When Wes awoke, he first noticed Aletterosa perched over him, like a sparrow perched over a particularly juicy worm. It occurred to him that he had never seen her sleeping.
"It's a good thing you're such a skinny toothpick, or I wouldn't have been able to carry you this far. Just be thankful us dragons don't fear the water. Unless that water happens to be less than or equal to 0° Celsius. Then it starts to hurt."
Wes got up and stretched his arms, which felt like they had been recently run over by a steamroller. At least the thirstiness was gone.
"Do you know what happened to Dan?"
"I don't know where he is. I don't think he's dead, though. There's just something about this place that tells me we aren't experiencing reality directly…"
Wes decided to look around. They were on what appeared to be an island, with steep cliffs that foamy waves crashed upon often. The water carried with it a strong salty wind that chilled the exposed skin. The landscape was rocky and bushy, with a few wizened trees here and there. Apart from the waves and cawing of birds they could not see, they could also hear the faint noises of sheep of some sort that appeared to be emanating from a cave further uphill. Being lost, they decided to follow the sounds.
The inside of the cave had been shaped and cut with a good deal of precision, for it was divided into distinct areas for cooking and sleeping. There was a hearth that was filled with ashes, and various scattered tools that had not been used for a long time. Of particular note was a fenced off area that overlooked the sea, which, at a glance, appeared to hold nothing. However, if one paid close attention, they would notice wispy figures that faded in and out of the light. They seemed to be a ghostly flock of Mareep, still going through their daily routines as if they were still alive.
"Even if you forget the small shoals…"
The travelers turned and noticed the voice that had begun to sing. It came from a gray apparition that was now sitting on one of the stools that surrounded a table. It was a Dusclops, who was holding an ethereal harp in its hands. Despite the fact that the harp produced no noise when he plucked the strings, he continued to do so anyway.
"In my lonely room, our fig weeps…"
Wes walked up to the ghost, though Aletterosa kept her distance.
"Excuse me."
The Dusclops, upon hearing his voice, dropped the harp, which dissolved into smoke when it touched the floor.
"Are you visitors? It's been so long since I've had visitors." The Dusclops waved a hand in front of his eye, as if he could not really believe what he was seeing. "Let me get you something to eat."
The Dusclops stood up and grabbed several plates, which were bone dry and void of anything edible. He placed these on a round table, and then walked off to get some cups. These cups, too, were empty, but the Dusclops handled them as if they were filled to the brim with some unknown liquid. He set them down on the table before taking a large swig from one, which remained empty.
Wes eyed the empty plates with suspicion. "I don't think we can eat any of… this."
The Dusclops looked at him. "You mean to say that you aren't dead?"
Wes shook his head.
"I see. Are you searching for the North Star?"
"The North Star?"
"Everyone looks for the North Star here. In fact…" He began shuddering, as if the memory he was recalling was painful. "…there was someone else that was alive. He was looking for it, too. Oh God, he was here wasn't he? WASN'T HE?!"
He lurched forward and grabbed Wes by the throat. "TELL ME WHERE HE IS, YOU-"
Aletterosa ran and grabbed a worn knife that was lying around, and stabbed the Dusclops in the eye. He let go of Wes, and dissolved into smoke that faded away.
"You can never trust ghosts, Wes. They're so temperamental and moody. You just never know when they're going to snap." She gave him a knowing smile.
Wes took a deep breath to steady him. "Alright. Do you know where we should go now?"
"There." She pointed to a wall of the cave, which had splintered open into another darkened passage similar to the one they had recently fell through. This one, however, simply acted as a horizontal passageway that led through darkness until it ended with a door. When they opened the door, it led onto another island, the door disappearing behind them as they exited it. What first caught their attention was the wreckage of a large wooden ship, much bigger than the small dinghy they had ridden in previously. It had apparently crashed into the coral reef that was visible beneath the sea, which was a clear blue greenish color. The sandy beach felt burning to the touch, and was littered with small sea creatures here and there and most noticeably, scattered glass bottles of many different colors. These bottles formed a makeshift trail which led further inland, into a thick forest of trees and ferns. Following the trail, which weaved in and out of the forest, the travelers then stumbled upon a wooden shack which overlooked the ship's wreckage at a closer vantage point. Inside the shack was a low lying mattress that showed its age, some rotten bananas thrown in a pile, and a small rusted iron chest that lay unopened. As Wes moved to open it, a voice came from one of the corners of the shack. "Don't touch it."
