Out of the Frying Pan

**"Out of the Frying Pan"**is the twelfth episode of *Contact* and the 47th episode overall. It is the first in the two-part season finale, followed by "Into the Fire."

The episode was published on March 15, 2020.

In the episode, Toontown is hurled into its darkest hour as the past and present converge in violence, despair, and tragedy.

## Promotion

   On March 12, 2020, ahead of the premiere of the first episode of the season finale, a trailer was released. The video is to the left. The trailer depicts floating embers before flashing into fire burning on the Bay of Toontown. It ends with the familiar warning: "Never trust a fox." The music used is "Noble Blood" by Tommee Proffitt.

## The Episode

---Lyme, Cervidium, Cartonia---

-One Year Ago-

Elko Mabbi was an auditor for the government of the Kingdom of Cervidium. Though more prestigious positions were available to him upon his graduation from the University of Cervidium, Elko preferred the solitude afforded to the government auditors. His speciality was in computer sciences, and illegal breaches. He was dispatched all over the country for a variety of assignments.

But none more interesting than the one he was currently investigating: abnormal computer signals.

In the past decade or so, a deep rumble across the Vulpine Empire was swelling in the form of resistance to the Vulpine crown. It was a difficult force to fight, as the resistance was virtually invisible. No one knew who was in charge, or how vast the scope of the rebellion was. No attacks had occurred yet, but it was an alarming change to the peace that had shaped Cartonia for 300 years under the formidable reigns of the Vixen Queens.

The resistance was called the Free, which made no sense to Elko. Everyone in Cartonia was free, except the mutts in the slave pits. But they were mutts, and not real people. The Free’s rhetoric was believed to be spreading via computers, and thus Elko was hired to find the origin of abnormal computer signals and direct the Vulpine and Cervidian armies to stamp out the uprisings.

Since taking on this project two months ago, Elko had been unsuccessful in uncovering anything concrete. He was asked to start auditing signals from the last ten years in chronological order; all leads ultimately reaped no results. Cervidium needed to send in Elko’s supervisor as well. Together, they sat across from each other in a grand library in Antlerstag, the royal palace of Cervidium.

Most of the signals were nothing, but Elko had not grown tired of the assignment yet. Each signal was a whole different rabbit hole.

The next was a several-years-old internet application to access the University of Cervidium’s library, blocked by its firewall. That was normal, but the oddity about it was that the application had originated from a computer outside Cartonia. Far outside. Elko traced the signal and laid a map of the Cartonian continent over the grid. But the signal would be in the water. Someone had applied for library access in the ocean…

Elko opened the application. It was for someone named Dr. Adam Molecule. He listed his occupation as Mechanical Engineer, and his residence as Chipper Acres.

A hoax? A glitch? He scratched his antler.

“Sir,” Elko said to his supervisor, “look at this.”

Elko’s supervisor, a tenured deer in computer science, scoffed at it.

“Chipper Acres? Probably a fake.”

“But look at where the signal originated.”

The supervisor frowned.

“I see. I’ll pass it off to the Director.”

The Director of the Auditing Team, a fox, took the report from the supervisor. Wrinkling his snout at it, he added it to a large stack and brought it to the Vulpus Senate Subcommittee on Intelligence.

Months later, the Chairfox, one of the most senior members of the government, immediately recognized the implication. She hand-delivered her report to the Imperial Secretary. She walked the note directly to the Vixen Queen.

---Vista, Vulpus, Cartonia---

Queen Vixen XXXI was strolling through the Portrait Hall of the Rook of Vulpus with her youngest daughter, Vella Vixen, when the Imperial Secretary emerged from the other end of the hall. She carried with her a tray upon which a single sheet of parchment rested.

“From the Chairfox of the Vulpus Senate Subcommittee on Intelligence,” the Imperial Secretary said with a bow. The Vixen Queen took the paper wordlessly and read it over.

She turned at once, and began walking back down the Hall. Vella trotted after her.

“Mother?”

The Vixen Queen stopped before the portrait of her ancestor, Queen Vixen VII. The reigning Queen who launched the War of Conquest and died at the destruction of the Vulpus Dam three centuries prior.

“It’s true,” the Vixen Queen muttered. “They survived after all.”

---Toontown---

-Present Day-

Shaking uncontrollably, tears staining her cheeks, Eileen gripped the railing on the bow of a fishing boat as it steamed with full force toward the burning wreckage of the *Chipper*. The inferno reached toward the sky like a pillar bursting out of hell. Blazing shrapnel floated on the placid sea, slowly extinguishing as the waves lapped over it.

Around them, in a floating cemetery, were the dead. Hundreds of bodies, charred and blown apart, rapidly sinking.

Screams of the survivors reverberated across the night, but as the boats grew closer, the cries died away. The ship had been totally obliterated by a sudden and horrible blast. The white light that erupted from within the ship had blinded Eileen as she and Constance could only watch in unadulterated horror as over 200 Toons were murdered.

Barnacle Barbara was hanging off the side of another fishing boat, pulling bodies from the water before they sank. Eileen was too horrified to move. She felt betrayed on such a terrible, personal level. This was no doubt the work of the Cartonians. She had seen a lifeboat sailing away from the *Chipper*, though now it was nowhere to be seen.

Her sorrow was mixed with fury, and she vowed to match the carnage tenfold when she got her paws on Blair Fawkes, Jerockle Padraic, Cale Metfin, Evelyn Quin, Tick Hunter, and Rook James.

Barbara could only think of saving the Toons. Her thoughts were not on the masterminds behind the attack, or the political implications, or this event’s role in the greater scheme. She only wanted survivors to be pulled to safety.

The boat approached a green duck waving a flipper. Barbara reached out and pulled the duck onto the deck.

She did not realize it was Cale Metfin.

Constance threw life rings overboard so that any survivors would swim toward them. But she knew it was fruitless. No one was screaming anymore. The night had gone quiet, the crackle of the flames the greatest noise drifting along the Bay.

All the Cartonians were aboard. Was this a suicide mission?

The siren activated back on shore, and Constance turned toward the noise. The voice of Declan Antlin burst from the intercoms, calling all Toons to the Docks to aid in the rescue effort.

---The Library---

-One Hour Earlier-

Doctor was shocked. His entire understanding of Toontown was changing, rapidly. Everything he had been taught, everything he had been raised to believe—everything everyone had been raised to believe—was not wholly true. This town wasn’t a refuge for anyone, for 500 regular Cartonians brave enough to attempt escape from the turmoil of war. The whole thing was a calculated mission to deliver the last hopes of the Cartonian monarchies to safety. How could so many Mayors have come and gone without knowing this secret? And more importantly, what was Doctor to do now that he had this information?

Mickey was smiling, probably out of relief from finally telling someone.

“You’re tracking down the heirs,” Doctor muttered. Mickey nodded.

“We got lucky with our six Cartonians. They’re harmless. But if the foxes invade, we need to hide the heirs. I’m glad I opened that letter in the Mayoral Vault because it’s taken me months just to find half the people on this list. Genealogical records were nonexistent for the first seven decades of this town’s existence.”

Doctor glanced at the list again.

*Leprolia (Rabbit): Azure Oldman*

*Mallardia (Duck): Queen Bella Mallard; now under the assumed name **Bella Becker***

*Willie (Mouse): Princess Anya Mus; now under the assumed name **Anna Amblerson***

*Simeone (Monkey): Mizzie Mercury*

*Phantine (Elephant): Tusk Card Tatum*

*Porcinia (Pig): Lana Loudoun*

*Eusuchia (Crocodile): Crown Prince Amin Hotep*

*Canis (Dog): Crown Prince Thumper Connelly, now under the assumed name **Charlie Bentley Wolfe***

*Equine Isle (Horse): Calinia Caligari, Countess of Yardley*

“Eusuchia and Phantine’s lines are all extinct.”

