Chapter 21

Gradually, other sensations began to filter back through the pain. Dizziness. Nausea. Anger, helplessness, and a little bit of fear. While he hurt everywhere, Killian's poor bruised brain was suffering the worst of it, and he would have liked nothing more than to collapse unconscious onto his bed and sleep off the raging headache currently plaguing him. With a quiet moan, he shifted his hand closer to his face, then noticed a cloth being held gently against the swelling on his cheek and jaw. Clumsily, he draped his wrist and palm over his eyes in an attempt to block out the overly bright light from a cloudless sky. Marvel misinterpreted the action as a search for reassurance, and she wrapped her free hand around his limp fingers.

"Back with us, Captain?" Eris' voice seared into his skull, echoing painfully around and around as he cringed. He didn't dare open his mouth to reply lest something other than words spill out. Marvel's grip tightened on his hand.

"Please leave him be," she requested quietly. "My captain is a good man; he doesn't deserve-"

Interrupting, the goddess' answer dripped with disdain. "This matter doesn't concern you, Ship. While I appreciate what that fool Brizo did, breaking the natural laws to grant you human form, it doesn't mean I won't send you away if you become too much of a nuisance."

Marvel tried again, and Killian's heart swelled at her courage. "But I thought you needed his help, and if you continue to hurt him, how can he-"

Her words turned into a grunt of startled pain as she was grabbed by a henchman and yanked roughly away. Killian's protective instinct overrode his pain - and common sense - and he wrenched his eyes open. Slapping his hand against the deck as leverage, he rolled onto his back. As he moved, he sought the figure harassing Marvel. The man was at least three images acting as one. Killian cursed his impaired senses and aimed for the vague center of the mess. His hook lashed out at the man's ankle.

Surprisingly, the weapon made contact. More surprisingly, Killian didn't pass out with the sudden exertion. But even though steel sank deep into flesh, Eris' man didn't so much as wince. He seemed to flicker for just a microsecond, and then Killian's hooked arm clattered to the deck uninhibited. While the pirate caught his breath, Marvel was shoved roughly against the hatch, where she curled in on herself, glaring.

"Leave her out of this," snarled the pirate weakly. "It's me you want."

Eris shrugged. "Happy to. If she'll behave."

Killian set his jaw, winced at the resulting lance of pain, then shoved himself up with trembling arms. The deck tilted dramatically and he had to swallow several times to keep from vomiting, but he was sitting, at least. He drew a knee to his chest on which to balance his elbow, then, massaging his eyes, he set about collecting his wits.

"Ready to discuss business?" asked Eris, impatient.

"Give us a tick," Killian snapped back. He was treading dangerous waters, antagonizing her like that, but just then, all he could focus on was remaining upright. Finally, he raised his head and fixed the goddess with his best hateful stare. "Just what is it you want?"

"I need you to steal an item for me from dear old Zeus. He's got it well protected from deities like me and my men. But a mere mortal should be able to penetrate his shields with no problem."

Killian sighed, listening to the ache drumming between his ears.

"Item?" he prompted. He just wanted to get the talking over with, so he could complete her bloody quest, so he could go home and snuggle up to Emma while she waved his aches away.

"More specifically, a potion. Created by Zeus himself and used to thwart my efforts at mischief. Put simply, it reverses magical influence. So if I decide to, say, turn off gravity in a village, Zeus can use the potion to counteract my hard work. Such a bore."

"I get you the potion, you flip the world upside down... what's to prevent Zeus from creating more?"

"Oh, he undoubtedly will. But it will take time, and I can have all sorts of fun in the interim. Plus, if I use the potion on myself, it'll make me immune to their attempts to capture or otherwise restrain me. I'll be free to keep one step ahead while they slog behind, trying to clean up the mess." She couldn't contain her glee at the thought.

Killian didn't exactly fancy a reality where the goddess of discord could roam about unchecked. Every moral instinct screamed for him to refuse. But he had a hunch that he would have no choice. Without waiting for him to reply, Eris carried on.

"Zeus keeps all of his treasures on a volcanic island surrounded by shielding that, as I said, will not allow any other god, demigod, or demon to enter. Mortals, on the other hand, are unaffected. I've tried for centuries to counteract the shields, to no avail. My only option, it seems, is to rely on a puny human such as yourself."

"If any old mortal can enter, how does Zeus even have any treasures left?"

Eris scowled. "That bastard didn't exactly make it easy. You'll remember I mentioned a volcano. What didn't say was 'continuously erupting' volcano. Continuous except for when Zeus wants to visit… and on one six-hour period every 100 years. The island resets itself, or something like that. The point is, theoretically, a human could make it in and out in that window. But no one ever has. The range of toxic gases and boiling ash clouds extends to a distance beyond a three-hour journey. By the time one reaches the island, there is not enough time left for the return trip, and all who attempt it perish."

"Brilliant. Seems there's no need to continue the tale, then. So why don't you let us go and save us all the time and trouble?"

Triumphantly, Eris held up a finger. "Ah, but this is the reason I specifically sought you out. You and this spectacular ship of yours. She is the fastest ship in all the realms, is she not?"

And there it was. The reason… and the truth. Killian winced, knowing it was a rhetorical question. But he could try.

"Technically… fastest of her kind. The inhabitants of the Land Without Magic have created vessels which operate on flame - these could certainly outrun even the Jolly Roger."

"But are useless for my purposes. Such a monstrosity would surely attract the attention of dear Zeus."

"And a 100-ton pirate ship would not?"

"We have boats of similar design. Those driven by wind or muscle power alone are much more in line with natural laws, and thus, invisible to Zeus' magic."

Killian thought hard for a moment, despite the protests of his battered mind. "Magic, then. Nab a magic-wielder, ask them to 'poof' to the island and back. Simple."

