and four horns, two big and two tiny, floating clawed fingers and a very tacky red superhero suit; Red Spark. )

Power Paige: (gets up and stands her ground) You're never getting away with all the damage you've done! Never!

Red Spark: Oh I beg to differ, dear Paige. You see, I'm nothing like those other villains you've faced before. I have two things that start with the letter P that make me stand out from the rest.

Woofster: And those are?

Red Spark: Power and (twirls upwards into the sky and does a big hand wave) PRESENTATION!! 

(He ends the big hand wave with a snap. That snap is heard echoing throughout the halls of the castle where survivors are settling down. Everyone quiets down once they hear it, wondering what's going on outside. Suddenly, all the crystal decorations turn red all at once. And before anyone was able to react to this…

KA-BOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

A giant explosion erupts from the castle, destroying the very last thing that was left in Power Paige's homeworld, with everyone inside it . The little hero and her dog look onward in horror, tears beginning to well in her eyes.)

Woofster: My god....

Power Paige: No...NOOOOOOOOOO!!! (breaks down into tears)

Woofster: There were so many people in that castle! How could you!?

Red Spark: There were? (looks at the explosion) Huh. Never noticed. (looks back at the heroes) Doesn’t matter now. I finally got the item I needed!

(Two fox cries can be heard, getting the attention of Red Spark. Two unusually big fennec foxes, one yellow and white, the other blue and pink, float over to their master, ready to give him the Staff of Writing.

A fancy looking tree branch with a cobalt blue jewel in the center. )

Red Spark: Ah! My fennecs! Such a delight to see you! And you brought me a little gift! How kind of–!

(A tornado whip nabs him before he finishes that sentence and he gets slammed straight into the ground. He groans as he struggles to get himself up and looks back at Power Paige, who's now in her wind form, with anger.

Paige’s Wind Form: Her eyes glow in a gray color, her braids are all floating in the formation of a tornado, she has cloud markings on her cheeks, her once colorful costume is now colored in shades of gray, even the beads that holds her braids together, her cape is split into four separate ribbons, and a tornado insignia replaces the heart one.

Power Paige holds the tornado in her hands, determined to defeat Red Spark even if she has nothing else left.)

Power Paige: I'm never letting you have that staff! Even if I have to die to protect it!

Red Spark: Brave words for a little girl. Yet, I love your enthusiasm! Fennecs, help me out here!

(The two fennecs nod and dive for an attack. Woofster jumps in and pounces the both of them to the ground, making the staff fly out of their mouths. One of them quickly gets up and grabs the staff, making off with it. Woofster chases them down and it quickly becomes a game of keep away. 

On Paige's side of things, she's using the last ounce of energy she has to give Red Spark a beatdown. She uses the tornado whip to slam him around several building walls, before tossing him high up into the air and, with the whip once more, pulling him straight back down to the ground. She collapses on her hands and knees, exhausted. Her costume starts to slowly fade away, revealing parts of her civilian clothing. Red Spark hops up onto his heels, not even a scratch to be seen, and turns to Paige, with a proud look in his eyes and a part of his mouth unsealing itself into a smirk, revealing sharp yellow teeth.)

Red Spark: You know, dear Paige, I had a lot of fun with you today, but…

(He looks over at the three animals fighting over the staff. Woofster catches in his mouth and darts directly to Paige, but the fennecs do a double tackle, causing it to fly out of his mouth and into the air. Red Spark catches it with his telekinesis and floats it over to his hand. He holds onto the staff with pride.)

Red Spark: This is a battle you lost, and…

(Red Spark flicks the jewel's hard surface, causing it to change to red, and consume the rest of the branch in dark magic, turning it pitch black. Red Spark crouches down to look at Paige's tear and sweat ridden face as his mouth fully unseals into a wide grin.)

Red Spark: I have so many things to do…. (cackles)

(Paige looks down at the ground in sorrow, realizing she has failed. Woofster sees this and tries to run to her aid, but gets pinned down by the fennecs. Red Spark stands back up, fully resealing his mouth.)

Red Spark: My dear fennecs, you can do whatever you like to these cretains. I’m off to make this world my new hideout!

(Red Spark flies off, leaving the fennecs alone to do what they please. They smile down on Woofster, thinking of just what to do to the two defeated heroes. Woofster looks at Paige, who has fully collapsed by this point and back in her civilian clothing. He looks at the blue glow coming from her pocket and gets an idea.)

Woofster: Oh no! Please! Don’t use that shiny blue thing that’s in Paige’s pocket!

(The two fennecs tilt their hands in confusion. They look over at Paige and also see the blue glow. The yellow fennec walks over and sniffs her pocket, then pulls out whatever’s inside, which is revealed to be the Fairytale Key. 

A gorgeous blue key with fairy wings, vines, and three small round jewels placed at the base.

Woofster smirks before quickly changing to a fake expression of horror.)

Woofster: No! Don’t use that! We don’t want to be kicked out of our world!

(Suddenly, the two fennecs’ eyes light up. They smile at each other with malice, and quickly walk away to prepare the portal. Paige notices what’s going on and looks at Woofster with confusion.)

Paige: Woofster…? What are you–?

Woofster: Trust me on this one, Paige. Those two don’t even share a brain cell. 

(The two fennecs try to figure out how to make the key work, eventually finding out that holding out the arm with the key in hand makes a lock magically appear. Once they solved that, they put the key in the lock and turn it, unlocking and allowing the portal to form. They look at the girl and dog with menacing smiles and slowly creep up on them like hungry animals. Woofster continues to act terrified, while Paige seems..very out of it. The fennecs grab the two by the scruff of their necks and begin dragging them over to the portal. Woofster “tries” to fight back, but it doesn’t work, as planned , while Paige just lets herself be dragged.)

Woofster: Hey! Let go, you dummies! Noooooo!

(The fennecs toss the two into the portal and lock it behind them. The blue one shallows the key and they both float away, laughing proudly to themselves.

Within the flowing blue vortex of the Fairytale portal, Woofster floats over to Paige, still in despair of failure.)

Woofster: Come on, Paige, snap out of it. We can still stop him from getting the other artifacts.

Paige: But…what if we can’t? He’s too strong for us….

Woofster: That’s why we’re going to Storybook Village first. To find every other Super Reader who can help us. (holds Paige’s hand in his paws and gives her a smile) I know we weren’t able to save our world, but we can still save everyone else. Where’s the determined Paige I know?

(Paige takes a moment to pull herself together before giving her loyal dog friend a smile.)

Woofster: There we go! Now come on! We’re almost there!

(Paige nods and follows Woofster to the other side, though not before looking back with a somber expression. She can’t go back now..she has to keep pushing forward. She shakes it off and reaches the edge of the vortex.

Next scene takes place at the Book Club, which is currently empty. A blue glow is seen coming from the ceiling and Paige falls face flat onto the table. Woofster lands on Paige a few moments later. Woofster jumps off and sniffs around, feeling a heroic air in the place. Paige, however, tries to get up but seems completely dazed and groggy. Her head pounds with constant pain as she tries to pull herself up. Yep, she took one too many injuries to the head today…. She takes a look around the Book Club and her eyes focus on the Super Duper Computer. She steps closer to it, wanting to see what it does, before getting interrupted by the voices of four kids coming in. Paige lets out a soft gasp and quickly looks around for a place to hide, eventually choosing to go behind the Super Duper Computer. Woofster follows her after and both wait to see who's coming in.

Four kids walk into the clubhouse; Littlest Pig, a…well, little pig with a yellow cap, yellow shirt, and blue overalls. Princess Pea, an African-american girl with a lilac dress and a crown. Red Riding Hood, a white girl with a red hoodie, red skirt and roller skates. And Whyatt Beanstalk, a Hispanic boy with a blue and green polo shirt and khakis. Paige and Woofster peek around the computer, while trying not to get themselves seen. A conversation strikes up on the other side. She watches them carefully, spying on their conversation. Spying is a natural instinct for a comic book superhero like her. )

Whyatt: Okay Red, state your problem.

Red: Well, me and Little Lamb were playing around in Black Sheep’s garden and we ended up trampling on her flowers and– (sighs) you know what, I'm just gonna ask this….

Whyatt: Ask what?

Red: Whyatt, do we really need to do this every time we have some kind of problem?

Whyatt: Wh-what do you mean?

Red: Don’t get me wrong, I love going on adventures and all that, but most of the time it feels…unneeded?

(Whyatt steps back a bit, feeling hurt by this.)

Whyatt: Un..unneeded?

Red: (realizes his hurt feelings) No no no! I'm not trying to be mean! I just think that..sometimes it just feels like some problems could be solved without..you know..going super? Or whatever you want to call it.

Paige: Going super? What does she mean by that?

Pig: (raises hand) But what about the fun of going into books? You've always liked that!

Red: For a little while, yeah. But it's almost every day now that we do this, even for answers that are obvious. Kinda sucks the fun out of it.

Whyatt: Sucks the…fun out of it…?

Princess Pea: Well, even if the answer is obvious, it's about the journey of finding it, right?

Red: Not when it's every day. It gets really…um…what's the word I'm looking for… that hopefully wouldn't hurt Whyatt’s feelings any further…?

(Whyatt rubs his arm, uncomfortable, anxious, and hurt by the ongoing conversation. Woofster looks at the boy with sympathy. Paige, however, feels a small bit of deja vu… and she doesn't like it one bit…. )

Pig: (to Princess Pea) We're not going to have two super big problems, are we?

Princess Pea: I'm sure we can solve all this in today's book.

(Princess Pea gets up from her chair and pulls out her wand, which she begins to wave around.)

Princess Pea: Peas and carrots, carrots and peas, book come out, please, please, please!

(Pink magic draws out from her wand and flies up to one of the bookshelves. A book gets drawn out and gently floats down to the ground. Paige looks on in amazement, as she rarely sees magic in Comic World. Then again, this is the land of fairytales, so magic should've been expected. Woofster sees that Paige is leaning too far out of their hiding spot and quickly pulls her back behind the computer. Paige sits against the wall, content with just listening to everything else after witnessing magic for the first time. Well, she would be, if not for one little line that is immediately heard… )

All four kids: Super Readers…to the rescue!

(Paige jolts to her knees, having heard the word Super Readers. She attempts to crawl out and see what's going on, but is stopped by Woofster pulling her back by her shirt. He may be a little puppy, but he's a strong one. Paige tries to pull away from Woofster's grasp as the transformation sequence goes on in the background.)

Paige: Woofster! Let go! I need to see this!

(She listens as they all transform one by one, whilst still struggling against her companion.

Alpha-Pig, with alphabet power!

Wonder Red, with word power!

Princess Presto, with spelling power!

Super Why, with the power to read!

Finally, Paige pulls away from Woofster, albeit with a bit of fabric torn off her shirt, and quickly crawls over to peek, disregarding any need to stay hidden. She sees the four kids now in their hero outfits and her eyes widen with excitement.)

Super Why: Together we are…

All four: The Super Readers!

Paige: I can't believe it…there are Super Readers in this realm. And four of them at that!

Super Why: Why-fliers!

(Four aircrafts fly down at the command and they all hop into each of their respective planes. The book opens as the planes prepare to take off.)

Super Why: Get ready to fly into this book!

(And like that, the planes fly off the ground and into the book of the day. The book closes up and Paige comes out of the hiding place, brimming with excitement.)

Paige: (bouncing up and down, flapping her hands) Ohmygoshohmygoshohmygosh!! I can't believe this! We landed in the exact place of the Fairytale Super Readers! I never thought there would even be a possibility of four of them in the exact same place! It's usually two per area! This is groundbreaking! We'll have quintuple the fighting power to stop Red Spark! This will be–!!

(Woofster hops onto the table and puts a paw on her shoulder, grabbing her attention. She looks at him and sees the dog's worried expression, which curbs her enthusiasm a bit.)

Paige: (pets Woofster's head) Don’t worry. I'm sure once we tell them everything, they'll be willing to help us. For now, (looks at the book) I guess we'll have to wait. (sits down on Red’s chair) Hope they don't mind me sitting here for a bit.

(Woofster whines, still worried as he repeatedly looks between her and the book.)

Paige: It’s only gonna be a little bit, Woofster. I mean, come on, (leads back with a smile) how long is it really gonna take?

Next scene cuts back to Comic World. A grand fortress stands on the remains of the glittering castle, with a menacing aura blowing through the air at all times. Inside, Red Spark is dancing around with the Staff of Writing, using it to make a variety of decorations to brighten up the darkened halls.)

Red Spark: A little sparkle here! Some jewels there! Oh, this place is really coming together, isn’t it?

(As Red Spark admires his work, the two fennecs walk over to their master, their heads high in pride. He turns around and notices this, ready to hear what they have done.)

Red Spark: Aha! My dear fennecs~! How is our little unfortunate hero? Hopefully not dead in a ditch! 

(All three of them laugh in unison at the suggestion.)

Yellow Fennec: (wipes away joyful tears, in fox speak) Well, it’s funny you say that. Cause she isn’t actually dead.

Red Spark: (digs claws into staff with anger, chuckles) What was that?

Blue Fennec: (also in fox speak) Yeah. Turns out they’re really afraid of being kicked out of this world. So we took this weird key from Paige’s pocket, opened a portal…

(Red Spark chuckles again in frustration in the middle of the blue one’s explanation.)

Blue Fennec: And chucked them right in to never return! (makes a whooshing sound with an accompanying gesture)

(Without hesitation or even a reaction shot, Red Spark thwacks the two fennecs on the head with the staff.)

Red Spark: Idiots! Don’t you realize what you’ve done!? Now she has a chance to come back–!

(Suddenly, the blue one starts to cough and hack, as if they’re about to spit something out.)

Red Spark: (recoils in disgust) Eugh! What are you doing? Stop that!

(The yellow one wacks the blue one’s back, causing them to cough the Fairytale Key.)

Red Spark: (backs away) Disgusting…. (narrows eyes, recognizing the key) Wait a minute. (points at the yellow one) You. Clean that.

(The yellow fennec pulls out a pack of disinfecting wipes and proceeds to wipe the key clean. They then give it to their master, who excitedly grabs it and stares in awe.)

Red Spark: The Fairytale Key! You said this was in Paige’s pocket, correct? 

(The two fennecs nod.)

Red Spark: Perfect! You may have made a mistake, but you seem to have made up for it greatly. How about we pay them a little visit, huh? 

(The two fennecs nod enthusiastically and reach for the key.)

Red Spark: (pulls key away from fennecs) Nuh uh uh. Not so hasty now. We can’t just barge in like neanderthals. You know how we do things here.

(Red Spark looks at the key with a scheming smile forming from his partially unsealed mouth.)

Red Spark: We have to make this entrance…a special one!

(Scene fades to black as Red Spark laughs maniacally.

Next scene fades to a white void, then shows Paige laying down. Paige slowly opens her eyes and look around, confused. She gets up on her feet and sees a blurred figure of a child in the distance, that strangely seems familiar to her . She tries to get closer to them, but finds that she can’t move from the spot she was placed on. The moment she realizes that is the moment that the blurred child pulls out a skull helmet with horns and a red jewel on the forehead. Paige realizes what’s about to happen and tries to call out to him, but no voice comes out of her throat. Paige watches on helplessly as the blurred kid is about to put on the helmet. Next thing she knew, she’s in her Power Paige costume, standing in front of Red Spark as everything is surrounded in red flames and fog. Red Spark stares down at her with a wide unsealed smile on his face. She stares back with horror-filled tears in her eyes, then he goes for the first strike…which thankfully gets interrupted by Red splashing water on her, waking her up. She looks around confused, seeing the four kids from before now standing around her, back in their civilian clothes. Three of them seem to have concerned expressions on their faces. Red, however, is not very happy to see her here.)

Paige: (scratches back of head) Heh..um..how long have I been asleep for?

Red: The real question is who are you and what are you doing here?

Princess Pea: And why are you so bruised up?

Pig: (points to Woofster still sleeping on the table) Is that your dog? What’s his name? 

Whyatt: Whoa, whoa, guys. Let’s ask one question at a time, okay? 

Red: (rolls eyes) Whyatt, she just showed up here without us knowing and was sleeping in my chair.

Whyatt: I know, but maybe she has a good reason for coming here, right?

Paige: (gets up) You bet I do! Just hear me out, okay?

(At this point, Woofster wakes up and sees what’s going on. He hops off the table and stands beside her. Even if he’s unable to talk at the moment, he still wants to show her support. )

Paige: (deep breath) Okay..here goes nothing…. I’m Paige Prower, and I’m not from any fairytale story. I’m from a comic book. A superhero comic book, to be exact!

Whyatt: Like the ones my big brother always reads?

Paige: Yes! Oh my gosh, yes! Exactly like that! We comic book characters come from a realm called Comic World, which…(mood becomes more somber) has been completely destroyed. All thanks to a dangerous super villain known as Red Spark. 

(Paige goes quiet for a moment, thinking back on all that happened. Woofster gently bumps his head against Paige’s leg, showing her comfort. Paige smiles and pets the puppy, before resuming.)

Paige: That’s why I’m here. To find people who will help me stop Red Spark. Stop Red Spark from taking over the entirety of Fiction itself! And to do that, I need other Super Readers. Super Readers like…(points at the four kids) all of you! So, are you willing to help me out?

(The four stand there in silence, mostly stunned that she knows that they’re the Super Readers…or apparently one group of them, it seems. Red takes a step closer to Paige, with a touch of suspicion on her face.) 

Red: And how big is this problem of yours? 

Paige: Like super big! The biggest problem we’ll ever face! High stakes and everything!

Red: Biggest problem we’ll ever face? High stakes!? Well, that sounds like a good change of pace! Sign me up!

Whyatt: What? But Red, this sounds like too big of a problem! We wouldn’t be able to handle this!

Pig: And it sounds really scary! Maybe she’s making it up?

Red: (rolls eyes) Come on, guys. I’m getting really tired of solving regular problems with our super powers. I want to actually do superhero stuff! You know, danger, risk, fighting! Just like a comic book! And you said you’re from one, right, Paige?

Paige: Well, yeah, basically. But–

Whyatt: No, no, you can’t just believe– Look…(frustrated sigh, looks at Paige) Do you have any place to stay tonight? 

Paige: (nervous chuckle) Well, I just fell down here, so…I don’t have any….

(An awkward silence occurs as the other kids think about where Paige will stay the night.)

Princess Pea: Oh! Maybe she can stay at my castle. We can make it a sleepover!

Paige: Yeah! That sounds super! Guess that’s settled then! So, (claps hands together) I’ll just let you finish whatever you were doing before! (chuckles)

Whyatt: Wait, we haven’t–

Paige: (makes her way over to the door) Don’t worry about the introduction thing right now. We can do that later. Sorry for staying here longer than I should, I didn't expect you to come back so soon.

Pig: Wait, what do you–?

Paige: I’ll meet you outside! Come on, Woofster! 

(Woofster catches up with Paige as she leaves the clubhouse, leaving the four in a confused stupor.)

Whyatt: Red..why are you trusting her so much? 

Pig: Yeah, we don’t know where she came from, or if she’s telling the truth. I hope she isn’t telling the truth…Red Spark sounds really scary….

Whyatt: (pats Pig’s back) I’m sure she was just trying to spook us. None of it makes sense.

Princess Pea: I don’t know…she seemed pretty beaten up.

Red: Well honestly, even if she is lying, it still sounds better than just doing small stuff and putting our powers to waste!

Whyatt: Look, I know that sounds really bad, but we still need some routine to–

Red: It’s getting annoying, Why!

(Red quickly covers her mouth as soon as she says that, feeling instant regret. Whyatt stares at her in shock, his mood crashing down entirely.)

Whyatt: A..a-a-annoying…?

Red: No, Whyatt, I…

(Red tries to step closer to him, only for Whyatt to back away, which only makes Red feel worse. Princess Pea gets in the middle to defuse the situation.)

Princess Pea: Maybe we should take a break from this and come back later. It's getting late. And Red, maybe you can go get some more flowers for Black Sheep. Maybe that'll fix your problem.

Whyatt: Wait, but…

Red: Right, right…I just want to get out of here….

(Red heads out of the Book Club and Whyatt stands there in stunned silence. 

For the first time, they came up with a solution to the problem without looking at the Super Story Answer…it's completely against the routine he became used to. The little adventure they had just became worthless to him. He thought that this routine would help them solve all their everyday problems…but this time it wasn't the case. Was it never the case? He can't do anything without putting it into a routine and he thought his friends were the same…but now that view has cracked. Red grew tired of it, will his other friends follow suit? Will they eventually get tired of his need for routine? Will they all leave him…? Will he…be all alone…?

Whyatt starts to tremble at the thought of being alone, which catches the attention of the other two kids.)

Princess Pea: (puts hand on Whyatt’s shoulder) Hey, it's okay. I'm sure Red was just having a bad day.

Pig: Yeah! We can have another adventure tomorrow!

(Whyatt gives them a friendly smile, though he can't get rid of the thought of losing his friends because of how he is as a person. He's just trying to help..but is it good enough…?