Mickey raised an eyebrow.

“But seven remain.”

“Do you think they know?” Doctor asked.

“I’ve been able to tell Katherine Becker and Cornelia Caligari of their heritage, and their title. I don’t think anyone else knows. The founders stamped it out. The secret was lost to time. But the truth always has a way of outing itself.”

Doctor pointed to the top.

“Slate Oldman’s ancestor is Azure Oldman. Is Slate the heir to Leprolia?”

Mickey consulted one of his family trees, which Doctor saw to be extensive.

“He is. Did you catch Bradley Wolfe’s surname as well?”

Doctor shook his head incredulously.

“Bradley Wolfe is the descendent of Thumper Connelly?! Thumper Connelly is one of our founders?!”

Mickey simply nodded. Doctor dropped his head, downright dumbfounded.

“How many heirs do you still need to find?” Doctor asked.

Mickey held up a his paw, curled into a zero.

“None. I found the last one tonight. And I intend to share the list with Constance tomorrow.”

Doctor kicked back his chair and began pacing.

“Tell me everything.”

Mickey did not speak at first, probably trying to figure out the best way to begin. He told Doctor about how a nightmare triggered his late-night journey to the Mayoral Vault, and how the arrival of the six Cartonians prompted him to buckle down and pick up the search for the heirs.

“Why didn’t you tell anyone else? That letter is for the current Mayor. That letter should have been shown to Constance. And Eileen.”

Mickey frowned.

“Constance and Eileen had enough on their plates. The Cogs were still a threat, and the new Cartonians gave them plenty of sleepless nights. This was my burden to bear, and I didn’t want the secret to get out before I found everyone.”

“Go on.”

“I started, obviously, at the top of the list. Azure Oldman was a Councillor of the Brrrgh, son of Glaucous Oldman, a well-known noble of Leprolia. The Oldman family has primarily male offspring, and so the title passed all the way through Slate’s ancestors until the crown rested on his brow.”

Doctor held up a paw.

“Hold up. Crown? You’re talking as if this means anything to us.”

Mickey blinked.

“Well…it is significant…”

“Sure,” Doctor interjected, “but these monarchies are meaningless. We left them behind, and even if seven of our neighbors have rightful *claims* to these defunct thrones, that will not change anything about how we govern ourselves. Monarchy contributed to war and separation…”

Mickey stood.

“Doctor, I do not intend to reinstate the monarchs. I will simply be informing these heirs of their heritage so that if the foxes ever invade, we can protect them. We are all *nothing* to Vulpus, except those seven. Those seven have a claim that might rival any claims up north. The *Queen of Mallardia*, a true Queen regnant, was a founder of Toontown. She was one of the original settlers. Her claim was absolute, and now Katherine Becker inherits that claim.”

Doctor rubbed his forehead.

“We don’t know that. The Diary of War mentioned special rules of inheritance for the Kingdom of Vulpus. Remember? Absolute distaffic primogeniture, where only women could inherit the throne, hence the line of seven consecutive Vixen Queens. How do we know there weren’t some rules surrounding Mallardia’s succession? Or any of them? Maybe the invading foxes—heaven forbid—wouldn’t care that we have heirs among us.”

Mickey seemed amused by that. He continued recapping his research.

“Slate Oldman was easy, as were the extinct lines. Calinia Caligari was Countess of Yardley, and her descendants were easy to track too. I only found Thumper Connelly’s heir because the surname was familiar…”

“Wait.”

Doctor thought for a moment, trying to remember all the details from the Diary of War. “As far as I know, Bentley Connelly wasn’t dead when our ancestors fled Cartonia. He was still on the throne of Canis.”

Mickey nodded.

“You’re right. King Bentley ruled Canis through the War. His brother, however, appears to have been one of the founders and assumed a new name once he got here. But back in Canis, Bentley never married, not after the love of his life—Victoria Vixen—was assassinated on Christmas Eve. It’s unlikely he bore children.”

Doctor smirked.

“Then his mother got what she wanted in the end.”

When Mickey looked confused, Doctor went and fetched a copy of the Diary of War from among Mickey’s books. Flipping to the chapters where the Diary Pig spoke about the causes of the War, he pointed to a passage from Maximilian Walter’s—the first Mayor of Toontown and the Kingdom of Canis’s Royal Historian—memories of a meeting between the dying King Ewan and his wife Queen Libby.

*“I pray he never marries, and that he never bears issue. And that nothing will come between Thumper and Evangie and the throne.”*

“I’m assuming Bradley Wolfe is the descendent of Evangelina Connelly, Thumper’s only child?”

Mickey nodded his head enthusiastically.

“The very same. Evangelina had two children, and the crown descends from there.”

Doctor scanned Mickey’s family tree for the newfound Wolfe family, and saw that the bloodline continued through Bradley Wolfe. He trusted that Mickey put in the work, and that by some way or another, in fate by providence, the defunct crowns of Cartonia fell upon the seven heads in Toontown.

“Katherine Becker, you said? She’s the heir to Mallardia?”

“She is. Queen Bella Mallard, daughter of King Swan XX, the last King of Mallardia. She was a young woman when she fled Cartonia as Queen. Her family history was actually carefully documented, similar to Slate’s, and so she wasn’t too challenging. I ran into a bit of a hiccup at the year 200 mark, when there was some debate about whether to include adopted children in the line of succession.”

Doctor raised an eyebrow. He knew from the Diary of War that adoption was nowhere near as common as it was in Toontown, and certainly not in royal circles.

“The hardest,” Mickey sighed, “were Willie, Porcinia, and Simeone. The three heirs do not share the same surname as their predecessor. Mice and pigs are usually born in large litters, and so there were a lot of family tree branches to cut off. Simeone’s heir stems from the line of Mizzie Mercury, who was the daughter of…”

“Ham Mercury…” Doctor uttered. He, of course, knew that tale as well. Ham was a distant royal relative of the reigning Queen Ana III, just an infant at the War’s genesis. Queen Ana tragically died, and Ham was the only royal family member residing in the capital who could immediately take the throne. He refused the crown and instead chose to rule Simeone as a republic. His choice would serve as the foundation for the idea of Toontown’s democracy. That his daughter had also escaped…this was unheard history that Mickey uncovered!

Mickey continued to show Doctor how he traced Mizzie Mercury to where the Carver family married into the Mercury clan in the year 103, and how the Simenese crown continued to descend through the centuries. All the way to Alvin Carver, whose only daughter Alice was horrifically kidnapped by Dr. Adam Molecule. Alvin perished before that event, having been killed in a robbery. Doctor often forget that Alice Carver’s father was a criminal, and that was why she had lived with her Aunt before the kidnapping.

And so Alice Carver was now the heir to the Kingdom of Simeone.

“Willie…” Mickey went on, “was challenging primarily due to the sheer size of this family tree. Anya Mus, changed to Anya Amblerson, had *nine* children. And each of those children had at least seven of their own. I traced the eldest child all the way to the year 309, when they died without issue. And up up up I went along the family tree, trying to find who would inherit next. But alas, no dice. And so I had to go all the way down the second child of Anya Amblerson. But there’s no mistake. The heir to Willie is Hyla Sensitive.”

Doctor scoffed.

“She won’t want it.”

“Oh, I doubt any of them do. This isn’t about what they want. This is about preventing the foxes from getting to them.”

Doctor leaned against the wall and clucked his tongue.

“You said there aren’t genealogical records for the first several decades of the town’s existence. So then how did you determine the connections between the original founders, and the names in that document, to the living heirs?”

