Chapter 7 Mavok Becomes a Pirate
Zambrog, Silver, and Blaze quietly walked around the wall of Belearian under cover of the shadows. Zambrog was going to wait for Maria and his brother to return, but he had a strange sense nagging him in the back of his head that something was wrong. He knew that they would have to take action now before it was too late. Zambrog could now see the harbor down the cliffside on the Amroth Sea. He also noticed that the only way to get to the harbor was down a stair carved into the side of the mountain.
"There are several guards at the harbor. Will we be able to take all of them?" Blaze asked concerned.
"I can deal with that Blaze, and once Mavok and Maria get back we certainly won't have any problems if we face resistance. However, I am worried about those other ships in the harbor. If we are intercepted I doubt there will be much when can do... Unless, we sabotage the other ships before we leave and then set sail! I believe that that would be our best option in getting to Balar safely. Unfortunately, that still won't guarantee us safe passage. I have spotted two ships that have left the harbor and are patrolling the seas. We will have to deal with them after we disembark, but who knows how many other ships could be out there. We could be intercepted within seconds of leaving the coast." Zambrog explained.
"Sounds simple enough..." Silver said sarcastically.
Suddenly, two guards walked up to them cautiously.
"Excuse me, but what are the three of you doing?" One of them asked.
Zambrog turned around to face them.
"Ah, we were just admiring your fantastic armada of sea craft. It is quite-" Zambrog was cut off when Mavok came up behind the guards and smashed their heads together knocking them unconscious.
"I'm back! And just in time too!" Mavok said laughing.
"I had everything under control brother, but where is Maria?" Zambrog asked confused.
"Well, we ran into some trouble. It turns out that the Thane is dead and Gothmog has taken control of the city. Maria should be fighting him right now." Mavok said nervously.
"What? You just left her all by herself? Mavok, she's your wife! You have to protect her!" Zambrog yelled angrily.
"Now brother, Maria told me that she could handle it and I have faith in her. Besides, it looked like you guys could use an extra pair of strong arms to help you out!" Mavok said laughing.
"That's a good idea! Why don't you go back and get Maria?" Zambrog said smiling.
"Okay, I deserved that." Mavok said smiling back at him.
Zambrog, Silver, Blaze, and Mavok ran down the stair trying to remain unseen. Unfortunately, one of the guards at the harbor spotted them and quickly ran to them.
He stopped abruptly and gave Mavok a puzzled look.
"Mavok, what are you doing here? I thought you were supposed to be meeting the... Thane?" He asked puzzled.
"Yes, I was going to ask the Thane if I could borrow one of his ships, but it turns out that you all led me into a trap and now I've decided to steal one instead!" Mavok said happily.
He then kicked the guard in the chest and sent him tumbling down the stairs. The other guards saw this and an alarm quickly sounded. The guards from the harbor rushed out onto the beach to meet them. Once the four of them had set foot on the beach, Mavok and Zambrog quickly ran to meet the assault.
"Silver, you and Blaze are in charge of destroying those ships. Just make sure that leave one for us." Zambrog said smiling.
Silver and Blaze both nodded and ran toward the harbor. Unfortunately, there were now many guards running out of the city to meet them. Zambrog knew that they would soon be surrounded.
"Let's make this quick, Mavok, and try to kill as few people as you can." Zambrog said frowning.
"Of course!" Mavok laughed as he charged at the Hesbeorn forces assembled on the beach.
As Mavok ran toward the Hesbeorn in suddenly began to rain very hard, but this did not bother Mavok save mess up his hair that he took so much pride in. Four of the Hesbeorn charged at Mavok and attacked him, but of course, Mavok used their anger to launch them into the air and send them plummeting into the sea. Zambrog stayed with Silver and Blaze in order to protect them. Six of the Hesbeorn ran toward Zambrog.
"Quick, run to the docks! I'll hold them off!" Zambrog yelled.
Silver nodded and continued running toward the ships with Blaze. He looked at Blaze running beside him and couldn't help but notice that she had let her hair down in the rain and that she looked very beautiful.
One of the Hesbeorn jumped into the air and attempted to slash at Zambrog's throat, but he parried the blow and struck him in the head with his hilt. Another vaulted over Zambrog in an attempt to decapitate him, but Zambrog caught his sword in mid air and threw him at one of the other Hesbeorn causing them to collide with much force. The remaining three charged at him furiously. With one swift strike, Zambrog cleaved their swords in half. He then kicked one them causing him to fly across the beach, and picked up the remaining two and smashed their heads together. Zambrog, satisfied with his victory, ran to meet his brother. They stood back-to-back as the guards from the city ran down the stair to meet them.
