Flashback
He wasn't supposed to be out on his own this late, he told himself. But if his dad could do it, why couldn't he?
Well, sure, his dad was awesome, he was the best surfer in the world, everyone at school (well, those who weren't meanies) wanted to be like him, and so did Zak.
Whenever his dad took him on a surfboard, it was always fun. Better than swimming or going on a boat, they were facing the waves together! He didn't like that his dad didn't take him far into the water when they had fun together, but went as far as he wanted when he didn't have Zak with him. His parents always told him he'd go further when he'd grow up.
He wanted to be like his dad, a super surfer, but he didn't even have a surfboard yet. Good thing there were lots of them inside the house, he only needed to take one to become a super surfer.
One thing Zak noticed was his dad's cool necklace. He always wore it when surfing, and he always looked cool wearing it. The jewel on it was round and grey, though Zak often saw it as white. He sometimes felt as if it was glowing, probably worked on tiny lamps and stuff people use to sell stuff. Zak didn't recognize the symbol on it, but it reminded him of the wind for some reason.
When he asked his dad about it, he answered that his necklace was his "lucky charm", that he never surfed without it, and that he always knew when was the right time for surfing thanks to it. Zak knew what he had to do. He sneaked around while the sun was setting down, his parents were busy relaxing.
Going unnoticed, he took a surfboard and snatched his dad's lucky charm from where it was. The lucky charm was already working, he didn't make any noise leaving, which was a first with someone as loud as he was.
He ran to the beach, tripping and falling many times because of how big the surfboard was. Another sign the necklace was a lucky charm, he didn't break the surfboard! Yet!
He looked at the sky above the sea. The wind was already rising, and it looked like there was a storm brewing. Good thing his last name wasn't Storm for nothing, he wasn't afraid of a little bad weather.
He set the surfboard on the water and positioned himself, remembering how his dad did it. He started paddling, getting further and further into the water. When he was sure he was far enough, he stood on the board and went for the waves.
Almost instantly, Zak found himself surfing like a pro! His dad would be so proud of him if he saw him. It didn't come to Zak's mind that his dad would probably ground him for weeks and stop him from ever surfing again until he was an adult, if he did see him.
The wind was getting stronger, but Zak wasn't afraid. However, Zak was afraid of the giant dark cloud in the sky. He knew there were clouds that had all sorts of shapes, maybe even skulls, but why did it look like that giant skull was moving towards him?!
The skull cloud looked like it was getting closer, and Zak didn't want to surf anymore. Not when the sea was getting scary. He decided it'd be safer if he returned to the shore, before the cloud monster got him!
He did as much as he could to reach the beach, but before he got to the sand, a giant wave came in front of him. When did waves come from the beach to the sea, not the opposite?!
Zak readied himself for the wave. He could do this, he was gonna be a super surfer! And then, right out of nowhere, there was something like an entrance in the wave, right where Zak was heading! He couldn't turn left or right or turn around in time, and before he knew it, he was sucked into the portal.
Vapir, the Sea of Wind and Darkness, the dark sea covered in fog and home to many spirits, as well as being the one sea in the entire Triangle where one can find Netherwhere, base to the Scourge of the Seven Seas, The Devourer of Dreams, Skullivar.
A golden skeleton, wearing a black pirate hat, a black cape and having a golden hook on his right hand, walked in front of his master and bowed, awaiting orders.
"Golden Bones. I senses a presence. Something ancient awaking in the darkness of the Vapir Sea." said the green skeleton before him.
"We'll scour every league of ocean, Master Skullivar." declared Golden Bones.
"Do so, Bones. There have been murmurs of a return of..." Skullivar stopped, making Bones raise a brow (or whatever a skeleton had). "Whatever is out there, bring it to me."
Bones left his Master, heading towards his ship, The Demoniac. He would not disappoint his master with this mission, he was the general of Skullivar's army. Whoever would dare stopping him from completing his task would have to pay the consequences.
The pirate ship sailed into the sea, the sun's feeble light illuminating Vapir's waters. The Demoniac left Netherwhere, in search of the artefact its master desired.
"Uhhh..." Zak put his hands on his head when he woke up.
He was so busted. He went outside super late, super not allowed, super lame. He stole one of his dad's boards, he tried to surf without being allowed to, and he almost drowned!
