Ch 3:
Meanwhile, Tula is pacing the cabin. She was afraid. What was going to happen to her? What did Bloth have in mind for her? And worse yet, what did the creature, Morpho have in store for her. She shivers thinking about it. And where was Ren? She hadn't seen him, since Bloth came aboard. "I have to find a way out of here, before Bloth returns," she says to herself. But to her worst fears, she never gets a chance, because Bloth had returned to the Wraith.
When she hears his voice, she also hears two more voices. It was Mantus and Morpho. She then puts her ear to the door, thinking she might be able to hear through the door, but she can't hear what they're saying. She might not be able to to help friends, but she might be able to slow Bloth down.
She knew she didn't have her sword Bloth had taken it away from her. She turns to the table. The legs. She could use the legs. She could use them into sharp knives. She then starts to kick at the table, trying to free one of the legs. It works. She catches the table, and slowly puts down on the floor, making sure nobody can hear it. She then was holding one leg against the table itself, and with the other, pulls the leg from the table. She then looks for something sharp to scrape the wooden leg. At first she looks through the drawers, nothing. But then she sees a small knife. She then starts to scrape the leg against the table. It takes time, but she does it. She then turns the wooden knife to wrist, and begins to slice at her wrist. But she never gets anywhere, because Bloth barges into the cabin. "Oh, no, you don't." Bloth then snatches the sword from Tula's hand. "I need you alive." He then drags Tula from the cabin.
As Bloth drags Tula from the cabin, Morpho climbs up using his right tentacle - like arm and gets on deck. He then yells down to the canoe, "Bring me up the small box, yes, that one." The crewman, who paddled for brings up the small black box. Morpho then turns to Bloth, and says, "Bloth, I'm having your crew bring up a mattress as well, as other materials I will be using in my experiments on the girl." He then asks Mantus to have the crew bring up the mattress, as well as the collapsible table onto the ship. As the crew is bringing up the supplies, Tula begins to struggle against Bloth's grasp. "Oh, no, you don't." He then lifts her into his arms. "Morpho, hurry up! This woman is like a slippery eel." "Of course, Bloth, bring her into the cabin. It won't take me long to set up my laboratory." Morpho then goes inside the cabin, taking some of the supplies with him. He then instructs the crew to set up his laboratory, and where to put the collapsible table and mattress. After the mattress is put on the table, Morpho pulls on a syringe. He then injects some fluid out of a vile and into a syringe. "Morpho, what's in that vile?" asks Mantus. "Oh, this is Barbitualine. Once the liquid is injected into the girl's arm, we will be able to use to find out how her powers work." Morpho then walks up to Tula. "Hold her, Bloth, while I inject the drug in her arm." Tula tries to struggle, but fails, as the syringe is injected into her arm. She soon collapses into Bloth's arms. "Now put her on the mattress." He then instructs Mantus to open up the chest he had brought up on the ship earlier. Mantus opens the chest, to find three large leather straps inside. "There are hooks on the sides of the mattress. Hook the ends of the straps to the hooks. Once you do that place the girl is on the mattress." They do so. Morpho then instructs them to strap her down. When Mantus sees this, he says, "Are you afraid she will wake up in the middle of your experiments?" "No, she will stay asleep for a long period of time. A couple hours or so. When she does wake up, she will have a nasty headache."
As Tula is being strapped against the mattress, Ren and Ioz are trying to plan a way to get out of their chains and get off the Maelstrom. "Ioz, we have to get out of these chains. Who knows what that animal Bloth is doing to Tula." "Easy, Ren, we need to make an escape plan first. Once we get off the Maelstrom, we'll get Tula." "You're right, Ioz, I need to calm down. Getting upset won't help Tula." He is about to say something else, when they hear footsteps. It's Konk. They can tell because of his peg leg. Konk is smiling when he comes in.
When Ioz sees this, he winks at Ren and whispers, "I think I have found our way out of here." He then looks at Konk. Ioz then begins to make fun of Konk. "Konk, I was telling Ren before that whatever Bloth is doing to Tula. It's got to be very big." "Yes, it is," says a smiling Konk. "Can you tell us what it is? Or you don't know. That's got to be it. You don't know; Bloth would never confide in you. You're too stupid. Konk gets very angry when he hears this. "I'll show you! Bloth wants to use the wench to keep the dark water at bay, ever since Teron escaped, Bloth has complained that he needs another ecomancer." "What about that creature Morpho? Does Bloth trust him? I know I wouldn't." "Konk thinks you're right," says Mantus. "Bloth doesn't trust him. Morpho just wants to use the wench for her clairvoyant powers as well as her ecomancer abilities. He is experimenting on her as we speak." When Ren hears this, he gets very mad. Ren then tries to kick Konk then turns and hobbles out of the room. "Ioz, I understand about Tula being an ecomancer, but clairvoyant." Ioz and Ren are then silent for a moment when Ioz snaps his fingers and says, "Maybe she became clairvoyant when she fell into the dark water. Now it all makes sense, we need to get out of here and fast." They then begin to think of a plan to get off the Maelstrom.