"It has certainly been a long time since we fought together." Zambrog laughed.
"It has indeed! We should do this more often!" Mavok said smiling.
Silver and Blaze ran onto the docks with much haste. Suddenly, five Hesbeorn guards jumped off of one of the ships and charged at them. Silver calmly used his psychokinesis to lift them off the ground and throw them into the ocean. Blaze then shot fire out of her hands and ignited the ship while Silver ran to another and a pulled boards out of its hull causing it to fill with water. Unfortunately, the last ship they were going to destroy had a necromancer onboard. He immediately summoned several wraiths that attacked Blaze while he launched a blast of dark energy at Silver. He quickly evaded the blast and jumped on the ship to face the necromancer. Blaze let out a burst of fire that disintegrated the wraiths around her and also ignited the ship. The necromancer noticed the flames spreading and began to climb the main mast. Silver flew after him. The necromancer shot several blasts of dark energy at Silver, trying to knock him out of the air so that he would fall into the fires. Eventually the necromancer reached the top of the mast. Silver landed in front of him. Though it was difficult to keep his balance on the wet wooden beam, Silver managed to fight him from atop the mast. The necromancer drew his sword and held it out toward Silver.
"Surrender, mortal! Your efforts are meaningless! Even if you were able to make it to Balar you would not be able to stop us!" The necromancer yelled over the raging storm.
Blaze grabbed a sword that one of the guards wielded. She jumped in the air, spun around and threw it up to Silver. He caught the sword without taking his eyes off of the necromancer. Silver clashed blades with the necromancer to find that he was surprisingly under skilled with his sword. Silver did not have much prowess with a blade either, but he had learned a great deal by watching Maria in battle, and observing her methods. The necromancer stabbed at Silver. He evaded the thrust and sliced the necromancer on the arm causing him to drop his sword. The necromancer watched his blade fall down into the fires below. Silver held out his sword to the Mobian's throat.
"I suggest that you surrender." Silver said smiling.
The necromancer laughed and shot Silver in the chest with a bolt of dark energy. Silver fell backwards and slipped causing him to loose his footing. He quickly grabbed the side of the beam. Despite the pain in his chest, Silver maintained his grip. The necromancer laughed and stepped on Silver's hands. He squinted at the pain but refused to let go. For some reason the dramatic situation caused Silver to forget that he could fly. As the necromancer stood above him gloating, Silver used his psychokinesis to rip the bowsprit off of the ship and hurl it at the necromancer. He turned around to see what Silver was focusing on just to get impaled through the chest by the bowsprit. Silver laughed at his success, but had little time to celebrate as the mast suddenly began to crack and fall. Silver swung himself off of the mast as it fell and landed on the dock in front of Blaze. Blaze stared at him in shock. Silver smiled and stroked her face.
"Silver... that was..." Blaze stopped speaking when Silver kissed her.
She threw her arms around Silver and jumped into his arms.
"I couldn't have done it without you, Blaze." Silver said smiling.
Blaze laughed and kissed him again.
"Ho there! Are you two coming with us or are you going to get a room!" Mavok yelled at them as he leaned over the bow of the ship. Silver and Blaze both laughed and began to blush rapidly. Silver carried Blaze to the ship and jumped on board. Mavok ran back to the stern and leaned over the side.
"Hurry up, Zammy! We're casting off!" Mavok yelled to his brother.
Zambrog was still on the beach, running toward the harbor as arrows whizzed by his head. The Hesbeorn had given up on a frontal assault and were now unleashing a flurry of arrows at Zambrog. Mavok heaved the massive anchor on board the ship and it began to set sail. Zambrog ran across the dock as fast as he could. The ship was now at least two meters out into sea. Mavok leaned over the side of the ship and held out his hand. Zambrog reached the edge of the dock and jumped as hard as could. He just barely managed to clasp his brother's hand before plummeting into the raging sea. Mavok pulled him on board with a mighty heave. Once Zambrog was on board he let out a joyous cheer.
"That went perfectly! Everyone did their part and it all turned out just fine!" Zambrog yelled happily.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that, brother. They're about to fire their arrows at our masts!" Mavok yelled in shock.
Several arrows then shot into the air and flew toward the main mast. Silver caught the arrows with his psychokinesis mere inches before they struck and launched them back at the Hesbeorn. Mavok sighed in relief.
