The Elusive Treasure
Chapter Six
Foreboding and Confrontation
(Close-up to Twister. His eyes are tightly closed, and an expression of fear is on his face)
Twister opened his eyes and looked around. He was standing on the edge of a wooden ship's deck. It was an old schooner – or so he thought. There were three large masts, a wooden frame and deck, lots of rope all around, cotton sails on every mast, and a couple of cannons on each side of the deck, their muzzles protruding from the portholes. But the oddest detail was the black flag on the tallest mast, with a large skull and two crossed bones as ensign.
Then he looked up front. He could see the blue ocean beneath him, extending in all directions. No sign of land or any other ship on sight. It would have been a beautiful sight in other circumstances.
Twister looked at himself. He wasn't wearing shoes or shirt; only those shorts he used as a bathing suit. And, instead of his trademark cap, he had a large, red handkerchief tied on his head, covering his hair. All his appearance was that of a low-rank pirate.
Twister looked down and gulped when he noticed the three steely, blue-grey fins that were moving lazily in circles on the water right by the ship's keel. He knew what they were: he had seen a TV special on sharks some time ago. It was odd to know that those fish were patiently waiting for their lunch… and then he suddenly realized that he was about to become their lunch!
Twister tried to step back, but it was impossible. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't separate his legs. He couldn't move his arms either; they were paralyzed in a very uncomfortable position, bent painfully behind his back. Puzzled, he looked down and noticed that Pi Piston was crouching behind him, making a knot on some ropes. That explained it: Pi had immobilized him very efficiently, tying his wrists and ankles with ropes to prevent him from escaping.
After securing the ropes, Pi stood and went to the middle of the deck, descending through a hatch to the ship's hold. Then Twister noticed a figure standing on the aft castle; it was none other than Lars, dressed in an old-fashioned pirate suit, complete with a large hat with crossed bones and skull, and a patch on his eye. He even had a foul-mouthed parrot on his shoulder. His crooked smile looked even crueler than ever as he watched his henchman prepare the execution.
"Lars" – Twister pleaded – "Please… don't do it…"
"Silence, you miserable dork! I warned you to tell me the truth about the treasure map!! You refused, and now I'll give you what you deserve!!!"
Twister looked down again, trying in vain to keep a tear from rolling from his eyes.
"Make sure this dork will sink to the bottom, Piston!"
"Yes, Sir!" – answered Pi as he climbed from the hold, carrying a large rope and a very heavy ballast rock in his hands.
Pi kneeled behind Twister and tied the rock with one end of the rope. Then he made a sliding noose on the other end. He stood behind Twister and put the noose around his neck, tightening it securely. Finally he bent over, picked the heavy rock in his hands, and walked to Twister's side.
"Everything's ready, captain!" – said Pi, turning to Lars.
"Ok. Proceed with the execution, lieutenant!"
"Aye, aye, sir!"
Pi raised the stone over his head and prepared to throw it to the sea. Twister closed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth, sweating profusely and feeling his heart pounding inside his chest. As if they knew that lunch was on the way, the sharks had begun to move frantically and jump out of the water, ready to eat the unfortunate kid.
::Whoosh::
Twister felt the noose tighten around his neck as the heavy rock pulled him down to the sea.
"ACK!!!!"
He couldn't keep his balance; the rock was too heavy and made him fall overboard.
::SPLAASHH::
Twister sank to the bottom, pulled by the rock. He couldn't swim to the surface, and in seconds he began to feel the effects of the asphyxia; but then he saw this enormous shark, coming towards him at full speed, mouth agape, ready to swallow him in a single bite!!!
Twisted tried to wiggle out of the ropes, but it was useless. The shark was becoming larger, and larger, and larger…
"AAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!!!!"
Twister fell from his bed and woke up, just when the shark in his dream was about to finish him off. He was sweating profusely, and took him some minutes to convince himself that he was safe in his house.
When he finally realized he had a very nasty dream, he sighed in relief.
"Man, that was sick!!" – He told to himself – "Too nasty, even for Lars; but I better be careful from now on."
Twister looked through his window and noticed the sky was clearing, making way for the rising sun.
"It's dawn. I better hurry; I'll be safer with Otto and the others. Hope I can get out of the house before Lars wakes up!"
Twister rose and went to his closet, took his clothes, and got dressed as fast and quietly as possible.
At the Rockets' home…
"Come on Rocket Boy, we've gotta go," Reggie said, shaking her sleeping brother.