Shows the outside of the clubhouse, some time before the conversation above. Paige exits the building in a haste and proceeds to lean against the wall, before slumping down onto the ground. Woofster walks out a few moments after and goes over to Paige.)

Paige: (big sigh of relief) I think that went well!

(Woofster looks at her with an expression that says “are you sure about that?”)

Paige: Okay, maybe I went a little too strongly and said a bit too much, but it seems like at least Red believes me, so that’s a plus, right? 

(Woofster still stares at her with the same unamused expression.)

Paige: Look, I don’t know what else I would’ve said. Cut me some slack, would ya? (sighs) I’m just hoping Red Spark doesn’t end up coming here. 

(Woofster is about to climb on Paige’s lap but ends up freezing upon realizing something. He left the key with the Fennecs, minions of Red Spark…which means… )

Paige: (notices this) Hmm? What is it?

(Woofster looks at her with a terrified face. It takes Paige a moment to figure out what’s wrong, but once she does…her face melts into horror as well.)

Paige: Oh no….

(Next scene takes place in Red Spark’s library of spells. Red Spark is rolling around on a ladder with wheels, trying to find a specific spell. Inevitably, he gets distracted by..well, the rolling ladder. After having some fun with the ladder, he collapses onto the ground with a frustrated groan.)

Red Spark: Fenneeeeeeccs!! Have you found anything yet!? I’m dying here!

(The blue fennec floats over to him, shrugging their shoulders. The yellow one, however, dashes to their master with a scroll in their paws. Red Spark perks up and jumps to his heels.)

Red Spark: Oooooo! And what do you have there, my sweet servant?

(The yellow fennec unrolls the scroll and presents it to him proudly. Red Spark looks over the spell they found and his eyes widen with delight.)

Red Spark: Oh ho ho! A hypnosis spell! How wonderful! (pets the yellow one) Thank you so much, my little sunlight~. (points at the blue one) You! Do better.

(The blue fennec whimpers in self-disappointment. Red Spark walks into his storage room, looking through his drawers and shelves for a couple other things. He eventually finds his red fog sphere and the Fairytale Key, and looks at them with a partially unsealed smirk, having gotten an idea. He picks up the staff and uses telekinesis to lift the three other items.)

Red Spark: Let’s see how these three will combine, shall we!?

(The fennecs rush into the room, wanting to watch whatever Red Spark is going to do. Red Spark proceeds to incase the three items in the staff's magic, making them slowly drift together. Red Spark’s mouth fully unseals into a menacing grin as he sees the items get closer and closer together. Soon, a bright light is produced as the items combine together. The final result is a bright red key with crooked torn wings, withered vines, and surrounded with fog. Red Spark takes the key and hops around with glee at his successful creation.)

Red Spark: Yes! Yes! Aha! I knew that this staff would be powerful, but holy crap! This..this is fantastic! Fennecs! Prepare one of my ships! (eyes glow brighter as he looks at the corrupted key) We have a show to begin!

(Next scene takes place in Black Sheep’s garden. Black Sheep, a..well, sheep with black wool and a red dress , is rushing around, trying to tend to the absolute mess made from the ruined plants. Jack Beanstalk arrives at the gate, carrying his guitar on his back, and looks around at the mess.)

Jack: Sheesh, I knew you said it was a mess, but I wasn’t expecting it to be this bad.

B. Sheep: (turns around) Oh! Jack! There you are!

(Black Sheep walks over and opens the gate, letting Jack inside.)

B. Sheep: It’s simply terrible, Jack! Little Lamb and Red Riding Hood were playing here and made such a horrible mess! I mean, (goes over to a trampled flower bed) look how badly my poor flowers were stomped on! It’s awful! 

(Black Sheep falls to her knees and covers her face with her hands, devastated.)

Jack: Ah, come on, Sheep. (kneels down and pats B. Sheep’s back) It’s not the end of the world. They’ll grow back.

B. Sheep: (looks at Jack) Hmph! That’s funny coming from someone who always feels his soul is crushed every time he gets grounded from guitar practice.

Jack: Alright, alright, you got me there.

Little Lamb: Baa baa! Lookie!

(Both of the teenagers turn around and see Little Lamb, a…well, lamb with white wool and a pink gown , and Red standing behind them, with the latter holding a pot full of flowers.)

Little Lamb: We got you flowers as a sorry!

Red: Yeah, sorry for ruining all your flowers.

B. Sheep: (both teens get up) Oh my! (takes the pot) How sweet of you! 

Little Lamb: Do you like it, baa baa?

B. Sheep: Of course, sweetheart. (ruffles Little Lamb’s wool) And I forgive the both of you. Just be more careful around my plants when you play, okay?

Little Lamb + Red: Okay!

B. Sheep: Now, why don’t you run off and play somewhere else for a bit, alright? 

(The two kids run off to play somewhere else. Black Sheep puts the pot on the table and lets out a heavy sigh.)

Jack: You’re still mad?

B. Sheep: Hey, they did something nice, and I appreciate it, but it doesn’t mean I can’t still be a little upset. It takes a while for these plants to grow, you know. If only there was a way to make this go faster….

Jack: Well…(steps closer to B. Sheep) has anyone ever told you that I can make plants grow with my music?

B. Sheep: (scoffs) Really? Don’t be silly.

Jack: What? Don’t believe me?

B. Sheep: (teasing smile) Isn’t soothing a rampaging giant with a song more than enough? Why don’t you stick with your thing, hot shot?

Jack: Heh, why don’t I show you then? Would you believe me?

B. Sheep: Hmmmm…yeah. I would believe you.

Jack: (takes off the guitar strap) Alright, Sheep, (tunes guitar) better listen closely.

B. Sheep: I’m all ears, Jack-a-boy.

(Jack begins to play a soft little song on his guitar. Soon, a green aura begins to surround the guitar as some sort of magic starts flowing through it. The magic quickly spreads to all the plants in the garden, coating them with the green aura as well. The flowers that were trampled and destroyed start coming back to life, reverting to the state they were before. Other plants that weren’t hurt are also affected, growing bigger and sprouting new flowers and leaves. Even the flowers in the pot Black Sheep was given started to undergo the same growth spurt. 

But Black Sheep didn’t pay attention to all of that. No, her attention was squarely focused on Jack. She gazes at him with love in her eyes, vibing with his music. Jack gazes back at her with the same look in his eyes. The air seems to set up for a moment of sweetness…until it gets interrupted by a loud beeping from Jack’s phone, spooking both of the teens. Jack pulls out his phone and sees that the alarm he set for returning home has gone off.)

Jack: Ah shiiioot. Shoot, heh heh. I have to go home now. But see? (puts guitar strap back on) I told you my music makes plants grow.

B. Sheep: Heh, don’t think I’m not aware of your little secret, music man.

(Jack and Black Sheep wave goodbye to each other as the former leaves the scene. Black Sheep turns to the revived flowers and plucks one off, taking a little sniff of its renewed life.)

B. Sheep: { I wonder if he’ll ever tell me this secret. It’s been years now. } (puts the flower in a vase) { Oh well. Even if he never tells me personally, I’ll at least keep it safe from everyone else we know. I’ll let him know that for sure. } (looks at the pot) { Now what to do with that pot? }

(Black Sheep picks up the pot, with some effort, and takes it inside, ending this scene.

Next scene takes place on one of Red Spark’s giant pyramid-shaped ships. Red Spark and his loyal fennecs are walking to the main control room, ready to set their plan in motion.)

Red Spark: Alright, my dear fennecs! Our first little show was a great success! I especially loved the big explosion at the end! Nearly pushed Paige right over that Despair Event Horizon! It would've been better if she were (turns to the fennecs angrily) dead and not alive , but (pulls out the corrupted key) we'll make up for that blunder in our second show, won't we?

(The three enter the control room and Red Spark puts the key in a scanner.)

Red Spark: But I don't want any surprises coming my way, so we'll have to scan a few things. 

(The great big computer screen turns on, and Red Spark raises his hands high in the air.)

Red Spark: Oh Grand Computer, come awake! Tell me, is Paige and her precious pooch over in…wherever this key goes?

(The computer scans the key and gives him a result.)

Computer: The key leads to Storybook Village, numbskull. And yes, Paige and her dog Woofster are still in there.

Red Spark: Well, there's no need for a sour attitude. Just in case, scan for any other Super Readers that could be there. I don’t want them getting in the way!

(The computer rolls its digital eyes and scans for any traces of other Super Readers. Red Spark leans against the panel, with a cocky partially unsealed smirk on his face.)

Red Spark: Of course there aren't going to be any other Super Readers around a (mocking tone) “fairytale land”! That’s just ridiculous! (the computer shows otherwise, though his back is turned) I mean, Paige is alone there! Beaten up, with no one to help her! It'll be easy as–! (finally turns around and stammers in shock at the results) WHAT!?! THERE'S 5 OTHER SUPER READERS IN THERE!?!

Computer: That's what I saw.

Red Spark: THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE!!! HOW!?! WHO ARE THEY!?! SHOW ME!!!

Computer: Hey, smart ass, I need to be closer to whoever owns the signal to register them into the database. You know how I work, right? Since you made me with that staff a few days ago.

Red Spark: Well, I didn't think you'd be so underpowered. And snarky too…. No matter! I'm going to visit that place anyway! So I'll just have to search for them myself! With everyone under my control, it should be easy!

Computer: One more thing to note; that hypnosis spell only works on adults 20 and up. It's an Orrenian spell. And you know how Orrena gets about these types of things.

Red Spark: Woof… really don't want me to take it the easy way, huh? Alright then, (taps finger on chin) uuuuuuh…capture anyone who is up to the age of 15. There we go. That should cover a good amount of ground, right?

(The fennecs nod.)

Computer: Anyone between 16 and 19?

Red Spark: Just kill them. They're of no importance anyways.

Computer: What if one of them is a Super Reader?

Red Spark: Then that's great! Less work for me! I have everything in place! Come, my fennecs! Remove the key from the scanner and let us get this show started! 

(Red Spark runs off to an elevator. The fennecs pull out the key from the scanner and fly out through a hatch, making their way to the bottom. The computer sits there with an unamused expression on its face.)

Computer: Idiot.

(Red Spark rides the elevator all the way to the top. Once he steps out, it shows a different, smaller control panel with a steering wheel and microphone attached. Red Spark takes a seat in his big commander chair and clicks on the bottom camera, showing the fennecs floating near the ground, ready with the key.)

Red Spark: (on the mic) Alright, fennecs! At the strike of noon, we open the portal and take over the village! Got that!?

(The fennecs squeak affirmatively. Red Spark presses a button that displays an analog clock, showing only 20 minutes til noon.)

Red Spark: Enjoy the last moments of normalcy while you still have it, my dear villagers! For noon, everything as you know it will be changed forever!!

(Red Spark lets out a maniacal laugh, as it shows the clock slowly tick down by the second.

Next scene shows Paige, Woofster, and Princess Pea riding the latter’s horseless horse carriage. Paige is holding tightly onto Woofster, staring at the sky, scared of when Red Spark is going to strike. Princess Pea notices and places her hand on Paige’s shoulder.)

Princess Pea: You seem really tense. 

Paige: Oh! Just a lot of things on my mind! That’s all! (nervous laugh)

(Paige falls silent again, thinking on what to do now with the incoming strike of Red Spark .)

Princess Pea: You know, I’ve been wondering what Comic World is like. I’ve never heard about it before.

Paige: Well..um..it was an amazing place. Full of superheroes, action, danger, and so much adventure you wouldn’t believe! There was so much fun and excitement to be had!

Princess Pea: Wow! That sounds amazing!

Paige: I know, right!? I wish I could take you there! If it weren’t…destroyed..that is….

(Paige falls silent once again, looking just as somber as the first she mentioned her home being destroyed. Princess Pea scoots closer to Paige and pats her back.)

Princess Pea: I’m sure we’ll sort this mess out as soon as we can.

Paige: Really…?

Princess Pea: Of course. We’re Super Readers, after all. We always do our best to solve each other's problems.

(Paige smiles, happy that she seems to believe her and willing to show support. Yeah, they are Super Readers, and this is a problem they can solve! No matter how difficult it will be! She looks at the sky, this time more determined, ready for whatever Red Spark is going to throw at them.

Smash cuts to the clock from before, showing that it is now 10 minutes til noon.

Next scene shows Jack walking down the path to his house. He stops and looks up at the clock tower, showing that, in Storybook Village at least, it’s actually late in the evening. He lets out a heavy sigh.)

Jack: { At this rate, Whyatt’s gonna be home before me. Let’s hope he’s not messing with my stuff again. Knowing him, that’s probably what he’s doing right now. }

(Jack groans and resumes walking. 

Another smash cut to the Comic World’s clock shows that it’s now three minutes til noon. 

Next scene takes place in Whyatt’s bedroom. Whyatt is at his desk, doing homework, though is having a hard time focusing. His mind keeps wandering back to that mysterious girl that showed up in the Book Club. What does she mean by her being a comic book character? What’s this place called Comic World? Why did Red Spark destroy it? Who is Red Spark? Why is he a supervillain? Why–? Whyatt quickly shakes his head, realizing he’s drifting into a bunch of questions again. Then again, he can’t help it. She just appeared out of nowhere. She wasn’t anyone they knew from here. All that, and she found out they are the Super Readers, which begs the question of how long she’s been in the Book Club. Should they really trust anything she said? Then again, she implied that she’s a Super Reader too…. Whyatt shakes his head again. He really needs to focus on his homework right now…as much as he doesn’t want to do it…. All part of the routine….

One final cut shows the clock to be at the edge of noon. Red Spark is leaning back in his chair, a juice box in his hand, bored out of his mind.)

Red Spark: (loud, long groan) God, I really should’ve started waiting when it was actually closer to noon…. It’s been..uh..how long has it been?

Computer: 19 minutes.

Red Spark: 19 minutes!? Oh you gotta be kidding me! At this rate, I might as well just do it now!

(And just like that, the clock strikes noon, with an ominous ringing filling the air.)

Red Spark: Oh thank god! Finally! Fennecs!

(Red Spark looks at the camera and sees the fennecs have fallen asleep.)

Red Spark: For the love of– FENNECS!!!

(The fennecs are startled awake, nearly dropping the key.)

Red Spark: It is time to pay the village a little visit! So, you better get that key ready! Cause it'll be one hell of a ride!

(The fennecs salute and fly all the way up to the very bottom of the ship. They hold the key straight down, which summons a giant lock. Red Spark looks upon this in delight.)

Red Spark: Alright, my sweet servants! On the count of three, unlock that portal! Just one more thing…

(Red Spark opens a drawer built into the panel, revealing a pair of goggles. He takes them out and straps them on.)

Red Spark: Safety first! (knocks on skull) I already have a helmet! (laughs) Alright, on one! 

(The fennecs raise up the key.)

Red Spark: Two!

(The fennecs ready themselves to dive.)

Red Spark: Three! And go!

(The fennecs dive down and insert the key into the lock. The key turns and unlocks the portal, with a shining red light pouring through. The fennecs shield their eyes from the light, while Red Spark stares on, a wide unsealed grin on his face.

Shows what could’ve been just another normal day in Storybook Village, until Little Boy Blue screams, pointing up to the sky. Everyone looks up and sees that the sky is slowly turning red as the same shining light pours through, with swirling clouds added to the mix. The town erupts into panic once they see this happening. Jack catches wind of this panic and looks up at the sky, seeing the red color spreading and consuming the blue. A sense of horror floods Jack’s expression.)

Jack: What…the hell…?

(Cuts to Princess Pea’s castle. The horseless horse carriage arrives at the front gate and the two girls and Woofster step out. Paige looks at the castle with excitement in her eyes.)

Paige: Wow! I’ve never seen a castle like this before! I mean, there were castles in Comic World, but they were more like crystalized headquarters. This is the first time I’ve seen a fairytale castle! 

Princess Pea: (giggles) Would you like a tour then?

Paige: Of course! (holds both of Princess Pea’s hands) I’d really love that, princess! 

(Princess Pea looks at the hand holding with surprise, feeling a soft fluttering in her chest. Woofster lets out a whine and the girls look over at him, seeing him staring at the sky, trembling in fear.)

Paige: What’s wrong, boy? What’s–?

(Both the girls both look up at the sky, and the same terror Woofster has nabs them too as they see the sky fill with horrid red.)

Princess Pea: Wh-what’s happening!? (looks at Paige) Paige!? (notices Paige’s horrified expression) Paige…?

Paige: Oh no…. He’s here….

(Cuts to Whyatt’s room. Whyatt seems particularly frustrated with some social studies homework. He leans back in his chair with an exhausted groan, before noticing a peculiar red light coming from his window. He gets up and looks out, seeing this terrifying sight of a blood red sky. Suddenly, the sound of speaker feedback can be heard as Red Spark turns on the mic.)

Red Spark: Hello, dear subjects! Welcome to a new era of your little lives! 

(Red Spark’s laugh echoes through the sky as everyone stares up at the sky with terror.

Final shot is a close-up of Whyatt’s eyes, full of dread, before cutting to black, ending this chapter.

Something tells him things will get so much worse from here…. )

To be continued….

Chapter Text

(Chapter begins where the last one left off. With a blood red sky hanging over Storybook Village, a shining light hanging in the middle over town square, with swirling clouds surrounding it, and panic quickly spreading through the village as Red Spark’s evil laugh echoes through the air. Paige, Woofster, and Princess Pea are at the entrance of the latter’s castle, Jack is standing in the middle of the panicking town, and Whyatt is looking out his bedroom window, all five of them are staring up at the sky in horror.

Red Spark’s laughter slows down as he starts losing his breath, before just stopping completely as he takes a moment to catch it.)

Red Spark: (huff huff) H-hold on a sec.… (huff huff) Whew, being evil takes a lot out of you, huh? (looks at the camera displaying the village) Wait, why is everyone still running and screaming? I thought– (looks at a smaller screen on the panel, seeing that the hypnosis spell hasn’t been activated) Oh… stupid manual. Hang on, hang on.

(Red Spark flicks on a switch that activates the spell, causing a sonic wave to blast through. The sonic wave causes a total blackout in all the buildings, knocks down most of the people near town square to the ground, Jack included, and makes a strong wind blow through everywhere else. Red Spark looks surprised by this, not expecting it to be that violent of an activation.)

Red Spark: Whoa! Didn’t mean to do that, but we’ll roll with it.

(The townspeople get up, and soon any adult that dares to look up at the sky is instantaneously hypnotized, their eyes turning red to signify this. Some of them noticed this and were smart enough to hide away from any view of the sky. Unfortunately, that’s only a small minority of adults…most have been entranced by the spell. Jack sits up after the shock of the blast and quickly checks to see if his guitar is okay, before looking around at what’s happening. All the children and teens show concern and fear at what is occurring. Red Spark looks at the screen with a joyful gilt in his eyes.)

Red Spark: That’s better! 

(Red Spark leans back in his chair and pulls the mic closer to him. He taps the mic a few times, which causes a loud feedback squeal to tear through the speakers, startling him and has everyone else cover their ears.)

Red Spark: Ow ow ow ! Christ! Woof… remind me to never do that again…. (clears throat) I see some of us are quite confused on what’s going on here, so allow me to fill you in~. My name is Red Spark, and I’m hoping to conquer this little town of yours and find seven of those Supers Readers you have here. Two of them are a dear archenemy of mine, Paige Prower and her little dog Woofster! The other five…I’m not so sure of. And that’s where all who fell under my control come in! For all under my control, I want you to grab all the children you can nab, including your own kids, and drag them over to the center of town! I have to scan them in order to find those five other super readers. And if they try to resist…I don’t know. Do what you like! Beat them, if you want. Er..just keep them alive, will ya? I don’t want any child death on my hands…except for those Super Readers, of course. Only the Super Readers deserve death!

(Jack’s eyes widened at that last sentence, realizing exactly what he’s planning to do. This man wants to kill his own little brother…and potentially himself as well…. Jack jumps to his feet and races off to his house, his sibling instincts having kicked in. He needs to get Whyatt out of the house…NOW!! )

Red Spark: But that’s for everyone 15 and under. As for anyone 16-19, just kill them. They’re teenagers, what importance do they have? And one more thing, no babies! I don’t want anything to do with those piles of flesh, so just leave them be. It’s not like you can be beaten up by a baby anyway….

(Red Spark looks at the screen and sees the hypnotized adults just standing there, not given the command to carry out his orders.)

Red Spark: What are you all still standing around for!? You have your orders! Go and do them, for god’s sake!

(And like that, the controlled adults move to achieve the orders given. The children start to panic, trying to evade being captured. The teenagers fend off the adults, fighting desperately for their lives. And the few adults that aren’t hypnotized (and know the sky causes it) fight off the others, trying to protect the kids that decided to reside safety with them. Basically chaos all around.

Next scene focuses on Princess Pea, Paige, and Woofster, who haven’t moved from the castle entrance since all this chaos began.)

Paige: Wait, 7 Super Readers? (looks at Princess Pea, perplexed) You have a 5th member? I didn’t know that!

