Captured By Pirates
This chapter shows what happens to Ben when he is first brought aboard the pirate ship The Lost Revenge.
[Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Descendants 2, nor the dialogue used from the film. Some dialogue from the film has been included in order to maintain continuity with the events of the film. No copyright infringement or theft of intellectual property is intended.]
Chapter 4
The captain turned to speak with the man who had acted as her decoy to trap the king. She appeared to be giving him instructions. But before he could hear what they were saying, Ben was forced across the gangplank and stumbled onto the ship's deck. Once aboard, most of his abductors left to see to their various duties. But two pirates remained, taking up the abandoned lengths of rope to hold the king in place.
The king knew that there was no hope of escape. First, he was so tightly bound that his arms had gone numb. Second, he was surrounded by a crew of bloodthirsty pirates. And third, his strength was beginning to fail after all that he had gone through this night. He knew it was only a matter of time before he eventually collapsed.
Just then the man from before crossed the gangplank and approached him. "So, have you figured out who my father is yet?" the man asked with a sneer on his face. With the gags firmly in place, Ben could only shake his head in answer. "No?" the man said amused, "Well, then let me give you a hint. Your father stole my father's woman. Then he tried to kill my father by throwing him off a castle parapet."
Ben's eyes widened in shock and fear as he looked into the face of Gaston's son; how could this have happened, how could he have fallen into the clutches of this man of all people? The one person, whose father had a personal grudge against his parents and him, was standing before him looking even more sinister than the captain had.
"Allow me to introduce myself," the man spoke relishing the fear in the captive king's eyes, "I'm Gil, son of Gaston, mortal enemy of your father's."
Panic drove the king to struggle against his bonds in an attempt to escape the villainous man. Gil just laughed at his futile struggling. Then he punched Ben in the gut. The king doubled over and would have fallen to the deck if the crewmembers weren't still holding onto his ropes. Instead he dangled about a foot above the wooden planks, while trying to catch his breath through the gags. The three men laughed at him for a while, but soon became bored, picked him up, and set the king back on his shaky feet.
"Enough of this prelude," Gil said, "It's time to have some real fun. Take him to the brig."
The two pirates half led, half carried the weakened king down the stairs below deck. After traveling the length of the ship and descending another set of stairs, they came to a locked door. Gil produced a heavy looking, iron key and unlocked it. They forced Ben through the doorway and into a large wooden room. The room was cut in half by a row of thick metal bars, spaced evenly apart, and set vertically in the floor and ceiling.
Ben was a king, and as such knew about dungeons, but his father hadn't needed to use one in years, not since banishing the villains to the Isle of the Lost. And so Ben had never set foot in a dungeon, prison, or even a jail cell, not until today. He could tell that the brig was more than just a cell, although calling it a dungeon would have been a stretch. There were shackles, whips, clubs, and other implements of pain hanging from hooks set in the wall to his left. Ben shuddered thinking about how these might have been used against other people. Then he closed his eyes in an effort not to think about how they might be used on him.
Gil led the way again, unlocking the cell door, and stepped aside to allow the two men to bring in their prisoner. Ben was unceremoniously thrown onto the straw covered ground of the cell. At first he had tried to get up, but the men pushed him back down and began untying his bonds. As they roughly tugged away the cords, Ben felt the sensation of prickling needles and a painful throbbing as blood rushed back into his newly freed arms and hands. Then he heard a sound that made him quiver in fear, metal clinked and chains rattled as Gil walked towards the prostate king, manacles dangling loosely in his hands.
"Pick him up," Gil commanded his two shipmates.
The men roughly yanked the king's sore arms lifting Ben to his feet. Gil approached the prisoner and began fastening the shackles to Ben's wrists, securing them in front of him. Then he used a lock to connect the shackles to a length of chain that he had taken from the wall of torture. Gil secured the other end of the chain to a metal loop set in the floor with a second lock. This effectively pinned the king in place, the chain was too short to allow Ben to do anything, but stand there with his arms pulled painfully downwards.
"That should do it," Gil said satisfied, "You may go," he said dismissing the two men, who looked a little disappointed that they wouldn't be allowed to watch. Gil, saw their reluctance, and assured them saying, "We're not allowed to hurt him yet. Don't worry you won't miss anything. The real show starts tomorrow." The two men laughed maliciously and agreed to leave without argument.
Once they had shut the door behind them, Gill crossed the room and locked it. Then he returned to the chained and gagged king like a wolf stocking its prey. Gil circled the king as if to get a better look at him. Then he stroked the Ben's cheek almost tenderly. The king jerked away to escape his touch. Gil laughed and stepped behind the prisoner. Ben closed his eyes bracing himself for whatever this man had in store for him. But opened them again in shock, when Gil began untying the gags that were digging into the sides of his mouth. Gil pulled away the knotted fabric and let the sodden rags drop to the floor. Then he turned the king around, so that he could look at the man's reddened face. The tight cloth had left bright crimson groove marks across his cheeks and bloody sores on the edges of his mouth. A bruise had formed just over the king's left eye and a trickle of dried blood trailed from his nose. Gil stroked the man's cheek again, as if to wipe away the feverish red streaks marring his handsome face. Ben tried to turn his head away again, but Gil grabbed his chin and forced the king's face upwards. Ben was compelled to look into Gil's eyes, which held his gaze for a long time. The man studied him intently, as if he were searching for something. It felt like he was peering into Ben's very soul with that intense stare. Then an expression of anger surged across Gil's face and he thrust the prisoner away with so much force that he fell to the ground. As he tried picking himself back up, Ben saw Gil leave the cell and lock its door. Through the bars he watched the pirate turn away from him. Then Gil's back began to shake. Ben wondered what was happening to the man until he heard a sob escape his lips.
'Is he crying?' Ben wondered.
Before Ben could react, Gil unlocked the large, wooden door, wrenched it opened, then exited, closing the heavy door behind him with a loud boom. The key rattled from the other side as Gil locked him in. Then all went quiet. Ben was grateful to have the gags and ropes removed, and for nothing worse to have happened to him this night. But he wondered what that sob was about. Before he could give it anymore thought, the last vestiges of his strength left, and the captive king fell into unconsciousness.