"Where are we going?" Otto asked.
"We're going to Lou's for breakfast. Don't you check your e-mail?"
"Not at seven in the morning I don't." Otto replied before getting out of bed. Reggie left the room and went downstairs to call Twister and Sam while Otto got dressed.
In Sammy's room…
::Riiiing..... riiiiing.....::
Sammy stirred when he heard the phone ringing. He was aching; after all, falling asleep on your desktop is not precisely comfortable. The phone rang several times until he finally managed to reach for it.
"Hello??" He yawned.
"Sam, wake up! We have a meeting with Scott and Lou in a couple of minutes! They emailed us late last night; apparently they have the stuff we'll need to find the treasure. Hurry!!"
"Sure, Reg... Just five more minutes...." Sam snored.
"S A M ! ! !"
"I'm up!! I'm up!!" he responded.
Sammy fixed his glasses and looked at his computer screen. He had left the machine on all night, and the monitor was flashing with a message window that read "You've got mail"
"Hold on a sec, Reg... I received a message from Scott..." Sam clicked on the window and opened the message. "Hum... OK. Scott says they can get all the stuff we need for our dive."
"Our dive?" Reg asked.
"Heh. Sorry, Reg. Forgot to tell you. I was analyzing the map last night, and according to my calculations, the treasure chest is underwater, somewhere near the channel. I wrote Scott about this last night, and I figure he emailed Lou."
"That makes sense, Sam. So, you're ready?"
"Sure! Just give me a moment to... err... slip into something more appropriate and I'll meet you guys outside your house."
"Ok, Sam. I'll call Twister."
"Hum... maybe you should go over there, instead of call him. Lars could eavesdrop on you."
"Good point. I'll go to Twist's while you and Otto get dressed."
Sam heard the telephone click when Reggie terminated the call, and seconds later got a glimpse of her when she exited her home.
"Aah!" - sighed Sam, looking at Reggie dreamily for a sec. But he caught himself and shook his head. - "Gotta hurry."
Sam walked to his closet and got some fresh clothes. He also got a swimming suit, just in case. Taking the clothes with him, he went to the bathroom to take a quick shower and get dressed.
----
Reggie rang the doorbell at the Rodriguez home, hoping she could get to talk to Twister immediately. Fortunately for her, Twist was up, and was ready to escape. Twister opened the door before Reggie rang, surprising her.
"Twist---"
"Shush! We better leave quietly, Reg!" Twister took Reg's wrist and dragged her to the street and into the Rocket's backyard. He didn't let go of her until they were hiding behind the Rocket's half pipe.
"What's eating, you Twist??" - demanded Reggie, a bit upset.
"S...sorry about that, Reg." - apologized Twist - "But I had to escape from Lars. He whomped me again last night, asking me to tell him what we found in the chest, and made me tell him about the map..."
"Twister!!!"
"I know, I know... But I had no choice, Reg! He said that, if I didn't tell him..." Twister motioned his finger across his neck, as if cutting it.
"How rude! Your brother is a real lame-o, Twist!"
"I thought you should know this, Reg. We should be careful; you know how he acts when he is in his bully mode."
"Yeah, it's good to know, Twist. Don't worry; I'll tell the guys when we are together"
A couple of minutes later, Otto left the house and joined them, just when Sammy was crossing the street. Soon the four friends were saluting each other with a woogie, and boarded their skateboards.
They didn't notice that an old brown Mazda 626 began to follow them discreetly.
At the Lopez house…
::Brrrrrrrriiiiiiiinnnnnnnnngggggggg!!!!!!::
Izzy shifted groggily in his bed. With a groan, he grabbed his alarm clock off the nearby shelf. A few seconds passed before he unceremoniously tossed it across the room. With a loud crash, it shattered into a million pieces. He moaned as he picked up his head. It was clear he's seen better days. Dark circles were present under his bloodshot eyes, his hair was tousled, and his hat was lopsided. He yawned as he sat up.
"Ugh... What a night... I feel like a got hit by a bob-omb..." He stretched his arms. "And that dream... It just kept repeating and repeating...!"
::Flashback::
Izzy was standing in a dark field. It was completely devoid of life. The trees were dead all around. The ground was completely dry. Not a single thing grew out of it. The boy then heard a deathly moan.
"Who's there!?" He shouted into the darkness. The moans continued as he looked all around for the source.
"Stay away from the Cajon de la Esperanza..." A ghastly voice cried out to him.
