Chapter Sixteen: Fire in the Sky
After the first explosions hit, Rock lovingly punched Joe in the shoulder. "Sullie, we're gonna split and raise some hell. You do what you gotta." Polly paused, uncertain, and put Joe's hand in her own. "Just come back, okay?" He smiled and nodded, allowing her to escape with confidence. He wouldn't let her down. Not if he knew what was good for him, she told herself.
But that was two hours ago, and she still wasn't any closer to escaping or, as Rock put it, raising hell. Resistance was light and they moved swiftly, occasionally vaulting over the bodies of the dead and dying as they looked for ways to do their part in destroying Blackbeard.
Outside, the battle raged as the City of Lost Souls unleashed hell on Blackbeard's forces. A barrage of weapons punched white hot holes through the castle and its galleon, liquefying stone and steel destructive efficiency. The hull of the galleon rippled like water before going supernova and exploding tons of shrapnel into anything in its path.
Rock and Polly passed a breach in the ship and paused to witness the carnage outside. The air around the hole was hot and shimmered like a mirage. Squinting through the burning haze, Polly watched Jolly Roger's motley army tear into Blackbeard's fleet, turning his airships into blazing fireballs that fell from the sky. The effect was both terrifying and beautiful. At that moment she felt incredibly mortal, and didn't want to think about it.
"So, you and Jolly, huh?"
"Yep."
She paused, not quite knowing how to choose her next words.
"You know she pickles severed hands don't you?"
"...yep...It's kind of a long story."
He blushed, and for some reason she was comforted by that. "I'll bet," she said. "You'll have to tell it to me when we get out of here."
They ran on. The corridor dropped at a sharp angle and before spiraling into a long helix, finally ending in a room untouched by the war in the sky outside. Overhead lights flickered on and off erratically. At the other end of the room were three steel doors. Rock and Polly stopped to consider their next move.
"Rock, this is getting us nowhere. We're going deeper into the ship and this place is about to go up in flames if Jolly keeps at it" Polly's cousin thoughtfully chewed on his lower lip for a moment before throwing a finger towards the middle door.
"There. Engineering. We go there first, see if we can break some stuff." He then moved his arm and pointed to the door on the right. "Assumin' we get outta that in one piece, we'll double back here and head for the shuttle bay, find something that flies."
Polly was confused. "But how do you know those doors will-"
Rock grinned and pointed up. As the lights flickered, Polly saw the words BARRACKS, ENGINEERING, and SHUTTLE BAY painted over each door. "C'mon kid," he said. "Let's go do some good."
The unattended engineering floor was a large, circular room packed with an array of hopelessly complex machines, sensors, and monitor stations. The devices silently stood guard over a glowing black orb that levitated in the center of the room. Suspended in a pale blue beam of light, the orb pulsed with abominable intent.
They hadn't searched for long when Polly cried for Rock. They stared into the green glow of a screen primed to override and detonate the orb. "I don't know how this got here," Rock cried, punching in the command to activate the self-destruct. "But I sure as hell ain't one to look a gift horse in the mouth!"
Stay Tuned for Chapter Seventeen: Last Man Standing