Author's Note: Wow! Got this written all in one sitting after watching the movie, in about an hour! WOOHOO! Go me… okay, enough fishing for approval, because that's… sneaky, and juvenile. But I am proud of myself for that. Not much happens in this chapter, except for a revelation as to what happens to one character we didn't see the fate of last time, and the discovery… but you shall see, shan't you? Mwahahaha.
angelic katty: Worth the wait? Good to know. Aide aboard the Nautilus? *is confused*
Melanie: Don't worry, she's not gone for good. As for what Mina will do, you'll find out soon enough.
Sethoz: Ah, split personalities, aren't they fun? *Jekyll shakes head, but in mirror, Hyde is nodding* ^_^ Six chapters without Tom angst! I don't know how I did it, but I did! It's gotta be some kind of record for me. Bah! Admit it, you liked Joe all along, didn't you? DIDN'T YOU? Okay… calm now. Hehe – regarding the quote that is.
Capt. Cow: Aw, thanks for that. I hope this one didn't take too long for you.
drowchild: Can I get up now? Super evil nasty cliffhanger? Me? … Yeah, okay then.
Graymoon74: You should have known I couldn't resist for long, GM. I'm gonna say GM cuz it's easier. Well it wouldn't have been fair if they beat up Tom and just shooed Huck away, would it? Gotta share ~_^ I know you seem to love all my fics, and I really appreciate you giving them your attention. Yup… poor Joe. Now, now, GM, I think you're letting your imagination run away with you a little there ^_^ Take it down a notch; there are young people present. Thanks for saying I rule. Very (too) kind of you.
Leigh S. Durron: I can and did leave you hanging like that, lol. Hope I didn't keep you waiting unbearably long though. Thanks.
Without any further ado or delay… Chapter 7 of Ghosts of Old…
Joe Harper had heard the gunshots and been running in their direction when some people had come around the corner ahead of him. His eyes widened, especially when one was revealed to be carrying Becky Thatcher over their shoulder, slumped and unconscious, completely at their mercy… and in Joe's eyes, in need of saving.
Grimacing, he blocked the way – putting on a brave face – and declared, "You're not goin' anywhere. Not with her, you're not."
"Out of our way," said the largest member of the small handful of – apparently – mutinous crewmen. "We do not have time for nuisances like you."
Nuisance? Joe thought, offended, and tried not to show it. He narrowed his eyes, and suddenly realised the other two Special Agents were not on the scene as they should have been. "What'd you do to Tom and Huck?"
The large man pressed forward, even as he audibly growled in a vicious manner, saying, "Nothing you won't experience for yourself if you do not step aside and let us pass."
"I won't and you know it." Joe squared his shoulders, only to be slammed in the jaw by a large fist, one that succeeded in ramming him down and to his knees, driving his face into a grimace, even as he hissed from the shock, stars and colours swimming and dancing madly behind his eyelids, prominent in his field of vision. "Ow…" he mumbled, and gave a yell when the boot flipped him over onto his back with enough force to knock the wind out of him before he could act against it. His ribs burned madly, even as the large man loomed over him, scoffing with feigned disappointment.
"Just as unchallenging as the others… I was under the impression these Americans were spies… and that spies knew how to put up a fight."
Yeah, but look at yourself! You're built like a –
His musings were cut short when the foot hit him across the face, robbing him of his consciousness and casting him mercifully into utter darkness, everything slipping away even as he relaxed entirely, laying on his back in the middle of the corridor.
Mina's mind was blissfully blank as they headed back to the Nautilus after visiting some of St. Petersburg's more tasteful establishments, where Rodney Skinner had tried – in vain – to intoxicate her. She had tried to inform him that, being a vampire, she could not and would not fall under the effects of alcohol or anything similar. He would not accept it, and was now more than a little tipsy himself, chatting eagerly with Dr. Jekyll about something that she could not comprehend… it involved a knife, an alleyway, and someone by the name of Charlie. She rolled her eyes, and quickened her pace to match that of Captain Nemo at the forefront of the procession.
"Mrs. Harker," he greeted her politely. "I now understand why Agent Sawyer did not wish to accompany us this evening."
"Oh?" she endeavoured to inquire, her voice soft and lulling in the cool night air, the lack of breeze aiding in her hearing picking out every little sound around them, highly tuned and precise. She was aware of every small animal in a wide perimeter, and when she cast her blue gaze around, she sometimes saw the flash of feral eyes glimpsing at them from beneath bushes and under porches, even as they neared the river itself.