Princess Pea: I didn’t know either. This is my first time hearing about this. I wonder who it is….

Paige: We can wonder about it later. Right now, we–

???: FREEZE!

(The girls turn around and see a flurry of guards spilling out from the gate and surround the trio, all pointing their swords at them. King Pea, Princess Pea’s father, steps out of the crowd and points his sword very close to his daughter’s neck. Princess Pea stumbles backwards out of the shock of this and looks at his bright red eyes, no longer seeing the father she once knew.)

Princess Pea: Father! I-It’s me! Princess Pea! Your daughter! Remember!?

King Pea: (dull tone) I’m sorry, Princess Presto…but I must kill you on behalf of you being a Super Reader. And your friend will come with us whether she wants to or not. Red Spark’s orders.

(Princess Pea gasps and seems to be on the verge of tears. She couldn’t believe that her own father was willing to kill his beloved child…. Paige puts on a determined scowl, knowing that they have to get out as soon as they can.)

Paige: Not on my watch! Blow Away!

(And like that, her eyes glow gray and she summons a strong gust of wind that blows King Pea and several of the guards away. She uses another gust to clear a path for the trio and grabs Princess Pea’s arm.)

Paige: Come on! Let’s go!

Princess Pea: But what about my father!?

Paige: We can worry about him another time! Right now, we just need to run for it!

(Paige starts running, dragging Princess Pea behind her and Woofster running alongside them. King Pea gets up with a terrifying determined face of his own.)

King Pea: (points sword in their direction) After them!

(The guards chase after them and Paige sees she needs to use a stronger move. Though she isn’t so sure how well it’s going to work. Better now than never! Paige halts and turns to the oncoming group of guards, letting Princess Pea and Woofster continue to run. She gathers up as much steely determination as she can and swings her arms up into the air.)

Paige: TRAPPING VORTEX!!!

(Paige summons a giant funnel of wind that traps all the guards in their place, unable to escape. Paige looks at the funnel with a mix of shock and joy. She couldn’t believe that she was able to do that without needing her super form! She races to catch up with Princess Pea and Woofster. The trio ran deep into the woods until they couldn’t anymore. Woofster collapses to the ground out of exhaustion. Paige props her against a tree, panting and trying not to collapse herself. Princess Pea, however, plops on the grass and curls up, burying her face in her knees, tears in her eyes, still trying to wrap her head around the events that are unfolding.)

Princess Pea: I..I can’t believe this…. My own father…tried to..kill me….

Paige: It wasn’t by choice. He was being controlled. They all are. Red Spark must’ve gotten access to a hypnosis spell that–

(Paige stops speaking once she hears Princess Pea begin to cry. She stares at the princess for a moment, knowing exactly how she herself felt when she was put under a similar situation. She goes over to her and sits down, putting her hand on Princess Pea’s shoulder.)

Paige: I know everything’s really bad right now, but we can fix it.

Princess Pea: But..but how?

Paige: Not sure, but (gets up) I recall a certain princess saying that we’re Super Readers who do our best to solve each other's problems. And I know there’s no problem too big to solve.

(Paige crouches down and extends her hands to Princess Pea.)

Paige: We can fix it all together.

(Paige gives her a warm smile. Princess Pea looks at Paige with pink sparkles in her eyes and smiles back, wiping her tears away. She takes Paige’s hand and the latter helps her up.)

Paige: We need to get to your headquarters as soon as possible!

Princess Pea: You mean the Book Club?

Paige: Right, right, whatever you call it, heh….

Princess Pea: Follow me, it shouldn’t be too far from here.

(Princess Pea dashes off to the Book Club, with Paige and Woofster tailing behind. 

Meanwhile, at the same time as the scene above, Whyatt slowly backs away from the window, flooded with pure confusion and fear. He couldn’t believe it. Red Spark is real, and he's here! Everything Paige was saying..was it really true!? He hears footsteps coming up the stairs and his heart begins to race. He can think on that later, he just needs to get out of here. Whyatt rushes out of his bedroom and turns to run down the stairs, only to see that his parents were already upstairs and ready to grab him. Bright red glowing eyes stare at him through the darkness of the house, enough to make Whyatt’s blood run cold. The parents start slowly approaching him, with Whyatt backing up at the same pace.)

Whyatt: M-mom? D-dad? It-it-it’s me, Wh-Whyatt! 

(The parents don’t respond, only continuing to approach him with blank expressions, like a couple of zombies. Whyatt soon realizes that he’s been backed in a corner and his parents grab him by the arms, trying to drag him away. Whyatt pulls back, trying to release himself from their grasp.)

Whyatt: No! Please! Let me go! 

(This sparks some anger in the hypnotized parents, as they look at him with scowls on their faces. Luckily for Whyatt, his older brother burst into the house just in time to hear his cry. Jack rushes up the stairs and, only running on pure protective instinct, slams his guitar into their father, breaking it half. Jack stumbles back after doing this, his mind having caught up with him. He looks at his broken guitar with horror. Everything happened so fast that he didn’t even realize that he was using his precious guitar as a weapon. Though, once he realized exactly who he hit, his heart lodged itself in his throat and he drops the guitar. He didn’t just break his guitar…he hit his own father as well! Though, one look at his dad’s now red eyes signals to Jack that he’s long gone at this point.

The father lunges at Jack, pinning him against the wall as he begins to strangle his oldest son. Jack scratches at his father’s hand as he struggles to breathe. Whyatt looks on in horror as he struggles against his mother, now desperate to help his brother out.) 

Whyatt: JACK!

(The mother gets so fed up with Whyatt resisting that she slaps him across the face. Whyatt stumbles back and stares at her in shock as she towers over him, looking ready to hurt him even more. 

Seeing this seems to activate something in Jack, as his eyes start to glow a brighter green than the normal emerald that his eyes naturally are. Just as suddenly, a couple of huge beanstalk plants erupt from the ground and nab both of the parents, ripping them away from both of the brothers and wrapping around them, effectively trapping them in place. Jack takes a big gasp of air as he collapses on his hand and knees, coughing as he recovers from the attempted strangulation.)

Whyatt: Jack! (rushes to Jack’s side) Are you okay!? 

(Jack takes a moment to stare at the plant in disbelief before getting up.)

Jack: We need to get out of here! 

Whyatt: What about–!?

Jack: Just go! Come on!

(Whyatt doesn’t take any second glances as both him and his brother race out of the house. They run as fast as they can until they are far enough away to catch their breath. Jack slumps down against a tree, trying to get himself together after all that chaos. Whyatt stands there, still in shock at what just happened. Once they're both able to speak again, Jack goes over to his little brother and kneels down, rubbing the cheek where Whyatt got slapped.)

Jack: It didn't hurt too badly, did it?

Whyatt: Our..our parents attacked us…like-like-like that…. They wouldn't just…do that, right…? 

Jack: No. No, they wouldn't. (looks up at the sky) Not by choice.

(Whyatt looks at the sky with Jack and seems…to tremble. This really is a super big problem…but not one he was ever used to…. Jack’s phone starts ringing and he pulls it out, seeing that Black Sheep is calling him.)

Jack: (answers phone) Hel–?

B. Sheep: (screams) JACK!! YOU NEED TO HELP ME!! AUNT MARY IS TRYING TO KILL ME!! AND SHE'S TRYING TO TAKE LITTLE LAMB!! YOU HAVE TO GET HERE NOW !! (sounds of things breaking) NO!! STAY AWAY FROM ME YOU BITCH!! HURRY!!

(The call hangs up and Jack stares at his phone, dumbfounded. Whyatt has his ears covered throughout the entire duration of the call.)

Jack: (under breath) Shit…. (puts phone back in pocket) Why, you need to get somewhere safe. Do not go back to the house.

Whyatt: But-but what about you? Won't you get hurt?

Jack: I'll be fine. You just need to hide somewhere. Don't do anything crazy, okay?

Whyatt: O-okay.

(The brothers share a hug before Whyatt runs off into the woods. Jack gets up to his feet and takes a deep breath. His mind wanders to that beanstalk plant that just sprouted out of the ground earlier. He felt something reactivate inside him the moment he saw Whyatt get hurt and suddenly that plant sprouted out of nowhere…was that his own doing? The fact that the plant grabbed their crazed parents and not them can't make it a coincidence, right? He hears a scream in the distance and shakes away his thoughts. He can't focus on that right now, Black Sheep is in danger. Jack runs off, ending this scene.

Next scene takes place outside the Book Club, as Princess Pea, Paige, and Woofster finally make it there.)

Paige: Woo! Made it without any other problems! Do you know a way we can call the others?

Princess Pea: Well, Whyatt’s usually the one that calls all the Super Readers to the Book Club, so I think we should wait for him.

Paige: So he's the leader, huh? Great! Though, I've been wondering, how did your father know you were a Super Reader?

Princess Pea: Well, one time we found him trapped inside a book we were in. We don’t know how he got there or how long he was stuck there, but when we rescued him he figured out our identities real quick. His answer to that was that we could always change our clothes, but never our face.

Paige: Unless you're wearing a magical helmet….

(Rustling can be heard coming from some nearby bushes. Paige and Woofster quickly get into fighting positions as they await this potential intruder, only for Whyatt to walk through the foliage instead. The two sigh with relief upon seeing that.)

Princess Pea: Whyatt! There you are! (notices the bruise on his cheek) What happened?

Whyatt: My parents attacked me and my brother Jack, but then this big beanstalk plant burst through the ground and saved us! I have no idea where that plant came from! (looks at Paige) I'm so sorry I didn't believe you the first time, Paige.

Paige: It’s okay. I wouldn’t’ve believed myself either. But now that you're here, we can call the other Super Readers!

Red: We're here!

(Red and Pig rush out of the bushes, exhausted from running.)

Paige: Oh.

Whyatt: Red! Pig! Did your families attack you too?

Red: Of course! It's been happening everywhere! My grandma scratched me with one of her knitting needles, (points at the bleeding gash in her arm) see?

(The other kids wince upon seeing the wound.)

Red: I managed to escape and went to save Pig too, since I saw Poppa Pig choking one of his older brothers and knew he had to get out of there!

Pig: (on the verge of tears) I just hope my brothers are okay…I can't believe Poppa Pig would do something like that….

Paige: He isn't doing by choice. None of them are. They’re all being controlled by Red Spark!

Red: Gotta say, this Red Spark guy knows how to make a scene.

Whyatt: Red! 

Red: What? Just saying.

Paige: (dry half-chuckle) That’s just how supervillains are like in my world. But now that we're all here, we can head inside the Book Club and–!

Princess Pea: Wait! Red Spark mentioned something about a 7th Super Reader, didn't he? Shouldn't they be here by now?

Red: There’s never been a 5th one that we know of, though. It's only been the four of us. Well, (gestures to Paige) I guess there is five now. Not sure how a dog could be a Super Reader.

(Woofster huffs, displeased by Red's comment.)

Paige: Well he addressed me and Woofster directly, so he already knows we're Super Readers. He knows nothing about you four, and he's probably just as clueless as us about who the 7th one could be….

(The other three kids think on what to do to find the 7th one. Whyatt then pulls out the portable Super Duper Computer out of his pocket, getting an idea.)

Whyatt: Maybe..maybe we can give them the Super Reader signal. 

Paige: The Super Reader signal? 

Red: Basically a sound only we Super Readers can hear. 

Pig: Whyatt uses it to call all of us to the Book Club.

Red: He uses it way too much in my opinion….

Pig: But I wonder, if there really is a 7th Super Reader in Storybook Village, why haven't we ever met them?

Princess Pea: Maybe they grew too old and retired?

Paige: Nonsense! I've never heard a Super Reader retire before! I've seen other active Super Readers who are adults, so that can't be right!

Princess Pea: Maybe the ones that do retire never talked about it? You'd never know.

Paige: Well, I mean–

Whyatt: Guys, we're wasting time! Let me just send the signal.

(Whyatt taps a button on the portable computer's screen and it displays a round button with a question mark on it and various other question marks surrounding said button. It's as if the Super Duper Computer itself doesn't know who it's sending the signal to. Whyatt presses the digital button and holds the device up in the air.)

Whyatt: To the 7th Super Reader in Storybook Village, please come out! I don’t know who you are, but we need your help! Please come to the Book Club and join us to fight Red Spark!

(Whyatt’s voice echoes along with translucent question marks floating across the sky. The flowing line of question marks approach the rest of the village…

Meanwhile, about the same time as the scene above, Jack managed to make it all the way to Black Sheep’s house. Jack slams open the door and is greeted with an empty messed up house, rather than the active fight he was expecting. He is partially relieved but still worried about this.)

Jack: Sheep!? Sheep, where are you!? 

(Jack starts looking around the house for Black Sheep, his heart racing as he looks into more and more of this mess. Eventually, he climbs up the stairs and looks into Black Sheep’s room, upon which he finds her battered and bruised. Jack lets out a sharp gasp and rushes to her side.)

Jack: Sheep!? Sheep!! (shakes B. Sheep) Come on, Sheep! Wake up!

B. Sheep: (groans, looks at Jack) Jack…?

Jack: (heavy relieved sigh) Thank god you're alright….

B. Sheep: (sits up) No, I'm not alright…. Where’s Little Lamb…?

(Black Sheep gets up with some help from Jack and they both take some steps out of the room. One look around the house has the memories flood back to her and she begins to cry into Jack’s shoulder.)

B. Sheep: (through tears) Oh my god…my poor baby….

(Jack gives her a comforting hug. Suddenly, sounds of running footsteps rapidly approach the house and both of them tense up, with Jack’s eyes beginning to glow again. After a few tense moments, Eldest Pig, a..well, much older pig with a green hard hat, overalls, and tool belt around his waist, rushes into the house and slams the door behind him. He locks the door and backs away, heavily out of breath. The other two look down the stairs and settle down once they realize he wasn't going to attack them.)

Jack: Eldest Pig?

E. Pig: AAAAAAAAH!!! GET AWAY FROM ME!!!

(Eldest Pig somehow finds a tire and throws it at them. The two dodge the incoming tire and look at him with confusion.)

B. Sheep: What in the–!? Where'd you find a tire!?

E. Pig: I– Uh– You're..you’re not going to kill me?

B. Sheep: No! What would make you think that?

E. Pig: Because Poppa Pig is trying to kill me! That's why! He tried to strangle me, then Middle Pig hit him in the back with a baseball bat! Littlest Pig ran off with Red Riding Hood, so I know he's safe! At least I hope so! But then Middle Pig got caught by some other guy and now Poppa Pig is chasing me with an ax! (goes to Jack and starts shaking him) I'M LOSING MY MIND!!!

Jack: (pulls himself away from E. Pig) Alright, alright, calm down! I'm sure we can think of somethi–

(Before Jack could finish, Poppa Pig begins chopping down the door with an ax. The teenagers all scream, with Eldest Pig clinging onto Jack, and Black Sheep runs into the kitchen to search for a weapon. Poppa Pig breaks down the door, but before he could do anything, Black Sheep knocks him out cold with a big pot. Poppa Pig flops face first onto the ground and the three teens take a brief moment to gather themselves.)

Jack: Holy fuck!

E. Pig: Jack! Watch your language!

Jack: That’s your biggest concern right now!?

B. Sheep: Will both of you stop yelling!? This is getting serious! 

(Black Sheep heads up the stairs, walking past both of the boys, and goes into her office space. The boys follow her and see her pulling out a large black chest from the bottom of her desk.)

B. Sheep: Thank goodness I never told Aunt Mary what's really inside this chest, otherwise I'd be as good as dead.

Jack: What do you mean by that?

(Black Sheep opens the chest and pulls out a large magenta hammer with some pink decals around the sides and a red heart on each flat end, and balances the handle on her shoulder.)

B. Sheep: What I mean, hot shot, is that we're going to get Little Lamb, Middle Pig, and whoever else that bastard wants to take away from us back.

E. Pig: But-but-but how are we supposed to fight!? We're just normal teens!

B. Sheep: (pulls a baseball bat from the chest) Isn’t it obvious?

(Black Sheep tosses the baseball bat over to Eldest Pig, who fumbles trying to get a hold of it before just letting it drop to the floor.)

E. Pig: We're..we're not really gonna hurt anyone, right?

B. Sheep: (rummages through the chest) Not unless we have to. (looks at Jack) Know how to use a firearm, hot shot?

Jack: (taken aback) Uh..well..I mean..not really…?

B. Sheep: (pulls out a gun and gives it to Jack) Well, you better start learning then.

(Jack seems perturbed by the gun, but takes it regardless. At least it makes for a better self-defense weapon than his guitar. )

E. Pig: Gun? Gun!? Why do you have a gun!? Why do you have weapons in general!?

Jack: Yeah, you seem oddly prepared for this.

B. Sheep: Let’s just say I've watched too many apocalypse and survival movies for my own good. Now, are we going to stand around and ask questions or… (hands some ammo to Jack) are we going to save those kids?

(Eldest Pig picks up the bat, reluctant to fight but still determined to protect his brothers. Jack takes the ammo and loads it into the gun. He was about to ready the firearm when the flowing line of question marks finally reaches the house and Jack freezes up as he hears the voice loud and clear in his head.

To the 7th Super Reader in Storybook Village, please come out! I don’t know who you are, but we need your help! Please come to the Book Club and join us to fight Red Spark!

A chill crawls up his spine as a strong compulsion of some kind hits him. 

Normally when that kind of call occurs, the voice was muffled and the compulsion was weak and able to be ignored, a constant reminder to him that those days were done. He wasn't bothered by that though, he at least knew what his brother was doing when he's gone for a good chunk of the day. But this time…this time was different. Now the call echoed in his mind, blurring away his thoughts. This compulsion to go back to the Book Club he left so long ago became so much stronger, he wouldn't be able to ignore it if he tried. He doesn't even know why or how. This never happened before. It was like– )

B. Sheep: Jack-a-boy? Are you there?

(Jack jolts back into reality when Black Sheep touches his shoulder. One look at the concerned expressions on both of the anthro animals' faces shows that he was getting lost in his thoughts, and his expression wasn't hiding what was going through his head. )

Jack: Yeah…(brushes off B. Sheep’s hand) yeah, I-I’m fine. Let’s just go.

(Black Sheep nods and carefully leads the two boys out of the house. Eldest Pig looks at the still unconscious Poppa Pig with fear and grief. He still couldn’t believe all this was happening. It must be some sort of dream. The whole world's gone all topsy-turvy on him! Jack readies the gun for any other villagers that may attack them, though the call still lingers in the back of his mind. He'll have to think on it later. Right now, he just needs to ignore this sudden compulsion as best as he can. He's just hoping that Whyatt’s still at the Book Club and doesn't do anything stupid….

Next scene takes place at the cockpit of the ship. Red Spark is spinning around in his commander chair, bored out of his mind.)

Red Spark: (groans, stops spinning) How hard is it to capture some kids? They're so small and feeble compared to an adult. It shouldn't be that hard.

Computer: Well, there's still the teenagers that have a better chance of fighting. And some adults did hide away.

Red Spark: Ah phooey! Why does that matter?

(Suddenly, a small alarm appears on the screen as the Super Reader signal is detected. The sound makes Red Spark fall out of his chair and he scrambles over to the panel.)

Red Spark: AAAAH! SIGNAL!? SIGNAL!! FOUND A SIGNAL FOUND A SIGNAL FOUND A SIGNAL FOUND A SIGNAL!!!

(The supervillain smacks his face into the panel and begins pressing random buttons.)

Red Spark: COMPUTER!! SHOW ME THE ORIGIN OF THAT SIGNAL!!

Computer: No need to yell, sir.

(The computer tracks down the location of the signal and pings the Book Club as the cause, being located far off from the main village.)

Red Spark: Hmmmm.. seems a little far for a headquarters. Bah! To each their own! Now then, let’s see who’s at that little “book club” of theirs? I’m sure all seven will be there soon enough.

(The computer scans for the identities of the Super Readers, and two names instantly pop up with pictures beside them; Paige Prower and Woofster.)

Red Spark: (rolls eyes) Ugh, of course they’re gonna be there…. What about the new guys? Who are they?

(The computer takes a bit longer to scan the others, but eventually names pop up one by one with pictures attached, starting with Whyatt Beanstalk.)

Red Spark: What kind of last name is Beanstalk? Kid needs to work on his civilian name.

(Next name is Little Red Riding Hood.)

Red Spark: HER!? Oh wait..I’m thinking of the wrong Riding Hood. (shudders) Let’s hope she’s not as bad as…her….

(Next name: Princess Pea.)

Red Spark: Ah, of course. The princess of the worst vegetable known to mankind.

Computer: What’s your problem with peas?

Red Spark: They’re all round and squishy and bleeeeh….

(The final name pops up; Littlest Pig, and Red Spark bursts into laughter.)

Red Spark: Are you serious!? A pig!? Ha! That one’s probably the easiest to handle! Alright! Last one, baby!

(The computer scans a little longer, Red Spark waiting at the edge of his seat, only to pop up with a scanning complete message. Red Spark stares dumbfounded for a moment.)

