Hello all! This comes as a request from kaitamis for a Treasure Planet story. Hope you all enjoy it!
Disclaimer: All characters belong to Disney. The plot belongs to kaitamis.
The day couldn't get any worse, Jim surmised, pushing the scrub angrily against a particularly stubborn mark on the deck, stopping only to mop his brow. This was the most recent in the long list of chores he had been tasked with from the moment he'd woken up. He'd already scrubbed the pots and pans from breakfast, shifted waste from said breakfast and cleaned down the mess surfaces. Now tasked with scrubbing the mess deck, his already sour mood was only growing darker. He growled at the stain as it refused to budge, scrubbing all the harder. With an explosive sigh, he threw the scrub back into the bucket with a splash and allowed himself a moment to breathe. This was not how he envisioned life on board a sail ship. None of the stories had mentioned this. He had expected adventure, possibly similar to the books. He had imagined having the chance to watch the passing of stars and planetary systems and nebulae, perhaps caught sight of other ships, their sails unfurled and rippling in the solar winds, and then being huddled around a table with the Captain and Doppler, studying the map and charting a course. But no, he just had to be cast as a cabin boy. This was one of the reasons he'd wanted to sail in the first place! To get away from having to wash pots and scrub tables! He sighed as reality kicked in once again. Silver wouldn't be happy if he hadn't finished his chores. He reached into the bucket to retrieve his brush, only to find it missing.
"What the..." He searched around him. Where had it gone? Scratching his head, he cast his gaze to underneath one of the tables. How had it gotten under there? He reached for it, starting when it jumped away from his hand. Frowning, he went for it again, and once more it jumped away from his hand. He smiled a little in realisation. "Morph..." As if in answer, two great big wide eyes appeared on the handle, a playful glint shining in them. The brush melted into a floating pink blob and buzzed around his head a couple of times before pressing himself against the teenager's cheek. Jim chuckled in spite of himself, stroking the blob with his finger, finding his mood lightening a little. He pulled away, placing a hand on his hip and looking at the mischievous protomorph in front of him.
"Come on, Morph, where's the real brush?" The blob merely bobbed up and down, a gesture Jim had come to realise was his way of shrugging. The teenager wasn't totally convinced, but until the morph came clean about it, there wasn't much else he could do. Except look for it himself. After all it couldn't have gone too far. On hands and knees, Jim searched the surrounding area for the missing item, getting closer to the steps leading up to the entrance of the mess. Where was it? He suddenly froze when an all too familiar hiss sounded from above him.
"Looking for thisss, Cabin Boy?" Jim turned around quickly, coming face to face with the intimidating form of the Spider Psycho himself. Scroop. And the arachnoid had his scrub. Great. Just great. The teenager pushed himself to his feet, squaring up to the much taller alien.
"What do you want?" He felt the cold wet feeling of the pink morph as he pressed against the teen's neck, hiding from the black and red spider crab. Scroop didn't answer immediately, simply seeming content in eyeing him up, casually tossing the brush from claw to claw.
"Jussst making sure you're keeping up with your work, boy. After all, wouldn't want any...accidentsss, now would we?" Jim narrowed his eyes, unconsciously stepping back towards the steps. Something was off; something in the yellow eyes of the spider seemed to be different. Whatever it was, Jim felt a shiver race down his spine. Scroop slowly made his way towards the teenager, a strange leering grin upon his mandibles. He tossed and caught the brush in his claw once more, advancing on him.
"What'sss the matter? No come back? No witty comment?" Jim simply frowned, stepping away from the psychotic arachnoid.
"Look, just leave me alone, ok Bright Eyes? I'm not in the mood to play around today." His grin seemed to widen all the more.
"A shame. Though, it doesss make it all the more enjoyable." Something in his tone made him shiver again, feeling his skin crawl. Too busy keeping his eyes on the arachnoid, Jim didn't notice how close to the stairs he was until his heels hit the bottom step, sending him sprawling across the planks with a gasp of surprise. It was at that moment that Scroop seemed to come alive, throwing the brush over his shoulder and pouncing on boy, pinning his wrists in his claws. Jim immediately fought back, remembering all too clearly what had almost happened the first time they had met. Silver had saved him that time, something he was grateful to the cyborg for. This time, however, he was alone with the spider psycho, the rest of the crew busy with their own duties. And with Morph. Morph! Where was Morph? The little blob had squeaked and fled when arachnoid had pounced. Jim felt the alien pressing against him, leering at him, the pressure on his wrists becoming painful. There was something about this that he really didn't like. The teenager fought all the harder, pushing and shoving at the alien, finally able to move one of his legs underneath the arachnoid's abdomen. With a grunt and a heave, he kicked out, pushing Scroop off him and winding him at the same time. The arachnid stumbled backwards, all eight feet skittering about upon the still wet floor before landing in a heap of tangled legs on the deck. Jim didn't waste any time in vacating the area, scrambling up the stairs and onto the Weather Deck. Scroop watched the retreating feet of his prey, a hissed growl escaping him. He was well aware that, for the first time in more than enough months, he was in heat. And the male members of his species did like to pursue those who were...less than willing. Or maybe that was just him. He didn't really care. All he knew was that he hated the boy, hated him with a passion. And it was mutual. The boy would fight him every step of the way. He smiled to himself. Let him. He was more than eager to run the boy down. Let the chase begin...
Ok, so there's the first chapter. I know it's a bit short, but I think it serves well as a prologue, a prelude to the mayhem that is to follow. 'Til next time!