Porfirio reeled backwards with a cry of pain, his arms flailing in the air, as if trying to grab grace's mind back. But Grace had come out of her entranced state, and didn't intend to return to it. She stood boldly, defiantly, in front of the vampirates who still had their weapons, a pleased but slightly devious grin on her face. It greatly amused her that no one else knew that she knew what she knew. If that makes any sense.
Porfirio stood back up straight, and some ghosts started paying attention, feeling that there was something interesting going on. Porfirio snarled. "Insolent little child! Do not block your mind from me!"
Grace continued blocking him. It felt as if there were a solid wall, hiding and defending her mind. She chuckled, and Porfirio got the impression that she knew something he did not know that she knew. (Yet again if that makes any sense)
"Leave this ship, right now." Grace said, and there was a silence, as if her words had bewitched everyone.
"Or what, girly?" But there was now an undertone of doubt in his voice now.
Grace felt very powerful, standing in front of all the vampirates. Now it was as if the situation had changed round completely: she was now the one who's figure was framed by the flaming, ghostly ship. Grace hoped that she looked clever and menacing, and to add to the effect, she smiled knowingly. "Or..." She drew out her sentence. "We will shoot you were it hurts!" Then she frowned, realizing that her words could have had the wrong effect. She certainly noticed some of the ghosts sniggering.
"I don't mean where you think I mean!" She hastily added, trying not to feel embarrassed. "I mean, I know how to kill a ghost. Shoot him in the place where his heart used to be- it's where most of the energy in their body's collect. Shoot there and the energy scatters- the ghosts are destroyed!" She grinned triumphantly. If only Lorcan could have seen this. Where was he, anyway?
Porfirio frowned. A frown of fear.- But then he remembered something. "Silly girl! Try anything, and my sea-monster rips you all up! So you'll die either way. Lose-lose situation." He reached out for her, and Grace cursed. "Now stop shielding your mind, or I'll have to summon my monster! There's no point any more, girl!"
***
Darcy jumped to her feet. Where had that cry come from? A cry of fear, and pain. And she could swear it had been the rusty voice of the ghost Porfirio. Darcy quickly dipped down and snatched up her fallen crossbow.
"Stay here, Paolo!" She told her friend, as she sprinted to see what was going on the other side of the ship. She ran as fast as her legs would carry her, and as she reached the opposite end of the ship she saw Grace standing confidently in front of a large group of vampirates, all armed.
Darcy decided not to make her presence known: Grace seemed to be handling this just fine by herself.
"I mean I know how to kill a ghost." Darcy heard Grace say. Was she bluffing? Darcy couldn't believe it. "Shoot him in the place where his heart used to be..."
Darcy heard the conversation unfold, a curious look on her face.
"Silly girl!" Porfirio said. "Try anything, and my sea-monster rips you all up! So you'll die either way. Lose-lose situation. Now stop shielding your mind, or I'll have to summon my monster! There's no point any more, girl!"
Darcy smiled, almost delighted that there was such a suitable place for her announce her presence. "What sea monster?" She shouted, walking boldly into the scene.
Everyone blanched, and after an initial moment of shock, Grace cried, "Darcy!" A pretty obvious thing to say.
"Yep." Darcy replied. "I'm so glad you're alright, Grace! I was so worried." She was going to hug her, but then decided that it would be more appropriate to do so later. "Anyway!" She walked up to Porfirio, boldly, a defiant frown on her face. "Mr. Porfirio, I'm afraid you have been a very bad boy, and I had to half-kill your poor sea monster!"
Porfirio was dumb-struck. "What??"
"That's right!" Darcy pointed over to behind Porfirio, into the distance, and he whirled around to look. There was a figure retreating into the distance. "There he is! Or she! Just managing to get away, bless him!" She grinned. "So now what do you have to bargain with, Mr, hmm?" Darcy twirled round to face all the other ghosts, as if she was a primary-school-teacher telling off some naughty pupils.
All the ghosts but Porfirio knew that they had lost. They knew when was enough, when to stop. They began moodily muttering and floating back to the flaming ship.
Porfirio ignored them, his face clouded with thunder, and he rose into the air, silently, saying nothing. There was a moment of silence.
"Well, Porfirio?" Grace said. "All your crew seems to be leaving. Face it! We've beaten you!"
"No." The word was laced with menace and storminess, and seemed to come from the very depths of Porfirio's being.
Darcy and grace took a few steps back, sensing something wrong, and all the ghosts who had filed reluctantly back onto the ship turned around to watch.
"No." Porfirio whispered again. "I will not leave. I must have my revenge!" The words got louder and louder as he said them, in a crescendo.
And then, unbelievably, he darted forward, gathering all of his power into one hand with mighty, angry, ghostly power, to make it almost solid, and grabbed Darcy's crossbow from her surprised hands.
"But ghosts can't hold things!" Grace cried, awestruck.
Porfirio didn't answer. He just swung the crossbow in her direction. He was shaking: obviously keeping lots of energy in his hands was a great strain. "Submit to my power!" he boomed. "Or I kill you all myself!"
"Why do all the evil baddies always end up wanting to kill us?" Darcy whispered into Grace's ear.
Grace shrugged, then remembered where they were, and suddenly became very worried.
Holding the crossbow was seeming to become easier and easier for Porfirio. His expression was becoming less and less strained, and so he smiled evilly to make up for the lack of interesting expression.
"Now, which one of you first?" he crooned, darting forward again and using the other hand to reel Grace and Darcy in. Obviously some insane power was enabling him to become solid. He pressed himself to the edge of the ship, to that there was something solid behind him. No chance of attack from there. There was only his own crew, mesmerized by this turn of events.
None of the vampirates where able to aim at Porfirio: he was holding the two girls too close to his chest: there was a very high risk of hitting them unless they could get closer. But then he'd kill them. Lose-lose.
And where was the captain? Grace saw him lying on the deck unconscious, and quickly turned away.
There was nothing that they could do to stop him, Grace thought despairingly, as Porfirio pulled her closer against his somehow now solid, but still transparent, bulk. There was no one left who could help.
But then grace realised with unexplainable relief that she was wrong. There was someone!
"Lorcan!" She cried, as she saw him flash, in the blink of and eye, over the side of the ship, and in one fluid movement, stab his sharp blade into Porfirio's chest.