"You know Silver, you're actually a very resourceful fighter. I'm surprised that the Chao didn't force you to stay in Rathadur as one of their generals!" Mavok laughed as he clasped Silver on the shoulder.
"Hmm... we could use more speed, Mavok. The Hesbeorn could catch up with us on smaller boats." Zambrog suggested as he watched the Hesbeorn run to the docks.
Blaze then conjured fire in her hands and used it to evaporate the rain in the air. The steam from the rain lifted up into the mast and made the ship sail exceedingly faster.
"Ha! Keep it up Silver's girlfriend! I will take the helm!" Mavok said excitedly.
Zambrog stopped his brother before he could run up to the quarter deck.
"Don't forget that there are still two ships out there that will attempt to stop us." Zambrog said sternly.
"And a dragon." Mavok said nonchalantly.
"A what?" Zambrog asked confused.
"A dragon." Mavok said pointing to the giant Northank beast as it landed on the bow of their ship.
The beast roared savagely which caused Silver to jump into Blaze's arms. Mavok and Zambrog drew their swords and charged at the beast. Zambrog sliced its eye which infuriated it greatly. The beast snapped its massive jaws at Zambrog, but he quickly evaded it. while the beasts neck was outstretched, Mavok swung his sword down upon it, decapitating the beast. Its black blood poured out of its neck and onto the deck like a river.
"Oh, great! Just look at what you two did to my ship! That will take hours to clean!" A friendly voice yelled from atop the beast.
It was indeed Gothmog. He jumped off the side of the beast and landed on the deck. Maria jumped off as well.
Mavok gasped when he saw them.
"You're alright!" Mavok yelled as he ran towards her with his arms outstretched.
Maria ran towards Mavok prepared to hug him, but as she jumped into the air, expecting him to catch her, Mavok kneeled down and hugged Gothmog which caused Maria to fall into the blood of the beast. Mavok picked Gothmog up and swung him around.
"It's wonderful to see you again, Mavok. I am happy to say that the demon that was within me has left, no small part from Maria." Gothmog said happily.
"Hooray for me..." Maria said glumly as she wiped the black blood out of her hair.
Mavok ran over to Maria. He picked her up and swung her around just as he did to Gothmog which was what she was waiting for. She laughed and kissed Mavok.
"And I'm overjoyed that you are fine as well, Maria!" Mavok said smiling.
"Oh, I'm more than fine, dear! You don't understand what I just saw! It was the most wonderful thing I had ever experienced!" Maria yelled happily.
"I'm sure we'd all love to hear it, but can't one of you help me with this thing?" Zambrog asked as he struggled to shove the beast's corpse over the side.
Mavok and Maria pushed the beast into the sea causing a massive wave.
"Thanks Maria. I like your new outfit. Where did you get it? I'd like one for myself." Zambrog said admiring the armor she wore.
"Yeah, because we all know that you would look great in a dress, Zammy!" Mavok laughed.
This caused everyone else on the ship to laugh except Zambrog of course.
"Oh, it was a gift, Zambrog, and by the way, that jump you made was nothing compared to mine!" Maria said smiling.
"Oh, really? I'm sure that your jump was more than seven feet then?" Zambrog laughed.
"Two and a quarter meters horizontally and four meters vertically I calculated. It was quite a stunt." Gothmog said crossing his arms.
Zambrog looked at Maria in shock.
"I think there's more to you than meets the eye, Maria." Zambrog said as he stroked his goatee.
"Yes, I was just about to tell you what happened to me!" Maria said excited.
"Well, go ahead then. Tell us what happened!" Mavok said smiling as he took her hand.
Maria went on to explain her encounter with Shadow and the Lord. She went into much detail even describing her own thoughts during this experience.
"Wow! That is amazing Maria! The fact that you were actually able to physically embrace our Savior and not only that but receive the privilege to walk with Him is beyond me!" Zambrog said astounded.
"That was the greatest thing I've heard in centuries, Maria! I only wish that I could've been there with you!" Mavok said beginning to cry.
Mavok looked over at Gothmog who was staring out over the sea with a very gloom expression.
"Is there something wrong, Gothmog?" Mavok asked as he placed a hand on his shoulder.
Gothmog turned to face Mavok and shook his head.
"Look at what I have become Mavok! I have caused so much pain and misery throughout the world. I have become no different from Agumar." Gothmog said sadly.
"Don't worry Gothmog, Zammy and I have a plan to fix all of this! We have discovered that there is a temporal rift on Balar. The rift caused the entire Lost Region to jump ahead ten years to this reality, but Zambrog and I are going to seal it so that the Lost Region will go back to the way it was ten years ago. Then I will make sure that no one travels to Balar and gets possessed by a demon, especially you and Avari." Mavok explained.
