___________________________
*Ben's POV*

It was almost like everything was falling apart and none of us could stop it. Masky and Hoodie took off for who know what reason. They claimed they were returning that same day... but it's been 3 days now. If I had to take a guess, they were headed after Lucy.

I would've too if I wasn't so worried about everything around here. Slender has been in and out of the Hideaway- never stepping foot inside, just in his office. I knew to give him space and everyone else knew that too. Papagrande is the only one allowed to disturb him- and that was only because they share the same office.

"Ben?"

I was seated on the couch, but looked up to see Clockwork and Sally standing in front of me. Sally seemed to have a carefree expression where as Clockwork's wasn't.

I nodded, "Yeah?"

"Can you check through the news articles again?" Sally smiled.

It was sad to see how much faith the little girl had in any of us. She trusted us wholly. Her main concern was getting Jeff back. At least once a day since they disappeared Sally would approach me asking the same thing. I could tell by the look on Clock's face that she was losing any hope of finding them.

"We can both check." I assured Sally, flashing Clock a hopeful smile.

Leaning forward on the couch, I grabbed Sally's hand and stood up. Her and I began walking to the staircase and up to my room. Behind us, I could hear Clockwork dragging her feet.

It was the same routine day in and day out for Clock and Sally: wake up, eat, ask for the news, then Clock would train as Sally played on the sidelines of the training course. Shortly after then was dinner for them and then a little bit of free time and bed. Clock has taken Sally under her wing to keep Sally's mind off of Slender being absent.

We reached my room and I sat down on my chair at my desk. Sally took a few steps back to stand next to Clock while I got the search going.

A few years ago Papagrande and I created a very well hidden website. It allows us to search through millions of articles with special keywords. It even has facial and structure recognition for when pictures are taken on the rare occasion so we can remove them immediately. Of course there's tons of reports and pictures that come through as false alarms, but it's helped us stay hidden for the past few years now. And, of course, there's the few pictures and articles that slip by.

"Since our search yesterday, over twenty thousand new articles have appeared around the world." I announced to Clock and Sally.

Clock sighed and ruffled Sally's hair. "That's less than yesterday. Should only take you, what? Fifteen to twenty minutes to search through?"

I nodded, scrolling through the false alarms. "Should be. If anything pops up, I'll let you girls know."

Clock and Sally's footsteps faded as they left the room. Checking through the system gave me something to do, so I didn't mind doing it at all.

******
*Eyeless Jack's POV*

The cell door swung open and Luke stepped through.

"Wakey, wakey, Jacky boy." Luke chuckled. "We've gotta go check on your girl."

My mind was foggy from being locked up in the cell for so long. They had the corrupted gas running all night, knowing that we were scoping out the woods where Luciana is.

"So, let me get this straight. You and Jack know where Lucy is hiding?" Scarecrow peeked around the corner and gave me a slight wave. "How did you manage that?"

Luke grinned. "I have my ways."

By now I was already to my feet, struggling to keep my balance as a dizzy feeling rushed through me. I glanced up at the raven haired girl as she shook her head.

"What the hell is Zalgo up to?" Scarecrow asked, walking into my cell and grabbing my arm. She pulled me up into a standing position and looked at me, shaking her head. "His face is full of corruption. His veins are darker than usual. You guys are going to get him so far gone that he won't come back. Does Zalgo know he's been in here for this long?"

"It was my orders."

Scarecrow spun around to see Zalgo enter the cell. Luke placed my mask on my head and slid it into its proper position, allowing the ooze from my eyes to hold it in place.

"But isn't he going ba-"

"When our plan follows through, there will be nothing for him to go back to." Zalgo cut Scarecrow off harshly as he strolled over to me.

"May I ask how you guys found out where Lucy was hiding?" Scarecrow spoke softly.

Zalgo looked away from me and to the grey girl. "We have someone on the inside." He placed his hand on her shoulder as it started to glow red. She began wincing in pain, her knees buckling. "But that's our little secret, isn't it?"

