Author's Note:
Nearly six months in the waiting, about 2 or 3 weeks in the making, I am finally finished! I apologize for it taking so long, for the chapter being so short, and for the conclusion being as it is, but, then again, this was originally intended to be a one-shot.
Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys.
"I'm going to kill it." Nautilus said as he began stepping forward.
He only managed to take a few steps before Mordekaiser grabbed him by his shoulders and dragged him back toward the rest of the group.
Nami let out a sigh and shook her head. "We don't even know what 'it' is." She said.
The Titan of the Depths couldn't match the strength of the Master of Metal, but that wasn't it. He knew they were right and that he couldn't just go in and beat whatever that thing was.
After losing more ground than he gained, the driver finally gave up and Mordekaiser released him. The armored champion went to pick up his mace before he turned back to them. "I do not know what that is, but I do know that thing in its chest is your pearl." He told them, pointing toward the monstrosity in question.
The thing they had spent the last ten minutes watching looked like a mass of bodies that had pulled themselves together. It was nearly twelve feet tall, its body moved like each part of it was alive with limbs and appendages moving nonstop, and it was hungry. They knew this because it unearthing and eating corpses from a grave.
Yorick had been the one to discover it when he went to dig some graves for Pentakill stagehands, but wisely chose to not engage the unknown monster.
At the time he had discovered it, it was smaller, but now it was three times larger. Before, it could only dig up and consume two bodies a day, but now it was digging them up in seconds and eating both bodies and dirt without care.
That had only been a few days ago, around the time it would have taken for Evelynn had said she given the pearl to her client, and it gave plenty of time for whatever necromancer who ordered the pearl to be stolen to conduct his ritual, breathe life into his creation, and have it kill him before it went on its all you can eat buffet. Or so they assumed as they saw pieces of clothing, ones not native to the Shadow Isles, passed along the numerous grabbing hands of the nightmarish monster.
Mordekaiser let his armored hand fall to his side as he addressed the two of them. "If Evelynn were here, she'd be the one to kill that thing, and then, if she survived, Thresh would have a few words with her. As it is, Yorick and Hecarim have provided decoys to lure it into a trap. Since the two of you are here and they are not, the both of you will be helping me kill it." He explained. By the way he spoke; it was obvious he was not pleased with the Widowmaker's actions, and he was eager to his metal hands around her throat.
Nami turned her head to glance back at the abomination before returning her attention to Mordekaiser. "Where is this trap, and what would you have us do?" She asked.
Nautilus groaned in annoyance and swung his anchor over his shoulder. "Why, exactly, has it taken you this long to take care of it?" He demanded.
Mordekaiser turned his eyes to the diver, who met his eyes nonchalantly. The two titans clad in metal stared one another down, neither wishing to back down.
Finally, Mordekaiser spoke his answer. "We have killed it before and thought it was dead, but, as you can see…" He said, his words traveling off as though what he was going to say would be obvious. "Had the two of you not come along, we would have broken the pearl after killing it again." He added.
"I'm glad we arrived then." Nami said, drawing both of their attentions as though they had forgotten she was there. She looked between the two, and then gestured with her hand. "Well? What do we need to do? The sooner it is no longer moving, the sooner I have my pearl back and it can be taken from this place." She said.
Mordekaiser let out an annoyed groan, but started moving. "Follow me. I will explain as we walk." He said.
As they walked, Mordekaiser explained that the plan was to have mindless undead shuffle around an open area. When the monstrosity started toward the easy meals, it would fall into a ditch, but within reach of the undead decoys.
As it reached and ate a few, Mordekaiser and Hecarim beat its arms and head off before smashing the pearl.
It was a simple plan for a simple-minded monster, but, given its size, it would require more than one person to kill it.
Instead of what the islanders had originally planned, Mordekaiser and Nautilus would kill it while it was trapped, and then remove the pearl from it and take it off the island.
With the plan in mind, and all parties agreeing, they made their way to the open area where the trap was made. However, Nami and Nautilus were surprised to find that the ditch wasn't even covered it, as though they expected it to just walk off a cliff.
In response to the looks on their faces, Mordekaiser answered their silent questions blankly. "This thing has showed literally no intelligence, only hunger. Did you think we would create some elaborate trap for a mindless creature?" He asked.
The Marai nodded her understanding. "Alright. Is there anything I can do to help?" She asked.
The Master of Metal nodded and pointed toward the pathway. "Stay there, out of the way, until one of us has brought you that pearl." He said with a warning tone.
Nami was surprised by his words and looked to Nautilus, but he only nodded. "It would be safest if you were out of the way." He said, agreeing with the other's idea.