"Avari! I had forgotten that she will still be possessed by a spirit. We have to save her, Mavok!" Gothmog said urgently.
"That won't be a problem, Gothmog. Once we seal the rift none of this will ever happen. Everything will simply go back to the way it was after Shadow and Maria became the Lost King and Queen. You won't even remember that any of this happened." Mavok said happily.
Gothmog sighed with great relief.
"That is wonderful news, Mavok. I would like nothing more than to forget that any of this ever happened." Gothmog said smiling.
Zambrog ran to Mavok.
"Mavok, take the helm. The two other Hesbeorn ships are preparing to intercept us!" Zambrog said urgently.
"Not to worry, Zambrog, they wouldn't dare fire upon their own king!" Gothmog laughed.
Just as he spoke those words a large six-foot long, flaming ballistae struck the deck of the ship, igniting it. Maria quickly grabbed the giant bolt and hurled it back at one of the ships as if it were a javelin while Blaze absorbed the fire before it could spread across the ship. Mavok ran up the stairs to the quarter deck and took the wheel.
"All right, everyone, listen up! Silver, stop as many of those ballistae as you can and give them to Maria and Zammy to throw back at them! Silver's girlfriend, keep venting the steam into the mast! It's the only way we'll be able to out run them, and Gothmog see if you can get them to stop firing at us! If you can't then you can take the helm while I help Maria and Zambrog!" Mavok shouted so that everyone could hear him clearly.
After he had given his orders Silver began catching the flaming ballistae and dropping them down to Zambrog and Maria who threw them back at the two other ships. Gothmog quickly climbed up to the top of the mast and held out his crown in order to get their attention, but they did not seem to heed him. He climbed down the mast and returned to Mavok.
"I don't understand, Mavok! They aren't giving me the slightest bit of attention! They saw my beast land they should realize that I'm on the ship!" Gothmog yelled confused over the rolls of thunder.
"It is likely that they think we killed you! Take the wheel, Silver's in trouble!" Mavok yelled as he jumped over the railing of the quarter deck and caught a ballistae in mid-air. He launched it at the ship on the left where it sailed through the air and crashed into the ship's bow causing it to rapidly fill with water and sink.
"There's one down!" Mavok laughed.
He noticed that the last ship had been keeping up a steady rate of fire. This was making it very difficult for Silver since at times he had to hold eight massive ballistae bolts at once.
"That ship is tough, Gothmog! How did you make it?" Zambrog asked laughing.
"I believe It's my flag ship, but I wouldn't know! I can't really remember much of anything, but I'm not complaining!" Gothmog yelled amused.
"I can't keep this up, Mavok! They're going to overwhelm us if we don't stop them soon!" Silver yelled over the strain of holding so many ballistae bolts.
Blaze ran up to Silver and kissed him.
"Okay, I think I'm good!" Silver yelled as he began to blush.
"Mavok, your assault is having no success! They must have Lost followers on their ship that are stopping the ballistae you throw back at them!" Gothmog yelled.
"Gothmog, there are no more Lost followers! Other than me, they're all dead!" Maria yelled trying to sound polite.
"Oh... Well, then they must have necromancers that are using their sorcery to stop your bolts! I believe that we have to board them and seize control of the ship, but hopefully once they see me face-to-face they'll stop this meaningless engagement!" Gothmog yelled annoyed.
He then began to steer them toward the massive ship that was at least twice the size of theirs. Once he had set their course, Gothmog jumped onto the main deck and took one of the ballistae bolts that Silver had caught. It wasn't difficult for him since he had the curse which gave him immense strength. Their ship rammed into the flag ship with devastating force. Gothmog expected all of the Hesbeorn on the ship to apologize to him for accidentally attacking him, but they all simply stared at him in disbelief. Suddenly the door to the captain's quarters opened and another Mobian walked out, though Gothmog could not see who it was since there was a line of Hesbeorn blocking his view of the rest of the deck. Eventually the line parted and once Gothmog saw who was commanding the ship he dropped his bolt and fell to his knees in grief. It was indeed Avari, but it wasn't the realization that Avari had been trying to kill him that shocked him so much. No, what shocked him so much was her appearance. She was wearing the same outfit she wore when Mavok saw her in Nathelien, but it was all new for Gothmog so I will describe it again in order to get his feelings on the matter. She wore a piece of Black leather strapped around her chest that was very low and much too tight, but Gothmog didn't understand why that would have been a problem. As far as he remembered Avari's breasts were never that large. Not that he cared. Gothmog was perfectly happy with her and very grateful for her love. He began to question if this even was Avari that stood before him as she was also much taller and he had a strange since of fear for her. Of course, Gothmog had always feared her out of respect, but now he was literally afraid of her as a child fears the darkness. She also wore a pair of black leather shorts that didn't even cover her thighs. It was difficult for Gothmog to imagine seeing Avari in anything but a dress since she was always so proper and ladylike, and seeing her as she was now literally made Gothmog sick to his stomach. He ran over to the bow of the ship and tried to throw up, but of course he couldn't since he was cursed and couldn't eat or drink anything. So he simply leaned over the side and coughed repeatedly. Maria walked over to him and rubbed him on the back.