Nodding her head quickly, Zalgo removed his hand as she fell to the ground gasping for air.

Fog. That's the only thing my mind can process. Thick, black, cold, dark... fog.

"Why don't you and Jack head out to check on our Lucy before someone else asks more questions than they're entitled to. I'd hate to waste my energy too much before our big day." Zalgo grinned from ear to ear as he spoke to Luke.

Nodding, Luke grabbed my arm and slowly began to lead me away from Zalgo and out of the cell.

Lucy. Dead, bloodied, lifeless, buried... Lucy.

A smirk formed over my lips and a cackle roared up from my chest.

"Let's go."

******
*Jeff's POV*

"I told you, I want absolutely nothing to do with this. Like at all. Ever." I shook my head.

It's been a few hours of sitting here with no idea of who they are or what they're doing here or why they ran from Slender or anything.

The man was seated on the couch in front of me, not taking his gaze off of my face. I've been sitting on my knees in the corner of the room the entire time. Darkness had taken over outside, and the only way I knew that was through the window behind the man's stupid head.

"Listen. I don't know what she is, but she's just like Sle-"

"If you finish that sentence, you won't leave here in one piece. Ally is nothing like that murderer. She wouldn't kill her own kind." The man stood up, pointing the gun at me once again. "I will kill you though and I won't hesitate."

A tendril quickly snatched the gun out of the man's hand. I watched as Ally three the gun to the corner of the room, never once moving her gaze off of me.

"What the fuck Al? I was trying to make a point." The man grunted as he sat back down.

Ally shook her head. "Jeff won't listen. He never catches hints."

For a small girl speaking, she sure sounded elegant.

"I hope I didn't hurt you during my black out. You threatened Xander. I won't tolerate threats to him, or even you. Xander's been looking after me since we escaped Slender and you... you're one of us. You will leave this cabin. I don't know when or how, but you will leave," she glanced at Xander and glared, "unharmed."

Xander stood up and rolled his eyes. I watched as he walked behind Ally and into the kitchen. He kept glancing behind him and at Ally as she continued speaking.

"Slender killed my friend. Once, not too long ago, but long enough, Xander and I were in the Slender Mansion. I had a friend..."

"We don't say her name here. I'm sure Nightmare Ally would make a reappearance and I'm not going to stop her this time." Xander snarled from the kitchen.

Ally cleared her throat and continued speaking. "She was a proxy, and Slender and her shared a connection. They were linked."

Furrowing my brows, I stifled back a chuckle. "Slender had a link like Lucy and Jack?"

"Who's Lucy?" Ally asked, leaning forward and placing her elbows on her knees as she intently listened.

"Lucy is who I need to get back to. Papagrande has-"

Ally jumped up and took a few steps back. "Does he know where we are!? Did he follow you?!"

Xander has dropped his glass of water. The glass shattered as he lunged for the door. Locking it, he glanced outside and picked his shotgun up.

"Jeff, what the hell are you doing around Papagrande!?" Xander was shaking vocally and physically.

I put my hands up as a sign of surrender as Xander walked closer to me.

"There is no way Slender allowed Papagrande in to the mansion. He's one of Zalgo's, not Slenders." Xander glanced at Ally. She was staring blankly at me.

I shook my head. "You're probably thinking of someone else. Papagrande placed Lucy and I in a cabin for protection a few miles away from here."

Ally gasped and threw her hands over her mouth. Fear. I know that look all too well. Fear had taken over her soft, innocent face.

Xander walked over to Ally. A sickening crunch was heard has he removed a key from her back. Her fearful face turned into a blank, cold expression. Gently, Xander picked the doll like girl up and brought her into a room.

My mind was trying to figure out too much at once. For starters, what the hell did I just witness him do? And for most, what do they have against Papagrande?

Xander walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. He slid a chain around his neck that had a brass key on it. Picking his shotgun back up, he sat down on the coffee table in front of me.

"You don't have like a nightmare mode or anything, right? I don't need to worry about you freaking out and snapping on me?" Xander narrowed his eyes at me.

