Begin!

~Violet's POV

"You're sure these dive suits will protect us?" It had been a couple hours but we had reached the grotto and were preparing to journey inside.

"Absolutely," Fiona replied, "I've been diving plenty of times before and they're perfectly safe. Are you sure you want Sunny to come?"

"We prefer to stay together as much as possible," Klaus said as he helped secure our sister inside her little dive suit.

Sunny made a sound of agreement. I don't like the idea of going into the grotto but we didn't have a choice. Fiona was certain that we would be fine as long as we get out before the mushrooms wax again. As we finished getting ready and gathering our materials, I glanced at a clock on the wall and thought about what day it was, in a few hours it would be my 15th birthday. I didn't want to bother anyone with this information though. I'm not sure if Klaus or Sunny remembered and it simply wasn't important right now. We grabbed several flashlights to help us see in the dark waters and Fiona brought a waterproof bag so we could transport the sugar bowl if we found it.

We were each given a comm-device to be able to talk underwater, and Fiona had one that was directly linked to the Queequeg just in case. And once we had everything, we were ready for our mission. I kept a tight grip on Sunny's hand as the four of us climbed out of the submarine into the murky depths. We went down to the sea floor before getting to move forward. Fiona led the way inside, having memorized the map of the area. (I assume she learned a few things from Quigley on the matter)

"It's awful dark down here," Klaus said.

"Sunlight can't come down this far," Fiona replied searching the area with her flashlight.

"You're sure there's nothing dangerous living down here right," I asked.

"Don't worry we're not in anything's territory so we should be safe. I found something interesting though."

Fiona pointed her flashlight slightly above us at what we recognized as a V.F.D. insignia on the cave walls. "We're close," She noted.

"What was Anwhistle Aquatics anyway," Klaus asked, "You told us it burned down but you didn't mention what they did there."

"It was a science facility from what I have been told," Fiona explained, "I was 6 when it burned down so I never saw it myself. My stepfather said he'd been there once or twice when it was still running though."

"Does he know what it was for?"

"I don't know, but I found a spot where we can surface. I'll go first to make sure it's safe."

We watched as Fiona swam up to the surface. After several seconds she gave us the all clear and we followed her up. The four of us emerged in an underground area that looked to have been part building and part cave at the same time. There was a mess of debris lying everywhere and part of the floor was tile while the rest was dirt. In the center of the cave was a spiral metal staircase that led up into the building ruins. The area was illuminated by a few, still-functioning, lamps lying around, but we used our flashlights to see better anyway.

"I don't see any sign of the Medusoid Mycelium." Fiona said, while taking off her helmet. "It should be safe for a while." We removed our helmets too and set them aside in a pile.

"Looks like the place was ransacked," I said looking around. "Are you sure it was the fire that caused this?"

"Like I said, I don't know all the details."

"Do you know what's in the sugar bowl," Klaus asked.

Fiona shook her head, "I've been told it's going to save a lot of people from a terrible fate. But that's all I know; stepfather didn't tell me more than that."

"Search," Sunny said which meant, "Well we'd better start looking so we can get out of here faster."

We agreed with her so we split up and started looking through the debris. Sunny found some food and various condiments, and Fiona helped her pack some of it away for later in her bag. Klaus searched one side of the cave while I was on the other. I found an overturned desk that had some broken scientific equipment scattered around it, but what was the most interesting to me was a small newspaper scrap.

I picked it up and the picture on the cover caught my immediate attention. Duncan told me the Daily Punctilio is almost always wrong and full of lies. But unfortunately, this was one of the few exceptions to that claim. I took another look at the picture of the man whose name was also in the headlines, and looked over at our new friend wondering if I should share this information. I debated with myself for a moment before deciding it could wait and put the paper in my suit pocket for safekeeping.

"I just got a call from Phil through my communicator," Fiona said after several minutes of us searching. "He says my stepfather was called away for an emergency. A distress call from somewhere."

"And what does that mean," I asked.

"It means that when we get back to the ship I'll drive us out of here. I'm in charge when the captain's not around. I hope Phil will be ok on his own in there for a while."

Klaus started chuckling at that. "He survived a stamper accident and a shark attack, I'm pretty sure he can handle anything at this point."

"Why did you apologize about the stamper accident anyway," Fiona asked.

Klaus avoided the question.

We searched damn near everywhere in the cave and eventually we came to our unfortunate conclusion: the sugar bowl was not here.

"Well I suppose we should just go back now-" Fiona stopped herself and stared at our exit route with wide, fearful eyes.

"What's wrong," I asked.

She didn't respond and simply pointed forward. We looked and saw what we had feared would happen. The Medusoid Mycelium; grey and black mushroom stalks started rising out of the ground blocking our only exit back to the submarine. We hurried as far back into the cave as we could get. Fiona reassured us that we as long as we stay far enough away we won't get poisoned.

We were going to be stuck down here for a while longer.

~Duncan's POV

"And then I ended up here." Quigley said finishing his tale of how he came to be with us again.

"That's amazing," I replied, "And you're still with your girl?"

Quigley nodded with a smile. "Yep, and after this is over I'll find her again and introduce you. The Baudelaires should be with her on the submarine right now so we can all be together after this."

"I can't wait," Isadora said excitedly. (Quigley and I both had an internal thought that she was referring to being with Klaus again more than anything else.)

Hector was flying the ship while we caught up with our brother. I can't believe how much he's changed! He's settled, happy, and even a little more modest! It's a miracle... though Isadora and I did kind of almost strangle him with our hugs upon seeing him again. And he'd already met the Baudelaires which was a good thing because it let us know where they were.