“Other sources,” Mickey answered, “such as diaries, newspaper clippings, marriage announcements. Anything that could connect the dots.”

Doctor nodded. Only one thing was on his mind now.

“I need to call Eileen.”

---Dr. Tom Foolery’s---

The triplet children of Dr. Kilo Byte and Dr. Hyla Sensitive were successfully brought into the world that evening. Kilo and Hyla lay side-by-side on the bed, holding their two daughters and one son. Dr. Tom Foolery, his work done, left the new parents to bond with their babies.

---Tenor Terrace---

Katherine Becker finally found the courage to tell her husband and daughter. She had been acting differently ever since the visit from Mayor Mickey Elias, and they knew it. What had he told her on the patio as the sun set over Melodyland? Katherine knew her husband and daughter were whispering about the possibilities, and she was ready to put their theories to rest.

Katherine had been married to Henry Yorcaster for two decades, ever since they went to university together. Their daughter, Mary, had just turned eighteen years old. Despite the happy marriage, Katherine never shed her maiden name of Becker. Which, as it turned out, made Mickey’s discovery of her that much easier.

“Henry,” Katherine said, “Mary. Mayor Mickey came to tell me something about Toontown, something that…will change how we historically view our town’s establishment.”

Henry cocked his head.

“Is that all?”

“Well, no,” Katherine said. “Because it affects me—us—quite personally. Toontown was apparently built as a place to keep the heirs to Cartonia safe. The royal house of Mallardia was among the founders, and I am one of their descendants.”

Mary gasped. Henry did not catch on as quickly, but since Mary was fresh out of school, and all the classes about the War, she realized at once what that meant.

“Mom!” Mary exclaimed. “Are you the *heir to Mallardia*?”

Henry’s eyes widened.

“Yes,” Katherine sighed. “According to Mickey. He showed me a family tree he constructed…I barely glanced at it. He wouldn’t lie about that.”

Henry scoffed.

“I don’t know, Kate. Mickey’s an old mouse now. I think he’s losing his grip on sanity. Toontown was a haven *from* royals. A step away from the idiocy of crowns and thrones. Mickey is mistaken. There are no heirs to Cartonia here in town, and you’re certainly not one of them.”

Mary didn’t seem as skeptical. Her flippers were over her beak. It was not lost on Katherine that Mary would be her own heir. But at the same time, the secret was jarring but nothing of real consequence. Katherine would never be one to push for any sort of special treatment, or for any power on the Toon Council. She, nor any of her ancestors, knew that they were of royal lineage. And in Toontown, that meant nothing. Crowns were tossed out the moment the founders escaped over the Vixen Cliffs three centuries ago.

Still…Katherine could not help feel a sense of pride and dignity at being identified as a royal. Mickey hadn’t said it, but Katherine knew that if the Kingdom of Mallardia still existed, and they followed the original royal line, then Katherine Becker of Toontown would be a Queen.

---The Library---

Doctor hung up the library phone and returned to Mickey in the genealogy room. He was bent over his work, still studying his family trees. Doctor had just given Eileen a basic rundown of what Mickey had told him. Though she was no longer Mayor, she had a strong understanding of Toontown, and would know what to do next. He didn’t know why, but Doctor felt a sense of urgency.

“Where did you keep your work?” Doctor asked. “In the Mayoral Vault?”

Mickey waved his paw at the wall of cubbies, where Doctor kept his own family tree.

“I just used one of those. I didn’t want to appear too conspicuous by shuffling files to and from the Vault. If anyone saw me working, they’d just think I’m studying my family history.

Doctor went and examined the cubby of Mickey’s. There was a simple three-digit combination lock dangling from the handle.

“It’s not very secure.”

“It doesn’t have to be,” Mickey shrugged. “I know this is a huge secret, but I had to get everything straightened away before we go public. And people don’t care what others do in the library, unless you appear obvious.”

Doctor furrowed his eyebrows.

“Mickey,” he said gently, “you were *very* conspicuous. Running around all frantic. Leaving notepads with the phrase ‘truth will out’ across the top? Even Jerockle noticed…”

Doctor froze. A Cartonian noticed Mickey. And Mickey said…that only Cartonians would care that heirs existed in Toontown.

What if…

His thoughts were disintegrated by the rising commotion in the Library’s atrium. Toons began running toward the door. Minutes later, the siren sounded.

---Bay of Toontown---

The *Chipper* exploded.

Piggy Pie screamed until her voice died in her throat. She felt her entire body go numb and rigid, rooted to the spot, as the ship was engulfed in smoke and fire. Horror submerged her, and she couldn’t breathe.

Hog was on board. Her friends were on board. Hundreds of innocent Toons were on board, and the ship had blown apart with such force that…

How could there be survivors? How could anyone survive that blast? And that meant…

Hog was dead. He must be. Her brother was dead. She was alive, spared by the Cartonians. But he was dead.

Why had they saved her? The whole thing, getting her into the lifeboat, was a ruse. They wanted her to live, to bear witness, to see her brother murdered.

*Never trust a fox*.

Something jumped out of the water and landed on the lifeboat. It was Rook James, the crocodile. He shook off the sea and sat beside Blair nonchalantly. That, it would seem, broke Piggy Pie completely. She flew into a rage and lunged at Blair and Rook, clawing at them, trying to inflict as much harm as possible.

But Tick Hunter grabbed her and restrained her easily. She didn’t give up though, even as his claws dug into her flesh. She kicked, hard, backward against his groin. He coughed in pain, but held fast.

And then Blair Fawkes pointed a weapon at her.

Piggy Pie had never seen this device before, an odd handheld silver gadget with a hole at the front and a trigger. It resembled a water pistol, but it wasn’t plastic. Or green.

Probably, Piggy deduced, because this was a real pistol. She relaxed, and let Tick squeeze her.

Hog was dead.

Hog was dead.

Hog was dead.

“Piggy Pie,” Blair Fawkes said calmly, as if the carnage behind her wasn’t there. As if the screams of the Toons were not audible. “You will use your transport hole to get all of us to safety. We are within range of the grid, are we not?”

Piggy nodded as she cried, the tears involuntarily rolling down her cheeks.

“Wonderful,” Blair cooed. “Can we all transport at once?”

“No,” Piggy muttered. “I can only transport one extra.”

“Fine,” Blair aimed the pistol at Piggy’s head. “One at a time, then. We all go to the same place, or you die. Look at the *Chipper*. That will be your brothers’ estate if you don’t cooperate. That will be Toon Hall, and the gag shops. Everywhere. You have no idea what we are capable of.”

Piggy Pie believed her. Completely. She would comply, for now. Just long enough until she could get back to her family, and the Docks. And pray that Hog survived.

She removed her transport hole, and took Tick Hunter to the abandoned stadium at the Speedway. She returned to the lifeboat for Rook, and then Blair.

Her laff was teetering above sadness.

Deputy Rocky Shores closed the eyes of another victim. She was pulled from the water in a horrific state of shock. Her life ended shortly after being laid out on the deck. Rocky lugged the body toward the “dead” section of the boat, where they were placing all the corpses.

So far, only one was alive. Rocky recognized her instantly as Cale Metfin. She was unresponsive, but that was more than could be said for her sister, Evelyn Quin. The elder Cartonian sister was assuredly dead. Evelyn had been impaled by shrapnel.

Most of the bodies would never be recovered. No one was wearing a life vest, and so the bodies sunk right to the bottom of the Bay.

Rocky knew, everyone knew, that this was the worst disaster in Toontown’s history. Never had a more vile act been committed. Which, Rocky realized, was a notable thought. He never suspected this was an accident.

No, something this terrible must have been planned.