I shook my head. "No. But if you don't let me go, you will have something to worry about."

Xander shook his head. "Not happening. Papagrande is a threat and you know where we are. I don't know what kind of bullshit Slendy is feeding you, but Papagrande is not one of you. He is hardly a follower of Zalgo. He has far more dark intentions, darker than Zalgo."

"Listen. Xander? Slender's current proxy is sitting in a cabin, pregnant, and by herself and only Papagrande and myself know where she is. So you better talk a lot quicker because if something happens to her, I will make sure you watch Ally suffer slowly." I snarled through my teeth. "And judging by the looks of it, if you guys are roughly two miles away, he already knows where you are."

"And this is just a tease before the big storm." Xander leaned back, shaking his head. "He must've brainwashed all of you into thinking he was on your side."

I chuckled. "You thinking Papagrande is smart enough to do that? Good joke. That guy can hardly do a tracking spell."

Xander quickly stood up and lunged at me. His face was now centimeters from mine. His long, thick black hair was hanging loosely around his face as he snarled. "Ally is the way she is because Mr. Creepypasta, Slender and Papagrande couldn't leave her dead. Their sick and twisted minds brought a ten year old back from the dead for absolutely no reason at all. Once Ally was made, Slender kept her at the mansion for a few years until Slender killed his linked proxy with the help of Papagrande. Ally was best friends with her and witnessed the drowning. Ally told me everything and the second we saw an opportunity, we ran. Papagrande found us though. He wanted to make more dead children into what Ally is. He wanted a world with just us freaks."

"Ouch." I cut him off. "I don't consider myself a freak."

Xander scoffed. "You've seen what you look like, right? Anyway. Shut up and let me speak."

"You don't look much better." I snorted.

It was true. He was no older than twenty five. His black hair was longer than mine, but unlike myself, he kept his hair neat. His skin was a fair skin tone, not too light but not tan at all. But he had markings all over his skin. Some were black, others were white and few were purple. They looked like random patterns to me.

"Keep interrupting and you'll never get back to Lucy." Xander pointed out as he tugged the zipper up on his brown sweatshirt.

"As I was saying. Zalgo's plan has always been to take over the world and rule it- I'm sure with a few million casualties. Slender's is to keep it as is. Papagrande just wants to end all existence, except for our kind. He worked for the SCP foundation until they found out he was letting the SCP's go or even letting the SCP's use their powers to talk to others on the outside."

"Wait, wait, wait. Powers to talk to others on the outside? Like mind communication?" I cut him off.

Xander nodded. "Some can do far worse."

My breath was caught in my throat and my stomach began churning. "Far worse?"

Xander nodded. "We're off topic. I was getting at-"

"Plague Doctor." I whispered.

"SCP-049. What about him?" Xander raised an eyebrow.

By now I knew I had to get to Lucy, and fast. I was scanning the living room and kitchen for something, anything, to fight with. That was when my eyes landed upon a wooden knife block on the counter top.

I stood up quickly, my head spinning with all of this new information. The Plague Doctor has been an SCP all along and how have I not realized it?

"I need to go. Now." I growled under my breath, not caring about the shotgun barrel pointed at my face.

Between the new information about Papagrande and the information about the Plague Doctor, I wasn't sure which one was worse. Neither of them have done anything significantly damaging, but they could just be waiting for the right time.

I began walking swiftly to the door, when suddenly Xander ran at me, throwing me into the kitchen. Toppling into the cabinets, I quickly grabbed the knife from the knife block that I was eyeing up and fell to the floor.

Behind me, I heard the gun get cocked as Xander started speaking. "You can try to run, but the second you get out the door, I will have Ally's key back in her and she will be after you. And I promise, she is much, much quicker than you."

Taking a deep breath in, I lunged for the door. Flinging it open and jumping off the porch, I allowed my legs to carry my as quickly as possible back to the cabin where Lucy was staying.

Behind me, a blood curdling scream rang through the air followed by the sound of a dog barking.

