The rogue Author’s clothing had changed.

Gone were the navy-blue jersey and shorts, replaced by some kind of military battle armor. Indira thought he looked a little ridiculous, like a toddler trying to walk around in his parent’s shoes. Even with the wardrobe change, he was still wielding the lacrosse stick from their first meeting. Indira’s eyes narrowed on it. That had to be the source of his power.

Joey laughed obnoxiously. “Told you, Ledge!” he called. “This is way more fun than facing them head-on. The story is always better when the heroes have hope. Nothing like an unexpected betrayal!”

Indira glanced back. Ledge offered a proud salute before disappearing down the stairs. Indira’s eyes swung back to Joey. Up close, the features she’d noticed during their first encounter were even more intense now. His eyes were shockingly blue. His blond hair was so bright it stung to look at it for too long.

“You have to stop this!” Indira shouted. “You don’t belong in this world.”

Joey frowned at her. “You can’t tell me what to do!”

It was such a surprisingly bratty thing to say that Indira almost didn’t notice him thrusting his lacrosse stick into the air. Indira flinched, but no cannons fired. Nothing exploded. Instead, magic swirled around them. She blinked a few times before looking down.

Her clothing had changed. The light pink tunic was gone. She looked at Phoenix and Cavern. All of them were wearing pirate clothing now.

“A shame you had to join the losing team,” Joey said in a mocking voice. Indira was still trying to process the fact that he’d changed her clothes in less than a thought. She felt paralyzed by fear. This kind of power was unlike anything she’d ever seen.

Phoenix came to his senses far faster than she did. He summoned a fireball into the air. His eyes glowed bright as he shoved the spinning flames in Joey’s direction. Indira’s heart leaped hopefully as the flames darted over the water, casting out shadows in every direction.

But the Author just smiled at them.

He lifted his lacrosse stick. The fireball halted in midair, hanging between both boats like a miniature sun. Another flick of Joey’s wrist drowned the flames. Indira’s jaw dropped as the deadly fireball transformed into hundreds of bubbles floating harmlessly into the air.

Joey laughed again. “Surrender your boat, pirate scum!”

Phoenix looked helpless. Indira still couldn’t move. Even Cavern stared in awe. All three of them saw the truth. There was no beating someone this powerful. Joey’s boat started closing the distance between them. Indira knew they’d lost.

Until an unexpected hero took flight.

Little Peck had been strutting back and forth in front of her. She watched as he fluttered onto their boat’s front railing. The rooster took a running start, angled in Joey’s direction, and leaped off the prow of the boat. Indira hadn’t known chickens could fly.

Maybe they couldn’t.

But Peck soared through the air like a superhero. Joey’s expression twisted, almost in slow motion. Cruel grin transformed into pure shock. Peck made contact, driving his beak right into Joey’s face and forcing the rogue Author to stumble back. Feathers puffed into the air. The chicken and the Author went down together.

Indira shouted, “Let’s go!”

Phoenix had already lunged for the controller. He jammed a finger down on the right button and their boat shot forward, barely scraping against Joey’s before getting clear. Indira caught a brief glimpse of the Author rolling around, shouting wildly, as Peck continued his assault. She was briefly tempted to join the fight, thinking for a fraction of a second that this might be Joey’s only moment of weakness. But the moment passed like a strike of lightning.

As their boat roared out of the alleyway, Indira saw a new threat approaching. Ledge Woods had climbed into his own boat. He took in the sight of their escape with wide eyes.

And Indira had the drop on him. She threw her hammer.

Magic tugged her through the air. Her feet landed hard in the back of Ledge’s boat. He was still staring at the place where she’d been when she caught the spinning weapon. Before he could turn, Indira brought her foot up and kicked his backside. The traitor went sprawling into the water.

Her eyes darted up as Phoenix and Cavern passed.

“Don’t stop!” she shouted. “I’m coming!”

Another throw. The hammer arched out over the water and Indira found herself shoulder to shoulder with Phoenix, facing the way they’d come. She caught the hammer a second time, grinning back at the damage she’d caused. She felt bad for abandoning Peck, but as they rounded the corner, she knew he was the only reason they were still alive.

“Back to the tunnel!” she ordered.

Phoenix was already whipping around the turn. There was cannon fire behind them. Engines revved and echoed over the water. Indira thought she even heard Joey’s furious shouts chasing them. Clearly, he wasn’t used to losing. The thought had her smiling as Phoenix rammed the boat up against her house’s front stoop. They disembarked quickly.

Her eyes flicked back. The water behind them churned with movement, but no one saw them slipping inside the house. She closed the door carefully behind them and began the descent. No one spoke as they crawled back through the pipes. Beginning was waiting anxiously at the bottom. She saw their weary faces and made a quick but necessary decision.

“I’m shutting down this tunnel,” she said. “We can’t risk him following you.”

Indira watched the land’s representative set a hand against the tunnel. Magic shivered up its length and the tunnel became just another part of the wall itself. Indira knew they’d need to get back into the town, but she guessed that Beginning had other ways in. The emissary was right. They couldn’t risk Joey finding the underground factories. There was no telling how much he’d destroy.

By the time they’d navigated the underground and reached the exit tunnel, it was nearly dark outside. Phoenix summoned a flame into his hand, allowing it to flash in the air and flicker. After a moment, he extinguished it. That was the signal. Indira saw a matching flame appear in the forest off to their right. It glowed for only a few seconds before gasping out.

“That way,” she said.

They crossed the distance to find the rest of their crew. Cavern was still clutching the briefcase with the device to his chest. She was honestly just thankful they’d all survived, even if she felt guilty for leaving Peck behind. The others stood at the shadowed edge of a forest.

Gadget looked thrilled. “You got it. This is huge.”

“That’s the good news,” Indira replied. “The bad news is that Joey is even more powerful than we thought. And he’s going to be really mad that we beat him. He’ll be looking for us now. No more element of surprise.”

“We know,” Minerva replied. “Look.”

Her pretend mother pointed toward Ordinary. The town’s massive walls loomed in the distance, but now massive banners were unfurled over the sides. It took a second for Indira to realize they were wanted posters. Joey had used his powers to produce house-size images of each of them, dressed in their pirate gear. Underneath, he’d attached absurd rewards for anyone who assisted in their capture. Her first thought was that other characters would never dream of helping someone like Joey, but Ledge was living proof that some of them would.

Sighing, she turned back to the others.

“At least we look cool,” she said. “Time to go check in with Maxi.”