---The Speedway---

Piggy Pie’s transport hole was taken from her at gunpoint, after she had transported Blair, Rook, and Tick to the safety of the abandoned Speedway. No one would look for them here.

Blair kept the gun aimed at Piggy while she smiled and laughed with Rook and Tick. Piggy didn’t know much about guns, but she knew they killed, so she stayed quiet and still. Distraught over the loss of her brother, she kept crying.

But none of the others cared at all.

“I can’t believe it worked,” Tick said, his tongue against his upper teeth.

“You were excellent, Vella,” Rook beamed.

Rook’s use of the name ‘Vella’ instead of ‘Blair’ did not catch up with Piggy until much later.

---The Library---

Mickey and Doctor, mouths agape, gasped at each as they heard the rest of Declan’s announcement over the town’s intercoms.

“We have to protect the heirs,” Mickey blurted. Doctor shook his head, his eyes wide.

“I have to find Piggy…I have to go.”

Mickey ran back to the genealogy room to fetch his notes, but Doctor had already teleported to the Docks.

---The Docks---

-One Hour After the Blast-

Sixty-one bodies were recovered from the Bay, out of 214 Toons aboard. Almost all had sunk in the ocean, depriving their families of the closure they would assuredly desire.

Eileen ghost-walked off the ship as the volunteers began unloading the bodies. Hundreds of Toons were clustered on the Docks, watching the scene unfold. The families of the victims were waiting, heartbroken, for good news that would never arrive.

Eileen turned around to gaze at the wreckage of the *Chipper*, still burning on the horizon. The other ships were coming back to shore now, and with them came the rest of the bodies.

“61,” Eileen heard Barnacle Barbara mutter to a quartermaster, who hurried to bring the news to Declan Antlin.

As Deputy Rocky Shores disembarked his boat, he carried a Toon slung over his shoulder. The whispers flooded along the docks like wildfire: “Survivor!”

Eileen pushed past those near her to get to Rocky and see who had lived through the explosion, who had defied the odds, and who could paint a picture of the scene on board before hell reared its head.

Rocky Shores laid the body on the ground, and Eileen choked.

It was Cale Metfin.

Blinding fury paralyzed her, and she hyperventilated as she imagined all the ways she wanted to kill her. Rocky bent over the small green duck, and administered CPR to resuscitate her. She gasped and coughed up water. Eileen hauled her to her flippers and socked her across the beak. Those near her cried out and restrained her, but Eileen screamed for them to let her go. She wasn’t done with Cale yet.

Cale, however, was shrieking herself, and seemed to not care that she had just been suckerpunched. She was screaming for her sister.

“Evelyn! EVELYN!”

“Shackle her.”

Constance emerged from the throng of Toons, and pointed at Cale. “In the gag shop.”

Deputy Rocky Shores led Cale through the hissing crowd, parts of which spat on her. Eileen wanted to run after her, but she was held back.

Then, the crowd whirled around and began running toward another ship, this one helmed by a set of fishermen and Aleck Harding. They brought with them another survivor, coated in soot and soaking wet.

Eileen recognized her as Harmony Swell, a purple rabbit who lived in Melodyland. She was one of the members of the Toontown Philharmonic Orchestra.

Though she was barraged with questions, and the poor rabbit kept looking for her family, she managed to get one thing across:

Piggy Pie had rowed away from the ship in a lifeboat before the attack with Tick and Blair. Which meant she was somewhere, probably with the rest of the Cartonians.

Deputy Aleck Harding hurried to tell Declan Antlin that an announcement must be made to find Piggy Pie and the Cartonians immediately.

---Alice Carver & Bradley Wolfe’s Estate---

Alice and Bradley did not receive the news of their royal heritage well. Alice took it as an insult, and Bradley immediately demanded the proof. While they pored over the research from the past few months, Mickey rocked back and forth on his paws beside Cornelia Caligari, Katherine Becker, and their families.

“This is ludicrous!” Alice cried. “Bradley *and* I? What are the chances of that? Did Molecule *know* about this? Is that why we were targeted?”

“Maybe,” Mickey muttered sheepishly. “I can’t say. But the family trees are honest. You’re both the heirs to Simeone and Canis.”

Bradley stared at his tree.

“I’m related to Thumper Connelly?”

“Yes,” Mickey replied. “I know this is hard, but we have to move. The Cartonians might know about you guys. We have to get you all to safekeeping.”

Alice crossed her arms.

“I don’t see why the Cartonians should care which of us are heirs to the thrones. Only the foxes rule up there. Monarchies are dead in Toontown. I could be the Vixen Queen herself, and it wouldn’t change my station in Toontown.”

“I’m with Alice,” Bradley agreed. “And who would believe that Alice and I would both find ourselves in the same predicament? How could our lives be *that* intertwined?”

Mickey shrugged, a passage from the Diary of War popping into his head.

“Destiny leads every monarch to their throne.”

Bradley and Alice both opened their mouths to protest further, but Mickey knew that time was in scarce supply. He put his paw down.

“We’re going someplace safe. Now.”

---The Docks---

Cale Metfin was manacled to a column in the lobby of the Gag Shop. She didn’t resist, knowing it would be fruitless. The second the ship exploded, foul play was suspected and the blame was rightfully placed on the Cartonians.

But not all of them.

Cale was already weeping. Evelyn was dead, and she had been absolutely right.

*“We should’ve known better.”*

Aleck Harding, Rocky Shores, Paul Pickaxe, and Marshall Ihob surrounded the column in a circle, their backs to her. She doubted they were protecting her from the mobs outside out of kindness, but instead for their strategic purposes. If she died, they’d never know what happened on the *Chipper*.

The only problem was that Cale had no idea what had transpired. She, like the Toons, had trusted the others.

And it cost her her sister.

---Dr. Tom Foolery’s Office---

Hyla Sensitive was horrified to hear of the attack in the Docks. It was a terrible shock with worse consequences. Toontown was no longer safe.

And the thought that kept rising to the surface like bile was the notion that the Cartonians, numbered only in six, would feel confident enough to commit such an act of evil and get away with it. No, they had something else planned. A surefire way to guarantee they would live to see the end of this tale.

Was there even any guarantee they *did* survive the bombing? Did they want to? Suicide missions were mentioned once in the Diary of War, but they didn’t appear to be too common. Then again, a lot could change in 300 years.

Kilo was holding his newborn son, Newton. Hyla cradled the daughters, Margot and Samara. All three were named after famous scientists. Margot Helix and Samara Franklin were the first to dabble in the invention of the transport network. Newton was more of a legendary figure, from a time long long before. He had something to do with gravity.

The door of the office opened and to Hyla’s shock, Mickey Elias entered. He looked haggard, and frantic. His fur was usually parted so neatly atop his head, but now it was cast askew.

“Mickey?” Kilo said with concern, “are you alright?”

Dr. Foolery offered a seat to Mickey, but he refused quickly.

“Hyla,” he stated. “I have something that I must impart to you. I know you’ve just given birth—congratulations, by the way—but you are potentially in danger. Have you heard about the *Chipper*?”

Hyla nodded, feeling herself getting warmer. What was he going to tell her?

“Right. Well, the Cartonians are likely behind the attack. Which means they might be here for a sinister purpose. And I believe that purpose is to track down and eliminate the heirs to the Kingdoms of Cartonia.”

“Huh?” Kilo blurted.

“Heirs?” Dr. Foolery echoed.

Mickey handed Hyla what looked like a copy of an old letter. She saw Mayor Maximilian Walters’ signature at the bottom.

“Toontown was founded as a refuge for the heirs to the Kingdoms. I’ve managed to locate the descendants of those listed by the Mayor, and therefore determined who would be the current heir to these defunct thrones. Hyla, *you* are the heir to the Kingdom of Willie.”