It was dark, but my sense of direction was something I perfected years ago for occasions like this. Just a little over two miles until I reached the cabin. I just hope within the amount of time that I was gone nothing happened with Lucy.

"Well, well, well." 

I skid to a halt in my tracks as two figured emerged from behind a tree a few feet in front of me. A fire engine haired boy with ghastly white skin and thick black veins grinned at me. Alongside him was...

"Jack..." I muttered, turning to look behind me.

Any time now Ally and Xander should be catching up to us. Usually I probably would've heard their footsteps in the distance, but my heart was beating so fast in my chest, and that was the only sound I heard.

"How do you know where we are!?" I shouted, gripping the knife in my hand.

Luke's mouth turned up. "We just do. We have our ways."

"Papagrande! He's behind this, isn't he!? Jack. Luke. If either of you are still in there, Lucy is in trouble. I need you to let me pass and get to her." I tried to reason with them.

Jack's mask was placed on the top of his head, which he was shaking.

"We're not the one standing in your way, Jeff." Jack snickered and signaled for me to look behind him. "He is."

Leaning to the side, a charcoal cloud formed behind them. Luke began running in the direction Lucy was. Jack and the cloud followed close behind.

"What the fu-"

Before I could finish my sentence, a tendril wrapped around my throat and yanked me backwards.

Xander walked into my vision along with Ally.

"Was that Jack?" Ally asked. "I've heard a lot about him. Doesn't he usually wear his mask?"

I was trying to scream, but her tendril was wrapped around my mouth. If Papagrande has any communication with Zalgo then Jack and Luke will know they can easily get into the cabin area by climbing the tallest tree by it. Basically jumping the invisible wall.

"I told you, Jeff." Xander shrugged. "You're coming back with us and staying there until I know what to do with you."

I was trying to fight my way out of her grasp, but with every movement she'd wrap another tendril around me, each one tighter than the last.

Off in the far distance, I watched as Luke, Jack and the grey cloud disappeared.

"Glad they didn't come back. That would've been messy. Let's get going, Al."

******
*Lucy's POV*

It seemed like rain was in the forecast. The stars in the sky were slowly being covered by the clouds were rolling in. Thunder could be heard off in the distance.

I was sitting on a kitchen chair, staring out the window as raindrops slowly started coming down. Any second now, I should see Jeff returning from wherever he went- at least that's what I was hoping.

"Maybe he's right about Papagrande?" I said out loud.

Could be...

"It doesn't make sense though. He wouldn't put me in harms way. Not Jeff either. Papagrande seems to be protective of all of us." I responded to the Plague Doctor.

Lucy, I think you need to stop wondering about it before you tread into waters you're not meant to be in.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Before the Plague Doctor could respond, a streak of lightening lit the night sky up, and three seconds later, thunder crashed.

"Three miles. The eye of the storm is three miles away." I muttered, wrapping the blanket around me tighter.

I was already in thick sweats, a thick sweatshirt and fuzzy boots, yet this whole place seemed like it was never warming up.

A few minutes of silence rolled by before another streak of lightening threw itself across the sky, illuminating the area.

Rain was pouring down and I could see the trees were already soaked with water.

Without a warning, all the power in the cabin shut down. Though it startled me, I didn't bother with moving. Jeff will be back soon and he'll know what to do.

A small tapping was coming from the window beside the one I was looking through. Leaning back and to the side, I squinted my eyes to get a better look at what it was.

I was expecting a tree branch or hail.

But when the lightening lit the area up again, the last thing I was expecting to see the same shade of blue that mesmerized me last year.

"Jack..."

**************
Happy Halloween you spooky dolls.
I'm not going to lie, I have a chapter that I wrote up saying the story is done. I was just not inspired at all. Mostly because I had a TON of ideas on my phone and one day they were all just gone... so I just gave up. Then suddenly I started missing the story like crazy. And you dolls too! I know I lost a HUGE chunk of my fan base and it SUCKS. But it is what it is. I'm determined to continue this to the end.