The Marai took a deep breath, and then sighed. She looked down in defeat, and then started down to the path she was indicated to wait. Though she wanted to help in some way, she was more afraid of getting in the way.
When she reached the area the two wanted her to wait, Nami could just barely see the two of them. She knew why they wanted her to wait in the middle of this path, so she could be seen easily and be able to see anything coming at her easily, but she did not like being on the sidelines as she now was.
It was her pearl, her duty, and her responsibility. She should be there, with them, getting it back, but… they only thought she'd be in the way.
"Feeling lonely, my dear?"
Nami jumped and quickly turned around, moving her staff to her hands and preparing to attack. She saw Thresh, smiling at her, and then watched him laugh at her.
"Did your metal boyfriend find another?" The specter asked with a joking tone.
The Marai lowered her staff, but glared at him with an angry look in her eyes. She then raised her head up and looked away from him. "For your information, I am here to help them capture that monster." She said.
The Chain Warden laughed and put his right arm over his side.
Nami then turned to him and spoke with a heated tone. "Stop laughing at me!" She said angrily.
He continued to laughed, but managed to speak in between fits of laughter. "But it's so funny! You actually think you're convincing." He said.
She swung her staff at him diagonally, trying to hit him, but he backed away from her before it could connect, not that it would have done much, if any, damage anyway. "Now, now. Is that anyway to treat a friend?" He asked.
"What are you even here for!? Just go away!" She demanded, nearly screaming at him, as she swung her staff at him again, but missed.
Thresh dodged her reckless swings easily and nearly effortlessly, laughing at her as he did. "Oh, no reason. I'm just here in case the three of you die. I have to collect souls some way, after all." He said.
She stopped swinging at him then, but she still appeared angry. "We're not going to die, you murderer! Nautilus will-"
"Oh yes, your knight in murky armor will get your gem back for you, won't he princess?" He asked.
The Marai's face turned to one of embarrassment with a blush coming to her face. "Wh- no! I mean yes- Just go away!" She demanded.
The specter laughed at her once more. "Oh you are certainly a treat, aren't you?" He laughed, but he suddenly stopped and looked at her. The way he looked at her made her feel uncomfortable; afraid even. "Maybe… I should see how much of a knight he is." He said, and then began to slowly drift toward her.
Nami's eyes went wide, and then she began to back away, still holding her staff up as though to attack. "Stay away from me!" She shouted, and then conjured a large tidal wave toward him.
Nautilus turned his head toward the sound of crashing water. "He won't harm her." Mordekaiser said, drawing the titan's attention back to him. "Thresh knows what will happen to him if he tries hurt her, but that does mean he won't toy with her." The Master of Metal added.
"Would there be any consequences to beating him after this?" The former diver asked.
Mordekaiser grunted a laugh. "If you can catch him, you can hurt him." He said. "But first, we will take care of this." He added.
Nautilus let out a deep sigh before stepping toward the undead monstrosity of moving bodies. "The sooner we kill it, the sooner leave." He said as he moved toward the abomination trapped in the ditch. It was reaching for the mindless undead, which it was getting by extending its reach by stretching its mass of many undead that made up its arms.
It showed no interest in Nautilus as he approached, leaving Mordekaiser to soon follow the Titan of the Depth's example and walking toward it.
When the two were within reach of it, it tried to reach for them with its arms, but all they had to do was step back from it. It soon lost interest and began to reach for the easier, mindless undead decoys.
"I'd question why you needed, my help for this, but, then again, I'm sure even Twitch could kill this thing blindfolded." Nautilus commented as he back away from its reach, and then stepped forward again when it reached for one of the decoys.
Mordekaiser lazily walked around and away from its reach. "We found it, killed it once, and then we found it what was keeping it alive when Yorick found it in a graveyard. Had the two of you and the pirate crew not showed up, we would have crashed and destroyed that damn pearl." He replied.
"Who killed it before?" Nautilus asked as he now approached the things head and upper torso.
"Yorick. He said the first time he saw it; it was eight feet tall and made up of five bodies. The next time he found it, it was about a foot shorter." He answered.
Nautilus nodded his head slightly, and then raised his anchor to strike it, but had to step back when it tried to get him with its mouth. If not for its tongue, which was a made up of one body, he would have begun his assault. "Let me take the pearl out of it. Nami and I have been to the abyss, and I'm sure you don't want to touch it." He said.
Mordekaiser lined up his mace like he was about to hit a golf ball, and then swung with all his might, grunting as he did. The thing's head and some of its neck flew off its body and a few yards away. He then gave another mighty swing, and severed its left arm, which had been crawling toward Nautilus. When he did, the limb began to lose its life, but continued to move.