Hyla didn’t know what to say. She didn’t want to believe this; it was all too fantastical. Yet, obviously it was true. Mickey wouldn’t visit her in the midst of this crisis to feed her a lie this gargantuan. As she skimmed over the letter, she barely heard Mickey tell her that the others were being taken for safekeeping at Toon Hall, and that if she felt it were necessary to come with them.

But Hyla was too weak to move, and Dr. Foolery insisted she remain on bedrest. Besides, she couldn’t leave her babies.

“Kilo, Tom,” Mickey said to the others, “then keep her safe.”

He turned, and was gone.

---The Speedway---

-One Hour Later-

Escape was hopeless. The Cartonians had taken her transport hole, and they were hiding out in the old Club Box overlooking the stadium’s field. For the past two hours, they had been celebrating, talking at length about their success in deceiving the Toons.

No one was calling Blair Fawkes by that name anymore. Rook and Tick exclusively called her Vella, which Piggy deduced was her true name. For whatever reason, Blair Fawkes was an alias, even though the name ‘Vella’ meant nothing to Piggy Pie. She still called the other two Rook and Tick so they apparently had not adopted pseudonyms.

They didn’t talk about Cale, Evelyn, or Jerockle either. Had they been part of the plan? Or were they left to die on the *Chipper* with everyone else?

Piggy Pie was too distraught to turn her full attention to this unfolding mystery. She just wanted to be back with her brothers so they could mourn together.

Hog was two years older than Piggy Pie, the only true brother she had. Muddy, Potbelly, Hamlet, and Truffle were half-brothers, sons of Piggy’s father’s first wife. The Pie children had been bereft of their parents ever since all three died from swine flu. Even though Piggy loved her other four brothers deeply, the relationship she had with Hog was different. He shared all of her blood, and he was the only of the five Pie sons to fight the Cogs. She remembered his bravery at the Deluge, fighting off Cogs with mediocre gags, refusing to leave his sister’s side.

It was that bravery that Piggy Pie summoned now, steeling herself to confront her captors.

“Why me?” she demanded, loudly and clearly. It was one of the more pressing questions. Everyone on the *Chipper* was likely dead. Except her. Why her?

Blair—Vella—smirked down at her. Piggy Pie was sitting on the floor, still in her ballgown.

“Because we need you.”

“Why?”

Tick chuckled.

“You have what we need.”

“And what’s that?” Piggy Pie pressed, hoping they weren’t going to eat her or something.

The fox sighed, as if Piggy Pie had worn her down, though Piggy knew that Blair—Vella?—was dying to share whatever information she was hiding.

“Do you know what your town is?” Vella asked.

“Home,” Piggy Pie spat. Vella laughed, a hollow, heartless cackle.

“I suppose. But before it was your home, before it was your parents’ home, Cartonians lived here. You may have changed the name of your species, but you cannot deny your heritage.”

“None of us ever have,” Piggy Pie stated, which was true. Toons never shied away from the truth that they were descended from Cartonia.

“Toontown,” Vella continued, “was not settled by a ragtag group of cowards, as you’re led to believe. When your ancestors murdered the Vixen Queen and blew up the Vulpus Dam, depriving Cartonia of drinking water for *years*, they ferried out of Cartonia some very valuable cargo.”

They must be talking about an heirloom of some kind, Piggy Pie thought. Something that Piggy apparently had access to.

“Cargo?” Piggy asked. Tick and Rook were smiling, which was deeply unsettling.

“Nine pieces of cargo, in fact,” Vella continued. “Nine monarchs or their heirs helped settle this town. I can’t speak for the other hundreds, about whom I hear barely anything, but I know that nine royal Cartonians lived here. And never went back.”

Piggy Pie stared in shock. *What!* She knew that Mayor Maximilian Walters was the Royal Historian of Canis, and that his closest friend was Minerva Taylor, the Royal Historian of Willie. Several founding Toons had noble titles, such as Glaucous Oldman, the first Councillor of the Brrrgh. But actual bonafide royalty? Piggy had never heard such an outrageous claim. The Diary of War was silent on that.

“Who…”

“Who are the heirs?” Vella asked, smiling. “Yes, that’s a good question. We knew that royal family members had disappeared from every Kingdom around the time the Dam burst, but theories never gave to fact. We followed the trail south, here to Toontown, and thanks to Jerockle we discovered the truth.”

“Where is Jerockle?”

The three shrugged casually.

“So,” Piggy said, “you need these royals? Their descendants, I mean?”

“Not their descendants,” Tick said. “The heirs.”

“And you said there are nine?”

Rook waved a scaled hand.

“Only seven now. Crocodiles and elephants are extinct here. That leaves Canis, Willie, Mallardia, Simeone, Equine Isle, Leprolia, and Porcinia.”

The mention of the pig Kingdom made Piggy’s heart flip. What if…

“We chose to make our statement on the first night of the cruises,” Vella said, which seemed like a sudden change of topic. “As we have found the heirs, pretending and acting was no longer necessary. Time, it would seem, was running short. The one issue was Hyla Sensitive.”

“Huh?” Piggy Pie said. “Why?”

Tick rolled his eyes.

“She’s pretty slow.”

“Silence,” Vella snapped. “Hyla Sensitive is the heir to Willie.”

Piggy’s eyes widened.

“Does she know?”

“Of course not,” Vella sneered. “None of the heirs do. I can’t fathom why, but your ancestors stamped out all traces of royalty. Opting instead for this…democracy.”

She said the last word with contempt. “We couldn’t have Hyla aboard the *Chipper*, for we needed her too. So we postponed the explosion to tomorrow, but then luck! Hyla went into labor and withdrew from the cruise. And who should fill her spot, but you.”

Vella’s eyes were twinkling, but not in a cheerful or happy way. Instead, it was like there was endless darkness and the lights of the room were reflecting off the deep pools of black.

“Unfortunately,” Rook sighed, “that too was an issue.”

Piggy stared. She could already sense where this was going.

“I don’t think you’re too keen on your family’s history,” Vella said, “and I don’t think your older brother was either. Had he survived tonight’s cruise, he would have been the King of Porcinia. Instead, the crown now passes to you.”

Vella drastically curtsied. “Your Majesty.”

Piggy reeled. She only half-believed this. She couldn’t be royal! And…

“Why me?” she asked again. “You didn’t want to kill an heir, and yet you killed Hog. You knew we were both on board and you chose to save *me*. Why?”

Vella shrugged.

“You possess…the regal quality we’re looking for. Hog was a weaker pig. Not all heads are fit to wear crowns.”

“And I am?”

“Yes,” the three said in unison.

Piggy swallowed hard. She shakily got to her feet.

“What are you going to do with us?”

Vella nodded at Tick, who began to move forward. Piggy backed away, but Tick grabbed her. Then, he slammed her head against the wall.

Black.

---The Mayoral Vault---

-One Hour Later-

Hours had passed since the explosion of the *Chipper*, and so far only two survivors had been definitively located. Harmony Swell of Melodyland, and Cale Metfin of Cartonia.

Piggy Pie was still missing, which was not good news for Mickey. Harmony reported that Piggy had been taken away from the ship with the Cartonians. If Hog had truly died aboard the *Chipper*, then Piggy Pie was the heir to Porcinia. If she was with the Cartonians now, she was not safe.

But Mickey couldn’t help but wonder why the Cartonians were focused on Piggy. Why hadn’t they gone looking for the other heirs? And how did they *know* about the heirs, and who they were specifically? Even if Jerockle had gotten into Mickey’s research, the Cartonians were hardly ever alone. Their sponsors were always around.

