I was thinking about another way to tell a story when I read "Truth Beneath the Rose" and then I got another idea.

With Onka's(a.k.a. HowCouldThisHappenToMe) permission, I now have this stroy put up. The disclaimer is the same as "The Time Has Come" so everything's good, yeah?


Treasure Planet; The Price One Pays

"Listen, son, I need you to follow Bones and bring me that map," a rough masculine voice ordered me.

"Aye aye, Cap'n," I answered and ran to where the longboats were. I jumped in one and started it up, my red eyes glistening as I looked into the metal of the engine. As I lowered, my dad, the captain, smiled at me, like he knew I wouldn't fail him. I never did, and I wasn't planning on starting now. I loosened the sails and headed toward the planet Bones' ship was headed for. Thankfully we were able to damage his engines so he would have no choice but to land there. However, He was moving slowly, so I couldn't get to him right away. I'd have to get ahead and wait for him to crash before anything could be done.

As I entered the planet, I took my time. I let the wind blow through my silver hair, let my army green scarf act as a cape above my zipped up black jacket, letting only a small bit of my red shirt show through. I put the boat on cruise as I stood up, looking around at the landscape, tightening my scarf by pulling on one of the loose ends. The scarf was special to me. My dad gave it to me as a gift during my 8th birthday. It was snug before, covering nearly my entire face, but now, since I'm 16, it's only covering my neck and a bit of my chin.

I sat back down as I neared a pier and pulled it over. I got out and tied it down, though I wanted it to be loose if I needed a quick way to leave if anything happened, but I didn't want to look suspicious. I dusted off my jeans, one pants leg half cut off, and headed for an inn I saw off toward the distance.

As I got to the building, I opened the door to find the inn packed with customers. It was almost as loud as my dad's crew. I didn't know how many people it took to keep this place together.

"Hello, how may I help you?" I looked over to find a woman asking me that question. I saw her name tag read 'Sarah'.

"Yeah, I'm lookin' for a place to stay," I replied.

"Sure, no problem. I'll set it up for you in just one minute. If you could just wait over there, please." She motioned her head toward a chair over near the corner. I nodded and headed over. I wasn't the talkative type when it came to people I didn't know.

Close to about half an hour later, I decided to get out an old piece of machinery dad gaveme three years back. I neglected it for some time, but I always kept it on me, just in case I needed something to do. The sphere was complicated, but fun to mess with.

The lady came over a few minute later saying, "I'm sorry it's taking so long. I'm just so busy."

I nodded my head, trying to let her know that it was alright. Then as she left, I saw this frog creature beside me. I tried to ignore it, but it just stood there, staring at me. 'Of all the blasted-' I knew I couldn't make a scene, so I tried to handle this the nice way. "Hey," I told it, "you shouldn't be near strangers, kid." It was still looking at me. I leaned forward, getting my face close to it's, but I closed my eyes slightly, saving them for a last resort. "You could get hurt." It was still there. I decided to use my eyes. I opened them quickly, then the kid gasped at my blood red color and ran back to it's family.

"I know he had some rough spots earlier this year," I turned to hear the conversation Sarah was making to another customer, "but I really think he's made a turn."

In the next second, the door burst open with a couple of robot police coming in. "Mrs. Hawkins," one called.

I pulled my scarf over most of my face so that no one could get a good look at me. I was the recon of my dad's crew. My main job was making sure no authority figure ever knew what I looked like, so I could stay free. My father always made sure I was never suspected of anything.

"Jim!" Sarah yelled.

During the quarrel, I slipped through and made it to the men's restroom. I shut the thick door behind me quietly, so to not attract attention, and tried to listen in on the cops. When they left, I was out.

"You take care now. Let's motor." I knew they left, but it was still quiet. I didn't want to walk into an awkward situation. However, the silence broke quickly and I was able to get out.

As I headed over to my chair, I noticed Sarah scolding that boy, Jim. I'm guessing he's her son. But I was starting to think about those cops around. If the police were around, then trying to find Bones would be like searching through a lava pit. One wrong move and I'm dead.

Sarah then walked over after her son disappeared. "I'm sorry. I'll prepare a room for you right now." She seemed tired of something, but it wasn't my business so I shrugged it off and nodded, pulling my scarf back down.

She led me upstairs, to a guest room. I looked back over at her before she left. "Hey!" She looked back at me and I gave her a couple of dollars in change. "For the trouble."

"No, I couldn't." She tried to give it back to me, but I pushed it away.