"Stay away from the...what...?" Izzy asked confusedly.
What sounded like a slap on the head echoed throughout the wasteland.
"The Cajon de la Esperanza!"
"Wha...?" The brunet was still confused.
Another slap was heard.
"The treasure, ya idiot!" The voice shouted bluntly.
"Oh yeah! My bad!" Izzy replied with a sheepish chuckle. He gasped as a thought came to him. "Stay away from the treasure!? Over my dead body!"
"If you continue to pursue the Cajon de la Esperanza, that will be your fate..." The voice moaned, getting back into character.
"Pfft! And why should I listen to some figment of my imagination!?" The boy scoffed, crossing his arms.
"Because the treasure is haunted..."
"And I should care why...?" Izzy mocked, imitating the voice.
"Ummm..." The voice replied. Sounds of scratching could be heard. "BECAUSE I SAID SO!!!"
The brunet gave a terrified scream as a horrible monster appeared before him. It was a giant skeleton that had four arms. In three of its bony hands, there were pirate swords. In the forth was a hook. They all looked rusty and were dripping blood. Izzy paled when he looked up at the beast's face. He was staring into a skull. In its eye sockets were two red glowing orbs. They started into the boy's very soul. Finally, it was all topped off with a torn and ragged pirate's hat. A worn skull and crossbones was stitched in the very center. Without warning, the monster lunged with all of its blades drawn back. The boy gave another shriek as it drew closer and closer...
::End Flashback::
"Brrr... I'm glad I always woke up before the end came..." Izzy sighed, wiping his sweaty head. "And that thing. Talk about creepy. It looked just like Cortez, that one boss in Paper Mario 2. Only difference was it didn't speak with a Spanish accent. Not that Cortez actually had a voice in the game—he talked through speech bubbles—but still..."
::SLAM!::
"Huh?" Izzy looked up to find his brother, who was grinning from ear to ear.
"Come on, bro! It's a new day! We gotta find that treasure!" Iggy shouted cheerfully before running off. The older boy glared at the doorway.
"Grrr... He's way too happy today..." He growled. He then sighed, letting it go. "He's right, though. We gotta find it before the others."
With another groan, he straightened out his hat, stood up, and changed into his normal clothes. When he finished getting ready, he grabbed the treasure map, the map of current-day Ocean Shores, and the gold mushroom from yesterday. He then left his bedroom and proceeded downstairs. His eyes were clouded over in thought as he walked.
'Why did I keep having that dream? And why was it so vivid?' He mused. 'I almost swore I could smell the death in the air. And when that...thing showed up, it looked so real. It was almost like a vision o-o-or an omen...'
He shook his head vigorously.
'Never mind! It was just a stupid dream! I'm not about to let some crazy nightmare stop me from getting all that gold!' He scowled as he neared the kitchen. 'Hmph! I knew Mom didn't that cook that fish all the way! It must've messed with my head!'
Convinced that it was just a weird dream, Izzy entered the kitchen. His brother was already fully dressed. He was sitting at the table with a full bowl of cereal.
"Good morning, bro!" Iggy shouted as his sibling sat down.
"Great... It's morning and already he's hyper..." The taller boy grumbled as he dumped the maps in front of him.
"So what's the plan? Didja figure out where the treasure is? Where is it, huh, huh, huh?!"
Izzy sweatdropped as the younger boy carried on.
'Yep... Definitely hyper.' He thought as he prepared to speak.
"Yeah, I figured out where the treasure is. It's in a sea cave under the harbor." He then added as an afterthought, "At least I hope it's in a sea cave... And as for the plan, I was thinking we could rent a sub and hire a crew or something. Considering your current state, I doubt you'll be of much help, but any thoughts on where we can find a crew?"
"Ummm..." The hyper boy put on a thoughtful look while keeping that toothy grin of his. A few seconds passed before he blinked. "Hey yeah! Isn't there some club or something that goes underwater?!"
"You mean the Sea Crest Engineer club?" Izzy put a hand to his chin. "I suppose they do underwater exploration... But what does that help? Unless..." He gasped. "Of course! They do have a sub we can use! All we gotta do is work out some sort of deal with the president of the club and we'll be golden!" He drummed his fingers on the table. "But who's the president, anyway? It's on the tip of my tongue..."
"Ummm..." Iggy tried to think of the name.
"He has orange hair and wears glasses, if I remember correctly..." Izzy said. "But what's his name...?"
The younger brother blinked in realization.