He then placed his mace's head on the ground and leaned against its handle before holding out his left hand toward the still writhing body. "Come and get it then. I refuse to touch that thing." The armored necromancer said.
Nautilus kicked the mass of flesh out of his way, and then stepped toward the body. He saw the pearl, glowing as faintly as he remembered, and used his anchor to fish it out. "Didn't you say Nami would get it?" He asked as he tried to remove the pearl.
Mordekaiser nodded his head. "I wanted her to come with us, but I did not want her to be near this thing. I'd rather not have to deal with her freaking out." He said.
"You think she would?" Nautilus asked.
"Evelynn called this thing disgusting, looked at it only once, and I've not seen her since." Mordekaiser explained. "From what I've seen of the Marai… better safe than sorry." He added.
Finally, Nautilus was able to get it. The pearl rolled out, onto the grass, and, after a few seconds of writhing and twitching, the whole of the monstrosity went still; aside from a few twitches from limbs and bodies around the torso.
The titan walked after it, and then picked up the black as night stone.
"Get the fish-woman and get out with that." Mordekaiser said as he gestured toward where they had left Nami. "I'm going to get Yorick, his wagon, and Hecarim. This damn thing won't clean itself up now." He said as he departed.
Nautilus then started toward Nami to return her long sought after pearl. Hopefully, when they left the Shadow Isles, they could put all of this behind them…
Except, Nautilus has something to discuss with Thresh.
When he arrived to the path, Thresh was swinging his lantern back and forth as Nami tapped her fingers against the top of her staff.
The ground and area around them was soaked, muddy, and looked like a rainstorm had occurred. "Did I miss something?" He said as he walked toward Nami.
The Marai turned her head to him, at first displaying an angry face and a glare but then changing to a more relaxed and thankful look. It only brightened further when she saw he had her pearl. "You got it!" She exclaimed, dropped her staff and jumping to hug him.
Nautilus dropped his anchor and embraced her with his right arm. "Now, let's get out of here." He said.
Thresh laughed at the two of them. "You two would never make it here." He said.
Nautilus looked toward the warden and glared. "Thank you for watching her." He said.
"We talked for bit, she got angry, and then she started throwing those tidal waves at me." He chuckled. "All I did was offer her a room at my prison to stay, and then she just went crazy. It was actually very hurtful." He said a little sorrowfully.
Nami ignored the specter and held out her hands to accept her pearl back. When she did, she hugged it to her chest, crying a little, and then went to retrieve her staff while Nautilus picked up his anchor.
When they were both finished, Thresh shrugged his shoulders. "You two." He said as he shook his head. "Are you sure you do not want to stay in, Tidecaller? The room isn't the best, but it is a little better than the stone floor, or so I've been told." He informed.
Nautilus released Nami, and then stepped toward the Chain Warden. The two of them stared at one another, and then the titan spoke. "You and me are going to have a discussion later." He said before leaning toward him. "If I have to wait at your prison for you to show up, I will." He warned.
The warden only smiled and tilted his head. "Really? And what would we speak of?" He asked.
Nautilus glanced over, and then tapped the lantern. "My former crew." He said blankly. "I want to have a talk with them, or I will have a talk with you." He added with his voice low and angry.
With his piece said, Nautilus returned to Nami, who smiled up at him. "Let's go." She only said.
He nodded, and then the two of them started away…
Thresh walked along behind them, a smile on his face. "You two have no idea how to get out of here, do you?" He asked smugly.
Both Nautilus and Nami stopped in their tracks.
Thresh laughed as he moved in front of the two. "Follow me." He said before laughing again.
An hour later, and after taking the portal back to the Institute of war, Nautilus and Nami sat at the beach outside of Bilgewater, just outside of Nami's ocean adapted home.
Nami leaned against Nautilus's diving suit, her pearl resting on her lap with her body submerged halfway in the ocean. She closed her eyes as she causally stroked the pearl with one hand and held Nautilus's right arm with her left arm.
Nautilus rested his right arm on her right hip, holding her close as he told her stories of when he was a sailor. His left hand rocked his anchor back and forth as he spoke with a calm and gentle tone, though his voice was anything but.
The two had been through quite an adventure, but at least the conclusion had been simple. The only problems were that he had to pay back Miss Fortune for damages to her ship, both of them were forbidden to set foot or fin on the Shadow Isles, Evelynn avoided them like the plague, which was probably the best part, and the pirate hunting crew did not want to sail with them again.
But they had grown closer together.
Nautilus had even forgotten to speak with Thresh about his former crew.
His past was lost in the depths, the tides having faded long ago, but now… he had found a new tide, and Nami, despite his appearance, continued to think of his as a noble of the abyss.
She even called him her knight in murky armor.