His mom and dad would be so mad when they found out. Why didn't the necklace give him luck?
He panicked, hoping he still had it on him. He sighed in relief when he felt it around his neck. That storm was so creepy, he'd wait until sun is out and the weather gets better next time, if his parents would even allow him to surf after this.
He opened his eyes and looked at the shore. 'Huh, weird. The house is supposed to be that way, now there's a... town?!'
Zak looked at the beach. First of all, it didn't look like he was in Florida anymore. The sky was covered by huge, dark clouds, the sea looked less friendly than he remembered, and the coast now had a very, very scary town!
'Where did I end up?!'
"Is this the ghost town the Muppets went to?! Why couldn't I go to Hollywood instead?!" Zak pouted, though he was scared. "There's light up there, is that a lighthouse? Maybe whoever's using it can help me get home." said Zak.
He tried to take his board, but he realized it was really unpractical to carry it around. There was no one else on the beach, he could leave it there and get it when he can go home.
He decided to go inside the spooky town. He looked at the necklace, hoping it'd protect him. It was glowing again, weird. He hoped he could use it to light up his way before its batteries died out.
The alleys were old and dirty, it looked like no one had been there for years. He saw no one around, and there was a fog settling on the place. Something didn't feel right, and it wasn't the treasure he just found!
A chest full of gold! Coins everywhere and stuff! There was even a crown! But why was this treasure in there?
Was there no one to take it? It looked new and in good state, as if someone had cleaned it up.
"This is so weird. I end up on a mysterious place after taking my dad's lucky charm, there's no one here, but there's an awesome treasure! It's just like my comics and the movies dad showed me! I am an adventurer!"
He laughed to himself. Maybe he could be like Indiana Jones and become famous by taking super secret items back to town? Maybe his parents wouldn't be mad at him?
"Wait, why is it there in the middle of nowhere? Usually, there's all sorts of traps, rolling boulders chasing me, ninja weapons attacking me, why did no one take this gold before me? I don't know how to surf yet, how come no one got here when I didn't? I mean, I'm only eight, how could I... Who am I even talking to?!"
Zak sighed. The beautiful treasure now sounded like a trap, it was too good to be true. Someone was probably waiting for him to take it, and then he'd be chased by monkeys, snakes, venomous scorpions and other animals adventurers have to avoid. Even if it looked good, he couldn't take it.
"Let's go to the lighthouse instead."
He walked in through the alleys, the entire island reminding him of what he saw in horror movies. 'Dad was right about me staying up too late, I don't know what to do when it's all dark.'
Had this town been abandoned? Why was the lighthouse still working? Who would leave the town like this? Sure, he understood someone didn't want to live in a place like that, but didn't adult always try to fix stuff and clean everything? Why was the town like that?
The fog was getting denser, and he wasn't sure he could see where he was going anymore. He shook his necklace, trying to figure out if it could give him directions. Beside glowing, it hadn't done much.
He felt the wind rising again. It was weird, but he didn't feel cold or bothered by it, and the fog seemed to go away, though he did notice his red shirt was all white. The color was probably washed off with the water, his mom would be so mad when she'd see him again. If he saw his parents again.
He suddenly felt very light and started running, going super fast. It almost felt like flying. He wished he was this fast in PE class, he'd probably be the best in the basket-ball team. He was rushing through the old streets, he didn't even feel like he was touching the ground when he ran.
What he didn't notice was that his feet were moving at a pace that couldn't make him go this fast, but also phasing through the ground.
He saw he was getting close, the door of the lighthouse in sight. He tried to slow down to open it, but he found himself unable to, he was going too fast. And he was flying!
"Waaaaaaah! What's going ooooon?! Help!" he shouted, for no one to answer. And when he got to the door...
...he went through it as if it was nothing, and with a white glow, his shirt was red again, he stopped flying and fell flat on the ground.
Zak was speechless at what he just did.
"Did I get superpowers? Am I like Superman or Spider-man? Awesome! But how did I do that?" he asked himself.
He noticed his necklace wasn't glowing anymore, its batteries must've been all emptied out. Or...
"Dad's lucky charm is magic! It gave me superpowers, that's why I could fly! Is that how dad was able to surf like a pro all these years? Man, dad was a superhero, and I never knew!" he exclaimed. "Of course he's a superhero, he's awesome! But why didn't he tell me about this? Is this one of those 'don't tell them to protect them' thing superheroes do? But I never saw dad fight any supervillain, what could he protect me from?"