"They would end up right back where they started, without ever having set foot on the volcano. Same goes for portals. You think mighty Zeus never accounted for that?"

His shoulders slumping in defeat, Killian growled. "Well, even if you're correct, and my Roger is the only way, the question remains: why should I help you?"

Mocking, Eris thrust out her bottom lip. "Don't you like me?"

"Beating a man senseless is hardly the way to go about winning allies, darling."

"Holiness," she corrected. "And you're probably right. But… I'm a goddess. I do what I like. And I expect to be obeyed."

Killian laughed once, humorlessly. "If you were on as close terms with Hades as you claim, you'll know how much trouble he had 'convincing' me to submit to his will. You won't find it any easier."

"Hades had a disadvantage," the goddess pointed out smugly. "You had nothing to lose. You were already dead, no hope of reuniting in the land of the living, even if your friends were to succeed at freeing you down there. Or so you thought. Up here, though… your happy beginning? The ones you love? You have much more to live for."

Killian swallowed; it sounded as if she already knew how she could get him to cooperate. But she surprised him.

"I know what you're thinking. And while it's true that you'd likely do almost anything if I threatened your loved ones, it's too predictable. I have something much more fun in mind. And, believe it or not, it doesn't necessarily have to be you who is convinced."

With that, Eris stretched out her arm, fingers splayed. Killian stiffened as a jolt of dark magic surged through him, setting his nerve endings aflame for one brief, torturous second. Then he slumped down against his knee, clinging desperately to consciousness. Grimacing, the pirate mumbled around his leg,

"Bloody hell. What did you do?"

"Do you know, Captain, that there is one natural law that I am in favor of? Entropy. Such a precious force. Turning order into disorder. I love it. And can you think of a bodily process that defies entropy?" She paused, as if expecting an answer; Killian remained stubbornly silent. "Healing, of course. Healing fixes broken systems, brings back the order, removes the chaos."

"And, what, you've taken away my ability to heal?" guessed a more-grumpy-than-frightened Killian. "Good thinking. If you wanted to ensure my death before I could retrieve your bloody potion, that's certainly one way to do it."

"Not only that," said Eris, ignoring his sarcastic evaluation of her plan. "This curse will also slowly begin to reopen all of your old wounds, one by one. In random order, of course. And judging by the scars visible even now, I would guess you've had a lot of them."

"I stand by my former assessment," Killian spat, even as he quailed at the thought. "Not much of a strategist, are you?"

"Oh, you won't die, not for a while yet. I've ensured the curse will progress slowly. You'll have enough time to reach the island; probably even enough for the return trip. But if you're smart, you'll figure out a way of counteracting it before that point."

She winked, and he seethed. But he drew a steadying breath and fought back the urge to lunge at her.

"It's not enough," he told her, some of the venom bleeding through despite efforts to contain it. "My life is not worth the suffering you'll inflict when you get your hands on that damn potion."

Instead of arguing, Eris suddenly teleported next to him, grabbed his wrist and shoulder, and hauled him to his feet. Killian grunted, feeling his knees giving out as the pressure exploded in his head. But Eris and her men held him upright and dragged him to the port gunwale. Dazed, Killian almost believed they were of a mind to chuck him overboard, and he could do nothing to stop it. But then Eris tangled her fingers in the back of his scalp, pulling painfully at the lacerated goose-egg above his left temple. While the pirate hissed and tried to break free, the goddess directed his face toward the horizon.

With her unoccupied hand, she pointed at a hazy smudge in the distance. Killian couldn't make out any detail, afflicted as he was by rippling double vision and watering eyes.

"There. The island. Just follow the ash clouds. If you leave now, you will arrive at just the right moment. Delay, and it will spell your doom."

Without one further comment, the goddess and her two henchmen vanished, and Killian collapsed hard against the railing. He scrambled for grip on the ship's wooden side: he didn't fancy a jarring landing on his knees once again. Leaning nearly all of his weight against the gunwale, Killian slowly rotated to turn his back to the sea, seeking Marvel out.

The human ship was already on her feet, hurrying to his side, and Killian panted a forced smile.

"There now, love. They've gone. We're safe."

Marvel skidded to a stop before she could plow into him, then crept cautiously forward and ducked under his good arm to provide support. "Captain. Please, sit."

She bent her knees and slowly lowered herself into a crouch. Killian allowed himself to slide down with her until, finally, he landed softly on the deck. Even that gentle impact sent a spear of pain through his skull.

"Do you think you can create a portal, Marvel?" Killian asked tightly.

"But Her Holiness said-"

"Back home," he clarified. "To Emma."

Marvel crawled out from underneath him and twisted to face him, placing a gentle hand on his cheek. "But you'll die."

Killian's pained scoff was a poor imitation of normal. "The hell I will. Bloody Eris called it a curse; therefore, all I require is True Love's Kiss. Simple."

Marvel appeared unconvinced. "That seems too easy. Wouldn't a goddess have thought of such a thing?"

Killian shifted his weight uncomfortably. The pain in his gut was worsening, in one place in particular, and he was afraid he may know why. Of all the wounds to start with… "These deities deserve far less credit than they're normally given. In any case…"

He broke off, looking away, unable to meet her eyes. "I can't enable that monster to do as she pleases. She can't get what she wants. Not this time." He forced himself to focus back on her and was even rewarded with a single image for once. "Do you understand, love?"

Marvel blinked at him, close to tears, distress clear on her stricken face. A slow nod turned into a vehement shake of her head. Killian sighed, grasping at some way to convince her… and he wasn't expecting the wave of magic that crashed over him, sending him slumping forward into Marvel's waiting arms.

"I'm sorry, my love," she murmured. And then everything faded from view.