"I know what it's like to be in-between a rock and a hard place." With that, she left with a smile on her face. "There's my good deed for the day," I said to myself.

I lied in bed for a few hours, occasionally messing with the sphere in my pocket, until I heard thunder in the distance. I sighed. "The weather never works with me." I climbed out a window and got on some lattice along the wall to climb up to the roof. Climbing it was like climbing rigging on a ship, only easier considering that it's more sturdy. As I got on the roof, I walked over and sat on the edge, listening for anything that may be an engine.

Instead, I heard talking. "I really don't know how you manage it, Sarah. Trying to run a business while raising a felon like- felon... fellow... fellow like Jim," a man said. I was guessing that it was that one person Sarah was talking to before.

"Manage it? I'm at the end of my rope! Ever since his father left, well, he's never recovered. And you know how smart he is. He built his first solar surfer when he was eight! And yet he's failing at school, he's constantly in trouble and when I talk to him, he's like a stranger to me. I don't know what to do, Delbert. I've tried everything." I knew that was Sarah.

So this Jim is having trouble? If I wasn't on an assignment, I would try to get him to join my father's crew. I would be nice to have someone about my age around. Just then, though, I felt a presence. I looked over my shoulder and it was that boy, Jim. I looked back away, hoping he wouldn't notice.

"Who are you?" he asked.

'Oh, of all the-' I wanted to lash out, but I'm undercover for now. Might as well go with it. "Gale Hollow," I replied. Hollow was my mother's maiden-name, according to my dad. She was the last one with the name, so I carry the bloodline.

Things were silent for sometime, but I went over to the chimney he was laying up against and leaned up against the section around the corner. "T'ain't my business, but ya mom's worried about ya."

"Then why do you care?"

I was really ready to lash out, but then I thought a moment. "Don't know. I guess I envy you. Never even knew my mum." I sensed him with a scowl on his face. "Heh, then again, who'd be I to get in another's life?"

I felt him glance at me. I decided to repay the glance and test him at the same time. As I turned, I kept my eyes shut.

"Are you blind?" he asked.

I snapped my eyes open as he finished, Jim pulling back a bit. "You think I should be?" I asked him, seeing if he feared my bloody eyes. Everyone did, even my dad sometimes, when I got angry.

"No, I didn't say that, but didn't expect them to be such a blood red color. Did something happen?"

"Born with 'em," I answered, looking back to the sky. "You scared?"

"Scared? More like surprised." I was surprised I could get along with this kid. But then something caught my ears, then my eyes.

Bones' ship came down, earlier then I wanted. I decided to let him cook for a bit before going over. Jim, However, had other ideas. He jumped down off the roof and headed toward the crash site. "Come on!" he called over his shoulder.

I really didn't want to do this, but I had to play my part as being a regular citizen of a planet. I got down and ran over as well, though I was sure I was gonna regret it later. However, my mission was to get the map in secret. Maybe I could swipe it when no one was looking?

"Hey, Mister!" Jim called as we neared the ship. "Mister, you're okay in there right?"

A claw hand slammed against the window and Jim jumped back. Knowing that he most likely was gonna come out, I pulled my scarf as high as it could go while still allowing me to see. The face was the easiest to describe of someone, so hide that, then you're close to invisible. That's what my dad said, anyway, and it always worked for me. The salamander fell out, as well as a chest. He sounded like he was dying, and I couldn't help but smirk at my handiwork. I fired the shot that brought him down.

"He's a comin'. Can you hear him?" Bones asked, grabbing Jim by the jacket. "Those gears and gyros clickin' and whirlin' like the devil himself." As he spoke, his neck elongated, having Jim move back. I hid my face, trying to hide my look of wanting to kill him for calling my dad the devil.

"Uh, hit your head there pretty hard, didn't ya?" Jim asked.

"He's after my chest, that fiendish cyborg and his band of cutthroats." I was willing to look back up, showing that I wanted to kill him. "But they'll have to pry it from old Billy Bones' cold, dead fingers before I- argh!" That time I looked up to see him fall to the ground, coughing again, sounding like he was coughing up his heart. I wanted it, so I could pull it in two.

Jim ran up and helped the salamander to his feet and picked up the chest.

"Let me get that," I offered, ready to get out of there if I did.

"I got it," Jim answered. "Just, help me carry him." I growled under my breath and took Bones' other arm and started up the path toward the inn. "Mom's gonna love this," Jim muttered as the rain began to fall.


In case you're wondering, this Gale is different then from my other Gale in KH, so don't mix them up. This one is more blood thirsty. Typical for a pirate, and he has eyes to match.