Chapter 10

'Woah, easy there Ashima!' Kwazii exclaimed as a golden flash almost knocked him over as she ran past. 'Shiver me whiskers.'

Ashima slid to a stop, her heart pounding as she turned back to him. 'S-sorry K-Kwazii. I didn't see you there.'

'No harm done me matey.' He walked up to her, the two of them heading down the hallway. The filly had officially been an Octonaut for two weeks now yet now was the longest he'd managed to speak to her. The filly avoided him like the plague. 'Ashima, I can't help but notice you keep trying to avoid me. I haven't done anything to upset you, have I?'

'N-no.' She stuttered, lowering her head. So he had noticed. She stopped, the cat stopping beside her. 'I-I'm sorry Kwazzi. I-I-' Her whole body shivered, then she bolted down the hallway, galloping away from the cat as fast as she could.

Kwazii sighed, continuing on down the hallway. He'd hoped the filly would have gotten used to him now but apparently not. What was the matter with her?

'Captain-' He started, walking up to him as the polar bear watched the screens in the HQ while he sipped his hot cocoa. ' Can I ask you something?'

'Sure Kwazii.'

'Its about Ashima. What's wrong with her Captain? She's terrified of me, I was speaking to her just now and she took off on me. I haven't done anything to scare her that I know of, I've been trying to be nice to her.'

Barnacles sighed heavily. 'I know you have Kwazii, you've been doing the right thing.'

'Then why isn't it working?'

'Ashima is-' He paused for a moment, trying to think of a way to put it nicely. 'Very troubled Kwazzi, she's been through a lot of trauma and it's affected her. Severely.'

'But what's that got to do with me?'

'The ship she was traveling on with the orphanage she was in was attacked and sunk by pirates Kwazii.' He replied gently, seeing the look on the cats face. 'I don't want to betray her trust by saying too much but you need to understand what she's been through. She's the soul survivor of the attack, she tried to protect the other orphans but she couldn't.'

'Aye. Poor little thing.'

'Just go easy on her Kwazii, she'll learn to trust you in time. Be patient with her, gentle. She's fragile Kwazzi, not like a flower but like a shaken soda bottle. She'll explode if she's pushed too far.'

'Understood Captain.' He sighed. 'I had a feeling that the shipwreck didn't happen by accident. Pirates like that make my whiskers curl. I just want to be her friend but she's terrified of me.'

'Time and patience Kwazzi, she doesn't know yet that you're not like those pirates.'

'I know. I'd like to know what kind of pirate plunders a ship carrying orphans though, they're a disgrace to the pirate race.'

'I can't argue with you there Kwazii.' He turned back to the screen. 'Do you know where Ashima went when she ran off?'

'No idea.'

'I might go check on her then-'

'No Captain.' Kwazii stopped him before he'd gone two paces. 'I'm the one who upset her, I'll go find her.'

'You sure?'

'A pirate never gives up on a fellow crewmate.' He started towards the Octochute then turned back to the polar bear. 'Any idea where she might be?'

'One of two places. Her room, or the gym.'

'Come on, come on! Run Kirra, run!' The filly begged frantically, the mare getting left behind from the herd as they were chased further and further from their home. 'Come on!'

The bay looked at her, about to reply when suddenly she crashed to the ground, her side's heaving. 'You. Must. Go.'

'No Kirra, no. I'm not leaving you.'

'Go.'

The filly watched in horror as the mare's eyes glazed over, her sides heaving no longer. The sound of the strange beast chasing them made her look behind, the filly giving a snot of terror. She didn't want to leave but- She dug her hooves into the ground, bolting after the herd. She was galloping, galloping, trying to catch up to them. They were just ahead, she could see them but she couldn't catch them. Come on, faster! Faster! She willed her legs to go faster, forcing herself near to the point of breaking-

The fillies legs gave out suddenly underneath her, the treadmill spitting her off backwards. She snorted, shaking her head as she tried to gain her bearings, tried to stop her fogged vision as she gasped and struggled to breath. The treadmill turned itself off after a moment, the only sound in the pod being that of her strangled gasping.

Blood. She was sitting with her head down as blood poured from her nostrils. She closed her eyes, trying to catch her breath and not start panicking. She bled like this when she exerted herself, she never used to, until that lab- She held her head down, waiting for the bleeding to stop. Her chest hurt, her lungs hurt. Her whole body hurt yet it couldn't compare to the pain in her heart and mind. It just wasn't fair, it just wasn't right.

She struggled to her hooves once the bleeding had stopped, shaking slightly as she stood unsteadily then started towards the cleaning supplies to clean up her mess. She was thankful for her boots, they made life so much easier now that she was able to pick up and hold things. She headed back to the puddle of blood, cleaning it up quickly so no one knew what had happened.