Red Spark: That’s it? That’s all there is!? Where’s the 7th one!?

Computer: You want to hear the message the signal gave out? 

Red Spark: Yeah, sure, whatever…. That’s so disappointing….

(The computer loads up the message that was recorded…)

Audio Recording: To the 7th Super Reader in Storybook Village, please come out! I don’t know who you are, but we need your help! Please come to the Book Club and join us to fight Red Spark!

Red Spark: (pauses for a moment) Ah. They don’t know who this elusive 7th Super Reader is either. (facepalm) Damn it. Was hoping for the easy way out….  

(Red Spark turns to the fennecs, who were in the background playing with an empty trash bin.)

Red Spark: Fennecs! Prepare the area for landing! We’re still going to have to find that secret Super Reader the hard way….

(The fennecs salute to their master and fly out. Red Spark rubs the sides of his head with exhaustion.)

Red Spark: Why, oh why..why must things still be hard for dear ol’ me? (does a dramatic hand on forehead pose while sighing) Oh well…guess I must suffer.

(Red Spark turns back to the computer, facing his back towards the camera, ending the scene.

Next scene takes place outside the Book Club. The kids are waiting for someone to answer Whyatt’s call, though no one seems to be coming. Whyatt seems to lose some hope in his face as this fact becomes apparent. Everyone else starts feeling the same way, except Red, who was growing impatient.)

Pig: You think they heard it?

Whyatt: They should’ve…maybe I should try it again? But I’ve already done it once…it should be enough….

Red: If they hadn’t shown up the other times we’ve been called here, they’re probably not going to show up now. Heck, they probably got sick of hearing that darn signal everyday….

(Whyatt hangs his head low upon hearing Red’s mutter. Paige notices this and walks over to him.)

Paige: Hey, maybe they live far away from here. I’m sure they’ll show up eventually, but right now we need to figure out a plan to stop Red Spark. Come on!

(Whyatt nods and they all head inside the Book Club. Once inside, Paige immediately goes over to the Super Duper Computer.)

Paige: So..uh..how does this fancy computer of yours work?

Whyatt: The Super Duper Computer? Well, when we normally have a question, we fly into books to answer them. There’s these special clues called Super Letters that lead us to what we call the Super Story Answer. 

Paige: Wow! Never knew that other Super Readers take care of their problems differently! (flapping hands) This is so exciting!

Pig: But what book is going to answer the problem of our parents suddenly attacking us!?

Red: And a supervillain taking over Storybook Village? If you hadn’t noticed, this is not some problem you face everyday.

Whyatt: I-I’m sure we can figure something out. We just–

(Suddenly, an emergency broadcast message occurs on the computer's screen. The kids look at the screen, completely baffled by this seemingly out of nowhere broadcast. Whyatt and Pig cover their ears at the blaring alarm sound it was producing.)

Paige: (looks at Princess Pea) Has this happened before? 

Princess Pea: No! This never happened before! It’s only ever been able to show what we already know, never a broadcast!

Red: (smirks) Heh, this day keeps getting better.

(The alarm stops and it shows footage of the bright red portal in the sky above town square. All the kids watch in anticipation, wondering what’s about to happen next…

Shows the town square, where the two fennecs have made multiple clones of themselves. These fennec clones are walking around, preparing various recording equipment and gathering all the hypnotized villagers to the area, with some of them having a tight grip on the children. Some of these kids were crying and some had wounds after being beaten, with the blue fennec clones tending to the tears and wounds. The yellow fennec clones are searching around the town, looking for anyone hiding. One of them seems to take suspicion towards a certain store. 

This clone walks into the store and searches around, looking through the shelves, opening the glass fridge doors, and even going into the backroom. Then their attention turns to the checkout desk, where it’s shown that the teen trio are hiding behind it. The fennec gets closer, causing the trio to unknowingly hold their breath. The fennec hops onto the desk, and at this point, the teens fear the worst and readied their weapons. The fennec does a surface level scan and gets distracted by a bunch of cookies locked inside a glass display case. The fennec gets excited and breaks the lock with ease. They take as many cookies as they can fit into their mouth before gunning for it, making various fox squeaks as they do this. The trio are a little puzzled by this, but are very relieved regardless. 

Jack peers out the window, trying not to get seen. The other two follow up, seeing everything going on right outside.)

E. Pig: Okay, Ms. Survival Guide, what do we do here?

B. Sheep: I’m gonna be honest, I have no idea….

E. Pig: What!? Didn’t any of those movies teach you anything about this?

B. Sheep: Well, there wasn't anything about hypnotized civilians!

Jack: Will you two be quiet? We’re in pretty deep shit right now!

E. Pig: (gasp) Profanity!

(Jack rolls his eyes with a heavy sigh. Soon, a soft rumble is here coming from the sky. They look up and see a giant pyramid floating through the portal and towards the ground. The fennec clones scramble to back everyone away and clear the area as the humongous ship gets closer to the ground. The kids back at the Book Club stare at the screen in horror as they watch this unfold. Well, except Red, who seemed very eager to see this villain. Pig hugs Princess Pea in fear and she hugs him back to comfort him. Paige and Woofster stare at the screen with determined expressions, but inside they feel the guilt of allowing Red Spark to take over like this …. Whyatt just…stands there, his connection to reality having vanished as he unconsciously tunes out everything around him, with the screen being the only thing that he has focus on. 

He couldn’t believe what he was witnessing. His whole world felt like it was falling apart right in front of him. He was never once prepared for this. Though, it doesn’t seem like anyone else was either. He knew it in his heart…this day is the day that will change everything. The moment Paige and Woofster arrived, he figured something else was going on. But how big it truly was...well, they were about to find out….

As the ship touches down, the ground shakes, making a majority of the villagers lose their balance. Some of the kids take it as an opportunity to escape, and while a few did succeed, the rest were caught by the castle guards as soon as they came around. The large hatch door opens and a ramp rolls down from the bottom of the door. All the children in the area, the teen trio, and the Super Readers in the Book Club waited with baited breath as they waited to finally meet Red Spark in the flesh. The fennecs bring out a boombox and…)

Red Spark: Fennecs! Hit it! 

(The fennecs turn on the boombox and start playing Bad by Michael Jackson. After letting the song build up for a bit, Red Spark starts dancing down the ramp, being all flashy and over the top. Everyone stares in bewilderment, even those who were hypnotized. The teen trio were equally as bewildered, with Jack mouthing the words “what the fuck”. The Super Readers react the exact same way as everyone else. All the fear and horror of his arrival immediately disappeared, and Whyatt and Pig have strangely calmed down seeing how he’s really like. Paige covers her face in secondhand embarrassment. Woofster follows after with a facepalm. Red…is severely disappointed by this event.)

Red: This is the guy who destroyed Comic World…?

Paige: He’s as silly as he is dangerous….

(Red raises an eyebrow at that statement. Eventually Red Spark reaches the bottom of the ramp, after doing a twirl and pose, of course.)

Red Spark: (laughs) Well, that was a fun entrance, wouldn’t you say? Fennecs! (clap clap) Cut the music!

(The music continues to play and Red Spark looks over to see all the fennec clones getting too in the groove.)

Red Spark: FENNECS!!!

(His yell quickly catches the attention of the fennecs, in which he gives a gesture to stop the song. The fennecs obey and press the button to stop the song…only for it to switch to a nursery rhyme tune instead. They try the button again, but it just switches to a different nursery tune. The fennecs continuously try to shut off the boombox, with it just simply switching to various nursery rhyme tunes. Red Spark slowly turns his head to the fennecs with pure frustration. One of the fennec clones finds a sledgehammer and slams it into the boombox, breaking it and shutting off the music for good. Red Spark is not very impressed by this.)

Red Spark: Welp. Looks like we’re gonna need a new one…. (sigh) Anyway…I hope you manage to wrangle up those kids! Because I still need to find that 7th ranger! As for those other four….

(Red Spark looks at a tv camera with an unsealed smile. He joyfully skips over to the camera and gets really close to it, which freaks out the Super Readers who were still watching the broadcast from that very camera.)

Red Spark: I know exactly where your little headquarters is! I tracked that little signal of yours and I’ll be sending whatever army I can to come and kill you!

(A collective gasp amongst the kids fills the air of the club.)

Red Spark: That’s right! They’ll all come to your little “book club” after this broadcast is cut off! So you best watch out, Paige Prower! And Woofster! And Princess Pea! And Little Red Riding Hood! And Littlest Pig! And Whyatt Beanstalk!

(Those last two names catch the attention of Eldest Pig and Jack, the former being concerned and confused on what Red Spark is talking about, and the latter, well, he already knows where this is going… .)

Red Spark: Your days of life will be over, Super Readers! (evil laugh, turns away from the camera) Once I figure out who and how to lead them there, that is…. 

(Red Spark takes a moment to think, then perks up with an idea.)

Red Spark: Aha! I got it! (notices the camera is still on) Why’s that camera still on!? Shut it down!

(Various fennec clones race to shut off the camera, but don't seem to know what they’re doing. Red Spark stomps over to shut it down himself.)

Red Spark: Fine! I'll shut it off myself!

(Red Spark grabs the camera lens and looks for a button to shut it down. He manages to find it and turns off the broadcast, setting the Super Duper Computer back to its original state. Everyone in the Book Club has..mixed emotions regarding this event.)

Red: What the heck even was all that?

Princess Pea: That was…something….

Pig: I don’t think I feel scared anymore. (pauses) Well, maybe a little bit….

(Whyatt just couldn’t comprehend the absolute mood whiplash that has occurred in front of them, staying completely silent.)

Paige: I know all this was silly but he's still a very dangerous villain! Don’t forget that he has control over this entire village! We have to stop him from taking over the world! He's trying to get all six artifacts of Fiction, which will allow him to become more powerful than anyone ever written, and to stop him we need to get the artifacts ourselves and keep them safe!

Whyatt: But how do we do that? We don't know where they are.

Red: Or what they are, for that matter.

Paige: I'm sure my friend Gidget can explain everything to you! But her lab is in Comic World, and we can't use the portal Red Spark made. Oh..I hope Gidget is alright…. I wonder if there's another way to get to Comic World…. (looks around at the shelves of giant books) Wait a sec….

(Paige walks around the club, scanning through the large books to see if any catch her eye. She spots a weird red glow from one of the books on the very high shelves and gets an idea.)

Paige: Hey, princess, (points to the mysterious book) do you think your magic can reach that book?

Princess Pea: (walks over to Paige, looks at the book, taps finger on chin) Hmmmm, seems tricky, but I'll try my best. (pulls out wand and begins to wave it around) Peas and carrots, carrots and peas, book come out, please please please!

(Casting the spell, pink magic flies out of her wand and over to the book. Paige watches in awe as she witnesses magic up close. The magic grabs the book and draws out onto the ground. The book appears to be a comic book, more specifically a comic titled The Adventures of Power Paige and Red Raider. Paige seems to gain a somber look upon seeing that second name. The one she couldn't save…. The comic book has a spooky red glow coming behind the cover, and is surrounded by red foggy clouds. This sight seems to put unease upon the Super Readers. Well, except Red, who seems eager to see what’s inside.)

Princess Pea: Never seen a book like this before….

Whyatt: Wait, is that your story, Paige?

Paige: It was…and judging by the way it looks, it could be our way to Comic World.

Pig: But how do we know it would take us there? What if it leads somewhere scarier? 

Paige: I’m not sure myself, but given Red Spark knows who and where we all are, anywhere is better than here. 

(Paige takes a step forward to the book..before turning to Whyatt with a nervous smile.)

Paige: So..um..how do you Fairytale Super Readers transform? It’s always been an instant one for me and Woofster. (nervous chuckle) 

Whyatt: Let us show you!

(Whyatt walks over to his friends.)

Whyatt: It’s time to transform! Ready, guys?

Princess Pea + Pig: Ready!

Red: Oh heck yeah!

(Woofster barks with the others, wagging his tail.)

Whyatt: Okay! Arms in! Paige, you can put your arm in too!

Paige: (gasp) Really!? (squees) Okay!

(Everyone puts their arms, and paw, in.)

Whyatt: Super Readers…

Everyone: (throws their arms into the air) To the rescue!

( Commencing transformation sequence;

Pig spins and becomes a super construction worker, complete with a hard hat and toolbox. He stands upon a triangular platform and gives a thumbs up.)

Pig: Alpha-Pig, with Alphabet Power!

(Red spins and becomes a champion roller skater with a purple and red gym suit, matching inline skate and wicker basket. She strikes a pose next to a giant purple word.)

Red: Wonder Red, with Word Power!

(Princess Pea spins and becomes an elegant princess with a pink and green ball gown, with her hair tied into a prim and proper bun and a star wand. She proceeds to use said wand to make a logo that says ‘Spelling’.)

Princess Pea: Princess Presto, with Spelling Power!

(Whyatt spins and dawns a green and blue superhero costume, with a blue cape and a pen with a question mark on top in his hand. He stomps on the ground, creating cracks and causing the word ‘read’ to rise from the floor in giant blue letters.)

Whyatt: Super Why, with the Power to Read! 

(Woofster jumps in and does a backflip, dawning a blue cape and a dictionary attached to his collar. He flies at the screen upon saying his line.)

Woofster: Woofster, with Dictionary Power!

(Paige spins and dawns her own superhero costume, and holds a matching pencil with a heart insignia near the eraser. She writes the word ‘write’ on the screen.)

Paige: Power Paige, with the Power to Write!

Super Why: Together we are…

Everyone: The Super Readers!

( End transformation sequence.

Power Paige hops around in joy, all giddy about being with other Super Readers like her.)

Power Paige: (squealing giggle) I can’t believe I really transformed with Super Readers from a different genre! Sometimes the darkest clouds always have the brightest silver linings!

(The other four kids look at Woofster with surprise.)

Wonder Red: Wow, you really are a Super Reader!

Woofster: You bet, Wonder Red! Call me Woofster!

Alpha-Pig: That’s so cool!

Power Paige: Come on! Enough lollygagging! We need to get out of here and to Comic World before Red Spark sends someone to catch us! And probably someone dangerous!

Alpha-Pig: What does lollygagging mean?

Woofster: It means we’re wasting time! (races to Power Paige’s side) We have to go!

Wonder Red: Pushy much?

Super Why: They’re right. We don’t know what Red Spark might do next. Why-fliers!

(Four aircrafts fly down at the command and they all hop into each of their respective planes, with Woofster hopping into Super Why’s and Power Paige taking a seat in Princess Presto’s. Princess Presto waves her wand and manifests a helmet on her head, as well as one for Super Why, Woofster, and Power Paige. The book opens as the planes prepare to take off, revealing a red swirling vortex not unlike the one that’s in the sky. The Super Readers look at it with hesitation. Well, except Wonder Red, who’s basically bouncing in her seat with excitement.)

Alpha-Pig: I don’t think we should do this….

Super Why: Well, there doesn’t seem to be any other way to solve this problem. 

(Super Why takes a deep breath to settle his nerves. This will be the biggest adventure of their lives, but even so, he still has to stand as the leader of this team. Even if he has absolutely no idea what they’re getting into. )

Super Why: We’re ready to fly into this book!

(And with that, the Why-Fliers fly into the portal and the book closes. Though..not all the way. The cover is left crept slightly open, with a sliver of light shining through… as if waiting for someone else….

Next scene shows Red Spark going around making commands and ordering the hypnotized villagers and fennec clones. The teen trio are still hiding in the store, watching everything happen through the window. Black Sheep seems to have grown impatient.)

B. Sheep: Can’t we just run in there and grab them? Shouldn’t be too hard.

Jack: You kidding? Some of those villagers could easily take us down. Not to mention some of them are animals that can eat us!

E. Pig: And we already knocked out Poppa Pig! I don’t want to hurt anyone else here!

Jack: Me neither…. There has to be some way to get those kids out….

(A sudden shudder crawls up Jack’s back as a strange whistle is heard. Jack looks around to see where that came from. The other two look at him with concern, not having heard the whistle.)

B. Sheep: Jack? Is something going on?

E. Pig: Did you hear something? 

Jack: No..no..I just…

(Another shudder crawls up his spine as the whistle plays again. The compulsion comes back even stronger, almost impossible to ignore. Something was calling to him…he has to answer it before it starts driving him crazy. It’s already grating on his nerves…. But he can’t just leave his friends without warning. Jack looks up at the ship, thinking of a plan. Maybe…just maybe… )

Jack: (gets up) Maybe you two can look for supplies around the store. I have to...check on something.

E. Pig: Supplies? For what?

Jack: We’re getting on that ship.

E. Pig: What!? Are you crazy!? We can’t just go on some crazy guy’s ship! 

B. Sheep: Then what do you think we should do then? Middle Pig is still in that man’s hands, and there ain’t no way I’m letting Little Lamb stay with him! 

Jack: And we’re basically outnumbered if we try to fight. Stealth is our only option if you want to save all of them. 

(Eldest stays quiet for a moment, before sighing, giving in.)

E. Pig: Alright, but how in the world are we going to figure out what to do there? We don’t even know where that ship will go.

Jack: We’ll just have to figure things out as we go.

E. Pig: (rolls eyes) Wow, great plan…. 

(Jack feels the shudder again and he clutches his torso as the shudder reverberates across his body.)

Jack: Fuck!

B. Sheep: (rushes to Jack) Jack! You alright?

Jack: Yeah, yeah, I’m fine, Sheep. (reassuring smile) I’m fine. I need to go, you two stay here, okay? 

B. Sheep: Are you sure you can go on your own?

Jack: I’ll be fine… (puts a hand on B. Sheep’s shoulder) I promise.

B. Sheep: You better keep that promise….

(Jack and Black Sheep share a hug, before Jack quietly leaves the market and dashes off. Black Sheep watches as he goes, having an idea on where he’s going . She then takes a bag from one of those hook shelves and turns to Eldest Pig.)

B. Sheep: Alright Pig, get a bag and start packing.

E. Pig: Wait, but isn’t that stealing!?

B. Sheep: We’re on a life or death mission here. Rules come secondary now. So are you going to help, or are you going to keep whining?

(Black Sheep goes to collect anything that seems like a necessity. Eldest Pig reluctantly follows along, though his expression certainly says that he doesn’t want to do this in the slightest.)

E. Pig: We’re gonna get some bad karma for this, I just know it….

(Next scene starts with a shot of the inside of Book Club, now feeling more empty. A loud creak is heard as the door opens. Jack steps in the building and seems to be hit with a wave of semi-bittersweet nostalgia. He remembers being in this place when he was a kid, going on adventures with an old friend he has since cut off. He couldn’t believe it’s been 7 years since that time he was a Super Reader. More so that his own little brother was the one that took his place after he turned it away. Sometimes he almost misses those days…though speaking of his little bro… )

Jack: Why? Why, are you around here? 

(It doesn’t take him long to see the giant comic book that is leaning against the wall, and his eyes widen. He never knew there were comic books in this place, let alone any like this. It’s almost surprising to see such a sight, but at the same time he is deeply concerned about what Whyatt was doing in there. The aura of this book came off as deeply unnatural, like it was from a different world entirely. He starts to worry about his brother’s safety, then he looks at the slightly opened crack on the side…

And like a snap, his grip on reality was sapped away from him. Everything disappears except for him and the book that stands, which proceeds to open wider. That strange whistle plays again as the crack grows bigger, almost like a beckoning call. Jack feels that old instinct awaken within him, and he tries to resist. As luck would have it, however, he finds himself subconsciously approaching the book, albeit slowly. The book opens more and more as he gets closer, and more of that light shines through. He begins to fall into his instinct as he reaches out to pull the cover open. He’s never jumped into a comic book before, so it wouldn’t hurt to take a peek, right? Just a peek…just a peek…just…a peek…. 

Jack grips the edge of the cover, and before he could open the book all the way…)

Royal guard: FREEZE!

(The yell snaps Jack out of his trance, letting go of the cover, and the book slams itself closed. He turns around and sees the hypnotized guards surrounding him, all pointing their swords at his neck.)

Royal Guard: We are looking for the Super Readers! Red Spark told us they were here and ordered their deaths by our hands! If you don’t cooperate or move out of the way, you’ll join them, understand!?

(Jack stays silent for a moment, trying to think of something quickly. He can’t use the gun because they have solid metal armor on, and he sure as hell isn’t going to reveal himself nor lead them to his younger brother or whoever else they’re after. Then it hits him…that plant that sprouted back when he fought against his parents…while the memory still twists his stomach, he wonders…if he could do that again…? Upon this realization, he looks at the guards with glowing green eyes.)

Jack: Not. A. CHANCE!!

(With that final word, Jack stomps his foot on the floor, summoning a spread of green magic that flows in the pattern of roots. Soon after, several huge beanstalk plants break through the ground and slam the guards into the roof, pinning them there as they struggle against its force. Jack stumbles back as he watches this happen. He couldn’t believe his eyes. At this point, the proof was undeniable, it really was his own doing! His powers..after being dormant for so long..after believing they were almost gone…they were coming back? But why? How? Jack had no time to process all this as one of the guards had dodged the attack and swiftly struck him with their sword, creating a giant gash in Jack’s gut. He yells in pain as he grabs at the wound. He turns to the one remaining guard, now very pissed off, and with a swift wave of his hand, he summons a bunch of vines that wrapped around the guard's body and tied them down to the ground. 