Except, Mickey realized with frustration, when they were alone on the ship.

The Mayoral Vault was one of the safer places in Toontown. The walls were made of fortified steel, and the Museum of Toontown, where the Vault was located, had stringent security.

Katherine Becker, the heir to Mallardia, sat on the floor with her husband and daughter.

Cornelia Caligari, the heir to Equine Isle, paced the room as her husband, children, and grandchildren propped themselves against the wall.

Alice Carver, the heir to Simeone, and Bradley Wolfe, the heir to Canis, were paw-in-paw. That just left Mickey, standing by the door to the Vault, wondering what else he could do. Hyla was warned, Slate Oldman was nowhere to be found, and Piggy Pie was missing. As Mickey had circled Toontown looking for his other heirs, he had seen Toons heading into shops to hide together. No one wanted to be by themselves as the Cartonians remained on the loose.

“Mickey,” Alice Carver said, her voice echoing in the quiet chamber, “why was getting royalty out of Cartonia the main objective?”

“I don’t know,” Mickey replied.

“What changed their minds?” Bradley asked. “Why did the founders choose a democracy instead of a monarchy? Why not continue the Harmony Crown?”

“I don’t know,” Mickey said.

He wished he knew, but he didn’t. All he had was Maximilian Walters’ letter.

A sudden knock came at the vault’s door, which shocked Mickey. He thought he would have heard the security alarm. But when he gazed into the viewing receptacle on the door, he was surprised to see it was Slate Oldman. He quickly unlocked the Vault.

“How did you know to come here?” Mickey demanded.

“It’s a safe place to put us. Are you gathering the heirs?”

Mickey gaped.

“How did you…”

“Of course I’m descended from royalty,” Slate said, pushing past Mickey into the Vault. “My ancestor was Glaucous Oldman, the Earl of Burrey. That nominal title is bestowed upon only those high up in line for the Leprolian throne.”

“But…”

“King Cottontail IX and his eldest son most assuredly did not survive the War. That would pass the Kingship to Glaucous, and all the way down to me. So, what’s your plan?”

“Wait,” Mickey said. “You knew you were the heir to Leprolia all this time and you never said anything?”

Slate scratched his ears.

“Why? It’s not like it really means anything to anyone.”

Mickey groaned in exasperation.

“So you knew that Toontown was founded by royals?”

Slate frowned.

“No. There were rumors in my family’s history, tall tales to tell the youth. But I never really followed up on it. Like I said, it doesn’t do much except change the way we view Toontown.”

“I suppose,” Mickey said, “but now that the Cartonians are here, you’re all in danger.”

Slate looked around.

“Is everyone here?”

“No,” Mickey said. “We’re missing two. Hyla, the heir to Willie. And Piggy Pie, the heir to Porcinia.”

---The Speedway---

-The Next Morning-

Piggy Pie awoke to a throbbing headache. She was lying on the same floor upon which she crumpled, and she blinked back the blazing sunshine. As she gathered her bearings, she noticed that her transport hole was still gone, as were the Cartonians.

Staggering to the door of the club box, she began to run. She had to get out of the Speedway, back to Dreamland, back to her family. The events of the night before felt like a horrible nightmare. She kicked off her heels and tore the bottom of her gown to allow for quicker mobility.

As she raced through Toontown Central and Melodyland, every so often losing control of her legs and falling on the pavement, Toons called out to her. She gathered from their shouts that the Toon Patrol was looking for her.

Fine, she thought. They can come to her estate.

The dark skies of Dreamland gave her a twinge of relief, and she didn’t stop running until she was home. All four of her surviving brothers were in the living room, their faces clouded in sorrow.

“Piggy,” Truffle exclaimed, rising to greet her. In one lunge, he had his arms around her. They sunk onto the couch. The house felt hollow with Hog’s absence.

“He’s dead,” Muddy whispered. “Gone.”

Potbelly whimpered.

The family mourned together. Piggy told them all about the night before, though as the hours went on, and the story ended, and the silence became more absolute, Piggy began to feel suffocated. Though part of her wanted to stay here with her remaining family and wallow in her loss, the other half wanted to return to the streets. Find the Cartonians, find Eileen, find Doctor.

Find the other heirs.

“Um,” Piggy Pie said, turning to her brothers, “the Cartonians…told me something. I don’t know if it’s true, but I think it is.”

The brothers reacted differently. Muddy was shocked, Potbelly and Hamlet were confused, and Truffle was calm.

“Charlotte always had poise,” Truffle commented about Piggy’s mother, the woman through whom the royal lineage descended. Since Muddy, Potbelly, Hamlet, and Truffle were sons of Dad’s first wife, they were not included in this royal debacle. Just Hog and Piggy.

“Do you think she knew?” Potbelly asked.

“Did she ever tell you?” Hamlet added.

Piggy Pie shook her head to both.

“Hog told me…while we were on the ship…that he had found something in Mom’s stuff. Charlotte’s stuff. He was going to show me. Do you know where he put it?”

Hamlet shook his head.

“It’s probably in his own house.”

The spare key was hanging on a hook by the door. She went alone to his yellow-painted cottage by the creek. It was the one closest to her own. As the door swung into the front parlor, she felt an odd sense of trespassing. This was his home, a house he would never come back to. Was it right to be here so soon after his death?

The thought dissipated as she saw a box on his coffee table. He had written “MOM” in black letters along the side. She spent the next half hour rifling through it. Most of it was familiar. Photo albums, crochet patterns, letters, books, collectibles, trinkets, recipes.

She sat back, having found nothing new or groundbreaking. Hog had said he discovered something the estate manager may have overlooked. If he found something, she supposed he would have put it somewhere else. Someplace he wouldn’t forget.

Hog was not a complex individual. Piggy Pie found it on his desk. A coffee thermos with a brass key within. Somehow, she always suspected it would be a key. The simplest of mysteries with unending possibilities. She recognized the cut; it was for a safety deposit box at the Bank of Toontown. She had one just like it. *This* was what the estate manager had overlooked. Because if Mom had a box at the Bank, that should have been communicated to her next of kin.

The front door burst open, and Piggy whirled around, ready to kill a Cartonian.

But it was Doctor, barreling toward her. He wrapped her in an affectionate embrace, and begged for details. Piggy quickly filled him in, leaving out most of the details in the interest of time, and sparing her the heartbreak of reliving the experience yet again.

“Has Mickey talked to you yet?” Doctor asked. Piggy began to shake her head, but Doctor was already going on. “Piggy, I’m so sorry. But you’re the heir to the Kingdom of Porcinia. Hog was at first but…”

“I know,” Piggy sighed. “Vella told me.”

“Who’s Vella?”

Piggy rubbed her forehead, remembering the name switch.

“Blair Fawkes. Tick and Rook kept calling her Vella. I think that’s her real name.”

“Why would she change her name?” Doctor frowned. “It’s not like any of us would recognize her.”

“I don’t know,” Piggy Pie said with a shrug. “There’s a lot I don’t understand.”

She glanced at the key on Hog’s desk. Curiosity burned within her. It was jarring, how she had wanted so much to get home and now she just wanted to get away and back to the action. She wanted a distraction. She *needed* a distraction.

“I need to go to the Bank,” Piggy said. “My mother may have left something there.”

Her brothers were not keen on letting her go back out into the fray, but Piggy was insistant. Being complacent was never an option for the Toons under the Cogs, and certainly not with this Cartonian threat looming.

“They’re still out there,” Hamlet said. “They’ll kill you.”

“They didn’t in the Speedway. They need me alive.”

None of the four protested. Doctor teleported to Toontown Central, taking Piggy with him. She refused to change out of her dress.

