For all her troubles, Leah awoke with an aching head and a strong bout of seasickness. Now where was she? She coughed violently and tried, feebly, to get to her feet, but a rather splayed quarter lotus position was all she could manage, a weak pile of body on the floor. Groaning, she noticed her vision had returned, but those same green eyes were back, doubly meaning that mini Shaemus was also back. And indeed, there he was, laughing cruelly in her face.
"You sick bastard."
He gave her a sinister smirk and stood up from the wooden crate he had been sitting on before. He gestured around.
"Where do you think you are?" he asked her, in a less prominent Irish accent, not as heavy as Shaemus's.
"Like I'd know…." she looked around cautiously and finally gave him a meek answer. "In a boat…?"
"I'd call it an illegal tanker ship, but you know, whatever works for you…"
And yes, it was the same ship 'Merkin', but Leah didn't know that. She only saw she was surrounded by wooden crates chained to the floor and high chainlink walls. He went on.
"And the reason I'm here," he chucked a small piece of something at the walls and it made a small explosion of blue sparks before it lay sizzling on the ground. "… is so you don't," he chucked something else and it, too, got fried, "… hurt yourself."
"Let me ask you something."
A little surprised at her vulgarity and boldness for someone who was just knocked out and abducted, he turned around suspiciously.
"For one, what's your name? Secondly, where are we, and what the fuck am I doing here?"
He took a minute to think to himself before he answered. "Aeneas O'Grady. And you're in the middle of the North Pacific Ocean, a little past Hawaii."
"Wait- let me get this straight. We're in the middle of the ocean? Why?"
"Well we're not just sitting here," he said, picking at a scab on his thumb, "We're going somewhere?"
"Where -- are -- we -- going?"
"Japan."
"Japan?? But I thought you were --"
"Irish? Well, uh, obviously, but that doesn't mean we're going there. We're delivering a shipment, and you just… came along."
"Bullshit."
"It's true."
Before she could start throwing swear words at him, his cellphone began to ring. He looked around for minute, then retrieved it from behind a large crate.
"Dia duit?"
Leah used the opportunity to push herself to her feet by means of a crate. She listened bitterly as Aeneas, or whatever his name was, talked quickly and animatedly in partial Irish and English. She sighed and sat herself on top of a crate like he had and looked around.
Through the chainlink, she could see the ship's inner hull, and other crates that were obviously bound for Japan. 'MERKIN' was stamped on many of them, and she soon deducted that it had to be the ship's name because she was almost positive that there was no town in Japan named Merkin.
"Oy!"
His voice brought her out of her pondering and she instinctively caught the cellphone he'd thrown at her.
"Your mum wants to talk to you."
"My mum. She's my adoptive mother, merci bocoup, and why is she talking to me through your phone?"
"Because she's with Shaemus."
"What?"
"Just talk to her," he growled and she did what he said.
"Dylan?"
"Leah! Thank god, I knock the shit out of him if he were lying…"
"What's going on?"
"Where are you?"
"Somewhere in the middle of the ocean, going towards--" but she was cut off by Aeneas leveling a rusty axe at her throat.
"Don't say anything about where we are or where we are going." he warned.
Leah ignored him and coolly pushed the axe away from her neck.
"Yeah, well, Aeneas is being an ass, so anyway…"
"Aeneas?"
"Yeah, replica, remember?"
"Ah…"
"So what's the deal?"
"Well isn't that the question… I had to make a small one of those," Leah could tell that she was censoring what she said so Shaemus wouldn't understand, "with Shaemus so that this piece of shit will give you back…."
"Wait, what? No! Don't do that, what deal??"
"It's a long story, but it won't come to play anyway. Just keep your eyes open, okay? I'll be seeing you soon, love you…" Leah listened as Shaemus took his phone back while Aeneas tried to pry her fingers off his cellphone.
"Shaemus? Da, Slán go fóill." He ended the call and stuffed the phone into a small duffle on top of one of the crates.
"What's going on?"
He smiled mischievously and brought a pacifist out of his bag. (a second meaning, not someone opposed to violence as a means of settling disputes ) He threw it against the chainlink, near the control box, and the electric current died around it.
"You'll see."