The voice's owner was a small blue creature that was lying in a dark corner of the shack. The creature stood up and walked into the light. Standing up, he reached about to Wes's knees. The biggest part of his body was his head, which was connected to a small body with smaller limbs. He wore a small band of cloth covered with dried blood, which covered one of his eyes. The other eye, which had three small circles above it, was fixated right on Wes with an unnerving grimness. He had two antennae, which were flat against the back of his head. He held an empty bottle in one of his limbs, which were gelatinous enough to be shaped into hands if he needed them. His voice was exceedingly scratchy, as if he had taken a good mouthful of the beach in one of the bottles and swallowed it.
"I know what you're looking for. That goddammned bird sang his tune, and you both lapped it up like dogs. Well, I'll only say this once. Forget it. Forget every stupid lie that bastard put in your head and walk away. It's not too late. You can still escape. God knows I've tried."
Wes scratched his head. "I don't really know what you're talking about. Who are you, anyway?"
The creature dropped the bottle. "I'm the prince of the seas. Always was. And then this birdie comes and says, 'Look here, little prince. Wouldn't you want to go on an adventure?' He was playing me for a fool, and I took his goddamn bait and found what he wanted me to find. Such a god damned fool. And now it looks like he's found some more idiots to get his treasure."
Aletterosa was beginning to tire of his rather hardboiled rants that had no specific details in them. "Well, could you tell us where it is now, whatever you were looking for?"
"I left it where I found it."
"Where is that?"
"I can't say. If you go and find the snake's feathers, he'll tell you."
"Why can't you say?"
"I'm under oath. I don't break oaths as easily as you do." Having said that, he slumped back onto the ground, and gazed sadly at the empty contents of the bottle.
"And where might we find the snake's feathers?" asked Wes.
The prince of the seas feebly raised a limb and pointed towards the center of the island.
As they ventured into the jungle, the ground began to rise, slowly at first, before turning into a sheer rock face that was almost vertical. Navigating it was slow and laborious, for the rocks were made of jagged obsidian and there were very few footholds. Nonetheless, they managed to reach the summit of the mountain, which overlooked the whole island in its tropical splendor. The peak of the mountain had been blasted away at some point, leading Wes to suspect it of being some dormant volcano. As they descended into the crater, the overpowering smell of sulfur seemed to confirm his suspicions. The bottom of the crater held a small altar, which had a tiny headdress made of obsidian, which had many feathers. As they approached it, a small green serpent crawled onto the altar. It was Rayquaza, only it now was the size of a garter snake. It looked up at them pleadingly, and began to speak again.
"You've found my feathers. I used to be able to find them on my own, but that was centuries ago. Now I can never do anything by myself. The only reason I could send you here is because of that carving you generously donated. What you saw on the pyramid; that was what I used to be like. You see, people used to believe in me. I wasn't just some old story. I was a real deity that people prayed to and fought in the name of. But all those people are dead now. And now I'm nothing but some dusty old relics and entries in mythology textbooks. So, please, before you touch those feathers, promise me something. Promise me, no matter what you see and what you do; you won't forget the Feathered Serpent."
Wes promised that he wouldn't forget, and grabbed the feathers. Another fireball engulfed them and they were back at the pyramid along with Dan and Ash. The gigantic version of Rayquaza was gone, and so was the carving of the jade serpent. In its place was a map.
Dan looked confused. "How did we end up here? All I remember was that tidal wave, and then everything went dark, and then we ended up back here."
Ash looked even more confused, as usual. "Huh? I thought we were just standing here the whole time."
Wes shrugged. "I'm not exactly sure of it myself, but we were separated after that wave. Anyways, we should check out this map."
They all gathered around the map, which had a decidedly important feeling to it. Most of it had been damaged by fire to the point where it was unreadable, but they could make out a line leading from the pyramid they stood on to the north, which was the supposed location of the Great Stone Mountain, according to the map.
Wes briefly thought about what the prince of the seas had told him, but decided not to worry about it. After all, he did not seem to be the most trustworthy character he had ever seen. With his doubts reassured, they set off for the mountain.