She didn't know what had taken control. She'd been running, running, trapped in the distorted flashbacks of her past. Some of the horses had been run to their deaths that day, they'd been run almost a hundred and fifty miles without a break, some of them just dropped dead on the way. They were the lucky ones. They never made it to the lab.

A shudder went up her spine as she took the bloodied cloths to the sink to clean up, watching the crimson water going down the drain. What had happened to her? She'd been on the treadmill one moment, the next, running for her life.

The cloths cleaned she made her way to the glass, sinking wearily down against it to watch the ocean beyond. Her coat was drenched in sweat, her body shaking as she tried to call down.

She heard the door open but didn't look back, staring up at the ocean as the footsteps got closer.

'Are you alright me matey?' Kwazzi asked softly as he sat on the floor beside her, looking at the filly.

'I'm alright, just finished my workout.'

'If you don't mind me saying, tis looks like you've run a marathon.' The filly sighed but didn't reply. He waited for a moment, looking up at the ocean. 'I'm sorry about what happened to you matey, I know it must have been horrible.'

She nodded. 'Thank you for your sympathy.'

He could still hear a hint of something in her voice, but couldn't tell just what exactly. 'I just wanted to let you know I'm not like them, I'm not going to harm you Ashima. My Grandpa, Calico Jack and I aren't like other pirates, there aren't many pirates left who are our kind of pirate.' He paused for a moment. 'I'd like to be your friend Ashima, I'm not asking for you to trust me overnight but I hope you'll at least give me a chance. Please?'

'A-Alright.' Ashima nodded after a moment. 'I-I like you Kwazii, you seem nice-'

'But me ol pirate patch and me talk scares you, doesn't it matey?'

'I guess I'll have to get over it.' She stood up, her legs shaking for a moment and she lent against the glass to catch her breath and wait for her vision to stop blurring.

'You alright matey?'

'Just- overdid it-' Her knees shook but she wouldn't let herself collapse in front of him. She wasn't weak. Forcing herself to stay standing she started across the room. 'I'll be fine.'

'You don't look fine.' He replied, keeping pace with her. 'Take a seat before you fall down.'

'Leave me be!' She snapped suddenly, her teeth catching the cats arm as he pulled away from her. She saw the look of shock on his face, shocked herself she'd gone to attack him. What was happening to her-

'Ashima! Wait-' He sighed as the filly raced out of the room, running a paw over his fur. Blood. He grimaced, holding his paw over the wound. He glanced towards the door the filly had bolted out of, grimacing as the pain from her bite set in. 'I certainly wouldn't want to get into a fight with you me heartie.' He mumbled under his breath. He hadn't expected her to attack him, he knew she hadn't expected herself to either. He'd seen the horror on her face as she'd turned. It certainly was going to be harder then he'd first thought to get through to her.


'How'd it go with Ashima Kwazii?'

'Ah, well Captain-' He cleared his throat as the polar bear turned around, holding up his bandaged arm. 'She's got a good set of nippers, that's for sure.'

'Oh Kwazii.' Barnacles sighed, shaking his head. 'What happened?'

'Well, everything was going fine till she just snapped and lunged at me. I didn't do anything, she just snapped.'

He sighed again. 'I'll go talk to her.'

'Do you think she's turnin dangerous Captain?'

'I don't know Kwazii, she's been through a lot. I'll find out what happened but it might be best if you try to give her a wide berth for the meantime.'

'Aye Captain. I will.' He sighed, looking away. 'I might go take the Gup B for a run.'

'Alright, I'll see you later then.'


Ashima sat in Dashi's room, staring out into the ocean, the tears in her eyes blurring her vision. She didn't know what had come over her, why she'd bitten Kwazii. It scared her. She couldn't control herself. She was dangerous.

She stood up, bashing her head into the glass, puffing angrily. How had she lost control? How could she have bitten him? Why had she lashed out? Why couldn't she control herself?

She hit her head against the glass so hard she saw stars, trying to ease the pain inside her by causing more pain somewhere else. She wavered, steadying herself against the glass as her vision blurred, her body shaking. I'm a monster. Played over and over in her mind, the filly closing her eyes as she hit her head against the glass again and again-

'Woah woah woah. Ashima!' Barnacles hurried in, standing between the filly and the glass to stop her hitting her head. 'Woah!'

Ashima lowered her head, unable to look him in the eye. 'Please, go. I don't want to hurt you. I'm a monster, I'm dangerous-'

'Ashima-' He tried to place his hand on her but the filly lunged at him, her teeth snapping in the air his arm had just been. He stepped back, watching the fillies expression. It wasn't a look of hate or anger, it was fear. Fear in her own eyes as she backed away, tearing up. 'Ashima, please, let me help you.'

