Elliot walked closer to the TV screen. A reporter was standing in front of a road that had caved into the earth, as if it had been built on top of a giant sinkhole. It looked like Elliot's entire house could fit into that hole.
"Nobody knows what caused this unusual event," the reporter was saying. "And it's not the only one."
Other pictures of caved-in roads were shown on the screen. A few had cars at the bottom of them, and helicopters were being flown in to help pull the people out of the sinkholes.
The reporter continued, "Right now, every road into the town of Sprite's Hollow has caved in. Until they can be repaired, it will be very difficult for anyone to either come or go."
"What about Mom and Dad?" Wendy said. "They won't be able to get home from work!"
Reed shrugged. "They'll find a way home as soon as they can. But this is weird, right?"
It's not weird, Elliot wanted to shout. This was obviously Kovol's way of letting Elliot know he was free, and he was making sure Elliot had no way to leave Sprite's Hollow. But of course Wendy and Reed didn't know about Kovol or any part of the Underworld. So in a voice not too different from a shout, he asked, "Where are the twins? They shouldn't be outside right now."
Elliot's six-year-old twin brothers, Kyle and Cole, had a talent for getting themselves into trouble. Elliot figured that if sinkholes were appearing in Sprite's Hollow, his brothers were probably very near one. They'd love to fill a sinkhole with water to create a giant mud pit to play in.
"They're out gathering extra hoses," Wendy said. "They want to make a super hose as long as Sprite's Hollow. But you're right. Come on, Reed. Help me find them."
As soon as they had left, another reporter came on the screen again. "More sinkholes have begun appearing outside of Sprite's Hollow," he said. "Dozens of new ones are being reported, some appearing as far away as China."
Dear Reader, if the reporter had said a sinkhole had appeared in Guatemala, this would not be much of a surprise, because they already have a giant sinkhole right in their capital city. It's over a hundred feet deep and big enough that it swallowed a three-story building. Nobody is sure exactly what caused that sinkhole, although scientists did eliminate the possibility of caved-in tunnels from freak-sized worms larger than rockets. Apparently, freak-sized worms don't exist. Besides, the reporter was very clear that this sinkhole was happening in China, not Guatemala. He pointed out that their fortune cookies would have to change to say, "Beware of walking into any holes larger than your house." Elliot thought most people would know that even without a fortune cookie's help. Except for maybe Tubs.
Once he made sure he was alone, Elliot ran up to his bedroom and closed the door. He put his hands around his mouth and shouted, "Mr. Willimaker!"
Mr. Willimaker was one of Elliot's closest Brownie friends and also his trusted advisor. Although it was true that most of Mr. Willimaker's advice was not very helpful, Elliot also knew that nobody had tried harder to help him be a good king.
But after two long minutes of waiting, no one appeared. Elliot shook his head. Mr. Willimaker usually came very quickly. He called again, but before he finished calling, Mr. Willimaker's daughter, Patches, poofed in.
Despite being half Elliot's size, Patches's brown eyes were twice as big as human eyes. She had a small mouth and thick hair that went in all directions.
Patches had made it clear on every possible occasion that she thought Elliot was the greatest king the Brownies had ever had, and that he was about the greatest human in the history of the world. Elliot thought that last part was a bit of an exaggeration, but he was okay with letting her believe it.
As soon as she poofed in, Patches said, "I took a peek at your television news downstairs. Is that what it looks like on the surface?"
"I guess so. How does it look in the Underworld?"
"Worse. So far he's left Burrowsville alone, so the Brownies are fine. But it won't be long before he attacks us too." Patches widened her eyes. "Kovol's free now, Elliot."
"I know," he said. "But why is he making sinkholes?"
Patches bit her lip, and it looked as if she was trying hard not to cry. "He's collapsing the Underworld. He's going to destroy everything."
"Collapsing the Underworld," Elliot whispered. "Why would Kovol do that?"
"Because he's evil!" Patches replied, as if that was the only explanation needed.
Elliot shook his head. "I think that must be only part of the reason. With the Underworld in chaos, none of the good creatures will be able to help fight him. And those sinkholes will create a bunch of problems here on the surface. Because that's what Kovol really wants. To destroy the surface world."
Patches groaned and sat on Elliot's bed, her tiny legs dangling in midair. "This is bad. Worse than bad."
"Yeah." Elliot sat beside her and put his head in his hands. "Even though I knew he'd escape one day, I didn't think he'd act so fast."
He looked up at the sound of a poof, and Mr. Willimaker appeared, along with one of Elliot's other advisors, Fudd Fartwick. Never one to forget his manners, Mr. Willimaker bowed to Elliot. However, Fudd didn't bow. He'd been blinded when he helped to save Elliot from Kovol's army, the Shadow Men, four months ago. He didn't appear to have any clue where he was now.
"King Elliot," Mr. Willimaker said (and at that moment, Fudd did bow). "Sorry I'm late. There's a lot of trouble down below. You've heard the news, I assume."
"Do you mean the news that Kovol has escaped and is now collapsing the Underworld?" Elliot asked. "Or something else?"
Mr. Willimaker blinked. "Um, yes, that news."