---Bank of Toontown---

Piggy and Doctor had to plead with Head Banker Bob Barker in order to get inside. He had locked up, unsure if the Cartonians were planning a heist or holdup. Carefully checking that no foxes, deer, or crocodiles got inside, Bob yanked them over the threshold.

The safety deposit boxes were in the basement, and they were fairly uncommon. There were enough for everyone in Toontown, but very few had secrets they had to hide. Piggy used hers mostly for an emergency stash of cash in case Cog Nation ruined the economy.

Mom’s was on the back wall, on a lower row. The key was firm in the lock, having been unused in years. Piggy removed the box and carried to one of the tables. Holding her breath subconsciously, she opened it.

There was some money, a locket, a few gemstones, and lots of paper. The paper on top was a copy of her will, which Piggy set aside. She knew the contents of that. A facsimile of her marriage license to Dad, and a document asserting guardianship over her stepchildren. But underneath all that was a folded set of parchment that looked beyond ancient, resting on a pink folder. She pressed delicately against it with the tip of her trotter, and the parchment crinkled stubbornly. She unfolded it, unsure what it was. Was it as old as it looked?

The ink was almost entirely faded. The pages were not that big, and she could make out lines that indicated this probably came from a journal. The words were lost to time; why would Mom keep this around? She examined the folder next, Doctor watching quietly beside her.

The folder contained a typed block of text, headed by the line:

“Transcribed 2/11/144.”

“Hmm,” Doctor said, reading it himself, “I guess this has been in your family for some time.”

Piggy Pie glanced at the basically bare parchment, a gossamer of its former self, and then began to read the typed pages.

*January 23*

*The weeks following the inauguration have been hectic. We are building more buildings, and more homes. It is hard work, and long days, but working in freedom makes every second worthwhile. No one will hear me complaining. Everyone is pulling their weight, and our town is taking shape. Is it possible we will find absolution here?*

“Doctor,” Piggy Pie said breathlessly, “this is from the Diary of War.”

Doctor skimmed it.

“Can’t be. I don’t recognize the passage.”

Piggy turned to him.

“You know how it ends. With the Mayoral inauguration of Maximilian Walters. This is what came next. You see how old those original pages are. This is from the Diary of War!”

Doctor shook his head in disbelief.

“We never knew there were pages missing.”

Piggy was convinced. She kept reading.

*May 30*

*In a recent referendum, we have collectively voted with a substantial majority in favor of raising the first generation of citizens in this town without knowledge of the atrocities we have left behind. Heavy lies the shadow over all of us, and we deign not inflict that upon our youth. Let them learn when we are elders, and when our model of government has succeeded.*

Piggy exhaled. Why did her mother have this? How did it end up in her family?

*September 21*

*Our schoolhouse has held its first classes, and our educators have struggled to teach a proper history class. What can we cover? What should we cover? The referendum’s results have ordered us not to relay our story of strife to the younger generation. The Council has voted in favor of a purge of all written records of the War to ensure that nothing poisons our children’s minds. Max urged me to hide this diary, as he believes my story must be preserved. And so I shall.*

Piggy Pie noticed the next entry was a few years later.

*August 11, Year 3*

*It is apparent that this is the only surviving account of the War, and will be unless another founder puts pen to paper. But I doubt they will. We have become ingratiated in our own happiness, and why would anyone uproot that newfound joy? But I have spoken with Max, and have agreed to save this diary and publish it when the time is right. I now have a daughter and son, and I will task them with keeping this book safe until after I die.*

*I have used the pages of this diary to chronicle my own experience in the War and to document the major causes that gave to its rise, to remind myself of the events that transpired in a world that is now so far away. I’ve been trying to think of how best to wrap this up, and I think I finally know. As I want this book to serve as an educational tool, and a cautionary tale, for those yet to inhabit this town, I must write one last confession.*

*I am from a prominent pig family in Porcinia. In fact, the* *royal family: the Hamleighs. My mother and I did not maintain ties with any of them, primarily due to my mother’s young pregnancy that isolated her from her parents. Simply, she did not uphold the image of the royal family and we were abandoned. When Max, Minerva, and Lionel rescued us from O Camp, we thought it was nothing more than a liberation. Only on the way to the Dam did I learn that Mom had been named as King Bacon IV’s heir. Max told me. That’s why they saved us from the Camp. That’s why so many of us are here now. This town is a continuation of nine royal lines, and therefore nine monarchies. If all had gone to Max’s plan, I would be sitting a throne right now, perhaps wearing a new Harmony Crown. But Minerva disagreed, as did so many of us. We chose a democracy to distance ourselves from Cartonia and from the War. We are new, reborn, rewritten.*

*This secret will not stay hidden for long. Once this diary is published, the whole town will know. I cannot force anyone to ascribe to my own beliefs, but I will nonetheless convey my own unyielding support for the government we’ve created. It is fair, it is transparent, and it is worlds better than the political strife that dominated Cartonia.*

*I chose to omit these passages from the chronological order which constitutes the primary composition of this diary because I did not believe in the weight Max said my royal birth carries. Mom and I were never exposed to ruling, and never desired it for ourselves. Though Mom is gone now, I have no desire to ever wear the Porcinian Crown.*

*For some time now, I have felt as if I’ve been writing to someone, and not just for my own memory and recollection. This diary is no longer just for my eyes, but for all those who will one day read it and learn about the War. That means I am able to choose the narrative, and I wanted to erase the whole arc of royal lineages. Why should future generations concern themselves with the identity of the current heir to a Kingdom that is ages-destroyed by carnage?*

*Ah, here we’ve come to the final pages. Here we’ve come, all the way from Porcinia, Cartonia, and the War to the bottommost tip of the continent, to a new home. We have a strong leader, and a brighter future. As much as I would love to conclude with a message of hope, I unfortunately must deliver one final warning.*

*As happy as we all are with the new home we have created, I do not think I am alone in my feeling that this is all temporary. We killed the Vixen Queen and that is a crime for which we will be punished. I’ve been reluctant to put those words to paper as I fear that I will speak them into existence. But I dare not scare my friends and allies by vocalizing these thoughts. We’ve come too far. I’m sure Max feels the same way. The foxes are ruthless and will not be deterred. If we were able to escape in one year with fledgling supplies and find our way here, then so can they. I know they’ll look for us. There will always be a Vixen Queen, and she will never rest until her predecessor is avenged.*

*The foxes will come here one day. They will traverse the continent, cross the Unforgiving Mountains and ford Lake Liberty and descend the Kinnar Glacier into Toontown. And they’ll kill us all. Maybe I’ll be alive for it. Or maybe I’ll be long gone. But there is no safe place so long as the Vixen Queens continue to reign over Vulpus and Cartonia.*

*In the meantime we’ll continue on with our new lives and build this town to its full potential so that we can be as happy as possible. Maybe with time I’ll forget some of the horrors from my life before. Maybe future generations will never experience the perdition of war. I just hope that they’re prepared for when the foxes inevitably make contact.*

Then, at the very bottom, in standard type:

*Lana Loudoun*

“Lana Loudoun,” Doctor repeated. “Lana Loudoun is the Diary Pig…”

The name was familiar. There were only 43 pig founders of Toontown, and one of them was obviously the Diary Pig. Extensive speculative articles had been written about the likelihood of each founder being the town’s most famous enigma. Lana Loudoun was not usually on the list.

“There’s something else,” Doctor said, pointing to the pink folder. Piggy had missed another folded paper.