"It is rather… uncivilised at times," Nemo explained, one hand on the ornamental hilt of his gleaming sword, the pommel shining in the wan light provided by the occasional lamp from houses or watch posts on their journey.
"How do you mean?" she pressed, glancing to meet his dark, soulful gaze with her own, tilting her head just slightly in an inquiring gesture of curiousity.
"Some of the individuals we encountered were most unpleasant, and it is a marvel that people such as Agents Sawyer, Finn and Harper, as well as Miss Thatcher, amounted to anything given their surroundings upon being raised."
To Mina, Nemo's cynical outlook was a little more than harsh on that particular evening, and she furrowed her brow, deciding to let it drop for what it seemed to be… a bad temper, and a bad experience in an – apparently – uncivilised town that he did not feel comfortable in. No doubt it was accounted for by his own nationality, and the unwelcoming looks some of the locals had offered him on sight. To be perfectly honest, that had angered Mina Harker as well… their close-minded approach to the regal Indian man was less than acceptable, but without wanting to cause any disturbance, what could she have done?
As they came up on the Nautilus, and the only sound descended into that of Skinner's tipsy ramblings, Nemo tensed, and froze in his approach. Skinner ran into the back of Mina as she too – instinctively – halted beside the captain, and she tried to ignore the intentional brushing of her backside as she asked Nemo, "What's wrong?"
"Something is very wrong," was his quiet, unnerving reply, and Jekyll came up alongside Mina, slapping Skinner's hand as it reached for the woman's rear once more.
"What exactly is it?"
Then Mina heard it… and felt the chill along her spine as the familiar creaking and groaning from within the Nautilus could be heard. "The exploration pod," she breathed in disbelief, and as one, the doctor, the captain and the vampire surged forward, running briskly along the dirt road, with the thief stumbling along behind in intoxicated confusion, yelling out, "Wait for me! What's the rush?"
Mina ignored the man, even as she heard him almost topple over a jutting rock, and practically flew up the ramp into the body of the ship, with Nemo and Jekyll running briskly alongside her. The crew were in disarray as to the noise as well, she noticed, and when they pushed beyond the cargo hold, Jekyll nearly fell over a body.
Nemo cursed something in his native tongue, and stormed off up the corridors to try and find out what was going on. He started barking commands and queries of all the conscious crew he came across, and very few came up with anything satisfactory. In English, he exclaimed, "Tend to the wounded!"
They were off again, Jekyll glancing back over his shoulder with a worried expression at the limp body of one of Nemo's men, and Skinner stumbled along behind them, grumbling and panting, cursing under his breath about unnecessary exertion. Mina rolled her eyes, and before long, they had come to the room that Nemo had been – it seemed – heading for all along. The Nautiloid's launching hatch. It was locked tight, and he yelled in frustration, looking through the clear portal in the middle of the iron door to see the small pod work its way out.
He grabbed a nearby man, and growled at him, "Start tracking the Nautiloid at once! Someone is stealing it, and they must be apprehended at once."
The crewman nodded, and hurried off to fulfil his Captain's command. Mina watched him go, and then caught something on the air… a smell she knew all too well, and one that made a feral growl try to force its way up out of her throat into audible being. She pushed it down, and closed her eyes, shuddering slightly. Jekyll was alert and attentive, and said, "Mrs. Harker, is something wrong?"
"Yes," she gasped. "I can smell blood…"
"Oh god," Jekyll muttered in dismay, and took off with Nemo down the corridor, before Mina pushed past them, following her senses to the origin of the haunting smell. It brought up painful memories for her, times that she would have rather forgotten, only to have them attack her at the least welcome moment… such as now.
When they turned their third corner, Mina halted at once, body tense, and let Jekyll drop to his knees at Joe Harper's side. He was clearly unconscious; his eyes closed in what would have appeared a peaceful – if not misplaced – sleep were it not for the blood that had spilt from his nose. Mina swallowed, throat suddenly dry and parched due to unnatural thirst, and she closed her eyes, whispering, "Excuse me," even as she carefully stepped around the fallen agent, and pushed her way on, realising the smell drifted from that direction as well. "Captain… I think our other Americans may have fallen victim to tragic circumstance also… Agent Harper's is not the only blood I can smell."