'No Captain-' She backed away further as she shook her head, stopping as her rump hit the wall. 'Please, leave me be. You can't help. No one can help.'

'Ashima, I can't do that.' He replied gently, walking back towards her slowly. 'When a creature needs help, we help. When a crew member needs help, we help. Leaving you alone is not an option. We're here for you.'

'I don't want you to get hurt.'

'That's a chance I'm happy to take.' He walked closer, extending his paw to her. The filly let him place it on her neck and he began to rub her gently, speaking softly to her. 'It's going to be okay Ashima. Everything is going to be alright.'

'How can it be? I attacked Kwazii, I almost bit you and the memories-'

'It's alright.' He ran his paw down her neck as the filly pressed her face to his chest. 'I'm here Ashima.'

'I'm s-scared.' She finally was able to exclaim between sobbing, Barnacles paws rubbing each side of her neck as he tried to calm her down. 'I'm terrified.'

'I know. It's alright though Ashima, nothing is going to hurt you. You're safe. You're one of us, your part of the crew. We look after each other.' He soothed gently, wiping the tears off the fillies cheeks. He lifted her head, looking into her eyes. 'Ashima, I promise you, I will protect you. I will look after you. Nothing is going to hurt you. Whatever happens, we, and I, will always be here for you.'

Barnacles stayed with the filly until she finally calmed down, lying down on her bed to get some sleep. He sighed heavily as he stood up from kneeling beside her, running his paw over his head. The filly had spoken so much about her past, giving more details to the explanation she'd given him and Dashi. It was no wonder at all why she was the way she was, she'd been through hell and back.

Gently he placed her blanket on her then softly left the room, headed for the library. Her problems were out of his league, he'd been through some pretty horrible stuff himself but the filly had been through worse he thought as he reasoned in his mind. She needed help, more help then he could give her.

'Ah, hello Captain.' Inkling remarked as the polar bear walked in. 'What's on your mind?'

'Ashima.' He replied, taking a seat across from him. 'She bit Kwazzii and went for me as well but once I managed to talk her down and get her calm she told me about some things that's been bothering her. Frankly, I don't know how to help her.'

'Yes, I heard Kwazzi had an accident or something.' He pondered, adjusting his monocle. 'I don't think I can help Captain but I might be able to get you in contact with someone who can. An old psychology professor I knew back in the old days. I'm sure he'd be more then happy to help.'

'Thank you Professor.'

'No problem Captain.' He started over to where his laptop was. 'I'll send him an email straight away.'

He nodded, heading out of the library and back to the HQ. 'How's things going Dashi?'

'Everything's shipshape Captain.' She looked up at him. 'I heard about Kwazii, how's Ashima?'

'Not doing so well I'm afraid, I finally managed to get her to sleep, she exhausted herself quite badly.' He sighed. 'I'm not sure what to do with her, she went to attack me too when I was speaking to her, I'm worried someone else is going to get hurt. Kwazii's already been bitten, she's so scared and fragile she'll just lash out at those around her. I thought she was getting better but-' His voice trailed off.

'I probably should have told you-' Dashi started nervously. 'But Ashima went for me yesterday too, I was just talking to her then it was like a flip had been switched.' She sighed heavily, seeing the disappointment in his eyes that she hadn't told him. 'I just thought she was having a bad day and tried to give her the benefit of the doubt but now-' She paused and looked back at him. 'I think she might be dangerous.'

'I don't want to label her as that but you should have told me Dashi.' Barnacles ran a paw over his head. 'I knew it wasn't going to be easy for her, we all knew it wasn't going to be easy for her but we can't expect her to get over her past overnight. On the other hand, we can't have others getting hurt.' he turned his attention back to her. 'What do you think Dashi? Do you think she's dangerous? Do you think she might go at you again? Do you feel safe around her?'

'I don't know Captain, like, I mean, I thought I was getting somewhere with her too but to be honest, she did scare me. It didn't take much for her to snap and I do think she might do it again.'

He nodded. 'Thank you for your honesty Dashi. Inkling is getting in contact with a psychologist that can help us with her but maybe it's best for everyone if I'm the only one that goes around her and stays with her. I think perhaps she should move into my room as well for the meantime, I can get Tweak to fix it up to give her her own space.' He paused for a moment. 'I want to do what's best for her but I need to think of you all too. I just hope she's going to improve.'

Dashi placed her paw on his shoulder. 'You'll be able to help her Captain, if anyone can do it, it'll be you.'

'Thanks Dashi.' He smiled. 'I really hope you're right.'