*My mother was Lana Loudoun, or who is now known as the Diary Pig. She died in the year 44. She asked me to wait some years after her death to publish this diary she kept for over two decades. I brought it to the Museum of Toontown in 67, and it has become an instant sensation. It is the year 79 now, and I am going. At my mother’s request, I removed the last seven pages, which reveal the existence of royal families in Toontown. Very few know, and even fewer will ever know. Toontown is better without this truth, and yet I cannot part with the pages. The final line is her name, which she chose to keep hidden for the duration of the diary. Only Mayor Max knew of its existence. I bequeath these pages to my children, and I suppose my family will always know the truth.*

*Signed,*

*Laila Loudoun Porker*

Piggy could hardly think straight. This was the greatest conspiracy in Toontown’s history. This was deliberate censorship, and her ancestors were behind it!

“You’re related to the Diary Pig after all,” Doctor said, and started chuckling. Piggy hit his arm.

“None of this is funny.”

“No,” Doctor said, his face growing serious again, “but don’t you remember how we met? In the library. You were researching your family. You had this suspicion you were descended from the Diary Pig.”

Piggy did remember. She recalled feeling extremely foolish after the fact. It wasn’t an outlandish theory to be related to one of 43 pigs that came down from Cartonia, but rather that she thought she could somehow figure it out in the library. If the greatest academic minds of Toontown were unable to discern the Diary Pig’s identity, why should she?

“Why did you think that you were related to her?” Doctor asked.

Piggy flapped a trotter.

“My dad’s last words. He was telling me what Mom said right before she died. He was already dying, but it sounded like she was trying to say something about the family. Being descended from the Diary Pig was the only thing I could think she meant.”

Doctor was half-smiling at her.

“What were the last words?”

Piggy could never forget them.

“My dad said ‘Mom said she is. She was. And now, he is. Hog is. But then, you are.’”

Doctor cocked an eyebrow, and suddenly the unspoken words were leaping into place.

*Mom said she is the heir to Porcinia.*

But she died.

*She was.*

*And now, Hog is the heir to Porcinia.*

*But then, you are*.

Hog was dead.

And so Piggy Pie was the heir to Porcinia.

Doctor placed a paw on Piggy’s shoulder. Above them, outside the Bank, the siren went off again. Muffled words from the unmistakable voice of Declan Antlin rumbled.

“The other heirs are gathered in the Mayoral Vault. I think you should go.”

Piggy shed a tear, but quickly placed the box back in its slot and locked it. Together, they hurried upstairs.

Declan’s message did nothing to placate her nerves.

“ALL ABLE TOONS GATHER WHATEVER WEAPONS YOU CAN CARRY AND HEAD TO THE DOCKS. PREPARE TO FIGHT.”

Doctor gripped Piggy Pie’s arm.

“Go to the Vault. I’m going to the Docks.”

Though Piggy wanted to go too, she knew the Cartonians needed her. She couldn’t imagine why they would leave her unattended at the Speedway, but she didn’t have the mental capacity to figure that one out right now. She had to get to the Vault.

---The Lighthouse---

Aleck Harding stood with Bodie Currituck, the caretaker, at the summit of the lighthouse. There was still no fog on the Bay, which made the scene below that much more terrifying. They didn’t even need to use the telescope. The scene was illuminated by the afternoon sun.

Toons were conglomerating by the thousands on the Docks. There was nowhere near enough space, and so they were standing on boats, on various ledges of the gag shop, on top of the street tunnels.

There, on the seas, was an armada of ships. A few at first, then dozens more. Too many to count. Their sails were black and red with a white emblem.

Vulpus.

The smoldering remains of the *Chipper* did nothing to impede their approach. Bodie grabbed his periscope and swiveled it to look behind them, toward the Brrrgh.

“Oh no,” he murmured dismally. Aleck bent to look himself.

Moving figures had broached the summit of the Kinnar Mountains. He could hardly make out the shapes, but he could not deny that they were alive.

And descending the glacier.

Foxes from the sea.

Foxes on land.

This was a fox invasion of Toontown.

Vella Vixen saw the ships, adorned in their Vulpine sails. She grinned.

Mother was coming.

## Production

### Continuity and Story Arcs

In “Heaven Found,” Adam Molecule submitted an online application for access to the University of Cervidium. He noted the occurrence in his journal, but years went by without the Library returning a response. It was revealed in this episode that the application was blocked by firewall and became the catalyst for the Cartonian discovery of Toontown.

This episode marks the first mention of the Free resistance to the Vulpus Empire.

This is the first episode to have a scene set in Cartonia since “Silent Night.”

Blair Fawkes  was revealed to really be named Vella Vixen, the youngest daughter of the Vixen Queen.

This episode confirmed the deaths of Jerockle Padraic, Evelyn Quin, and all the other passengers except Harmony Swell and Cale Metfin.

Many of the events of “Silent Night” are reintroduced in this episode, including Bentley Connelly’s relationship to Victoria Vixen and his parents’ disapproval of their relationship. In addition, minor characters in the Christmas special, such as the unseen Thumper Connelly and Bella Mallard, were revealed as founders of Toontown.

The infant monkey Queen Ana III of Simeone, seen briefly in “Silent Night” was assassinated during the War. The monarchy collapsed and Simeone was ruled by a scientist named Ham, whose descendants founded Toontown.

The triplet children of Kilo Byte and Hyla Sensitive were born.

In addition to Katherine Becker and Cornelia Caligari, the other five heirs to Cartonian Kingdoms are: Slate Oldman, Alice Carver, Bradley Wolfe, Hyla Sensitive, and Piggy Pie.

The Cartonians allowed Hog Pie to die on the *Chipper* in order to allow Piggy Pie to become Queen of Porcinia.

Piggy Pie’s mother, Charlotte Pie, during her life the heiress to Porcinia, left behind an undiscovered safety deposit box in which she had stored the removed pages from the Diary of War (“They Came From the North”).

During the settlement of Toontown, Mayor Maximilian Walters had favored reinstating the Harmony Crown but others, including fellow founder Minerva Taylor, disagreed and vouched for a democratic republic.

The passage from the Diary of War from the first episode, was repeated verbatim as Piggy Pie read the removed pages.

The Diary Pig’s name was finally revealed as Lana Loudoun.

Piggy Pie suspected early on she may be related to the Diary Pig (“Doctor Who?”) because of the cryptic nature surrounding her father’s last words (“Six Little Pigs”).

As the night worsened, Toontown was invaded by fox forces from Vulpus.

### References

Doctor referenced absolute distaffic primogeniture, a fictional form of inheritance created in “Silent Night.”

## Trivia

* The title of this episode and its successor "Into the Fire" is a reference to the phrase "out of the frying pan and into fire," or going from a bad situation to a worse one. In this case, the Toons went from misery from the Cogs to worse misery from the Cartonians.
* Elko Mabbi’s surname is an anagram of “Bambi”
* The capital of Cervidium is Lyme, named after Lyme Disease, which is spread through deer ticks.
* The screams of the ship’s survivors dying away is inspired by the similar phenomenon experienced by the survivors of the 1912 sinking of the RMS Titanic.
* Ham Mercury of Simeone is named after Ham the Chimpanzee, the first non-human hominid to be launched into space as part of NASA’s Project Mercury.
* Anya Mus, the heiress to the Kingdom of Willie, renamed herself Anya Amblerson and is based on Anna Anderson, a German imposter who pretended to be Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov of Russia.
* Katherine Becker  is named after Katherine of Aragon. Her husband, Henry Yorcaster, is named after Henry VIII and the York and Lancaster families which united with Henry’s birth. Their daughter, Mary, is named after Mary Tudor, who would go on to become Mary I “Bloody Mary” of England.
* As evidenced by Piggy Pie’s father’s last words, it was known from the start of the series that Piggy Pie would eventually be revealed as the heir to Porcinia.