"I'm so sorry, Gothmog. It must be very difficult for you." Maria said sadly.
Gothmog took several gasps of air before speaking.
"You should have killed me, Maria... It would have been a better fate than this." Gothmog said wet with tears, barely able to get the words out.
He turned around and hugged Maria.
"Maria, you don't understand! She was the only person who loved me, and now not even she loves me!" Gothmog cried into her shoulder.
"You know that's not true, Gothmog! I love you, so do Mavok and Zambrog." Maria said smiling trying to cheer him up.
"I'm sorry Maria, but you just don't understand." Gothmog said glumly as he walked back to face Avari.
Maria grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back. She unsheathed Dyrnwyn and held it out to Gothmog. He took the hilt of the sword and it shone brilliantly in his hand.
"God loves you, Gothmog! You know that, but you're just too under confident to admit it. I know that this must be very hard for you to see Avari like this, but I have faith in you! You can do this, Gothmog, you've been through much tougher circumstances and prevailed!"
Gothmog shook his head and began to sob.
"You may be right, Maria, but she was always by my side during those challenging times. Avari was everything to me, Maria, and now she's gone. I can't go on, Maria. I just don't have the will." Gothmog said as he covered his face with his hands.
"Then, Gothmog, at least hold on to the hope that we can still save her. I dispelled the demon from you didn't I? Who's to say that you can't do the same for her?" Maria said happily.
"Are you two done yet?" Avari asked as if she didn't care.
Mavok stared at Avari with much hatred.
"Shut your mouth you vile wretch! Go crawl back into your barrow!" Mavok yelled angrily.
"You'll regret that, Mavok!" Avari yelled as she clenched her fists.
Mavok laughed oblivious to her threat.
Gothmog walked over to Mavok and grabbed his arm.
"It's fine, Mavok. I'll handle this." Gothmog said as he tried to smile.
He went back to where he was standing to face Avari.
"Avari, I doubt you can hear me, but if you can I just want you to know that I love you and I'm going to do whatever I can to free you from this demon!" Gothmog yelled as he legitimately smiled.
Avari laughed menacingly.
"They're all traitors! Kill them! Except for him... He's mine." Avari said smiling as she pointed at Gothmog.
Gothmog gripped his chest and stepped back as if he had been shot with in arrow.
"Please, Avari... you're breaking my heart. Please, don't make me do this..." Gothmog said pitifully as tears ran down his face.
"Like you ever had a heart! You're naught but an empty shell with no hope and certainly no love!" Avari yelled as she took her weapon, the Flame of Balar, from a Hesbeorn guard standing next to her.
Avari then launched herself through the air and slammed into Gothmog causing them both to sly over the side of the ship and plummet into the icy depths of the Amroth Sea. Mavok shook his head in disbelief as tears streamed down his own face.
"For the king!" He yelled hoarsely as he drew his sword.
He charged onto the other ship and immediately slew three of the Hesbeorn. He aimed to kill now for he no longer cared for the sanctity of life. It didn't even matter to him if his own life was taken, not after what he had just experienced. It seemed to have had similar effects on Zambrog and Maria as they too even fought to kill. Actually, Maria seemed to be in worse shape than both of them. She threw Dyrnwyn and her circlet on the deck of the ship and jumped over to the flag ship using her Lost powers to decimate the Hesbeorn in very cruel and painful ways. She refused to use Dyrnwyn because she did not want to tarnish it's name and it's Creator in her enraged state. She threw her circlet down mostly out of rage and to allow her hair to fall down onto her face.
"Ha, ha! It's a good thing Shadow isn't here to see me like this!" Maria yelled in an almost deranged tone as she blasted green fire all over the ship.
