Chapter 12:00 Harlequin Tragedy

Kane kept his word and led them up through the lift that carried them all the way to the top of the mountain.

Oliver gasped when they rose above the horizon. "The world in the light," he said, "I forgot how beautiful it was."

They spot the dinner party on the patio and duck out of sight. A tear rolls down King Horyx's cheek as he listens to Gwendolyn play her violin.

They formulate a plan: they'll create a distraction in order to swoop in and grab Maise and Gwendolyn. How will they distract them though?

Enoch takes a deep breath and hands Theo a small piece of time— a tiny gold cog the size of a pebble. "Give this to Ada," he says. "Tell her that I trust her above all others."

"What are you doing?"

"Remember, Theo, it takes incredible strength to accomplish an impossible task."

Before they have a chance to protest, Enoch steps out toward the patio. Maids murmur and Gwendolyn stops playing. Griffon guards rush to restrain him.

"What's going on here?!" Somna shouts. "Take him back to the dungeon immediately!"

"No." Enoch says.

"Excuse me?" Somna replies.

"I will no longer allow you to keep me there."

"Is that so?" she asks. "Very well, then. Let him go. Drop him through the clouds."

The griffon guards lift off, carrying Enoch away from the castle, over the clouds and release him. Oliver watches in disbelief as Enoch drops below the clouds, out of sight.

"It's not easy being me," the Queen says. "Why'd you stop playing? Continue."

"No!" Kane shouts as he runs toward them. Theo, Oliver and Mr. Bear charge with him and the forgotten children follow.

"Stop them!" the Queen shouts.

The griffon guards escort the Queen and her guests inside. The maids flee. Gwendolyn runs to Kane.

A closet door opens and an army of skeleton guards with crystal swords file out and attack. Theo wards them off with the crooked dagger.

In the castle parlor, the Typho holds Maise's shoulders. Horyx lays back on a green couch and the fortune teller sips from his cup with a grin.

"You're doing this on purpose!" Somna shouts at the fortune teller. "All you've done is bring me bad luck!"

"Cruelty bores me," he replies with a hiccup.

"Tell me what happens next!"

"Everything works out exactly as it's supposed to."

Somna smiles at him, "Why haven't I thrown you through the clouds yet?"

"Nobody wants to throw away their punching bag," he replies.

"Useless. They want light? Let them have light. A great fire to cleanse the land, reinvigorate the soul."

The Queen turns to her guards, "Have your army torch the town from forest to sea."

The griffon guards nod and depart.

"They'll hate you for this," the fortune teller warns.

"If they fear you, they respect you!" she says as hundreds of griffons fly, carrying flaming pots toward the town. "So let them hate, so long as they fear."

In town, the griffons drop the flaming pots on homes and rooftops. Ada looks up from her book when she hears people screaming. Jean and her high horse run for cover. Even the fire merchant runs away. Judge Punisher shouts as the Kangaroo Court burns and the gawkers run out rioting and looting the fire merchant's shop, spreading more fire.

In the castle, Theo fights his way through the skeleton army. They crumble into piles of bone when he strikes them with the dagger.

Bonnie the porcelain doll joins them. Pieced together with glue and tape, the reinforcements have made her one hundred times stronger. She runs to the parlor door and with her incredible strength, rips the door off its hinges.

The Queen jumps up and the crown of flowers falls at Maise's feet.

"Now!" Oliver shouts and Bonnie throws him into the parlor. He aims his stinger down as he rockets toward the Typho's neck and jabs him— the stinger breaks off and Oliver falls. Theo runs and jumps, catching him before he hits the ground.

"Ow!" The Typho bursts into tears as he grabs his neck and runs to hide in the old castle below.

The returning griffon guards capture Theo and Bonnie and all of the forgotten children as the town burns from beyond the castle walls.

There, Ada rushes to the hornless unicorns and the black sheep. She straps buckets to their backs and tells them to run to the ocean as fast as they can. The high horse helps too. Then she runs to the puzzle factory and gets all the derelicts and outcasts to help pour the buckets of water on the fires. They all work as hard and as fast as they can, pushing themselves until their arms and legs ache then they push themselves some more.

"Maise, help!" Theo pleads as he's being held down by the sharp claws of a griffon. With the Typho gone, Maise drifts from her trance and awakens. At her feet is the Queen's crown of flowers. She picks it up and places it on her head.

"Stop her!" screams the Queen.

Maise stands as whirling winds cause the clouds around the castle to spin into a cyclone, growing and whipping, creating a wall of storm around them. A bolt of blue lightening explodes the roof of the castle, cracking it and it slowly melts.

The griffon guards flee and get caught in the winds, sending them soaring into the distance.

The Queen runs to Horyx, "Look at what you've become! I married a warrior! Help me!"

She takes off her golden necklace and shoves it into his hand. King Horyx feels the gold in his palm and remembers. He wraps the chain around his wrist and rises with a fury the land hasn't seen in a thousand years. He grabs two large steel broadswords hanging above the mantle as the wall behind them melts.

Maise holds up her palm. Above it floats a small shadow ball the size of a marble. Curious and bewildered, King Horyx drops the swords.

Behind Horyx, Somna seems confused. This is the first time she's taken the necklace off since receiving it. It's as if she suddenly realizes all she's done and all the pain she's caused. "I can see color again," she whispers softly.

King Horyx reaches out his pointer finger and touches the floating sphere and it expands like an explosion that leaves only the King and Queen inside of it; a timeless void where there is nothing, yet they're inside of everything.

Maise places the sphere in a box given to her by the mad fortune teller. A box with a keyless lock where they'll be banished forever.

And the storms subside.