Hook… I Will Always Find You

Chapter Twelve

Meanwhile, aboard Captain Silver's ship within the Underworld…

Once Silver and his pirate crew returned to this realm's equivalent of the ship Killian remembered all too well being a slave aboard for over sixteen years of his very early life, the men shoved the one handed pirate captain onto the deck at their feet and left him lying there until they were given their next orders from their own Captain. Killian groaned painfully when his body roughly hit the floorboards beneath him, then let a cry escape his lips when he suddenly felt one of the crew slam his foot down heavily against his back and another kick him in his chest.

"That was for your part in the mutiny you and your brother raised against us!" his first assailant, whom Killian recognized to be Silver's first mate shouted out at him angrily, then swiftly and with even more force, he kicked the slave once again in his chest and used his leg and foot to flip the younger man over onto his back.

"Take it easy, Bellamy," Silver responded more calmly as he turned around and faced his men, then stared down at the wounded man at their feet with a smugness in his eyes. "Both of the brothers Jones will suffer greatly for what they did to us. Hades has been generous enough to give this one over to us for now. The older Jones will pay for his sins in due time."

When his men nodded their heads and grumbled amongst themselves, the Captain knelt over Killian and spoke to him again cruelly saying, "I'm guessing you never expected you would wind up down here and once again aboard the ship where your father abandoned you so long ago… did you, Jones? You've changed a little since I last saw you. You've gotten older, though you definitely don't look your age, seeing as it's been over two hundred years since then and yet you were still alive until only recently. And I see you've also lost your hand. Tell me, how did you do that?"

Killian struggled to breathe through the pain in his chest and across his back while he glared up at the man above him the best he could, but when he refused to let the slave master's taunts goad him into retorting, Silver roughly grabbed a fistful of Killian's hair in his grasp to force him to cry out again and then he suddenly shouted, "You killed us all! And I swear you're going to pay for it. So will your brother after he sees how badly you're about to suffer."

"What would you like us to do with him, Captain?" one of Silver's other men questioned anxiously when he stood again and turned to face his crew.

"We're going to remind him what it's like to be the slave he's always been," their leader answered coldly and turned to face the walls of the massive cavern surrounding them, then looked out as he walked over to the side of his ship anchored within the deep waters of the green river flowing throughout most of the Underworld in which resided all the souls that have been lost for all eternity in endless torment. "Until Hades returns, you're free to beat him however you see fit to do so. Beat him, bloody him, even burn him with scalding water or boiling oil if you wish. It's not like we have to worry about killing him anymore. Just be sure to leave the shackles on so he won't be able to fight back. Have fun."

Finally, Silver walked away without saying another word as he walked down below deck in order to leave his crew be for awhile with their prisoner. Soon they began to strike Killian over and over again with their fists and feet until they grew bored, then pulled out various instruments in which to torture him with such as lashes, clubs, and even their swords so they could continue on with making him suffer while Killian stifled his cries.

When Silver walked back up on deck, he carried with him a wooden bucket and motioned to his men to step back, then suddenly poured scalding, boiling oil over Killian's back, at last causing him to scream no matter how hard he struggled to keep these pirates from seeing the anguish he felt at their hands.

Once the oil cooled enough, Captain Silver knelt down before his slave once more and reached out to grab Hook by his throat to get him to look up into his eyes while he said again cruelly, "All of this has been because your brother sold our souls to Hades in order to protect himself and you. Both of you deserved to go down with the ship just like the rest of us. I will see to it that you will, some way or another."

The leader released his hold, then stood again as he hauled Killian back up to his feet and was about to speak again to his crew, until everyone became startled when what they believed was a ghost suddenly appeared in front of Killian while the beautiful woman with long blonde flowing hair fearfully called out, "Killian. Killian, we're here to help you. We just can't find you. Where are you?"

"Just tell us where you are," the ghost fearfully continued, refusing to look away as she struggled to help Killian see into her eyes without being able to reach out to touch him so that he could somehow be assured she had come to save him.

"Something's happening," Killian and the pirates surrounding him could hear another voice utter worryingly from behind the woman before them, when the magic began to lose what little strength it held.

A woman's voice immediately added, "It's not holding."

The ghost ignored the others, keeping her eyes on Killian while she whispered even more desperately, "Talk to us. Talk to me."

"Killian!" she then shouted out to him in horror until the magic faded, and the beautiful woman vanished again from before them the moment Hades appeared as he magically yanked his captive down against the floor of the ship, then roughly forced him back against the main mast using the chains of his shackles to bind him against it.

"What was that?" Silver asked the deity while Hades advanced on Hook, then angrily backhanded him across his face when the one handed pirate struggled to look at him through his one eye he could still see through, as his other was closed shut as a result of his beatings. "Or who was that?"

Hades pulled out a small vial from his coat pocket containing a yellow liquid as he replied, "That was the woman Jones here fell in love with from the world above and who he actually managed to get to fall in love with him too. She's come down here to my realm in a foolish attempt to save him from me, but I'm not going to let her take him back."

When the God unstopped the cork keeping the liquid inside the vial and raised it above his prisoner, he carefully poured a single drop on top of his forehead, then laid his hand against the side of his head as magic began to flow through them. Killian screamed until finally the pain vanished when Hades released him, then the Captain mercifully lost consciousness at last.