Jack stands there in a moment of stunned disbelief before looking at the opened door. He needs to get out of here! And fast! He races over to the door, but before he takes a step out, he looks back at the book. Whatever his brother is doing in there, he hopes that he's safe. Jack runs out the door, leaving the scene. The final shot of this scene is the book standing there as the guards struggle against the plants restraining them, fully sealed shut, and yet…disappointed….

Next scene takes place in the town square. The fennecs clones are rounding up all the villagers up the ramp and into the ship. Some of the kids have accepted their fate and are crying in fear, with the blue fennecs walking alongside them in an attempt to ease their terror. Others were still fighting against the adults restraining them, with the yellow fennecs there to nip at them in an attempt to have them obey. Amongst the kids still struggling is Middle Pig, who is being held by Papa Bear. He repeatedly kicks the bear in the gut, which was ineffective.)

M. Pig: Hey! Let me go! You big bully! 

(Middle Pig then sees a still unconscious Poppa Pig being carried in by Mama Bear and the Big Bad Wolf. This only serves to make Middle Pig even more desperate to break free.)

M. Pig: Poppa Pig! Wake up! Please! 

(A yellow fennec walks up to the fighting pig and starts nipping at his legs. Middle Pig retaliates by kicking them right in the muzzle, which was very effective, as their nose bleeds a little. This causes other yellow ones to come over and hound the kid, though they aren't able to break his resolve, as he keeps kicking them in the face. 

Black Sheep and Eldest Pig are watching all this happen from an alleyway closer to the ship. Eldest Pig seems heartbroken seeing his father and one of his two brothers get carried into the ship, but cracks a small smile seeing Middle Pig still fighting.)

E. Pig: I always knew that he's the bravest of us three….

(Black Sheep looks around and spots Little Lamb being lead in by Aunt Mary. Little Lamb shows little resistance but a lot of tears as she looks up at her hypnotized aunt.)

LL: Auntie…where's Baa Baa…?

(No response.)

LL: Where’s Baa Baa, auntie…?

(No response. Little Lamb starts to sob again, with a blue fennec rubbing their head against her wool as a means of comfort. Black Sheep feels heartbroken as well, but it quickly turns to rage as she grips the hammer in her hand. She was about to step out the alley and give Red Spark a piece of her mind, but was quickly stopped by Eldest Pig grabbing her shoulder.)

E. Pig: Wait! We still need to wait for Jack!

B. Sheep: Ugh! Then where is he!? Because I'm about to tear through this entire village so I can–!

(Jack finally meets back up with the two anthro animals, out of breath and clutching the side of his body where he got cut, leaning against the alley wall.)

Jack: (huff huff) There you are…. I was looking all over for you two…. I thought you were still at the store…. (huff huff)

(The other two teens stare at the blood coming down Jack’s side. Black Sheep steps closer and removes his hand from the wound, with her making a sharp gasp as she sees it.)

B. Sheep: Jack! I thought you promised you'd be okay! This is not okay!

Jack: It’s fine, Sheep. It's just a little cut.

B. Sheep: Not sure what cuts you've seen but this is not “little” in the slightest !

E. Pig: (spots something) Hey, uh, Jack? Aren't those your parents?

(Jack peers out the alley to see what's going on, and spots his parents, still hypnotized, being led onto the ship by some guards. Red Spark looks at the two, puzzled.)

Red Spark: Where have those two been?

Guard #1: We found them tied up in a plant, sir.

Red Spark: Tied up in a– How do you get tied up in a plant?

(The group of guards that were at the Book Club show up, with leaves and cut vines covering them. Jack seems surprised by this.)

Jack: (very quiet) Wow…that was..fast.

Guard #2: There’s a teenager walking around with the power to control plants, sir. We tried to get him to cooperate, but he unleashed his power out of nowhere. We’re lucky to even have the chance to get out as he was in a hurry.

Red Spark: You’re kidding, right? There’s someone else here with super powers? Are you able to identify him?

Guard #2: He is not anyone we know, unfortunately.

Red Spark: Well that’s just great…. What about those Super Readers I sent you after? Are they dead?

Guard #2: No…they were gone long before we got there, sir. He was the only one there.

Red Spark: OH THAT’S JUST WONDERFUL, ISN’T IT!? Now I have to deal with a bunch of other kids outside of Paige! Like another Red Riding Hood copy…wait I think she’s the original actually…is she? Bah whatever! And then there’s a princess, and a..uh..little pig…I think he was just called Little Pig, and I don’t know what the fourth kid’s name is…. 

(Red Spark starts to ramble to himself, and the teen trio just look at him confused and losing patience.)

B. Sheep: What is this guy on about!?

Jack: No clue. But we have to get on without them seeing us.

E. Pig: And just how do we do that, Sherlock!?

(As Eldest Pig says that, King Pea approaches Red Spark.)

King Pea: Sir, all the villagers are on board the ship.

Red Spark: Really? Well, that was quick! Alright then, we’ll figure this whole Super Reader mess later. Right now, I have to find that 7th reader! Now, on with it! All of you! I don’t have all day!

(Red Spark heads up the ramp and into the ship, being followed by King Pea and the remaining guards. Shortly after, all the fennec clones race onto the ship, in a noisy sea of yellow and blue. The teen trio quickly hide away as this happens, and Jack starts seeing the opportunity to slip in.)

Jack: On my signal….

(The other two look at each other before preparing to run for it. The flood of fennec foxes disappeared as soon as it started and the trio peer around the corner once they know it’s safe. The ramp starts to slowly recede into the ship and Jack seizes the chance.)

Jack: Now!

(Jack bolts for the ramp, with the other two quickly rushing after. The ramp gets further and further away from the ground as they get closer and Jack begins to worry they won’t make it. That fear causes his powers to activate again as his next few steps produce a green glow on the ground, albeit more subtle than last time. And just like that, two giant beanstalk plants rise from the ground and grab hold of the ramp, keeping it in place. Jack has a brief moment of shock before he becomes even more determined. The other two are also surprised, having never seen that before.)

E. Pig: Where did those plants come from!?

Jack: Don’t question it!

(They eventually reach the ramp and Jack and Black Sheep jump on, then help pull up Eldest Pig. They run inside and the plants let go of the ramp, letting it continue to recede. The teens take a moment to catch their breath. Jack collapses onto his knees, clutching his side as the pain of the wound reverberates through his torso. Black Sheep kneels down to check on Jack…)

Red Spark: (from a short distance) Hey! What’s with all the commotion!?

(The teens immediately panic and rush to hide behind a massive shelf full of stuff, with Black Sheep helping Jack get up and pulling him over there. The hatch door closes up as soon as Red Spark enters the massive lobby, taking a quick look around.)

Red Spark: Hello? Anyone around here? (waits for a response, then shrugs) Ah, I’ll have those guards take a look later. Right now, there’s some things I need to figure out. (heads back upstairs) Like keeping those villagers under my control of course! The effects of the sky won’t last long! Or can they? I can never tell….

(Red Spark begins to ramble to himself again as he leaves. The teens sigh with relief and Black Sheep pulls out a first-aid kit from her bag.)

B. Sheep: Thank god I packed this…. (turns to Jack) Jack, I’m gonna need you to take off your jacket and lift up your shirt.

Jack: (spudders) What!? Why!?

B. Sheep: That wound isn’t going to heal itself now, is it?

Jack: Sheep..I’m fine..really.

B. Sheep: It didn’t look like you were fine.

Jack: Sheep….

B. Sheep: Jack, I’m trying to help you. Can you stop being stubborn? Please…?

(After a brief pause, Jack finally relents and takes his jacket off. Black Sheep takes some iodine wipes from the kit and lifts up his shirt, revealing the gash in full. Eldest Pig winces in disgust and looks away.)

B. Sheep: Alright, this may sting a little….

(Black Sheep starts to clean up the wound, the iodine creating a stinging pain. Jack sucks air through his teeth as he feels the pain, wanting to flinch away but at the same time not wanting to make it worse. At least Whyatt’s having a better time in that book than he is here, right?

Next scene shows the Super Readers through a swirling vortex of red and gold. This was definitely different from what they’re used to. Normally, they would be flying through the skies, not tunnels of light. After a moment of nothing being said, Wonder Red flies her plane closer to Super Why’s, practically flying side by side with him.)

Wonder Red: So, this is an exciting change of pace, isn’t it?

Super Why: Not a change I like….

Wonder Red: Ah, come on, Why. Don’t be such a stick in the mud.

Super Why: Our lives are in danger, Red! Don’t you know what that means?

Wonder Red: Of course I do! We’re finally on an adventure with actual stakes! Why can’t you be excited about it?

Super Why: Because my own parents attacked me and Jack! That’s why!

Woofster: Okay! Okay! Let’s just calm down before we start saying things we’ll regret!

Power Paige: Yeah! And besides, arguing will get us nowhere! We have to keep our focus!

(Soon, a white light could be seen at the end of the tunnel.)

Power Paige: (points at the light) Hey look! We’re almost there! Get ready everyone!

(As the Super Readers get closer to the exit, the light shines brighter, eventually consuming the whole screen. Shows the back cover of the comic, leaning against a destroyed wall of a building that once stood strong. The back cover opens, revealing a golden portal on the other side, and the Why-fliers all soar out the portal. The book closes and Alpha-Pig looks back completely confused.)

Alpha-Pig: Wait, we’re not in the book anymore!

Super Why: You’re right! 

Princess Presto: Then…where are we?

(Everyone looks at Power Paige, who’s looking dead ahead with a serious face.)

Power Paige: My home….

(Final shot is a full view of the destroyed city as the Super Readers fly in the sky, with Red Spark’s fortress looming in the distance, before it all cuts to black)

Power Paige: Comic World….

To be continued…

Chapter Text

(The chapter starts where the last one left off. The Super Readers are flying in the rust red sky, with the desolate city down below them. All the heroes are staring at her when she revealed to them where they are.)

Alpha-Pig: Wait…this is Comic World? But…everything is destroyed.

Super Why: What happened here…?

(Power Paige hesitates, not wanting to tell them, but she takes a deep breath, knowing she has to.)

Power Paige: This is all Red Spark’s doing. He managed to find a spellbook powerful enough to grant him all the power he needs to destroy an entire realm without much effort. We all tried to stop him but…somehow, he became too strong for any of us to defeat him. Even Captain Cosmic wasn’t able to stop him! And…and the other Super Readers that lived here… (shallows down her tears) He wanted to make sure that no hero would ever be able to stop him, and since Super Readers are the highest ranking heroes in the Fiction world, he…he…

(Power Paige finally breaks down crying, remembering all the deaths that occurred during Red Spark’s rampage. Woofster hangs his head low, having gone through the same experience. The other Super Readers go silent, realizing what she was about to say. Princess Presto holds her hand as a means to comfort her.)

Princess Presto: Don’t worry, Paige. I’m sure we’ll find a way to fix everything. 

(The princess smiles at Power Paige, and receives a smile back. Paige wasn’t sure how they’re going to fix all this, especially the deaths, but she knows Princess Presto is trying. )

Super Why: We need to stop Red Spark first, but that’s going to be difficult.

Wonder Red: What’s the worst he’s gonna do to us? Dance us to death?

Super Why: Red!

(Wonder Red lets out a laugh and Super Why rolls his eyes, clearly annoyed. Power Paige chuckles a bit herself. In Red’s defense, Red Spark didn’t leave the most threatening first impression. Suddenly, another siren blares, with being more high-pitched and shrill than the previous one they heard. The kids look around to figure out the source of it, then Super Why notices the screen on his plane’s dashboard is flashing red. A message appears on the flashing screen;

Warning: Incoming Danger. Activating Autopilot.)

Super Why: (tilts head) Autopilot–?

(The plane quickly dives, along with the other three planes, as a bright beam blasts through where they were before the dodge. Super Why looks up at the beam, then at the screen, then double-takes a few times. The others are just as surprised as him.)

Alpha-Pig: That beam almost hit us!

Woofster: And that won’t be the only one! Look!

(Woofster points at an armored woman flying high above them, Golden Gladiator. 

An Asian woman with black wavy hair who has a full coat of golden armor covering her body, a helmet with small wings on the sides, golden wings that stretch from her back, and a thin and long sword in her hands. 

Her eyes glow a sinister red as she’s surrounded by a dark red aura of corruption. She raises her sword into the sky as it starts charging with holy light. She then swings down, creating a slashing beam that careens towards the kids. Three of the planes successfully dodge this strike as well. Wonder Red’s plane, however, was slow to the punch and got one of the wings chopped off. The plane swirls out of control and is about to crash into the ground. Wonder Red jumps out of the plane just as it gets very close to ground level.

The plane slams down on the ground, crushing almost half of the vehicle. Wonder Red, at the same time, lands flat on her face. Wonder Red gets up, showing that the fall gave her a bloody nose, and tries to get herself reoriented. She looks up at the chaos going on in the sky, as the planes fly around randomly in an attempt to evade.)

Wonder Red: I need to help my friends! (looks at her crashed plane) But how am I gonna do that!?

(She gets no time to think before a heavy metal basket whacks her straight into a nearby building. She collapses onto the ground in extreme pain, groaning. She lifts her head up to see who hit her, though her vision is a tad blurry. A shadowy figure of an overweight woman stands before her, an infamous anti-hero named Little Red Dread.

An African American woman with dreadlocks, a gray corset, wolf pelt skirt, arm length fingerless leather gloves, belt with chains hanging on it, combat boots with metal soles, a red cloak draped along her shoulders, and welding a metal basket connected to a long chain. She has the same dark red aura and glowing red eyes as Golden Gladiator. 

Wonder Red’s eyes widen once her vision fully clears up and she’s able to see the full detail.)

Wonder Red: Wait, you…(gets up on her knee) you…you took my look! What’s the big idea, huh!?

Red Dread: Ha! Like you own a red hood! Bitch, your story is dead! And soon you’ll be too!

Wonder Red: (gets up on her feet and strikes a fighting stance) Bring it on, witch!

(Red Dread glares at Wonder Red, with the latter glaring back at her. After a moment of a stare down, they rush at each other to engage in battle, but it cuts away before anything else could happen. 

Back in the sky, things aren’t looking good. The Why-Fliers blitz around, avoiding beams left, right, and center. Super Why tries to regain control of his plane, but no matter how many times he turns the wheel or how many buttons he pressed, the plane won’t turn off autopilot. This stresses him out even more than he already was.)

Super Why: I CAN’T CONTROL MY WHY-FLIER!!! WHAT DO I DO!?!

Woofster: SUPER WHY!!! LOOK OUT!!!

(Super Why looks at where Woofster’s pointing and sees a glowing beam heading straight for them. He screams and both of them duck just as the plane dives down to dodge the beam. Woofster looks back up, breathing a sigh of relief.)

Woofster: That was a close one! (looks over) Alright, Super– Super Why!?

(Woofster notices Super Why has completely curled up in his seat and seems to be…trembling. His breath has quickened to a point where it hurts his lungs and a slight heave can be caught if you listen closely. His heart beats so fast that he swears it was going to burst and leave him dead in the seat, probably a much better fate than what he's going through right now. Sweat drips down his panicked face and he rubs his hair so aggressively that he might make himself go bald early. He feels his mind spiraling out of reality, which is the last thing he wants, given how out of control the situation is, yet no matter what he just can't regain control over…anything. Is he going crazy!? Is he stuck in a nightmare he just can't wake up from!? He wants out of this dream! He wants out of this stress! Everything is changing so fast that he can't possibly keep up and…a part of him begins to wonder if he can even be a hero and a leader if even his own body is spiraling out of his control….

Woofster stares at Super Why with worry, unsure of what to do in this situation. He rarely saw any Super Readers have a panic attack before, so he's unsure how to handle this or calm him down, especially when they're being actively attacked. )

Woofster: Super Why! You need to snap out of it! (taps his paws on Super Why’s shoulders) Come on, Super Why! You have to calm down!

(What Woofster’s doing here is absolutely not helpful in the slightest. If anything, it makes the panic attack even worse. Golden Gladiator eyes Super Why’s Why-Flier and charges up another attack. She raises her sword and slashes the air, creating another slashing beam that heads straight for Woofster and Super Why. Woofster, realizing that the plane won’t be able to dodge in time, grabs Super Why’s cape with his mouth and jumps out, pulling the panicking Super Reader in tow. The beam cuts through the plane, splitting it in half and having it fall into a fiery inferno. Super Why watches as his plane falls, with Woofster carrying him to the ground for safety. 

Even in spite of the raging panic flowing in his chest, he looks on as the Why-Flier he cherished falls into destruction with deep sorrow in his eyes. Everything has changed…and none of it is good. None of it….

Woofster places Super Why safely on the ground and looks up at the remaining two planes, still frantically evading attacks.)

Woofster: We need to do something! Super Why–! (turns around) Super Why?

(Woofster sees Super Why curled up, wrapping himself in his cape, crying his eyes out. It was clear that he reached a breaking point, and Woofster didn't exactly help him despite the effort. While he doesn't know how to help with a panic attack, he does know how to comfort someone who's crying . Woofster walks over to Super Why and starts nudging his arm. Super Why, thinking this is an attempt to get him up and start fighting, rolls over and keeps his back facing Woofster. Woofster is hurt by it, but it doesn't shoot down his resolve. He hops over Super Why and decides to lay down next to him, keeping a bit of distance between him and the kid. It takes Super Why a bit to realize what Woofster is actually trying to do, and he pulls the puppy closer in his arms for comfort. Just a moment to breathe…. He just needs a moment to breathe….

Super Why looks up at the chaos above, worrying about his friends, and he suddenly realizes something.)

Super Why: (gasp) Wonder Red! (gets up, wipes away tears) We need to find Wonder Red!

Woofster: But what about your other friends!? They’re in danger too!

Super Why: I know, but Wonder Red was shot down first and I need to make sure she’s okay! 

(Super Why floats up and starts flying around the ground level, searching for Wonder Red. Woofster follows in tow, also flying. They don’t get too far, however, as…

SKITTER! SKITTER! SKITTER!

Sounds of small legs crawl through the ruins of the city. Woofster’s ear lifts up as he’s alerted to the sound.)

Woofster: Um..Super Why? We might have a problem….

(Super Why didn’t hear what Woofster said as he’s far too focused on finding Wonder Red. Suddenly…

WHACK! SLAM!

A spider leg smacks Super Why off-course and causes him to crash into the wall.)

Woofster: (gasps) Super Why!

(The spider crawls into view, showing itself to be a giant wolf spider, bigger than a whole building, in fact. Woofster looks up at it, frozen in terror. The spider pins Woofster to the ground, and stares into his soul with hunger, its mouth drooling with poison. Woofster screams and struggles in its grasp as the spider gets closer and closer to devouring him. Super Why slowly gets back up, his fists clenched and his teeth gritted, as all the terror he has felt swirls into rage. A blazing fury he never once thought he could feel til this moment…. )

Super Why: You…. (turns around) You!

(Both Woofster’s and the spider’s attention was turned to Super Why, as they see his furious expression staring at them.)

Super Why: Of everything I had to go through today, you had to show up!? Why!? I have been stressed, tired, hurt, and all because of this Red Spark guy who likes to dance down stairs and threaten people! But you! You! You’re the last freaking straw!

(The spider stares at him, completely befuddled by his seemingly out of nowhere rant. It even lifts two of its legs up, as if saying “Whoa, dude. Chill”. Woofster looks equally befuddled, though in a more “Do we really have time for this?” kind of way. Super Why pulls out his Why-Writer and aims it at the spider.)

Super Why: I’ve had enough of this! Why don’t you do us all a favor and (Why-Writer charges up, eyes glow pure white) leave! Us! (echoing voice) ALONE!

(And with that last word, the Why-Writer shoots a beam that hits the spider right on the side, knocking it off Woofster.)

Woofster: Nice shot, Super Why! Though, maybe you could’ve done that without the ranting?

(Super Why is about to something but is interrupted by the horrifying squeals and groans of the spider as it writhes around in pain. A light blue magical field surrounds it, with eyes popping in and out of existence. The two little heroes watch in shock as this happens.)

Woofster: Uuuuh…Super Why? What did you do?

Super Why: I-I-I don't know! I just-I just blasted!

(Not a moment sooner, the spider transforms into…

POP!

A duck. Just a duck. The two heroes stare at this now transformed animal for a bit, tilting their heads in befuddlement.)

Super Why: Aaaaaa…duck?

(Woofster steps over to curiously sniff the duck. The duck lets out a fearful quack and waddles away. The two just looked at each other, wondering what they had witnessed.)

???: (sighs) How disappointing.

(The pair look up at where the voice came from, seeing an elegant lady sitting upon another spider of the same size. 