"Ooh, ooh! I know, I know!" He shouted, raising his hand.
"Come on, brain! Work with me!" The older boy groaned, ignoring Iggy. "Who was it???"
"Come on, bro! Pick me! Pick me!" Iggy yelled, waving his hand frantically.
"Ugh! I can't think!" Izzy pounded the table in frustration. He glared at the other boy, who was going crazy. "What now!?!"
"I know who it is!" The younger one practically screamed.
"Well!?! Who is it, then?!"
"His name was Oliver! Oliver Van Rossom!" Iggy answered, laying his head on the table. Izzy blinked and held his chin.
"Oh yeah..." He said. Iggy blinked in response.
"Yay! I got one right!" He shouted with a wide grin.
"Yeah... Had to happen some time..." The older brother rolled his eyes. "Anyway, I'll call him and see if he'll lend us the club's sub for the hunt. I'll probably have to give him some of the gold though..."
"Who cares!?" The younger brunet yelled, still proud of his accomplishment. "As long as we beat everybody else to it, who cares if we gotta pay them!?"
"Hmmm... Good point." Izzy nodded. "Alright. I'll give him a call in a couple of hours. It's still early, after all."
And so, with their plan set, the Lopez Brothers ate breakfast and did their daily grooming.
On the way to Lou's place…
Otto, Reggie, Twister, and Sam were skating along the road. Otto happened to glance behind him and catch a view of the brown Mazda that was following some distance behind them.
"Why would Pi be following us, guys?" He asked.
"Your guess is as good as mine," Twister answered.
Coming in the other direction was Lou's pickup truck, with Lou and Scott. They were on their way over to Ozone Street to pick up the gang, when Otto waved at them. Strangely, they didn't stop right away to pick them up, because Scott observed, "Why is Pi Piston following Otto and the gang?"
Lou could only respond, "I dunno, but knowing the Lasers, it can't be good. Whatever's going on, it's time to nip it in the bud, before it gets out of hand. Hang on!"
Lou made a U-turn as they passed the Mazda, then overtook it, and with a honk of his horn, coerced the driver of the small car over to the side of the road.
Lou was hopping mad. He stepped out of the cab of his truck and strode over. "What's the deal, Piston?" he demanded, standing head and shoulders above the young delinquent, whose haughty expression turned to one of fear and confusion once confronted by the two angry young men.
Pi knew he could take on any one guy in Ocean Shores and win, but being confronted by a duo such as Lou and Scott threw several unknowns into the equation. Besides, Pi was alone, and had trouble finding his voice.
"I asked you a question, dork!" Lou bellowed at Pi, as Scott mostly watched, still at the ready.
"W-w-well," Pi began to whine, "Lars wanted me to keep an eye on—" Without warning, Lou grabbed the bully by his shirt and shoved him against the side of his own car.
"Now you listen to me, punk!" Lou hissed. "Twister is our friend. If you—or Lars—really need to know, I give you my word of honor that he will be perfectly safe. Which is not as likely to be the case if you, Lars, or the rest of your hooligan mob have your way. Mark my words: if so much as a hair on his head is disturbed, or a bruise put on his body—or that of his friends—so help me, mister, each of you will answer to me. Have I made myself perfectly clear?"
"Yes sir," Pi managed through a choked larynx, his face turning purple.
"Now, be gone!" shouted Lou. "Don't interfere with our activities, and don't let me see your ugly face 'round here again!" Lou let go of Pi, who got back into his car and drove away.
The kids circled back to where Lou and Scott were after Pi left.
"Everything okay, Lou?" asked Sammy, ever curious.
"Yeah," Lou answered. "Just told a lost soul where he needed to go." Twister couldn't help a small grin at Lou's comment. "C'mon, guys; pile in, and let's go eat!"
- - - -
When Lou and the Ozone Streeters pulled up at Lou's place, a large green SUV was parked at the curb, with a good size trailered motorboat. A tall, pretty, thirtysomething blond woman stood to greet them. The younger kids recognized her immediately.
"Breezy!" Reggie exclaimed.
"Hi, guys!" replied Breezy. "Scotty filled me in on the situation, and I sort of thought that time was of the essence. So, I thought I'd tag along on your little expedition."
"I think we can use all the help we can get on this one," Lou agreed. "Let's get inside and I'll treat us all to a good old fashioned pancakes-eggs-and-bacon breakfast with oj and cocoa and everything. We've got a whole lotta stuff to discuss..."