Silver and Blaze were appalled by the massacre and simply stood back and looked away as the other ship erupted into chaos.
Gothmog and Avari surged deeper and deeper into the depths of the sea. Gothmog opened his eyes and stared at Avari's face with much remorse. He was certain that he would be crying if they weren't falling into the ocean at what he guessed had to be over one hundred miles per hour. Gothmog could feel the intense pressure being exerted on his body from delving so deep into the dark depths of the sea he had loved so much, but now it was nothing but a watery hell of pain and misery. He ignored the intense spikes of mind in his head, and allowed Avari to force him down deeper into his grave. He didn't have the will to harm her, and even if he did Gothmog wasn't certain that he could stop her. Because Avari had the curse, she was as equally strong as he was and would be just as difficult to harm. Gothmog realized that if Avari really did want to kill him he would have to experience a long and painful death at her hands, but it really didn't matter to him. Gothmog didn't care about his life anymore, he wanted to die. Without Avari he had nothing. All those years ago when he told Avari that he couldn't live without her he literally meant it. He knew what Maria had said, that there was still hope that they could return Avari to her normal self, but he had no hope. Not even Dyrnwyn could give him hope now. His will had been utterly crushed. He had suffered so much pain and sorrow through his life it was unbearable. First, he was cursed by Agumar which deprived him of any chance of finding love ever again. Then, his entire kingdom was the destroyed and all of his people slain or defected and joined the enemy. Everyone that was dear to him, his people, his parents, his brother, his friends all gone in a single day. He remembered pulling his own mother out of the rubble of his city and having to bury her all by himself. But then, everything changed when he joined the Lost and met Avari that day she rescued him from his prison cell in Nathelien. Seeing her gave him hope, hope that his life was not over and that he wasn't just some monster. Her love had given him the very will to go on, but now even that was gone. He no longer wished to go on. He simply wanted to die so that he could escape this living Hell he was trapped in.
Avari finally slammed Gothmog into the seafloor where it was littered with the bones of dead sea creatures.
I guess that will be me soon... Gothmog thought gloomily as he felt the bones scattered around him.
Suddenly the utter darkness was broken when the blade of Avari's weapon ignited in white flame. The Flame was like a candle in an endless void that he was trapped in. It illuminated Avari's appearance which only made Gothmog feel worse. He understood that it should be impossible for the fire to be ignited under water, but who was he to question the craft of Northank. Gothmog watched hopelessly as Avari charged at him, her eyes filled with rage. Gothmog then realized that that would be the last thing he would see. He knew that it would take at least an hour before Avari would finally kill him. He knew that he would die now in the dark, cold depths of the Amroth Sea at the hands of the only person who ever loved him where he wouldn't even be able to cry or scream. As Gothmog watched Avari run toward him he suddenly saw a figure descend through the water and softly land on the sea floor behind Avari. Gothmog realized that it was one of the Hesbeorn that was aboard Avari's ship. Then, it suddenly hit Gothmog.
My people! They're in danger! I can't put myself in front of my own people! I swore to serve and protect them! Gothmog thought in shock.
He quickly evaded Avari's blow and kicked her in the back sending her flying across the sea floor. Gothmog quickly swam over to the body of the Hesbeorn and found that he had received no physical damage, but his soul had been removed.
This must be Maria's doing. Gothmog thought as he grimaced.
He noticed the light behind him grow brighter and brighter. Gothmog turned around and was slammed in the side by Avari. He hurtled through the water for several meters until he finally regained his control. Avari charged Gothmog through the water and swung at his neck. Gothmog narrowly avoided the attack and swam under her. He quickly landed on the sea floor and grabbed the Mobian's body. Gothmog then launched himself upward through the water. He was certain that he could swim faster than Avari. After all, he had spent a large part of his youth swimming in this ocean, but the weight of the Mobian's body slowed him down a great deal. Avari grabbed his leg and threw him down into the water. Gothmog managed to hold onto the Hesbeorn's body as he tumbled back into the darkness. Infuriated by this, Gothmog blasted through the water and grabbed Avari by the throat. He then launched himself back toward the sea floor and threw Avari against one of the large rocks that were scattered around them. Avari slammed into the rock which caused it to shatter. However, this did little to harm her as she simply got up and swam at Gothmog, but he was already swimming toward the surface at a rapid rate.
Gothmog had no idea why he had attempted to harm Avari in such a way. It was almost like a different person came out of him. Gothmog then realized the horror that he was becoming the monster that he always knew he was. Without Avari's love, the curse was finally taking control of him and threatening to take away his sanity.