This lady is thin and lanky, almost unrealistically so. She has light purple skin and plum-colored hair that is tied up in a prim and proper bun. She is wearing a shimmering red dress with long sleeves, a black veil covering her wrinkled face, black tights with white web patterns all over it, red stiletto heels, and holding a long fancy smoking pipe. She has red eyes, but unlike the previous two, they aren't glowing, and she doesn't have any dark aura surrounding her. 

Woofster’s jaw drops as he realizes who this woman is.)

Woofster: Lady Arachne!

Lady Arachne: Woofster. What an unpleasant surprise to see you. Glad to see you found a new friend. Where's your old partner Power Paige? Why isn't she with you?

Woofster: She’s busy fighting Golden Gladiator! And just so you know, I believe she'll win the battle! 

Lady Arachne: (scoffs) Please, mutt. Confidence is the same as ignorance. Do you really believe that she could win a fight with one of the most powerful non-Reader superheroes? She barely held her own with Red Spark!

Woofster: Enough talking! You know we're much stronger than you take us for, so bring it on!

Lady Arachne: (chuckles) Still haven't learned, have we, little pup? Heh, tu es plus bête que tu n'en as l'air…. Well, (snaps fingers) we'll see how well you two can do against all my creepy friends.

(She laughs as more spiders of varying sizes crawl around the area the three are standing in. Woofster growls, ready to face the fight in front of them. Super Why, however, is unprepared for it. He holds the Why-Writer close to his chest as a look of terror dawns on his face.)

Super Why: Oh crud….

(Cuts back to the sky battle. Golden Gladiator is still dishing out her strikes, but it's becoming clearer that she's getting drained of her energy. Power Paige notices and decides to take the chance.)

Power Paige: She’s getting weaker! Now’s our chance to strike! But how do we do that…?

(She takes a quick bit to think and an idea almost immediately hits her.)

Power Paige: Wait a minute! That’s it!

Princess Presto: What!?

Power Paige: We need to hit her with the Why-Flier!

Princess Presto: (pauses) WHAT!?

Power Paige: Come on! It’s the only way I can think of to get her off our tail!

Princess Presto: This might not be the most lady-like thing for me to ask, but…ARE YOU CRAZY!?

Power Paige: Look, princess, I know it sounds crazy, but–!

(She’s suddenly interrupted by the sound of Alpha-Pig screaming. The two girls look over and see the pig going down with his Why-Flier, as the propeller was blown off.)

Both girls: ALPHA-PIG!!!

(Power Paige decides enough is enough and reaches for the controls.)

Power Paige: Sorry for this, princess!

Princess Presto: Wait! Paige! What are you doing!?

(Power Paige takes over the plane and starts heading towards Golden Gladiator, who’s taking a breather to recharge her energy. Princess Presto screams and covers her eyes as they rapidly approach the gold-plated woman. Once the plane is a mere minute away from her, Power Paige quickly grabs hold of Princess Presto and jumps out of the plane with her in her arms. The plane slams right into Golden Gladiator and both her and the plane falls towards the ground, the latter exploding upon impact. 

Power Paige uses her wind powers to safely land on the ground. She gently places Princess Presto on her feet and quickly checks her for injuries.)

Power Paige: Are you okay, Princess Presto?

(Princess Presto takes a moment to respond, clearly shaken up from everything that has happened.)

Princess Presto: I..I think that I'm fine. But where's Alpha-Pig? Is he okay?

Alpha-Pig: Yeah! I'm up here!

(The girls look up as Alpha-Pig gingerly flies down to where they’re at. The propeller on his hat retreats once he's fully planted on the broken asphalt.)

Alpha-Pig: That was really scary!

Power Paige: Yeah, but (looks at the flame from the explosion) I don’t think she's gonna bother us for a while.

Princess Presto: What do we do now?  We don't know where Super Why, Wonder Red, or Woofster are!

Alpha-Pig: Or if any of them are okay! 

Power Paige: Okay, let's just calm down. I'm just as worried about them as you, but I know that they're doing alright. We're all going to make it out soon! We just need to stay focused and–

(Suddenly, a giant elderly ratman jumps in, scaring the three kids.

This old man is wearing a tattered white long-sleeved shirt with ash gray pants that looks equally as bad for wear and tear. He has a dirty brown cloak covering most of his disfigured form. His face is malformed into something that looks closer to that of a rat, with uneven, unaligned sharp teeth dotted across the muzzle. His eyes glimmer in a forest green and, similar to Lady Arachne, has no dark, corrupting aura surrounding him.

Power Paige’s eyes widen once she recognizes who he is.)

Power Paige: (gasps) MuskRat!

MuskRat: Power Paige! Surprised to see you after your humiliating defeat at Red Spark’s hands. And you brought some new meat too! That pig looks especially tasty!

(Alpha-Pig quickly hides behind Power Paige upon hearing that.)

Power Paige: (grits teeth) You’re not eating me or my friends!

MuskRat: We’ll see about that. Now…(licks lips) time to eat!

(MuskRat lunges at the trio, who all dodge his strike at once. The ratman turns his attention to Alpha-Pig, having a particular craving for pork. He salivates as he slowly steps the little pig, with the pig stepping back at the same pace. Princess Presto waves her wand around and, with a flick of her wrist, sends out a blast of pink light that smacks MuskRat straight in the face. It also leaves a splash of glitter on his cheek, dangerously close to his eye.)

MuskRat: Ack! Glitter! (tries to wipe away the glitter) That shit's never coming off!

(He looks at Princess Presto, bearing his sharp teeth. He begins to approach her with visible annoyance in his green eyes.)

MuskRat: So…you’re looking to be an appetizer, aren’t you?

(Princess Presto points her wand at him, making it clear that she will do it again, in spite of the fear on her face. Power Paige starts to charge up a wind attack, ready to blow him right off his feet. Before anything could be done, though…

BAM!

A tire comes out of nowhere and slams right into the ratman's face, knocking him over. He holds his face in pain, cussing very clearly under his breath. The two girls look over at where the tire came from and see Alpha-Pig standing near a broken down car, twiddling his fingers.)

Alpha-Pig: Uuum…too much?

(Power Paige tries to say something but…)

Princess Presto: (gasps) Paige! (points to something behind Paige) Behind  you!

(Power Paige turns around and sees a shadow person in knightly armor standing tall, their ax raised high above their head. They swing down to cut her in half, which she thankfully dodges, with the only casualty being a piece of her cape that got torn off. She takes a moment to get a better look at this shadow knight.

The knight seems to be pure silver armor with their face casted in pure shadow. Perhaps that is their face? Who knows. There's a crest on their chest that shows a crescent moon with a couple of stars next to it in the dark blue night sky. They're wearing navy blue gloves and boots that are adorned with tiny sparkling dots on them to resemble stars. They have glow-in-the-dark stars all over their armor as added decorations. A navy blue cape flows behind them, tattered and worn from constant battles. Their eyes glow a violent red and a corrupting aura flows around them, just like Golden Gladiator and Little Red Dread. )

Power Paige: Fright Knight…? What are you–?

MuskRat: About damn time you showed up! (gets up) I was starting to worry that my ass will get beat up by some kids! After all, (runs up and goes behind Fright Knight) food always tastes better when prepared by someone else. Now, dear sir, prepare my feast!

(Fright Knight prepares his ax and rushes towards Power Paige. He tries to strike her again, only for Princess Presto to jump in and form a forcefield around them, which the ax merely bounces off of.)

MuskRat: (facepalms) Oi…. (points at Alpha-Pig) Get the pig then, you dumbass!

(Fright Knight does what they’re told and locks in on Alpha-Pig. They race and try to hit him, but once again their ax gets dodged. Alpha-Pig speeds over to the girls and to the safety of the forcefield. Princess Presto lifts up a part of the forcefield to let Alpha-Pig in, then quickly closes it as soon as he slides through.)

MuskRat: (facepalms again) Double oi….

(Fright Knight gets tired of this tomfoolery and starts slamming his ax against the forcefield. It starts out as ineffective, but it slowly starts to crack little by little with every hit. Princess Presto tries to fix the cracks each time they appear, but that only slows it down, with Fright Knight showing no signs of stopping any time soon. Alpha-Pig hides behind Power Paige as this goes on, trembling.)

Alpha-Pig: What do we do now, Power Paige!?

Power Paige: At this rate…we’ll have to fight for our lives….

( Meanwhile…

Cuts to Storybook Village. The sky still has the vortex painting the whole thing red and the pyramid ship still stands firm in town square. This doesn’t last long though, as the ground begins to shake and the ship lifts off the ground. The ship gets sucked into the portal above, leaving a shallow square-shaped carter in the ground. Shortly after, the portal vanishes the same way it appeared, with the sky changing back to its friendly blue color. A few of the remaining villagers peek out to see if the coast was clear. Once that’s been confirmed, most of the remaining come out, checking to see if everyone else is okay. One question is left burning in everyone’s heads after all of the craziness;

What’s going to happen to the majority of the population that was taken? Especially the children?

Cuts to the lobby inside the ship. Black Sheep is wrapping a bandage around Jack’s torso, covering the wound he’d received earlier. Eldest Pig stays around the edge of the shelf, acting as a look out for the other two. Black Sheep tears the roll away from the wrapping and tapes down the torn end, thus finishes the wrapping.)

B. Sheep: There! Much better, right, Jack?

Jack: I guess. Better than just bleeding out.

B. Sheep: Yeah. Can’t be letting you do that.

E. Pig: Guys! Shush! Someone’s coming!

(The teenagers quickly quiet themselves as a few knights come in to investigate the lobby. It takes a small moment for one of them to notice the drops of blood on the floor. They kneel down to take a closer look and notice that there’s a trail of blood leading to where the teen trio are hiding. They draw their sword and start slowly approaching the shelf. Eldest Pig, peering through one of the small gaps between the items on the shelf, lets out a soft gasp.)

E. Pig: Someone is getting closer! I think they know we’re here!

B. Sheep: What!?

Jack: Shit!

E. Pig: What do we do!?

(Jack readies his gun, despite knowing that it won’t work well against metal armor. Worth a shot, I suppose. The teens wait with baited breath as the knight steps closer and closer. The knight is almost close to the shelf when…)

Red Spark: What is taking so long!?

(Red Spark stomps down the steps in a childish haste, clearly thin on patience.)

Red Spark: We got no time to waste! That hypnosis spell won’t last long! Come on! (claps hands) Chop chop! We don’t have all day for this!

The knight: Sir, there appears to be a trail of blood on the ground.

Red Spark: Really? (spots the blood) Ew! Gross! Some injured animal must’ve dragged itself in here! Must be dead now. Oh well. I’ll have a few people clean it up.

The knight: But sir, what if there’s stowaways in here? I had heard people whispering.

Red Spark: I think you need to get your ears checked. Or your brain. Either or might work for you. But enough with this chatter! Let’s get a move on! We only have fifteen minutes left before I lose complete control over all of you!

The knight: But sir–!

Red Spark: I SAID MOVE!!!

(Red Spark grabs the knight’s arm and starts dragging him out of the ship, with the other few knights following in tow. The teens breathe a sigh of relief as the knights and Red Spark leave.)

B. Sheep: That was close….

Jack: Too close…. But I don’t think we can step out just yet.

E. Pig: Why not? (hears more footsteps approaching) Oh…right….

(All the hypnotized adults and terrified children are herded out of the ship by the rest of the knights. The teen watch as the crowd are led into the fortress, with Black Sheep tapping her fingers impatiently.)

B. Sheep: Shouldn’t we follow them?

Jack: We will, Sheep. Just give it a moment.

(The crowd are fully off the ship and Jack decides to leave the hiding spot and peer around the entryway, making sure he stays hidden from view. Black Sheep joins him, while Eldest Pig elects to stick around the shelf, though he still peeps around it. The crowd gets far enough away for them to follow safely and Jack looks at Black Sheep, giving her a single nod, confirming this. Black Sheep returns the nod and turns to Eldest Pig, gesturing to him to follow.)

B. Sheep: Come on, Pig.

(Eldest Pig hesitates, but follows them off the ship anyways with a reluctant sigh. He doesn’t feel he has a choice in the matter…. They walk behind the crowd from a safe distance, making sure that they hide every now and again to drive away suspicion. After a moment of walking, Red Spark stops and checks his watch. He soon realizes that his 15 minutes has been knocked down to 12 and he begins to internally panic, sweat somehow forming on his skull helmet. He pulls out a small book with the title ‘A Short Guide to Quick Magic Learning’ and starts flipping through the pages rather fast.)

Red Spark: Come on! Come on! Where is it!? Where is it!?

(Everyone stands around rather awkwardly while Red Spark searches through the book. Jack tries to see if he can aim his gun at Red Spark’s head to kill him right then and there, to the shock of the other two teens. His attempt was foiled by Black Sheep grabbing his arm and pulling it down. She gives him an intense glare while slowly shaking her head.)

Black Sheep: Not. Around. The children. Jackass.

(Jack quickly drops the idea after that, his face becoming pale from fear. He swore he just had a heart attack from her glare…but she is right. Those kids are stressed out already, no need to just traumatize them like that. Though…this won’t stop him from trying again when he and Red Spark are alone with no one else around. )

Red Spark: Aha! I found it!

(Everyone looks at Red Spark as he bounces on his toes in glee.)

Red Spark: A teleportation spell! I knew it was somewhere in here! Should've learned this sooner. Oh well. Might as well practice it now! 

(Red Spark skims through the page before tossing it aside. He is about to do the spell until he realizes he needs that book and quickly retrieves it.)

Red Spark: Alright! Everyone ready!? Actually, scratch that! I don’t care!

(Red Spark rises his staff in the air, as it begins to glow with red, smoky magic. He waves it around and…)

Red Spark: Zippity Zappity Zip!

(Red Spark slams the base of the staff straight to the ground, producing a massive cloud of red smoke that consumes the crowd. The teens cover their faces as the smoke dashes pass them. After a bit, the trio look over to see the crowd has vanished.)

B. Sheep: What the–? They just disappeared!?

Jack: Oh god damn it!

E. Pig: Oh that's just freaking great, isn't it!? Now we're stuck here with no way of knowing where we should go! And I wonder who's fault it is? Oh, that's right! (smacks Jack’s chest) Your fault!

Jack: My-My fault!? How is any of this my fault!? You saw everything Red Spark did! You were there!

E. Pig: You’re right, but that’s not what I'm referring to! It was your idea to actually sneak in this gosh darn fortress! It was your idea to try to save all these kids even though we don't know how to do that! And it was you who wanted to be some kind of hero! Had those kids not been there, you would've shot that guy! We don’t even know if that would've worked! He has magic for heaven's sake!

Jack: Your point is!?

E. Pig: My point is, Jack, is that we're pretty much blindly going about trying to do something we're clearly way out of our depth to do! Don't you two have any common sense!?

B. Sheep: What about your brothers? Don't you want to save Middle Pig? 

E. Pig: Of course I do! I want to protect my brothers as much as you want to protect your siblings, but I have my limits! Being stuck inside some crazy supervillain's fortress, completely lost? Yeah, that reached my limit!

Jack: Alright, alright. I get it. I get it, Pig. But we're already in the fortress now, so we have to keep going. There's no turning back now.

E. Pig: (scoffs) Yeah. I'm unfortunately aware of that.

(The teen trio wander the halls aimlessly for a moment, before stumbling upon a door that is cracked slightly opened, with Black Sheep being the one to notice it.)

B. Sheep: (tilts head) Hey, boys? (points at the door) What do you think is in there?

E. Pig: Either nothing special or a booby trap. Go ahead. Pick your poison.

(Jack rolls his eyes and starts walking over to the door, to Eldest Pig’s surprise.)

E. Pig: Hey, wait a minute! I said that sarcastically!

Jack: Yeah. I know that.

(Jack cracks the door further open, being sure not to make a sound. The room is revealed to be a storage closet with miscellaneous items and gadgets packed tightly and messily into the shelves. Jack walks around, looking at all the stuff in the room. The two anthro animals follow after, with Eldest Pig being extremely cautious, fearing that some sort of trap might go off at any moment. Black Sheep, on the other hand, seems curious about all the items and starts taking them off the shelf to have a closer look, much to the pig's dismay.)

E. Pig: Black Sheep! Don't touch that!

B. Sheep: Ah, calm down, Pig. I'm not gonna break anything.

E. Pig: I don’t care about you breaking anything! I care more about you two setting off a trap or something!

B. Sheep: Oh please, why do you believe that this guy would booby-trap his fortress?

E. Pig: Because that's what villains would do! Obviously ! All those shows I watched with Middle Pig wouldn't lie about that!

(While the two continue to argue about whether or not the fortress is booby-trapped, Jack scans the shelves to see if there's anything they could use. He soon spots a futuristic-looking tablet gleaming in the dim lighting. He picks it up to take a closer look at it. It turns itself on and he shields his eyes from the bright screen. After letting his eyes adjust for a bit, he sees that the screen is asking for a couple of names. He stands up and turns to the other two.)

Jack: Hey! Guys! Guys! Look what I found!

(The two stop their argument and look at Jack and the tablet in his hands.)

B. Sheep: Huh, (puts her hand on her hip) that's a weird-looking tablet.

E. Pig: And we probably shouldn't be messing with it. Maybe we can just put that back?

(Jack rolls his eyes and promptly ignores him.)

Jack: I wonder what it does. 

(Jack types his name into one of the boxes, then looks at Eldest Pig, who’s still looking at the tablet with concern. The pig looks back at him, confused.)

E. Pig: What? Why are you–? (realization) Hey! Don’t you dare put my name in there!

(Jack smirks as he does exactly that.)

E. Pig: (huffs) You’re being a real jerk today, you know.

(Jack inserts both of the names into the tablet and it begins to load up a map of the surrounding area they’re in. Two blinking dots appear a foot away from where they’re standing. Jack tilts his head at this and looks around, quickly spotting blinking two lights in a box that was next to the tablet. He shuffles through the box’s contents and pulls out a couple of buttons that were the source of the lights. He looks between the tablet and the buttons as the dots quickly connect.)

Jack: I think this is a tracking device.

B. Sheep: A tracking device?

E. Pig: Great. That could’ve been helpful had we found it earlier….

B. Sheep: And just how do you think this would help us?

E. Pig: Oh, I don’t know, put one of those pins on a kid so we would know where they all went.

B. Sheep: And how would we have done that without getting caught?

(Eldest Pig pauses, realizing he didn’t quite think that thought out thoroughly.)

B. Sheep: (raises eyebrow) You don’t know, do you? 

(Eldest Pig stammers for a moment, trying to come up with a way to save his argument, but eventually…)

E. Pig: No…. No, I don’t. (sighs)

B. Sheep: ( hmph ) Figured as much.

(Jack searches through more boxes as they were talking and finds a few walkie talkies. He ends up getting an idea from this and turns to the anthro animals.)

Jack: Maybe we should split up.

B. Sheep: What?

E. Pig: What!? Are you nuts!? We’ll be even more lost!

Jack: (holds up one of the walkie talkies) Not if we have these. We can just call each other if any of us find anything or are in trouble.

B. Sheep: What about that tracking device there? There’s three of us and one of it. How do we keep track of where everyone is?

Jack: You’re usually good at keeping track of stuff, right?

B. Sheep: Well, yeah, but–

Jack: (gives the tablet to B. Sheep) Then I think you can handle this. You can tell us where the other is at, right?

B. Sheep: But how are you going to know where I'm at if I'm in trouble? You're not just gonna magically know that, are you?

(Jack starts to think again, realizing he's hit a wall with this plan. He decides to look around for something that could help with this issue. He soon stumbles across a palm leaf green and powder blue flare gun that has translucent fairy wings on it and sparkly all over. Jack tilts his head at it and is about to completely dismiss it until he notices a note next to it. He grabs the piece of paper and reads the note;

The Fairytale Flare Gun 

When you fire this, it will give all the people close to your heart a light to follow, leading right to your location.

Use this only when you have an emergency. It's a single use shot, so be wise.

-M. G.

Black Sheep is looking over Jack’s shoulder, tilting her head as she reads it too.)

GB. Sheep: I think I get what it does, but how would we know it can work?

Jack: (shrugs) Not sure, but at least it gives you a signal in case you need our help. We can give it a shot.

(Jack hands the flare gun over to Black Sheep, who still seems reluctant about this whole thing.)

B. Sheep: (sighs) Alright, fine. If you’re so sure about this, we’ll do it. But if anything goes wrong, you know who I’m blaming.

Jack: Right. Got it.

E. Pig: Wait, so we’re just going with it? No back-up plans? No nothing!?

Jack: Yeah. We’re just doing an Indy Ploy. 

(The two anthro animals seem confused, never hearing that term before. They look at each other, then back at Jack.)

E. Pig: Indy Ploy?

B. Sheep: What’s that?

(Jack was about to answer, almost like a basic instinct of his has reformed, but he quickly stops himself, freezing up in terror. His face shows the intense embarrassment that was boiling inside him. Oh god…that habit wasn’t coming back…was it? How was he even supposed to explain that without sounding like a fucking nerd!? Black Sheep recognizes the expression on his face and puts her hand on his shoulder.)