"Did Violet say anything about me when you were with her," I asked.

"She misses you a lot, big brother," Quigley replied, "She told me you guys were dating."

"I knew it," Isadora said confidently.

"Ok Izzie, thank you for the comment," I said dryly. "Everyone knows now I'm sure..."

"I figured it out because I saw you two making out behind the bleachers on the athletic field one night."

Quigley snickered, "Nice make out choice."

Isadora's smile faltered slightly, "I hope they're all ok..."

"Me too," I said quietly.

"If anything happened to my doll, I don't know what I'd do..." Quigley said.

The three of us fell into an uncertain silence thinking about the people we loved and hoping they were somewhere safe.

~Violet's POV

It would be a couple hours before the mushrooms would wane again to let us leave. And during this time Sunny made us some dinner with her limited cooking materials and we spent time talking about things to keep our minds off our stressful situation.

"Quigley would be livid if he knew I was down here right now," Fiona said, "He's adamant about my safety, as if I can't take care of myself."

"Well he is your boyfriend," Klaus replied, "He's got every right to be worried."

Fiona rolled her eyes, "If I want safety, I call my brother."

That made me think about my newspaper scrap again, and I couldn't stop myself from asking a question. "What's your brother's name?"

"Fernald."

"Where is he?"

"No idea." Fiona started to clean her glasses with a small cloth as she continued. "He left home when he was 19 and I was 6; it was a couple weeks before we got the news about the Anwhistle Aquatics fire."

"You must miss him," I noted.

"He's a good, kind, man." Fiona said while putting her glasses back on. "He'd never hurt anyone unless they tried to hurt me. He made a promise to our mother that he'd never let anything or anyone hurt me."

"He can't very well keep that promise while he's not around you," Klaus said.

Fiona nodded. "I said the same thing before he left. He came into my room and told me he was going away and wouldn't tell me why. He said he wanted me to stay home because it meant I'd be safe. He and our stepfather had a falling out for some reason. In the weeks before he left, they would argue when they thought I was asleep. It was a shock really. Fernald was closer to our stepfather than our real father."

"Where," Sunny asked, meaning, "What happened to your real dad?"

"Dead, or maybe not," Fiona replied. "Mom said he walked out on us shortly after she found out she was pregnant with me. Fernald never said he was a cruel man, but he was a man who didn't want to be with us anymore. Mom got remarried when I was only a few months old. I never knew him so I don't think it's a big deal."

"So your family just kind of fell apart then," I said.

"Sad but true. We are still a family though," Fiona said, "A family looks out for each other."

"Your mother must have had the patience of a saint to marry a hasty man like your stepdad," I said trying to lighten the mood. "No offense."

Fiona smiled. "She did... and no offense taken; believe me I have to live with him so I know he takes some getting used to. Quigley said the same thing while he was living on the ship. But he also got to know him better."

"So the captain was just ok with your boyfriend living with you guys for all those months," Klaus said quizzically.

"Believe me, if Quigley had wanted to cross the line, I wouldn't have let him... I do hope the world goes back to being quiet soon so I can see him again..."

"I hope he found his family somehow," Klaus added softly. "I miss Isadora..."

"We're all worried about everyone," I said.

Fiona gave us a sad look. "I don't want to have to tell you this, but I remember when I heard about your fire. Our telegraph was going crazy printing reports on it. It was also the last night Quigley and I were together because Jacques called him back to land the next day to help with his investigation on you guys."

Quigley... hadn't told me that part in his tale... and now I know why.

Klaus and Sunny gave Fiona sympathetic looks while I felt a tad guilty. Our stories had been connected from the start and we didn't even know.

"Oh but please don't think I'm blaming you for it," Fiona pleaded, "It wasn't your fault, it's just how the story goes. Once we're all together again nothing else will matter."

We quickly switched the conversation to more pleasant topics, such as getting to know each other better. I could tell that Klaus and Fiona had already built a good friendship that was sure to last a long time. And once Fiona deemed it safe for us to leave, we put our helmets back on and made our way back through the grotto to the submarine once more.

When we got back inside the submarine we found Phil waiting for us with his usual optimistic smile. As Fiona had said, the captain was nowhere to be found which meant she was in charge. I didn't mind this outcome, it is her submarine. Klaus and I got out of our dive suits before going to help Sunny with hers.

"Wait, don't let Sunny out yet," Fiona practically shouted.

"Why not," Klaus asked.

Fiona showed us that the spores of the Medusoid Mycelium had managed to get inside Sunny's helmet, and our poor sister was now coughing from the horrible poison.

"If you take off her helmet it'll spread and kill us all."

"We can't just leave her in there," I said frantically.

"You don't have a choice," Fiona said gently, "It must have taken us around 10 minutes to get back to the ship, so we've got just under an hour to figure out a cure."

Klaus and I looked at our poor sister worriedly and conceded to trusting our friend that she would help us no matter what.

And none of us noticed until it was too late that the Queequeg was getting swallowed up by a much bigger submarine; piloted by a man we knew and hated very much. Once the Queequeg was trapped inside, one of its portholes was broken open and Count Olaf climbed through it to make his "grand theatrical entrance."

As if Sunny dying wasn't bad enough, now we have to deal with Olaf again...

And this time we're on a time limit...

~End of Chapter

I'm not going to use Olaf and Esmé's stupid evil laugh and please don't ask me to... It's funny to read and watch, but actually writing it sounds like torture.