I'm going to turn into a mindless beast if I don't die soon! Then I might kill Avari and possibly everyone else! Gothmog thought as fear began to spread through his body like a virus.
After about a minute of swimming Gothmog finally broke the surface and blasted through the air. To any normal being, the extreme change in pressure would have killed them instantly, but due to his curse, Gothmog was able to adapt quickly to the changes in the force exerted upon his body. He landed on their ship and was immediately appalled by the slaughter that was taking place on the other ship. Gothmog laid the Hesbeorn down and jumped over to the other ship.
"Please... Stop! They're my people!" Gothmog begged as he helplessly watched his people die around him.
He saw Maria using her chain that she conjured to remove one of the Hesbeorn's soul. He watched in horror as the Mobian screamed in pain and gripped the chain trying vainly to remove it from his chest, and worst of all, Maria was standing over him, laughing as if it amused her. Gothmog fell to his knees and sobbed.
"I beg you, please stop this! They were only following orders!" Gothmog yelled in grief.
He turned to see Zambrog repeatedly swinging his sword down upon a Hesbeorn who's sword had been broken in two and was holding his shield up against Zambrog's blows desperately trying to save himself. Zambrog finally tore through the metal shield as he swung with a mighty roar and his sword bit into the poor Mobian's neck.
"Please, they have done nothing wrong! We are in the wrong, friends! I implore that you stop! These people are all I have left!" Gothmog shouted with so much anguish that he fell on his side and covered his face with his hands.
When he uncovered his face he saw Mavok leaning over a Hesbeorn muttering some words that Gothmog could not hear. He suddenly realized, to his horror, that Mavok was attempting to use the same curse on that Mobian that had been used on himself by Agumar. Gothmog immediately got up and tackled Mavok to the ground.
"What do you think you're doing, Mavok?" Gothmog yelled this time out of pure anger.
Mavok stared at Gothmog speechless. Maria and Zambrog also stopped their violent actions and looked over at him.
"Are you all insane? Look at yourselves! We've become like Agumar! You're slaughtering innocent people who have done nothing wrong! The only person here that has done any wrong is me!" Gothmog yelled, his voice echoing across the sea.
Mavok, Maria, and Zambrog removed their gazes from him and looked down at themselves in shame. Gothmog sighed deeply and began to speak in his normal voice.
"I understand that you all have been emotionally overwhelmed by these recent experiences. Trust me, I've had my share of emotions as well, but this is not who we are. You are all revered and wonderful people. I know this to be true! Maria, you saved my life even when I killed Shadow and destroyed the Lost! I had killed your own husband, the very person who saved Avari's life nearly a decade ago, the very person who I named my son after for the love of Dyrnwyn! I threw him down as if he were some sort of inconvenience and yet you still believed in me, Maria! Zambrog, you were always one of my greatest friend during my years with the Lost! Without you, I would've never gotten the courage to even ask Avari if she loved me! Mavok... you were the best man at my wedding! You... you helped me raise my own children! You were always there to help me through my difficult times, Mavok, but this isn't helping me through this one. No, far from it actually! However, if you, for some unfathomable reason, want to help me through this one I suggest that you all cease this violence and cleanse yourselves of this awful sin so that you can go back to being those reverend and-" Gothmog's speech was cut short when Avari emerged from the water and sliced him across the neck with the Flame of Balar. However, once the blade tore through his skin the blood that was released from his neck quickly cauterized. Gothmog wiped the dried blood off his neck to reveal that the wound was completely healed. He then stared at Avari, her fur and hair dripping with water. She now looked more wild now than ever, and Gothmog hated looking at her now more than ever. He hated seeing her look so vulgar. He wanted more than anything for her to be her normal self again. He didn't even care if she still looked the way that she did standing before him. Gothmog simply wanted to hear her tell him that she loved him. That was all he wanted but he knew that he would not get it.
"Please, Avari, you must stop this! Of course I don't want to fight you, but it's not that! This curse is beginning to turn me into a rabid beast and I don't want you to be around when it finally happens! Even as you stand before me now, I still love you and would never wish to bring any harm to you!" Gothmog pleaded.
Avari laughed savagely.
"You do not love me! You don't even posses the capacity to love! You are nothing but a monster! You've known that all your life, but you're just too afraid to admit it!" Avari yelled menacingly.
There was a long uncomfortable silent moment where everyone stared back and forth between Gothmog and Avari in shock.
"Ouch..." Mavok muttered as he rubbed the back of his head.