B. Sheep: Jack, you good? You look like you’re having a war flashback. 

Jack: I’m fine, Sheep. (gently moves her hand away) What I was trying to say is that we’ll just be making things up as we go. You know, throwing caution into the wind. 

E. Pig: Are you sure that that’s the best approach to this?

Jack: Guess so. I can’t think of anything better. Can you? 

E. Pig: (heavy sigh) No. No, I can’t.

B. Sheep: Then everything’s settled. Not sure how well this will go, but we’ll have to start walking soon. Who knows what that skull-faced freak is doing to everyone right now.

E. Pig: Yeah, yeah, I hear ya. I’ll go walk to my death….

(Eldest Pig takes one of the buttons from Jack and pins it to his overalls, resigning himself to his fate.)

B. Sheep: Oh don’t be like that, Pig. We can’t be sure about that.

E. Pig: Exactly. Death is possible.

(Eldest Pig walks over to the door, and decides to look over his shoulder to say one more thing.)

E. Pig: And for the record, once this is over, I’m not talking to you both for a week. Or anyone else, really. I’m just gonna stay in bed and recover from all of this.

(And with that, Eldest Pig walks out the door and further into the fortress at a random direction. Jack waits til he’s out of earshot to say something.)

Jack: He’s being really dramatic, isn’t he?

B. Sheep: Can’t say I blame him. With everything going on, who wouldn’t be stressed out? 

Jack: Guess you’re right. I think I’m gonna stay here and see if there’s anything else that we can use. You can go on without me. I’ll be okay.

B. Sheep: You better keep to that. Cause I swear to god if you get hurt again, I’m gonna beat your ass.

Jack: Uuuh…(scared chuckle) I’ll…I’ll keep that in mind.

(Black Sheep gives him a big hug before making her way to the door.)

B. Sheep: Please take care of yourself, Jack. I mean that.

(And with that, Black Sheep walks off, going the opposite direction that Eldest Pig went. Jack watches as she disappears into the reddish darkness of the fortress, with a slight blush on his cheeks.)

Jack: Damn..she can be scary when she wants to be,

(Jack pins the other button to his jacket and turns back to the closet, proceeding to search through some more shelves to see if there’s anything else he could use. He soon spots a small box on a medium-sized box. There’s silver writing on the top that says:

Magic Repellent Stone

Please Use With Caution 

Jack picks up the box, tilting his head with curiosity.)

Jack: Magic Repellent Stone? Wonder what that does.

(Jack decides to open it slightly, seeing a glowing green rock inside. Unfortunately for him, even a slight crack was enough to feel the effects. He could feel himself weakening as the stone starts draining him of his power. He quickly closes the box before he could fully collapse. He grips on the shelf to keep his balance as his body regains his strength. Once he regains strength and composure, he looks at the box, now more avoidant to open it again.)

Jack: Holy shit…. That rock is strong….

(Then, an idea strikes him in the head.)

Jack: Wait a minute, if that rock can work on me, maybe it can work on Red Spark too. If I can get close to him with this rock, then there won’t be anything he can do to stop me from shooting him. I still need to be careful, but I think it can work.

(Jack slips the box into his jacket pocket, with the hope it will be very useful when he encounters Red Spark again. Jack takes one more look around the room before finally deciding to start wandering around himself. He steps out and quietly closes the door behind him, looking around to make sure no one could spot him. He checks his pockets to see if he has everything he feels he needs.)

Jack: Let’s see…have my gun…that rock…hmm?

(Jack pulls out a roll of bandages, something he knows he didn’t have before. It only takes half a second before it clicks, and he smiles.)

Jack: Huh, guess Sheep really does care about me. (puts roll back in pocket) Let’s hope I don’t need to use it.

(And with that, Jack starts to walk away, going in a much different direction than the first two teens. 

It cuts back to the inside of the supply closet, which is much darker now that the door is closed. Well, except for a rather dim light behind one of the big boxes. A small fairy with blonde hair, teal eyes, and a pink dress is sitting against the wall, a flashlight much bigger than her shining below. She pulls a phone small enough to fit in on a dollhouse table and presses a button to call someone. She holds the phone up to her ear as the drone plays a few times, then someone answers.)

Mother Goose: Krysta? Is everything going well?

Krysta: I believe things are going well. I managed to find the retired Super Reader with his friends and discreetly gave them a couple of things that could help their situation.

Mother Goose: Any specific notes?

Krysta: Well…I don’t think Jack’s going to do this passively. He..he seems to want to kill him.

Mother Goose: Oh dear…. (pauses) In that case, make sure that Red Spark is defeated, but don’t let Jack kill him. You need to inconvenience him at any opportunity he gets to try and kill him.. Red Spark needs to pay for the crimes he has committed and death is not a viable option.

Krysta: Okay, Mother Goose, I’ll be sure to do just that. You have my word.

Mother Goose: Excellent. Any word about the other Fairytale Super Readers yet? Have you managed to find them?

Krysta: Unfortunately, no. I haven’t found them yet. I don’t believe they’re anywhere in the fortress.

Mother Goose: (sighs) I was worried you’d say that. I dearly pray that those children will be okay. And I curse Literatura’s name for all the mistakes he’s made that lead to this point. Speaking of Literatura, I have a little meeting with him arranged, so I have to go. Be sure to watch over the retired one, at least, okay?

Krysta: Okay, my dear Fairytale Goddess, I will. And don’t fret, I’m praying for the children’s wellbeing too.

Mother Goose: That’s lovely of you, dear. I always knew that I had a reason to make you leader of the fairies. Take care of yourself, alright, dear?

Krysta: Of course, Mother Goose.

(And with that, Mother Goose hangs up the phone. Krysta puts the phone back in her bag and lets loose an anxious sigh. She then pulls out a pink round bottle.)

Krysta: I know I shouldn't be too afraid. After all, children can be capable of much more than what others think they're capable of. But even still, I fear there might be worse to come. Regardless, I must continue on with the task I've been given, and that's to keep a close eye on Jack. I just hope this situation will clear up quickly and smoothly. (shakes the bottle) Okay, Porta-Bottle, take me somewhere closest to Jack!

(The bottle's pink color glows brighter after being shaken. She throws it against the wall, shattering it, which delivers a smooth transition back to the kids, as Fright Knight finally shatters Princess Presto’s forcefield. 

The blowback from the shatter sends the three kids flying backwards. The two girls slam into a wall while the pig slams straight into a car, which causes the car to freak out and make loud beeps. MuskRat stands next to Fright Knight, looking very pleased.)

MuskRat: Aaaaaah. Finally! Enough with the child's play! Time to feast! (points at the girls) Fright Knight! Take care of those girls! (turns to Alpha-Pig) I’m feeling like eating pork right now!

(Alpha-Pig gasps, knowing the raggedy villain is targeting him. He acts quick, grabbing a tire and throwing it at him. This time, MuskRat dodges the tire, wagging his finger at Alpha-Pig.)

MuskRat: Uh uh uh. Not letting you do that again.

(The ratman lunges at Alpha-Pig, teeth bare with hunger. Alpha-Pig evades the attack and dashes away, with a chase ensuing.)

Power Paige: Alpha-Pig! (gets up to her feet) Don’t worry! I’ll–!

(Power Paige gets interrupted by Fright Knight slamming his ax down in front of her, blocking her path. She looks up at them with determined anger, knowing that she has to knock this guy down first. Let’s hope Alpha-Pig will be alright by the time she’s through. She uses some of her wind magic to give her a boosted jump and delivers a roundhouse kick to the knight’s helmeted face. That managed to knock them back, getting them to let go of their ax, though they’re not out yet. Power Paige’s eyes turn grey and she gathers a hefty amount of wind power swirling around her, charging up an attack. Fright Knight reorients themselves and tries to grab their ax. Unfortunately for them, their attempt was foiled once Power Paige unleashes a strong gust their way. The wind manages to blow them further away from the ax, though they’re still anchored to ground somehow, streaks in the asphalt made as they’ve been moved farther and farther away. After her wind attack, Power Paige runs up the ax's handle and jumps off. She does a flip and delivers another blow to the knight’s head with her heel. That finally knocks out the knight as they flop to the ground. Power Paige takes a moment to catch her breath before walking to Princess Presto and helping her up.)

Power Paige: Come on, Princess Presto! We need to help Alpha-Pig before MuskRat gets to him first!

(Princess Presto nods and the two girls run off.

Cuts to Alpha-Pig running away with MuskRat right on his tail. He turns a corner and ends up in a dead-end alleyway. He turns around and sees MuskRat standing before him, his tall silhouette casting a shadow over the pig. A sharp-toothed hungry smile creeps across his face as his green eyes lock onto Alpha-Pig’s bright blue ones.)

MuskRat: Aaaaah~! Finally! There’s nowhere left to run, little pig! I got you right where I want you! Now to gobble you up like the Big Bad Wolf!

(The old ratman lets out a sinister rickety chuckle as he slouches and slowly steps towards the pig. Alpha-Pig seems completely frozen in fear, trembling, mind drawing a blank as to what to do now. His eyes begin to glow a bright yellow as he feels something activate in him. Small sparks of electricity start coming off his body as he curls up in fear. MuskRat is close to taking a bite of him when he notices the sparks. He halts and tilts his head at this, wondering what was happening. Before MuskRat could do or say anything…

BZZZZZZAAAAAP!!

A bolt of lightning jolts out from the pig and hits MuskRat, electrocuting him in spectacular fashion. The girls arrive just in time to see this happen. Their eyes widen as they watch the ratman get an electrifying defeat. After a bit, MuskRat collapses to the ground, twitching and frothing at the mouth. Alpha-Pig stares at the unconscious ratman, just as surprised about his sudden electric power as the two girls were. After a moment of stunned silence…)

Power Paige: Wow! Alpha-Pig! I didn’t think you’d have an electric core!

Alpha-Pig: A…a what?

Power Paige: You know, that secondary power you get after you’ve a Super Reader for a few years or so? Something that unlocks with strong emotions…?

(Both Alpha-Pig and Princess Presto just stare at her, confused on what she’s talking about.)

Power Paige: Wait…did..did neither of you know about this?

(The two Super Readers look at each other, then back at Power Paige.)

Princess Presto: This is our first time hearing about this.

Power Paige: (awkward pause) Oh….

(Woofster’s scream disturbs the awkwardness that was accumulating for a moment. Power Paige turns in the direction of the scream, fearing for her beloved friend.)

Power Paige: Woofster!? (starts running) Don’t worry, buddy! I’m coming!

Princess Presto: Power Paige! Wait!

(Alpha-Pig and Princess Presto race after Power Paige, preparing to face another battle.

Cuts to Woofster being surrounded by a bunch of big spiders, all drooling with fangs bare. Woofster seems to be cornered and unsure of what to do. Then…

PEW! POOF! QUACK!

One of the spiders gets turned into a duck, just like the first. 

PEW! PEW! PEW!

More beams come flying through, turning another few spiders into ducks. A couple of stray beams narrowly hit Woofster and another stray one hits a dented mailbox and turns it into a duck. All this ducking chaos is enough to chase away the remaining spiders, with the ducks following after, except the mailbox one, which just sits there, unsure on what to do with its newfound life. Woofster looks at Super Why, who’s looking very, very stressed. His hair was frazzled, he was shaking uncontrollably, and he looked like he could break completely at any moment. Woofster is understandably concerned and walks over to him.)

Woofster: Super Why? Are you okay…? You’re looking…uh…overwhelmed?

Super Why: I’m fine…. I’m fine…. Everything’s fine….

Woofster: (pauses) Thanks for the save, though..um..maybe you can do something other than ducks–

Super Why: DUCKS ARE THE ONLY THING I CAN THINK OF RIGHT NOW, OKAY!?! GIVE ME A BREAK!!!

(The puppy jumps back with a yelp by Super Why’s sudden outburst. Super Why immediately regrets doing that.)

Super Why: W-Woofster! I-I-I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to–!

(A spider leg comes and kicks him in the side before he could finish. The kick sends him flying straight into a wall.)

Woofster: SUPER WHY!!!

(Woofster gets pinned to the ground as the spider Lady Arachne's on stomps over to Super Why.)

Lady Arachne: I must say, dear child, you are certainly an annoying one. You and your little obsession with turning my spiders into ducks ends here. You best say farewell to your little dog friend, cause this will get messy for the both of you.

(The spider starts to open its maw as venomous saliva leaks out. Super Why aims his Why-Writer at the giant arachnid and it charges up once more. Unfortunately for him, the lady thought ahead. She shoots a web from the palm of her hand, which sticks to the tip of the magic pen. Then, with a swift movement, she pulls it out of his hand and into hers.)

Super Why: Hey! My Why-Writer!

Lady Arachne: I’m very sorry, but I can’t let you do that anymore.

(She shoots another shot of webbing at him, sticking him to the wall before he could do anything else. The spider slowly lowers down to consume the child. Woofster tries to squirm out from the leg, but to no avail. Super Why looks upon the spider’s jaw in horror, his heart racing, his mind spinning, and his eyes filling up with tears. 

Is this how he dies? Eaten by a spider, without being able to achieve anything in his life? Without saying goodbye to his family? His friends? His pet Mr. Lizard? He never once thought his life would end so quickly, like it was nothing. He never thought that they could end up in real danger. That they could be risking their lives trying to save the world. That…that…that he could never make it to his eleventh birthday.

He closes his eyes and turns his head away, hoping that his death will be quick. Thankfully, that death will not come today as his friends arrived just in time. Well, sans Wonder Red, who was still busy with her adult comic book counterpart. )

Alpha-Pig: (gasps) Super Why!

Princess Presto: Super Why!

Power Paige: Let him go, Lady Arachne! 

Lady Arachne: Aaah~! Power Paige! Another unpleasant surprise. You're just in time to watch your new little friend die!

Power Paige: Not a chance! Blow away!

(And like that, Power Paige summons a strong, violent gust of wind in Lady Arachne and the spider’s direction. The wind manages to knock the lady in red off her spider and onto the dirt below. The spider, however, sticks in its place, and is very irritated at his lunchtime being interrupted like this. Power Paige pours more power into her gust to make it stronger, but still the spider won’t budge. The wind stops and Power Paige is left exhausted from the exertion. The spider hisses and turns its hunger-induced rage towards the three kids, walking away from Super Why and getting its leg off Woofster. Woofster takes the chance to try and pull the webbing off Super Why, with…lacking results. 

The spider stomps over the kids with venom on its fangs and hunger in all eight eyes. Alpha-Pig and Princess Presto stay behind Power Paige, terrified at the horrid arachnid. Power Paige stands firm and determined, though she doesn’t know what to do about the beast. She looks over at Alpha-Pig, getting an idea.)

Power Paige: Alpha-Pig! You need to electrocute the spider!

Alpha-Pig: (tilts head) Electrocute? What does that mean? 

Power Paige: It means you need to use your electric powers to shock the spider to death! It’s going to eat us!

Alpha-Pig: But I just got these powers! I don’t know how to use them yet! 

Power Paige: That’s kind of the same with every Super Reader! Even me! You’ll get the hang of them eventually! We just need–!

(The spider lunges at the two, and the kids dodge the attempt. The spider hisses again and turns to Alpha-Pig. It prepares to lunge again when a pink beam of light strikes it in the face. It looks over and sees Princess Presto waving her wand, charging up another attack. She swings the wand downwards, sending another blast directly into the spider’s face. The spider gets more agitated and spits venom in her direction. Princess Presto raises up a shield to block the venom and then flings the shield towards it. The shield shatters in its face, leaving several shards in its exoskeleton. The spider screeches in pain and runs off, not wanting to take any more effort for a meal. Lady Arachne is distraught by her beloved pet getting hurt like that and running away.)

Lady Arachne: Nooooo! Empress Tzu Tzu! Come back! You poor thing!

Power Paige: Wow! Nice technique, princess!

Princess Presto: Thanks! My mother taught me those tricks so I can protect myself. Never thought I had to use it until now.

Lady Arachne: (points at Princess Presto) You! You monster! Don’t you realize what you’ve done!? Empress Tzu Tzu will be traumatized for weeks now and it’s all your fault!

Power Paige: Our fault!? Excuse me, lady, but you were trying to make Super Why your pet’s dinner! We did what we needed to!

Lady Arachne: (intense frustrated growl) I knew some of you Super Readers are brats, but I never thought you could be this bad! Quelle bande de putains d'horribles gosses! (stomps foot) Fine! If you wish to be like that, perhaps I’ll take something of yours! And I know exactly what to take!

(Lady Arachne turns to Super Why and Woofster, the latter now stuck in the sticky web like the former. Super Why is not very amused by his predicament . Her mouth curls into a twisted smile.)

Lady Arachne: (points at the trapped Super Readers) Mes chères araignées, débarrassez-vous de ces enfants faibles!

(Obeying her orders, several giant spiders make their way over to the wrapped-up heroes. The other three heroes gasp and the two girls look ready to fight to protect their friends.)

Lady Arachne: (points at the other three) Retenez-les! Ne les laissez pas se battre!

(A spider down and pins the three down with its legs. They try to wiggle out of its grip to no avail.)

Power Paige: Hey! Let us go!

Lady Arachne: (deranged laugh) Not a chance! You had your piece! We end it all now! Mes chères araignées, détruisez ces païens! Notre victoire est proche!

(Woofster struggles with the web as the spiders close in on them. Soon, Woofster starts to glow orange, though he’s too busy to notice right away. Super Why’s eyes widen as Woofster glows brighter and brighter.)

Super Why: Woofster! You’re glowing!

Woofster: Glowing!? Wait, I am! But how–!?

(It doesn’t take long for Woofster to glow the brightest he possibly could, with Super Why squeezing his eyes shut as it starts to hurt to look at the puppy. Then…

KA–BOOOOOM!

Woofster releases a giant explosion from his body, blowing back the spiders that were surrounding them. Lady Arachne and the three trapped Super Readers stare in shock, clearly not expecting it.)

Lady Arachne: Je n’en reviens pas!

Princess Presto: Oh my peas!

Alpha-Pig: Oh my chinny-chin-chin!

Power Paige: Super Why! Woofster!

(The initial explosion fades and all that’s left behind is a carter with a barreling tube of smoke. A moment of silence fills the air. The suffocating silence starts to make the Super Readers worry that Super Why and Woofster might be…gone. At least, until…

Cough! Cough! Ack!

Super Why crawls out of the hole, coughing harshly and covered in soot. Woofster crawls out after, also covered in soot and clearly shaken up by the event. The other Super Readers are joyful to see them okay.)

Princess Presto: Super Why! Woofster! Thank goodness you’re okay!

Super Why: (cough) Yeah…. (cough cough) Barely….

(Lady Arachne growls loudly and is stomping her feet like a child throwing a tantrum, drawing all attention to herself.)

Lady Arachne: Ces salauds vont me ruiner! Je ne peux plus supporter cette merde! (aims the Why-Writer at the children) Je l'arrête tout de suite!

(Super Why and Woofster are spooked by the prospect of Lady Arachne wielding something that was able to change things at a moment’s notice. The three, however, were left out of the loop, confused at why Super Why and Woofster look afraid of her pointing the magic pen at all of them. Lady Arachne smiles wildly as she ready the pen to fire, and yet…it does jack all. No charging up, no light blue glow, no nothing. This just pisses off Lady Arachne even more. She smacks and shakes the Why-Writer, trying to make it work for her. But yet, no matter how hard she tries, it just refuses to work for her. Super Why and Woofster calm down upon realizing this.)

Lady Arachne: AAAAARRRGGGH!!! Pourquoi ce putain de truc stupide ne fonctionne-t-il pas? Allez, on y va! (points Why-Writer at herself) Es-tu cas—!?

(ZAP! POOF! SQUEAK!

The Why-Writer finally decides to do something, which is turning Lady Arachne into a mouse. Everyone stares at her with surprise, even the spiders. The now-transformed mouse looks at her new form for a moment, then starts crying. She runs away as the make-up gets ruined by her tears. The fearful tension in the air was now replaced with awkward quiet.)

Woofster: Well, that was..uh..something.

Alpha-Pig: I feel kinda bad for her.

Princess Presto: Yeah, same here.

Woofster: Don’t be. She’s nothing but a one-note comic villain. She doesn’t care about anyone but herself.

Super Why: And she diiiiid try to kill us. I mean, I would feel bad too, but–

Power Paige: Okay, okay. I hate to interrupt but…there’s still a giant spider pinning us down and I don’t think I have enough excess wind power to knock it off.

Woofster: Well, they don’t usually do anything after Lady Arachne is dealt with, so…I don’t know how to help.

Super Why: I do.

(Super Why walks over and picks his Why-Writer off the ground. He aims it right at the spider, making it nervous as it no longer knows what to do. He fires a beam and instantly turns it into a duck, which lands on Alpha-Pig’s head.)

Alpha-Pig: Wow! I didn’t know your Why-Writer could do that.