He reached an arm carefully through the chainlink and unlocked the large mechanical door from the outside. With a couple quick maneuvers, the door grated on its metal slides and rose into the air. Leah bit her lip and tried to put the procedure to memory, but Aeneas pulled her off the crate and out of the mechanical door.
"You sick bastard."
He gave her a sinister smirk and stood up from the wooden crate he had been sitting on before. He gestured around.
"Where do you think you are?" he asked her, in a less prominent Irish accent, not as heavy as Shaemus's.
"Like I'd know…." she looked around cautiously and finally gave him a meek answer. "In a boat…?"
"I'd call it an illegal tanker ship, but you know, whatever works for you…"
And yes, it was the same ship 'Merkin', but Leah didn't know that. She only saw she was surrounded by wooden crates chained to the floor and high chainlink walls. He went on.
"And the reason I'm here," he chucked a small piece of something at the walls and it made a small explosion of blue sparks before it lay sizzling on the ground. "… is so you don't," he chucked something else and it, too, got fried, "… hurt yourself."
"Let me ask you something."
A little surprised at her vulgarity and boldness for someone who was just knocked out and abducted, he turned around suspiciously.
"For one, what's your name? Secondly, where are we, and what the fuck am I doing here?"
He took a minute to think to himself before he answered. "Aeneas O'Grady. And you're in the middle of the North Pacific Ocean, a little past Hawaii."
"Wait- let me get this straight. We're in the middle of the ocean? Why?"
"Well we're not just sitting here," he said, picking at a scab on his thumb, "We're going somewhere?"
"Where -- are -- we -- going?"
"Japan."
"Japan?? But I thought you were --"
"Irish? Well, uh, obviously, but that doesn't mean we're going there. We're delivering a shipment, and you just… came along."
"Bullshit."
"It's true."
Before she could start throwing swear words at him, his cellphone began to ring. He looked around for minute, then retrieved it from behind a large crate.
"Dia duit?"
Leah used the opportunity to push herself to her feet by means of a crate. She listened bitterly as Aeneas, or whatever his name was, talked quickly and animatedly in partial Irish and English. She sighed and sat herself on top of a crate like he had and looked around.
Through the chainlink, she could see the ship's inner hull, and other crates that were obviously bound for Japan. 'MERKIN' was stamped on many of them, and she soon deducted that it had to be the ship's name because she was almost positive that there was no town in Japan named Merkin.
"Oy!"
His voice brought her out of her pondering and she instinctively caught the cellphone he'd thrown at her.
"Your mum wants to talk to you."
"My mum. She's my adoptive mother, merci bocoup, and why is she talking to me through your phone?"
"Because she's with Shaemus."
"What?"
"Just talk to her," he growled and she did what he said.
"Dylan?"
"Leah! Thank god, I knock the shit out of him if he were lying…"
"What's going on?"
"Where are you?"
"Somewhere in the middle of the ocean, going towards--" but she was cut off by Aeneas leveling a rusty axe at her throat.
"Don't say anything about where we are or where we are going." he warned.
Leah ignored him and coolly pushed the axe away from her neck.
"Yeah, well, Aeneas is being an ass, so anyway…"
"Aeneas?"
"Yeah, replica, remember?"
"Ah…"
"So what's the deal?"
"Well isn't that the question… I had to make a small one of those," Leah could tell that she was censoring what she said so Shaemus wouldn't understand, "with Shaemus so that this piece of shit will give you back…."
"Wait, what? No! Don't do that, what deal??"
"It's a long story, but it won't come to play anyway. Just keep your eyes open, okay? I'll be seeing you soon, love you…" Leah listened as Shaemus took his phone back while Aeneas tried to pry her fingers off his cellphone.
"Shaemus? Da, Slán go fóill." He ended the call and stuffed the phone into a small duffle on top of one of the crates.
"What's going on?"
He smiled mischievously and brought a pacifist out of his bag. (a second meaning, not someone opposed to violence as a means of settling disputes ) He threw it against the chainlink, near the control box, and the electric current died around it.
"You'll see."
He reached an arm carefully through the chainlink and unlocked the large mechanical door from the outside. With a couple quick maneuvers, the door grated on its metal slides and rose into the air. Leah bit her lip and tried to put the procedure to memory, but Aeneas pulled her off the crate and out of the mechanical door.