Avari then launched herself at Gothmog and they blasted through the wall of the captain's quarters. To Gothmog's dismay they landed on a bed, and Avari's provocative outfit only made the scene worse for him. Avari laughed and smiled down at him mockingly. Gothmog grabbed Avari's arm and threw her off of him, sending her flying into a table and overturning it. Gothmog sat up and walked over to her. Avari grabbed his leg and snapped it in two. Gothmog's leg quickly healed of course, but it did cause him to stumble and fall. Avari quickly jumped up and held out the Flame of Balar to stab Gothmog while he was on the floor. He quickly rolled out of the way and stood up. Gothmog quickly grabbed the table by its leg and slammed it into Avari. She flew through the air and smashed into a mirror that was hanging on the wall. The shards of glass were impaled into Avari's bare back, but the glass quickly melted out of her skin as if her immune system were repelling it like a disease. The wounds then cauterized to where it looked as though nothing had happened. Avari jumped into the air and kicked Gothmog in the face sending him flying through the wall. He landed on the deck of their ship and felt a sharp pain in his rear. Gothmog reached under himself and grabbed Dyrnwyn.
"And I just sat on Dyrnwyn... Could this day get any worse?" Gothmog said sadly.
Avari landed on the deck of the ship and slowly walked toward him.
"Oh, it could get much worse!" Avari said laughing.
"It was a rhetorical question, but I do agree with you, Avari that this day could get much worse... for you." Gothmog said frowning as he picked up Dyrnwyn and prepared himself for her attack.
This obviously made Avari very angry and she swung at Gothmog with all of her rage. Surprisingly when she swung the Flame of Balar down upon him, Mavok jumped between them and caught the edge of the blade. Gothmog immediately realized what he doing. Mavok could easily kill her from all of the anger had used in that attack, and Mavok's hindrance was making her even more angry which only made him more powerful. Mavok didn't say a word. He simply turned to Gothmog as if asking for his permission to unleash his wrath upon her. He dropped Dyrnwyn and fell to his knees. He covered his face with his hands and began to cry now more profusely than ever. He moaned in agony at the thought of actually watching Avari die. He knew he wouldn't be able to bear it. Maria quickly knelt down next to him and put her arms around him.
"It's fine Gothmog. You don't have to do this. It's your choice, and no matter what happens everything will be okay. I promise." Maria whispered to him.
Gothmog hugged Maria back and sobbed into her shoulder.
"I can't do it, Maria! I just can't! We've been through so much together!" Gothmog yelled over his choked sobs.
Maria looked at him and smiled.
"Do you think that it was easier for me to let go of Shadow? Ask yourself Gothmog, what would Avari want you to do?" Maria said as tears began to run down her face as well.
Gothmog thought on the question for quite some time. He remembered all of the wonderful times he and Avari had together. He remembered their marriage, both of them actually, especially the first one. He remembered when their first child was born and he became a father. All of it was simply too unbearable for him. Finally, Gothmog stared at Mavok for quite some time, and then nodded his head.
Mavok sighed and turned back to Avari. He punched her in the stomach with devastating force causing her to skid across the Amroth Sea and crash into the Isle of Balar. She plowed into the ground and rammed into several trees knocking them over. She finally stopped when she slammed into a large boulder, but even then the impact caused a large crack to splinter up its side. Avari laid there for a few moments wondering if she would die. She did come very close to death, but close was not enough to stop her. Slowly she stood up as her spine snapped back into place along with several other bones. Her stomach had also ruptured from Mavok's blow, but it too slowly began to heal. Once Avari was at full height again she popped her neck a few times to make sure that it was in proper place and ran off deeper into the island. She eventually found herself at a large crypt. It was indeed her own crypt, or at least it was the crypt of the spirit that possessed her. Above the crypt was a large red portal that was the temporal rift Zambrog had spoken of. Avari knew well what they were attempting to do and she would not allow it. She was not about to let anything stop her from taking over Northank. Avari slowly laid down on her side in front of the crypt and waited.
SILVER, BLAZE, AND SHADOW ARE COPYRIGHT BY SEGA
Whoa... this chapter... was amazing! I really surprised myself even once I read through it! The emotion in this chapter I felt was just so powerful beyond any other chapter I've written, and naming this chapter Mavok Becomes a Pirate! Talk about misleading and judging a book by its cover if you thought that this chapter would be all fun and filled with pirate talk and silly stuff like that! I mean, other than stealing a ship, this has nothing to do with pirates! Maybe I should rename the chapter... nah!