Silver and his crewmen all stared between them until Hades lifted the vial again to show its contents to the pirates as he spoke up to them again saying, "This contains the waters from the yellow river which flows throughout the Underworld from my lair, just like the River of Lost Souls. Only this river is better known as the River of Forgetfulness. Had I poured this entire vial over his head, he would have forgotten absolutely everything he's ever known. However, one drop and his simply forgets the one memory I just pulled from his mind. His worst torment is the pain he's caused all those around him and his many, many regrets. I can't have him forgetting all that. But this way, he won't ever know that the woman who loves him has come for him. Keep him here a bit longer and leave him be for awhile. I'll be back."

"Where are you going?" the Captain of the ship they stood aboard attempted to cry out to the God, until Hades suddenly vanished from before them again without another word.

"What are we going to do with Jones now, Captain?" Bellamy questioned, then slapped the slave's face in order to see how deeply unconscious he really was, which Killian didn't even stir from.

Silver glanced towards his first mate as he responded, "We're doing just as Hades told us to do. We're going to leave him be. Right where he is."

Back in Storybrooke…

Before he headed home from the pond within the park once those who left town again to enter the Underworld were gone, Archie silently slipped away from everyone else and began to walk Pongo, whom he had left with Marco to watch for him while he was in Camelot. His dog missed his master while he was gone and so Pongo stayed close by, for which the doctor felt grateful for.

It was late and Archie felt tired, but he knew sleep wouldn't come easy to him that night and perhaps for many nights after because his mind was still troubled. So, he stopped at Granny's on his way back and asked for some food and a large cup of coffee to take home with him. However, he wound up giving most of the sandwich and fries to his dog when he found he wasn't really as hungry as he thought either.

He fed Pongo the last of the bacon left behind on the plate from his sandwich and tenderly began to pet the animal, until a knock suddenly sounded at his door much to the doctor's surprise, then Archie stood to answer it. As he did, he found Marco was standing there in front of him and the younger man despite his appearance making him appear to be much older, quickly pulled off his hat, then reached out to pat his long time friend's shoulder.

Archie looked at him quizzically, and out of concern Marco said, "Forgive me for coming over so late, but I couldn't help notice how upset you were when you left the diner yesterday evening. I'm sorry for not coming over until now, but you've been quite busy since you've been back. I have known you a long time, Archie. So I know when you are deeply troubled and right now, you are. I just wanted to make sure you were alright. How are you doing, my friend?"

"Honestly… I don't know, Marco," Jiminy despondently answered, after he motioned for his friend to come in and to have a seat on his couch. "We've all been through so much and yet I don't believe I've ever felt so helpless, like I do now. At least not since I was still trapped under my parents' control so long ago."

"Because you didn't offer to join with Emma and the others to save Hook?" Geppetto asked in confusion.

The psychiatrist replied, "Yes. I mean… no. It's more than that. I failed to help him and not just while were in Camelot. Before then too. Killian may have taken the darkness into himself to save Emma and Regina from his fate, but he and Emma entrusted me with the dagger in hope doing so might keep Arthur from getting his hands on it. And yet he still did because Arthur shot me to get us to tell him where it was. And I told him. The King took control over Hook and he still fought to save my life. But what's worse, is that he knew something terrible like this was going to happen and he looked to me for guidance. I'm not so sure… I gave him the best advice I could have."

The old man shook his head as he responded, "That isn't true, Archie. You have a gift. A rare gift that allows you to always know what someone needs to hear. I am certain you gave him the best advice you could have."

"Not this time," the man of conscience answered sadly. "I told him that night everything would be alright. But here we are and everything is hardly alright. Killian lost himself to the darkness. He became the very monster he most feared and then became consumed by his guilt over all the pain he caused. However, at no fault of his own. At least not since he became the Dark One. I fulfilled his last wish for him, but it never should have come to that, Marco."

"You cannot blame yourself, or go on believing you failed him," Marco replied. "You didn't. What you did was give Hook hope when he had none. And you did as he asked of you."

Archie sighed and then continued, "He was protecting us from the darkness and from himself, but that wasn't the only reason why he's dead. Killian came to hate himself so much despite all he's done over the last few years to become the hero he really is… that he couldn't live with himself any longer. He came to see himself as a monster who needed to be put down like a wild animal. I may have only been a psychiatrist since the Evil Queen's dark curse brought us here to Storybrooke, but even in all my years as a conscience and helping so many other people when they've come to me seeking advice… Killian is the first patient I've ever lost to suicide."

Geppetto reached out to lay his hand over Archie's, then he responded, "If Emma and the others succeed in saving him from this God and bring him back home, you will have another chance. You didn't fail him and when he returns you will help to remind him why he must fight to live."

"That isn't going to be easy," the doctor answered worryingly. "He's a very closed off and he's not comfortable talking about his past, which from what little I've learned of him so far has been very painful for him. Not to mention he's lived for over two hundred years. It's going to take a long time for him to come through so many years of pain, I can only imagine he's suffered through."

"He's trusted you enough to come to you before," the younger man replied. "And to protect the dagger for as long as you were able above everyone else. He considers you a good friend. Trust in yourself, my friend. You will find your voice when the time comes for you to help him again. Of this, I have no doubt."

Archie smiled and patted his shoulder, then he stated, "I appreciate your confidence in me. And you coming over at this hour to make sure I'm alright. It's nice to have someone to talk to about my own worries for a change."

Geppetto nodded as he whispered, "It's the least I can do after all you've done for me."

At last the two men stood again so Archie could see Marco to the door, but before the woodcarver left, he turned around to face his closest friend again and pulled the psychiatrist into a firm embrace, then told him he was glad to see he'd returned home safely. Archie simply nodded and then watched Marco walk away.