Realizing he was talking to himself again, he tried to find a way to return home instead of talking about superheroes.
"Is anyone there? Hello?" he called out.
No answer. 'Guess I just have to see if the lighthouse keeper will help me or not, if he's up there.'
"Hellooooooooooooo? Is there anyone heeeeeeeeeeeere?" he called out loudly. "Anyoooooooone?" he said as he started going upstairs.
This place was so old, in bad shape and creepy, he could probably throw the best Halloween party ever in there, if the lighthouse keeper let him in. Or if he could get back home.
"Who dares coming into our town uninvited?"
Zak gulped. Not only was that voice angry, but it had a strange echo to it, and it sounded like it came from the walls.
"Sorry sir, I got lost and..."
"You shall pay for what you have done!"
Then out of the walls, blue figures came out. They had a sick grin on their faces, distorted shapes that looked like eyes, a pointy head, and the way they had a weird cape instead of feet... the way they flew... Zak realized what they were.
"Ahhhh! Ghosts!"
Zak ran back downstairs, but he felt something cold stop him. One of the ghosts seized his shirt and practically made him run in place.
"No!" he shouted in horror. He tried to get the transparent being to drop him, but all it did was amuse the spirit, making the creature laugh and making Zak very afraid. "Let me go! I didn't do anything! I'm not a bad person, I..." he seized his necklace.
The amulet glowed bright, his shirt was white again, and suddenly, a blast of wind came out of Zak's hand, flying straight in the ghost's face, making it lose its grip on the boy.
"I'm a superhero!"
He used the speed the jewel gave him, gliding through the air faster than the ghosts, feeling the wind around him. The spirits were chasing him, but he knew he could avoid them now, and fight back. Reaching first floor, he knew all he had to do was go through the door, nothing was stopping him.
He phased through it and found himself back in the ghost town, heading back towards the beach.
'I couldn't fight a way to get out from here, maybe I could use my powers to escape from the beach with my board.'
But he suddenly felt tired, heavily tired. He didn't realize yet the amulet he had was tiring him out whenever he used these powers, emptying him from his energy. He didn't know he wasn't in his world anymore, he wasn't anywhere near his family, his home, his old life.
And he didn't realize, as his eyes were slowly closing, that he was going through an army of skeletons.
The skeletons were confused as they saw a kid made of flesh and blood rather than mere bones or ectoplasm phasing slowly through their bodies, landing softly on the sand, falling asleep. Golden Bones, who had been looking at the island to see if any threat was coming, saw the whole scene. He went down the Demoniac and went to inspect the boy he saw gliding two minutes ago.
"What is this foolery?" he scoffed.
His eyes widened when he saw what Zak had around his neck. 'Impossible! The Eye of Vapir... How could this human...'
He shook his head and ordered his men to move. "Set sail for Netherwhere, we found what we needed!" he said, picking the poor boy from the ground and putting him over his shoulder.
The skeletons looked at each other in confusion, but obeyed. Usually, their general didn't give them missions that ended that quick, this was a whole different thing for them.
Bones went back on the Demoniac, carrying Zak with him. He had questions to ask the boy, Skullivar had to see this human. A boy, a normal human boy, had in his possession the Eye of Vapir and was able to use it. Not only that, but he didn't have the Great Key with him, which was supposed to render that power available for the wielder. Yet this pathetic, mortal, pint-sized human boy was somehow able to summon the powers of Vapir, if his little show in front of the army was anything.
Skullivar would be pleased to have one of the Eyes of the Seven Seas in his possession, especially the one belonging to his realm. As soon as they'd get to Netherwhere and get the information they've needed from the flesh child, he'd be thrown overboard and Bones would keep serving his Master, as always.
He didn't notice Zak was gripping tightly to his cape. And from the looks of it, even if it was on the shoulders of a skeleton made of gold, the boy had finally found comfort away from danger.
Something I've noticed with Bones, he thinks Zak is something to be hated, but he also compliments what Zak does on numerous occasions (whether it's to mock him, because he wants to fight or just because of his condescending personality leading him to say stuff like that). So of course, I will take that out of proportion just for the sake of a fluffy AU!