Flynn brought Daphne their new hideout, which was a beaver dam that was flooded in the middle of the island and dragon gems.
Once they got inside, Twilight's horn lit up the candles.
"Lost Boys, fall in!" Flynn ordered.
One by one, the Lost Boys emerged from the ceiling, laughing and almost scared the daylights out of Daphne.
"Jeepers!" cried Daphne. "Please be careful! You're gonna fall."
Twilight snorted in disgust. Sure, she recognizes Daphne as Rapunzel's daughter but she sure didn't like her attitude.
"Sound off!" Flynn announced.
The Lost Boys immediately introduced themselves.
"Angry!"
"Boun"
"Luca! Alberto!"
One of them fell off the ceiling.
"Ow! Lance" he groaned.
The boys then piled each other's hands.
Daphne chuckled a little. The boys seemed friendly.
Flynn then sat beside Daphne on the bed.
"Boys, this is Daphne" he smiled. "She's gonna stay here and be our new mother and tell us stories."
"Yeah! Stories!" cheered the boys.
This made Daphne uncomfortable.
"Um, actually, I'm afraid I'm not very good at telling stories" she said anxiously.
"Ah, that's okay" Alberto laughed. "We're not very good at listening to stories."
Daphne frowned.
The Lost Boys then decided to play a game.
"How about Silenceo Bruno?" Luca asked.
"No!" the boys yelled.
"Red rover! Red rover!" Lance begged excitedly.
"Nah. Something else" scoffed Boun.
Then Flynn suddenly realized Daphne was upset.
"Okay, guys, stop! What's wrong, Daph?"
"My brother, Elroy came here too, but he was kidnapped" answered Daphne. "Sisu brought my mother and I here to reclaim him."
Angry gasped in shock.
Flynn was furious.
"Dastardly" he growled. "He's using your brother as bait to get to me."
The Lost Boys grabbed their weapons, ready to attack.
"But Sisu said it was Zhan Tiri who took him" replied Daphne.
Twilight heard the name and tried to convince Flynn otherwise.
"No, Twilight" said Flynn. "Zhan Tiri has been banished from Never Land for ten thousand years."
All the Lost Boys then started to argue on if Dastardly was responsible for kidnapping Elroy and if Zhan Tiri truly has returned.
Daphne was so confused and hurt that she wanted to yell, but she had to do it herself. So, she took a gem piece and a map from Flynn's bed.
"I've got to find my brother" she said.
Twilight watched as Daphne left the hideout as the boys continued to fight.
"What's the matter with her?" Angry asked Flynn.
"I don't know. She acts kinda like a... grown-up."
"Ugh!"
Daphne emerged from the entrance and jumped as two fish swam around her.
"I've got to get out of here" she said sadly.
Twilight emerged and stared at the fish with confusion.
"She went that way" said one of the fish.
"Thanks" Twilight replied before flying away.
The fish then swam away, not understanding the situation.
Just then, Rapunzel passed by with Tong, Namaari and Muttley by her side.
"Since you've been gone, Zhan Tiri returned to bring darkness to the land" Namaari said.
"In your world, it may have been forty years. But here, it feels like three weeks since time works differently here."
Rapunzel was nervous as they approached the now ruined Northuldra camp, surrounded by the petrified Northuldra people. The young mother sighed as she touched Yelena's frozen face.
"We'll camp here" Tong said. "We got gems to defend ourselves and we're surrounded by water. Tomorrow, we find your son and daughter and our captain in this plan of druun butt kickery."
As the pirates fell asleep in the tent, Rapunzel stared at the stars, praying that Daphne and Elroy were safe.
Meanwhile in a large cave not far from Sisu's home, a small camp was made with a large nest made of twigs, leaves, dragon gems and torn clothes and a large fur blanket made from a dead bear.
Two voices yelled in the distance.
"Dastardly! Dastardly?! Shove off! You get away from our rock! You know better! OFF, OFF, OFF, OFF!"
A loud growl echoed off the walls, followed by a loud thud, then suddenly it calmed down.
Dastardly emerged from the cave water, sighed through his nose and crossed a mark on the wall.
"Day 243 in this dreadful place" he said tearfully. "Or is it 243 years? I can't remember."
The captain has been hiding ever since Sisu brought him to this cave while he was under Twilight's temporarily sleep spell.
His only companions were the glowing snails that were the only light source in the cave.
"The question is… to whom I'm speaking?" Dastardly thought out loud.
It seemed like he became a "featured player" in the theater of the endless darkness, wasting in this lonely tower with no crew, no luxury, no hook… and no regal clothing. Just pants and his shirt ripped in the center of the chest.
But one thing crossed his mind was revenge on Flynn Pan, which obviously wasn't going to happen with the druun spreading.
Dastardly had to strive on hunting fish with complete success, but fruit however… very limited.
So, finally it's day 243 and Dastardly had given up hope and for some reason, he has been recently thinking he is turning into an animal. He felt like he was inside the belly of a beast, nothing but darkness and sounds of water dripping from the cave ceiling and the glowing snails wailing.
"No sooner I rid myself to that crazy dragon! And now Zhan Tiri!" he sobbed. "I swear, this is propelling me to delirium. I'd give anything to get out of here!"
He fell on his knees in a trembling heap and began to sob, tears running down his face and his hand-less arm against his chest.
Dastardly had no idea what to do. He didn't want to be here, but he had no choice but to endure this dark, cruel fate until either someone stops the druun and Zhan Tiri or he dissolves into nothingness.
There's no way out of this dark place the captain thought to himself. I can't be free.
He continued to sob until he was tired of sobbing and he fell asleep.
Sisu watched from behind a rock on the other side of the cave, feeling remorseful for the pirate.
"I'm so sorry, captain" she said to herself softly.
To be continued…