Super Why: I didn’t know it could do that either. I always thought it could only change words inside books.

Power Paige: Well, (gets up) I did hear that Super Reader items can do a little more stuff outside the books, so maybe it’s the same for your pen.

Super Why: Why-Writer. It’s–uh–it’s called the Why-Writer.

Power Paige: Oh! Right. (scratches back of head) Sorry, I didn’t think to ask.

Princess Presto: What are we going to do about the rest of the spiders?

(Princess Presto points to the rest of the spiders, now seeming very calm and no longer vicious as their master is no longer around to command them. Super Why narrows his eyes and aims his Why-Writer at the arachnids.)

Super Why: Anyone else? Does anyone else want to be a duck?

(That seemed enough to scare away the pack, with all of them skittering away at the mere thought of being a duck for the rest of their lives. Super Why lowers his arm, relieved that that nightmare was over.)

Super Why: That’s what I thought….

(Super Why takes a few deep breaths, rubbing his forearm a bit as he felt a small, yet oddly sharp pain in it earlier. He doesn’t decide to focus on it right now, his mind goes to something more important…)

Super Why: We need to find Wonder Red. She’s still in trouble!

Power Paige: Right! She was the first one to be knocked out of the sky! She must be in more trouble than the rest of us!

Princess Presto: Oh goodness! I hope she’s okay!

Super Why: We won’t know until we find her. Come on!

(Super Why hops up as his rocket shoes activate and flies off to search for Wonder Red. The others follow suit, joining Super Why. Super Why’s mind races with worry as he flies through the ruined city with his friends on his tail. Even in spite of their current strain, he still cares about his best friend a lot. He dearly hopes that she’s still in one piece. Surely, surely , she’s not in as much trouble as he’s believing she is. Right…?

Cuts to Wonder Red getting slammed straight into the wall by Red Dread’s metal basket flail. She looks awfully battered and bruised, as though the battle went on for a while. Her nose is leaking blood and she coughs some up as well. Yet, despite all the pain and damage that was inflicted on her, she still gets back up. This infuriates Red Dread deeply.)

Red Dread: Oh my fucking god! You know, at first I was impressed with that resilience you’ve been showing me, but now it’s getting fucking annoying! Why can’t you stay down!?

(Red Dread swings her basket flail high above her head and proceeds to swing it down upon her fairytale counterpart. Wonder Red thinks fast and dodges the incoming attack, causing it to slam straight into the weakly supported building. The building collapses onto the basket, trapping it in its heavy rubble. Red Dread tries to pull it back but finds that she can only pull it out a little bit at a time.)

Red Dread: You’re joking…. You’re fucking joking! Of all the times this could happen, it had to be now! God damn it!

(While Red Dread struggles with pulling her basket out of the rubble, Wonder Red finally sees an opening. Her body is screaming in pain but her resolve is stronger than ever as she skates towards Red Dread with increasing speed. Her eyes glow bright red as she can feel something activating in her, feeling her with more energy and determination. Using a piece of broken road as a ramp, she jumps into the air and readies herself to punch her comic counterpart in her face. At this point, the scene is put into slow-motion. Wonder Red curls her hand into a fist, which proceeds to light itself on fire. Red Dread looks over at the oncoming Super Reader with widening eyes. Then, before she could retaliate or defend herself, she is met with a flaming punch to the face. The scene returns to normal speed as Red Dread stumbles back from the punch, holding her burned cheek.)

Red Dread: AAAA! FUCK THAT HURTS! SHIT!

(Wonder Red stands there for a moment, wondering what just happened. She looks at her flaming hand in awe. She didn't know that could happen! Did she always have fire powers and just never knew about them…? A smile grows on her face as her excitement grows.)

Wonder Red: Awesome!

Super Why: Wonder Red!

(Wonder Red looks over as she sees Super Why rushing towards her. He tackles her with a big hug.)

Super Why: I’m so glad you’re okay! I was getting worried–! 

(Super Why jumps back with a scream upon seeing the fire still consuming her hand.)

Super Why: Red! Your hand is on fire!

Wonder Red: I know, right!? Isn’t that so cool!?

(Super Why seems puzzled by her reaction and takes a closer look at her hand. Despite the fact that her hand is, you know, literally on fire, it doesn’t seem to affect it that much. No burns, no skin melting off, no glove burning away, nothing. Her hand was perfectly fine.)

Super Why: Doe-does it hurt?

Wonder Red: (shrugs) A little, but it’s not bad.

Red Dread: I’ll show you what hurts!

(The two kids look over to Red Dread, who managed to pull her basket flail from the heavy rubble and look very pissed off. Red Dread swings her flail up high above her head and flings it over towards the two. The two prepare to dodge the strike, but then Princess Presto appears and with a wave of her wand, she sends out a beam that knocks the basket off course. The metal basket slams into the ground with enough force to break it. The other three Super Readers manage to catch up to the rest of them, as they all reunite at last. Power Paige rushes over to Wonder Red with worry on her face.)

Power Paige: Wonder Red! You look awful!

Wonder Red: Well…that’s one way to put it….

Power Paige: I’m sorry if that sounded rude but–

(Woofster pushes the girls out of the way of another basket strike, knocking them to the ground.)

Woofster: Can we keep talking at a minimum, please? Talking isn’t always a free action here!

Power Paige: Right! Right! Sorry!

(Power Paige helps Wonder Red onto her feet and all the Super Readers engage in battle with Red Dread. 

The camera moves over to one of the alleyways. A man wrapped in a red hood and face obscured by shadow is stumbling through the broken ground and loose debris. He leans against the wall, seeming exhausted and breathing heavily. He peers around the corner and watches as the kids fight the corrupted anti-hero. His vision is slightly blurry from the fatigue he’s feeling but he can still make some things out in the fight.

Red Dread is still swinging her flail violently around, trying to hit the kids, who keep evading her attempts, furthering her frustration.)

Red Dread: For fuck’s sake, JUST HOLD STILL, YOU LITTLE BRATS!!

(Red Dread swings the flail straight into Power Paige, slamming her into another building.)

Princess Presto: Power Paige!

Red Dread: Ha! Finally! One down! Now, (turns to Wonder Red) for the annoying bitch here.

(Wonder Red readies herself to dodge…only to start doubling over in pain. There wasn’t enough adrenaline pumping to ignore it anymore. Her body was screaming loud and clear and her head was spinning from the blood loss. She falls to her hands and knees as her body now refuses to move no matter how much she wants to. Red Dread smiles menacingly as she sees the opportunity to kill the little girl. She pulls the basket back to her and swings it high into the air. Alpha-Pig realizes what’s about to happen and he makes a dash to Wonder Red. The basket is pulled down to a harsh downwards path to Wonder Red. Alpha-Pig manages to make it to Wonder Red in time and with no more time to lose, he grabs her by the cape and tosses her away from the incoming strike, tanking the heavy blow himself. Red Dread seems to stand in shock for a moment, then laughs.)

Red Dread: Wow! That was so stupid! You just decided to take a hit for someone who’s gonna die anyway? How pointless!

(Red Dread turns to the other three Super Readers that were still standing. She chuckles maliciously as she pulls back and twirls the basket in her hand.)

Red Dread: Guess that leaves half of you left then, huh? Ha! This should be easy!

(Red Dread swings the basket high in the air and directs it over to Super Why.)

Red Dread: Take this, dickhead!

(Princess Presto gets in front of Super Why and forms a shield around the both of them. The basket slams into the shield, bouncing off though still doing significant damage to the latter.)

Red Dread: Heh, is a shield supposed to stall me? Don’t waste your time!

(She goes for another swing, only to be interrupted by a strong gust of wind. She looks over and sees Power Paige still standing, clearly in pain but determined. Alpha-Pig also gets back up, also in pain and trying to call upon his recently-developed electric power, to varying success. Wonder Red is sitting up, weak, hurt, yet still surviving. Red Dread growls in frustration upon realizing all this.)

Red Dread: God damn it! You’re all like cockroaches! You just can’t die, can you!? Fine! Time to unleash the beasts!

(Power Paige and Woofster become very frightened, while the others are confused but still worried.)

Princess Presto: Unleash the beasts?

Alpha-Pig: Wh-what does that mean?

Super Why: I don’t know…but that sounds like bad news….

Woofster: It is bad news….

Power Paige: Very, very bad news!

(A bright red aura starts to emulate from the woman, mixing in with the corrupted aura surrounding her as well. Her basket glows violently, with a mix of monstrous growls filling the air around it. The cloaked man steps out of the alleyway, knowing exactly what’s about to happen. He pulls up his Weather Hammer, ready to charge in at any moment. He keeps a particular eye on Wonder Red, knowing she’s the most injured out of all of them.

Red Dread, after a moment of charging, starts swinging the basket around and around above her head. A dark cloud starts to form above them all and Red Dread’s smile grows twisted.)

Red Dread: From the darkness of Hell, rise and take care of these fucking pests!

(With her call echoing through the sky, she slams the basket onto the ground with enough force to break the ground and knock the Super Readers away. From the massive cracks in the ground, shadows spill through and form into six wolves, each locking onto a Super Reader as a target. Red Dread smiles as the kids slowly backs away from their respective wolves.)

Red Dread: (laughs) Try getting past this, you little shits!

(Power Paige changes to her wind form, ready for a hard battle with the beast. She summons her tornado whip and attempts to grab the wolf with it. It seems to work, as the shadow gets sucked in and almost disappears. She disengages the whip and it seems like it’s gone for good…only to reform from the ground again with another wolf. She stares at it with widened eyes, realizing it's not an easy entity to get rid of.)

Power Paige: Crap….

(Woofster growls at the wolf, who growls back with vitriol. He decides to charge at it head on, trying to ram it with a headbutt. The attempt fails as he ends up going through the shadowy wolf. What’s worse, he comes out the other side clearly shaken, as though the shadow filled him with intense fear. He looks back at the wolf, who’s now staring him down with a vicious grin. Woofster, feeling the terror inside him, runs for the hills whimpering, with the wolf chasing after him.

Alpha-Pig trembles at the sight of the wolf approaching him. His fear causes more sparks of electricity to fly off his body, and the dots finally connect in his mind. His fear was causing the electricity to spark. Alpha-Pig looks at the wolf again, now knowing how to use his new power. He begins to channel all the fear he’s feeling in this moment, causing more and more sparks to shoot out. The wolf stops its approach and tilts its head, wondering what he was doing. Once he feels that enough power has been stored, he unleashes a massive thunderbolt attack that disintegrates the wolf completely. Alpha-Pig panted from the exertion and stood there for a moment in shock, before a small proud smile crawled on his face.)

Alpha-Pig: Yay! I did it!

(The wolf immediately resurrects with two identical clones of itself. Cue Alpha-Pig being disappointed about it.)

Alpha-Pig: Oh….

(Wonder Red tries to fight the wolf with flaming fists, which just completely go through the wolf. Soon, the combination of exhaustion and pain really gets to her and she finds herself unable to keep attacking the wolf, giving it a chance to pounce on her and pin her to the ground. The wolf opens its maw, intending to eat her, and Wonder Red feels equal parts fear and frustration.)

Wonder Red: { Drats! I-I can’t lose! We didn’t get to fight Red Spark yet! We didn’t save Comic World! I can’t die! I don’t want to die! }

(Wonder Red looks away, bracing herself for what seems inevitable. Then, in that moment, is when the cloaked man jumps into the fight.

WHACK! WHINE!

The mystery man swings his hammer downwards, hitting the wolf square in the face and knocking it away. Wonder Red looks at the man with surprise and awe.)

Wonder Red: Wh-who are you?

???: We can go over introductions later. I need you to stay behind me.

Wonder Red: What? But I can still fight!

???: Really? Because you were struggling earlier.

Wonder Red: But I–! That was–!

???: We don’t have time to argue. Just stay behind me.

(Wonder Red wants to argue, but knows she doesn’t have much ground to stand on, so makes the reluctant choice to stay behind the mystery man, feeling disappointed in herself for not doing enough.

Super Why aims his Why-Writer at the wolf targeting him. He lets the pen charge up its magic to become strong enough to vanish it, though he’s also unsure of whether or not it's going to change it into a duck again, or something else. The wolf growls with its teeth bare, hungry for the child’s flesh and bone. The pen starts to shake with its power at max and that’s when Super Why knows it’s time to fire. He lets the blast loose and it strikes the wolf with prejudice. The wolf tries to resist the change but, unfortunately for it, whatever magic has been casted is too strong. The wolf lunges at Super Why to attack, but it transforms into a balloon animal before it could succeed. Super Why sighs with relief and is about to take care of the other wolves until three more take the first one’s place, manifesting before him. Super Why is much more than frustrated.)

Super Why: Oh are you kidding me!?

(Princess Presto is surrounded by multiple wolves, unlike the others which had only one initially. She waves her wand and fires a magic blast at one of the wolves. It gets hit and starts to burn away, screeching loudly in pain. The other wolves stare in horror as it burns into dust…and not return with clones. The wolves stare at the dust before turning back to Princess Presto with anger. Princess Presto realizes what has happened and does it a few more times, burning away more wolves into dust. However, the amount of wolves proves too much for her, as she is now backed into a corner. She tries to think of what to do now, then she looks around at her friends. Seeing all of them struggling just as much as she is fills her with a sense of dread and worry for everyone around her. She looks at her wand and that dread and worry is turned into determination. 

She needs to make a much stronger spell to rid these shadow wolves. Her mother has always told during her magic training that there will come a point where she’ll come up with her own spells. She’ll just have to find that right moment. Perhaps now is that moment….

She raises her wand high above her head and begins to wave it around in a bigger arch than she has done previously, channeling as much magical energy she can into her wand. The wolves, who were moments from killing her, back away slowly, ears brushing back and tail between their legs as they fearfully watch the wand glowing brighter and brighter. This makes Princess Presto more certain in her power, with her eyes glowing a bright pink as she feels something activate in her. The last Super Reader of the group whose core fully activates. She summons several pink stars into the sky, along with a few medium-sized comets. Everyone stops what they’re doing and watches this marvelous sight. All the shadow wolves start to quiver in fear, realizing that she had figured out their weakness. Red Dread is staring at this in complete shock, mouthing the words “holy shit”. Wonder Red looks really excited, joyful for her friend unleashing an awesome looking attack. Power Paige looks at the attack in awe then looks at Princess Presto with pink sparkles in her eyes.)

Power Paige: { Wow! She never told me she could do that! That’s so cool! }

(Princess Presto smirks with confidence and waves her wand downwards, directing her attack towards the wolves. The barrage of stars and comets do significant damage to the pack, burning away a good chunk of the shadow beasts into dust. The ones that survive turn tail and return to the darkness underground, not wanting to deal with any of this shit. Red Dread is very pissed off at the runaway wolves.)

Red Dread: Hey! What do you all think you’re doing!? You’re not done with them yet! Don’t run away, you fucking cowards!

(Red Dread lets out an exasperated groan as the last of the wolves either retreat or are burned into dust. Princess Presto twirls her wand around and blows the pink smoke off of it. She then sees that everyone is staring at her in shock, which quickly makes her anxious.)

Princess Presto: Um…(nervous giggle) did I go a little overboard?

Wonder Red: That..was..AWESOME!!

(Wonder Red rushes over to Princess Presto, patting on her back.)

Wonder Red: That really was cool! You saved our butts!

Alpha-Pig: Yeah! We were in big trouble before you saved us!

Power Paige: You did great! I’ve never seen an attack like that before! (hugs Princess Presto) That was amazing!

(Princess Presto blushes upon being hugged by Power Paige before quickly embracing it.)

Princess Presto: Thank you so much, guys!

Super Why: I’m just glad it’s over….

Red Dread: Don’t think we're done yet!

Super Why: Oh come on!

Red Dread: You may have defeated my ultimate attack, but you should know one thing about me! (swings her basket flail around) I don’t stop until my enemies are dead!

(The hooded figure quickly stands between her and the Super Readers.)

???: I’m afraid I can't let you continue fighting these children. Your fight is with me now.

Alpha-Pig: Who’s that?

Woofster: I don’t know. Yet he sounds familiar….

Red Dread: Excuse me!? And just who are you!?

???: I was afraid you would ask that. The corruption has mended your mind so much that you couldn't recognize me as quickly as you used to. Allow me to jog your memory.

(The man pulls off his hood, revealing his face. Blond hair, bushy beard, and heterochromatic eyes, one yellow and one blue, with spark-shaped pupils. Captain Cosmic, the God of Comics and the Action genre.

The Fairytale Super Readers seem very surprised by his reveal, though they don't really know who he is, so it’s mostly a natural kind of surprise. Like a “oh wow, anyways” type deal, if you know what I mean. Power Paige and Woofster, on the other hand, are completely frozen, knowing exactly who he is.)

Woofster: Ca…Captain Cosmic!?

Power Paige: You’re…you’re okay….

(Captain Cosmic turns his head to Power Paige, giving her a smile. Then he looks back at Red Dread with a serious expression. Red Dread glares at the god with irritation.)

Red Dread: Oh great…. You’re back again.

Captain Cosmic: I believe I said that I was going to fight until I couldn’t anymore. I’m still standing, so I (twirls hammer in hand) can still fight. 

Red Dread: (rolls eyes) Oh fuck off! You’re not important to me! Those Super Readers are! (points at Wonder Red) That bitch there burned my cheek!

Wonder Red: No regrets!

Super Why: Red!

Red Dread: See! Just step aside, Cosmic! I want to kill those weaklings, then we can fight one on one!

Power Paige: Hey! We’re not weaklings, and we’re gonna show you!

Captain Cosmic: You don’t have to, Paige. You all have done enough. You just need to be somewhere safe. I can take it from here.

Power Paige: What? But Captain Cosmic–!

Captain Cosmic: I know you’re capable of battle, but you need to recharge and come up with a plan to stop Red Spark. He’s the main priority.

(A low hum can be heard from above. Captain Cosmic looks up and sees a medium-sized drone with a gear emblem on the underside.)

Captain Cosmic: (soft relieved sigh) Just in time.

(Power Paige recognizes the emblem and looks between the drone and Captain Cosmic, panicking.)

Power Paige: But-but what about you!? What if you get hurt!? Like really badly hurt!?

Captain Cosmic: Don’t worry about me, Paige. I’ll be fine.

MuskRat: Don’t go counting on that. 

(MuskRat walks into the scene, along with the corrupted Fright Knight. MuskRat is twitching with electric sparks after having been hit with Alpha-Pig’s attack.)

MuskRat: We still have a (electric twitch) score to settle with (electric twitch) those little chicken nuggets!

(Two other opponents join the scene as well. Golden Gladiator returns after a long absence, her armor worse for wear and wings completely broken. Her red eyes gaze down at the Super Readers with hatred. Empress Tzu Tzu skitters in as well, with the mouse-ified Lady Arachne on their back. Lady Arachne glares at Super Why in particular, grumbling in squeaks. Seeing Lady Arachne like that catches Captain Cosmic off-guard, tilting his head in confusion.)

Captain Cosmic: What on earth happened to her?

Power Paige: You..uh..don’t wanna know.

(All the villains and corrupted superheroes slowly close in on the group. The look of hunger for revenge strewn across all their faces. The Super Readers begin to panic, realizing they’ll most likely be overpowered by the opponents. Captain Cosmic looks between the Super Readers and the closing threat with fear a few times then looks at the drone.)

Captain Cosmic: Gidget! Now!

(It switches to the drone’s POV. Upon being given the command, the drone locks on to all the Super Readers. A message pops up, saying;

Activating Teleportation Beam…. Please Stand By….

Outside the POV, the drone lowers down a blaster from its bottom hatch. It starts to charge with white light. Woofster looks at it with deep concern.)

Woofster: Wh-what are you doing?

Captain Cosmic: You’re going to be teleported to Gidget’s Lab. She’ll be able to help all of you.

Princess Presto: Who’s Gidget?

Super Why: I don’t think that asking questions here is a good idea.

(Super Why points at the aggressors getting ready to attack. The beam fully charges up and is perparing to fire. Power Paige looks worryingly between the drone, the aggressors, and Captain Cosmic for a bit. She then, at the last moment, hugs Captain Cosmic tightly.)

Power Paige: Be safe, okay?

(Captain Cosmic smiles at her and ruffles her hair.)

Captain Cosmic: I will.

(And with that, the teleportation beam fires, sweeping the ground and taking the Super Readers away while not affecting anyone else. The drone retracts the blaster once it’s finished and speeds away from the scene. The aggressors stare in shock at the sudden vanishing act.)

MuskRat: Hey! Where’d they (electric twitch) go!?

Captain Cosmic: That’s not important to any of you. As I said before, your fight is with me now.

Red Dread: (grits teeth) Then we’ll have to put all our anger towards you, you know that, right?

Captain Cosmic: (readies hammer) I’ll take whatever you throw at me.

(Red Dread twirls her basket flail around and launches it into the air. Final shot is the basket falling straight towards the camera before cutting to black, ending the chapter.)

To be continued…