Wicked Dawn | 'Till The Night Falls Book 1 (Disney Descendants)

Chapter 18: Countdown

"Yeah, man, but what if it doesn't?" Jay whispered.

Carlos turned towards him, blinking. He never thought he'd see the day when Jay was questioning a plan. "It will work," he insisted, turning back towards Mal worriedly. "It has to."

Mal, meanwhile, was busy doing something or another near the pedestal. She took a deep breath and laid her hands on the scepter. A moment passed and then a wall of green fire erupted around her.

Carlos cried out as the sudden heat was enough to force him backward. He shielded his face with his arm, feeling Evie and Jay to the same. They all moved back next to Doug who stood there, wide-eyed, watching the entire scene in shock.

"Is that...is that normal for her?"

The VKs nodded. Carlos nodded, clapping him reassuringly on the back. "Very," he responded. "Don't worry. This is normal. Let's get back and let Mal do her thing. Come on, come on." He led the others back to join Ben.

"How's she doing?" the king inquired as they hurried out of the room and Jay took a watchful position near the hall.

"Mal?" Carlos glanced briefly back towards the room while Evie drug Doug away from the door. "Oh...you know...the usual. Casting some weird spell to save the world. You know how she is. Probably will be done any minute now." Then, he got an idea. "Say, Ben, Mal mentioned seeing the symbol for the Lost on some kind of scroll or parchment. In the heroes wing perhaps?"

Ben nodded. "Yeah. She mentioned that. Sounds like it was on one of the scrolls recovered from Captain Hook's ship. We talked about it once in history. Dad found several on board before he sunk the Jolly Rodger."

"Do you...do you think you could show me?"

"Yes. Of course. Mal--"

"Mal will be fine," Jay spoke up. "You two go and see what you can find out. The rest of us will wait for Mal and then catch up with you."

"I can come too," Doug offered, much to Carlos' and Evie's surprise. Then, seeing their startled expressions, he added. "I...might be able to help."

That was true, Carlos knew. He was good at the tech side of things but Doug was better when it came to raw facts. And Evie and Jay were more than capable of waiting for Mal. "All right," he agreed and Doug hurried over to join them. "Let's go." He turned and sprinted out the door. Ben and Doug followed quickly.

They hurried down the hallway, their footsteps the only sound in the deserted building. Carlos shuddered at the bleak darkness and slowed, allowing Ben to take the lead. They descended the stairs again and sprinted to the back of the building. Carlos ignored the statues all around him, nearly tripping over the ones of Pongo and Perdita as he chased after Ben.

They reached the pirate wing a few seconds later and Ben pointed out the scroll.

"That's it?" Carlos questioned, moving closer to read the fading ink. He squinted. "Anybody got a flashlight?"

"Here," Doug stepped up beside him and handed it over the boy's shoulder. When the others looked at him in surprise, he just shrugged. "What? I'm a Boy Scout. I came prepared."

Carlos smirked as he flicked the flashlight on and began to read the inscription aloud. "Long, long, ago--" he began.

"In a galaxy far far away?" Ben interrupted with a grin.

Doug groaned good-humoredly and rolled his eyes.

Carlos look at him and cracked a smile. "Thank you, Obi-Wan, but, no." He continued reading. "Before the time of villains, before there were two worlds, there were two magicians--"