"Lead the way, Mrs. Harker," Nemo instructed cautiously, and Mina nodded, before taking off at a swift pace, her skirts and coat flowing out behind her like the wings of the bats she used for urgent flight or hunting. Her eyes flashed red momentarily, and she would be forever glad no one had seen it… the enticing smell of young blood drove her mad with a fiery hunger, and she wished for nothing more – deep down in the monstrous part of her turned self – to drive her fangs into those who had been attacked, to draw the youth and warmth from their veins and satisfy her urges.
Fighting it down as best she could, something she had taught herself strictly over the years, she came to the open door of the Nautiloid control room, where the machine was unlocked and prepared for launch, before anyone could depart in the vessel. She hesitated in the doorway, and then forced herself to step inside, with the others right behind her. Jekyll had remained behind with Joe Harper to tend to him, check he was all right.
But as soon as her eyes focused on the situation, she wished he had not; that he was right by her side at that moment, on hand to help. The sight was enough to draw a gasp of burning worry from her. Documents were in disarray on the floor, pens and bottles of ink smashed sporadically, with smatterings of the liquid marring the ground underfoot. One of the large planning tables in the room had been toppled and subsequently shattered by an unexpected, and seemingly forceful impact. She followed the trail of carnage, to find two motionless bodies.
The first was Huckleberry Finn, laying prone on his side, seemingly unharmed but unaware nevertheless, and obviously in need of checking for injury.
And the second was the one that caused her to charge to their side, his blonde hair cast all over his youthful, handsome face, his eyes closed in forced unconsciousness, laying on his stomach on the hard floor, with papers and other items all around him. From the position of his body, she devised he had been the one to collide with the sturdy table, and she immediately realised he could be seriously injured, after having shattered the furniture so thoroughly and forcefully. She knelt at his side, and brushed some of the hair from his peaceful-looking face, and moved to roll him over, before realising her stomach churned with otherworldly hunger.
Touching her now bare hand to the floor, near his temple, she brought it away crimson with blood… it looked so inviting, but the dilemma tore her from her fantasies of tasting it. There was a time and a place for unintentional urges, and this most certainly was not either. Tom Sawyer was wounded, and she called to the others, "I need help."
Nemo moved to her side, even as Skinner stood shocked in the doorway, trying to take it all in. "What on Earth…" he was mumbling, shaking his head in disbelief, apparently.
"Skinner!" she snapped fiercely. "Do not just stand there; fetch Dr. Jekyll at once!"
He nodded swiftly and turned on his heel to do just that, even as the man rushed in the door, having heard her voice. "What is-" He cut himself short, and dashed to assist at once, seeing the situation.
"Is Agent Finn wounded?" he asked, crouching to one knee beside Mina, opposite Nemo. The warm, brown eyes floated to the other still body for a moment, before glancing back to his fellow League members.
"Not that I could see," Mina responded.
Jekyll looked to Skinner immediately. "Check on Huckleberry," he instructed calmly but coolly, and the thief did not hesitate to obey. Despite always being ordered around, he did not waste time when he knew the stakes.
"Tom, however," Mina began in a dangerous tone of voice, laced with concern, "is another matter." She brought her hand back up to show them, coated at the tips with the young man's blood.
"We need to roll him over so I can see the injury." Jekyll placed his hands carefully but in calculated positions on certain parts of the American's body, instructing the others to do the same where he showed them, and them gave them a verbal and physical cue to roll as one. They succeeded in turning him face up, seeing the motion of his breathing as his chest rose and fell, seemingly rhythmic.
That was not their concern; clearly, as the wound on Tom Sawyer's right temple became apparent. It was coated in blood, thick, scarlet liquid that indicated a sharp, blunt blow, probably the cause for his unconsciousness in the first place. From laying on the ground, it had mostly spread around near the cut close to his hairline, and soaked onto the floor, but it had also succeeded in actually matting the hair close to the wound. Though he did not appear overly pale, Mina knew the loss of blood would only get worse if not tended to.
"Captain, we need assistance in taking the three of them to the infirmary. They need to be checked thoroughly, and Agent Sawyer's head wound needs treatment. He will also need testing for a concussion, which, from the looks of this, could very well be the case." Jekyll stared right at his addressee as he spoke, and the other man nodded in agreement, standing to call for aid.
Mina glanced down at Tom's unconscious form, and noticed the lack of female presence in the room… save for herself.
"Becky Thatcher…" she muttered under her breath.
"Mrs. Harker?"
"They took Becky Thatcher…"